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Two of the main ways you can gift assets to a minor child are the Uniform Transfers to Minors Act (UTMA) or placing them in a trust fund. While both options have good aspects that can make them ideal for certain cases, there are some drawbacks to be aware of. UTMA Basics UTMAs are custodial accounts subject to rules for how they can be opened and used. A custodial account is one in which money or other assets are placed in the name of a child....

Banks Bank loans are the best source of funding if you qualify. They are the second most popular source of loans for small businesses, after retained earnings. They have the lowest interest rates since they use depositors’ funds to make the loans. Your local community bank or credit union offer the best rates. But banks require a business to show signs of success before lending money. The bank wants to make sure it gets a return on its investment....

How Do I Know If I’m Self-Employed? You are self-employed for self-employment tax purposes, according to the IRS, if you: Carry on a trade or business, including being a sole proprietor or independent contractor, You are a partner in a partnership, or You are otherwise in business for yourself, even if it’s part-time.  You are also self-employed if you are a member (owner) of a limited liability company (LLC). But you aren’t considered self-employed if you are a shareholder of a corporation or S corporation....

FICA taxes are due on wages paid for “services performed as an employee in the United States, regardless of the citizenship or residence of either the employee or the employer,” according to the IRS. Anyone working as an employee in the U.S. must have Social Security and Medicare tax withheld from wages, at least to some extent. What Are Social Security Wages? Social Security wages are the portion of earnings that are subject to the FICA tax....

Estate and Inheritance Tax Terms To Know Understanding what individual states do and don’t do begins with grasping the various terms involved with estate and inheritance taxes, and what they mean for you. The term “death tax” is something of an umbrella term that covers both estate and inheritance taxes. Estate taxes are levied against an estate based on its value, but only values above a certain threshold called an “exemption” are taxed on that portion....

Before you work toward aggressively paying off either type of debt, make sure you’re current on the payments on all your accounts. It doesn’t benefit you to completely ignore payments on one debt so you can pay off the other. Not only will falling behind hurt your credit score, but it will also make it more difficult to catch up and pay off your account. To consider whether to pay student loans or credit cards first, we’ll pit the debts against each other in a few important repayment categories....

A late-summer decision would mean student loan borrowers would have to sweat it out as the Sept. 1 deadline nears for interest and payments to resume. A pandemic-era freeze on loan obligations has been extended six times already, lasting over two years and laying bare how hard it was for many borrowers to pay their loans even before the pandemic. Forgiveness of up to $10,000 per borrower would wipe out $321 billion in federally owned student loans, economists at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York calculated for a report released in April....

Use the checklist below to make your move to a new bank as quick and painless as possible. Choose a Bank If you haven’t decided where you want to bank, home in on institutions that offer the type of bank account you want, whether it’s a checking, savings, or money market account. Then, carefully review the bank features and fee schedule along with online customer reviews of the banks. You’ll choose between institutions like:...

Finding the right account type for your goals can be simple. Start by learning the basic facts and benefits of taxable accounts and IRAs. Here’s a breakdown of how each type works and its main benefits. What’s the Difference Between Taxable Accounts and IRAs? An individual retirement account (IRA) is an account designed with retirement in mind. It offers tax advantages to incentivize contributions. IRAs come in different forms, including traditional and Roth....

You may think you want dividend funds with the highest yields, but other factors go into finding the best funds. Our list of best dividend funds includes only no-load mutual funds with low expense ratios. The funds that make our list are split between the mutual fund companies Vanguard and Fidelity, which are known to offer efficient pricing. Why Invest in Dividend Funds? Dividend stocks or funds supply a steady stream of income from dividend payments, which typically occur every quarter....

That’s where business safes come in. These receptacles will keep documents, cash, and other valuable items out of harm’s way. Whether you need a high-volume safe or a business safe that is fire-resistant, there are plenty of options on the market to meet your needs. Here, find the best business safes you can buy. Access is digital—no keys to worry about—and you can reprogram the code as often as you like....

For each, you’ll find a child-friendly definition and some additional information to help your child better understand the term. Unicorn Did you know that unicorns are real? At least they are real in the world of personal finance. Except “unicorns” in the financial sense aren’t horse-like creatures sporting a beautiful horn. But like the mythical creatures they’re named for, companies that reach “unicorn” status are rare. A financial unicorn is a private company that reaches a supposed valuation of $1 billion....

In a televised interview earlier today, New York Fed President John Williams stated the Federal Reserve will continue to “do what’s necessary” in order to bring inflation in line with the central bank’s goal. The Fed has a 2% inflation target, and with the annual rate of inflation at 7.1%, there is clearly a long way to go. While the Federal Reserve raised rates by a more modest 50 basis points earlier this week, questions and fears still remain about the future path of rate hikes in 2023....

While you would think that maximizing employment would be a good thing, right now the Fed is trying to bring inflation down, which means that we all have to go through some economic pain, including higher levels of unemployment. If a large share of workers remain employed and make more money, they’ll keep spending, further fueling inflation. But one thing that people aren’t as interested in spending on is homes....

Rules and Laws Defining Intestate Heirs Determining who is entitled to inherit comes down to each state’s “intestacy” laws. Sometimes it’s the state where the decedent lived that determines his heirs. Sometimes it’s the state where his physical property was located at the time of his death, and to really complicate things, sometimes it’s both. When a decedent leaves a will, his heirs may be beneficiaries under its terms — or they may not be....

What Are the Best Entry-Level Jobs? If you are just starting out in your career, or are switching industries, an entry-level job is typically the way to go. One size obviously doesn’t fit all when it comes to jobs. The best entry-level job for you will depend on your unique combination of interests, skills, values, personality traits, and goals. The level of education that you have attained or plan to acquire is another key factor....

All home improvement projects aren’t created equally, especially when it comes to resale value. According to Remodeling’s Cost vs. Value report, if you want to get the most out of your improvement projects, you should be focusing on these seven projects for 2021. 1. Replace Your Garage Door Cost: $3,907​Resale value-added: $3,663Total cost recouped: 93.8% A garage door replacement basically pays for itself, according to statistics. Not only does it add over $3,600 in resale value to your property, but it also can enhance curb appeal, making it easier to market your home and attract future buyers....

The primary differences between a resume and a curriculum vitae (CV) are length, what is included, and what each is used for. While both are used in job applications, a resume and a CV are not always interchangeable. CV vs. Resume: What’s the Difference? Most resumes in the United States are competency-based: they are personal marketing documents intended to showcase the candidate’s skills, notable achievements, and work experience to the greatest advantage....

You must first determine whether someone who works for your company is an employee or a nonemployee so you know which report form to give that individual. Independent Contractors vs. Employees The IRS uses three general criteria to determine whether an individual is an employee or a nonemployee, commonly referred to as an independent contractor: behavioral control, financial control, and the relationship between the worker and employer. Behavioral Control Does your company control what the worker does and how, when, and where the worker does it?...

The average 30-year fixed mortgage rate, as measured by Freddie Mac, reached 3.69% this week, surpassing its pre-COVID-19 reading for the first time. As the chart below shows, the pandemic-era dip is over after the recent sharp uptick. The ultra-low mortgage rates of the pandemic (the 30-year reached a record low of 2.65% in January 2021) increased purchasing power for homebuyers and helped fuel a surprising homebuying boom. But now you can blame inflation for the fact that they’re over: As yields on 10-year Treasuries go, so go rates for fixed-rate mortgages, and investor concerns about today’s red-hot inflation—and the Federal Reserve’s response to it—have driven those yields sharply higher....