I’ve been so focused on revenue, subscribers, and deals that I forgot why I started. Then I saw Oprah speak at Cannes Lions yesterday.
I’ve been so focused on revenue, subscribers, and deals that I forgot why I started. Then I saw Oprah speak at Cannes Lions yesterday.
I’ve seen a lot of articles lately talking about how you can still get a sub-6% mortgage rate, despite the recent uptick.
We had 5% mortgage rates as recently as early March, but then they climbed back above 6.5% due to the conflict with Iran.
They’ve kind of been stuck there ever since and even threatened to go close to 7% before a deal was struck.
Despite all that, you can still get a 30-year fixed mortgage that starts with a “5.”
But is it actually worth the cost to do so?
If you go to a mortgage rate comparison site, or even look at the rates advertised on this blog, you’ll notice a lot of mortgage rates in the fives.
But if you dig a little deeper and look at the fine print, you’ll notice that there are mortgage points required to obtain those rates.
These points, technically known as mortgage discount points, allow borrowers to obtain below market rates.
They’re essentially prepaid interest that you can pay at loan closing to secure a lower interest rate.
But since you pay the points upfront, the monthly savings from the lower interest rate won’t absorb that cost for potentially years.
For example, if you’re offered a rate of 5.75% today, which is arguably about 0.75% below the par rate (rate with no cost or rebate), you might be required to pay 1.5-2 points upfront.
A point is simply a percentage point so for every $100,000 you borrow to finance your property, one point is equal to $1,000.
If you take out a $400,000 loan, one point would be $4,000. If it’s two points, it’s $8,000.
You only get “paid back” via lower monthly mortgage payments, which absorb that upfront cost over time.
Eventually, you’re “winning” because you’ve paid back that upfront cost and your monthly payments are lower for the remainder of the loan term.
But this only works if you stay in the loan/property long enough to break even.
I created a mortgage points calculator that calculates this break-even period to help determine if it makes sense or not.
It includes how long you plan to stay in the property and an optional tax rate to really fine-tune things.
In our example above, it’d take about two years and eight months to break even if you bought down your mortgage rate from 6.5% to 5.75% for a cost of two points.
That’s not too bad as most would likely stay in the loan/property for at least a few years in most scenarios.
And to make matters even better, you can often get seller concessions (credits) that can be used to buy down your rate. So it doesn’t necessarily even come from your own pocket.
Before you look at the math and think this is a no-brainer, I’ll surely stay in the property for 2-3 years, there’s another factor to consider.
What if mortgage rates fall back to the 5s or even lower in the next few years?
At that point, you’d have the chance to apply for a rate and term refinance to lower your rate, potentially without any cost.
That would mean that the potential savings would be lost, or that you didn’t actually need to pay thousands of dollars upfront for a lower rate.
Instead, you accept today’s par rate and wait for rates to improve, at which point you take advantage of a refinance.
Of course, lower rates aren’t a sure thing and could actually rise from here, at which point paying to buy down a rate to the 5s would look genius.
Another alternative is to go with a completely different loan program, such as an adjustable-rate mortgage.
Both the 5/6 ARM and 7/6 ARM offer a fixed interest rate for the first five to seven years before the first rate adjustment.
During that time, if rates fall you can refinance. If they’re more or less flat, you can keep your ARM after it adjusts.
Or perhaps you move at some point during those years. The only thing you’d really need to worry about would be if mortgage rates unexpectedly skyrocketed.
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Shoppers have been hunting for ways to make their dollars count for decades, and now, the longest-running savers have a shot at scoring big on their dusty stash of discounts. And now, the homeware chain Bed Bath & Beyond is giving its thriftiest shopper a $100,000 home makeover—they just need to bring in the oldest coupon to date.
Bed Bath & Beyond’s “Legendary Coupon Hunt” is underway. And participants must bring in their iconic blue-and-white coupons to Bed Bath & Beyond + The Container Store and Kirkland’s Home locations by July 13 to qualify.
There’s no doubt there will be a deluge of loyal customers vying to cash in on their oldest savings keepsake. The grand prize of the competition is a $100,000 home renovation, alongside $500 gift cards awarded to 100 top entrants, and $100 in spending money for another 50 winners.
“For decades, our customers treated these coupons like treasure,” said Amy Sullivan, President of Bed Bath & Beyond, Inc, said in the announcement. “They tucked them into purses, filing cabinets, cookbooks and memory boxes because they believed they would be valuable someday. We think they were right.”
