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Distrust in US inflation data threatens $2 trillion market

Consumer / Home and Consumer News /

A $2 trillion market for securities linked to U.S. inflation data could be the first area of Treasuries that would crack if the Bureau of Labor Statistics is politicized, according to bond investors.

After President Donald Trump fired BLS chief Erika McEntarfer on Friday following a weak jobs report and said the figures were “rigged,” ...Read more

Wall Street is warning investors to get ready for stocks to drop

Consumer / Home and Consumer News /

A chorus of stock market prognosticators at some of Wall Street’s biggest firms is warning clients to prepare for a pullback as sky-high equity valuations slam into souring economic data.

On Monday, Morgan Stanley, Deutsche Bank AG and Evercore ISI all cautioned that the S&P 500 Index is due for a near-term drop in the weeks and months ahead...Read more

Handout/Vanguard Group/TNS

Vanguard's first 'outsider' boss looks to innovate with AI, private investments

Consumer / Home and Consumer News /

Vanguard Group has added more than $1 trillion in customer assets, from stock-market gains and new investments, since Salim Ramji was named the first outsider to run the 50-year-old, Malvern, Pennsylvania-based investment giant last year.

But that kind of growth isn’t unusual at Vanguard, which has added $7 trillion in customer assets, in the...Read more

DREAMSTIME/TNS

7 ways to teach your kids about investing today to set them up for future success

Consumer / Home and Consumer News /

The habits we learn as children often stick with us through adulthood, and so it goes with financial habits, too, according to a recent Bankrate survey. Bankrate’s 2025 Financial Habits Survey revealed that Americans who had a strong financial education as children were more likely to use those habits as adults. Unfortunately, the survey also ...Read more

Las Vegas Review-Journal/Las Vegas Review-Journal/TNS

If you're a fan of sports betting or casino gambling, you won't be a fan of the new tax law

Consumer / Home and Consumer News /

The house always wins in gambling, and soon it could feel like Uncle Sam does too. That’s because gamblers face what amounts to a tax hike beginning in 2026: They’ll no longer be able to deduct the full amount of their wagering losses.

New rules included in the massive tax bill that was signed into law in July will reduce the tax deduction ...Read more

Dreamstime/Dreamstime/TNS

Zillow violated copyright in rental listings, competitor alleges

Consumer / Home and Consumer News /

Seattle-based Zillow is in hot water over the photos that populate its rapidly growing selection of rental listings. And another Seattle listings company could soon face similar trouble.

Virginia-based listing website CoStar sued Zillow on Wednesday, alleging Zillow illegally uses CoStar’s photos in a “widespread and systematic” pattern ...Read more

Tyger Williams/The Philadelphia Inquirer/TNS

Are Philadelphia's historic preservation regulations too strict?

Consumer / Home and Consumer News /

PHILADELPHIA — Jonathan Hessney moved to Philadelphia in 2021, settling his family in a Washington Square West home that dates to the 1970s.

So he was confused when he heard last year that the neighborhood — including many buildings of more recent vintage like his — was becoming a historic district, under the purview of the city’s ...Read more

Real estate Q&A: How can I get my neighbor to trim their overgrown, messy tree?

Consumer / Home and Consumer News /

Q: We have a neighbor with an overgrown tree. We’ve tried everything to get her to trim it. She won’t do it, and it drops debris on our lawn and makes a mess of our house. What are our options? — Greg

A: Dealing with a neighbor’s overgrown tree can be a frustrating experience, especially when it encroaches on your property. While the ...Read more

Armando L. Sanchez/Chicago Tribune/TNS

Parking minimums eliminated in much of Chicago, change aimed at adding housing density

Consumer / Home and Consumer News /

In what proponents say is a pivotal change to how housing gets built in much of Chicago, developers will now have the easy option to dedicate less space to cars after the City Council eliminated parking minimums near public transit.

Builders putting residences within a half mile of a Chicago Transit Authority train or within a quarter mile of a...Read more

Ken Lambert/The Seattle Times/TNS

These retirees found ways to save money living abroad

Consumer / Home and Consumer News /

When tech layoffs hit Kelly Bowen-McCombs last August, then her husband, Leith McCombs, in May, the Woodinville, Washington, couple didn’t immediately think to move abroad.

