Realtor.com CEO Damian Eales takes aim at regulations, red tape Realtor.com CEO Damian Eales weighed in on what measures are needed to address America’s housing crisis, taking particular aim at excessive regulation. The U.S. has been contending with affordability and supply issues in its housing market for some time, making it difficult for people to purchase homes. "America is in a state of gridlock in terms of housing transactions where we’re really, for the last two years we’ve been hitting 30-year lows," Eales said during a recent "Mornings with Maria" appearance. "That’s largely because of high interest rates. Most American mortgages – in fact, 70% of American mortgages – are below 5%, so prevailing rates are closer to 6.8%, perhaps even going up shortly. Sellers are very reluctant to sell because they’re going to have to refinance at a much higher cost." High costs of homes compared to income have also made it challenging for people to enter the market, the Realtor.com CEO said. In the U.S., there is a supply gap of 3.8 million homes as well, according to a report released by Realtor.com in March. Eales said Realtor.com was "optimistic that all of the moving parts of the economy will fall into place such that there can be easing of mortgage rates." The 30-year fixed mortgage rate came in at 6.81% on average the week of April 24, according to Freddie Mac. "But I would say that even if mortgage rates were to drop substantially, that would free up the market, but it certainly wouldn’t address this issue of a lack of supply, which the president is also trying to address in terms of freeing up federal lands," Eales remarked The Trump administration’s Joint Task Force on Federal Land for Housing was unveiled in March. The goal is to pinpoint "underutilized" federal lands that could be "suitable" for housing development as well as make land transfer processes smoother and promote measures to boost affordable housing, according to a memorandum of understanding. "It’s not just an issue for federal policymakers," Eales said. "This is really an issue for state and local governments to free up the ability to build those homes." He said federal and local governments need to ease regulations and get rid of costly red tape to help with housing affordability and supply. "It is estimated that one-quarter of the cost of any new home in this country is due to red tape, so freeing up regulations. I think environmental regulations in many states throughout the country have been really weaponized to just prevent development of any type. That has to be addressed," the Realtor.com CEO said. "And I think that a combination of that and looking at zoning regulations that prevent multifamily developments," he continued. "Now, you don’t want multifamily developments in every neighborhood in the country, but around public transport stations, you do want multifamily developments. That would ease the housing crisis that exists today." He told "Mornings with Maria" there were "a bunch of other areas" of regulation that could also be changed, giving an example of some rent seekers who "take advantage of the planning process." "That’s not a federal government issue, that’s a local government issue, and it’s a state government issue," Eales said. "So it’s one thing for the Feds to free up federal lands, but it has to come at a bipartisan sense with local and state government reducing regulation and wanting growth in their economy." His appearance on "Mornings with Maria" came the same day that Realtor.com bestowed letter grades on America’s 50 states and Washington, D.C., in its "Grading the States: Affordability & Homebuilding Report Cards" report. Only three states – South Carolina, Iowa and Texas – earned scores in the A range when it came to affordability and their "ability to meet future supply challenges through new construction," according to Realtor.com. Meanwhile, seven states got an "F" in the report, with New York, Massachusetts and Rhode Island at the very bottom. The others with that letter grade were identified as Oregon, Connecticut, California and Hawaii. Eales indicated he thought regulations were hampering affordability and homebuilding in some states toward the bottom of the ranking. "I think it’s also a growth mindset," he added. "I think that the South and the Midwest have a, generally speaking, those states have a real growth mindset, they want new housing development." For March, the National Association of Realtors pegged the median price of existing single-family homes at $408,000. New single-family homes purchased in March had a median price of $403,600, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

There is something peculiar about entering a building only to be greeted by another one inside it, so it takes a moment to adjust upon arriving on the second floor of London’s prestigious Tate Modern art gallery. Directly in front of the entryway is a 1:1 scale facsimile of Do Ho Suh’s childhood home in Seoul, which he wrapped in mulberry paper and carefully traced in graphite to produce an intricate rubbing of the exterior. It is just one of many versions of home envisioned by the Korean artist over the past 30 years. Running at Tate Modern through to October, “Walk the House” is Suh’s largest solo institutional show to date in the UK, where he has been based since 2016. Before that, he lived in the US, having studied at the Rhode Island School of Design and Yale University in the 1990s. The exhibition’s name stems from an expression used in the context of the “hanok,” a traditional Korean house that can be taken down and reassembled elsewhere, thanks to its construction and lightweight materials. The buildings have become rarer over time, because of urbanization, war and occupation, which led to the destruction of many traditional homes in the country. Suh’s own childhood home was an outlier amid Seoul’s changing cityscape during the 1970s, which underwent rapid development after the Korean War left the city in ruins. It spurred the artist’s ongoing preoccupations with home as both a physical space that could be dissolved and reanimated, but also a psychological construct that can reflect memory and identity. Among the show’s exhibits are embroidered artworks, architectural models in various materials and scales, and film works involving complex 3D techniques. The detailed outlines picked up in Suh’s hanok rubbing are echoed in two closely related large-scale pieces on display for the first time, both of which visitors can walk inside. “Perfect Home: London, Horsham, New York, Berlin, Providence, Seoul” (2024) takes various 3D fixtures and fittings from homes Suh has lived in around the world and maps them onto a tent-like model of his London apartment. “Nest/s” (2024) is a pastel-hued tunnel, again based on different places he has called home, this time splicing together incongruous hallways — an environment that holds symbolic