WEBVTT - Friday Flight - Miserable Millionaires, More Shrinkflation, & Dumb Dorm Insurance #879 0:00:00.120 --> 0:00:03.400 Welcome to How to Money. I'm Joel, I am Matt, 0:00:03.440 --> 0:00:08.240 and today we're talking about miserable millionaires, more shrinkflation, and 0:00:08.400 --> 0:00:09.520 dumb dorm insurance. 0:00:27.360 --> 0:00:29.400 You know, it's Friday, which means it's time to go 0:00:29.400 --> 0:00:31.800 over the news from this past week and how it 0:00:31.880 --> 0:00:35.159 pertains to your personal finances. But before we get to 0:00:35.200 --> 0:00:37.519 the actual headlines, Joel, let's kick it off with a 0:00:37.600 --> 0:00:40.479 quick tip in the pursuit of excellence and the ability 0:00:40.560 --> 0:00:43.519 for How to Money listeners to save more money. You 0:00:43.600 --> 0:00:45.880 and I have we're doing a little bit of self 0:00:45.920 --> 0:00:49.520 experimentation and we're trying out some new cell phone service. Yeah, 0:00:49.560 --> 0:00:52.800 a new cell phone carrier called US Mobile. So they've been. 0:00:52.720 --> 0:00:54.920 Around for a minute, we just haven't really talked about them, 0:00:54.920 --> 0:00:56.800 but it seems like their product, their service, and their 0:00:56.800 --> 0:00:58.720 price points gotten better. So you and I we're like, 0:00:58.800 --> 0:00:59.640 let's be guinea pigs. 0:00:59.800 --> 0:01:01.840 Have they revamped what they what they were offering because 0:01:01.840 --> 0:01:03.959 they weren't really on my radar up until I think 0:01:03.960 --> 0:01:05.520 they have, So I think they've They look like that 0:01:05.560 --> 0:01:08.160 they're kind of like an old school and VN O 0:01:08.280 --> 0:01:10.280 really is that weird to say like an old school 0:01:10.280 --> 0:01:13.120 because mvnas are relatively new, but like compared to Mints 0:01:13.160 --> 0:01:15.240 like Mint. You see their site, which by the way, 0:01:15.240 --> 0:01:17.479 we're still fans of, like Mint mobile, US mobile sites 0:01:17.520 --> 0:01:20.520 better what yeah, oh funny. It just feels way more 0:01:20.560 --> 0:01:22.720 like two point zero and kind of fun got the 0:01:22.760 --> 0:01:24.679 little fox and the rocketed maneuverability. 0:01:24.880 --> 0:01:27.360 The maneuverability isn't as good actually as the US Mobile 0:01:27.400 --> 0:01:30.760 side ux user Yeah, user experience. But the thing people 0:01:30.800 --> 0:01:33.120 want to know about, I guess is how much money 0:01:33.120 --> 0:01:35.360 you can save? Why we're doing this the price, Yeah, 0:01:35.400 --> 0:01:39.160 and so the the reason we thought about switching is 0:01:39.200 --> 0:01:41.560 because they released a couple of times. We were Emily 0:01:41.600 --> 0:01:43.480 and I were on the five gig plan with Mint. 0:01:43.680 --> 0:01:45.640 We were on Mint Mobile for years and Mint Mobile 0:01:45.680 --> 0:01:48.240 still is an awesome service that you should consider still great, 0:01:48.360 --> 0:01:51.120 but we were like, ah, man unlimited. It seems like 0:01:51.160 --> 0:01:53.280 it's actually not much more expensive on some of the 0:01:53.320 --> 0:01:56.400 other carriers. So we're going from potentially fifteen dollars a 0:01:56.400 --> 0:01:58.320 month with Mint, and when we went over, we had 0:01:58.320 --> 0:02:00.919 to pay Mint a little extra like enter twenty bucks 0:02:00.920 --> 0:02:03.640 to reload a couple extra gigs, which got frustrating and 0:02:03.760 --> 0:02:04.640 expensive over time. 0:02:04.720 --> 0:02:07.920 It's more of an inconvenience honestly, like compared to the cost. Right, Like, 0:02:07.960 --> 0:02:10.560 it's also not fun to have to pay per gig 0:02:10.760 --> 0:02:12.600 when you go over, but it's like the hassle of 0:02:12.600 --> 0:02:15.200 being like, oh sorry, you right out right, you got 0:02:15.200 --> 0:02:17.240 to do something about that. Yeah, well, and that's what 0:02:17.240 --> 0:02:19.080 you're trying to avoid is the heartache from Emily. 