Maria Hollenhorst

Producer

SHORT BIO

Maria Hollenhorst is based in Los Angeles, California.

She produces content for Marketplace’s flagship broadcast including host interviews, economic explainers, and personal stories for the “Adventures in Housing” and “My Economy” series. Her work has been recognized by the Association for Business Journalists Best in Business Awards.

When not making radio, she can be found hiking, skiing, jogging, roller-blading, or exploring this beautiful world. Originally from Salt Lake City, Utah, she wound her way into journalism after graduating from the University of Utah. She has a deep appreciation for trees.

Latest Stories (409)

The big business of wacky holidays

Sep 4, 2023
Holidays, even made-up ones, can be powerful marketing tools.
Volkswagen's Cameron Batten and Marlo Anderson, the founder of National Day Calendar, onstage at a reveal of National Volkswagen Bus Day on June 02, 2023 in Huntington Beach, California.
Joe Scarnici/Getty Images for Volkswagen of America

How Labor Day has changed — and not changed — in its 140-year history

Sep 4, 2023
The first Labor Day parade took place in 1882. Historian Allyson Brantley says there are notable parallels between that moment and today.
A member of the sheet metal workers union walks in a 2022 Labor Day parade in Wilmington, California. Parades have been a mainstay of Labor Day celebrations since the 1880s.
Mario Tama/Getty Images

When it comes to measuring economic welfare, GDP doesn't cut it

Sep 1, 2023
Gross domestic product has been the standard measure for economic growth since 1944, but it doesn't measure the quality of life.
GDP has been a global standard for measuring economic growth since 1944, but it doesn't measure economic welfare.  
Stefani Reynolds/AFP via Getty I ages

Moving — instead of building — a house

Aug 29, 2023
When the Knapp family relocated from Alaska to Wisconsin, they bought a building from a church for $1 and relocated it to their property.
When Anna and Patrick Knapp came to Wisconsin, they decided to take a house off of a church's hands and move it to their property. It worked out well.
Courtesy Anna Knapp

The economic and logistical realities of straw-bale building

Aug 16, 2023
One couple shares their experience with an alternative construction project.
David and Carrie Chew stand in the wooden frame of their incomplete straw-bale house in 2022.
Courtesy David and Carrie Chew

Checking in on the path of pandemic homebuying

Aug 10, 2023
Three real estate agents explain how their communities have changed.
The flow of out-of-state buyers into rural communities has not stopped, according to one Montana real estate agent.
Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

Co-buying a house with your best friend

Jul 27, 2023
The lack of affordability has spurred “nontraditional setups” like this partnership between women who trust each other and work well together.
In 2022, Cass Lang, left, and Jordan Heiden bought a home together in Vermont. “We both wanted the same thing at the same time, so why would we not do it?” Lang said.
Courtesy Lang

Milton Friedman’s “long and variable lag,” explained

Jul 24, 2023
A concept popularized by Milton Friedman in the 1960s still influences how the Fed talks about monetary policy today.
The phrase that Milton Friedman popularized — long and variable lag — still helps orient monetary policymakers today.
Alex Wong/Getty Images

The past, present and future of “Hard Bargain” Tennessee

Jul 4, 2023
A historic home in Franklin, Tennessee, serves as a monument to generational sacrifice.
A plaque outside the McLemore home in Franklin, Tennessee tells the story of “Hard Bargain.
Courtesy of the Hard Bargain Association

Hiring a cat? This organization can help

Jul 4, 2023
Hard Hat Cats places feral cats in breweries, bodegas and other businesses looking for organic pest prevention.
Dulce, a cat with a history of biting and scratching, was adopted by a Brooklyn brewery as a “working cat” through an organization called Hard Hat Cats.
Courtesy of Hard Hat Cats