WEBVTT - I'm Debt Free, Now What? (BA Q&A) 0:00:02.320 --> 0:00:07.000 It's time for the ba qa A the ba qa 0:00:07.000 --> 0:00:10.240 what to say? The v a qa with Manday, the 0:00:10.360 --> 0:00:16.200 va qa and Tiffany A the ba qa A. Okay, 0:00:16.200 --> 0:00:18.520 I lie, Tiffany's not here, y'all, She's not here. She 0:00:18.600 --> 0:00:20.479 left me solo today, but not for long, because I 0:00:20.480 --> 0:00:23.440 am joined by our brilliant guest. If you haven't listened 0:00:23.440 --> 0:00:26.800 to her episode about her brand new book, Your Journey 0:00:26.800 --> 0:00:29.480 to Financial Freedom, why are you here? Going back to 0:00:29.520 --> 0:00:33.199 Wednesday's episode and check it out. Jamila sous frant is 0:00:33.240 --> 0:00:36.279 in the house. Hey Jamila, hey girl, Hey, long time 0:00:36.320 --> 0:00:40.159 nothing I know, right, so excited to have you on. 0:00:40.200 --> 0:00:41.960 So in the baqa. First, we got to start with 0:00:41.960 --> 0:00:44.599 our disclaimer, okay, Jamila, because we ain't trying to get 0:00:44.600 --> 0:00:48.080 you sued. You just got here. We are your financi 0:00:48.120 --> 0:00:51.440 You can call us your financial sisters, your financial besties. 0:00:52.080 --> 0:00:54.640 We are not your lawyer, not your financial advisor, not 0:00:54.680 --> 0:00:57.440 financial planner, not your investment advisor, not anyone that you 0:00:57.440 --> 0:01:00.160 would pay for advice. So take everything we say the 0:01:00.200 --> 0:01:04.560 grain of salt. Okay, we got brains, we got smarts 0:01:04.640 --> 0:01:08.120 and all of that juicy goodness. But no, please, you 0:01:08.160 --> 0:01:11.200 can just send those you know, send those send those 0:01:11.280 --> 0:01:14.640 legal fees somewhere else. Okay, we don't have time for that. 0:01:14.800 --> 0:01:17.280 Let's jump into some questions, because Jimmy, let your book 0:01:17.360 --> 0:01:20.479 is all about your journey to financial freedom and helping 0:01:20.520 --> 0:01:23.520 others feel what is possible for them if they take 0:01:23.600 --> 0:01:26.840 some steps in their lives today to get to their 0:01:26.920 --> 0:01:29.800 own version of financial freedom. So we picked out a 0:01:29.840 --> 0:01:33.280 couple of good questions from our BA fam that we're 0:01:33.280 --> 0:01:35.880 going to read today listen. As a reminder, y'all can 0:01:35.880 --> 0:01:40.000 submit your questions at Brand Ambition Podcast on ig slide 0:01:40.000 --> 0:01:42.959 into our DMS, or you can go to Brandnambisson podcast 0:01:43.000 --> 0:01:46.520 dot com and click ask us anything and submit your 0:01:46.600 --> 0:01:49.880 questions there. All right, Number one? You ready? 0:01:50.120 --> 0:01:50.680 Yeah, let's go. 0:01:51.240 --> 0:01:55.440 Little shoulder shimmy, little shoulder rub rub, I wish shoulder rub, 0:01:55.680 --> 0:01:58.880 little shoulder stretch. All right. The first question comes from 0:01:58.920 --> 0:02:02.560 IG from listen, Ana Anna says, hey, ladies, First, thank 0:02:02.560 --> 0:02:06.120 you so much for creating this space. Finance credit savings 0:02:06.120 --> 0:02:09.040 investing is so overwhelming to me that I just turn 0:02:09.120 --> 0:02:11.400 away from it. But I can't afford to do that 0:02:11.600 --> 0:02:15.200 any longer. I picked up Get Good with Money, Tiffany's book, 0:02:15.200 --> 0:02:18.639 and I'm ready to put in work. Yes, My question 0:02:18.760 --> 0:02:20.560 is should I invest in a four to oh one 0:02:20.680 --> 0:02:24.000 K or a wroth I? Ray, I have zero dollars 0:02:24.040 --> 0:02:26.560 in either of these right now. I'm an immigrant from 0:02:26.680 --> 0:02:30.520 Dr Hey Mandy High girl Ola, and no one in 0:02:30.520 --> 0:02:34.160 my family knows how to navigate American finances. I'm thirty 0:02:34.160 --> 0:02:37.080 one years old and I want to retire comfortably around 0:02:37.160 --> 0:02:41.600 fifty five years old ish. Any tips or reality checks 