Markus Andrews

President Donald Trump is expected to sign an executive order Thursday aimed at dismantling the U.S. Department of Education.
Karoline Leavitt, the White House press secretary, told reporters on Thursday that she expected some key functions of the Education Department, including federal student loans, to remain at the minimized agency.
However, earlier this month Trump said student debt should be managed by another agency.

President Donald Trump signs executive orders in the Oval Office of the White House on January 20, 2025 in Washington, DC. Trump takes office for his second term as the 47th president of the United States. 
Anna Moneymaker | Getty Images News | Getty Images

President Donald Trump is expected to sign an executive order on Thursday aimed at dismantling the U.S. Department of Education, throwing into question the fate of the agency’s $1.6 trillion federal student loan portfolio.
Only Congress can eliminate the Education Department. But the Trump administration can starve the agency of resources. Earlier this month, the department laid off nearly half of its staffers. The actions leave the department with 2,183 employees, down from 4,133 when Trump took office in January.

What does this all mean for the more than 40 million Americans who hold federal student loans?
“[T]his would create chaos,” said Michele Shepard Zampini, senior director of college affordability at The Institute For College Access & Success, in an interview with CNBC earlier this year.
Karoline Leavitt, the White House press secretary, told reporters on Thursday that she expected some key functions of the Education Department, including federal student loans, to remain at the minimized agency.
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However, Trump told reporters earlier this month that the loan accounts should be overseen by another department.

“I don’t think the Education [Department] should be handling the loans,” Trump said. “That’s not their business.”
Here’s what could be next for borrowers.

Other agenices floated by Trump for student loans

Trump said this month that his administration was looking to task the Treasury Department, Commerce Department or the Small Business Administration with federal student loan management.
Experts say the most logical agency would be the Treasury Department, since it already plays a role in collecting past-due debts from Americans through the Treasury Offset Program.
Meanwhile, “Neither Commerce nor SBA has any relevant experience,” higher education expert Mark Kantrowitz told CNBC this month.

Student loan forgiveness could be at risk

These changes at the Education Department could not come at a worse time for federal student loan borrowers, consumer advocates say.
Court rulings have nixed Biden administration attempts at widespread forgiveness and repayment plans with lower payments, leaving many borrowers confused and saddled with higher costs.

Without the Education Department operating at full capacity, borrowers may now find their applications for existing loan forgiveness programs stalled, Kantrowitz said. Federal student loan borrowers can be eligible for debt cancellation under income-driven repayment plans or if they become disabled, among other reasons.
Student loan servicers handle the paperwork for the relief, but it’s the Education Department that “has final approval of all student loan forgiveness,” Kantrowitz said.
One important thing to keep in mind: The terms and conditions of your federal student loans cannot change even if the agency overseeing them does, experts say. Borrowers’ rights were guaranteed when they signed the master promissory note when their loans were originated.
The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
What worries do you have about your federal student loans with the Education Dept. at risk? If you’re willing to share your experience for an upcoming story, please email annie.nova@nbcuni.com.

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Appetite for ether ETFs has been tepid since their launch last July, but that could change if some of the regulatory wrinkles holding them back get “resolved,” according to Robert Mitchnick, head of digital assets at BlackRock.
There’s a widely held view that the success of ether ETFs has been “meh” compared to the explosive growth in funds tracking bitcoin, Mitchnick said at the Digital Asset Summit in New York City Thursday. Though he sees that as a “misconception,” he acknowledged that the inability to earn a staking yield on the funds is likely one thing holding them back.

