Afford Anything

#244: Grant Baldwin felt burned out.He worked as a youth pastor, which felt like a 24/7 profession. He had to attend student events held late into the night, which left him exhausted.One night, he came home to find his wife crying. She told him that she felt like she had a roommate, rather than a husband, because he was gone so often.So Grant did something drastic: he quit his job, with negligible savings, when his wife was four to five months pregnant.For the following year, he waited tables and worked odd jobs, cobbling together gig-economy money while raising a newborn. During his rare unscheduled moments, he started crafting a new career for himself as a self-employed public speaker.Today, Grant Baldwin is a speaker, entrepreneur, coach, and author of The Successful Speaker. He’s earned multiple seven-figures in speaking fees and has helped over 2,000 people become professional speakers.He shares how he made his dream a reality in this episode.For more information, visit the show notes at https://affordanything.com/episode244 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

#243: 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!For more information, visit the show notes at https://affordanything.com/episode243 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

#242: Ash Ambirge grew up in a trailer park in Pennsylvania. She never met her father. Her disabled mother, who raised her on government assistance, passed away when she was 20.Her childhood goal? To join the middle class. She dreamed of becoming one of those people who eats lemon pepper chicken. What’s more middle-class than that? She attended college on a full scholarship. When she graduated and accepted her first cushy office job, earning $30,000 per year, she blew her paychecks. She bought a brand-new car, rented a luxury apartment and financed a $5,000 mattress. Yet despite her material luxury, she felt that some important element was lacking.In her quest to find meaningful and creative work, she launched The Middle Finger Project, a company that teaches skills like entrepreneurship, battling perfectionism, and trusting your most dangerous ideas. She joins us on today’s podcast episode to share her incredible story about struggling to join the middle class, shrugging off a conventional career, and trusting her most dangerous ideas.For more information, visit the show notes at https://affordanything.com/242 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

#241: 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!For more information, visit the show notes at https://affordanything.com/episode241 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

#240: Are you investing, speculating, or gambling?What are the three drivers of asset performance?Are you aware of who’s getting a cut from your investments?Do you even know who’s on the other side of the trade?David Stein is the author of Money for the Rest of Us, a book that answers these questions. He’s the former Chief Investment Strategist & Chief Portfolio Strategist at Fund Evaluation Group, a $70 billion investment firm. If you’re thinking of adding a new investment to your portfolio, David’s investment philosophy and framework can help you avoid expensive mistakes.For more information, visit the show notes at https://affordanything.com/episode240 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

#239: 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?For more information, visit the show notes at https://affordanything.com/239 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

#238: “If I had more willpower, I’d achieve my financial goals.” “I’m doomed to fail with money.” “I’m horrible for not keeping to a budget.”These are common thoughts, but they’re erroneous.You can’t willpower your way through money management, you’re not doomed to fail, and you’re not horrible for blowing your budget. You’re human, and humans make emotional decisions. Those emotional decisions don’t have to mean a financial death sentence, though.Jeff Kreisler, co-author of Dollars and Sense and Editor-in-Chief of PeopleScience.com, tells us how we can avoid common money mistakes and rewrite our financial future.For more information, visit the show notes at https://affordanything.com/238 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

#237: 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.For more information, visit the show notes at https://affordanything.com/episode237 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

#236: Kristy Shen and Bryce Leung achieved financial independence four years ago at age 31 and 32. They saved $1 million and live on $40,000 per year while traveling the world.Kristy and Bryce don’t worry about running out of money, they created new identities after quitting their jobs, and their community has quadrupled in size. Here’s how they achieved this lifestyle.For more information, visit the show notes at https://affordanything.com/episode236 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

#235: 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?For more information, visit the show notes at https://affordanything.com/episode235 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices