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USA Today
7 hours ago
- Business
- USA Today
The Daily Money: What's the going allowance rate?
Good morning and Happy Friday! This is Betty Lin-Fisher with Friday's consumer-focused edition of The Daily Money. Let's just say it has been awhile since I've doled out allowances for my "kids," who are young adults. So when I read a story by colleague Rachel Barber about the going rate for kids' allowances, I was surprised. According to a new survey by Wells Fargo, 29% of parents have increased their kids' allowances over the last year to keep up with inflation while 65% have not and 6% have decreased the amount they give their children. How much are kids getting for allowances? How to save on car-loan interest Are you in the market for a new car? You might want to consider the 20% rule if you'll be financing that new ride. New car prices have reached record numbers in 2025. What is the 20% rule and how can that help your car payments? 📰 Consumer stories you shouldn't miss 📰 🍔 Today's Menu 🍔 Kroger is facing backlash on TikTok after a video of lackluster Juneteenth cakes for sale at one of the grocery store's locations went viral. The video, which was recorded at a store in Atlanta, Georgia, showed several cakes minimally decorated in honor of the federal holiday on June 19, which marks the 1865 emancipation of the last enslaved people in the United States. About The Daily Money Each weekday, The Daily Money delivers the best consumer and financial news from USA TODAY, breaking down complex events, providing the TLDR version, and explaining how everything from Fed rate changes to bankruptcies impacts you.
USA Today
16-05-2025
- Business
- USA Today
The Daily Money: Hate credit card surcharges?
The Daily Money: Hate credit card surcharges? Good morning and Happy Friday! This is Betty Lin-Fisher with Friday's consumer-focused edition of The Daily Money. We've all been there: you're ready to pay your bill at a restaurant or checkout at a store. Then the clerk says: "It'll cost 3% more if you use your credit card. Is that OK?" If you're like me, I only carry an "emergency" $20 bill with me, so that usually doesn't cut it. So I grit my teeth and go forward with the transaction while grumbling to myself about the surcharge. I'm not alone. In two separate surveys, a large majority of people faced the same transaction fee to use their credit card and were ticked off that they were being "nickel and dimed" for something that used to be a cost the business paid. Many people also use credit cards to rack up cash rewards or other perks. This begged the question: are rewards credit cards worth it if you have to pay a surcharge at the register? Also, make sure to read about a surprising debit card rule you may not know about in my story. Can young people afford home ownership? Many young people feel crushed when they think about their ability to buy a home, but it doesn't mean they're giving up on the dream. The average age of first-time home buyers rose to an all-time high of 38 last year, reports my colleague, Rachel Barber. That reality has young people feeling jealous. More than six in 10 Gen Z and millennial non-homeowners said they're envious of peers who have bought houses, according to a new BMO survey. How are some young home buyers making it work? Should travelers turn off Face ID at border crossings? Rising reports of U.S. Customs and Border Protection searches and detainments have raised concerns among travelers about what could happen if they're stopped when trying to enter the country. My colleague, Kathleen Wong, outlines travelers' rights at the border and offers tips, including whether you should turn off Face ID at border crossings. 📰 Consumer stories you shouldn't miss 📰 About The Daily Money Each weekday, The Daily Money delivers the best consumer and financial news from USA TODAY, breaking down complex events, providing the TLDR version, and explaining how everything from Fed rate changes to bankruptcies impacts you.
