Host Steve Chiotakis and MSN Money columnist Liz Pulliam Weston take your questions on how to ask a parent to co-sign a student loan, what to do after a co-signed parent declares bankruptcy and why paying off debt too quickly doesn't have any drawbacks, despite urban myths to the contrary.
If you didn't pay your taxes for the last 20 years and have a guilty conscience, Nina Olson, the IRS' taxpayer advocate, let's you know how to 'fess up, which may not be as painful as you'd think.
It's tough enough trying to raise one child and see her through college, but Tab and Debbie Thompson did just that with quadruplets who graduated just graduated from Texas A&M.
Raising kids today isn't a cheap endeavor — and some argue that you don't get your money's worth — but Chris Farrell thinks raising kids is more affordable and is worth the money.
With summer kicking off this Memorial Day weekend, Steve Chiotakis talks to Anne Banas of SmarterTravel.com to get a forecast on this summer's travel industry and tips on how to save before you hit the road or take to the air.
Panera Bread Co. opened a new location in St. Louis and let its customers decide what they want to pay. Sounds like a free lunch, but as Steve Chiotakis talks to Vickie Morwitz, people still decide to pay.
Got extra change? You'll need it this Memorial Day weekend when stocking up on your grilling supplies. Erika Aguilar reports beef prices are nudging up.
Felix Salmon from Reuters and John Carney, senior editor at CNBC, talk with Bob Moon about what to make of the stock market plunging in May and the proposal for banks to report the true value of their loans.
Lawmakers in Washington are considering an offer of limited government help for a pension plan favored by truckers and construction workers that's been hit hard by the financial crisis. But that could create a precedent for taxpayer bailouts of struggling pension plans. John Dimsdale reports.
Toys "R" Us is growing up. It plans to go public. The toy seller was a public company five years ago, but then it was one of many companies bought by private investors during boom times. Jeff Horwich reports this is a sticky time for the toy retailer to try to get its money back.
You may have driven a Ford lately, but probably not a Mercury. Mercury sales are down 74 percent over the last decade, and reports say Ford plans to close down the Mercury brand. Brett Neely reports.
There are now more than 10 million people nationwide getting unemployment checks. And with federal subsidies, the maximum length of time they can keep getting a check is 99 weeks. But people may run out of benefits before they reach that point because Congress hasn't acted to keep funding the program. The House passed a bill to extend benefits, but the Senate left town without doing anything.
It's just not Wall Steeters who are keeping a close eye on the financial reform bills Congress is reconciling, but car dealers, farmers and airlines. Steve Chiotakis speaks to Marketplace's Washington correspondent, Nancy Marshall-Genzer.
A lot of the biggest soccer clubs in Europe are in debt and facing bankruptcy. So the organization that governs Euro soccer has agreed on some new rules designed to stop clubs from spending more than they take in.
Arizona's new law targeting undocumented immigrants hasn't taken effect yet, but activists aren't waiting. Tomorrow, protesters take to the streets in Arizona and 22 other states. Some of those marching in solidarity will be union leaders. Jeff Tyler reports.
The Hoover Dam's completion 75 years ago marked one of the biggest public works projects in the U.S. and a win for jobs and electricity. But experts say the Dam would not pass today's environmental guidelines.
The electronics company tries to take measures to prevent more worker suicides. The companies working with Foxconn — including Apple, HP and Dell — have pledged to investigate further into the matter.
There's lots of bad news for transit agencies around the country — service cuts, fare hikes, budget deficits — but a few cities have figured out a way to improve their customer service, and spend virtually nothing. Andrea Bernstein reports.
Oprah is opening her second retail store in Chicago. What might happen as the queen of daytime TV moves from your living room to your local mall? Jeff Horwich reports.
The Museum of Contemporary art in L.A. is getting a new director. Independent dealer Richard Polsky talks with Kai Ryssdal about the new director, Jeffrey Deitch, and how he might bring fiscal responsibility to the museum.
Some banks that used to seem kind of shaky have been looking better based on their latest books. But we learned the hard way the past couple of years you can't necessarily take those books to the bank. So corporate-accounting rule setters are suggesting it's time for a change. Bob Moon reports.
Today President Obama announced plans to suspend exploratory drilling in the Arctic, cancel a lease sale in the Gulf and off the Virginia coast, and continue the deepwater drilling moratorium. How will these new ground rules impact the domestic oil supply and companies that drill for it? John Dimsdale reports.
