The Stacking Benjamins Show

Ever wonder HOW you can finally get ahead? While some people moan that they just can't seem to make ends meet, Craig Curelop worked from the opposite strategy: he realized that EVERYTHING is for sale. Today we'll talk to the 24 year-old who's hacked his house, his car, and more to get ahead. He's biked to work, slept on his couch...and his old boss said he'd even rent you his underwear. Craig shows us all how we can get ahead if we're willing to go the extra mile. Plus, what funds have had the worst returns in 2019? We'll share the list, which is interesting (to say the least). Not only that, but we'll also watch OG maybe throw up in his mouth as we tackle target-date funds. New information shows that maybe the big brokerages know these tools are broken...or at the least, suboptimal for many people. That's not all. Of course, we'll also finish out the show with some of Doug's absolutely amazing trivia! It's gonna be fantastic! Hit play already! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

While everyone else panics about student loans, what if YOU were able to reach your dream of a great education and ZERO debt? Wouldn't that be awesome? You're going to love our featured interview with Anthony ONeal, author of Debt-Free Degree and Dave Ramsey personality. Between fantastic advice on choosing the right school, lowering your tuition amount, and earning scholarships... Anthony has a plethora of actionable steps you (or anyone else you know) can take to graduate with a degree, but WITHOUT being shackled to loans. Buying a car? In our headlines segment we'll talk about the HUGE number of people who are "underwater" on their auto loans. Maybe that's the new epidemic. We'll talk about how to handle auto loans much more effectively, plus, we'll also talk about one new piece pushing the claim millennials should be happy that they're stuck renting their house. We'll do a dive into today's pieces and naturally give our two cents as well. Later we'll throw out the Haven Life Line to Kathy, who has some questions on the differences between two savings accounts at her bank. Kathy thought she should be earning more on her savings, but it turns out her bank actually has two different versions of their savings accounts, and she's been putting her cash into a lower-earning account. What's the deal with that? As always, we'll save some time for Doug's trivia. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

We've all had those days. Nothing went right at work and on the way home you KNOW you'd feel better if you just stopped at the (insert favorite store) and bought...that expensive (or inexpensive thing). On Instagram, that's often called self-care. But is it destructive? In a recent viral YouTube video, Chelsea Fagan of The Financial Diet lays out her thoughts. We'll play a clip and then jump into a fascinating discussion on the topic with Jacob Wade, from IHeartBudgets.net, and basement regular Len Penzo, of the LenPenzo.com blog. Whether you own a business or are thinking about starting a side hustle, one problem we KNOW you'll have is handling your books. How come current bookkeeping and business management software programs don't work together? A company working at solving that puzzle is called Roger.ia, and halfway through the show, we'll take a break from our discussion to talk to Catherine Anderson, the cofounder of Roger. Catherine will walk us through how Roger does everything from fraud detection to team management, bill pay, and how it even helps out with possible audits. During our Magnify Money segment, we'll answer a voicemail from William, who will be retiring soon. William and his wife are still paying on the mortgage, but they have some savings they could tap into. Here's the question: Should William use their extra savings towards the mortgage, or keep the cash liquid as an emergency fund? We'll answer Will's question and still save some time for Doug's trivia. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Ever wonder why you don't reach any of your goals? Tom and Ariana Sylvester were there. Over $70k in debt, newly married...they needed a plan. BUT more than that, they needed a way to STICK TO their plan. Today they join us in the basement to share the method they've used to achieve some amazing goals. In our headlines segment, we'll discuss a possible merger between two big companies. What happens when you own shares of a company and it's swallowed by another? What happens if the company whose shares you own devours another? We'll use this current news to discuss how mergers work from the viewpoint of a shareholder. Then, after a little dose of Doug's trivia, we'll wind up the show by throwing out the Haven Life line to a lucky listener, as always. Today's question? Is Social Security going to go extinct faster if younger people join the FIRE movement? Enjoy! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Raising financial literacy rates in the country is not only important for the population at large but especially for military service members. That's why we're honoring service members this Veteran's Day with some HUGE advice from Ellie Kay, founder of the Heroes at Home program. The program provides military members and their families financial education on how to get out of debt, save more, and how to make their dollar go further. Today she'll share resources for veterans and current military members alike, plus there are LOTS of takeaways for those of you who aren't military-related. During our headlines segment, we'll take a look at another brokerage firm slashing fees and the reactions of two other CEOs in the industry. Are you missing out by not chasing lower fees? We'll give our thoughts, plus, cover a second piece about the wife of a convicted Ponzi scheme fraudster. She recently pleaded guilty to trying to cash in on $26,000 in credit card points - points earned from the Ponzi scheme of course. Later in the show, we'll throw out the Haven Life Line to Peter, who has recently become an uncle. Peter wants to set up his niece with some investments to help her later in life, but he's not sure what to do. He doesn't want to lock up the money in education funds, but he doesn't want it freely available either. Options? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

