How to Thrift Shop for Vintage Patagonia Fleece Jackets

Shopping thrift stores, flea markets and estate sales can be overwhelming. With the sheer volume of stuff, how do you know where to start? How do you spot gems amid all the … well, junk?

As a professional reseller who has been combing through thrift stores for the better part of 30 years, I can help. If you’re ready to cut your shopping time in half, score bigger bargains or walk away with brag-worthy finds you can flip for cash, read on.

From hard-to-find household items to resale money-makers, everything featured in my “Thrift Shop Like a Pro” series qualifies as a BOLO (Be On the Look-Out for) item. When you find it, buy it!

Featured find: Vintage fleece jackets by Patagonia

Autumn is the perfect time to talk about fleece jackets, and Patagonia makes some of the best. The company’s growing popularity in the retail market has sparked

Continue reading

Don’t Even Think About Buying Bank CDs. Here’s Why.

If you’re the type who insists on the safety of bank money market accounts and certificates of deposit, your time has finally arrived.

After years of waiting, you’re earning more than a pathetic pittance on your savings. But there’s a simple way to earn even more without taking on more risk: investing in United States Treasurys.

Following are many reasons you should be putting money in Treasury securities instead of bank certificates of deposit or savings accounts.

1. Treasurys pay more

As you’re likely aware, rates have been steadily rising this year as the Federal Reserve jacks interest rates to crush inflation.

Rising rates show up everywhere, including banks. But the interest on Treasury bills (maturing within one year), notes (maturing from two to 10 years) and bonds (maturing from 20 to 30 years) are now paying more than the vast majority of bank offerings, and they’re adjusting faster to

Continue reading

Fed Gives Early Christmas Gift, Employment Report Steals It

Editor’s Note: This column about investing is available to members only. If you’re not already a member of Money Talks News, please join. Not only does your membership support our journalism, you also get lots of additional benefits, like ad-free reading, free books, course discounts and much more. And it’s cheap: just $5/month. I hope advice columns like this one alone are worth that much! Learn more here.

It’s been a wild week.

On Wednesday, in a prepared speech, Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell suggested the Fed was likely to soon begin easing up on rate hikes, thanks to falling inflation.

Since lower rates are good for stocks, the market rejoiced. In one day, the S&P 500 jumped 3.1%, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 2.2% and the Nasdaq composite soared by 4.4%. European and Asian stocks followed suit, adding billions more in market value to shares worldwide.

Then,

Continue reading

15 Innovative Tips to Make Your Blog Rank Higher on Google

In this article, I will share some practical tips on how to make your blog rank higher on Google. Some bloggers may have already been implemented, and a few don’t know what to do. If you are the few, here is the solution.

Driving Traffic is the most crucial part of success in blogging. Did you remember when did you search — How to make your blog rank higher on Google?

More than 80% of bloggers are worrying about their blog traffic. They are under pressure and need to find a way to rank their blog posts.

Are you frustrated after seeing fewer (or no) views and engagement on your blog posts? Are you stuck in finding the right way to rank in Google?

Newbie bloggers are taught to produce a large number of articles by spending extra time. Hence, budding bloggers forget that blog marketing is essential to drive

Continue reading

7 Companies Laying Off Thousands of Workers

Laid off worker
DC Studio / Shutterstock.com

The nation is bracing for recession. The Federal Reserve continues to steadily raise its federal funds rate in an attempt to kill inflation, and many experts fear an economic downturn will be an unfortunate side effect of that campaign.

CEOs of major companies are especially worried that the economy will contract soon. A staggering 86% of chief executives polled in October forecast a recession in 2023. And they are wasting no time getting ready for hard times.

At least seven big companies recently have announced layoffs of 1,000 employees or more. Some of these companies are trying to restructure, while others appear to be getting lean and mean before a downturn potentially arrives.

Following is a roll call of the firms slimming their workforces.

