The financial news that actually matters
American households carrying credit-card debt face a sharp warning sign: 13 percent of credit-card balances are now at least 90 days past due, the highest share recorded since 2011. The milestone arrives as the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation publishes its latest system-wide data on bank asset quality, and it raises direct questions about whether lenders…
Freelancers, gig workers, and anyone with income that escapes regular paycheck withholding face a clear federal threshold: if the gap between what they owe and what has already been withheld reaches $1,000, the IRS expects them to send quarterly estimated payments throughout the year. Missing that obligation triggers an automatic penalty calculated on each late…
Workers who get married, welcome a baby, or pick up a second job during the year often discover the consequences months later, when a tax return reveals hundreds or even thousands of dollars owed to the IRS. The agency itself warns that these common life changes can throw paycheck withholding out of alignment with actual…
Two U.S. banks have shut their doors in 2026, and the second closure came just weeks ago. On May 1, Georgia regulators seized Community Bank and Trust, a small lender based in LaGrange, Georgia, after determining the institution was insolvent. That followed the January 30 failure of Metropolitan Capital Bank and Trust in Chicago, which…
American consumers saw prices climb at the fastest pace in three years, with the Personal Consumption Expenditures price index rising 4.1% from May 2025 to May 2026. That annual increase, the largest since April 2023, landed just days after Federal Reserve officials wrapped their June 16–17 policy meeting without signaling any near-term rate cuts. For…
Homeowners who bought in fast-appreciating markets a decade ago now face a tax question that can swing their after-sale proceeds by tens of thousands of dollars. Under federal law, married couples filing jointly can exclude up to $500,000 of gain from the sale of a primary residence, while single filers can exclude up to $250,000….
American households already stretched by high prices got more bad news this week: the Federal Reserve’s preferred inflation gauge accelerated in May, and the central bank’s own officials now project that core price growth will stay above 3 percent through the end of 2026. The core personal consumption expenditures price index, which strips out volatile…
Bank customers across the United States lost a combined $12.5 billion to fraud in 2024, and one of the fastest-growing tactics behind those losses is deceptively simple: a phone call or text that appears to come from a trusted bank. Federal regulators and law enforcement are now pressing the same countermeasure on every account holder….
American borrowers lost roughly 1.73 million vehicles to repossession in 2024, the highest annual total since 2009 and a 16 percent jump from the prior year. The estimate, produced by Cox Automotive, signals that the financial strain from pandemic-era vehicle purchases is now hitting households hard enough to cost them their cars. Behind the numbers…
Lower-income workers who put money into a retirement account can claim a federal tax credit worth up to $1,000 per person, or $2,000 for married couples filing jointly. The Retirement Savings Contributions Credit, commonly called the Saver’s Credit, applies a percentage of 50%, 20%, or 10% to qualified contributions capped at $2,000 per eligible individual….