Personal finance

President Donald J. Trump signs the Tax Cut and Reform Bill in the Oval Office at The White House in Washington, DC on December 22, 2017. Brendan Smialowski | AFP via Getty Images There’s tax uncertainty heading into 2025 as Congress prepares to negotiate President-elect Donald Trump‘s economic agenda. But there could be lessons for

Eleganza | E+ | Getty Images If you’re considering a Roth individual retirement account conversion, your tax bracket could help you decide whether the move makes sense. Roth conversions transfer pretax or nondeductible IRA funds to a Roth IRA, which can begin tax-free growth. The trade-off is paying upfront taxes on the converted balance —

Mark Zandi, chief economist of Moody’s Analytics, testifies during the Senate Budget Committee hearing titled “The Default on America Act: Blackmail, Brinkmanship, and Billionaire Backroom Deals,” in Dirksen Building on Thursday, May 4, 2023.  Tom Williams | Cq-roll Call, Inc. | Getty Images The economy is doing “exceptionally well” as President-elect Donald Trump gets ready

A customer walks by a display of fresh eggs at a grocery store on Sept. 25, 2024 in San Anselmo, California. Justin Sullivan | Getty Images It’s déjà vu for grocery shoppers, as the price of those Grade A eggs has spiked in recent months, just two years after egg prices soared to record highs.

Andersen Ross Photography Inc | Digitalvision | Getty Images Most people believe in the value of college and, for the most part, institutions of higher education have been able to weather significant financial challenges throughout history.   But now, the number of colleges set to close in the next five years is expected to spike, a

Eclipse_images | E+ | Getty Images If you’re age 73 or older and retired, there’s a key annual deadline approaching for mandatory retirement plan withdrawals — and missing it could trigger a penalty, the IRS said on Tuesday. Generally, you must start so-called required minimum distributions by age 73. The first due date is April

Ljubaphoto | E+ | Getty Images If you’re in the market for a used car, the best time of the year to buy one is fast approaching. New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day are the best days of the year to buy a used car because there are 47.9% more deals than average, according

An exterior view of the New York Stock Exchange on September 18, 2024 in New York City.  Stephanie Keith | Getty Images As the calendar turns to a New Year and a new presidential administration, many investors are wondering where they can earn above-average returns. The current outlook is positive, with continued interest rate cuts

David Zervos, Jefferies Scott Mlyn | CNBC The Federal Reserve is expected to cut interest rates by another quarter point at the conclusion of its two-day meeting next week. “Two years ago … three out of four economists were saying we’re going into a recession,” David Zervos, chief market strategist for Jefferies LLC, said during CNBC’s

Close-up of unrecognizable black woman opening mail containing new credit card Grace Cary | Moment | Getty Images Most credit cards have a variable rate with a direct connection to the Federal Reserve‘s benchmark. It follows that credit card rates spiked along with the Fed’s string of 11 rate hikes starting in March 2022. The average annual percentage rate

Rudi_suardi | E+ | Getty Images The U.S. job market has been stagnant of late, a dynamic that contains both good and bad news for U.S. workers. On the one hand, businesses are holding on to their existing workforce, meaning employees are unlikely to lose their jobs, economists said. But it also may be hard

Former Representative Billy Long, a Republican from Missouri, speaks during a campaign event for former US President Donald Trump at Simpson College in Indianola, Iowa, US, on Sunday, Jan. 14, 2024.  Al Drago | Bloomberg | Getty Images President-elect Donald Trump has tapped former Missouri congressman Billy Long to lead the IRS, which has triggered