Personal finance

David Paul Morris/Bloomberg via Getty Images Inflation fell in September as lower gasoline prices combined with other waning price pressures in areas such as housing to bring relief to consumers’ wallets, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. The consumer price index, a key inflation gauge, was up 2.4% last month from September 2023,

Lordhenrivoton | E+ | Getty Images The Social Security Administration on Thursday announced that the cost-of-living adjustment will be 2.5% in 2025. When that increase goes into effect, it will be the lowest adjustment to benefits that beneficiaries have seen since 2021, when the cost-of-living adjustment, or COLA, was 1.3%. The Social Security cost-of-living adjustment

Portra | E+ | Getty Images More than 72.5 million Americans will see a 2.5% cost-of-living adjustment to benefit payments in 2025, the Social Security Administration announced on Thursday. With the change, Social Security retirement benefits will increase by about $50 per month on average starting in January, according to the agency. The Social Security

Tomml | E+ | Getty Images Social Security beneficiaries will soon know the size of their annual cost-of-living adjustment for 2025. They may be in for a disappointment because if current projections hold true, the increase to benefits could be the lowest since 2021. The Social Security cost-of-living adjustment, or COLA, could be 2.5% next

Visoot Uthairam | Moment | Getty Images Home repairs and renovations are expensive. To lower costs, 1 in 3 homeowners are willing to hire a contractor with holes in their resume.  About 33% of surveyed homeowners say they’d consider hiring a contractor with a questionable reputation to save money, according to a new report by