Last month, one of our rental properties looked like this: Today, the same property looks like this: Renovating this rental property took three weeks, cost $13,648, and increased our rental income by $3,450 per year. We worked roughly 38 hours, spread across those three weeks. Want to learn more about maximizing rental income through renovations? Read on.
There are 168 hours in a week. If you work 40 hours per week and sleep 8 hours per night (56 hours per week), you’ve accounted for 96 hours. You have an additional 72 waking hours per week. What are you doing with this time? Let’s assume you spend 10 hours per week commuting, 10…
As a child, Chris Guillebeau loved learning about planets and astronauts. He also loved burgers. When grown-ups asked “What do you want to do when you grow up?,” then-six-year-old Chris gave two answers: he wanted to either become a NASA astronaut or flip patties at Burger King. I can relate. When I was a child,…
It’s the first Monday of the month, and you know what that means … Time for another Ask Paula episode! On today’s show, I answer a handful of phone calls from listeners who posed questions about real estate investing. One caller from Atlanta said that he’s thinking about buying a rental property from a turnkey investing…
Carrie Smith enjoyed her full-time accounting job, but she wanted to make extra money on the side. Who doesn’t, right? She landed a second job in a tax office, working 9-to-5 for one employer and 5-to-9 for the other. She earned decent money, but her schedule had no flexibility … and she felt unhappy. This needs to change, she…
Steve Chou’s wife used to work grueling hours at a job she dreaded and despised. When she became pregnant with their first child, she decided to quit. The problem? She earned six figures, and their family needed that income. She opened an online store, buying handkerchiefs wholesale from China and retailing these online at a significant markup. She and…
After serving in the Navy for 20 years, Doug Nordman, then age 41, retired from his military career. Most of his peers started second careers in the civilian world. But Doug didn’t. He had an ace up his sleeve: he had spent his military career saving 40 percent of his income. By the time he turned…
In this week’s episode, Paula takes your calls: Should you sell your stocks, given that we might be heading for a market downturn? What are the downsides of index funds? Should you invest in out-of-state rental properties, and if so, how can you figure out where to look? How should you manage money from an…
It’s time to wave the truce flag over one of personal finance’s greatest battles. One of the most spirited debates in personal finance circles is the classic “earn more” vs. “save more” standoff. The “earn more” crowd argues that raising your income is the best way to reach financial independence. There’s no upper limit to…
Jim Collins, also known as popular blogger JLCollins, has been financially independent since 1989. He achieved this in the simplest way possible: he saved half of his income and invested in index funds. That’s it. Jim says that if your goal is to build financial freedom, the simplest possible approach is the best. “The great…