0:02:41.639 --> 0:02:46.640 are welcome. Okay, Anna, Anna in the house. Okay, So 0:02:47.400 --> 0:02:51.200 she's got this feeling that her family doesn't know how 0:02:51.240 --> 0:02:54.239 to navigate American finances. She's on her own, but she's 0:02:54.240 --> 0:02:58.200 ready to do something, all right. But the question itself 0:02:58.280 --> 0:03:03.360 is pretty simple. One K or wroth Ira, what do 0:03:03.440 --> 0:03:04.000 you say? 0:03:04.160 --> 0:03:07.640 Okay, so this is gonna be Yeah, it's gonna depend 0:03:07.680 --> 0:03:09.480 on a couple of things. So if you have access 0:03:09.520 --> 0:03:12.080 to a four to one K through your job, so one, 0:03:12.680 --> 0:03:14.480 you know, make check that out. Make sure that you 0:03:14.520 --> 0:03:17.360 do have access. Do they give you a company match, 0:03:17.440 --> 0:03:19.480 meaning if you put in a certain percentage or a 0:03:19.480 --> 0:03:22.640 certain amount, do they also match you up to a 0:03:22.680 --> 0:03:25.760 certain point? Because if you can, then you should be 0:03:25.880 --> 0:03:28.600 investing up until that point in which they can max 0:03:29.000 --> 0:03:32.320 or match you in your account. It's almost like free money. 0:03:32.360 --> 0:03:35.600 I do air quotes because technically it's not free, like 0:03:35.600 --> 0:03:37.680 it's part of your compensation package, so you should be 0:03:38.080 --> 0:03:41.320 using it, and you know start there. So, do you 0:03:41.360 --> 0:03:42.920 have a four to one K? Does it have a 0:03:42.960 --> 0:03:46.000 company match? If it does, you should invest up into 0:03:46.080 --> 0:03:50.120 that company match at the minimum. Also recognizing the difference 0:03:50.160 --> 0:03:51.200 between a four to one. 0:03:51.160 --> 0:03:52.920 K and a wroth IRA. 0:03:53.200 --> 0:03:55.480 So typically the four to one K will be through 0:03:55.520 --> 0:03:59.600 a company. It's a company sponsored pre tax retimement plan, 0:04:00.240 --> 0:04:03.920 meaning the amount you put in reduces your taxable income 0:04:04.080 --> 0:04:06.520 so you actually pay less in taxes or it makes 0:04:06.560 --> 0:04:10.280 your net income less. And then a wroth IRA is 0:04:10.280 --> 0:04:13.920 an after tax retirement vehicle that you can use and 0:04:13.960 --> 0:04:18.080 open up separately with a brokerage company outside of your job. 0:04:18.400 --> 0:04:20.919 And that's after tax money, meaning you pay taxes on 0:04:20.920 --> 0:04:24.080 that money already and you're now putting it into this 0:04:24.240 --> 0:04:27.960 roth iray to grow over time. So I always like 0:04:28.000 --> 0:04:31.080 to think about what is your income level, So people 0:04:31.120 --> 0:04:34.560 who are typically higher earners like to put money in 0:04:34.600 --> 0:04:36.800 their four one K and pre tax retirement accounts to 0:04:36.920 --> 0:04:39.640 reduce how much they need to pay in taxes. So 0:04:39.680 --> 0:04:43.320 it's a smart tax strategy and just it's helpful to 0:04:43.320 --> 0:04:46.240 put money away. Or if you're not earning a lot 0:04:46.240 --> 0:04:48.599 of money and there is a limited amount, if you 0:04:48.600 --> 0:04:50.720 do have that match, do up to the company match 0:04:50.720 --> 0:04:52.400 in your four to one K. But then you can 0:04:52.440 --> 0:04:55.640 also take and use your after tax dollars to invest 0:04:55.680 --> 0:04:58.000 in a roth ira if you're not earning a lot 0:04:58.080 --> 0:04:58.920 At the moment. 0:04:59.120 --> 0:05:01.360 I was just looking up the limits for four oh 0:05:01.400 --> 0:05:03.520 one K because I haven't had a traditional job in 0:05:03.520 --> 0:05:06.560 a few years, so I'm like, what is the limit now? God, 0:05:06.600 --> 0:05:09.120 I miss my four to one K. It's so easy, y'all. 0:05:09.680 --> 0:05:12.560 People make you know, business ownership looks so cute and sexy, 0:05:12.560 --> 0:05:15.400 but it's more complicated. Okay, I miss my cute little 0:05:15.440 --> 0:05:18.839 cozy four one K. I got my little auto payroll deposit. 