Arizona’s Family On Your Side

If you’ve ever bought or sold a house, you know how costs, including realtors’ fees, can add up quickly. With that said, the National Association of Realtors and several large brokerages were ordered to pay $1.8 billion dollars in damages after a jury found real estate agents conspired to inflate home commissions. On this episode, we’re talking with Katrina Barrett. She a Valley realtor, and she’s...

The kids just finished trick-or-treating, and we’re moving on quickly to the holiday season. This year, holiday shopping started earlier than ever as people try to spread out their spending and manage inflation. On this episode, we’re talking with Angelica Prescod, a financial advisor with Edward Jones in Scottsdale. She’s going to help us stick to our holiday budget, and give us some cost-saving...

On Your Side is always working to warn people about the different tactics bad guys are using to steal money and information. Today we’re talking with Brian Watson on the On Your Side podcast. He’s a retired special agent with the IRS’ Criminal Investigation and now he works with an organization called ROSE which stands for "Resources and Outreach to Safeguard the Elderly." We’ll talk about scam lo...

October is National Estate Planning month, which may be more important than you think. It's a time when individuals and families are reminded of the importance of creating or maintaining a trust or will. One myth is that you have to be wealthy or have a substantial real estate portfolio in order to have a will or trust. But nothing could be further from the truth. For instance, if you have minor c...

October here is here already and that means it's time to make sure you enroll in health insurance and everything else that goes with it for 2024. We're talking life insurance, hospital indemnity plans, disability. It can all be overwhelming. For instance, should you go with a high-deductible policy and if so, what are the risks? Remember, the decisions you make now will be in place for all of 2024...

Today we’re talking about smart TVs. Of course, we flip of the TV to stream our favorite movies, shows and sports. But the latest TV technology could also help us stay healthy with access to telehealth and virtual clinics. Our guest today is Patrick Pannett. He is the Director of Industry Communications with the Consumer Technology Association. He’s going to help guide us through smart TV technolo...

Sixty-eight percent of American households own a pet, and many of them are of course dogs and cats. But owning a pet comes with added expenses. Vaccinations, healthcare and unexpected visits to the vet all add up quickly. And one of the number one reasons owners have to take their pets for an emergency vet visit has to do with eating something they're not supposed to eat.  Today, Dr. Ricky Walther...

When it comes to finding a good restaurant, a caring doctor or maybe even a talented contractor, consumers have learned to rely on Internet reviews. But how legitimate are those reviews and more importantly, can you really trust what they all say? The answer is "no" because many of the reviews we read are "fake," put on the Internet to reel in new customers. Today, Kay Dean joins us on the On Your...

For all parents, the path to parenthood is unique, and for many families, it includes adoption. It can be an emotional process. And now scammers are preying on people who desperately want a child. Today, Nicole Witt joins us on the on your side podcast. She is the executive director of the adoption consultancy – and the host of ‘adopting! The podcast’ helping families who want to adopt with educat...

Student loan payments have been on hold for years. But they’re back beginning in October. At the same time, millions of borrowers are enrolling in a new income-driven student loan repayment plan called “SAVE” which is reducing monthly student loan bills. It may feel complicated, so today Robert Farringdon joins us on the On Your Side podcast. He’s the founder of ‘The College Investor’ and calls hi...

Like it or not, Artificial Intelligence is here to stay. We have self-driving cars, smart assistants, manufacturing robots and countless other examples of machines acting like humans. Artificial intelligence is already available in hundreds of different industries and it's only a matter of time before the number starts to increase. So, don't get left behind in the world of AI. Colleges are startin...

The real estate market across the nation, including here in Phoenix, has really slowed down due to higher interest rates and low inventory. So, if you're even thinking of trying to sell your home, what can you do to get it SOLD? Well, you want to set your home apart from your competition and that includes updating your house. Olivia Mariani from Curbio joins us on the On Your Side podcast. She tel...

