Afford Anything

Category: Episodes

By Paula Pant

#292: Ask Paula – I’m an Investor Who Likes Volatility; What Should I Buy?

Three Kids, FI has an all-equities broad stock market index portfolio that he’s held for years. He’s confident he can handle maximum volatility, so what investments can he lean into to that will provide him with great long-term returns?

Sarah is concerned: a financial advisor told her that investing in VTSAX over-indexes her in large cap funds and technology stocks. Is this true, and what should she do about it?

Alex’s wife lost her job due to the pandemic. They live in Washington state and are married filing separately due to his wife’s student loans. Can he use half of his income to qualify her for Roth IRA contributions?

Jordan is a new listener and he has three questions: should he use $100,000 to buy more rental properties or invest in a brokerage account? Should he and his wife upgrade their home and buy a property that’s worth double their current home? And finally, how can self-employed individuals who earn more lower the cost of health insurance?

I answer these four questions on today’s episode. Enjoy!

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By Erin @ Team Afford Anything

PSA Thursday: Year-End Tax Moves to Finish 2020

Welcome back to PSA Thursday, a weekly-ish segment in which we talk about how to handle money, work, and life in the year that is 2020.

Today, we focus on end-of-year tax planning and what you can do to prepare before you celebrate the end of 2020.

Here’s what we cover:

  1. Open a retirement account – you can make contributions that can be retroactively applied to 2020
  2. Adjust your tax withholdings
  3. Check your 529 Plan – see if your contributions qualify for a state income tax deduction or credit
  4. Make charitable contributions
  5. This could be a good year to make a Roth conversion
  6. Spend down the balance in your FSA – you can only rollover up to $500

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By Erin @ Team Afford Anything

#291: How to Command Respect at Work, with Tracy Tutor

Are you confident in your ability to lead a virtual conversation, or do you get so nervous that you forget everything you planned to say as soon as you open your mouth?

Do you know how to keep people engaged during meetings, or do you notice people looking elsewhere for a distraction?

Are you able to listen to your gut and speak your truth when things go awry, or do you silence your inner voice and doubt your feelings?

Tracy Tutor, author of Fear is Just a Four Letter Word and the first female real estate broker on Million Dollar Listing LA, joins us to tackle all of these questions. In this interview, Tracy shares how she learned to listen to her gut after experiencing trauma at the hands of larger-than-life egos, tips for engaging clients and managing group dynamics both virtually and in-person, and why humor can connect us all.

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By Paula Pant

#290: Ask Paula – Is Upgrading Our Lifestyle Worth Mortgaging a More Expensive House?

Sharon owns two condos that are worth $1.4M and has a cash cushion of $120,000 plus a $50,000 emergency fund. She’d like to move into a small house while keeping her cash cushion intact. Should she take out a home equity loan on her mortgage to essentially pay for her house in cash, or get a traditional mortgage and use her savings towards the downpayment? 

Jury and her partner are torn between two options: buying a condo, which would allow them to live off of one salary and invest the other, or buy a more expensive house – a much more attractive lifestyle option. Which should they purchase? 

Daine’s IRA balance is a result of 401k rollovers. He’s concerned that his lack of monthly contributions cause him to miss out on compound interest. What can he do to grow his retirement funds?

Molly and her husband want to reach financial independence (FI) in 15 years, at age 50. They’re unsure of whether their rental property income will sustain their FI lifestyle. How can they plan for this?

I answer these questions in today’s episode. Enjoy!

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By Erin @ Team Afford Anything

PSA Thursday: What’s Happening with Student Loans?

Welcome back to PSA Thursday, a weekly-ish segment in which we talk about how to handle money, work, and life in the year that is 2020.

Today we provide an update on the latest news in student loan forgiveness and forbearance, plus smart strategies for student loan repayment in 2021.

Here’s what we discuss:

  • When you can expect to make payments on qualifying student loans again
  • What could happen in the future
  • How to budget for your student loan repayments
  • Should you make extra student loan payments?
  • What you should do if you have private student loans
  • How your employer could potentially help you pay off your loans (if they have an educational assistance program in place)

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By Erin @ Team Afford Anything

#289: Business Principles that Improve Your Life, with Josh Kaufman

Wish you could get a crash course in business administration, without the expensive price tag?

Want to know how you can provide more value in your current job to increase your chances of a promotion or raise?

Are you exploring the possibility of turning your side hustle into a full-time business, but have no idea where to start?

Today, Josh Kaufman, bestselling author of The Personal MBA, joins us on the show to discuss all three of these situations and much more.

In Josh’s words, “I think in general, business as a domain of knowledge is one of those things that once you learn it…it can help you in all sorts of different areas, even outside of business.” Regardless of whether you’re a teacher, graphic designer, entrepreneur, junior level employee, or manager, becoming familiar with business basics can change your perspective on work and the part you can play in your role.

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By Paula Pant

PSA Thursday: To Buy or Not to Buy?

Many people in the personal finance / FIRE community have a complicated relationship with the concept of consumer spending.

They may see family, friends and neighbors demonstrate one extreme — they’re profligate spenders who will buy anything — and, in an effort to be nothing like them, they may overcompensate by becoming extreme penny-pinchers. (I see this often at the start of a person’s FIRE journey, when the pendulum is swinging sharply in the other direction). 

The reality is that neither extreme is healthy.

There’s a middle ground between being so gullible that you’ll buy anything vs. being so cynical that you build a wall that shuts real value out of your life and hampers your growth.

In recognition of that balanced middle path, today’s PSA Thursday episode focuses on five questions that you should ask yourself before making a purchase.

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By Paula Pant

#287: Put Yourself on the Hook, with Seth Godin

“Confidence is a trap.”

“Personal narrative is another trap; it was invented by the social media people to turn well-rounded, comfortable people into balls of insecurity.”

“Authentic is a ridiculous concept, and it’s a trap, and no one wants you to be authentic. They want you to be consistent.”

Prolific thinker and writer Seth Godin, arguably the most famous modern author in the field of marketing and storytelling, shares these insights in today’s conversation.

Seth Godin is famous for his ideas. He’s written 19 bestselling books on mastery, creativity, business and marketing. His books have been translated into 35 languages, and one of his books was the top bestselling marketing book of the last decade. He’s an inductee to the Marketing Hall of Fame (yes, it exists).

He joins us today to talk about creativity, choice, the importance of practice, and how to overcome your self-imposed limitations.

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By Erin @ Team Afford Anything

PSA Thursday: How to Slash Your Food Budget, with Rosemary Fotheringham

Welcome back to PSA Thursday, a weekly-ish segment in which we talk about how to handle money, work, and life in the year that is 2020.

Today, we’re tackling one of the biggest line-items on your budget: food.

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, in 2019, Americans spent just over $8,000 on food.

If you’re on a tight budget, slashing your grocery bill is one of the easiest ways to spend less. But what if you don’t want to compromise on healthy eating?

Today’s guest, Rosemary Fotheringham, is a Functional Nutritional Therapy Practitioner (FNTP) who’s also on the path to financial independence. She and her husband slashed their monthly grocery bill from $1,200 down to $300 – without eating pasta every night.

In this episode, Rosemary explains their framework for healthy eating and shares her best tips for eating well on a tight budget.

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