Yahoo
14-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Didn't file for 2021? The IRS may owe you money. April 15 is your last chance to claim it
With the clock ticking on tax season, the IRS is reminding Americans that April 15 is also their last chance to file a past due return and receive a refund for tax year 2021. Some 1.1 million Americans who didn't file a federal income tax return for 2021 are collectively missing out on $1.025 billion in unclaimed refunds, according to the IRS. If you are one of them, you may be leaving money on the table and time is running out to claim it. The IRS says there is no penalty for failing to file until now if a refund is due, but in order to receive one and claim any credits, a past due return must be filed within three years of the original due date. For those who didn't file in 2022, that deadline is April 15, 2025. Fail to file within the three-year window? Your refund becomes the property of the U.S. Treasury and you're most likely not getting it back. More: Kids bring joy, chaos... and tax benefits. What to know as a new parent filing a return The more than $1 billion estimate for unclaimed refunds is based on taxes that were withheld from paychecks or paid during 2021. States with the highest median refund for 2021 include Massachusetts at $936; Rhode Island at $946; Pennsylvania at $993; and New York, where the IRS estimated the median unclaimed refund is $995. The IRS estimates the midpoint for potential refunds nationwide for 2021 is $781, meaning half the refunds are more than $781 and half are less. Everyone's circumstances are different. Actual refund amounts will vary based on a filer's status, withholding amount, and other factors. Tax year 2021 refunds may be held back if you haven't filed returns for 2022 and 2023, so make sure you've filed for all three years. They may also be withheld and used to offset unpaid child support or past due federal debts, including student loans. Taxpayers can potentially up their 2021 refund by thousands of dollars if they are eligible for and take advantage of credits, such as the recovery rebate credit and the earned income tax credit, when they file. But remember, that money goes to the U.S. Treasury unless you file by April 15. Contributing: Susan Tompor Reach Rachel Barber at rbarber@ and follow her on X @rachelbarber_ This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Last chance to claim refund for tax year 2021 Sign in to access your portfolio
USA Today
14-04-2025
- Business
- USA Today
Didn't file for 2021? The IRS may owe you money. April 15 is your last chance to claim it
Didn't file for 2021? The IRS may owe you money. April 15 is your last chance to claim it Show Caption Hide Caption Tax status changing? Here's what to know about filing this year Tax season gives many people anxiety. Here's what we know about filing this year. With the clock ticking on tax season, the IRS is reminding Americans that April 15 is also their last chance to file a past due return and receive a refund for tax year 2021. Some 1.1 million Americans who didn't file a federal income tax return for 2021 are collectively missing out on $1.025 billion in unclaimed refunds, according to the IRS. If you are one of them, you may be leaving money on the table and time is running out to claim it. The IRS says there is no penalty for failing to file until now if a refund is due, but in order to receive one and claim any credits, a past due return must be filed within three years of the original due date. For those who didn't file in 2022, that deadline is April 15, 2025. Fail to file within the three-year window? Your refund becomes the property of the U.S. Treasury and you're most likely not getting it back. More: Kids bring joy, chaos... and tax benefits. What to know as a new parent filing a return How much does the IRS owe taxpayers? The more than $1 billion estimate for unclaimed refunds is based on taxes that were withheld from paychecks or paid during 2021. States with the highest median refund for 2021 include Massachusetts at $936; Rhode Island at $946; Pennsylvania at $993; and New York, where the IRS estimated the median unclaimed refund is $995. The IRS estimates the midpoint for potential refunds nationwide for 2021 is $781, meaning half the refunds are more than $781 and half are less. Everyone's circumstances are different. Actual refund amounts will vary based on a filer's status, withholding amount, and other factors. Why some refunds could be more or less Tax year 2021 refunds may be held back if you haven't filed returns for 2022 and 2023, so make sure you've filed for all three years. They may also be withheld and used to offset unpaid child support or past due federal debts, including student loans. Taxpayers can potentially up their 2021 refund by thousands of dollars if they are eligible for and take advantage of credits, such as the recovery rebate credit and the earned income tax credit, when they file. But remember, that money goes to the U.S. Treasury unless you file by April 15. Contributing: Susan Tompor Reach Rachel Barber at rbarber@ and follow her on X @rachelbarber_
USA Today
17-03-2025
- Business
- USA Today
Government shutdown averted
