EducationLoans

Can You Trust U.S. News & World Report’s College Rankings?

How do students get the best value out of their college education? And how effectively do college ranking sites deliver on that need? As the rising cost of college far outpaces wages for American workers, this question of value is more important than it has ever been. The good news is that students have more choices than ever before. The bad news is that navigating these choices can be exceedingly difficult. College ranking leaders generally operate under the premise that their ranking lists make this process easier. But do they really? Are college ranking leaders actually providing the information that students need to make smart decisions? Or are they feeding students into a college industry that profits from reputation over outcomes? Are college rankings the ultimate case of style over substance? We examine these questions and more with a closer look at the ranking sector through the prism of its most widely recognized and influential player—U.S. News and World Report.

19 min read

Read More
General

Five Ways Individuals Can Think Globally and Act Locally

What does it mean to think globally and act locally? This oft-quoted concept calls on us to consider the health of the planet and all of its inhabitants even in the smallest and most immediate actions. In other words, when you act to support your local economy, community, and culture, you are making important contributions to improvements in living standards, sustainability, and economic fairness the world over. 

9 min read

How To Make Money With Web 3.0
CryptoMoney

How To Make Money With Web 3.0

These days, you’re likely well aware how the major players like Facebook and Google — among very few others — make tremendous amounts of money on the internet. The services of these web giants are free, but by using these web giants, average people like you and me offer up an enormous amount of data […]

10 min read

Business

Ten Reasons Your Company Needs a Great HR Department

Human Resources (HR) covers a lot of ground. In a given organization, HR can play a direct role in everything from recruitment, hiring, and firing to training, evaluation, and oversight of company ethics. While the exact duties charged to an HR department may vary from one company to the next, the importance of a strong, functional and rational HR department is indisputable.

10 min read

JobsTravel

Ten Ways to Travel For Free … and Maybe Even Get Paid To Do It

So you want to see the world? You’ve got the time, the energy, and maybe you’ve even picked up a few useful words in several different languages. Obviously, you want to get out there and spend that time wisely, burn that energy constructively, and use those words contextually. There’s just one problem. You don’t have any money. Granted, that isn’t ideal, but it’s also not a dealbreaker. There are actually all kinds of cool ways to adventure both in the U.S. and abroad without so much as a dime to your name. Not only are there lots of amazing ways to travel for free, but if you do it right, you may even find a way to get paid for it!

9 min read

OP-ED

BusinessEconomicsInterviewsMoneyOp-Ed

The Unreasonable Sway of College and University Rankings: An Interview with Jeffrey Stake and Jed Macosko

It may seem strange for a money and business website like Expensivity.com to present this interview about college rankings and the problems they raise. But these academic rankings are big business, and the actual school ranking lists that they produce have significant business and financial implications for the schools listed, especially depending on where they […]

20 min read

CryptoEconomicsInvestingMoneyOp-Ed

10 Reasons to Invest in Cryptocurrency

What is cryptocurrency? Should cryptocurrency be part of your investment strategy? We cut through a lot of the hype and complexity surrounding cryptocurrency so that you can understand the risks, the benefits, and the opportunities in this emergent system of alternative currency and exchange. In the simplest terms, crypto tokens are virtual currencies that can be used to make transactions without passing through conventional centralized financial entities or institutions like banks, stockbrokers or exchanges. The idea behind this decentralized financial (DeFi) system is to create a form of financial transaction that is at once more secure and transparent than traditional finance and, simultaneously, more private, more accessible, and less beholden to fees or regulations than traditional finance.

8 min read

BANKING

BankingEconomicsReal Estate

Five Ways We’re Still Feeling the Effects of the Great Recession Today

The Great Recession was a financial crisis that gripped the world in late 2007 and held tight until roughly the summer of 2009. While this period of economic stagnation and decline was a global phenomenon, its impact was especially concentrated in the United States. Over a period of 18 months, one in every five American workers was laid off. This was a catastrophic period in the lives of many Americans. For the nation as a whole this period qualified as the worst economic meltdown since the Great Depression some 80 years prior. As we face down a growing threat of inflation, Congressional grappling over infrastructural needs, and a political landscape that is both sharply divided and marked by a far-reaching sense of economic discontent, this feels like a uniquely appropriate time to reflect on the Great Recession.

