Athlete Wealth Podcast

If you do not have the time or energy to learn about how true professionals go after the returns they deserve, then find an advisory team that will unbiasedly vet the deals for you or just go buy a publicly traded Real Estate Investment Trust.

If you want to explore the best ways to allocate money to real estate, listen to this podcast or Aaron Golderberg’s recent PGA Players Podcast #14 and always ask the right questions before investing. The most important question being the track record of the private real estate shop and if they have “skin in the game.” You also want to know their specialty niche in the market and when the cash flow will make it to you.

I also share some of the mistakes I made and saw my teammates make when it came to real estate investing and NFL Players.

Episode Highlights

• (00:42) The biggest driver of your net wealth is Human Capital
• (2:18) Deep dive on private real estate: PGA Players Podcast #14
• (3:18) Taking stock of your financial structure – does real estate fit?
• (4:58) Homes are consumption assets
• (6:41) The BRRR (Buy, Rehab, Rent, Refinance, Repeat) Method
• (7:38) Vetting private investment deals
• (8:49) Public REITs (Real Estate Investment Trust)
• (10:04) When are you going to get paid back?
• (10:52) The advantage of non-recourse debt

Not for NFL players. 

The data is pretty clear on who wins in the hedge fund world and it’s not the investor. Just like in venture capital, access matters and the line to get that access is out the door. If you want to hedge against uncertainty, you can tailor the perfect hedge on negative economic or personal shocks by creating your own protective reserve customized to your priorities. This keeps costs low, taxes low, and provides a personalized hedge to ride out uncertainty. 

Don’t let Wall Street fool you with shiny objects. Let the compelling evidence drive your investment decisions. 

Episode Highlights

• (1:02) NFL Free Agency
• (2:55) What are hedge funds?
• (3:33)What returns do they have to produce to justify allocating to them?
• (5:14) Creating your own personal hedge fund
• (7:43) Analyzing the Business Risk
• (8:27) Manager skill
• (9:14) Does it really make sense to only throw Hail Marys?
• (10:50) Summing it up

More resources at awmcap.com/nfl16

In this week’s episode I break down venture capital investing and cover what matters most for professional athletes to consider about the space. 

If your advisor has you invested in private equity and is not getting you access to the best funds and managers in venture capital, then should you even allocate any of your hard-earned wealth to the space? Venture Capital can produce outsized returns, but at what cost? 

Don’t let Wall Street take advantage of you, but instead, be a pro when it comes to investing. 

Disclaimers: 

*Not all AWM Clients are invested through the Next Play Capital Opportunity Fund. 

**The Next Play Capital Opportunity Fund is a private fund that is restricted to specific AWM Clients who are accredited investors in the fund.

Why do Professional Athletes continue making headlines for losing money on investments? Do you know what to look out for so you are not taken advantage of when it comes to private investments? 

In the first podcast of the series of private investments, I give a quick overview that we will discuss over the coming weeks including venture capital, hedge funds, and private real estate. As every investor learns, there is no free lunch in the market so I explain some of the risks and the possibility of higher returns and what must be sacrificed to attain those returns. There is always a trade-off for every investment decision whether you know it or not. Those that build generational wealth put their money where there are compensated risks. 

Episode Highlights

• (00:06) Private investment series overview
• (1:03) The advantages of private investments
• (1:23) Russell Wilson news
• (2:12) Public vs private markets
• (3:34) Confidence in returns
• (4:30) Dealing with risks
• (5:30) Returns vs expenses
• (6:34) Investments with friends or family?
• (8:26) The importance of vetting deals
• (9:22) Finding the right financial team to help 

This week I discuss the upcoming free agency window in the NFL. It is only three weeks until it officially begins, but big names are already getting a chance to choose where they will play next season. How can you maximize your next contract and get the deal you deserve?

I talk about the salary cap going down and what actually drives the large numbers signed by the marquee free agents. I also talk about my own free agency experience, the first time being a top free agent the second time with multiple surgeries and a failed physical. 

If you have any specific questions, please let me know at [email protected]

Episode Highlights

• (00:06) Getting released and becoming a free agent
• (1:38) Zach’s pro tip
• (2:18) When might the cap go back up?
• (3:58) Why getting into the free agency should be every NFL players goal
• (4:43) Free agency terms
• (6:09) Long-term contracts
• (9:09) Zach’s story of becoming an unrestricted free agent
• (11:51) “You're sacrificing your body for money in the NFL. That's just true. You're going to have the effects of football for the rest of your life. So you need to go ahead and make sure you take care of your financial life first and sign the deal you deserve.” – Zach Miller

More resources at nflplayerspodcast.com

As an NFL Player you are in the top tax bracket. Your biggest expense is income tax. The more income you can delay and defer to the future where your tax rates will be lower means more money in your future pocket. 

In this episode, I explain some of the basic tax forms you will receive as an NFL player and discuss some of the advanced strategies to build generational wealth. These include

• Individual 401(k) for endorsement income
• Backdoor Roth IRA
• Donor Advised Fund
• Asset Location
• Safe Harbor Strategy

If you don’t feel like you are getting the best advice, give us a chance to discuss your personal tax strategy. I wish I would have searched out more second opinions when I was a player.

More resources at nflplayerspodcast.com/

NFL Teams have already started implementing their strategies for the 2021 NFL Season. Have you reviewed your personal wealth strategy for the year? If you have not done so yet, I implore you to seek out the best professionals to grow and protect your wealth before it’s too late. 

