1 00:00:00,160 --> 00:00:02,960 Speaker 1: Welcome to How the Money. I'm Joel and I am Matt. 2 00:00:03,160 --> 00:00:07,600 Speaker 1: Today we're discussing Christmas shopping starting now, rental scams and 3 00:00:07,840 --> 00:00:29,280 Speaker 1: no Vack's penalties. It's right, Joel, this is our Friday flight. 4 00:00:29,480 --> 00:00:32,360 Speaker 1: Every week we look over the different stories, uh, and 5 00:00:32,440 --> 00:00:34,920 Speaker 1: we want to see how they pertain to our money. 6 00:00:35,120 --> 00:00:36,879 Speaker 1: That's what we're gonna do again this Friday, like we 7 00:00:36,920 --> 00:00:40,600 Speaker 1: do every Friday flight. But Man, first things going, Yeah, 8 00:00:40,640 --> 00:00:42,760 Speaker 1: I'm good, dude, having a great day, doing all right. 9 00:00:42,800 --> 00:00:44,560 Speaker 1: I wanted to ask too, because Emily she's been taking 10 00:00:44,560 --> 00:00:46,720 Speaker 1: her classes now for a couple of weeks. How's that 11 00:00:46,800 --> 00:00:49,640 Speaker 1: been working out for y'all? It has been great. She's 12 00:00:49,680 --> 00:00:53,040 Speaker 1: really enjoying it. She's kind of she's always been interested. 13 00:00:53,040 --> 00:00:54,960 Speaker 1: I think I mentioned on a recent episode. She's going 14 00:00:55,000 --> 00:00:58,400 Speaker 1: back to graduate school to become a licensed therapist, and 15 00:00:58,560 --> 00:01:00,680 Speaker 1: it's something that she's kind of always wanted to pursue 16 00:01:01,040 --> 00:01:02,800 Speaker 1: and now was the right time to go about it. 17 00:01:02,800 --> 00:01:04,840 Speaker 1: And so she's been taking classes now for just I 18 00:01:04,880 --> 00:01:07,080 Speaker 1: don't know, a couple of weeks, three weeks, and it's 19 00:01:07,080 --> 00:01:10,039 Speaker 1: been It's been a joy for sure, I will say 20 00:01:10,120 --> 00:01:11,480 Speaker 1: on that note, Matt, she had to get a bunch 21 00:01:11,480 --> 00:01:15,479 Speaker 1: of books for class, and I was trying to save 22 00:01:15,520 --> 00:01:19,800 Speaker 1: as much money as possible as I do on those books, 23 00:01:19,880 --> 00:01:22,400 Speaker 1: and one of the places I turned to was eBay 24 00:01:22,480 --> 00:01:25,400 Speaker 1: to buy some use books for really cheap. But another 25 00:01:25,480 --> 00:01:27,479 Speaker 1: thing I wanted to mention for anybody out there who's 26 00:01:27,480 --> 00:01:30,120 Speaker 1: some kids are probably right now trying to buy books 27 00:01:30,160 --> 00:01:34,960 Speaker 1: for as classes begin, and uh consider renting a book 28 00:01:35,000 --> 00:01:38,920 Speaker 1: instead of buying it. That was one. For one particularly 29 00:01:38,959 --> 00:01:42,320 Speaker 1: expensive textbook that Emily needed, we checked a couple of 30 00:01:42,319 --> 00:01:45,000 Speaker 1: different websites. Amazon turned out to be the lowest price, 31 00:01:45,360 --> 00:01:47,840 Speaker 1: but it was thirty one dollars to rent the book 32 00:01:47,840 --> 00:01:49,920 Speaker 1: for the semester, or I could have paid a hundred 33 00:01:49,920 --> 00:01:52,960 Speaker 1: and six dollars to buy it, and it just made 34 00:01:52,960 --> 00:01:55,360 Speaker 1: a whole lot of sense to to run it instead. 35 00:01:55,400 --> 00:01:56,920 Speaker 1: It wasn't one of those books that Emily felt like 36 00:01:56,960 --> 00:01:59,560 Speaker 1: she was gonna need after the class was over. And 37 00:01:59,640 --> 00:02:02,960 Speaker 1: so yeah, for some folks, renting textbooks just is going 38 00:02:03,000 --> 00:02:05,360 Speaker 1: to be a whole lot better of of an idea, 39 00:02:05,480 --> 00:02:06,960 Speaker 1: And I just kind of want to put that out 40 00:02:07,000 --> 00:02:10,000 Speaker 1: there can be money saving because textbooks are expensive, and 41 00:02:10,040 --> 00:02:12,520 Speaker 1: plus I feel like oftentimes when you get expensive textbooks 42 00:02:12,560 --> 00:02:14,360 Speaker 1: like that, you think a lot of money into it, 43 00:02:14,360 --> 00:02:16,040 Speaker 1: and you think at the end of the class, you're like, oh, 44 00:02:16,040 --> 00:02:17,640 Speaker 1: I gotta I should hang onto this one. This one 45 00:02:17,760 --> 00:02:20,120 Speaker 1: was one of those expensive ones. There must be valuable 46 00:02:20,200 --> 00:02:22,359 Speaker 1: information in there that I will refer to in the future, 47 00:02:22,760 --> 00:02:24,639 Speaker 1: and then you never do, but you always feel bad 48 00:02:24,639 --> 00:02:27,120 Speaker 1: about actually selling it for you know, pennies on the dollar. 49 00:02:27,400 --> 00:02:30,120 Speaker 1: I think renting it is definitely a smart way to go. Yeah, yeah, 50 00:02:30,160 --> 00:02:32,320 Speaker 1: so for sure, there's there's multiple websites where you can 51 00:02:32,560 --> 00:02:36,720 Speaker 1: rent textbooks. Amazon cheg is another one. But I will 52 00:02:36,760 --> 00:02:39,560 Speaker 1: say after looking around, at least on that book, but 53 00:02:39,600 --> 00:02:41,320 Speaker 1: on a few others that we looked at it seemed 54 00:02:41,320 --> 00:02:43,720 Speaker 1: like the Amazon terms were better and the prices were better. 55 00:02:44,040 --> 00:02:47,400 Speaker 1: So yeah, make sure you do your research. But renting 56 00:02:47,480 --> 00:02:50,280 Speaker 1: instead of buying often works. Very nice. Dude. All right, 57 00:02:50,320 --> 00:02:52,560 Speaker 1: let's go ahead get our Friday flights. Let's talk about 58 00:02:52,960 --> 00:02:55,400 Speaker 1: some rising prices, and for once, we're actually not going 59 00:02:55,440 --> 00:02:58,480 Speaker 1: to refer to inflation. Uh, We're gonna talk about credit cards, 60 00:02:58,800 --> 00:03:01,000 Speaker 1: because there's some new evidence that shows that is actually 61 00:03:01,000 --> 00:03:04,119 Speaker 1: getting more expensive when you pay with a credit card. 62 00:03:04,280 --> 00:03:06,600 Speaker 1: The Wall Street Journal had an article discussing why this 63 00:03:06,720 --> 00:03:09,440 Speaker 1: is the number of retailers that are charging more to 64 00:03:09,480 --> 00:03:12,240 Speaker 1: accept a credit card has more than doubled in the 65 00:03:12,280 --> 00:03:15,400 Speaker 1: last five years. So for instance, you might pay, say 66 00:03:15,480 --> 00:03:17,520 Speaker 1: just an extra fifty cents to use your card the 67 00:03:17,560 --> 00:03:19,720 Speaker 1: next time you stop to maybe grab some ice cream 68 00:03:19,720 --> 00:03:22,040 Speaker 1: at your local favorite spot, or the reverse actually might 69 00:03:22,120 --> 00:03:25,040 Speaker 1: happen and you might be able to score a discount 70 00:03:25,320 --> 00:03:28,320 Speaker 1: for paying with cash, which I never do. Unfortunately, that 71 00:03:28,320 --> 00:03:30,359 Speaker 1: would be one area where I wouldn't get that discount. 72 00:03:30,880 --> 00:03:33,120 Speaker 1: Uh yeah, I don't carry cash on me most of 73 00:03:33,120 --> 00:03:36,560 Speaker 1: the time, and I might need to begin caring honestly, 74 00:03:36,600 --> 00:03:39,480 Speaker 1: and does make me consider keeping like I always keep 75 00:03:39,480 --> 00:03:41,520 Speaker 1: that spirits morning, but that's like for emergencies, you know, 76 00:03:41,560 --> 00:03:43,200 Speaker 1: but like it makes me want to keep some money 77 00:03:43,360 --> 00:03:46,120 Speaker 1: like in the wallet forged regular expenses as well. But 78 00:03:46,240 --> 00:03:48,880 Speaker 1: for some small businesses, just this very act of not 79 00:03:48,920 --> 00:03:52,160 Speaker 1: continuing to absorb the fees but passing those you know, 80 00:03:52,200 --> 00:03:55,440 Speaker 1: those costs on to consumers, that's gonna mean tens of 81 00:03:55,440 --> 00:03:58,520 Speaker 1: thousands of dollars in savings each year for those businesses. 82 00:03:58,800 --> 00:04:00,920 Speaker 1: The different credit card companies there make a killing when 83 00:04:00,920 --> 00:04:04,000 Speaker 1: it comes to those interchange fees that they charge businesses. 