How to Money

Think back to the last time you lost power at your place. I’m sure it was an inconvenience- it was likely annoying to find yourself walking into a room and reflexively reaching for the light switch, even though the power was out. But the real problem with an outage are the downstream effects it has: food in the fridge spoils, traffic is a nightmare if the stoplights are out, folks even die due to extreme heat or cold. We’re less worried about a power outage and more worried about the mayhem that ensues. And in a similar way we’re less worried about silly credit scores and more worried about the negative impact that a crappy score can have on much of your personal finances. Listen as we discuss our stance on taking out loans, the high cost of neglecting your credit, and steps that you can immediately take in order to mitigate the knock-on effects of crappy credit.

Want more How To Money in your life? Here are some additional ways to get ahead with your personal finances:

• Knowing your ‘money gear’ is a crucial part of your personal finance journey. Start here. 
• Sign up for the weekly HTM newsletter. It’s fun, free, & practical.
• Join a thriving community of fellow money in the HTM Facebook group.
• Find the best credit card for you with our new credit card tool!
• Massively reduce your cell phone bill each month by switching to a discount provider like Mint Mobile.

During this episode we enjoyed a Grapefruit Radler by Halfway Crooks Beer! And please help us to spread the word by letting friends and family know about How to Money! Hit the share button, subscribe if you’re not already a regular listener, and give us a quick review in Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. Help us to change the conversation around personal finance and get more people doing smart things with their money!

Best friends out!

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It’s time to get your financial butt in shape! Our guest today, Ericka Young, is the financial coach that she never had! As a newlywed couple, Ericka and her husband discovered that it’s actually pretty easy to become just like the average US household that now has over $150,000 in debt. It’s the norm and if you don’t have a plan to avoid debt, you will likely find yourself falling into that trap! But that’s not the path that Ericka continued along- she was determined to change her family tree, and now helps others who are seeking financial freedom in their lives. Ericka started her company, Tailor-Made Budgets where she creates custom plans for her clients that give them the tools and the knowledge to cut their stress levels by increasing their savings and decreasing their debt. We get to hear Ericka’s debt story, how she was able to leave a high paying engineering job, signs that someone might need a financial coach, what it looks like to face your financial reality, how she helps her clients think through making trade-offs, and why friends may not be enough of an accountability partner.

Want more How To Money in your life? Here are some additional ways to get ahead with your personal finances:

• Knowing your ‘money gear’ is a crucial part of your personal finance journey. Start here. 
• Sign up for the weekly HTM newsletter. It’s fun, free, & practical.
• Join a thriving community of fellow money in the HTM Facebook group.
• Find the best credit card for you with our new credit card tool!
• Massively reduce your cell phone bill each month by switching to a discount provider like Mint Mobile.

During this episode we enjoyed a Where I Want To Be Deciduous Brewing! And please help us to spread the word by letting friends and family know about How to Money! Hit the share button, subscribe if you’re not already a regular listener, and give us a quick review in Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. Help us to change the conversation around personal finance and get more people doing smart things with their money!

Best friends out!

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Better know a podcast host! Oftentimes here on the podcast we talk about our daily lives. We’ll share little ways that we’re saving money, or you get to hear about our curb alert scores, and we might even talk a little too much about how much we’re riding our bikes. So if you’ve been listening for a few years you might know a good bit about us- that happens after nearly 700 episodes! But we’ve never done a deep-dive origin story on the show and what better time to do that than here at the beginning of the year. So during this episode you’ll get to learn all about Joel’s money origin story- favorite jobs as a kid, how a bankruptcy shaped his early perceptions of personal finance, switching colleges to avoid taking on more student loans, his splurge as a single professional, and pursuing financial independence through investing in real estate.

Want more How To Money in your life? Here are some additional ways to get ahead with your personal finances:

• Knowing your ‘money gear’ is a crucial part of your personal finance journey. Start here. 
• Sign up for the weekly HTM newsletter. It’s fun, free, & practical.
• Join a thriving community of fellow money in the HTM Facebook group.
• Find the best credit card for you with our new credit card tool!
• Massively reduce your cell phone bill each month by switching to a discount provider like Mint Mobile.

During this episode we enjoyed a Woodland Pursuit by Humble Forager! And please help us to spread the word by letting friends and family know about How to Money! Hit the share button, subscribe if you’re not already a regular listener, and give us a quick review in Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. Help us to change the conversation around personal finance and get more people doing smart things with their money!

Best friends out!

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Oftentimes here on the podcast we talk about our daily lives. We’ll share little ways that we’re saving money, or you get to hear about our curb alert scores, and we might even talk a little too much about how much we’re riding our bikes. So if you’ve been listening for a few years you might know a good bit about us- that happens after nearly 700 episodes! But we’ve never done a deep-dive origin story on the show and what better time to do that than here at the beginning of the year. Especially as we’re likely welcoming some new listeners to the fold. So during this episode you’ll get to learn all about Matt’s money origin story- how he was taught personal finance principles, his money struggles growing up, why he shouldn’t have opened a Roth IRA, and how Downton Abbey helped Matt and his wife Kate discover financial independence.

