Grace Tinsen

Why is a hospital bill I couldn't help getting back on my credit report? A Texas court threw out the CFPB rule that kept medical debt off reports. 15M Americans have it there. Apply for charity care, even after paying: dollarfor.org. The book is in the reply.

23 private equity firms and hedge funds now own 1,934 mobile home parks in the US. Nearly 400,000 home sites. 47% were financed by Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac. Across all US parks, it's 9%. Taxpayer money funded the buyout. Then rent went up.

1- Health insurance premiums are set to jump again for 2027 - about 15% on marketplace plans, faster on employer plans. That's not a guess. That's what insurers already filed.

4- The move: open enrollment starts Nov 1, but you can window-shop 2027 prices at healthcare.gov right now. Estimate your real income carefully before you pick a subsidy amount - not the lowest guess.

1- Health insurance premiums are set to jump again for 2027 - about 15% on marketplace plans, faster on employer plans. That's not a guess. That's what insurers already filed.

2- Here's the quiet part: the subsidy repayment CAP is gone. If you guess your 2027 income too low to get a bigger subsidy, you could owe the difference back at tax time - with no ceiling on it.

The government wrote a rule capping overdraft fees at $5. It would've saved you up to $5 billion a year, combined. Congress repealed it before it ever took effect. Banks still collect about $8 billion a year on $35 fees. Nothing failed. It got reversed on purpose.

One in six US households is behind on their utility bill. Utility debt is near $23 billion. Heating is projected up 8.7% this winter. Electricity up 9%. If you're behind: call and ask for a payment arrangement, and ask your state's winter shutoff protection dates. Neither is automatic.

Your car repair bill is up 7% this year. Inflation is 3.4%. Here's why. Mavis is buying Pep Boys for $700M. Icahn kept the real estate. So the shops now pay rent to a landlord, and that rent comes out of your invoice. Ask for the written estimate. Authorize nothing past it.

Your electric bill is up 7.3% this year. Groceries up 29% since 2020. Your raise was 3%. That gap has a name. It isn't your budgeting. More than 20 years as a financial advisor taught me this one is not a willpower problem. (1/5)

And the dial gets turned on purpose. Vet care is up about 60% since 2014 while private equity bought up the clinics. Housing has its own version: rent-setting software the DOJ hauled into court. Someone bought it. Someone turned the dial. You got the bill. (3/5)

Your electric bill is up 7.3% this year. Groceries up 29% since 2020. Your raise was 3%. That gap has a name. It isn't your budgeting. More than 20 years as a financial advisor taught me this one is not a willpower problem. (1/5)