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Capital markets regulator <keyword id="19901201" type="General" weightage="100" keywordseo="Sebi" source="keywords" meta.keywordsubtype="org" meta.entityname="Sebi" meta.hostid="261" meta.entityid="Sebi">Sebi</keyword> on Monday launched <keyword id="19925751" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="mobile-app" source="keywords">mobile app</keyword> '<keyword id="21922624" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Saathi" source="keywords">Saa₹thi</keyword> 2.0' on <keyword id="20127396" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="personal-finance" source="keywords">personal finance</keyword> for <keyword id="19900618" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="investors" source="keywords">investors</keyword> with comprehensive tools aimed at simplifying complex <keyword id="21922626" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="financial-concepts" source="keywords">financial concepts</keyword>. "The updated 'Saa₹thi' app introduces a user-friendly interface with comprehensive tools aimed at simplifying complex financial concepts," Sebi said in a statement. The app includes <keyword id="21922625" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="financial-calculators" source="keywords">financial calculators</keyword> and has modules that introduce and explain KYC procedures, <keyword id="19929240" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="mutual-funds" source="keywords">mutual funds</keyword>, <keyword id="20003842" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="ETFs" source="keywords">ETFs</keyword>, buying and selling shares on <keyword id="19905454" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="stock-exchanges" source="keywords">stock exchanges</keyword>, investor grievances redressal mechanism, and the Online Dispute Resolution (ODR) platform. Additionally, the app features a range of videos designed to assist investors in their personal finance planning. "In today's era, where social media sometimes provides biased or misleading information, there is a significant need for an unbiased, objective, and trusted source of investment information," Ananth Narayan G, Whole Time Member, said during the launch. "The Saa₹thi app serves this purpose by empowering investors with reliable and essential insights into the securities market. This tool can be especially useful for young investors who are at the beginning of their financial journey. "The content within the app is dynamic, allowing us to keep pace with the rapidly evolving market conditions. We actively seek public suggestions to further refine and enhance the Saa₹thi app, ensuring it continues to serve our investors," he said. The 'Saa₹thi' app is available for download on Google Play Store and the iOS AppStore.

Sebi launches Saa₹thi 2.0 mobile app on personal finance for investors

<ul class="summary-list"><li>The <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/florida-residents-moving-leaving-climate-change-refugees-hurricanes-flood-2023-2">climate crisis</a> is an often-hidden financial risk when buying a house.</li><li>A few online tools can help you assess that risk and possible costs by address.</li></ul>If you're <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/florida-man-refused-leave-hurricane-proof-home-basically-unharmed-milton-2024-10">shopping for a house</a>, you're probably thinking ahead and planning for your future.Here's the thing, though: By the end of a <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/personal-finance/mortgages/will-mortgage-rates-go-down-this-year">30-year mortgage</a>, you'll be living on a pretty different planet.Even if companies and governments across the world make some drastic changes — and that's a big "if" — humanity's carbon emissions have already locked in some additional warming for decades to come. That means more intense and sometimes more frequent floods, wildfires, hurricanes, winter storms, and other forms of <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/housing-market-outlook-analysis-prices-rising-extreme-weather-risk-jpmorgan-2024-2">extreme weather</a>.You and your house could suffer everything from headaches and declining <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/housing-market-higher-home-prices-climate-change-air-quality-impact-2024-2">property value</a> to giant bills and life-threatening events.That's why it's important to take stock of the <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/real-estate-housing-market-prediction-sun-belt-climate-change-zelman-2024-7">climate risks your home faces</a> in the coming decades.It's impossible to know exactly what will happen, but a few <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/tool-determines-home-climate-risk-heat-wind-bad-air-2024-3">online tools</a> can give you an idea of the risks — as well as the costs you could incur and what you can do about it — depending on which house you buy.<h2 id="f72716a3-6428-4f34-94f8-2f3ebf4d7693">Learn about the possible damages</h2>The <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/zillow-gone-wild-weird-unique-houses-homes-hot-homebuying-selling-2024-7">most popular real-estate website</a> in the US, Zillow, has a new feature to peer into the potential climate future of each listing. The new "climate risks" tool shows <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/map-shows-united-states-extreme-heat-belt-study-2022-8">how many days of extreme heat</a> and unhealthy air quality a property is expected to see over the next 30 years, assuming humanity is on track to stabilize climate change by 2100. The tool also shows the likelihood of more destructive events: floods, wildfires, and windstorms.<div type="image" title="group of people watch wildfire burning home in the hills with palm trees" height="1771" width="2500" msid="114374425" hostid="261" sizebytes="281278"></div>These assessments come from First Street, a former nonprofit that became a for-profit company this year, which uses computer models to quantify certain weather and climate risks for individual properties. First Street says it incorporates a <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/maui-wildfires-lahaina-wooden-house-spared-among-rubble-2023-8">building's specific structural characteristics</a>, as well as local infrastructure like roads and utilities."If you don't take stock of the climate risk specifically, you could be in over your head," Jeremy Porter, the head of climate implications research at First Street, told Business Insider.For example, if the cost of flood or wildfire insurance spikes as it already has in places like <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/homeowners-california-florida-insurance-issues-natural-disasters-wildfires-hurricanes-2023-10">Florida and California</a>, "all of a sudden your household budget doesn't make any sense for the property that you ended up buying," he said.The new Zillow tool also makes recommendations about insurance based on First Street's analysis.To dive even deeper, you can go to First Street's website and get a free trial of its paid service, which shows ballpark estimates of how much a flood or fire could cost you, expected cooling costs, and projections of <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/florida-insurance-hurricanes-extreme-weather-relocate-to-ocala-2023-10">insurance prices</a>. You can also toggle certain renovations to see how they impact those costs.<h2 id="0eef8ad3-480e-4072-aadf-cb64222742c5">Remember those estimates aren't a crystal ball</h2>Climate-science experts outside the company have some reservations about First Street's flood and wildfire estimates, though.Michael Wara, a senior research scholar at the Stanford Woods Institute for the Environment, told <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://heatmap.news/guides/zillow-climate-risk-flooding-fire">Heatmap News</a> to take First Street's calculations with "a lot of grains of salt."Heatmap reported that First Street probably underestimates <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/photos-wildfire-burns-multimillion-dollar-homes-in-california-orange-county-2022-5">wildfire risk</a> in wildfire-prone areas and that flood risk is very difficult to accurately model. You can try to cross-check flood risk with other sources like seeing if the town or city has flood maps available."Everything that we're offering are probabilistic risk estimates," Porter said."I think that just in general, the models give you a pretty good indication of which properties are riskier than other properties," he added.<h2 id="ea2c710b-3a7a-45fe-b58f-971596d4b019">Then check local building codes…</h2>Once you know the climate risks, you can assess <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/photos-why-some-homes-survive-hurricanes-lessons-homeowners-2024-10">how well a property is built</a> to withstand them.<div type="image" title="slumping one-story grey and wood panel house with panels ripped away next to a standing yellow house" height="1500" width="2249" msid="114374424" hostid="261" sizebytes="407800"></div>A good indicator of that is the local building code and whether the house is built to its standards. The Federal Alliance for Safe Homes has a tool for checking that at <a target="_blank" href="http://inspecttoprotect.org">inspecttoprotect.org</a>.Not only does FLASH rate the local building code, but the tool also shows information about the area's past <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/who-how-profit-natural-disasters-hurricanes-wildfires-storms-investors-2023-8">natural disasters</a> and suggests upgrades.<h2 id="03112be6-cab7-49c5-9eed-55cc34037179">... and consider renovations</h2>In the FLASH tool, you can select the year a house was built to see what <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/tiny-home-renovation-old-abandoned-cottage-scotland-before-after-photos-2022-7">renovations</a> would strengthen it against different natural disasters. Each upgrade has a cost and impact rating.Taking matters into your own hands could make a big difference because, <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.fema.gov/emergency-managers/risk-management/building-science/bcat#:~:text=FEMA%20tracks%20the%20building%20code,simply%20by%20its%20acronym%2C%20BCAT.">according</a> to the Federal Emergency Management Agency, only about one-third of US jurisdictions have adopted up-to-date codes to match their natural hazards.Even then, building codes are often designed to protect the lives of people inside the house, but not necessarily to prevent <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/florida-homeowner-milton-tearing-through-neighborhood-cant-sleep-2024-10">expensive property damage</a>."You got to at least have a good building code, but that's a starting point. It's not your gold standard, it's your minimum," Leslie Chapman-Henderson, FLASH's president and CEO, told BI.In some cases, renovations and upgrades can even help lower your insurance costs.