0:05:19.480 --> 0:05:23.119 The limit right now is twenty two twenty two, five hundred, 0:05:23.200 --> 0:05:25.560 but in the new year, which is just around the corner, 0:05:26.000 --> 0:05:28.279 it's going to go up to twenty three thousand, So 0:05:28.320 --> 0:05:30.400 if you get that match. I mean, I always kind 0:05:30.400 --> 0:05:32.240 of went by the rule of max out the four 0:05:32.279 --> 0:05:34.960 to one K or try to because it's hard to 0:05:34.960 --> 0:05:38.040 get up to that, like save twenty two something k 0:05:38.080 --> 0:05:40.480 a year. That in and of itself is a huge, 0:05:41.160 --> 0:05:44.840 you know, a huge accomplishment. And then my financial planner 0:05:44.960 --> 0:05:46.960 was always like, you know, okay, once you get past that, 0:05:47.080 --> 0:05:49.200 then let's move on to the ROTH because you can 0:05:49.240 --> 0:05:52.440 save less in the ROTH. Ira there's and there's income limits, 0:05:52.480 --> 0:05:56.080 so there's it's a bit more like complicated. And when 0:05:56.120 --> 0:05:58.760 it comes to financial steps again, I'm not a financial planner. 0:05:59.040 --> 0:06:02.720 I'm always like, what's the easiest path to entry? And 0:06:02.760 --> 0:06:05.240 for so many of you listening, including you, anna go 0:06:05.279 --> 0:06:07.640 to your payroll department, your HR and be like, how 0:06:07.640 --> 0:06:09.920 do I enroll in the four one K? And make 0:06:09.920 --> 0:06:12.360 sure they tell you and they probably told you at orientation, 0:06:12.520 --> 0:06:17.760 make them tell you again. That's their job. Okay, Jamila. 0:06:17.839 --> 0:06:22.120 Now I'm curious because you're Jamaican and you were born 0:06:22.279 --> 0:06:24.960 in Jamaica and your mom brought you here? How did 0:06:24.960 --> 0:06:27.800 that work? But I want to know, because she obviously 0:06:28.320 --> 0:06:32.480 wasn't from here, how did she navigate her finances in America? 0:06:33.000 --> 0:06:36.880 Listen, my mom was a force because she came here 0:06:36.920 --> 0:06:39.279 at twenty years old, and yeah, she left me behind 0:06:39.320 --> 0:06:41.760 in Jamaica when she had me to establish herself a 0:06:41.760 --> 0:06:44.039 bit and then I came to join her just a 0:06:44.040 --> 0:06:47.960 few months later. But she did with no internet, no phone, 0:06:48.000 --> 0:06:50.960 so quickly you type up to find something. She yellow 0:06:50.960 --> 0:06:54.080 pages and showing up to places that said they would 0:06:54.080 --> 0:06:56.599 be open, you know, looking into resources and getting on 0:06:56.640 --> 0:07:00.200 government assistance in the beginning to help sustain herself. And 0:07:00.240 --> 0:07:03.760 so it did take a lot of curiosity and tenacity, 0:07:03.800 --> 0:07:05.719 and at such a young she was only twenty years old. 0:07:06.160 --> 0:07:11.240 Like again, I can't imagine doing it by herself, for right, 0:07:11.640 --> 0:07:13.000 and so in a country. 0:07:12.640 --> 0:07:13.920 She had to leave. 0:07:15.200 --> 0:07:17.960 Right that part, So you know how it is being 0:07:18.000 --> 0:07:19.600 a mom now, I mean, I get it. I talk 0:07:19.640 --> 0:07:22.800 about this in the book Your Journey to Financial Freedom, 0:07:23.120 --> 0:07:26.040 that you know, for her to forge a path like 0:07:26.040 --> 0:07:28.560 go to the country she's never been, to experience seasons 0:07:28.600 --> 0:07:31.480 she's never experienced for the first time with barely any 0:07:31.480 --> 0:07:34.920 money in her pocket, how bold she must have been 0:07:34.960 --> 0:07:37.480 to be able to do that. And so like the 0:07:37.480 --> 0:07:40.440 the call for us to try to attain financial independence 0:07:40.800 --> 0:07:44.280 is bold, right, Like Anna now is entering into this 0:07:44.360 --> 0:07:46.640 stage where she's like needing to make a big decision, 0:07:46.680 --> 0:07:49.560 and it is big for her, you know, and it 0:07:49.600 --> 0:07:52.000 can change the course of her life. But It's just like, 0:07:52.400 --> 0:07:55.360 think about what your parents or your your ancestors did 0:07:55.400 --> 0:07:59.240 to put like to get you here, and how probably 0:07:59.280 --> 0:08:01.520 you know it wasn't like their money that was at risk, 0:08:01.560 --> 0:08:04.880 it was their lives and livelihood. And that always gave 0:08:04.920 --> 0:08:07.280 me the courage. I'm like, you know what, I can 0:08:07.360 --> 0:08:10.000 call hr, I could do this. Yeah, I can ask 0:08:10.040 --> 0:08:13.320 this question and so use that as your motivation to 0:08:13.920 --> 0:08:16.480 get you going to do something different because just because 0:08:16.520 --> 0:08:18.600 no one in your family, look, I get it. No 0:08:18.640 --> 0:08:21.560 one in my family also talked to me specifically about investing. 0:08:21.800 --> 0:08:24.760 These are things I learned on the as I got 0:08:24.800 --> 0:08:27.560 older and especially on my journey. But you can be 0:08:27.600 --> 0:08:30.040 the first. You can change that and then be the 0:08:30.040 --> 0:08:33.040 person that you know puts your family on and your 0:08:33.040 --> 0:08:36.080 cousins and you start to help other people when you 0:08:36.080 --> 0:08:39.760 have the knowledge and information right. 0:08:39.880 --> 0:08:42.240 And I just want to say too that when you're 0:08:42.280 --> 0:08:45.560 on this journey and you know, I would say, gather 0:08:46.200 --> 0:08:49.160 friends confidants as you go along who were on the 0:08:49.200 --> 0:08:52.559 same path as you. Because family is amazing. But family 0:08:52.559 --> 0:08:54.839 doesn't always understand the journey that we're on because they 0:08:54.840 --> 0:08:57.360 have their separate journeys. So I just feel like the 0:08:57.400 --> 0:08:59.839 more voices you have, whether it's hours from listening to 0:08:59.880 --> 0:09:02.439 the podcast. I'm happy that you found BA, but also 0:09:02.600 --> 0:09:05.000 Jamila's podcast Journey to Launch. It's a great one to 0:09:05.000 --> 0:09:07.680 add to the mix. So you yeah, we can be 0:09:07.880 --> 0:09:10.559 like your big sister friends who can give you these 0:09:10.559 --> 0:09:12.559 ideas and help guide you a little bit of the way. 0:09:12.960 --> 0:09:15.360 But to take ownership of your own journey. And you're 0:09:15.440 --> 0:09:18.920 only thirty one, you're so young. Fifty five to me 0:09:19.040 --> 0:09:22.400 does not seem like out of step with reality at all. 0:09:22.679 --> 0:09:24.720 To have a goal of you know, being able to 0:09:24.760 --> 0:09:27.439 retire or at least being used to say it's comfortable, 0:09:27.840 --> 0:09:30.520 of course, like fifty five, Like that's twenty five years 0:09:30.559 --> 0:09:34.720 almost that you've got to invest. I'm like, start now, Yeah, let's. 0:09:34.520 --> 0:09:36.520 Go to it. You got you got a lot of time, 0:09:37.360 --> 0:09:40.760 and it's never too late. You know, it's never too late. 0:09:40.800 --> 0:09:43.079 You'd be surprised how much ground you can make up 0:09:43.320 --> 0:09:45.920 once you just start, because as you start, you may 0:09:45.960 --> 0:09:48.200 not know everything you need to know right now, but 0:09:49.200 --> 0:09:51.320 as you start going, you start it's like picking up 0:09:51.320 --> 0:09:54.120 gems you play in a video game, right and it's 0:09:54.120 --> 0:09:55.880 just like you picking up these gems and tools and 0:09:55.920 --> 0:09:58.440 it becomes like a big effect, a snowball effect, and 0:09:58.480 --> 0:10:01.360 things start accumulating faster that you could have ever imagined. 0:10:01.480 --> 0:10:03.560 So just start and this is a great start for 0:10:03.600 --> 0:10:04.880 you asking the question. 