If you’re someone who likes to return and exchange gifts after the holidays, prepare yourself: Making returns could feel a little different this year. “It’s going to be hard for consumers to navigate,” says shopping expert Trae Bodge. “The return policies are all over the place.” The biggest change, she adds, is that more retailers […]
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This week’s money news
This week’s top story: How to overcome the challenges buying a house in 2024. In other news: How to put a ting on it and save for a house, too, what documents to protect and how if a disaster strikes, and how the Fed affected your savings account in ’23 and what’s next. Buying a House […]
Q&A: Closing credit cards could hurt scores
Dear Liz: If I have a few credit cards, why would my credit be negatively affected if I paid off and closed some? Answer: Your credit scores won’t be negatively affected by paying off your card balances — quite the opposite. Paying off debt improves your credit utilization — the amount of your available credit you’re actively […]
Q&A: Social Security benefits for exes
Dear Liz: I divorced after three decades of marriage, and my ex remarried before age 60. If I understand Social Security’s rules correctly, that remarriage disqualified my ex from claiming a survivor’s benefit based on my work history. Here’s my question: If my ex’s current spouse dies before he does, does that then make him eligible […]
Q&A: Their 529 college savings plans have a problem: The students graduated. Now what?
Dear Liz: My adult children both have money left in 529 accounts that I control as well as uncashed savings bonds given by generous grandparents. We were able to get them through college without needing the funds, but neither has decided to continue with graduate education and the funds have been stranded because of the high tax rate on non-education […]
Investing for retirement — Why you might want to reconsider that 403(b)
Like many other educators, high school science teacher Robert Curtiss of Dearborn, Michigan, thought he was doing the right thing by investing in his school district’s 403(b) retirement plan. Then federal regulators charged the company handling Curtiss’ investments with fraud. In July 2022, the Securities and Exchange Commission said Equitable Financial Life Insurance Co. had […]