1 00:00:00,080 --> 00:00:02,720 Speaker 1: Welcome to How the Money. I'm Joel and I and Matt. 2 00:00:02,960 --> 00:00:06,960 Speaker 1: Today we're discussing bitcoin, credit cards, Ebike tax credit, and 3 00:00:07,120 --> 00:00:29,840 Speaker 1: a quirky mortgage payoff strategy. Dude, it is pretty cold 4 00:00:29,960 --> 00:00:32,479 Speaker 1: here in Atlanta. I thought we were done with this 5 00:00:32,680 --> 00:00:35,760 Speaker 1: cold winter weather, but it's actually not nearly as cold 6 00:00:35,800 --> 00:00:37,960 Speaker 1: as it is over there in Texas. Uh. Some of 7 00:00:38,000 --> 00:00:40,400 Speaker 1: our listeners out there, we know are freezing their tails off. 8 00:00:40,400 --> 00:00:42,280 Speaker 1: And if you've been affected by the bad weather, we 9 00:00:42,280 --> 00:00:44,320 Speaker 1: we hope that you're staying warm. Yeah. Yeah, we always 10 00:00:44,320 --> 00:00:47,120 Speaker 1: have that first false spring here in Atlanta and you're like, what, Uh, Mike, 11 00:00:47,120 --> 00:00:49,360 Speaker 1: my tulips have started coming on with you all excited. Seriously, 12 00:00:49,360 --> 00:00:50,960 Speaker 1: we were out there working in the garden. But but 13 00:00:51,040 --> 00:00:53,080 Speaker 1: I feel really bad for for you everybody in the 14 00:00:53,080 --> 00:00:54,560 Speaker 1: middle of the country. I think you told me, Matt 15 00:00:54,600 --> 00:00:56,360 Speaker 1: the other day, that it was colder in Texas than 16 00:00:56,400 --> 00:00:58,880 Speaker 1: it wasn't Anchorage, Alaska, which I think it's colder in 17 00:00:59,000 --> 00:01:00,720 Speaker 1: Dallas one morning than it was an Anchorage. Like I 18 00:01:00,760 --> 00:01:04,680 Speaker 1: can't imagine. That's like rarer than rare. So our hearts 19 00:01:04,720 --> 00:01:06,360 Speaker 1: go out to the folks who are struggling with that 20 00:01:06,440 --> 00:01:08,440 Speaker 1: winter weather in Texas. But Matt, we got a lot 21 00:01:08,480 --> 00:01:11,200 Speaker 1: to cover on today's Friday Flight, a lot of interesting 22 00:01:11,200 --> 00:01:14,080 Speaker 1: stories that came out this week. But right before we 23 00:01:14,080 --> 00:01:16,840 Speaker 1: get to that, let's talk about razors um. Your your 24 00:01:16,920 --> 00:01:20,160 Speaker 1: face is bleeding a little bit. So I've got a 25 00:01:20,160 --> 00:01:22,080 Speaker 1: good frugal or cheap for you, I think, which is 26 00:01:22,400 --> 00:01:24,640 Speaker 1: you know, I've been self employed for over thirteen years. 27 00:01:24,800 --> 00:01:26,440 Speaker 1: I have never had a job where I needed to 28 00:01:26,480 --> 00:01:29,000 Speaker 1: be clean shaven, like, It's just not something that I did. 29 00:01:29,360 --> 00:01:31,959 Speaker 1: But recently, dude, I started shaving more often because I 30 00:01:32,040 --> 00:01:34,840 Speaker 1: realized that I sleep better i shower at night, and 31 00:01:34,880 --> 00:01:37,039 Speaker 1: so I've been shaving every night in the shower, and 32 00:01:37,080 --> 00:01:39,279 Speaker 1: I shaved now every single night. Gets my face pretty smooth, 33 00:01:39,280 --> 00:01:41,679 Speaker 1: and I sleep better because my uh, I don't know. 34 00:01:41,680 --> 00:01:43,400 Speaker 1: As I've gotten older, I think maybe maybe my beard 35 00:01:43,440 --> 00:01:46,920 Speaker 1: is getting thicker, finally getting some more scruff, like on 36 00:01:46,959 --> 00:01:49,520 Speaker 1: my on my cheeks so much in neither you or 37 00:01:49,640 --> 00:01:51,840 Speaker 1: I could be accused of having a thick beard. We 38 00:01:51,880 --> 00:01:54,680 Speaker 1: are not the earliest man. Yeah, we're not like the 39 00:01:54,760 --> 00:01:57,880 Speaker 1: lumberjack looking types, are we? But but even still, I 40 00:01:57,920 --> 00:01:59,920 Speaker 1: have found that if I don't shave now, it gets 41 00:02:00,000 --> 00:02:02,120 Speaker 1: scratchy at night, and I don't sleep as well, so 42 00:02:02,160 --> 00:02:05,640 Speaker 1: I've been shaving every night. But I use Kate's old, 43 00:02:06,400 --> 00:02:10,040 Speaker 1: cheap disposable razors that sit in the shower for weeks 44 00:02:10,040 --> 00:02:12,600 Speaker 1: on end, and it kind of gets the job done, dude, 45 00:02:12,639 --> 00:02:16,360 Speaker 1: but it hurts. It's not very comfortable, and it causes 46 00:02:16,400 --> 00:02:19,119 Speaker 1: you to bleed apparently. Yes, I'm literally bleeding right now. 47 00:02:19,639 --> 00:02:21,600 Speaker 1: If I need to call an ambulance, I can, and 48 00:02:21,639 --> 00:02:23,240 Speaker 1: we can stop the show. So it makes me want 49 00:02:23,280 --> 00:02:25,040 Speaker 1: to ask the question, though, is that frugal or cheap? 50 00:02:25,639 --> 00:02:28,639 Speaker 1: I gotta say, I think using your wife's razor that's, 51 00:02:28,680 --> 00:02:31,880 Speaker 1: you know, not in great condition already is probably cheap. 52 00:02:32,000 --> 00:02:35,480 Speaker 1: Like razors really aren't that expensive, and so I would say, 53 00:02:35,520 --> 00:02:37,280 Speaker 1: you know, it's kind of like what we talked about 54 00:02:37,280 --> 00:02:40,240 Speaker 1: recently with me upgrading the holes in my socks. I'm 55 00:02:40,240 --> 00:02:43,080 Speaker 1: just like not willing tap socks with holes in them anymore. 56 00:02:43,160 --> 00:02:45,000 Speaker 1: And I think maybe you should be less willing to 57 00:02:45,080 --> 00:02:47,400 Speaker 1: use your wife's razor and maybe get a grown up 58 00:02:47,440 --> 00:02:50,280 Speaker 1: family version. Yeah. We even talked about that with Jacob 59 00:02:50,280 --> 00:02:52,520 Speaker 1: Goldstein earlier this week on Monday. He's like, I'm not 60 00:02:52,560 --> 00:02:54,720 Speaker 1: a child any longer. Like I have a real job, 61 00:02:55,360 --> 00:02:57,120 Speaker 1: this is something I can do. There are certain things 62 00:02:57,160 --> 00:02:58,960 Speaker 1: that are kind of beneath me now at this point, 63 00:02:59,000 --> 00:03:00,880 Speaker 1: and and holes in the side box, and I think 64 00:03:01,000 --> 00:03:04,440 Speaker 1: using my wife razor would be would be two of us. Yeah. 65 00:03:04,480 --> 00:03:06,679 Speaker 1: Before when it wasn't something I did as often I did, 66 00:03:06,760 --> 00:03:09,040 Speaker 1: I did not care. I mean literally, I've never purchased 67 00:03:09,040 --> 00:03:10,720 Speaker 1: a razor, I think since I was in high school. 68 00:03:11,240 --> 00:03:12,880 Speaker 1: But now that it's something I do more often, it 69 00:03:13,400 --> 00:03:15,920 Speaker 1: might be something that I look to finally upgrade in 70 00:03:15,960 --> 00:03:18,720 Speaker 1: my life. Dude, Yes, spend a few bucks, get something 71 00:03:19,080 --> 00:03:22,239 Speaker 1: decent and uh and start shaving with a razor maybe 72 00:03:22,320 --> 00:03:24,000 Speaker 1: built for your face. Yeah, it might be time. I 73 00:03:24,000 --> 00:03:26,160 Speaker 1: think most dudes would be appalled if they saw what 74 00:03:26,280 --> 00:03:29,359 Speaker 1: I drag across my face every night in the shower. 