There’s less than two weeks until the latest pause on federal student loan payments is set to expire on Aug. 31. No need to tell Cassie Smith. The chance of restarted payments are “a looming rain clou...
Tag: consumer products
Biden will sign the Inflation Reduction Act today. Here’s MarketWatch’s rundown of how it will affect your energy bills, investments and drug costs.
President Joe Biden on Tuesday is scheduled to sign into law the Inflation Reduction Act — the Democrats’ big economic package aimed at addressing climate change, capping drug costs and raising hundre...
All the reasons a dozen eggs now costs up to 38% more than one year ago
Why are eggs so expensive now? Grocery prices continued to soar in July despite slower inflation overall, and eggs were among the foods experiencing the biggest increases. The average price of a doze...
‘I’m stuck in a penny-pincher mindset’: My spouse and I bought a home, but he only wants to buy high-end items. How can we agree?
Dear Quentin, My spouse and I spent years saving for a new house, and living well below our means. It may sound weird, but now that we have a new home, we feel overwhelmed by the prospect of spending ...
Why an Arkansas town could provide a grim road map for America if car repos blow up
As recession worries loom over America, a debt crisis already bearing down on wage workers in northwest Arkansas could foreshadow bigger problem for a nation on high alert for a flood of car repossess...
My boyfriend, 68, has almost no ‘mad money’ for fun activities and trips. He lives with his father, 95, and expects to inherit his house. Is it unreasonable to expect him to get a part-time job?
I am a 65-year-old retired woman with modest Social Security and annuity payments. I also own my own home and have savings. I’ve been seeing a 68-year-old retiree since just before the pandemic. He li...
U.S. inflation surges again and stays at 40-year high, key price gauge shows
The numbers: A key gauge of U.S. inflation rose a sharp 1% in June, led by higher fuel prices, in a sign that price pressures in the economy are still intense and unlikely to relent quickly. The incre...
15 quality dividend stocks that you can buy on sale right now
John Buckingham, editor of the Prudent Speculator newsletter, paraphrases Warren Buffett when he says “whether it is socks or stocks, we like to buy quality merchandise that is marked down.” And 2022 ...
‘Hot inflation is over.’ Here’s where what that means for investors, says this portfolio manager.
A firmer start is ahead for stocks. Investors seem to be perking up after Apple spoiled the mood some on Monday via a report it plans to slow its hiring roll. If true, Apple AAPL, +2.39% has good comp...
The IRS audited ex-FBI director James Comey and former deputy Andrew McCabe. What are the odds?
In recent years, the Internal Revenue Service has been processing around 150 million to over 160 million tax returns annually, doing the work with a shrinking staff and an inflation-adjusted budget th...
Gas prices edge down just in time for July Fourth travel — here’s why
It’s a cool breeze during a hot moment, but it’s not the summer weather. As record-breaking numbers of Americans pack their cars and travel to Fourth of July barbecues that will cost them more than la...
The 60-40 portfolio is supposed to protect investors from volatility: so why is it having such a bad year?
The first half of 2022 has been a historically bad stretch for markets, and the carnage hasn’t been limited to stocks. As stocks and bonds have sold off in tandem, investors who for years have relied ...
‘I wouldn’t be successful at my job without her’: My friend cleans, cooks and cares for my child. I pay her $50 a day. Am I taking advantage of her?
I’m a working-from-home mom and my supervisors have no intentions of bringing me back to the office at this time. In order to actually get work done, I have pieced together childcare using the help of...
Scared to check your 401(k) as Dow tumbles? Here’s when you should look — and when you shouldn’t
To look or not to look. That’s the question when people consider checking the balances in their investment and retirement accounts. Maybe ignorance is bliss amid a volatile stock market’s recent seque...
Crypto crash FOMO? ‘I missed the bus on Bitcoin, but now feel like my time has come. Is it time to go big or go home? I have another 25 years of a boring 9-to-5 job, and I just want out.’
I read a letter from a reader last year who was suffering from crypto FOMO, and I have been following the crypto markets ever since. I felt like I missed the bus on Bitcoin, but now feel like my time ...
‘The goal is never to seek the top’: The wild, hair-raising ride of a 30-something investor who battled against NFT hackers and dodged the crypto crash
Vinny Zane has a taste for life — and an appetite for risk. The 38-year-old teacher and father of a 2-year-old son on Brooklyn’s Coney Island got into crypto in 2017 with $4,000 worth of Bitcoin, and ...
‘I respect every profession equally, but I feel like so many people look down on me for being a waitress’: Americans are tipping less. Should we step up to the plate?
I read your article about tipping. I’ve been serving and bartending for almost 16 years now, since I was 18. Waiting tables is so hard on your body, and a lot of people don’t appreciate all of the wor...
U.S. didn’t get any relief from high inflation in May – CPI to show another big gain
Wall Street is looking for a sign, any sign, that U.S. inflation is coming off a rapid boil. But they are unlikely to find much cooling off in May’s report on consumer prices. The consumer price index...
Opinion: Inflation is making everything we buy more expensive, and once stagflation hits things could get even worse
Last month I examined the culprits that are causing global inflation, including rising interest rates, persistent supply chain issues (China locking down cities), and climbing energy and fertilizer pr...
I put $200K toward a down payment for a condo unit with my boyfriend. He is on the title, but not on the mortgage. How do I protect my equity investment now?
Dear Quentin, I recently sold my apartment and put the equity earned (over $200,000) toward a new condo unit I own with my partner. My partner — we are not married — is on title, but not on the mortga...
Apple workers tell CEO Tim Cook: ‘We demand location-flexible work’
The self-styled solidarity group AppleTogether launched a petition Monday demanding a more flexible work policy in response to the company’s return-to-office mandate. “We demand that Apple allows each...