Before buying a home, check this hidden financial risk

The <keyword id="19946148" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Karnataka-High-Court" source="keywords">Karnataka High Court</keyword> recently dismissed an appeal filed by a woman seeking Rs 6 lakhs in monthly <keyword id="20538992" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="alimony" source="keywords">alimony</keyword>, citing the lack of reasonable justification for the requested amount. <keyword id="22894144" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Justice-Lalitha-Kanneganti" source="keywords">Justice Lalitha Kanneganti</keyword>, presiding over the case, found the petitioner's claim to be excessive and asked for more concrete figures regarding her actual expenses. The appeal, presented by Advocate Akarsh Kanade on behalf of the petitioner, sought the large sum to cover what was described as her “basic needs,” which included items such as bangles, chains, sandals, and watches. The court questioned whether such expenses constituted "basic needs" and noted that the petitioner did not have any dependents or children. <div type="twitter" handle="DeepikaBhardwaj" handlename="DeepikaBhardwaj" favoritecount="0" retweetcount="0" id="1826237815962907135"></div>According to the Bar and Bench, the court said that she has no responsibility for any other family member or children, “Does anybody spend this much? A single lady for herself?” During the hearing, the petitioner referenced her ex-husband’s preference for branded clothing, such as Calvin Klein t-shirts costing around Rs 10,000, arguing that she should be entitled to similar living standards. Additionally, she cited health concerns, including knee joint pain and fever, which she attributed to negligence during the marriage. Further, Judge Lalitha Kanneganti also refused to entertain the request, saying, “If she wants to spend, let her earn,” TOI reported. <h2>But how much alimony is considered fair in India?</h2>In India, alimony, also referred to as <keyword id="20027249" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="maintenance" source="keywords">maintenance</keyword>, is a key aspect of <keyword id="19911325" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="divorce" source="keywords">divorce</keyword> proceedings. This <keyword id="19972877" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="financial-support" source="keywords">financial support</keyword> is provided by one spouse to another, irrespective of the divorce grounds. The determination of alimony involves complex legal and financial assessments, taking into account factors such as the earning capacity of both spouses, their financial needs, the length of the marriage, and the lifestyle maintained during the marriage. The <keyword id="19900742" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="supreme-court-of-india" source="keywords">Supreme Court of India</keyword> has set a general benchmark for monthly alimony, where the husband may be required to pay 25% of his net salary to his estranged wife. While this guideline applies to monthly payouts, no specific rule exists for lump-sum settlements, though they typically range from one-fifth to one-third of the spouse's net worth. The calculation of alimony depends on various factors, such as: <ul><li>Monthly incomes of both spouses</li><li>Educational background and employment prospects</li><li>Duration of the marriage</li><li>Number of children and child custody arrangements</li><li>Husband's income, liabilities, and lifestyle</li><li>Reasonable needs and financial independence of the wife</li></ul>In case of the Karnataka woman, the court expressed its expectation that more reasonable figures be provided to support her request. "If you want an order from the court, I want actual figures, not these lakhs of figures," said Justice Kanneganti. The judge also stated that the court is not a place for bargaining and advised the petitioner to be realistic in her demands. While the petitioner’s counsel attempted to lower the alimony request, the court maintained that without a rational basis for the amount, the application could not be entertained. Justice Kanneganti emphasised that the appeal would be dismissed if a more reasonable claim was not presented. In its final remarks, the court suggested that the appeal could be denied solely on the grounds of being unreasonable, stressing the importance of presenting justified and fact-based requests in legal proceedings. <div type="Article" hostid="261" msid="112689204" title="Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck reportedly didn&amp;#39;t sign a prenup. Here are the assets they may have to split 50/50 in their divorce settlement." mstype="2" mssubtype="0"></div>

A Karnataka woman is being ridiculed for demanding an alimony of Rs 6 lakh monthly from her ex. Is this fair?

