Daniel Harper
Daniel is a finance writer covering personal finance topics including budgeting, credit, and beginner investing. He began his career contributing to his Substack, where he covered consumer finance trends and practical money topics for everyday readers. Since then, he has written for a range of personal finance blogs and fintech platforms, focusing on clear, straightforward content that helps readers make more informed financial decisions.
Latest Articles by Daniel Harper
Sanders tells Democrats to block a Social Security commission he says threatens 70 million beneficiaries
Sen. Bernie Sanders has turned a procedural Social Security bill into a test of whether Senate Democrats will permit benefit changes to advance through a...
VA urgent care costs $0 for the first three 2026 visits in priority groups 1 through 5
VA’s 2026 copay schedule gives veterans in priority groups 1 through 5 three urgent-care visits at no charge before a $30 copay begins with the...
Early retirees can avoid the 10% penalty with 72(t) payments lasting at least five years
Section 72(t) can turn retirement savings into penalty-free income before age 59½, but it does so by replacing flexibility with a rigid payment schedule. A...
$24,150 is the 2026 standard deduction for heads of household
Head-of-household filers receive a $24,150 standard deduction for tax year 2026, an amount between the deductions for single and joint filers. The larger deduction is...
Medical deductions begin only after eligible expenses exceed 7.5% of adjusted gross income
The federal medical-expense deduction does not begin with the first eligible dollar. An itemizer can deduct only the portion of unreimbursed qualifying costs above 7.5%...
Social Security taxes can begin above $25,000 single or $32,000 jointly
Federal income tax can reach Social Security benefits at combined income above $25,000 for many single filers or $32,000 for married couples filing jointly. Those...
$15 million is the federal estate-tax threshold for 2026 deaths
Federal estate-tax exposure begins at a much higher level for deaths in 2026: the IRS lists a $15 million basic exclusion amount. The threshold means...
$19,000 is the 2026 gift-tax exclusion for each recipient
The federal annual gift-tax exclusion remains $19,000 for each recipient in 2026, giving a donor room to transfer cash or property without using lifetime exemption....
$1,699.36 monthly starts 2026 VA DIC payments for a surviving spouse
Dependency and Indemnity Compensation begins with a $1,699.36 monthly base for an eligible surviving spouse under the 2026 VA schedule. That figure is the starting...
$180.42 monthly starts VA disability payments at a 10% rating in 2026
A 10% service-connected disability rating produces the first compensable step on VA’s 2026 table: $180.42 a month. The amount is smaller than higher-rating payments, but...
$163,699 is Veterans Pension’s net-worth limit through November 30
Veterans Pension uses a bright eligibility line that can be easy to misread: $163,699 in net worth through November 30, 2026. The figure is not...
$5,780 monthly goes to Medal of Honor recipients in 2026
The Medal of Honor pension is a rare federal payment with a simple eligibility trigger and an unusually large monthly value. For the 2026 rate...
The Labor Department holds recovered back wages for three years before transferring them to Treasury
When the Labor Department recovers unpaid wages but cannot find the worker, the money does not remain available in the same system forever. The Wage...
Owners of 5,952 recalled SDADI step stools can request a full refund
Nearly 6,000 SDADI kitchen step stools are now attached to a full-refund remedy after a federal recall identified collapse, tip-over and entrapment hazards. The July...
Owners of 5,918 recalled teething toys can request a full refund
A full refund is available for about 5,918 Sili Factory pull-string teething toys recalled after federal regulators found that their silicone strings violate the mandatory...
Nara formula buyers can request refunds for all lots sold through June 2026
The Nara Organics infant-formula recall is unusually broad: every listed lot that reached the U.S. market from July 2025 through June 2026 is included, and...