Happy Friday, MarketWatchers. Here are some of the day’s top stories to keep you entertained as we head into the long weekend.
Personal Finance H&R Block agents took ‘empathy training’ to handle people upset by smaller tax refunds or surprise tax bills
Accountants are investing in customer service as the average tax refund has dropped 8% and 4.6 million people are expected to owe money this year.
Kicking yourself for missing the recent rally? Here are 5 reasons you shouldn’t
It’s not as big a deal as some Wall Street analysts might lead you to believe.
They’re now making salt-flavored vodka
A prominent U.S. distiller offers a different take on the classic spirit.
America’s 1% hasn’t had this much wealth since just before the Great Depression
A new study puts wealth inequality in a historical and, perhaps, worrying perspective.
From strip-club lunches to gambling losses — here are workers’ most outrageous expenses
A new study analyzing over 3 million expense reports reveals some surprisingly egregious expenses.
Why President Trump should be concerned about America’s obesity epidemic
Donald Trump weighs 243 pounds and is 6 feet, 3 inches tall, according to his latest medical exam.
More than 44% of Americans pay no federal income tax
The Tax Policy Center estimates how many people paid no federal individual income taxes in 2018.
Before I give my fiancée a $7,000 diamond engagement ring, I want her to promise to bequeath it to my daughter
This man wonders whether it’s a good time to raise the delicate subject of death and diamonds with the woman who is set to become his third wife.
All the ways Gen X is financially wrecked
Though they’re struggling financially, they’re far less likely than millennials to plan to spend less and save more this year.
West Coast real estate is now so expensive that married couples are moving in with multiple roommates
The number of married couples living with roommates has doubled since 1995, new report finds
Elsewhere on MarketWatch Commerce Department report backing 25% tariffs on auto imports could hit Sunday
The auto industry and its investors are bracing for a long-awaited Commerce Department report offering recommendations on new tariffs targeting imported vehicles and auto parts.
Banks offered homeowners refinances after the crisis, but Americans had stopped trusting banks
A study from a group of Columbia Business School professors found that more than half of homeowners passed up the opportunity to do a HARP refinance primarily because they mistrusted their bank.
Democrats want to tax the rich to fight inequality, but will it work?
Bernie Sanders, Elizabeth Warren and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez are leading the fight to tax the wealthy.
Here’s how Trump wants to pay for the border wall after invoking a national emergency
President Donald Trump is planning to tap into several sources to build his signature border wall, invoking a national emergency that even he predicts will be subject to court battles.
Americans value a free gas fill-up over a cash giveaway — that doesn’t erase risk for commodity investors
Volatile prices make gasoline a particularly risky investment, but the fuel’s importance to drivers hasn’t wavered.
Get a daily roundup of the top reads in personal finance delivered to your inbox. Subscribe to MarketWatch's free Personal Finance Daily newsletter. Sign up here.
