#347: Back in the 1960’s, Jack Bogle thought that actively-managed mutual funds performed better than a passive indexing strategy. He pseudonymously published a paper saying so. But academic data from the University of Chicago challenged his preconceived notions. He attended seminars that showed how the drag on returns that come from management fees and trading costs, coupled with the reality that the bulk of gains come from a hard-to-predict handful of equities (a concept known as “skew”), lead...
Nov 05, 2021•57 min•Ep 347•Transcript available on Metacast #346: Pensions make Chad uncomfortable, to the point of quitting his job to roll his $175,000 over to an IRA. Is the 12 percent match his employer offers good enough to beat the two percent growth of his pension? Or should he leave and never look back? Anonymous and his wife have $275,000 saved and a child on the way. They’re 27 and want to reach financial independence by 35. They want to buy a house, but with this crazy market, what’s the smartest way for them to use their savings? Anonymous an...
Nov 02, 2021•1 hr 3 min•Ep 346•Transcript available on Metacast #345: Let’s talk about one of the biggest expenses you might ever encounter: health care costs. When you get a hospital bill, do you understand it? After all, it looks like it’s written in code (and sometimes it literally is). How do you know if the bill is accurate? Has everything been coded properly? Are you being charged for the services that you actually received? If you need to dispute an item, what’s the process? Pulitzer Prize finalist Marshall Allen joins us to shed light on the complex ...
Oct 26, 2021•49 min•Ep 345•Transcript available on Metacast #344: Russell’s job offers the option to contribute to a 457 plan. Since he’s in the highest tax bracket, should he take advantage of the tax deferral offered through the 457 or invest within a taxable brokerage account? Anonymous is on track to be financially independent in 14 years, but isn’t living up to her potential working a boring job. How can she live up to her potential and do more without sacrificing her quality of life? C wants to know what tax implications she should consider before ...
Oct 19, 2021•1 hr•Ep 344•Transcript available on Metacast #343: The real estate market in 2021 has been bonkers. That’s the technical term. From 2012 to 2020, home prices nationwide rose at an annualized average of 5.8 percent per year. From April 2020 to April 2021, home prices climbed 17.2 percent. This sudden surge in prices has many homeowners and would-be investors fearful of a crash. The memories of the stark price run-up prior to The Great Recession are all too salient. What goes up must come down, right? Not exactly. In this episode, we walk th...
Oct 11, 2021•1 hr•Ep 343•Transcript available on Metacast #342: Russell is a busy professional who’d like to invest passively in real estate. Is there data he can use to compare this approach to owning and managing their own properties? Laura wants to purchase her first investment property in Miami. Should she cash out some RSUs and stock from her company to use as a down payment? And what type of mortgage is she eligible for since she already owns a home? Jordan and his wife own three properties and are under contract on a new house since they have a ...
Oct 04, 2021•1 hr 8 min•Ep 342•Transcript available on Metacast #341: Imagine a line. Cowardice exists at one extreme end of that line. Recklessness exists at the other extreme end. And in the balanced middle, you’ll find courage. Today’s conversation is about courage. We’re not talking about inspiring physical acts of bravery in this episode; rather, we’re discussing moral and social courage. The type of courage you need to make an investment. Buy a rental property. Invest in stocks. Start a business or side hustle. Retire early. Travel overseas. Have a dif...
Oct 02, 2021•56 min•Ep 341•Transcript available on Metacast #340: Imagine this: You start a side hustle. Maybe you sell planners or lead workouts in the park. You make a few thousand dollars during your first year. It’s fun beer money, but not enough to quit your day job. But you keep growing. You run this as a one-person operation, though you bring on freelancers or independent contractors. Your revenue grows into the five figures. Then six figures. After a few years, you’re running a one-person, million dollar company. This sounds like a pipe dream, ri...
Sep 29, 2021•1 hr 12 min•Ep 340•Transcript available on Metacast #339: Have you ever thought, “I’d like to invest in rental real estate but there are no cheap properties in my area!” “Homes in my city are too expensive. I’d have to invest out-of-state, but that sounds terrifying.” Or have you ever thought, “I’m curious about real estate but I’m not a fan of the idea of taking on all that debt.” Today’s interview is right up your alley. We talk to Rich Carey, who bought 20 single-family rental properties in Alabama, totally debt-free, while stationed in German...
Sep 24, 2021•1 hr 15 min•Ep 339•Transcript available on Metacast #338: This month, we’re running four episodes based around the four pillars of F.I.R.E. — financial psychology, investing, real estate and entrepreneurship. Today’s episode, which originally aired in April 2018, offers advice to investors who want to sharpen and hone their competitive edge. Here are three lessons from this conversation with investment writer Morgan Housel: Lesson #1: Great investors need patience and humility. Lesson #2: Read broadly. Don’t just read books about finance and inve...