Too many NFL players receive just average financial advice. I cover just a few areas of what should be graded when it comes to wealth planning and strategy. Don’t settle for just investment advice. I know from personal experience it just is not good enough for NFL players. Financial advice for athletes must include tax planning, private equity, and your NFL benefits. 

Do not waste the opportunity of building generational wealth like the wealthy know how to do. They don’t accept someone not acting in their best interest and stay investing for the long term. 

More info at NFLPlayersPodcast.com

Super Bowl

Winning a Super Bowl is one of the greatest moments of my life. Personal success and achievements are good to have but they do not stack up to what you can be accomplished playing as a team that sacrifices for each other to accomplish something that could never be done alone. The long journey and ability to overcome adversity is what makes a Super Bowl Championship Ring the embodiment of greatness.

This Super Bowl will be about more than Tom Brady versus Patrick Mahomes as sports media would have you believe. It is also like no other game unless you’re Tom Brady who is playing in his 10th Super Bowl. Use all the same preparation and fundamentals that got you to the Super Bowl to give you the edge you need to win. Focus on what you can control and don’t make s*** up. Make the plays you are capable of making.

Gamestop

The meme stocks have been getting outsized media exposure this week. Whether is Robinhood, GameStop, AMC, Bitcoin, or Dogecoin when people believe easy profits are to be made, they begin piling in. Brandon, Erik, and Justin have an excellent AWM Insights podcast they released on Tuesday that discusses short selling, hedge funds, meme stocks, and good versus evil. Everyone should recognize that professional traders, whether that’s high frequency traders, momentum traders, or quants have tools and resources the Robinhood amateur does not have access to. The equivalence is if a guy off the street tried to play in the NFL, they would get hurt. This is the same thing. The people buying these meme stocks like GameStop will be the ones that get hurt. I cannot emphasize enough how it pays to be humble and recognize being a long-term investor gives you the freedom to ignore short-term noise such as this and allocate to the highest expected returning investments.

Protect Your Net Worth

Personal Liability Umbrella Insurance is necessary for any athlete. You have worked so hard to be the best player, you owe it to yourself and your family to protect that. Many advisors do not have experience with liability insurance written for athletes so you may not be protected even if you have some in place. With the ability for anyone to Google you and your net worth, it is smart to have a Certified Financial Planner review your insurance just in case there are any gaps. Own your wealth and hold your advisors accountable to the same standard you hold yourself as a player.

Just as blocking and tackling are the fundamentals of football, saving and investing are fundamentals of wealth. In this podcast I challenge you to evaluate how much of your income you save and if you don’t know, it is a good time to find out. 

Wealth is the freedom to do what you want, when you want, with who you want. Every NFL Player has a chance to achieve this once the game is done with you. Just as you would track calories to lose weight or track your gains in the weight room to judge progress, taking ownership of your spending gives you control over your financial security. 

I also discuss debt and the few cases it makes sense for NFL players. High interest debt, like credit card debt, only shows lack of understanding of how interest rates work. You want to be on the other side of that equation, compounding your investments at those rates, not paying banks at those rates.

I also cover quickly some common traps of NFL players and introduce what every investor should know; opportunity cost. I left out way too many but investing in a friends business, owning multiple homes, collecting depreciating assets, or struggling with gambling addictions are some of the many ways to destroy wealth. 

Remember that making it to the NFL is an incredible opportunity and it is easy to get distracted. Finding an independent, fiduciary advisor with relevant knowledge to your situation can help sustain and grow your wealth. 

Episode Highlights

• (00:08) Great AFC/NFC championship games this past week
• (2:05) You can’t play forever
• (2:44) Savings rate
• (4:42) Not all debt is bad
• (6:08) Common financial traps NFL players fall into
• (8:07) Depreciating assets
• (10:26) Pete Carol and the importance of fundamentals

It sucks to have to watch guys still playing for the elusive Super Bowl Championship but that's out of your control now. As the NFL offseason is underway for many NFL teams here are some smart game planning you can do off the field. In this episode, I cover some topics that can help you become a true professional not just in the NFL but in owning your wealth.

Your biggest driver of your wealth is your human capital. This is your future earnings and they are highly uncertain. Spending the necessary money to increase your future value should be non-negotiable for you. This involves training, treatment, mental performance, and any improvement that can increase your performance.

Now is the time to own your wealth in your financial life. There is time to dedicate to improving your situation and evaluating the financial team you have in place. As an NFLPA Representative, there are many great benefits that you may not be taking advantage of. At least set up and login to your account even just to know it's there (NFLplayerbenefits.com).

Your money is just a tool and I simplify it into four categories: lifestyle, giving, saving, and taxes. No need to overcomplicate it, but crucial for all NFL athletes to understand. We discuss the opportunity of actually doing tax planning the right way and how to protect wealth with proper insurance and estate planning. 

Lastly, tax planning should be given more attention by the people advising NFL players. A CPA that files taxes and is only evaluated in April is not providing the value that you need. I explain what I failed to realize as an NFL player and what actually matters when growing net worth. Tax planning is incredibly valuable and can add huge savings that will be missed if you are not getting it from the best that understands your situation. 

Episode Highlights

• How to approach the offseason (00:06)
• A game plan for taking care of your body (1:01)
• Sharpening your mental game (3:09)
• Owning your wealth (4:02)
• Tax filing vs tax planning – don’t settle for less (5:40)
• Finding a financial team that can handle your entire wealth management and more (6:30)
• How to not get taken advantage of (8:06)
• Should you consider a disability policy? (8:55)
• The importance of estate planning (9:36)
• Is your team doing what’s best for you? (10:22)
• What is human capital? (10:59)