“There’s obviously a next phase in the potential evolution of [ether ETFs],” he said. “An ETF, it’s turned out, has been a really, really compelling vehicle through which to hold bitcoin for lots of different investor types. There’s no question it’s less perfect for ETH today without staking. A staking yield is a meaningful part of how you can generate investment return in this space, and all the [ether] ETFs at launch did not have staking.”
Staking is a way for investors to earn passive yield on their cryptocurrency holdings by locking tokens up on the network for a period of time. It allows investors to put their crypto to work if they’re not planning to sell it anytime soon.
But Mitchnick doesn’t expect a simple fix.
“It’s not a particularly easy problem,” he explained. “It’s not as simple as … a new administration just green-lighting something and then boom, we’re all good, off to the races. There are a lot of fairly complex challenges that have to be figured out, but if that can get figured out, then it’s going to be sort of a step change upward in terms of what we see the activity around those products is.”
The Securities and Exchange Commission has historically viewed some staking services as potential unregistered securities offerings under the Howey Test – which is used to determine whether an asset is an investment contract and therefore, a security. But a more crypto friendly SEC is moving swiftly to reverse the damage done to the industry under the previous regime. Its newly formed crypto task force is scheduled to kick off a roundtable series Friday focused on defining the security status of digital assets.

Ether has been one of the most beaten up cryptocurrencies in recent months. It’s down more than 40% year to date as it has struggled with conflicting and difficult-to-comprehend narratives, weaker revenue since its last big technical upgrade and increasing competition from Solana. Standard Chartered this week slashed its price target on the coin by more than half.
Mitchnick said the negativity is “overdone.”
“ETH … at the second grade level is easier to define … but at the 10th grade level is a lot harder,” he said. “Second grade level: it’s a technology innovation story. … Beyond that, it does get a little more vast, a little more complicated. It’s about being a bet on blockchain adoption and innovation. That’s part of the thesis as we communicate it to clients.”
“There are three [use cases] that we focus on that have a lot of resonance with our client base: it’s a bet to some extent on tokenization, on stablecoin adoption, and on decentralized financing,” he added. “It does take a fair bit of education, and we’ve been on that journey, but it’s going to take more time.”
BlackRock is the issuer of the iShares Ethereum Trust ETF. It also has a tokenized money market fund, known as BUIDL, which it initially launched a year ago on Ethereum and has since expanded to several other networks including Aptos and Polygon.

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“Sequence of returns risk” refers to how the timing of withdrawals paired with stock market losses can impact how long your nest egg lasts.
This issue is biggest during early retirement years because there will be less money for future growth when the market rebounds.
You can reduce this risk with portfolio diversification or the “bucket strategy,” experts say.

Doug Wilson | Corbis Documentary | Getty Images

Stock market dips can create a big portfolio risk during your earlier retirement years — and many investors don’t prepare, financial experts say. 
The issue, known as “sequence of returns risk,” refers to how the timing of withdrawals paired with stock market losses can affect how long your retirement savings last.

Your first five years of retirement are the “danger zone” for tapping accounts during a downturn, according to Amy Arnott, a portfolio strategist with Morningstar Research Services.
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If you take assets from accounts when the value is falling, “there’s less money left in the portfolio to benefit from an eventual rebound in the market,” she said.  
Moreover, sequence risk can increase your chances of outliving retirement savings, Arnott said.
Let’s say your portfolio dropped by at least 15% during your first year of retirement and you also withdrew 3.3% of the balance.

That combination would increase your odds of depleting the portfolio within 30 years by six times compared with someone who has a first-year positive return, according to a 2022 Morningstar report. The Morningstar research assumed future yearly withdrawals were fixed at the same share of the portfolio.

Negative returns are more harmful early in retirement than later, according to a 2024 report from Fidelity Investments. That’s because retirees miss more years of potential compound growth.   
“It’s very difficult to overcome those losses in early years,” said David Peterson, head of advanced wealth solutions at Fidelity.
By comparison, early years of positive returns in retirement have “the advantage of the markets working in your favor,” he said.

Keep a ‘balanced asset allocation’ 

As you approach retirement, a “balanced asset allocation” is one of the best things investors can do to reduce sequence risk during early retirement years, Arnott said. 
For example, there’s a lower sequence risk if your portfolio is 60% stocks and 40% bonds compared with heavier stock allocations, she said. 
With the “proper asset allocation,” negative returns might not be as extreme for your portfolio as the stock market losses, Peterson said. Of course, the right mix ultimately depends on your risk tolerance and goals. 

