We have some really exciting news to share before introducing this Wednesday episode (and ironically enough, we discussed the cost of diapers at the beginning of this one)! Are we ready for a recession!? The economy has been roaring for close to a decade and corrections are inevitable. We’re not saying to pay uber close attention to the news cycle and the different predictions of the market tanking, but it is good to be prepared. And even if an actual recession never occurs, getting our personal...
Sep 25, 2019•39 min•Ep. 125
This week on the pod we’re answering your questions! 1 - Condos: are they a good investment? Should I consider one instead of a house? 2 - What are all the different types of auto insurance that are offered? 3 - I have whole life insurance. Should I cancel immediately or let it sit around to allow the cash value to grow? 4 - Unfortunately I’ve already signed up with a debt settlement company, but should I stick with them if they’re settling and negotiating my debts? 5 - Frugal or Cheap? I’m goin...
Sep 23, 2019•35 min•Ep. 124
Over the course of our lives, our habits become ingrained and the small things we do day after day shape who we become. This is especially true of our money as simple routines can be life-changing, but don’t forget the door swings both ways. While positive financial habits can lead to massive wins for us down the road, negative habits can lead to some pretty grim consequences. In this episode we discuss the ‘what’ and the ‘how’- what are some great financial behaviors to begin practicing, and ho...
Sep 18, 2019•36 min•Ep. 123
Tiffany Aliche is also known as the Budgetnista and her mission is to make life-changing financial education accessible to women worldwide. She’s been featured on MSNBC, The Today Show, Forbes- and earlier this year she was instrumental in a new law that passed in New Jersey that will have a massive impact on financial education. We also dive into her history with money and how even though she was raised in a household that prioritized money discussions, she still made some costly mistakes that ...
Sep 16, 2019•55 min•Ep. 122
Housing costs are a significant expense, gobbling up around 37% of most American’s take home pay- other categories don’t even come close! Spending less on housing will have an inordinate impact on the amount of money you’re able to save and invest, and house hacking is one of the best ways to achieve this goal. House hacking is a tactic that everyone should consider- whether you pay rent or have a mortgage, you’re a candidate for transforming a monthly expense into a source of revenue. Listen as...
Sep 11, 2019•32 min•Ep. 121
This week on the pod we’re answering your questions! 1 - What should I do with my old employer sponsored retirement plan? 2 - Where should I invest being fresh out school and in my 20s? 3 - Solar- finance and take the tax credit now or wait and save to pay cash? 4 - I’m receiving 8k from the Peace Corps once I complete my service- what should I do with that money? 5 - Should I extend a line of credit to pad my emergency fund? And if you have a question for us, we’d love for you to submit your ow...
Sep 09, 2019•39 min•Ep. 120
We talk a lot about investing- whether that be in the stock market, in real estate, or in bitcoin (JK don’t ever do that)! But it’s not often that we discuss investing in ourselves- our personal capital is one of the greatest assets we have! The power to grow our income based on our unique skills is crucial as we develop personally and professionally. While many folks stop growing their knowledge and experience once they receive that diploma, challenging ourselves to grow in these areas can have...
Sep 04, 2019•31 min•Ep. 119
Kristy Shen has an amazing story- from growing up in China on $0.44 a day to becoming financially independent at age 31 and traveling non-stop around the world. Kristy writes about money on her site Millennial-Revolution and shares her story in the new book she wrote with her husband called “Quit Like a Millionaire.” In this interview we cover a number of topics that range from her remarkable childhood and the surprising benefits of a scarcity mindset, all the way to analyzing what degree to pur...
Sep 02, 2019•51 min•Ep. 118
There’s a lot of crappy financial advice out there. Some sayings you might hear all the time and you’re not even sure where they even originated- maybe they’re more of a proverbial phrase. There are also bits of wisdom that might have been good at some point, but are now just outdated- it’s time to retire those old ways of thinking! And other phrases might just be broad blanket statements, but our financial landscape today requires a bit more nuance. We’re going to tackle some of these sayings a...
Aug 28, 2019•32 min•Ep. 117
This week on the pod we’re answering your questions! 1 - I’m moving to the beach, should I keep my current house as a rental or sell it? 2 - When applying for credit cards, what do I put as my income if I have irregular or unearned income? 3 - What should you keep in mind if considering bankruptcy? 4 - Instead of having an escrow account with my mortgage company, should I save the money myself? 5 - My sister is in college- where can she start investing money in a Roth account? And if you have a ...
