Author: Money Mechanics

Thank you, John, and thank you for the invitation to speak to you today. My purpose this evening is to explain why I believe that the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) should reduce our policy rate by 25 basis points at our next meeting.1 I used to tell my junior research colleagues that presentations are not murder mysteries—just tell the audience up front “who did it” by telling them the main point. So let me follow my own advice and state up front the reasons I believe we should cut the policy rate at our meeting in two weeks. First,…

A late-summer window of opportunity with relatively low mortgage rates is upon us, but it may be short-lived.  Late August is typically a slow time for housing activity, with people on vacation and preparing kids to return to school. With mortgage rates now falling on news coming out of a Fed meeting in Jackson Hole, the market could actually get a little less sluggish in this late-summer season. The market is anticipating a September interest-rate cut by the Fed. That’s already being priced into mortgage rates, which could pop back up depending on how the jobs and inflation reports come…

KEY TAKEAWAYS President Donald Trump has implemented tariffs on many of the U.S.’s biggest trading partners and several individual tariffs on materials used for home renovations.Most home contractors said they are raising prices to keep up with tariff-related price increases.Fewer homeowners have started extensive renovations that require loans because of high interest rates. The Federal Reserve has kept borrowing costs high as it waits to see how tariffs will affect prices. Home renovations and remodels will likely be more expensive as contractors increase what they charge to keep up with tariffs. In a recent survey of home contractors, including HVAC,…

It’s become fashionable — especially among the globally mobile, the tax-weary and the disillusioned — to grumble about life in America.From health care costs to political dysfunction, the list of frustrations is long. But spend time in the rest of the world — and I don’t mean just the beach towns of Portugal or the cafés of Paris — and you’ll remember something too many Americans forget: This country still works.In Henley & Partners’ recently released Henley Private Wealth Migration Report 2025, the annual authoritative publication on global wealth and millionaire migration worldwide, reports that the U.S. is in second…

How much is enough to save for retirement? It’s the million-dollar (or more) question every pre-retiree is asking, and it can be incredibly confusing and overwhelming to answer.I’ve come across many articles, videos and statistics about how much you need to save to retire comfortably. Clients often come to me for guidance on this.Sometimes the guideline is to be able to generate a certain income level with your investments. The number I frequently hear is associated with that target is 80% to 90% of your pre-retirement income. Subscribe to Kiplinger’s Personal Finance Be a smarter, better informed investor. Save up…

Welcome to Kiplinger’s My First $1 Million series, in which we hear from people who have made $1 million. They’re sharing how they did it and what they’re doing with it. This time, we hear from a married 48-year-old health care worker in Sagadahoc County, Maine. See our earlier profiles, including a writer in New England, a literacy interventionist in Colorado, a semiretired entrepreneur in Nashville and an events industry CEO in Northern New Jersey. (See all of the profiles here.)Each profile features one person or couple, who will always be completely anonymous to readers, answering questions to help our…

Editor’s note: This article is part of an ongoing series on retiring abroad. To see all the articles in the series, jump to the end.Fiji is such a dream vacation destination — a place that seems so exotic and ephemeral — that it is difficult to imagine actually relocating there. But you can, and doing so is not particularly arduous. The bar for demonstrating financial independence (which is mandatory in order to obtain a long-term visa) is low, and assuming you can meet it, this beach paradise that served as the location for both The Blue Lagoon and Survivor can…

Ben Affleck. He starred in Good Will Hunting with Matt Damon. Matt Damon starred in Ocean’s Eleven with Julia Roberts. Julia Roberts starred in Flatliners with … Kevin Bacon!That puts Ben Affleck at a three in the parlor game “six degrees of Kevin Bacon,” which challenges you to link any actor to Kevin Bacon in six steps or fewer. It’s based on the idea of “six degrees of separation” that posits we’re all more interconnected than we think. Think: friend of a friend of a friend.But play the game with our own lives, things are starting to look a lot…

What is a redress payment, and who is sending it?A redress payment compensates a consumer who has been wronged.The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is a U.S. government agency dedicated to making sure you’re treated fairly by banks, lenders, and other financial institutions. When we enforce the law, we or a court may order the company or person to take action to correct the harm caused to consumers. This can include requiring the company or person to compensate its victims through redress payments.These payments may be distributed directly by the company, through the CFPB’s Civil Penalty Fund, or by a payments…

Many Baby Boomers have done well for themselves financially. In fact, an Allianz global wealth report found that Baby Boomers — born between 1946 and 1964 — have become the wealthiest generation in history.But across housing, investing, retirement planning, and careers, Millennials are rewriting the playbook Boomers used. Not because the old rules were “wrong,” but because the math, the market and the workplace have all changed.Here are four money habits Millennials are moving away from and the factors driving those shifts. Subscribe to Kiplinger’s Personal Finance Be a smarter, better informed investor. Save up to 74% Sign up for…