Posts

The Fannie Mae Economic and Strategy Research (ESR) Group projects a decline in home sales as interest rates rise and economic growth slows, according to a press release and associated commentary released by Fannie Mae on March 17. By Dawn Allcot See: Millennials Are Applying To Buy Homes More Often Than Boomers and Gen X in Red-Hot Housing Market Find: As Home Prices Reach 34-Year Record, Mortgage Rates Could Be Final Nail in Coffin for Some Homebuyers...

Getting your finances in order is an essential step to achieving important milestones in life, like starting a family, building wealth or saving enough for retirement. One proven method is by investing in a capable financial advisor who can help you navigate the journey and make the best decisions. By Casey Bond Types of Financial Advisors What a Financial Advisor Is What a Financial Planner Is Financial Advisor vs. Financial Planner Choosing the Best Option One common question is: What is the difference between a certified financial planner and a financial advisor?...

It’s Friday and National Guacamole Day. The ultimate pre-weekend win-win! Grab your chips for dipping, but don’t veg out until you’ve had the chance to catch up on today’s top financial stories. By Heather Taylor The Big Lead: Social Security COLA Increase of 8.7% Expected The Senior Citizens League said it anticipates the Social Security cost-of-living-adjustment (COLA) to be 8.7%, based on the new Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W) data....

According to a new AARP study, “already-rampant” shopping scams are likely to increase in frequency with the approach of the holiday season as more criminals attempt to fleece money out of victims. By David Nadelle See: 5 Zelle Scams To Look Out for and How To Protect YourselfFind: Beware Text Alert Scams This Holiday Season: 4 Tips To Protect Yourself In surveying 2,102 Americans aged 18 or older for its report, AARP found that three-quarters of respondents had experienced (or had been targets of) business-impersonation fraud like phony charity requests, online shopping scams and fake order or shipping confirmation swindles....

Interest rates may not be going down anytime soon. The Federal Reserve hiked rates by half a point to a range of 4.25% to 4.5% in December to help combat inflation, CBC News reported, and promises more increases in 2023. By Josephine Nesbit See: Why 10-Year Government Bonds Important to Economy Right NowLearn: Strong Jobs Report Bad News for Inflation, Say Experts Inflation sits at 7.1% year-over-year in November 2022, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, but the Fed noted that the current benchmark rate is not enough to suppress price and wage growth, CBC News added....

“Super saver” is a loosely defined term that describes the most zealous financial hoarders who prioritize saving and investing for the future over their current standard of living. They’re not misers and they’re not miserable. They’re motivated by a laser-focused mission to achieve financial independence and early retirement, even at the expense of important here-and-now amenities like quality housing. By Andrew Lisa Wealthy Millennials Aren’t Banking on Stocks: Here’s What They’re Investing In InsteadSee: If Your Credit Score Is Under 740, Make These 4 Moves Now...

An initial public offering, more commonly called an IPO, is when privately held companies become publicly traded. When a company goes public, its shares are available to the public for the first time on an exchange. By Lydia Kibet How an IPO Works 4 Steps Buying Before Going Public Is It a Good Idea Alternatives Most investors would want to participate in an IPO on its first trading day since prices often go up and lead to significant short-term gains....

Baby boomers and millennials are in a heated housing battle and according to a new Zillow report, boomers are winning. So many baby boomers are active in the housing market that it’s become increasingly difficult for millennials to compete. By Josephine Nesbit See: Millennial Trend of Co-Buying Homes Soars 771% in 7 Years – How It WorksFind: 15 Mortgage Questions To Ask Your Lender According to the report, Americans 60 years and older are more active in the housing market than they were a decade ago....

Google parent company Alphabet’s 20-for-1 stock split was completed July 18. The split effect at market close on July 15 and started trading at the new price today — following the announcement in February. By Yaёl Bizouati-Kennedy See: How To Start Investing and Win Big, According to WallStreetBets’ Founder Jaime RogozinskiFind: 4 Times Mark Cuban Was Right About the Stock Market Bloomberg reported that Alphabet was the most-purchased stock on Fidelity’s platform on July 18, with its ticker seeing notable interest on Reddit’s WallStreetBets platform....

JetBlue made a $3.6 billion bid to buy Spirit Airlines, in what the company believes “constitutes a superior proposal under Spirit’s merger agreement with Frontier and represents the most attractive opportunity for Spirit’s shareholders,” according to a press release. By Yaёl Bizouati-Kennedy See: 50 Ways You’re Throwing Money AwayFind: Unplug These Appliances That Hike Up Your Electricity Bill Following the announcement, Spirit shares soared, closing the day up 22%. Shares were down 3% in pre-market trading on April 6....

