WEBVTT - Friday Flight - Protecting Your Tax Refund, Credit Reporting Errors, & Fake Amazon Reviews #324 0:00:00.080 --> 0:00:02.400 Welcome to How the Money. I'm Joel and I am 0:00:02.480 --> 0:00:05.920 Matt's and today we're discussing protecting your tax refund, credit 0:00:06.000 --> 0:00:29.240 reporting errors, and fake Amazon reviews. That's right, Joel. This 0:00:29.360 --> 0:00:31.840 is our Friday Flight episode, which means we are going 0:00:31.880 --> 0:00:34.040 to cover a bunch of stories that we came across 0:00:34.120 --> 0:00:37.080 this week, uh and specifically how they pertain to our 0:00:37.200 --> 0:00:40.800 personal finances, our money. Uh. And we got a great 0:00:40.840 --> 0:00:43.440 note actually the earlier this week from a listener talking 0:00:43.479 --> 0:00:45.360 about one of the ways that she's kind of able 0:00:45.360 --> 0:00:46.920 to make a little bit of money on the side 0:00:47.200 --> 0:00:49.720 while also helping her neighbors. Yeah. Man, I thought that 0:00:49.760 --> 0:00:53.000 was so cool. Listener Stephanie wrote to us, and she 0:00:53.000 --> 0:00:55.680 she mentioned that she was shopping for groceries not just 0:00:55.760 --> 0:00:59.120 for herself, but for health vulnerable friends who just like 0:00:59.320 --> 0:01:02.800 don't feel going to the grocery store right now. And um, like, 0:01:02.840 --> 0:01:04.480 what a sweet thing to do, right, to offer to 0:01:04.520 --> 0:01:07.399 go pick up their groceries, because, like we've talked about before, 0:01:07.440 --> 0:01:10.920 getting food delivered or even groceries delivered, there's additional fees involved, right, 0:01:10.959 --> 0:01:13.200 It's gonna cost him more, and so Stephanie doing that 0:01:13.319 --> 0:01:15.440 for them is just a super sweet thing. But at 0:01:15.440 --> 0:01:20.840 the same time, Stephanie is putting those grocery purchases on 0:01:20.920 --> 0:01:24.920 her m X Blue Cash Preferred credit card and said maybe. Yeah, 0:01:25.360 --> 0:01:27.759 so it's like nobody else gets charged the fee like that, 0:01:27.800 --> 0:01:29.560 her friends don't get charged the fee. But she's you know, 0:01:29.640 --> 0:01:31.800 racking up a little bit of those rewards at the 0:01:31.840 --> 0:01:35.320 same time while she's like doing something noble and helpful. Yeah, 0:01:35.319 --> 0:01:37.200 like a pretty good sized grocery run, like maybe two 0:01:37.200 --> 0:01:39.600 in her bucks. That's twelve bucks just on one run. 0:01:39.640 --> 0:01:41.200 I mean that could definite at least pay for your dinner, 0:01:41.240 --> 0:01:43.760 you know. But I think that this is a good 0:01:43.760 --> 0:01:45.440 way to think about it if you're kind of maybe 0:01:45.440 --> 0:01:48.120 on the fence about whether or not, uh, the annual 0:01:48.160 --> 0:01:49.920 fee that comes with that card, if it's worth it, right, 0:01:49.920 --> 0:01:51.600 because if you don't go to the grocery store all 0:01:51.640 --> 0:01:53.840 that often. But you know, I can definitely go to 0:01:53.840 --> 0:01:56.240 the grocery store, use it for you know, neighbors, for 0:01:56.280 --> 0:01:58.240 other friends who yeah, like you said, might be vulnerable. 0:01:58.280 --> 0:02:00.440 That's definitely can tip the scales a little bit and 0:02:00.640 --> 0:02:03.240 make it a little bit more worthwhile. But again, yeah, 0:02:03.280 --> 0:02:05.040 it's just a nice thing to do regardless, you know, 0:02:05.160 --> 0:02:07.040 to do it for for your neighbors, do it for 0:02:07.080 --> 0:02:09.400 some friends. I like that. Yeah, super sweet. So Stephanie, 0:02:09.440 --> 0:02:12.360 thank you for sharing and glad you're getting some extra 0:02:12.400 --> 0:02:13.919 cash back. Just a little bonus in your life for 0:02:14.040 --> 0:02:16.480 doing something nice. Alright, Matt, let's get onto the Friday flight. 