By Paula Pant
Austin and his wife are worried about moving to a single-income household while supporting two kids. Should they free up cash flow by paying off a car loan, or tighten up and stay the course?
Paul has been retired for seven years, but still can’t shake his anxiety about not having enough. Is there a […]
By Paula Pant
Anonymous, 60, recently lost her job and is worried about retirement. She owns a paid-off triplex, living in one unit and renting the others for $30,000 a year. She used her 401(k) funds to buy the triplex and now has $50,000 in retirement savings and $150,000 in cash. She expects only $2,400 a month from Social Security at age 67. After losing her son two years ago, she’s seeking advice on managing her underfunded retirement.
Noelle, 40, and her husband, 49, want to cancel his whole life insurance policy. They are debt-free, own their home, and plan to retire soon, relying on Noelle’s $80,000 income. They have $504,000 in retirement savings. Should Noelle keep her $100,000 term life policy until she retires?
Sleepless in San Antonio, age 35, plans to retire at 45 but is concerned about how this will affect Social Security benefits, which is calculated based on the top 35 earning years. Should they work longer in order to boost their Social Security benefits?
Former financial planner Joe Saul-Sehy and I tackle these three questions in today’s episode.
Enjoy!
By Paula Pant
Sara is five years from retirement with a paid-off house. But she’s worried that her money will run out before she turns 80. What does she need to do now to protect her future self?
Lauren is a personal finance nerd who gets it. But one question perplexes her: When should she choose an ETF […]
By Paula Pant
Christine’s business is struggling. She needs more income. If she adds a full-time remote job to her plate, how will her retirement and finances change?
Rob enjoyed a banner year in 2023. He made over $1 million. But the sting of income tax has him making moves that violate his investment strategy. Is his tax tail wagging the dog?
Gena is excited to make the most of business deductions. Can she contribute 100 percent of her wages to a 401k and have the company match that?
Christina is tired of living like a pauper in the name of student loan repayment. Is Public Service Loan Forgiveness the answer?
Former financial planner Joe Saul-Sehy and I tackle these four questions in today’s episode.
Enjoy!
By Paula Pant
Cara made $100,000 in commissions this year, her biggest bonus ever. What should she do with the money if she wants to retire early?
An anonymous caller and his partner have lived in an RV for years. They’re ready to settle. Should they sell most of his investments to purchase raw land and build an off-grid home?
Remy and her husband need to come up with $30,000 for IVF treatments. How do they build their family without breaking the family finances in the process?
Another anonymous caller is upset that the 401k plan he sold his boss on is charging him an Assets Under Management (AUM) fee. Should he keep the 401k at all?
Former financial planner Joe Saul-Sehy and I tackle these four questions in today’s episode.
Enjoy!
By Paula Pant
Kristen’s financial advisor charges a 1.3 percent fee on her investments. They also sold her term life, whole life, and long-term disability insurance. Do they have her best interests at heart?
Casey has $290,000 in student loan debt. He committed 10 years to one employer for a chance at public service loan forgiveness. But five years in, Casey questions what he’s missing out on.
Sara feels like it’s time to move to a more conservative asset allocation but she’s torn between buying bonds from Vanguard or Treasury Direct. What’s the difference anyway?
Former financial planner Joe Saul-Sehy and I tackle these three questions in today’s episode.
Enjoy!
P.S. Got a question? Leave it here.
By Paula Pant
Emily is saving aggressively for financial independence, but it’s hard to enjoy the present. Is it time to increase spending?
Monroe wants to stop working. Forever. Which is more important: debt payoff or investing?
Another anonymous caller and his spouse dream of building a homestead on an expensive piece of land. How much is too much to spend on housing?
Given the high costs of moving, Sarah wonders if buying a starter home is the best decision. Should she and her fiance jump straight to buying their forever home?
Former financial planner Joe Saul-Sehy and I tackle these four questions in today’s episode.
Enjoy!
P.S. Got a question? Leave it here.
By Paula Pant
Dr. Ellen Vora, M.D., shared insight into the roots of procrastination, offering evidence-based tips for how to overcome our own inner demons of anxiety, fear and laziness.
Psychology professor Bill von Hippel described why too much happiness is just as detrimental to our long-term health and wellbeing as too little happiness.
Wall St. Journal columnist Spencer Jakab observed the perfect storm of conditions that gave rise to meme stonks and other oddities of our era.
Former financial planner Joe Saul-Sehy argued for “strategic under-diversification” and explained the Sharpe Ratio.
Data scientist Nick Maggiulli explains the save-invest continuum.
And financial planner Bill Bengen, the creator of the 4 percent retirement withdrawal rule, talks about what most people misunderstand about the safe withdrawal rate.
These are just some of the highlights from the Afford Anything podcast in this 2022 year-in-review episode.
Enjoy!
By Paula Pant
Jake wants investment cash flow until he’s eligible for his military pension in 10 years. Should he buy small multifamily properties right now, wait a few years and invest in syndications or should he invest in index funds through taxable accounts?
Andy in Palm Springs is shoveling money into a taxable brokerage account. He wants to use these investments to create another stream of income. But there’s a problem: his tax bill is going to be high. What should he do?
Anonymous is a U.S. citizen, lives in London, and can’t invest in index funds. Can he emulate the index fund experience by directly buying a huge number of individual stocks?
Former financial planner Joe Saul-Sehy and I tackle these questions in today’s episode.
Enjoy!
By Paula Pant
Anonymous and her husband have set themselves on the path of saving for retirement. But an old mistake haunts them: a financial planner convinced them to buy a mix of whole and term life insurance, which costs them $700 per month. Do they need whole life insurance, and where else can they save their money?
Mike has $60,000 in cash earning one percent interest. He has plans to buy a home and get married in three to five years. Where else can he put his cash to earn a little more? Is the stock market too risky for such a short time horizon?
Anonymous and her future husband are wondering: what’s a realistic amount to spend on a wedding?
My friend and former financial planner Joe Saul-Sehy joins me to answer these questions on today’s episode. Enjoy!
Do you have a question on business, money, trade-offs, financial independence strategies, travel, or investing? Leave it here and we’ll answer them in a future episode.