75 00:03:29,480 --> 00:03:31,440 Speaker 1: Or you could just like go supermanly and use a 76 00:03:31,480 --> 00:03:34,440 Speaker 1: hatchet just to like, I don't know, use my my 77 00:03:34,440 --> 00:03:37,720 Speaker 1: wood splitting mall that I had, which is very lumber jack, Like, 78 00:03:38,800 --> 00:03:40,600 Speaker 1: I just don't have the beard to match it. All 79 00:03:40,720 --> 00:03:43,080 Speaker 1: thirty hairs on your face. You can you start to 80 00:03:43,120 --> 00:03:44,360 Speaker 1: take it off with that hatchet if you need to. 81 00:03:44,600 --> 00:03:46,440 Speaker 1: All right, let's move on to the Friday flight. Matt. 82 00:03:46,440 --> 00:03:49,160 Speaker 1: This is sampling of stories that we found interesting this week. 83 00:03:49,400 --> 00:03:51,800 Speaker 1: In every story that we talked about pertains to our 84 00:03:51,800 --> 00:03:54,480 Speaker 1: personal finances. And right, yeah, there was an article in 85 00:03:54,520 --> 00:03:56,280 Speaker 1: the Wall Street Journal that I wanted to start with. 86 00:03:56,400 --> 00:03:58,360 Speaker 1: It was about weird free stuff, and of course, Matt, 87 00:03:58,400 --> 00:04:00,320 Speaker 1: I thought of you. You are the quick to Joel 88 00:04:00,400 --> 00:04:03,920 Speaker 1: curb alert dude. I tend to be cheap, yes, and 89 00:04:04,240 --> 00:04:06,120 Speaker 1: whatever is on the side of that. I'm always surprised 90 00:04:06,160 --> 00:04:09,000 Speaker 1: a kind of what you end up bringing into your life. Like, 91 00:04:09,040 --> 00:04:11,680 Speaker 1: I think probably one of the weirdest things recently, you 92 00:04:11,800 --> 00:04:14,200 Speaker 1: got a giant night that you uh, it's like a 93 00:04:14,320 --> 00:04:16,200 Speaker 1: seven foot night that you put on your front porch 94 00:04:16,240 --> 00:04:17,960 Speaker 1: f Halloween. Did it not look so good on our 95 00:04:18,000 --> 00:04:21,080 Speaker 1: front porch for Halloween? And I'm sure nobody else would 96 00:04:21,080 --> 00:04:22,360 Speaker 1: have thought to do that except for you. And into 97 00:04:22,400 --> 00:04:26,440 Speaker 1: Thanksgiving a little bit, yeah, yeah, And like, so it 98 00:04:26,440 --> 00:04:28,520 Speaker 1: turns out that a lot of folks are getting boy 99 00:04:28,560 --> 00:04:31,159 Speaker 1: Scout and girl Scout level resourceful, and the stuff that 100 00:04:31,160 --> 00:04:33,599 Speaker 1: people are giving away and looking to snag is a 101 00:04:33,600 --> 00:04:36,520 Speaker 1: reflection of that. I know that I personally have probably 102 00:04:36,520 --> 00:04:38,479 Speaker 1: been too quick to throw things away that someone else 103 00:04:38,520 --> 00:04:41,160 Speaker 1: could use. I've trashed it when and said I should 104 00:04:41,200 --> 00:04:43,240 Speaker 1: have looked to find a new owner. And so in 105 00:04:43,240 --> 00:04:45,160 Speaker 1: that story they highlight people who are getting rid of 106 00:04:45,279 --> 00:04:48,640 Speaker 1: cracked bowling balls, used oil that they that they like 107 00:04:48,760 --> 00:04:51,760 Speaker 1: fried stuff in, and other oddities too that people are 108 00:04:51,760 --> 00:04:54,279 Speaker 1: posting in the free section of Facebook. And it makes 109 00:04:54,360 --> 00:04:56,320 Speaker 1: me want to do a better job at parting with 110 00:04:56,360 --> 00:04:58,680 Speaker 1: things I no longer need. It just kind of reminded 111 00:04:58,720 --> 00:05:01,320 Speaker 1: me that I don't want uh toss stuff in the trash, 112 00:05:01,600 --> 00:05:05,440 Speaker 1: because one person's trash really is another person's treasure. And 113 00:05:05,440 --> 00:05:07,240 Speaker 1: I'm like, okay, crack bowling ball, I'm not gonna go 114 00:05:07,279 --> 00:05:09,279 Speaker 1: sign up to get that, but somebody's gonna want that 115 00:05:09,320 --> 00:05:11,080 Speaker 1: for some reason, who knows what they're gonna do with it. 116 00:05:11,400 --> 00:05:13,880 Speaker 1: And like we do art projects with like the weirdest 117 00:05:13,880 --> 00:05:15,919 Speaker 1: thing sometimes at our house, and so it kind of 118 00:05:15,920 --> 00:05:18,160 Speaker 1: makes me actually want to start purging more, getting rid 119 00:05:18,200 --> 00:05:20,279 Speaker 1: of stuff, but making sure that it finds like a 120 00:05:20,320 --> 00:05:23,359 Speaker 1: new home as opposed to just being disposed of instead 121 00:05:23,360 --> 00:05:25,680 Speaker 1: of it just going straight to the landfill. For sure. Man, Yeah, 122 00:05:25,839 --> 00:05:27,320 Speaker 1: you know, I do want to point out as well. 123 00:05:27,400 --> 00:05:30,160 Speaker 1: I wonder if people think that we're hoarders, but that's 124 00:05:30,200 --> 00:05:32,240 Speaker 1: definitely not the case. I mean, I think most people 125 00:05:32,240 --> 00:05:33,720 Speaker 1: who would walk in our house would would think that 126 00:05:33,720 --> 00:05:35,640 Speaker 1: we're almost like minimalist, you know, like our I feel 127 00:05:35,680 --> 00:05:38,280 Speaker 1: like our possessions are pretty spare, but we do happen 128 00:05:38,320 --> 00:05:40,280 Speaker 1: to stumble upon the right items on the side of 129 00:05:40,279 --> 00:05:42,080 Speaker 1: the road. Do you want to know our most recent 130 00:05:42,520 --> 00:05:44,279 Speaker 1: curb alert, that's I like to call him, the curb 131 00:05:44,320 --> 00:05:48,080 Speaker 1: alert finds. This one was ate. She was I hope 132 00:05:48,080 --> 00:05:51,040 Speaker 1: it was a razor for you know, she came across 133 00:05:51,640 --> 00:05:54,240 Speaker 1: a neighbor was putting out plants on the side of 134 00:05:54,240 --> 00:05:56,000 Speaker 1: the road that she was going to toss out. And 135 00:05:56,040 --> 00:05:58,320 Speaker 1: these were perfectly good plants, and plants can cost a 136 00:05:58,320 --> 00:06:01,000 Speaker 1: lot of money, but they were big plants, and they 137 00:06:01,040 --> 00:06:03,640 Speaker 1: each also had I mean they came with the pots 138 00:06:03,680 --> 00:06:06,239 Speaker 1: like the terra cotta pots. One was one was metal 139 00:06:06,279 --> 00:06:08,120 Speaker 1: as well. And the pots will cost you just as much, 140 00:06:08,160 --> 00:06:10,480 Speaker 1: if not more. That will cost double exactly, And so 141 00:06:10,640 --> 00:06:12,320 Speaker 1: you know, for us to get some quality, like she 142 00:06:12,400 --> 00:06:15,520 Speaker 1: scored a prettymature cactus, which we don't have any cactus 143 00:06:15,560 --> 00:06:17,800 Speaker 1: in her house, but we do now, but yet I 144 00:06:17,800 --> 00:06:19,760 Speaker 1: was super proud of her, pulled over loaded those up 145 00:06:19,800 --> 00:06:21,680 Speaker 1: and I mean, for her plants are something that she 146 00:06:21,880 --> 00:06:24,320 Speaker 1: definitely loves to to collect. You know, we don't have 147 00:06:24,360 --> 00:06:25,880 Speaker 1: a lot of other possessions, but there are a lot 148 00:06:25,880 --> 00:06:27,960 Speaker 1: of plants in our house for sure. And this makes 149 00:06:27,960 --> 00:06:30,320 Speaker 1: me think of fast fashion, because that's of course a 150 00:06:30,360 --> 00:06:33,240 Speaker 1: contributing factor to the mounds of things that we do 151 00:06:33,279 --> 00:06:36,440 Speaker 1: throw away right or give away. Some people have migrated 152 00:06:36,520 --> 00:06:39,240 Speaker 1: away from buying clothes in the pandemic because there are 153 00:06:39,320 --> 00:06:43,880 Speaker 1: far fewer people to impress with your wardrobe, but others, 154 00:06:44,120 --> 00:06:48,480 Speaker 1: as The Atlantic reports, are still consuming fast fashion like 155 00:06:48,520 --> 00:06:51,240 Speaker 1: there is no tomorrow. In fact, they found that fast 156 00:06:51,240 --> 00:06:53,960 Speaker 1: fashion brands they did better in the two thousand and 157 00:06:53,960 --> 00:06:56,240 Speaker 1: eight downturn and have also done better uh in the 158 00:06:56,240 --> 00:06:59,640 Speaker 1: past year. Americans are buying a new item of clothing 159 00:07:00,040 --> 00:07:04,360 Speaker 1: every five days on average, which is insane crazy. Kivid 160 00:07:04,440 --> 00:07:07,400 Speaker 1: might have bumped your vacation planes, but many have deemed 161 00:07:07,560 --> 00:07:09,880 Speaker 1: cheap clothes as a as a worthy place to spend 162 00:07:09,920 --> 00:07:11,960 Speaker 1: some of that money instead. It turns out, yeah, and 163 00:07:12,560 --> 00:07:16,320 Speaker 1: like fast fashion, I understand the appeal. I think because 