Government shutdown averted | The Excerpt On Saturday's episode of The Excerpt podcast: A government shutdown has been averted. USA TODAY Economy Reporter Rachel Barber takes a closer look at what's actually going on amid economic uncertainty. Elon Musk's 'Hitler didn't murder millions' repost draws outrage. USA TODAY National Correspondent Trevor Hughes talks through data that shows more foreign-born people call the United States home today than ever. Diddy pleads not guilty again. Hit play on the player below to hear the podcast and follow along with the transcript beneath it. This transcript was automatically generated, and then edited for clarity in its current form. There may be some differences between the audio and the text. Podcasts: True crime, in-depth interviews and more USA TODAY podcasts right here Taylor Wilson: Good morning, I'm Taylor Wilson, and today is Saturday, March 15th, 2025. This is The Excerpt. Today's Shutdown Averted, plus we take a closer look at the economy amid spooked markets and consumers and more foreign-born people call the US home today than ever in history. The government shutdown has been avoided. Senate yesterday evening passed a bill to keep the government funded through September, a partial shutdown otherwise would've begun at midnight, 10 Democrats joined with all but one of their GOP colleagues on a key procedural vote to advance the bill yesterday afternoon, but far fewer Democrats joined Republicans to vote for the bill itself, which shifts some money toward President Donald Trump's priorities and increases his power over spending. The vote came amid a brewing trade war between Trump and international allies and the administration's mass layoffs of federal workers, and where any additional signs of US political dysfunction would have only added to economic uncertainty. Still, consumer confidence is sinking as that economic uncertainty continues. I spoke with USA TODAY economy reporter, Rachel Barber, to help make sense of where things stand right now. Hey there, Rachel. Rachel Barber: Hi Taylor. Taylor Wilson: Thanks for hopping on this, Rachel. So lots of, I think concerns and anxiety around some of these economic points right now, but let's start by talking about the markets. I know stocks inched back up on Friday, but it was really a nightmare week beforehand, Rachel? What happened here was this, I guess, mostly a reaction to uncertainty? Rachel Barber: It's complicated, but it seems that way. One of the sources that I spoke to said that markets are like people, they like stability and certainty, and right now investors are worried what tariffs will mean for their supply chains and their businesses overall. As we know, tensions have been rising between the US and its top three trading partners, Canada, Mexico, China, and this week Trump escalated the risk of a trade war with the European Union. He threatened to impose a 200% tariff on alcohol coming to the US from Europe unless the EU drops its plans for a tax on American whiskey, which by the way itself, was part of an EU retaliation strategy after Trump put a 25% tariff on steel and aluminum imports to the US. Taylor Wilson: All right, so what about inflation? This was something Trump promised to lower on day one, has he made good on any of that promise? Rachel Barber: I'm not an expert on inflation, but I can tell you that it eased more than was expected in February, but economists told my colleague, Paul Davidson, that the reprieve will probably be short-lived because those import tariffs we just spoke about are expected to drive prices up. Taylor Wilson: Well, as I said at the top, Rachel, consumers, just average Americans, are clearly worried in this moment or at least puzzled know we have some new indicators on consumer confidence. What can you tell us here, just how spooked are consumers right now? Rachel Barber: Well, first to add some context, really simply put, consumer sentiment is a measure that we and economists use to understand how people are feeling about their finances and the economy, both in the short and the long term, and it matters because how people feel about the economy affects how much they spend and how much they save. So now we have some new data according to a new University of Michigan study, consumer sentiment in the US has fallen three months in a row, meaning people are feeling more pessimistic. The survey reported consumer sentiment is at 57.9, which is the lowest it's been since the end of 2022, and it's down 22% from December last year before Trump took office. Taylor Wilson: Wow. All right, so we've had this recession where it's swirling around for a few weeks now, Rachel. Considering all of this, what we've been talking about, how likely is a recession in the coming months? What does that word actually mean and how would that land with Americans? Rachel Barber: Well, yeah, honestly Taylor, I'm not in a position to make that call, if we're headed into a recession but I can tell you who is. For the last several decades, it's been up to eight economists who serve on something called the Business Cycle Dating Committee, which is within the National Bureau of Economic Research to formally decide when the US is in a recession. And that organization defines a recession as a, "Significant decline in economic activity that is spread across the economy lasting more than a few months." So it's a pretty broad definition, but the committee considers several factors when making that determination. Consumer spending is one of them, but they also look at real income, employment, industrial production, and GDP. So far they have not made any decisions that we are in a recession and Trump and his administration say that we are rather just in a period of economic transition. When he was asked on Fox News Sunday about whether the US would experience a recession in 2025, he didn't exactly rule it out, instead he just said that he hates to predict things like that. Taylor Wilson: All right, it feels like a critical next few weeks. Rachel Barber covers the economy for USA TODAY, thank you, Rachel. Rachel Barber: Thank you so much, Taylor, have a good one. Taylor Wilson: Elon Musk this week reposted a message on X, formerly Twitter, writing, "Stalin, Mao and Hitler didn't murder millions of people, their public sector employees did." Musk's repost, which now appears to be deleted, drew furious reactions from a labor union and the Anti-Defamation League. Lee Saunders, for instance, president of the American Federation of State County and Municipal employees said that America's public service workers chose making communities