We're finishing out our rewind week with one very interesting topic: should you marry for money? Tune back in next week for another 8 weeks of brand new shows! We'll kick the week off with featured guest Ellie Kay. You can read our original show notes below:  While people say that marrying for money is a horrible reason to wed...are there positives? We ask Len Penzo and special guest Jessica Moorhouse from the Mo' Money podcast, that question...and as usual, the answer isn't what you'd expect. Plus, we talk about guaranteed income streams. It seems everyone wants one...but is the cost of a guarantee worth it? Finally, we'll tackle the video everyone's been talking about...the professor on the BBC who's interrupted by family. What are some workplace gaffes that WE'VE had happen? You'll laugh with us (and probably at us). During our FinTech segment we talk to Jon Ziglar from Parkmobile about some much-needed technology. How about an app that helps you find and pay for parking without all of the hassle? We'll ask him how it works on today's podcast. Thanks to MagnifyMoney.com for sponsoring our show! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

We're taking a look back to an episode originally aired in 2016 about a crazy story that left our guest traumatized. She went on to use that fear to change her life for the better. Here is our original show description: A horrifying event changed Leisa Peterson’s life…for the better. What happened? That’s what we’ll discuss with her on this show, along with a great discussion on fear. Plus, we’ll talk about crazy things people buy with student loan money AND answer questions from Amy about when to hire a financial advisor and from Michael about when to diversify his investments. There’s ALL of that and more on today’s show! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

How about a kick in the pants financially? Deacon Hayes got one...and today, you're going to get one too, especially if you want to be motivated to pay off debt. Let's get that debt paid! Today we bring you one of our FAVORITE episodes. If you're new here, every eight weeks we take a week off to organize and plan our next two months' shows. The good news for you? This whole week we're going to feature some of our favorite episodes from the past! While markets may change from week to week, great financial advice doesn't. Here's the original show notes from two years ago: Thinking about retiring early but you're stuck in neutral with your debt? Maybe it's time to change your money habits. Deacon Hayes (recent winner of the Plutus' Blog Of The Year award), joins us to tell his personal "getting his money act together" story, that YOU can also use to get out of debt and start on your road to early retirement. Then we talk about retiring early, the topic of his new book. From investing in stocks to real estate and business, we cover MANY avenues you can use to work like Deacon, who's on a path to financial independence in his early 40's. In our headline segment today we'll tackle a story about an icon who just sold nine figures worth of stock. What does this have to do with your portfolio and investments? It has a LOT to do with you, if you're accumulating stock in a single company. We'll also detail a recent shopping trend.  How much has online shopping overtaken the Black Friday experience? What does this mean for your holiday shopping this year? We'll discuss it on today's show. We'll also throw out the Haven Life Line, answer a listener letter, and also try to answer a tough trivia question from Doug. That's just the beginning of the fun we're having on today's Stacking Benjamins podcast! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

You have your financial plan, you've cut back on the lattes and the subscriptions, you've downsized your home, you know how much debt you need to pay off each month, and you've socked away LOTS of cash... right? In the race to financial freedom, is that it? Maybe not. On today's roundtable discussion the gang will tackle a recent blog post that says, "Maybe there's something ELSE you should be paying attention to, first." Diving in today, we're excited to feature our long time regulars: Paula Pant of the Afford Anything podcast, Len Penzo of LenPenzo.com, and from our very own podcast: OG. We'll take a break halfway through the show while Joe sits down with Michael Bovee from Resolve. Resolve is a company that's setting out to be your personal guide out of financial stress, and Michael will share just how the company intends to do that. During the Magnify Money segment we'll answer a question one of our listeners posted in the Stacking Benjamins facebook group. When you know you'll be needing to sell and buy a home and the next 5-10 years, how would you prioritize saving? Our roundtable will weigh in with their two cents, and we'll still save some time for Doug's trivia. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Since October is almost Oct-over it's time to turn down the lights and look over your shoulder because today someone might be playing a spook-tacular Halloween episode for you! We'll share some simply horrifying stories about being an adult from Amanda Holden (AKA the Dumpster Doggy). We'll also offer you a nice treat from Chuck Jaffe (The Money Life podcast) who will share how he tricks the treaters. But it's not all partying with fantastic friends, on this celebration of financial horror. In our headlines segment, we'll show you a super easy way to save some money...and it's one that's probably sitting in your house right now. Like a few extra Benjamins a year? We do! After a little dose of Doug's trivia, we'll wind up the show by throwing out the Haven Life line, as always. It's a fantastic, horrible, money-saving episode of Stacking Benjamins on tap! Enjoy. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices