Financial Tip of the Day

[ColinR]

Great tip! Sounds very similar to the great Dave Ramsey.

I'm on what I call the modified Ramsey plan. LOL

Pretty much everything we have is paid for except house and my wife's Tahoe. I do have truck itch really bad right now. Our deal on vehicles is we put at a minimum half down and pay them off in 3 years and then drive them another 5 to 7.

[Tex_Cattleman]

How often do you think mortgage loans get manual underwriting due to lack of a credit score? Where actual net worth and income is considered in honest versus a FICO and being good at spending someone else’s money?

I am really not sure. We we not manually underwrite secondary (think vanilla, low rate) loans. We manual underwrite only for bank-held loans, not secondary market loan. With bank loans, underwriter looks at the whole picture and uses their brain. Secondary, you have to meet Fannie/Freddie guidelines. It's a box with one round hole and you have to fit in regardless of your peg shape - even if it's made of gold.

[Throwin Darts]

Great post! In this world we live in where people "show off" material possessions constantly on social media it is important to operate in a state of contentment that isn't reliant upon keeping up with the Jones.

[tpack]

I read a quote from someone years ago when I was a lot younger and it has always stuck with me. I have known and worked with many people who live this way.

To many peoples needs are really "a want" that is parked in their neighbors drive way.

[Tyrex750]

Kidding fellas, we eat ramon noodles every night and live in a 1970 single wide and put all the money in the bank. Lol

[Rush2Judge]

Great post. I did not read it to mean save today so you can live tomorrow. I see it as more of a "spiritual" philosophy. There is nothing intrinsically wrong with material things. The problem comes when we get caught in the trap of envy or just thinking I can find happiness (true, long term happiness) through material things. If you can find true contentment with where you are and what you have or have achieved, then you will find yourself making fewer of those impulse purchases. At least that is how it has worked for me. Everyone has to live their own life.

[BLACKFINTURKEY]

MAN I CANNOT LIKE THIS ENOUGH!!!!

90% of americans live paycheck to paycheck. In debt and on plastic

This is awesome. Keep it up

Man I disagree most Americans live purchase to purchase not even pay check to check.

It’s a fine line imo save for tomorrow but live for today. You don’t need the best of everything but a happy medium. Life is so much easier when your not in debt to your neck and struggling to get by. With that being said I spend way to much on crap....

[Keith]

My newest vehicle is a 2011 we bought used, the others range from 1985 to 2009. My boat is a 1986, with way more money in electronics than the boat is worth. LOL We currently only owe for only our house. I learned many years ago that nobody is impressed with what I drive. I wish I had invested for retirement as soon as I graduated high school. I basically know nothing about the stock market, and I am scared to invest and loose it all.

[RR 314]

Kidding fellas, we eat ramon noodles every night and live in a 1970 single wide and put all the money in the bank. Lol

Leave Ramon's noodle alone. What in the cornbread heck?

[STGS]

My newest vehicle is a 2011 we bought used, the others range from 1985 to 2009. My boat is a 1986, with way more money in electronics than the boat is worth. LOL We currently only owe for only our house. I learned many years ago that nobody is impressed with what I drive. I wish I had invested for retirement as soon as I graduated high school. I basically know nothing about the stock market, and I am scared to invest and loose it all.

You highlight some great points. Fear of the markets, volatility and lack of information/control is real. NEVER, NEVER, NEVER invest your money in something you don't fully understand and feel comfortable with.... I don't understand crypto currencies, so I don't go anywhere near them.

If you want to learn more about the equities market(s), check out John Bogle's book titled, The Little Book of Common Sense Investing. The audio book is good and not very long. Highly encourage it if you want an easy to follow investment book.

[Bowtech2004]

What has worked for my family. If you can't buy it with cash and then you don't need to buy it. That does not work for everybody but it works for us.

[Keith]

You highlight some great points. Fear of the markets, volatility and lack of information/control is real. NEVER, NEVER, NEVER invest your money in something you don't fully understand and feel comfortable with.... I don't understand crypto currencies, so I don't go anywhere near them.



If you want to learn more about the equities market(s), check out John Bogle's book titled, The Little Book of Common Sense Investing. The audio book is good and not very long. Highly encourage it if you want an easy to follow investment book.

I'll check out that book. I'm 56 and hope to retire in about 10 years, but that's just wishful thinking. I do have both a ROTH and a standard IRA, but got out of the market about 2-3 years ago. It's all held as cash now.

Sent from my SM-N975U1 using Tapatalk

[Ksbowhunter]

I'll check out that book. I'm 56 and hope to retire in about 10 years, but that's just wishful thinking. I do have both a ROTH and a standard IRA, but got out of the market about 2-3 years ago. It's all held as cash now.

Sent from my SM-N975U1 using Tapatalk

Mutual funds are a great option. The risk is spread across many companies. Look for funds with long track records of a solid return. At your age and risk tolerance you might look for funds with a heavier Cash / bond weight to them. Lower return but lower risk. An investment pro such as Edwards jones will be able to help “educate” you. Education is key. It’s your cash

[TxAg]

When you forego purchases today, you have more money to invest for tomorrow. Here's a 401k example.





"The full table is below. It’s very easy to use. You just need to look at the first column and find the number of years you’ve worked. The Accumulated Value column shows how much your 401k would be worth if you’ve maxed out your contribution right from the beginning. The 4th column shows the max contributions for the corresponding years."






Credit: https://retireby40.org/what-if-always-maxed-401k/

[rut-ro]

You are splitting hairs honestly. We could all survive with a campfire on the side of a creek......sabe?

February 14,2021-February 21,2021 disproved this theory.

Sorry could not resist but I get what the OP is saying k