164 00:07:16,640 --> 00:07:19,880 Speaker 1: an inexpensive item of clothing for ten bucks is like it. 165 00:07:19,880 --> 00:07:21,840 Speaker 1: It feels like you're doing the right thing right. It 166 00:07:21,880 --> 00:07:24,240 Speaker 1: feels like you're spending very little on your wardrobe. But 167 00:07:24,280 --> 00:07:27,400 Speaker 1: in reality, when people buy a new item of clothing 168 00:07:27,440 --> 00:07:29,800 Speaker 1: every five days, like you said, the opposite is true. 169 00:07:29,920 --> 00:07:32,520 Speaker 1: We're buying a whole lot more clothing. We just have 170 00:07:32,720 --> 00:07:34,960 Speaker 1: a lot more of it available to us, and most 171 00:07:35,000 --> 00:07:36,920 Speaker 1: of it we either don't use, or we use a 172 00:07:36,920 --> 00:07:38,960 Speaker 1: couple of times and we toss out, and that leads 173 00:07:38,960 --> 00:07:40,880 Speaker 1: to real waste right when it when it comes to fashion, 174 00:07:41,160 --> 00:07:43,480 Speaker 1: and some of the newer online only retailers are able 175 00:07:43,520 --> 00:07:46,600 Speaker 1: to order apparently fewer amounts of each style, reducing some 176 00:07:46,720 --> 00:07:49,560 Speaker 1: of that waste. But the biggest waste when in the 177 00:07:49,600 --> 00:07:52,960 Speaker 1: fast fashion industry is your money, right, Like it's it's 178 00:07:53,000 --> 00:07:55,520 Speaker 1: the money that you're pouring down the drain. Fast fashion, 179 00:07:55,960 --> 00:07:59,400 Speaker 1: in my opinion, is all about impulse buying. The items 180 00:07:59,480 --> 00:08:01,800 Speaker 1: never really hold up for long. They're made cheaply, and 181 00:08:01,960 --> 00:08:05,640 Speaker 1: they're manufactured based on like fleeting trends. Um something that's 182 00:08:05,640 --> 00:08:08,640 Speaker 1: trendy today is in all likelihood not gonna be all 183 00:08:08,680 --> 00:08:11,160 Speaker 1: that trendy a couple of months from now. Uh, definitely 184 00:08:11,160 --> 00:08:13,880 Speaker 1: not next year, right, And so I think a better 185 00:08:13,920 --> 00:08:17,000 Speaker 1: approach to building a wardrobe is having fewer, nicer things, 186 00:08:17,360 --> 00:08:19,640 Speaker 1: being willing to spend more money on stap ale itemus. Man, 187 00:08:19,680 --> 00:08:21,320 Speaker 1: I've talked about this a couple of times before on 188 00:08:21,360 --> 00:08:23,320 Speaker 1: the show that I used to buy like the cheapest 189 00:08:23,360 --> 00:08:25,760 Speaker 1: genes bout like fifteen dollar jeans or something like that, 190 00:08:25,840 --> 00:08:28,280 Speaker 1: and you had fifteen pairs of them, yes, and they 191 00:08:28,360 --> 00:08:32,360 Speaker 1: just like didn't fit well. And Man, the sixty dollar 192 00:08:32,440 --> 00:08:35,480 Speaker 1: pair of jeans that I currently have I love and 193 00:08:35,480 --> 00:08:38,520 Speaker 1: I've been wearing four years now, and so I think, 194 00:08:38,720 --> 00:08:42,199 Speaker 1: like I'm willing to spend more on things that I 195 00:08:42,360 --> 00:08:45,480 Speaker 1: love that I'm actually gonna wear consistently for years and years. 196 00:08:45,760 --> 00:08:48,160 Speaker 1: And fast fashion, Man, it's just not my jam. And 197 00:08:48,200 --> 00:08:50,840 Speaker 1: so if you're guilty maybe of buying a little too much, 198 00:08:51,240 --> 00:08:53,480 Speaker 1: uh when it comes to clothing, maybe you're living how 199 00:08:53,520 --> 00:08:57,680 Speaker 1: I used to live. Maybe you should consider another approach. Yeah, 200 00:08:57,720 --> 00:08:59,520 Speaker 1: we're definitely more fans of kind of like going in 201 00:08:59,520 --> 00:09:02,960 Speaker 1: the direction of style as opposed to fashion. Right, And 202 00:09:03,040 --> 00:09:05,240 Speaker 1: since we're talking about things that are a waste of money, 203 00:09:05,559 --> 00:09:08,200 Speaker 1: let's ask a question. Do you need cell phone insurance? 204 00:09:08,520 --> 00:09:11,800 Speaker 1: That's a question that the Wall Street Journal recently covered, uh, 205 00:09:11,840 --> 00:09:14,679 Speaker 1: and the major phone companies like Apple and Samsung are 206 00:09:14,800 --> 00:09:17,400 Speaker 1: making quite a bit of money in the space. But 207 00:09:17,480 --> 00:09:19,439 Speaker 1: here's the thing. The best insurance is not going to 208 00:09:19,520 --> 00:09:21,680 Speaker 1: be buying the expensive stuff from the phone companies, but 209 00:09:21,720 --> 00:09:25,440 Speaker 1: instead self insuring through using either the right credit card 210 00:09:25,440 --> 00:09:28,600 Speaker 1: to purchase that phone or just simply using a solid 211 00:09:28,640 --> 00:09:31,800 Speaker 1: phone case, which Joel, you don't do. But you also 212 00:09:33,000 --> 00:09:35,160 Speaker 1: you always talk about how careful you are, and you've 213 00:09:35,160 --> 00:09:38,520 Speaker 1: never dropped your phone, right, Yeah, I do think it's 214 00:09:38,559 --> 00:09:40,360 Speaker 1: a wise thing for people to use phone cases. I 215 00:09:40,360 --> 00:09:42,760 Speaker 1: can't do it myself, but I am really careful, like 216 00:09:42,800 --> 00:09:44,960 Speaker 1: I haven't had a major break. And I, on the 217 00:09:45,000 --> 00:09:47,319 Speaker 1: other hand, you, yeah, you drop it a lot. Always 218 00:09:47,360 --> 00:09:49,920 Speaker 1: dropped my phone. But you have another way of insuring, 219 00:09:49,960 --> 00:09:51,960 Speaker 1: which is being able to repair your own phone. Right. 220 00:09:52,280 --> 00:09:54,280 Speaker 1: That's a that's a huge thing too, totally man. Yeah, 221 00:09:54,320 --> 00:09:57,320 Speaker 1: I'm still rocking that first gin Apple se. You know, 222 00:09:57,400 --> 00:09:59,800 Speaker 1: we recently talked about. Hi, I replaced the screen on 223 00:09:59,880 --> 00:10:01,800 Speaker 1: my phone, and I also will say I kind of 224 00:10:01,880 --> 00:10:04,920 Speaker 1: cheaped out a little bit yet again, and I got 225 00:10:04,960 --> 00:10:07,480 Speaker 1: like the twenty five dollar screen when I was like, well, 226 00:10:07,480 --> 00:10:09,480 Speaker 1: there's this other one that's thirty five dollars and it's 227 00:10:09,520 --> 00:10:11,959 Speaker 1: supposed to be like the original O e um kind 228 00:10:11,960 --> 00:10:13,800 Speaker 1: of manufactured part, I was like, let me just get 229 00:10:13,800 --> 00:10:15,800 Speaker 1: the dollar one. You know, this is an old phone. 230 00:10:16,320 --> 00:10:19,000 Speaker 1: I can tell the difference of the screen quality. Sometimes 231 00:10:19,040 --> 00:10:21,160 Speaker 1: it's not as responsive. I'm kind of wishing that would 232 00:10:21,200 --> 00:10:23,199 Speaker 1: have like gotten the thirty five dollar screen, especially since 233 00:10:23,200 --> 00:10:25,719 Speaker 1: you're spending the time to put it in Exactly, it's like, 234 00:10:25,720 --> 00:10:27,679 Speaker 1: what's another ten bucks when I'm gonna go ahead do 235 00:10:27,720 --> 00:10:30,240 Speaker 1: it anyway. But honestly, to you just buying cheaper phones 236 00:10:30,280 --> 00:10:32,360 Speaker 1: to begin with, it's gonna be another way to avoid 237 00:10:32,679 --> 00:10:35,480 Speaker 1: expensive repair bills. Uh, if you don't want to repair 238 00:10:35,600 --> 00:10:38,680 Speaker 1: yours yourself. Companies are making just you know, killer smartphones 239 00:10:38,720 --> 00:10:42,160 Speaker 1: out there now. For unless you know, the cheaper you go, 240 00:10:42,240 --> 00:10:44,840 Speaker 1: the easier and cheaper, it's going to be too self insured. 