Money Guy Show – "Financial Advisors React to Money Advice with Humphrey Yang"

Hosts: Brian Preston & Bo Hanson | Guest: Humphrey Yang
Release Date: November 17, 2025

Main Theme & Purpose

This episode centers on financial advisors Brian Preston and Bo Hanson reacting to popular money advice and hot takes from the internet, joined by personal finance creator Humphrey Yang. Together, they break down viral financial opinions and strategies, explain the real math and psychology behind them, and offer practical advice for better wealth building. The goal is to dispel myths, validate good practices, and empower listeners to make smarter decisions and build confidence in their financial journeys.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Tax Minimization & Write-Off Myths

(01:25–04:24)

• Viral Claim: If you make $1 million/year, the "goal" is to get rid of $930,000 to only be taxed at the 12% bracket. Achieve this via business expenses and investments, e.g., cars and plane tickets as write-offs.
• Reactions:
  • Humphrey (02:23): "At first I was like, oh man, this is kind of crazy. ... But then he got into the more of the write-offs and business deductions and I kind of like that part."
  • Hosts (03:19): Warn that while deductions exist, you can't literally live on what's “left” after eliminating taxable income. Over-simplifying leads to poor planning.
  • All: Not everyone can write off personal expenses—most taxpayers won't qualify to deduct cars, flights, or clothes (04:05–04:12).
  • Brian (04:23): "Everything is deductible… until you get caught."

Insight: Business deductions can be powerful but shouldn't be abused or misunderstood. True wealth is about making money work for you through owning productive assets, not just minimizing taxes.

2. Renting vs. Owning a Home

(04:26–07:38)

• Popular View: "Renting is absolutely not a waste of money." Homeownership often comes with unaccounted-for expenses; renting may save more if the difference is invested.
• Personal Experiences:
  • Humphrey (05:25): Shares that he’s renting and not rushing to buy to avoid hidden costs.
  • Brian (05:42): Cautions that, while renting is less expensive for many, homeowners often build net worth through "forced savings" (equity), as real data shows actual investment by renters is rare.
  • Hosts (06:56): Advise would-be buyers to access Money Guy’s home buying resources to evaluate readiness, emphasizing that home buying should align with life stages and financial security.
  • Memorable Quote (07:38, Brian): "It's not throwing your money away at all. It's actually buying yourself flexibility..."

Insight: Renting is a valid financial choice, especially when young or mobile—but only if individuals exercise discipline to invest the savings. Homeownership has intangible benefits (stability, community) once life stage and finances align.

3. The Latte Effect & Focusing on Real Budget Drivers

(08:06–09:18)

• Debunked Advice: Cutting out small pleasures like a gym membership will not make you wealthy.
• Hosts (08:36): Focus should be on big-ticket expenses—housing, cars, debts—that truly shape financial outcomes.
• Maxim: "Every dollar has a purpose and a why, so nothing gets wasted."

Insight: The fixation on small sacrifices distracts from larger, more impactful areas for savings and investment growth.

4. Investing Early, Compound Growth, and Wealth Habits

(09:18–11:10)

• Good Advice: "Take 15% of all your paychecks…, put it in the market and just let it compound. ...You'll end up a millionaire" (09:18–09:48, Kevin O’Leary via clip).
• Host Reaction (10:53, Bo): "Don't spend money you don't have on things that you don't need to impress people whose opinions don't matter."
• Compound Growth (10:34–10:53): Brian highlights that wealth snowballs—"a million isn't enough? How about 2 million? ...this thing picks up speed."

Insight: The power of time and compounding is unmatched; the sooner you start saving and investing, the greater your financial outcome. Maintain focus on essentials, avoid lifestyle inflation and spending to impress.

5. Rise of the $100k Middle Class and Cost of Living Pressures

(11:10–14:11)

• Viral View: Middle class now requires $100k/year due to rising home and living costs ("monthly bills are $7,000 a month" without children).
• Humphrey (12:07): Validates $100k as a statistical definition of middle class but questions if it feels the same in today's dollars.
• Hosts: Discuss inflation pressures, urge listeners to "increase your shovel"—your earning power—to stay above inflation and rising costs.

Quote (12:59, Brian): "You need to do everything in your power to facilitate speeding that up. Grease the skids, ...invest in yourself."

Insight: Inflation ebbs and flows, but the only constant is rising costs and shifting standards. Proactively grow your income and skills to keep pace.