0:10:05.720 --> 0:10:09.320 Absolutely. Okay, thank you, Anna, thank you so much for 0:10:09.480 --> 0:10:11.280 sending in your question. We're going to take a quick 0:10:11.440 --> 0:10:13.800 break and we'll be right back with more of the 0:10:13.800 --> 0:10:20.400 Baqa with our guest Jamila Soufront of Journey to Launch. Hey, 0:10:20.480 --> 0:10:23.320 ba Fan, we are back with question number two. This 0:10:23.440 --> 0:10:25.680 question comes from a listener who'd like to be called 0:10:25.760 --> 0:10:30.040 Manifesting Wealth Babe. Okay, I feel that I'm excited to 0:10:30.080 --> 0:10:32.400 hear from you, Manifesting Wealth Babe, because you've been a 0:10:32.400 --> 0:10:35.000 long time listener. Let's get into this question. Hey, Mandy 0:10:35.040 --> 0:10:38.280 and Tiffany. She says, I last wrote to y'all one 0:10:38.320 --> 0:10:40.600 and a half years ago when I was seventy five 0:10:40.720 --> 0:10:43.560 hundred dollars in credit card debt and seeking advice on 0:10:43.600 --> 0:10:46.679 how to pay that down and buy a house. Well 0:10:46.800 --> 0:10:50.760 now I am credit card debt free, yes, and I'm 0:10:50.800 --> 0:10:53.720 getting the keys to my first row home next week, 0:10:53.760 --> 0:10:56.960 which will be my primary residence. Come on, this is 0:10:57.040 --> 0:11:00.840 amazing and just one and a half years that is phenomenal. 0:11:01.480 --> 0:11:04.040 I'm also starting a new job where I'll be making 0:11:04.160 --> 0:11:07.360 fifty k more than my last one. To me amazing, 0:11:07.840 --> 0:11:13.320 like I shook it. Wow, you did the damn thing, girl. 0:11:13.400 --> 0:11:16.920 This is incredible. Okay, starting a new job making fifty 0:11:17.040 --> 0:11:20.640 k more. Since my mortgage interest rate is at seven 0:11:20.679 --> 0:11:23.959 point three seven percent ooof yes, it's so expensive out 0:11:23.960 --> 0:11:26.400 there right now, I'd like to pay now my house 0:11:26.400 --> 0:11:29.319 as quickly as possible. I figure that I can put 0:11:29.360 --> 0:11:31.960 that fifty k a year toward my mortgage by tripling 0:11:32.000 --> 0:11:35.080 my monthly payment. What else should I be doing to 0:11:35.120 --> 0:11:37.400 make my money work for me? I have several four 0:11:37.440 --> 0:11:39.599 to one ks from different jobs throughout the year, but 0:11:39.640 --> 0:11:41.760 I don't keep up with them, and I don't know 0:11:41.920 --> 0:11:45.320 the collective total. Should I start focusing on building that up, 0:11:45.400 --> 0:11:49.160 put more money toward my emergency face savings, or start investing. 0:11:49.600 --> 0:11:52.040 I've got a six month emergency fund, and since I'm 0:11:52.120 --> 0:11:55.680 using some state grant programs, I'm technically not supposed to 0:11:55.720 --> 0:11:59.920 rent out my house for the life of the loan. Okay. Interesting. 0:12:00.480 --> 0:12:03.080 Any advice on next steps now that I've got my 0:12:03.120 --> 0:12:05.840 head above water would be greatly appreciated. Things for all 0:12:05.880 --> 0:12:09.960 you do ooh, Okay, got to celebrate those wins. Yeah, 0:12:10.000 --> 0:12:13.240 but now it's the Okay, I did the dirty work, 0:12:13.760 --> 0:12:16.480 paying down the debt, doing what I can to get 0:12:16.520 --> 0:12:19.120 access to I love the idea that you use grants, 0:12:19.520 --> 0:12:24.360 some state programs to get your first property, but fifty 0:12:24.440 --> 0:12:28.840 k more and thinking about tripling her mortgage payments? Why 0:12:28.880 --> 0:12:32.280 does my chest kind of do like it? When I 0:12:32.280 --> 0:12:34.120 don't know, am I wrong? I kind of feel like, 0:12:34.400 --> 0:12:36.440 don't do that? But I don't know what. I don't 0:12:36.480 --> 0:12:38.160 know what exactly I'm thinking yet, what do you think? 0:12:38.200 --> 0:12:41.040 All right, there's a few things here. So the first is, 0:12:41.160 --> 0:12:44.320 oh my gosh, congratulations, you are doing the damn thing. 