Author: Amanda Kusumowidagdo

A start-up EV carmaker is about to go bust. Fisker, based in Manhattan Beach, California, is reportedly in a dire financial situation. If the company files for bankruptcy, not only will its employees lose jobs. But the customers may also eventually lose their cars. Failure to Pay Debt Source: Monstera Production/Pexels Fisker, founded by Henrik Fisker and Geeta Gupta-Fisker, revealed its financial woes when it filed a Form 10-K with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The company was once valued at $2.9 billion. But now the company couldn’t even pay an interest payment of $8.4 million in March. If…

One of the names in Donald Trump’s shortlist of running mates in the upcoming presidential election is South Dakota Governor, Kristi Noem, who’s set to release her second autobiography. But instead of praise, many people found absurd and disturbing things in the pre-release excerpts that got them confused. Beyond the story of killing her family-owned dog, some lies are just too big to be believed. A Big Lie Source: Office of the Governor, South Dakota (Kristi Noem)/Wikimedia Commons; Center Street Publisher (cover)/Amazon A leaked passage from her book, entitled “No Going Back: The Truth on What’s Wrong with Politics and…

Winning the lottery once is already a miracle. But winning it twice? And in the space of just 10 weeks? Talk about a phenomenon! And it’s exactly what happened to a woman from Massachusetts. Christine Wilson of Attleboro, a town in Bristol County, Massachusetts, is the extremely lucky winner — TWICE! — of a $1 million lottery. The Recent Victory Source: WPRI/Youtube Wilson purchased a 100X Cash ticket for 10 bucks at a Family Food Mart in Mansfield. She scratched it off and turned out to have the lucky ticket. The convenience store will receive $10,000 for selling the winning…

President Biden is still intent on canceling student loans. But a new study is saying that his latest plan will burden taxpayers heavily. The president’s cancellation plans will bring relief to many Americans but it’s accruing criticism from the opposite side of the political corridor. Now let’s study the plan. New Plans Source: Clay Banks/Unsplash Under the latest cancellation plans, the total cost of the student loan cancellation plans that taxpayers must bear is a whopping $559 billion.  Households earning more than $300,000 in annual income will benefit the most.  Long-Term Debt Relief to Lower-Income Households Source: Freepik The estimates…

The US resident population has increased by 0.4% in 2022, according to the US Census Bureau. After the pandemic era in 2020 and 2021 recorded a historically low change, we have returned to the pre-pandemic era. But several US states showed declining numbers of population. There are 18 states, to be exact, where population decline occurred. Find out which states have fewer residents and why it happened. Almost Every State Saw Population Growth Source: Jonathan Simcoe/Unsplash More states experienced population growth in 2023 than in any year since the start of the pandemic. At the state level, 42 states and…

A start-up EV carmaker is about to go bust. Fisker, based in Manhattan Beach, California, is reportedly in a dire financial situation. If the company files for bankruptcy, not only will its employees lose jobs. But the customers may also eventually lose their cars. Failure to Pay Debt Source: Monstera Production/Pexels Fisker, founded by Henrik Fisker and Geeta Gupta-Fisker, revealed its financial woes when it filed a Form 10-K with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The company was once valued at $2.9 billion. But now the company couldn’t even pay an interest payment of $8.4 million in March. If…

Sam’s Club, the membership-only warehouse club owned by Walmart, is changing the way it’s allowing customers to check out their carts. Instead of using physical receipts, Sam’s Club is now using a new AI-powered verification tech that scans items shoppers bought. Available in 120 Locations Source: Austin Kirk/Wikimedia Commons This new tech’s been rolled out in more than 120 locations across the country. Meanwhile, 450-plus Sam’s Club warehouses still use the traditional checkout method. The retailer told Business Insider, more than half of its customers where the tech is available choose to pay and go. These shoppers walk out with…

Costco loves its customers. Its customers love a good bargain. For that reason, Costco’s trade-in program is a potentially rewarding program for the customers who love the brand and a good bargain You can trade in your old electronics at Costco and exchange it for store credits. Then, you can buy anything, including groceries, with it. The Costco Trade-Up Program Source: Marques Thomas/Unsplash This is how Costco’s Trade-Up program works: customers with old electronic devices (smartphones, tablets, laptops, game consoles) can exchange them at Costco. Customers will visit the program’s dedicated website and choose the specific device they wish to…

One might ask, are California’s troubles ever going to end? One more pressing issue in the Golden State is its staggering debt of nearly $21 billion. It paints a bleak picture of its fiscal health. And it’s only made worse by a surge in unemployment during the pandemic that emptied out its employment trust fund. The Burden of Debt Source: Ruth Enyedi/Unsplash The debt’s burden, along with an interest rate of around 2.6%, sits heavily on the state’s budgets, which is already strained due to many other factors. $650 million in interest has already been paid, but there’s an additional…

Postponing major life events due to debt is not an uncommon occurrence. In fact, based on a new study, the delay seems to be the norm. Many student loan borrowers are forced to wait to move on with the big things in life due to their debt. These big things include buying a home, getting married, or even getting out of their parents’ home. College-Based Study Source: Andrea Piacquadio/Pexels The study was done by the Lumina Foundation with Gallup, surveying the 2024 State of Higher Education. According to the study, 71% of all students currently enrolled in colleges, or previously…