MintLife Blog | Personal Finance News & Advice » Ross Crooks http://www.mint.com/blog The blog of the free, simple personal finance solution. Track all your spending automatically, find the best deals, save more money. And save the world. Fri, 19 Mar 2010 23:03:39 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.6 en hourly 1 The Unemployment Situation in Perspective http://www.mint.com/blog/trends/the-employment-situation-in-perspective-infographic/ http://www.mint.com/blog/trends/the-employment-situation-in-perspective-infographic/#comments Fri, 19 Mar 2010 16:45:20 +0000 Ross Crooks http://www.mint.com/blog/?p=9052 ]]> MNT-EMPLOYMENT-PERSPECTIVE-R6

By any measure, the unemployment rate is on the rise. But exactly how bad is the problem and what are the implications for the broader economy? To put things in perspective, we need to consider how the unemployment rate is calculated, who is considered employed and who isn’t. Many claim the official rate is flawed and presents an optimistic picture that doesn’t truly reflect reality. Other quoted statistics measuring job loss can be deceptive if selective time periods are used. In our latest infographic we have taken a broad view of the American workforce over the last five years showing the various employment conditions and how each is categorized.

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]]> http://www.mint.com/blog/trends/the-employment-situation-in-perspective-infographic/feed/ 0 The 20 Best Companies to Work for in 2010 http://www.mint.com/blog/trends/the-20-best-companies-to-work-for-in-2010/ http://www.mint.com/blog/trends/the-20-best-companies-to-work-for-in-2010/#comments Mon, 15 Mar 2010 18:05:48 +0000 Ross Crooks http://www.mint.com/blog/?p=8996 ]]> If you’re unemployed and struggling to make ends meet, you might be feeling like any job will do. But, there’s no need to resort to desperation tactics. Being smarter about where you apply could get you a better job — one with a higher-than-normal salary, less chance of a layoff, or unusual benefits that are unique to a particular industry. To help you in your job search, we’ve taken a look at the companies that have put their people first, making them the best companies to work for in 2010.

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]]> http://www.mint.com/blog/trends/the-20-best-companies-to-work-for-in-2010/feed/ 1 The Best Cities for Working Mothers http://www.mint.com/blog/trends/best-cities-for-working-mothers/ http://www.mint.com/blog/trends/best-cities-for-working-mothers/#comments Mon, 08 Mar 2010 23:29:19 +0000 Ross Crooks http://www.mint.com/blog/?p=8921 ]]> At the risk of generalizing about the needs of working mothers, we think its fair to say that they not only want to find meaningful employment at a good salary, with comprehensive benefits but they also have specific needs that are unique to raising a family. Working mothers, across the board, want to live in a place that is safe, with good schools, and decent medical care. Based on Forbes’ rankings over multiple areas, we have prepared this map of America’s best cities for working mothers.

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]]> http://www.mint.com/blog/trends/best-cities-for-working-mothers/feed/ 7 The US Income Gap http://www.mint.com/blog/trends/the-us-income-gap/ http://www.mint.com/blog/trends/the-us-income-gap/#comments Thu, 25 Feb 2010 22:11:04 +0000 Ross Crooks http://www.mint.com/blog/?p=8680 ]]> Though the income gap in the United States has slowly decreased over the last few decades, there still remains a significant disparity in income between genders and across races. The earnings of Black women are much closer to the US average than those of their male counterparts, and the trend is similar for those of Hispanic descent. It is also notable that on average, Asian females earn more than both Black and Hispanic males, while Asian males have the highest income among all groups.

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]]> http://www.mint.com/blog/trends/the-us-income-gap/feed/ 18 Mint Map: Housing Sales http://www.mint.com/blog/trends/mint-map-housing-sales/ http://www.mint.com/blog/trends/mint-map-housing-sales/#comments Wed, 24 Feb 2010 01:08:53 +0000 Ross Crooks http://www.mint.com/blog/?p=8644 ]]> MNT-HOME-SALES-R6

The government will tell you that we are coming out of recession and economic recovery is right around the corner. Since the mortgage meltdown could be considered the root cause of the economic downturn, it’s helpful to look at the current housing market to get a sense of whether the recovery is hitting close to home. As prices have continued to drop in cities across the nation, the number of home sales has been increasing in many areas. Especially profound was the dramatic percentage increase year-over-year between Q3 and Q4 in total properties sold. Our latest map may not be able to tell you when to buy and when to sell but it will give you some strong data with which to make an informed decision.

