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NEW YORK (AP) — Shares of Trump Media & Technology Group Corp. jumped Friday after former President Donald Trump said he won’t sell shares of the social media company.

“I don’t wanna sell my shares. I don’t need money,” Trump said while speaking to reporters at his golf club in Los Angeles.

Trump owns nearly 115 million shares of the company, according to a recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Based on Thursday’s closing price of $16.08, Trump’s shares are worth approximately $1.85 billion.

The former president can start selling shares of Trump Media, the parent company of Truth Social, starting on Sept. 19 when a lockup provision ends, if he chooses to do so. The lockup provision prevented company insiders from selling newly issued shares for six months after the company began trading publicly in March.

Even though Trump would receive a sizeable payout if he did sell, the stock of Trump Media is now worth considerably less than it was valued at several months ago. When the company made its debut on the Nasdaq in March, it hit a high of $79.38. read more

David McMillin | Bankrate.com (TNS)

If you’re gearing up to send a child to college, the cost can feel overwhelming. A home equity line of credit (HELOC) or home equity loan could help pay for it — but before leveraging your home ownership stake in this way, you’ll need to balance a number of considerations. Here’s our crash course on the pros and cons of using your home to pay college tuition or other educational bills.

Homeowners can tap their equity and use it for a variety of big expenses, including major home improvement projects, large medical bills, debt consolidation — and yes, higher education costs.

Home equity represents the portion of your home that you own outright — equivalent to the initial down payment, plus any mortgage payments made since then. Another way to look at it: Home equity is the difference between what your home is worth and what you still owe on your mortgage.

Your home equity isn’t just a theoretical amount, though. It can be turned into cash (as the ads say) — or, strictly speaking, as collateral for a cash loan. You can borrow against your home equity in two basic ways: home equity loans and HELOCs. read more

Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams watched the spacecraft that took them to the International Space Station leave them behind last week as the Boeing Starliner made its return trip to Earth without a crew.

“We’ve got lessons learned that we will go through. We will have discussions. We will be involved with those discussions, and things that need to change will change,” Wilmore said during a press conference Friday from the ISS. “Obviously, when you have an issues like we’ve had, there’s some changes that need to be made. Boeing is on board with that. We’re all on board with that.”

The NASA call to keep its two NASA astronauts safe because of concerns with Starliner’s suspect thrusters that had poor performance on the flight up to the station meant that Wilmore and Williams had to prep for a long stay on board the ISS that will continue into 2025.

They arrived to the station June 6 — one day after launching on Starliner from Cape Canaveral atop a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket for what was supposed to be an eight-day visit. That will now be pushed to more than eight months. read more

Q: My son is disabled, and I plan to name him as a beneficiary of my IRAs. Will he be required to use the 10-year rule immediately after my passing, or are their options to enable him to lengthen the time he can make withdrawals?

A: Under the SECURE Act, beneficiaries with certain disabilities are allowed to lengthen the withdrawal time. They are considered “eligible designated beneficiaries,” meaning they can use their life expectancy to calculate yearly required minimum distributions (RMDs) rather than the 10-year option. The SECURE Act permits IRA owners to pass on retirement assets to a special needs trust, and I recommend that you touch base with an attorney familiar with this type of trust.

Q: I plan on distributing up to $200,000 to some relatives in order to help them pay for their education. Will the beneficiaries have to pay taxes on the gifts? What are the tax implications for me? How do I handle the gifts in order to minimize any income taxes?

A: In 2024, you are allowed to gift up to $18,000 per year to an individual without any tax consequences. If you are making the gifts from your spouse as well, the two of you can gift a combined $36,000 per year to one individual whether they are a relative or not. If you make a gift over these limits to one individual, you should file IRS Form 709. read more

Fun Spot has announced its plans for the Halloween season and introduced a new name for the family-friendly event: Funoween.

Fun Spot’s Orlando and Kissimmee locations will begin the celebration on Sept. 30 with fall decor and atmospheric, eerie music and selfie spots with monster motifs.

On Saturdays through October, Funoween activities will include a trick-or-treat trail for ages 12 and younger (4-6 p.m.) and the Monster Ganza Dance Party (6-9 p.m.). Weekend themes will include Ghoulish Game Nights, Scavenger Hunt  Saturday, Costume Party Chaos and Pretty Pumpkin Decorating.

Fun Spot will also have trick-or-treating on Oct. 31 from 4-6 p.m.

Specialty foods for the Funoween season — dubbed the Fright Bites — include items such as sidewinder snake fries (with white queso and bacon), ghostly gator bites and monster gourmet dipped apples.  Beverages with distinctive cups include the pumpkin head punch, Long Skulland Iced Tea and the “Who You Gonna Call” Green Slime Icee in a refillable yard-long sipper. read more