blog posts Podcast: Real Estate May 5, 2021 12:00 pm18 views Episode 17 of Making Cents of Money, Real Estate, explains the world of real estate professions and what to consider when hiring professionals to help you buy or manage a home or other real estate property! Podcast: Financial Planner vs AI Jul 12, 2023 12:00 pm17 views In episode 65 of Making Cents of Money, Financial Planner vs AI, we discuss the pros and cons of using Artificial Intelligence language model, ChatGPT, to answer financial planning questions with the help of Donovan Sanchez, CFP®. Podcast: Buying a Car! Jul 21, 2021 12:00 pm17 views In episode 22 of Making Cents of Money, Buying a Car!, Nikki, Andrea, and Jake explain the true costs of car ownership as well as the terms and tools to know about before you buy your next vehicle. Podcast: Selling a Home Jul 20, 2022 12:00 pm16 views In episode 45 of Making Cents of Money, Andrea and Nikki discuss many aspects of selling a home so you can make more informed choices when it comes time to sell your own home. Podcast: Holiday Savings Tips and New Year's Goals Dec 17, 2020 12:00 pm16 views Episode 8 of Making Cents of Money, Holiday Savings Tips and New Year's Goals, explored tips to help prepare for a less stressful holiday season over the coming year as well as ways to set S.M.A.R.T. goals, be it financial or otherwise. Podcast: Short-selling Mar 24, 2021 12:00 pm15 views Episode 14 of Making Cents of Money, Short-selling, allowed us to interview Chasse Rehwinkel about the investing method that's become so popular in the media over the past few months. Podcast: Technology and Your Money Oct 5, 2020 12:00 pm15 views Episode 3 of Making Cents of Money, Technology and Your Money, explores how financial technologies are evolving and what that means for keeping our money safe. Podcast: Inflation Nov 17, 2021 12:00 pm15 views In episode 30 of Making Cents of Money, Inflation, Jake, Nikki, and Andrea discuss what inflation is as one of many metrics to gauge how an economy is doing and how it impacts our spending power as consumers. Podcast: Renting! Mar 30, 2022 12:00 pm14 views In episode 37 of Making Cents of Money, Renting!, Andrea, Jake, and Nikki discuss the basic steps and what to watch for when renting a place to live. Podcast: Building Wealth After Graduation Mar 25, 2024 12:00 pm13 views In episode 80 of Making Cents of Money, Building Wealth After Graduation, Donovan Sanchez returns to talk about how to navigate juggling multiple goals during the transition to life after college. Podcast: The Community Reinvestment Act Aug 17, 2022 12:00 pm13 views In episode 47 of Making Cents of Money, Chasse Rehwinkel joined Nikki & Andrea to discuss the Community Reinvestment Act and how it is intended to support economic equality. Podcast: Professional Licensure in Illinois May 19, 2021 12:00 pm12 views Episode 18 of Making Cents of Money, Professional Licensure in Illinois, helps us understand the scope of professional licensing in Illinois across many different industries and some protections in place for consumers. Podcast: Shopping for Appliances Jul 8, 2022 12:00 pm12 views In episode 44 of Making Cents of Money, Nikki and Andrea talk about shopping for appliances, and they've focused on times when it may be a surprise shopping need! Podcast: What's a Credit Report Anyway? Aug 9, 2023 12:00 pm12 views In episode 67 of Making Cents of Money, What's a Credit Report Anyway?, Nikki and Andrea discuss what's in your credit reports and how to get them at AnnualCreditReport.com. Podcast: Password Managers Jul 28, 2023 12:00 pm11 views In episode 66 of Making Cents of Money, Password Managers, we explore what password managers are and how they can be leveraged to protect your important information. Podcast: Loan Payments Resumed in October Oct 31, 2023 12:00 pm10 views In episode 73 of Making Cents of Money, Loan Payments Resumed in October, we discussed the "on-ramp" to repayment being implemented by the U.S. Department of Education as millions of borrowers started making payments on their federal loans again in October. Podcast: Gross National Happiness Feb 9, 2022 12:00 pm9 views In episode 34 of Making Cents of Money, Gross National Happiness, Jake and Nikki discuss an alternative metric to Gross Domestic Product