Social Security Overpayment Introduction In a move that could affect millions of Americans, the Social Security Administration is tightening its rules on Social Security overpayment. Starting March 27, beneficiaries who have been accidentally overpaid may see 100% of their monthly Social Security check withheld until the debt is recovered – a drastic jump from the previous 10% cap on withholdings​. This stricter clawback policy applies to Social Security retirement, survivors, and disability benefits and could leave some people with no benefit payment in the interim. The change has sparked concern among advocates and lawmakers, who fear it will cause severe…

Imprint’s cloud-based ledger system allows retailers to micro-target rewards. Does it have a shot against big branded-card issuers like Synchrony and Capital One? By Jeff Kauflin, Forbes Staff Having cycled through jobs as a corporate lawyer, financial services consultant at McKinsey and vice president of operations at WeWork, Daragh Murphy was determined to do a fintech startup–something, perhaps, to help credit unions get up to date. But in April 2020, he got a call from Gaurav Ahuja, a venture capitalist at Josh Kushner’s Thrive Capital, with an alternative plan. As Murphy tells it, Ahuja said, “We hear you’re working on…

Education Department Massive Layoffs The Education Department is preparing to lay off roughly half of its employees, according to multiple reports, including CNN and ABC News. An internal memo, obtained by CNN, ordered that “all Department of Education offices will be closed” Tuesday evening and Wednesday for unspecified “security reasons,” instructing staff to take their laptops and leave by 6 p.m. By Thursday, the agency plans to resume work with a drastically reduced workforce. “Nearly half of the department is expected to be eliminated,” sources told ABC News, with reduction in force notices expected to go out at 6 p.m.…

Start your kids on the right financial foot by saving for retirement early with a Roth IRA. If your child has earned income, perhaps from a part-time job, they can contribute to a Roth IRA. Even better: the child or teen doesn’t have to part with their hard-earned cash. IRA contributions can come from a parent, grandparent, relative…anyone. While you could open a regular custodial IRA and make pre-tax contributions, since most minors don’t have meaningful taxable income, a Roth IRA is almost always a better savings vehicle. How A Custodial IRA Works A custodial Roth IRA is a regular…

Over the years, I have learned to focus on earnings, interest rates and other market factors when assessing the outlook for stocks, and to avoid letting the Washington DC political scene impact investment decisions. While I believe this has served me well for decades, perhaps the first time in my career I may rethink that philosophy. Wall Street prefers to know what the playing field looks like regarding, trade, taxes, policy, as well as the outlook for corporate earnings and interest rates. With so much uncertainty out of Washington DC these outlooks have become less visible. Even The Federal Reserve…

Student Loan Forgiveness Hoax A viral social media claim alleges that Hope Walz – the daughter of Minnesota Governor Tim Walz and 2024 U.S. vice-presidential candidate – received $82,000 in student loan forgiveness and that her family is worth $138 million. This sensational claim has spread widely online, but it is entirely false​. The story originated from a satirical website and has no basis. Multiple fact-checkers, including Snopes, have debunked the rumor and confirmed that Hope Walz did not get $82,000 in student loan forgiveness. Moreover, as Forbes has reported, Tim Walz’s net worth is closer to $1 million, a…

More than eight million student loan borrowers appear increasingly likely to get kicked out of an affordable income-driven repayment plan in the coming months, jeopardizing their ability to have manageable payments and a pathway to eventual student loan forgiveness. The SAVE plan, a Biden-era income-driven repayment option, was created to provide borrowers with affordable payments (more affordable than other repayment options) and student loan forgiveness after 20 or 25 years, or in some cases, in as little as 10 years. The program was intended to benefit borrowers in other ways, as well, including by ending runaway interest accrual. The SAVE…

Tesla Stock Price Drop: Why TSLA Crashed 50% Since December And The Impact On Investors Tesla stock has plunged by over 50% since December, a dramatic collapse that has stunned shareholders and analysts alike. In mid-December 2024, Tesla traded near an all-time high of around $480 per share; by early March 2025, it had sunk to roughly $220. This wipeout erased over $800 billion in market value, the steepest drop Tesla has seen in years. Even Elon Musk’s Tesla shares have not been spared – Musk’s net worth has tumbled by more than $100 billion during the crash. Given that…

The U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM) recently emailed over 2 million federal employees an offer to pay eight months of salary in exchange for resignation. Initiated by the newly launched “Department of Government Efficiency” (DOGE), roughly 75,000 employees accepted the deal. The change underscores a broader shift of large institutions curtailing their workforces. This trend could have significant implications for retirement planning for many Americans.­­ Other prominent examples of 2025 layoffs include: These recent cuts add more data points to what seems to be a pattern. In 2019, multinational industrial and technology company General Electric offered buyouts to nearly…

Hundreds of thousands of federal student loan borrowers may be impacted by President Donald Trump’s latest student loan forgiveness action, imperiling a popular program that, until fairly recently, had enjoyed bipartisan support. The Public Service Loan Forgiveness program, often referred to as PSLF, provides a pathway to loan forgiveness for borrowers who commit to careers in the nonprofit or public sectors. Borrowers can qualify for complete federal student loan forgiveness after making 120 qualifying payments (the equivalent of 10 years) on eligible loans under a covered repayment plan while working full-time for certain organizations engaged in public service work. At…