PoFU Podcast

Should you rent or buy? Our conclusion...well it depends. Current state of your market, your need to be mobile, your career path , there's a lot to consider. From a pure financial perspective, we are basically 50/50 on the net financial benefit of owning vs renting. When you rent, your monthly rent is the MOST you will pay that month. When you own, your mortgage payment is the LEAST you'll pay that month. While owning has all the benefits of appreciation, equity, and tax benefits, it also comes with a slew of additional expenses like property taxes, repairs/maintenance, renovations, etc. What's best for you ultimately comes down to where you are in life and what you value most.

Over the next 10 years, the number of individuals in the workforce ages 75+ is going to quadruple! It shouldn't come as a surprise considering the majority of Americans live paycheck-to-paycheck and live beyond their means. It brings us back to the famous Warren Buffet quote: "If you can't find a way to make money while you sleep, you will work until you die."

Most people don't understand that saving/investing just $125/month from ages 22-65 at 10% interest yields $1M+. Well, what if you legitimately don't have $125/month? A relatively simple way to make a few extra hundred dollars a month is ARBITRAGE. Buy things at one price, sell them at a higher price. Garage sales, Dollar Stores, Facebook Marketplace, Craigslist, any number of places where you can buy things on the cheap and flip them on Amazon, Ebay, Wish, Etsy, etc. Some of our favorite arbitrag-ers include Gary Vaynerchuk and Ryan Pineda. All the secrets to arbitrage are online FOR FREE. All you need is a phone.

If you could go back in time, how would you advise your 20 year old self? Grant Cardone says don't drink, don't do drugs, don't chase women, and learn learn learn. Fantastic advice, but we at the PoFU Podcast sing a slightly different tune. 

Surround yourself with good people. And when it comes to finance, surround yourself with financially successful people. Ask questions, learn, exchange ideas, talk about money! In this episode Jeremiah shares a statistic that's not at all surprising: 84% of Americans stress about money at least once a week.  Easy to understand seeing that the majority of Americans live paycheck to paycheck and have weak financial bases.

The remedy to financial stress is obviously a strong financial foundation, but you don't get there by ignoring the problem. By surrounding yourself with successful people that want to talk about money, leaning on their expertise, and asking questions, you're exposing yourself to the secret sauce.

PoFU fans...it's been a while! Summer hiatus is no excuse, but that's what we are going with for now. It felt good to be back in the studio!

Don't let the episode title fool you, we didn't dive deep into the financial benefits of marriage. Why? To be frank, we couldn't find any! Of course there are benefits of bill and resource consolidation, but from a tax perspective we aren't aware of any major benefits when it comes to marriage. Is there a CPA or financial planner out there that would like to shed some light on this subject? If so, please email us at pofupodcast@gmail.com.

The Dave Ramsey's of the world will tell you that credit cards are evil and debit cards are the only way to go. We could not disagree more! Like everything, there are pros and cons to each. We break it all down for you in episode 48.

A new bill has been passed in the state of Michigan requiring all students (starting with the 8th grade class in Fall 2023) to complete a personal finance class in order to graduate high school. How man times have we heard "I was taught the pythagorean theorem but I was never taught how to balance a checkbook"? In the state of Michigan, that's all about to change.

Kudos to State Representative Diana Farrington for sponsoring the bill and her efforts to get it endorsed by the governor. This is a step in the right direction. In episode 47 we discuss the implications, question the curriculum, and even volunteer to teach this class!

Going into a new year we normally talk about goal setting. In episode 46 we have a different take on the subject: habit-setting instead of goal-setting. Habits are controllable and allow you to take "digestible" actions toward hitting a goal. In 2023 we are all about setting new habits!

PoFU Nation we are back! Surgeries, vacations, holidays, and of couse Jeremiah Time has kept us out of the studio, but we are back and ready to charge into 2023! This episode we discuss what worked and what didn't in 2022 and are excited to move the financial needle forward in 2023.

An integral part of the PoFU journey is dreaming big dreams. What would you do if you had all the money in the world? Would you buy stuff like houses, cars, and toys? Would you buy investments like stocks and real estate? Would you give some away to meaningful charities? A little dream session from time to time is a great exercise to help reinvigorate your PoFU goals, and what better time to do that when the Powerball jackpot is nearly $2 Billion!  We rarely play the lottery, but the entertainment value of chipping $10 into a pool with your buddies and dreaming some big dreams is money well spent.

This episode centers around the announcement of the recent student loan bailout and the $300 billion (or more??) bill handed out to the American taxpayers.  We start with a profanity-laced rant about how this is a colossal mistake, but we regroup and propose a solution that will not only revamp the entire student loan industry but will reduce the skyrocketing cost of college at the same time. Tune in to find out!

Arguably one of the largest investments some people will ever make, a college education is one that has seen diminished value over the past 10+ years. On the low end (public, in-state) the total cost of attendance for a degree averages about $125k nationwide. For private universities, that number soars to $270k!

As corporate demand for college degrees has reduced, the supply of college graduates has increased, and coupling these factors with the soaring cost of college, this investment has become an ROI-negative proposition for many. In this episode we explore why the value of college has dropped what we think should be done about it.

We heard you, PoFU Listeners! We took a little recording break over the back half of the Summer but we are back with a new episode. Summer in Michigan is a special time and we chose to soak up all the Summer we could before getting back in the studio.