It’s been years since the beloved home goods retailer stopped accepting the coupons back in 2023.
The struggling business had filed for bankruptcy, shuttering hundreds of its brick-and-mortar stores until none were left standing. Under a new owner, Overstock.com (now Beyond, Inc.), it launched online later that same year—but contrary to its time-honored tradition, didn’t accept the physical coupons.
However, Bed Bath & Beyond is now getting back to its roots; it re-opened its first store in August 2025, and is on track to roll out more locations this year. And the coupon hunt is reviving the nostalgia of print coupons as old-school bargain-hunting culture has made its way to the internet.
From this competition moving forward, store locations plan to go back to accepting coupons in whatever state they’re in—faded, expired, and even decades-old.
And it’s a time-honored savings ritual deployed by even the wealthiest of shoppers.
Everyone enjoys the thought of knowing they got a steal when shopping, no matter the tax bracket.
About 93% of Americans use coupons or have redeemed one within the past year, up 26% from the year prior, according to a 2026 report from Capital One. However, most were claiming a code rather than handing over their paper clippings; 169.2 million Americans used digital coupons in 2025. Around 67% of all consumers use online discounts—at a frequency 13.6% higher than their counterparts—compared to the 59% who opt for physical coupons. And there could be a few factors at play. More consumers are buying online out of convenience; foot traffic is down at brick-and-mortar stores; and brands are shifting away from “dated” print coupons.
However, the appeal of couponing has lived on for generations—no matter what medium it occupies. 95-year-old Warren Buffett is famous for clipping coupons and living in a modest Nebraska house, despite having $146 billion to his name. Years ago, the prolific investor took Bill Gates there for lunch at McDonalds, pulling coupons out of his pocket to foot the cheap eats. Gates recalled laughing at his thriftiness—but for the hedge-fund mogul, every penny counts.
And one of the greatest and highest-paid showrunners in television history, Shonda Rhimes, is right there with him. The Bridgerton and Greys Anatomy creator still cuts coupons and hunts for the best deals, despite sitting atop an estimated net worth of $240 million. Rhimes said that when people finally hit professional milestones, “The trappings change—you don’t change.”
“You know what happens when all your dreams come true? Absolutely nothing. Everything stays the same. You’re still you,” Rhimes said on the Call Her Daddy podcast last year. “I’m still the person clipping coupons, and thinking ‘Maybe I should get that on sale,’ and, ‘Maybe I shouldn’t get too comfortable like with these shows.’”
Buffy the Vampire Slayer star Sarah Michelle Gellar is also one of the millions of Americans cutting coupons out of newspapers and magazines—and she’s not afraid to take the long road to save money. At just 19 years old she was a fixture on TV screens as the star of the hit vampire series, and was raking in money that finally made her feel financially secure. And yet, even after years of success in other projects like Scooby Doo, Scream 2, and Cruel Intentions, Gellar still hesitates when splurging on expensive items.
“I cut coupons to this day,” Gellar told CNBC Make It in a 2018 interview. “Like, if there’s a coupon there, I’m going to use it…I will go back and stare at a leather jacket for a couple days before I even purchase it.”
Are you a super-couponer? Fortune wants to hear from you! Email emma.burleigh@fortune.com to share more about your thriftiest habits and how much you’ve saved over time.
[2026.6 Update] I Prefer has been added as a new transfer partner at a 1:2 ratio.
Bilt Points are Bilt’s transferable rewards currency. They can be transferred to programs such as Hyatt, Alaska Airlines (AS), JAL (JL), and United Airlines (UA), making them extremely useful points to have. In terms of transfer-partner quality, Bilt Points arguably rival—or even surpass—the transferable-points currencies offered by major banks, such as Chase Ultimate Rewards, Amex Membership Rewards, Citi ThankYou Points, and Capital One Miles.
Note that Bilt’s rewards system became fairly complicated after the Bilt 2.0 overhaul. Bilt Points, which are highly valuable and flexible, and Bilt Cash, which is much harder to use effectively, are two different currencies.
