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This tactic works if you have enough years of employment to qualify for your own Social Security benefits, and you’ve filed for those benefits. If you’re divorced, your ex can usually claim a spousal benefit on your work record even if you haven’t yet filed for your own benefits, but this is subject to certain rules. If you have less than 35 years of work history, or if there are many low earning years among the 35 years you do have but you are now earning more, you might want to keep working....

What Is the Southwest Rapid Rewards Program? The Rapid Rewards program is Southwest Airlines’ frequent flyer program and has been around since 1987. Each time you fly or buy things from program partners, you’ll earn Rapid Rewards points that you can redeem for flights. Southwest Airlines is the second-largest airline in the United States, with more than 4,000 daily flights during peak times to 103 destinations in the United States and 10 neighboring countries....

What Is the Standard Mileage Rate? The first option for deducting driving expenses is to use the standard mileage rate. In this deduction, you will calculate the total miles driven and multiply it by the standard mileage rate. The standard mileage rate changes per year. For the 2022 tax year, there were two standard mileage rates because of the high price of gas: January to June: 58.5 cents per mileJuly to December: 62....

Investors were already wary that the delta variant of the coronavirus could hurt the economy, but battles in Washington over a vast spending bill proposed by Democrats and raising the government’s debt limit (to avoid a government shutdown) are compounding concerns, analysts said. Another concern is that the financial issues of a Chinese land developer, Evergrande, are so large that they could not only harm the Chinese economy, but economies elsewhere....

Ahead of the best stock market books available today. The random walk hypothesis states that one cannot consistently beat the markets, so it makes more sense to build a balanced portfolio that matches market performance. This idea also supports the efficient-market hypothesis. Fundamental concepts in the book include technical and fundamental analysis, whether or not actively managed mutual funds make sense, and other tried and true investment theories. This updated version includes an introduction by Fisher’s son Ken Fisher, a successful investment professional in his own right....

Still, it’s not without its risks. Commodities trading is generally considered risky since prices fluctuate based on supply and demand—the latter is often majorly impacted by unforeseeable occurrences (think natural disasters, floods, even epidemics). Learn more with our picks of the best commodity trading books. Beyond knowing math and computer skills, you need to master these fundamentals. Also, you will learn the history of the commodity futures market and a more thorough understanding of how to evaluate the risks of using margin....

Start with a general idea of your costs to determine the impact that paying for a college education will have on your family. These include the cost of applying to college, which is sometimes higher than many parents expect. You could be out several thousand dollars before the first acceptance letter even arrives when you add up the costs of campus visits, tests, application fees, and outside professional advice. Then there are the actual costs of attending....

The bigger-than-expected slide in retail sales was the most since December of last year. Despite the sharp falloff, sales are still 6.5% higher than they were in November 2021, as consumers kept shopping this year, despite stubbornly high levels of inflation. Retail sales are an important economic indicator, because consumer spending drives roughly 70% of the U.S. economy. So when we keep shopping, the economy remains strong and can continue to grow....

As the Federal Reserve hiked interest rates to help curb inflation, which has remained stubbornly high, it’s sent mortgage rates soaring. While the average interest rate on a 30-year fixed-rate loan recently eased to 6.61% according to Freddie Mac, rates had been sitting above or near 7% for the last several weeks. Concerns about future rate hikes have kept investors nervous and markets jittery. Yesterday, several policymakers from the Fed spoke about inflation and several struck a more hawkish tone (meaning, wanting to increase interest rates)....

Crude oil is one of the better commodities to trade on a futures contract, because the market is incredibly active, and it is well known to traders around the world. Oil prices fluctuate on the faintest whisper of news regarding pricing, which makes it a favorite of swing and day traders who are looking for an edge. This volatile environment can provide some solid trading opportunities, whether your focus is on day trading futures or longer-term trading....

Options Contracts Options markets trade options contracts, with the smallest trading unit being one contract. Options contracts specify the trading parameters of the market, such as the type of option, the expiration or exercise date, the tick size, and the tick value. For example, the contract specifications for the ZG (Gold 100 Troy Ounce) options market are as follows: Symbol: ZGExpiration date: Expires into the nearest month of the six-month contract cycle (Feb....

The country has also proven resilient to the global economic downturn of 2008 and beyond. The country’s economy and employment levels grew during the worst of the crisis. Other measures like consumer confidence and business confidence also quickly rebounded to pre-crisis levels, which many have attributed to the country’s resilient economy. In this article, we will take a closer look at Australia’s economy and how investors can gain exposure to one of the world’s most promising developed markets....

Microsoft Money was capable of keeping records on an individual account basis, such as for a specific 401(k) or Roth IRA, as well as the entire household. It handled dividend reinvestment programs, calculated each position’s tax basis, and pulled real-time updates from internet stock quotes to give up-to-date information. In the years that have passed since Microsoft announced it was ending the program, several alternatives have become available, some of which are hosted online under the software as a service model while others are programs you can install on your computer....

Capital Gains on Foreclosures The sale of real property normally goes through an escrow process. The seller receives statements showing how much the home sold for, but with a foreclosure, there is no escrow period. The lending bank simply takes possession of the home. The basic formula for calculating capital gains is to subtract the basis or cost of the property from the sales price. The difference is how much of a profit the seller made or how much money was lost in the transaction....

When choosing a budget software tool, ensure that it meets your specific needs. Consider these features to look for as you weigh your options. In the software, you’ll assign categories to transactions you make throughout the month. It’s important to take these category assignments seriously. The more accurate the budget report, the more useful it’ll be. You should be able to split transactions into subcategories if you want more detailed reports....

How to Proofread Effectively There are a few effective strategies you can use while proofreading. Your first step should be to read your resume slowly from the beginning to check for spelling and grammatical errors. Then, run spell check on your computer and repeat this step (note that spell check is not always 100% accurate and won’t identify words like homonyms which are spelled correctly but misused in your text (such as “there”— there”—“they’re”)....

The average rate offered to homebuyers using a conventional 30-year fixed mortgage ticked down to 4.34% from 4.35% the previous business day, when it was the highest it’s been since 2020. The average for a 15-year fixed mortgage fell to 3.52% from 3.56% the previous business day, also its high since 2020. Fixed mortgage rates tend to track the direction of 10-year Treasury yields, which usually rise with heightened inflation fears (and fall when those fears subside....

The average rate offered for a 30-year conventional fixed mortgage fell to 6.21% from 6.40% the previous business day. The 15-year rate dropped as well, moving down to 5.33% from 5.48% the previous business day. Our mortgage rate data only dates back to 2020, but if other measures are any indication, both rates are near their highest levels in over a decade. Fixed mortgage rates tend to track the direction of 10-year Treasury yields, which usually rise with heightened inflation fears (and fall when those fears subside)....

Just like almost everything else in your life, job searching has gone mobile and you can do it on the go. There isn’t much you can’t do with one of the apps that connects job seekers with available positions. Most of the application process can be done with your phone or tablet, though it can be a bit cumbersome at times. Even so, you can search and apply for jobs without using a computer....

Traditional IRAs let you put money away that will grow tax-deferred until it’s withdrawn. You might also be able to take a tax deduction for your annual contributions to the account based on your modified adjusted gross income (MAGI) and whether you’re covered by an employer-sponsored plan. But in exchange for these benefits, the Internal Revenue Service imposes some strict rules for withdrawals, and you can be charged with tax penalties of up to 50% if you don’t follow them....