Is there an AI bubble? Some of AI's biggest boosters seem to think so. I talked to financial experts about what you can do with your money to protect it (or prepare to ride out a downturn) if there's a burst: www.sfchronicle.com/personal-fin...

Exciting news for working parents with kids under 13: The dependent care FSA, which has had the same limit since it was introduced in 1986, is finally increasing next year: www.sfchronicle.com/personal-fin...

Federal workers are now missing entire paychecks due to the shutdown. We rounded up grants, loans, food banks, restaurants, hardship loans, unemployment information and other resources for federal employees. No paywall: www.sfchronicle.com/personal-fin...

Sometimes you just can't predict where your reporting will take you. I set out to find out how much the $1.50 Costco hot dog deal -- now celebrating its 40th year -- would cost if that price had kept up with inflation. I wound up in a conversation with a Costco super-fan who owns a piece of history.

The COLA increase for 2026 was set to be announced on Oct. 15. The government shutdown “is going to delay that announcement.” www.sfchronicle.com/personal-fin...

How much does it cost to send your child to the top-ranked private high schools in the Bay Area? In many cases, more than UC tuition. Here's how the top private schools ranked this year and what they cost.

I love getting emails from readers, and I try to write back as often as I can. But when I published our list of California’s richest suburbs, my inbox overflowed with variations on the same question. So I wrote a follow-up: www.sfchronicle.com/personal-fin...

Bay Area parents: Tell us your thoughts on private school — and help shape our coverage www.sfchronicle.com/personal-fin...

“The fact is we’re paying more partly because of tariffs.” www.sfchronicle.com/personal-fin...

Gov. Newsom weighs in: "Corrupt, despicable, & spineless behavior. A coordinated effort to control the media is happening before our eyes & it needs to be called out."

A new study out of the California Policy Lab found hundreds of thousands of Californians are now delinquent on their student loans. Older borrowers are more likely to be behind. www.sfchronicle.com/personal-fin...

Even in vaccine-friendly California, people are having trouble getting COVID shots. Here are the conditions that qualify + other tips to get one here. www.sfchronicle.com/health/artic...

These are California’s 50 richest suburbs — a Bay Area city tops the list www.sfchronicle.com/personal-fin...

🎧 Listen to the Podcast! @sfchronicle.com's @jessicaroy.bsky.social, @latimes.com's Andrea Castillo and McClatchy's David Lightman broke down what the new law means for everyday Californians like you. 🔗: buff.ly/1As0FhK

I’m in downtown Los Angeles where the “No Kings” protest is set to begin in half an hour. There are already well over 1000 people here. The crowd is rapidly growing, and in my estimation is made up of a significantly older contingent than previous anti-ICE protests in LA. I’ll be covering all day

The Pentagon confirmed to the Chronicle that the photos of sleeping soldiers are real. www.sfchronicle.com/california/a...

As faith leaders have a crowd take a knee and pray outside the federal building, DHS officers raise their weapons at priests and National Guard members lineup with riot shields against them tonight in downtown L.A.

Law enforcement is violently targeting press at protests around Los Angeles, from easily recognizable "mainstream" outlets to freelancers and independents. ALL press have explicit legal protections in California. #JournalismIsNotACrime. This evidence thread may get graphic. 🧵👇

In the last 20 or so minutes I’ve seen LAPD officers shove women to the ground without provocation, rip a sign out of a man’s hand and then swing a baton into his leg and raise a less-lethal launcher to aim directly at a protester (which I’m 99% is a major policy violation.)

.⁦‪⁦‪@LAPDHQ‬⁩ officer just raised and aimed directly at a protester.

NEW: The CFPB has been gutted. More than 1,400 workers received RIF notices this afternoon, agency sources tell me. Around 200 employees are left. www.wired.com/story/cfpb-h...

MON at 9AM: @jessicaroy.bsky.social, @ramitsethi.bsky.social & @usnews.com Money editor Susannah Snider join to help us make sense of the economic uncertainty and how it should affect our financial choices. ❓ How are you managing your finances in response to tariffs, inflation or market changes?

On “Everybody’s Live With John Mulaney,” @jessicaroy.bsky.social sat down with Joan Baez, Michael Keaton and Fred Armisen to talk about a financial issue that most of us will face at some point.