safe, healthy, and strong over getting rich, adding they are not, as the world's richest man implies, "Genocidal murderers." The Anti-Defamation League, a non-profit that seeks to combat anti-Semitism said the post was deeply disturbing. Musk's repost comes at a time when his crackdown on the federal government has spurred Tesla takedown protests with Tesla owners being harassed and multiple dealerships vandalized across the country. Back in January, Musk also sparked controversy with a gesture that drew comparisons to the Nazi salute while speaking at an inaugural event for President Donald Trump. ♦ More foreign-born people call the US home today than ever in history according to new federal data. I spoke with USA TODAY national correspondent, Trevor Hughes, for more. Hey there, Trevor. Trevor Hughes: Hey, how's it going? Taylor Wilson: Good, good. Thanks for hopping on, Trevor. So let's just start with the numbers. What did you find here about foreign-born folks in the United States? Trevor Hughes: What we're seeing, this is reflected in frankly in the election, but the new results from the Census Bureau and the Bureau of Labor Statistics suggest that there are now something like 53 million foreign-born people living in the United States. That's almost 16% of the overall population. Now, that's a combination of people here legally and people who cross the board illegally or people who have overstayed their visas. Taylor Wilson: How does this compare with past eras of foreign-born Americans? Do we have any numbers on this? Trevor Hughes: This is actually the highest level of foreign-born Americans that we've ever had in this country, at least in modern history, going back to the late 1800s when we started keeping good statistics on this, and again, this is self-reported by the BLS and the Census Bureau. It reflects, I think a thing that many Americans thought about when they were making a decision in the presidential election, president Trump campaigned very strongly on this idea of closing the border, and what we are now seeing from the statistics is that there are more people who are from somewhere else than have ever been in this country. Taylor Wilson: And you touched on this, Trevor, but does this survey distinguish between people who arrived with or without legal authorization? Do we know the breakdown here and in terms of how many foreign-born residents have received documentation? Trevor Hughes: This is a long-running sort of issue in America, which is that we don't actually have a really good sense of how many people are living here without legal permission. That is something the Trump administration actually plans to address. They have been trying to push this on the census for a number of years, and I expect that you're going to see stronger efforts in the coming years to really put a number on those folks so that the Trump administration can follow through with its campaign promises to deport people who are living illegally here in the United States. Taylor Wilson: Trevor, we hear a lot about how immigrants impact the economy. Where do the arguments here stand at this moment in time on I guess either side of the aisle, and what do the numbers tell us about the impact of foreign-born workers on economics? Trevor Hughes: This is the thing, Americans aren't having kids, and our population growth at this point is almost entirely because immigrants are coming to this country. That means more people to work, which actually keeps wages down, especially in industries that immigrants are traditionally employed, especially if you're unskilled, landscaping, labor, farming, fishing. And so that helps keep wages down, which is obviously good for employers, and is good for consumers. But if you're an American-born worker, you may not feel that way, you may be frustrated that people who are willing to work for less than you are working alongside you and that depresses your wages. Taylor Wilson: This is another interesting piece from you, Trevor. Listeners can go find the full version with a link in today's show notes. Trevor Hughes is a national correspondent with USA TODAY. Thanks, Trevor. Trevor Hughes: You bet, good to be here. ♦ Taylor Wilson: Former hip hop mogul, Sean Diddy Combs appeared in court once again yesterday pleading not guilty, this time for a new indictment, stating that he had forced employees to work long inhumane hours and threatened to punish those who did not assist in his alleged two decade long sex trafficking scheme. The indictment follows numerous lawsuits and allegations of rape, sexual assault, physical abuse, and similar claims over the course of three decades, all of which Combs has pleaded not guilty to. You can read more with a link in today's show notes. ♦ On the campaign trail, President Trump pledged to once and for all, dismantle the Department of Education, a longstanding goal of conservative Republicans. That promise took shape this past week with the layoff of 50% of the department staff. The question is, will that lead to better education in America? Zach Schermele: Tracking educational progress going forward in order to test the hypothesis that these cuts that the Trump administration has moved forward with are working, that's going to be a challenge because the folks who are in charge of engaging in that research are no longer going to be at the department. Taylor Wilson: That's USA TODAY Education Reporter Zach Schermele. Listen in tomorrow beginning at 5 A.M. when my colleague, Dana Taylor, sits down with Zach to talk through the impacts of these latest moves by the Trump administration to rein in Washington's footprint in the lives of millions of Americans. ♦ And thanks for listening to The Excerpt, you can get the podcast wherever you get your audio, and if you're on a smart speaker, just ask for The Excerpt. I'm Taylor Wilson, and I'll be back Monday with more of The Excerpt from USA TODAY.