0:02:19.160 --> 0:02:21.840 And then the price per gig is ridiculous at that point, 0:02:21.919 --> 0:02:24.280 so you'd be better off to have a slightly more 0:02:24.280 --> 0:02:26.560 expensive plan every single month and never have to worry 0:02:26.560 --> 0:02:29.480 about that. So US Mobile seventeen dollars and fifty cents 0:02:29.600 --> 0:02:34.359 a month for unlimited everything. Yes, they're read the details 0:02:34.360 --> 0:02:36.520 about when you get throttled after using a certain amount 0:02:36.520 --> 0:02:39.560 of data, stuff like that, but I was like, it's 0:02:39.560 --> 0:02:41.200 worth a shot. And the cool thing is, I think 0:02:41.240 --> 0:02:43.960 Mint has a free seven day trial. US Mobile has 0:02:43.960 --> 0:02:45.200 a free thirty day trial. 0:02:45.400 --> 0:02:47.240 It's really stinking cool. So I've been doing that. 0:02:47.280 --> 0:02:49.239 Emily and I have been doing that, and we've basically 0:02:49.320 --> 0:02:51.760 noticed and I think this is actually the most ringing 0:02:51.840 --> 0:02:54.800 endorsement you can give, no discernible change. 0:02:55.400 --> 0:02:57.280 It works just the same. Okay. So one of the 0:02:57.320 --> 0:02:59.320 benefits of US Mobile is the fact that you can 0:02:59.360 --> 0:03:02.040 choose from two different networks. What network did you choose? 0:03:02.440 --> 0:03:03.000 Are y'all doing? 0:03:03.040 --> 0:03:03.160 Oh? 0:03:03.160 --> 0:03:04.079 I forget what it was called. 0:03:04.080 --> 0:03:06.560 There's two different not the Warp one, not the dark 0:03:06.800 --> 0:03:10.200 Oh really? Yeah, so because I heard is different than 0:03:10.200 --> 0:03:12.640 the dark Star. Oh dark okay, So I did Warp, 0:03:12.720 --> 0:03:15.519 not Dark Stars. So dark Star okay. Dark Star apparently 0:03:15.600 --> 0:03:18.200 runs on AT and t's network, so US Mobile has 0:03:18.280 --> 0:03:21.320 multiple networks they do this, which is how Star Wars 0:03:21.880 --> 0:03:25.600 rylokin does that sound dark Star, which also makes sense 0:03:25.600 --> 0:03:27.560 because the AT and T logo, I guess it kind 0:03:27.560 --> 0:03:28.399 of looks like the dust Star. 0:03:28.520 --> 0:03:31.320 Is that why they called it that? So I actually 0:03:31.320 --> 0:03:33.280 started out because I looked at the maps, because they 0:03:33.320 --> 0:03:35.480 got the coverage maps of both of those, and so 0:03:35.920 --> 0:03:37.960 I knew that dark Star was AT and T. I know, 0:03:38.160 --> 0:03:40.120 I knew that Warp was Verizon, and I looked at 0:03:40.120 --> 0:03:42.000 the coverage map for where we live and it looked 0:03:42.000 --> 0:03:45.120 like the AT and T map coverage map was slightly better. 0:03:45.360 --> 0:03:47.320 And so for the past couple of weeks, I've been 0:03:47.320 --> 0:03:49.560 doing Dark Star, which I also kind of like the 0:03:49.600 --> 0:03:51.280 fact that says dark Star up in the top corner, 0:03:51.320 --> 0:03:53.280 which is kind of fun. But I think I've noticed 0:03:53.320 --> 0:03:55.320 that it has not been quite as good as Mint. 0:03:55.360 --> 0:03:57.280 So I actually switched. And this is one of the 0:03:57.280 --> 0:03:59.040 things that makes it so great is you can literally 0:03:59.040 --> 0:04:02.480 switch networks in the middle of a period of a 0:04:02.520 --> 0:04:06.040 pay period because it's all through the eSIM. Your phone's 0:04:06.040 --> 0:04:08.400 offline for like five or ten minutes or something like 0:04:08.440 --> 0:04:12.080 that while the new eSIM gets activated, but literally, So 0:04:12.120 --> 0:04:14.800 I switched from dark Star, which is AIGHTE and T 0:04:15.000 --> 0:04:19.080 two WARP which is Verizon, and I have seen much 0:04:19.080 --> 0:04:22.360 better coverage with WARP. Yeah, it's good, and that's one 0:04:22.400 --> 0:04:24.520 of the selling points that US Mobile has is not 0:04:24.560 --> 0:04:26.839 