There are a lot of personal finance sites on the Internet. Although there are really only a handful of real topics out there (i.e. spending, saving, investing, taxes, etc.), what helps attract readers is the author’s take on the various subjects. One thing I noticed on most of my cohort sites out there is the focus on budgeting. So here’s a unique perspective… I’ve never budgeted. That’s right. I’m probably in the minority, but I’ve never set a budget for […]
There’s been something that’s been eating at me for a couple of months now. The stock market seems too bloated right now and I’m thinking about moving my money out of it. No, no – I’m not trying to be the guy timing the market. I just think I should move the money in my 401(k) to cash for a little bit and when the market crashes, I’ll be able to buy again at much lower prices. My 401(k) would
We’ve all seen ’em… the infomercials telling you that YOU can be rich by just following a few simple steps to buying real estate with no money down. Think of it – none of your money is involved and soon enough you’ll be retired, sitting on the beach with an endless supply of piña coladas being served to you day and night. Easy money… it’s that simple!! Wait – what?! Who buys this crap anyway?? I do. Well ok, I
I spend a lot of my time every day focusing on my path to financial independence. I have a game plan that I feel even more confident about now that I got a second opinion. But that doesn’t stop me from looking for ways to expedite the process. I’m constantly educating myself by listening to podcasts relating to personal finance and real estate. And I’m reading every book I can get my hands on related to those topics as well as closely
Why is Financial Independence Such an Uphill Battle? Read More »
For most of us in a first-world country, it’s almost natural in an unsettling way for us to accumulate crap. Not only do we have junk we don’t need (although we think we do when we buy it), we also spend money needlessly on things we think will simplify our lives. The problem is that most of the time we buy something – be it a product or a service – with the intent of it making life easier or better,
Recently, I decided that I wanted a second opinion on my game plan. Although I’m pretty confident on how to make things work, I decided that this is important enough to warrant bringing in someone else to look everything over and give some unbiased input. So I recently hired a certified financial planner. I thought this would be a great opportunity to take you through the process from start to finish to give you a better idea if this is something that you
My Experience with a Certified Financial Planner Read More »
When I bought my first house back in 2003, I had plans to live there for a couple of years, fix it up, and then turn it into a rental property. The idea sounded simple enough, but I ran into a lot of headaches along the way. I knew location was important, but I didn’t know where I should be looking. I also didn’t know how to properly determine cash flow and ROI (return on investment). And I didn’t take into consideration
I recently asked my 6-year old daughter “what do you want to be when you grow up?” She answered back that said she wants to buy duplexes. That’s my girl! Now, before you start chastising me for trying to force my daughter to be something she doesn’t want to when she grows up, let me explain. When I grow up… When I was young, I had my sights set on being an artist for Disney. I had a pretty good knack for drawing and that just
As I was going through college, I had my mind set on getting rich. I envisioned a good job that paid a ton of dough. After all, the more money you make, the richer you are, right? Fresh out of college though, I wasn’t building savings, I was chasing the money to have and to spend in the present day. And I did alright. While I was still in school, I was working at Walmart. I started out with it being
It’s Not How Much You Make, It’s How Much You Keep Read More »
When I set out on this journey toward financial independence, I knew I had some work to do. I started out with around $30k of credit card debt and didn’t know anything worthwhile on how to make it happen. I even bought into one of those late night real estate scams on how to get rich. I wasted some of my hard-earned money late in my college years thinking that was the way to go… it wasn’t. Eventually, I got on track. I read as many books as I
Is It Possible to Reach Financial Independence with Kids? Read More »
