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Issuers such as American Express, Capital One and Chase offer digital coupons to holders of their debit and credit cards. Credit cards with rental CDW coverage include the Chase Freedom Unlimited, Chase Sapphire Preferred ($95 annual fee), American Express Blue Cash Preferred ($95 fee, waived for the first year), Amex Platinum card ($695 fee) and a host of others. REWARDS The credit cards in your wallet are packed with insurance, identity-theft protection and a slew of perks - including exclusive access to concerts and sporting events, discounts on products and services, and free memberships. TAP YOUR CREDIT CARD'S PERKS AND PROTECTIONS. [Extracted from the article]

If you still have funds left to spend, make doctor's appointments for you or your family and use FSA funds for the co-payments or deductibles. MONEY TRIM YOUR 2022 TAX BILL Don't buy a tax liability. A distribution of 2% to 3% of the share price probably won't cause you a lot of tax headaches, but if the fund estimates it will pay out 20% to 30% of the share price, wait until after the distribution to buy - or consider investing in a different fund. Even if you don't itemize and choose to take the standard deduction, giving appreciated assets to a donor-advised fund can provide a tax benefit because you may eliminate paying taxes on capital gains you've accumulated through the years. [Extracted from the article]

To begin your EV search, start with the Department of Energy's qualified vehicle list at https://afdc.energy.gov/ laws/electric-vehicles-for-tax-credit. REWARDS Car buyers have had a tough go looking for their next road warrior. The gas-mild hybrid version of the vehicle has a starting manufacturer's suggested retail price of $41,300, whereas the plug-in hybrid starts at $51,250. If you add in the gas price hikes that dominated summer news headlines and passage of the EV-friendly Inflation Reduction Act, you now have a cacophony of issues to consider when searching for a new vehicle. [Extracted from the article]

While in recent years an increasing number of employers have been offering high-deductible health plans - sometimes as the only option - Watts says the number of employers offering only these plans has decreased going into 2023. MANAGE PRESCRIPTION DRUG COSTS Another big driver of the rise in health care premiums is the cost of prescription drugs - a major concern among large employers, according to the BGH survey. MONEY Inflation has made everything from gas to eggs more expensive, and health care is no exception: Costs rose 8.2% in 2021, the biggest jump since 2018, according to the Business Group on Health. Employers are increasingly tying health insurance premiums, deductibles and other costs to salaries, which means higher-paid employees may pay more for health care. [Extracted from the article]

Or check out the no-fee CITI CUSTOM CASH MASTERCARD, which provides 5% cash back automatically in whichever single category among 10 possibilities that you spend the most on each month; the categories include grocery stores, gas stations, restaurants and select travel. MONEY 15 MINUTES AUTOMATE YOUR SAVINGS With automatic transfers from your checking to your savings and investment accounts each payday, you're paying yourself first - and increasing the odds that your savings and investment accounts will grow. (Coinstar has a 12.5% processing fee to exchange coins for cash, but there's no fee if you choose gift cards, including cards for major retailers such as Amazon and Lowe's.) The AMERICAN EXPRESS BLUE CASH PREFERRED card carries a $95 annual fee, but it provides an outstanding 6% cash back on up to $6,000 spent annually at the supermarket (grocery purchases from superstores, such as Target and Walmart, and warehouse clubs are excluded). [Extracted from the article]

SOURCE: Provident Consumer Inflation Survey WILL AND ANNA, HERE WITH SONS THEO AND JACK, USE REWARDS POINTS TO LOWER GAS COSTS. If inflation remains high for several years, the cost of interest on the federal government's debt will rise, says Damsky, a chartered financial analyst. MONEY SPENDING LESS, SCRAMBLING TOSAVE Americans have survived a few brushes with economic uncertainty over the past few years. [Extracted from the article]

Property taxes are fairly steep, although the state offers property tax credits to homeowners who are at least 65 years old and meet income restrictions. RETIREMENT The number-one rule in real estate is location, location, location, but that means different things to different people. However, although the Golden State has the highest income tax rate in the country for high earners, tax rates for mid-dle- and lower-income folks are much lower, which reduces the tax hit on your retirement savings. The state's sales and property taxes are middle-of-the-road when compared with taxes in other states. [Extracted from the article]

