The Federal Reserve’s 2022 Survey of Consumer Finances reported that retirement plan participation hit its highest level since 2010. The same survey reported that mean balances for participants in the bottom half of the…
On a recent NerdWallet Smart Money Podcast segment, the host worked through a scenario any retirement-minded homeowner has considered. Take a $1,000 mortgage payment. Throw it at principal and you save interest. Invest that…
On a recent Smart Money Happy Hour episode titled “Ritzy vs. Regular: Reacting to Social Events in Every Class,” co-host George Kamel laid down a one-line rule for bachelorette weekends, destination weddings and family…
On a recent episode of Suze Orman’s Women & Money, Orman broke a rule she has preached for decades. A 66-year-old single caller named Nancy asked whether she should lease or buy her next…
Seniors who get most or all of their retirement income from Social Security tend to rely on the program’s annual cost-of-living adjustments, or COLAs, in a really big way. Without those COLAs, seniors would…
The Federal Reserve’s 2022 Survey of Consumer Finances delivered a headline that sounded like progress for ordinary households: 58% of American families now hold stock either directly or through retirement and mutual fund accounts,…
Is 18 credits cards too many? What about 30? A California listener named Perry called into The Clark Howard Podcast recently to ask about credit card churning. “I have maybe 18 credit cards, most…
The American dream of graduating from college and landing a great job isn’t the reality in 2026. Recent college graduates have a higher unemployment rate than the national average (5.7% vs. 4.3%). Far worse…
The Federal Reserve’s 2022 Survey of Consumer Finances, the most recent triennial snapshot of household balance sheets, reported that the median debt-payment-to-income ratio for indebted families fell to 13.4%, the lowest level ever recorded.…
The Federal Reserve’s 2022 Survey of Consumer Finances captured a housing market split into two Americas. For homeowners, the three years from 2019 to 2022 produced the single largest jump in housing wealth on…
Margaret recently phoned into The Clark Howard Podcast, wondering what to do with the Health Savings Account (HSA) left behind at a former employer. The plan has high fees and few investment options. “Move…
Most people walk into a retirement conversation asking the wrong question. They want to know whether 62, 65, or 67 is the right age to stop working. The number that actually decides the outcome…
When the Federal Reserve opted to hold interest rates steady in April, it didn’t necessarily come as a huge surprise. The Fed hiked rates aggressively to cool inflation in the wake of the…
The Federal Reserve made headlines in April by choosing to hold interest rates steady, extending an ongoing pause. Of course, that pause wasn’t exactly a surprise, as current market volatility continues to influence central…
Replacing a $75,000 salary with dividends means replacing a real skilled-worker paycheck, the kind earned by many nurses, electricians, accountants, sales representatives, and experienced technicians. The math is simple: divide your income target by…
