Joanna Nesbit is a Pacific Northwest writer with a focus on personal finance, higher education, and family (aging parents, young adults, parenting). She writes for consumer and custom publications.
6 Ways a Good Credit Score Helps You
If you’re just starting out, you might not realize how much a good credit report and solid credit score influence your access to regular things—like buying a smartphone or insuring your car (separate from your parents).
Eat Local: Ferndale’s Wright Brothers Farm To Expand CSA Shares This Summer
With spring comes all things farming as soils warm and daylight lengthens. For the Wright Brothers Farm in Ferndale, that means crop planning, composting, and de-winterizing the pump as the brothers prepare for a third season of growing organic vegetables.
Do You Know Your Money Personality?
If you understand your inclinations and how they affect your beliefs about money, you can repair habits that aren’t optimally serving you or your family.
Dorm vs. Off-Campus Apartment: How to Estimate What College Housing Really Costs
Last-minute campus housing closures threw college families into turmoil this year. Here's what to know about pricing out campus and off-campus housing for next year -- assuming students will be allowed to live on campus.
Make the Most of Campus Services During the Pandemic
Many colleges are offering accessible online resources to their students as a result of the pandemic. Here's how you can utilize these valuable remote services.
Bills Before Frills: Budgeting and Money Basics
When you first start out on your own, budgeting and the concept of personal finance may seem intimidating. That’s particularly true if your parents didn’t talk to you about money.
What Is Probate? (And Is It Bad?)
Have you heard horror stories about probate being a long, expensive process that gobbles assets to pay fees? And that creating a living trust is possibly a way to avoid it. Or, maybe you’ve heard that probate isn’t that bad. So, which is it?
Here's How Much of Your Income Should Go Toward Student Loans Each Month
How much of your money should you actually be allocating to student loans each month in an ideal budget? Details here on budget breakdowns and income-driven repayment loan programs if you have a lower salary.
More Than 3 Million College Students Who Can't Afford Food May Be Eligible for Expanded SNAP Benefits
On any given day, Christal Yu fields about 10 texts and emails from fellow students asking about food pantries, rental assistance, or low-cost textbooks. A student at Borough of Manhattan Community College, she balances schoolwork with her role as a student navigator, guiding peers to critical resources.
Aging in Place: How to Help Your Parents Stay at Home
Many seniors feel strongly about remaining in their own homes. The vast majority of adults age 50+ want to stay in their homes and communities as they get older.
529: Qualified Expenses: What You Can Spend On Now
Some families’ college costs have dipped this year. Others are still feeling the financial pinch. Here’s what to know about college costs and 529 plans now.
Colleges Are Lowering Tuition Prices. But Most Students Won't Save a Penny
Some colleges are resetting tuition for 2021, and most families think it will save them money. But it's not quite that easy. Here's how it works and what it might mean for your student.
6 Expert Tips for Applying to College During the Pandemic
With the pandemic roaring full force across the country, college application season remains upended in an unprecedented year.
How Will Students Get College Scholarships if They Can't Take the SAT?
With the coronavirus pandemic and wildfires wreaking havoc on testing, students are struggling to take the SAT or ACT. They might not have to. Here's what they need to know before they drive across the state to get it done.
Financial Tips for Disadvantaged International Students
With the effects of the coronavirus pandemic in full swing, international students face unprecedented uncertainty about studying in the United States. But that doesn’t mean students should give up on their goals of attaining an American education.