Adopt the ‘bucket approach’

You can also shield your portfolio from stock market losses with a retirement strategy known as the “bucket approach,” Arnott said. 
Typically, you’ll keep one to two years of living expenses in cash, which would be accessible during market dips, she said.  
The next five years of spending could be in short- to intermediate-term bonds or bond funds. Beyond that, the third bucket focuses on growth with stocks, Arnott said.
“It does take some maintenance from year to year,” but it could provide “peace of mind” while reducing sequence of returns risk, she said. More

As the Social Security Administration seeks to curb identity fraud, more people will now be required to visit an office to claim benefits or change their direct deposit information.
In the next two weeks, the agency will transition to stronger identify proofing procedures.
The change may prompt “more headaches and longer wait times,” the AARP said.

The Social Security Office in Alhambra, California.
Mario Anzuoni | Reuters

As the Social Security Administration seeks to curb identity fraud, more people will now be required to visit an office to prove their identity for new benefit claims and direct deposit changes.
In the next two weeks, the agency will transition to stronger identify proofing procedures, the Social Security Administration announced on Tuesday.

Individuals who cannot use an online My Social Security account for identity proofing will need to visit their local Social Security office, according to the agency.
As a result of the new proofing measures, the Social Security Administration also plans to accelerate the processing of both online and in-person direct deposit change requests to one business day, down from the 30 days those changes were typically held.
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The changes are aimed at helping to avoid the fraudulent redirection of benefit checks, which the agency has been warning about for years. Social Security Administration acting commissioner Lee Dudek said he witnessed the effects of the fraud firsthand while working in one of the agency’s field offices.
“It’s always heartbreaking,” Dudek said on a Tuesday press call, recalling the tears, anger and disbelief he saw from victims.

“The beneficiary always needs the money they depend on,” Dudek said. “Many times it’s their only source of income, and guys steal their information and redirect their check somewhere else.”
Ultimately, “it was up to SSA to make it right,” said Dudek, who estimates the agency is now losing more than $100 million per year due to direct deposit fraud.
Between January 2013 and May 2018, fraudsters redirected $33.5 million in benefits for 20,878 beneficiaries by making unauthorized direct deposit changes, audits from the Social Security Administration Office of the Inspector General found. Over that same period, the Social Security Administration was able to correct unauthorized direct deposit changes before checks were issued for an additional $23.9 million in payments to 19,662 beneficiaries.

How new identity proofing procedures will work

The agency plans to move away from knowledge-based authentication, which uses personal questions like asking for your mother’s maiden name or a previous address to verify identities. A spate of private company data breaches have made it so much of the same information the Social Security Administration asks for is available in the public domain, Dudek said.
The Social Security Administration plans to enforce the new online digital identity proofing and in-person identity proofing starting on March 31, following a two-week training period for management and frontline employees.
Individuals who want to start benefits claims may do so by phone if they cannot go online. However, they will have to verify their identify in person to complete their request.

“The agency therefore recommends calling to request an in-person appointment to begin and complete the claim in one interaction,” the agency stated in its March 18 announcement. “Individuals with and without an appointment will need to prove identity before starting a transaction.”
Individuals who want to change their direct deposit information and who cannot go online, can either visit a local office or call to schedule an in-person appointment.
The change may require foot traffic to Social Security offices nationwide to increase by about 75,000 to 85,000 more in-person visitors per week, according to reports on an internal Social Security Administration memo.

‘More headaches and longer wait times’ possible

The change comes as the Department of Government Efficiency, an unofficial government entity within the Trump administration, has disclosed it plans to close about 47 Social Security offices across the country out of approximately 1,230 locations.
Meanwhile, Social Security’s 800 number has struggled with long wait times.
The AARP, an interest group that represents Americans ages 50 and over, urged the Social Security Administration to reverse the decision. The changes will prompt “more headaches and longer wait times to resolve routine customer service needs,” Chief Advocacy and Engagement Officer Nancy LeaMond said in a March 19 statement.

