You’ve heard of home equity lines of credit (HELOCs) and home equity loans, which let you borrow against the value of your home, getting ready cash for renovations, debt consolidation or anything else. But jumping through the income-qualification hoops that characterize much home-based financing may be difficult for borrowers with…
Key takeaways The NCUA (National Credit Union Administration) insures credit union deposits up to $250,000 per depositor, per institution, per ownership category. NCUA insurance provides the same protection as FDIC insurance at banks. Both are backed by the full faith and credit of the U.S. government. Joint accounts receive $250,000…
Key takeaways CD early withdrawal penalties typically cost 60 to 365 days of interest, with longer terms carrying steeper penalties. Breaking a CD early may be worth it if you need funds to avoid high-interest debt, make a major down payment, or lock in significantly higher rates. CD early withdrawal…
Key takeaways The Federal Reserve’s decisions significantly impact the economy, influencing borrowing costs for consumers, the job market and inflation. The Fed’s monetary policy has shifted significantly over the years, from combating high inflation in the 1980s to dealing with recessions and financial crises in the 2000s and 2010s. The…
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The nation’s 75 million Social Security recipients will receive a 2.8% cost of living adjustment (COLA) increase in their benefits…
Historically Black colleges and universities are on the frontlines of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act’s new limits on parent…
The big new fees JPMorgan Chase is planning to charge some financial technology companies may well trickle down to consumers,…
With artificial intelligence beginning to eat away at many white-collar entry-level jobs, and the unemployment rate for recent college graduates…
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Hispanolistic/GettyImages; Illustration by Hunter Newton/Bankrate Key takeaways Offered by many financial institutions, online bill pay is typically a free, secure service that enables consumers to make various types of payments electronically. Payments made via online bill pay can be made using a website or an…
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2. Coaching and Tutoring Take stock of your areas of expertise – maybe you speak a second language or solving math equations comes…
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OBSERVATIONS FROM THE FINTECH SNARK TANKBankers wants to discuss AI strategy. They’re excited about chatbots, machine learning models, generative AI tools, and AI…
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Image by PM Images/Getty Images; Illustration by Hunter Newton/Bankrate Mortgage rates reversed course to edge higher this week, with the 30-year fixed rate averaging 6.31 percent, up from 6.25 percent the previous week, according to Bankrate’s latest lender survey. Current mortgage rates Loan type Current 4 weeks ago One year…
Daniel Acker/Bloomberg via Getty Images Key takeaways Most banks are closed on the 11 holidays when the Federal Reserve is closed. You can usually find alternative ways to bank when your bank isn’t open. A bank holiday, like a weekend, can affect how long it takes for funds from a…
Congratulations, you left that old job behind! Everything is in front of you now. Well, except for that old 401(k). Don’t forget about that because that is your future, and you need to keep a close eye on it. Unfortunately, bringing your 401(k) along isn’t as easy as cleaning out…
A larger share of women than men aren’t saving for the future and could miss out on hundreds of thousands of dollars over their lifetime as a result, a Bankrate national opinion poll found. Bankrate’s retirement savings survey found that more than a quarter of women (28%) working full-time, part-time…
Cassandra Gucwa was crying in frustration in her office closet shortly after her employer was acquired by a larger conglomerate in 2012. Hundreds of employees were now mixing into her workspace, and the vibe in the office shifted from collaborative to competitive. “It was just so difficult to work your…
Building wealth is hard. For women, it’s even harder. Women typically earn less than men. When trying to move up, many find that bias is still the norm in many corners of the American workplace. They’re more likely to take breaks from work or shift to lower-paying jobs to raise…
Key takeaways Discover’s rotating cash back categories offer cardholders the chance to earn 5 percent back (after activation) on up to $1,500 combined spending on qualifying purchases each quarter (then 1 percent). Categories tend to align with seasonal themes and common spending patterns. Each of the rotating categories cards also…
The median age of first-time homebuyers has risen to 40 — the highest it has ever been, according to new data from the National Association of Realtors.It’s not as though first-time homebuyers needed any more bad news, but that’s what they got with this dreary statistic, which tops last year’s…
Dear Abby, You probably won’t earn as much money as a man who does the same work for most of your career. I know this makes you mad. It makes me mad, too. This gender pay gap has been a problem in America for decades. Women earned 61 cents for…
Illustration by Bankrate / Getty Images While the gender wage gap has narrowed over time, Census Bureau data shows it remains pervasive across the country. In every state, and even in the nation’s capital, women still earn less than men on average. Some states fare worse than others, including Louisiana,…
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