Warren Cohen, Author at The Financial Wire

Title: Federal National Mortgage Association, or "Fannie Mae," headquarters building in Washington, D.C Physical description: 1 transparency : color ; 4 x 5 in. or smaller Notes: Title, date, and keywords provided by the photographer.; Digital image produced by Carol M. Highsmith to represent her original film transparency; some details may differ between the film and the digital images.; Forms part of the Selects Series in the Carol M. Highsmith Archive.; Gift and purchase; Carol M. Highsmith; 2011; (DLC/PP-2011:124).; Credit line: Photographs in the Carol M. Highsmith Archive, Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division.

Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, and the FHA just opened mortgage lending to VantageScore 4.0 — and FICO 10T historical credit data starts publishing this summer for a broader 2027 rollout

Warren Cohen3 months ago3 months ago05 mins

Mortgage borrowers gained a new option on April 22, 2026, when the Federal Housing Finance Agency, the FHA, Fannie Mae, and Freddie Mac simultaneously cleared VantageScore 4.0 for use in home loan underwriting. The move breaks a decades-long period in which FICO was the only credit scoring model accepted by the government-sponsored enterprises and the…

The 2026 Earned Income Tax Credit pays up to $7,830 for families with 3 or more qualifying children — but earned income above $59,899 single makes you ineligible entirely

Warren Cohen3 months ago3 months ago08 mins

Working families with three or more children stand to receive a larger Earned Income Tax Credit in 2026, with the maximum credit rising to $8,231, up from $8,046 for tax year 2025. But the credit phases out entirely once a single filer’s earned income crosses the threshold, creating a sharp cutoff that can erase thousands…

Business woman phone call and overwhelmed in office with paperwork laptop and proposal in agency Chaos deadline and tech with multitasking stress and burnout with documents and busy staff

COBRA premiums now average $584 a month for individual coverage and $1,640 for family coverage — laid-off workers pay 102% of the full group rate without the employer’s contribution

Warren Cohen3 months ago3 months ago09 mins

Workers who lose employer-sponsored health insurance and elect to continue it through COBRA face a steep financial cliff: they must cover the entire premium their employer once subsidized, plus an administrative surcharge, at the exact moment their paycheck disappears. Federal law caps what plans can charge at 102 percent of the total cost, but for…

a woman sitting at a table using a laptop computer

Mortgage rates sit at 6.53% — but borrowers are paying $190 a month more than the 10-year Treasury yield would suggest, the widest mortgage-bond spread since 1990

Warren Cohen3 months ago3 months ago08 mins

Homebuyers locking in a 30-year fixed mortgage are absorbing a cost penalty that has not been this steep in more than three decades. The gap between the average mortgage rate and the 10-year Treasury yield has ballooned to levels last seen around 1990, adding roughly $190 a month to a typical borrower’s payment compared with…

Modern apartment buildings against a blue sky.

Apartment vacancies hit 7.8% in Q1 — the highest since 1989 — as 712,000 new units delivered in 2025 finally outpaced renter demand

Warren Cohen3 months ago3 months ago09 mins

Renters across the United States gained bargaining power in early 2026 as apartment vacancies climbed to levels not seen in years, driven by a wave of new construction that finally exceeded the pace at which tenants signed leases. The headline claim of a 7.8% vacancy rate and 712,000 new units delivered in 2025 captures the…

The Saver’s Match starts in 2027 — but only workers earning under $20,500 single or $41,000 joint qualify for the full $1,000 federal retirement-contribution match

Warren Cohen3 months ago3 months ago09 mins

Millions of lower-income workers who set aside even small amounts for retirement will soon be eligible for a direct federal deposit into their retirement accounts, but the income thresholds are tight enough to shut out a large share of the workforce. Starting with taxable years beginning after December 31, 2026, the federal government will match…

CMS comments close June 15 on a rule forcing Medicare drug plans to approve prior authorization within 72 hours — 24 hours for urgent requests

Warren Cohen3 months ago3 months ago09 mins

Millions of people enrolled in Medicare Advantage, Medicaid, CHIP, and federal marketplace plans could see drug prior authorization decisions arrive days faster under a proposed federal rule now open for public comment until June 15, 2026. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) wants to require health plans to approve or deny standard drug…

Three credit cards: Visa, Mastercard and American Express.

Visa and Mastercard’s $38 billion settlement cuts merchant swipe fees by 0.1 points for 5 years — and lets stores surcharge or refuse premium consumer rewards cards

Warren Cohen3 months ago3 months ago08 mins

Millions of U.S. merchants that accept Visa and Mastercard stood to see modest relief from credit card swipe fees under a proposed settlement valued at roughly $30 billion, but a federal judge has now blocked the deal, calling it “not likely” to survive final approval. The ruling throws the future of interchange fee reform back…

Community mailboxes with multiple residents retrieving their mail from a shared mailbox system

The IRS Form 1099-DA arrives in mailboxes this fall — every crypto trade settled at a U.S. broker through 2025 is now reported to the IRS automatically by name

Warren Cohen3 months ago3 months ago08 mins

Millions of Americans who traded cryptocurrency through a U.S. broker during 2025 will receive a new tax form when filing season arrives next year. Form 1099-DA, created by the IRS to report digital asset proceeds from broker transactions, will be sent to both taxpayers and the agency, ending the era when many custodial crypto trades…

three men laughing while looking in the laptop inside room

Student loan borrowers have 29 days to leave the SAVE plan — miss July 1 and the government auto-enrolls you in Standard Repayment by September

Warren Cohen3 months ago3 months ago09 mins

Federal student loan borrowers still enrolled in the SAVE plan face a hard deadline: starting July 1, servicers will begin sending notices directing them to pick a new repayment option. Those who fail to act within 90 days of receiving that notice will be automatically placed into the Standard Repayment Plan, which typically carries higher…

Warren Cohen

Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, and the FHA just opened mortgage lending to VantageScore 4.0 — and FICO 10T historical credit data starts publishing this summer for a broader 2027 rollout

The 2026 Earned Income Tax Credit pays up to $7,830 for families with 3 or more qualifying children — but earned income above $59,899 single makes you ineligible entirely

COBRA premiums now average $584 a month for individual coverage and $1,640 for family coverage — laid-off workers pay 102% of the full group rate without the employer’s contribution

Mortgage rates sit at 6.53% — but borrowers are paying $190 a month more than the 10-year Treasury yield would suggest, the widest mortgage-bond spread since 1990

Apartment vacancies hit 7.8% in Q1 — the highest since 1989 — as 712,000 new units delivered in 2025 finally outpaced renter demand

The Saver’s Match starts in 2027 — but only workers earning under $20,500 single or $41,000 joint qualify for the full $1,000 federal retirement-contribution match

CMS comments close June 15 on a rule forcing Medicare drug plans to approve prior authorization within 72 hours — 24 hours for urgent requests

Visa and Mastercard’s $38 billion settlement cuts merchant swipe fees by 0.1 points for 5 years — and lets stores surcharge or refuse premium consumer rewards cards

The IRS Form 1099-DA arrives in mailboxes this fall — every crypto trade settled at a U.S. broker through 2025 is now reported to the IRS automatically by name

Student loan borrowers have 29 days to leave the SAVE plan — miss July 1 and the government auto-enrolls you in Standard Repayment by September

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