For the week ending March 26, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial jobless claims was 202,000, an increase of 14,000 from the previous week’s revised level, according to the Labor Department. By Yaёl Bizouati-Kennedy See: 9 Best Small Business Ideas To Make Money From Home Find: 7 Financial Habits That Improve Your Daily Life The previous week’s level was revised up by 1,000 from 187,000 to 188,000. Economists surveyed by The Wall Street Journal expected unemployment claims to rise to 195,000....

Heating bills are expected to surge this winter, thanks to higher fuel costs and colder weather, but there’s help available to low-income Massachusetts residents. The Massachusetts Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD) is starting its Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) on Nov. 1. By Josephine Nesbit Learn: 7 Ways To Keep Your Home Heating Bill Low During InflationExplore: 9 Bills You Should Never Put on Autopay “Now more than ever, we need to ensure that we’re fueling the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program with the funding and support it needs so that it can in turn help heat households across the Commonwealth this winter,” Senator Markey said in a statement to local Springfield news station WWLP....

With the passage of the American Rescue Plan stimulus relief bill last March. Congress allocated a total of $46 billion in assistance for renters and their landlords. This money was meant to be distributed by each state to those most in need and at risk of being potentially evicted and help landlords stay afloat during the moratorium on evictions — but very little has actually been distributed. By Georgina Tzanetos See: Numerous Programs Offer Rental Assistance — Here’s How To Get ItFind: Pandemic Relief Programs Are Ending — Here’s How You Can Still Get Assistance...

About six in 10 consumers will mainly shop online this holiday season, according to a new survey from Creditcards.com, and more than half plan to start before Halloween to avoid potential supply-chain disruptions. By Vance Cariaga See: Supply Chain Issues Make Now an Ideal Time to Start Your 2021 Holiday Shopping Find: Hurricane Ida Repairs Expected to Make Supply Chain Issues Worse The survey of 2,410 adults, conducted by YouGov in August and released on Monday, found that 62% of respondents said they planned on making their purchases online....

Being in a relationship often means merging finances, but before opening any joint accounts with your partner, there are certain steps you should take to ensure you won’t end up on the line for their bad financial behavior. In this “Financially Savvy Female” column, we chat with Shazia Virji, general manager of credit services at Credit Sesame, about what you should do and discuss before opening any bank accounts or lines of credit with your significant other....

One of the most striking phenomena of the pandemic has been the rise of retail investors, who became savvier and more self-educated amidst economic uncertainties and market volatility, thanks in parts to new apps, such as Robinhood, social networks, including Reddit and meme stocks. By Yaёl Bizouati-Kennedy See: 8 Best Cryptocurrencies To Invest In for 2021Find: 10 Best ETFs To Buy for Long-Term Growth Now, a relatively new social network — Commonstock — offers users to “amplify the knowledge of the best investors, verified by actual track records for signal over noise....

As of November 2021, same-sex couples can qualify for the same Social Security spousal and survivors’ benefits as other couples. As same-sex couples received the constitutional right to marry in all 50 states in 2015, President Joe Biden made sure in November 2021 that same-sex couples would not be subject to waiting periods and would have the same access to Social Security benefits as any other couple. By Dawn Allcot Social Security: New Bill Could Give Seniors an Extra $2,400 a YearSee: 5 Things You Must Do When Your Savings Reach $50,000...

Retirement benefits paid out by the Social Security Administration are predominately funded through payroll taxes, so it stands to reason that when fewer workers pay into the system, Social Security revenue declines. This is becoming a bigger concern because of immigration — and not for the reasons some might claim. By Vance Cariaga Government Shutdown 2023: Will Your Social Security Payments Stop Now That the Debt Ceiling Has Been Reached?Find Out: With a Recession Looming, Make These 3 Retirement Moves To Stay On TrackLearn: What Happens to Social Security When You Die?...

The Child Tax Credit for 2021 was extended as part of the American Rescue Plan stimulus relief bill based on 2019 and 2020 tax returns. This means that your status in 2019 or 2020 determines the benefit you are receiving today for the advance portion of the child tax credit — but what if you just recently had a baby in 2021? By Georgina Tzanetos Stimulus News: Child Tax Credit Payment Dates, Opt-Out Deadlines and Tax Implications Economy Explained: How the Child Tax Credit and Other Stimulus Packages Benefit the Full Economy and Not Just Recipients...

If you qualify for the advance Child Tax Credit, you can expect your next payment to hit your bank account by Nov. 15. If you haven’t been receiving CTC payments but are qualified to do so, you have until Nov. 15 to opt in. By Dawn Allcot Those who opt in on or before Nov. 15 will receive a lump-sum payment on Dec. 15, when the final advance CTC payment rolls out....