0:12:44.920 --> 0:12:47.560 You'd be primed to like join me on this journey 0:12:47.600 --> 0:12:50.480 to financial independence because you're the kind of person where 0:12:51.760 --> 0:12:54.880 you're a journey to financial freedom because you have so much, 0:12:55.120 --> 0:12:57.880 so many assets in terms of what can help you 0:12:57.920 --> 0:13:01.440 on this journey leap frog you forward very fast through 0:13:01.480 --> 0:13:03.760 these stages that I talk about to reach financial independence. 0:13:04.360 --> 0:13:06.880 And so first this is going to just be technical, 0:13:06.960 --> 0:13:10.000 but I would like you to go search down and 0:13:10.040 --> 0:13:13.480 find where your several four one ks are, so you know, 0:13:13.600 --> 0:13:16.080 a task is to where are those four one k's located. 0:13:16.280 --> 0:13:18.360 If you got in the book, honey, right. 0:13:18.520 --> 0:13:21.120 Sit down, call those companies up, get the log in 0:13:21.120 --> 0:13:24.080 information and it might be best served that might it 0:13:24.120 --> 0:13:26.880 will be best served for you to probably roll those 0:13:27.000 --> 0:13:31.320 all over into your own you know outside what would 0:13:31.320 --> 0:13:34.880 happen is a traditional ERA. So because it's a pre 0:13:35.000 --> 0:13:37.040 tax four one K, if you roll that and took 0:13:37.040 --> 0:13:40.040 that out of your companies who's ever holding it and 0:13:40.080 --> 0:13:43.520 put it into your own ERA account, you can roll 0:13:43.520 --> 0:13:46.720 that over and combine everything just so you can have 0:13:46.760 --> 0:13:49.880 it all in one place and be more direct or 0:13:49.960 --> 0:13:53.320 active in knowing what the numbers are and where you're invested, 0:13:53.360 --> 0:13:56.800 because you don't know if the company's charging you overcharging 0:13:56.840 --> 0:13:59.640 you to help manage these investments when you can park 0:13:59.679 --> 0:14:02.280 them on your own somewhere else in a mutual fund 0:14:02.920 --> 0:14:06.040 that has a low fees. So just one get that 0:14:06.080 --> 0:14:09.240 information for all your accounts, consider rolling them over into 0:14:09.320 --> 0:14:12.400 one and talk to a tax person. So at your 0:14:12.440 --> 0:14:14.600 income level, I'm assuming it's a lot more now you 0:14:14.640 --> 0:14:18.120 know it might be best to talk to someone who 0:14:18.160 --> 0:14:21.560 can help navigate and manage this for you. The other 0:14:21.600 --> 0:14:23.440 thing is that you're you're going to have a very 0:14:23.840 --> 0:14:26.920 huge increase in income, So investing in a four to 0:14:27.000 --> 0:14:29.880 one K to help manage taxes, right, you're putting away 0:14:29.880 --> 0:14:33.680 for your financial future and financial independence, but you're able 0:14:33.720 --> 0:14:36.720 to lower your taxable income because you know, when we 0:14:36.760 --> 0:14:39.800 make more, that's when the government comes in and they 0:14:39.880 --> 0:14:42.000 tax us more, which is not always a bad thing. 0:14:42.000 --> 0:14:42.160 You know. 0:14:42.240 --> 0:14:46.360 I am for paying taxes because this country needs to 0:14:46.400 --> 0:14:49.800 run some way. So but if you can then increase 0:14:49.840 --> 0:14:52.920 your four one K contributions at your current job, that 0:14:53.000 --> 0:14:55.880 will help to reduce how much taxes you pay and 0:14:55.920 --> 0:14:59.480 put some money away for yourself that you can use. 0:15:00.040 --> 0:15:02.040 I think the other thing I didn't want to mention before, Mandy, 0:15:02.080 --> 0:15:04.600 I want to hear some of your feedback is that 0:15:06.320 --> 0:15:08.240 you know, the biggest thing is that you don't have 0:15:08.240 --> 0:15:09.960 to make this complicated. It seems like you pay down 0:15:10.000 --> 0:15:13.240 your credit card debt already. The interest rate is very high, 0:15:13.280 --> 0:15:14.680 So I just keep your eye in the interest rate 0:15:14.720 --> 0:15:16.760 to see when you can refinance at a lower rate 0:15:16.800 --> 0:15:18.960 once they start dropping, because