More Money

Need a sitter? Malia Obama may be available.

Reducing unemployment and cleaning up the oil spill in the Gulf may top Barack Obama's to-do list, but he hasn't forgotten about the importance of teaching his daughters about money. In an interview last week with ABC News, the president said he and Michelle have started teaching first daughters Sasha and Malia about savings and interest. He also suggested that the girls may soon be old enough to earn their MORE

Should you opt in for overdraft protection?

You can officially say goodbye to that $40 cup of coffee — that is, if your bank doesn't badger you into paying for it all over again.

Thanks to new Federal Reserve rules, you now can decide what happens when you pull out a debit card to pay for a purchase but don't have enough money in your checking account to cover it.

Previously, if you didn't have enough in your account MORE

What if the housing bubble never happened?

Ever wonder where home prices would be today if the real estate market never overheated? Now you can get a clue, thanks to a new online tool from MacroMarkets, the company founded by housing economist Robert Shiller of the Case-Shiller home price index.

Are you borrowing too much for college?

When it comes to soaring college costs, much of the blame has been leveled at the colleges themselves — and their nonstop spending on everything from lavish student centers to generous salaries for administrators.

Certainly the schools deserve criticism for their extravagant outlays. But what's often overlooked is the role of the parents and students who are determined to pay lofty prices for brand-name schools, even if it means going deeply MORE

Your Midyear Tax Checkup, day 4: Revisit retirement contributions

With 2010 halfway complete, we've spent all this week providing you with  tax planning tips to keep in mind for the six months ahead — the kind of advice CPAs across the country are considering for their own clients right now. These moves require some foresight and time, which is why it's important to start thinking about them now (vs. on December 31). But they're worth the effort in terms MORE

Your Midyear Tax Checkup, day 3: Three write-offs to plan for

You may not like thinking about taxes this far out from April 15, but you like saving money, don't you? To the tax planners go the spoils. So all this week we've been highlighting things you can do now to make the next tax day more bearable, if not enjoyable.

So far, we've covered how to estimate your tax bill for the year to see if you'll be square and how MORE

Your Midyear Tax Checkup, day 2: Sell investments strategically

Having hit the midpoint of 2010, we're doing a week-long spree of tax planning posts this week (check out the earlier one on figuring out if you'll be square with Uncle Sam). As any tax pro knows, a little foresight can go a long way toward making your next April 15 a little more pleasant.

Today's topic: Investing strategy.

If you sold an investment in '07, '08, or early '09 for MORE

Your Midyear Tax Checkup, day 1: Make sure you're square with Uncle Sam

Believe it or not, 2010 is already half over. And while you're seeking relief indoors from the triple-digit July misery outside — it's currently a brain-melting 102°F here in New York — you might make use of this respite to think about your taxes.

Yeah, yeah. That's not the summer fun you'd planned. We get it. But as Hunt Valley, Md. financial planner and CPA Drew Tignanelli puts it,"The best time MORE

Money-saving tips for a summer abroad

While a summer abroad can be a great way for college-age kids to learn crucial lessons about self-reliance, responsibility and foreign cultures, let's face it: Often those lessons cost a lot more than you'd want them to. Yes, the dollar is up more than 10% in value against the euro since last summer. But it's still a threat to a student's (and his whole family's) finances to be on MORE