0:02:16.520 --> 0:02:18.480 Let's talk about the stories we found interesting this week 0:02:18.520 --> 0:02:21.600 that pertain to our personal finances. Uh. First, let's talk 0:02:21.600 --> 0:02:24.480 about taxes. It is tax season. Tax season is in 0:02:24.639 --> 0:02:27.640 full swing now. The I R S is accepting tax 0:02:27.680 --> 0:02:30.040 returns UM. And you know, we've talked about where you 0:02:30.040 --> 0:02:32.639 can go to file your tax return for free. If 0:02:32.680 --> 0:02:34.320 you make under a certain amount and I think it's 0:02:34.320 --> 0:02:37.280 seventy two adjusted gross income, you can hit up I 0:02:37.360 --> 0:02:40.280 R S free file go there. But one thing we 0:02:40.320 --> 0:02:43.200 haven't talked about is that identity theft is a legitimate 0:02:43.240 --> 0:02:47.160 concern when you're filing your taxes, given that nearly half 0:02:47.200 --> 0:02:50.120 of the country had their Social Security numbers compromised with 0:02:50.120 --> 0:02:52.400 the Equifax breach a few years ago. We're gonna talk 0:02:52.400 --> 0:02:54.520 more about that UM later on in the show. We're 0:02:54.600 --> 0:02:56.960 glad to see that the I R S is now 0:02:57.200 --> 0:03:00.880 issuing identity protection pins, uh, because you might need them 0:03:00.880 --> 0:03:04.040 now filing your taxes. Basically, what this pin does is 0:03:04.080 --> 0:03:07.160 it prevents thieves from filing a fake tax return before 0:03:07.240 --> 0:03:09.560 you do, which would potentially give them access to your 0:03:09.560 --> 0:03:11.480 tax refund if you're owed one. And a lot of 0:03:11.480 --> 0:03:15.000 people are they count on that tax refund. They usually 0:03:15.000 --> 0:03:16.680 set it up. You know, we don't advise this, but 0:03:16.720 --> 0:03:18.359 a lot of people set it up to where they're 0:03:18.360 --> 0:03:20.840 gonna get a two, three or four thousand dollar tax refund, 0:03:21.200 --> 0:03:23.640 and if somebody else files taxes before you do, they 0:03:23.680 --> 0:03:25.839 get that money and then you have to calaw it back, 0:03:25.919 --> 0:03:29.120 usually in a long process with the I r S. Right. 0:03:29.320 --> 0:03:31.280 And so though even though you don't have to do this, 0:03:31.320 --> 0:03:33.560 you don't have to get one of these protection pins, 0:03:33.760 --> 0:03:36.760 it's not mandatory, we would suggest that you do it. 0:03:37.000 --> 0:03:38.760 You can get your own PIN by going to the 0:03:38.800 --> 0:03:41.080 I r S website where you provide your info and 0:03:41.160 --> 0:03:43.760 you opt into the program, and then when you file 0:03:43.800 --> 0:03:47.240 your return, you input that PIN, and a potential identity thief, well, 0:03:47.320 --> 0:03:49.560 they wouldn't have access to that PIN, meaning they can't 0:03:49.560 --> 0:03:51.480 file that return as if they were you. So we'll 0:03:51.520 --> 0:03:53.440 put that link in the show notes. Because it's not 0:03:53.520 --> 0:03:55.720 like some easy term member u r L. But it's 0:03:55.760 --> 0:03:59.040 not like it's like thirty or forty characters long. Yeah. 0:03:59.200 --> 0:04:01.000 So yeah, go to our site how to money dot com. 0:04:01.120 --> 0:04:02.920 You'll find that link so that you can sign up 0:04:02.920 --> 0:04:05.560 for your own I r S protection pin. It's pretty 0:04:05.560 --> 0:04:07.400 easy to do it, and you know what, it could 0:04:07.400 --> 0:04:09.240 save you a bunch of hassle, you know. On the 0:04:09.280 --> 0:04:12.600 note of not only taxes, but Texas as well, we 0:04:12.600 --> 0:04:15.400 know Texas is still recovering from the storms from last week. 0:04:15.720 --> 0:04:17.400 We know things have been crazy out there right due 0:04:17.440 --> 0:04:20.400 to the storms. We definitely feel for everyone who is suffering. 