Andrea Coombes, an editor at Bankrate, translates complex personal finance topics into understandable language that helps people live their best financial lives. She’s a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ and over the past 25 years has worked as a financial coach, personal finance writer and editor, and volunteer tax preparer.
Her work has been published in The Wall Street Journal, USA Today, MarketWatch and many newspapers nationwide. She's been interviewed on local and national TV and radio, including NPR's All Things Considered, CBS News, NASDAQ and Marketplace.
Andrea has moderated panels on how to invest for retirement, how to use 529 college savings plans and more, and she's an experienced personal-finance speaker who has presented to groups on a variety of topics such as how to budget, improve credit, manage debt, and build savings. She's also worked as a personal financial coach and certified consumer credit counselor, helping people reach their goals. For two tax seasons, she worked as a volunteer tax preparer.
A lot of people are nervous about managing their money. I'm here to say: It's not rocket science. There are small steps each of us can take to slowly start moving towards our long-term financial goals. We can do this, people.
— Andrea Coombes, CFP®
Knowing the difference between gross and net income can help you better manage your financial situation.
A TIN is a nine-digit number used to identify taxpayers. If you need to file taxes, you’ll need a TIN.
FICA tax, also known as payroll tax, is what almost all workers have to pay for Social Security and Medicare.
The W-4 form determines how much in taxes is withheld from your paychecks, which in turn helps you manage your tax refund, or tax bill.
Paying attention to short-term capital gains tax rates can help you save money in the long run.
There are a lot of reasons to love Roth IRAs, but the tax rules governing them are complex. Here’s what you should know.
The consequences of not filing your tax return vary depending on whether you owe a tax bill or are expecting a tax refund.
Net income is gross income with some items subtracted. This financial term has relevance for businesses and individuals.
