Personal finance

Ungureanu Vadim | EyeEm | Getty Images Many student loan borrowers were suffering when the pandemic shuttered the economy. Americans collectively hold more than $1.6 trillion in student debt. According to credit monitoring service Experian, Gen Z saw their student debt balances increase by 9% from the first quarter of 2018 to the first quarter of 2019 —

Student loan borrowers could see big changes over the next few months. pcess609 Former Vice President Joe Biden made an announcement in April that was mostly drowned out by more and more alarming developments of the coronavirus pandemic: As president, he would forgive undergraduate federal student loan debt picked up at public colleges for those

Senator Ron Wyden, a Democrat from Oregon and ranking member of the Senate Finance Committee, speaks during a hearing in Washington, D.C., U.S., on June 9 about unemployment insurance during the Covid-19 pandemic. Leah Millis/Reuters/Bloomberg via Getty Images The enhanced unemployment benefits supporting household income for millions of jobless Americans will soon lapse. Lawmakers, scrambling

This past April was a month Tom Nigro will never forget. As a certified registered nurse anesthetist, Nigro was well-equipped to serve victims of the coronavirus and moved that month from his apartment in Milwaukee to New York City – then the epicenter of the pandemic. On April 8, for example, more than 5,581 New

Jason Stitt | Getty Images Millions of Americans put a second round of $1,200 stimulus checks on their wish lists. But Congress has yet to decide exactly what the next version of coronavirus stimulus legislation will look like. If House Democrats have their way, a second batch of checks would be deployed to qualifying Americans.

Closed businesses on May 21, 2020, in Baltimore, Maryland. (Photo by Salwan Georges/The Washington Post via Getty Images) Lawmakers should replace a $600 unemployment supplement for jobless workers with a maximum $400 a week, according to a new proposal issued by a group of powerhouse economists.  The proposal comes as Democrats and Republicans debate the merits

Jay Clayton, chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission, warned Wednesday about the risks of tapping 401(k) retirement money and using it for riskier investments during the coronavirus pandemic.  As part of the CARES Act,  Congress approved a change to let people withdraw up to $100,000 from their 401(k) or IRA accounts this year without having to

Yellow Dog Productions The U.S. economy is restarting and millions of unemployed Americans are returning to work.    Yet that positive trajectory may not last. Many newly employed Americans could be furloughed or laid off again. Officials in areas like New York have discussed renewed lockdown measures as citizens flaunt social distancing rules. Houston may

Students at the Bradley-Bourbonnais Community High School graduation ceremony on May 06, 2020 in Bradley, Illinois. Scott Olson The future is suddenly looking very different for new high school graduates thanks to the coronavirus pandemic. In fact, 49% of the Class of 2020 have changed their plans as a result of the crisis, according to

Klaus Vedfelt | Getty Images Many companies have made big promises in recent weeks when it comes to improving racial diversity. Yet investors may be wondering whether the stocks they own include companies that have made racial inclusion a priority. One index is aiming to provide a measure for that. The Morningstar Minority Empowerment Index

Labor Secretary Eugene Scalia testifies before a Senate Finance Committee hearing on unemployment insurance on Capitol Hill in Washington on Tuesday, June 9, 2020. (Pool photo by Caroline Brehman-Pool/Getty Images) Amid the recent good news about stronger-than-expected job growth in May, some economists have eyed one labor statistic with a sense of bewilderment. Specifically, the

Restaurants in San Francisco began opening patios and sidewalks to diners for the first time in three months as of June 12. Photographer: David Paul Morris/Bloomberg via Getty Images States are reopening and millions of people have returned to work. In some cases, those workers may be able to continue collecting unemployment benefits. That pay

Karen Ducey | Getty Images So you’ve enrolled in Medicare and have determined that a supplement plan — aka, “Medigap” — is an appropriate add-on for you.  There may be more decisions to make. While Medigap policies are standardized regardless of which insurance company sells them and where you live, the premiums can vary from

Larry Kudlow, director of the U.S. National Economic Council, speaks to members of the media outside the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S., on Monday, June 15, 2020. Photographer: Stefani Reynolds/CNP/Bloomberg via Getty Images The Trump administration wants to end enhanced unemployment benefits and replace them with a different policy, according to a senior aide.

katleho Seisa Word on the street was that the stock market was immune to the coronavirus pandemic. We wished.  Stocks have been gyrating this week and last on news that virus rates could surge as businesses around the country re-open and social distancing practices are relaxed. Since the start of 2020, the S&P 500 Index is

When the coronavirus crisis hit New York, many of the city’s wealthiest families went elsewhere. Without knowing what the fall will look like, some are debating if they will return to New York at all, which could open up an unprecedented number of spots at even the most elite institutions, according to Emily Glickman, president

Students at the University of Washington in Seattle on campus for last day of in-person classes on March 6. Karen Ducey The coronavirus pandemic and resulting economic recession have many college students scrambling to reduce costs. Some may opt to go to a state college instead of a private one, or commute rather than live

Image Source | Getty Images Many Americans are at risk of not receiving their $1,200 stimulus checks. Now, research estimates that as many as 12 million people could go without the payments due to them. That’s according to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, a non-partisan research and policy institute. The center based its

Matt Marfoglia, a waiter at the Tasting Kitchen in Los Angeles, was furloughed in March. Enhanced unemployment benefits are helping him make ends meet financially, but they may end after July. Matt Marfoglia Matt Marfoglia was living paycheck to paycheck before the coronavirus pandemic. Now, while unemployed, he’s barely scraping by.  The 51-year-old was furloughed

It won’t be long before that blissful reprieve from having to worry about filing taxes comes to a close — July 15 is Tax Day. While the process may be a headache, it doesn’t necessarily have to come with a cost, as well. If you haven’t yet filed your return, it’s worth checking to see