0:04:20.440 --> 0:04:24.039 But there is some good news regarding UH taxes. The 0:04:24.200 --> 0:04:28.000 tax deadline has been extended to June for residents of 0:04:28.040 --> 0:04:31.960 Texas as well as other states that had disaster declarations 0:04:31.960 --> 0:04:34.839 issued by FEMA. And so this also means that affected 0:04:34.880 --> 0:04:39.560 taxpayers will have until June ira A contributions as well 0:04:39.600 --> 0:04:42.000 as quarterly estimates as well, if that's something that you 0:04:42.040 --> 0:04:44.039 have to pay. Yeah, smart moved by the I r S. 0:04:44.440 --> 0:04:47.159 Very helpful to the people of Texas that have suffered 0:04:47.200 --> 0:04:50.160 greatly in recent weeks. And Matt two, let's talk about 0:04:50.160 --> 0:04:52.760 how people at an individual level can actually help some 0:04:52.800 --> 0:04:54.800 of the people out there in Texas to you can 0:04:54.880 --> 0:04:57.479 donate and help people that were affected by the extreme 0:04:57.520 --> 0:05:00.600 weather and power outages. The Houston Food Ban is collecting 0:05:00.640 --> 0:05:03.400 donations to help feed people. They're saying that a hundred 0:05:03.400 --> 0:05:05.680 and fifty meals can be provided with a donation of 0:05:05.720 --> 0:05:08.760 just fifty bucks, which is really cool. And so in Oklahoma, 0:05:09.040 --> 0:05:11.440 the Homeless Alliance is doing something similar. Will link to 0:05:11.520 --> 0:05:13.400 an article that The New York Times published where you 0:05:13.400 --> 0:05:15.880 can learn how to donate, how you can help, and 0:05:15.920 --> 0:05:18.320 also we'll put a link to Charity Navigator in our 0:05:18.320 --> 0:05:20.159 show notes as well. But if you've got a little 0:05:20.200 --> 0:05:22.520 bit of extra money and you're feeling generous, those people 0:05:22.640 --> 0:05:24.920 went through a lot and so if you can spare 0:05:24.920 --> 0:05:27.960 some money to donate in that direction, we would encourage it. Yeah, 0:05:28.000 --> 0:05:29.919 I mean the reason who we mentioned Charity Navigator is 0:05:29.920 --> 0:05:32.560 that anytime there is a crisis or or folks who 0:05:32.600 --> 0:05:35.720 are asking for money, sometimes you'll hear from organizations kind 0:05:35.720 --> 0:05:37.080 of out of the wood work, you know, they'll kind 0:05:37.080 --> 0:05:38.280 of just show up, and you want to make sure 0:05:38.320 --> 0:05:41.040 that you are giving to an organization that is doing 0:05:41.080 --> 0:05:42.880 what you want them to do, that's legit. Yeah, you 0:05:42.880 --> 0:05:45.479 want to vet that organization and charity navigators in place 0:05:45.520 --> 0:05:47.440 to do it. Yeah. Yeah, So let's shift gears. Let's 0:05:47.440 --> 0:05:49.520 talk about the wedding industry, man, which is, by the way, 0:05:49.640 --> 0:05:53.400 a seventy three billion dollar market, and really, of course, 0:05:53.440 --> 0:05:56.560 that industry saw a massive shift last year. The Washington 0:05:56.600 --> 0:06:00.560 Post reports that about eight of couples post owned or 0:06:00.680 --> 0:06:04.920 canceled their ceremonies, and those who still had weddings massively 0:06:05.080 --> 0:06:08.160 scaled back for obvious reasons. But it's interesting that though 0:06:08.520 --> 0:06:11.719 couples cut back on some things like venues and catering, 0:06:12.000 --> 0:06:15.680 they redirected that money towards things like bigger and more 0:06:15.720 --> 0:06:19.000 expensive floral arrangements and wedding rings as well. So they're 0:06:19.000 --> 0:06:21.640 not doing just the cheap silicone rings like I'm doing. No. 0:06:22.440 --> 0:06:23.919 I kind of wish they would have, you know, like 0:06:23.920 --> 0:06:25.280 it would have been an awesome way to just save 0:06:25.320 --> 0:06:27.280 money overall. But folks, they I don't know, they I 0:06:27.320 --> 0:06:28.960 guess they still wanted to spend that money, but they 0:06:28.960 --> 0:06:31.160 just spend it in other areas. There's there's this other 0:06:31.200 --> 0:06:34.360 couple too, who said that they're planning to spend more 0:06:34.839 --> 0:06:36.760 on their honeymoon. In fact, they were gonna go on 0:06:36.760 --> 0:06:40.599 two honeymoons instead of just one, the old double honey Yeah. 0:06:41.000 --> 0:06:43.600 Once uh, you know, once travel is able to open up, 0:06:43.600 --> 0:06:46.240 and so it's just an interesting observation of kind of 0:06:46.279 --> 0:06:48.800 what's happening there within that industry. I gotta say I 0:06:48.800 --> 0:06:50.840 am in favor of the double honeymoon, Like why not? 0:06:50.960 --> 0:06:53.680 Man Like, especially