just the cheap service, but that, hey, we're on multiple networks, 0:04:26.839 --> 0:04:28.359 so you can flip flop back and forth if you 0:04:28.400 --> 0:04:31.120 need to. So just let you guys know where. Doing 0:04:31.120 --> 0:04:32.719 this as a trial period, it's still like the early 0:04:32.720 --> 0:04:34.600 stages of it because I have not yet hit the 0:04:34.640 --> 0:04:37.120 ten gig limit yet to where it's they're going to 0:04:37.160 --> 0:04:39.680 start slowing it down. That area. The only downside and 0:04:39.720 --> 0:04:40.919 the only thing to kind of watch out for. 0:04:41.520 --> 0:04:43.839 Still better than the five gigs for fifteen I was getting. 0:04:43.880 --> 0:04:47.520 Now get a minimum ten gigs for seventeen fifty and 0:04:47.720 --> 0:04:49.560 technically unlimited, but I don't know how slow it is. 0:04:49.560 --> 0:04:51.560 You want to hear my last little tip then, because 0:04:51.600 --> 0:04:53.400 it's so easy. I was getting ready to switch Kate over, 0:04:53.640 --> 0:04:56.560 and they were really not happy with the fact that 0:04:56.560 --> 0:04:58.440 I was getting ready to drop her off too, and 0:04:58.480 --> 0:05:01.000 so they started throwing numbers out as to like, hey, well, 0:05:01.040 --> 0:05:02.680 what if we gave you this special and it was 0:05:02.720 --> 0:05:05.000 better and we've been on the Phax mobile was Mint 0:05:05.080 --> 0:05:07.600 was yeah, I'm on the phone with customer support with Mint, 0:05:08.000 --> 0:05:09.920 and we see we don't deal with the five gig 0:05:09.960 --> 0:05:12.080 because Kate got on me too many times of her 0:05:12.160 --> 0:05:13.880 running out of data, and so we bumped us. We 0:05:13.880 --> 0:05:16.360 bumped ourselves up to the fifteen gig, which means we're 0:05:16.400 --> 0:05:18.719 paying two hundred and forty bucks for the year, which 0:05:18.720 --> 0:05:21.440 comes out to twenty dollars a month. And the lady 0:05:21.480 --> 0:05:23.560 I was talking to you was saying, well, looks like 0:05:23.600 --> 0:05:25.680 there's a special deal and we can offer you the 0:05:25.680 --> 0:05:27.599 fifteen gig for one hundred and eighty dollars, and I 0:05:27.640 --> 0:05:30.000 was like, oh really. I was like, oh, that's that's great. 0:05:30.000 --> 0:05:31.480 I'll keep that in mind for next time. Let's go 0:05:31.520 --> 0:05:34.039 ahead and switch. And she's like, Okay, hang on and 0:05:34.080 --> 0:05:36.760 she like, you hear the keyboard typing, she dropped it 0:05:36.760 --> 0:05:39.440 down to one sixty Oh wow, one hundred and sixty bucks, 0:05:39.440 --> 0:05:42.880 which comes out to like thirteen dollars and change. That's great, 0:05:43.120 --> 0:05:45.640 four fifteen gig. So I actually I left her on 0:05:45.720 --> 0:05:48.279 Mint okay, yeah, because I was like, all right, babe, 0:05:48.720 --> 0:05:50.760 have you been happy with the coverage? She's like, yeah, totally. 0:05:51.080 --> 0:05:52.480 And so I saw that as a way for us 0:05:52.480 --> 0:05:55.400 to compare one of the new networks with US Mobile 0:05:55.760 --> 0:05:58.359 to the old T Mobile network, which is what Mint uses. 0:05:58.400 --> 0:06:00.080 And so sometimes you gotta play hard to get to 0:06:00.080 --> 0:06:01.680 get the deal. What's so great about this, though, is 0:06:01.720 --> 0:06:05.000 the fact that competition. You've got another player entering into 0:06:05.000 --> 0:06:06.839 the scene. And now Ryan Reynolds has to find a 0:06:06.839 --> 0:06:08.839 way to keep his customers and keep all the Mint 0:06:08.880 --> 0:06:09.880 mobile users happy. 0:06:09.920 --> 0:06:14.440 And I've even seen visible offering T Mobile customers and Mint. 0:06:14.600 --> 0:06:17.760 Mint users count as T Mobile customers fifteen dollars a 0:06:17.839 --> 0:06:21.960 month unlimited service for the next five years. So whoa, yeah, 0:06:22.080 --> 0:06:25.040 I mean that's a commitment. That's a commitment. No, but no, 0:06:25.080 --> 0:06:27.320 but you don't have it's not a they're guaranteeing it 0:06:27.360 --> 0:06:28.880 for five years. You don't have to sign up. Okay, 0:06:28.880 --> 0:06:29.679 it's not a contract. 