Bilt currently offers three credit cards that earn Bilt Points:
| Card Name | Bilt Blue | Bilt Obsidian | Bilt Palladium |
|---|---|---|---|
| Annual Fee | $0 | $95 | $495 |
| Bilt Points Earning | 1x on rent, mortgage, and everyday spend | 3x on dining or grocery (choice of one; grocery up to $25K/year); 2x on travel; 1x on rent, mortgage, and everyday spend | 2x on everyday spend; 1x on rent and mortgage |
| Bilt Cash Earning | 4% on everyday spend | 4% on everyday spend | 4% on everyday spend |
| Credits | N/A | $100 Bilt Travel hotel credit ($50 every six months) | $400 Bilt Travel hotel credit ($200 every six months); $200 Bilt Cash annually |
| Other | N/A | N/A | PPS |
One important point: you can still earn Bilt Points and transfer them to Bilt’s excellent partners even if you do not hold a Bilt credit card. Some ways to earn Bilt Points without a Bilt credit card include:
Of course, a Bilt credit card remains the best way to accumulate Bilt Points quickly.
Bilt Points transfer at a 1:1 ratio to the following airline programs:
Bilt Points can also be transferred to the following hotel programs:
The biggest strength of Bilt Points is their unusually valuable set of transfer partners: Hyatt, JAL (JL), Alaska Airlines (AS), and United Airlines (UA). Hyatt is an especially rare transfer partner. Until Bilt came along, Chase Ultimate Rewards was the only major transferable-points currency that could transfer to Hyatt. Transferring points to Hyatt is also one of the most valuable ways to use Chase Ultimate Rewards points. JAL and Alaska Airlines miles are both difficult to earn and can be extremely valuable. It is impressive that Bilt was able to secure both as transfer partners. United miles are also among the most useful airline currencies for U.S.-based travelers. Because of these partners, we value Bilt Points at least 1.6 cents per point.
Bilt runs Bilt Rent Day promotions on the first day of every month. One of the most important features of Rent Day is its transfer bonuses.
A 20%–30% transfer bonus is generally considered quite good. Bilt Rent Day bonuses, however, can often reach 100% or more. When there is a useful transfer opportunity, these bonuses can substantially increase the value of Bilt Points.
Bilt also has a travel portal powered by Expedia. Points redeemed through the portal are worth a fixed 1.25 cents per point.
This is usually not the best use of Bilt Points, since transferring them to Hyatt or airline partners such as United will often provide better value. Still, the portal provides a flexible fallback option when award availability is limited or when you simply prefer a cash-like travel redemption.
Bilt Points can also be redeemed for statement credits at a fixed rate of 0.55 cents per point. This redemption rate is far too low to be attractive and is generally not recommended.
Although Bilt’s Bilt 2.0 credit cards have not been particularly well received, Bilt Points themselves remain an excellent rewards currency.
Their standout feature is Bilt’s rare collection of transfer partners: Hyatt, JAL (JL), Alaska Airlines (AS), and United Airlines (UA). Hyatt is an especially valuable and uncommon partner, while JAL and Alaska miles are difficult to earn and can offer excellent redemption value. United miles are also widely useful for U.S.-based travelers. These partners alone make Bilt Points worth at least 1.6 cents per point in our view.
United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres on Tuesday called on artificial intelligence companies to release information about the carbon pollution they create, along with the water and land used to power their operations.
While urging action in an address at London Climate Action Week, Guterres proposed the AI Environmental Transparency Initiative, arguing AI companies should measure and disclose the impact of their increasingly in-demand technology — impact which has been cited by opponents as reasons to curb the rapid growth of data centers. These companies have faced mounting pressure, both from governments and locally in areas with data centers that support AI, for increased transparency and more standardized reporting across the industry.
Guterres said AI companies should also commit to powering their facilities with electricity produced with renewable technologies, such as wind and solar, by 2030.
“No more hidden costs,” Guterres said at Europe’s largest independent climate conference. “No more shifting the burden onto those least able to bear it. It is time to come clean.”
Many major tech companies have vowed to power their operations using cleaner sources, some by the end of the decade. Some plan to do so especially using solar and nuclear, including tech giants Amazon and Google.
But the race to deploy AI has complicated those commitments and sent soaring greenhouse gas emissions, which come from the burning of fuels like oil, coal and gas, and heat the planet. Regulatory barriers have also hindered climate-friendly projects.
Currently, coal sources about 30% of the electricity consumed by data centers globally, according to the International Energy Agency. Renewable energy – primarily wind, solar and hydro powers – supplies about 27%, natural gas, 26%, and nuclear, 15%. Renewables are expected to meet just half of that demand over the next five years.
As AI booms, many, including Guterres, have touted its ability to accelerate climate solutions. It could improve energy efficiency, and reduce pollution and emissions.