Aug 26, 2019•31 min•Ep. 116
Loyalty to certain brands, stores, or service providers could be costing you a ton of money. The same might be true when it comes to your devotion to an employer - your loyalty might be keeping you from earning more. There are times when loyalty is appropriate and justifiable, and we’ll discuss those instances, but just be mindful of where your allegiances lie. Sure, dedication can be great in your personal life with friends and loved ones, but we want you to question your loyalty, especially wh...
Aug 21, 2019•35 min•Ep. 115
Talking with your parents about their finances might prove to be a very difficult conversation- discussing religion and politics may even seem like a walk in the park compared to breaching the topics of retirement, long term care, and wills. Which is why we’re so thankful to have Cameron Huddleston join us to explain how we can go about having these essential conversations with our parents. She has recently published her book “Mom and Dad, We Need to Talk” and she is here to walk us through init...
Aug 19, 2019•55 min•Ep. 114
Much of our financial life often revolves around one number- our credit score. It’s really important that your score is in a healthy range as it impacts loan terms, insurance rates, and even job offers. Luckily we all have free access to our credit scores, credit reports, and the steps we need to take to ensure that our credit score is in great shape. We’re sharing that information with you in this episode. Depending on your history, it could be a long road of rebuilding your credit, but boostin...
Aug 14, 2019•30 min•Ep. 113
This week on the pod we’re answering your questions! 1 - Should I continue investing with an impending market correction? 2 - What should I do with the money I’m setting aside for new baby expenses? 3 - After some hail damage, should I fix my car or keep the insurance money? 4 - How does compounding work for investments like stocks? 5 - Do I have to pay quarterly estimates or should I invest that money instead? And if you have a question for us, we’d love for you to submit your own via HowToMone...
Aug 12, 2019•34 min•Ep. 112
What do you do for fun? This might seem like a trivial question, but discovering your hobbies can have some pretty large impacts on your financial health and overall well-being. Of course we want to ensure that we’re pursuing frugal hobbies and that we’re being intentional by curating our interests. The mindless pursuit of expensive hobbies is never a good thing- but reaching the end of our working career and finding ourselves bored and restless sounds like a nightmare scenario! We live in a wor...
Aug 07, 2019•36 min
This episode is chock full of personal finance gold. Sure, we spend a good amount of time talking about negotiating, but we also cover intentional spending, the psychology behind being smart with your money, and rethinking the money ‘truths’ we’ve grown up with. We are stoked to have Ramit Sethi join us as we cover all those topics and more, which can also be found in his book ‘I Will Teach You to be Rich’ (and stick around to the end as we’re giving away a few copies as well)! Ramit has written...
Aug 05, 2019•56 min•Ep. 110
If you have a difficult time setting aside money for the future and saving towards retirement, then identifying why it is that you’re saving might be what you’re missing. Studies have even shown that we will save more money for retirement when we’re able to see an older version of ourselves- so maybe trying out FaceApp is a good thing after all! Even though we all might have different motivators, it’s healthy to remind ourselves of why it is so important to save and invest. And actually realizin...
Jul 31, 2019•25 min•Ep. 109
This week on the pod we’re answering your questions! 1 - Is it OK to buy a new car if I’m going to keep it for 15 years? 2 - What receipts should I keep for tax purposes on the portion of my duplex I’m renting? 3 - What were y’all taught and what should I be teaching my kid about money? 4 - As a higher earner, is there any tax benefit to contributing to my IRA when I’m already covered by a retirement plan at work? 5 - Where should I consider opening a small business account for my new business? ...
Jul 29, 2019•37 min•Ep. 108
We should all probably watch a little less TV than we do, but that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t be getting a deal in the process! The television bundle is the priciest way to watch and you should consider a free or streaming option because there are now so many choices. And you don’t have to sacrifice and give up a particular show or live sports if that’s your thing- there’s a really good chance you can find a video service, providing the content you’re looking for, that will be substantially more ...
Jul 24, 2019•40 min•Ep. 107
The leading cause of bankruptcy in America is the inability to pay medical bills- an estimated half a million people file for this reason every year! Almost no one is immune to the rising cost of healthcare, and fellow podcaster Dan Weissmann is here to commiserate. Dan’s podcast, An Arm and a Leg, is part journalism part personal narrative as he dives into real life experiences of Americans with their health coverage. Healthcare is definitely confusing, and based on the fact that our country sp...
