Welcome to our weekly money guide, where we have all the news that could affect your wallet.
Here is the latest on the job market and how changes to the tax code are playing out.
WHERE THE JOBS ARE
The job market may be the only thing hotter than the stock market. We learned last week that the U.S. economy added 2.06 million jobs in 2017.
That's a little bit less than last year, when it created 2.24 million jobs, but still strong. Unemployment remained at 4.1%, matching the lowest level in 17 years.
Manufacturing, construction, bars and restaurants, and health care industries all saw strong gains.
But retail stores lost 66,500 jobs last year. There were a record number of store closings and a surge in bankruptcies in 2017. Macy's, JCPenney and Victoria's Secret parent company L Brands have warned of a weaker year ahead.
Despite the solid job numbers, wage growth is still lagging behind.
WHERE THE EQUAL PAY IS
A new law in Iceland has made it illegal to pay women less than men. Employers will have to prove that they pay men and women equally or risk being fined.
Meanwhile American women, on average, still earn around 80 cents for every dollar a man makes. The gap is even wider for African American and Hispanic women. And sexual harassment can contribute to the the pay gap, reports CNNMoney's Julia Carpenter.
WHERE THERE ARE HIGH TAXES, OFFICIALS LOOK FOR LOOPHOLES
Lawmakers in high-tax states, like New York and California, may try to find a way around the new limit on state and local tax (SALT) deductions. The $10,000 cap was one of the most controversial changes in the federal tax overhaul just signed into law.
New York Governor Andrew Cuomo has said he is looking for ways to redesign the state's tax code to counter the new cap on SALT. And a top lawmaker in California introduced a bill that would allow residents to make charitable contributions to the state in exchange for a tax credit.
The thinking is if filers can't deduct the state and local taxes they pay in excess of $10,000 on their federal returns, some states may try to let them get the full deduction anyway -- just by different means. Here's what those changes could look like.
