Personal finance

U.S. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky.; Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif.; President Joe Biden; and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., meet in the Oval Office on May 9, 2023 to discuss the debt ceiling. Anna Moneymaker | Getty Images News | Getty Images The U.S. may be weeks away from being

Regardless of where the Supreme Court comes out on President Joe Biden’s student loan forgiveness plan, education debt isn’t going away. College is only getting more expensive. Tuition and fees plus room and board at four-year, in-state public colleges rose more than 2% to $23,250, on average, in the 2022-23 academic year; at four-year private colleges, it increased

Ponywang | E+ | Getty Images This story is part of CNBC’s College Money Guide 2023, a series to help students and recent graduates understand their money and start their adult life off on a solid financial path. Getting your first full-time job out of college is exciting! It’s thrilling to know that someone wants

A protestor holds a sign reading “64 years is a no” during a May Day (Labor Day) demonstration in Lille, France, on May 1, 2023, more than a month after the government pushed an unpopular pensions reform act through parliament. Sameer Al-doumy | Afp | Getty Images French citizens have taken to the streets to

Dobrila Vignjevic | E+ | Getty Images Amid a stalemate on federal debt ceiling negotiations, some government officials are warning the Social Security checks sent to more than 65 million beneficiaries each month could be at risk. On Sunday, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., warned a “Social Security shutdown” could happen if the U.S.

Economists have been forecasting a recession for months, and that looming downturn is one of the most anticipated in U.S. history. But it’s not yet materialized, in part due to strong consumer spending. “Consumer spending represents more than half of the economy,” said Curt Long, chief economist at the National Association of Federally-Insured Credit Unions.

Sunrise at Laguna Torre in Patagonia, Argentina. © Marco Bottigelli | Moment | Getty Images Travel in 2023 has been expensive. Indeed, some prices — like those for international flights — have hit record highs. Americans are unleashing their wanderlust en masse after a few years of pandemic-era trip delays, making for a busy —

Bernard Friel/Education Images/Universal Images Group via Getty Images National park tourism is booming. But an idyllic adventure into the great outdoors can be derailed by overlooking an important aspect of trip planning: advance permits and reservations. Some of the most frequently visited parks require people to book ahead for access to popular attractions like heavily

Kevin Dodge | The Image Bank | Getty Images College is one of the biggest purchases you’ll make in a lifetime, yet few families have a solid plan for how to pay for it. Most often, parents are on the hook for the bill, according to Sallie Mae’s annual How America Pays for College report. For

Bernardbodo | Istock | Getty Images New government data shows inflation is cooling, and that means Social Security beneficiaries will likely see a lower cost-of-living adjustment next year. The Social Security cost-of-living adjustment for 2024 could be 3.1%, according to a new estimate from The Senior Citizens League. That’s well below the 8.7% increase to

Ja’crispy | Istock | Getty Images As the president of the National Bureau of Economic Research and a member on the Business Cycle Dating Committee, James Poterba helps determine when a recession officially starts and ends. Why is that important? What do those dates tell us? When the NBER was founded in 1920, its economists

New college grads negotiating their first salary may be in for a rude awakening. In the midst of a historically strong job market, characterized by low unemployment, rising wages and a high degree of job-seeker confidence, those armed with a degree are feeling relatively good about their earning potential. In fact, today’s undergraduates expect to make $84,855