6. Frugality: LeBron James & Living Below Your Means

(14:37–16:54)

• Anecdote: LeBron James named "cheapest guy in the NBA"—uses free apps, refuses international data charges.
• Hosts (15:42): Praise LeBron’s reputation in a circle of wealthy peers, and his willingness to learn from Warren Buffett.
• Memorable Quote (16:33, Bo): "Money is just an amplifier of who you are. ...Those that are good with small amounts will also be good with big amounts."

Insight: Living frugally and seeking financial mentorship—even at high wealth—lays the foundation for staying wealthy. Good habits scale up.

7. Viral ETF Advice and Portfolio Construction

(16:56–19:18)

• Viral Video: "7 Popular Buy and Hold Forever ETFs"—should you buy all?
• Humphrey (17:45): Warns against investing equally in overlapping funds. "You want to pick one."
• Brian (18:22): Praises simple frameworks but adds importance of understanding overlap, purpose, and track record.
• General Consensus: Index investing is powerful, but be aware of overlap, fees, and fit for your own goals. Don’t chase “lists” blindly.

8. Account Selection, Tax Benefits, and the 'Financial Order of Operations'

(19:18–22:53)

• Viral Video: Alex on a Budget discusses prioritizing contribution to Roth IRA, 401k, then brokerage, and ETFs like VTI, VXUS, QQQ.
• Reactions:
  • Humphrey (20:52): Likes her transparency; notes her investing 100% in equities fits her goals and risk tolerance.
  • Hosts: Recommend deeper nuance: download their "Financial Order of Operations" resource for stepwise prioritization. Brokerage accounts also offer capital gains rates, tax-loss harvesting, and charitable giving.
  • Quote (22:08, Brian): "How she laid hers out was great...I’d go steps 1 through 9."

Insight: Efficient wealth building requires intentional account usage—taking advantage of every tax benefit available and understanding each account's strengths.

9. Market Timing – Why Consistency Wins

(22:56–23:36)

• Viral Tip: "My market timing strategy? I simply buy every single month, no matter what is happening with the market."
• All: Fully endorse. Dollar-cost averaging over time beats waiting for ‘perfect’ timing.
• Humphrey (23:12): "The hook was good...no notes."

Notable Quotes & Timestamps

• "You have to create money that works harder than you can." – Brian (02:41)
• "It's not going to work…If you did take it literally, it'll be a bad idea." – Humphrey (03:47)
• "Owning stuff is where it's at...If you make a million dollars, figure out how minimize the taxes, but then get as much of that money working for you." – Brian (02:41)
• "Renting is absolutely not a waste of money…right now it is much cheaper to rent in 80 to 90% of America right now." – Video clip (04:26)
• "It's not throwing your money away at all. It's actually buying yourself flexibility.” – Brian (07:38)
• "Don't spend money you don't have on things that you don't need to impress people whose opinions don't matter." – Bo (10:53)
• "Money is just an amplifier of who you are. If you make really good wise decisions when you have small amounts…hopefully those behaviors are still the behaviors that you implement [with big amounts]." – Bo (16:33)

Important Timestamps

• 01:25 – Viral “write everything off” tax strategy and reactions
• 04:26 – Renting vs. owning debate
• 08:06 – Debunking ‘latte effect’ savings
• 09:18 – Best advice: save, invest, compound 15%
• 11:10 – Cost of living realities & the new $100k “middle class”
• 14:37 – NBA frugality: LeBron James story
• 16:56 – ETF list videos & the risk of overlap
• 19:18 – Account priority: Roth/401k/brokerage, Money Guy’s ‘Financial Order of Operations’
• 22:56 – Endorsing dollar-cost averaging

Tone & Takeaways

The conversation is a blend of approachable expertise and peer-to-peer advice, with a spirit of collaboration and myth-busting. The hosts, along with Humphrey, encourage skepticism toward sensationalized or oversimplified financial social media claims, and guide listeners toward intentional, proven strategies: disciplined saving and investing, understanding (not just mimicking) tax benefits, and building a strong financial foundation rooted in real behavioral change.

Practical Message:
There's no shortcut to wealth—focus on the basics, use every advantage smartly, and make your money work as hard as you do. Make wise decisions, seek nuance, and don’t be afraid to rent, live simply, or question viral "hacks." Consistency, sound strategy, and mindset matter far more than any viral trick.

Find more:

• Money Guy Show resources & tools: moneyguy.com/resources
• Guest: Humphrey Yang on YouTube

(Summary skips pre-roll ads and post-show banter.)