11 min read

Read More
BankingCredit CardsInvestingLoansReal Estate

How to Buy a House With Bad Credit

Bad credit can seriously derail your dreams of home ownership. Your credit rating will be a key figure used by mortgage lenders as they evaluate your ability to repay a home loan. Your credit rating will play an important role in determining both the total sum of the loan banks are willing to provide you for a new home and the interest rate that you’ll pay each month on top of your original loan. For those with poor credit, buying a home may even feel like an impossibility. But there are actually home loans designed to assist prospective buyers with bad credit. 

9 min read

Capital One Loans Review and Best Alternatives
BankingLoans

Capital One Loans Review 2021

Among American bank holding companies, Capital One is perhaps the most notable, offering credit cards, auto loans, banking, and even savings accounts, with a heavy media presence popularized by the slogan, “Capital One: What’s in your wallet?” As personal loans become more and more popular, though — which are typically unsecured loans that those with […]

6 min read

BankingLoansMoney

A Complete Guide to Personal Loans

A personal loan is an unsecured loan that you promise to pay back within a certain amount of time with monthly installments. In return, the lender gives you a fixed rate of interest along with a set time period for repayment. Personal loans come with a higher rate of interest than other sources of funding, but […]

12 min read

BankingBusinessHighlightsInvestingMoneyTaxes

Tax Havens Made Clear: A Comprehensive Guide

The Problem of Taxation Taxes. They’re the bane of the existence of honest and hard-working people everywhere. We’d much rather preserve our capital for the benefit of our families and for important charities than pay the bill for all manner of government waste and inefficiency—often in the service of projects we would rather not support. […]

3 min read

BUSINESS

Business

Ten Reasons Your Company Needs a Great HR Department

Human Resources (HR) covers a lot of ground. In a given organization, HR can play a direct role in everything from recruitment, hiring, and firing to training, evaluation, and oversight of company ethics. While the exact duties charged to an HR department may vary from one company to the next, the importance of a strong, functional and rational HR department is indisputable.

10 min read

Read More
What Kind of Insurance Do Small Businesses Need?
BusinessInsurance

What Kind of Insurance Do Small Businesses Need?

You’ve poured your heart and soul into your business, why not protect it? The best way to do so is through insurance coverage, but what kind of insurance do small businesses need? For a small business owner, like you, it’s hard to know which insurance policies are necessary, and which ones you can do without.  […]

7 min read

BusinessTaxes

How to Start a Small Business in 10 Steps

So you have an amazing idea for a business and you’re ready to make the leap from concept to reality. But how do you actually start your own business? What steps must you take to transform your vision into a fully-functioning and eventually profitable endeavor? If you’re ready to dive full-throttle into the exciting world of entrepreneurship, follow these ten steps. The exact sequence may vary depending on the nature of your business and your personal circumstances but in most cases, you will need to check these items off of your list on the way to a viable business.

8 min read

BusinessEconomicsInterviewsMoneyOp-Ed

The Unreasonable Sway of College and University Rankings: An Interview with Jeffrey Stake and Jed Macosko

It may seem strange for a money and business website like Expensivity.com to present this interview about college rankings and the problems they raise. But these academic rankings are big business, and the actual school ranking lists that they produce have significant business and financial implications for the schools listed, especially depending on where they […]

20 min read

BusinessGeneralJobsMoney

10 Reasons to Get Yourself a Side Hustle

The “side hustle” is one of the great phenomena of the Internet age. Now that we all have access to this wide world of engagement, communication, and commerce, we also have access to a certain type of economic and professional freedom that never previously existed. That doesn’t mean we can all just turn around and quit our day jobs in a blaze of digitally-liberated glory. But it does mean each of us has the chance to explore a side hustle—a personal pursuit that earns you a few extra dollars while fulfilling something within you that can’t be met by the responsibilities of your day job. 

