Personal finance

shot of social security card Kameleon007 People who receive Social Security benefits and who do not submit tax returns will not have to file in order to get a government stimulus check. The announcement by the Treasury Department and Internal Revenue Service on Wednesday night reverses earlier guidance that said those people would have to

Rowan Jordan The next coronavirus relief bill might resurrect the state and local tax deduction – and overburdened accountants are less than thrilled. In an interview with The New York Times, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., raised the prospect of retroactively reinstating the so-called SALT itemized deduction in a fourth coronavirus relief bill to put

NoDerog | E+ | Getty Images Those government stimulus checks should be on their way soon to millions of Americans. Many people have still have a lot of questions about them. Last week, Washington lawmakers approved a $2 trillion relief bill in response to the coronavirus outbreak that includes a payment of $1,200 for single taxpayers

Amid a global pandemic and sharp economic slowdown, college-bound high school seniors are giving their state schools a second look. Thanks to heightened financial concerns, students and families may be more likely to choose local and less-expensive public schools rather than private universities far from home, according to Robert Franek, editor in chief of The Princeton Review

US President Donald Trump participates in a meeting with Supply Chain Distributors to discuss the response to COVID-19 at the White House in Washington, DC, on March 29, 2020. Jim Watson | AFP | Getty Images This year, heirs of retirement accounts can bypass mandatory withdrawals from those IRAs. The coronavirus relief bill, which President

The $2 trillion coronavirus relief package President Trump signed into law Friday significantly expands unemployment benefits for out-of-work Americans. The law pays laid-off and furloughed workers an extra $600 a week, for up to four months, and extends existing state benefits by 13 weeks. It also offers jobless benefits to previously ineligible groups, such as

New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy speaks after taking the oath of office in Trenton, New Jersey, January 16, 2018. Lucas Jackson | Reuters New Jersey homeowners whose finances have been affected by the novel coronavirus will get a 90-day reprieve on their mortgage payments, said Gov. Phil Murphy on Saturday. Lenders will also waive late

College acceptance letters are already in the mail. Now high school seniors must decide their fate for September. Up until now, National College Decision Day, the deadline for high school seniors to choose which college they will attend, has always been May 1. This year, however, the global coronavirus pandemic and extreme economic uncertainty have pushed many

Andrew Cuomo, governor of New York, speaks during a news conference at the Jacob Javits Convention Center in New York, U.S., on Friday, March 27, 2020. Angus Mordant | Bloomberg | Getty Images New Yorkers are getting more time to submit their 2019 income tax returns to the Empire State. Individuals filing a New York

The pandemic affects everyone — even cats and dogs that are clearly surprised at the change in routine. Younger children might not understand everything that’s going on, and older ones might realize life has changed but not know how to get clarity from their parents. The current situation is different from anything anyone’s experienced in

Cabania | iStock | Getty Images Plus Congress has passed a $2 trillion coronavirus stimulus bill, and you’re probably already counting up the money you could receive in relief checks — if you’re eligible. Generally, individuals who earn $75,000 or less qualify for $1,200 one-time payments, while couples making $150,000 or less may receive $2,400.

The coronavirus pandemic is far from over, so knowing how to deal with your investments is important, says top investment advisor Ric Edelman. “This is ugly right now, and it is going to get much uglier,” he said, referring to the pandemic. “My biggest concern is that most people have not come to terms with

Small businesses are getting a potential lifeline from Congress. The massive $2 trillion economic rescue package — expected to get final approval from Congress on Friday — includes provisions aimed at helping smaller employers weather the economic storm brought on by the coronavirus pandemic. “We are cautiously optimistic that this will provide the cash flow

An ambulance sits outside the US Capitol in Washington, DC, March 23, 2020, as the Senate continues negotiations on a relief package in response to the outbreak of COVID-19, known as the coronavirus. Saul Loeb | AFP | Getty Images The historic stimulus package Congress is expected to pass  to inject relief into an economy

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) speaks to reporters following the Senate Republican policy luncheon which both President Donald Trump and Vice President Mike Pence attended on March 10, 2020 in Washington, DC. Samuel Corum | Getty Images The federal coronavirus relief bill would allow taxpayers to nab a $300 deduction for charitable giving –

Jamie Grill | Getty Images More than a decade ago, the markets were sent into a tailspin during the financial crisis of 2008-2009. But it turns out investors who left their retirement nest eggs alone fared best. That’s according to research from J.P. Morgan, which used the firm’s own data combined with research from the

katleho Seisa Congress may permit retirees to skip required minimum distributions from their retirement savings. The House coronavirus relief bill, which was released yesterday, contains a provision that waives for 2020 the required minimum distributions from individual retirement accounts and workplace retirement plans. A similar provision is in the latest version of the Senate bill.

Stashing cash in a savings account may give you peace of mind, but little else. In the wake of an emergency rate cut by the Federal Reserve to combat the economic effects of the COVID-19 outbreak, savings interest rates are down significantly. Although the Fed has no direct influence on deposit rates, those tend to be correlated to changes in the target federal funds

Rep Ilhan Omar (D-MN) takes part in a discussion on “Impacts of Phobia in Our Civic and Political Discourse” during the Muslim Caucus Education Collective’s conference in Washington, July 23, 2019. Kevin Lamarque | Reuters Democratic Reps. Ilhan Omar of Minnesota and Ayanna Pressley of Massachusetts introduced legislation on Monday that would suspend student loan

US Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos Saul Loeb | AFP | Getty Images U.S. Department of Education Secretary Betsy DeVos announced on Friday that student loan borrowers could put their monthly payments on pause for at least 60 days during the coronavirus outbreak.  DeVos said this pause, coupled with the suspension of interest on student