Time for a Friday Flight- our little sampling of the week’s financial news and what it means for your personal finances. There are a lot of headlines out there, but we boil them down to specific takeaways that will allow you to kick off the weekend informed and help you to get ahead with your money. In this episode we explain some relevant and helpful stories like:

• Government shutdown federal layoffs
• Deploying a Bare Bones Budget
• Accidental landlords
• Ending capital gains on primary residences
• Space heaters to the rescue
• $30 home (mint)ternet
• Rent vs attending a wedding
• WFH premium
• Debilitating debt
• Perceived importance of college
• College discounts
• The necessity of creative destruction

Want more How To Money in your life? Here are some additional ways to get ahead with your personal finances:

• Knowing your ‘money gear’ is a crucial part of your personal finance journey. Start here.
• Sign up for the weekly HTM newsletter. It’s fun, free, & practical.
• Join a thriving community of fellow money in the HTM Facebook group.
• Massively reduce your cell phone bill each month by switching to a discount provider like Mint Mobile.

And please help us to spread the word by letting friends and family know about How to Money! Hit the share button, subscribe if you’re not already a regular listener, and give us a quick review in Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. Help us to change the conversation around personal finance and get more people doing smart things with their money. Have an awesome weekend!

Best friends out!

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Our guest today is a self professed personal finance oddball! Len Penzo spent 35 years in the aerospace industry before retiring at age 58 as an electrical engineer. Along the way he launched LenPenzo.com in December 2008 (he even helped to give Joel a start writing personal finance content back in the day). Since then, the blog has drawn millions of readers and earned awards from publications like Kiplinger. Len’s work has appeared in outlets like Forbes, Time, Business Insider, CBS MoneyWatch, and he’s been featured on radio and TV segments. And he now has a new book out called True Money Stories that’s about the intersection of money and family life. We discuss:

• Intelligence vs. financial management
• Running household finances like a business
• The importance of honesty in personal finance
• Allowing children to make financial mistakes
• The annual sandwich survey and inflation
• Navigating retirement and long-term care
• And much more!

Want more How To Money in your life? Here are some additional ways to get ahead with your personal finances:

• Check out Len’s book True Money Stories, more of his writings at his site, and follow over on X.
• Knowing your ‘money gear’ is a crucial part of your personal finance journey. Start here.
• Sign up for the weekly HTM newsletter. It’s fun, free, & practical.
• Find a thriving community of fellow money nerds by joining the HTM Facebook group!
• Massively reduce your cell phone bill each month by switching to a discount provider like Mint Mobile.

And please help us to spread the word by letting friends and family know about How to Money! Hit the share button, subscribe if you’re not already a regular listener, and give us a quick review in Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. Help us to change the conversation around personal finance and get more people doing smart things with their money!

Best friends out!

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Let’s kick off the week with some fresh listener questions we have lined up for you! And don't just stand on the sidelines- if you have a question you’d like us to answer, toss your voice memo our way. It only takes about 90 seconds to record and you can find a step by step guide over at HowToMoney.com/ask . Regardless of how random or bizarre you might think it is, we want to hear it!

1 - eBay: when to list and when to sell locally?

2 - Quarterly estimates: making estimates vs increasing withholding to avoid the tax shock

3 - Backdoor Roth IRA: is the window closing to make backdoor Roth IRA contributions?

4 - Buying a home: when it makes sense to make an as-is offer?

5 - Selling a home: what should I do if the appraisal comes back below the offer price?

Want more How To Money in your life? Here are some additional ways to get ahead with your personal finances:

• We referenced this holistic tax planning conversation with CFP Cody Garrett.
• Knowing your ‘money gear’ is a crucial part of your personal finance journey. Start here.
• Sign up for the weekly HTM newsletter. It’s fun, free, & practical.
• Join a thriving community of fellow money in the HTM Facebook group.
• Massively reduce your cell phone bill each month by switching to a discount provider like Mint Mobile.

During this episode we enjoyed a Rice Lager by Hi-Wire Brewing! And please help us to spread the word by letting friends and family know about How to Money! Hit the share button, subscribe if you’re not already a regular listener, and give us a quick review in Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. Help us to change the conversation around personal finance and get more people doing smart things with their money!

Best friends out!

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.