Financial News Features

"Consumers are going to spend as much as they did last season, but they are limiting the people they're spending on. They only have a certain amount of money, so they have to tighten that list of who they're buying presents for," said Howard Dvorkin, chairman of Debt.com. "Because of the increased pricing, their dollars won't go as far as they did last year."

“The IRS lowers your taxes by raising the standard deduction,” said Howard Dvorkin, CPA and chairman of Debt.com. “Think of it as a chunk of your money the IRS ignores. This year, the IRS will hike the standard deduction by around 7%, depending on your circumstances.”

“CPAs and doctors have one thing in common,” says CPA Howard Dvorkin, chairman of Debt.com. “We see the same symptoms in people. Headaches, ulcers, high blood pressure, chest pain, obesity, anxiety, depression, panic attacks. You name it, I’ve seen it.”

Some of that speculation falls into the eye-opening category.Debt.com Chairman Howard Dvorkin has been tracking BNPL trends since the buy now, pay later revolution broke out. Here's his outlook on what's next with BNPL.

“Medical debt is often the most depressing and stressful kind, because you or a loved one just endured a health scare—only to face huge bills you can’t afford,” said Howard Dvorkin, CPA, chairman of Debt.com. “You’re already fragile, either physically or emotionally, and often both. Pile medical debt on top of that, and it can crush anyone’s resolve.”

And if you feel like it’s professional financial help you need for your money stress rather than a therapist, there are free places to go for that as well, says Howard Dvorkin, a certified public accountant and chairman of the debt education website, Debt.com. “There’s no shortage of free assistance,” Dvorkin says. “Your bank or credit union probably offer free online budgeting tools that can help you squeeze every last dime from your income. Nonprofit credit counseling agencies ... offer you a free, in-depth debt analysis over the phone.”