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Liz Weston

Thursday’s need-to-know money news

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Today’s top story: This tax status could give single parents a break. Also in the news: What to buy (and skip) in March, how to find out the status of your state refund, and how much 8 emergencies may cost you.

This Tax Status Could Give Single Parents a Break
Filing as head of household.

What to Buy (and Skip) in March
Grab that tax software.

How to Find Out the Status of Your State Tax Refund
Tracking your refund.

This is how much 8 different emergencies may cost you — and you probably can’t afford them
From fires to layoffs.

Wednesday’s need-to-know money news

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Today’s top story: What to do if you haven’t received your tax documents yet. Also in the news: Don’t let the great recession haunt your investing dreams, managing your money when your life brings change, and how to fix these IRA mistakes by April 15th.

Haven’t Got Your Tax Documents Yet? Here’s What to Do
Don’t get stalled on the road to April 15th.

Don’t Let the Great Recession Haunt Your Investing Dreams
Shake off that apprehension.

How to Manage Your Money When Life Brings Change
Adjusting your financial course.

Fix These IRA Mistakes by April 15
Avoid a penalty.

Tuesday’s need-to-know money news

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Today’s top story: How to resist online ads and keep your money. Also in the news: Avoiding a common student loan scam, a NerdWallet special report on home buyers, and why you should schedule an extra student loan payment on the day the interest is lowest.

How to Resist Online Ads and Keep Your Money
Fighting temptation.

She Fell for a Common Student Loan Scam. You Don’t Have To
Don’t get duped.

Recent Home Buyers Stretched, Future Hunters Optimistic
A NerdWallet special report.

Schedule an Extra Student Loan Payment on the Day the Interest Is Lowest
Make sure the payment is applied correctly.

Should you move abroad for health care?

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The notion that health care outside the U.S. could be good as well as cheap is a foreign one to many Americans.

Kathleen Peddicord frequently hears from such skeptics as founder of Live and Invest Overseas, a site for people curious about living abroad. Actual expats like her, however, tell of good-quality care at a fraction of the U.S. price. Treatment for a motorbike accident in Panama cost her $20. Emergency dental surgery that might cost $10,000 or more in the U.S. was $4,500 in Paris. In many countries, medications that would require a prescription in the States are available directly from licensed pharmacies at low prices, thanks to government subsidies or regulation.

“The health care in a lot of places around the world is very good, as good as in the United States,” says Peddicord, who currently divides her time between Paris and Panama. “Some places, it is better.”

In my latest for the Associated Press, why reduced medical costs could prompt Americans to relocate.

Monday’s need-to-know money news

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Today’s top story: Electric scooter haters could be missing a chance to save money. Also in the news: Picking the wrong money goals, how and when your student loan interest rate may change, and 4 essential tips when teaching young kids about finance.

Are Electric Scooter Haters Missing a Chance to Save Money?
Better for the environment and your wallet?

Are You Picking the Wrong Money Goals?
What you should be focusing on.

Know How and When Your Student Loan Interest Rate May Change
Don’t be caught by surprise.

4 Essential Tips When Teaching Young Kids About Finance
Lifelong lessons.

Q&A: Timing spousal benefits

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Dear Liz: My wife, who is 59, lost her job and has been unable to find a new one. Can she file for Social Security spousal benefits at 62? I plan to continue working.

Answer: For her to receive spousal benefits, you need to be receiving your own benefits. If you’re not yet 62, the youngest age at which you can claim retirement benefits, then her only option would be to file for her own benefit.

That may be the right course in any case. If you’re the bigger earner, it often makes sense for you to put off filing as long as possible to maximize not just your own check but the survivor’s benefit that one of you will have to live on once the other dies.

You can start your research into the best claiming strategy by using free calculators, such as AARP’s Social Security calculator or Open Social Security. If your situation is at all complicated — you have a minor child or a pension from a job that didn’t pay into Social Security — then consider paying about $40 to use a more sophisticated calculator, such as Maximize My Social Security, or consulting with a fee-only financial planner.