The average rate offered for a conventional 30-year fixed mortgage dropped to 5.64% from 5.69% the previous business day, moving farther from its recent peak of 6.19%. The average 15-year mortgage rate fell to 4.69% from 4.79% the previous business day. Last month it reached 5.26%, its highest point since at least 2019, and likely much farther back. (Our daily mortgage rate data only goes back to April 2021, but our data on yearly highs and lows dates back to 2020, so we know rates weren’t higher in 2020, and if other measures are any indicator, may have hit their highest points in over a decade recently....

The TransUnion 2021 consumer credit forecast predicts that as long as unemployment figures and gross domestic product (GDP) continue to move in positive directions, banks will soon start approving more credit applications, particularly in the second quarter. Lenders tightened their purse strings this year to brace for financial losses as consumers weathered the pandemic, which made it harder for borrowers without stellar credit to get approved for new loans or credit cards....

Whatever your reason for leaving, two weeks gives an employer enough time to come up with plans to cover your absence. For example, an employer might need time to hire someone to fill the position or need time to reassign your tasks to other employees. When to Give Two Weeks’ Notice In some circumstances, you may not be able to provide two weeks’ notice or even any notice at all....

How Do Taxes Work? The United States has a big budget. Building roads and other infrastructure, funding education, maintaining the military, and paying for social benefits requires substantial resources. Taxing individuals and businesses is one of the ways the country raises the financial resources to pay for these social and civic needs. Congress and the president of the United States are responsible for writing and approving the country’s tax laws. The Internal Revenue Service then enforces these laws, collecting taxes, processing tax returns, issuing tax refunds, and turning the money collected over to the U....

In this review of how USD Coin works, we will examine the origins of USD Coin, special features of USD Coin, and how you may want to use USD Coin to transact in cryptocurrency without the considerable risks of many other cryptocurrencies. What Is USD Coin? USD Coin is a stablecoin with a fixed value of $1 per coin. It was developed by Centre, a technology project backed by cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase and Fintech company Circle....

There are a few versions of the list of sectors, but for the most part, investors and market players agree on a set standard. One of the most common systems of classification breaks the market into 11 different sectors. Here, we’ll cover the many sectors and offer a few examples of how they are used, so you can use this knowledge in making your own stock investment choices. The Main Sectors Almost every company whose stock is traded in the market falls into one of the 11 sectors defined by the Global Industry Classification Standard (GICS)....

The National Retail Federation (NRF) estimates that more than half (about 53%) of U.S. adults plan to celebrate Valentine’s Day in 2022, spending a total of $23.9 billion. If the estimate holds true, 2022 will become the second-highest spending year on record since NRF conducted its first spending survey in 2009. In 2021, about half of U.S. adults planned to celebrate Valentine’s Day and spent a total of $21.8 billion, down from $27....

Consisting mostly of credit card debt, revolving credit balances grew at an annual rate of 6.7%, the smallest month-to-month change since April, when balances shrank, according to the Federal Reserve’s latest consumer credit report, released Wednesday. July’s increase of $5.6 billion—the third straight gain—brings balances to $998.4 billion, closer to the pre-pandemic peak of $1.1 trillion. Consumers used their credit cards less during the worst of the pandemic, with fewer opportunities to spend and a sharper focus on their financial situation....

Top Home Insurance Policy Credits and Discounts Everyone has heard that bundling your insurance (having your home and car insurance with the same insurance company) can save you money, or that being claims-free will give you a discount. These are the obvious discounts that we hope you are already taking advantage of. Usually, an insurance company will be aware of these facts, so getting those discounts is generally automatic. You may have also heard that taking a higher deductible can save you money on insurance....

The most common type of personal financial assets are bank deposits and investment portfolios. In the U.S., according to recent data, the majority of personal financial assets are held specifically in checking accounts, with the second most-used financial asset being retirement accounts. Businesses have financial assets as well, including those in the form of accounts receivable and notes receivable. This information is listed on a company’s balance sheet. To get a better understanding of what is classified as a financial asset, let’s take a look at Home Depot’s balance sheet as of May 2, 2021, per the U....

