Why are my brakes squealing?

Because brakes are now made of hard, semi-metallic materials, hearing a squeal in brakes has become pretty common and doesn’t necessarily mean you need new brakes. It could just be that the brake pad is grinding on the steel rotar. On the other hand, the squealing could be an indicator that your brake pads are worn out, and it is the metal behind the pad that is scraping the rotor. The best thing to do is to have your brakes inspected, just to be sure.