Sep 14, 2021•1 hr 1 min•Ep 338•Transcript available on Metacast #337: Meet Kristen Berman, a top researcher in the field of behavioral economics. She’s the co-founder of Irrational Labs, which designs products that are evidence-based in the behavioral sciences. Her co-founder, Dan Ariely, is the James B. Duke Professor of psychology and behavioral economics at Duke University, and one of the most famous behavioral economists in the world. Here are some of the (counterintuitive!) ideas that Kristen shares: Habits are overrated. Automate instead Budgeting does...
Sep 08, 2021•57 min•Ep 337•Transcript available on Metacast #336: Anonymous and his partner have a one-bedroom condo that they rent out in Pasadena, CA. The problem? They’re barely breaking even. Should they keep the condo, or sell it and make better use of the profits? Sam wants to know: how much of an emergency fund does a rental property need? Michael and his wife expect their taxable income to be less than $10,000 this year. Should Michael (age 56) take distributions from his 401k to minimize or eliminate their income tax burden? Shanon wants to swit...
Sep 03, 2021•1 hr 10 min•Ep 336•Transcript available on Metacast #335: Have you ever spent years studying the wrong major, climbing the ladder at the wrong company, chasing the wrong career? Have you spent years living in the wrong city? Wrong relationship? Wrong lifestyle? It’s hard to discern what *we think we want* from what we really want. Society teaches us what we’re “supposed” to want. And we follow along. The result is keeping up with the Joneses. It’s the hedonic treadmill. It’s lifestyle inflation. And it causes conflict, both within ourselves and w...
Sep 01, 2021•1 hr 4 min•Ep 335•Transcript available on Metacast #334: In today’s episode, we answer three questions from a college senior named Rafael. He asks about productivity tools and tactics, student debt, Robinhood and market investing, and how to establish yourself as an expert in a given domain. We answer his questions by widening the lens. People often ask about productivity tools. “Do you use Asana or Trello?” But nobody asked Michelangelo what paintbrush he used to paint the Sistine Chapel. The discussion around tools misses the point, which is t...
Aug 25, 2021•1 hr 1 min•Ep 334•Transcript available on Metacast #333: In the 1890s and early 1900’s, we had recessions every two years. From 2009 to 2020, we enjoyed an 11-year bull run, the longest bull run in history. And when we finally had a recession, it lasted only two months. It was the shortest recession in U.S. history. The duration between recessions is growing longer (these days, we average 10 years between recessions, as opposed to two years at the turn of the previous century). And when recessions strike, we recover faster. The average length of...
Aug 18, 2021•1 hr 2 min•Ep 333•Transcript available on Metacast #332: Ginger’s financial independence (FI) number is $2 million, but she doesn’t want to fully retire early. Once she hits ‘coast’ FI, she wants to 1) buy her time back with outsourcing, 2) take a mini-retirement, and 3) buy a vacation home. Does it make sense for her to divert retirement contributions to these goals, or should she aim to save $2M? Wilson plans to have a two percent withdrawal rate in retirement. Given this low rate, should he go all-in on stocks? Or should he split up his retir...
Aug 12, 2021•59 min•Ep 332•Transcript available on Metacast #331: Four thousand weeks. That’s how long we live if we’re lucky enough to celebrate our 80th birthday. We rarely think of our lifespan in terms of weeks. When we do, it seems painfully short. And that’s the point that Oliver Burkeman, author of Four Thousand Weeks, wants to drive home. Rather than fight a losing battle against time, Oliver recommends that we embrace our cosmic insignificance, redefine what a meaningful life looks like, choose what to fail at, burn bridges, and ruthlessly limit...
Aug 07, 2021•52 min•Ep 331•Transcript available on Metacast #330: Linda is 58 and wondering how to account for her Social Security benefits when thinking through the 25x expenditure equation. Her expected expenses are $100,000 - $150,000. How can she figure out if she’s ready to retire? Alise has dreamed of living abroad for long periods of time and wants to buy a property in Portugal before the minimum spend requirement increases. Should she go through with this, or is there another way to gain dual citizenship or travel abroad for long periods of time?...
Aug 02, 2021•52 min•Ep 330•Transcript available on Metacast #329: Have you ever thought about how an economist views financial planning? Would you guess that it's vastly different from how some financial planners approach this work? Today's guest, Laurence Kotlikoff, is a Professor of Economics at Boston University. The Economist named him one of the world's 25 most influential economists in 2014. Professor Kotlikoff has written 19 books, and hundreds of professional articles and Op-Eds. He's here to explain why economists take a different view than fina...
Jul 29, 2021•1 hr 2 min•Ep 329•Transcript available on Metacast #328: Sarah O Sahara’s parents sold their rentals and business of 24 years. They’d like to create a trust for their grandkids with boundaries in place to avoid entitlement. How should they structure this trust? Anonymous in Canada has a fully paid off condo that she wants to turn into a rental once her new townhome is ready. Should she mortgage against the condo to reduce the mortgage on her townhome? Are there any tax benefits to having a mortgage on a rental? Luis’s wife wants to start moonlig...