Over the past two years, the stock ETF, which tracks a Morning-star index of large-company stocks, has gained 20.4% annualized. The fund tracks the S&P Regional Banks Select Industry index and holds 139 stocks in equal weights, providing unconcentrated exposure across a diversified spectrum of mostly midsize- and small-company stocks. Cloud-computing data warehouse company Snow-flake and vacation-rental firm Airbnb are the fund's top holdings. REWARDS BARGAIN SHOPPING FOR STOCKS Persistent inflation, rising interest rates and uncertainty in Ukraine have weighed on every broad-market index since the start of the year. [Extracted from the article]

Another option is to use a home-inventory smartphone app, such as Memento Database, which costs $3 a month for the lite version, or Sortly, which is free (both are available for Apple and Android users). The same goes for your home insurance and automobile policies, which you may be able to access through your insurer's smartphone app. MONEY Severe weather is taking a huge toll on the economy - and the finances of families. The rest of the documents should be securely stored, such as in a fireproof home safe or in a safe deposit box at your bank or credit union. [Extracted from the article]

Home insurance deductibles can be set as a flat dollar amount, usually ranging from $1,000 to $2,500, or as a percentage of your home's replacement value; for auto insurance, deductibles typically go up to $1,000. "A lot of companies don't want to sell home insurance in Florida because it's high risk", says Dan Karr, founder and CEO of ValChoice, an insurance industry watchdog. Roughly one-third of individuals with home or auto insurance haven't reshopped their policy for better coverage and lower premiums, according to insurance comparison website Policygenius. MONEY The talking lizard from Geico and perky Flo from Progressive claim that switching insurance companies and bundling policies can save you money. [Extracted from the article]

A family of four can save close to $930 a year, on average, by switching wireless carriers, says Toni Toikka, president of Alekstra, a New York City - based research firm that analyzes the wireless service industry. REWARDS ILLUSTRATIONS BY HALEY TIPPMANN We've witnessed a lot of changes in the past couple of years, but you may have overlooked the upheaval in the wireless industry. The deal reduced the number of major wireless carriers from the big four - AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile, Verizon - to the big three. Verizon, for example, will give switchers who keep their phone up to $500 on a Verizon gift card to use on Verizon products and services - including your bill. [Extracted from the article]

Fidelity Charitable, Schwab Charitable and Vanguard Charitable charge an annual administration fee of 0.60% or $100, whichever is greater, on the first $500,000 (amounts greater than $500,000 have a tiered fee structure). If you have received a cash windfall and want to donate a portion of it, parking the cash in a donor-advised fund is a safe bet. For the 2021 tax year, you can deduct cash contributions totaling up to 100% of your AGI that are made directly to charities - but the limit is still 60% of AGI for a donor-advised fund. REWARDS ILLUSTRATION BY FRELLY (ENRICO FOCARELLI BARONE) When the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act nearly doubled the standard deduction starting with the 2018 tax year, charities and tax experts expected donations to drop. [Extracted from the article]

To help offset the costs of meeting a deductible, high-deductible plans typically come with a health savings account (HSA) that your employer may contribute to. To get a more complete picture of your total costs, your employer may provide a calculator that compares premiums and out-of-pocket costs for various plans based on your expected health care needs throughout the year. Meanwhile, to keep their health care costs down, some employers are tying premiums, deductibles and other out-of-pocket costs to wages, which means that high earners pay more for their coverage. MONEY SPECIAL REPORT It has been said that nothing is certain except death and taxes, but you can add a third item to the list: rising health care costs. [Extracted from the article]

MONEY PONCE GARNER, WHO I HAS MODELED AND WORKED IN RETAIL, IS PURSUING A CAREER IN LAW ENFORCEMENT. TRACY AKRESH STONE WORKED IN CORPORATE FINANCE BEFORE GOING SOLO AS A CAREER COACH. Eventually, Stone realized she didn't want her boss's job and decided to take some of her own advice. Pfeifer spent most of his career in the private sector, moving from an engineering job at a semiconductor wafer fabrication plant to chief financial officer of an e-commerce company that sells women's bathing suits. [Extracted from the article]

CONSIDER A HYBRID POLICY Another alternative to a traditional long-term-care policy is a hybrid life insurance policy that includes long-term-care benefits. These premiums, as well as returns from fixed-income investments, cover the cost of long-term-care insurance. A long-term-care policy could give you peace of mind, but the cost is steep. If you tap the policy to pay for long-term care, your death benefit will be reduced, although some hybrid policies will pay a small residual benefit even if the entire death benefit is exhausted by long-term-care costs. [Extracted from the article]