if you're able to save money on 0:06:53.760 --> 0:06:55.960 other parts of your wedding right now and you can 0:06:56.000 --> 0:06:58.480 spring for two awesome trips, go for it. I'm sure 0:06:58.480 --> 0:07:00.400 the story how Kate and I went on two honeymoons, Yeah, 0:07:00.440 --> 0:07:02.719 because of the hurricane. The hurricane and Jamaica. So we 0:07:02.760 --> 0:07:04.680 had our initial kind of week off you know that 0:07:04.720 --> 0:07:07.080 we had planned, uh, and so we instead just kind 0:07:07.080 --> 0:07:09.800 of found a really affordable bed and breakfast in Charleston 0:07:09.800 --> 0:07:11.680 and spent the time at the beach. But then, yeah, 0:07:11.720 --> 0:07:13.640 because of that hurricane, we were able to then go 0:07:13.720 --> 0:07:15.760 on the actual honeymoon and go to Jamaica, and we 0:07:15.800 --> 0:07:18.200 did that over Thanksgiving. It was slightly shorter, but we 0:07:18.280 --> 0:07:19.840 got two trips out of it that fall. See, you're 0:07:19.840 --> 0:07:22.840 a fancy dude. You've been on two hunting super nice. 0:07:22.840 --> 0:07:24.840 All you need is a hurricane to line up. Yeah, 0:07:25.680 --> 0:07:27.800 it's similar to travel. There's going to be like a 0:07:27.880 --> 0:07:30.480 lot of pent up demand. Of course, in the wedding industry, 0:07:30.720 --> 0:07:32.840 things are going to ramp back up this summer in 0:07:32.840 --> 0:07:35.440 a big way in all likelihood. But the problem is, Matt, 0:07:35.680 --> 0:07:37.200 that there are going to be a lot of wedding 0:07:37.240 --> 0:07:39.000 vendors who are gonna be booked up and won't be 0:07:39.040 --> 0:07:40.840 able to meet the demand because I don't know what 0:07:40.920 --> 0:07:42.560 twice as many people are gonna want to get married 0:07:42.600 --> 0:07:44.680 this summer as in a normal Yeah, I mean there's 0:07:44.680 --> 0:07:46.760 there are certain vendors who can only do one thing 0:07:46.760 --> 0:07:49.040 a day, Like as a former wedding photographer, there's only 0:07:49.080 --> 0:07:50.840 one wedding I'm going to shoot that day. Like same 0:07:50.840 --> 0:07:53.440 thing with venues as well, like there's typically only one 0:07:53.520 --> 0:07:55.040 wedding that you can knows per day. You can't just 0:07:55.080 --> 0:07:58.320 like work harder and in order to meet all this demand, 0:07:58.360 --> 0:08:00.760 can't be in two places at once. And as more 0:08:00.880 --> 0:08:03.440 venues are booked up, and you know more photographers are 0:08:03.480 --> 0:08:05.680 booked up, um, you know you're gonna have to make 0:08:05.720 --> 0:08:08.240 some different choices if you're planning to get married this summer. 0:08:08.480 --> 0:08:10.080 In a particular, if you're a listener and you've got 0:08:10.080 --> 0:08:12.440 a cool space, you might want to consider listening it 0:08:12.600 --> 0:08:15.760 on a site like pier space or this open space 0:08:15.800 --> 0:08:17.840 dot com. More couples are gonna be out there looking 0:08:17.920 --> 0:08:20.480 at less traditional platforms to play in their wedding because 0:08:20.520 --> 0:08:23.120 some of the traditional wedding venues are going to be 0:08:23.200 --> 0:08:25.239 all booked up. So if you have a place where 0:08:25.320 --> 0:08:27.520 you're like, man, people will be interested in getting married 0:08:27.560 --> 0:08:29.320 in my yard. Um, I've got a nice little thing. 0:08:29.400 --> 0:08:31.240 We can make a fancy pergola or something where people 0:08:31.360 --> 0:08:33.680 get get married, toss some seating out there. You know, 0:08:33.720 --> 0:08:35.520 I might want to consider, you know, listening your space 0:08:35.520 --> 0:08:37.040 because you might be able to make some money off 0:08:37.040 --> 0:08:38.840 of it. Yeah. I mean, like some folks might have 0:08:38.880 --> 0:08:41.120 had an airbnb and instead they're like, you know what, 0:08:41.160 --> 0:08:43.720 I don't want to do like the every two days 0:08:43.760 --> 0:08:45.760 cleaning thing instead, Like what if we just host a 0:08:45.800 --> 0:08:47.920 party every weekend or something like