@Kerri #22: Way to go… for some reason TV seems to be one of the hardest things to let go of, but once you do you see the benefits very clearly! Nice work.

For example, if you have a credit card with a 15% interest rate, and you pay extra on it to pay it off early — you are getting a ZERO-RISK and GUARANTEED 15% Rate of Return (ROR) on each dollar invested. That is the investment of a lifetime!

Paying off debt early is one of the easiest and no-brainer things one could do financially. The tricky part is once you are out of debt, is deciding where to put all the extra money. It’s a nice problem to have…

If you were debt-free, would you take out credit card loans and car loans to buy stocks / index funds?

If the answer is no, then stop investing in companies, and invest in getting out of debt (invest in yourself) !

Since then, I’ve saved $1,275. Isn’t $1,000 the initial goal for an EF for many people? Yes, broadcast TV sucks. Having $1,275 saved is sweet.

I’m not saying I could live without cable for my 40-year professional life, but if I could, $85/month invested at a 9% return would mean $398,000.

It is hard to get fired up about paying off our mortgage when the payoff date is so far in the future (8 more years!). But it’s still important!

It does help me paying off my car when I see the payments broken down into principal and interest. All told, at the end of the loan’s natural life I’ll have to pay $175 or so in interest… Let’s see how much I can shave off, eh?

As for tv, it’s great for keeping me entertained… Even now, I have the tv on and am working on my computer. The background noise helps me, and I have a hard time doing homework without it… I just keep busy while it’s on and don’t get sucked into watching tv only. (Unless it’s a good, educational show or a movie or something.)

This isn’t a new concept, it’s been around for decades.

But people seem to hate life insurance, so it hasn’t caught on. But there is a rogue group of everyday investors that are doing this.

Wouldn’t you like to line your own pockets with all the interest you pay over a lifetime?

I have a burning passion in my soul for financial independence and am always humbled to know that I could motivate others to the same end. What a blessing!

Your stories and advice encourage me as well, thank you for sharing.

However, I LOVE debt when it comes to nice property to live in or rent out for income. OPM or other peoples money as they say. I had saved up a 20% downpayment on a $550,000-$1,000,000 on a place. I first had to overcome my risk aversion of going into debt, which I was happy about… and did end up spending $580,000 after putting 25% down. The property is a nice 2/2 in a prime location. HOWEVER, in retrospect, I should have got that even nicer 3 bedroom closer to my limit b/c the markets are still up about 35% since then (was up as much as 55%). Meanwhile, fast forward 7 years later, we’re generally all making more money and have more savings naturally. I should have gone deeper into debt.

Again, it is very important younger folks research things out well, and invest aggressively now.

Get aggressive guys. This downturn is a blessing for younger folks. Just do your research! I promise I will buy another rental/retirement property within the next 12 months. It’s clear the market has bottomed and the labor market will rebound. Don’t kick yourselves in 10-20 years at missing the opportunity.

Best,

RB
RB30RB40

I really like the part about TV. Wastes time that could better be spent on productive past times and stokes the consumer in all of us. Turning it off is probably the first, best step to a better life.