Author: Money Mechanics

KEY TAKEAWAYS The ‘One Big Beautiful Bill’ boosted a deduction for qualified business expenses, allowing business owners to subtract the total amount they paid from their 2025 taxable income, rather than just 40% of the cost.This deduction applies only to property that depreciates over time, such as equipment, buildings, vehicles, or furniture. If you bought equipment, buildings, furniture, or a vehicle for your business in 2025, you may be able to deduct the entire purchase from your taxes this filing season. The ‘One Big Beautiful Bill’ made many significant changes to tax laws, which are expected to increase refunds and…

Key Takeaways AI tools like ChatGPT can speed up early car research by comparing listings, organizing criteria, and helping prep dealer questions.AI guidance is most useful before dealership visits and far less reliable once context, pricing pressure, and negotiation come into play.Buyers still need trusted consumer resources and human judgment to validate information and make confident final decisions. Why I Turned to AI Before Stepping Onto a Car Lot The last time I bought a new car was Thanksgiving 2010. That car came with a CD player, one USB port, and a very thick owner’s manual. Fifteen years later, enough…

Economists are generally optimistic about the economy, but the public hasn’t hated it this much in more than a decade. If you’re downbeat about the economy and your personal finances, you’re far from alone: consumer sentiment fell to its lowest level since 2014 in January, according to a survey by The Conference Board. Yet the word “recession” has dropped from most economic forecasts as the economy has shrugged off disruptions from tariffs, the government shutdown, and a slowdown in the job market. In fact, the economy is on track to grow at a blistering 5.4% annualized rate in the fourth…

Non-deductible IRA contributions can create serious headaches. Learn how a reverse rollover can avoid the pro-rata rule, simplify recordkeeping, and prevent double taxation.gettyThe regular rollover process is well-known: electing to move funds from an employer 401(k) to an IRA after changing jobs. But the reverse rollover is far less common. As the name implies, a reverse rollover is the opposite of this. It involves moving money from an IRA into an employer-sponsored retirement plan (401(k), 403(b), etc.). The primary use case for a reverse rollover is cleaning up the issues that non-deductible IRA contributions can trigger: the pro-rata tax rule,…

Key Takeaways A Payscale report preview found that 44% of organizations are planning or considering so-called peanut butter raises for 2026.Median base pay raises are expected to be 3.5% in 2026, while job switchers saw median wage growth of 4.1% as of December 2025. Your company’s annual pay raise may look a little different in 2026. Some employers are planning to dole out so-called peanut butter raises, or evenly distributed wage increases across the company, that are not based on merit or performance. A preview of an upcoming report by Payscale—a compensation data and software company—found that 44% of organizations…

Oregon’s $1.41 billion tax surplus is officially returning to taxpayers. Thanks to the Oregon Surplus Kicker program, millions of eligible filers can now claim the tax credit on their 2025 state income return.The credit pays out every two years, and only if state revenue projections rise above 2% — so the Oregon kicker isn’t always a guarantee. Like prior years, strict eligibility requirements mean not all Oregon taxpayers qualify, either.Here is what you need to know about the 2026 calculation and how to ensure you don’t leave your potential share of the surplus on the table. From just $107.88 $24.99…

Key Takeaways As the S&P 500 and Nasdaq rose Tuesday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.8%, dragged down by slumping UnitedHealth Group stock.UnitedHealth, one of the priciest stocks in the blue-chip Dow, tumbled nearly 20% Tuesday after reporting disappointing earnings.UnitedHealth stock shaved 422 points off the Dow, accounting for all of the index’s 409-point decline on Tuesday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average missed out on a rally today thanks in large part to one very influential stock.  The Dow fell 0.8% Tuesday. Meanwhile, the S&P 500 and Nasdaq gained 0.4% and 0.9%, respectively, boosted by rising chip stocks and…

Key Takeaways The widely followed Conference Board Consumer Confidence Index fell to its lowest level since May 2014, as worries over job losses and inflation persisted.Despite a recent trend of dour consumer survey readings, the economy has been expanding, and consumers keep spending, driven primarily by high-income consumers.Despite the poor confidence, economists expect consumers to continue spending in 2026. Consumer confidence plunged in January, but fears about the future aren’t stopping some people from spending. The Conference Board’s Consumer Confidence Index is hitting its lowest levels since 2014 on Tuesday. It comes after another widely followed sentiment survey last week…

(Image credit: Getty Images)Stocks were mixed Tuesday as investors looked ahead to a busy stretch of mega-cap earnings announcements and tomorrow’s policy statement from the Federal Reserve. While the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite extended their daily win streaks to five, the Dow Jones Industrial Average finished the session in the red.At the close, the S&P 500 was up 0.4% at 6,978 – a new record high – and the Nasdaq was 0.9% higher at 23,817. This marked the fifth straight win for each index.Boosting them both was positive price action for several Big Tech stocks ahead of their respective…

Retirement planning can sometimes feel like trying to assemble IKEA furniture in the dark — stressful, confusing and full of variables you can’t control. Enter the ‘4% Rule’: the retirement rule that suggests if you withdraw 4% of your nest egg in your first year of retirement (and adjust for inflation thereafter), your money should last for 30 years.Does this classic strategy align with your long-term goals, or does the current economy demand a different approach? Use this quiz to decide if this strategy is right for you or if you should pivot toward a more adaptable approach.More on the…