meaning for the artist. “I think that the experience of cultural displacement helped me to see these in-between spaces, the space that connects places. That journey lets me focus on transitional spaces, like corridors, staircases, entrances,” Suh told CNN at the show’s opening. The exhibition also features “Staircase” (2016), a 3D structure that was subsequently collapsed into a red, sinewy 2D tangle. “I think in general we tend to focus on destinations, but these bridges that connect those destinations, often we neglect them, but actually we spend most of our time in this transitional Removing internal walls There’s a translucent quality to much of the work on display. Fine, gauzy textiles are used directly within many of the pieces, as well as in the form of a subtle room divider — the closest thing to an internal wall in the main space. “For the first time since 2016, the galleries of the exhibition will have all their walls taken down in order to accommodate the multiple large-scale works that will be materialized within them, as well as the multiple times and spaces that those works carry,” said Dina Akhmadeeva, assistant curator for international art at Tate Modern, who co-curated the show with Nabila Abdel Nabi, senior curator of international art at the Hyundai Tate Research Centre: Transnational. “In doing so, the open layout will form not a linear passage or narrative, but instead encourage visitors to meander, return, loop back, evoking an experience closer to the function of memory itself.” Suh’s emphasis on spatial interventions poses creative challenges for curators as well as the institutions that hold these works. One such example is “Staircase-III” (2010), acquired by the Tate back in 2011, which often needs to be adapted to wherever it is shown by measuring new panels to fit each space. “I wanted to disturb the habitual experience of (encountering) an artwork in a museum,” said Suh by way of explanation. Akhmadeeva added that the approach challenged the “idea of permanence — of the work and of the space around it.” Removing the gallery walls also reflects Suh’s interest in peeling environments back to their foundations. “It’s just the bare space that the architects originally conceived,” he said. Suh’s work often focuses on spatial experiences rather than material goods because, just like the rooms and buildings we inhabit, an empty space behaves like a “vessel” for memories, he explained. “Over the years and the time that you’ve spent in the space, you project your own experience and energy onto it, and then it becomes a memory.” Exploring transience The artist does occasionally focus on ornaments and furnishings, however, as seen in his monumental film, “Robin Hood Gardens” (named after the East London housing estate it captures), which used photogrammetry to stitch together drone footage taken inside the council building awaiting demolition. It marked a rare instance of Suh documenting both residents and their belongings. The film illustrates the subtle politics of Suh’s practice. “Often in my case, the color and the craftsmanship and the beauty in my work distract from the political undertone of it,” he said. Issues such as privacy, security, and access to space are intimately connected to class and public policy, but his commentary is covered in a soft veil of fabric or the gentle rub of graphite. The latter is also used in “Rubbing/Loving: Company Housing of Gwangju Theater” (2012), which reflects on the deadly Gwangju Uprising of 1980. The artwork resembles the shell of a room that is unravelled to form a flat, vertical structure, like a deconstructed box. It is based on a rubbing that was taken by Suh and his assistants while blindfolded — a nod to the censorship of the military’s violent response and its absence from South Korean collective memory. The exhibition is bookended by pieces that address sociopolitical questions. “Bridge Project” (1999) explores land ownership among other issues, while “Public Figures” (2025), an evolution of a piece Suh made for the Venice Biennale in 2001, is a subverted monument featuring an empty plinth, directing focus to the many miniature figurines upholding it. For Suh, it was intended to address Korea’s histories of both oppression and resilience. While these two exhibits may feel distinct, for Suh, all of his work interrogates the boundaries between personal and public space, and the conditions that force transience or enable permanence. The tension between public and private was thrown into sharp relief during the pandemic, when lockdowns forced people to spend most of their time indoors. Although Suh “scrutinized” all corners of his home during this time, the lockdowns didn’t materialize in his practice in the way one might expect. Instead, it elicited a more tender reflection on what is often the making of a home: people. It explains why, among the substantial, often colorful structures in the exhibition, there are two small tunics made for (and with) his two young daughters, adorned with pockets holding their most cherished belongings, such as crayons and toys. “As a parent, it was quite a vulnerable situation. Other families, I cannot speak for them, but it really helped us to be together,” said Suh.

Last month, four Republicans from the House and Senate sent letters to the presidents of Ivy League schools demanding years of data about how they decide what to charge. These institutions, the letters said, “establish the industry standard for tuition pricing, creating an umbrella effect for all colleges and universities to justify higher tuition costs than they could otherwise charge in a competitive market.” In fact, no more than a few dozen other schools can command Ivy League prices from a high percentage of their students and their families. Every other private institution — and most public ones — compete brutally on price up until the May 1 reply date each year (and sometimes afterward). The average tuition discount among private colleges is now over 56 percent for first-time, full-time students. Those discounts — which often come in the form of merit scholarships — can make a six-figure difference in what families pay over four years. This aid is different and often less predictable than the need-based kind that depends on a family’s income and assets. Advertisement SKIP ADVERTISEMENT The driving force behind college pricing is not some evil genius at Harvard or Penn. Instead, it’s a series of algorithms developed quietly over decades by consulting firms operating just out of sight. The two biggest — EAB and Ruffalo Noel Levitz, or RNL — are owned by private equity firms. To understand how all this happened — and how things really work today, for families and the financiers hoping to make money off this opaque system — we need to turn the clock back 50 years to when an unlikely character took over the admissions department at Boston College and upended everything.

