published Jan 9th 2017, 10:59 am, by Alan Bjerga (Bloomberg) — Children keep getting more expensive to raise — fashion is pricier and so are doctor visits and day care, according to the U.S. government. At least food’s still relatively cheap. The cost for a middle-income family to raise a

published Jan 3rd 2017, 3:19 pm, by Megan McArdle (Bloomberg View) —Was the 401(k) a tragic mistake? When you use one of those online calculators to estimate your expected income in retirement, it can sure seem so. Investment returns have proven variable, and individuals are often prone to making idiotic

published Jan 3rd 2017, 5:00 pm, by David Ader (Bloomberg View) —Bond strategists use many tools in attempting to forecast the path of interest rates, ranging from straightforward data analysis, to parsing the statements of Federal Reserve officials, to looking for trading patterns. The challenge lay in weighting these methods

published Dec 9th 2016, 6:00 am, by Ben Steverman (Bloomberg) — One way to prepare for retirement is to save. Another way: Don’t retire. It’s surprisingly common to put very little aside and hope you never need to hang up your cleats for good. Among investors under age 35, more

published Dec 15th 2016, 4:00 am, by Suzanne Woolley (Bloomberg) —When it comes to debt, it’s nice to be below average. Do your credit card balances fall below the national mean of $16,000 for households with debt? Is your total household debt, including mortgages, shy of the $132,500 mark? If so,

published Dec 1st 2016, 4:00 am, by Josh Eidelson, Eva Holland and David Gauvey Herbert (Bloomberg) — The Couple Whose Band Might Blow Up Samantha Lepre and Branden Wilbarger Ages: 25, 28 Jobs: Waitress and Waiter/musician. Incomes*: $26,000 and $55,000 Home: Los Angeles Together: 4 years Samantha: When we first

published Dec 7th 2016, 9:49 am, by Ben Steverman (Bloomberg) — Shortly before Thanksgiving, Nathan Lundquist, a 22-year-old senior at Auburn University, was sitting in the Delta Air Lines lounge in the Atlanta airport, pondering his next credit card. In blogs and online forums in which “churners” obsess over credit-card

published Dec 5th 2016, 2:15 pm, by Megan McArdle (Bloomberg View) —The only good thing that can be said about aging is that it’s better than the alternative. It’s also more expensive, and as society ages, we’re going to have to figure out how we pay for it. Most Americans

published Nov 28th 2016, 5:32 pm, by Suzanne Woolley (Bloomberg) — Many company 401(k) retirement savings plans could use a swift kick into the 21st century, according to a new report from the U.S. Government Accountability Office. A number of longtime 401(k) plan designs fail to reflect a new, more

published Nov 22nd 2016, 9:19 am, by Shobhana Chandra (Bloomberg) — Sales of previously owned U.S. homes unexpectedly climbed in October to the highest level since February 2007, a sign of momentum in the housing market a month before a jump in borrowing costs, National Association of Realtors data showed