Student loan forgiveness was a hot topic during the 2020 election cycle. With so many outstanding student loan payments, will the government step in to wipe out the debt? While many theorize about this, Robert Farrington takes the opposite angle, urging those who have student loans to prepare for repayment, rather than cancellation. This way, even if your student loans get forgiven, you’re put in a financially advantageous spot. Robert runs The College Investor , a website dedicated to investing...
Jan 17, 2022•48 min•Ep. 267
Bad debt is more common than it seems. Many people you know have a car loan, personal loan, credit card loan, or some other form of high(er) interest debt. If you find yourself with bad debt, the first thing to do is formulate a plan to get rid of it, unless you want your savings and potential investments to suffer the consequences. Today’s guest, Stephanie is in a financially solid position, but she has some bad debt to take care of. She’s on her way to financial freedom by forty after already ...
Jan 14, 2022•1 hr 20 min•Ep. 266
Home insurance isn’t the sexiest topic, but in the world of financial independence , predictability is quite an attractive trait to have. That’s why money nerds across the world value insurance as a natural hedge against catastrophic wealth-ending disasters. Whether you’re a homeowner, a renter, or a landlord, home insurance could help you rebuild quicker after the unexpected happens. Recently, a large fire broke out around the Denver, Colorado area, affecting families in Mindy’s home city of Lo...
Jan 12, 2022•48 min
Death and finances can arguably be called the two things that people hate talking about most. Unfortunately, these are two topics that cannot be kept in the dark, as we all must deal with loss, both emotionally and financially over our lifetime. What can the average person do when they’ve just received the heartbreaking news that a loved one has died. Even worse, what if it’s their partner? This almost unimaginable shock came to Allison Nichol Longtin when her husband passed away six years into ...
Jan 10, 2022•1 hr 10 min•Ep. 265
“Can I retire yet?” If you’re today’s guest Jenn, then the short answer is a resounding “yes”. And if you aren’t Jenn, you’ll probably want to be in her position upon retirement. Jenn has a lot of income options: a military pension from her spouse, a great full-time income, real estate syndication cash flow, and a LOT of assets. Jenn’s net worth has reached the height of around $4 million, with more than a million alone in retirement accounts. If Jenn is so set, why is she coming on the Money Po...
Jan 07, 2022•1 hr 12 min•Ep. 264
Most people assume wealth is built from a singular source, but the most successful people have multiple streams of income . 2020 was the year of the side hustle. People started to find ways to monetize their hobbies, create services, and capitalize on their talents. While some people are just now catching on, today’s guest, Jannese Torres-Rodriguez, was ahead of the curve. It all began with a food blog she started for fun that has turned into passive income for her $320,000 salary composed solel...
Jan 03, 2022•1 hr 15 min•Ep. 263
Mindy may seem like a financial superhero to most listeners of the Money Podcast, but she’s nothing without her financial education inspiring partner, Carl Jensen. Carl is known quite well around the personal finance community as co-host of the Mile High FI podcast and writer over at 1500days.com . Carl and Mindy are just closing in on their twentieth anniversary, so there’s no better occasion to have them both on the show than right now! Surprisingly, Carl and Mindy didn’t talk about money for ...
Dec 31, 2021•1 hr 5 min•Ep. 262
Building wealth takes decades with some serious hard work and many, many mistakes along the way. The problem? Most financial independence chasers see themselves as having to be perfectionists. Every investment must be perfect, every dollar spent housed within a budget, and at no time can money become something fun or playful. Joe Saul-Sehy and Emily Guy Birken rightfully see this type of “serious money attitude” as a mistake that should be avoided at all costs. Every financial guru, expert, or l...
Dec 27, 2021•1 hr 4 min•Ep. 261
Stocks vs. real estate is a regular feud among many financially savvy forums on the internet. While some investors love the passive aspect of stocks, other investors love the tax savings and flexibility of real estate . Regardless of your preferred asset, it’s better to stick your hard-earned money in something that makes money for you, instead of spending it or letting it sit. Our guest today, Madison, is having trouble deciding which asset class she and her husband are best suited for. They ha...
Dec 24, 2021•1 hr 7 min•Ep. 260
If you need pension funds explained, there’s no better person to talk to than the internet’s leading voice on all things pensions and retirement, Grumpus Maximus . After spending twenty or so years in the military, Grumpus began to put his health, happiness, and passions first. Now, retired with plenty of money coming in (thanks to pensions and retirement accounts ), Grumpus spends his time blogging and helping others ask the meaningful question, “is my pension worth it?” Guest co-host Joe Saul-...