Mushroom coffee is gaining ground as a substitute for the morning caffeine fix. While drinking mushrooms might not sound like the most appealing thing in the world, the trend has attracted attention for its array of health benefits and added energy boost. Mushroom coffee proponents have said it promotes better sleep — plus provides more energy, improves focus, boosts the immune system and reduces inflammation, according to a Harvard Health publication. Some mushroom coffee makers also claim the drink can boost mood and gut health. Most mushroom coffees do include caffeine but contain about half the amount of a regular cup of coffee. The brew is typically made with medicinal mushrooms, including common varieties such as chaga, lion's mane, reishi, cordyceps, king trumpet and turkey tail, Harvard Health noted. These are considered adaptogens as part of the "adaptogenic mushroom coffee" infusion that's meant to provide health benefits. In a video posted to Instagram over the weekend, Fox News co-anchor Dana Perino of "America's Newsroom" and "The Five" shared her love of mushroom coffee with "Fox & Friends" co-hosts Rachel Campos-Duffy and Charlie Hurt. "I'm a big proponent and I love amazing coffee," Perino said as her colleagues took a sip. "It's like mushroom soup," Hurt reacted with disapproval. "You've just ruined it for me," Campos-Duffy responded. "I was about to say 'great.'" Perino rated her mushroom coffee a 10 out of 10 — while Campos-Duffy gave it a four and Hurt gave it a one. "Ask Martha McCallum, she likes it, too," said Perino. "It kind of does grow on you," Campos-Duffy said. In a conversation with Fox News Digital, Perino detailed how she started drinking mushroom coffee about a year ago to replace English breakfast tea that she used to drink with honey. "I don't like how coffee tastes, but I love the scent of it brewing," she said. "I've cut out most sugar – and so I tried the Amazing Coffee brand. I used to use the collagen creamer when it was not sweetened, but they've changed that, so now I just include it with a splash of almond milk." Perino said her mushroom coffee mix gives her a bit of "get-up-and-go" energy in the morning. "Let the record show that, after the video, Charlie said the taste had grown on him," she added. Nutritionists also back the benefits of mushroom coffee. Los Angeles-based registered dietitian nutritionist Ilana Muhlstein told Fox News Digital that many of these mushrooms are grown in "cold, harsh climates." Chaga mushrooms that are grown in Siberia or northern Canada must survive in 40-degree Fahrenheit conditions, she said. The intense cold forces the mushroom to produce more antioxidants for protection, the nutritionist stated. "This not only increases the nutrient density of the mushroom, but it takes on a powerful sense of adaptability," she said. "The reason it can be helpful to consume adaptogen mushrooms is that you are getting more powerful antioxidants in your system and perhaps a heightened ability to adapt to stressors in your life as well." For people who drink coffee every day or are chronically stressed, Muhlstein suggested that adding a mushroom complex can be "greatly beneficial." "Even if it's just a placebo effect, which works for me," she said. "When I consume adaptogens, I try to envision myself taking on their powerful survival skills and ability to handle challenges." Recent studies have proven the immune-boosting and metabolism-regulating properties of medicinal mushrooms, according to Harvard Health. The mushrooms' high antioxidant levels can also help slow down the aging process, though there has been no clinical research conducted on the impact of mushroom coffee.

New data has revealed the major American cities that have the cheapest food delivery fees. A website for deal-seekers and shoppers analyzed data from DoorDash and Grubhub across 20 major U.S. cities and food categories to calculate the average delivery fee per order. Four Texas cities rank in the top 10 overall, data from BravoDeal.com showed. Fort Worth had the cheapest average DoorDash delivery fees, at just 40 cents per order. Dallas wasn't far behind, ranking second with an average charge of 47 cents. Houston came in sixth at 63 cents, while San Antonio was eighth at 67 cents and Austin was ninth at 70 cents. Austin had the cheapest average Grubhub delivery fees among Texas cities. It was second overall behind Seattle, which had an average charge of $3.14 per order. The capital of Texas was slightly more, with an average delivery fee of $3.32. Houston was third with an average delivery charge of $3.38, while Dallas rounded out the top 10 with an average fee of $4.18 per order. The city with the highest average DoorDash delivery fee was Jacksonville, Florida ($2.70), which ranked in the top 10 for Grubhub orders — while Grubhub users in San Francisco are paying the most ($6.12). Food delivery fees can differ by city due to a variety of factors. These include cost of living and local tax regulations that may impact pricing, the study noted. "It's important to consider the additional costs you may be subject to on top of delivery when placing an order to decide if it's worth the cost," said Marco Farnararo, CEO and co-founder of the Bravo Savings Network, which operates BravoDeal.com. Uber Eats data was unavailable for the study, according to BravoDeal.com. Here's what the study found. Cheapest cities for DoorDash delivery fees Fort Worth, Texas ($0.40) Dallas ($0.47) Philadelphia ($0.51) San Francisco ($0.54) Phoenix ($0.57) Houston ($0.63) Chicago ($0.66) San Antonio ($0.67) Austin, Texas ($0.70) Columbus, Ohio ($0.75) Cheapest cities for Grubhub delivery fees Seattle ($3.14) Austin, Texas ($3.32) Houston ($3.38) New York City ($3.63) Charlotte, North Carolina ($3.80) Columbus, Ohio ($3.97) San Antonio ($3.98) Jacksonville, Florida ($4.03) Philadelphia ($4.07) Dallas ($4.18) A DoorDash spokesperson told Fox News Digital that the company "is always working hard to lower costs for consumers and make DoorDash even more affordable and accessible for everyone." "Our approach to fees prioritizes fairness and transparency, with no hidden fees or surprises at checkout." Grubhub also provided a statement to Fox News Digital. "We're committed to keeping fees low, and in fact, we've had $0 delivery fees in several major markets since last year," the statement said. "It's unclear when this data was pulled because the methodology wasn't shared with us. We are upfront about our fees and clearly disclose them to customers during the checkout process."