84 00:04:04,160 --> 00:04:07,000 Speaker 1: That is true, and our listeners. They might be saying, 85 00:04:07,200 --> 00:04:10,440 Speaker 1: I met Matt and Joel there against businesses charging these fees, 86 00:04:10,440 --> 00:04:13,760 Speaker 1: aren't they aren't they? No, we're not. We're not because 87 00:04:14,080 --> 00:04:16,440 Speaker 1: you know, again, like what Matt, you just said that 88 00:04:16,600 --> 00:04:18,760 Speaker 1: there are there's a lot of money at stake for 89 00:04:18,880 --> 00:04:22,719 Speaker 1: these small businesses, and the idea that they're passing on 90 00:04:23,080 --> 00:04:25,920 Speaker 1: costs like that to their customers makes sense to me. 91 00:04:26,200 --> 00:04:29,080 Speaker 1: I'm okay with it. So our recommendation is to be 92 00:04:29,160 --> 00:04:32,760 Speaker 1: aware that this might be happening at a local shop 93 00:04:32,760 --> 00:04:35,760 Speaker 1: near you, or or sometimes even more, a bigger business 94 00:04:35,760 --> 00:04:38,120 Speaker 1: near you. So it's important to be flexible. If the 95 00:04:38,160 --> 00:04:41,520 Speaker 1: surcharge isn't worth the rewards, consider paying with the debit 96 00:04:41,560 --> 00:04:46,360 Speaker 1: card instead. We prefer credit cards, right, but that's only yeah, 97 00:04:46,360 --> 00:04:48,840 Speaker 1: for a lot of reasons, but not necessarily if you're 98 00:04:48,839 --> 00:04:51,719 Speaker 1: going to be charged more. Credit cards are our favorite 99 00:04:51,720 --> 00:04:54,040 Speaker 1: method for making purchases. We've talked about that not too 100 00:04:54,040 --> 00:04:55,760 Speaker 1: long ago, maybe just like a month ago on the show. 101 00:04:56,080 --> 00:04:58,880 Speaker 1: The rewards you can achieve with by using a credit 102 00:04:58,880 --> 00:05:01,680 Speaker 1: card are great. For example, though, Matt, let's say at 103 00:05:01,720 --> 00:05:04,080 Speaker 1: the grocery store, they wanted to charge me two and 104 00:05:04,080 --> 00:05:06,680 Speaker 1: a half percent fee, I would gladly pay that fee 105 00:05:06,760 --> 00:05:09,680 Speaker 1: fee actually, because the rewards I get back on my 106 00:05:09,960 --> 00:05:12,200 Speaker 1: m X Blue Cash Preferred art six percent at the 107 00:05:12,200 --> 00:05:15,360 Speaker 1: grocery store. So in that case, it's a nice little swing. 108 00:05:15,520 --> 00:05:17,920 Speaker 1: But I might actually avoid the same search arge at 109 00:05:17,920 --> 00:05:20,559 Speaker 1: a place where my rewards are kept at like two percent. 110 00:05:20,920 --> 00:05:23,120 Speaker 1: And um, you know, we actually just posted a new 111 00:05:23,200 --> 00:05:26,240 Speaker 1: article on the website about the exact credit cards that 112 00:05:26,279 --> 00:05:27,600 Speaker 1: you and I use. Will link to that in the 113 00:05:27,600 --> 00:05:30,400 Speaker 1: show notes, but it's a little peak inside of our wallets. Yeah, 114 00:05:30,440 --> 00:05:33,000 Speaker 1: that's right. Yeah, and a little preview the Blue Cash 115 00:05:33,000 --> 00:05:35,520 Speaker 1: Preferred that's actually one that you and I both love. Yeah, 116 00:05:35,520 --> 00:05:38,120 Speaker 1: that's very much. The one card that overlaps is actually 117 00:05:38,160 --> 00:05:40,080 Speaker 1: that one. Well, let's go ahead and move on. We 118 00:05:40,120 --> 00:05:42,359 Speaker 1: want to warn all of our listeners out there to 119 00:05:42,400 --> 00:05:45,440 Speaker 1: watch out because there is a preponderance right now of 120 00:05:45,520 --> 00:05:49,000 Speaker 1: rental scams these days. We talked recently about the increased 121 00:05:49,000 --> 00:05:52,000 Speaker 1: demand that's happening in the rental market that's leading to 122 00:05:52,080 --> 00:05:54,359 Speaker 1: higher prices, but it's also leading to an increase in 123 00:05:54,400 --> 00:05:57,880 Speaker 1: criminal activity. Anytime there's more money, more activity leading towards 124 00:05:58,040 --> 00:06:00,240 Speaker 1: uh an industry or business, there are all is going 125 00:06:00,320 --> 00:06:02,159 Speaker 1: to be criminals who are looking to make a buck 126 00:06:02,520 --> 00:06:04,640 Speaker 1: as well. There's actually a story from one of our 127 00:06:04,680 --> 00:06:08,000 Speaker 1: local TV stations and they documented a rise of fake 128 00:06:08,080 --> 00:06:13,280 Speaker 1: rental listings which are stealing thousands of dollars from unsuspecting victims. Uh. 129 00:06:13,279 --> 00:06:16,080 Speaker 1: And these criminals, man, they're praying on your time sensitive 130 00:06:16,120 --> 00:06:17,920 Speaker 1: need to find a place. And the fact that they 131 00:06:17,920 --> 00:06:20,240 Speaker 1: list the place for quite a bit cheaper than you 132 00:06:20,240 --> 00:06:21,919 Speaker 1: know what most of the other units in the area. 133 00:06:22,279 --> 00:06:24,200 Speaker 1: That feels the fire for you to to sign the 134 00:06:24,279 --> 00:06:26,440 Speaker 1: lease to get into the home. There's always a sense 135 00:06:26,480 --> 00:06:29,240 Speaker 1: of urgency. They're making it sound like, hey, this house 136 00:06:29,279 --> 00:06:31,000 Speaker 1: is under price, is not gonna last soon, get your 137 00:06:31,040 --> 00:06:34,120 Speaker 1: deposit in and uh, that will ensure that this place 138 00:06:34,200 --> 00:06:36,760 Speaker 1: is reserved just for you. Yeah. Let's say the average 139 00:06:36,760 --> 00:06:39,440 Speaker 1: price of a rental is dollars where you live, and 140 00:06:39,440 --> 00:06:41,919 Speaker 1: this one's listed at nine fifty dollars and you're like, 141 00:06:42,080 --> 00:06:44,440 Speaker 1: oh my gosh, I have to jump I gotta put 142 00:06:44,480 --> 00:06:47,719 Speaker 1: the security deposit down immediately. Well, if it's priced that low, 143 00:06:47,920 --> 00:06:50,200 Speaker 1: there's a good chance you're gonna get taken advantage of, 144 00:06:50,360 --> 00:06:51,839 Speaker 1: right and you're gonna have some of your money stolen 145 00:06:51,880 --> 00:06:54,080 Speaker 1: from you. And it turns out that the person who 146 00:06:54,080 --> 00:06:57,160 Speaker 1: creates this listing with the nice pictures and they live, 147 00:06:57,200 --> 00:06:59,920 Speaker 1: they uploaded to Craigslist or Zillo or wherever they posted. 148 00:07:00,080 --> 00:07:02,200 Speaker 1: Most of the time Craigslist, they're not even the owner 149 00:07:02,240 --> 00:07:06,320 Speaker 1: of that house. They've just copied picks from another rental 150 00:07:06,440 --> 00:07:09,440 Speaker 1: or sail listing and then they pop up that ad 151 00:07:09,440 --> 00:07:12,360 Speaker 1: on Craigslist. It takes all of three minutes to do that, 152 00:07:12,720 --> 00:07:16,680 Speaker 1: and then they're hoping to make thousands from from your mistake. 153 00:07:17,040 --> 00:07:19,160 Speaker 1: And so, yeah, it only takes three minutes. Right, you 154 00:07:19,200 --> 00:07:21,720 Speaker 1: are a listener, you can do that right now. Please don't, 155 00:07:21,800 --> 00:07:26,600 Speaker 1: but don't. It's illegal and morally ridiculous. So one of 156 00:07:26,640 --> 00:07:28,800 Speaker 1: the key tips is when they ask for a security 157 00:07:28,800 --> 00:07:32,040 Speaker 1: deposit via a wire or money transfer, or if they 158 00:07:32,080 --> 00:07:35,080 Speaker 1: ask you to pay it in cash. Basically, whenever they 159 00:07:35,080 --> 00:07:37,240 Speaker 1: want you to pay in a way that can't be traced, 160 00:07:37,600 --> 00:07:40,120 Speaker 1: it's a bad sign. And so we yeah, we suggest 161 00:07:40,120 --> 00:07:43,160 Speaker 1: always meet the landlord in person at the house, take 162 00:07:43,200 --> 00:07:45,200 Speaker 1: a tour, and always make sure you sign a lease. 