Jul 22, 2019•53 min•Ep. 106
Health Savings Accounts aren’t just for paying your medical bills- when used properly, they are pure retirement gold! If you have a qualifying healthcare plan and aren’t taking advantage of an HSA, you’re missing out on massive amounts of money that you could be socking away. This is because an HSA is the most tax advantaged retirement account that exists, maybe even dethroning the Roth IRA as our favorite retirement account! Have a listen as to why we think you should seriously consider opening...
Jul 17, 2019•31 min•Ep. 105
This week on the pod we’re answering your questions! 1 - Should I keep my car payment around in order to boost my credit score? 2 - When does it make sense to replace old light bulbs with new LEDs? 3 - Is it worth disputing my property tax bill? 4 - How can I negotiate a lower APR on my credit cards? 5 - I’m considering joining Lending Club as an alternative way to invest my money- is this a good idea? And if you have a question for us, we’d love for you to submit your own via HowToMoney.com/ask...
Jul 15, 2019•36 min•Ep. 104
Whether you’re planning to score a deal on Amazon Prime day or not, chances are you do a good bit of purchasing online. Obviously we love getting a great deal and the convenience of online shopping is unmatched, but what other considerations should be taken into account? Just because we’re getting a deal now, does that mean we’re spending less money in the long run? During this episode we cover when shopping at a local brick and mortar is better, some serious downsides of shopping online, and th...
Jul 10, 2019•46 min•Ep. 103
Getting your significant other on-board when it comes to personal finance goals may be no small task- which is just one of the reasons we’re excited to have Andy Hill join us for this episode. Andy and his wife started their life together 50k in debt. They put in the hard work of confronting their individual unhealthy financial patterns, set some serious goals, and in just 4 years were completely debt free (including a 195k mortgage!) and now 8 years later have grown their net worth to over 750k...
Jul 08, 2019•55 min•Ep. 102
Many of us have our own personalized, specific goals when it comes to our money, so it’s no surprise that we also have many different views of what financial independence means to each of us. Since tomorrow is the 4th of July, we wanted to take a moment and reflect on how our views of financial independence have changed over the years. We also posted this question in the How To Money Facebook group, and we look forward to digging into and sharing your wisdom regarding what financial freedom mean...
Jul 03, 2019•39 min•Ep. 101
This week on the pod we’re answering your questions! 1 - What does it mean to put index funds in my Roth IRA? 2 - Should I invest in Fundrise and REITs in order to learn more about real estate investing? 3 - Should we consider getting a home warranty? 4 - How will my credit score be impacted if I pay off a debt in collections? 5 - Am I crazy to consider buying a new $65,000 electric truck? And if you have a question for us, we’d love for you to submit your own via HowToMoney.com/ask During this ...
Jul 01, 2019•40 min•Ep. 100
Understanding what our time is worth allows us to make more informed decisions regarding our time and money. Your hourly rate informs your decision to DIY a project at home, determine whether you’re spending too much time searching for a deal, or whether its time to negotiate a raise or other benefits at work. Your personal hourly rate shouldn’t be the only consideration but understanding the relationship between our time and money will allow us to live more meaningful and optimized lives. Durin...
Jun 26, 2019•40 min•Ep. 99
So many of us grew up without any sort of formal or informal education about personal finance. Few states offer a personal finance course in their public schools and even fewer participate in any sort of standardized testing for the courses they do offer. That’s why we’re really excited to have Dan LaSalle join us for this episode. Dan saw a need for this type of education in the high school where he was teaching and four years ago he took it upon himself to create a personal finance program tha...
Jun 24, 2019•50 min•Ep. 98
More and more investors want their money to be going to companies who are doing good in the world, or at least to companies who are being responsible when it comes to the environment, social issues, and governance. Companies who are leading in this front may also be better positioned for future challenges and experience fewer instances of bribery, corruption, and fraud (bonus: giving you better returns on your investment)! Unfortunately, with socially responsible investing being fairly new on th...
Jun 19, 2019•24 min•Ep. 97
This week on the pod we’re answering your questions! 1 - Should I get umbrella insurance or put each investment property in it’s own LLC? 2 - Should I change my tax withholdings to pay off debt? 3 - How should my partner and I split bills and pursue financial independence when we have very different incomes? 4 - When should I consider switching to a bank that pays a higher interest rate? 5 - How should I structure a group of friends to discuss talking about money? And if you have a question for ...
Jun 17, 2019•35 min•Ep. 96