The change not only “comes as a total surprise but is on an impractical fast-track,” LeaMond said.
“SSA needs to be transparent about its service changes and seek input from the older Americans who will be affected, because any delay in Social Security caused by this change can mean real economic hardship,” LeaMond said.
Advocacy groups also expressed concern that certain beneficiaries — particularly older, disabled or rural residents — may have difficulty accessing the necessary in-person services.
On Tuesday, Social Security acting commissioner Dudek said he is open to meeting with advocates and helping to figure out better ways to help their constituents.
“If it is to the detriment of our citizens that we serve, then we’re going to take necessary actions to improve those services,” Dudek said.  More

The Federal Reserve held interest rates steady at the end of its two-day meeting on March 19.
Although the central bank is on the sidelines, for now, some consumer loan rates are starting to ease, giving households a little breathing room. 
From credit cards and mortgage rates to auto loans and savings accounts, here’s a look at where those rates stand.

The Federal Reserve Building in Washington, D.C.
Joshua Roberts | Reuters

The Federal Reserve announced Wednesday it will leave interest rates unchanged as President Donald Trump’s tariff policies weigh on economic growth.
Although inflation receded last month, an escalating trade war threatens to hike prices on consumer goods going forward.

“Tariffs on aluminum, steel and oil are essential elements to production across a wide range of products,” said Brett House, an economics professor at Columbia Business School. “Those price increases are going to ripple more widely across the American economy.”
National Economic Council director Kevin Hassett recently warned of “some uncertainty” in the weeks ahead because of the United States’ tariff agenda.
The inflation risk from tariffs ensured the central bank would take a more cautious approach, according to House. “Greater uncertainty in the world means the Fed is more predictably in a wait-and-see mode,” he said.
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The federal funds rate sets what banks charge each other for overnight lending, but also influences many of the borrowing and savings rates Americans see every day.

When the Fed hiked rates in 2022 and 2023, most consumer borrowing costs quickly followed suit. Even though the central bank began to lower its benchmark rate at the end of last year, consumer rates are still elevated, with credit card annual percentage rates down only slightly from an all-time high. 

“The pressure on household budgets is unrelenting,” said Greg McBride, chief financial analyst at Bankrate.com.
As the federal funds rate comes down, consumers may see their borrowing costs decrease as well, making it cheaper to borrow money to purchase a house or a car. 
But even with the Fed on the sidelines for now, consumers struggling under the weight of high prices and high borrowing costs could see some relief, experts say. Already, rates for mortgages, auto loans and credit cards are edging lower.

Credit cards

Most credit cards have a variable rate, so there’s a direct connection to the Fed’s benchmark.
Even though the central bank held rates steady at the last few meetings, average annual percentage rates have eased. The average credit card rate is down to 20.09%, from 20.27% at the start of the year, according to Bankrate. That is on the heels of the rate cuts that already went into effect. 
“Credit card rates have fallen from their 2024 record highs,” said Matt Schulz, chief credit analyst at LendingTree. “March was the sixth straight monthly decline, but the decreases have slowed as Fed rate cuts get further back in the rearview mirror.”

Mortgages

Because 15- and 30-year mortgage rates are fixed, and largely tied to Treasury yields and the economy, those rates have also been trending lower.
Uncertainty over tariffs and worries about a possible recession have dragged down consumers’ outlook. “Mortgage rates are falling because of concerns about economic weakness,” McBride said.
However, “that’s not the type of environment that’s going to provide a sustainable boost to the housing market,” he added.
The average rate for a 30-year, fixed-rate mortgage is now 6.78% as of March 19, while the 15-year, fixed-rate is 6.24%, according to Mortgage News Daily. 

Auto loans

Although auto loan rates are fixed, payments are getting bigger because car prices are rising, in addition to pressure from Trump’s trade policy.
“Sticker prices are still really high and tariffs will only drive those prices higher,” McBride said.
Auto loan rates have also backed down from recent highs but are still up year to date. The average rate on a five-year new car loan is now 7.2% as of the week ended March 14, while the average auto loan rate for used cars is 11.3%, according to Edmunds. At the end of 2024, those rates were 6.6% and 10.8%, respectively.