163 00:07:45,280 --> 00:07:46,840 Speaker 1: That's one of those things too, where if they're like, 164 00:07:47,040 --> 00:07:49,640 Speaker 1: I don't have the lease ready, but if you hand 165 00:07:49,680 --> 00:07:52,240 Speaker 1: me the security deposit now, it ensures that you will 166 00:07:52,440 --> 00:07:54,720 Speaker 1: that you will that this is the house you're gonna 167 00:07:54,760 --> 00:07:57,120 Speaker 1: live in. There's just so many red flags when they're 168 00:07:57,200 --> 00:07:59,000 Speaker 1: unwilling to meet you, when they're unwilling to show you 169 00:07:59,000 --> 00:08:00,880 Speaker 1: the house, when they don't make you sign a lease, 170 00:08:01,200 --> 00:08:03,560 Speaker 1: and yeah, you gotta protect yourself because these rental scams 171 00:08:03,560 --> 00:08:05,400 Speaker 1: are on the rise right now. Yeah. Well, and the 172 00:08:05,440 --> 00:08:08,160 Speaker 1: new twist here, specifically in Atlanta is that some of 173 00:08:08,200 --> 00:08:11,600 Speaker 1: these applicants are actually getting keys to the place because 174 00:08:11,600 --> 00:08:15,400 Speaker 1: the lock boxes are accessible via like the it's a 175 00:08:15,440 --> 00:08:18,440 Speaker 1: self touring lock box essentially, and so you can upload 176 00:08:18,480 --> 00:08:20,320 Speaker 1: your I d H and as long as I guess 177 00:08:20,320 --> 00:08:22,360 Speaker 1: you're not a criminal or something like that, like, you 178 00:08:22,400 --> 00:08:25,080 Speaker 1: are able to get a key. But the applicants think 179 00:08:25,280 --> 00:08:26,960 Speaker 1: that they are getting the keys to the place because 180 00:08:27,040 --> 00:08:29,640 Speaker 1: they have paid a deposit to somebody else. And so 181 00:08:29,760 --> 00:08:32,120 Speaker 1: in one case, there's a guy who had actually moved 182 00:08:32,120 --> 00:08:35,040 Speaker 1: into the place before the realtor who had actually had 183 00:08:35,080 --> 00:08:36,680 Speaker 1: the real listing showed up and knocked on the door, 184 00:08:36,880 --> 00:08:38,280 Speaker 1: and there's like a bunch of furniture in there, there's 185 00:08:38,280 --> 00:08:40,480 Speaker 1: a guy in there. There's like, what's going on, Because, 186 00:08:40,559 --> 00:08:42,920 Speaker 1: let's be honest, having to move twice not only did 187 00:08:42,920 --> 00:08:44,880 Speaker 1: he lose his money from the you know, the deposit 188 00:08:44,920 --> 00:08:46,680 Speaker 1: and he didn't actually have a place, but having to 189 00:08:46,720 --> 00:08:48,360 Speaker 1: move all of your stuff again, I mean that's just 190 00:08:48,400 --> 00:08:50,640 Speaker 1: like kicking you while you're down. Yeah, exactly, And so 191 00:08:50,679 --> 00:08:52,760 Speaker 1: that's that's why you always need to meet the landlord 192 00:08:52,800 --> 00:08:55,080 Speaker 1: in person. That's a really important part of it. That's right, 193 00:08:55,280 --> 00:08:57,720 Speaker 1: Juli shift Gears. Let's talk about some of the shipping 194 00:08:57,720 --> 00:08:59,920 Speaker 1: delays that we've seen. How would you feel if you 195 00:09:00,480 --> 00:09:03,960 Speaker 1: had your kids crying on Christmas morning because they you 196 00:09:03,960 --> 00:09:05,920 Speaker 1: didn't get them gifts that they wanted. Sounds like my 197 00:09:06,000 --> 00:09:08,439 Speaker 1: kids every other morning, Matt. Well, if you want to 198 00:09:08,480 --> 00:09:12,000 Speaker 1: avoid that specifically for for actual Christmas, you can do 199 00:09:12,040 --> 00:09:15,360 Speaker 1: that by starting the shop now. Because supply chain issues, 200 00:09:15,400 --> 00:09:18,480 Speaker 1: they've been a massive problem disrupting our economy for over 201 00:09:18,480 --> 00:09:20,320 Speaker 1: a year now. And while that's it, you know, it 202 00:09:20,360 --> 00:09:23,080 Speaker 1: has gotten better in some instances in some industries, not 203 00:09:23,400 --> 00:09:25,640 Speaker 1: all of the problems have been fixed. Uh. There are 204 00:09:25,720 --> 00:09:29,320 Speaker 1: articles and all the different major newspapers this week discussing 205 00:09:29,679 --> 00:09:33,160 Speaker 1: those lingering supply chain issues, the different shipping delays, and 206 00:09:33,200 --> 00:09:36,600 Speaker 1: the headaches that both businesses but us as consumers that 207 00:09:36,640 --> 00:09:39,640 Speaker 1: we've realized and that we're feeling as a result, some 208 00:09:39,679 --> 00:09:41,960 Speaker 1: reports are coming out that there will be a shortage 209 00:09:42,000 --> 00:09:46,200 Speaker 1: of toys this Christmas as these issues persist, and naturally 210 00:09:46,200 --> 00:09:47,880 Speaker 1: they're predicting that the toys that will make it to 211 00:09:47,880 --> 00:09:50,800 Speaker 1: the shelves are actually gonna cost more. Again, this is 212 00:09:50,840 --> 00:09:53,720 Speaker 1: kind of partly due to COVID shutdowns and the increased 213 00:09:53,760 --> 00:09:56,960 Speaker 1: costs of shipping those toys state side. And I've seen 214 00:09:57,040 --> 00:09:58,920 Speaker 1: just some of the stats on what some of these 215 00:09:58,960 --> 00:10:01,400 Speaker 1: businesses are having to pay just to get their container 216 00:10:01,920 --> 00:10:05,080 Speaker 1: on a ship to be sent over to to the States, 217 00:10:05,559 --> 00:10:08,840 Speaker 1: and it's increased dramatically. It used to cost like six 218 00:10:08,920 --> 00:10:10,880 Speaker 1: or seven thousand dollars per container, and now it's like 219 00:10:11,240 --> 00:10:15,280 Speaker 1: sometimes twenty dollars dollars to get your container loaded on 220 00:10:15,320 --> 00:10:17,360 Speaker 1: the ship to come over. It's crazy, it's insane. And 221 00:10:17,400 --> 00:10:19,000 Speaker 1: of course that you know, they've got a pass those 222 00:10:19,040 --> 00:10:21,840 Speaker 1: cost on to us, exactly. Yeah. And so I mean, 223 00:10:21,840 --> 00:10:23,800 Speaker 1: I know we're talking about Christmas and it's only August. 224 00:10:25,080 --> 00:10:27,079 Speaker 1: Pumpkins spice lot days. They you know, they only came 225 00:10:27,120 --> 00:10:28,600 Speaker 1: out this week. We don't need to be talking about 226 00:10:28,679 --> 00:10:30,640 Speaker 1: Christmas as yet. And really they shouldn't have even come 227 00:10:30,640 --> 00:10:32,760 Speaker 1: out yet let's be honest, it's still it's still August, 228 00:10:32,880 --> 00:10:35,760 Speaker 1: it's about to be September, but it's it's important to 229 00:10:35,800 --> 00:10:39,400 Speaker 1: mention that this year is going to be an odd one. Uh. 230 00:10:39,440 --> 00:10:43,120 Speaker 1: And it's always kind of financially advantageous to not wait 231 00:10:43,200 --> 00:10:45,720 Speaker 1: until the last minute to do your Christmas shopping, but 232 00:10:46,080 --> 00:10:48,200 Speaker 1: we're just saying that it's going to be even more 233 00:10:48,480 --> 00:10:51,160 Speaker 1: helpful to be the early bird this year. Yes, you 234 00:10:51,240 --> 00:10:54,200 Speaker 1: basically always pay more when you wait until the last minute, 235 00:10:54,280 --> 00:10:56,760 Speaker 1: right if you're a December twenty three shopper, you're used 236 00:10:56,760 --> 00:10:59,640 Speaker 1: to paying high prices for Christmas presents because you waited 237 00:10:59,640 --> 00:11:02,120 Speaker 1: too long on And it might sound crazy, but we 238 00:11:02,120 --> 00:11:05,000 Speaker 1: would say to start formulating a list now for the 239 00:11:05,000 --> 00:11:07,160 Speaker 1: people that you love that you plan on buying presents for, 240 00:11:07,600 --> 00:11:09,200 Speaker 1: and then be ready to pounce when you see a 241 00:11:09,240 --> 00:11:12,000 Speaker 1: decent deal on an item that's on their list, something 242 00:11:12,040 --> 00:11:14,320 Speaker 1: that they want. It'll mean that you're able to save 243 00:11:14,360 --> 00:11:16,880 Speaker 1: money and gain some peace of mind by having your 244 00:11:16,880 --> 00:11:20,960 Speaker 1: shopping done earlier than anyone else around you, and you'll 245 00:11:21,000 --> 00:11:25,040 Speaker 1: also avoid that sinking feeling in December that like if 246 00:11:25,080 --> 00:11:26,800 Speaker 1: a lot of the top gift items on your list 247 00:11:26,840 --> 00:11:29,480 Speaker 1: are actually sold out. Well, do you have any predictions 248 00:11:29,520 --> 00:11:32,040 Speaker 