8 min read

INVESTING

InvestingMoneyReal Estate

Should I Buy a Fixer-upper?

A fixer-upper can be a great investment as long as you know what you’re getting. Here, we discuss the best strategy for finding the right work-in-progress home along with a look at the Pros and Cons of Buying a Fixer-upper.

9 min read

InvestingMoneyReal Estate

Should I Buy or Build a House?

Getting a new home is a pretty big decision, so you obviously want to consider all of your options first. You’ve probably also noticed just how competitive the housing market is these days. If you find your dream house on the market, there’s a pretty good chance that dozens of others also think they’ve found their dream home. So wouldn’t it just be easier to build your own home? Well, if you’re looking for a home that checks off every box on your wishlist, it might be preferable to design, contract out, and build your perfect dream house. But it might not necessarily be the most affordable option and certainly isn’t the easiest way to get a new home.

11 min read

BankingCredit CardsInvestingLoansReal Estate

How to Buy a House With Bad Credit

Bad credit can seriously derail your dreams of home ownership. Your credit rating will be a key figure used by mortgage lenders as they evaluate your ability to repay a home loan. Your credit rating will play an important role in determining both the total sum of the loan banks are willing to provide you for a new home and the interest rate that you’ll pay each month on top of your original loan. For those with poor credit, buying a home may even feel like an impossibility. But there are actually home loans designed to assist prospective buyers with bad credit. 

9 min read

CryptoEconomicsInvestingMoneyOp-Ed

10 Reasons to Invest in Cryptocurrency

What is cryptocurrency? Should cryptocurrency be part of your investment strategy? We cut through a lot of the hype and complexity surrounding cryptocurrency so that you can understand the risks, the benefits, and the opportunities in this emergent system of alternative currency and exchange. In the simplest terms, crypto tokens are virtual currencies that can be used to make transactions without passing through conventional centralized financial entities or institutions like banks, stockbrokers or exchanges. The idea behind this decentralized financial (DeFi) system is to create a form of financial transaction that is at once more secure and transparent than traditional finance and, simultaneously, more private, more accessible, and less beholden to fees or regulations than traditional finance.

8 min read

MONEY

CryptoMoney

How To Make Money With Web 3.0

These days, you’re likely well aware how the major players like Facebook and Google — among very few others — make tremendous amounts of money on the internet. The services of these web giants are free, but by using these web giants, average people like you and me offer up an enormous amount of data […]

10 min read

Read More
How To Make Money With NFTs
CryptoMoney

How To Make Money With NFTs

All the news about NFTs has got you thinking What’s up with that? The truth is, non-fungible tokens — shortened to NFTs — are shaking up the world of art and finance. But what are NFTs, how do they work, and — here’s the million-dollar question — how do you make money with NFTs?  In […]

10 min read

MoneyReal EstateTravel

Ten Ways to Save Money on a Cross Country Move

Whether you’re moving cross country for a new job opportunity or you’re just ready for a change of scenery, picking up your whole life and transporting it 2500 miles away is a pretty big undertaking. It should come as little surprise that this undertaking can also be quite expensive. From packing supplies and shipping costs to fuel and professional moving companies, expenses can really add up. For some idea of what all of these expenses might add up to, check out this handy Moving Calculator from Moving.com. This is a useful tool for determining how much your move could cost. But you should only consider this estimate as a starting point in your research. While you may not be able to control things like the cost of gas, there are actually a lot of factors that you can control. Any combination of the tips below could lower your overall cross country moving expenses at a time when every penny counts. 

