Relief checks 2023 | Summary news 15 April
Headlines: Saturday 15 April, 2023
- Mortgage rates drop for fifth consecutive week. 30-yr fixed-rate average at 6.27%
- Initial unemployment claims increased by 11,000 to 239,000 last week
- Inflation rose 0.1 percent in March; housing was the primary driver of the increase.
- Federal Reservecould increase rates again as soon as early May
- Tax deadline extended in California after the state was battered by severe storms this winter
- Home prices begin to fall in some cities in California
- Over 3 million layoffs in the US this year, which sectors have seen the highest job cuts?
- Social Security and Medicare Trustees warn of respective funds depleted by 2031 and 2033
- Various states will continue to issue inflation relief checks and generous tax refunds in April
- Social Security April payment schedule: when can you expect your payment?
Related stories:
There are plenty of tax credits available this tax season, with some people in the US eligible for a refund of more than $10,000.
AS USA's Daniela Barrera has the full lowdown.
After tweaks were made to pandemic-era support, for US taxpayers, charitable contributions will no longer be completely deductible in your federal tax return this year.
As the tax deadline approaches, AS USA takes a look at a couple of common errors that Americans should avoid when filing their federal return.
Don't fall for scams this tax season
The IRS is reminding Americans to be vigilant for tax scams such as those that seek to fool people into revealing personal information to fraudsters.
The IRS has put together an info sheet detailing some of the most typical scams, and how to report them to the agency.
Digging through the sofa to find some spare change? Well you might be able to get a lot more than a few coins. The IRS announced that nearly 1.5 million people across the country have unclaimed refunds for tax year 2019.
Tens of millions of Americans receive Social Security retirement benefits each month, but many recipients may not be aware of the tax implications.
A tax credit is essentially a reduction and/or a rebate for taxes paid to the IRS. Tax credits in general can be split into two types: refundable and non-refundable.
It’s important when preparing your tax return to look into all the available tax credits that you may be able to claim. The credits will reduce the amount of taxes you owe dollar for dollar, and even put thousands of dollars in your pocket.
Prices slowed their growth in March, only rising 0.1 percent, bringing the year-over-year change in the CPI down from six to five percent. Housing continued to be a major driver of inflation, a worry for some economists who predict that higher rates could continue to push home prices up.
Combined with the increases seen in January and February, inflation has officially hit one percent this year. Markets are likely to respond positively, given the newest report is a major sign that inflationary pressure may be disapating.
Read more on which goods and prices saw changes in their price in March in our full coverage.
The vast majority of US taxpayers have already submitted their 2022 tax returns to the IRS. The agency reports that it has received over 101 million filings as of 7 April. However, with just days to go until the Tuesday 18 April deadline, there are still millions who have yet to do so.
If you are one of those people and you need more time, you can request an extension to avoid incurring additional costs but you need to do so by Tuesday18 April. There is no penalty for applying for an extension to get more time to hand in your tax documents, but you will still need to pay, to the best of your knowledge, any taxes that you owe to avoid penalties and interest accruing on your debt with Uncle Sam.
Time is running out for most Americans to file a 2022 tax return. However, certain taxpayers in seven states have been given an automatic extension.
31 million families qualified for EITC in 2022, a nearly $7,000 tax credit
The Earned Income Tax Credit is a refundable credit, meaning that once taxes owed are accounted for the remainder gets added onto a tax refund. The credit could be worth up to almost $7,000, but the amount varies depending on earnings and the size of the taxpayer's family.
Last year, the Internal Revenue Services reports that "as of December 2022, 31 million workers and families received about $64 billion in EITC. The average amount of EITC received nationwide was about $2,043."
April 18 is the deadline to file the 2022 tax return. However, taxpayers can get more time to complete their return by requesting an extension from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). We'll explain how...
Mortgage rates fall for fifth consecutive week
Mortgage rates inched down once again for the fifth week in a row. The average 30-year fixed-rate mortgage was 6.27% for the week ending 13 April according to Freddie Mac..
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Every month, the Social Security Administration (SSA) issues millions of payments to recipients of the program, who are mostly retired workers.
The amount to be received depends on the years worked, the salary received and the age at which the worker requested retirement. However, insurance beneficiaries must continue to pay taxes on monthly payments.
However, there are some states in the country that have their own exemptions to avoid paying such high taxes.
Three in every four tax filers in the United States receive a refund each year. At the IRS, tax returns are processed on a first-come-first-served basis but with just days left to file it is crucial to submit our 2022 declaration now.
The IRS has sent out over 69 million refunds this year for a total of nearly $199 billion. If you're wondering where your refund is, the IRS has a tool called ‘Where’s My Refund?’ that allows taxpayers to check the status of their refund
This year, the SSA applied an 8.7 percent Cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) increase to American benefits. The COLA is calculated each year to help payments maintain their purchasing power with inflation, which has been particularly high the last 18 months.
Once the COLA was applied, the average retiree payment increased to about $1,830 a month. However, some are set to receive more than $4,000. Let’s see who qualifies.
Keeping Social Security alive with an aging population
In calendar year 2022, Social Security paid $1.23 trillion in benefits to approximately 66 million beneficiaries. An estimated 181 million people had earnings covered by Social Security and paid payroll taxes.
The problem for the system to navigate is an aging population, meaning fewer workers are paying in. As of 2022, there were 2.7 workers paying into the system for each person claiming benefits, down from 3.4 at the turn of the millenium.
According to a report by the Social Security Board of Trustees, funds for the United States' Social Security program are due to run out in under a decade's time unless more money is apportioned to it.
AS USA's Corina González and Oliver Povey have the full story.
The food stamps program, formally known as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) is the nation's central food support. In California the program is known as CalFresh; a state-supervised and county-operated initiative.
California has no asset or resource limit for SNAP benefits, but does have eligibility requirements on both gross and net income. The gross income limit is 200% of the federal poverty level, while the net figure is 100%.
Welcome to AS USA’s live blog on the latest financial news
There’re just three days to go before the 18 April deadline to file your tax returns. We'll give you some reminders and tips to help the process go smoothly.
Plus we will give you the latest figures on the economy after more inflation data was released yesterday and other financial news.