1: as to what the top gift items are going to 249 00:11:32,120 --> 00:11:33,800 Speaker 1: be for kids? Tickle Me Almos are coming back now, 250 00:11:33,840 --> 00:11:35,320 Speaker 1: I'm just kidding, I have no I have no idea 251 00:11:35,360 --> 00:11:37,080 Speaker 1: what the top gifts are gonna be. Ida. I know 252 00:11:37,080 --> 00:11:39,160 Speaker 1: what my kids like, and I'm going to be on 253 00:11:39,200 --> 00:11:41,680 Speaker 1: the lookout now for some of those things, just so 254 00:11:41,720 --> 00:11:43,520 Speaker 1: that I can get that shopping down early, have it 255 00:11:43,520 --> 00:11:45,520 Speaker 1: off my mind, and not be worried about the shipping 256 00:11:45,520 --> 00:11:48,120 Speaker 1: delays impacting my ability to get them cool stuff. Yeah, 257 00:11:48,120 --> 00:11:50,040 Speaker 1: forget Tickle Me Elmo, we gotta jump on that. BLUEI 258 00:11:50,280 --> 00:11:53,280 Speaker 1: merch our kids love Bluie. If any parents out there 259 00:11:53,320 --> 00:11:55,920 Speaker 1: have never havn't watched Blue yet, we highly recommend it. 260 00:11:55,960 --> 00:11:58,920 Speaker 1: Probably the best kids show on television, So freak and 261 00:11:59,280 --> 00:12:01,680 Speaker 1: if they're watching, I also done and watch it too. Yeah. 262 00:12:01,679 --> 00:12:03,560 Speaker 1: In the season two came out, you know, over the summer. 263 00:12:03,840 --> 00:12:05,800 Speaker 1: It's been a great show for us. Yeah, And I 264 00:12:05,800 --> 00:12:07,480 Speaker 1: would say, yeah, one of the things that that people 265 00:12:07,520 --> 00:12:10,600 Speaker 1: should consider is making Christmas a little less gift centric, 266 00:12:10,720 --> 00:12:16,280 Speaker 1: like maybe offered and especially right now, when you're gonna 267 00:12:16,320 --> 00:12:18,280 Speaker 1: pay more, it's gonna be harder to find these gifts, 268 00:12:18,600 --> 00:12:20,800 Speaker 1: and you're gonna be maybe beating your head against the 269 00:12:20,840 --> 00:12:23,240 Speaker 1: wall to get all the presents you want under the tree, 270 00:12:23,440 --> 00:12:26,240 Speaker 1: maybe fewer presents, you know, and then throwing an experience 271 00:12:26,240 --> 00:12:29,120 Speaker 1: in there on top of it, and you've got Christmas 272 00:12:29,160 --> 00:12:32,080 Speaker 1: shopping nipped in the bud without all the hassle. That's 273 00:12:32,080 --> 00:12:33,920 Speaker 1: a great idea, dude, I love it. Uh. It really 274 00:12:33,960 --> 00:12:36,679 Speaker 1: is getting tiring to hear about these supply chain disruptions, 275 00:12:36,960 --> 00:12:38,880 Speaker 1: you know, and it is having real world impacts on 276 00:12:38,920 --> 00:12:42,440 Speaker 1: pretty much everyone at this point. And Segway, speaking of fatigue, 277 00:12:42,720 --> 00:12:46,120 Speaker 1: talk about subscription fatigue. It feels like we're paying for 278 00:12:46,200 --> 00:12:50,200 Speaker 1: virtually everything with those small monthly subscription costs, uh, you know, 279 00:12:50,320 --> 00:12:53,080 Speaker 1: ranging from something as small that we pay for like 280 00:12:53,240 --> 00:12:56,120 Speaker 1: iCloud or paying for Google storage, to something pretty huge, 281 00:12:56,440 --> 00:12:59,480 Speaker 1: as car manufacturers are even kind of getting into at 282 00:12:59,480 --> 00:13:02,560 Speaker 1: this point. So for instance, Tesla, they're now offering access 283 00:13:02,600 --> 00:13:05,440 Speaker 1: to self driving technology for two a month instead of 284 00:13:05,440 --> 00:13:09,200 Speaker 1: for that upfront price tag of ten dollars. But man, 285 00:13:09,280 --> 00:13:11,880 Speaker 1: the worst thing that we saw was that BMW theyre 286 00:13:11,960 --> 00:13:15,920 Speaker 1: um they're plotting to sell a subscription for heated seats, 287 00:13:16,559 --> 00:13:19,199 Speaker 1: which is completely insane. I don't even know how that works, 288 00:13:19,200 --> 00:13:21,080 Speaker 1: Like they're holding your car hostage. It's like, oh, you 289 00:13:21,080 --> 00:13:23,360 Speaker 1: want all these sweet perks, Yeah, I cough it up. 290 00:13:23,400 --> 00:13:25,000 Speaker 1: You forgot to pay the heated seat bill this month. 291 00:13:25,040 --> 00:13:28,880 Speaker 1: We're turning that off. It's yeah, yeah, that that's definitely 292 00:13:29,000 --> 00:13:30,839 Speaker 1: one of the most nuts out things. I've heard your 293 00:13:30,880 --> 00:13:33,280 Speaker 1: partners sitting over there in the seat and they're like, Hey, 294 00:13:33,280 --> 00:13:35,760 Speaker 1: why did my seat hot anymore? Did you forget to 295 00:13:35,800 --> 00:13:40,160 Speaker 1: pay the seat heating bill? Yeah? That sounds ridiculous, And 296 00:13:40,240 --> 00:13:44,040 Speaker 1: I think one of the pros of subscriptions, Matt. It 297 00:13:44,080 --> 00:13:46,960 Speaker 1: can seem like you're saving money, but that's not always 298 00:13:46,960 --> 00:13:48,720 Speaker 1: the case. You're just kind of breaking up those payments, 299 00:13:48,760 --> 00:13:51,720 Speaker 1: and often when you add up the costs over time, 300 00:13:51,960 --> 00:13:54,839 Speaker 1: you're still getting host by by choosing to do a 301 00:13:54,880 --> 00:13:57,920 Speaker 1: subscription model as opposed to paying all at once up front. 302 00:13:58,160 --> 00:14:00,360 Speaker 1: When you look at that Tesla thing, that's four years 303 00:14:00,520 --> 00:14:03,360 Speaker 1: that you'd you'd have that paid off, and so it 304 00:14:03,400 --> 00:14:05,160 Speaker 1: would be it would make more sense to pay it 305 00:14:05,200 --> 00:14:09,440 Speaker 1: off upfront instead of opting for the monthly subscription. Pee right, However, 306 00:14:09,520 --> 00:14:11,920 Speaker 1: I do see I guess a slight advantage to where 307 00:14:11,960 --> 00:14:14,319 Speaker 1: that might pan out, and so imagine you're like, well, 308 00:14:14,360 --> 00:14:16,280 Speaker 1: I don't really want to do the self driving thing, 309 00:14:16,360 --> 00:14:18,160 Speaker 1: but if you know there's gonna be a season in 310 00:14:18,200 --> 00:14:20,640 Speaker 1: your life, maybe this fall. You're thinking, I'm gonna do 311 00:14:20,680 --> 00:14:22,840 Speaker 1: a lot of driving this fall, and it would be 312 00:14:22,920 --> 00:14:25,600 Speaker 1: really nice to be able to unlock that feature. I mean, 313 00:14:25,680 --> 00:14:27,480 Speaker 1: what if you paid for that subscription for just a 314 00:14:27,480 --> 00:14:30,080 Speaker 1: couple of months, used it a bunch, and then the 315 00:14:30,120 --> 00:14:32,080 Speaker 1: rest of the time you're just using your car just 316 00:14:32,120 --> 00:14:34,000 Speaker 1: to you know, get to the grocery store or run 317 00:14:34,080 --> 00:14:37,280 Speaker 1: errands around town. In my mind, that actually makes sense 318 00:14:37,280 --> 00:14:39,359 Speaker 1: because it allows you to be a little more strategic 319 00:14:39,480 --> 00:14:42,480 Speaker 1: or a little more selective of the services you use. 320 00:14:42,760 --> 00:14:44,320 Speaker 1: Or if you only pay for those heated seats in 321 00:14:44,360 --> 00:14:47,080 Speaker 1: December and January, yeah, and you're not paying for them 322 00:14:47,080 --> 00:14:49,160 Speaker 1: every month out of the year exactly, maybe that is 323 00:14:49,200 --> 00:14:51,360 Speaker 1: a reason. Like so, this is actually kind of why 324 00:14:51,360 --> 00:14:53,480 Speaker 1: I see this as not only a benefit to that 325 00:14:53,520 --> 00:14:55,160 Speaker 1: you're not having to pay a bunch of money up front, 326 00:14:55,200 --> 00:14:56,760 Speaker 1: but if it allows you to be a little more 327 00:14:56,760 --> 00:14:59,200 Speaker 1: shrewd with your usage of that product, I kind of 328 00:14:59,240 --> 00:15:01,320 Speaker 1: like that aspect of it. It actually makes me think 329 00:15:01,320 --> 00:15:03,600 Speaker 1: of a recent example with my dad. He had been 330 00:15:03,640 --> 00:15:07,320 Speaker 1: avoiding upgrading the OS on his Mac because he was 331 00:15:07,360 --> 00:15:11,480 Speaker 1: holding onto some legacy old school software like his Microsoft 332 00:15:12,040 --> 00:15:14,280 Speaker 1: Xcel package or whatever, the same same thing that you 333 00:15:14,280 --> 00:15:16,640 Speaker 1: went through recently. Yeah, actually exactly, we're cut from the 334 00:15:16,680 --> 00:15:20,200 Speaker 1: same cloth. Uh. And also with Adobe Audition, he had 335 00:15:20,200 --> 00:15:21,960 Speaker 1: an old version that he had purchased a long time 336 00:15:21,960 --> 00:15:23,440 Speaker 1: ago for hundreds of dollars, you know, I mean that 337 00:15:23,480 --> 00:15:26,280 Speaker 1: software is expensive, and he knew once he upgraded he 338 00:15:26,320 --> 00:15:27,640 Speaker 1: wasn't going to be able to use any of that 339 00:15:27,680 --> 00:15:29,920 Speaker 1: software anymore, and he didn't want to have to pay 340 00:15:29,960 --> 00:15:32,440 Speaker 1: for the subscription cost. But what I you know, in 341 00:15:32,520 --> 00:15:33,800 Speaker 1: talking with him, I was like, well, how often do 342 00:15:33,800 --> 00:15:36,920 Speaker 1: you actually use Adobe Audition. He's like, well, you know, rarely. 