While romance may be brewing ahead of Valentine’s Day, so are some dirty secrets. About 44% of U.S. adults admit to hiding a bank account or debt, or to spending more money than their partner would be comfortable with, according to a new study from CreditCards.com, which surveyed 1,378 adults who are married, in a […]
While saving is usually the focus of early retirement discussions, saving exists only in relation to spending. Everyone spends something, no matter how frugal your habits. In early retirement books, blogs and podcasts, we tend to throw around the phrase “spend on your values” flippantly, as shorthand for only spending money on the things that […]
U.S. presidential candidates get asked many questions about the country’s state of affairs — one of which is what they will do about “entitlement programs.” “Entitlement” often refers to Social Security and Medicare, but critics argue that’s the wrong way to describe it. Many Americans take to social platforms saying they’ve paid into the system […]
“Turn off the lights.” “Why would you go out and spend money for coffee?” I grew up middle-class in the 1950s with a litany of lines like that from my Depression-era mother. Usually, I didn’t listen to them. But now that I’m 70 and figuring out ways to budget in retirement in San Francisco, I’m […]
The 2020 income tax season officially started on Monday, January 27, when the IRS started accepting tax returns. Despite the stereotype of people hating doing their taxes, for millions of taxpayers, tax season means getting a refund. But there’s no reason to get a refund loan or similar services, which often include steep fees, since […]
Health savings accounts can be a great tool for retirement medical costs — if you don’t make any mistakes using them. These accounts work alongside high-deductible health plans and they offer three major tax benefits. First, you can make pretax or tax-deductible contributions to your HSA. Second, your funds will grow tax free – and […]
Saving for retirement is likely one of the greatest financial challenges you’ll ever face. It takes decades to successfully prepare for retirement, and you’ll likely need to save hundreds of thousands of dollars (if not more than $1 million) to enjoy your senior years comfortably. While there’s no one-size-fits-all approach to preparing for the future, […]
A $100,000 or even $200,000 balance in a 401(k) plan might seem like a lofty amount of money — and it is — but it may not mean as much in your retirement as you think. As part of the new Secure Act, plan sponsors will have to show Americans how their account balances translate […]
With tax season officially open as of Jan. 27, taxpayers may feel a familiar sense of anxiety. In fact, about 1 in 3 taxpayers told Credit Karma Tax in a recent survey they typically get anxious about prepping their taxes. Tax anxieties are higher among younger Americans, with the survey finding that more than 40% […]
We’ve all heard that it’s a bad idea to put all your eggs in one basket, and the saying holds true for nest eggs as well. However, not everyone understands how the concept works when it comes to retirement saving, and that can be a costly mistake. More than half (55%) of Americans don’t know […]
It’s no secret that Americans aren’t doing all that well in the savings department. An estimated 39% of U.S. adults don’t have the money on hand to cover a $400 emergency, and 45% of Americans have no money earmarked for retirement savings. If your savings efforts have been far from fruitful in recent years, it’s […]
Taxes can be confusing, even for those of us who have done them a few dozen times. They can seem especially complicated to those who are new to doing their own taxes, but they don’t have to be. Unless you really love math, you’re probably going to use some sort of tax filing software, and […]
