Author: Brian Lund
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Turning 65 Soon? Your Medicare Enrollment Window
Medicare’s Initial Enrollment Period runs seven months around your 65th birthday. Miss it and the late penalties follow you for life. Here’s the timeline.
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Unit Pricing: The Shelf Tag That Beats Shrinkflation
The small price-per-ounce number on the shelf tag defeats shrinking packages and misleading “family size” labels. Here’s how to read it in 2026.
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Free Credit Reports Are Now Weekly: How to Use That
You can pull your credit report from each bureau free every week at AnnualCreditReport.com. A simple rotation turns that into year-round fraud monitoring.
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The Self-Employment Tax, Explained in One Sitting
The 15.3% self-employment tax funds your Social Security and Medicare. Who owes it, the $400 trigger, the 92.35% quirk, and the deduction that softens it.
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Time-of-Use Rates: When Electricity Costs Half as Much
Time-of-use electric rates can cut the price per kilowatt-hour in half overnight. How the pricing works, who saves, and who should stay on a flat rate.
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Standard vs. Itemized: The Simple Test Most People Pass
The 2026 standard deduction is $16,100 single and $32,200 joint. A four-number test tells you in minutes whether itemizing could ever beat it.
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Flood Insurance: Why Homeowners Policies Don’t Cover It
Standard homeowners insurance excludes flood damage. Here’s how the National Flood Insurance Program works, what it covers, and why the 30-day wait matters.
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Fired vs. Laid Off: What It Means for Unemployment
Laid-off workers usually qualify for unemployment. Fired workers often do too. How states draw the misconduct line, and what to do the week you lose a job.
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Drug Recalls: How to Check Your Prescriptions Tonight
FDA publishes every monitored drug recall, searchable by name and lot number. Here is how to check your own prescriptions in about ten minutes.
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How to Read a Job Offer: Salary Is Only Half the Number
Benefits average roughly 30 cents of every compensation dollar, per BLS data. How to compare two job offers on total compensation, not just salary.