A popular appliance manufacturer is recalling more than 2 million pressure cookers after receiving over 100 reports of injuries. The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) announced the recall on Thursday. The recall only pertains to Ninja Foodi OP300 Series Multi-Function Pressure Cookers, though all models are included in the recall. At least 106 burn injuries have been reported so far – and a quarter of those have led to lawsuits. "SharkNinja has received 106 reports of burn injuries, including more than 50 reports of second- or third-degree burns to the face or body, with 26 lawsuits filed," the CPSC's report noted. "Consumers should immediately stop using the product's pressure-cooking function and contact SharkNinja for a free replacement lid." SharkNinja confirmed the recall in a statement provided to Fox News Digital. "The safety of our customers is a top priority for SharkNinja," the company said. "In cooperation with the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission and Health Canada, Ninja is conducting a recall to replace the lid on certain Ninja-brand 'Foodi' multi-function cookers in the OP300 model family." "This addresses reports that some consumers have been able to open the pressure-cooking lids of certain units of these cookers during use, resulting in burn injuries from hot contents." There were 1,846,400 pressure cookers that have been recalled in the United States, while 184,240 were sold in Canada. The following model numbers, which are visible on the cooker's side label, are included in the recall: OP300, OP301, OP301A, OP302, OP302BRN, OP302HCN, OP302HAQ, OP302HW, OP302HB, OP305, OP305CO and OP350CO. The appliances have pressure-cooking and air-frying functions and boast a 6.5-quart capacity, according to the CPSC. Consumers can still use the appliance's air-frying option, said the CPSC. The cookers were sold at Walmart, Costco, Sam's Club, Amazon and Target and were available to buy online from Amazon, Sam's Club and Costco.

From stopping dust and dirt getting into the eyes to prompting our blink reflex, eyelashes do more than just look pretty. Which makes it hard to explain the social media trend of men trimming down — or even entirely shaving off — their eyelashes in a bid to look “more masculine.” Videos posted to TikTok, Instagram and X in recent weeks show men braving blades very close to their eyes, in barber shops from Turkey to New Zealand, in a quest for stubby lashes. While some barbers are seen wielding buzzing electric clippers, others are freestyling with just a pair of hairdressing scissors and, hopefully, a steady hand. “Eyelashes are vital for both visual experience and eye health,” said Vickie Lee, a consultant ophthalmic and oculoplastic surgeon at Imperial College London, in an email interview. “As well as acting as a barrier and a trigger for the protective blink reflex, eyelashes help reduce airflow over the eyes… maintaining moisture, keeping the eyes healthy and comfortable, filtering intense sunlight, reducing glare and improving visual quality.” While Lee said eyelashes follow a natural growth cycle, shedding and re-growing over time, she added that there are many reasons why removing them, per the methods seen on social media, is a bad idea. “Improper removal can lead to complications… Cutting or trimming eyelashes can cause discomfort and irritation as (it) can leave a sharp stubby end rubbing on the ocular surface,” she said, not to mention the risk of “causing potential injury to the eye.” The rise of ‘masculine energy’ Lustrous lashes have been a signifier of femininity or attractiveness for centuries, depicted in art (including works by John Singer Sargeant and Pablo Picasso), poetry (Thomas Hood) and literature (F. Scott Fitzgerald), And there may be an evolutionary imperative, too: Scientific research from 2005 found that women with more attractive faces also possessed higher levels of the female sex hormone estrogen, which equates to increased fertility and fecundity — genetic traits that are appealing, in reproductive terms. But in today’s increasingly masculine political climate, fueled by controversial online “manosphere” figures such as Andrew Tate and tech bro jocks like Meta chief Mark Zuckerberg (who recently voiced his support for more “masculine energy” in the corporate world, telling podcaster Joe Rogan in January: “A culture that celebrates the aggression a bit more has its own merits”), it is easy to see why some men are eager to repress anything about their appearance that could be construed as overtly feminine. Even Vice President JD Vance, an outspoken defender of men’s right to “masculine urges,” has fallen foul of new masculine beauty standards when it comes to his eyes. During his televised election debate in October 2024, the internet was awash with speculation that Vance had worn eyeliner to achieve his dark, heavy-lashed look. The chatter became so widespread that disgraced former Republican congressman George Santos weighed in: “Vance does NOT use eyeliner,” he wrote on X at the time. “I’ve met him in person before he was a senator and I can confirm he has long eyelashes and they cast a shadow on his waterline. Grow up people!” While none of the eyelash-shaving barbers approached for this story replied to CNN’s requests for comment, I do speak to one long-lashed male friend, 48-year-old, Spencer Bailey. “I’ve got a lot of flak over the years about my thick, dark eyelashes,” said the London-based IT professional. “But I definitely wouldn’t take the clippers to them. Comments are usually from other men who say they’re ‘girly’ — despite the fact I’m also 6-foot-2” — and ask if I’m wearing eye makeup or, more recently, if they’re fake… My wife likes them, but they seem to really bother some guys.” After decades of decline, gender traditionalism is on the rise among Republican voters in the United States, according to recent data cited by The New York TImes. In the Views of the Electorate Research Survey (run by The Democracy Fund foundation in conjunction with YouGov), which was carried out after President Donald Trump’s re-election in November 2024, Republicans increasingly endorsed what the survey called “traditional notions of masculinity,” with more than three quarters of Republican men and women agreeing with the view that “what it means to be a man has changed and I don’t think that has been good for society.” The same study found that 48% of Republican men agreed that women “should return to their traditional roles” in society — significantly up from May 2022, when the figure was 28%. The proportion of Republican women agreeing with the statement meanwhile increased from 23% to 37% in that time. Who wants thick, long lashes? While these opinions are just that (or, at least, there is little evidence that these thoughts have translated into real-world behavioral changes — more women of “prime age” are employed than ever before and rates of marriage and childbirth are declining), it’s a stark reversal of the trends of the past half century, in which time the percentage of respondents in the American National Election Studies (ANES) saying that “women’s place is in the home” decreased steadily — from almost 30% in 1972 to 6% in 2008, when the survey’s researchers stopped asking the question. With women increasingly