in a couple of years 0:15:19.000 --> 0:15:24.080 they will. But for me, I wouldn't necessarily put all 0:15:24.240 --> 0:15:27.360 of my money or additional money in the house just 0:15:27.440 --> 0:15:30.240 because you know, it's a non liquid asset. You know, 0:15:30.280 --> 0:15:32.120 to tap into that money. It would be a lot 0:15:32.160 --> 0:15:35.680 harder if you need it or need to sell or 0:15:35.720 --> 0:15:37.600 whatever the case like. In order to tap into the 0:15:37.640 --> 0:15:39.360 equity of your home, you're going to either need to 0:15:39.360 --> 0:15:42.320 sell it or to take out a home equity mortgage 0:15:42.440 --> 0:15:45.640 versus you invest that money and you can maybe beat 0:15:46.080 --> 0:15:47.520 I mean, this is a high interest rate, but if 0:15:47.560 --> 0:15:49.920 you can beat the average of what you're paying any 0:15:49.920 --> 0:15:54.800 of your mortgage, it maybe makes sense to do it 0:15:54.840 --> 0:15:56.680 that way. But I wouldn't discourage you. I do the 0:15:56.720 --> 0:16:01.080 math on how much do so would I pay or 0:16:01.080 --> 0:16:03.240 how long will it take if I do triple these payments? 0:16:03.520 --> 0:16:06.680 Does it shave off five years? Does it shave off 0:16:06.720 --> 0:16:10.760 only like? What does that look like? And less cash flow? 0:16:10.840 --> 0:16:14.240 Does that matter more to me versus increasing my assets 0:16:14.280 --> 0:16:17.560 on the other side, versus increasing my equity in my house? Mandy, 0:16:17.640 --> 0:16:18.200 what do you think? 0:16:19.200 --> 0:16:22.240 Yeah, I love a lot of what you said. I 0:16:22.280 --> 0:16:24.480 think the reason my stomach was kind of turning when 0:16:24.480 --> 0:16:26.760 it came to the idea of tripling their mortgage payments 0:16:26.840 --> 0:16:29.520 is like the high of paying down debt. You know, 0:16:29.560 --> 0:16:32.040 you get that this is like the Dave Ramsey way 0:16:32.040 --> 0:16:34.600 of paying down debt. Right, just like attack, attack, attack. 0:16:35.320 --> 0:16:37.720 But I agree it's going to put you in a 0:16:37.800 --> 0:16:41.240 financially vulnerable situation to tie up even more of your 0:16:41.240 --> 0:16:47.920 money in a house, especially like like like Tiffany, Sorry, Jamila, Tiffany, 0:16:47.960 --> 0:16:51.320 I miss you, Like Jamila said, you know, it's it's 0:16:51.320 --> 0:16:53.920 something that you can It's not a piggy bank. People 0:16:53.960 --> 0:16:55.920 treat it. They think you can treat like a piggy bank, 0:16:55.920 --> 0:16:58.840 but it takes time. And even during the pandemic, banks 0:16:58.880 --> 0:17:02.000 were like stopping giving home equity loans because everybody was like, oh, 0:17:02.040 --> 0:17:04.480 my home, my home prices have gone up so high, 0:17:04.640 --> 0:17:06.639 my home values have gone up so high. I want to, 0:17:06.840 --> 0:17:09.200 you know, tap into this. And thanks were like slow down, 0:17:09.760 --> 0:17:12.840 so and and I like the idea because you have, 0:17:13.160 --> 0:17:15.360 you know, paid off your debt. I think that's incredible. 0:17:16.200 --> 0:17:18.639 You can keep that good feeling going, the high that 0:17:18.680 --> 0:17:21.040 you get from paying it down, But don't put that 0:17:21.200 --> 0:17:23.800 energy into your house. I would say, put it into 0:17:23.840 --> 0:17:26.920 your investment account, in your in your emergency fund. Six 0:17:26.960 --> 0:17:29.960 months is great, but you're a homeowner now, and these 0:17:30.000 --> 0:17:34.880 homes be homing, okay, Like I moved into I bought 0:17:34.880 --> 0:17:37.800 my house five years ago, and it's about that time, 0:17:37.880 --> 0:17:40.600 the appliance has start breaking down on you, and I'm like, 0:17:40.720 --> 0:17:43.840 wait a minute, didn't I just spend two thousand dollars 0:17:43.880 --> 0:17:46.480 on this washer dryer, you know what I mean? And 0:17:46.720 --> 0:17:49.080 it's like, oh, well, this is what