<ul class="summary-list"><li>A new report shows what jobs are typically held by asset-limited, income-constrained, but employed Americans.</li><li>Nearly a quarter of US nonprofit workers live just above the federal poverty line.</li></ul>Many of America's <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/tiktok-calling-out-non-profit-low-pay-exploitation-2022-8">nonprofit employees</a> fill gaps in the <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/gen-z-capitalism-socialism-economy-jobs-social-security-unemployment-2024-2">social safety net</a>, helping people <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/half-of-nyc-residents-cant-afford-housing-food-healthcare-report-2023-4">access housing</a>, food, and <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/gen-z-millennials-giving-up-medical-care-cant-afford-costs-2024-2">healthcare</a> where government programs fail.But a chunk of these workers are <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/middle-class-americans-earning-above-poverty-live-paycheck-to-paycheck-2024-4">barely getting by themselves</a>. A report published in September by the policy and research firm United for ALICE found that 3 million US nonprofit employees — nearly a quarter of the total nonprofit workforce — are living just above the federal poverty line. The report examined Americans who have identified as nonprofit workers on the Census' American Community Survey, including many employees in healthcare, educational services, and social assistance.The <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/meet-the-typical-alice-middle-class-poverty-housing-food-benefits-2024-4">ALICE demographic</a> is people who are asset-limited, income-constrained, and employed. The ALICE threshold varies based on local cost of living and household size. If an individual lives above the federal poverty line but can't afford survival necessities — like housing, food, and healthcare — where they live, they are considered ALICE. This might be $702 a month for a parent and school-age child in El Paso, Texas, or $2,158 a month for a parent and school-age child in Alexandria, Virginia.The cohort's financial experience is <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/alice-living-paycheck-to-paycheck-without-government-assistance-snap-medicaid-2024-5">marked by a catch-22</a> — their household income is often too high to get help but too low to comfortably afford daily life.Lisa Kelley, for example, lives paycheck to paycheck in Cincinnati. Often, the 47-year-old feels like she's "doing everything right" and is still <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/government-assistance-food-stamps-snap-doesnt-help-low-income-dinks-2024-5">unable to access</a> the assistance she needs."There's no help," she <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/rent-healthcare-plasma-gen-x-government-assistance-2024-5">previously told BI</a>. "If you make too much, there's no help; if you are healthy, there's no help; if you don't have kids, there's no help."<h2 id="1051b53b-ec29-4b34-a6e5-059d162766d3">Nonprofit workers provide help, but they're also struggling</h2>About 13% of Americans live at or below the federal poverty threshold, meaning their annual household income is below $15,060 for one person or $31,200 for a family of four. Access to many assistance programs, like SNAP, Medicaid, and housing vouchers, is based on this measure, which <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/poverty-line-leaves-behind-low-income-americans-snap-medicare-wic-2024-6">largely hasn't been updated</a> since the 1960s. This measure was calculated when Americans spent about a third of their paycheck on food, whereas Americans now spend only 13% of their income on groceries.<a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/alice-living-paycheck-to-paycheck-without-government-assistance-snap-medicaid-2024-5">ALICEs</a>, however, make up another 29% of Americans who <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/retirement-savings-social-security-baby-boomers-without-savings-401k-poverty-2024-8">feel like they are living in poverty</a> but are out of reach of these resources because their paychecks are slightly too high. This leaves some choosing between putting food on the table, paying bills, or going to necessary doctor's visits. It's led some to take extra part-time jobs or rely on gig work — especially if they live in a <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/how-much-food-healthcare-housing-cost-most-expensive-us-cities-2024-2">high-cost-of-living area</a>."We need help, especially those of us that are trying to go to work every day," Cherie Tobias, a 48-year-old Applebees server in Michigan who lives on $25,000 a year, <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/middle-class-americans-earning-above-poverty-struggles-afford-food-medicine-2024-4">previously told BI</a>. "No matter how we feel, no matter how much pain we're in, we're going to try to push through to provide — but we go home defeated."Younger nonprofit workers are particularly struggling. According to the report, 37% of nonprofit workers under the age of 25 fall into the ALICE category. This follows larger ALICE trends, which show that workers under 25 are one of the main cohorts living out of reach of most assistance programs. Similarly, 23% of nonprofit workers ages 25 to 44 are considered ALICEs.<a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/alabama-basic-income-single-mothers-afford-childcare-bills-birmingham-2024-8">Single parents</a> working for nonprofits are also facing grim prospects: According to the report, over half are living below the ALICE threshold. And, while 16% of white nonprofit workers were below the ALICE threshold, 35% of Black workers in the sector were struggling to make ends meet.It's an irony that addresses some of the larger struggles ALICE workers face in the US: Many of the larger support structures do not see them as in need, which exacerbates the need further. Without adequate income or access to resources, these Americans are stuck in the middle."I'm not homeless enough to get certain help because I have a roof over my head," Melissa Hedden, 41, <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/not-poor-enough-low-income-millennial-cant-afford-rent-homeless-2024-5">previously told BI</a>. "But I'm too homeless to get a job because I don't know where I'm going to live in three weeks. What do you do?"Are you an ALICE or nonprofit employee struggling to afford daily life? Are you open to sharing your story? If so, reach out to <a target="_blank" href="mailto:allisonkelly@businessinsider.com">allisonkelly@businessinsider.com</a>, <a target="_blank" href="mailto:nsheidlower@businessinsider.com">nsheidlower@businessinsider.com</a>, and <a target="_blank" href="mailto:jkaplan@businessinsider.com">jkaplan@businessinsider.com</a>.

Nonprofit workers fill holes in the social safety net, but millions are financially insecure themselves

