Author: Elizabeth Blessing
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Homeownership under 35 fell to 35.2 percent, the only age group where the drop was big enough to count
The share of Americans under 35 who own their home fell to 35.2 percent in the second quarter of 2026, down a full percentage point from 36.4 percent a year earlier. It was the only age bracket where the U.S. Census Bureau’s own statisticians flagged the year-over-year change as large enough to be meaningful rather…
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Eating out is rising 3.6 percent this year while groceries rise 2.5 percent
Restaurant meals are set to get costlier at a faster pace than groceries this year, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s latest economic forecast. The agency’s Economic Research Service projects food-away-from-home prices rising 3.6 percent in 2026, while grocery store prices climb a slower 2.5 percent. That’s a wider split than the two categories…
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Electricity costs three times more in California than in New Mexico, and Hawaii’s rate rose 35.5 percent in a year
California households now pay nearly three times as much for electricity as households in New Mexico, and the gap is only getting wider in parts of the country. Federal energy data covering June 2026 puts a 19.54-cent-per-kilowatt-hour spread between the priciest and cheapest states in the lower 48, while Hawaii’s average electricity revenue jumped more…
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A new order tells USDA to let small meat processors ship across state lines
A state-inspected meat plant in most of the country cannot legally ship a single package across a state line. An executive order signed September 4, 2026 directs the U.S. Department of Agriculture to widen the narrow federal programs that make an exception, so small, state-inspected processors can sell their beef, pork and poultry beyond their…
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The IRS put a verified tax compliance report inside the individual online account
The Internal Revenue Service has begun issuing a digitally authenticated Tax Compliance Report that taxpayers can download directly from their IRS Individual Online Account, ending the routine of mailing off for a transcript just to prove a clean filing history. The report tells a lender, a licensing board or a landlord whether someone filed on…
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Medicare Advantage plans will have to publish who actually qualifies for the grocery and utility allowances they advertise
Medicare Advantage commercials have spent years promising enrollees hundreds of dollars a year for groceries, produce or a home utility bill. What the ads rarely mention is that the money isn’t available to everyone who signs up. It is reserved for enrollees who meet a chronic-illness definition that each insurer writes for itself, and until…
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Molina is dropping its traditional Medicare Advantage drug plans for 2027, a product carrying about $1 billion in annual premiums
Molina Healthcare says it will drop its traditional Medicare Advantage prescription drug plans starting with the 2027 plan year, walking away from a product line that brings in roughly $1 billion a year in premiums. The insurer disclosed the move inside its own fourth-quarter 2025 earnings report, framing it as a strategic pivot rather than…
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Benefits sites list the VA survivor pension ceiling at $19,453, and the VA’s own page says $18,697
A surviving military spouse who searches for the maximum VA Survivors Pension payment will run into two different numbers depending on where they look. Several benefits and elder-law websites list $19,453 as the top rate for 2026. The Department of Veterans Affairs’ own current rate table lists $18,697 as the maximum for a surviving spouse…
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A surviving military spouse receives $1,699.36 a month, and $421 more when she needs daily help
When a service member dies from a service-connected cause, or a veteran carried a total disability rating for years before dying, the Department of Veterans Affairs pays their surviving spouse a monthly benefit called Dependency and Indemnity Compensation, or DIC. As of December 1, 2025, the base DIC payment for a surviving spouse is $1,699.36…
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Earning $580 a month satisfies Medicaid’s new work rule without logging a single hour
A new federal Medicaid rule requires most working-age adults on the program to prove 80 hours a month of work, job training, schooling or community service to keep their coverage, starting no later than January 1, 2027. Buried inside that rule is a second, far simpler way to clear the same bar: show at least…
