If you’ve been considering a mortgage with an adjustable rate, your reasons for going that route might be disappearing. As recessionary fears cause longer-term interest rates to hover near or below short-term rates, the advantage that typically comes with adjustable rate mortgages has shrunk — or entirely disappeared — at some lenders. ARMs, as they

EIR Healthcare How to apply You should fill out the newly available cancer deferment application and send it to your servicer. “A telephone call is not sufficient,” Kantrowitz said. “Keep a copy for your records.” You will need your doctor to confirm that you have cancer. He or she can do this on the cancer

With fears about a possible recession on the horizon, people are coming up with different ways to get their hands on some cash. Some may even be thinking about taking out a home equity line of credit as an insurance policy in case the economy goes south. Those concerns were renewed on Thursday when a

Experts have a message for anyone thinking about relying on basic Medicare with no extra coverage: Don’t do it. With deductibles, copays, coinsurance and — this is a biggie — no out-of-pocket maximum, the program has a variety of costs that make having no backup insurance a huge financial risk. “All it takes is one

Thursday marks “Equal Pay Day” for black women. It’s the approximate day when their 2018 wages, plus the amount they’ve earned so far this year, catches up to what white men earned just last year alone. While women overall in the U.S. earn about 80 cents for each dollar paid to men, the disparity in

A patient at the Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Washington, D.C. Jeff Hutchens | Getty Images President Donald Trump signed a memorandum on Tuesday to automatically cancel the student debt of tens of thousands of disabled veterans. “Today I’m proud to announce that I am taking executive action to ensure that our wounded warriors are

RyanJLane | Getty Images President Donald Trump has considered new payroll tax cuts to let American workers take home bigger pay checks. But such a move could have negative consequences for both individuals and the economy, a number of experts warn. The president told reporters on Tuesday that he is “thinking about” cutting payroll taxes.

ADragan | iStock | Getty Images Credit card rewards can be tempting. They can also be costly. Nearly 70% of people with credit card debt are trying to pick up cash-back and other perks from their cards, even though they’re carrying a balance that’s costing them interest, according to a new survey by Bankrate.com. “This

If you’re hoping to snag the best-available terms on a loan, a standard rule of thumb about credit card usage could end up standing in your way. The common advice is to keep revolving debt below 30% of your available credit so that your utilization rate doesn’t hurt your credit score. Yet experts say your

Hero Images | Hero Images | Getty Images If you’re looking for some of the nation’s most charitable donors, turn toward Beantown. Residents of the Boston-Cambridge-Quincy metro area were among the top three most generous cities based on gifts made to charities centered on the arts, education, the environment, health and human services, according to

Two can live as cheaply as one, the old saying goes. Except for some high-income taxpayers. Although the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act mostly eliminated the so-called — and hated — marriage penalty, some taxpayers, particularly high-income couples, could still end up paying more in taxes as a married pair than they would if they

Hero Images | Hero Images | Getty Images Even if your employer offers you health insurance at work, chances are you’re shelling out more money for medical care. Last year, employers spent an average of $15,159 in premiums to cover a family of four, according to an analysis from the Kaiser Family Foundation. In all,

Hero Images | Getty Images This isn’t your mother’s or grandmother’s retirement. If you’re a woman in your 50s, the chances are greater than ever that you’re not married, either because you’re divorced or because you’ve never walked down the aisle. That’s according to a recent study from the Center for Retirement Research at Boston

Glenn Daily, a fee-only insurance consultant, owns a whole life insurance policy. Glenn Daily Roth IRAs and Roth 401(k) plans aren’t your only sources of tax-free income in retirement. Say hello to so-called permanent life insurance — a policy with an interest-bearing account that’s known as cash value. This cash value accumulates without being subject

When Rep. John Larson, D-Conn., travels the country to talk about his plan for Social Security reform, he often holds up a Starbucks coffee cup. The cost of that latte — about $4.50 — could also cover nine weeks of Social Security payments if you’re making $50,000 per year, Larson said he points out to