MONEY With the invention of the smartphone and the ascendancy of app-based services, financial technology companies - better known as fintechs - have been disrupting traditional banking, offering attractive features to new customers who aren't tied to traditional banks. LILI, for example, offers a checking account with tax-planning tools (in addition to charging no overdraft fees and requiring no minimum balance). Neither your checking nor your savings account balance can dip below $0 for the month, and your savings account can't exceed a daily balance of $5,000 for any day of the month. The account has no overdraft fees, no monthly maintenance fee and no minimum-balance requirement. [Extracted from the article]

Alabama also has the second-lowest median property tax rate in the U.S. CAPE CORAL, FLA. Population: 194,495 Cost of living for retirees: 99.5/100 Median home price: $335,800 Number of hospitals within 25 miles: 6 What locals love: The Cape Coral Waterways In a state that continues to attract retirees seeking beautiful beaches, warm weather and no state income tax, the Gulf Coast haven of Cape Coral stands out. KALAMAZOO, MICH. Population: 76,200 Cost of living for retirees: 78.4/100 Median home price: $185,000 Number of hospitals within 25 miles: 7 What locals love: Gilmore Car Museum Kalamazoo is the birthplace of the Gibson Factory company (now headquartered in Nashville), which made the iconic Gibson guitars played by the likes of B.B. King and Prince. COVER STORY RETIREMENT As cases of COVID-19 continue to decline, retirees may no longer feel the need to retreat to the hinterlands. Washington has no state income tax, so retirees don't need to worry about state taxes on retirement income, pensions or Social Security benefits. [Extracted from the article]

The company is "executing on all cylinders", says Ken Leon, analyst at research firm CFRA. Growth in revenue is slowing, but analysts still expect average annual increases of more than 25% in revenues and 28% in earnings over the next two years. REWARDS REWARDS ILLUSTRATION BY DELPHINE LEE BUY THE DIP DURING THE TECH-STOCK BREATHER Lately, amid ripping gains in the S&P 500 index, information technology shares have been on the sidelines. But supply issues should be resolved by late 2021, and Morningstar analyst Abhinav Davuluri believes the company will withstand regulatory investigations and continue collecting licensing revenue. [Extracted from the article]

Keys called her insurance agent at Erie Insurance, her home insurance provider, only to learn that she was on her own because she didn't have a separate flood insurance policy. Wildfires are covered by standard homeowners insurance, but insurers have been canceling policies in some high-risk areas. Even though he has been with his insurance provider for 15 years and hasn't filed any claims, the insurer chose not to renew his policy. You need a separate policy or an endorsement on your current policy to cover direct damages caused by an earthquake. [Extracted from the article]

MONEY TAXES IF THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC forced you to move or work remotely, file for unemployment benefits or pick up a side gig to earn extra income, filing your tax return could be more complicated than in the past. To account for some pandemic-related circumstances that could affect taxpayers, we looked at how the programs handled the economic stimulus payments millions of taxpayers received in 2020 and early 2021, which represented an advance payment of a tax credit on your 2020 tax return. On the plus side, retirees, students and workers with just W-2 income should be able to file a federal return and up to three state returns for free by using Block Free Online. But because our fictional single taxpayer had freelance income, he had to upgrade to Tax- Act Self-Employed, which costs $64.95 for a federal tax return plus $44.95 for each state tax return. [Extracted from the article]

MONEY THE IRS, WHICH IS DEALING with a backlog of unprocessed tax returns dating back to 2020, has urged taxpayers to file their returns electronically. If you realize later that you had enough medical expenses to cross the threshold, you could file an amended return on IRS Form 1040X and claim the deduction. You'll need to report the purchase date and price when you file your taxes for the year an investment is sold to establish your cost basis, which will determine your taxable gain or loss. [Extracted from the article]

REWARDS REWARDS OUTDOOR ENTERTAINING How to Socialize Safely at Home BEING WITH FAMILY AND FRIENDS DURING COVID was easier last spring and summer, when you were able to feel reasonably safe gathering outdoors at sidewalk cafés and restaurants, picnic areas, and porches and patios. If your budget is more modest, BETTER HOMES AND GARDENS' CLAYTON COURT 5-PIECE PATIO DINING SET ($450 from Walmart.com) is a top pick among reviewers at The New York Times' product-review site Wirecutter. One highly rated, propane fueled patio heater is the XTREMEPOWERUS 48,000 BTU PREMIUM FLOOR STANDING PROPANE GAS PATIO HEATER (about $170). Other companies that specialize in prefab rooms include Modern Shed and Studio Shed. [Extracted from the article]

The article focuses on several cities and towns in the U.S. that are ideal for the retiring community. Some of the cities mentioned are St. Augustine in Florida, Savannah in Georgia, Hanover in New Hampshire and Richmond in Virginia. Some of the concerns for retirees include health care, recreation, entertainment, art and culture.