that. I think it 0:08:47.960 --> 0:08:49.520 all just depends on what kind of space you have, 0:08:49.600 --> 0:08:52.000 you know. I think folks are realizing that people are 0:08:52.160 --> 0:08:54.439 down to get married wherever, you know, like a farm 0:08:54.480 --> 0:08:56.640 that overlooks the mountains. Sure, like it doesn't have to 0:08:56.640 --> 0:08:58.760 be some traditional chapel you know, in the middle of 0:08:58.800 --> 0:09:01.040 the city, like like I think folks are often used to, 0:09:01.400 --> 0:09:03.000 So that's definitely something to keep in mind as we're 0:09:03.120 --> 0:09:05.720 expecting things to kind of ramp back up this year. Also, 0:09:05.760 --> 0:09:09.200 we're seeing gasoline prices really continue to climb since this 0:09:09.280 --> 0:09:12.600 past winter, in large part because demand is increasing as 0:09:12.640 --> 0:09:16.200 as COVID numbers are starting to go down. The national 0:09:16.240 --> 0:09:19.280 averages now around two dollars and six cents a gallon, 0:09:19.600 --> 0:09:22.000 and experts are saying that that's actually only going to 0:09:22.040 --> 0:09:24.800 get worse in the coming weeks with refineries that shut 0:09:24.840 --> 0:09:27.720 down because of all that winter weather. So you know, 0:09:27.720 --> 0:09:29.120 next time you're at the pump, maybe you can go 0:09:29.160 --> 0:09:31.640 ahead and fill up the tank all the way as 0:09:31.679 --> 0:09:33.760 opposed to just a quick fill. And if you don't 0:09:33.760 --> 0:09:36.400 already use it, the gas Buddy app is a great 0:09:36.400 --> 0:09:38.480 app to look up to see the prices around you. 0:09:38.480 --> 0:09:39.920 You know, like we wouldn't recommend for you to drive 0:09:39.960 --> 0:09:42.120 across town just to save a few cents, but it 0:09:42.200 --> 0:09:44.600 is a convenient way to at least know where to look. 0:09:44.640 --> 0:09:47.160 If you've got two gas stations that are equidistant from 0:09:47.160 --> 0:09:48.920 your home, definitely go to the one that's ten cents 0:09:49.000 --> 0:09:50.439 cheaper man, and so we'll make sure to link to 0:09:50.520 --> 0:09:52.600 that app gas Buddy in our show notes. We will 0:09:52.800 --> 0:09:54.840 and also to make sure that you're putting those gas 0:09:54.960 --> 0:09:57.479 charges on the right credit card, because that can effectively 0:09:57.520 --> 0:10:00.000 lower the price you pay per gallon at the pump. Right. 0:10:00.360 --> 0:10:03.160 Having a dedicated gas credit card or card that you 0:10:03.200 --> 0:10:04.880 know gives you the best cash back at the gas 0:10:04.880 --> 0:10:07.520 station is a no brainer, and so if you're a 0:10:07.559 --> 0:10:10.160 Sam's Club or Costco member, those cards offer the best 0:10:10.200 --> 0:10:13.400 cash back on purchases that you make when you're fueling 0:10:13.480 --> 0:10:16.920 up five percent and four percent, respectively. It's also important 0:10:16.920 --> 0:10:20.040 to remember that for most people, even as gas prices rise, 0:10:20.360 --> 0:10:23.440 they're often still a small sliver of your overall budget. 0:10:23.520 --> 0:10:26.080 So don't freak out. Don't go swapping your SUV for 0:10:26.120 --> 0:10:29.280 a new Prius just because gas got more expensive. I know, 0:10:29.320 --> 0:10:30.920 as I read these headlines, Matt, I kind of start 0:10:31.000 --> 0:10:33.320 to miss my niecean Leaf a little bit. You't you do? Yeah, 0:10:33.360 --> 0:10:36.480 but I'm like, electricity so much cheaper than gas. But um, 0:10:36.480 --> 0:10:37.800 but really, when it comes down to it, we don't 0:10:37.880 --> 0:10:40.160 drive very much, and obviously what we're saving by having 0:10:40.160 --> 0:10:43.840 only one car versus too far outweighs the additional price 0:10:43.840 --> 0:10:46.160 that we're gonna pay in gas. Also to one quick 0:10:46.200 --> 0:10:49.280 note update, the mileage that you're driving with your insurer. 