Author: Money Mechanics

Lorene Cowan, 44, thought she would own a home by now. However, in New York City, where Cowan lives and works, home prices have soared beyond reach.”I would love to buy a home. That’s the next step,” said Cowan, a business and life coach. But “in New York, the entry in became so much more difficult,” she said.In fact, New York notched the highest annual rise in home prices of all the metropolises in the latest Case-Shiller 20-city composite, up 7.4% in May compared with the prior year. The median listing price of a home in New York City is…

U.S. border agents searched more electronic devices during a three-month period than ever before, according to new government statistics.  The data shows that U.S. Customs and Border Protection, the agency tasked with immigration screening at the U.S. border, searched 14,899 devices of international travelers between April through June, a 17% rise on the previous record high recorded in early 2022.  Most of these searches are “basic,” where U.S. border agents demand the password to the traveler’s device and look through its contents without using equipment. While citizens cannot be denied entry to the U.S., their devices can be seized indefinitely…

Everyone wants to stay fully independent as we age. A few people over age 80 do and they don’t suffer from memory loss either. They are called “super agers” because they do not suffer the same mental and physical declines as almost everyone else. They’ve been studied by researchers for decades. We do have some answers to what makes them different from everyone else. Maybe we all wish we could be super agers ourselves. What Is A Super Ager? The term describes someone over 80 with an exceptional memory — one at least as good as the memories of people…

Key Takeaways The Jackson Hole conference will serve as a forum for Federal Reserve officials to signal whether the central bank will start cutting interest rates in September.Fed Chair Jerome Powell may also discuss whether the Fed is changing its inflation-fighting strategy, moving away from a flexible approach that failed to stop inflation from surging after the pandemic.Powell may also defend the Fed’s independence from political control amid increasing pressure from President Donald Trump. This year, the Jackson Hole conference in Wyoming is more than just a chance to see central bankers outside their natural habitat.The annual economics symposium, which…

Key Takeaways Neuro‑imaging studies find that sports betting and day trading trigger the same dopamine pathways in the brain’s reward center. Variable rewards, illusions of skill, and loss‑chasing can drive people to double down in both arenas. Your brain is hardwired for excitement, not spreadsheets. Brain scans reveal the same reward centers light up when people make an in‑game wager and when they click “Buy” on a meme stock. The dopamine pathways that govern these impulses evolved to push our ancestors toward high-stakes, high-reward endeavors—hunting dangerous prey, exploring new territory, and bonding with allies—by flooding the brain with feel-good chemicals…

Key Takeaways U.S. equities were mostly lower at midday as tech shares once again weighed on the overall market.Target named a new CEO and reported lower revenue.JPMorgan upgraded Hormel Foods on expected demand for the company’s protein products and those with fewer artificial ingredients. U.S. equities were mostly in the red at midday, dragged for a second session by tech stocks, as well as a mixed bag of earnings news. The Nasdaq dropped 1%, the S&P 500 was down as well, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average was little changed. Shares of artificial intelligence (AI)-related firms, including Palantir Technologies (PLTR)…

Unlike many of its rivals, Alaska Airlines is giving members of its new loyalty program a choice on how they earn rewards points. The Alaska Air Group (ALK) carrier issued several press releases Wednesday, touting a premium credit card, free Starlink Wi-Fi, and a new membership program that is different than its peers’ in one key way. Alaska Says Offering Under Its New Rewards Program Marks an Industry First Alaska Airlines on Wednesday announced the launch of its Atmos Rewards loyalty program, which combines its old Mileage Plan with Hawaiian Airlines’ HawaiianMiles after the Department of Transportation cleared their merger…

Why Some Analysts Think Tech Sell-Off Won’t Last 31 minutes ago Tech stocks are having a rough day, extending their recent slump amid a sector rotation away from big tech leaders.  However, some Wall Street analysts said they don’t expect that to last long.  “While some near-term tech volatility is not surprising given the run-up in valuations, we advise investors against becoming overly defensive,” UBS said Wednesday. “While we think some caution may be warranted in the more cyclical parts of tech, we remain confident in the broader AI sector’s long-term growth and resilience. We recommend investors seek balanced exposure across the…

In July, equity investors saw the broad rally from April lows continue, leading the S&P500® Index (SPX®) to multiple new highs. Volatility was muted — the Cboe Volatility Index (the VIX® Index) remained in the 15-18 range and volatility of volatility, expressed by Cboe’s VVIX℠ Index (VVIX), held steady near 90, the lower end of the prior year range.SPX rose 2.17%, from 6204 to 6339, and set an all-time closing high just shy of 6390 on July 28. Continuing a long-term trend, small cap performance lagged, with the Russell 2000® Index (RUT) gaining 1.68%, finishing at 2211.65. Although RUT increased…

The Social Security cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) is projected to be higher next year, but benefits still might not be enough for many older Americans to live off. Each year, the Social Security Administration adjusts benefits based on inflation. This year’s COLA was a 2.5% increase. While the official numbers aren’t released until the fall, The Senior Citizens League predicts the increase for next year will be even higher at 2.7%. Retirees received an average of $2,006.69 in benefits during July. A 2.7% COLA would raise that average monthly check by roughly $54. TSCL estimates that nearly 22 million seniors live…