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28 articles from 4 sites
How to Get a Refund on Every Major Game Store — and Where You Can't
Steam made refunds normal, but the rules change completely one storefront over. The real windows, the PlayStation download trap, the eShop wall.
Should You Pre-Order? What You Are Actually Paying For
A pre-order moves your decision from after the reviews to before them. When the trade is rational, what each store lets you undo, and how to decide.
Your Kid and In-Game Spending: A Parent's Guide That Holds
The FTC found premium currencies are engineered to hide cost. The spending controls that hold on every platform — and how to reverse a charge.
Is That Really America.gov? A Scam-Spotting Checklist
Every new government portal is followed by convincing fakes. Twelve checks that separate a real .gov site from an impostor — before you type your Social Security number.
The 2027 Social Security COLA: What Gets Announced October 14 — and What Doesn't
How the COLA is actually calculated, why the 3.4–3.6% projections are not the number, and why your net increase depends on a figure nobody has announced yet.
The Backlog Is Not a Task List: Choosing What to Play Next
A hundred-game backlog is a symptom of abundance, not laziness. How to choose the next game with a time budget instead of guilt — and when to quit one.
Free-to-Play Isn't Free: How the Money Is Actually Made
Free games are designed to be played free and paid to continue. What battle passes, gacha and cosmetic economies are engineered to do — and how to set your own price.
How to Tell a Game Is Worth Buying — Before You Buy It
Reviews, refunds and a bit of arithmetic. A way to decide whether a game deserves your money and your evenings, before the purchase instead of after.
The ACA Subsidy Cliff Is Back: What to Check Before You Pick a 2027 Plan
Enhanced ACA credits expired after 2025. How the restored 400%-of-poverty cliff works, why repayment risk grew, and four checks before open enrollment opens November 1.
An Expert Tested America.gov's Health Answers. What That Means for Your Medicare Questions
An infectious-disease physician asked America.gov 37 health questions. Where the AI portal got Medicare right, where it got a federal rule wrong, and how to verify before you act.
Medicare Enrollment Is Moving Toward America.gov: What Changes and What Doesn't
Medicare enrollment is slated for the new America.gov portal. What the executive order changes, what it does not, and the one penalty to avoid.
Medicare open enrollment 2027: lower average premiums, and the fine print that decides your bill
Open enrollment runs October 15 to December 7, 2026. Average Advantage premiums fall for 2027, but stand-alone drug plans go the other way.
The $90 Medicare premium rebate: who gets one, when it arrives, and who is left out
A one-time $90 payment is going to 20.8 million Medicare Part B enrollees in October 2026. Check the exclusions — and the fraud that follows the money.
The $500 Obamacare Refund: Who Gets a Check, Who Doesn't, and the Scams That Follow
Checks are now going out: $500 to about 950,000 marketplace enrollees in 30 states, automatically, with no application. Who qualifies — and how to spot the fraud.
Your First Passport Is Going Online: What the State Department Announced
The State Department plans fully online first-time passport applications through America.gov by 2027, plus a redesigned single-size passport in 2028.
What Is America.gov? The New Federal Front Door, Explained
America.gov launched on September 29, 2026 as a single, AI-assisted front door to federal services. What it does today, what is coming, and what to avoid.
Auto Insurance in the US: What Each Coverage Actually Pays For
"Full coverage" is a marketing phrase with no legal meaning. What each coverage actually pays for, and why state minimums are not enough.
How Divorce Splits Property in the US: Community Property vs Equitable Distribution
Nine states divide marital property down the middle. The rest divide it fairly — which is not the same thing. What counts as marital property, and how the court decides.
Pay Off the Mortgage Early or Invest? A Framework, Not an Answer
Prepaying a mortgage earns a guaranteed return equal to your after-tax interest rate. Whether that beats investing depends on four numbers you can actually look up.
Term vs Whole Life Insurance: How to Work Out How Much You Need
Life insurance is not an investment decision first — it is a question of who depends on your income and for how long. A method for sizing the death benefit.
After a Car Accident: How Fault and Insurance Claims Actually Work
Whether the other driver's insurer pays depends on which state you are in and how fault is assigned. A guide to the first 48 hours and the rules that decide the rest.
Reading Investment Returns: CAGR, Fees and the Trap in 'Average' Returns
A fund that gained 50% then lost 50% did not return 0%. How compounding, inflation and fees turn a headline number into the return you actually keep.
The ACA Marketplace: Open Enrollment, Subsidies and Special Enrollment Periods
Open enrollment runs November 1 to January 15. How marketplace subsidies work now that the enhanced credits have expired — including the return of the 400% cliff.
Lending Money to a Friend: What to Put in Writing Before You Do
Money between friends is the most common kind of loan and the least documented. A one-page note and an understanding of your state's limits prevent most of the damage.
Index Funds and Dollar-Cost Averaging: What They Do — and Don't Do
Index funds remove the stock-picking problem and leave the cost problem. Dollar-cost averaging removes the timing problem and does nothing for your expected return.
Premium, Deductible, Copay, Out-of-Pocket Max: How US Health Insurance Costs Stack
A low premium is not the same as a cheap plan. How the four cost-sharing numbers interact, and how to compare two plans without doing the arithmetic twice.
At-Will Employment: What It Actually Means When You're Let Go
At-will employment lets an employer end the relationship for almost any reason — but not for an illegal one. Here is where the line sits, and what to do in the first week.
How Big Should an Emergency Fund Be — and Where Should It Sit?
Three to six months of expenses is the standard answer, but the useful questions are which expenses count, and what the money should actually be held in.