being perceived and treated as “less than” men, it is perhaps no surprise that some men are eager to avoid being perceived as “feminine.” “The more conservative, regressive or perhaps the more ‘traditional’ a society makes itself, the more it will really endeavor… to try to create two genders who look very different to each other,” Meredith Jones, honorary professor of gender studies at Brunel University of London, told CNN in a telephone interview. “Eyelashes are a strong binary,” Jones said. “There is currently a fashion for one sex to have eyelashes which are outrageously long, thick and black. These are seen as an indicator of high ‘uber’ femininity and… therefore, the opposite has to be ‘true’ for the opposite gender.” “The example of JD Vance being mocked for the appearance of wearing eye makeup during the election was fascinating,” Jones added. “Because President Trump obviously wears makeup, but his makeup endeavors to make him look more tanned, more toned, more chiseled… more ‘masculine.’” Meanwhile, influencers and celebrities appear to be eschewing bold lashes in what has since been dubbed the #fullfacenomascara movement. Could women also be moving away from the archetypally feminine big eyelash trend? While the ‘no mascara’ trend has been gaining traction, with a growing number of people showcasing their natural lashes as part of a broader shift towards minimalist beauty, mascara remains one of the most widely used cosmetic products, Clare Hennigan, principal analyst of beauty and personal care at research firm Mintel, told CNN. In fact, it remains the most commonly applied eye makeup in the US, she noted, indicating that “the no-mascara trend will take considerable time, if ever, to gain widespread adoption.” But trends are, indeed, cyclical. And for every action there is a reaction, pointed out Jones: “Fashions spring out of the times we are living in,” she said. “The 1960s were a classic example. One of the complaints of conservatives during that period was that they could no longer tell the difference between men and women due to the prevalence of bell-bottomed trousers and long hair worn by both sexes. In the ‘80s, in reaction to conservative Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, London’s club fashion became very adventurous. These movements are always cyclical.”

After a five-year reprieve, the Trump administration restarted forced collections on federal student loans in default, which could include garnishing a portion of borrowers’ paychecks. With collections in place, the last piece of the student loan machinery has been turned back on, officially ending pandemic-era relief, which began when President Trump paused federal student loan payments in March 2020. The Biden administration extended the freeze several times, and payments resumed only in October 2023. But the rules were relaxed for the first year of repayment, and borrowers weren’t penalized for slipping behind until last fall. Now that those penalties have begun to appear, borrowers who fell behind are beginning to see their credit scores plunge, including more than five million borrowers in default and many millions more projected to be on the precipice. Advertisement SKIP ADVERTISEMENT At the same time, the Biden-era repayment program known as SAVE — which ties a borrower’s loan payments to income and household size — has been frozen since August, with its eight million enrollees’ payments on hold. That plan is stuck in legal limbo, an evolving situation that threatens to upend the income-driven repayment plans that came before it. Here’s where things stand for borrowers. Where can I learn more about my loan status? If you log in to your account on the federal website, StudentAid.gov, you’ll find your dashboard with details on how much you owe and the status of your loans — whether they are in repayment, for example, or default. If it’s the latter, you may also see a warning at the top. Make sure your contact information is up to date both there and with your loan servicer, which is the company the government hired to administer your loans. My loans are in default. What happens next? The Education Department began forced collections on loans in default on May 5, which means any tax refunds and other federal payments can be withheld and applied toward your debt. (Seizures from recurring payments, like Social Security benefits, won’t start until early June.) This summer, the government said, it will send out required notices that pave the way for garnishing a portion of borrowers’ paychecks. If you are among the five million borrowers in default, or those with loans 270 days or more overdue, you should expect to receive an email from the Federal Student Aid office in the next couple of weeks, urging you to get in touch with its Default Resolution Group. That unit can help get your loan situation sorted. There are serious consequences if the loans remain in default, which means the balance becomes immediately due. The government can grab your entire tax refund (as long as it doesn’t exceed your debt amount) and up to 15 percent of monthly Social Security retirement and disability benefits and your paycheck. (The Treasury Offset program has a more comprehensive list of what’s eligible and what’s off limits.) Besides collections, the default will damage your credit standing, which can make it more difficult to qualify for an apartment rental or impossible to obtain new loans. How can I get out of default? You can pay the loan in full, but that’s not an option for most people. More feasible alternatives include consolidating the defaulted loans or rehabilitating the loan, which requires making nine out of 10 consecutive “reasonable” payments, determined by loan holders using a formula. It’s usually easiest to consolidate the defaulted loan (as long as you have more than one loan) into one federal Direct Consolidation Loan, which pays off the old ones. But there are drawbacks, especially for borrowers in income-driven repayment plans (which forgive any remaining debt after a period, generally 20 years, of payments tied to your income and household size). After consolidation, you lose any credit earned toward loan forgiveness. Advertisement SKIP ADVERTISEMENT I can’t afford my payments. What are my options? Income-driven repayment plans, a decades-old safety net that ties the size of your monthly loan payments to your income level, is often a go-to option in times of financial distress. But there are fewer income-driven options at the moment: The entire landscape was shaken up after two groups of Republican-led states challenged the Saving on a Valuable Education (SAVE) plan, the more affordable income-driven repayment plan introduced by President Biden. Given the high cost of the program, the states argued that Mr. Biden had overstepped his authority, and the courts temporarily froze SAVE while the merits of the case are decided. Remaining programs include: The Pay as You Earn (PAYE) and Income-Based Repayment (I.B.R.) plans, where monthly payments are 10 percent of discretionary income for 20 years, at which time any remaining balance is forgiven* (or after 25 years for graduate borrowers in I.B.R.). The Income-Contingent Repayment (I.C.R.), a more expensive plan, where payments are 20 percent of discretionary income for 25 years, after which any remaining debt is wiped away.