A week that centered on the Federal Reserve's direction and the future of interest rates finished in a fitting way, with stocks retreating Friday in response to hawkish commentary from one of the Fed's members. While the Fed's latest policy announcem

The Nasdaq Composite pressed higher Thursday, to within just a few points of a fresh closing record, flipping the script on how the technology-heavy index has acted for much of 2021. The Federal Reserve yesterday revealed higher expectations for infl

Washington has just added a 12th federal holiday – Juneteenth, or June 19, which commemorates the end of slavery in the U.S. – to the calendar. Among the questions that have arisen from the speedy advancement of the holiday's legislation is: Will the

The first quarter of 2021 saw America's billionaires modify a host of their stock holdings, whether they were adding or reducing positions. And many of the wealthiest insiders have been selling stock in large quantities so far this year. According to

Harry Chapin’s song Cat’s in the Cradle is a poignant reminder about how we are all getting older, and real estate investors are no exception. After years — or even decades — of being landlords, many are coming to a crossroads.  “So now what?” says t

If you’re like many people who are considering hiring a fee-only fiduciary investment adviser, you might be wondering what does “fee-only” really mean, and why is it important? How much are these fees? What are they based on? What do they pay for, an

The writing on the wall – that the clock is ticking on near-zero interest rates – grew increasingly clear Wednesday as the Federal Reserve projected higher benchmark rates by the end of 2023 in its latest policy announcement. The Fed's statement, rel

Whether you’re a novice hobby trader, a seasoned titan of Wall Street, or just beginning to research investing, you’ve probably heard of diversification. At some point, you’ve been casually channel surfing and stumbled upon a financial pundit touting

After a year of challenges and uncertainty, the world is emerging from the pandemic. Even as the economy picks back up and life resumes some semblance of normal, for some people, the long-term impact of the virus on their health may persist for many

Value stocks are not only staging a comeback in 2021, but also setting up to deliver higher returns even further down the road. A revival for value stocks is due at least in part to the recovering U.S. economy. Many value stocks come from cyclical in

Investors have plenty to think about with the Federal Reserve's latest announcement on deck tomorrow, but on Tuesday they were first forced to consider a heaping helping of economic data – and found little to act on. The biggest data point out today:

You know the importance of saving enough money for retirement so that you have readily available sources of funds to augment your guaranteed income from Social Security and any pensions. But did you also know that how you go about converting your ass

Enrolling in an employer’s 401(k) plan can be one of the easiest ways for a worker to save for retirement. If you’re new to 401(k)s, it may seem prudent to do whatever the guy sitting next to you says he did — especially if the enrollment forms are i

The American Rescue Plan offers American families a bigger and better child tax credit for 2021. For this year only, the credit amount for many families is increased from $2,000 per child to $3,000 per kid ($3,600 for children under age six), 17-year

The technology sector and other tech-related stocks showed signs of life on an otherwise slow Monday, and a small afternoon burst helped the Nasdaq Composite and S&P 500 rewrite the record books. Foremost on investors' minds is likely the upcoming Fe

Amazon Prime Day -- really days, but who’s counting? -- is set to launch at midnight June 21 and roll straight through June 22. Amazon has historically hosted its Prime Day in July -- Christmas-in-July fireworks, so to speak, to ignite a typically du

Want to put money into a Roth IRA but earn too much? Use the “backdoor” Roth IRA strategy.  Unlike traditional IRAs, the Roth version has an income threshold. The ability to make a direct contribution to a Roth IRA phases out for single filers with a

Stocks started Friday with gains but lost steam as the day wore on, even as the latest consumer sentiment data came in better than expected. After yesterday's consumer price index release, which showed inflation is indeed on the rise, today's economi

If you get hit with a higher premium for Medicare Part B and Part D that you think is unjustified, you can ask Social Security to revisit that decision and perhaps reduce the cost. "You should go through the appeals process if you believe you qualify

Divorce is becoming more common among people 50 and older – so common, in fact, that it has its own name: “gray divorce.”  There are often major changes to someone’s finances and lifestyle after the divorce, but the sooner you face your new financial

The schedule for paying federal estimated taxes is back to normal this year. In 2020, the first two payments were pushed back to July 15 because of the pandemic. But we're back to the usual estimated tax payment due dates for 2021, even though the fe

When it comes to retirement and financial planning, much of the talk revolves around people in their 60s and older who are fast approaching the day they retire or may have already reached it. Lost in that discussion are people in their 40s and 50s wh

Retirement is the longest vacation you will ever take. To get the most out of that special time, which rewards all your years of hard work, retirement requires careful and precise planning. But the reality is, most people spend more time planning a d

Millions of Americans will start new jobs this year. With the pandemic drastically changing how, when and where we work, a fall 2020 survey by resources software company Ceridian found that sixty-four percent of all workers were actively looking or o

If you have recently graduated from college or graduate school with student loans, you might be wondering what to do about your loans. How long will it take to pay off the debt? How much would you have to pay monthly? When do you start the repayment?

Memorial Day is the traditional start to summer, and 2021's day of commemoration is sure to feel a little more normal than 2020's. The annual rituals of opening up the pool, running across a sandy beach and throwing a backyard cookout were on hold ac

The handful of investors that stuck around today ahead of the long holiday weekend (U.S. stock markets will be closed Monday for Memorial Day) weren't fazed by the latest sign of rising inflation. "The Fed's favorite inflation indicator – the core pe

When does the stock market open? Well ... it depends. Regular trading hours for the U.S. stock market, including the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) and the Nasdaq Stock Market (Nasdaq), are 9:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. Eastern time on weekdays (except stock m

There's one commodity that's worth its weight in gold right now. And at this point, it may be worth more than its weight in gold. We're not talking about Bitcoin, diamonds or some other "precious" material. We're talking about the 2x4 at your local h

The U.S. economy is officially on the mend and entering the expansionary stage of the business cycle. The Federal Reserve now expects U.S. GDP to grow at an annualized rate of 6.5% in 2021, up from the 4.2% it had forecast in December 2020. Fiscal an