Student loans

Federal student loan rates are fixed, as well, so most borrowers are somewhat shielded from Fed moves and recent economic turmoil.
Undergraduate students who took out direct federal student loans for the 2024-25 academic year are paying 6.53%, up from 5.50% in 2023-24. Interest rates for the upcoming school year will be based in part on the May auction of the 10-year Treasury note.
Private student loans tend to have a variable rate tied to the prime, Treasury bill or another rate index.

Savings

On the upside, “savings rates really haven’t changed all that much, that’s the good news,” McBride said. “Savings rates are still at attractive levels and the top yields are still well in excess of inflation.”
While the central bank has no direct influence on deposit rates, the yields tend to be correlated to changes in the target federal funds rate.
Top-yielding online savings accounts currently pay 4.4%, on average, according to Bankrate. Although that’s down from roughly 5% last year, it is well above the annual inflation rate of 2.8%.
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On average, home sellers who list their properties in the week of April 13 to April 19 could sell for roughly $27,000 more, according to a recent report by Realtor.com.
“This is the right time of year to list to get ahead,” said Joel Berner, senior economist at Realtor.com.

The Good Brigade | Digitalvision | Getty Images

The ideal time to sell your home may be fast approaching.
On average, home sellers who list their properties in the week of April 13 to April 19 this year could sell for roughly $27,000 more than other times of the year, according to a recent report by Realtor.com. The site assessed seasonal trends and housing metrics — but did not factor in mortgage rates because they do not follow seasonal patterns.

“This is the right time of year to list and to get ahead,” said Joel Berner, senior economist at Realtor.com.
Of course, the ideal time to sell can differ every year.
A separate report by Zillow found that homes listed in the last two weeks of May 2024 sold for 1.6% more than other times of the year, a $5,600 boost on a typical U.S. home. But, the report notes, “it’s not certain that this year’s spring home shopping season will follow last year’s pattern.”
Sellers generally get better returns if they list between March 15 and July 31, but many factors can affect the timing of the premium, according to Zillow.
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What’s more, the peak time to sell a house might depend on market conditions in your area. According to Zillow data, a San Diego home listed as early as the second half of March could sell for roughly 2% more than other times of the year, or $20,100. Meanwhile, the site found it’s better to list homes in Phoenix in the second half of November when there’s a price premium of 1.4%, or $6,400. 
If you plan to sell your home in 2025, here’s what you should consider, according to experts.

What to know about this year’s spring housing market

The spring is typically when the housing market sees the most activity from buyers and sellers, experts say, as homebuyers are often looking to close a purchase before summer kicks off and well in advance of the new school year.
Sellers often want to capture the “sweet spot” of listing their home when more buyers are looking and when their property looks the most attractive, according to Amanda Pendleton, a home trends expert at Zillow.
In spring, “the flowers are starting to bloom, the grass is green,” she said. “Your home looks great.”
The same principles apply to whether you’re listing an apartment, condominium or co-op, Pendleton said. You’re still trying to showcase your property when it looks and feels the best. During the spring, the city is vibrant, which can be a “big selling point.”
“Nobody wants to look out at a bleak city full of snow,” Pendleton said. “You’re trying to still capture the nicest view possible.”

The ‘typical’ spring housing market

There hasn’t been a “typical” spring housing market in years, experts say. The pandemic put the country on lockdown in March 2020, freezing that year’s spring housing market.
Then, the market was hot with buying and selling activity for much of 2021 as low mortgage rates attracted buyers. In 2022, the spring housing market was impacted as the Fed began to hike borrowing costs in March.
Even though most buyers held back due to high prices and mortgage rates, there was a slight return-to-normal in 2023’s spring market. But then last year, the spring housing market essentially took place in the fall. At that point, the Fed had slashed interest rates for the first time in years.