Jul 21, 2021•59 min•Ep 328•Transcript available on Metacast #327: The stories of success that highlight talent and hard work don’t tell a complete picture. The best artists, athletes, and entrepreneurs don’t always have innate talent. Not all of them have put in 10,000 hours of practice. What sets them apart is their framework for learning. Award-winning social psychologist Dr. Ron Friedman discusses his new book, Decoding Greatness, which answers the question, “why are some people so good at what they do, and what can we learn from this?” You’ll learn h...
Jul 14, 2021•1 hr 1 min•Ep 327•Transcript available on Metacast #326: Anonymous is struggling with being too frugal, possibly to the detriment of her health. I mentioned in a previous episode that I struggled with frugality for a long time. She wants to know: in what ways was frugality a hindrance or an asset, and how did I get myself out of such a frugal mindset? John and his wife aren’t sure how much they should contribute to their daughter’s Ohio 529 plan. They want her to graduate from undergrad debt-free, but they imagine she’ll get help from scholarshi...
Jul 07, 2021•1 hr 2 min•Ep 326•Transcript available on Metacast #325: Okay, so everyone and their dog is talking about Bitcoin — but what exactly is it? And what’s Ethereum? If you’re feeling lost in the topic and confused by the jargon, start with this episode in which we cover the basics about blockchain technology and cryptocurrency. For more information, visit the show notes at https://affordanything.com/episode325 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Jul 02, 2021•51 min•Ep 325•Transcript available on Metacast #324: Rob and his fiancé are grappling with what to do about her $400,000 of federal student loan debt. Should they pay it off immediately, or bank on a 20-year dismissal? “Nurse Dreaming of FI” isn’t sure what her family’s next financial move should be. She’s torn between investing extra money into index funds, or using it to buy a fix-and-flip. Her goal is to make work optional. Which path will lead her there? Daniel recently discovered the financial independence retire early (FIRE) movement a...
Jun 28, 2021•1 hr 11 min•Ep 324•Transcript available on Metacast #323: Brad and Jonathan from ChooseFI join us for a deep philosophical and practical discussion around what we learned from 2020. We explore... What the pandemic taught us about work, finance, and life The importance of being mentally and logistically nimble and flexible The distinction between directionality vs methodology What we’ve learned about how to get a job, what type of education to get, and what to do with the rest of our lives For more information, visit the show notes at https://affo...
Jun 21, 2021•1 hr 25 min•Ep 323•Transcript available on Metacast #322: Jess wants to reach financial independence by the time she’s 50. But she’s worried that she doesn’t have enough money in cash or taxable brokerage accounts to bridge the gap in her first few years of retirement. What moves should she make, if any? Yisell wants to invest money now. Should she cash out her $70,000 pension in hopes to generate more than the $1,000 per month she’s guaranteed from it? Abbey is 22 and she would like to go back to graduate school for nurse anesthesia. Should she ...
Jun 18, 2021•1 hr 14 min•Ep 322•Transcript available on Metacast #321: Have you dreamed of making a career transition, only to realize you have no idea where to start, who to talk to, or how to convey your skills to interviewers? Career expert Ashley Stahl has the information you need to take control of your career and pivot into something new. Ashley struggled with this, too -- but in the process, she figured out a system for identifying someone’s core skills and core nature to find a career and company more aligned with both. She also chats about the 10 cor...
Jun 08, 2021•1 hr 7 min•Ep 321•Transcript available on Metacast #320: Rob is hoping to retire at age 60, but he has a pesky mortgage balance he wants to eliminate beforehand. He and his wife expect to inherit $300,000. Should they use this money to pay off their mortgage or should they bulk up their retirement accounts? Another anonymous caller has two separate questions. One is about the tax efficiencies of ETFs vs. mutual funds, while the other is about Ginny Mae funds and whether there are bond funds that have an inverse relationship with equities. Priya ...
Jun 04, 2021•1 hr 19 min•Ep 320•Transcript available on Metacast #319: Julia Galef is an acclaimed expert on rational decision making. She’s hosted the Rationally Speaking podcast for the last decade, and she’s passionate about good reasoning. Her book, The Scout Mindset, highlights the importance of looking at situations objectively and honestly. This is something a lot of people struggle with -- humans are often irrational -- but Julia argues that this is a skill that we can develop with self-awareness. In this interview, she shares the difference between w...
Jun 01, 2021•1 hr 5 min•Ep 319•Transcript available on Metacast #318: Joe is a new real estate agent and he’s looking for ways to save. Is opening a SEP IRA a good account when you’re no longer a W2 employee? Grace has a similar concern: she’s a tutor, but she’s paid as a contractor. Should she forget about her Vanguard brokerage account and open a SEP IRA or Solo 401k? Kim is newly divorced and celebrating the freedom to make her own financial decisions. She’s struggling to make a living -- also as a new realtor -- and wants to get started with real estate....
May 25, 2021•57 min•Ep 318•Transcript available on Metacast 
