Personal Finance

Canceled that flight to Cancun or that cruise out of Miami to the Caribbean? You’re not alone. In light of the Covid-19 pandemic and worries over health and safety, many Americans will opt to “staycation” this year and holiday at home or nearby. “We’re seeing a trend overall [that] people are booking trips closer to

We are all getting back to the basics. While it might feel good to bake bread, the best way to get through the coronavirus pandemic could be to stock your emergency fund and learn to “do-it-yourself” with household chores so you can save on expenses.  One bright spot: You might have more time on your

Hero Images | Getty Images Traditionally, parents pay a premium so their children can play capture the flag, drink bug juice and swim in a lake through August. This year, of course, summer camp looks very different. Amid the coronavirus crisis, many camps have cancelled their summer sessions, others have moved online and a few

Lillian Johnson, 77, pictured outside her East Meadow, New York, nursing home. Because of Covid-19 restrictions, her son was unable to visit her for two months. Lamont Johnson Lamont Johnson lives just about two miles from his mother’s nursing home in Long Island, New York. He has not been able to visit her for about

College graduates will soon be hit with their first student loan bill aywan88 | E+ | Getty Images When Democratic presidential candidates Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren dropped out of the race, it seemed that proposals to tackle student loan debt would go away, too.  They haven’t. Between the impact of the coronavirus pandemic and

A driver and passenger wearing protective masks exit the ride sharing pickup area in a car displaying Uber Technologies signage at San Francisco International Airport in San Francisco, California, U.S., on Monday, May 4, 2020. Photographer: David Paul Morris/Bloomberg via Getty Images Bloomberg Leonardo Diaz is in a tough spot. Diaz, a driver for Uber

Hispanolistic Over 152 million stimulus checks have been issued to individuals over the last six weeks, according to data from the U.S. Treasury Department and Internal Revenue Service. In all, the agencies have distributed $257.9 billion in Economic Impact Payments. Uncle Sam began depositing the funds into taxpayers’ bank accounts in mid-April. The average payment came

SDI Productions Americans could use a financial boost. How to get that money into people’s hands has been a hot topic of debate. Democrats have proposed expanding unemployment insurance and giving Americans as much as $2,000 per month to get back on their feet. Meanwhile, one Republican proposal has called for giving Americans $11,000 now in

Getty Images Talk of a second round of $1,200 stimulus checks made headlines last week when Democrats in the House of Representatives passed a new bill including those payments. But another round of federal relief checks is far from a done deal. Americans should brace themselves for a potentially long wait for that money, if

Workers are back on the job at the the construction site of new towers near Government Center in downtown Boston on May 19, 2020. As the state economy cautiously begins to reopen, construction projects resume. (Photo by Lane Turner/The Boston Globe via Getty Images) Boston Globe Another round of coronavirus relief for Americans may hinge

Tom Werner Next year, the IRS will allow people to put away even more money in health savings accounts, a tax-advantaged account you can use for medical expenses. Health savings accounts work alongside high deductible health plans. You can save money on a pretax or tax-deductible basis, have it grow tax free and then use

A single person must stand on each yellow box. Stanley Fong The coronavirus pandemic has changed almost every facet of American life, from how we work to how we consume, and in so doing destroyed millions of jobs.  Yet the virus has also also created a demand for new types of work. As companies consider

DTP | Getty Images Add robocalls to scammers’ methods of capitalizing on the coronavirus crisis. As Americans adjust to life in the midst of a global pandemic, roughly a quarter of individuals say they’ve experienced an increase in robocalls and about 20% have received a call or text regarding the illness, according to a survey

Thomas Barwick Lawmakers may allow savers to undo last year’s mandatory withdrawals from retirement accounts. The $3 trillion HEROES Act – the latest round of proposed federal coronavirus relief legislation – was passed by the House last Friday. Aside from granting households another batch of $1,200 stimulus payments and granting student loan relief, the measure

As part of the House bill passed on Friday to deliver relief to a battered economy, people with student debt would get some more elbow room.  The U.S. Department of Education has already announced that due to the pandemic, federal student loan borrowers don’t need to make payments on their loans until at least October. And during

Don Bayley | Vetta | Getty Images Retirees who feel their Social Security benefits aren’t stretching as far as they used to aren’t imagining it. Retiree costs are going up at a rapid clip, and Social Security cost-of-living adjustments are not keeping up with those growing expenses, according to a recent report from The Senior