Episode 41 is a State of the Union to bring everyone back up to speed on what's going down in PoFU-land. From a financial perspective, the stock market is down in recent months and the real estate market has cooled significantly. Our message to the listeners: Keep buying and stay the course. Stocks or real estate, over time the market always goes up, so in these times of a down market just look at it like everything is on sale and you're getting a better deal when you buy now.

One of the great conundrums of the PoFU journey is striking the balance between living for today and planning for tomorrow. The PoFU journey is long and arduous. After years of saving, investing, and growing streams of passive income we often find ourselves asking the question "what is all this for?"

For some people, the PoFU journey itself is what excites them and keeps them focused on tomorrow. For others, the need to live for today and enjoy some fruits of their labor is ever-present...and that's ok! We struggle with this balance ourselves. After all, what good is all the planning and investing when the stark reality is that we might not make it to tomorrow barring some unforeseen tragedy. 

We dive deep into this subject in Episode 40. Spoiler alert...it boils down to happiness and sacrifice! 

**Warning! Sensitive real estate agents, proceed with caution!**

We love real estate agents. We really do. We have several friends who are real estate agents and we wish them nothing but success and hefty paydays. Real estate agents are a vital component to real estate transactions. However, the consensus at the PoFU Podcast is that for a large portion of transactions, real estate agents (especially LISTING agents) are grossly overpaid.

We offer a scenario: When a $500k house is sold with 6% agent commissions, that costs the seller $30k in commissions. When a $600k house is sold with 6% commissions, it costs the seller $36k in commissions.  What is the seller getting for the extra $6k in costs? The agent is not spending extra time on the $600k house, they aren't hosting more open houses, they aren't spending more on better pictures, they aren't spending more on marketing efforts. So what is the seller getting for the extra $6k? The answer is NOTHING. Let's not forget that the cost of selling the house is as much as a new car!

Most people don't know that real estate agent commissions are negotiable. We encourage all sellers to make sure they are getting the value they deserve out of the commissions they pay. All this discussion and more in Episode 39!

Addressing 2 listener questions in Episode 38:

• Should I use a HELOC for a home improvement project? While every situation is different, the basis for our answer is to determine whether your home improvement project is a NEED or a WANT? If you have a repair that needs immediate attention (roof leak, failed mechanicals, foundation issue, etc) and you don't have the cash handy, then YES you should use your HELOC to address that issue. Or if you have a dire NEED for extra space to accommodate children, roommates, family then go for it. However, if you simply WANT and updated kitchen or WANT to update your landscaping, then we would not advise using a HELOC.
• Should I refi my mortgage at a higher interest rate if it eliminates my PMI? Quick refresher, most situations a homeowner needs to have 20% equity (house value minus mortgage balance = equity) to eliminate PMI. Many homeowners that bought houses even a year ago with more than 80%+ LTV have seen their home values increase and in many cases their equity has increased due to higher home sales in their neighborhood. A year ago interest rates were in the 3% range but today we are in the 5% range. The answer to this question boils down to the math and your old payment to new and also consider the total interest cost by refinancing at a higher interest rate. That said, you might not need to refi at all. Call your bank, explain your situation, and a simple appraisal might be all you need. 

Keep the questions coming and thanks for listening!

Back from a short, Summer-induced podcast break, we are back in a fresh new studio for Episode 37!

This episode centers around another of Jeremiah's famous "articles" that brings us a valuable lesson. Imagine this: over the past 40 years our country has experienced 6 recessions, 5 bear markets, 41 Fed rate hikes, 2 market crashes of 50%+, 12 wars, the Dot-Com Bubble, Black Monday, the Financial Crisis, a global pandemic, and now inflation over 8%. Lots of bad stuff, right? But guess what? Had you invested $500/mo every month during this same time frame you'd be sitting on $3.5M today. 

What's the message? STAY THE COURSE. KEEP INVESTING. STAY CONSISTENT. Lots of bad things will happen in the financial market, but over the course of time you will win!

The last in our 3-part series with special guest Brendan O'Driscoll from Treadstone. Brendan talks about the cost of waiting to buy a house relative to the recent rate hikes, we share some unfiltered feelings about Zillow and Rocket Mortgage, and we do our worst Jack Nickolson impressions from A Few Good Men. Enjoy!

The 2nd installment of our 3-part series with special guest, Brendan O'Driscoll. The co-founder of Treadstone Mortgage, Brendan talks about the power of giving and how success should not be defined by the amount of money you have, rather the amount of money you give. A tremendous lesson along this PoFU journey...happiness and self-fulfillment is the key. While money can buy you freedom and time, money has no value if you are miserable. 

Brendan and his amazing wife, Christine, have chosen to do great things with their money including support for Guiding Light Mission (www.guidinglightworks.org), Family Promise of Grand Rapids (www.familypromise.org), and substantial investments in The New Growth Project (www.newgrowthproject.org). Please consider supporting these causes or find something within your own community and contribute!

Owner and founder of Treadstone Mortgage, Brendan O'Driscoll, joins us for episode 34! Brendan has built a successful business out of the ruins of the sub-prime market in the late 90's. A phenomenal boss and an amazing philanthropist, Brendan talks about building a business with integrity and taking care of his people in ways every great boss should. It was an honor to have him join us in the studio.

Follow Brendan at @OD_on_Mortgages or @treadstonemortgage