These 6 public colleges have the best return on investment

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The 6 public colleges with the best return on investment (Think Advisor)

College is expensive. The total cost of four years at a private institution comes to about $181,000, while public colleges charge in-state students $83,000 on average - and 20% more for out of state.

Given the stats, Princeton Review analyzed 650 institutions to come up with a list of the schools that have best the return on investment. According to their study, the top six are (in reverse chronological order): University of California - Santa Barbara, University of Florida, College of William and Mary, UCLA, University of Virginia, University of California - Berkeley.

Three important tax lessons for same-sex couples (Reuters)

The Supreme Court legalized same-sex marriage across the US last June. So, this year will be the first time these couples can file taxes as married couples.

There are three things that same-sex couples should remember, reports Beth Pinsker: 1) It is now easier to file taxes - and cheaper; 2) some folks will be looking at the marriage penalty; 3) look-backs can be work it.

The Fed is a long way away from using negative rates. Probably. (Advisor Perspectives)

"Even though the Fed may be looking into the feasibility of NIRP, the US central bank seems a very long way from ever having to use it. Right now even the likelihood of the Fed reversing its December hike is extremely low," argues Kristina Hooper of Allianz Global Investors.

But "while NIRP is very unlikely to come to American shores, it could still have an impact on US capital markets given that five central banks have already adopted it with the potential for more to come," she continues. "That's because NIRP should weaken currencies, which could in turn strengthen the dollar-which means we should be following this situation closely."

LPL has to pay a broker $630,000 after they sent letters to 300 clients implying that he stole money (Financial Planning)

A FINRA arbitration panel ordered LPL Financial to pay $630,000 for allegedly defaming a former broker by sending letters to roughly 300 clients suggesting that he stole money, reports Ann Marsh.

This decision comes when the the firm's stock has fallen by about 50% since the end of last year. LPL has had some trouble with regulators as of late. The firm has had to pay a series of fines, including $11.7 million to FINRA in May.

United Capital is adding a new tool to its technology suite (Wealth Management)

United Capital, the Newport Beach, California-based firm, is acquiring FlexScore, a consumer-facing financial planning tool that aggregates users' financial data to generate a credit score-like number of a person's financial health, reports Ryan W. Neal.

"Once the investor knows their score, FlexScore provides actionable advice on how to improve it that is tailored to the user's unique financial situation and goals," Neal added.