Dec 20, 2021•1 hr 15 min•Ep. 259
A common debate in real estate is cash flow vs. appreciation . While some investors rely on their rental property income to reach FI, others argue that appreciation will provide them the equity gain to truly build wealth . You’ll hear this discussion in-depth on today’s episode as guest Jackeline walks Mindy and Scott through her $20,000 rental property in Northern Illinois. Jackeline is already doing well in other aspects of her life. She’s got a high net worth, with fully-funded retirement acc...
Dec 17, 2021•1 hr 11 min•Ep. 258
We have a lot of impressive guests on the show, and they just seem to get younger with every new episode. You’ve heard the stories of people in their twenties buying rentals , people in their thirties hitting coast FI, and people in their forties and beyond making many, many millions. But, what about a marine recruit , making a low salary, buying more than $800k in real estate within his second decade on earth? Now that sounds like an interesting story. Jabbar Adesada fits the bill exactly! Afte...
Dec 13, 2021•1 hr 29 min•Ep. 257
There are many ways to fund your nest egg. You could outright save, or you could invest in index funds, rental properties, or short-term rentals like today’s guest, Charlotte from Charlotte. Working as a teacher in one of the lowest-paid states in the US, Charlotte was able to fully replace her teacher’s salary by operating a single short-term rental cabin in Western North Carolina. When she discovered the FIRE Movement only a year ago, she knew that intelligent investments like this could fund ...
Dec 10, 2021•1 hr 7 min•Ep. 256
If you’ve been in the FI community for years, you know the ins and outs of retirement planning, index fund investing , house hacking , and every other money-making opportunity around. But, it’s safe to say that this took you years to figure out, sometimes well into adulthood. What if you were given the same knowledge you have now, but when you were a teenager? Dan Sheeks is trying to do this exactly, by teaching his students about personal finance , saving, investing, and how they can plan for F...
Dec 06, 2021•1 hr 9 min•Ep. 255
We’re back with another Finance Friday Follow-Up! This week, we talk to two past guests and review three life updates. Fabio from episode 174 , Clayton from episode 168 , and Rachael from episode 190 all have life updates for the audience! When we last talked to Fabio, he was starting to expand his real estate empire . Since the market has been so hot, he has had to pivot his strategy towards what works best for him in the long term. With a few years of military service left, Fabio wants to wind...
Dec 03, 2021•50 min•Ep. 254
On the last day of a semester in college, Adam Zaleski’s geology professor dropped a bomb on his class: the professor was worth a staggering $10,000,000! The reason for telling the students about his net worth wasn’t to impress but to make the case that exponential growth is more likely than most people think. This taught Adam that he needed to choose a profession he enjoyed so he could continue to work, invest, and grow his wealth exponentially , just like his professor. Adam did just that, and...
Nov 29, 2021•1 hr 26 min•Ep. 253
It takes a leap of faith to leave a W2 job and wander through the hills and valleys of self-employment. With the right skill set, time management , and perseverance, you can come out more profitable (and happier) than you were originally at your old job. But, once you succeed, it may be hard to slow down the self-employment train, and your side-gig could become a full-on business, with the need for employees. TJ has put herself in a phenomenal position, both financially and income-wise. She left...
Nov 26, 2021•55 min•Ep. 252
Is college worth it? For the first time in history, we may have a definitive answer to whether or not your specific degree and school choice provides a positive ROI. We know that ROI isn’t the only thing that matters when choosing a degree, but when looking at higher education through a financial independence lens, it’s definitely the highest value. Looking through census, employment, and Department of Education data is number crunching crusader, Preston Cooper . Preston and his team over at The...
Nov 22, 2021•1 hr 21 min•Ep. 251
Everyone knows that tech salaries tend to be on the higher end. In tech, you could be working as an engineer, programmer, or statistician, like today’s guest Matthew. But, Matthew never planned to go to school for this type of work. Half a decade ago, Matthew was wearing a chef’s apron, working forty to sixty-hour weeks, making slightly above minimum wage . He loved the work (and the food) but realized he couldn’t keep living with the long hours, low wages, and high stress. Mathew went back to s...
Nov 19, 2021•1 hr 9 min•Ep. 250
You’ve heard the old statistic “ nine out of ten businesses fail ”, but why is that? If there are so many people willing to risk their livelihood to pursue a great idea, why do so many end up broke and back at a job? Gabe Nelson , certified financial planner and business advisor, has an idea. Gabe advises many business owners and solopreneurs through building their businesses with maximum cash flow and minimum time commitment. A couple of decades ago, Gabe was in the position many entrepreneurs ...