At the same time, the environmental footprint of data centers already rivals some of the world’s largest countries, according to a U.N. report released earlier this month.
That report also said the water, energy use and pollution associated with AI will double in just four years. Data centers needed to fuel AI accounted for about 1.5% of the world’s electricity consumption in 2025, and will account for nearly 3% of the world’s projected electricity use by 2030.
“Despite these obvious concerns, communities are often left in the dark about the environmental impact of the infrastructure rising around them,” Guterres said in his remarks.
The U.N. chief has long urged the world to take serious climate action, and will once again convene leaders at the annual Conference of Parties, this year in Turkey, to negotiate plans.
On Tuesday, addressing AI was just a number of steps he said needed to be taken to keep the world below the warming limit of 1.5 degrees Celsius (2.7 degrees Fahrenheit) compared to pre-industrial times, a goal set during the 2015 Paris Agreement.
Last year was the first time that the three-year temperature average broke through that threshold.
“Every major emitter must accelerate action,” Guterres said. “And every country must over-deliver on its commitments.”
He called for cutting methane, a powerful greenhouse gas responsible for around one-third of global warming and significantly more potent than carbon dioxide, though comparatively it lingers for less time in the atmosphere. He also called for a reduction in dependence on coal, oil and gas.
Guterres noted in his remarks positive developments in renewable energy, as scale drives down the costs of the technologies and adoption increases.
Clean power generation — largely driven by solar and wind — exceeded overall global electricity demand growth last year. The share of renewables also hit more than one-third of the world’s electricity mix for the first time in modern history in 2025, and coal power saw its share fall below one-third of global generation.
China continues to drive the world’s clean energy transition, and in Europe, fossil generation is generally trending down.
But the U.S. under President Donald Trump has embraced coal, oil and gas and slashed support for renewables and broader climate action — all amid the global energy crisis exacerbated by the U.S. war in Iran, which Guterres called “the mother of all energy shocks.”
Guterres referred to the current state of the world as “A Tale of Two Crises,” drawing a metaphor to the Charles Dickens’ novel, “A Tale of Two Cities” — also a nod to London where the address was given.
“For the climate agenda, this is indeed the best of times and the worst of times,” he said. “The worst – because climate impacts are intensifying, tipping points are looming, and the energy crisis has exposed the deep risks of dependence on fossil fuels. But also the best – because the renewables revolution is well underway.”
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Alexa St. John is an Associated Press climate reporter. Follow her on X: @alexa_stjohn. Reach her at ast.john@ap.org.
___
The Associated Press’ climate and environmental coverage receives financial support from multiple private foundations. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP’s standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at AP.org.
Condos are a popular choice for many first-time homebuyers owing to their lower price point and access to amenities such as gyms and pools.
The federal government does not have the legal authority to forgive all student loans through executive action. But in narrow circumstances, it can compromise (meaning settle, discharge, or write off) federal student debt on a case-by-case basis, and it can suspend or terminate collection on defaulted loans it decides aren’t worth pursuing.
This matters more in 2026 than it has in years. Collections on defaulted loans restarted in May 2025 after a five-year pandemic pause, then the Department of Education hit pause again in January 2026 — postponing wage garnishment and Treasury offsets while it rolls out the repayment overhaul that takes effect July 1, 2026.
At the same time, the Department has begun handing its defaulted loan portfolio to the Treasury Department, and roughly 9 million borrowers are now in default. For that group, understanding when (and whether) the government will settle a balance is no longer a fringe question.
Below, we break down when federal borrowers may be able to get a student loan compromise, suspension, or termination of collection activity, what’s actually changed, and where the rules still stand exactly where they did.
The U.S. Department of Education does sometimes settle long-defaulted federal student loans at a discount. The three standard settlement offers include:
These settlements must be paid in a lump sum by the end of the year. They generally exceed the amounts the U.S. Department of Education could collect through wage garnishment and the offset of income tax refunds and Social Security benefit payments.
As discussed in Is Student Loan Forgiveness By Executive Order Legal, the President and Secretary of Education do not have the legal authority to implement broad student loan forgiveness except when specifically authorized by Congress.
But the Money and Finance section of the U.S. Code, enacted in 1982, provides the legal authority for federal agencies (such as Education Department) to compromise debt owed to the federal government in certain circumstances. These circumstances can include federal education loans, not just federal contracts.