The article offers information on several deals offered by the companies. Deals discussed include information on the deals on the tution cuts by the different colleges including Albright College; Elizabethtown College; and the Elmira College; discussions on the deals on the gas prices; and the information deals on the school taxes.

The article offers suggestions on spending bonus income on buying travel upgrades, creating a smarter home, and making a difference for local schoolkids. Topics discussed include installing smart home devices such as smart speaker Amazon Echo; buy a 3D printer to make household items or create replacement parts; and contribute to a 529 college savings plan and get a tax break.

The article offers suggestions on being prepared for personal finance in case of job loss or unforeseen expense. Topics discussed include need for creating budget and simple budget breakdown; views of Ken Mahoney, chief executive officer of Mahoney Asset Management, on removing memberships and subscriptions; and setting emergency fund for unforeseen expenses.

Outside of a plain-vanilla refinance, retirees can access their home equity through a cash-out refinance, a home equity line of credit or a reverse mortgage. Borrow With a Home Equity Line of Credit Another way to tap your home equity that won't increase the size of your mortgage permanently is a home equity line of credit, or HELOC. RETIREMENT Housing wealth, better known as home equity, increased to $7.8 trillion for homeowners 62 and older in the third quarter of 2020, according to a report from the National Reverse Mortgage Lenders Association. [Extracted from the article]

Veterinarians and insurance experts suggest that owners look for a policy that covers the unexpected, because it's difficult to plan for those costs. If you put off buying insurance until your pet is older (or adopt an older pet), you may not be able to get some illnesses covered because most policies exclude preexisting conditions. Pet insurance deductibles range from $100 to $1,000 and, as with human health insurance, the lower the deductible, the higher the premium. [Extracted from the article]

The article suggests places to live after retirement including Mesa, Arizona, Richland, Washington, and Portland, Maine. It includes information on health care facilities rating from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services in Mesa, Richland, and Portland. It also includes information on the house prices, population, and hospitals in Mesa, Richland, and Portland.

To resolve these issues, the DOE announced last October that it is offering a limited waiver that allows eligible borrowers to have payments that were previously excluded count toward loan forgiveness. MONEY As Kiplinger's went to press, the Biden administration was considering a plan to forgive up to $10,000 in federal student loans for borrowers who meet certain income thresholds. If your loan balance is close to Biden's $10,000 forgiveness proposal, making payments before the moratorium ends may not be in your best interest because you could be paying a debt you won't have to repay, says Michael Kitchen of Student Loan Hero, which helps borrowers manage student debt. [Extracted from the article]

FUNDAMENTALS A LOW-COST BROKERAGE account will allow you to buy individual stocks, mutual funds, exchange-traded funds and other investments outside of your employer's retirement account. Just how much can vary: The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, the self-regulatory arm of the brokerage industry, requires that you keep a minimum of at least 25% of the value of the margin securities, but some firms call for more. Brokerages are required by law to keep customers' investments separate from securities owned by the brokerage firm, an arrangement that offers some protection against fraud. [Extracted from the article]

FUNDAMENTALS GETTING A BILL FOR A MEDICAL procedure or an appointment you thought your insurance would cover can throw you for a loop. Katalin Goencz, a medical insurance and reimbursement specialist in Stamford, Conn., says one of her clients got an estimate from his insurance company for a colonoscopy, but when his claim was processed, it didn't cover the entire cost. However, you could receive a bill for a COVID-19 vaccination if the provider bills you directly instead of your insurer or due to human error in medical billing systems. [Extracted from the article]

It requires no monthly fee or minimum balance, and the account reimburses all domestic out-of-network ATM fees (there is a 1% foreign-transaction fee). The basic account has no fee or minimum-balance requirement, but it doesn't reimburse ATM fees. Existing customers have access to its FDIC-insured 0.60% high-yield checking account, which has no minimum balance and no fees. [Extracted from the article]

