Andy | Saving to Invest

2020 Payroll Tax Deferral – When Will It Start and How Much Extra in My Pay Check?

Per Trump's order (see below) to suspend employee payroll taxes for 2020 and defer them to 2021, many eligible workers will enjoy a temporary boost to their paychecks in 2020. See this article for more details on how this is implemented per IRS guideline. The employee payroll tax break is equivalent…

Best Job Prospects for 2026 and Beyond: What the Latest BLS Data Shows Is Actually Growing

The national unemployment rate was 4.2% in June 2026, and the economy added just 57,000 jobs that month — well below expectations, with leisure and hospitality actually losing jobs while healthcare and professional services kept growing. It's a mixed, uneven labor market, and it makes the question of where the…

How to Get Out of Debt in 2026 — The Avalanche and Snowball Methods, Compared

The average American carries $6,715 in credit card debt, and average credit card APRs are running in the 20-25% range in 2026. At those rates, a $6,700 balance paying only the minimum can take years to clear and cost more in interest than the original purchases. Getting out of debt…

No Tax Refund or Status After 21 days? Tips On Contacting the IRS For Payment and Processing Updates

As the IRS notes, 9 out of 10 filers get their refund within 21 days of an accepted e-filed return. But that also means roughly 1 in 10 filers — over 15 million people in a typical season — wait longer than that. If you're past 21 days (or 6…

The Personal Exemption Is Gone for Good — What Replaced It on Your 2026 Tax Return

Quick answer for anyone searching: the personal exemption is permanently gone. The $4,050-per-person deduction last existed on 2017 returns, was suspended by the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) from 2018 through 2025, and Trump's One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA) made the elimination permanent in 2025. It's not coming…

Using the New $40,000 SALT Deduction Cap in 2026 for Your 2025 Tax Filing

[Updated following passage of OBBB] The world of personal finance is a constant dance of numbers, rules, and ever-shifting legislation. For millions of American homeowners and high-earners, few changes have been as impactful—and as debated—as the State and Local Tax (SALT) deduction. Since the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act…

2026 Roth IRA Contribution and Income Limits — Plus Catch-Up and Conversion Rules

The Roth IRA contribution limit for 2026 is $7,500 — up from $7,000 in 2025. If you're 50 or older, you can add a $1,100 catch-up contribution (now indexed for inflation under SECURE 2.0), bringing your total to $8,600. The income phase-out ranges have also shifted up slightly for 2026.…

Couples and Money: How to Set Expectations and Avoid Financial Disagreements

"What's hers is hers, and what's mine is hers — that's how we share our money!" That joke lands because most couples never actually spell out how they handle money. Each partner just assumes the other shares their views, and that assumption is usually wrong. Money is one of the…

Does Your IRS Tax Transcript Show Your Refund and Direct Deposit Date? What N/A Really Means

Reviewing your free IRS tax transcript is a technique a lot of filers use to get an update on their return processing and refund status, particularly when Where's My Refund (WMR) or the IRS2Go app isn't showing much beyond "still processing." While the IRS's official line is that a tax…

Should I Refinance My Mortgage in 2026? Rates, Requirements, and the Breakeven Math

The average 30-year mortgage refinance rate is sitting around 6.8% as of early July 2026, per Freddie Mac's Primary Mortgage Market Survey. That's not the "lowest since the 1950s" environment this page used to describe — those sub-4% rates are long gone, and most homeowners today are locked into a…

Can a Taxpayer Advocate Help Get My Delayed Refund Released? 2026 Update

The Taxpayer Advocate Service (TAS) is an independent organization within the IRS that helps filers with tax problems they can't resolve through normal channels, or who've exhausted standard IRS contact options without a real answer. Every state has at least one local TAS office, independent of the regular IRS office.…

Refund Direct Deposit Date (DDD) Earlier Than Expected? 2024 IRS Direct Deposit Timings, Payment Delays and Fixing Incorrect Bank Information

Despite ongoing processing delays the IRS is continuing to process and pay tax refunds. However there are still a lot of folks seeing delays in getting their refund payment despite the Where is My Refund (WMR) IRS tool showing that the return has been approved (2 bars) and/or refund sent (3…

What to Expect This Tax Season — Answers to the 7 Questions I Get Asked Most

Every year I get the same handful of questions from readers gearing up for the next filing season: when can I file, how do I file for free, how much will I get back, and why does the IRS take so long to pay it. This year's answers lean forward…

Why is My Tax Refund So Low Compared to Last Year?

If your refund feels smaller than you expected, you're not imagining it being out of step with the news — average refunds are actually up this filing season, which can make an unchanged or lower refund of your own feel especially confusing. Nationally, the average federal refund reached $3,397 as…