Samuel Corum/Bloomberg Democrats seem to have nixed the idea of taxing returns on unsold stock and other assets, favoring other ways to raise revenue as part of a nearly $2 trillion social and climate bill. Scrapping that tax on “unrealized capital gains” would primarily benefit the richest Americans, who hold the bulk of the country’s
Personal finance
Jose Luis Pelaez Inc | DigitalVision | Getty Images Coming off several years of outsized gains in the stock market, investors may be hoping 2022 is like deja vu again. Don’t count on it. While future performance is impossible to predict with certainty, many financial advisors expect returns will come back down to Earth. “We
FG Trade | E+ | Getty Images Vanguard investors have been grappling with partial website outages over the past several days that have blocked some customers from trade confirmations, certain statements and forms. These interruptions may cause problems for those making year-end transactions, such as required minimum distributions, as there’s a 50% penalty for missing the
Brendan McDermid | Reuters Almost as predictable as the big jolly elf himself, the Santa Claus rally in the stock market comes around in late December. That is, the markets tend to rise over a stretch of time right before and after the calendar flips to the new year. Specifically, the rally involves the last
FatCamera | E+ | Getty Images Open enrollment for the public health insurance marketplace lasts a month longer than usual this year — which means there’s still time to get coverage. Through Jan. 15 — unless your state has a different closing date — you and your family can sign up for a plan through
U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona. Bloomberg | Bloomberg | Getty Images After making payments on her student loans since 2005, Karen Tongson is finally free of her debt. In November, Tongson, an English and gender studies professor, signed into her loan account and discovered her balance had fallen from $47,000 to $0, thanks to
Holiday shopping returned with a vengeance this year. But going into debt is one gift you can’t return. After Americans paid off a record $83 billion in credit card debt in 2020, helped by government stimulus checks and fewer opportunities for discretionary purchases, credit card balances are heading higher once again. Overall, credit card balances rose by $17
Victoria Popova | iStock | Getty Images Student loan borrowers got some happy news this holiday season: They’ll have an additional three months before they have to start making their payments again. The payment pause, which has been in effect since March 2020, was scheduled to expire Jan. 31, but the Biden administration announced it
Integrity Pictures Inc | The Image Bank | Getty Images The share of employers allowing Roth 401(k) savings surged last year, giving more workers access to the financial benefits that accompany such contributions. A Roth is a type of after-tax account. Workers pay taxes up front on 401(k) savings, but investment growth and account withdrawals
Whenever Anne Helen Petersen and her partner Charlie Warzel, both journalists, were on a trip, they’d find themselves talking about moving to wherever they were visiting. “It would happen when we went to Santa Fe and to the Catskills,” Petersen said. “It was every single place.” That told them that they weren’t happy in New
The Jet offers one-by-two luxury seating in its 14-passenger coaches between New York and Washington, D.C., along with at-seat attendant service and UV air filtration. The Jet For New York City resident James Gilmer, 28, long-distance travel by bus usually means something very specific: getting to and from his hometown of Pittsburgh during the holidays.
Maria Teijeiro | OJO Images | Getty Images ‘Tis the season for charitable giving, and retirees eyeing a year-end donation may still score a write-off with transfers from their individual retirement account. Qualified charitable distributions, or QCDs, are direct gifts from an IRA to an eligible charity. Investors age 70½ and older may donate up
A graduate who calls himself “April Vendetta” protests student debt in New York’s Washington Square Park on May 19, 2021, after New York University’s virtual commencement ceremony. Timothy A. Clary | AFP | Getty Images Most Americans want the government to forgive at least some of the $1.7 trillion in outstanding student loan debt. Some
RgStudio | E+ | Getty Images It’s almost time to ring in the new year. Before you do, there are some smart money moves you can still make that can set you up for success in 2022 — and beyond. To be sure, practicing good financial health is important all year long. However, there are
The crypto ecosystem has expanded significantly in recent years. While institutions such as the IMF are starting to embrace its innovation, they are also calling for investors to exercise caution. Jakub Porzycki | NurPhoto via Getty Images Cryptocurrency donations to charity are booming, with gifts still rolling in as the calendar winds down. There was
Nederland, Colorado resident Nick Emery clears mountains of snow from his driveway on March 14, 2021. Helen H. Richardson | Denver Post | Getty Images It’s gearing up to be an expensive winter, especially for those grappling with rising heating costs. In the last year, about 20% of Americans struggled to pay their energy bill
New Hampshire parents and others gather outside of Sen. Maggie Hassan’s Manchester office on Sept, 14, 2021.. Scott Eisen | Getty Images Entertainment | Getty Images Democrats on Capitol Hill will face a big task when they regroup in the new year — finding common ground on the Build Back Better legislation. One key question
RgStudio | E+ | Getty Images Just in time for winter travel, gas prices are ticking up again. Nationwide, the average price for a gallon of gas is $3.34, up 2 cents from a week ago, according to GasBuddy.com. However, that’s down from about $3.43 a month ago. Average prices range from about $2.84 in
DjelicS | E+ | Getty Images If you still have money in your flexible spending account, be aware that you may have only another week or so to spend it. Congressional action loosened FSA rules for 2020 and 2021 as a way to give workers more time to spend unused funds, yet many companies did
Supporters demonstrate in favor of Build Back Better on the Senate Steps of the U.S. Capitol on Dec. 15, 2021. Leigh Vogel | Getty Images As the Build Back Better bill and the new government aid it promised stalls on Capitol Hill, millions of Americans who may have been expecting more help amid the pandemic