It remains to be seen how the 2025 spring housing market will pan out as mortgage rates remain volatile.
“If mortgage rates cooperate,” said Pendleton, the housing market should continue to normalize from an intense seller’s market in the past years.
The 30-year fixed rate mortgage was 6.65% for the week ending March 13, flat from 6.63% the week before, according to Freddie Mac data via the Federal Reserve.

Is it possible to perfectly time your listing?

The mortgage rate lock-in effect deterred homeowners who secured low interest rates from listing their properties, because they were reluctant to finance a new property at the market’s higher rates.
But even though rates remain above 6%, more sellers are listing their homes as life events like growing households or a need to relocate come into the picture, Berner said: “Families grow, jobs change and people have to move.”

For home sellers running against the clock, whether that’s a new baby or a new job, there might be less room to perfectly time a listing, experts say.
But those with more time will be in a stronger position to come up with a plan, especially as buyers gain more power and sellers may need to be more strategic with their timing. Even if you don’t have much flexibility with when you list, “getting the price right” will help you sell your home faster, Berner recently told CNBC.
Work with experts like real estate agents or brokers in your area to come up with a strategy. Local real estate agents will have a better knowledge of the intricacies related to your area, Berner said. More

The American Federation of Teachers is suing the U.S. Department of Education for shutting down access to affordable repayment plans for millions of student loan borrowers.

The headquarters of the Department of Education on March 12, 2025 in Washington, DC.
Win McNamee | Getty Images

The American Federation of Teachers is suing the U.S. Department of Education for shutting down access to affordable repayment plans for millions of student loan borrowers.
The AFT, one of the country’s biggest labor unions, filed the lawsuit on Tuesday over the Trump administration’s decision to take down the applications for income-driven repayment plans.

“By effectively freezing the nation’s student loan system, the new administration seems intent on making life harder for working people, including for millions of borrowers who have taken on student debt so they can go to college,” said AFT President Randi Weingarten in a statement.
Congress created the first income-driven repayment plans in the 1990s to make federal student loan borrowers’ bills more affordable. The plans limit people’s monthly payments to a share of their discretionary income and cancel any remaining debt after a certain period, typically 20 years or 25 years.
More than 12 million people were enrolled in IDR plans as of September 2024, according to higher education expert Mark Kantrowitz.
The Education Dept. did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
This is breaking news. Please refresh for updates. More

A judge ordered the Trump administration to reinstate some of the education grants it had nixed as part of its work to end diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives.
The end of the grants could have a “grave effect on the public,” U.S. District Judge Julie Rubin in Maryland wrote, including “fewer teachers for students in high need neighborhoods.”

Kindamorphic | E+ | Getty Images

A judge ordered the Trump administration to temporarily reinstate some of the education grants it had nixed as part of its work to end diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives.
U.S. District Judge Julie Rubin in Maryland said that the U.S. Department of Education’s termination of the grant awards is “likely to be proven arbitrary and capricious, because the Department’s action was unreasonable, not reasonably explained, based on factors Congress had not intended the Department to consider,” and were “otherwise not in accordance with law.”

The end of the grants could have a “grave effect on the public,” Rubin wrote, including “fewer teachers for students in high need neighborhoods.”
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The American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education, the National Center for Teacher Residencies and the Maryland Association of Colleges for Teacher Education filed a lawsuit earlier this month against the U.S. Department of Education and President Donald Trump for the administration’s termination of more than 100 educator preparation grants.
An analysis by the National Center for Education Statistics found that 80% of public school teachers in the 2020-2021 school year were white, 9% were Hispanic and 6% were Black.
The plaintiffs claimed that the grants were funded under Congressionally appropriated programs.

National Center for Teacher Residencies CEO Kathlene Campbell applauded the restoration of the grants.
“At a time when we as a nation are enduring local teacher shortages, especially in critical areas of need, we must not fall short in supporting the preparation of teachers,” Campbell said in a statement. “That’s why this ruling is paramount in supporting current and future teachers of the education field.”
A federal judge in Boston also recently ordered the Trump administration to temporarily restore grants for teacher preparation in eight states.
The U.S. Department of Education did not immediately respond to a request from CNBC for comment. More