As the country starts to reopen its economy amid the coronavirus pandemic, Americans of all ages are still trying to figure out the path forward. Many have lost income, may be struggling with a small business or are dealing with child-care issues. But those in their 40s, the younger end of Generation X, have their

U.S. President Donald Trump’s name appears on the coronavirus economic assistance checks that were sent to citizens across the country April 29, 2020 in Washington, DC. Chip Somodevilla | Getty Images News that the U.S. government has deployed millions of stimulus checks for up to $1,200 per individual has made headlines. But still many individuals

You may qualify for paid leave Justin Paget Qualified workers, including those telecommuting, can get two weeks of paid leave at full pay courtesy of the Families First Coronavirus Response Act. Valid reasons include being unable to work because you are under quarantine order, have coronavirus symptoms and are seeking diagnosis, or must care for

Labor economist Teresa Ghilarducci began studying retirement in 2008, when the Great Recession was making it impossible for millions of Americans to retire. “The phenomenon of Granny working in McDonald’s really started to ramp up,” said Ghilarducci, who leads the Retirement Equity Lab at The New School in New York.  Yet, as bad as it was then,

Agatha Kulaga, co-founder and CEO of Ovenly Source: Agatha Kulaga There’s no doubt the coronavirus pandemic has hit small businesses hard. For some, like retail and wholesale bakery Ovenly, it meant completely shutting down their operations. The New York-based business had to lay off its entire staff of 66 employees, said Agatha Kulaga, the co-founder and

A cyclist passes a boarded up store during the coronavirus pandemic on April 28, 2020 in New York City. John Lamparski | Getty Images New Yorkers who owe the state medical or student debt that has been referred to the state attorney general’s office have been given another 30-day break from paying those balances. New York Attorney

Car line up at a drive-thru Three Square Food Bank emergency food distribution site at Boulder Station Hotel & Casino in response to an increase in demand amid the coronavirus pandemic on April 29, 2020 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Three Square is currently operating dozens of emergency distribution sites at various times and dates throughout

Under ordinary circumstances, the opportunity to make changes to workplace health plans and flexible spending accounts happens only once a year. However, new guidelines from the IRS allow workers to revisit those elections now in response to the coronavirus pandemic. “I cannot think of a time when the IRS has been this flexible,” said David Speier, managing

A view of new York State Department of labor office in Flushing Queens during coronavirus pandemic on April 12, 2020. (Photo by John Nacion/NurPhoto via Getty Images) NurPhoto Democrats want to give Americans larger unemployment checks until next year. Certain workers — particularly those in lower-paying industries like accommodation and food services — stand to benefit

People wait in a food bank line in Brooklyn, New York, April 24. Angela Weiss | AFP | Getty Images The economic impact of coronavirus has put a dent in Americans’ finances: Nearly 1 in 3 individuals has experienced a decline in income since the pandemic arrived. Those are the results from a new survey

U.S. Representative, Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) at the ceremonial swearing in of Representative Elect Kweisi Mfume (D-MD). Michael Brochstein | Barcroft Media | Getty Images Fewer people itemizing Since the new tax law, significantly fewer people are claiming the SALT deduction. About 16 million taxpayers claimed the SALT deduction for the 2018 tax year, according to

Sandi Bochum Source: Donna Aceto Eight weeks after Sandi Bochum applied for unemployment benefits in New York, she’s still waiting for a check.  The 75-year-old video journalist’s income has dried up, thanks to the coronavirus pandemic, which has prevented her from getting on the subway or an airplane to shoot events.  “I’m completely paralyzed,” said Bochum,

U.S. President Donald Trump speaks during a meeting with Republican members of Congress in the State Dining Room at the White House in Washington, U.S., May 8, 2020. Tom Brenner | Reuters President Donald Trump is reportedly considering another way to get more money to struggling Americans by letting them take an advance on their

Richard Cordray, former director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and author of “Watchdog: How Protecting Consumers Can Save Our Families, Our Economy, and Our Democracy” Congress provided borrowers a lifeline when it passed the CARES Act. Whether it will deliver significant relief to consumers remains to be seen. The $2.2 trillion coronavirus relief bill