343 00:15:37,160 --> 00:15:39,360 Speaker 1: He's like, but when I it's great having it, because 344 00:15:39,360 --> 00:15:40,800 Speaker 1: when I use it, I use it a bunch. And 345 00:15:40,880 --> 00:15:43,160 Speaker 1: I was like, well, that's actually when the subscription might 346 00:15:43,200 --> 00:15:45,320 Speaker 1: work out to your favor, because if you know you're 347 00:15:45,320 --> 00:15:47,720 Speaker 1: gonna use it a bunch one month, uh, and you're 348 00:15:47,760 --> 00:15:50,360 Speaker 1: just paying thirty bucks for access to the latest, greatest 349 00:15:50,400 --> 00:15:53,320 Speaker 1: software with the newest features, you might actually kind of 350 00:15:53,320 --> 00:15:55,640 Speaker 1: come out ahead in that instance. And so for him, 351 00:15:55,680 --> 00:15:58,720 Speaker 1: that was away that it did make more sense, But 352 00:15:58,800 --> 00:16:01,960 Speaker 1: I agree, we have to be careful of absorbing these 353 00:16:02,000 --> 00:16:04,560 Speaker 1: costs into our monthly budget, right, especially when you said 354 00:16:04,800 --> 00:16:07,240 Speaker 1: these auto pay billing like on your credit card, like 355 00:16:07,400 --> 00:16:09,200 Speaker 1: set it and forget that you do not feel it. 356 00:16:09,280 --> 00:16:12,200 Speaker 1: We have like that psychological inertia that keeps us from 357 00:16:12,280 --> 00:16:14,560 Speaker 1: wanting to like nip it in the bud. Uh. And 358 00:16:14,560 --> 00:16:17,080 Speaker 1: so for all those folks just across the board, we 359 00:16:17,080 --> 00:16:20,239 Speaker 1: would recommend for everyone out there to just re evaluate 360 00:16:20,320 --> 00:16:23,400 Speaker 1: your spending, whether that's go on an annual basis or 361 00:16:23,520 --> 00:16:25,000 Speaker 1: like on a monthly basis. I mean, that's a part 362 00:16:25,040 --> 00:16:27,240 Speaker 1: of why I like tracking our spending like we do, 363 00:16:27,280 --> 00:16:29,240 Speaker 1: because it allows me to see everything that we're spending 364 00:16:29,240 --> 00:16:31,760 Speaker 1: our money on. Uh, allows us to catch any little 365 00:16:31,800 --> 00:16:34,720 Speaker 1: mistakes early on before they kind of compound months a month. 366 00:16:34,840 --> 00:16:36,240 Speaker 1: But we want to make sure that we're spending our 367 00:16:36,240 --> 00:16:38,640 Speaker 1: money on things that we actually value, things that are 368 00:16:38,680 --> 00:16:40,800 Speaker 1: bringing joy and happiness to our lives, whether it is 369 00:16:41,040 --> 00:16:44,640 Speaker 1: service or products. Don't let those subscriptions continue if you're 370 00:16:44,640 --> 00:16:46,960 Speaker 1: not getting any value from them. Yeah, they're not inherently 371 00:16:47,160 --> 00:16:50,960 Speaker 1: evil or inherently bad, but and they they can be good. 372 00:16:51,040 --> 00:16:53,440 Speaker 1: You just have to use them. Judicially, and we're just 373 00:16:53,480 --> 00:16:57,880 Speaker 1: being inundated with subscriptions these days. For everything you nobody 374 00:16:57,920 --> 00:16:59,360 Speaker 1: wants you to pay up front. They want you to 375 00:16:59,360 --> 00:17:01,560 Speaker 1: pay every single month in order to buy something. And 376 00:17:01,600 --> 00:17:03,240 Speaker 1: so we just have to be careful and not allow 377 00:17:03,360 --> 00:17:05,840 Speaker 1: too many subscriptions into our lives and cancel some of 378 00:17:05,840 --> 00:17:07,600 Speaker 1: the ones that were not using anymore. Less for sure, 379 00:17:08,200 --> 00:17:11,199 Speaker 1: We've got more to get to, Matt, including the biggest 380 00:17:11,200 --> 00:17:13,800 Speaker 1: signing bonus I've ever heard of, and uh, and then 381 00:17:13,840 --> 00:17:17,160 Speaker 1: what vaccine mandates, how those are actually affecting our our 382 00:17:17,160 --> 00:17:19,520 Speaker 1: wallet and our money. We'll get to that and more 383 00:17:19,640 --> 00:17:30,200 Speaker 1: right after this break. All we are back from the 384 00:17:30,200 --> 00:17:33,080 Speaker 1: break gets our Friday flight, We've got more stories to 385 00:17:33,160 --> 00:17:36,240 Speaker 1: cover and how those pertain to your personal finances. The 386 00:17:36,600 --> 00:17:38,560 Speaker 1: first story we get to after the break every week 387 00:17:38,680 --> 00:17:42,240 Speaker 1: is the ludicrous headline of the week. And I said 388 00:17:42,280 --> 00:17:44,520 Speaker 1: that in a normal voice because I was thinking about 389 00:17:44,560 --> 00:17:46,439 Speaker 1: a weird voice. But instead I was thinking about the 390 00:17:46,440 --> 00:17:48,560 Speaker 1: fact that we call this the ludicrous headline of the week, 391 00:17:48,720 --> 00:17:51,080 Speaker 1: and we were just talking about Tesla right before the break, 392 00:17:51,240 --> 00:17:54,960 Speaker 1: ludicrous mode, right ludicrous mode. Exactly, what if we reached 393 00:17:54,960 --> 00:17:56,639 Speaker 1: out to Elon Musk and we were able to get 394 00:17:56,720 --> 00:17:59,560 Speaker 1: him to sponsor this segment the ludicrous headline of the week. 395 00:17:59,600 --> 00:18:01,240 Speaker 1: What do you think? I'll tweet him later and see 396 00:18:01,280 --> 00:18:03,280 Speaker 1: see what he says. So I know you're joking, but 397 00:18:03,480 --> 00:18:06,920 Speaker 1: for real, I think we should or I will because 398 00:18:06,920 --> 00:18:09,080 Speaker 1: I feel like that's the kind of ridiculous thing, that's 399 00:18:09,119 --> 00:18:10,879 Speaker 1: the ludicrous kind of thing that he would see and 400 00:18:10,920 --> 00:18:12,800 Speaker 1: be like, oh yeah, why not. Maybe I'll I'll donate 401 00:18:12,840 --> 00:18:15,840 Speaker 1: a couple of Tesla's to those dudes, uh, and then 402 00:18:15,880 --> 00:18:18,080 Speaker 1: we can try out the self driving mode and I 403 00:18:18,080 --> 00:18:20,040 Speaker 1: will let folks know whether it makes more sense to 404 00:18:20,280 --> 00:18:22,840 Speaker 1: do the self driving subscription or pay for it upfront. 