County Santa Barbara Financial News

Los Angeles, California, earned the second spot in a recent survey of the most expensive cities in the United States, falling just behind San Diego in the rankings.This surprising ranking, published by U.S. News & World Report in their «Most Expensive Places to Live in the United States 2023-2024» list, sheds light on the changing landscape of American cities and the factors that contribute to their high cost of living.

LPL Financial’s employee advisor channel Linsco is opening a new office in Santa Barbara, California, after attracting a $200 million AUM advisor from Stifel.

When you ask Seth Streeter what he likes about the financial advice industry, he talks about what he loves.

ExxonMobil has lost a court bid to truck millions of gallons of crude oil through central California — a crucial part of its efforts to restart offshore oil wells that were shut in 2015 after a pipeline leak caused the worst coastal spill in 25 years

A recently resurfaced video from 1998 has stirred up speculations regarding the alleged involvement of Hal Finney, an American software developer and early Bitcoin pioneer, in the creation of the flagship cryptocurrency. 

Early Bitcoin (BTC) pioneer Hal Finney shared his vision for zero-knowledge proofs more than 25 years ago, a full decade before the launch of the first cryptocurrency, Bitcoin. 

Hurricane Hilary is predicted to make its impact on California overnight Sunday. The National Weather Service, recognizing this unusual situation, has released a Tropical Storm Watch for the first time in the area. Consequently, California has declared a state of emergency. The looming consequences encompass potential flash floods and strong winds, particularly across L.A., Ventura, and even Santa Barbara counties. The period of heightened impact is foreseen to span Sunday and Monday. Due to Hurricane Hilary, a number events and concerts have been postponed as well as rescheduled. Several theme parks including the Disneyland have made major announcements regarding closing timings. While CicLAvia – Koreatown has historically taken place regardless of weather conditions, organizers have opted to cancel the event due to the unpredictability of Sunday's weather. Although the forecast suggests substantial rainfall may hold off until later in the day, CicLAvia—Koreatown meets Hollywood has been called off in consideration of the safety of participants from both near and far.

As of Saturday morning, Hurricane Hilary was situated approximately 240 miles southwest of the southern tip of Baja California. The National Hurricane Center has categorized Hilary as a «large and powerful» storm, characterized by maximum sustained winds clocking in at 130 mph, as per a report in USA Today. Early on Saturday, the National Weather Service in San Diego noted that Hilary had accelerated and deviated slightly eastward in its trajectory. Consequently, the period with the most pronounced impacts from the hurricane is projected to span from Sunday morning until evening. In light of these conditions, the National Weather Service is advising residents to take precautions such as securing valuable items in and around their homes and refraining from driving on roads that are submerged due to flooding.

Trained scent dogs exhibit a remarkable ability to detect COVID-19 infections with higher accuracy and efficiency compared to conventional RT-PCR tests, according to a review of studies.This innovative approach not only promises quicker results but also holds the potential to substantially reduce diagnostic costs, the researchers said A growing number of studies over the last two years has highlighted the power of dogs in detecting the stealthy virus and its variants, even when they are obscured by other viruses, like those from common colds and flu. «It went from four papers to 29 peer-reviewed studies that include more than 400 scientists from over 30 countries and 31,000 samples,» said Tommy Dickey, Distinguished Professor Emeritus at the University of California (UC) Santa Barbara, US. Dickey and collaborator Heather Junqueira from BioScent, Inc. noted that the collective research demonstrates that trained scent dogs are «as effective and often more effective» than the antigen tests we're keeping handy at home, as well as the gold-standard reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) tests deployed in clinics and hospitals. According to the study, published in the Journal of Osteopathic Medicine, not only can dogs detect the SARS-CoV-2 virus faster, they can do so in a non-intrusive manner, without the environmental impact that comes with single-use plastics.

Anupama Chopra on Film Companion, she said, “I wasn’t allowed to watch Ramayan and Mahabharat either. She insisted that I read the epics first (before delving into the serialised versions)." Further adding, she said that her mother believed, "the first exposure to these epics should not be someone else’s imagination; it should be a product of your own imagination." In the interview, she also revealed that her mother also never let her watch the mainstream Hindi or Bengali films but explored some world and regional cinema.

Kevin Costner's divorce has been much talked about. The drama has further unfolded with news that the Yellowstone actor’s estranged wife Christine Baumgartner has left his home in Santa Barbara, California on Friday, July 28, 2023. Christine Baumgartner is Kevin Costner’s second wife. “Christine is following the legal advice per the prenup and is vacating the family house," a source was quoted by People magazine as saying. The source also revealed that Costner’s estranged wife «will stay at a smaller house on the property that’s been used as a staff quarters.» «This is a temporary solution. She is still looking for another house,” the source explained. Christine is still staying near her Kevin Costner so as not to disrupt their kids’ school routine. “Christine is trying to keep everything as normal as possible. Her sole focus is the kids,” the source added. Meanwhile, Kevin Costner is currently vacationing in Aspen, Colorado, with the children, even as his wife moves houses. After 18 years of marriage, Christine Baumgartner filed for divorce on May 1, 2023, citing irreconcilable differences with husband Kevin Costner. She listed April 11 this year as the date of their separation. The couple has three children – a 15-year-old son, Cayden, a 14-year-old son, Hayes, and a 12-year-old daughter Grace. Costner legally sent an eviction notice to his estranged wife. As per their prenuptial agreement, Christine was to vacate the home before completing 30 days from the date of filing of divorce. However, she had refused to leave and hence Costner took the legal route. The court has ordered Kevin Costner to pay Christine Baumgartner about $130,000 per month in child support. Christine had demanded $248,000 per month.

The Pulitzer Prize-winning Santa Barbara News-Press, one of California’s oldest newspapers, has ceased publishing after its owner declared the 150-year-old publication bankrupt

There's something that the strategy and development team at AppFolio should know about their boss: His New Year's resolution is to get into a fistfight.

Federal Reserve governor Christopher Waller said he could support raising the central bank’s benchmark interest rate next month by a half-percentage point if economic data in the next few weeks show evidence of accelerating price pressure, adding his voice to the debate over the size of the likely increase.

Skill sets gained from working on trading strategies, technology, data science and a personal passion for motorcycle racing made Scott Robinson launch a sports analytics platform. With a bit of blockchain added to the mix, the founder of Apex146 found new ways to proceed in the sports analytics business.