Retire with MONEY

by Prachi Bhardwaj Nearly half of Americans say a second stimulus check is necessary to cover their essential expenses like food and housing over the next three months, according to a recent Money/Morning Consult poll. The survey also found the highest reported need among Black Americans. Overall, 42% of Americans said they needed an additional check to make ends meet, while 32% said further assistance would be helpful, but not necessary, to cover basic expenses.

by Mallika Mitra Dressed up in business pants and a black turtleneck, Devin Booker researched Cisco and Hewlett Packard Enterprise once more before heading in to meet with representatives from the companies. But the senior marketing major at Morgan State University wasn’t in Silicon Valley to meet at the companies’ headquarters. Instead, he was over a thousand miles away in Nebraska, in front of his laptop in his sister’s living room.

by Michael Tedder When was the last time you thought about your washer and dryer? Chances are, you haven't given your machines much thought over the years as they dutifully clean and dry your clothes. It might be worth considering an upgrade, though. Many new models come with energy-saving features that are good for the environment and your power bill.

by Daniel Bortz Home buyers eager to take advantage of low interest rates are rushing to schedule home tours, just recently allowed in some places as stay-at-home restrictions are eased. To curtail potential exposure to the coronavirus, however, many sellers are trying to limit the number of people traipsing through their properties. To achieve this, real estate agents are suggesting that sellers only admit buyers who have been pre-approved for a mortgage.

by Ingrid Case When Albert Einstein said that compound interest is the universe’s most powerful force, he wasn’t kidding. Set aside $5 a day, every day, beginning when your baby is born, and invest it at 8%. By age 18, your child will have about $73,000 put aside for college expenses. Assuming no withdrawals for college expenses, by age 65 that child will have a $4 million cushion to pad her retirement. Of course, to reach those numbers, you’ll have to set aside $5 a day.

Booking excursions well in advance is a great way to save some money on your trip. It’s also a huge risk at a time when the coronavirus could cancel your plans at the last hour. A survey of 2,000 people by GetYourGuide and Dynata showed that a little over half of U.S. travelers expect to travel in the next six months and two-thirds said they expect to travel in the next year.

by Ashley Abramson Travis Fields and his wife, Niki, were visiting family in Hawaii when Colorado governor Jared Polis ordered all restaurants to stop dine-in services. So they had to figure out a way to keep their business open from 3,000 miles away. The couple owns FH Beerworks, a brewery and taproom that sits on five acres of land outside of Colorado Springs, Colo., and employs a team of 12 brewers, bartenders, and salespeople.

by Heidi Rivera As many 1 million undergraduate students a year turn to private student loans, according to The Institute for College Access & Success. Experts stress that families should exhaust all of their federal aid options before turning to private loans. Unlike private student loans, federal loans don’t require the student to pass a credit check and nearly anyone with a satisfactory academic standing can get them.

by Chris Taylor So far the stock market has remained surprisingly sanguine in the face of the economic and human toll of COVID-19. Now as new virus hotspots emerge in the U.S., investors are having to reassess. Even with stay-at-home orders, a total of 47 million jobless claims, and a national death toll of 124,000 and rising, the S&P 500 is actually down only 6% year-to-date. From the lows of March 23, it is up almost 40%.

by Mallika Mitra If you thought you knew the typical rules of investing during a recession, the coronavirus may have proved you wrong. Usually, defensive stocks tend to fare better during an economic downturn. These include essential industries, like utilities, consumer staples and health care. Cyclical stocks, on the other hand, have a harder time weathering a recessionary storm, as people stop buying discretionary purchases.

by Kenadi Silcox Up until a year ago, I was a freshly-graduated college student with a million things on my mind. None of which included what it might be like to retire someday. On the contrary, I was desperately trying to find a job that could help make a dent in my burgeoning college debt while simultaneously consuming hundreds of hours of doom-and-gloom climate change news.

by Charlotte West California State University made waves last month when it announced the majority of classes at its 23 campuses would be offered online this fall. In the days following the news, students — and in some cases, the parents paying for their education — took to social media asking if CSU would be lowering tuition since “online is cheaper.

"Before You Take an Early Retirement Buyout, Complete This 3-Step Checklist" by Martha C. White Airlines are trying to convince thousands of their workers to take early-retirement buyouts as they search for ways to cut costs in the face of still-weak demand. What’s more, the pandemic-induced recession is likely to lead to a larger wave of voluntary separation — i.e., buyout and early retirement— offerings from employers.

How I Saved My Small Business: A Swanky Coffee Shop Pivots to Toilet Paper and Cheetos by Ashley Abramson Kristine and Drew Coffman moved from Florida to Redding, Calif. with a vision: Open up a beautiful little boutique hotel—the kind that people drool over on the Travel Channel—with a coffee shop or restaurant on the first floor. That was 2016.

3 Cities Where Coronavirus Could Hit Housing the Hardest by Samantha Sharf A buyer looking to make a smart long-term bet in today’s volatile housing market should follow the jobs, according to a new report. That may mean avoiding cities too heavily dependent on a single industry and seeking out those with more diversified economies.