9 min read

GeneralMoney

How To Win the Lottery

The chances of striking it rich with the purchase of a lottery ticket are quite low indeed. But that doesn’t mean it’s impossible. Perhaps even more encouraging—there are actually a few ways that you can improve your chances of winning. While we wouldn’t necessarily advise basing your future financial plans on buying the proverbial golden ticket, we recognize that playing the lottery can be fun. And there are steps you can take to improve your odds of winning the lottery. For most people, this will generally mean improving from terrible odds to merely bad odds. But hey, at least it’s something.

11 min read

TOOLS

CryptoInvestingTools

10 Best Cryptocurrency Trading Platforms

The best cryptocurrency trading platforms support investors as they get started with this revolutionary new wealth building strategy. Naturally, each one of these exchanges offer different levels of service and customer support, setting themselves apart from each other with varying degrees of security on each transaction, with all sorts of user experiences.  And there’s no […]

10 min read

Read More
InsuranceMoneyResourcesTools

A Complete Guide to Life Insurance

Life insurance can be one of the most important assets in a portfolio. There are many nuances and types of life insurance that can be beneficial depending on the insured. Having a life insurance guide can help with the terminology, different kinds of life insurance available, and what to expect. This life insurance buyer’s guide […]

11 min read

Tools

100 Online Finance Tools To Manage Your Money & Investments

In a dream world, we’d all never spend another minute worrying about our finances. But here in reality, understanding how you make your money, what your money is capable of, and knowing exactly where it’s going is crucial to your financial success. Setting and sticking to financial goals. Budgeting. Saving. Investing. Spending responsibly. It can […]

5 min read

InvestingMoneyTools

A Strategy for Trading Options on Index ETFs

Warren Buffett famously remarked that “if you don’t figure out how to make money while you sleep, you’ll work until you die.” Of course, avoiding this fate can also be achieved by making extra money during the day in ways that don’t interfere with your regular job. What I’m about to discuss falls more in […]

50 min read

Credit Cards

BankingCredit CardsInvestingLoansReal Estate

How to Buy a House With Bad Credit

Bad credit can seriously derail your dreams of home ownership. Your credit rating will be a key figure used by mortgage lenders as they evaluate your ability to repay a home loan. Your credit rating will play an important role in determining both the total sum of the loan banks are willing to provide you for a new home and the interest rate that you’ll pay each month on top of your original loan. For those with poor credit, buying a home may even feel like an impossibility. But there are actually home loans designed to assist prospective buyers with bad credit. 

9 min read

Read More
Best Credit Cards for Building & Improving Credit Scores
Credit Cards

The Best Credit Cards for Building & Improving Credit Scores

A good credit score touches every aspect of our financial life. With little or no credit,  important loan applications may be denied. With a poor credit score, a loan application may be approved, but only with a higher interest rate than you would otherwise have to pay. Those two examples are just the tip of […]

10 min read

Best Airline Miles Credit Cards
Credit Cards

The Best Airline Miles Credit Cards

Ever notice those folks in the exclusive, airport lounge, sipping cocktails, laughing, and looking relaxed? Figure they must be high-rolling business people with millions of dollars in memberships to some exclusive club? Turns out, that’s likely not the case. Instead, some of those individuals could have simply redeemed airline miles to access that lounge, earned […]

10 min read

Best Credit Cards for People with Bad or Poor Credit
Credit Cards

Best Credit Cards for People with Bad or Poor Credit

Having bad or poor credit creates many challenges for people, not least of which, when applying for a credit card. What’s more, the credit card application itself can negatively impact a credit score. If that’s the situation you’re in, don’t give up.  That’s because there are a number of secured cards designed specifically for people […]

10 min read

The Best No-Fee 0% Balance Transfer Credit Cards
Credit CardsMoney

The Best No-Fee 0% Balance Transfer Credit Cards in 2021

From planning a trip to remodeling your home, there are many sensible reasons to apply for a no-fee, 0% balance transfer credit card. That way, your vacation or renovation is financed with what amounts to a no-interest loan. And with no annual fees and few other expenses to worry about, that balance can be paid […]

10 min read