Adulting Is Easy: Making Personal Finance & Real Estate Easy

This week, Lauren brings you her interview with Jessica Mauser. Jessica's been in real estate full time for 17 years, but she's just now acting on her investment theses. Using 1031 exchange funds from California investments, she's expanding into Florida, Wisconsin, and Montana. She's into long-term rentals, short-term rentals, and student housing! Jessica offers great insight into getting started in real estate now, and you'll walk away more motivated than before. What's next? Perhaps she'll expand in Florida, or maybe she'll get into commercial real estate. Stay in touch with Jessica to see what she does next!

About Jessica:

By trade, Jessica Mauser is a top producing commercial real estate broker, with 17 years of experience in leasing and sales of shopping centers, and over $350 million in transactions. By night, she’s a rookie investor building an opportunistic portfolio that currently includes a vacation rental, a bit of multi-family, and an attempt at commercial real estate.

Connect with Jessica:

Google: Lee & Associates

https://twitter.com/Jessica925cre

https://www.instagram.com/jessica.mauser/

Subscribe to the Adulting Is Easy YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@adultingiseasy

Sponsored by Steadily Insurance: https://adultingiseasy.steadilypartner.com/

This week, Lauren brings you her interview with Chad Money Matters. Chad is here to answer the question, "What if I don't make a lot of money?" And tear down the excuse, "I don't make enough money to invest." Lauren and Chad discuss emergency funds and the importance of living beneath your means. Chad talks about what he's teaching his daughter about money. He outlines the steps he and his wife took to get to the point where they have about $20,000 each year, even while making less than $60,000. Chad is very open about how he invests: in his Roth IRA and brokerage account. He talks about his old car, and what his grandma thinks of that car! If Chad can invest, you can invest too!

About Chad:

Chad a.k.a. Chad Money Matters is passionate about teaching folks how to do more with less, financially. Chad and his family are building wealth on a modest salary of less than $60,000, and he’s showing on social media how they do it so you can too.

Connect with Chad:

https://twitter.com/Chadmoneymatter

Subscribe to the Adulting Is Easy YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@adultingiseasy

Sponsored by Steadily Insurance: https://adultingiseasy.steadilypartner.com/

This week, Lauren brings you her interview with Mark Holmes. Mark and his wife have both a long-term rental (LTR) and short-term rentals (STRs) in their portfolio, which is why Lauren invited him on the podcast. The two go over their cash flow numbers for the 3 properties, which by the way were purchased in 2022. They discuss retirement plans and numbers. Lauren asks about the controversial decision to take early withdrawal penalties from a 401k to invest in real estate. They even get into their new step in entrepreneurship: opening a flower shop! Did we mention they also had their first baby this year?! Wow.  

Follow the Adulting Is Easy YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/@adultingiseasy

About Mark:  

Mark Holmes and his wife Brie started investing in 1 long-term rental (LTR) and 2 short-term rentals (STRs) in April, June, and October of this year, 2022. They both work W2’s and have leveraged his 401K via loan and 2 withdrawals to kick start their real estate investing journey. They’re also exploring opening a flower shop. Their goal is to have enough cash flow to have the option to retire by the end of 2025! Mark and Brie have a golden retriever named Tatum and had their first baby boy, Jackson, in September.  

Connect with Mark:  

https://twitter.com/RealTatum57 

Sponsored by Steadily Insurance: https://adultingiseasy.steadilypartner.com/ 

Connect with Lauren: https://twitter.com/AdultingIsEasy  

Download rental resources: https://adultingiseasy.gumroad.com/   

Schedule a coaching session: https://www.realadultingiseasy.com/book-online   

This week, Lauren brings you her interview with David, who is more known as Uncommon Yield on Twitter and Instagram. The two cover the history of credit and  the genesis of credit cards. They discussed the pros, like convenience, rewards, and various protections, as well as the cons, like the propensity to overspend and face high interest rates. Lauren and David dove into FICO scores, the components, and offer some tips on keeping your FICO score up. Finally, Uncommon Yield and Lauren both divulge how many credit cards they have and how they leverage the benefits by paying them off every month (unless they're 0%).