Jim Kendrick, assistant professor of film at Baylor University, talks with Jeremy Hobson about George Romero's latest movie, "Survival of the Dead," and how unusual a big zombie movie like that is.
Authors and booksellers are crowding Book Expo America in New York City to seal the deal on which books will end up in which bookstores. Lisa Napoli explains why this is a vital step for authors who want sales success.
Macs are the more traditional bet for sleeker, sexier laptops. But could Hewlett-Packard's new design, which won it product placement in the Sex and the City sequel, threaten Apple's title?
Another worker at Foxconn manufacturing plant in China jumped to his death — the 10th to commit suicide this year. How might problems at a manufacturing on the other side of the world can affect companies here in the U.S.?
BP is trying yet another maneuver to plug the leaking oil well in the Gulf of Mexico. In the meantime, the government is under pressure to punish BP, but doesn't want to distract the company from the clean-up effort. Jeff Tyler reports.
Facebook is balancing privacy expectations with the need to make money. Recent changes to the social-networking site have left many users feeling exposed. Today, Facebook rolled out new privacy controls meant to stem the controversy. Jeff Horwich reports.
Facebook users have become increasingly concerned about the website's privacy settings. Slate tech columnist Farhad Manjoo talks with Kai Ryssdal whether Facebook's new privacy system will divert people from walking away and what the site needs to grow as a business.
With so many new platforms — Kindles, iPads and smartphones — publishers are facing a whole new discussion about how to charge for content. The New Yorker said it's planning to offer a flat-rate subscription for its content across all platforms. Alisa Roth reports.
The American labor market is still shaky. We've started adding jobs, but more than 8 million jobs have disappeared over the past two and a half years. A news story the other day got David Frum thinking about jobs and the economy, and where we might be headed.
Cleveland's mayor wants to find a company to supply energy-efficient lighting across the city. But he also wants that company to set up shop in the city to create jobs. Dan Bobkoff reports his first attempt didn't quite work out.
Big investments banks like Goldman Sachs are keeping an eye on the financial reform bill, but so are small banks. Sarah McCammon reports many community banks are just as worried about how the bill could affect them.
Boston College Professor Ray Madoff talks with Kai Ryssdal about her new book "Immortality and Law," and why dead doesn't really mean dead anymore — financially speaking — because states have started extending to some of the dead permanent control over their trusts and estates.
If a business gives you your change in counterfeit money, you're probably out of luck unless you can prove it right there on the spot. But what if the fake money comes from an arm of the federal government?
The Iraqi government has said it will close the state-owned Iraqi Airways after declaring it bankrupt. Iraq's transportation ministry said the airline would be closed following a damaging dispute with Kuwait over war reparations.
The Chicago Blackhawks haven't won a Stanley Cup since 1961, and this weekend they'll be playing the Philadelphia Flyers in the National Hockey League playoffs. What changed? Tony Arnold reports.
The House Committee on Energy and Commerce released details from its inquiry into the BP oil spill, revealing several warning signs before the Deepwater Horizon rig exploded.
U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner starts two days of meetings in London, Berlin and Frankfurt today as credit woes begin to mount throughout Europe.
Walmart is offering the iPhone at a hundred dollars less than the Apple store, but with a restrictive contract and a new iPhone on the way, it might not be worth it.
In California, former executives from Hewlett-Packard, eBay and Facebook are running for office. But in some cases, that business-world background can backfire. Jeff Tyler reports.
Americans are surviving long enough that many of us are outliving our organs, and it's taking millions of dollars each year in health care to maintain them. Artificial organs could change that. Kerry Grens reports.
Kai Ryssdal reviews what listeners had to say about stories involving stepping back to explore the plenitude, a commentary criticizing the financial overhaul bill, reforming investment behavior, and the social media site Togetherville.
When financial services were driving the economy, it seemed a no-brainer to send the cream of the academic crop to Wall Street. But after the last few years of financial crisis, a lot of people are asking whether it's worth it for graduates and the country. Jeremy Hobson reports.
In the past couple of weeks the three major indices have lost 10 percent. More than 1,000 points on the Dow. That's a lot of money not in stocks. Chris Low, chief economist at FTN Financial, talks with Kai Ryssdal about what's going on with Wall Street.
Google released a report that says its advertising helped generate $54 billion of economic activity last year. Brett Neely reports there's more to that number than meets the eye.
Home health and hospice provider Gentiva plans to acquire Odyssey. That merger would create one of the largest hospice companies in the U.S. Gregory Warner reports.
