Hold onto your wallets, gas prices are heading to an all-time record high. Here are a few ways to protect yourself

With gasoline prices at a 14-year high, it’s hard to imagine paying even more at the pump. Yet prices are only heading higher. On Sunday, the national average for a gallon of gas hit $4.009, the highest since July 2008, according to data from AAA.  An increase in demand along with a reduction in supply…

More than $1 billion could be forfeited in health-care flexible spending accounts this year

Jose Luis Pelaez Inc | DigitalVision | Getty Images If you have a flexible savings account for health-care expenses, it’s probably worth checking whether any of that money is on the verge of disappearing. An estimated $1 billion in those accounts could be forfeited in 2022, according to an estimate from FSAstore.com. Some forfeitures could…

When buy now, pay later comes back to bite you

You can use buy now, pay later for just about everything these days. Since the start of the pandemic, installment payments have exploded in popularity along with a general surge in online shopping. In some cases, spreading out the cost of a big-ticket purchase — like a Peloton, for example — makes financial sense, especially at 0%….

Target date retirement funds work up to a point. Here’s when you may want to reconsider

Bloom Productions A retirement-savings option that can be smart at the outset of your career probably needs to be reexamined down the road. Target-date funds, as they’re called, offer a way to put your savings on autopilot: Holdings gradually shift away from riskier assets like stocks and toward more conservative investments (bonds and, perhaps, cash)…

This Big Tech company ‘surprises and delights’ employees to keep them happy

LinkedIn employees are treated to “surprise and delight” moments through the tech company’s LiftUp program. LinkedIn Millions of Americans are quitting their jobs and rethinking what they want when it comes to work and work-life balance. Companies are responding, meeting their employees’ needs in areas like remote work, flexible hours, four-day workweeks, compensation and more….

IRS unveils Taxpayer Experience Office to improve customer service

The Internal Revenue Service headquarters building in Washington, DC. Chip Somodevilla | Getty Images News | Getty Images The IRS on Friday unveiled a new Taxpayer Experience Office as part of a long-term plan to improve customer service issues. The office will focus on “all aspects of taxpayer transactions,” working closely with the Taxpayer Advocate…

Student loan delinquencies could return to pre-pandemic rate when payments resume. What borrowers can do now

Getty Images Federal student loan payments are currently set to resume in May after a pause that’s been extended for more than a year due to the coronavirus pandemic. However, borrowers might not be ready to restart payments and could therefore fall behind on their loans, according to a recent blog post from the Federal…

The IRS has sent nearly 30 million refunds. This is the average payment

Cabania | iStock | Getty Images Plus Despite ongoing challenges, the IRS has sent nearly 30 million tax refunds, worth about $103.2 billion, the agency reported Friday. While 29% of Americans worry about a smaller refund, according to a Bankrate survey, the average is currently $3,473 through Feb. 25, which is $658 larger than last…

White House may delay student loan payments yet again as it weighs debt forgiveness

Jbyard | Istock | Getty Images President Joe Biden made no mention of student loan forgiveness at his State of the Union address on Tuesday. Yet a spokesman for the administration says cancellation remains on the table. White House Chief of Staff Ron Klain said a decision on whether to forgive student debt through executive…

60% of teens want to launch their own businesses instead of working regular jobs

Morsa Images | DigitalVision | Getty Images Today’s teens are thinking differently about their future employment, and many have decided they don’t want to work for anyone else. About 60% of teenagers are more interested in someday starting their own business instead of working a traditional job, according to a March 1 survey from Junior…

How to tackle medical bills before the debt becomes a long-lasting financial problem

Whyframestudio | Istock | Getty Images Anyone who has felt burdened by medical debt may be familiar with that initial bout of panic when a big bill arrives. What may be worse, though, is what can happen to your long-term financial picture if you disregard it. Generally speaking, that debt can end up haunting you. …