Personal finance

Morsa Images | Digitalvision | Getty Images About 8 million Americans rely on federal benefits that provide income to the elderly, blind and disabled who have little or no income or resources. Yet the program — Supplemental Security Income, or SSI — has not been updated in about 40 years. A bill called the SSI

Shoppers walk with items during Black Friday deals at a Target store in Westbury, New York, U.S., November 24, 2023.  Shannon Stapleton | Reuters After more than a year of dealing with rapid inflation, consumers have become numb to higher prices. But as inflation cools, experts say there are strategies that can help you weather current conditions

For many families, financial aid is key when it comes to paying for college. But students must first fill out the Free Application for Federal Student Aid to access any assistance. And this year, the FAFSA has been significantly delayed. For the 2024-2025 school year, a new, streamlined FAFSA form will be available on or before

Luis Alvarez | Digitalvision | Getty Images The U.S. economy inched closer to a so-called “soft landing” after a new batch of labor data, economists said. A soft landing is a good thing. It would mean the Federal Reserve has accomplished the difficult task of taming inflation without triggering a recession. Job openings, a barometer

The number of Americans who say they are stretched too thin has remained stubbornly high. Amid a prolonged period of high inflation, more than 60% of Americans are living paycheck to paycheck. However, women are ”significantly more likely” than men to have a hard time making ends meet, according to a recent report from Varo Bank. About

Young people using cellphones. Filippobacci | E+ | Getty Images Gen Z women are driving spending trends on TikTok. Women in their 20s spend more time on the short-form video app than male peers of their generation, and it’s exposing them to a financial risk. “TikTok is a Gen Z women-centric app and it is

Eric Audras | PhotoAlto Agency RF Collections | Getty Images If you’ve poured cash into money market mutual funds, you could see a higher 2023 tax bill in April. But other investments could reduce your 2024 taxes, experts say. Investors and institutions have funneled cash into money market funds amid rising interest rates, and balances

Vesna Andjic | E+ | Getty Images With roughly one month left in 2023, there’s still time to reduce your tax bill or boost your refund, experts say. Typically, you can expect a federal refund when you overpay annual taxes or withhold more than the total owed. The average refund for 2023 was $3,054, as

A US Air Force (USAF) Lockheed Martin F-35A Lightning II all-weather stealth multirole combat aircraft flies over during the 2023 Dubai Airshow at Dubai World Central – Al-Maktoum International Airport in Dubai on November 13, 2023.  Giuseppe Cacace | Afp | Getty Images In times of war, investors’ thoughts naturally may turn to defense stocks.

Richard Stephen | Istock | Getty Images When Joyce Debnam’s husband passed away, she began receiving $1,400 a month in Social Security survivor benefits. Eight months later, that income unexpectedly changed. The trigger: Debnam retired from her job at the United States Postal Service in 2013 after four decades of service. That life change prompted

Hero Images | Hero Images | Getty Images Even before the Supreme Court blocked President Joe Biden’s plan to forgive student debt, fewer students were enrolling in college. Nationwide, enrollment has lagged since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic, when a significant number of students decided against a four-year degree in favor of joining the workforce or completing a certificate

Tom Werner | Digitalvision | Getty Images As 2023 comes to an end, you may have just a few weeks left to use any leftover money in your health-care flexible savings account.  Employer-sponsored FSAs allow you to save pretax dollars and use the funds for qualified medical expenses. An individual can save up to $3,050

JGI/Jamie Grill If you funneled cash into money market mutual funds in 2023 amid rising interest rates, you may have a surprise tax bill in April, experts say. Investors and institutions have piled $5.84 trillion into money market mutual funds, as of Nov. 29, according to the Investment Company Institute, and many funds are paying

Caiaimage/chris Ryan | Istock | Getty Images There has been a wave of financial literacy legislation nationwide as states push to get personal finance classes into public schools — and Tennessee was one of the first to enact a high school mandate. Since 2013, Tennessee has required a half-semester personal finance course for high school

Pedestrians walk in front of the IBM building in New York. Scott Mlyn | CNBC IBM, which decades ago helped lead the shift from defined benefit plans to defined contribution plans, recently told U.S. employees it will be scrapping its 401(k) match in favor of funding what it calls a “retirement benefit account.” Other companies

Morsa Images | Digitalvision | Getty Images The share of workers being called back to the office has flatlined, suggesting the pandemic-era phenomenon of widespread remote work has become a permanent fixture of the U.S. labor market, economists said. “Return to the office is dead,” Nick Bloom, an economics professor at Stanford University and expert

Antonioguillem | Istock | Getty Images It has been a frustrating and confusing time for many student loan borrowers. President Joe Biden promised millions of Americans up to $20,000 in debt forgiveness, but then the Supreme Court blocked the program, and the relief never came. As payments restarted in October after a three-year break, borrowers

Black Friday shoppers leave the Nike store as other shoppers wait in line to shop as retailers compete to attract shoppers and try to maintain margins on Black Friday, one of the busiest shopping days of the year, at Woodbury Common Premium Outlets in Central Valley, New York, U.S. November 24, 2023.  Vincent Alban |

AleksandarNakic | E+ | Getty Images Women have a complicated relationship with money. That may start with how they feel about their finances. While men most commonly say they are “hopeful” when it comes to money, women’s No. 1 word for their financial feelings was “stress,” according to a 2023 Fidelity Investments survey. “Women’s No.

Getty Images When it comes to gathering with friends and family over the holidays, etiquette experts usually say that money and politics should be off the table. That is, of course, unless you’re sitting with a professional financial advisor. Advisors shared with CNBC the top questions they were asked this Thanksgiving, and how they answered