* (I.C.R. is the only income-driven plan available to federal parent PLUS loan borrowers.) (*At the moment, loan forgiveness is on hold for all income-driven repayment plans with the exception of I.B.R. For more explanation on the complicated status of all income-driven plans right now, see the next question.) Beyond the income-driven programs, there are repayment plans that can lower your monthly obligation: graduated repayment, where payments start lower and rise over time, and extended repayment, which lowers the monthly payment by lengthening the loan term. The Education Department’s Loan Simulator can help borrowers evaluate and compare which type of repayment plan would work best for their situation. Have the rules of income-driven plans changed? Some have, at least temporarily. A February court order upheld the temporary pause on the SAVE plan, but also expanded it by calling into question a longstanding feature of income-driven plans: loan forgiveness, which usually occurs after at least two decades of payments. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit said the Education Department lacked the explicit authority to forgive loans as part of the Income-Contingent Repayment plans, a significant departure from how the statute governing the plan had been interpreted for about 30 years. The litigation, which is ongoing, prompted the administration to pause forgiveness on the PAYE and I.C.R. plans since, like SAVE, they were created by the Education Department. Borrowers in the I.B.R. plan, which Congress enacted, can continue to have their loans forgiven. (Payments on PAYE, SAVE and I.C.R. are counted toward I.B.R. plan forgiveness if the borrower enrolls in the I.B.R. program.) Several other newer rules were changed or clarified, too. Separately, a married borrower in an income-driven plan who files a separate income tax return from their spouse will not have to include the spouse’s income in the calculation determining monthly payments, experts said, but the spouse can be included in family size. Where did the counter showing my progress toward forgiveness go? Starting in January, borrowers in income-driven repayment plans were able to see their progress toward loan forgiveness on their StudentAid.gov dashboard. But with the appellate court’s order temporarily banning the SAVE plan and parts of other income-driven plans, the Education Department said it had removed the payment counter for the time being. Borrower advocates say it is still possible to find the counter once you’re logged in, however, and they suggest taking screenshots. “This is important so that they know where they stand and how much longer they should expect to have student loan bills,” said Abby Shafroth, director of the National Consumer Law Center’s Student Loan Borrower Assistance Project, “and so they have evidence of their credit toward forgiveness in case there is an effort to quietly roll it back.” Are loan servicers processing income-driven plan application requests? The Education Department said it had not processed applications for enrollment in any income-driven repayment plans since August, but it is working with federal student loan servicers and expects processing to begin again in May. Still, it could take a while, depending on your situation: Roughly 1.9 million applicants are in the queue. I’m enrolled in an income-driven plan. Do I need to recertify my income? Since income-driven plans base payments on earnings and family size, participants have been required to update — or recertify — their income each year (or face negative consequences). If you were due to recertify on or after Feb. 21, 2025, your recertification date has been extended one year. (The Federal Student Aid office’s website has more specifics.) The department said that recertification would eventually be automated, and that it would release more information this week. What other ways can I get a reprieve — or lower monthly payments? Borrowers can temporarily pause payments through deferments or forbearance. Review the terms carefully, because these programs have different eligibility requirements and consequences, largely because of the way interest is treated. Simply consolidating your loans can also lower your monthly payments by extending the repayment period, but there are drawbacks. You may have a higher interest rate on all of your debt and end up paying more overall. I’m in the SAVE plan. What’s the status? The Saving on a Valuable Education plan is still winding its way through the courts, and enrollees have been in limbo since last summer. Their accounts are in forbearance, which in this case means payments are on hold and interest is not accruing. Can I still make progress toward Public Service Loan Forgiveness? The Public Service Loan Forgiveness program is still open to government and nonprofit employees such as public schoolteachers, librarians and public defenders. After 120 qualifying payments are made, any remaining balance is wiped out. But most borrowers need to be enrolled in an income-driven repayment plan to be eligible for loan cancellation. Borrowers in SAVE are currently in an interest-free forbearance — and they cannot earn payment credits toward forgiveness. But the other available income-driven plans — I.B.R., I.C.R. and PAYE — are still compatible with Public Service Loan Forgiveness. What if I’m in P.S.L.F. but I’m stuck in the SAVE plan? You have a couple of options. You can switch to one of the other income-driven repayment plans, which will allow you to earn credit toward forgiveness. Alternatively, you can ride out the SAVE forbearance and use what’s called a “buy back” to get credit for those months once you have completed 120 months of eligible employment, said Betsy Mayotte, president of the Institute of Student Loan Advisors, a group that provides free guidance to borrowers. Using the buy back option, borrowers later make payments that are at least equal to what they would have owed under an eligible income-driven plan for the time they were paused in forbearance. (Be sure to document and keep copies or snapshots of everything, including your work history with your eligible employer as well as any qualifying payments and recertification applications.) Trump wants to shut down the Education Department. What does this mean for my loans? President Trump instructed Education Secretary Linda McMahon to begin to shut down the agency, but he cannot do so without congressional approval. He also announced that the student loan portfolio would move to the Small Business Administration, a change that would also require approval. But as my colleague Stacy Cowley reported, Congress has shown no interest in that idea. For now, the loan portfolio remains at the Education Department. Where can I get more help? You can try the Institute of Student Loan Advisors, a group that provides free guidance to borrowers. The Student Debt Crisis Center has a resource center and holds workshops, and some states, like New York, may offer services to assist borrowers. If you’re having trouble getting the help you need with your servicer, some states have student loan ombudsman offices that can help. The Federal Student Aid office also has a list of frequently asked questions on its website.

