Key takeaways The Federal Reserve’s interest-rate decisions have a wide-ranging influence on Americans’ personal finances, affecting their job security, financing costs and the direction of the economy. When the Fed’s key interest rate falls, borrowing costs for consumers also decrease, influencing the cost of financing purchases with credit cards, car…
Images by GettyImages; Illustration by Hunter Newton/Bankrate Index funds are one of the most popular types of investments because of their simplicity, low cost and diversification benefits. In general, index funds seek to replicate the performance of an underlying index comprised of stocks or bonds, which means they aren’t managed…
Can you count a local sports team sponsorship as a business expense? If you discuss your advertising strategy over coffee with your partner, is it considered a business lunch? And just what does a certified public accountant do when you hand them a pile of gas receipts? If you’re a…
Worries about inflation, high interest rates and chaotic global events have kept experts and investors queasy about the stock market and the economy overall. All that fear and uncertainty has led to whispers about another recession or a potential stock market crash—the first since the start of the coronavirus pandemic…
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A perfect storm is brewing for millions of federal student loan borrowers, who may experience dramatic increases in their monthly…
As the Biden administration exits Washington, President-elect Donald Trump inherits a federal student loan system that looks much different than…
Republican lawmakers in Congress are circulating a number of proposals to cut federal spending as part of a massive bill…
Washington is abuzz over whether Congress will address President-elect Donald Trump’s ambitious policy agenda in one bill or two. But…
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Key takeaways You can write checks against a line of credit with credit card convenience checks. Convenience checks are often processed as a cash advance, which can be expensive. It’s a good idea to consider alternatives before using a convenience check to borrow against your…
Dept Managmnt
Key takeaways A balance transfer fee is what credit card issuers charge when you transfer debt, usually credit card debt, to another credit…
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No matter how often bank regulators, international standard setters, rating agencies, or financial reform advocates warn banks that climate change is serious, the…
Credit Cards
Key takeaways The Bank of America® Unlimited Cash Rewards credit card offers a flat 1.5 percent cash back on all purchases. Bank of…
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Hey, we’re not going to geek out on accounting terminology, but to understand tax liability, it’s helpful to be familiar with two basic accounting terms: assets and liabilities. Assets are things you own—think money, property, your collection of obsolete cell phones. Liabilities are money you owe to other people. In other words: Bills…
The 2025 tax season is approaching fast: Do you know how to find your tax bracket? In the U.S., your tax rate is tied to which bracket you fall into, based on your taxable income and filing status. Knowing how to calculate your tax rate — both your effective tax…
An IRA is a tax-advantaged investment account that you can use to save for retirement. Technically, IRA stands for Individual Retirement Arrangement, but the ‘A’ in the acronym is colloquially referred to as an account. IRAs are particularly valuable tools for the 33 percent of private industry workers in the…
Alistair Berg/Getty Images More people are shopping online, and that continues to grow in our heavily online world. According to a Bankrate Social Media Survey, 48 percent of users have made impulse purchases based on something they’ve seen on social media. More business owners are spotting the opportunity in e-commerce,…
Taxes . . . can’t live with ’em, can’t live (in America) without ’em. Whether we like it or not, income taxes are as much a part of American life as baseball and apple pie. And while we groan and grumble as we fill out our tax returns every spring,…
Richard Drury/ Getty Images; Illustration by Austin Courregé/Bankrate As the New Year looms, there’s a new low in home equity lending. The $30,000 HELOC (home equity line of credit) plunged nine basis points to 8.43 percent—rates we haven’t seen in about a year and a half, according to Bankrate’s national…
Key takeaways The average small business loan amount is $663,000, according to the Federal Reserve For fiscal year 2024, the average loan amount for all types of 7(a) loans from the Small Business Administration was $443,097, and the average amount for a 504 loan was $1.11 million Large national banks…
Credit Sesame discusses recovering from a financial setback by rebuilding your credit and confidence. Life is unpredictable, and financial setbacks can happen to anyone. Whether it is a job loss, medical expenses, or unexpected emergencies, these events can disrupt your financial stability and overwhelm you. However, recovery is possible. You…
Wouldn’t it be awesome if you didn’t have to pay taxes? It would be so cool to be able to go out, work hard, and bring that money home without Uncle Sam or one of his 50 little nephews taking a cut. It’s a nice dream, but here in the…
Key takeaways Chase and Wells Fargo feature a range of popular rewards credit cards for consumers and small businesses. Options from both banks include cash back credit cards and travel credit cards that offer point transfers to airline and hotel programs. Before you choose between these two issuers, make sure…
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