241 00:10:45,120 --> 00:10:47,400 Speaker 1: And so that's something that we're gonna point you away from. 242 00:10:47,440 --> 00:10:50,600 Speaker 1: Avoid those insurance planes. Don't buy those overpriced plans from 243 00:10:50,640 --> 00:10:52,800 Speaker 1: the different phone manufacturers. I know a lot of our 244 00:10:52,800 --> 00:10:54,520 Speaker 1: listeners out there just heard you say that, Matt, and 245 00:10:54,520 --> 00:10:56,760 Speaker 1: they were like, what is he talking about? I need 246 00:10:56,800 --> 00:10:58,840 Speaker 1: this right? What if I dropped my phone, it's gonna 247 00:10:58,880 --> 00:11:00,959 Speaker 1: cost me so much money to replace it. But when 248 00:11:00,960 --> 00:11:02,439 Speaker 1: you look at the fine print on a lot of 249 00:11:02,480 --> 00:11:05,200 Speaker 1: those insurance plans. I feel like more than anything, it 250 00:11:05,320 --> 00:11:07,680 Speaker 1: feels like a piece of mind having that insurance plan. 251 00:11:07,880 --> 00:11:09,760 Speaker 1: But for the most part, if you take those other steps, 252 00:11:09,920 --> 00:11:12,199 Speaker 1: have a decent case on it, and you're careful with 253 00:11:12,240 --> 00:11:14,480 Speaker 1: your phone, in all likelihood you don't need it. And 254 00:11:14,559 --> 00:11:16,480 Speaker 1: the financial terms. So we've gotten worse on a lot 255 00:11:16,520 --> 00:11:18,360 Speaker 1: of these cell phone insurance plans, as detailed in that 256 00:11:18,400 --> 00:11:20,800 Speaker 1: Wall Street Journal article, So they're not even as good 257 00:11:20,800 --> 00:11:23,600 Speaker 1: for consumers as they used to be. And even back 258 00:11:23,640 --> 00:11:25,280 Speaker 1: in the day they weren't that great. And on the 259 00:11:25,280 --> 00:11:27,920 Speaker 1: note of cell phones, yeah, we're big fans of switching 260 00:11:27,920 --> 00:11:31,480 Speaker 1: over to MB and O service providers that's mobile virtual 261 00:11:31,520 --> 00:11:34,400 Speaker 1: network operators in order to save big money every single 262 00:11:34,400 --> 00:11:36,600 Speaker 1: month on your cell phone bill. But some folks might 263 00:11:36,600 --> 00:11:38,480 Speaker 1: be wondering, well, which one's best for me? And we 264 00:11:38,480 --> 00:11:41,360 Speaker 1: actually had someone in the Facebook group asked that very 265 00:11:41,440 --> 00:11:43,360 Speaker 1: question this week. They're like, Hey, I joined up with 266 00:11:43,400 --> 00:11:44,640 Speaker 1: one of these m B and O s and I'm 267 00:11:44,640 --> 00:11:47,679 Speaker 1: getting not not not that great service, So how can 268 00:11:47,720 --> 00:11:50,240 Speaker 1: I find one that's going to work for me where 269 00:11:50,240 --> 00:11:53,959 Speaker 1: I live? And we came across this app called open Signal, 270 00:11:54,360 --> 00:11:56,760 Speaker 1: And what's cool is that it uses local users to 271 00:11:56,840 --> 00:11:59,600 Speaker 1: show the signal strength and most importantly, you can see 272 00:11:59,600 --> 00:12:03,800 Speaker 1: the cover ridge of specific carriers or networks. And it's free, 273 00:12:03,840 --> 00:12:05,840 Speaker 1: so you can check it out before switching to an 274 00:12:05,920 --> 00:12:08,000 Speaker 1: MB you know, because sometimes that's the most annoying things. 275 00:12:08,040 --> 00:12:10,040 Speaker 1: You switch, You pay a little bit a bit of money, 276 00:12:10,040 --> 00:12:12,079 Speaker 1: and then you're like, ah, this isn't really working out 277 00:12:12,120 --> 00:12:14,280 Speaker 1: for me, and then you have to switch again. Um. 278 00:12:14,320 --> 00:12:16,320 Speaker 1: And that's just a pain for multiple reasons, and it 279 00:12:16,320 --> 00:12:18,920 Speaker 1: can cost you, you know, unnecessary dollars. But we'll put 280 00:12:18,960 --> 00:12:20,959 Speaker 1: a link to Open Signal in the show notes because 281 00:12:21,120 --> 00:12:23,880 Speaker 1: it's this perfect app where you can like figure out 282 00:12:23,880 --> 00:12:25,559 Speaker 1: whether or not that's going to work for you ahead 283 00:12:25,559 --> 00:12:27,760 Speaker 1: of time, based on what other users in your area 284 00:12:27,800 --> 00:12:30,040 Speaker 1: are experiencing. That's right, man, Yeah, that apples save you 285 00:12:30,080 --> 00:12:32,000 Speaker 1: the hassle of switching to one of those providers who 286 00:12:32,280 --> 00:12:34,280 Speaker 1: isn't quite working out maybe for where it is that 287 00:12:34,320 --> 00:12:37,240 Speaker 1: you live. I love apps that save us money. Um. 288 00:12:37,280 --> 00:12:39,200 Speaker 1: And well, you know, at the beginning when you introduce 289 00:12:39,240 --> 00:12:41,640 Speaker 1: the episode, you talked about this kind of weird wonky 290 00:12:41,679 --> 00:12:45,720 Speaker 1: way of paying down a mortgage, right, a specific strategy, 291 00:12:45,800 --> 00:12:49,400 Speaker 1: and so let's talk about Velocity Banking and this is 292 00:12:49,400 --> 00:12:51,760 Speaker 1: that approach to to paying off a mortgage. Early money 293 00:12:51,760 --> 00:12:54,640 Speaker 1: dot Com had an article detailing the rise in the 294 00:12:54,679 --> 00:12:58,920 Speaker 1: pitch for velocity banking. Oftentimes, uh there's popular videos for 295 00:12:58,960 --> 00:13:01,280 Speaker 1: it on YouTube. But the basic idea is, if you 296 00:13:01,320 --> 00:13:03,480 Speaker 1: have a mortgage on your home, you take out a 297 00:13:03,520 --> 00:13:06,360 Speaker 1: heelock as well a home equity line of credit, and 298 00:13:06,400 --> 00:13:09,160 Speaker 1: then you pay off bigger chunks of your mortgage with 299 00:13:09,400 --> 00:13:13,040 Speaker 1: that helock money, and then after that you pay down 300 00:13:13,040 --> 00:13:15,959 Speaker 1: that helock balance as quickly as possible. Because of the 301 00:13:15,960 --> 00:13:19,000 Speaker 1: way interest is calculated, you can save some money that 302 00:13:19,120 --> 00:13:21,920 Speaker 1: otherwise would have gone to the banks when you're paying 303 00:13:21,920 --> 00:13:24,800 Speaker 1: down a higher interest rate debt like your mortgage, with 304 00:13:24,960 --> 00:13:26,559 Speaker 1: lower interest rate debt like you can get with the 305 00:13:26,640 --> 00:13:29,880 Speaker 1: helock these days, technically you can save money. Yeah, and 306 00:13:29,960 --> 00:13:32,200 Speaker 1: it's partly based on the way, like you said, interest 307 00:13:32,280 --> 00:13:34,960 Speaker 1: is calculated on a helock versus on a mortgage. But 308 00:13:35,040 --> 00:13:37,800 Speaker 1: there are a couple of problems with velocity banking, and 309 00:13:37,840 --> 00:13:40,720 Speaker 1: so it bears talking about it. I think it's worth 310 00:13:40,760 --> 00:13:44,360 Speaker 1: bringing up one one. You've got to be completely dedicated 311 00:13:44,400 --> 00:13:46,680 Speaker 1: to this method, and you've got to be really buttoned 312 00:13:46,760 --> 00:13:49,040 Speaker 1: up on the details you If you don't follow the 313 00:13:49,160 --> 00:13:51,800 Speaker 1: Velocity banking method to a t you can actually find 314 00:13:51,800 --> 00:13:56,320 Speaker 1: yourself any in more difficult financial circumstances. This strategy also 315 00:13:56,480 --> 00:13:59,360 Speaker 1: assumes that paying off your mortgage is like one of 316 00:13:59,360 --> 00:14:02,480 Speaker 1: the biggest fine goals you could have, But Matt and 317 00:14:02,559 --> 00:14:04,120 Speaker 1: I don't think that that should be the case for 318 00:14:04,160 --> 00:14:07,240 Speaker 1: most people. Actually, you know, when we did our money 319 00:14:07,280 --> 00:14:09,560 Speaker 1: Gears episode at the beginning of the year, Matt and I, 320 00:14:09,840 --> 00:14:12,520 Speaker 1: we relegated the paid off mortgage to money gear number seven, 321 00:14:12,720 --> 00:14:15,400 Speaker 1: which is the last and final money gear out there, 322 00:14:15,640 --> 00:14:17,839 Speaker 1: like one of those big money goals. Yeah, set for 323 00:14:17,880 --> 00:14:20,360 Speaker 