Posts by Nick Wallace
Mortgage
The Best Cities for Teens
There are currently about 29.5 million teenagers in the U.S., according to the Census Bureau. That’s a lot of teenagers! In comparison, there are about 28.5 million U.S. residents over the age of 70. What do those teens do? Roughly one out of six of them work – about 4.6 million, according to the Bureau of… read more…
Personal Loans
The Best Cities for Boat Owners
Ahoy matey! Thinking about buying a boat? Join the armada. According to the U.S. Coast Guard’s National Recreation Boating Survey, there are nearly 22.3 million recreational boats in the United States. Those vessels range from one-person kayaks up to 200-foot mega-yachts. They can be found adrift on calm lakes in the Midwest or sailing through high… read more…
Retirement
Where Are Retirees Moving? – 2016 Edition
As the baby boomer generation ages into their 60s and 70s, the number of retirees in the United States is going to increase. So too will their economic sway. Many retirees, no longer anchored to a city or region by their job, choose to pack up and leave. Some seek a lower cost of living.… read more…
Mortgage
The Metro Areas with the Most Mansions
What does your dream house look like? For some, it must include a swimming pool. Others want a 10-car garage to fit their collection of Lamborghinis. Those who prefer the urban lifestyle might opt for a Manhattan penthouse with views of Central Park, while those who love the mountains might be more interested in a… read more…
Mortgage
The Best States for the Middle Class in 2016
The middle class is shrinking. According to a 2015 analysis by Pew Research, for the first time in recent history less than half of American households are part of the middle class, with greater numbers of households moving into the upper and lower classes. Likewise, while middle-income Americans used to earn more than 60% of… read more…
Mortgage
The Best Cities for New College Grads: 2016 Edition
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the unemployment rate for workers with a Bachelor’s degree averaged just 2.8% in 2015. That is much lower than the overall rate of 4.3% and it means that for most college grads finding a job should not be difficult. That’s not to say that college grads have it… read more…
Mortgage
19 Things You Need to Know About Moving to Denver
Denver has been one of the country’s fastest-growing big cities in recent years and it’s easy to see why. Located along the Rocky Mountain Front Range, the Mile High City is surrounded by beautiful scenery and has direct access to… read more…
Mortgage
The Most Undervalued Cities in America
Many of America’s largest cities are facing an affordable housing crisis. In particular, some cities on the West Coast and in the Northeast have seen skyrocketing rental rates and home prices in recent years, as the growing demand for urban housing has not been equally matched by increases in supply. While the supply side of… read more…
Mortgage
The Best Cities for Coffee Fanatics
In 2016 it’s hard to fall over in a U.S. city without hitting a coffee shop. Thanks in part to chains like Tully’s, Dunkin Donuts, Caribou Coffee and Starbucks, the amount of coffee shops across the U.S. seems to have grown exponentially in recent years. Starbucks, for example, increased from 165 stores in 1992 to… read more…
Mortgage
The Best Green Cities for Families in 2016
Americans are more concerned about the environment than ever before. In a Gallup poll released earlier this year 64% of respondents said that they worry about global warming a “fair amount” or a “great deal.” Nearly 60% said that the effects of global warming have already begun, while another 31% believe that it will eventually.… read more…
Mortgage
The Best Cities for Living the American Dream
Is the American Dream making a comeback? After the housing crisis last decade, many people questioned the legitimacy of homeownership as a means of building wealth and providing economic security. Today, however, with home prices in much of the U.S. at last passing their pre-crisis peak and mortgage rates hovering near their historic lows, for many… read more…
Mortgage
The Top 10 Cities for Working Parents
Being a parent is a full time job. Nonetheless, on top of the substantial energy required to raise a child, most parents in the United States are also employed. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, among U.S. families that have children, 88.7% have at least one working parent. In 60.2% of those families both… read more…
Life Insurance
The Best States for Healthcare Access