Travel tech platform <keyword id="19901637" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="OYO" source="keywords">OYO</keyword> reported <keyword id="19910979" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="financial-year" source="keywords">financial year</keyword> 2023-24 as the maiden profitable fiscal with a net earning of nearly Rs 100 crore, founder <keyword id="20198157" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Ritesh-Agarwal" source="keywords">Ritesh Agarwal</keyword> said on Thursday. In a post on social media platform X, Agarwal said he sees growth ahead "not just in India" but also in OYO's other key markets of Nordics, South East Asia, the US and UK. "While a delighted customer or a hotel partner brings the biggest smile on my face, our first cut financials of FY24 have me humbled as well," Agarwal shared. "We had our maiden net profitable financial year at nearly Rs 100 crore. This was our eighth consecutive quarter of a positive EBITDA and we also have a cash balance of around Rs 1,000 crore," he added. He further highlighted that global credit rating firm Fitch has also taken note of OYO's improved performance and strong cash flows, upgrading its credit rating. "I see growth ahead not just in India with emerging travel trends such as premiumization, spiritual travel, business travel and conferences, destination weddings but also in our other key markets of Nordics, South East Asia, US and UK. FY25 will clearly be even more exciting," the OYO founder stated. He added that these are provisional numbers, but the audited financials will likely be close to these. Earlier this week, Fitch Ratings announced it has upgraded the rating of OYO parent firm Oravel Stays, citing the hospitality company's improved financial profile. Fitch upgraded Oravel Stay's long-term foreign and local currency issuer default ratings to 'B' from 'B-' with a 'Stable' outlook, according to a statement. It also upgraded the rating on the company's USD 660-million senior secured term loan facility due 2026 to 'B' from 'B-'. In FY24, OYO added about 5,000 hotels and 6,000 homes globally. It also reported a PAT (Profit after Tax) of Rs 99.6 crore (USD 12 million) and an adjusted EBITDA of Rs 888 crore (USD 107 million) for the whole fiscal year, up from Rs 274 crore (USD 33 million) in FY23. EBITDA -- Earnings Before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation, and Amortization -- is an alternate way of calculating profitability to net income. SEE ALSO:<a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/india/news/lok-sabha-exit-poll-2024-what-are-they-when-will-they-be-announced-and-all-you-need-to-know/articleshow/110565608.cms" target="_blank"></a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/india/news/lok-sabha-exit-poll-2024-what-are-they-when-will-they-be-announced-and-all-you-need-to-know/articleshow/110565608.cms" target="_blank">Lok Sabha Exit Poll 2024 – what are they, when will they be announced and all you need to know</a><a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/apps/news/truecaller-can-now-detect-if-the-caller-is-using-ai-how-to-use-it-to-prevent-ai-call-scams/articleshow/110556100.cms" target="_blank"></a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/apps/news/truecaller-can-now-detect-if-the-caller-is-using-ai-how-to-use-it-to-prevent-ai-call-scams/articleshow/110556100.cms" target="_blank">Truecaller can now detect if the caller is using AI – How to use it to prevent AI call scams</a><a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/sports/webstories/indias-t20-world-cup-team-matches-and-everything-you-need-to-know/slidelist/110551798.cms" target="_blank"></a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/sports/webstories/indias-t20-world-cup-team-matches-and-everything-you-need-to-know/slidelist/110551798.cms" target="_blank">India’s T20 World Cup team, matches and everything you need to know</a>

At ₹100 crore, OYO posts FY24 as maiden profitable fiscal: Founder

New Delhi: The <keyword id="19903456" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="income-tax-department" source="keywords">income tax department</keyword> has notified the <keyword id="21803475" type="General" weightage="100" keywordseo="Cost-Inflation-Index" source="keywords">Cost Inflation Index</keyword> for the current fiscal beginning April 2024, for calculating <keyword id="20584761" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="long-term-capital-gains" source="keywords">long-term capital gains</keyword> arising from sale of immovable property, securities and jewellery. The Cost <keyword id="19895000" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="inflation" source="keywords">Inflation</keyword> Index (CII) is used by <keyword id="20081991" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="taxpayers" source="keywords">taxpayers</keyword> to compute gains arising out of sale of capital <keyword id="19975917" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="assets" source="keywords">assets</keyword> after adjusting inflation. The CII for <keyword id="19910979" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="financial-year" source="keywords">financial year</keyword> 2024-25, relevant to assessment year 2025-26, stood at 363, as per a notification of the Central Board of Direct Taxes (<keyword id="19980145" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="CBDT" source="keywords">CBDT</keyword>). The CII number for last fiscal was 348 and for 2022-23 financial year it was 331. Moore Singhi Executive Director Rajat Mohan said the CII reflects the inflation in the economy, which causes the prices of goods and services to increase over time. The index for the following financial year, 2024-25, has been updated to 363, marking an increase of 15 points, which corresponds to an annual inflation rate of approximately 4.3 per cent. "This is consistent with the retail inflation rate of 4.83 per cent recorded in April 2024. Taxpayers usually prefer a higher CII as it allows them to claim larger tax rebates," Mohan said. AKM Global Partner-Tax Sandeep Sehgal said the index is useful to adjust the capital gains for inflation, so that the taxpayers are taxed on real appreciation of the assets and not the gains due to inflation. "Taxpayers can use this to calculate gains for long-term capital assets sold during FY 24-25 and reduce the tax liability accordingly," Sehgal said. CII is notified under the Income-tax Act, 1961 every year. It is popularly used to calculate "indexed cost of acquisition", while calculating capital gains at the time of sale of any capital asset. Normally, an asset is required to be retained for more than 36 months (24 months for immovable property and unlisted shares, 12 months for listed securities) to qualify as 'long-term capital gains'. Since prices of goods increase over time resulting in a fall in the purchasing power, the CII is used to arrive at the inflation adjusted purchasing price of assets so as to compute taxable long-term capital gains (LTCG).

