SoFi Blog

There are over 5.1 million photos tagged with #vanlife on Instagram as of this writing. There are photos taken in the backs of vans and showing toes poking out of plush comforters that open up to sweeping beaches. They show dogs wearing handkerchiefs around their necks in converted vans, tiny kitchens, and adorable couples who’ve struck out on their own in rolling tiny spaces.

There’s no real way to tell how many people are actively living a van life, since no van life census exists. But it’s hard to deny that the trend has been growing and more and more folks are taking their tiny house dreams on the road. Maybe you’ve just landed a remote job. Maybe you’re looking for a huge project. Or maybe you’re just looking for a change in scenery (and another change and another change).

Regardless of your motivation, you might be about to make a huge change and you want to give some time and thought to the real cost of van life. Here are some costs and van life essentials to think about.

Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies aren’t endorsed or guaranteed by any government, are volatile, and involve a high degree of risk. For more information, see FINRA , SEC , and CFPB public advisories concerning digital asset risk.

Facebook is no stranger to mixing it up—and making headlines. First, they dropped the word “the” from their name to go from “the Facebook ” to just Facebook.

They then created the timeline, and put the algorithm through change after change, which probably led to at least one person you know to post a message about how they hoped it would somehow go back to how it used to be.

They bought Instagram and a VR company and put Farmville requests into countless American homes and mobile devices. Now they’re looking to make waves again with Libra.

You might be thinking that Libra is a new social media platform, a hot new unicorn startup acquisition, or a codename for a killer new feature.

It’s none of those things. It’s actually the big blue thumb’s first foray into the world of cryptocurrency. Yep, Facebook, that very same Facebook, now has its very own altcoin and they announced it Tuesday, June 18 with a whitepaper called “An Introduction to Libra .”

One of the biggest investments a student can make is pursuing a graduate degree. Today, more than ever before, more people are taking on a larger amount of debt for master’s programs. We at SoFi believe you should be able to focus on your degree, not your debt. With our newly launched SoFiPrivate Student Loans for graduate school, we want to help you get low-rate loans that you can pay back on your own terms.

Just like our undergraduate student loans, launched earlier this year, our graduate school loans have no fees, competitive rates, flexible repayment options (deferred, interest-only, partial, and immediate), and a mobile-first experience. In addition to this, those pursuing their MBA or law degree will have access to specialty graduate pricing.

Slack Technologies, Inc. is a game-changing and familiar company that’s been making waves around Silicon Valley and across the globe. With that, it’s no surprise that their upcoming IPO is cause for some buzz in the investment world.

Some of you might even be logged into Slack right now. If you’re not already familiar with the company, it provides a cloud-based messaging and file-sharing service that facilitates workplace collaboration. You can think of it as a hub that replaces email.

Anyone that’s ever worked on a project with a team of people while at work knows that email doesn’t always get the job done. Email is one-sided, and conversations can become buried under the pile of junk that constantly pollutes our inboxes. And most importantly, it is not conducive to a fluid conversation between a group of people.

The need for such a service was clearly there. Slack filled that void and has subsequently seen success, and is now taking the company public.

Graduation is an exciting milestone that serves as a marker for a new chapter in life. The next steps for high school graduates may include heading off to college—eager to pursue a college degree in the field of their choice. As a college graduate, after years of studying, they’re graduating with a degree in hand. They may be continuing toward a master’s degree or planning on joining the workforce.

As the graduates in your life embark on their next steps, they might need a bevy of new things to get them though. That’s why, as you’re racking your brain trying to think of what to buy a college graduate, it can make sense to gift them something on the practical side, something that might come in handy as they head off on their new adventures.

And hey, no one ever said practical needed to be boring. Here are nine useful gift ideas for the recent graduate in your life.