TaxesGuide
The No Tax on Tips Deduction and Who Qualifies for It
Tipped workers can deduct qualified tips up to $25,000 if the job is on the IRS list. What counts, the phase out and why payroll tax still applies.
7 min read
The library
14 plain-English reads on budgeting, saving, investing, debt, credit and taxes. Newest first unless you say otherwise.
EverythingBudgetingSavingInvestingDebt PayoffBankingCreditTaxesRetirementCollege SavingsPassive IncomeMoney FoundationsEveryday SpendingInsuranceSocial Security & MedicareHousing & RentingStudent LoansMoney MindsetSide IncomeCareer & SalaryFinancial IndependenceEstate PlanningFamily FinancesLife EventsSmall BusinessFraud & Consumer ProtectionHealthcare CostsTravel & RewardsCars & TransportInflation & the EconomyMoney ToolsGiving
Money Foundations
What to Do With Your First Real Paycheck in the First Month
Your first real paycheck sets habits that last for years. Learn how to allocate initial paychecks across employer benefits, starter savings and bills.
7 min read
Insurance
Employer Life Insurance vs Your Own Term Policy Compared
Group life insurance through work is cheap but ends with your job. Learn why workplace coverage is rarely enough and when private term policies save money.
6 min read
Social Security & Medicare
What the Social Security Fairness Act Changed for Pensions
WEP and GPO penalties historically slashed benefits for public servants. How statutory reform restores full retirement and spousal checks to pensioners.
6 min read
Social Security & Medicare
The Social Security Earnings Test for Working Retirees
Working while claiming early can pause some checks. They are not lost: the benefit is recalculated upward later, which almost nobody explains.
5 min read
Social Security & MedicareGuide
How Your Social Security Benefit Is Actually Calculated
Your benefit comes from your top thirty five years of indexed earnings run through a formula that favors lower earners. What that means for working longer.
6 min read
Insurance
Disability Insurance Is the Coverage Most Workers Skip
You are three times more likely to suffer a disability before retirement than to pass away prematurely. Here is why employer group coverage alone leaves a dangerous gap.
4 min read
BudgetingGuide
How to Read a Pay Stub (and What Is Missing From It)
The gap between gross salary and take-home pay creates widespread financial confusion. Here is line-by-line pay stub anatomy, tax mechanics, and four January checks.
10 min read
Taxes
Why Your Refund Shrank
A smaller refund can mean more money reached each paycheck. Compare total tax, withholding, credits and other income before assuming rates rose.
4 min read
TaxesGuide
How to Adjust Your W-4
A $3,600 refund is $300 a month that stayed out of your paycheck. Use the IRS estimator, then translate its result onto Form W-4.
5 min read
Editor's pick
TaxesGuide
Your Tax Season Checklist
Gather the forms your return actually needs, including the four records most likely to arrive after you think you are ready to file.
7 min read
Retirement
The 401(k) True-Up: How Front-Loading Costs You Match
Most employers match per pay period. Hit the annual limit in September and you get no match for the rest of the year, unless your plan has a provision most people have never heard of.
6 min read
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