The Pax Ellevate Global Women’s Leadership Fund (PXWEX) is a mutual fund that attempts to track the Impax Global Women’s Leadership Index. According to Impax, the index is the first broad-market index of companies promoting or working to advance women’s leadership. How Pax World Mutual Funds Work In 1971, the Pax Fund (now the Pax Sustainable Allocation Fund) was launched as the first public fund in the U.S. to invest with sustainability issues in mind....

Determining if you qualify under the IRS home office rules to write off your home office expenses on your income taxes is not simple. You should only take the home office deduction if you meet every requirement and can provide proof of your eligibility if audited. Learn the IRS home office rules to determine whether or not you qualify for the home office deduction. What Are the IRS Home Office Rules?...

Keep reading to learn more about the state and federal laws relating to paying employees. Three Pay Violations Here are a few things you might not know about paying employees that can cause issues with federal and state employment agencies. Withholding and Deducting Without Consent An employer cannot withhold a portion of an employee’s wages without their consent, except for withholdings required by law (FICA taxes, for example). Make sure you have a record of employee agreement for all pay non-required deductions in case of an audit....

You must “fund” your assets into the trust after the agreement has been signed. Three general procedures can accomplish this and they depend on the type of property that’s being funded. You can change the title or ownership, you can assign ownership rights, or you can simply change the beneficiary. Change of Title or the Ownership This works best for assets such as bank accounts, non-IRA, and non-401(k) investment and brokerage accounts, stocks and bonds held in certificate form, and real estate....

Below we dive into the expenses that are considered advertising for business tax purposes, and which expenses are not deductible. What’s Considered Advertising? Advertising is a broad category of business expenses that includes business activities such as: Advertising in newspapers and magazines, and on TV or onlineDirect marketingSponsorship of sports teams and creating promotional items like mugs, hats, T-shirts, or pensEmail newsletters, pay-per-click advertising, and SEO servicesAdvertising materials like business cards, brochures, and web pagesAdvertising events such as a publicity campaign or special promotional event...

Capital gains or losses are taxed differently. Profits are typically taxed as ordinary income at the “regular” tax rate. Gains or losses on investments or the sale of assets are taxed as capital gains or losses, but it can depend on the type of business. Capital Gains and Capital Losses Almost everything a business owns and uses is a capital asset. If the selling price of an asset is higher than the owner’s basis in that asset, the result is a capital gain....

What Is a Property Manager? The property manager is the owner’s partner in maximizing the return on investment of the property through the efficient performance of these four functional areas of responsibility. The property management company acts in the best interests of the owner to maintain the property, keep it occupied with tenants, collect rents, budget improvements and maintain records. In return, property managers charge a fee. How much and how you pay depends on the property manager’s business model....

It helps to know with whom you’re speaking and what each person or group does for the company. So, let’s look at two common entities in the process: hiring managers and hiring search committees. As you’ll see, their jobs are similar. Hiring Managers vs. Hiring Search Committees The hiring manager is usually the individual who will ultimately supervise candidates if they are hired for a particular job. As such, they have the most detailed knowledge of the position for which the employer is recruiting....

Alternate definition: The institution responsible for receiving any checks returned due to insufficient funds.Acronym: BOFD For example, say your mom sends you money for your birthday. She’s a little leery about sending cash in the mail, so she writes you a check instead. She banks with BB&T and you bank with Ally Bank. In this case, BB&T (your mom’s bank) is the paying bank. Ally Bank (where you’re depositing the check) is the BOFD....

While there have been several bear markets in U.S. history, the economy generally spends more time expanding than contracting. This means that the market spends more time as a bull than a bear. Since less time is spent in bear markets than bull markets, they tend to become highly publicized occurrences. Here are a few of the most notable bear markets in the U.S. Great Depression Bear Market The Great Depression bear market was the worst in U....