Accumulated debt, unpaid bills, and a general lack of reserve funds can make talking about estate planning with parents difficult. Don’t wait until the meeting with an estate attorney to discuss money woes, as it can add an extra layer of emotion to an already difficult conversation. “For so many, the estate planning discussion is already uncomfortable, and understandably so,” said Ashley Agnew, financial therapist and director at Centerpoint Advisors, LLC, in Massachusetts, via an email with The Balance....

Types of Bonuses The most common—and rewarding—types of bonuses include cash bonuses for opening new accounts. To qualify, you typically need to bring new assets into the bank and meet additional requirements. Checking Accounts Checking account bonuses are the easiest to find because they’re most likely to pay off for banks and credit unions. To earn the bonus, you may need to set up direct deposit into your account, make a significant deposit, use your debit card multiple times per month, and leave your money in the account for several months....

According to videoconferencing technology firm Owl Labs’ State of Remote Work 2020 report, 70% of full-time U.S. workers are working from home, and 75% of them are as productive or more productive while working remotely. Stress, Burnout, and Productivity The extra productivity spurred by remote work can come at a price. The lines between work and home are blurred, and if you’re feeling overwhelmed and overworked, you’re not alone. Is taking on more work contributing to your stress levels?...

LinkedIn Page Follow, also sometimes called LinkedIn Company Follow, is a tool job seekers can use for researching employers and discovering contacts at organizations where they might like to work. It is also a way to receive updates about a company. Explore more of the benefits of using this tool, and get detailed instructions on how to follow a company on LinkedIn. The Benefits of Following a Company A company’s page has information about the organization....

While there are many ways to value a stock, a few basic tools are universal. Today, we’ll touch on the most universal valuation tool of all, the P/E ratio, as well as how useful it is for retail stock investing. Understanding EPS and P/E Unfortunately, a “value” stock is not simply the cheapest priced stock you can find. A $2 stock can be, and often is, much more expensive than a $200 stock....

Don’t count on employers to keep you informed about the status of your application. Research shows that only 22% of companies communicate with candidates in a timely manner. You might need to reach out to determine your status. You may not get a reply, but it’s worth spending the time it takes to follow up with the employer. Here’s how to follow up on a job application, with advice on what to write and examples of email follow-up messages....

Pass-Through Businesses and Income Taxes Some businesses pass their earnings and losses to their owners, who pay income taxes on their share of the business’s taxable income. These are called “pass-through” taxes. Businesses that are pass-through tax entities: Sole proprietorshipsLimited liability companiesPartnershipsS corporations Here’s an explanation of how pass-through taxes work: Self-Employment Tax for Business Owners Owners of pass-through businesses also must pay self-employment tax (Social Security/Medicare tax) on their business income....

Times Are Changing Insurers have gotten skittish since then due to issues like mold and asbestos. Buyers can no longer count on getting homeowner’s coverage as a matter of course. You might find that the home you want is uninsurable or you might have to take out high-cost coverage if the home has a history of complaints, especially with high-risk issues like mold. Now we need insurance contingencies in contracts. Buyers want to be able to get their earnest money back if there’s an insurance surprise....

The finance industry can be both financially rewarding and personally satisfying because, in certain positions, you get to spend your time helping people. Like many other fields, you will have to apply yourself and work hard to succeed in this kind of demanding career, but the potential for success is worth it. To get into the field and land any of these positions, you will need at least a bachelor’s degree, although you have a few choices of majors that qualify....

The University of Michigan’s Index of Consumer Sentiment fell again in early November and is now at its lowest point since November 2011, data released Friday showed. Each month the index measures consumers’ feelings about their own finances and the broader economy—both current and future prospects—using a minimum of 500 phone interviews statistically designed to be representative of all American households. As the chart below shows, they weren’t this gloomy even during the depths of the pandemic....

Consumer confidence is an important signal for the economy’s future direction because the worse people feel, the less likely they are to make major purchases. And since consumer spending is the country’s major engine of economic growth, worsening consumer confidence could forecast a slowdown ahead. Economists have been watching for signs that the U.S. economy could be headed for a recession in the near future, dragged down by inflation, supply chain problems, and other woes....

The Dangers of Irrational Exuberance Investors egg each other into a state of irrational exuberance. They become so greedy for profits that they overlook deteriorating economic fundamentals. They get into a bidding war and send prices up even higher. Irrational exuberance can only occur during the later expansion phase of the business cycle. That’s when the economy has been running at full capacity for a while. There is not a lot of undiscovered opportunities....

W-3 forms compile into one document all the information on the W-2 forms you give to your employees. You would use the 1096 form to summarize information on any 1099-MISC forms you give to non-employees. What Is Form W-3? Form W-3 totals the data from all the W-2 forms provided for all your employees. The IRS and the Social Security Administration use this information to track employees’ pay, including salaries, wages, commissions, and tips, as well as federal withholding from their pay....

In the draft 1040 form released last week on the IRS website, the cryptocurrency question at the top of the form now reads, “At any time during 2021, did you receive, sell, exchange, or otherwise dispose of any financial interest in any virtual currency?” Last year, the IRS moved the cryptocurrency question from Schedule 1 to the very top of the 1040 to make sure people didn’t miss it. Not everyone uses Schedule 1, which is for reporting certain adjustments or additional income such as unemployment benefits....

Prepare for the Interview You don’t need to memorize an answer, but do take the time to consider how you’ll respond. The more you prepare, the more confident you’ll feel during a job interview. When you’re not sure what to expect during an interview, also take time to review this refresher on how job interviews work, and these tips on how to prepare to ace your job interview. Job Interview Questions and Answers Here’s a list of common job interview questions, with examples of the best answers about you, your work history and experience, the new job, salary, what you have to offer the employer, and your goals for the future....

When you finally do check your bank balance, you may be surprised to see how low it is. You don’t have affluenza and aren’t spending lavishly. You aren’t dining at the Ritz. You aren’t flying to Paris every year. You don’t drive a Mercedes-Benz. So, where is all of your money going? Here are some starting points as you begin your search for budget leaks, along with some tips for how to get your budget under control (or start one, depending on where you are in your financial journey)....

However, just because you’re self-employed doesn’t mean that getting a personal or business loan is impossible—you just need to know where to look. From government programs to specific banks or online marketplaces, you still have several options to explore beyond traditional lenders. We’ll take a look at some of these below. Why Getting a Loan May Be Trickier It’s no secret that self-employed individuals may encounter more obstacles when trying to obtain a loan....

Reserve Requirement The reserve requirement refers to the money banks must keep on hand overnight. They can either keep the reserve in their vaults or at the central bank. A low reserve requirement allows banks to lend more of their deposits. It’s expansionary because it creates credit. A high reserve requirement is contractionary. It gives banks less money to lend. It’s especially hard for small banks because they don’t have as much to lend in the first place....

The department will forgive $1.1 billion in student loan debt belonging to 115,000 borrowers who attended the now-defunct ITT Tech on or after March 31, 2008, under a legal stipulation called closed school discharges. To qualify for a closed school discharge, students must have been unable to complete their degree because the institution they were attending closed, and they must not have transferred credits to another school. The department estimated 43% of the ITT Tech borrowers affected by the announcement are currently in default on their loans....

Since the start of the pandemic, 2.5 million workers have retired—more than double the number in 2019—and many of them have left the workforce earlier than they would have expected, according to an analysis by Oxford Economics. At the same time, the value of so-called defined compensation plans, which include 401(k) accounts, had grown 34.9% year-over-year in the first quarter of 2021, the largest increase in 35 years, according to Federal Reserve data....