Online shopping is about to get more expensive

Gird your (digital) wallets!

The Supreme Court has ruled that states can charge online retailers sales tax, even if they don't have a physical presence in the state. That means that some of the biggest online retailers — including Wayfair, Overstock.com, and Newegg, who were named in the suit against the state of South Dakota — may soon have to pass on that additional cost to consumers.

"Each year, the physical presence rule becomes further removed from economic reality and results in significant revenue losses to the States," Justice Kennedy wrote in his Court Opinion.

How does this affect the gargantuan elephant in the room, Amazon? Amazon actually already charges sales taxes on the goods that it sells directly. But the third party sellers on Amazon do not. So you might have to start paying sales tax alongside those non-Prime shipping charges. Ouch. Read more...