Want more How To Money in your life? Here are some additional ways to get ahead with your personal finances:

• Knowing your ‘money gear’ is a crucial part of your personal finance journey. Start here. 
• Sign up for the weekly HTM newsletter. It’s fun, free, & practical.
• Join a thriving community of fellow money in the HTM Facebook group.
• Find the best credit card for you with our new credit card tool!
• Massively reduce your cell phone bill each month by switching to a discount provider like Mint Mobile.

During this episode we enjoyed an Athena Paradiso Blackberry by Creature Comforts! And please help us to spread the word by letting friends and family know about How to Money! Hit the share button, subscribe if you’re not already a regular listener, and give us a quick review in Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. Help us to change the conversation around personal finance and get more people doing smart things with their money!

Best friends out!

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We’re kicking off the week by answering listener questions! And if you have a question that you’d like for us to answer on the show, we’d love for you to submit your own via HowToMoney.com/ask , send us your voice memo. Regardless of how random or bizarre you might think it is, we want to hear it!

1 - Are prepaid college plans a good deal or should I stick with a traditional 529 account?

2 - What should I do with some EE savings bonds that are maturing?

3 - Is college a good time for my kid to get a credit card and how important is building up his credit score?

4 - Do you guys like “return of premium” life insurance policies?

5 - Roth vs a traditional 401k - which one should I contribute to?

Want more How To Money in your life? Here are some additional ways to get ahead with your personal finances:

• Knowing your ‘money gear’ is a crucial part of your personal finance journey. Start here. 
• Sign up for the weekly HTM newsletter. It’s fun, free, & practical.
• Join a thriving community of fellow money in the HTM Facebook group.
• Find the best credit card for you with our new credit card tool!
• Massively reduce your cell phone bill each month by switching to a discount provider like Mint Mobile.

During this episode we enjoyed a Var by Halfway Crooks! And please help us to spread the word by letting friends and family know about How to Money! Hit the share button, subscribe if you’re not already a regular listener, and give us a quick review in Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. Help us to change the conversation around personal finance and get more people doing smart things with their money!

Best friends out!

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Time for a Friday Flight- our sampling of the week’s financial news and what it means for your personal finances. There are a lot of headlines out there, but we boil them down to specific takeaways that will allow you to kick off the weekend informed and help you to get ahead with your money. In this episode we explain some relevant and helpful stories like: prepared for Prime Day, student loans (un)forgiven, details of the SAVE plan, FTC targeting fake reviews, shamed spenders, debt counseling, geographic arbitrage, charitable giving on the decline, and optimizing your giving with Daffy.

Want more How To Money in your life? Here are some additional ways to get ahead with your personal finances:

• Knowing your ‘money gear’ is a crucial part of your personal finance journey. Start here. 
• Sign up for the weekly HTM newsletter. It’s fun, free, & practical.
• Join a thriving community of fellow money in the HTM Facebook group.
• Find the best credit card for you with our new credit card tool!
• Massively reduce your cell phone bill each month by switching to a discount provider like Mint Mobile.

And please help us to spread the word by letting friends and family know about How to Money! Hit the share button, subscribe if you’re not already a regular listener, and give us a quick review in Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. Help us to change the conversation around personal finance and get more people doing smart things with their money. Have an awesome weekend!

Best friends out!

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Are you ‘credit card FI’ or are you ‘sabbatical FI?’ But maybe we’re getting ahead of ourselves… First, does anyone else remember the home run obsession back in 1998? In an attempt to beat the single-season record, home runs became the only metric that anyone watching baseball seemed to care about. But what’s interesting is that most MLB games aren’t won by someone sending a 450 foot bomb to center field. It’s an all-or-nothing approach that most often leads to a strikeout and taking a seat back in the dugout. And when it comes to seeking financial freedom, one of the problems with that go big or go home approach is that it can make financial independence seem unattainable, that FI is just out of reach of the typical American and you might as well give up. And others might see it as a false dichotomy- you’re either working 80 hour weeks in order to achieve FI, or you’re sipping pina coladas on the beaches of Tahiti. But we’re here to explain how financial independence exists on a spectrum, the different levels of FI, and how you can practically begin to put your financial freedom to use.

Want more How To Money in your life? Here are some additional ways to get ahead with your personal finances:

• Knowing your ‘money gear’ is a crucial part of your personal finance journey. Start here. 
• Sign up for the weekly HTM newsletter. It’s fun, free, & practical.
• Join a thriving community of fellow money in the HTM Facebook group.
• Find the best credit card for you with our new credit card tool!
• Massively reduce your cell phone bill each month by switching to a discount provider like Mint Mobile.

