If you want a case study for real estate impacts after a disaster, look no further.

 

In this episode, I speak with David Weaver about real estate in Houston considering the after-effects of Hurricane Harvey. The storm flooded thousands of homes, prompting shifts in supply and demand that no one had really accounted for ahead of time. On the one hand homes in severely flooded areas are seeing stark price drops, but on the other hand renovations are being done in unprecedented numbers and causing a tightness in the market for building materials and labor.

 

We touch on:

-The dynamics of real estate markets

-Drivers of the Houston market

-The synergy and benefit of concentrated competition in real estate

-Mortgage rates impacting ownership demand

-Millennial’s lifestyle shift away from home ownership

-The minimum time required to own a home and make a profit

-Short term impacts of Harvey on Houston real estate

-Long term impacts of Harvey on Houston real estate

 

David Weaver is Director of Builder Relations at The Loken Group.

 

 

OK, you have a business idea, but do you have the money to make it work? Money is always going to be an issue in getting a business going.

 

In this episode, I speak with Eddie Sajjad about funding your business idea. Having enough money at the right times and managing what you have wisely can make or break your business. You may start by asking yourself “can I solve a problem?”, but then you have to ask yourself “can I make money solving the problem?” Even if you’re able to develop an answer for these first two questions, you still have to ask yourself “can I fund the process until the business becomes self-sufficient?”

 

We touch on:

-Increasing your chance of business success through conscientious money management

-Estimating your “cash burn rate” and available “runway”

-Taking a conservative self-funded growth strategy versus a subsidized hypergrowth strategy

-Sourcing funds from investors

-The interplay between planning and funding

-Fund raising via networking

 

Eddie Sajjad is the Creative Director of isitonline.com, a creative advertising agency with operations in 5 countries.

 

 

We’ve been hearing people talk about low interest rates for almost a decade now, but what do they really mean to you? Should you even care?

 

 

In this episode, I continue the discussion with my friend George about interest rates, the bond market, and the impact of central banks on the two. George is part of the next generation Wall Streeters otherwise known as ‘quants’; a brainy sort inclined towards the application of higher math in the finance world. He studied physics and math in school before jumping into an investment bank and then the buy-side as a fixed income analyst at a very large bond fund. We discuss the impact of interest rates on regular people and the role that central banks plays in the equation.

 

We touch on:

-the increasing inter-connectivity of the global financial system

-the waterfall impact of the Fed Funds rate all the way down to mortgage rates

-an analogy of The Federal Reserve in the money market to Saudi Arabia in the oil market

-the impact of mark-to-market accounting on participants in the marketplace

-the current impacts of existing “low” interest rates

-economic uncertainty hurting future investment

-investor psyche

-the theory of no risk-adjusted arbitrage between assets

-central bank flexibility and ability to respond to a recession in the near-future

-George’s forecast for interest rates in 5 years

 

Maybe you’ve started to save, but now you don’t know what to do with it.

 

In this episode, I speak with my Sarah Mizell about financial planning for people who have started to establish a savings and make a plan for retirement. Sarah is Director of Marketing at Valued Retirements, a Houston-based financial advisory and planning firm. Sarah talks about the line of thinking she takes as a financial planner for helping clients establish and implement a savings and investment plan given a client’s goals.

 

We touch on:

-Valued Retirements and Certified Financial Planners

-Do-it-yourself versus trusting a financial planner

-Creating a retirement plan

-Identifying your money goals

-Being purposeful with your financial resources

-Getting on the same page with your significant other and matching expectations

-Gauging savings targets over time

-The American retirement model not being the same today as it was in the past

-Automatically setting aside a percentage of your income in savings

-Vetting financial planners and conflicts of interest

-Types of savings

 

 

Resources mentioned in the podcast:

 

* Valued Retirements financial planning

* Houston First Baptist Church Financial Consulting

 

 

People talk about investing their retirement savings, but what if you don’t even have savings?

 

In this episode, I speak with my Sarah Mizell about financial counseling for people who feel like they just don’t have their finances under control. Sarah is Director of Marketing at Valued Retirements, a Houston-based financial advisory and planning firm. Sarah shares her personal story witnessing her family’s journey with finances and how she developed a fear of money while growing up. By making the decision to step into that fear and learn about it, she began to educate herself on personal finances and take control of the situation; which is what eventually led her into a career as a financial advisor.