1: yourself that that's far off once you've completed a ton 324 00:14:20,480 --> 00:14:23,440 Speaker 1: of other money goals along the way, So that should 325 00:14:23,480 --> 00:14:25,960 Speaker 1: be way down the list of financial priorities in your life, 326 00:14:25,960 --> 00:14:29,280 Speaker 1: and Velocity Banking basically elevates the paid off mortgage to 327 00:14:29,360 --> 00:14:31,520 Speaker 1: being a much more pressing concern. And so, you know, 328 00:14:31,600 --> 00:14:33,600 Speaker 1: we think that most folks should pay no more than 329 00:14:33,640 --> 00:14:36,880 Speaker 1: the required monthly mortgage payment, especially with interest rates being 330 00:14:36,880 --> 00:14:40,240 Speaker 1: this slow, instead focus on ramping up your savings and 331 00:14:40,400 --> 00:14:43,240 Speaker 1: investing game. So, yeah, you might have a friend Tashi 332 00:14:43,280 --> 00:14:46,240 Speaker 1: a link to a YouTube video about Velocity banking or 333 00:14:46,280 --> 00:14:48,480 Speaker 1: the you know, YouTube algorithm might recommend it to you 334 00:14:48,600 --> 00:14:50,720 Speaker 1: or something at some point, and we would say, how 335 00:14:50,720 --> 00:14:54,240 Speaker 1: the money you might be interested in write velocity banking exactly, 336 00:14:54,280 --> 00:14:56,800 Speaker 1: And you know, it is an interesting concept. And it's 337 00:14:56,800 --> 00:14:58,920 Speaker 1: not that the math is incorrect or that the math 338 00:14:58,960 --> 00:15:01,720 Speaker 1: doesn't work. It's just to this quirky mortgage payoff method 339 00:15:02,240 --> 00:15:04,920 Speaker 1: prioritizes something that we don't think should be a high 340 00:15:04,960 --> 00:15:07,600 Speaker 1: priority in your life. Yeah, technically it is correct, like 341 00:15:07,640 --> 00:15:10,800 Speaker 1: according to the numbers, you would save money. Basically, it's 342 00:15:10,880 --> 00:15:13,800 Speaker 1: kind of like the debt avalanche on steroids, right, Like, 343 00:15:14,400 --> 00:15:17,840 Speaker 1: but that's the thing. The debt avalanche oftentimes assumes that 344 00:15:17,840 --> 00:15:20,600 Speaker 1: you're gonna take the perfectly rational path, right Like you're 345 00:15:20,640 --> 00:15:22,840 Speaker 1: going to turn off your emotions. You're going to be 346 00:15:22,920 --> 00:15:24,720 Speaker 1: a robot and you're going to only look at the numbers. 347 00:15:24,920 --> 00:15:27,200 Speaker 1: And for a lot of people that is really difficult. Like, 348 00:15:27,360 --> 00:15:30,760 Speaker 1: behavioral economics shows us that our emotions can have a 349 00:15:30,760 --> 00:15:33,480 Speaker 1: significant impact on our ability to do smart things with 350 00:15:33,520 --> 00:15:36,480 Speaker 1: our money, and so velocity banking kind of ignores that 351 00:15:36,640 --> 00:15:39,680 Speaker 1: entire aspect of our behavior. And Dude, over the years, 352 00:15:39,720 --> 00:15:41,960 Speaker 1: you and I have both come to see the importance 353 00:15:42,320 --> 00:15:44,600 Speaker 1: of that aspect when it comes to handling our money. 354 00:15:44,640 --> 00:15:46,720 Speaker 1: You know, it's not just about knowing the proper thing 355 00:15:46,720 --> 00:15:49,240 Speaker 1: to do, but it's about approaching it in a way 356 00:15:49,480 --> 00:15:52,000 Speaker 1: that is actually doable, that will actually lead to you know, 357 00:15:52,040 --> 00:15:54,160 Speaker 1: positive results. Yeah, man, I feel like too. This is 358 00:15:54,200 --> 00:15:57,080 Speaker 1: just another case where simplicity wins the day. You You 359 00:15:57,200 --> 00:15:59,040 Speaker 1: and I are big fans of simplicity when it comes 360 00:15:59,040 --> 00:16:00,960 Speaker 1: to how we handle our money, and how we approached 361 00:16:01,000 --> 00:16:03,960 Speaker 1: debt payoff, and how we approach investing, really all aspects 362 00:16:03,960 --> 00:16:05,800 Speaker 1: of our financial lives. We want to keep it as 363 00:16:05,880 --> 00:16:08,720 Speaker 1: simple as possible. This complicates things a little bit and 364 00:16:09,000 --> 00:16:11,640 Speaker 1: unnecessarily so. Right, So, all right, Well, we got more 365 00:16:11,720 --> 00:16:14,840 Speaker 1: to get to um, including our ludicrous headline of the week. 366 00:16:15,400 --> 00:16:18,560 Speaker 1: This one involves a former Olympic gold medal winner. Well, 367 00:16:18,800 --> 00:16:30,160 Speaker 1: we'll get to that one right after this break. All right, 368 00:16:30,240 --> 00:16:32,840 Speaker 1: this is our Friday flight where we talk about news 369 00:16:32,840 --> 00:16:35,160 Speaker 1: and headlines that we came across this week and how 370 00:16:35,160 --> 00:16:37,400 Speaker 1: it pertains to our personal finances. And Joel, it is 371 00:16:37,440 --> 00:16:41,120 Speaker 1: now time for our ludicrous headline of the week. Let's 372 00:16:41,160 --> 00:16:43,320 Speaker 1: do it. You mentioned gold medalists, Uh, this one isn't 373 00:16:43,320 --> 00:16:46,720 Speaker 1: about Michael Phelps, who is one of my favorite medalists. 374 00:16:46,880 --> 00:16:48,280 Speaker 1: It's one of all of our favorites, right, Like we 375 00:16:48,320 --> 00:16:50,240 Speaker 1: all love watching Michael Phelps for like a decade and 376 00:16:50,280 --> 00:16:54,600 Speaker 1: a half. Yeah, this one was about his buddy, Ryan Locktey. 377 00:16:55,200 --> 00:16:58,840 Speaker 1: So this headline came courtesy of CNBC. The headline read, 378 00:16:59,280 --> 00:17:02,760 Speaker 1: Ryan Locktey went from earning millions to living paycheck to paycheck. 379 00:17:03,080 --> 00:17:05,760 Speaker 1: Here is what he learned. It's like, just to be clear, 380 00:17:06,040 --> 00:17:08,000 Speaker 1: we don't want to throw Ryan Lockty under the bus. 381 00:17:08,040 --> 00:17:11,280 Speaker 1: You know, this isn't quite our style, but there's obviously 382 00:17:11,320 --> 00:17:14,280 Speaker 1: a problem in our country that for so many people 383 00:17:14,520 --> 00:17:18,040 Speaker 1: goes beyond an inability to earn money. Instead, it's more 384 00:17:18,119 --> 00:17:20,920 Speaker 1: of an inability to save more of what you earned. 385 00:17:21,040 --> 00:17:24,320 Speaker 1: Like that's often the bigger culprit, right, and so locked 386 00:17:24,359 --> 00:17:27,240 Speaker 1: he snagged twelve Olympic medals uh and made millions of 387 00:17:27,280 --> 00:17:29,720 Speaker 1: dollars over a twelve year span from two thousand four 388 00:17:29,800 --> 00:17:33,000 Speaker 1: to two thousand and sixteen, again right alongside Michael Phelps. 389 00:17:33,240 --> 00:17:36,520 Speaker 1: But like many athletes before him, he found all of 390 00:17:36,560 --> 00:17:39,600 Speaker 1: that money gone in in large part that was due 391 00:17:39,600 --> 00:17:42,520 Speaker 1: to losing a bunch of sponsorships because of some of 392 00:17:42,920 --> 00:17:46,960 Speaker 1: his foolishness there in the Olympics and Rio. But yeah, 393 00:17:47,040 --> 00:17:50,240 Speaker 1: the gas station incident, so we all know about at 394 00:17:50,240 --> 00:17:53,920 Speaker 1: this point, right. Yeah. I think Matt that story was interesting, 395 00:17:53,960 --> 00:17:56,080 Speaker 1: and I think one of the most telling things is 396 00:17:56,080 --> 00:17:58,520 Speaker 1: it locked. He mentioned that he didn't know how much 397 00:17:58,560 --> 00:18:00,640 Speaker 1: was in his bank account when he was astiny. He said, 398 00:18:00,640 --> 00:18:02,399 Speaker 1: in fact, I haven't even looked at that account in 399 00:18:02,400 --> 00:18:05,680 Speaker 1: two years. And and no, that's a recipe for financial 400 00:18:05,720 --> 00:18:08,600 Speaker 1: disaster for most folks. But lockedy um, he seems to 401 00:18:08,640 --> 00:18:10,360 Speaker 1: have learned from some of those mistakes. And he talked 402 00:18:10,359 --> 00:18:12,840 Speaker 1: about the importance of having a budget and keeping your 403 00:18:12,840 --> 00:18:15,120 Speaker 1: spending in check. Maybe he's been listening to the show. 404 00:18:15,160 --> 00:18:17,399 Speaker 1: I don't know. Uh. In fact, he said, he ditched 405 00:18:17,440 --> 00:18:21,040 Speaker 1: his fancy Porsche. It's like a n a month car payment. 