This has not been a good year for American workers, as more than a quarter million people were shown the door after getting laid-off. The tech industry was hurt the most with big companies like Facebook and Zoom laying off thousands. Unfortunately, many of those affected didn’t see it coming and were financially unprepared. Today, we’re talking to Stewart Willis. He’s a financial expert with Asset...

Have you ever heard of an airline offering super cheap airfare, but once you try to but those tickets, they are all gone? There's a reason they get gobbled up so fast, and it's not because some consumers are quicker to react.  On this episode, we're talking to Jesper Essendrop, the CEO of Queue-It. He reveals the results of his investigation into how bots are making things more difficult for trave...

It's estimated that a little over 2 million weddings will take place here in the United States by the end of the year. That's significantly higher than the past three years. And while more weddings are taking place, the price tag for the big day has sky rocketed. In fact, a whopping $29,000 is the national average cost for a wedding.   Today, Ann Kaplan joins us on the On Your Side podcast. She’s...

When you send your kid off to college, are they ready to clean? Do they know how often to clean, or how to wash their bedding? According to a new survey, a lot of parents aren't so sure, and neither are their college-bound kids. On this episode, we're talking to Brian Sansoni, a cleaning expert and the Senior Vice President of Communications, Outreach, and Membership at the American Cleaning Insti...

If you’re on the house hunt, you know the real estate market is competitive. Turns out, it’s competitive for real estate agents, too. A new report by the Consumer Federation of America shows there are too many real estate agents for too few home sales. And it is coming at a cost to consumers. On the On Your Side podcast, we are chatting with Steven Brobeck, the author of the report. He’s the senio...

Are you looking for a job and you feel like you're not getting a lot of interest from potential employers? Well, it may be that your resume isn't AI friendly. Artificial Intelligence is weeding out job candidates based on certain words that may or may not be in your resume. But don't worry, you can turn that resume around. Today, we're talking to Jeremy Schiff. He's the CEO of RecruitBot which is...

Summer is officially here. And by now, you may have some bored kids out of school for summer vacation. So on this episode, we’re chatting with one of our favorite money-saving moms. Her name is Andrea Woroch and she tells us how to help salvage summer fun without breaking the bank, whether you’re home or away on vacation.

It’s hard to keep up with the real estate market these days. One month, it seems housing prices are falling. The next month prices are creeping up. A lot of it has to do with interest rates that the fed has increased 10 straight times in a little over a year. Another factor is where you live. So, some lenders have come up with something called the 1 percent mortgage.   Today, we’re talking to Jeff...

How often are you Googling for answers? On this episode, we're talking with Bailey Tomson, a Google Trends expert. We'll go behind the scenes of some of the most recent trends that have millions searching like how much to tip and what we're dreaming about.

Graduation is here, not only for college students but high school students as well. But looking for job opportunities after leaving school can be ripe with scams. Fake job postings, phony offers, and high pay are all techniques that scammers use to lure unsuspecting job seekers down a road to financial loss and big disappointment. So, today Kevin Roundy joins us on the On Your Side podcast. He's a...

Is AI killing customer service? On this episode, we're talking with Micah Solomon, a customer service expert and author of several books including "Ignore Your Customers (and They'll Go Away)" and "Your Customer is the Star." We'll discuss what companies are doing wrong with customer service, what they're doing right, and what customers can do to get the very best service.

Summer is coming up and chances are you might be taking a vacation somewhere. Maybe you booked a cruise, bought airline tickets, or plan on driving to a theme park like Disney World. If so, did you purchase travel insurance? Some consumers buy travel insurance when it comes to big ticket vacations like flying overseas, or booking a cruise. It gives them a little peace of mind just in case somethin...

No matter where you’re at in your career, you’ve probably dreamed of retirement at least once or twice. But a growing number of workers and retirees are worried about retirement. This year’s new retirement confidence survey shows 64 percent of workers are confident they’ll have enough money to live comfortably throughout their retirement years. That’s down from 73 percent just last year.   In this...