0:10:49.360 --> 0:10:51.240 If you're not one of those people who's ramping back up, 0:10:51.280 --> 0:10:54.000 you're driving. If you have curbed, you're driving in large 0:10:54.040 --> 0:10:56.600 part due to COVID Let your insurer no, because you 0:10:56.640 --> 0:11:00.000 might be eligible for you know, discounts on your premiums 0:11:00.320 --> 0:11:03.360 because you drive under a certain amount of miles. That's right, man. 0:11:03.440 --> 0:11:05.959 And as gas prices rise, the exact opposite is actually 0:11:06.040 --> 0:11:08.760 happening in the world of solar. According to our World 0:11:08.760 --> 0:11:11.040 and data that the price of producing electricity via solar 0:11:11.040 --> 0:11:14.040 has plummeted eighty nine in the past ten years, which 0:11:14.080 --> 0:11:17.320 is remarkable. As solar paywall production has scaled up, these 0:11:17.360 --> 0:11:20.760 productivity gains are having a major impact on our ability 0:11:20.800 --> 0:11:23.880 to implement solar more broadly at an individual level on 0:11:23.880 --> 0:11:26.520 our own roof. And you know, utility companies are opting 0:11:26.559 --> 0:11:29.040 for solar over say, you know, let's you know, like 0:11:29.040 --> 0:11:31.559 building a new natural gas plant. Uh. It's incredible to 0:11:31.600 --> 0:11:34.320 see how solar has gone from kind of the most 0:11:34.320 --> 0:11:37.280 expensive way to produce power to the cheapest in just 0:11:37.440 --> 0:11:40.320 a decade, and they're still federal tax credits available to 0:11:40.400 --> 0:11:42.600 for folks. So this year, if you install a new 0:11:42.640 --> 0:11:45.839 solar system on your house, you still get a federal 0:11:45.920 --> 0:11:47.960 tax credit, which is pretty sweet, and that it's actually 0:11:47.960 --> 0:11:51.320 set to expire in two unless the government steps in, 0:11:51.360 --> 0:11:53.560 which they might then they might. Yeah, but it is 0:11:53.720 --> 0:11:56.280 really incredible to see. We'll link to that article map, 0:11:56.320 --> 0:12:00.120 but the visual to see what's happened with solar prices 0:12:00.120 --> 0:12:03.080 over a decade. It's just like it's it blows your 0:12:03.080 --> 0:12:05.920 mind that the solar prices have plummeted that far um 0:12:05.960 --> 0:12:08.120 and that it used to literally be ten years ago, 0:12:08.200 --> 0:12:10.719 like the most expensive way to generate power, and now 0:12:10.760 --> 0:12:13.280 it's literally the cheapest. And with a tax credit too. 0:12:13.320 --> 0:12:14.559 It could make sense for a lot of people. It 0:12:14.600 --> 0:12:16.400 doesn't make sense for everyone. There are other factors you 0:12:16.440 --> 0:12:18.400 have to uh, you have to think about when you're 0:12:18.600 --> 0:12:20.760 designing to install solo at your house, but it could 0:12:20.840 --> 0:12:22.720 make sense for a lot of people, especially you know, 0:12:22.760 --> 0:12:24.839 with that tax credit still hanging around. That's right, when 0:12:24.840 --> 0:12:27.720 the sun is not shining, you don't make power, That 0:12:27.840 --> 0:12:29.840 is true. But we got more to get to, including 0:12:29.880 --> 0:12:33.920 some interesting stuff about credit reporting errors and maybe something 0:12:33.920 --> 0:12:37.240 that the Biden administration plans to do about that. We'll 0:12:37.240 --> 0:12:48.560 get to that and more right after this break. Al Right, 0:12:48.559 --> 0:12:50.800 we are back and it's time now for our ludicrous 0:12:50.800 --> 0:12:53.760 headline of the week. There was a pretty ludicrous headline 0:12:53.760 --> 0:12:56.320 that we saw from CNBC and this one was titled 0:12:56.720 --> 0:13:00.000 millionaire who bought a home that regrets paying off as 0:13:00.040 --> 0:13:02.760 mortgage early. Uh. And then they had a quote from 0:13:02.840 --> 0:13:04.600 him which is, this is the biggest downside no one 0:13:04.640 --> 0:13:07.320 tells you. Uh. And you know, part of the reason 0:13:07.320 --> 0:13:09.280 we chose this article is because the headline is kind 0:13:09.280 --> 0:13:11.760 of tough to stomach. Let's all, I feel sorry for 0:13:11.840 --> 0:13:13.920 the millionaire who you know, paid off his mortgage right 0:13:13.960 --> 0:13:16.560 I'm playing my little violine over here right now. But 