405 00:18:22,880 --> 00:18:24,880 Speaker 1: All right, if we if you get us Tesla's, dude, 406 00:18:24,920 --> 00:18:26,800 Speaker 1: that'd be that'd be sweet, would be in all right? Well, 407 00:18:27,160 --> 00:18:31,360 Speaker 1: this week's ludicrous headline comes from Real Simple magazine. It's 408 00:18:31,520 --> 00:18:34,440 Speaker 1: not a magazine I subscribed to, but listener Jeremy emailed 409 00:18:34,520 --> 00:18:37,280 Speaker 1: us this one this week and the headline was do 410 00:18:37,320 --> 00:18:39,160 Speaker 1: you really need a four oh one K to retire 411 00:18:39,520 --> 00:18:42,600 Speaker 1: people over fifty without one way in? And I thought 412 00:18:42,600 --> 00:18:44,760 Speaker 1: it was an interesting question. I was curious to see 413 00:18:44,800 --> 00:18:48,000 Speaker 1: the advice. But it turns out, Matt, most folks do 414 00:18:48,119 --> 00:18:50,800 Speaker 1: need a four oh one K or similar tax advantage 415 00:18:50,800 --> 00:18:53,960 Speaker 1: accounts to really help them invest for the future. There 416 00:18:53,960 --> 00:18:58,080 Speaker 1: were some really, really bad suggestions in this piece from 417 00:18:58,080 --> 00:19:00,639 Speaker 1: folks who decided not to go that route. One person 418 00:19:00,800 --> 00:19:03,920 Speaker 1: chose gold and silver bullion as one of her main 419 00:19:03,960 --> 00:19:07,320 Speaker 1: investing methods. Some folks decided to just stock money away 420 00:19:07,320 --> 00:19:10,000 Speaker 1: in a savings account. We've talked about anybody like mentioned 421 00:19:10,040 --> 00:19:12,440 Speaker 1: just like putting it in the sock drawer, like no 422 00:19:12,440 --> 00:19:15,040 Speaker 1: no one said that. No one said under the mattress, 423 00:19:15,119 --> 00:19:18,119 Speaker 1: but just just the savings account, right, which we know 424 00:19:18,200 --> 00:19:20,919 Speaker 1: how horrific that can be when it comes to the earnings, 425 00:19:21,080 --> 00:19:23,960 Speaker 1: especially when you're talking about long term money that you 426 00:19:24,000 --> 00:19:26,680 Speaker 1: want to have when you're at past age of fifty, 427 00:19:26,720 --> 00:19:29,320 Speaker 1: when you're getting close to retirement age. Someone else said 428 00:19:29,800 --> 00:19:32,080 Speaker 1: the whole life policy was the best way to save 429 00:19:32,080 --> 00:19:35,399 Speaker 1: her retirement. One other person mentioned tapping social Security earlier. 430 00:19:35,440 --> 00:19:37,080 Speaker 1: It's like, hey, as long as I can just make 431 00:19:37,080 --> 00:19:40,080 Speaker 1: it to sixty two, I can tap social Security and 432 00:19:40,280 --> 00:19:43,480 Speaker 1: that that's that's how I'm gonna fund retirement. But none 433 00:19:43,480 --> 00:19:46,440 Speaker 1: of these methods comes even close to what putting your 434 00:19:46,440 --> 00:19:48,199 Speaker 1: money in index funds inside of a four o one 435 00:19:48,280 --> 00:19:51,560 Speaker 1: K can do for your future, and most of those 436 00:19:51,880 --> 00:19:54,920 Speaker 1: pretty much all of those things come with significant downsides. 437 00:19:55,320 --> 00:19:58,040 Speaker 1: So I'm not gonna really, you know, address each one 438 00:19:58,080 --> 00:20:00,000 Speaker 1: and how awful it is. But every single one of those, 439 00:20:00,240 --> 00:20:02,760 Speaker 1: he's pretty bad. All those offs that you just mentioned, 440 00:20:02,840 --> 00:20:05,000 Speaker 1: we would not recommend do. The line that got me 441 00:20:05,040 --> 00:20:07,240 Speaker 1: at the beginning was that many people believe that it's 442 00:20:07,240 --> 00:20:09,600 Speaker 1: time to ditch the four O one K really, like, like, 443 00:20:09,640 --> 00:20:11,600 Speaker 1: who are all these people that say we should get 444 00:20:11,640 --> 00:20:14,000 Speaker 1: rid of the forum for one K? Like the most popular, 445 00:20:14,280 --> 00:20:17,520 Speaker 1: most widespread retirement account out there. It's like when people say, well, 446 00:20:17,760 --> 00:20:20,080 Speaker 1: folks are saying, It's like, well, who's those folks? Tell 447 00:20:20,119 --> 00:20:23,639 Speaker 1: me you who's saying? Because as pensions have become like 448 00:20:23,720 --> 00:20:25,639 Speaker 1: mostly non existent, the four O one K with an 449 00:20:25,640 --> 00:20:28,760 Speaker 1: employer match has become the easiest way to build wealth 450 00:20:28,760 --> 00:20:31,640 Speaker 1: for the future for most Americans out there. But even 451 00:20:31,640 --> 00:20:34,280 Speaker 1: though there was some really bad advice in this article, uh, 452 00:20:34,320 --> 00:20:36,800 Speaker 1: they did offer some you know, reasonable stuff. It wasn't 453 00:20:36,800 --> 00:20:38,879 Speaker 1: only just off the wall stuff that they were recommending. 454 00:20:39,200 --> 00:20:42,080 Speaker 1: At least i ra's individual retirement accounts they were mentioned here. 455 00:20:42,480 --> 00:20:44,760 Speaker 1: Lots of people don't have access to a four one 456 00:20:44,840 --> 00:20:46,919 Speaker 1: K right, and so if that's the case, then taking 457 00:20:47,160 --> 00:20:51,600 Speaker 1: advantage of those other tax advantaged accounts is crucial. Someone 458 00:20:51,640 --> 00:20:55,000 Speaker 1: else they mentioned hs as. Those are also awesome and 459 00:20:55,080 --> 00:20:58,240 Speaker 1: come with like the most tax advantaged abilities out there, 460 00:20:58,320 --> 00:21:01,000 Speaker 1: even more than an IRA or four O. One problem 461 00:21:01,000 --> 00:21:02,640 Speaker 1: with hs A s is that it's hard to get 462 00:21:02,800 --> 00:21:04,560 Speaker 1: enough money in and into an h s A and 463 00:21:04,600 --> 00:21:05,760 Speaker 1: you have to have the right plan to be able 464 00:21:05,800 --> 00:21:07,800 Speaker 1: to take advantage of it. But I agree that's another 465 00:21:07,960 --> 00:21:10,720 Speaker 1: great option for retirement. Say exactly, you're limited it to 466 00:21:10,760 --> 00:21:13,320 Speaker 1: a few thousand dollars versus nineteen five hundred that you 467 00:21:13,320 --> 00:21:15,560 Speaker 1: can put into a four O one K. And there 468 00:21:15,600 --> 00:21:18,439 Speaker 1: is another who mentioned rental properties. We really like that 469 00:21:18,520 --> 00:21:20,920 Speaker 1: route for for many folks, and we actually literally just 470 00:21:20,960 --> 00:21:23,359 Speaker 1: talked about this on Wednesday. But the question posed in 471 00:21:23,400 --> 00:21:25,280 Speaker 1: the article was do you really need a four oh 472 00:21:25,320 --> 00:21:27,680 Speaker 1: one K to retire? And so when you look at 473 00:21:27,720 --> 00:21:30,000 Speaker 1: the percentage of Americans who have one of them, which 474 00:21:30,000 --> 00:21:34,159 Speaker 1: is only who have access to a four O one K, 475 00:21:34,560 --> 00:21:37,000 Speaker 1: the answer is actually no, Like you don't need to 476 00:21:37,040 --> 00:21:38,600 Speaker 1: have a four O one K in order to retire. 477 00:21:38,960 --> 00:21:42,760 Speaker 1: But they're still the most popular and most widely used account. 478 00:21:43,200 --> 00:21:45,399 Speaker 1: UH and that's for a good reason, no doubt. So 479 00:21:45,560 --> 00:21:47,600 Speaker 1: there was some bad advice in that article, and there 480 00:21:47,640 --> 00:21:49,240 Speaker 1: was also some four o one K hating, which I 481 00:21:49,240 --> 00:21:51,919 Speaker 1: don't like to see because we think four own cast 482 00:21:52,080 --> 00:21:56,240 Speaker 1: yes and much better than putting all your money in gold. Matt, 483 00:21:56,280 --> 00:21:58,720 Speaker 1: let's talk about jobs for a second, would you like, 484 00:22:00,080 --> 00:22:02,320 Speaker 1: are you asking me? Yeah? Sure, okay, so I've got 485 00:22:02,320 --> 00:22:05,080 Speaker 1: a new job for you. Then it turns out that 486 00:22:05,119 --> 00:22:07,479 Speaker 1: there is a severe shortage of truck drivers in our 487 00:22:07,480 --> 00:22:09,600 Speaker 1: country right now. I'm not sure if you've been reading 488 00:22:09,600 --> 00:22:12,160 Speaker 1: about that, but those those self driving trucks that Elon 489 00:22:12,200 --> 00:22:14,680 Speaker 1: Musk has been promising us, well, they seem to still 490 00:22:14,680 --> 00:22:16,320 Speaker 1: be a ways off, so we can't hate on them 491 00:22:16,359 --> 00:22:19,439 Speaker 1: while also asking for the sponsor a segment, and he's 492 00:22:19,480 --> 00:22:20,800 Speaker 1: gonna be like, wait a second. I kept listening, and 493 00:22:20,840 --> 00:22:22,680 Speaker 1: then you guys trashed me for not having self driving 494 00:22:22,680 --> 00:22:25,400 Speaker 1: trucks ready, So no testa for you. But uh yeah, 495 00:22:25,600 --> 00:22:29,080 Speaker 1: there's a trucking company, Cowen Systems, offering a twenty dollar 496 00:22:29,119 --> 00:22:32,480 Speaker 1: signing bonus to lure new drivers, So