Nov 15, 2021•56 min•Ep. 249
Your late 20s through early 30s can be a financially troubling part of life. You aren’t making the most money you ever will, but you’re tackling big expenses. A wedding, a down payment , and trying to max out retirement accounts can put you in a financial tizzy. But, it doesn’t have to be so complicated, especially if you stick to a scalable investment strategy. Today’s guest Louise is in this position. She recently changed employers and found herself with a big uptick in monthly income. She has...
Nov 12, 2021•1 hr 28 min•Ep. 248
There are few people on this earth that can make Mindy laugh as much as Alex Felice . He’s been around the block with BiggerPockets a few times, appearing on episode 301 of the BiggerPockets Real Estate Podcast . Alex has a growing rental property portfolio, a flipping business, and is a professional photographer/videographer. But, beneath his success, was thirty-one years of financial struggle . Alex was taught financial skills growing up. The only problem: he didn’t listen to any of the advice...
Nov 08, 2021•1 hr 21 min•Ep. 247
“Should I cash out my 401k?” That’s a question you never want to ask in an online financial independence forum. It’s been a well-known rule to never cash out retirement accounts due to withdrawal penalties, tax implications, and the possibility of throwing away your retirement plans. But, what if you had a substantially larger amount in real estate and other assets, what would you think then? Kate is in this exact predicament and has done a phenomenal job at growing her wealth over the past deca...
Nov 05, 2021•1 hr 17 min•Ep. 246
Brad Finn was raised with a strong work ethic that follows him to this day. He always knew he should be working hard, and that’s exactly what he did. Brad worked throughout high school, college, and started multiple businesses in adulthood. While his work ethic was strong, his financial skills were lacking. When Brad went to college, he remembers using almost a third of his student loans on partying alone. Fast forward to his mid-thirties, Brad is waking up in a beautiful house, with two nice ca...
Nov 01, 2021•1 hr 31 min•Ep. 245
Retirement planning can be complicated when you have so many options to choose from. Do you stick with the Roth IRA, the 401k, the Roth 401k, your employee pension plan , or solely invest in stocks and real estate? With all these different types of accounts and their numerous benefits and drawbacks, it’s easy to get stuck financially stalling. One person who has been able to optimize his retirement plans, is Matt, pilot and soon-to-be captain, delivering cargo around the United States. Matt boug...
Oct 29, 2021•59 min•Ep. 244
If you’re part of the FI community, you’re probably a saver. Heck, if you’re listening to this podcast you’re probably a saver . While we all are busy optimizing our budget, reinvesting dividends, and contributing to our retirement accounts, do we ever take a step back and ask, “why are we saving so much?” Maybe you have a simplistic answer for this: your kids, your spouse, your “future”. When it comes time to finally reap the rewards of all that saving and investing, we struggle, and often fail...
Oct 25, 2021•1 hr 33 min•Ep. 243
A few weeks ago, Mindy was asked by a listener of BiggerPockets Money, “when are you going to do a Finance Friday follow-up?” Well, listener, your wish has come true! Today we talk to three past guests of the BiggerPockets Money Show, Sarah from episodes 6 and 178 , Brian from episode 180 , and Erik from episode 170 . In Sarah’s most recent episode, she spoke about having large safety reserves and sinking funds for her new property. Since being on the show, she’s taken time to evaluate how safe ...
Oct 22, 2021•1 hr 6 min•Ep. 242
Amber Porter has one of the most optimized retirement plans we’ve ever seen. Seriously, she could give Mindy and Scott a run for their money! Amber grew up in a neighborhood that was anything but rich. Surprisingly, the wealthier people in her neighborhood were more interested in purchasing nice cars instead of investing, which they told her was essentially gambling. Amber quickly saw past this idea and realized that smart, consistent investing could lead her to many millions of dollars. She wor...
Oct 18, 2021•1 hr 8 min•Ep. 241
Marching along Bourbon Street last week was a parade with some of the best real estate investors in the world, celebrating another successful BPCon, ready to take on the world. Throughout the past week, attendees of the conference heard from world-class business leaders , investors, and authors, learning about everything from running a business to short-term rental markets , to self-storage , and more. On this live episode, your BiggerPockets Money host, Scott Trench, is joined by Brandon Turner...
Oct 15, 2021•1 hr 31 min•Ep. 240
If you and your sweetheart want to get married, rent a truck in a Colorado ski town, and have your dog watched while you’re doing so, Stephanie Warner is the person you should get in touch with. Even though she has a great W2 job, she still hustles hard with her side income work, making enough to pay for her lifestyle while her nine-to-five pays for her future financial freedom. Stephanie had enough money growing up, but she wasn’t given a ton of financial literacy lessons from her parents. Than...
Oct 11, 2021•1 hr 17 min•Ep. 239