 

Sarah shares the strategy she has developed, refined to a few helpful financial habits that can easily be adopted: knowing what’s important to you, setting and keeping SMART financial goals, directing your dollars instead of letting your dollars direct you (abiding by a spending plan), and using the 10-10-80 rule (10% generosity, 10% savings, 80% living expenses).

 

We touch on:

-it not being about being good with big numbers, but being good with small habits

-there being no shame in not having been taught personal finance

-the empowerment of financial education

-having the willingness to be humble with respect to your personal financial situation

-conducting a personal status-check of your finances

-the significance of the long term over the short term

-forgetting about keeping up with the Jones’

-money not being truly fulfilling

-being financially wise, not miserly

 

 

Resources mentioned in the podcast:

 

* Houston First Baptist Church Financial Counseling

* Crown Financial Christian financial ministry

* The Millionaire Next Door by Thomas Stanley

* Stop Acting Rich and Start Living Like a Real Millionaire by Thomas Stanley

* Fields of Gold by Andy Stanley

* Valued Retirements financial planning

 

 

We’ve been hearing people talk about low interest rates for almost a decade now, but what do they really mean to you? Should you even care?

 

In this episode, I speak with my friend George about interest rates, the bond market, and the impact of the Federal Reserve on the two. George is part of the next generation Wall Streeters otherwise known as ‘quants’; a brainy sort inclined towards the application of higher math in the finance world. He studied physics and math in school before jumping into an investment bank and then the buy-side as a fixed income analyst at a very large bond fund. We discuss the impact of interest rates on regular people and the role the Fed plays in the equation.

 

We touch on:

-finance career paths

-effects of interest rates

-the time value of money

-interest rates versus inflation

-negative interest rates

-determinants of rates

-the Federal Reserve’s role in interest rates

 

 

Stock options are an asset class that most of us have very little knowledge of, yet derivatives are so significant that they largely contributed to the Great Recession. That alone should be enough to catch your attention.

 

In this episode, I speak with Eric Sunday about the basics of stock options. Eric had been working in a back-office role on Wall Street feeling like a cog in a giant machine, when all of a sudden he realized what he was doing every day at work could be valuable knowledge for his own personal investments. He began to really pay attention and learn from what he was doing and has since applied it out on his own.

 

We touch on:

-what stock options are

-the components of stock options

-what stock options are used for

-how they’re priced and what impacts their value

 

 

 

Legality ≠ Morality. Although the two often get conflated, we’ve seen stark examples in history that show us that the law does not always reflect what we feel to be right.

 

In this episode, I speak with Brett Bollinger about the difference between laws and morals. We start by clarifying what we mean when talking about each, but the application really comes into play in the working world when you are put into questionable situations and asked to do things that may be legal, but could be considered immoral.

 

We touch on:

-defining morality

-the determination of morality

-morality examples

-defining legality

-legal jurisdiction

-the determination of laws

-personal discernment in the workplace

 

 

 

What you say matters. Today more than ever given the reach and permanence of the internet.

 

In this episode, I speak with Eddie Sajjad about the importance of personal branding. When it comes to your income potential, people often overlook the immensely powerful intangible value of a personal brand. We talk about the significance of a personal brand and how you can begin to think about your own personal brand that you’re conveying to the world.

 

We touch on:

-The importance of your personal brand

-Benefits of a personal brand

-Your digital presence

-Cultivating and curating your personal brand

-Your personal brand preceding you

-People’s perception of you

-Methods of personal branding

 

Eddie Sajjad is a Houston-based graphic design and creative marketing professional with proven experience developing creative and original designs that deliver innovative and effective solutions. With over 15 years of visual design and communication experience, he has demonstrated expertise in managing and prioritizing multiple projects, overseeing the creative process, and delivering innovative solutions ranging from print design, signage, trade shows, websites, social media, mobile apps, softwares and websites.

 

Eddie Sajjad’s Profile : http://eddiesajjad.branded.me

Eddie’s Company: http://www.isitonline.com

 

 

 

 

As I’ve said before, a goal isn’t worth anything if it doesn’t translate to action.

 

In this episode, I check back in with Mayra. Mayra was our guinea pig in the goal setting podcast 6 months ago where I interviewed her about her goals. During the episode, she set two main goals she wanted to achieve, one of which was financial. We agreed to check back in 6 months later to see how things had gone, so listen in for the results…

 

Mayra’s 1st Goal:

Lose 12 lbs in 6 months

 

Mayra’s 2nd Goal:

Reduce private student loan balance by 20% in 6 months

 

You can listen to the original episode here:

A Goal Setting Case Study