During this episode we enjoyed a Hayburner IPA by Big Ditch Brewing- thanks to Liz and Tyler for sending this one our way! And please help us to spread the word by letting friends and family know about How to Money! Hit the share button, subscribe if you’re not already a regular listener, and give us a quick review in Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. Help us to change the conversation around personal finance and get more people doing smart things with their money!

Best friends out!

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Purchasing an insurance policy is one of those seemingly boring tasks that accompanies entering adulthood. Whether it was your parents making you chip in on the higher costs of car insurance because they were now insuring a teenage driver, or seeing the health insurance deduction come out of your paycheck every two weeks. Or maybe it’s realizing that you now have folks who are dependent on your income so it’s finally time to purchase a life insurance policy. Regardless, it’s often thought of as a dull task but our guest, Amy Finkelstein, is here today to explain why insurance is more fascinating than we realize! Amy is a distinguished professor of economics at MIT, she’s a co-director at the National Bureau of Economic Research, she’s won the MacArthur Genius Grant, and now she’s written a book, “Risky Business: Why Insurance Markets Fail and What to Do About It.” In our conversation today we talk about the imperfect insurance market, the purpose of waiting periods, the types of insurance policies we should think long and hard about, and much more!

Want more How To Money in your life? Here are some additional ways to get ahead with your personal finances:

• Knowing your ‘money gear’ is a crucial part of your personal finance journey. Start here. 
• Sign up for the weekly HTM newsletter. It’s fun, free, & practical.
• Join a thriving community of fellow money in the HTM Facebook group.
• Find the best credit card for you with our new credit card tool!
• Massively reduce your cell phone bill each month by switching to a discount provider like Mint Mobile.

During this episode we enjoyed a Kon Tiki Triple IPA by LA Ale Works. And please help us to spread the word by letting friends and family know about How to Money! Hit the share button, subscribe if you’re not already a regular listener, and give us a quick review in Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. Help us to change the conversation around personal finance and get more people doing smart things with their money!

Best friends out!

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Time for a Friday Flight- our sampling of the week’s financial news and what it means for your personal finances. There are a lot of headlines out there, but we boil them down to specific takeaways that will allow you to kick off the weekend informed and help you to get ahead with your money. In this episode we explain some relevant and helpful stories like: student loan clarity with the Chipper app, bad consumer sentiment vibes, resisting rising property taxes, YES in my backyard, Airbnb feeling the squeeze, how do I lose thee? (crypto) let me count the ways, Amazon ‘dark patterns’, forgotten 401k accounts, & Costco’s crackdown.

Want more How To Money in your life? Here are some additional ways to get ahead with your personal finances:

• Knowing your ‘money gear’ is a crucial part of your personal finance journey. Start here. 
• Sign up for the weekly HTM newsletter. It’s fun, free, & practical.
• Join a thriving community of fellow money in the HTM Facebook group.
• Find the best credit card for you with our new credit card tool!
• Massively reduce your cell phone bill each month by switching to a discount provider like Mint Mobile.

And please help us to spread the word by letting friends and family know about How to Money! Hit the share button, subscribe if you’re not already a regular listener, and give us a quick review in Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. Help us to change the conversation around personal finance and get more people doing smart things with their money. Have an awesome weekend!

Best friends out!

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Have you ever renovated a home? If so, then you remember all of the decisions that you had to make that initially were a lot of fun. Paint colors, light fixtures, tile, even the kind of toilet you wanted… but eventually it gets old and you just want it done. If you can’t relate, even picking up a loaf of bread at the grocery store can be overwhelming- “Should I get honey wheat, 100% whole wheat, 13 grain, the stuff with flax?!” While it can be nice to have options, complicating things doesn’t always make them better. And when it comes to investing, the opposite is actually true. Decision fatigue is what we’re talking about and there can be so many distractions that keep us from reaching our financial goals. Lump sum vs dollar cost averaging, international stocks, ESG investing, real estate, hiring a financial advisor- these are just a few of the potential distractions that we discuss in today’s episode.

Want more How To Money in your life? Here are some additional ways to get ahead with your personal finances:

• Knowing your ‘money gear’ is a crucial part of your personal finance journey. Start here. 
• Sign up for the weekly HTM newsletter. It’s fun, free, & practical.
• Join a thriving community of fellow money in the HTM Facebook group.
• Find the best credit card for you with our new credit card tool!
• Massively reduce your cell phone bill each month by switching to a discount provider like Mint Mobile.

During this episode we enjoyed a Symptom of Progeny by Burial! And please help us to spread the word by letting friends and family know about How to Money! Hit the share button, subscribe if you’re not already a regular listener, and give us a quick review in Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. Help us to change the conversation around personal finance and get more people doing smart things with their money!

Best friends out!

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.