Visit https://www.joincfu.com/ to learn more about CFU. (Note: group has since moved towards mostly stocks and options only.)

About Uncommon Yield:

David a.k.a. UncommonYield is a financial educator and teacher at Cash Flow University. He takes a unique approach to personal finance that teaches you how to get the most out of every dollar. UY is married with 4 young kids and is Midwest born and raised. Find him @UncommonYield on Twitter and Instagram.

Connect with Uncommon Yield:

https://twitter.com/UncommonYield

https://www.instagram.com/uncommonyield/

This week, Lauren brings you her interview with Jessica from The Fioneers. The two talked about Jessica and her husband's journey to FI (which they're still on). It's anything but linear, but then again that's how most journeys are. She shares examples from friends and client who have reached Coast FI or semi-retirement. Jessica paints quite the picture of what designing a life you love that brings you joy is all about. The beautiful thing is: it's different for everyone. How would you design you life? What does your dream week look like? Jessica talks Lauren through how to think about the future. As always, you'll walk away from this episode more motivated than ever.

About Jessica:

Jessica is a full-time human being and a part-time writer and lifestyle design coach. She is a Co-Founder of The Fioneers, a financial independence blog focused on the intersection between financial independence and lifestyle design. She also provides coaching and courses on career discovery and lifestyle design for people who want to take unconventional paths and design lives they love. In her free time, you can find her spending as much time as possible outside, perfecting her sourdough pizza recipe, and road-tripping in her campervan.

Connect with Jessica:

https://twitter.com/thefioneers

https://www.instagram.com/thefioneers/

https://thefioneers.com/

Slow FI Enthusiasts Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/531780934295233/

Subscribe to the Adulting Is Easy YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@adultingiseasy

Sponsored by Steadily Insurance: https://adultingiseasy.steadilypartner.com/

This week, Lauren brings you her interview with Lawrence Briggs. His story is incredibly fascinating because most children from the project don't grow up to be homeowners, never mind landlords. Lawrence steps Lauren through the numbers for his 3 properties (2 rentals and one primary): purchase price, closing costs, rental income, and cash flow. They discuss buying in the high interest rate environment. Lauren puts Lawrence on the spot when she asked if landlords are evil. Of course, real estate can be a great and somewhat passive income stream.

About Lawrence:

Lawrence Briggs aka "College Boy". He is a real estate investor and financial literacy nerd (with style) from New Orleans! He shares tips and tools to help you turn earned income from a 9-5 job into passive income to achieve the lifestyle you desire!

Connect with Lawrence:

https://twitter.com/Lawrence_Briggs

Subscribe to the Adulting Is Easy YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@adultingiseasy

Sponsored by Steadily Insurance: https://adultingiseasy.steadilypartner.com/

This week, Lauren brings you her interview with Jannese Torres. The two discuss Jannese's start. Her family moved from Puerto Rico to New Jersey to realize the American Dream. It wasn't long into her career, though, that Jannese realized the traditional American Dream might not be for her. Was working 9-5 all there was to life? Did she really want to do this for 40 years? Getting fired from her corporate job gave her the spark she needed to explore entrepreneurship. Jannese worked hard to make her food blog a success. She later created Yo Quiero Dinero, the podcast and all that comes with it. Lauren walked away feeling empowered and motivated, and you will too, no matter your gender or color of your skin!

About Jannese:

Jannese Torres is the creator and host of the award-winning personal finance podcast, Yo Quiero Dinero®. She started her first side hustle about 6 months before getting fired in 2014. With freedom as the goal, Jannese really started her journey into online entrepreneurship. She’s on a mission to help you be poderosa with your dinero, because she didn’t have a clue what she was doing with money for a VERY LONG TIME. She’s based in Tampa Bay, Florida, and loves drinking mimosas and her two dogs.

