I am married, but we are both different people, and I get the feeling my husband doesn’t even like me. He’s too tired to leave, and we don’t have anything but bills. He doesn’t have a driver’s license, and he won’t even go to court to pay his fines and get it back. He’s content…
Generation Z is getting smarter about their money, with some starting to invest even before they turn 18, according to a new report. The survey by FINRA Investor Education Foundation and the CFA Institute, which defines Generation Z as those aged between 18 to 25, concluded that 6 in 10 owned at least some investments….
Financial Literacy Month puts a spotlight on the financial knowledge Americans are supposed to know and often don’t. But what about financial knowledge that we think we know, but should reconsider? When it comes to money, we pick up lessons from a mish-mash of sources ranging from parents to TikTok videos to high school classes….
I’m a 46-year-old woman, and single mother to a 14-year-old boy. I bought a centrally located house in Miami after the housing market crash in 2010 for $167,000. The house is small but has a big lot in front of it, and I currently owe $128,000. The house is now worth about $400,000. I have…
Hi, MarketWatchers. Don’t miss these top stories. Where did laid-off tech and media workers go? They’ve found jobs in these industries. More than 199,000 global technology-sector employees have been laid off so far in 2023. Read More We bought a falling-down 100-year-old home. We tried to renovate, but things took a turn for the worse….
Dear Quentin, My brother-in-law is being honored by an organization that provides medical assistance to children of families who can’t afford their treatments. I was included on the email invitation, and the ticket price is $375 per person. I feel that it is unfair to ask an individual to incur such an expense. I feel…
Americans want to travel this summer, but they’re stressed out about money. Luckily, experts say there are ways to find cheap flights — but it may require a bit of detective work. “All estimates show that it’s going to really be a busy summer,” Ben Ayers, a senior economist at Nationwide Economics, told MarketWatch. The…
The housing market has cooled in recent years, but it’s still hot in some parts of the U.S. “It’s an exciting time to be a realtor in Gainesville,” said Dani Burns, who joined the real-estate profession 21 years ago, and who now works with Keller Williams Lanier Partners. Out of the 15 homes she’s sold…
Paying servers the minimum wage has influenced tipping practices in the U.S. Many folks were taught that you should tip 18% or 20% — unless the service is outright horrendous. But wait staff are already making the minimum wage in many cities and, if you add the tips they earn, they are oftentimes making significantly…
I’m disabled, 52, and have one minor son. My boyfriend has his own house, and also has a minor child still living at home, as well as another son, 24, who is living at home and is employed as his younger son’s babysitter. He stays at my place, probably five out of seven nights, but…
Protecting your retirement in the face of a potential recession means taking a hard look at your financial plan and making sure you have enough of a safety net if the economy falters later this year or next year. As many as two-thirds (67%) of U.S. adults expect the economy will enter into recession later…
During my lengthy career in finance, I picked up several market heuristics that have generally proven more useful than not. Every January, for example, I remember the “five-day rule,” which holds that if the S&P 500’s SPX, -0.14% accumulated performance is positive over the first five days of the new year, there is around an…
Our tipping culture is out of control. It has become mandatory, and forced upon us. It has lost its cause. It’s not a gratuity anymore, it’s become another tax. Consumers are forced to help merchants to pay workers after paying merchants for the service. One time, I tried to donate money online, and was asked…
The first-quarter dip never happened. Some observers say that’s a problem. Credit-card balances hit $986 billion in the fourth quarter last year and remained largely unchanged in the first quarter of this year, the Federal Reserve Bank of New York said in its most recent quarterly report on household debt. It looks increasingly likely that…
My wife and I enjoy two week-long vacations a year to the local seashore, and we generally live well within our means. I’m convinced we can afford a new-car payment, but my wife is convinced it will break us, and that’s a problem. I’m 45 and my wife is 43. My wife and I make…
After a months-long review, the Internal Revenue Service will test a free federal tax-filing pilot program, IRS and Treasury Department officials said Tuesday. Though many details about the pilot program still need to be worked out, the upcoming test run could mark the start of a new, free alternative to paid preparers and tax software…
After six years of flying, U.S.-based flight attendant Allyah McIntyre was used to dealing with difficult passengers. During the earliest days of the coronavirus pandemic, dealing with the few passengers who chose to fly was actually a pleasant experience. But as more people began to book airline tickets again, chaos reigned, she said. “The passengers…
The Internal Revenue Service is the country’s tax collector, but a majority of people like the idea of the agency also becoming a tax preparer that does the job for free, according to a new poll released Monday. In Monday’s poll, 76% of voters said they like the prospect of the IRS creating a no-cost…
As millions of Americans put in orders for flowers, massages, and other treats for Mother’s Day, working mothers spoke to MarketWatch about the “mom tax” or “motherhood penalty” – a toll that impacts women when they become mothers and raise a child, by increasing their responsibility at home and limiting their earnings and income. Women…
My husband lost his business many years ago, and we had to sell our house to pay off his debt. I had a part-time job then because I needed to take care of our two young children. My husband stopped bringing in any income. A few times, he gave me money, but the source was…