Education Articles

Your Personal Boat Buying Guide

Ah, the freedom of the open water. Feel the breeze coming off the Pacific Ocean or one of the Pacific Northwest’s many lakes and rivers as you put the throttle down or point the sails leeward. Or maybe it’s just you, your fishing pole, and the early morning serenity of your favorite watering hole. Boats come in  many shapes and sizes —sailboats ...

Carvana: An Online Car-Buying Nirvana?

“Honey, your car is here!” No, it’s not your Uber or Lyft pulling up. It’s the car you purchased online a week ago. There’s a relatively new Amazon-esque auto seller in town, and its name is  Carvana —akin to the mega-online retailer because it’s fast and everything is done on the internet. With a quick stop at the Carvana website, you can order...

Signs You Might Be Living Beyond Your Means

In an age of plastic spending and mobile payments, living within  your means can easily slide into living  beyond  your means. And many of us fall into this trap without realizing it. Getting out of this trap can be “easier said than done,” said Nick Manley, Financial Advisor for SELCO Investment & Retirement Services. “Living within your means...

What To Know About ‘Buy Now, Pay Later’

They’re so easy to use, they almost seem too good to be true. Is there a catch? With Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) services, you can walk away with that expensive exercise bike, entertainment system, sectional sofa, or anything else that catches your eye, even if you can’t cover the costs in the moment. And in return, retailers can make more sales b...

Demystifying Mortgage Terms, Part II

Now that some of the  common loan-approval terms  are embedded in your brain, it’s time to explore other head-scratchers that come up over the life of a mortgage. The following is a short list of terms describing anything from mortgage insurance to the various types of loans. By the time you wade through this list, you’ll be good and ready to bu...

Demystifying Mortgage Terms, Part I

Here’s an understatement: The financial industry is full of confusing terms. The mortgage world, especially, is saturated with head-scratching  words and acronyms . What’s an LTV, for example? You’d be forgiven if your first thought went to some sort of off-road vehicle. If you’re buying a home for the first time, a lot of terms will be thrown a...

Looking to Consolidate Debt? Try a HELOC.

What would you rather have—several hundred dollars in monthly payments spread across all your credit cards or one smaller payment over a set number of years? If you’re a homeowner, a home equity line of credit (HELOC) may be what you need to reel in that pesky debt. Aside from being fun to say, a HELOC (hee-lock) can be more than just a means of...

Driving for Uber or Lyft? Make Sure You’re Insured

Popular rideshare services like Uber and Lyft are now available in larger cities across Oregon, including Eugene. And for many people, becoming a driver is an attractive way to pick up a little extra spending money. You’ll want to make sure you’re prepared for the associated costs, and that you and your customers are protected, to make it a smoo...

5 Steps to Getting a Small Business Loan

If it’s time for your startup to start going up, a small-business loan may just be what you need. The process of applying for a small-business loan can be confusing, but we’re here to help guide you through the process. Below are five manageable steps to securing funding for your business needs—whether that’s for expansion or handling the...

Crypto May Be Hot, But These Investment Options Are Safer

If you haven’t heard, cryptocurrency is the flavor of the month in the investment world. More than 20 million Americans own some form of  cryptocurrency . With Bitcoin leading the way, the  global market capitalization  of crypto is hovering around $2 trillion. El Salvador became the first country to  adopt Bitcoin as legal tender . Crypto was...