Connect with Jannese:

https://yoquierodineropodcast.com/

https://twitter.com/dineropodcast

https://www.instagram.com/yoquierodineropodcast/

https://www.facebook.com/yoquierodineropodcast

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCqjyPFk9zzMBr_nVI6KmoIA

Subscribe to the Adulting Is Easy YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@adultingiseasy

Sponsored by Steadily Insurance: https://adultingiseasy.steadilypartner.com/

This week, Lauren brings you her interview with Tyann Marcink Hammond, short-term and vacation rental expert. Tyann answers the question right off the bat, what is a short-term rental? HINT: It's NOT an "Airbnb" or a "Vrbo." We learn how she got started, with some good, old-fashioned family rivalry. She started like many short-term rental (STR) hosts do, with long-term rentals (LTR) and house hacking. She had some issues with a tenant/drug dealer and that was enough of the LTRs. Lauren's favorite part is when she talks about turning a bank into an STR. The two run through the numbers in detail. Tyann takes guest experience seriously and she offers hosts great tips for communication. Finally, she gives you the push you need to take action (if you haven't already)!

About Tyann:

Tyann Marcink Hammond, the Queen of Guest Experience for Touch Stay digital guidebooks, co-host of The Guest Cast podcast, industry leader and consultant, co-creator of VR Mastered vacation rental boot camp, author, speaker, and owner/manager of two vacation rental brands: Branson Family Retreats and Missouri Haus. Her passion for the vacation rental industry and guest experience truly makes my eyes sparkle.

Learn from Lauren and Tyann in Cash Flow University: https://launchpass.com/cfu/cfu-member/v2?via=lauren

Connect with Tyann:

https://twitter.com/tyannmarcink

https://www.instagram.com/tyannmarcink/

https://www.facebook.com/tyannmarcink

https://www.linkedin.com/in/tyannmarcink/

Tyann's tools: https://tyannmarcink.com/tools/

The Bank: https://missourihaus.com/bankhaus/

Subscribe to the Adulting Is Easy YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@adultingiseasy

Sponsored by Steadily Insurance: https://adultingiseasy.steadilypartner.com/

This week, Stephen Wealthy, Clint Murphy, Tom the Frugal Gay, and Lauren (Adulting Is Easy) talked about their recent real estate nightmares. Tom is juggling multiple renovations and will be filling more units soon. Stephen had a turnover at his condo, but shares some stories from his family's investments. Clint has an empty unit that's he's had to decrease rents on twice. Lauren shared some new nightmares from her short-term rental business. 

The group also reminisced about the last year of Wealth Wednesdays and talked about future projects. Enjoy this very last Wealth Wednesday!

Join Cash Flow University: https://www.joincfu.com/?via=lauren

Connect:

https://twitter.com/IAmClintMurphy

https://twitter.com/Thefrugalgay11

https://twitter.com/AdultingIsEasy

https://twitter.com/StephenCFU_

-- Please note that this information is meant to be just that. Please consult your accountant, financial advisor, and other professionals about your specific situation. --

This week, Lauren interviewed Eric Friday and Jamiel Strickland, the Monopoly Brothers. They're doing wholesaling, flipping, buy and hold, and more to trade up into apartment buildings in Detroit, Michigan. Lauren wanted to know more about wholesaling real estate. The two told Lauren what it's like to works with buyers and sellers as the middle man in a real estate deal. They talked about their biggest wins and what it's like when people are mean to wholesalers. What becomes clear as the episode goes on is the vital role wholesalers play in real estate markets. They told Lauren about the kind of person who would be successful in wholesaling - and it's not what you'd think!

Book: The One Thing

About The Monopoly Brothers:

In the game of Monopoly, the players’ goal is to become financially sound by buying, redeveloping, and selling pieces of property. Detroit-based real estate investors, Eric Friday and Jamiel Strickland, are playing Monopoly in real life, with real pieces. Through the Monopoly Bros brand, which started in 2022, Friday and Strickland envision building generational wealth. And instead of bankrupting other property investors, they teach others how to build wealth.

Connect with The Monopoly Brothers:

https://twitter.com/Monopoly_Bros_

https://twitter.com/Monopoly_Bros_

[email protected]

Subscribe to the Adulting Is Easy YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@adultingiseasy

Sponsored by Steadily Insurance: https://adultingiseasy.steadilypartner.com/