Personal Finance 101

New to personal finance and money management? Start here to learn about the basics like paying off debt, saving more, spending less, and budgeting.

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    #247: Ask Paula – Is the Stock Market Going to Crash in 2020? How Should I Invest in a Bear Market?

    ByPaula Pant
    [smart_track_player url="https://traffic.libsyn.com/paulaandjaymoney/AA247.mp3" title="Ask Paula - Is the Stock Market Going to Crash in 2020? How Should I Invest in a Bear Market?" artist="Paula Pant" social="true" social_twitter="true" social_facebook="true" social_gplus="true" social_linkedin="true" social_stumble="true" social_pinterest="true" social_email="true" ]

    Caroline wants to buy her first home in Denver, CO. How can she calculate how much mortgage she can comfortably afford?

    Anne plans to retire later this year on rental income (woohoo!). She’s saved up a hefty emergency fund for her properties, and she wants to know 1) if she should invest a portion of this in index funds, and 2) whether she should rebalance her portfolio to account for this huge cash allocation.

    Anonymous Nurse has over $100,000 in debt, not including their mortgage. They want to invest in rental properties, but with so much debt, they’re thinking of selling their home or renting it out. Which option is best given their interest in real estate?

    Joy wants to know if she should put $50,000 towards her primary residence mortgage, or use it as a downpayment on her first rental property. What are the pros and cons of each option?

    Anonymous owns a cash-flow positive condo…on leased land. The land will revert back to the owners in 32 years. When is the best time to sell this property?

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

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    #243: Ask Paula – How Can I Retire in 10 Years with Rental Properties?

    ByPaula Pant
    [smart_track_player url="https://traffic.libsyn.com/paulaandjaymoney/AA243.mp3" title="Ask Paula - How Can I Retire in 10 Years with Rental Properties?" artist="Paula Pant" social="true" social_twitter="true" social_facebook="true" social_gplus="true" social_linkedin="true" social_stumble="true" social_pinterest="true" social_email="true" ]

    Adam is 23 years old and wants to achieve financial independence as quickly as possible. However, he’s nervous about investing in the stock market and real estate. How can he overcome his fears?

    Paris, age 35, has a similar question. She earns $150,000 per year, is debt-free, and doesn’t own a home. How can she reach financial independence in less than 10 years?

    Paul wants to househack his first home, but none of the properties he’s seen meet the one percent rule. He doesn’t want to rent forever. Does he need to compromise on his commute time, or wait until he finds an undervalued gem?

    Anonymous Househacker rents an apartment with three bedrooms, two of which he rents out on an inconsistent, short-term basis. They want to know: does the money they earn count as rental income if they aren’t making a profit on it?

    Ben is a real estate investor who’s curious about growing his portfolio from four units to 20 units. What’s the best approach to take?

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

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    #241: Ask Paula – Should I Raid My Retirement Savings to Pay for School?

    ByPaula Pant
    [smart_track_player url="https://traffic.libsyn.com/paulaandjaymoney/AA241.mp3" title="Ask Paula - Should I Raid My Retirement Savings to Pay for School?" artist="Paula Pant" social="true" social_twitter="true" social_facebook="true" social_gplus="true" social_linkedin="true" social_stumble="true" social_pinterest="true" social_email="true" ]

    Anton wants to accelerate his flight training so he can get hired within two to three months, rather than two to three years. He has to raid his retirement savings to achieve this. Should he?

    Linda and her husband have their eyes on early retirement, but they aren’t sure what their post-retirement lifestyle will cost. How can they budget for unknown expenses that include travel?

    Joseph contributes 15 percent of his income to both a Roth 457b and Roth IRA. He wants to retire before age 59.5. Given his early retirement goal, should he focus solely on his Roth 457b?

    Henry wants to know how rebalancing and dollar cost averaging interact with each other. Should he rebalance his all-equities portfolio? If so, what approach should he take?

    Joe maxes out his 401k and IRA each year. He can make after-tax 401k contributions, or fund his Vanguard taxable brokerage account. Which should he prioritize?

    As usual, my friend and former financial advisor, Joe Saul-Sehy, joins me on the show to answer these five listener questions. Enjoy!

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    #239: Ask Paula – Should I Put My Student Loans in Forbearance? Should I Buy a Vacation Rental in the Mountains? and More

    ByPaula Pant
    [smart_track_player url="https://traffic.libsyn.com/paulaandjaymoney/AA239.mp3" title="Ask Paula - Should I Put My Student Loans in Forbearance? Should I Buy a Vacation Rental in the Mountains? and More" artist="Paula Pant" social="true" social_twitter="true" social_facebook="true" social_gplus="true" social_linkedin="true" social_stumble="true" social_pinterest="true" social_email="true" ]

    Lo is in a good spot with her career, but she’s struggling with a ton of student loan debt, and consequently, credit card debt. What should she do to manage it?

    Anonymous wants to know how to set up a backdoor Roth IRA.

    Eric and his wife own a property in Savannah, GA that brings in more money as an Airbnb than a traditional rental. They want to invest in more properties and are wondering if this model is the best path to take.

    James wants to own a vacation rental in the Vermont mountains that he can use when it’s vacant. What features or qualities would make a profitable vacation rental? What red flags should be on his radar?

    Ayesha is looking at buying a rental property that has a partial HUD claim on it. What kind of complications should she anticipate? Or should she let this property go completely?

    Shelbi and her husband own a rental property that they purchased for $178,000 that’s now valued at $300,000. They’re looking at a multitude of options – sell it, move into it, or keep it. What’s best given their FIRE goal?