IT department declares 363 as cost inflation index for current fiscal

Our experts answer readers' investing questions and write unbiased product reviews (<a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/personal-finance/investing-rating-methodology" class="not-content-link" target="_blank">here's how we assess investing products</a>). Paid non-client promotion: In some cases, we receive a commission from <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/personal-finance/our-partners" class="not-content-link" target="_blank">our partners</a>. Our opinions are always our own.<ul class="summary-list"><li>Lauren Boland is a software developer and active member of the online FIRE community.</li><li>She created an early-retirement simulator that's been used over 500,000 times in the last year.</li></ul>Achieving financial independence and retiring early is something many people dream about, but the number of people who dedicate time, energy, and money to achieving it is far smaller. Software developer Lauren Boland, 40, is among the latter group.Boland is so interested in the FIRE movement (<a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/personal-finance/financial-independence-retire-early">Financial Independence/Retire Early</a>) that she programmed an early-retirement calculator in 2013 called <a href="https://cfiresim.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">cFIREsim</a> that is still so popular it's been used over half a million times in the last year. With a few data inputs, the calculator helps users understand how much they'll need to retire early, and how likely they are to end up with $0 before the end of their retirement period.As for her own FIRE journey, Boland told Insider that she and her wife were "about 90% to our goal" with their own retirement accounts, <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/early-retirement-savings-most-vulnerable-first-years-2022-7" target="_blank" rel="noopener">but experienced some setbacks</a> due to the market downturn. However, she's still confident they'll hit their numbers in a few years if the market recovers soon enough. When asked what methods the couple has used to near their FIRE goal, Boland said they did it "the boring way." "I know that's an unsatisfying answer, but it's true," said Boland. "One superpower of most people who achieve FIRE is patience." She said two key tenets of her "boring" strategy have helped her stay on track toward financial independence — and shared one pitfall that FIRE adherents should avoid.<h2>1. Keep living costs down as much as you can</h2>Boland said the first step to being able to save enough in your <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/personal-finance/best-retirement-plans">retirement plan</a> is to slash as many costs as possible while you're still working. "We always tried to keep our housing, car, and food expenses pretty low and never really got out of our league in terms of those costs," said Boland. She added that it didn't hurt that they had "slightly above average" incomes that helped them save even more, despite living in a suburb of Washington DC, which is a high cost-of-living area. She stressed that it's particularly important to keep housing costs low, but understands that this can be a big challenge right now."I know that rents right now are crazy, and housing costs in general are crazy," Boland said, adding that the cultural expectation in the US that people live by themselves can also exacerbate housing-cost issues. Shared housing could help keep costs down — for example, splitting costs with family members or having long-term, reliable roommates. Some shared housing arrangements can be even more unique, like doing "co-housing" and buying property with someone other than a romantic partner. The post-pandemic boom in remote work has also opened opportunities to live in lower-cost areas for some people as well.<a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/personal-finance/robinhood-investing-review">Robinhood</a> offers the only IRA with a match. Get an extra 1% on every dollar you deposit. Every year. <a href="https://affiliate.insider.com?h=c354a3cf10baa72fa676e7869d601b32dba8e4962103c9f39ba833ed6595ea52&amp;postID=62cefab5f9954a39d823d235&amp;postSlug=strategies-financial-independence-early-retirement-2022-7&amp;site=bi&amp;u=https%3A%2F%2Frobinhood.c3me6x.net%2Fc%2F4722637%2F1541113%2F10402" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Start saving for retirement with Robinhood today</a>.<h2>2. Budget for a monthly investment contribution and stick to it</h2>After you slash your living costs, the next step is simple: Invest what you've saved. "If you set out a plan to save a certain amount each month and invest it, that's honestly all you need to do," said Boland. "If you are patient and keep doing that, you will hit your goal."Many financial planners and <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/personal-finance/best-online-financial-advisors">financial advisors</a> — as well as personal finance content creators — often talk about the power of compound interest. <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/personal-finance/what-is-compound-interest">Compound interest</a> is defined as interest that is built upon earlier interest. In other words, if you invest $100 and you get a 10% rate of return, you'll have $110 the next year, which will become $121 by the end of the second year, due to the ever-growing principal amount and steady rate of return. <h2>A pitfall to avoid: Getting too deep into alternative investments</h2>Boland said the "No. 1 counterproductive thing to do is expect things to happen quickly," and to seek out <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/personal-finance/get-rich-quick-never-works-2022-2">get-rich-quick schemes</a>. FIRE adherents, she said, should be particularly wary of alternative investments that promise really high returns in short periods of time without a lot of reliability. While she has some alternative investments — including a little bit of cryptocurrency — she said that you shouldn't get "too deep into it," because you run the risk of losing a lot. If there's a huge crash, as we've seen with crypto, you could lose all or a significant portion of your retirement savings. This article was originally published in July 2022.

A software developer who built a hugely popular early-retirement calculator says 2 'boring' tips are helping her reach financial independence

<ul class="summary-list"><li>OpenAI's GPT-4 is better than humans at analyzing financial statements and making forecasts, according to a new study.</li><li>"Even without any narrative or industry-specific information, the LLM outperforms financial analysts in its ability to predict earnings changes," the study found.</li></ul>OpenAI's GPT-4 proved to be a better financial analyst than humans, according to <a href="https://deliverypdf.ssrn.com/delivery.php?ID=883022123123082086028082006005099126018076068001039051073088005127013004123104083065018087081117012065113070067041028032110007097064093082007007089067065082124086015120122028127064125080121026113008&amp;EXT=pdf&amp;INDEX=TRUE" target="_blank" rel="noopener">a new study.</a>The findings could upend the financial services industry that, like other business sectors, is racing to adopt generative AI technologies.According to the study conducted by the Booth School of Business at the University of Chicago, the large language model did a better job of analyzing financial statements and making predictions based on those statements."Even without any narrative or industry-specific information, the LLM outperforms financial analysts in its ability to predict earnings changes," the study said. "The LLM exhibits a relative advantage over human analysts in situations when the analysts tend to struggle."The study utilized "chain-of-thought" prompts that directed GPT-4 to identify trends in financial statements and calculate different financial ratios. From there, the large language model analyzed the information and predicted future earnings results."When we use the chain of thought prompt to emulate human reasoning, we find that GPT achieves an accuracy of 60%, which is remarkably higher than that achieved by the analysts," the study said. The human analysts were closer to the low 50% range with regard to prediction accuracy.The large language models' ability to recognize financial patterns and business concepts with incomplete information suggests that the technology should play a key role in financial decision-making going forward, according to the study's authors.Finally, the study found that applying GPT-4's financial acumen to trading strategies produced more profitable trading, with higher share ratios and alpha that ultimately beat the stock market."We find that the long-short strategy based on GPT forecasts outperforms the market and generates significant alphas and Sharpe ratios," the study said.

