Author: Money Mechanics

KEY TAKEAWAYS The 2026 tax brackets increased by about 2.3% compared with the year prior, so if your wages don’t increase by more than that percentage this year, you should be taxed at the same rate.The increased tax breaks from the One Big Beautiful Bill Act lower taxes for many Americans and could allow you to lower your withholding amount for your paycheck in 2026. Tax rules are changing for 2026, potentially affecting how much of your paycheck you keep. The IRS has raised this year’s tax brackets by about 2.3% and expanded several deductions and credits under this year’s…

Key Takeaways While the Department of Education paused wage garnishments on student loan borrowers in default, borrowers can use this time to get back into good standing before collections resume.Borrowers can consolidate their student loans or apply for loan rehabilitation, which will help them exit default and restore their loans to good standing. More than 5.5 million borrowers are in default on their student loans. These borrowers face damaging credit report entries, loss of eligibility for future federal aid, and the possibility of having up to 15% of their after-tax income garnished. While the Department of Education temporarily paused wage…

Key Takeaways Wall Street strategists, optimistic about the outlook for stocks, are approaching the recent turmoil over President Trump’s efforts to acquire Greenland as a buying opportunity. Jonathan Curtis, CIO of Franklin Equity, said he expects the AI boom to continue to support tech mega-caps, but that the AI rally was likely to broaden out to other segments of the stock market this year. Small cap indexes and the equal-weight S&P 500 have outperformed mega-cap tech indexes since the start of the year, but some experts warn the first weeks of the year rarely reflect sustainable trends. Yesterday’s sell-off struck…

Key Takeaways Kraft Heinz shares fell Wednesday, after Berkshire Hathaway warned it could look to sell its stake.Warren Buffett, who stepped down as CEO of Berkshire at the end of the year, reportedly said he was “disappointed” in Kraft Heinz’s planned split. Warren Buffett was “disappointed” Kraft Heinz (KHC) planned to split into two. His successor as Berkshire Hathaway CEO may exit the stock entirely. Kraft Heinz shares were down 6% in afternoon trading Wednesday, a day after the food giant revealed in a regulatory filing that Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A, BRK.B) may sell “up to an aggregate of 325,442,152 shares of the Company’s…

For a couple of years, I have been relentlessly defending my forward inflation forecasts against a sizeable group of people who looked at various high-frequency rent indicators and concluded that rents were going to be imminently in deflation. (For most of the last year many of those same people thought tariffs would be a large and immediate effect increasing inflation. Fortunately for them, being wrong on both counts, at least the errors offset somewhat.) This battle began in early 2023, shortly after the publication of new indices by the Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland, supported by a paper entitled “Disentangling…

CHONGQING, CHINA – JANUARY 16: An elderly man walks along a street with high-rise residential buildings under construction in the background, where tower cranes and overhead power lines are visible on January 16, 2026, in Chongqing, China. Cheng Xin | Getty Images News | Getty ImagesChina’s sharp investment downturn is amplifying credit risks across the economy, particularly homebuilders, real estate, banks and construction sectors, Fitch Ratings has warned, as a slowing economy crimps their growth and the ability to repay debt. Fixed-asset investment in China, or FAI, declined 3.8% in 2025 to 48.52 trillion yuan ($6.8 trillion) — the first…

Supersmario/iStock/Getty Images PlusFollow ZDNET: Add us as a preferred source on Google.ZDNET’s key takeawaysJust The Browser strips your browser of unwanted features.Just The Browser can be used with Chrome, Edge, and Firefox.This tool is free to use and open-source.I do not want AI in my web browser. I just don’t. I also don’t want companies collecting information about me, or sponsored content and product integrations. All those bits make me want to pull my hair out.I like my privacy and want to browse, you know, the old-fashioned way.I do use AI (on occasion), but only locally-installed AI and only for…

Key Takeaways Home sellers outnumbered buyers by 47% in December, the widest gap in more than a decade of Redfin data.Both buyers and sellers retreated from the housing market as mortgage rates remained elevated and home prices edged higher.But in some places like Nassau County, N.Y. and Milwaukee, home sellers had an edge, the report showed. Buyers have more power in many U.S. housing markets, even as prices hold firm. There were 631,535 more home sellers than buyers in December, according to Redfin data, creating a staggering 47% gap. That’s the widest margin recorded since Redfin began tracking it in…

Key Takeaways Gold prices hit an all-time high of $4,888 per troy ounce on Wednesday before paring some of those gains. JPMorgan estimates that gold’s share of total central banks’ reserves rose to a new record at the end of last year. There’s nothing like a potential crisis to brighten the shine on gold. Spot gold prices rallied to fresh highs on Wednesday, coming within dollars of $4,900 per ounce and leading investors and media to wonder when we might touch $5,000 for the first time. While U.S. stocks shook off Tuesday’s scare as affairs involving U.S. President Donald Trump,…

Key Takeaways Low-cost side hustles built on existing skills can scale to six or seven figures without substantial startup capital. Reinvesting early profits rather than increasing personal spending accelerates long-term business growth and wealth building. Platform diversification, combining marketplace sales with content creation, creates multiple revenue streams and reduces income volatility. Jocelyn Elizabeth bought a $5 lamp at a church sale in 2011 that changed her financial future, turning a side gig into a lucrative career. What started as weekend thrifting trips while working part-time as a marketing administrator evolved into NikNax, an online resale marketplace generating over $5.2 million…