Considering insurance, gas, maintenance and repairs, most drivers are well aware of how expensive cars are to buy and maintain. In fact, the average cost to own and operate a new vehicle is $8,849 a year, according to an annual study by AAA, or just under 59 cents a mile if you average 15,000 miles

Colette Simone borrowed $200,000 in private and federal loans to attain her doctorate degree at the Michigan School of Professional Psychology in the early 2000s. After graduation, her student loan bill was around $1,600. She tried to make those payments, but with entry level salaries it was difficult. She repeatedly postponed the loan payments, causing

They found students who have a job they like lined up after college are more than twice as likely to be earning $60,000 a year than those graduates who took between two and 12 months to secure a good job. The longer it takes for that desired job to come, the bigger the hit to

The OpenX research, based on a Harris Poll of more than 2,000 adult shoppers, also shows that many consumers aren’t waiting to start holiday gift shopping. About half of consumers have either already started buying presents, or will get going between October and the long Thanksgiving holiday weekend in November, which includes big sales-push days

The second trap is making an uninformed decision about the type of additional coverage that is best for you. Medicare Advantage plans combine traditional Medicare, parts A and B, into a single plan that often includes Part D (prescription drug coverage) benefits as well. Some people find the simplicity of Advantage plans appealing. Medicare Supplement

If you’re about to turn 65, put your birthday party planning on hold: It’s time to start shopping for insurance that will supplement your Medicare coverage. Medigap, a type of health insurance coverage, fills out the areas where your Medicare policy falls short, including deductibles, copayments and coinsurance. Some of these policies cover extras, such

Sometimes the best bargains are right in your backyard. During the 2017-2018 school year, the average in-state tuition and fees at a four-year public school was $9,970, according to the College Board. Add room and board, and you’re boosting the all-in cost to $20,770. Not only do you have the benefit of in-state tuition costs,

Wealthier people have access to resources that can help manage credit issues, such financial planners, said Bob Annibale, global director of Citi Community Development and Inclusive Finance. Poor credit leaves people behind: “It’s not part of an inclusive, growing society,” Annibale said. “People need a financial identity.” “If you don’t have a credit card you’re

Applying for financial aid is about to get easier, the Education Department says. Starting in October, the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) will be available on a new phone app, called myStudentAid. You can use the app on an android or iPhone. Previously, the lengthy form was much easier to fill out from

As trade tensions between the U.S. and China heat up, expect to pay for it at the cash register. “Every time this trade war escalates, the risk to U.S. consumers grows,” Matthew Shay, president and CEO of the National Retail Federation, said in a statement. “With these latest tariffs, many hardworking Americans will soon wonder

When it comes to living the lifestyle they imagined, today’s retirees often have to make some sacrifices. But it doesn’t have to be that way. According to a new report, some of the best places to retire are also the most affordable, which means that it is possible to enjoy your golden years in sunny

Whether kids should learn about personal finance at school or at home, though, they are the ones who are left clueless about how to manage money. Kids need to know what you have to do to earn money and, once you get it, what you can do with it. The “three S’s” — saving, spending

Cost-of-living adjustments are aimed at ensuring that benefits keep up with inflation. The adjustments are calculated each year using the Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers, or CPI-W. That index is based on the buying habits, including goods and services, of workers who are under 62 years old. The cost-of-living adjustment

“If you have a rewards card, you should probably be using it more often,” Rossman said. “That’s why it’s surprising that credit cards came in so low on the list.” Rewards credit cards are ideal for small purchases, where you can rack up points and pay off the balance quickly, according to Rossman. If you

Travis Long | Raleigh News & Observer | Tribune News Service | Getty Images A man in front of a flooded home on Will Baker Road in Kinston, North Carolina on Sunday, Sept. 16, 2018 following the aftermath of Hurricane Florence.  Under most circumstances, in order to claim the casualty or theft loss, you must

The head of the National Flood Insurance Program told CNBC’s “Squawk on the Street” Monday that the government is prepared to handle the anticipated rash of claims filed by homeowners in the upcoming days and weeks. “As the days continue, we’ll be able to start to get the number of claims being submitted, get adjusters

When a company’s culture is healthy, these conversations should happen easily, Moravek says. But even in an unhealthy culture and with a difficult, poorly trained supervisor, it’s worth trying to develop the relationship. After a difficult moment at work, Moravek recommends taking these steps. Take a deep breath and remind yourself this is not personal.

