Personal finance

U.S. President Joe Biden shakes hands with U.S. President-elect Donald Trump in the Oval Office of the White House on November 13, 2024 in Washington, DC.  Alex Wong | Getty Images The country’s roughly 40 million federal student loan borrowers should brace for changes related to their debt when President Joe Biden exits office toward

Rgstudio | E+ | Getty Images When it comes to financial resolutions, paying down debt is at the top of many to-do lists for 2025. But financial advisors who work with clients every day have their own wish lists for what they think should be top financial priorities for 2025. Here are some tips covering

Ezra Bailey | Stone | Getty Images Opening presents during the holidays is of course a lot of fun. But for many, opening those credit card statements will be just the opposite. Months before the holidays hit, consumers were already bracing for the anticipated costs. More than half of 2024 holiday shoppers, or 55%, felt

Pedestrians walk in front of the New York Stock Exchange, decorated with a giant U.S. flag, in New York City, Nov. 6, 2024. China News Service | China News Service | Getty Images Assets in U.S. exchange-traded funds in November topped $10 trillion for the first time, according to the latest data from Cerulli Associates.

Hobo_018 | E+ | Getty Images The U.S. Department of Education recently announced that it was reopening two student loan repayment plans, leaving borrowers with more choices to tackle their debt. Those options are: the Pay As You Earn Repayment Plan and the Income-Contingent Repayment Plan. They’re both income-driven repayment plans, which means they set

Janet Yellen, U.S. Treasury secretary, on a tour of the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) in Vienna, Virginia, on Jan. 8, 2024. Valerie Plesch/Bloomberg via Getty Images An upcoming Treasury Department deadline for millions of small businesses to fulfill a new reporting requirement on “beneficial ownership information” was delayed again, following a court order that

J Studios | Digitalvision | Getty Images In Saïd Sayrafiezadeh’s fictional short story, “Minimum Payment Due,” the main character is trapped in credit card debt and desperate for a way out. The fact that the experience is common — more than a third, or 38%, of adults in the U.S. have credit card debt, according

Hill Street Studios | Getty Images Keith Harris, a 17-year-old high school senior at KIPP DC College Preparatory, has studied accounting, investing and budgeting, among other basic lessons, like his English, history and math curriculum. Harris is enrolled in his high school’s NAF Academy of Business, a rigorous three-year finance program with a work-based learning

A woman shops at a Target store in Chicago on Nov. 26, 2024. Kamil Krzaczynski | AFP | Getty Images Heading into the holidays, many Americans were already saddled with record-breaking credit card debt. And yet, consumer spending is set to reach a fresh high this season.  The National Retail Federation reported last week that

Images By Tang Ming Tung | Digitalvision | Getty Images Many people, especially those with debt, will be discouraged by the recent Federal Reserve forecast of a slower pace of interest rate cuts than previously forecast. However, others with money in high-yield cash accounts will benefit from a “higher for longer” regime, experts say. “If

Manonallard | E+ | Getty Images Many Americans are capping off the holidays with new debt balances. This season, 36% of American consumers took on holiday debt, according to a new survey from LendingTree. Those who racked up balances this season took on an average of $1,181 in debt, up from $1,028 in 2023. However,

Janet Yellen, U.S. Treasury secretary, on a tour of the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) in Vienna, Virginia, on Jan. 8, 2024. Valerie Plesch/Bloomberg via Getty Images The U.S. Treasury Department has delayed the deadline for millions of small businesses to Jan. 13, 2025, to file a new form, known as a Beneficial Ownership Information