GPT-4 is better than humans at financial forecasting, new study shows

<ul class="summary-list"><li>A February <a target="_blank" href="https://wallethub.com/edu/cities-with-the-most-people-in-financial-distress/133346">study from WalletHub</a> examined the 100 largest US cities' levels of "financial distress."</li><li>Arizona boasts four cities with stronger local economies, compared to the rest of the US.</li></ul>While the <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/prices-inflation-rate-rise-drop-deflation-food-oil-car-prices-2024-1">US economy</a> is improving, many <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/how-to-manage-app-subscriptions-save-money-monthly-vs-annual-2024-2">Americans are still struggling</a> with high home prices and growing debt. However, residents in Arizona's largest cities are doing much better than the rest of the country.A February <a target="_blank" href="https://wallethub.com/edu/cities-with-the-most-people-in-financial-distress/133346">study from WalletHub</a>, a personal finance company, examined the 100 largest US cities and calculated the level of "financial distress" for each.Four Arizona cities ranked among the nine metros with the least financially stressed residents, contrasting sharply with the cities that emerged as home to the most distressed people — Chicago, Houston, and New York.The study looked at several data points from the U.S. Census Bureau, Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts, Google Ads, and WalletHub, including residents' credit scores, debt accounts in distress, and bankruptcy filings. WalletHub ranked all cities in each category and calculated a total "financial distress" score.Boise, Idaho, ranked as the top city in terms of being least financially distressed. Arizona claimed the next three spots, with Scottsdale in second place, Gilbert in third, and Chandler in fourth. Glendale was also among the top 10 at No. 9.Interestingly, in an earlier <a target="_blank" href="https://wallethub.com/edu/states-with-the-most-people-in-financial-distress/130790">WalletHub study</a> that looked at financial distress at the state level, Arizona ranked just 16th least burdened. This suggests that larger cities like Glendale and Scottsdale are not only bucking the national trend but are also doing much better than the rest of the state."Cities such as Scottsdale and Glendale in Arizona are distinct from other parts of the state due to several reasons, including economic diversity, job prospects, and local policies," WalletHub analyst Cassandra Happe told Business Insider. "These cities have strong local economies, lower unemployment rates, and better access to financial resources compared to other areas in the state."It also didn't hurt that <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/economics-super-bowl-las-vegas-billion-dollars-new-orleans-2024-2#:~:text=The%20estimated%20economic%20impact%20of,in%20the%20years%20to%20come.">Glendale hosted the 2023 Super Bowl</a>, which was believed to have a $1.3 billion economic impact on the local community.<div type="image" title="Super Bowl in Glendale, Arizona." height="1667" width="2500" msid="108117372" hostid="261"></div><h2>Major economic hubs like New York and Chicago are among the most distressed</h2>Chicago tops the list as the most financially distressed city, ranking last or next-to-last in four categories, including accounts in distress.Houston and New York follow, burdened by high bankruptcy filings and a substantial share of residents with distressed accounts. These cities' financial woes underscore the broader economic challenges, from <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/jobs-labor-market-unemployment-rate-wage-growth-january-economy-2024-2">unemployment</a> to <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/why-cant-millennials-buy-homes-first-time-buyers-mortgage-rates-2023-12">high living costs</a>, that add stress to the residents' financial difficulties.Happe noted that residents face several economic challenges, including the cost of living, unemployment, underemployment, and high levels of debt, which can lead to a distress level that is difficult to escape."Cities with higher distress levels often struggle with reduced consumer spending, limited access to credit, and slower economic growth, which can further exacerbate their financial difficulties," Happe said."The cost of living can also significantly impact distress levels, as seen in cities like Chicago, where factors such as increased bankruptcy filings and high levels of financial distress coincide with the challenges of living expenses."<div type="image" title="Chicago river and skyline" height="3999" width="5999" msid="108117374" hostid="261"></div>The five most distressed cities, which also include No. 4 Los Angeles and No. 5 Dallas, would all typically be considered major economic hubs. However, Happe explained that the <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/credit-card-debt-interest-rates-consolidation-economy-recession-soft-landing-2024-2">economic conditions</a> of the past two years, including high inflation and soaring interest rates, led to significant increases in financial stress factors, suggesting that these metropolitan areas suffered more than others under the rocky economic conditions.<h2>How some cities are alleviating financial distress</h2>Arizona's largest cities have become a model for financial stability in a post-pandemic economy, instituting policies designed to address recent financial hardships.In one example, while the US deals with <a target="_blank" href="https://markets.businessinsider.com/news/commodities/rent-prices-all-time-high-us-housing-market-mortgage-rates-2023-9">rents at near-record levels</a>, Scottsdale eliminated the <a target="_blank" href="https://www.scottsdale.org/city_news/city-continues-strong-economic-growth-for-now/article_5b856c68-7a6c-11ee-8aae-fb5f6eebf6bf.html">city tax on rental properties</a>, designed to keep rent prices more manageable. Meanwhile, Gilbert has become a <a target="_blank" href="https://www.tradeandindustrydev.com/region/arizona/gilbert-arizona-driving-economic-growth-greater-31798">top destination for younger Americans</a> thanks to programs designed to incentivize small businesses such as <a target="_blank" href="https://www.gilbertedi.com/programs/">income and capital gains tax credits</a>.Cities hoping to improve the financial conditions of their residents can aim to be more like their counterparts in Arizona. According to Happe, several proactive steps can be taken, including promoting debt management and encouraging better budgeting practices."Cities can also take measures to discourage predatory lending practices and facilitate resources for debt consolidation, ensuring that residents have access to sustainable solutions for managing their finances," Happe said.

