Today we are talking about trade. Why is trade on your mind?  On Thursday, President Trump announced that his is planning to impose a 25% tariff on imported steel and a 10% tariff on imported aluminum. This news rattled the markets – the S&P fell 1.4% while the Dow shed 1.5% – and had many talking […]

Despite student loan balances in the United States hitting an all-time high of 1.4 trillion — in the recently released federal budget, the President has proposed to eliminate the public service loan forgiveness program, which aims to help people such as school teachers, firefighters, police officers and health researchers get out from underneath a mountain […]

Today we are talking about student loans again. Why?  We have known for some time now that American college students and graduates are being swamped in a tsunami of student loans. Now, a new study release by the Brookings Institute last week shows that the number of large-balance student loan borrowers – individuals with over […]

This morning we are talking about companies who share their tax windfalls with their employees and what you need to know.  Mellody, in recent weeks a rash of companies have announced they will be giving employees bonuses and other benefits in the wake of the recent tax cuts. What is behind these moves? Lower taxes, […]

Life & Style

Deemed ‘hip-hop’s financial advisor,’ Rob Wilson boasts a roster of high-profile athletes and celebrities. The Pittsburgh-based independent financial and investment guru has made a name for himself having appeared on popular news outlets such as CNN, CBS, NBC, Foxbusiness.com and Black Enterprise. 3 WAYS TO MASTER YOUR MONEY IN 2018 One of the most common New Year’s resolutions […]

With 2017 almost over, what should we be focusing on in 2018?  Amid all of the holiday cheer, it is smart to take some time at the end of the year to take stock of your financial wellbeing, and review things like your retirement accounts, and your insurance needs. Just a few actions can improve […]

Why is bitcoin in the news right now?  There has been a surge in interest in bitcoin, especially over the past year, because the value of the digital currency has surged. At the beginning of 2017, a single bitcoin was worth $1,000. Now, the value is floating around $11,000. Today I want to talk about […]

WE ARE TALKING ABOUT WAYS WE CAN PROTECT OURSELVES DURING THE HOLIDAY SHOPPING SEASON. WHY IS THIS SO IMPORTANT? It’s the first holiday retail season in the wake of the massive Equifax breach, and it is more important than ever to be vigilant when we are shopping for friends and family. Hackers and scammers are […]

The holiday season is fast approaching. But a major retailer, Toys R Us, is struggling. Why? It has been a tough road for this company. They have been in a vicious financial cycle since they were acquired by investors twelve years ago for $6.6 billion. The purchase was a leveraged buyout, meaning the investors took […]

What do we know so far about the Equifax data breach?  Equifax says it discovered a massive exposure of information that occurred between the middle of May through July, compromising personal information of as many as 143 million Americans and thousands of Canadian and British consumers. The fraudsters gained access to a wide array of […]

Last week Amazon completed its purchase with Whole Foods. Why is this such a big deal?  This deal is going to shake up the grocery industry. Until now, Amazon has been a minor player in grocery, with just 1 percent of market share. Whole Foods has just under 2 percent. But this deal shows Amazon […]

What do we need to know right now about 401(k) loans?  We have seen a significant rise in 401(k) loans in recent years. Loans against retirement accounts have been taking the place of home equity loans because fewer Americans have home equity in the wake of the housing market collapse in 2008. But these loans […]