Question

How do you factor `5a^2-25a-a+5`?

Answer 1

`(5a-1)(a-5)`

Explanation:

Let's group the first two terms and the second two together. Then, we can factor out `5a` from the first group, and -1 from the second.

`5a(a-5)-1(a-5)`

Then, working backwards from the distributive property, we can state:
`(5a-1)(a-5)`