THIS PAST AUGUST, EQUIFAX, one of the three major credit bureaus, announced that a coding error had led to erroneous credit scores for some consumers. If you applied for credit and the lender pulled your Equifax report, contact the lender and ask whether your application was affected by the coding issue. [Extracted from the article]

If there were a prize for living through unprecedented events, millennials might win first place. According to a recent survey by Ally Financial, nearly 20% of investors closed a brokerage or investment account over the past 12 months, and of those, the largest group - more than 20% - consisted of millennials and Gen Zers. The S&P 500 index officially fell into bear-market territory on June 13, when it dropped 21.3% from its early-January high. [Extracted from the article]

Another pitfall is that some of these CDs may be callable, meaning that if interest rates fall, the brokerage firm may redeem or sell your CD before maturity. IN THE SEPTEMBER ISSUE, WE explained how to create a certificate of deposit ladder. Brokered CDs typically provide above-average yields when compared with CDs offered through banks. [Extracted from the article]

If your debt is mostly tied up in student loans, consider using some or all of the money to pay down your loan balance. The moratorium on federal loan repayments is expected to be extended through the end of the year, but it doesn't include private student loans. Although the Biden administration is considering forgiving a portion of federal student loans, that's not a sure thing, and depending on the size of your loan you could still need to make repayments when the latest moratorium ends. [Extracted from the article]

Credit Karma also monitors your Equifax and Trans-Union credit reports for free and gives you access to free credit scores from Equifax and TransUnion. If you aren't taking advantage of that, you can sign up for Capital One's CreditWise or Chase's Credit Journey credit score and monitoring services. In early April, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau sued credit bureau TransUnion for violating a 2017 order to stop deceiving customers into signing up for a subscription to various services that include credit reports, credit scores and credit monitoring. [Extracted from the article]

Vanguard Total Intl Stock Idx AdmVTIAX305.8-16.62.5none5. American Washington Mutual AAWSHX152.50.1115.758. Vanguard European Stock Index AdmVEUSX-17.95.1none0.17. [Extracted from the article]

SAVERS ARE FI NALLY GETTING some good news: Interest rates on savings and money market accounts are climbing. For example, the rate on American Express's high-yield savings account jumped from 0.6% to 1.0% in a span of two months (see the table at right for other top-yielding savings and money market deposit accounts). Certificates of deposit haven't been left out of the rising-rate tide, and they're moving up faster than the rates for some online savings accounts. [Extracted from the article]

INVESTING IT WAS A BIT LATE TO THE party, but VANGUARD GLOBAL ESG SELECT STOCK is having a blast so far. Mandel and Courtines pick profitable, well run firms around the globe that are leaders in integrating ESG practices into their businesses. That beat the fund's bogey, the FTSE All-World index, as well as the typical global large-company stock fund with an ESG focus. [Extracted from the article]

Flood damage is not covered by standard homeowners insurance policies, so you will have to purchase a separate flood insurance policy from a private insurance company or through FEMA. With the old maps, FEMA assessed risk based mostly on the elevation of your property. The FEDERAL EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT AGENCY (FEMA) recently updated its flood maps to incorporate more variables, including flood frequency and the types of floods - storm surges, river overflows and heavy rainfalls, for example - that could affect a particular area. [Extracted from the article]

If you want to help your kids or grandkids get their first home, here's what you need to know about gifting or lending money or cosigning a mortgage. (If the money is a loan that's expected to be paid back, the child must let the mortgage lender know because it is factored into the debt-to-income ratio.) After the money is gifted, the mortgage company will require a "mortgage gift letter" from your child and your child's spouse (or partner). [Extracted from the article]

MONEY MONEY CREDIT REPAIR on your credit reports could hurt your credit score, and errors are not uncommon. The lender will then instruct the credit bureau either to update the information you're contesting or to leave the info alone because the lender believes it's accurate. Gerri Detweiler, credit expert and coauthor of Debt Collection Answers, did that when she applied for a car loan and discovered that her mortgage lender had reported that she had made six late payments. [Extracted from the article]

Series I savings bonds9.629.623.54Six-month Treasury bills1.681.450.04Five-year Treasury notes2.953.010.84Ten-year Treasury notes2.962.971.63