that some countries use to help monitor the health of their economies called Gross National Happiness. Podcast: What Happens When a Bank Fails? Mar 11, 2024 12:00 pm9 views In episode 79 of Making Cents of Money, What Happens When a Bank Fails?, Chicago City Comptroller and former Illinois Director of Banking, Chasse Rehwinkel joins us to discuss recent incidents of bank failure and how these differed from others in history. Podcast: Is Crypto the Wild West? Feb 26, 2024 12:00 pm8 views In episode 78 of Making Cents of Money, Is Crypto the Wild West?, David DeCarlo and Jake Hamilton join us to discuss what regulation does and does not exist for consumers regarding crypto. Podcast: World Investor Week Oct 4, 2023 12:00 pm8 views In episode 71 of Making Cents of Money, World Investor Week, Andrea interviews Alan Sorcher and Anne McKinley from the US Securities & Exchange Commission in honor of World Investor Week on ways investors can learn about securities throughout the year. Podcast: Student Loan Update Oct 6, 2021 12:00 pm8 views In episode 27 of Making Cents of Money, Student Loan Update, Jake and Nikki gave a quick update on the state of federal student loans. Podcast: Reintroductions Jun 2, 2021 12:00 pm7 views Episode 19 of Making Cents of Money, Reintroductions, lets us learn more about one of the co-hosts, Jake Hamilton, the history behind the podcast, and what's in store for the future of this audio teaching medium. Podcast: The Impact of Compound Interest Sep 20, 2023 12:00 pm7 views In episode 70 of Making Cents of Money, The Impact of Compound Interest, Andrea and Nikki explore the complicated relationship we can have with compound interest when it comes to accomplishing financial goals. Podcast: Tackling Insurance! (Part 2) Nov 3, 2021 12:00 pm7 views In episode 29 of Making Cents of Money, Tackling Insurance! (Part 2), Nikki and Jake talked with Laura Pellikan from the Illinois Department of Insurance about the basics of health insurance and ways you can get covered. Podcast: What is Crypto Anyway? Jan 29, 2024 12:00 pm6 views In episode 76 of Making Cents of Money, What is Crypto Anyway?, Jake Hamilton, a previous podcast co-host, comes back to provide an overview of how crypto works and what the future looks like for this financial technology. Podcast: Tax Talk Feb 9, 2024 12:00 pm6 views In episode 77 of Making Cents of Money, Tax Talk, Andrea and Nikki talk tax... forms, terms, and more as the April 15 federal tax deadline approaches. Podcast: Help with Utility Bills May 3, 2023 12:00 pm6 views In episode 61 of Making Cents of Money, we learn about the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP). If you're struggling to pay utilities, apply by May 31! Podcast: Help for Renters Jun 21, 2023 12:00 pm6 views In episode 64 of Making Cents of Money, Kari Byer, Director of the APLD & Investigations, joins us again to talk about programs designed to help find and afford renting a place to live. Podcast: Free Financial Education Resources for Illinois Residents Apr 22, 2024 12:00 pm5 views In episode 82 of Making Cents of Money, Free Financial Education Resources for Illinois Residents, Maggie Owen from the Illinois State Treasurer's Office joins us to discuss all the financial education programs Illinois has for residents. Podcast: Farewell, Jake! May 13, 2022 12:00 pm5 views In episode 40 of Making Cents of Money, Andrea and Nikki bid farewell to long time co-host, Jake, as he transitions off the podcast and on to the next step in his career! Podcast: Get Covered, Illinois May 22, 2023 12:00 pm5 views In episode 62 of Making Cents of Money, Brian Gorman, Director of Outreach & Engagement for Get Covered Illinois, answers our questions about managing healthcare costs. Podcast: Help for Homeowners Jun 7, 2023 12:00 pm4 views In episode 63 of Making Cents of Money, Kari Byer, Director of the APLD & Investigations, joins us to talk about programs designed to help those who may be struggling with initial and ongoing homeownership costs. Podcast: Lines of Injustice: What is Redlining? May 6, 2024 12:00 pm2 views In episode 83 of Making Cents of Money, Lines of Injustice: What is Redlining?, DFPR Secretary Mario Treto, Jr. discusses the topic of redlining and how it leads to disparities for generations.