News

Your Money: New Approaches to Holiday Gift Giving

At a time when so many people have so much less than they did just a few months ago, there ought to be a way

Failing Home Economics

As Americans attempt to perform cost-benefit analyses of their needs and behaviors, some are practicing economies that may not deserve the name. ...

Wife/Mother/Worker/Spy: Cost Cutting, a k a Mooching

Tough times require tough measures in household budgeting. ...

Web Sites Wage Holiday Price Wars

As deserted malls and department stores struggle to court consumers with steep discounts, an even more ferocious price war is being waged online. ...

Op-Ed Columnist: The Formerly Middle Class

In this recession, maybe even more than other ones, the last ones to join the middle class will be the first ones out. ...

Itineraries: Savings as Part of the Job

Employees on business trips are increasingly responsive to management’s call to cut travel costs. ...

New Veterans Hit Hard by Economic Crisis

A combination of factors including unemployment and injury has forced many veterans into foreclosure. ...

On 5th Ave., Discounts Arrive Early

Prices are dropping at stores where people usually wrinkle their noses at the mention of the word “sale.” ...

In Hard Times, No More Fancy Pants

Belt-tightening has prompted a reconsideration of acceptable consumerism, even among the well-off. ...

Mortgages: How Rates Are Set

Interest rates are often a mystery for many people applying for home loans. ...

Fundamentally: Market Bottom? For Some Investors, It’s Close Enough

The elusive market bottom may be finally in sight. But don’t count on being able to time the market. ...

The Debt Trap: Downturn Drags More Consumers Into Bankruptcy

With their credit cards drained, the latest bankruptcy filers are deeper in debt than those in previous downturns. ...

Cost of Living: Tight Times Even Tighter for Charities

The fallout from the financial crisis is striking nonprofit groups and charities fast and hard. ...

Your Money: Your Insurance Company, and Related Worries

What has happened in the past when insurance companies have gone under? What might happen to your life policy or annuity in a worst case ...

Financial Advisers’ House Calls

In tough times, employee perks are vulnerable. Yet companies seem to be maintaining, and even adding one in particular — one-on-one, personal financial advice. ...

Our Towns: Making a Case for Other Bailout Plans

An online brokerage billionaire in Greenwich, Conn., has a simple (and perhaps brilliant) solution to the mortgage meltdown. ...

Retailers Feel Pinch of Returns

A steeply rising number of shoppers, driven by anxiety over jobs and savings, or an immediate need for cash, are marching back to stores with ...

U.S. Shifts Focus in Credit Bailout to the Consumer

Henry M. Paulson Jr. is hoping to put in place a major new lending program run by the Fed and aimed at unlocking the frozen ...

Retirees Cope With Dwindling Portfolios

With the economy in free fall and stocks down, legions of middle- and upper-middle-class retirees are suddenly worried about having enough to carry them through. ...

Economic Scene: Buying Binge Slams to Halt

With Wall Street edging back from the brink, a consumer confidence crisis has become the biggest short-term economic issue. ...

Most Popular
Most E-mailed

Featured author