0:06:29.800 --> 0:06:30.400 Yeah, all right. 0:06:30.440 --> 0:06:32.880 But so that's the cool thing is there's so much 0:06:33.160 --> 0:06:37.720 It's amazing how in an era of inflation, what's deflationary 0:06:38.160 --> 0:06:39.480 is self fun playing prices. 0:06:39.520 --> 0:06:39.919 So love it. 0:06:40.160 --> 0:06:42.320 Us Mobile going to give it a shot, and I 0:06:42.400 --> 0:06:44.480 might even try some of these other ones, Matt, because 0:06:44.520 --> 0:06:46.279 the price point might keep dropping. At some point, self 0:06:46.440 --> 0:06:48.120 service is going to be like free. That's what it 0:06:48.160 --> 0:06:48.560 feels like. 0:06:48.600 --> 0:06:50.800 Honestly, we might get to that point because they're going 0:06:50.839 --> 0:06:52.320 to pay you in order to get their hands on 0:06:52.360 --> 0:06:53.640 your data. Yeah, I guess. So. 0:06:54.000 --> 0:06:55.680 All right, let's move on, Matt. Let's get to the 0:06:55.720 --> 0:06:58.480 Friday Flight, the sampling of stories we found interesting this week. 0:06:58.800 --> 0:07:01.760 Let's talk about toys for a second. I don't know 0:07:01.760 --> 0:07:03.920 if you've noticed this, Matt, I don't know. I haven't 0:07:03.920 --> 0:07:06.360 seen any catalogs come in the mail yet. My kids, 0:07:06.760 --> 0:07:07.839 you just wait for those. 0:07:07.920 --> 0:07:10.000 You just wait. It'll be in the mailbox before you 0:07:10.040 --> 0:07:11.800 know it. Come Monday, it'll be there. 0:07:11.880 --> 0:07:14.160 They found they found the old catalog from last year 0:07:14.240 --> 0:07:16.840 under the couch recently, and they were obsessed with it again. 0:07:16.920 --> 0:07:18.800 I had to throw it in the trash and I did 0:07:18.840 --> 0:07:20.520 not want them to see it. But we're starting to 0:07:20.520 --> 0:07:22.880 see lists come out of the hot toys for this 0:07:22.960 --> 0:07:27.560 Christmas season. Barbie is apparently back. Legos never went away, 0:07:27.600 --> 0:07:31.880 They've always been hot. Bluey, that's another hot toy. Everybody 0:07:31.960 --> 0:07:35.120 loves Blue. I think there were more streaming hours of 0:07:35.280 --> 0:07:38.040 Blue than any other show. Yeah, in the US. In 0:07:38.080 --> 0:07:40.480 addition to that, Christmas aisles are popping up everywhere at 0:07:40.520 --> 0:07:42.960 Costco selling the Christmas trees. All the Christmas stuff is 0:07:43.040 --> 0:07:45.760 up already. The Halloween stuff has been put away. It 0:07:45.800 --> 0:07:47.880 feels too soon. I'm not gonna lie. 0:07:48.080 --> 0:07:50.840 It's just rushing us along through life. I know, yeah, 0:07:51.080 --> 0:07:51.560 I'm not a fan. 0:07:51.760 --> 0:07:54.960 Let's uh, let's wait for the Christmas season. But I 0:07:54.960 --> 0:07:58.240 think what this brings up a couple of things. Businesses, Yes, 0:07:58.320 --> 0:08:01.640 are clamoring for your holiday, but I think this is 0:08:01.840 --> 0:08:03.760 just a friendly reminder from us as I'm starting to 0:08:03.760 --> 0:08:06.680 see this stuff pop up, start budgeting, start saving for 0:08:06.680 --> 0:08:07.400 those purchases. 0:08:07.880 --> 0:08:08.200 Now. 0:08:09.200 --> 0:08:11.680 Ultimately, what we're fans of is people saving throughout the 0:08:11.800 --> 0:08:15.760 year so you're not overwhelmed. Come this season and you're like, ah, man, 0:08:15.880 --> 0:08:18.560 I'm gonna spend more than I have on hand. But Hey, 0:08:18.920 --> 0:08:21.600 maybe you can't go back to January. You can't time 0:08:21.720 --> 0:08:25.360 travel back to January and start saving for Christmas ahead 0:08:25.360 --> 0:08:28.400 of time, but you can start saving now. You still 0:08:28.400 --> 0:08:31.000 have time to kind of ramp up your