Sam wants to use the funds in her Vanguard S&P 500 index funds for a downpayment on a house. She isn’t sure if she should keep her savings in the market. Should she move her money, and where?
Hailey purchased a duplex in March and is already looking to sell due to a hostile tenant during the purchase process. How can she shift her focus from her initial return on investment to a long-term outlook?
Zoe dreams of attending grad school, but her savings are locked away in retirement accounts. How can she save for grad school in the next two to three years?
Mohamed wants to monetize a new podcast with affiliate relationships, but the service providers he wants to promote don’t offer affiliate programs. Can he still make this work, and how?
I answer these listener questions in today’s episode. Enjoy!
Zoe asks (at 1:34 minutes):
I’m 23, debt-free, and live in Massachusetts. I’ve been at my first job for almost a year, and I earn $63,000 per year. I save half of my income: I max out my 401k, HSA, and contribute a little to a Roth IRA.
I want to attend grad school to get my Master’s degree, but I can’t access any of my savings to fund my education. I decreased my 401k contributions from 30 percent to 10 percent, and I’m diverting the difference to a high-yield savings account. What else can I do to save for grad school?
I thought about househacking a duplex to offset living costs while I’m in school, but I don’t know which university I’ll attend. I’ve also read about 529 plans. What should I do?
Sam asks (at 9:52 minutes):
I want to purchase my first home using the savings I have stashed away in Vanguard S&P 500 index funds. However, in the PSA episode about building an emergency fund, you advised us not to put money in the market if we want to access it in less than 15 years. Is it a bad idea to keep my savings for a downpayment in my Vanguard funds? If so, where should I put these funds?
Hailey asks (at 20:12 minutes):
I purchased a duplex using a hard money loan back in March. (It couldn’t be financed due to structural issues.) The previous owners were in a bad spot, so I got a good deal. Since then, I’ve rectified the structural issues and made repairs and updates. I had tenants move in, and the building has a 1.5% ARV. For Spokane, WA, that’s pretty great.
However, during the purchasing process, I had a hostile decline tenant. I met with my lawyers and my standards were up to snuff, but the experience left a bad taste in my mouth. Even though the current tenants are good, I’m no longer excited to own the building.
According to my realtor, my net might be $15,000 after owning the building for at most 150 days. This isn’t a bad return, but I’d like guidance on decision-making for a business and thinking long-term versus looking at my return on the initial investment and knowing it’s a good deal.
Mohamed asks (at 33:50 minutes):
I want to start a podcast and monetize it through affiliate relationships. My goal is to host a program about a service provider, give valuable input about their service, and at the end, encourage my listeners to sign up for their service. I’d like to get compensated with a cut of the sale.
The problem is that many of the service providers that I want to promote do not offer affiliate links or affiliate programs. How can I ensure that the sign ups from my audience are attributed to me so that I can get a cut?
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