Why 4 Arizona cities have emerged as havens from financial stress

<ul class="summary-list"><li>An asset's <keyword id="12650666" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="standard-deviation" source="Orion">standard deviation</keyword> tells you how much its particular and average returns vary.</li><li>You can quickly calculate or look up the standard deviation of different assets.</li><li>A high standard deviation can indicate the asset's returns will be more volatile.</li></ul>Investors need to consider different types of risk when they're choosing which investments to buy and sell. One of these risks is related to an investment or a portfolio's <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/what-is-volatility" target="_blank" rel="noopener">volatility</a>. Higher volatility may be riskier as big price swings can be hard to stomach and may make predicting an investment's returns more difficult. Standard deviation is used in many fields and situations to help determine a data point's distance from a data set's average. Within investing, which is what we'll focus on, an <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/what-are-assets" target="_blank" rel="noopener">asset</a> or portfolio's standard deviation is one way to assess its potential volatility.<h2>What is a standard deviation? </h2><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/what-is-standard-deviation" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Standard deviation</a> — also referred to by the Greek letter sigma (σ) — measures how far an asset's returns have been from its average return in a specific period. Investments that have a higher standard deviation may be more volatile, and could be prone to larger price swings. "It's like when you're meeting a friend, and you tell him you'll arrive at 1 p.m., plus or minus 15 minutes," says Alvin Carlos, a financial planner at <a href="https://districtcapitalmanagement.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">District Capital Management</a>. "The 15 minutes is your standard deviation."However, the standard deviation isn't predictive. Instead, it tells you how volatile the asset has been in the past. <h2>5 steps to calculate standard deviation </h2>To find an asset's standard deviation for a certain period of time, you'll need to compare its returns at different points to its average return. Specifically, you'll find the square root of the variance, and the formula looks like this:<div type="image" title="Standard deviation formula" height="988" width="1668" msid="88036583" hostid="261"></div>If you break down the equation step-by-step, you'll find it's not too difficult to calculate on your own. As an example, we can find the standard deviation for the <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/what-is-the-sp-500" target="_blank" rel="noopener">S&amp;P 500</a> during the first six months of 2021. <h2>Step 1. Calculate the average return (the mean) for the period</h2>Start by finding the average return, or mean, of the data points within the period. Here, we <a href="https://ycharts.com/indicators/sp_500_monthly_return" target="_blank" rel="noopener">looked up</a> historical returns to find how well the S&amp;P 500 performed each month. <h4>S&amp;P 500 returns for Jan. 2021 to June 2021</h4><table style="border-collapse: collapse; width: 100%;" border="1"><tbody><tr><td style="width: 50%;">Month</td><td style="width: 50%;">Return</td></tr><tr><td style="width: 50%;">January 2021</td><td style="width: 50%;">-1.11%</td></tr><tr><td style="width: 50%;">February 2021</td><td style="width: 50%;">2.61%</td></tr><tr><td style="width: 50%;">March 2021</td><td style="width: 50%;">4.24%</td></tr><tr><td style="width: 50%;">April 2021</td><td style="width: 50%;">5.24%</td></tr><tr><td style="width: 50%;">May 2021</td><td style="width: 50%;">0.55%</td></tr><tr><td style="width: 50%;">June 2021</td><td style="width: 50%;">2.22%</td></tr></tbody></table>To find the average, add up the six monthly returns and divide by six.(-1.11 + 2.61 + 4.24 + 5.24 + 0.55 + 2.22) / 6 = 2.29<h2>Step 2. Find the square of the difference between the return and the mean</h2>Once you have the mean, you can find the square of the difference between the actual rate of return (ri ) and the average rate of return (ravg) for each month.For example, in January, it would be (-1.11 - 2.29)2 = 11.56February is (2.61 - 2.29)2 = 0.10Repeat the process for all six months. <h2>Step 3. Add the results</h2>Now, add the results from step two to find the numerator (the number above the line) in the equation. In this case, the result is 27.2<h2>Step 4. Divide the result by the number of data points minus one</h2>Next, divide the amount from step three by the number of data points (i.e., months) minus one. So, 27.2 / (6 - 1) = 5.44<h2>Step 5. Take the square root</h2>Finally, take the square root of the result — √5.44 — to find the standard deviation, which is 2.33%.Don't worry if that seems like a lot of math. There are plenty of online calculators you can use, and spreadsheet programs like Excel and Google Sheets have a built-in formula:=STDEV(point, [point2, ...])Quick tip: The standard deviation formula we're using for analyzing an investment is the standard deviation of a sample of data. There's also a formula to find the standard deviation of an entire population, which is identical, except you divide by N rather than (N-1) in step four.Because it's a commonly used financial metric, some investment analysis websites and programs will show you an asset's standard deviations over different periods. <h2>How to use standard deviation </h2>Investors may use the standard deviation for an asset, whether that's a specific stock or an <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/what-is-an-index-fund" target="_blank" rel="noopener">index fund</a>, as part of <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/technical-analysis" target="_blank" rel="noopener">technical analysis</a>. It can also be an indicator of an asset's potential volatility and <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/irr" target="_blank" rel="noopener">rate of return</a>.Within a normal distribution — an inverted bell-shaped curve — an asset's returns may fall within one standard deviation of the average 68% of the time, within two standard deviations 95% of the time, and within three standard deviations 99% of the time. "In investing, you may have read that the stock market has historically returned 10%," says Carlos. "That doesn't mean you'll get a 10% return each year." Instead, explains Carlos, you might expect a return of 10% plus or minus one standard deviation. For example, over the last 10 years, the S&amp;P 500's average annual return was 9.2%, and it had an annual standard deviation of about 13%. So, you might conclude that there's a 68% chance the next year's returns will fall within the -3.8% to 22.2% range.<h2>The financial takeaway</h2>An asset's standard deviation isn't enough to tell you whether or not investing is a good idea. It's also not predictive, as an asset's historical price changes don't necessarily align with its future returns. Still, it can be informative. Carlos points to emerging market and US <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/what-is-a-small-cap-stock" target="_blank" rel="noopener">small-cap stocks</a>, which have a higher standard deviation than US investment-grade <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/what-is-a-bond" target="_blank" rel="noopener">bonds</a>. "The higher your investment's standard deviation, the wilder the price swings you'll experience," he says. More volatility investments may be desirable in some cases, particularly if you have a <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/buy-and-hold" target="_blank" rel="noopener">long time horizon</a>. But it can also be risky to hold volatile assets if you're actively trading or may need the money soon.

5 steps to calculating an asset's standard deviation

<ul class="summary-list"><li>Travel search engine Kayak launched a new budgeting tool called <a href="https://www.kayak.co.uk/c/vacay-valuator/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">"Vacay Valuator"</a> on May 19.</li><li>The calculator presented me with 15 options of comforts I was willing to give up in exchange for my next holiday.</li></ul>We are almost halfway through 2023, and I was recently hit by a depressing number: one. That's how many PTO days I have taken so far this year.If you're a millennial like me, chances are you, too, aren't the biggest fan of <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/why-prices-inflation-soaring-corporate-greed-profits-margins-wages-jobs-2023-4">the rising inflation rates</a> and <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/select/airline-ticket-prices-are-up-25-percent-why-and-how-to-save/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">insanely high airline ticket prices</a> that have chipped away at our purchasing power this year.But I was looking forward to some good news when I read that on May 19, travel search engine Kayak launched a new budgeting tool — <a href="https://www.kayak.co.uk/c/vacay-valuator/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">"Vacay Valuator"</a> — that helps people book their next vacation.The tool does exactly what it says it does — but the problem is that it's the same messaging millennials have been getting for years.First, the good: The online tool is easy to use.Now, for the bad.Vacay Valuator asks the user, "For how many months would you like to save up for?" I keyed in the number "two."Next, it presented me with 15 options ranging from "coffee" and "alcohol" to "home DIY" and "gym," and one prompt: "Select the items which you are ready to abdicate."As a Kayak spokesperson told me, "the interactive tool provides an easy and practical way for people to see how much they could save by making small adjustments to their spending habits to help fund their holiday."But in real terms, what it means is that according to this tool, to afford one comfort — a vacation — I need to give up another. <div type="image" title="A screenshot of Kayak's budgeting tool Vacay Valuator" height="832" width="1110" msid="100420510" hostid="261" sizebytes="22388"></div>Notably, the tool didn't ask for my income or any other parameters for budgeting, but I went along with it anyway.<a href="https://www.kayak.co.uk/c/vacay-valuator/">According to Kayak's Vacay Valuator</a>, if I stop drinking coffee for a month — saving £44, or $55 — all I can afford is a flight from New York to Charleston for a weekend in June — and that's literally just the flight itself. If I went harder with my cuts and stopped buying coffee and alcoholic beverages for two months, and halted my Amazon Prime subscription and professional house cleaning services, I would save $739 — enough to buy a round-trip ticket from Singapore to Ishigaki, an island in Japan's southwestern Okinawa Prefecture known for its beaches and its snorkeling, diving, and surfing sites.A weekend on a Japanese beach sounds pretty nice.But this budgeting tool is playing on the same tropes that have already been plaguing millennials for years: <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2017/may/15/australian-millionaire-millennials-avocado-toast-house" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Stop eating avocado toast</a>, <a href="https://www.vice.com/en/article/jpk8g8/millennials-are-spending-more-on-coffee-than-on-retirement" target="_blank" rel="noopener">stop getting takeaway coffees</a>, and all your financial woes will be solved.Before you angrily tweet @ me, I am a trained accountant — meaning I budget obsessively. But it also true that we're living in a brutal economy and facing <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/as-jobs-boomed-wages-stayed-flat-in-february-2022-3">stagnant</a> wages. We've <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/millennials-money-financial-economic-trauma-recession-student-debt-inflation-2022-2">already weathered two financial crises</a>. And yet, we're still being told that we, and our discretionary spending habits, are the problem. And that is really depressing.

