Personal finance

The national average credit score sits at an all-time high of 716, unchanged from a year ago, according to a report from FICO, developer of one of the scores most widely used by lenders. However, this marks the first time since the Great Recession that scores did not improve year over year, the report found.

Matthias Clamer | Getty Images Long-term wealth-building strategies should not be an all-or-nothing game. Yet videos on YouTube, TikTok or Instagram may sometimes tout seemingly urgent get-rich-quick schemes. “At the end of the day, if there is some misinformation that’s keeping people on the platform for a very long time, that video might get surfaced

Ascentxmedia | E+ | Getty Images The CEOs of some of the biggest American companies believe the economy may be heading for a recession. “It could be a hurricane,” JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon said on CNBC’s “Squawk Box” on Tuesday morning. Yet financial advisors warn against too much certainty, or pessimism, over what’s next. ‘It’s possible

Rafael Henrique | Sopa Images | Lightrocket | Getty Images Robinhood is bringing the concept of a 401(k)-style contribution match to its retail customers who may not have access to a retirement plan through the workplace. The retail brokerage will pay a 1% “match” on contributions its customers make to a Robinhood individual retirement account,

Travel demand has surged this year, although not everyone can afford the sky-high tab. Along with rising costs for hotels and rental cars, travelers can expect to pay up to 39% more for a round-trip flight around Christmas compared with last year, according to data from the travel booking app Hopper. Young adults, in particular, are shifting

seksan Mongkhonkhamsao | Moment | Getty Images With the holiday season in full swing, it can be easy to forget about the finer points of financial planning. While your tax return isn’t due until April, several key deadlines are approaching by year-end, experts say. “You can control your tax reporting destiny,” said certified financial planner

New cars are getting increasingly expensive. But they’re also more durable than before, which means drivers have a better chance of getting their money’s worth. As the average transaction price for new cars reached an estimated $45,872 in November — the highest on record, according to a joint forecast from J.D. Power and LMC Automotive —

10’000 Hours | Digitalvision | Getty Images A recent wave of layoffs in the tech sector may lead American workers to wonder whether their job is next on the chopping block. So far, evidence is scant that the thousands of cuts at major technology firms — Meta, Amazon and Twitter, to name a few —

Marko Geber | Digitalvision | Getty Images Some men may need a bigger push than women when it comes to participating in their workplace retirement-savings plan, new research suggests. In 401(k) plans with automatic enrollment — meaning employees must opt out if they don’t want to participate — 93% of both men and women remain

Secretary of Labor Marty Walsh speaks during a news conference at the White House in Washington, April 2, 2021. Erin Scott | Reuters Most American workers dream of a comfortable retirement. Yet many find their money falls short of meeting that goal when they reach their golden years. Much of the problem has to do

Tom Werner | DigitalVision | Getty Images After another year of tax law changes, there are significant updates for the 2022 season, with the possibility of a smaller refund or bigger bill for many taxpayers, experts say. With many Americans facing reduced tax breaks, it’s important to be proactive with year-end planning before the calendar

Americans are increasingly finding alternative ways to satisfy their holiday wish lists as they continue to grapple with high prices and inflation. In many cases, that means opting for flexible payment plans. On Black Friday through Cyber Monday, buy now, pay later payments through companies such as Klarna, Zip, Zilch, Affirm and Afterpay jumped 85% compared with

Momo Productions | Digitalvision | Getty Images Remote work surged in the pandemic era — but this trend, borne of necessity for public health, has now become a fixture of the U.S. job market, one that’s likely to remain entrenched, according to labor experts. Almost 10% of online job searches in September mentioned “remote work,”

10’000 Hours If you’re expecting a tax refund in 2023, it may be smaller than this year’s payment, according to the IRS.  Typically, you get a federal refund when you’ve overpaid yearly taxes or withheld more than the amount you owe. Your annual balance is based on taxable income, calculated by subtracting the greater of

Holger Scheibe | The Image Bank | Getty Images The rate of job cut announcements at U.S. employers in November was more than five times greater than a year ago, according to a report by Challenger, Gray & Christmas. Overall, U.S.-based firms announced 76,835 job cuts in November, led by the technology sector. So far this

Kemal Yildirim | E+ | Getty Images You’ve got about a month left to make sure you get it right when it comes to mandatory withdrawals from retirement accounts. Required minimum distributions, or RMDs as they’re called, are annual amounts that must be withdrawn beginning in the year you reach age 72 — up from age

Bill Oxford | E+ | Getty Images If your tax refund is still in limbo, there’s good news: Your balance may be accruing interest, and the rate increases to 7% from 6% on Jan. 1, according to the IRS. As of Nov. 18, there were 3.4 million unprocessed individual returns received in 2022, including filings

Sam Norpel and her family. Norpel, 48, second from the right, got Covid-19 in December 2021 and hasn’t recovered. This chronic illness, known as long Covid, impacts up to 23 million Americans. Kirstie Donohue Sam Norpel used to present regular financial updates to C-suite executives. Now, unpredictable bouts of broken, staccato speech make that impossible

Viktorcvetkovic | E+ | Getty Images A combination of high inflation and plentiful job openings may tempt some retirees into rejoining the workforce. But if you’re thinking about working, either part time or full time, and you’re already collecting Social Security retirement benefits, there are a few things you may want to know first. Social

Source: Getty Images After a volatile year for the stock and bond markets, it may be time to rebalance your portfolio by shifting assets back to match your original goals, according to experts.   As of Nov. 28, the S&P 500 Index was down roughly 17% year-to-date, and the U.S. bond market has dropped by around