Personal finance

Mark Zandi, chief economist of Moody’s Analytics, testifies during the Senate Budget Committee hearing titled “The Default on America Act: Blackmail, Brinkmanship, and Billionaire Backroom Deals,” in Dirksen Building on Thursday, May 4, 2023.  Tom Williams | Cq-roll Call, Inc. | Getty Images The economy is doing “exceptionally well” as President-elect Donald Trump gets ready

A customer walks by a display of fresh eggs at a grocery store on Sept. 25, 2024 in San Anselmo, California. Justin Sullivan | Getty Images It’s déjà vu for grocery shoppers, as the price of those Grade A eggs has spiked in recent months, just two years after egg prices soared to record highs.

Goran Babic | E+ | Getty Images Building a $1 million nest egg may seem an impossible feat. However, amassing such retirement wealth is within reach for almost anyone — provided they take certain steps, financial advisors say. “You might think that, ‘Well, I have to become a Silicon Valley entrepreneur to become rich,'” said

Eleganza | E+ | Getty Images If you’re considering a Roth individual retirement account conversion, your tax bracket could help you decide whether the move makes sense. Roth conversions transfer pretax or nondeductible IRA funds to a Roth IRA, which can begin tax-free growth. The trade-off is paying upfront taxes on the converted balance —

Ljubaphoto | E+ | Getty Images If you’re in the market for a used car, the best time of the year to buy one is fast approaching. New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day are the best days of the year to buy a used car because there are 47.9% more deals than average, according

An exterior view of the New York Stock Exchange on September 18, 2024 in New York City.  Stephanie Keith | Getty Images As the calendar turns to a New Year and a new presidential administration, many investors are wondering where they can earn above-average returns. The current outlook is positive, with continued interest rate cuts

Peter Kramer/NBC via Getty Images U.S. consumers would likely see prices increase if President-elect Donald Trump follows through with a plan to levy import tariffs, experts said Tuesday during CNBC’s Financial Advisor Summit. “Either way, there is a cost to consumers,” said Erica York, senior economist at the Tax Foundation. A tariff is a tax

David Zervos, Jefferies Scott Mlyn | CNBC The Federal Reserve is expected to cut interest rates by another quarter point at the conclusion of its two-day meeting next week. “Two years ago … three out of four economists were saying we’re going into a recession,” David Zervos, chief market strategist for Jefferies LLC, said during CNBC’s

Andersen Ross Photography Inc | Digitalvision | Getty Images Most people believe in the value of college and, for the most part, institutions of higher education have been able to weather significant financial challenges throughout history.   But now, the number of colleges set to close in the next five years is expected to spike, a

Hispanolistic | E+ | Getty Images Consumers saw inflation pick up slightly in November, as price increases in categories like groceries, gasoline and new cars outweighed a deceleration in others like shelter during the month. The consumer price index, a key inflation gauge, rose 2.7% last month relative to November 2023, the Bureau of Labor

Eclipse_images | E+ | Getty Images If you’re age 73 or older and retired, there’s a key annual deadline approaching for mandatory retirement plan withdrawals — and missing it could trigger a penalty, the IRS said on Tuesday. Generally, you must start so-called required minimum distributions by age 73. The first due date is April

Rudi_suardi | E+ | Getty Images The U.S. job market has been stagnant of late, a dynamic that contains both good and bad news for U.S. workers. On the one hand, businesses are holding on to their existing workforce, meaning employees are unlikely to lose their jobs, economists said. But it also may be hard

Former Representative Billy Long, a Republican from Missouri, speaks during a campaign event for former US President Donald Trump at Simpson College in Indianola, Iowa, US, on Sunday, Jan. 14, 2024.  Al Drago | Bloomberg | Getty Images President-elect Donald Trump has tapped former Missouri congressman Billy Long to lead the IRS, which has triggered

PANTONE 17-1230 Mocha Mousse, Color of the Year 2025. Courtesy: Pantone “Mocha Mousse” was dubbed 2025’s color of the year, according to the Pantone Color Institute, which it described as “a warming, brown hue imbued with richness.” Leatrice Eiseman, executive director Pantone Color Institute, described the shade as “sophisticated and lush, yet at the same

In this article FIS Follow your favorite stocksCREATE FREE ACCOUNT As the markets tested record highs, retirement savers reaped the benefits. The average 401(k) plan balance ended the third quarter up 23% from a year earlier, at $132,300 — the highest average on record, according to a new report by Fidelity, the nation’s largest provider of

A driver for an independent contractor to FedEx delivers packages on Cyber Monday in New York, US, on Monday, Nov. 27, 2023. Stephanie Keith | Bloomberg | Getty Images Holiday shopping is expected to reach record levels this year. But a growing share of those purchases will be sent back. Returns in 2024 are expected to

Traders react after the closing bell on the floor at the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York City, U.S., December 13, 2023.  Brendan Mcdermid | Reuters However you feel about the world these days, you’re likely happy with the stock market. The S&P 500 is up nearly 30% this year so far. But

Grace Cary | Moment | Getty Images After decades of building your nest egg, you will eventually have to start taking required minimum distributions, or RMDs, from pretax retirement accounts. The first RMD can be tricky, according to financial experts. Since 2023, most retirees must begin RMDs at age 73. The first deadline is April

Morsa Images | Digitalvision | Getty Images Companies can now offer their workers a “match” on their student loan payments in the form of a contribution to their 401(k) plan — and a small but growing number of employers are taking advantage. Traditionally, companies have only paid a 401(k) match to workers based on their

Richard Stephen | Istock | Getty Images New leadership has yet to be sworn in, in Washington, D.C. Yet Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, ignited a debate this week on the future of Social Security with a series of posts on social media platform X. The program, which provides monthly checks to more than 65 million