Category: personal finance

How to Get the IRS to Waive Your Tax Penalties

Sometime after your tax time, you may get a letter from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) stating there is a problem with your tax forms and taxes you paid—or failed to pay. The letter may also say that you have a tax penalty. The good news is that you may have made a simple mistake…


Has the Recession Already Started? May 2023 Edition

Inflation has been putting pressure on households across the country for over a year now. And while prices have started to decrease again, increasing consumers’ purchasing power in the process, inflation is not yet yesterday’s problem. As you map out your own household budget, it’s easy to spot the continued impact of higher prices. With…


What Is a Gold IRA Rollover?

In today’s uncertain economic climate, many people are looking for ways to hedge their retirement accounts to combat inflation. Gold IRAs allow investors to put their money into precious metals. While many people feel that their standard employer-provided 401(k) will be enough to sustain them through their golden years, more and more people are waking up to…


Don’t Let the Fed Pause Become a Fed Surrender to a Higher Inflation Target Rate

The Federal Reserve announced on June 14 that it has “paused” its relentless pace of interest-rate hikes for the first time in 15 months.  In March,2022, the Fed commenced  hikes, then continued as follows: Fed Meeting Rate Increase  Target Rate March 15–16, 2022 +25 basis points 0.25–0.5 percent May 3–4, 2022 +50 basis points 0.75–1.0…


Some Student Loan Borrowers in Worse Shape After Reprieve: Risk Consultant

The pandemic-era freeze on student loan payments will end soon after three years. Student loan interest will start accruing on Sept. 1 and payments are starting in October. The pause on student loan payments will end this summer regardless of how the Supreme Court rules on President Joe Biden’s plan to forgive billions of dollars…


3 Ways to Create Multiple (Big) Streams of Income

By Andres Tovar How did Elon Musk become one of the richest entrepreneurs in the world? He didn’t start just one company, he was involved in several groundbreaking enterprises including PayPal, SpaceX, and Tesla. The same goes for Richard Branson, who has launched over 400 companies, and Oprah, who has founded or acquired substantial stakes…


Gold Regains Its Luster

By Kim Clark From Kiplinger’s Personal Finance The price of gold has plunged and spiked so dramatically in the past year that investors likely feel woozy. Concerns about war in Europe helped push gold to just over $2,000 an ounce in March 2022. Then, rising interest rates eroded gold’s appeal, and prices fell to the…


Closing Prices for Crude Oil, Gold, and Other Commodities (June 16)

Benchmark U.S. crude oil for July delivery rose $1.16 to $71.78 a barrel Friday. Brent crude for August delivery rose 94 cents to $76.61 a barrel. Wholesale gasoline for July delivery rose 4 cents $2.68 a gallon. July heating oil rose 7 cents to $2.55 a gallon. July natural gas rose 10 cents to $2.63…


How Major US Stock Indexes Fared June 16

Wall Street closed out its best week since March on a quiet note. The S&P 500 fell 0.4 percent Friday after wobbling up and down through the day. The benchmark index still marked its fifth straight winning week, its longest such streak since November 2021. It’s also near its highest level since April 2022. The…


Franchise Businesses, DEI, and Wall Street: FTC to the Rescue?

Commentary The promise of franchise businesses is that any schmuck with the money to buy one, the grit to do it, and the extraordinary work ethic required to run a business can be successful—and even become wealthy beyond their wildest dreams. No highfalutin Ivy League college degree (let alone an MBA!) to succeed in business;…