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]]> http://www.mint.com/blog/trends/mint-map-housing-sales/feed/ 0 Mint Map: Where the Jobs Will Be http://www.mint.com/blog/trends/mint-map-where-the-jobs-will-be/ http://www.mint.com/blog/trends/mint-map-where-the-jobs-will-be/#comments Fri, 19 Feb 2010 18:32:08 +0000 Ross Crooks http://www.mint.com/blog/?p=8603 ]]> With the current unemployment rate at 10.6 percent and soaring even higher, you might have to seriously consider relocating in order to find work. You know what the say about the grass being greener? Well, our latest map shows that not all cities are faring equally in our current economic climate and in fact some are actually growing. Take a look to find out which cities are projected to have the greatest number of new jobs created, as well as those with the fastest rate of job growth over the next 20 years.

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]]> http://www.mint.com/blog/trends/mint-map-where-the-jobs-will-be/feed/ 12 Spending Beyond Our Means: US Trade Balance By Decade http://www.mint.com/blog/trends/spending-beyond-our-means-us-trade-balance-by-decade/ http://www.mint.com/blog/trends/spending-beyond-our-means-us-trade-balance-by-decade/#comments Tue, 16 Feb 2010 00:39:48 +0000 Ross Crooks http://www.mint.com/blog/?p=8361 ]]> MNT-TRADE-BALANCE-R3

How many zeroes are in 690 billion? Most of us need to write it out, just to make sure we’ve got our numbers straight. President Obama can probably tell you in his sleep. He’s presiding over a $690 billion trade deficit, the largest in the history of the United States, both as a number (that’s ten zeroes, by the way) and as a percentage of our country’s GDP (that’s 5%). Our latest infographic takes a look at deficit spending through the decades.

A trade deficit occurs when a country imports more goods and services than it exports. In the United States, imports have been out-sizing exports since the 1980s. In fact, the last time we produced a trade surplus was in 1975, with President Gerald Ford in residence at the White House. Ever since, our country has been living beyond its means, and the debt is steadily mounting.

Sound familiar? Many blamed the current economic crisis on the fact that millions of Americans spent more than they earned. Perhaps it’s in our genes.

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]]> http://www.mint.com/blog/trends/spending-beyond-our-means-us-trade-balance-by-decade/feed/ 19 Flower Power: A Look at February’s Booming Floral Economy http://www.mint.com/blog/trends/flower-power-a-look-at-februarys-booming-floral-economy/ http://www.mint.com/blog/trends/flower-power-a-look-at-februarys-booming-floral-economy/#comments Fri, 12 Feb 2010 19:51:30 +0000 Ross Crooks http://www.mint.com/blog/?p=8506 ]]> MNT-FLOWERS-R3

With Valentine’s Day around the corner, love is in the air and solicitations from flower companies are flooding your inbox. While most significant others would prefer to receive flowers year-round, there’s no question that the month of February is the flower industry’s favorite time of the year. And Valentines Day isn’t just for hopeless romantics. As we’ve seen, all this spending can be a boon to the economy at large.

Our latest infographic takes a look at February’s Booming Floral Economy and is based on the aggregate data from over one million Mint.com users, a representative sampling of US consumers.

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]]> http://www.mint.com/blog/trends/flower-power-a-look-at-februarys-booming-floral-economy/feed/ 0 Mint Map: State of the Unions http://www.mint.com/blog/trends/mint-map-state-of-the-unions/ http://www.mint.com/blog/trends/mint-map-state-of-the-unions/#comments Mon, 08 Feb 2010 23:44:03 +0000 Ross Crooks http://www.mint.com/blog/?p=8427 ]]> MNT-STATE-OF-UNIONS

In 2009, the number of union jobs in the public sector surpassed those in the shrinking private sector. As job loss and business failure has become increasingly commonplace, the face of unions is changing. We take a look at the prevalence of unions as a percentage of the total workforce around the country, and highlight a demographic breakdown of union membership.

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]]> http://www.mint.com/blog/trends/mint-map-state-of-the-unions/feed/ 4 Mint Map: Moving for Money http://www.mint.com/blog/trends/mint-map-moving-for-money/ http://www.mint.com/blog/trends/mint-map-moving-for-money/#comments Wed, 27 Jan 2010 21:45:54 +0000 Ross Crooks http://www.mint.com/blog/?p=8322 ]]> MNT-MIGRATION-R2

In times of plenty, relocating for work usually means a better job or a higher standard of living. But in today’s tough economy, many are finding that they just can’t find work or maintain their standard of living where they currently live. It’s especially bad in New York and California, two places where the economy is suffering and the cost of living remains high. Many of these financial refugees are ending up in Texas, a place where the cost of living is low. And many of those that are relocating are in the very lowest income bracket, a further indication that money is their motivation for moving.

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