But it soon dawned on them that they were facing a bleak job market. Rather than stick it out, the pair decided to take a leap of faith and relocate to France. There, they...Read more

Dreamstime/Dreamstime/TNS

Want to retire abroad? Here's what to consider first

Consumer / Home and Consumer News /

The draw of retiring overseas can be tempting, especially in the face of stubbornly high costs of living in the Seattle area.

But before you go, experts recommend thorough research and planning. Retiring abroad comes with complications, including lifestyle changes, immigration hurdles and disruptions to health care coverage.

Here are a few ...Read more

Dreamstime/Dreamstime/TNS

What is the kiddie tax, how does it work and who has to pay it?

Consumer / Home and Consumer News /

If a child collects a sizable amount of money from investments or other sources of unearned income in a given year, their parent or guardian will likely need to pay taxes on it. While a portion of the child’s income isn’t taxed, after reaching a certain level of income, a specific tax rule — nicknamed the kiddie tax — applies.

Here’s ...Read more

Lionsgate/Entertainment Pictures ZUMA PRESS/TNS

'The Home' review: Pete Davidson retirement home thriller is horror-ble

Consumer / Home and Consumer News /

It's a case of geriatric panic in "The Home," a hapless horror movie starring Pete Davidson as a troubled man sent to work in a retirement home to avoid jail time.

While there he uncovers a bunch of grisly secrets, none of them remotely believable, in co-writer and director James DeMonaco's dour thriller that doesn't work on any conceivable ...Read more

Myung J. Chun/Los Angeles Times/TNS

This LA company builds venues for the world's biggest pop stars, sports teams and sumo wrestlers

Consumer / Home and Consumer News /

Sports and music fans, flocking to a once-questionable corner of downtown, were the springboard for an L.A.-born multibillion-dollar empire of venues and events for screaming enthusiasts around the globe.

AEG, the company behind Crypto.com Arena and the L.A. Live district, has turned its know-how about hosting and promoting big shows into a ...Read more

Brian Cassella/Chicago Tribune/TNS

New Illinois law aims to make it easier to evict squatters

Consumer / Home and Consumer News /

A new Illinois law is intended to allow law enforcement to remove squatters from privately owned property without the necessity of a lengthy eviction process.

The measure, signed into law by Gov. JB Pritzker on Monday, clarifies what has long been a point of contention over how authorities should handle squatters — people who are living in a ...Read more

Real estate Q&A: How do I convince 'unreasonable' neighbor to fix plants that are wrecking my fence?

Consumer / Home and Consumer News /

Q: I have a chain-link fence separating my property from my neighbor’s. They have a bird of paradise and a coconut palm (that hatched from a coconut) that are destroying my fence. We’ve spoken to him, and he did a half-hearted job of fixing the problem. In fact, there was no real improvement at all. He refuses to discuss the issue. Very ...Read more

Kilmermedia/Dreamstime/TNS

Jonathan Lansner: 19% of California houses are owned by investors

Consumer / Home and Consumer News /

Relatively speaking, California is not a hot spot for housing investors.

That’s a conclusion from my trusty spreadsheet’s review of data on investor activity across the nation from BatchData, a small data tracker that digs deeper into property records than many traditional real estate analysts.

BatchData reviewed California ownership ...Read more

Carl Juste/The Miami Herald/TNS

Too many Americans live paycheck to paycheck. This researcher has some ideas to help

Consumer / Home and Consumer News /

For all the change constantly happening in and around the Magic City, many Miamians feel stuck.

More than half of Miami-Dade’s population lives paycheck to paycheck. They’re spinning their wheels, moving from one day to the next, hoping they avoid the health emergency, job loss, car accident or hurricane that would push them over the ...Read more

Dirk Shadd/Tampa Bay Times/TNS

Investors snapped up Tampa Bay homes damaged by hurricanes Helene and Milton

Consumer / Home and Consumer News /

Ann Haendel lived happily in her St. Pete Beach, Florida, home for more than 30 years before Helene sent 3 feet of water into the two-bedroom cottage.

When she returned after evacuating, the place looked “like a tornado had ripped through,” she said. Furniture was upturned and books lay sopping on the floor.

The city determined that the ...Read more

Real estate Q&A: Should broker get part of deposit from failed sale?

Consumer / Home and Consumer News /

Q: I hired a broker to sell my house in Florida. The first buyer backed out, so we agreed that I’d keep part of their deposit. I kept working with the same broker, and eventually, someone else bought the place. The broker got their full commission from that sale. Now the broker is asking for half of the deposit from the first buyer who bailed....Read more