you're gonna take 497 00:22:32,480 --> 00:22:34,880 Speaker 1: the gig? Are you gonna quit podcasting and start driving 498 00:22:34,960 --> 00:22:37,520 Speaker 1: cross country? I mean, if I had whatever license you 499 00:22:37,560 --> 00:22:39,480 Speaker 1: need to get in order to drive like a big 500 00:22:39,600 --> 00:22:42,199 Speaker 1: rig CDL. I think c d L. I mean, I 501 00:22:42,240 --> 00:22:44,280 Speaker 1: think for anybody out there who was maybe getting getting 502 00:22:44,280 --> 00:22:47,720 Speaker 1: ready to retire from that industry, because maybe they saw 503 00:22:47,760 --> 00:22:50,000 Speaker 1: the headlines of like the self driving trucks on the 504 00:22:50,000 --> 00:22:51,320 Speaker 1: way and they're like, all right, time for me to 505 00:22:51,320 --> 00:22:53,280 Speaker 1: get out of the game, they might want to extend 506 00:22:53,320 --> 00:22:55,120 Speaker 1: it another six months at least, because I was reading 507 00:22:55,160 --> 00:22:57,720 Speaker 1: the article and the CEO of that company he said 508 00:22:57,720 --> 00:23:00,160 Speaker 1: that you would get half of that sign up bonus 509 00:23:00,359 --> 00:23:03,920 Speaker 1: within six months of coming on board, which is amazing, 510 00:23:03,920 --> 00:23:06,560 Speaker 1: and you can actually get the full bonus only by 511 00:23:06,600 --> 00:23:09,640 Speaker 1: working eighteen months. And so I don't know, Like I know, 512 00:23:10,040 --> 00:23:11,680 Speaker 1: you know, drivers don't make a ton of money, but 513 00:23:11,680 --> 00:23:14,000 Speaker 1: when you're talking about a five digit hiring bonus like that, man, 514 00:23:14,040 --> 00:23:16,880 Speaker 1: it's got to make you reconsider things. In my mind, 515 00:23:16,920 --> 00:23:18,760 Speaker 1: I have set what I want my life to look like, right, 516 00:23:18,800 --> 00:23:20,720 Speaker 1: and anything that kind of falls outside of that realm, 517 00:23:21,000 --> 00:23:23,560 Speaker 1: I'm less interested in those things. Whether driving huge loads 518 00:23:23,600 --> 00:23:25,680 Speaker 1: of things across the country. Yeah, well right now I'm 519 00:23:25,680 --> 00:23:28,159 Speaker 1: podcasting with you, But it makes me not even want 520 00:23:28,160 --> 00:23:30,160 Speaker 1: to consider it. But I guess I wanna. We wanted 521 00:23:30,200 --> 00:23:31,840 Speaker 1: to mention the story because we want folks to think 522 00:23:31,840 --> 00:23:34,680 Speaker 1: about the different opportunities that were faced with, whether it's 523 00:23:34,720 --> 00:23:36,680 Speaker 1: on the earning side of the equation or whether it's 524 00:23:36,680 --> 00:23:38,560 Speaker 1: on the spending side. Right, So on the earning side, hey, 525 00:23:38,760 --> 00:23:43,320 Speaker 1: a twenty dollar bonus that is worth considering. Doesn't mean 526 00:23:43,400 --> 00:23:46,879 Speaker 1: you should completely, you know, quit law school or or 527 00:23:46,960 --> 00:23:50,040 Speaker 1: pull out of residency at the hospital. But if that's 528 00:23:50,040 --> 00:23:52,840 Speaker 1: something you're already interested in, maybe you should be looking 529 00:23:52,840 --> 00:23:55,600 Speaker 1: at this company instead, or even on like the saving 530 00:23:55,640 --> 00:23:58,000 Speaker 1: money side of things, right, Joe, I feel like you 531 00:23:58,000 --> 00:23:59,960 Speaker 1: did a really good job with this, but like being 532 00:24:00,000 --> 00:24:02,720 Speaker 1: able to pounce on sales or deals and stock up 533 00:24:02,760 --> 00:24:05,720 Speaker 1: and you know what, peanut butters on sale at Costco. 534 00:24:05,760 --> 00:24:08,800 Speaker 1: We got six of them. Now we have six gallons 535 00:24:08,840 --> 00:24:11,640 Speaker 1: of peanut butter in the pantry. Don't come in gallant size, 536 00:24:11,720 --> 00:24:13,199 Speaker 1: is there that'd be that'd be a lot of peanut butter. 537 00:24:13,240 --> 00:24:15,200 Speaker 1: It's like barrels basically, you can you can buy like 538 00:24:15,240 --> 00:24:17,600 Speaker 1: a palette of peanut butter for like five thousand dollars. 539 00:24:17,640 --> 00:24:19,760 Speaker 1: Can buy ballots of things. And it's so weird to see, 540 00:24:19,920 --> 00:24:22,040 Speaker 1: but it'll last year. Your entire life. But it's just 541 00:24:22,080 --> 00:24:24,680 Speaker 1: a good way of approaching some of the different opportunities 542 00:24:24,720 --> 00:24:27,080 Speaker 1: in our lives. We want folks to be open minded 543 00:24:27,080 --> 00:24:29,600 Speaker 1: when it comes to possibly changing what our lives look 544 00:24:29,640 --> 00:24:31,359 Speaker 1: like a little exactly, and just be on the lookout 545 00:24:31,400 --> 00:24:34,840 Speaker 1: in general for signing bonuses because that can make the 546 00:24:34,840 --> 00:24:37,760 Speaker 1: difference between which company you decided to apply with, which 547 00:24:37,760 --> 00:24:40,400 Speaker 1: company you decided to take a job with. They we're 548 00:24:40,400 --> 00:24:42,679 Speaker 1: just gonna see I think more and more of these 549 00:24:42,720 --> 00:24:46,719 Speaker 1: signing bonuses popping up, especially in industries where they need 550 00:24:46,760 --> 00:24:49,400 Speaker 1: people to fill a bunch of roles. And yeah, Matt, 551 00:24:49,480 --> 00:24:51,280 Speaker 1: let's let's move on the let's keep talking about jobs, 552 00:24:51,320 --> 00:24:54,159 Speaker 1: but let's talk about vaccine mandates and the impact that 553 00:24:54,200 --> 00:24:56,600 Speaker 1: they're having right now. It's not just happening with places 554 00:24:56,640 --> 00:24:59,240 Speaker 1: like music venues. I know some of my favorite musicians 555 00:24:59,240 --> 00:25:01,240 Speaker 1: are saying, you can't come to the show unless you 556 00:25:01,280 --> 00:25:04,920 Speaker 1: provide proof of vaccination. Uh. And it's it's actually happening 557 00:25:05,119 --> 00:25:08,320 Speaker 1: like where you work. And these new mandates can massively 558 00:25:08,320 --> 00:25:11,240 Speaker 1: impact your finances because your job, your livelihood can be 559 00:25:11,240 --> 00:25:14,240 Speaker 1: tied to it. Just this week, actually, Disney reached a 560 00:25:14,280 --> 00:25:17,560 Speaker 1: deal with the employee union to mandate vaccines. They already 561 00:25:17,560 --> 00:25:21,119 Speaker 1: had mandates in place for non union employees CBS and 562 00:25:21,160 --> 00:25:25,600 Speaker 1: Deloitte to other giant employers, they're taking similar measures. UM 563 00:25:25,680 --> 00:25:29,440 Speaker 1: and CBS employees need to be fully vaccinated by Halloween. 564 00:25:29,920 --> 00:25:34,600 Speaker 1: Delta just announced Delta Airlines that it's charging non vaccinated 565 00:25:34,640 --> 00:25:38,960 Speaker 1: employees more for health insurance and it's also suspending pay 566 00:25:39,000 --> 00:25:42,480 Speaker 1: protection for non vaccinated folks who end up getting COVID 567 00:25:42,520 --> 00:25:46,000 Speaker 1: and being sidelined. And since the FDA gave the Fiser 568 00:25:46,080 --> 00:25:48,800 Speaker 1: vaccine full approval this week, we're likely to see more 569 00:25:48,840 --> 00:25:51,520 Speaker 1: of these mandates springing up like this is only the beginning, 570 00:25:52,000 --> 00:25:55,000 Speaker 1: and Matt and I were fully vaccinated. We encourage everyone 571 00:25:55,040 --> 00:25:57,760 Speaker 1: who can get vaccinated to make it happen. It's good 572 00:25:57,760 --> 00:26:00,560 Speaker 1: for your health and the healthier community and your loved ones. 573 00:26:00,840 --> 00:26:03,280 Speaker 1: But we're also big fans of the freedom to choose 574 00:26:03,520 --> 00:26:06,879 Speaker 1: for individuals and for these private companies. Individuals they have 575 00:26:06,920 --> 00:26:08,520 Speaker 1: the right not to get a CHAP if they don't 576 00:26:08,520 --> 00:26:12,120 Speaker 1: want to, and employers also have the right to require 577 00:26:12,240 --> 00:26:14,760 Speaker 1: them to do so. And we're at this standoff, and 578 