Kayak launched a new 'holiday calculator.' As a millennial, it's depressing.

<ul class="summary-list"><li>The Education Department announced an update to its FAFSA formula to expand aid eligibility.</li><li>In accordance with a FAFSA law, the update will make 7.3 million students eligible for Pell Grants.</li></ul>President Joe Biden's Education Department is continuing its rollout of a key financial aid form — and its latest update is set to make more students eligible.On Tuesday, the Education Department is set to announce an update to the way it calculates the rewards for the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, or FAFSA, form.Specifically, according to the press release obtained exclusively by Business Insider, the update ensures the FAFSA formula is "in full alignment" with the <a target="_blank" href="https://studentaid.gov/help-center/answers/article/fafsa-simplification-act">FAFSA Simplification Act</a>. The Act requires the department to expand Pell Grants to more students and link eligibility to the student's family size and federal poverty level, beginning in the 2024-2025 school year.The department estimates that its latest update to the formula will result in 7.3 million students becoming eligible for Pell Grants. Under Secretary of Education James Kvaal told BI that the update addresses how much students can afford to contribute to their educations based on earnings, and it will not impact the department's timeline to send completed applications to schools in the first half of March."We are putting all hands on deck and using every lever we have to make sure we can achieve the transformational potential of the Better FAFSA to make higher education possible for many more of our nation's students," Education Secretary Miguel Cardona said in a statement."The technical updates we are making today will not impact our implementation timelines, and, combined with other implementation efforts, the Department's Better FAFSA will result in more students eligible to access more Pell Grants in the 2024-25 award year," he said.The department is set to work with schools in the coming days to implement the latest update. Along with the formula change, Kvaal also said that this is the first week that Federal Student Aid staff will begin going to schools across the country to ensure they are prepared to process student aid packages efficiently.This latest update comes on the heels of a <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/fafsa-why-parents-students-have-to-wait-financial-aid-awards-2024-1">rocky FAFSA rollout</a> over the past few months. In January, the Education Department announced that its timeline to send FAFSA forms to schools was two months delayed as it worked to overhaul the application and make it easier for families to access.The delays have sparked concern among advocates and lawmakers. Justin Draeger, president of the National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators, said in a statement at the time that "these continued delays, communicated at the last minute, threaten to harm the very students and families that federal student aid is intended to help."Some Republican lawmakers have also called on the Government Accountability Office to <a target="_blank" href="https://www.help.senate.gov/ranking/newsroom/press/ranking-member-cassidy-colleagues-announce-gao-investigation-into-biden-admins-botched-fafsa-rollout">investigate the rollout</a> of the FAFSA form. Still, some colleges have started adjusting their commitment deadlines to allow more time for students to review their financial aid packages. The University of Pittsburgh, for example, <a target="_blank" href="https://www.utimes.pitt.edu/news/pitt-moving-commitment">recently extended</a> its deadline from May 1 to May 15, with Marc Harding, vice provost for enrollment, saying in a statement that it "ensures that students and families have ample time to review their options and make an informed decision when choosing Pitt."Kvaal said that he appreciates schools' efforts to give students more flexibility and encouraged others to evaluate their financial aid deadlines to work in the best interest of students.

7.3 million students will be eligible for Pell Grants in the Education Department's latest update to a key financial aid application

<ul class="summary-list"><li>JPMorgan said the vast majority of Americans have burned through excess savings. </li><li>It's likely that all but the top 1% of consumers will be worse off financially in mid-2024 than they were pre-pandemic, the bank said.</li></ul>The majority of Americans have burned through their excess savings piled up during the COVID-19 pandemic, and in the coming months, JPMorgan says it is likely that almost everyone will be worse off financially than they were in 2019. In a Thursday note, the bank's top stock strategist Marko Kolanovic said 80% of consumers, a group that accounts for nearly two-thirds of consumption, has already depleted any savings cushion they may have built during lockdowns."It is likely that only the top 1% of consumers by income will be better off than before the pandemic," Kolanovic wrote, pointing to the growing signs of credit card and auto loan delinquencies, as well as Chapter 11 filings.The chart below shows how, by June 2024, every income group except the top 1% is on pace to dip below their March 2020 levels of inflation-adjusted liquid assets, in the form of deposits and money market funds. <div type="image" title="JPMorgan consumer spending and liquid assets chart 2023" height="406" width="852" msid="105819941" hostid="261"></div>JPMorgan estimated previously that excess savings had peaked in August 2021 at $2.1 trillion, boosted by government stimulus checks. That's since been whittled down to below $148 billion, per the firm's calculations as of October. "Consumers are facing tighter credit conditions and rising rates, wind-down of Covid-era stimulus and relief programs, declining excess savings and liquidity, and multiple years of above average inflation," JPMorgan strategists wrote at the time.As Bank of America wrote in a recent note, the plight of elder millennials is particularly difficult. Older millennials — a demographic of Americans born in the 1980s that holds significant influence on the US economy — have had to navigate the 2008 financial crisis in addition to the pandemic during critical working years of their lives.The two economic storms, as well as mounting childcare costs and sticky inflation, have made it difficult for the sizable cohort to own a house, save for retirement, and <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/credit-card-debt-income-homeownership-foreclosure-bankruptcy-elder-millennials-lifestyle-2023-12">comfortably spend money within their means</a>. JPMorgan notes that, fortunately for now, there is little sign of systemic weakness in housing, though the market remains largely frozen amid high borrowing costs. "There are no significant delinquencies in residential mortgages yet, as consumers locked in low interest rates," Kolanovic said. "However, existing home sales have dropped near record lows, and ~$6.5 trillion of commercial real estate debt remains an overhang."

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