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    #238: How to Stop Making So Many Money Mistakes, with Jeff Kreisler

    ByErin @ Team Afford Anything
    [smart_track_player url="https://traffic.libsyn.com/paulaandjaymoney/AA238.mp3" title="How to Stop Making So Many Money Mistakes, with Jeff Kreisler" artist="Paula Pant" social="true" social_twitter="true" social_facebook="true" social_gplus="true" social_linkedin="true" social_stumble="true" social_pinterest="true" social_email="true" ]

    Have any of these thoughts ever crossed your mind?

    If I had more willpower, I’d achieve my financial goals.

    I’m doomed to fail with money.

    Budgets suck. They only show me what I did wrong and make me feel horrible.

    If so, you’re not alone.

    It’s not that you lack willpower.

    It’s not that you’re doomed to fail with money.

    It’s not that you’re a horrible person for blowing your budget.

    It’s that you’re human.

    And humans make emotional decisions all the time. Decisions that often defy logic.

    But making emotional decisions doesn’t have to be a financial death sentence. Money management is a skill, which means we can improve.

    When we understand the “why” behind our decisions, coupled with the marketing tactics that retailers use, we can guard ourselves against cognitive biases and sales strategies.

    That’s what today’s guest is here to discuss.

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    #237: Ask Paula and Joe – Should I BUY a Business, Instead of Starting One?

    ByPaula Pant
    [smart_track_player url="https://traffic.libsyn.com/paulaandjaymoney/AA237.mp3" title="Ask Paula and Joe - Should I BUY a Business, Instead of Starting One?" artist="Paula Pant" social="true" social_twitter="true" social_facebook="true" social_gplus="true" social_linkedin="true" social_stumble="true" social_pinterest="true" social_email="true" ]

    Katie wants to know how to purchase a business that’s already cash-flow positive. What indicators can she look for?

    Rob will retire from the military with an inflation-adjusted pension. Does he need a bond allocation in his investment portfolio?

    Brian conquered a large sum of credit card debt, but still has student loan debt and a mortgage. Should he pay off his student loans, refinance them, or refinance his mortgage?

    Jeff is curious about the pros and cons of investment apps. When should you use them?

    Another Kati (without an e!) wants to live a healthy and wealthy life before she’s 70. Where should she allocate her savings so she can retire early?

    We answer these five questions in today’s episode.

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    #235: Ask Paula – Sooo … I Quit My Job. What Type of Business Should I Start?

    ByPaula Pant
    [smart_track_player url="https://traffic.libsyn.com/paulaandjaymoney/AA235.mp3" title="Ask Paula - Sooo … I Quit My Job. What Type of Business Should I Start?" artist="Paula Pant" social="true" social_twitter="true" social_facebook="true" social_gplus="true" social_linkedin="true" social_stumble="true" social_pinterest="true" social_email="true" ]

    Anna has made the leap to self-employment … but what’s next? She lives in the Bay Area and she’s trying to choose between five business ideas; she needs to make enough money to stay in her high-cost area.

    Doug recently won $9,000 from an online poker side gig and is wondering how best to use the funds: pay off high-interest student loan debt, or keep it to increase his poker earning potential?

    Alex and his partner want to househack a single-family property with a mother-in-law suit. What should they consider as far as zoning goes?

    Darrell is on track to retire in two years at age 55 and wants to know what he should do with his primary residence. Should he rent it out? Or should he sell it and use the profit to invest in rental properties? Or use the profit to buy his retirement home?

    Mara is curious about 1031 exchanges. She has equity in a rental property that she’d like to harvest, but she wants more information before making the move.

    Michael and his wife are struggling with competing goals. They want to invest in real estate, but they also want to move into an apartment closer to work to reduce their long commutes. Should they sell their home and invest the equity into a rental property, or should they take a HELOC on their home instead?

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

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    #234: 26 Easy Moves to Improve Your Finances in 2020

    ByPaula Pant
    [smart_track_player url="https://traffic.libsyn.com/paulaandjaymoney/AA234.mp3" title="26 Easy Moves to Improve Your Finances in 2020" artist="Paula Pant" social="true" social_twitter="true" social_facebook="true" social_gplus="true" social_linkedin="true" social_stumble="true" social_pinterest="true" social_email="true" ]

    Last year, I issued the One Tweak a Week challenge to this community.

    The Afford Anything team and I released a free book outlining 26 easy actions that improve your finances and life. We choose simple actions that you could complete in one hour or less (some are as quick as five minutes), which added together amount to major change.

    We challenged this community to take one action per week for the first 26 weeks (six months) of the year, and we sent a weekly reminder email, each Sunday, to anyone who downloaded the free book.

    We heard incredible feedback. Several people told us that One Tweak a Week helped them make huge improvements to their financial life.

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    #233: Ask Paula – How Can I Retire in 12 Years?

    ByPaula Pant
    [smart_track_player url="https://traffic.libsyn.com/paulaandjaymoney/AA233.mp3" title="Ask Paula - How Can I Retire in 12 Years?" artist="Paula Pant" social="true" social_twitter="true" social_facebook="true" social_gplus="true" social_linkedin="true" social_stumble="true" social_pinterest="true" social_email="true" ]

    Deepak is considering downsizing his family’s home, but wants to know if the savings are worth the transaction costs he’ll have to pay.

    Anonymous and her husband hold $900,000 worth of privately-owned company stock. How should they plan for handling this money?

    Shelby is 25 years old and works for a company that awarded her restricted stock units. What should she do with these? Additionally, she traded in a 2013 Prius for a 2018 Subaru, for which she now owes $19,000. Should she sell it for a used vehicle or stick it out?

    Katelyn is interested in learning more about annuities. What should she know in order to make an informed decision?

    Max FI and his wife want to retire in 12 years. How should they invest to achieve this?

    Anonymous’s former employer offered a Roth and Traditional 401k, and his new employer only offers a Traditional option. How should he rollover his former Roth 401k?