406 00:18:21,040 --> 00:18:22,760 Speaker 1: He got rid of it. So I feel like there 407 00:18:22,840 --> 00:18:25,200 Speaker 1: is a silver lining to the ludicrous headline this week. 408 00:18:25,240 --> 00:18:28,640 Speaker 1: We've all made mistakes, right, We've all made money mistakes, Matt, 409 00:18:28,760 --> 00:18:32,280 Speaker 1: You and I we are no stranger to financial mistakes either, 410 00:18:32,520 --> 00:18:34,040 Speaker 1: and it's important to be able to admit those. And 411 00:18:34,080 --> 00:18:36,800 Speaker 1: so I actually appreciate Ryan Lockty go in public with 412 00:18:36,800 --> 00:18:39,320 Speaker 1: it and and detailing um what he's learned to see 413 00:18:39,400 --> 00:18:42,520 Speaker 1: NBC readers. But it's important to learn from those mistakes, 414 00:18:42,560 --> 00:18:44,720 Speaker 1: right and um, even more helpful can be to learn 415 00:18:44,720 --> 00:18:46,600 Speaker 1: from the mistakes of others so that we don't make 416 00:18:46,640 --> 00:18:49,919 Speaker 1: them ourselves. I think sometimes when we have guests on 417 00:18:49,960 --> 00:18:52,159 Speaker 1: the show, that can be one of the best parts 418 00:18:52,160 --> 00:18:54,760 Speaker 1: of having those people on is that we can get 419 00:18:54,760 --> 00:18:57,400 Speaker 1: their story. We can hear some of the mistakes they made, 420 00:18:57,400 --> 00:18:59,800 Speaker 1: and we can be like, oh, ouch, that's rough, and 421 00:19:00,240 --> 00:19:01,800 Speaker 1: we see how they've learned from it, and then maybe 422 00:19:01,840 --> 00:19:04,399 Speaker 1: how we can avoid the bad beats you know that 423 00:19:04,480 --> 00:19:06,760 Speaker 1: they that they had to suffer exactly. Yeah, we all 424 00:19:06,760 --> 00:19:09,040 Speaker 1: make mistakes. It's just not you know, our Tom fooler 425 00:19:09,040 --> 00:19:13,640 Speaker 1: Regis doesn't make it on like worldwide news, right. Uh well, dude. 426 00:19:13,640 --> 00:19:16,880 Speaker 1: Aside from former millionaire Gold Medal winners who are living 427 00:19:16,880 --> 00:19:20,120 Speaker 1: paycheck to paycheck, lots of regular Americans are actually still struggling, 428 00:19:20,440 --> 00:19:22,720 Speaker 1: and the White House has taken some additional steps to 429 00:19:22,840 --> 00:19:26,840 Speaker 1: provide some relief. Biden has extended the foreclosure moratorium and 430 00:19:26,880 --> 00:19:30,760 Speaker 1: mortgage forbearance period through the end of June, so this 431 00:19:30,800 --> 00:19:33,720 Speaker 1: has continued good news for those out there with federally 432 00:19:33,760 --> 00:19:36,800 Speaker 1: back mortgages who might be in a tight spot who 433 00:19:36,840 --> 00:19:39,400 Speaker 1: are looking to hang onto their house. And so if 434 00:19:39,440 --> 00:19:41,560 Speaker 1: if you, you know, find yourself in a situation like 435 00:19:41,600 --> 00:19:43,800 Speaker 1: that where things are are feeling a bit dicey, we 436 00:19:43,800 --> 00:19:47,280 Speaker 1: would recommend for you to head over to CFPB dot gov. Uh, 437 00:19:47,320 --> 00:19:50,600 Speaker 1: there is more information up there about this forbearance period. Yeah, 438 00:19:50,640 --> 00:19:53,080 Speaker 1: those predictions are helpful for people who are still hurting. 439 00:19:53,480 --> 00:19:55,960 Speaker 1: And Matt, let's talk about one of our favorite subjects. 440 00:19:56,080 --> 00:19:57,359 Speaker 1: I don't know if we talked about it too much, 441 00:19:57,440 --> 00:19:59,960 Speaker 1: but let's talk about again bikes. Bikes. Yeah, we love bike. 442 00:20:00,080 --> 00:20:02,000 Speaker 1: Here's some good news for people out there. There's a 443 00:20:02,040 --> 00:20:04,960 Speaker 1: congressional bill that was recently introduced that would allow a 444 00:20:05,000 --> 00:20:07,720 Speaker 1: thirty income tax credit for the purchase of an e 445 00:20:07,840 --> 00:20:10,560 Speaker 1: bike if it becomes a law. It's called the Electric 446 00:20:10,600 --> 00:20:14,040 Speaker 1: Bicycle Incentive Kickstart for the Environment, or the e Bike Act. 447 00:20:15,000 --> 00:20:17,760 Speaker 1: It's so good. I love it. And you can receive 448 00:20:17,760 --> 00:20:21,520 Speaker 1: a maximum credit of up to fifteen bucks. And obviously, 449 00:20:21,560 --> 00:20:23,800 Speaker 1: everybody who's listening, and he's listened for a while, it 450 00:20:23,840 --> 00:20:26,600 Speaker 1: knows that we love bikes. I love e bikes in particular, Matt, 451 00:20:26,640 --> 00:20:28,600 Speaker 1: you don't actually have an ebike yet. I'm a huge 452 00:20:28,600 --> 00:20:31,560 Speaker 1: fan of ebikes. I love that people are riding their 453 00:20:31,560 --> 00:20:34,080 Speaker 1: bikes more because they've got that that extra juice, you know, 454 00:20:34,200 --> 00:20:36,639 Speaker 1: they get that extra power. It turns them into bionic humans. 455 00:20:36,680 --> 00:20:38,720 Speaker 1: I love that. Yeah, and I think we're gonna see 456 00:20:38,760 --> 00:20:41,160 Speaker 1: the e bike boom continue more and more people get 457 00:20:41,200 --> 00:20:42,880 Speaker 1: on these things, because, yeah, there's just a whole lot 458 00:20:42,880 --> 00:20:45,119 Speaker 1: of people who wouldn't get on a regular bike that 459 00:20:45,200 --> 00:20:47,280 Speaker 1: will get on an ebike. And you know what, there's 460 00:20:47,280 --> 00:20:48,760 Speaker 1: a whole lot more people that are going to get 461 00:20:48,760 --> 00:20:52,520 Speaker 1: on ebikes if there's a tax credit essentially tied to 462 00:20:52,520 --> 00:20:54,159 Speaker 1: buying one. Yeah, that's right, man. And then you know 463 00:20:54,200 --> 00:20:56,520 Speaker 1: there's a lot of problems too that e bikes could 464 00:20:56,600 --> 00:20:58,679 Speaker 1: solve in a lot of our cities. UH. If this 465 00:20:58,720 --> 00:21:02,520 Speaker 1: bill does pass, would also bring back the qualified Bicycle 466 00:21:02,560 --> 00:21:06,680 Speaker 1: Commuting reimbursement UH that was temporarily suspended a few years ago. 467 00:21:07,080 --> 00:21:10,199 Speaker 1: And this would give employers a small tax break if 468 00:21:10,240 --> 00:21:13,280 Speaker 1: they reimbursed their employees who can meet by bike. UH. 469 00:21:13,320 --> 00:21:16,000 Speaker 1: And it would also increase that reimbursement from just two 470 00:21:16,080 --> 00:21:19,000 Speaker 1: hundred forty dollars to over six dollars. You know, in 471 00:21:19,080 --> 00:21:21,199 Speaker 1: the grand scheme of things that may not move the 472 00:21:21,240 --> 00:21:23,360 Speaker 1: needle much for people. But hey, dude, six hundred bucks, 473 00:21:23,440 --> 00:21:25,760 Speaker 1: I will take it. Uh, that is meaningful, man. I'll 474 00:21:25,760 --> 00:21:27,960 Speaker 1: tell you what. Like I when I started bike commuting, 475 00:21:28,080 --> 00:21:31,200 Speaker 1: I reached out to ask my employer if they had 476 00:21:31,240 --> 00:21:33,600 Speaker 1: any sort of incentive for biking into work. And they're like, no, 477 00:21:33,800 --> 00:21:35,760 Speaker 1: not really, And I just think, like, if that that's 478 00:21:35,760 --> 00:21:37,040 Speaker 1: the kind of thing if you put it out front 479 00:21:37,040 --> 00:21:38,920 Speaker 1: and center, you lect your employees. No, there is a 480 00:21:39,240 --> 00:21:42,800 Speaker 1: there is an incentive for you. Um one, it means 481 00:21:42,840 --> 00:21:45,240 Speaker 1: like there's fewer parking decks that a lot of employers 482 00:21:45,280 --> 00:21:47,840 Speaker 1: have to build. If more and more employees are biking too, 483 00:21:47,880 --> 00:21:49,960 Speaker 1: you might save on healthcare costs. Right if your employees 484 00:21:49,960 --> 00:21:52,480 Speaker 1: are in better shape because they're biking more frequently. There's 485 00:21:52,480 --> 00:21:55,119 Speaker 1: just biked in. They got the endorphins flowing, like folks 486 00:21:55,119 --> 00:21:57,280 Speaker 1: are high five and as they're like riding other bikes, 487 00:21:57,320 --> 00:21:59,520 Speaker 1: like like so much good can come with us. Yeah. 488 00:21:59,560 --> 00:22:02,320 Speaker 1: So I plus, like it's not necessarily like the dollar amount. 