With the stock market on a wild ride and many Americans out of work due to COVID-19, it’s easy to be discouraged by the economic outlook.
The federal government has stepped in and made changes to try and boost the economy. While it remains to be seen whether these measures will help, we wanted you to be aware of some of them in case they could be to your benefit.
- The Federal Reserve has cut interest rates to nearly 0%. You’ll see interest rates on your savings accounts go down, but credit card interest rates will also decrease and it might be a good time to refinance your mortgage or any private student loans.
- The Trump Administration has said that interest payments on federal student loans will be waived for the time being. This means that, though your monthly payment will stay the same, the entire payment will be going toward the principal balance of the loan. This will save borrowers more in the long run.
- Tax bills (and now your Federal tax return) will now be due July 15, a 90-day extension from the original deadline of April 15. This hasn't yet led to changes in state tax return deadlines, so we'll keep you posted.
- There has been some talk from the Administration about sending checks to Americans as part of a stimulus package. There aren’t many other details available at this time, but we will certainly stay up-to-date and send out additional information as we learn more. We have ideas about how to put this money to work for you for your investment portfolio.
If you have any questions on how these measures might affect your financial plan, feel free to schedule a call with Debbie. As a reminder, if you’d like to schedule a working meeting, we are only holding virtual meetings via GoToMeeting at this time.
Stay well!