Watchmaking doesn’t feel like the most 21st century profession. The job requires unwavering patience and a delicate touch, with watchmakers taking months or even years to create a single timepiece. Meanwhile, most people tell the time by looking at their phones. But this seemingly bygone profession appears to be enjoying a resurgence of interest triggered, at least in part, by Gen-Z’s enthusiasm for all things analog — and a desire for work far away from computer screens. For decades, the industry has warned of a labor shortage as older watchmakers retire. Experts spoken to by CNN, however, report promising levels of interest in the profession, despite ongoing worries over the departure of baby boomers across different specialties. Online watch communities have helped foster a new generation of horology enthusiasts, as connoisseurs young and old share their collections, spotlight master watchmakers and advertise second-hand and vintage watches for sale on platforms like TikTok Shop. This burgeoning resale market has generated demand not only for watchmakers, but for the expert repairers needed to revive treasures of the past, said Johann Kunz-Fernandez, director of the Watchmakers of Switzerland Training and Educational Program (WOSTEP), in a phone call with CNN. Young people could be a “saving point” to help reinvigorate the watch industry, added Kunz-Fernandez, who was struck by the uptick in their attendance at this year’s Watchers and Wonders, a major watch fair held annually in Geneva, Switzerland. “What I saw and discussed with some watch producers … is that there are a lot of young people, very young people, which is interesting because it absolutely was not the case before,” he said of the event. But how can they turn a passion for watches into a career? Kelloseppäkoulu, the Finnish School of Watchmaking in Espoo, Finland, has been training students to break into the industry since 1944. One of the most renowned watchmaking schools, it prides itself on producing “the steadiest hands in the world,” said principal Hanna Harilainen. The school has experienced so much demand that it is offering an English-language course for the first time in its 80-year history. Prospective students have registered interest from Canada, the US, the UK, Turkey, South Korea and Iran, among others, Harilainen said. Harilainen credits some of this demand to a growing interest in “micro-brands” founded by independent watchmakers. “Young people … want to create something of their own,” she told CNN over the phone. “Something durable, not to be used and tossed away.” They also bring fresh ways of engaging with the craft, Harilainen added. One of Kelloseppäkoulu’s recent graduates, for instance, co-founded a popular independent watch brand and regularly livestreams watchmaking sessions on Twitch. “My feeling is that new generations are looking for something that makes sense for them,” said Aurélie Streit, vice president of the Fondation Haute Horlogerie (FHH), a Swiss non-profit that works on preserving and disseminating watchmaking knowledge. The hands-on nature of the job also appeals: “You can see the pieces, it’s easy to understand what you are doing, and the impact of (it),” she said, adding that FHH often hears from prospective young watchmakers who don’t want to spend all day at a screen. Streit is cautiously optimistic — not only for the prospects of young watchmakers but for other professions vital to the craft, like polishing and micro-mechanics. Her organization plans to showcase these jobs as part of an interactive exhibition in Geneva this June that will give attendees an opportunity to try out different tasks. Who wants to be a watchmaker? When Bernhard Lederer decided to become a watchmaker in the 1970s, no one could understand why he wanted to do it. The “quartz crisis,” brought on by the popularity of battery-powered watches, was severely impacting the Swiss economy and it felt hard to see mechanical watches ever making a comeback. “I have been treated a little bit like an extra-terrestrial — like a non-conventional person,” said Lederer of his choice to train as a watchmaker, which he calls “the most beautiful profession I can imagine.” But as the years went by, Lederer appeared to be vindicated. His watches, which can take anywhere between a few months and years to make, now retail for upwards of $150,000. He credits the pandemic for helping revive interest in independent watchmakers, as collectors had time to learn more about the industry and to shop for pieces “personalized according to (their) taste,” rather than choosing “industrial luxury” from well-known brands, he told CNN over the phone. Among the young talents following in Lederer’s footsteps are Johannes Kallinich and Thibault Claeys, who met while working at luxury watchmaker A. Lange & Söhne before founding their watch company, Kallinich Claeys, in 2022. The duo, who are based in Glashütte, a German town renowned for a watchmaking tradition that dates to 1845, saw an opportunity to “breathe new life into traditional watchmaking,” according to their brand’s website. They achieve this by combining classic and modern materials, such as German silver (a copper-nickel-zinc alloy) with stainless steel. Kallinich Claeys’ other innovations include a “world-first” in the craft: placing the power reserve indicator on the side of the case — rather than on the dial, which is typical of most wristwatches — to give the dial a “cleaner look” while allowing the wearer to better see the mechanical movement. Taking a new approach to watchmaking can be a “stressful” process, according to 28-year-old Claeys who makes the parts and handles the finishings, while 32-year-old Kallinich designs and assembles the pieces. “People will only buy it if they find it beautiful,” he told CNN over a video call. The risk appears to be paying off. At this year’s Watches and Wonders, Kallinich said observers remarked on the timepieces’ distinctly “German” design while appreciating the brand’s innovation. But despite the interest, the pair’s supply is limited, for now: The painstakingly detail-oriented work means they only plan to make 10 to 12 watches a year, bolstered by support from two employees and a third due to join later this year. While machines could complete some of their tasks, like finishings, the difference between hand- and machine-chamfering (polishing sharp edges into flat, angled surfaces) is obvious, said Kallinich, emphasizing the importance of retaining a human touch. More than just functional watches, these are “small artworks” with “heart and soul” put into them, said Claeys. “The craftsmanship, the emotions and the love behind the details … is something I believe machines will never do,” added Kallinich. Later in life It’s not just young people embarking upon the profession. Others are coming to it later in life, reviving a dormant passion or escaping desk jobs. Kunz-Fernandez recalled one aspiring watchmaker enrolling on a WOSTEP course after 40 years as a banker. “What is common is the fact that most of them, at a moment in their life, said, ‘What am I doing?’” he said of the programs’ students. Tiina Virtanen, who is due to graduate from the Finnish School of Watchmaking this