Medical science has made enormous strides over the past century. Antibiotics, vaccinations and other treatments have all but eliminated many illnesses that once claimed thousands of lives each year. Likewise, advancements in surgical techniques and technologies have pushed the survival rates on many difficult procedures, including open-heart surgery, to over 95%. Find out now: How… read more…
Mortgage
23 Things to Know Before Moving to Seattle
Seattle is a city unlike any other. Nestled between the Cascade and Olympic Mountain ranges, and sitting along the shores of the Puget Sound and Lake Washington, its natural beauty causes many who visit to wish they could stay forever. And… read more…
Retirement
The Best Cities for an Active Retirement in 2016
What’s your ideal retirement? For the couch potatoes among us, it probably involves lots of big books, television shows and classic movies. Beach bums might envision a spot in the sand with a cool drink and a bit of shade. Others prefer the purpose (and income) provided by entrepreneurship or a part-time job. For many,… read more…
Personal Finance
The Most-Googled Personal Finance Terms (Map)
Google search traffic has been shown to be a useful tool for measuring the interests and concerns of the general public. For example, it has been used to predict both unemployment claims and retail sales. Recently it has also been used to forecast election results with greater accuracy than many electoral prognosticators. At a less… read more…
Mortgage
The Best Cities for First-Time Homebuyers in 2016
In the wake of the housing crisis last decade, homeownership rates declined markedly. In 2005, more than 69% of American households owned the home they lived in. Today that rate is just 64%. The decline has been especially steep among young homeowners. At the end of 2015, less than 35% of adults under the age… read more…
Personal Loans
The Best Cities for Motorcycle Owners
According to the U.S. Department of Transportation, as of 2012 there were at least 8.4 million registered motorcycles in the United States (a number that has likely risen in the past four years as the economy has strengthened and auto sales have ballooned). That’s a lot of hogs – about one for every 37 people… read more…
Career
The Best Jobs for People Who Want to be Self-Employed
Most people don’t love having a boss. Bosses tell you what to do and they berate you when you screw up. According to a 2015 Gallup survey, half of all U.S. workers have at some point in their careers left a… read more…
Mortgage
17 Things to Know Before Moving to New York
Any New Yorker will tell you that NYC is the greatest city in the world, with better food, better entertainment, and, well, better everything than anyplace else on the planet. But it takes some getting used to, especially if you’ve never visited or if you’re coming from a smaller city or town. So, for anyone… read more…
Student Loans
The States with the Best Schools
The United States is a global leader in many regards, but when it comes to education it seems there is room to improve. According to the OECD, U.S. schools rank 28th in the world based on student reading and writing performance at age 15. That places us in the same league as European countries like Italy… read more…
Mortgage
Where Are Millennials Buying Homes? – 2016 Edition
The homeownership rate among young people has been declining steadily in recent years. In 2005, 43% of adults under the age of 35 owned a home. Today that rate is just 35%. There are a number of possible reasons for this shift, including the rising cost of housing in many cities. Yet, just as housing… read more…
Mortgage
The Best Cities for Women in Tech in 2016
Women in the U.S. tech industry have long faced major disparities in both employment and pay. Last year, SmartAsset’s analysis of Census Bureau data found that women hold less than 26% of tech jobs in the U.S. and on average earn just 85% of what men in those positions earn. We further found that in… read more…
Mortgage
The Best Cities for Public Transportation in 2016
According to the Texas A&M Transportation Institute, the average auto commuter in the United States spends 42 hours per year in traffic. That same study puts the price tag of those delays at $960 per driver. In big cities, the numbers are even uglier. Drivers in the 15 largest U.S. metro areas spend an average… read more…
Student Loans
The Best States for Higher Education in 2016
Higher education is always a big topic in election years. Candidates of all political stripes readily agree that our colleges and universities are a key driver of prosperity but that there are serious flaws with our current system. The most-discussed issue in higher education today is the rising cost of attendance at schools across the… read more…