00:26:14,920 --> 00:26:17,399 Speaker 1: this standoff is going to results I think Matt and 579 00:26:17,560 --> 00:26:20,320 Speaker 1: some people having to move on and find another place 580 00:26:20,359 --> 00:26:22,920 Speaker 1: of employment. And if you are one of those people 581 00:26:22,960 --> 00:26:25,840 Speaker 1: who decides not to get vaccinated, well yeah, you're gonna 582 00:26:25,880 --> 00:26:28,960 Speaker 1: have to be prepared to suffer those consequences. Exactly. Heads up, 583 00:26:29,040 --> 00:26:32,119 Speaker 1: there could definitely be some financial consequences. Uh, we're going 584 00:26:32,160 --> 00:26:35,040 Speaker 1: to see that impact a lot of people's earning potential, 585 00:26:35,359 --> 00:26:38,639 Speaker 1: and specifically man for Delta employees like Delta Airlines not 586 00:26:38,760 --> 00:26:43,400 Speaker 1: like the Delta variant that means paying more for healthcare, 587 00:26:43,720 --> 00:26:47,160 Speaker 1: uh specifically two a month to be exact. There are 588 00:26:47,200 --> 00:26:51,320 Speaker 1: some outstanding legal questions with this new policy, so we'll 589 00:26:51,320 --> 00:26:53,800 Speaker 1: see if there are any challenges on that front. And 590 00:26:53,840 --> 00:26:55,480 Speaker 1: the other thing, man, we sure hope that this means 591 00:26:55,480 --> 00:26:57,800 Speaker 1: that Delta is also looking for other ways to ensure 592 00:26:57,840 --> 00:27:01,440 Speaker 1: that their employees are being healthy, like incentivizing them to 593 00:27:01,480 --> 00:27:03,680 Speaker 1: lose weight and too to go in for real checkups, 594 00:27:03,800 --> 00:27:06,560 Speaker 1: right help and quit smoking if they are still one 595 00:27:06,560 --> 00:27:08,800 Speaker 1: of those kind of exactly, because these are bonuses or 596 00:27:08,840 --> 00:27:10,919 Speaker 1: you know, ways that they can decrease the cost for folks. 597 00:27:11,080 --> 00:27:12,640 Speaker 1: I mean, I hope that they were able to provide 598 00:27:12,680 --> 00:27:15,879 Speaker 1: not only sticks for folks that aren't doing the actions 599 00:27:15,880 --> 00:27:17,680 Speaker 1: that they want, but that they're able to provide carrots 600 00:27:18,119 --> 00:27:20,560 Speaker 1: for those who are going to kind of go through 601 00:27:20,640 --> 00:27:22,800 Speaker 1: some of those actions. But here's the thing as well, 602 00:27:22,960 --> 00:27:26,399 Speaker 1: for those who choose not to get vaccinated these vaccine mandates, 603 00:27:26,440 --> 00:27:28,119 Speaker 1: like that might mean that you end up looking for 604 00:27:28,119 --> 00:27:31,000 Speaker 1: a new job, or you're gonna at least realize some 605 00:27:31,080 --> 00:27:33,320 Speaker 1: penalties in your life. We're bound to see more of 606 00:27:33,359 --> 00:27:35,399 Speaker 1: these types of policies in the coming weeks, and so 607 00:27:35,520 --> 00:27:37,880 Speaker 1: realize that this could impact the amount of money you've 608 00:27:37,880 --> 00:27:39,679 Speaker 1: gotten the bank, no doubt. All Right, on a bit 609 00:27:39,680 --> 00:27:41,520 Speaker 1: of a lighter note when it comes to employment, Matt, 610 00:27:41,840 --> 00:27:44,040 Speaker 1: there was kind of a fun article this week about 611 00:27:44,119 --> 00:27:47,680 Speaker 1: video resumes, and apparently they're becoming more helpful and more 612 00:27:47,760 --> 00:27:51,399 Speaker 1: necessary in today's job market. More employers are asking that 613 00:27:51,520 --> 00:27:54,879 Speaker 1: you send in a video resume these days instead of 614 00:27:54,880 --> 00:27:57,040 Speaker 1: a paper one, or in addition to a paper one, 615 00:27:57,560 --> 00:27:59,239 Speaker 1: And I think that's kind of awesome because I think 616 00:27:59,280 --> 00:28:02,920 Speaker 1: of a video resume, it doesn't have to be incredibly polished, 617 00:28:02,920 --> 00:28:05,800 Speaker 1: although some people are making really really funny polished ones, um, 618 00:28:05,880 --> 00:28:09,199 Speaker 1: but it can showcase your personality and your creativity. So 619 00:28:09,240 --> 00:28:11,800 Speaker 1: I just want to mention to listeners, if, yeah, you're 620 00:28:11,800 --> 00:28:14,560 Speaker 1: looking for work and you're hearing crickets with the traditional 621 00:28:14,640 --> 00:28:17,840 Speaker 1: resume and the cover letter that you're sending to, you know, 622 00:28:18,160 --> 00:28:20,320 Speaker 1: places that you want to work. Think about creating a 623 00:28:20,320 --> 00:28:23,159 Speaker 1: sweet video resume and sending that along as well. That 624 00:28:23,200 --> 00:28:25,880 Speaker 1: can help you kind of stand out to a potential employer. 625 00:28:26,160 --> 00:28:28,200 Speaker 1: And we're actually you're gonna talk more about landing a 626 00:28:28,280 --> 00:28:31,480 Speaker 1: job that you love on Monday with career expert Ashley Stall, 627 00:28:31,720 --> 00:28:33,760 Speaker 1: So make sure you're subscribed to the show so that 628 00:28:33,800 --> 00:28:36,840 Speaker 1: you get that one in your podcastcher She's awesome. Yeah, 629 00:28:37,200 --> 00:28:39,280 Speaker 1: and you can always do the classic put the resume 630 00:28:39,440 --> 00:28:42,600 Speaker 1: in the box of doughnuts uh tactic and pretend that 631 00:28:42,600 --> 00:28:46,560 Speaker 1: you're a door dash delivery person. I think I don't know. 632 00:28:45,960 --> 00:28:49,040 Speaker 1: I saw somebody actually do this like last year, and 633 00:28:49,080 --> 00:28:51,000 Speaker 1: I think they inspired other folks to do that. But 634 00:28:51,040 --> 00:28:54,440 Speaker 1: there's always that option if you happen to do that 635 00:28:54,480 --> 00:28:56,120 Speaker 1: and it worked out. We would love to hear from you. 636 00:28:56,320 --> 00:28:59,640 Speaker 1: Please let us know because I love non traditional funny 637 00:28:59,680 --> 00:29:01,960 Speaker 1: stories like that. Sometimes you gotta think outside the box 638 00:29:02,080 --> 00:29:05,000 Speaker 1: to impress the person that you know you if you 639 00:29:05,040 --> 00:29:08,000 Speaker 1: really want to job some place, find a way to, yeah, 640 00:29:08,040 --> 00:29:10,640 Speaker 1: make yourself stand out because everybody else is doing the 641 00:29:10,640 --> 00:29:12,720 Speaker 1: same thing. If you do stuff a little bit differently, 642 00:29:12,960 --> 00:29:15,400 Speaker 1: it can make you a more appealing candidate outside of 643 00:29:15,400 --> 00:29:17,840 Speaker 1: the box or inside of the donut box. All right, 644 00:29:18,040 --> 00:29:20,680 Speaker 1: we hope everyone has a good weekend. Unite and conquered 645 00:29:20,800 --> 00:29:23,320 Speaker 1: all the Atlanta United fans out there. We've got a 646 00:29:23,440 --> 00:29:25,840 Speaker 1: big match coming up this weekend. Joel and I were 647 00:29:25,840 --> 00:29:27,880 Speaker 1: hoping to be there. You're definitely gonna be there. I 648 00:29:27,920 --> 00:29:29,800 Speaker 1: actually haven't talked about it with Kate yet, hoping arond 649 00:29:29,880 --> 00:29:32,240 Speaker 1: my bike there, free bike fell If I'm going, I'm 650 00:29:32,240 --> 00:29:34,440 Speaker 1: definitely I'll be riding with you. Sounds but yeah, we're 651 00:29:34,440 --> 00:29:36,640 Speaker 1: on a four game winning streak right now, so knock 652 00:29:36,640 --> 00:29:38,280 Speaker 1: on wood that we've been able to turn things around 653 00:29:38,280 --> 00:29:39,760 Speaker 1: a little bit. We didn't have much to brag about 654 00:29:39,800 --> 00:29:41,760 Speaker 1: earlier in the season. We did not except for our 655 00:29:42,160 --> 00:29:44,760 Speaker 1: authoritarian head coach that we had for a while, but 656 00:29:44,800 --> 00:29:46,920 Speaker 1: we're done with him now. So alright, but I hope 657 00:29:46,920 --> 00:29:48,400 Speaker 1: you'll have a great weekend. We'll see you back here 658 00:29:48,400 --> 00:29:51,800 Speaker 1: on Monday, and until next time. Best friends out, best 659 00:29:51,840 --> 00:30:04,120 Speaker 1: friends out, don't bo