savings and 0:08:31.080 --> 0:08:33.280 so that you're not going into debt. You don't want 0:08:33.280 --> 0:08:35.920 to find yourself, of course in January with a ridiculous 0:08:35.960 --> 0:08:36.960 credit card bill on hand. 0:08:37.000 --> 0:08:38.640 I know this sounds crazy, but you can start looking 0:08:38.679 --> 0:08:41.600 ahead a little bit, so Christmas twenty twenty five. And yes, 0:08:41.679 --> 0:08:43.360 you can't go back in time, but this is literally 0:08:43.360 --> 0:08:44.720 why at the end of the year, Kate and we 0:08:44.760 --> 0:08:46.920 sit down and we review our finances and we look 0:08:46.960 --> 0:08:48.760 at the money that we spent when it comes to 0:08:48.880 --> 0:08:51.920 Christmas presents, when it comes to birthday presents, and what 0:08:52.080 --> 0:08:54.040 is it anniversaries as well, Like we've got a special 0:08:54.080 --> 0:08:56.960 category that we that we spend oh in gifts like 0:08:57.000 --> 0:08:59.520 teacher gifts, teacher appreciation, end of the year kind of 0:08:59.520 --> 0:09:02.200 stuff that you know, when you have more kids, and 0:09:02.240 --> 0:09:04.080 when we start having a lot more teachers as they 0:09:04.080 --> 0:09:06.600 get into these higher grades, it really adds up. And 0:09:06.640 --> 0:09:09.280 so the ability to start saving for that. Literally we 0:09:09.400 --> 0:09:11.199 add all those up, we get a total amount and 0:09:11.240 --> 0:09:13.120 then we divide that by twelve for the next year. 0:09:13.160 --> 0:09:16.400 That way, every single month we're essentially like dollar cost average, 0:09:16.440 --> 0:09:19.560 not dollar cost. We're just sending aside a small installment 0:09:19.600 --> 0:09:20.520 so that we're not like you. 0:09:20.520 --> 0:09:23.200 Said, it's a seeking fund, right like that, that's what 0:09:23.200 --> 0:09:26.040 it's called. And you know what you're going to spend 0:09:26.320 --> 0:09:29.320 in all likelihood, and you're you slowly but surely ahead 0:09:29.320 --> 0:09:30.800 of time, and you know you want to spend that, 0:09:30.840 --> 0:09:33.360 So just be prepared and to be a little bit 0:09:33.360 --> 0:09:36.600 more proactive. Like Christmas happens every year we for some reason, 0:09:36.679 --> 0:09:38.679 so many people always get caught up off guard and 0:09:38.760 --> 0:09:39.120 didn't be. 0:09:39.120 --> 0:09:41.800 A surprise as much to their financial chagrin. Yeah, so 0:09:41.920 --> 0:09:43.960 good news is there's a bank rate survey and they 0:09:44.000 --> 0:09:46.439 find that a third of folks are planning on spending 0:09:46.840 --> 0:09:50.160 less this holiday season. Actually, so that's great, A solid 0:09:50.240 --> 0:09:52.439 chunk of shopper say that they plan on starting their shopping. 0:09:52.800 --> 0:09:56.000 Now I love both of these things, right, So again, 0:09:56.280 --> 0:09:58.480 spreading your shopping out where you're able to hunt for 0:09:58.520 --> 0:10:01.000 bargains on the front, then I think that can lead 0:10:01.040 --> 0:10:03.839 to increased savings. But then the bad news, the bad 0:10:03.880 --> 0:10:06.920 part of the survey is that nearly a third, so 0:10:06.960 --> 0:10:09.720 it was twenty seven percent of people are planning to 0:10:09.760 --> 0:10:12.120 go into debt for holiday spending. 0:10:12.160 --> 0:10:14.120 They're not much like, ah, maybe they're planning on it, 0:10:14.120 --> 0:10:15.720 They're like, literally, this is my plan. 0:10:15.920 --> 0:10:17.520 This is how they're going to be able to afford it, 0:10:17.559 --> 0:10:20.120 which we obviously hate. So again, I think the ability 0:10:20.160 --> 0:10:22.400 to proactively plan for that is the way to go. 0:10:22.559 --> 0:10:25.679 Yeah, one of the things that Amanda said on Wednesday's 0:10:25.679 --> 0:10:28.360 episode was it's just not worth it to go into 0:10:28.400 --> 0:10:30.080 debt to try and keep up appearances. Matt and I 0:10:30.080 --> 0:10:32.199 think sometimes, well, the things she's spot on, I think 0:10:32.240 --> 0:10:35.720 sometimes when it comes to Christmas, the appearance is yeah, 0:10:35.720 --> 0:10:39.120 I'm flush and I'm gonna buy everybody awesome Christmas presents, 0:10:39.400 --> 0:10:42.320 when if you're not and you can't financially handle that, 0:10:42.679 --> 0:10:44.800 now is the perfect time to have that conversation. It's 0:10:44.800 --> 0:10:48.360 to set expectations. So we actually have an article about 0:10:48.840 --> 0:10:51.320 creating a holiday budget that we'll link to in the 0:10:51.320 --> 0:10:55.319 show notes. But also make sure you are are upfront, honest, 0:10:55.559 --> 0:11:00.000 and having those talks with your friends and family before 0:11:00.120 --> 0:11:03.280 or you get to Christmas Eve, because that's a recipe 0:11:03.320 --> 0:11:07.000 for relational disaster. Having that conversation about maybe hey, let's 0:11:07.040 --> 0:11:09.920 just buy for only the kids this year, or if 0:11:09.920 --> 0:11:12.839 that's the financial position you find yourself in. I think 0:11:12.840 --> 0:11:16.960 people respect that, yeah, and so yeah, just don't feel ashamed. 0:11:16.960 --> 0:11:18.920 I guess to have that conversation to broach the topic. 0:11:18.960 --> 0:11:20.840 And it could be something like, doesn't have to be 0:11:20.920 --> 0:11:24.680 like all dour and sad and gray. Yeah, like there's 0:11:24.679 --> 0:11:26.040 a way that you can do that but still make 0:11:26.080 --> 0:11:27.800 it fun. Yeah, you just got to be a little 0:11:27.800 --> 0:11:29.160 bit more creative. And it might not be that you're 0:11:29.480 --> 0:11:31.400 strapped for cash. It might just be that you have 0:11:31.640 --> 0:11:33.960 other financial goals you want to achieve. And so yeah, 0:11:34.120 --> 0:11:35.600 you can say it like that, like, hey, listen, we're 0:11:35.640 --> 0:11:37.440 working on this, this, and this right now, We're gonna 0:11:37.440 --> 0:11:40.240 have to tame our Christmas spending down. Is that okay 0:11:40.240 --> 0:11:42.040 with you guys? That's a great way to. 0:11:41.960 --> 0:11:43.560 Start the con THO. We actually, I don't know how 0:11:43.559 --> 0:11:45.640 folks would feel about this, but Kate and I asked 0:11:46.120 --> 0:11:49.160 family and extended family instead of doing getting us kind 0:11:49.160 --> 0:11:51.680 of random gifts to supply or not to supply, but 0:11:51.760 --> 0:11:53.600 to help us to be able to purchase equipment for 0:11:53.640 --> 0:11:55.520 the business that we're starting. At that point, in time, 0:11:55.840 --> 0:11:57.840 and I would say most folks were on board with that, 0:11:57.880 --> 0:11:59.200 and that was a great way for us to not 0:12:00.160 --> 0:12:01.880 to go into debt in order to get that off 0:12:01.880 --> 0:12:04.760 the ground. Speaking of surveys, there is a new one 0:12:04.800 --> 0:12:08.920 from Loop that finds that more Americans are abusing return policies. 0:12:09.720 --> 0:12:12.200 We've talked about this. Folks are they're lying about products 0:12:12.240 --> 0:12:15.080 not showing up. They're wearing stuff and then returning it, 0:12:15.120 --> 0:12:17.400 which is gosh, I hate that, man, that's like so 0:12:17.480 --> 0:12:20.840 freaking tacky. Some folks are claiming that items are defective 0:12:20.880 --> 0:12:23.960 when they weren't, all in hopes for a refund when 0:12:24.000 --> 0:12:27.600 it actually isn't deserved. Retailers are finally starting to wise 0:12:27.720 --> 0:12:31.319 up and they are making their return policies less generous, 0:12:31.600 --> 0:12:35.199 which then harms honest customers who experience real issues. You're 0:12:35.240 --> 0:12:37.680 basically ruining the party for everybody. Yeah, and so we 0:12:37.720 --> 0:12:40.000 want folks to not be afraid to return items obviously 0:12:40.080 --> 0:12:42.120 that aren't up to snuff. But just don't be one 0:12:42.160 --> 0:12:44.600 of these people, please. But there is a slight silver lining, 0:12:44.640 --> 0:12:46.679 which is that some companies and some brands, they're not 0:12:46.800 --> 0:12:49.880 changing the overall return policy for everybody, but they are 0:12:50.240 --> 0:12:53.600 cracking down on customers who present consistent issues. They're starting 0:12:53.640 --> 0:12:56.160 to keep a little file on you, a little dossier. 