Will you live to be 100? If you’re a woman, your odds of becoming a centenarian are seemingly better than those of men. In the 2010 U.S. Census, over 80% of Americans aged 100 or older were women. Will you eventually live alone? According to the Administration on Aging (a division of the federal government’s…

HOUSEHOLD SENTIMENT REACHES 9-MONTH PEAK The University of Michigan’s index of consumer sentiment rose 2.6 points in its preliminary April reading, bouncing back from a 4-month low of 80.0 at the end of March to a high unseen since last July. From 2003-07, the index averaged a reading of 89.0; during the 2007-09 recession, its…

Is Wall Street out of control? Main Street and Wall Street are abuzz over Flash Boys: A Wall Street Revolt, the new book from Berkeley-based journalist Michael Lewis (author of Moneyball and The Blind Side, London School of Economics graduate and former bond salesman). Flash Boys makes a couple of bold conclusions, which the media…

PAYROLLS EXPAND BY 192,000 IN MARCH This gain almost met Wall Street’s expectations. Economists surveyed by Bloomberg had forecast 200,000 new jobs. March’s hiring didn’t move the Labor Department’s unemployment indicators much: the jobless rate remained at 6.7%, the labor force participation rate rose just slightly to 63.2, and the population of long-term unemployed still…

CNN news-show host Anderson Cooper is the son of Gloria Vanderbilt — a successful fashion and interior designer and daughter to the Vanderbilt railroad and shipping empire who is believed to be worth $200 million. Is Anderson chomping at the bit for an inheritance? No. Here is what Anderson said this week in an interview…

Read the BBC Capital column titled The Financial Risk You Don’t Know You’re Taking Excerpt: At its simplest, human capital is the asset that you, personally, bring to the table every day. It’s the embodiment of your potential to earn income. It can be risky and short-lived (think of an athlete’s career) or staid and predictable…

A SENSE OF OPTIMISM ON MAIN STREET The Conference Board’s consumer confidence index reached a six-year peak this month, climbing 4.0 points to 82.3. Analysts polled by Reuters had forecast a gain of 0.3 points to 78.6. Additionally, new Commerce Department data showed household spending rising 0.3% in February with household incomes up by the…

Financially, how might retirement differ from your expectations? To some degree, it will. Just as few weathercasters can accurately predict a month’s worth of temperatures and storms, few retirees find their financial futures playing out as precisely as they assumed. As you approach or enter retirement, you may find that your spending and your exit…

FED TAPERS, CHANGES CRITERIA FOR A RATE HIKE Last week, the Federal Reserve disclosed another $10 billion cut for QE3 in April, and a view that declining unemployment would not necessarily prompt interest rate increases. Rather than peg rate hikes on the jobless rate dipping below 6.5%, the Fed will give greater weight to inflation…

Medicare enrollment is automatic for some. For those receiving Social Security benefits, the coverage starts on the first day of the month you turn 65. Your enrollment is also automatic when you are under 65, disabled, and receiving benefits from Social Security for 24 months. The exception to this would be for people with Amyotrophic…