0:13:16.880 --> 0:13:20.480 I mean, despite the kind of crummy clickbait headline, the 0:13:20.480 --> 0:13:23.600 the actual content of the article had some surprise, like 0:13:23.640 --> 0:13:25.400 really helpful advice, you know, if you are one of 0:13:25.400 --> 0:13:28.600 those people who might be a bit obsessed with paying 0:13:28.600 --> 0:13:31.120 off your mortgage early. Yeah. I agree that it was 0:13:31.160 --> 0:13:35.480 a ludicrous headline, but actually had some legit helpful money insights. Uh. 0:13:35.600 --> 0:13:38.680 The author his name Sam. He goes by financial Samurai 0:13:38.720 --> 0:13:41.400 on the on the internet. On the webs. He he 0:13:41.440 --> 0:13:44.320 detailed his obsession with paying off his mortgage early. He 0:13:44.360 --> 0:13:46.360 and his wife were able to get their mortgage paid 0:13:46.360 --> 0:13:48.480 off in just twelve years, which is pretty good, right. 0:13:48.760 --> 0:13:50.200 A lot of people will be happy with that, would 0:13:50.240 --> 0:13:51.720 be thrilled to be able to pay off their mortgage 0:13:51.720 --> 0:13:54.440 in that amount of time. But once that mortgage was 0:13:54.600 --> 0:13:56.960 paid off, Sam kind of details how he lost his 0:13:57.000 --> 0:14:00.960 psychological edge to continue making financial prog rest. He saw 0:14:01.000 --> 0:14:05.240 that additional bucks a month that he was paying towards 0:14:05.240 --> 0:14:07.960 his mortgage kind of as extra spending money in his life, 0:14:08.000 --> 0:14:09.920 and he kind of started to soak it in and 0:14:09.920 --> 0:14:12.560 and you just buying more stuff, and that curbed. He 0:14:12.600 --> 0:14:14.880 also said some of his desire to hit some of 0:14:14.880 --> 0:14:17.320 the other financial goals that he had for himself, and 0:14:17.360 --> 0:14:18.960 that you know, when I was reading that, I could 0:14:18.960 --> 0:14:22.520 totally identify with Sam in that regard. Like as as 0:14:23.120 --> 0:14:26.520 our family wealth has continued to grow, fortunately, I've had 0:14:26.560 --> 0:14:29.000 to set up mental and physical roadbox to prevent me 0:14:29.240 --> 0:14:31.800 from seeing or using that money. It's helpful that you 0:14:31.840 --> 0:14:35.000 know most of the wealth that I'm accumulating is in 0:14:35.080 --> 0:14:37.760 retirement accounts that I can't touch for decades anyway, right, 0:14:38.040 --> 0:14:40.080 and in home equity that's harder to get to. I 0:14:40.080 --> 0:14:43.680 can mentally convince myself that it doesn't really exist. Now, 0:14:43.680 --> 0:14:45.080 you can't just show up at the bank and take 0:14:45.120 --> 0:14:47.280 some money out of that home equity account. Yeah, exactly, 0:14:47.720 --> 0:14:49.440 you have a helo, which I guess I could do. 0:14:49.640 --> 0:14:52.040 But like knowing that it's over there, it's siphoned off, 0:14:52.080 --> 0:14:55.560 it feels like it's very removed from your every day spending. Yeah, 0:14:55.560 --> 0:14:57.880 it feels like vapor money that doesn't exist. And obviously, 0:14:58.000 --> 0:14:59.960 you know, someday if I sold the home, it would, 0:15:00.400 --> 0:15:02.880 But I'm all about these kind of tricks that keep 0:15:02.960 --> 0:15:05.400 us motivated and on track. And for Sam, paying off 0:15:05.400 --> 0:15:08.000 his mortgage, um kind of took him off the track 0:15:08.040 --> 0:15:09.680 that he wanted to be on. Yeah, I mean, and 0:15:09.720 --> 0:15:11.600 we would never want to stand in the way of 0:15:11.680 --> 0:15:13.560 someone who is, you know, attempting to pay off their 0:15:13.640 --> 0:15:17.280 debt and do so in short order, especially when we're 0:15:17.280 --> 0:15:19.440 talking about high interest rate debt like credit card debt. 0:15:19.720 --> 0:15:21.240 In that case, we would recommend for folks to pay 0:15:21.240 --> 0:15:24.160 it off quickly. There's no downside in terms of math 0:15:24.400 --> 0:15:26.720 or psychology, but attempting to pay off your mortgage as 0:15:26.800 --> 0:15:30.040 quickly as possible can have downsides on both fronts, So 0:15:30.120 --> 0:15:32.160 we just