0:12:56.280 --> 0:12:58.280 And so if you like a company or a brand 0:12:58.280 --> 0:13:00.760 and you want to keep shopping there, well, if you 0:13:01.120 --> 0:13:04.400 abuse the return policies exhibiting this type of behavior, it 0:13:04.400 --> 0:13:07.079 could lead to you not being able to do business 0:13:07.120 --> 0:13:07.800 with them anymore. 0:13:08.080 --> 0:13:10.000 When mister Smith, this is your eighth return this. 0:13:10.000 --> 0:13:12.720 Month, exactly. Yeah, I think this is a much better 0:13:12.720 --> 0:13:14.520 way to go, and it could be a way that 0:13:14.559 --> 0:13:17.959 companies are able to maintain just higher levels of customers 0:13:17.960 --> 0:13:19.600 serve because you don't want to burn everybody, right right. 0:13:19.640 --> 0:13:21.520 I think that's one of the reasons for some price 0:13:21.559 --> 0:13:23.880 inflation too, man. I think some of the companies that 0:13:23.960 --> 0:13:26.880 offer the most generous return policies have kind of higher 0:13:26.920 --> 0:13:28.880 prices on some of the items that they sell. So 0:13:28.880 --> 0:13:31.440 it's one of their marketing things. And because they're saying, listen, 0:13:31.480 --> 0:13:33.439 you can return it, no questions asked, even years down 0:13:33.520 --> 0:13:35.480 the road, Well, you're going to pay a little more 0:13:35.480 --> 0:13:38.040 for the item up front for that privilege, which I'm 0:13:38.040 --> 0:13:41.640 also okay with because and you just have to remember too, 0:13:42.040 --> 0:13:44.199 keep them oud. What is the return policy of that company? 0:13:44.360 --> 0:13:46.720 For instance, Like we've talked about Darn Tough socks, Bambas 0:13:46.720 --> 0:13:49.880 has something similar like one hundred percent satisfaction guarantee and 0:13:49.880 --> 0:13:52.240 if there's holes in your socks, they'll send you new ones. 0:13:52.280 --> 0:13:55.120 Because Bambas don't. I'm not a huge fan. You've like 0:13:55.200 --> 0:13:57.400 Mamba's in the last, but like they're cozy when you 0:13:57.440 --> 0:13:59.320 take them on. They have not held up at all all, 0:13:59.559 --> 0:14:01.280 could not compared to the Darn tuffs a least send 0:14:01.320 --> 0:14:02.760 them an email. I just did with just a couple 0:14:02.800 --> 0:14:04.240 of mine because there's holes in them, and they send 0:14:04.240 --> 0:14:07.480 me new socks. Bomb is dead. Yeah, nice, so interesting. Yeah, 0:14:07.480 --> 0:14:08.040 all you gotta do. 0:14:08.080 --> 0:14:09.880 And you don't even have to send them pictures. You 0:14:10.280 --> 0:14:12.480 just literally say this is the order, ye I got? 0:14:12.520 --> 0:14:13.360 I got holes of my socks. 0:14:13.360 --> 0:14:15.040 Guys. Yeah, but I do, I mean I do. 0:14:15.440 --> 0:14:17.280 I sent them pictures because I didn't want to be 0:14:17.440 --> 0:14:19.080 that's I mean, coercive individuals. 0:14:19.080 --> 0:14:20.560 I want to. I feel bad for kind of throwing 0:14:20.560 --> 0:14:22.480 them under the bus, but that's one of the reasons. 0:14:22.520 --> 0:14:24.880 I'm just like, they haven't really held up, Unlike like 0:14:24.960 --> 0:14:27.240 darn toff are amazing, dude, Like truly, I'm like, are 0:14:27.240 --> 0:14:28.320 these things ever gonna wear out. 0:14:28.400 --> 0:14:31.680 Well, if they do, like with either one of those companies, 0:14:31.720 --> 0:14:34.240 you can get another product return, but that is their policy. 