489 00:22:02,440 --> 00:22:04,280 Speaker 1: It's just the fact that knowing you're gonna get something. 490 00:22:04,480 --> 00:22:06,520 Speaker 1: It's not like it's it's sort of this mental trick 491 00:22:06,680 --> 00:22:08,720 Speaker 1: that if you know that, like, well, if I don't 492 00:22:08,760 --> 00:22:11,080 Speaker 1: do this, then you know I don't get that reimbursement. 493 00:22:11,119 --> 00:22:12,480 Speaker 1: I kind of see it as just a little bit 494 00:22:12,520 --> 00:22:15,640 Speaker 1: of accountability that keeps people motivated. Right, And we know 495 00:22:15,720 --> 00:22:18,399 Speaker 1: that economics is all about incentives, and any time you 496 00:22:18,440 --> 00:22:20,239 Speaker 1: give somebody a little bit of an incentive, it can 497 00:22:20,240 --> 00:22:23,199 Speaker 1: go a long way towards changing behavior. Um. But on 498 00:22:23,240 --> 00:22:25,240 Speaker 1: the opposite side of bikes, let's talk about cars for 499 00:22:25,280 --> 00:22:28,520 Speaker 1: just a second. Uh. Consumer Reports just published an article 500 00:22:28,880 --> 00:22:31,120 Speaker 1: that is, I think, such a helpful gauge for people 501 00:22:31,160 --> 00:22:34,800 Speaker 1: of which vehicles maybe make less sense to own. And uh, 502 00:22:35,040 --> 00:22:37,399 Speaker 1: what they detailed in this article was minor repairs that 503 00:22:37,440 --> 00:22:39,600 Speaker 1: could cost you a fortune. If you're looking to buy 504 00:22:39,640 --> 00:22:42,200 Speaker 1: a new or used car, you'll probably want to avoid 505 00:22:42,240 --> 00:22:45,680 Speaker 1: ones that have a poor history of reliability. Consumer Reports 506 00:22:45,760 --> 00:22:49,720 Speaker 1: consistently does a great job rating the reliability of different models, 507 00:22:49,760 --> 00:22:52,120 Speaker 1: but you also want to avoid the ones on this 508 00:22:52,160 --> 00:22:53,720 Speaker 1: list that will cost you an arm and a leg 509 00:22:54,040 --> 00:22:56,719 Speaker 1: even when just basic things go wrong with your vehicle. 510 00:22:57,240 --> 00:22:59,200 Speaker 1: To make it easier to figure out which cars are 511 00:22:59,240 --> 00:23:02,040 Speaker 1: likely to all into this category, well, the more expensive 512 00:23:02,080 --> 00:23:04,840 Speaker 1: the car is initially, the more expensive it will be 513 00:23:04,920 --> 00:23:06,800 Speaker 1: to repair. That's almost a hard and fast rule to 514 00:23:06,840 --> 00:23:09,520 Speaker 1: Consumer Reports. A direct correlation, yeah, found when they were 515 00:23:09,560 --> 00:23:12,520 Speaker 1: doing this study. So yes, luxury cars, of course are 516 00:23:12,520 --> 00:23:13,800 Speaker 1: going to fall into that. They're not only going to 517 00:23:13,880 --> 00:23:16,960 Speaker 1: cost you more initially but also every year and repairs. 518 00:23:17,000 --> 00:23:19,280 Speaker 1: So if you're frugal, how the money listener, you know, 519 00:23:19,320 --> 00:23:21,720 Speaker 1: a luxury car might not be in your future. That's true. Yeah, 520 00:23:21,760 --> 00:23:24,200 Speaker 1: the the gadgets and gizmos, you know, all those cars 521 00:23:24,520 --> 00:23:26,320 Speaker 1: can certainly add a bunch to the price tag. And 522 00:23:26,440 --> 00:23:29,320 Speaker 1: those more expensive cars have a higher likelihood of breaking 523 00:23:29,359 --> 00:23:32,320 Speaker 1: down and costing even more of your money to fix. 524 00:23:32,520 --> 00:23:35,080 Speaker 1: So it is ideal from a financial standpoint to own 525 00:23:35,080 --> 00:23:38,040 Speaker 1: a dumber car and one that you know, more mechanics 526 00:23:38,119 --> 00:23:40,040 Speaker 1: are able to work on, you know, a new starter 527 00:23:40,160 --> 00:23:42,800 Speaker 1: in your Hunter accord, My costis underbuts whereas you might 528 00:23:42,840 --> 00:23:45,359 Speaker 1: have to you know, pay like twenty dollars to replace 529 00:23:45,400 --> 00:23:47,480 Speaker 1: that one if you maybe own an Audi or something 530 00:23:47,520 --> 00:23:50,320 Speaker 1: like that. So think about the total cost of ownership 531 00:23:50,560 --> 00:23:53,560 Speaker 1: before you purchase that new car. Uh, It's worth asking yourself, 532 00:23:53,600 --> 00:23:55,280 Speaker 1: like is it really worth it? Like what am I 533 00:23:55,320 --> 00:23:58,639 Speaker 1: gaining from this, you know, luxury car or even just 534 00:23:58,720 --> 00:24:01,280 Speaker 1: the different luxuries that come with affordable cars. You know, 535 00:24:01,359 --> 00:24:02,639 Speaker 1: like like for instance, it makes me think of Jo 536 00:24:02,720 --> 00:24:04,760 Speaker 1: Like I know when y'all were looking at a used van, 537 00:24:05,160 --> 00:24:08,160 Speaker 1: like a van that had automatic sliding doors was something 538 00:24:08,160 --> 00:24:09,680 Speaker 1: that was important to you. It's something that y'all have 539 00:24:09,760 --> 00:24:12,439 Speaker 1: talked about. And I'm guessing automatic doors cost more to 540 00:24:12,440 --> 00:24:14,680 Speaker 1: replace than a regular sliding door, Like a regular sliding 541 00:24:14,720 --> 00:24:17,840 Speaker 1: door is not likely going to break as opposed to 542 00:24:17,880 --> 00:24:19,879 Speaker 1: one of the automatic doors. But that's something that was 543 00:24:19,920 --> 00:24:22,200 Speaker 1: important to you all. I mean, those automatic doors are awesome. 544 00:24:22,680 --> 00:24:24,920 Speaker 1: They're seriously great. It's just something to make sure that 545 00:24:24,960 --> 00:24:26,840 Speaker 1: you're going into with your eyes open, to make sure 546 00:24:26,840 --> 00:24:28,879 Speaker 1: that you're you're putting your money where it is that 547 00:24:28,920 --> 00:24:31,280 Speaker 1: you are going to actually find value. Yeah, and those 548 00:24:31,320 --> 00:24:34,520 Speaker 1: minor repairs like eat you alive. If you have a 549 00:24:34,560 --> 00:24:37,000 Speaker 1: car that that's like super smart and has all these 550 00:24:37,040 --> 00:24:39,159 Speaker 1: things going on, you're gonna find yourself facing more of 551 00:24:39,160 --> 00:24:42,119 Speaker 1: these repair situations, um, and it could get overwhelming from 552 00:24:42,119 --> 00:24:45,280 Speaker 1: a financial perspective, and just like an emotional perspective, you're like, man, 553 00:24:45,440 --> 00:24:47,520 Speaker 1: I hate this car now. I can't believe I'm done 554 00:24:47,560 --> 00:24:51,000 Speaker 1: with the Shagua. I've never said that before, but I 555 00:24:51,080 --> 00:24:54,280 Speaker 1: like it all. Right. Now, let's talk about bitcoin just 556 00:24:54,280 --> 00:24:57,080 Speaker 1: for a second, not because we think that everybody should 557 00:24:57,080 --> 00:24:59,600 Speaker 1: be investing their retirement savings in bitcoin, although a lot 558 00:24:59,640 --> 00:25:02,160 Speaker 1: of people probably wish they had a few years back. 559 00:25:02,520 --> 