Amazon

Amazon Prime van
Janet Julie Vanatko / Shutterstock.com

Amazon recently notified staff that the company plans to lay off around 10,000 employees. The

Continue reading

9 Ways to Screw Up a Job Search When You’re 50 or Older

Older woman covering her mouth because she made a mistake during an online job interview for remote work on her laptop
Kues / Shutterstock.com

Millions of Americans are job hunting during their 50s, 60s and beyond. Some of these seniors are looking for a job because they love to work. Others are sending out resumes for reasons ranging from pink slips to financial need.

Seniors can be attractive job candidates. Many potential employers value older workers for their experience and work ethic, and for the stability they bring to the workplace. But if you hope to land a job after 50, you must avoid some key mistakes.

Here are some crucial errors that can derail the job search of anyone who has passed the half-century mark.

1. Forgetting to edit your resume

Resume
Aaron Amat / Shutterstock.com

Today’s businesses get an avalanche of resumes every time they post a job opening. Computer programs may first scan these and weed out the ones deemed lost causes. The survivors then go to a hiring

Continue reading

How to Reach for Financial Freedom with House Hacking

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Amazon Music | RadioPublic | Stitcher | RSS

What if you could live in your home while someone else pays the mortgage? That’s the idea behind house hacking.

House hacking refers to living in a home or multi-unit property while renting out part of it. Dedicated house hackers say it’s a great way to lay the foundation for a real estate empire—one that can catapult you to financial freedom. But will it work for you?

That’s what we’re exploring in this week’s podcast.

As usual, host Stacy Johnson is joined by financial journalist Miranda Marquit. Listening in and sometimes contributing is producer Aaron Freeman. This week’s guest is Robert Leonard, the author of “The Everything Guide to House Hacking.”

Remember, even though we sometimes talk about specific investments in our podcasts, don’t take them as recommendations. Before investing in

Continue reading

IRS Increases Tax Breaks for Gifts, Estates and Capital Gains

Man puts money in his pocket
Dean Drobot / Shutterstock.com

The income thresholds that trigger some important taxes are changing in 2023, the IRS has announced.

The agency is making the changes to account for inflation. The moves will mostly impact wealthy taxpayers, although some folks in the middle class also likely will benefit.

Following are definitions of the three key taxes that are impacted and explanations of what will be new in 2023.

What is the gift tax?

Woman holding money
Dean Drobot / Shutterstock.com

When you give a certain amount of money or other property to someone, it is considered a gift — whether or not you intended it that way. Such gifts are subject to a tax. Here is how the IRS defines the gift tax:

“The gift tax applies to the transfer by gift of any type of property. You make a gift if you give property (including money), or the use of or

Continue reading

What Income Level Is Considered Poverty in Your State?

Stressed woman calculating income or expenses
Phovoir / Shutterstock.com

How poor do you have to be before you’re in poverty?

The answer is important because many social welfare programs determine eligibility by some measure of poverty — often based on the federal poverty guidelines. These include the Medicaid health insurance program and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), which was previously known as food stamps.

The federal poverty guidelines — which are sometimes loosely referred to as the “federal poverty level” — are set by the federal government as a baseline and take into account the size of your family and where you live.

Following is a look at how these poverty guidelines are determined, what they are used for, and how much they are in the 50 states, the District of Columbia and U.S. territories.

What the federal poverty guidelines are used for

Senior health care patient
Studio Romantic / Shutterstock.com

Many federal, state and local government programs use

Continue reading

Will Social Security Run Out of Money?

Panicked worried senior unable to look at something scary
FabrikaSimf / Shutterstock.com

The Social Security system of retirement benefits, begun in 1935, are a crucial underpinning of life for American retirees. For most people over 65, it’s undoubtedly hard to imagine life without this retirement benefit.

About half of Americans 65 or older live in households that depend on Social Security benefits for half or more of their income, says the Social Security Administration. In a quarter of such homes, Social Security checks comprise nearly their entire income.

Since its inception, Social Security has hit periodic financial crises, and Congress has always resolved them with adjustments. Today, Social Security approaches another financial cliff for these and other reasons:

  • The retirement of the huge baby boomer generation
  • Longer lifespans
  • Lower birth rates
  • Growing income inequality

Here’s a quick look at the problem and whether Social Security will be allowed to go broke this time.

How Social Security is

Continue reading