On August 24, 2022, just a few days before federal student loan repayment was set to resume, President Biden announced a plan for additional student loan debt relief. Federal student loan repayment was originally halted in March 2020 at the start of the pandemic. The new plan extends the payment moratorium through the end of
In recent months, the debate surrounding digital asset investing has reached a fever pitch among media pundits, financial experts, lawmakers, and policy enforcers, partly due to the fact that cryptocurrency might soon be available in at least some 401(k) plans. If given the opportunity, should employer retirement plans offer crypto as part of their investment
A non-fungible token — or NFT — is a unique digital asset verified by blockchain, the underlying record-keeping technology used to authenticate its originality and ownership. Blockchain was initially invented for the exchange of Bitcoin, the first cryptocurrency. The market is growing fast NFTs are credited with helping artists, musicians, and digital media companies to
The Inflation Reduction Act, signed into law on August 16, 2022, includes health-care and energy-related provisions, a new corporate alternative minimum tax, and an excise tax on certain corporate stock buybacks. Additional funding is also provided to the IRS. Some significant provisions in the Act are discussed below. Medicare The legislation authorizes the Department of
In an early July poll, 58% of Americans said they thought the U.S. economy was in a recession, up from 53% in June and 48% in May.1 Yet many economic indicators, notably employment, remain strong. The current situation is unusual, and there is little consensus among economists as to whether a recession has begun or
The COVID-19 pandemic kicked off a severe labor shortage — and quite possibly the most worker-friendly job market in many years. Unpredictable demand shifts exposed pre-existing mismatches between the knowledge and skills of available workers and the tasks for which they are needed. The sheer number of available jobs has also been running far above
$452 billion – Total assets in 529 savings plans, as of December 2021, spread over 14.8 million accounts. The average account balance was $25,395. Source: ISS Market Intelligence, 2022 The typical family uses a combination of income, savings, borrowing, and grants/scholarships to pay for college. Not surprisingly, the largest source of funding — 45% —
If you earn money through an app or online digital platform, you may be affected by a tax reporting change that took effect on January 1, 2022. A provision of the 2021 American Rescue Plan requires third-party payment processors to report business transactions totaling over $600 per year by issuing a Form 1099-K to the
3% – Amount that the prime rate typically runs above the upper end of the federal funds target range. For example, if the federal funds rate is set at 3.25%–3.50% by the end of 2022, the prime rate would typically be 6.50%. The prime rate, which commercial banks charge for loans to their best customers,
John D. Rockefeller, one of the wealthiest Americans in history, loved receiving stock dividends. “Do you know the only thing that gives me pleasure?” he once asked. “It’s to see my dividends coming in.”1 There may be many things other than money that give you pleasure, but you can still appreciate the stabilizing role that
