SoFi supports entrepreneurship and startups through our Entrepreneur Program, which provides members with networking, mentorship, and an opportunity to defer their student loans. Our #SoFiStartups series profiles members who participate in the program, highlights the ups and downs of their entrepreneurship journey, and offers advice for other aspiring entrepreneurs.

With a background in architecture and engineering, SoFi member Ben Silverman spent the early part of his career designing building facades that were highly energy efficient. But his interest in sustainability soon extended past structures and into another one of his passions—food.

Two Sides is a new series of articles in which we ask SoFi members and employees to weigh in with their experiences, perspectives, and insights on topics important to our diverse community.

When house hunting, you might have trouble deciding whether you want to buy new home or invest in a fixer-upper. While a new or newer home typically requires little or no work, you’ll likely pay market price, which means ponying up more dough up front. With a fixer-upper, there’s a good chance you’ll get a deal that allows you to put less money down, but you’ll need funds on hand for immediate renovations. You’ll also need to plan ahead financially for any fixes you want to make at a gradual pace.

When you can’t make it home for Thanksgiving, throwing (or attending) a Friendsgiving dinner party is the next best thing. Friendsgiving is the perfect occasion to give thanks with your closest friends, gorge yourself on terrific food and drinks, and, of course, watch some football.

This annual get-together of great friends and food has increased in popularity over the years, and one reason for that is the cost of air travel. For example, if you live in San Francisco and want to spend the four-day Thanksgiving weekend with your family in New York City, a non-stop, round trip ticket will cost anywhere from $738 (JetBlue) to $1222 (American). If you work in a demanding professional career, your career goals might force to you stick around town. But a tight budget or work obligations shouldn’t mean you have to miss out on what many people believe to be the best holiday of the year. You’ve got friends—lots of them—and some of them might be in the same position as you are.