“The fact you have to pay it back is unusual,” Johnson said. It raises questions about who should share in the cost of raising children. Paid leave should be a benefit provided by employers, says Jennifer Himes, a customer service rep in Pittsburgh . “This is a scam to take your own money out of

With money at the root of a lot of relationship stress, it’s no surprise that a partner with credit issues can cause a significant strain and even a split. More than one-third of borrowers said college loans and other money woes contributed to their divorce, according to a recent report from Student Loan Hero, a

In the last decade, the S&P 500 has rallied 200 percent, yet many Americans are less willing to invest in the market than they were before 2008 — and before $2.7 trillion in retirement accounts were erased in the financial fallout. “When you have giant shocks to the economy it changes people’s attitudes about risk,”

A tug-of-war between student borrowers hoping to get tens of thousands of dollars in loans they took out for their education discharged and the government may be a step closer to resolution. A federal judge ruled this week that repeated delays by Education Secretary Betsy DeVos of an Obama administration plan to provide debt relief

The rate at which stocks have risen since the Great Recession make 25-year-old Rachel Grafman nervous. “I don’t think the markets can stay this high indefinitely,” said Grafman, a civil engineer in Denver. “When we contract, it will be big.” Grafman keeps tabs on domestic equities markets and has some knowledge of market history –

Following the 2008 crash, retirement plan advisors pushed to help employers and workers understand market risk. For Pottichen, that means selecting target-date funds based on the demographics of a given employer. For instance, an employer with an older population that has high savings rates and large balances might be better off with a target-date fund

There’s a reason these plans are catching on: They offer many tax benefits that are better than using a simple savings account. Not only can you get a tax deduction or credit for contributions (more than 30 states and the District of Columbia offer a direct state tax deduction for your contributions), earnings grow on

The second bill, the Family Savings Act of 2018 (H.R. 6757), includes changes to retirement and education accounts and creates a new tax-deferred savings account. For starters, the measure would remove the age limit on individual retirement account contributions. Currently, IRA owners cannot make additional contributions beginning in the year they turn 70½. Roth IRAs,

Growing up in Connecticut helped shield Emilie Hoogewerff, 24, from the crash. “I don’t think I knew how bad it was,” she said. Hoogewerff describes her hometown as a bubble for “rich, white people who don’t have much connection to what’s going on in the world.” But Hoogewerff was not rich. At 14, after her

Ultra-wealthy investors may be feeling bearish about the markets, but they are still searching for returns. Members of TIGER 21, a group of about 630 individuals with at least $10 million to invest, allocated more of their wealth toward stocks and riskier assets during the second quarter of 2018, according to the group’s quarterly report.

The poverty rate also fell for the third consecutive year. In 2017, the official poverty rate was 12.3 percent, down from 12.7 percent in 2016. The number of people who did not have health insurance – 28.5 million, or 8.8 percent, in 2017 – did not change significantly from 2016, according to the Census Bureau.

It’s important to note that the percentage is based on your insured value, not the damage caused. So if your home is insured for $200,000 and you have a 2 percent hurricane deductible, you’ll pay $4,000 even if the damage is only, say, $10,000. Policies also have coverage exclusions and limits that are helpful to

As interest rates continue to rise, investors now have a few options as to where they can store their short-term cash. “Now that we have begun seeing yields pop up to more meaningful levels, it’s important to shop around,” said Morningstar’s Benz. The Crane 100 Money Fund Index, which measures the 100 largest money market