Had to preserve a frame of Joan Baez (with Richard Kind and Jessica Roy) dancing to Cypress Hill's "Hits from the Bong" on John Mulaney's Netflix show

Hey, that's me!

Catch Chronicle columnist @jessicaroy.bsky.social LIVE on Netflix this Wednesday!

Good morning! This week I’m on Everybody’s Live With John Mulaney. Watch! Call in! #EverybodysLive

The mayor of San Jose says the state should negotiate a bulk purchase of up to 1 million ADUs and sell them to cities, agencies and homeowners to address the state's housing crunch: sfstandard.com/opinion/2025...

The CFPB released an updated and searchable database of consumer reporting companies. There are... a lot. www.consumerfinance.gov/consumer-too...

Have you built an ADU in California? I reeeally really want to hear all about it. Tell me more here: www.sfchronicle.com/personal-fin...

“Without a faster transition away from planet-heating fossil fuels, California will continue to get hotter, drier, and more flammable.” www.sfchronicle.com/weather/arti...

Pacific Palisades was a second home for housekeepers and nannies -- the place that paid their mortgages and gave their kids a place to go to school. Their employers could be as close as family. For many of them, it's all gone now: www.latimes.com/california/s... via @brittnymejia.bsky.social

Despite anti-gouging laws, we're finding examples of huge increases for available apartments in the wake of the Los Angeles wildfires. An Encino landlord raised the price of their four-bedroom listing by 28% to $11,500 a month until my colleague called them. www.latimes.com/california/s...

All of our coverage is free and open to the public here: www.latimes.com/california/l...

Direct hit on the Sunset Fire in Hollywood. 🎯 Nice work, @lafd.bsky.social #LAFD c/o @nbcla.bsky.social 👨🏼‍🚒

Los Angelenos! The app Watch Duty will keep you updated on the fires

Stuff to pack/prep if you might need to evacuate (applies to basically everyone in LA right now): Water, nonperishable food, utensils, can opener Flashlight + extra batteries First aid kit Fire extinguisher Moist towelettes, garbage bags, toilet paper, and plastic ties (cont.)

Stuff you should have on hand in case of disaster: Water (one gallon per person per day for several days) Food (several days' worth, non-perishable) Battery-powered or hand crank NOAA weather radio Flashlight First aid kit Extra batteries

Never ever a bad time to charge your devices and power banks and check your flashlight batteries!

Food eats up a lot of most budgets — and it’s one of the few areas with spending flexibility. @jessicaroy.bsky.social shares the strategy that’s been a game-changer for her: trib.al/Hvr8N3z 📸: John Blanchard/The Chronicle

I looked up whether my toddler's fever symptoms are normal and I'm absolutely losing it at how this information is being presented

All this month, I'm writing about tiny ways to improve your finances. It starts with a challenge you can do today: Commit to tracking your expenses for a month. www.sfchronicle.com/personal-fin...

Want to get on top of your money stuff in the new year? I've got a new newsletter coming out that breaks down taking charge of your finances into little bite-size daily tasks -- one for every day of January. Sign up here! It's free! www.sfchronicle.com/newsletters/...

The economy is good! Wait, no, the economy is bad. Actually, what you think about it depends a lot on how you measure it. I talked to @s-stantcheva.bsky.social about her research on why we dislike inflation: www.sfchronicle.com/personal-fin...

In Washington, D.C., a tax on residents earning more than $250,000 a year is boosting the wages of child care workers. Two years in, it's proving to be a great investment.

Lower-income Californians can get $2,000 rebates on electric bikes. My @latimes.com colleague @karenmg.bsky.social explains how: www.latimes.com/california/s...

And don't miss this exchange in the comments section: www.latimes.com/california/s...

The power went out for an hour the other night and now the electric company has sent me this inscrutable survey about my "outage experience"

Last month, I fell down an absolutely bizarre rabbit hole trying to figure out who was ripping off articles from Oregon journalists. What I found was identity theft, plagiarism and an absolutely terrifying future for local journalism led by AI scammers. My latest:

A Catholic hospital in California's capital declined to treat a woman having a miscarriage at 17 weeks. The couple says they were told to pass the fetus and dispose of it on their own -- "go home and flush your baby down the toilet, essentially" www.union-bulletin.com/news/nationa...