Back to school is an increasingly costly time of year, particularly for families with college-bound children. A college education is now the second-largest expense an individual is likely to make in a lifetime — right after purchasing a home. Tuition and fees for a four-year private college averaged $35,830 in 2018-19; at four-year, in-state public

The average American has $38,000 in debt — a quarter of which comes directly from credit card charges. In December 2018, consumer debt overall hit a record high $4 trillion. Experts say a significant amount of this debt can be explained by what they call “money disorders.” Brad Klontz, author of “Mind Over Money” and

For anyone holding a long-term-care insurance policy, new allegations of financial trouble at one insurer may make you wonder what would happen to your policy if your underwriter went belly up. While insurance companies have been bolstering their reserves to cover future claims and raising premiums to counteract inaccurate pricing when the policies were first

As student debt grows, so do the plans to squelch it. A new federal program offers up to $75,000 in student loan relief for those who work for three years in the health-care field, battling the opioid epidemic. The South Korean auto maker Hyundai announced recently that it will give $900 to people with student

Steven Puetzer | Getty Images “Stock market gets ugly.” “The next recession is going to be brutal.” “Markets in turmoil.” Headlines of late on the direction of the economy — or, perhaps closer to home, your 401(k) balance — might have you on edge. Breathe. It’s O.K. If you haven’t already done so, you can

Tricking yourself may be an effective strategy for getting better at managing money. Some people swear by spreadsheets, others by budgets. But what about people who freeze up at the very idea of using a calculator? It’s easy. Or not as hard as you’d think. Make a few behavioral changes. It’s mind over money, and

Maskot | Maskot | Getty Images It’s only August, yet college students’ best chance at a decent financial aid package is right around the corner. Oct. 1 marks the first day for students and their families to apply for grants and other aid for the 2020-2021 school year through the Free Application for Federal Student

kate_sept2004 | E+ | Getty Images If you are worried about a possible recession on the horizon, there are some financial moves you can make to help protect yourself. Those concerns flared up on Wednesday after a warning signal came from the bond market. At one point during the trading session, the benchmark 10-year Treasury

For older Americans, Social Security promises guaranteed monthly income. Except when you have certain kinds of unpaid debt. While most creditors — i.e., credit-card companies or other lenders — can’t touch your Social Security payments, some types of delinquent debt can reduce those monthly checks. And when they do, look out. “If you’re actively paying

Getty Images If you faced a surprise penalty for coming up short on your 2018 taxes, the IRS might be giving you some relief. On Wednesday, the IRS said it would automatically waive the tax underpayment penalty for more than 400,000 taxpayers who have already submitted their 2018 federal income tax return and failed to

wundervisuals | E+ | Getty Images If you’re panicking over Wednesday’s market declines, here’s your silver lining: You might have a great opportunity to save on taxes. The Dow Jones Industrial Average plummeted by more than 600 points on Wednesday morning, amid news that the yield curve has inverted. In particular, yields are now higher

Hero Images | Hero Images | Getty Images American teenagers may spend a lot of time on their smartphones but when it comes to getting paid and spending their money, they prefer cash. According to a new survey by Junior Achievement USA and data-marking firm Alliance Data, 75% of the teens polled have made purchases

A woman lights a candle at a makeshift memorial outside Walmart, near the scene of a mass shooting which left at least 20 people dead, on August 4, 2019 in El Paso, Texas. Mario Tama | Getty Images News | Getty Images The threat of gun violence is real enough that business owners, schools and

Fertnig | E+ | Getty Images Some people are just fine with paying a little extra to the tax man. In fact, 42% of adults polled by NerdWallet said that they would prefer to overpay on federal income taxes, even if it means they’re taking home less money for the entire year. The personal finance

Even with the jobless rate at 3.7%, near a 50-year low, you may have to speak up if you want to get a raise in the year ahead. Wage growth has been sluggish throughout the economic expansion, only recently breaking 3%, despite low unemployment and a tight labor market. Still, most of those gains have