Author: Money Mechanics

(Image credit: Getty Images)Every time your car insurance is up for renewal, you’re faced with the decision of where to set your car insurance deductible. If you raise it up a bit, you could save on car insurance premiums each month. If you lower it, you could ensure that an accident won’t completely wipe out your savings or, worse, push you into debt.But, how high a car insurance deductible is too high? How low is too low? As with most personal finance questions, there’s no one right answer. That’s why rules of thumb like the one-month car insurance deductible rule…

The 2026 tax filing season officially began on January 26, and it was already shaping up to be a challenging one for the IRS due to staffing and funding challenges.But now, some wonder whether a looming government shutdown at the end of January could disrupt operations just as the season kicks off.Last week, congressional leaders released a “minibus” spending package designed to avert a government shutdown on January 30. From just $107.88 $24.99 for Kiplinger Personal Finance Become a smarter, better informed investor. Subscribe from just $107.88 $24.99, plus get up to 4 Special Issues CLICK FOR FREE ISSUE Sign…

Key Takeaways Shares of a number of health insurance providers sank sharply Tuesday following a proposal from the federal government.The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services said it was proposing a 0.09% increase in Medicare payments in 2027, far less than expected after a 5.06% rise this year. Several health insurer stocks tumbled Tuesday following a proposal from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services that would raise payments to insurers less than expected in 2027. CMS proposed lifting Medicare insurer payments by just 0.09% next year, well below what the industry was anticipating. Wall Street had forecast a bump…

Lucid is building an EV business from the ground up. The company increased production by more than 100% in 2025. Lucid will need to grow even more before it can compete with its larger peers. 10 stocks we like better than Lucid Group › Lucid (NASDAQ: LCID) has made great achievements in its short history. For example, it has award-winning electric vehicles (EVs) and industry-leading battery technology. However, that’s not enough. It still has more to do, with its 2025 production highlighting the problem it faces. Image source: Getty Images. In some ways, 2025 was a banner year for Lucid.…

US prices dipped today amid profit-taking by traders, after soaring by over 117% in the five days to Monday, Bloomberg has reported, noting the benchmark jumped by 30% on Monday alone. Last week, gas prices went up by as much as 70% amid frigid weather that apparently took gas traders both in the United States and Europe by surprise. This surprise led to frantic short-covering and position exits at a hefty loss. Currently, natural gas is trading at over $6.60 per million British thermal units, which is the highest in four years and up from around $3 per mmBtu in…

The “sell the dollar” trade is coming up in the chatter I see. I think that economists love making international trade and finance more complicated than it should be, but that is partly a side effect of needing to publish new articles on a continuous basis. My simplistic input on this topic is that people need to stop thinking about “global rebalancing” in terms of flows, price changes can do the job.My guess is that the focus on flows draws from the experience of developing markets, with countries with less developed financial sectors. If a handful of rich people directly…

Key Takeaways Americans can expect to pay anywhere from about $5,700 to over $30,000 per month for nursing home care, depending on the market.Medicare covers 100% of the costs of nursing home care for only 20 days. After that, families must handle the costs.There are steps families can take to try to shield themselves from these high costs, but it’s important to prepare early. There are many reasons why people don’t put their parents in a nursing home as their care needs mount. They may want to help their parents maintain their independence, for example, or protect them from potential…

Key Takeaways The average retirement account balance for Americans in their 70s is $250,000, but the median falls below $100,000. Once required minimum distributions (RMDs) start at 73, have a plan for your taxes. You’ve spent decades building your retirement savings. Now comes the part where you make it last. In your 70s, the questions change. It’s no longer about how much you can save—it’s about how much you can safely spend without running out of money. The average American in their 70s has $250,000 saved, but half have less than $107,000. Whether you’re above or below that line, the…

Key Takeaways Warren Buffett says that emotional intelligence is key to making wise investment decisions. Investors with patience and self-control often outperform those who follow emotion in the market. If you’ve ever bought a stock during a market boom, only to panic and sell at a loss, you already know emotions can be costly.  With recent headlines full of stock market swings, it’s natural for investors to be nervous, but Buffett has stayed calm, slowly amassing a record cash pile for potential future purchases. Why is he so steady when others panic? Buffett told those assembled at Berkshire Hathaway Inc.’s…

Stock futures pointed to a mostly higher open Tuesday, with several big-name companies set to report quarterly results. However, shares of health insurers sank following a report that the Trump administration is proposing barely raising Medicare Advantage payment rates. Nasdaq 100 and S&P 500 futures rose 0.6% and 0.2%, respectively, while Dow Jones Industrial Average futures were down 0.2%. Yesterday, the blue-chip Dow, benchmark S&P 500, and tech-heavy Nasdaq finished higher, with the Dow adding more than 300 points, to begin a busy week of tech earnings and the Federal Reserve’s decision on interest rates. Shares of Dow component UnitedHealth Group (UNH) sank 13% before the…