00:25:05,360 Speaker 1: But bitcoin is everywhere right now. It's in all the headlines, 560 00:25:05,520 --> 00:25:07,439 Speaker 1: and that's in large part because it hit over fifty 561 00:25:07,880 --> 00:25:10,440 Speaker 1: dollars in value earlier this week for one bitcoin. And 562 00:25:10,480 --> 00:25:12,920 Speaker 1: we're also seeing more because there are soon going to 563 00:25:13,000 --> 00:25:15,080 Speaker 1: be credit cards that allow you to earn bitcoin as 564 00:25:15,119 --> 00:25:17,959 Speaker 1: cash back rewards instead of actual dollars, right instead of 565 00:25:18,440 --> 00:25:22,680 Speaker 1: true cash. Block five is a cryptocurrency trading platform I 566 00:25:22,720 --> 00:25:25,360 Speaker 1: think Fidelity but for crypto, and they're rolling out their 567 00:25:25,520 --> 00:25:28,440 Speaker 1: Bitcoin rewards card this year, and that's I'll find a 568 00:25:28,520 --> 00:25:30,600 Speaker 1: Danny and seems to be an easy and pain free 569 00:25:30,600 --> 00:25:32,680 Speaker 1: way maybe to get into crypto in a super small 570 00:25:32,720 --> 00:25:34,560 Speaker 1: way where you don't actually have to go out and 571 00:25:34,560 --> 00:25:37,280 Speaker 1: buy three bitcoins because none of us can actually afford that, 572 00:25:38,000 --> 00:25:40,280 Speaker 1: except that it's gonna cost you two hundred bucks a 573 00:25:40,359 --> 00:25:43,280 Speaker 1: year to get that card. Yeah, so that's gonna make 574 00:25:43,320 --> 00:25:45,159 Speaker 1: it not worth it, we think, And honestly, maybe that 575 00:25:45,160 --> 00:25:47,000 Speaker 1: should have been our ludicrous headline of the week because 576 00:25:47,000 --> 00:25:48,720 Speaker 1: that's a that's a pretty high annual fee for this 577 00:25:48,800 --> 00:25:51,720 Speaker 1: credit card, um, and especially when you're only earning one 578 00:25:51,760 --> 00:25:54,119 Speaker 1: and a half percent cash back not cool. So if 579 00:25:54,160 --> 00:25:56,520 Speaker 1: you want to dabble, then just use a better rewards 580 00:25:56,520 --> 00:25:59,440 Speaker 1: card and use your actual cash back to buy crypto 581 00:25:59,560 --> 00:26:02,040 Speaker 1: on your own instead of getting the credit card that 582 00:26:02,160 --> 00:26:04,600 Speaker 1: specifically gives you bitcoin cash back. And it makes it 583 00:26:04,640 --> 00:26:07,320 Speaker 1: like fancy and and makes you feel like you're cool. People. 584 00:26:07,400 --> 00:26:10,639 Speaker 1: People want the bitcoin card, I guess, but not for 585 00:26:10,720 --> 00:26:13,639 Speaker 1: two annual That is way too much money just to 586 00:26:13,680 --> 00:26:16,199 Speaker 1: have the privilege of receiving your cash back in the 587 00:26:16,240 --> 00:26:18,840 Speaker 1: form of crypto, right. And you know another reason too 588 00:26:18,920 --> 00:26:20,960 Speaker 1: that you might hear us talking more about bitcoin and 589 00:26:21,200 --> 00:26:24,560 Speaker 1: cryptocurrencies kind of moving forward is because MasterCard is planning 590 00:26:24,560 --> 00:26:27,880 Speaker 1: to allow their card holders to pay with crypto at 591 00:26:27,920 --> 00:26:30,200 Speaker 1: some point later this year. One of the biggest hurdles 592 00:26:30,200 --> 00:26:34,080 Speaker 1: and using something like bitcoin as an actual currency, uh 593 00:26:34,119 --> 00:26:36,520 Speaker 1: instead of dollars is that as clunky, you know, like 594 00:26:36,560 --> 00:26:38,600 Speaker 1: if you actually wanted to spend it, you have to 595 00:26:39,359 --> 00:26:41,440 Speaker 1: like log in somewhere, sell it, like convert that to money, 596 00:26:41,440 --> 00:26:43,280 Speaker 1: and then transfer that over then use that to actually 597 00:26:43,320 --> 00:26:45,879 Speaker 1: make a purchase and hope that that retailer accepts bitcoin. 598 00:26:45,920 --> 00:26:47,639 Speaker 1: Because still a lot of retailers don't, that's right. And 599 00:26:47,680 --> 00:26:50,399 Speaker 1: so MasterCard is basically, you know, inserting themselves as the 600 00:26:50,400 --> 00:26:53,040 Speaker 1: middleman here and handling all of those exchanges for you. 601 00:26:53,280 --> 00:26:55,560 Speaker 1: And so getting a major player like MasterCard on board 602 00:26:55,600 --> 00:26:58,000 Speaker 1: should be a huge boon for folks who are wanting 603 00:26:58,000 --> 00:27:00,439 Speaker 1: to use it for everyday expenses. And dude, you know, 604 00:27:00,520 --> 00:27:03,760 Speaker 1: every day there's news about a big institutional investor or 605 00:27:03,960 --> 00:27:07,240 Speaker 1: another you know company in corporate America who is waiting 606 00:27:07,320 --> 00:27:09,840 Speaker 1: into crypto, and so this is just something that we 607 00:27:10,040 --> 00:27:12,640 Speaker 1: do want to keep our on. It's interesting. But yeah, 608 00:27:12,680 --> 00:27:14,439 Speaker 1: like you said at the beginning, this is something that 609 00:27:14,520 --> 00:27:16,320 Speaker 1: we want you to go all in on. We don't 610 00:27:16,320 --> 00:27:18,760 Speaker 1: want you to sell everything that you have in your 611 00:27:18,800 --> 00:27:22,000 Speaker 1: index funds uh and in instead go in on bitcoin. Uh. 612 00:27:22,080 --> 00:27:24,280 Speaker 1: It's something that intrigues us. We're interested in it, but 613 00:27:24,320 --> 00:27:26,119 Speaker 1: at the same time, we're not advocating for you to 614 00:27:26,520 --> 00:27:29,880 Speaker 1: invest heavily in bitcoin at all. Right. Yeah, and and Matt, 615 00:27:29,920 --> 00:27:31,639 Speaker 1: you and I we we talked about fees a lot 616 00:27:31,680 --> 00:27:33,280 Speaker 1: on the show when it comes to investing, when it 617 00:27:33,359 --> 00:27:35,960 Speaker 1: comes to other parts of our personal finances. And so yeah, 618 00:27:36,000 --> 00:27:38,960 Speaker 1: this bitcoin cash back credit card, it sounds nice until 619 00:27:39,000 --> 00:27:41,840 Speaker 1: you're like, man, two annual fee, But what other benefits 620 00:27:41,880 --> 00:27:44,879 Speaker 1: is it providing? Because nothing. We don't mind certain annual 621 00:27:44,920 --> 00:27:47,199 Speaker 1: fee credit cards because the perks are good enough when 622 00:27:47,200 --> 00:27:49,560 Speaker 1: you're earning six percent, right, you know, like I don't 623 00:27:49,560 --> 00:27:51,920 Speaker 1: mind paying ninety five dollars a year, uh in order 624 00:27:51,960 --> 00:27:54,320 Speaker 1: to earn six percent at the grocery store. But I 625 00:27:54,400 --> 00:27:57,119 Speaker 1: do that bitcoin cash back as opposed to like dollars, 626 00:27:57,160 --> 00:27:59,000 Speaker 1: Like that's that's not gonna do it for me. Yeah, 627 00:27:59,040 --> 00:28:02,119 Speaker 1: there's like literally like row benefit right there, except there, 628 00:28:02,160 --> 00:28:03,760 Speaker 1: except that it just makes it a little bit easier 629 00:28:03,800 --> 00:28:05,320 Speaker 1: for you. True, all right, Well that's gonna do it 630 00:28:05,320 --> 00:28:07,200 Speaker 1: for this episode, Matt. For folks who want the show 631 00:28:07,240 --> 00:28:08,840 Speaker 1: notes for this episode and links to some of the 632 00:28:08,880 --> 00:28:10,960 Speaker 1: stories that we covered today on the show, go to 633 00:28:11,000 --> 00:28:13,159 Speaker 1: our website at how to money dot com. That's right. 634 00:28:13,160 --> 00:28:14,560 Speaker 1: We hope everyone has a great weekend out there. We 635 00:28:14,600 --> 00:28:15,919 Speaker 1: hope you stay warm, and we hope to see you 636 00:28:15,920 --> 00:28:18,080 Speaker 1: back here on Monday. We've got a great listener questions 637 00:28:18,119 --> 00:28:20,760 Speaker 1: episode lined up for you and Joel. Until next time, 638 00:28:20,880 --> 00:28:22,720 Speaker 1: best Friends Out, Best Friends Out,