spring, came to her new profession after 18 years as a civil engineer. Virtanen, 46, said she was “halfway” through her career when she started questioning whether it was what she wanted to do until retirement. “Instead of being in front of a computer all day long, I was longing for something to do with handcrafting,” she wrote in an email to CNN. Upon graduation, she intends to move to Norway to work in a store that repairs and services watches. Her classmate, Jatta Berggren, also came to the school by way of a previous career — as an entrepreneur in the yarn and handicraft industries. “As the work changed over the years, from handmaking to working with computers, I decided to fulfil my dream of studying to be a watchmaker,” Berggren told CNN. “I get the most joy from working with my hands and being able to see the results of my work.” Berggren, 39, sees watchmaking as an industry that “combines the old and the new in a wonderful way,” emphasizing the need for people from different ages and backgrounds to enter the profession so it can continue to develop. As women in a male-dominated industry, Virtanen and Berggren are a minority in their classrooms and the upper echelons of the profession they hope to enter — but this doesn’t appear to daunt them. There are also promising signs of change: The school has experienced growing interest among women, who made up a third of this year’s applicants. Women in higher places Historically, women have long been present in watchmaking (their smaller hands were sometimes seen as beneficial for those working on factory lines or aiding their watchmaker husbands). FHH’s Streit said there has been “gender parity” in the industry since the 1960s, with women constituting 50% of the workforce in watchmaking factories — though they were primarily “operators,” with the position of “watchmaker” largely held by men. Today, women remain underrepresented in the industry, according to young female watchmaker Shona Taine, who is among those bucking the trend. “There are few other young independent women in the business, but not many,” Taine said. Earlier this month, the 27-year-old became the first woman — and youngest person — admitted to the Académie Horlogère des Créateurs Indépendants, a prestigious association of independent watchmakers. An encounter with Prague’s famous astronomical clock during a childhood vacation inspired the French-born, Switzerland-based watchmaker to understand how it functioned. She started training at 15 and set up her own business at 22 upon realizing that no company would give her freedom to develop the “lots of watches in my mind.” “I had all the fire and energy of a very young woman,” she wrote to CNN in an email, explaining her decision to go independent. “I had no idea of the scale of the task,” she added, nor any idea “what it would be like to set up business in a man’s world.” Last year, Taine was a semi-finalist in Louis Vuitton’s Watch Prize for Independent Creatives and she is now working on 12 editions of her first independently made watch. Called Khemea (“alchemy” in Greek), the first model took her three years to develop and retails for 89,000 Swiss francs ($107,000). Her university studies in philosophy and literature are evident in its design: A poem written in the movement’s cogs only aligns a few times a year (when the moon cycle and Gregorian calendar cycle meet) and can only be read if the watch is taken apart. “We’re not reinventing the wheel,” she said of her creation, “but we’re putting it together in a new way.” When Taine compares being a watchmaker now to previous generations, she admits the profession is less about necessity. But, with that, comes artistic freedom. In today’s world, she sees the craft as “an artistic field in its own right,” adding that watches’ social status, as non-essential luxury items, affords makers like her “more freedom, more extravagance, more self-expression.” When asked about being one of the few young women in her profession, Taine said it’s often other people, not her, who bring up gender. “Personally, I think it’s cool,” she said of her place in the industry. Buyers and collectors can, however, be “apprehensive,” she added. “It’s a lot of little remarks that I have to deal with and ignore.” But none of this is a deterrent for Taine, who sees her vocation as a “way of life.” “It takes longer to convince the general public that a woman can be just as talented in precision engineering as a man,” she said. “But the time will come, I’m sure.”

A huge painting by Mark Rothko, thought to be worth tens of millions of dollars, has been removed from display in a Dutch museum after it was damaged by a visiting child. Conservators will now have to repair the artwork, “Grey, Orange on Maroon, No. 8,” after it was “scratched” by a child visiting the Rotterdam gallery where it was on display. The abstract painting from 1960, which measures 7 feet, 6 inches high by 8 feet, 6 inches wide, was a centerpiece of the Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen in Rotterdam – though it had been temporarily on display at the Depot Boijmans Van Beuningen as the museum is currently closed for a large-scale renovation. The museum confirmed the incident in a statement emailed to CNN. It said: “The painting Grey, Orange on Maroon, No. 8 by Mark Rothko has sustained superficial damage after a child touched the painting when it was on display. As a result, small scratches are visible in the unvarnished paint layer in the lower part of the painting. “Conservation expertise has been sought in the Netherlands and abroad. We are currently researching the next steps for the treatment of the painting. We expect that the work will be able to be shown again in the future.” The museum declined to say how much the painting is worth nor how much the damage might cost to repair—or who might be expected to foot the bill. In response to a question about the painting’s value on its website, the museum said the piece was bought in the 1970s for an undisclosed amount. It went on to explain: “An appraiser from an international auction house would be involved in a sale of an artist as famous as Rothko. The price is then very dependent on the condition, size, frame, etc.” Latvian-born American artist Rothko, who died in 1970, was best known for his “color field” paintings. His works regularly fetch millions of dollars at auction – in November 2023 “Untitled, 1968” sold for $23.9 million at Sotheby’s in New York. Museums and galleries are usually eager to promote visits from families with young children, in the hope of fostering an early interest in the arts. Many have programs and workshops aimed at young visitors and actively encourage them – but children can, of course, be unpredictable. Maxwell Blowfield, writer and creator of the popular “maxwell museums” newsletter, told CNN: “Every museum and gallery thinks hard about how to balance meaningful physical access to artworks and objects with keeping them safe. I’d say most have the balance right but accidents can still happen. It’s impossible to prevent every potential incident, from visitors of all ages. Thankfully things like this are very rare compared to the millions of visits taking place everyday.”