0:14:34.280 --> 0:14:36.040 And they charge more for the socks up front because 0:14:36.360 --> 0:14:37.880 you can get a three dollars pair of socks or 0:14:37.920 --> 0:14:39.600 you can get a fifteen dollars pair of socks. But 0:14:39.640 --> 0:14:41.880 as long as there's a guarantee behind the fifteen dollars 0:14:41.880 --> 0:14:44.760 pair of socks, I don't mind spending more because if 0:14:44.800 --> 0:14:46.320 they do wear out, they're gonna send me another pair. 0:14:46.560 --> 0:14:49.520 Let's talk about retirement, Matt. There's good news on the 0:14:49.520 --> 0:14:52.280 retirement front. There are more four oh one K millionaires 0:14:52.440 --> 0:14:55.560 than ever before these days. It doesn't I guess take 0:14:55.560 --> 0:14:57.920 a rocket scientist to figure out that that would be 0:14:57.960 --> 0:15:00.520 the case considering how well the stock market has been 0:15:00.520 --> 0:15:03.960 performing recently, you know, with that we're still near all 0:15:03.960 --> 0:15:08.040 time highs. But Fidelity reports that they house almost half 0:15:08.040 --> 0:15:10.680 a million four to one k's that have accrued more 0:15:10.720 --> 0:15:13.960 than a million dollars in assets. And it's not only 0:15:14.000 --> 0:15:16.120 because the assets are growing, that's part of it, obviously, 0:15:16.480 --> 0:15:19.680 but investing habits are getting better too, So the average 0:15:19.680 --> 0:15:21.720 Fidelity four o one K savings rate. Matt, this is 0:15:21.720 --> 0:15:23.360 what I zeroed in I'm like, oh, yeah, cool, half 0:15:23.360 --> 0:15:26.080 a million millionaires with Fidelity four on ks. 0:15:26.080 --> 0:15:26.800 That's super cool. 0:15:27.200 --> 0:15:29.760 But the average savings rate in a Fidelity four O 0:15:29.760 --> 0:15:33.320 one K is fourteen point two percent, which is getting 0:15:33.440 --> 0:15:37.400 really close to our fifteen percent minimum investment amount suggestion. 0:15:37.600 --> 0:15:38.160 It's amazing. 0:15:38.160 --> 0:15:40.600 So that's good. That's we're celebrating. And I think this 0:15:40.760 --> 0:15:42.840 is just a reminder too. When I saw this, I'm like, oh, 0:15:42.840 --> 0:15:45.640 that's really cool. But slow and steady wins the race. 0:15:45.960 --> 0:15:49.600 And I would be willing to bet that the vast 0:15:49.600 --> 0:15:52.480 majority of those those four to one k millionaires yes, 0:15:52.520 --> 0:15:54.800 are in their fifties and sixties. They've been getting the 0:15:54.840 --> 0:15:58.000 match and increasing their personal contribution amount year over year, 0:15:58.520 --> 0:16:00.640 and it just took time, but they got there. They 0:16:00.680 --> 0:16:03.520 got to where they wanted to go. And I think 0:16:03.520 --> 0:16:06.360 this has encouragement, especially for our listener base who is 0:16:06.680 --> 0:16:09.160 mostly younger let's say, jen Z and millennials. If you 0:16:09.200 --> 0:16:10.920 do the same, you're going to get there too. And 0:16:11.200 --> 0:16:13.720 I saw this article from our friend Sam Over at 0:16:13.720 --> 0:16:17.480 Financial Samurai. He ran the numbers Ogan Sam Dogan, and 0:16:17.560 --> 0:16:20.280 he found that if you max your four oh one 0:16:20.320 --> 0:16:22.760 K contribution, I'm not saying that's easy. It can be 0:16:22.760 --> 0:16:24.240 really difficult to do that. It can take years for 0:16:24.240 --> 0:16:24.800 you to get there. 0:16:25.000 --> 0:16:27.600 Just to designe twenty three thousand dollars, right, that's all 0:16:27.600 --> 0:16:29.160 about every year. It's simple. 0:16:29.680 --> 0:16:32.120 But he basically found it's going to take you eighteen 0:16:32.240 --> 0:16:35.840 years to get there with contribution limits set where they 0:16:35.840 --> 0:16:38.600 are at twenty three grand. So think about that if 0:16:38.640 --> 0:16:41.360 you were and again, really hard to do. It is simple, 0:16:41.560 --> 0:16:44.080 it's not easy. But if you can max that four 0:16:44.160 --> 0:16:46.600