529 accounts are tax-advantaged savings plans designed primarily for education expenses, and recent legislation has significantly broadened their uses. As of July 2025 and the passage of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA), 529 funds can now be used for a much wider range of educational pursuits and related expenses.

The changes reflect a seismic shift in education as more Gen Zers shun the traditional four-year degree—and resulting student loan debt. Instead, many are picking up trade skills or reaping the benefits of the Creator Economy.

Key features and recent legislative changes (2025):

• Expanded K–12 qualified expenses: 529 accounts were previously limited to K–12 tuition (up to $10,000 per year), but they can now be used for additional expenses such as books, online educational materials, testing fees (e.g., SAT/ACT), dual enrollment fees, tutoring by qualified professionals, and educational therapies for students with disabilities. The annual limit for all K–12 expenses will rise to $20,000 starting January 1, 2026.
• Broader postsecondary and career use: In addition to traditional college and university costs, 529 funds may now pay for adult learners’ and career changers’ credential programs, including professional licenses, certificates (including registered apprenticeships), and continuing education courses in fields such as automotive repair or food safety. Recognized credentials include those covered by federal programs and military career advancement resources.
• 529-to-Roth IRA rollover: Under the SECURE 2.0 Act (effective since 2024), up to $35,000 in unused 529 funds can be rolled over into the beneficiary’s Roth IRA, subject to annual Roth contribution limits and other conditions (such as the 529 account being open for at least 15 years). This allows families to avoid penalties on unused funds if a beneficiary doesn’t need all 529 savings for education.
• Additional changes and flexibility: 529 funds can also be applied to student loan repayments (up to certain limits), pay for K–12 and higher education expenses across public, private, or religious institutions, and support a broader set of personal education and development goals.

Implications:

• 529 accounts now serve not just as college savings plans, but as comprehensive education savings vehicles adaptable to a variety of academic and professional needs. This flexibility recognizes modern realities, such as students pursuing alternative postsecondary training paths and adults shifting careers.
• These updates provide greater clarity and planning assurance for families, especially those saving for children who may take nontraditional education or career routes.

Caveats:

• Rules regarding eligible expenses, contribution and rollover limits, and state-level nuances may still apply, so consulting a tax professional or financial advisor is highly recommended for those planning to leverage these new benefits.
• The expansion’s implementation details (such as some effective dates and regulatory guidance) are still emerging as of July 2025.

In summary, 529 accounts have evolved into versatile, tax-advantaged savings vehicles for many forms of education and career development, with recent Congressional changes making them more broadly applicable and beneficial for American families and individuals.

For this story, Fortune used generative AI to help with an initial draft. An editor verified the accuracy of the information before publishing. 

This story was originally featured on Fortune.com

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Intel CEO Lip-Bu Tan sent a memo to employees Thursday informing them of significant ongoing layoffs and other cost-cutting measures. The company has struggled to maintain a competitive edge amid ongoing financial losses and strategic setbacks in the AI and semiconductor markets.

“There are no more blank checks,” Tan wrote in a memo to employees, published by Reuters. “Every investment must make economic sense. We will build what our customers need, when they need it, and earn their trust through consistent execution.”

The memo directly addresses …

• A reduction of about 15% (over 25,000 jobs) via layoffs and attrition
• Operational streamlining to “drive greater efficiency and increase accountability at every level”
• Cancellation of new factory projects in Germany and Poland, and a slowdown in Ohio facility construction, adjusting spending to actual market demand
• Relocation of manufacturing operations from Costa Rica to Asia, while maintaining select engineering functions in Costa Rica

“We are making hard but necessary decisions to streamline the organization, drive greater efficiency, and increase accountability at every level of the company,” wrote the CEO, who took over in March.

Intel’s stock jumped early in 2025 as optimism built around new leadership, but shares fell over 9% after Thursday’s Q2 earnings and layoff announcement, threatening to erase most yearly gains.

Intel has lost ground to Nvidia in the AI sector and to AMD in the traditional computing market. Unlike other Silicon Valley giants, it doesn’t have booming AI or cloud businesses to offset its losses.

Microsoft, IBM, and Google have also shed thousands of workers this year. CEOs, including Meta’s Mark Zuckerberg and Microsoft’s Satya Nadella, have said they are cutting staff to streamline operations and free up capital to invest billions in AI.

For this story, Fortune used generative AI to help with an initial draft. An editor verified the accuracy of the information before publishing. 

This story was originally featured on Fortune.com

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• The American new home market is cooling, with softer sales, higher inventory, and falling prices reflecting the current slowdown.

The latest New Residential Sales report (June 2025) from the U.S. Census Bureau shows that the U.S. housing market is experiencing a slowdown in new single-family home sales, while inventory and supply have increased, and prices are declining.

As buyers balk at high home prices and mortgage rates that continue to approach 7%, a recent Oxford Economics report predicts more pain ahead. Concerns about the economy and job security mean many would-be new purchasers are opting to make do with modest home improvements instead.

Increased new home sales often indicate strong consumer confidence, greater employment, and accessible financing. Conversely, declines suggest waning buyer interest, affordability issues, or economic stress.

“There’s no question that in many of pockets of the Sun Belt—the epicenter of U.S. single-family homebuilding—buyers have gained a considerable amount of leverage this year and the market has softened,” ResiClub editor-in-chief Lance Lambert told Fortune Intelligence.

“In order to keep sales volumes steady, big homebuilders have compressed margins further and done bigger incentives or outright price cuts. Lennar is spending the equivalent of 13.3% of final sales price on incentive, like mortgage rate buydowns,” Lambert noted, up from 1.5% at the height of the Pandemic Housing Boom in the second quarter of 2022. In normal times, Lambert pointed out, Lennar spends 5% to 6% on buyer sales incentives. (Lennar is ranked no. 129 on the Fortune 500.)

Key points from the report:

• New home sales: Sales were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 627,000 in June 2025. This is only 0.6% higher than May 2025, but 6.6% lower than June 2024, indicating a notable year-over-year decline in buying activity.
• Inventory: At the end of June, there were 511,000 new houses for sale, a 1.2% increase from May 2025 and an 8.5% increase from June 2024. This rise in inventory suggests that homes are staying on the market longer.
• Months’ supply: The supply of homes relative to the sales rate is now at 9.8 months, up from 9.7 months in May 2025 and 8.4 months in June 2024. A higher months’ supply figure generally indicates a slower market with more supply than demand.
• Prices: The median sales price for new homes in June 2025 was $401,800, which is 4.9% lower than May 2025 and 2.9% lower than June 2024. The average sales price was $501,000, down from the previous month but slightly higher than a year ago. This points to downward pressure on prices, likely due to rising inventory and decreased demand.

What it means:

• The combination of dropping sales, rising inventory, and declining prices indicates a market with weaker demand and increased supply.
• These conditions are often seen when buyers are constrained (e.g., by high mortgage rates or economic uncertainty), or homebuilders have ramped up production in anticipation of higher demand that didn’t fully materialize.
• The elevated months’ supply metric—at almost 10 months—suggests a buyer’s market, where purchasers have more negotiating power and sellers may need to lower prices to attract buyers.

A new home is defined by the U.S. Census Bureau as a single-family house that is being sold for the first time. Since new home sales are recorded early in the sales process, trends in new home sales can signal coming shifts in the broader housing market, forecasting changes before they appear in existing home sales data.

For this story, Fortune used generative AI to help with an initial draft. An editor verified the accuracy of the information before publishing. 

This story was originally featured on Fortune.com

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