happens. Now you 0:17:49.160 --> 0:17:52.200 got to repair stuff. The prices, you know, the cost 0:17:52.280 --> 0:17:55.880 goes up. Also to make your money work for you. 0:17:56.280 --> 0:17:59.679 I feel like there's no better place at this stage 0:17:59.720 --> 0:18:02.960 for you then getting some of that money into the market, 0:18:03.119 --> 0:18:05.080 and whether it's like getting all your four to one 0:18:05.160 --> 0:18:07.840 ks all in one place, which I absolutely I would 0:18:07.880 --> 0:18:10.000 even go further to say, girl, go round them up 0:18:10.000 --> 0:18:12.359 and get them in one place. You can't be losing 0:18:12.400 --> 0:18:14.960 track of money like that, like leaving money under the 0:18:14.960 --> 0:18:19.080 couch cushions, because for example, I forgot about like a 0:18:19.160 --> 0:18:21.200 little tiny baby for one K I had from a 0:18:21.280 --> 0:18:22.960 job that I was at for just a hot minute 0:18:23.040 --> 0:18:25.680 a few years back, and it was like fifteen hundred 0:18:25.720 --> 0:18:27.800 dollars and it was just putting a money market fund, 0:18:27.960 --> 0:18:31.400 earning negative money, and I missed all the fun ups 0:18:31.480 --> 0:18:34.879 of the pandemic. You know, I could I could have 0:18:34.920 --> 0:18:36.720 gained a lot on that a little bit of money, 0:18:37.200 --> 0:18:41.280 but it was just sitting there not invested. Excuse me. So, 0:18:41.720 --> 0:18:43.600 I think if you want your money to work for you, 0:18:43.640 --> 0:18:46.800 figure out a way to leverage your increase in pay 0:18:47.040 --> 0:18:49.680 in a tax savvy way. I agree with Jamila about 0:18:49.680 --> 0:18:53.040 reaching out to a tax professional, but you know, I 0:18:53.080 --> 0:18:56.199 think it is simple open up or start contributing to 0:18:56.280 --> 0:19:00.320 your pre tax retirement account through your employer and start 0:19:00.800 --> 0:19:06.040 letting that money continue accruing on the side while adding 0:19:06.040 --> 0:19:08.679 a little bit more to that emergency fund. It's up 0:19:08.680 --> 0:19:11.520 to you sort of what your magic number is. Six 0:19:11.560 --> 0:19:14.359 months sounds good, but I'm honestly, like a as a homeowner, 0:19:14.840 --> 0:19:17.439 I'm on that, like you know, nine to twelve month, yeah, 0:19:17.520 --> 0:19:21.919 expenses kind of train like I yeah, especially having survived 0:19:21.920 --> 0:19:25.320 a couple of processions now. But that's that's really up 0:19:25.359 --> 0:19:28.359 to you. But my message is, let's sink more money 0:19:28.359 --> 0:19:31.960 into your investment portfolio than into your house right now. 0:19:32.119 --> 0:19:33.760 And if I could just add so One of the 0:19:33.760 --> 0:19:35.439 things I tell people to do in the book to 0:19:35.480 --> 0:19:39.119 help map out their journey to financial independence is that 0:19:39.160 --> 0:19:41.199 you have to assess where you currently are. You have 0:19:41.240 --> 0:19:43.159 to know your numbers and so you have to know 0:19:43.200 --> 0:19:45.520 your income, You have to know your expenses. You have 0:19:45.560 --> 0:19:47.879 to know how much you owe sow your liabilities, and 0:19:47.920 --> 0:19:50.200 you have to know how much you own your assets 0:19:50.480 --> 0:19:54.280 because your assets and accumulating more eventually allows you to 0:19:54.480 --> 0:19:57.080 retire early or quit that job, or do whatever you 0:19:57.080 --> 0:19:59.800 want because your assets will pay for your living expenses. 0:20:00.200 --> 0:20:02.320 But if you don't know how much you have or 0:20:02.359 --> 0:20:04.680 where they are, then you don't know your starting point, 0:20:04.760 --> 0:20:06.560 So you don't know you might be further along that 0:20:06.640 --> 0:20:10.439 you can even know to reaching financial independence or your journey, 0:20:10.880 --> 0:20:12.439 but you just don't know that you're not counting that 0:20:12.480 --> 0:20:14.320