want folks to be aware before you put 0:15:32.240 --> 0:15:35.120 too much energy into that pursuit. Like, honestly, I think 0:15:35.120 --> 0:15:37.200 in the end, what folks need to do once they've 0:15:37.200 --> 0:15:39.160 achieved a goal like that is to remember, like why 0:15:39.200 --> 0:15:41.480 it is that they set out to achieve that goal, right, 0:15:41.840 --> 0:15:43.880 And so if for you, maybe that meant like being 0:15:43.880 --> 0:15:46.360 able to step out of like a more stressful work situation, 0:15:46.880 --> 0:15:48.680 maybe part of the reasoning was for you to spend 0:15:48.680 --> 0:15:50.080 more money, right, Like if you want to be able 0:15:50.120 --> 0:15:52.400 to increase how much you spent on vacation every year, 0:15:52.480 --> 0:15:53.600 or like how much you want to be able to 0:15:53.640 --> 0:15:55.920 give away, it's just important to kind of loop back 0:15:55.960 --> 0:15:58.160 around and revisit why it is that you had set 0:15:58.160 --> 0:15:59.880 these financial goals, and just to make sure that you're 0:16:00.040 --> 0:16:02.160 you're kind of seeing to those you know. Like I 0:16:02.160 --> 0:16:03.440 guess the idea is that we want to make sure 0:16:03.480 --> 0:16:06.000 that you're not just by default, just spending more money 0:16:06.400 --> 0:16:08.640 without really thinking about it. Like all of a sudden, 0:16:08.680 --> 0:16:11.120 you're like buying more junk on Amazon, You're getting more 0:16:11.160 --> 0:16:14.320 meals delivered over priced meals delivered to your door because 0:16:14.320 --> 0:16:16.760 you don't feel like cooking. It's things like that. It's 0:16:16.800 --> 0:16:20.840 the mindless consumption that we're against here, not necessarily the 0:16:21.280 --> 0:16:24.320 consumption that you've sought out to pursue. Uh. And these 0:16:24.360 --> 0:16:26.680 financial goals have allowed you to pursue those goals. If 0:16:26.680 --> 0:16:28.400 you if you pay off your mortgage in twelve years, 0:16:28.400 --> 0:16:31.760 you're you're obviously being intentional. Right, that's a that's a 0:16:31.880 --> 0:16:33.680 very specific goal you said not to achieve and then 0:16:33.720 --> 0:16:36.120 you hit it. But once that happens, you almost have 0:16:36.160 --> 0:16:38.480 to be intentional again, right, you have to figure out 0:16:38.560 --> 0:16:40.120 what what's the next thing I want to tackle, What's 0:16:40.200 --> 0:16:42.200 what's the next place I want to go with this money, 0:16:42.200 --> 0:16:44.360 and not just achieve a goal? Um, and then you 0:16:44.400 --> 0:16:48.120 know sit back and get lazy. Well and that yeah, yeah, 0:16:48.160 --> 0:16:49.920 and and setting new goals is super important. But I 0:16:49.920 --> 0:16:51.960 guess what I'm kind of honding on on like making 0:16:52.000 --> 0:16:53.880 sure that you achieve that goal and then make sure 0:16:54.040 --> 0:16:56.160 like you think about why it is that you've even 0:16:56.200 --> 0:16:58.080 set that goal to begin with, you know, and like 0:16:58.200 --> 0:17:01.200 actually make sure you realize the things that you wanted 0:17:01.200 --> 0:17:03.200 to achieve with that goal. But yeah, like setting that 0:17:03.240 --> 0:17:05.000 next goal is super important though, as well, to make 0:17:05.000 --> 0:17:07.359 sure that like cool. Otherwise you're gonna just kind of 0:17:07.400 --> 0:17:10.199 coast along. Make sure that you are just living the 0:17:10.200 --> 0:17:11.919 life you want to live totally. All right, let's get 0:17:11.960 --> 0:17:15.120 to credit reports. Matt. We mentioned briefly at the beginning 0:17:15.119 --> 0:17:17.880 of the episode the Equifax credit breach of a few 0:17:17.920 --> 0:17:20.119 years back, and it turns out that more Americans are 0:17:20.200 --> 0:17:23.560 reporting errors on their credit reports these days. According to 0:17:23.640 --> 0:17:27.879 the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, consumer complaints about errors found 0:17:28.000 --> 0:17:31.760 on a personal credit report doubled in the past year alone, 0:17:32.000 --> 0:17:35.960