The authority to compromise federal student loans most often manifests itself with regard to defaulted federal student loans and bankruptcy discharge of student loans. Federal agencies are required to take “all appropriate steps” to collect any delinquent debt before discharging it. [31 USC 3711(g)(9)] These steps include:
However, according to 31 USC 3711(a)(2), federal agencies may compromise claims of up to $100,000 (not including interest) under two circumstances:
The U.S. Department of Education relies on the regulations found in 31 CFR 902 and 31 CFR 903 for deciding when to compromise federal student debt, suspend, or terminate collection of it.
The regulations at 31 CFR 902.1 specify that the authority to compromise debts of $100,000 or less (not including interest, penalties and administrative costs) rests with the federal agency (i.e. the U.S. Department of Education). Meanwhile, the authority to compromise of debts greater than $100,000 rests with U.S. Department of Justice.
The regulations at 31 CFR 902.2 specify several bases for the Department of Education to compromise federal student debt including when:
Let’s take a closer look at how the Education Department determines when a borrower is unable to repay a debt and when the cost of collection is considered unjustified.
When determining whether the borrower is unable to repay the debt, 31 CFR 902.2(b) instructs federal agencies to consider the:
This information should be verified by the federal agency using credit reports and other financial information, such as the borrower’s current financial statement showing income, expenses, assets and liabilities.
Guaranty agencies can decide against opposing an undue hardship petition on a FFELP loan when “the expected cost of opposing the discharge petition would exceed one-third of the total amount owed on the loan.” Otherwise, guarantee agencies are required to oppose the borrower’s discharge petition or agree to a partial discharge if necessary to obtain a judgment against the borrower.
Similar rules apply to the Federal Perkins Loan program. And the U.S. Department of Education follows a similar process in the Direct Loan program, although there are no regulations that require it.
In practice, the one-third calculation does not seem to occur. The cost of litigation often exceeds a third of the average student loan debt that borrowers seek to discharge through an undue hardship petition. Why would the Education Department oppose petitions when the cost of collection is so high? It seems that it’s willing to do so simply to prove a point and deter future borrowers.
According to 31 CFR 902.2(e), the federal government may continue to collect a debt, even if the cost of collection exceeds the potential recoveries, if this is necessary to demonstrate its “willingness to pursue aggressively defaulting and uncooperative debtors” as a deterrent to default by other borrowers.
In 31 CFR 902.2(c), it mandates that compromises must bear “a reasonable relation to the amount that can be recovered by enforced collection procedures…” But the amount accepted in compromise may reflect “an appropriate discount for the administrative and litigative costs of collection.”
When there is significant doubt about the federal government’s ability to prove its case in court, “the amount accepted in compromise of such cases should fairly reflect the probabilities of successful prosecution to judgment.” Court costs and attorney fees should also be considered.
Generally, compromises must be paid in a lump sum and not in installments. Discharged debts must be reported by the federal agency to the IRS. And when a debt is discharged, the federal agency must release any liens that secure the debt.
Federal agencies may suspend collection of a debt when the:
Federal agencies may terminate collection of a debt when the:
It’s important to understand that even after collection termination, the federal agency might pursue collection activity in the future if the borrower’s financial circumstances change, a new collection tool becomes available, or it’s able to offset income or assets that weren’t previously available. This means that there’s little practical difference between the suspension and termination of collection activity.
Finally, federal agencies may choose to sell the debt, if the sale is in the best interest of the United States. But the U.S. Department of Education must first have satisfied the requirements listed above to terminate collection activity.
The government can’t forgive student loans without congressional authorization, but it does have the power to compromise, suspend, or terminate collection in limited cases. That authority is generally reserved for debt deemed “uncollectable,” and the rules haven’t changed even as the defaulted portfolio shifts toward Treasury.
For most borrowers, a settlement isn’t the first move. Pursuing a compromise can make sense if you truly can’t repay based on your finances, or if the government’s cost to collect would be very high — and if you have a lump sum to offer. Otherwise, the 2026 options may serve you better:
Pursuing a federal student loan compromise could be worth it if you’re truly unable to repay your loans based on your financial situation or if the cost of collecting your debts would be very high. Otherwise, you may want to focus on other student debt relief measures such as joining an income-driven repayment plan or applying for federal forbearance or deferment.
Editor: Robert Farrington
Reviewed by: Chris Muller
The post Can You Settle Federal Student Loans for Less? What the Rules Say in 2026 appeared first on The College Investor.