The HIDDEN Costs of Moving

Summary

Podcast Summary: Money Guy Show – "The HIDDEN Costs of Moving"

Release Date: February 19, 2025

Hosts Brian Preston and Bo Hanson delve into the often-overlooked financial implications of relocating in this insightful episode of the Money Guy Show. Through listener questions, personal anecdotes, and expert advice, they uncover the myriad hidden costs that can accompany a big move, ensuring listeners are well-prepared to navigate their own transitions smoothly.

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1. Introduction to Hidden Moving Costs

Brian opens the episode by highlighting the theme: the concealed financial burdens that come with moving. Bo expresses excitement about tackling such significant life decisions, emphasizing the importance of understanding all facets to make informed choices.

Bo (00:09): "Sometimes those life decisions have hidden costs or hidden things that we need to think about to make sure that we're doing it well."

2. Listener Question: Moving from Chicago to Colorado

Megan, the senior content developer, presents a question from Thomas S., who plans to relocate from Chicago to Colorado with his wife. They have secured employment and savings but seek advice on additional considerations.

a. Social and Logistical Challenges

Bo reflects on the personal challenges of moving away from established family networks, sharing his own experience of relocating from Georgia to Tennessee. He underscores the importance of anticipating the lack of immediate support systems in a new area.

Bo (02:50): "Things that I didn't think were going to be an issue all of a sudden become an issue if I need help moving furniture, moving in."

b. Financial Implications of Housing

Brian discusses the significant variation in housing costs between regions, using his move from Georgia to Tennessee as an example where his housing budget unexpectedly increased by 40%.

Brian (04:07): "My budget increased by 40% because the housing was a lot more expensive here in the Nashville area than it was south Atlanta."

c. Moving Services and Costs

The hosts explore the costs associated with hiring professional movers, especially for interstate moves. Brian shares a cost-saving strategy where he combined professional loading and unloading with personally driving a U-Haul.

Brian (06:35): "I paid professional movers to load up the U Haul and then I drove my... hired professional movers to help me unload the U Haul. So that's a hack because they're not allowed to drive across state lines unless they're licensed."

d. Additional Expenses: Furniture and Decorating

Brian warns against the Diderot effect, where acquiring new items during a move leads to increased spending. He advises meticulous planning to avoid unnecessary costs.

Brian (05:30): "Furniture and decorating... measure twice, cut once and plan for it."

e. Logistical Considerations Beyond Finances

Bo brings up practical aspects such as finding new healthcare providers and mechanics, highlighting the broader scope of moving beyond just financial planning.

Bo (07:28): "What doctors are you going to see? What kind of doctors do you need to see?"

3. Personal Anecdotes and Community Insights

The hosts share personal stories about moving and the ripple effects on their families. Bo mentions the joy and challenges of having grandparents move closer, strengthening familial bonds.

Bo (08:22): "It's not all bad. There's a lot of pros and it makes the time when you are together much sweeter."

4. Upcoming Projects and Community Engagement

Brian and Bo announce the upcoming premiere of their passion project, "Making a Millionaire", set to launch on February 3rd. They encourage listeners to engage with the content and share feedback.

Bo (13:16): "It's the world premiere of Making a Millionaire... Monday, February 3rd at 8am Central."

5. Listener Question: Balancing Student Loans and Savings

Megan presents a question from Bob B., who, along with his wife, grapples with managing $74,000 in student loans while aiming to build an emergency fund and invest in a Roth IRA.

a. Financial Order of Operations

Bo introduces the concept of a financial order of operations, a nine-step process designed to prioritize financial decisions effectively.

Bo (09:00): "We came up with the financial order of operations. Brian, you hold the thing up."

b. Assessing Debt Interests

The discussion emphasizes determining whether student loans are high or low interest to decide their priority in the financial hierarchy.

Bo (09:16): "Where do you classify the student loans—high interest debt or low interest debt?"

c. Layering Financial Goals

Bo advises layering financial goals based on personal priorities, suggesting that one must align financial actions with their ultimate objectives.

Bo (10:27): "He has to layer his goals that way before he can decide exactly how to tackle them."

Brian complements by recommending tools like the Know Your Number course to assess financial standing and make informed decisions.

Brian (11:00): "Use the know your number in conjunction with the financial order of operations."

6. Listener Question: Investing vs. Paying Down Mortgage

Megan shares a question from Colton J., a young couple deciding whether to pay down a 7% mortgage or invest, given their plans to upgrade their home in four to seven years.

a. Evaluating Mortgage Debt

Bo congratulates the couple on their financial discipline and discusses the nature of mortgage debt, distinguishing it from other high-interest debts.

Bo (15:16): "At 25 and 23 years old, have I gone to moneyguy.com resources and checked out the wealth multiplier."

b. Long-Term Financial Planning

Brian discusses mortgage refinancing opportunities and the benefits of adhering to the financial order of operations over solely focusing on debt repayment.

Brian (17:53): "Don't treat that 7% as itself necessarily a step three... consider refinancing opportunities."

c. Future Housing Goals

Bo encourages forward-thinking about future housing needs, such as saving for a down payment on a new home, to mitigate financial risks.

Bo (18:55): "Decisions you're going to begin making today so that you're prepared for that 20% payment seven years in the future."

7. Listener Question: Sell or Rent Out Home When Relocating

Megan introduces a question from John M., contemplating whether to sell his home or rent it out due to a new job requiring relocation.

a. Behavioral Considerations

Bo emphasizes the importance of assessing personal willingness to handle the responsibilities of being a landlord, beyond the mathematical aspects.

Bo (27:04): "Do I want to be the person who's having to source your tenants? Do you want to have to pay a management company?"

b. Financial Calculations and Practical Challenges

Brian shares his experience with renting out a property, highlighting unforeseen maintenance costs and the complexities of managing rentals from a distance.

Brian (29:52): "The house just wouldn't sell... so we rented it out to capture paying the mortgage."

c. Assessing Financial Readiness

Both hosts advise ensuring that pursuing a rental doesn't jeopardize financial stability, urging adherence to the financial order of operations to avoid taking on excessive debt.

Bo (28:25): "Ensure that you are making wise financial decisions based on where you are in your financial order of operations."

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8. Closing Remarks and Community Engagement

Towards the end, the hosts share light-hearted moments and personal insights, discussing the longevity of their podcast and the unexpected journey from hobby to financial advisory roles. They encourage listeners to subscribe and engage with upcoming content.

Bo (21:22): "Would you have thought back then 20 years, 19 years in the future, this is where you'd be sitting doing this. How wild is that?"

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Key Takeaways

• Comprehensive Planning: Moving involves more than just securing a new home; it requires detailed financial and logistical planning.

• Assess Hidden Costs: Be aware of unseen expenses such as increased housing costs, moving services, and setting up new utilities or services.

• Behavioral Readiness: Decide whether the responsibilities of renting out a property align with your personal preferences and lifestyle.

• Financial Hierarchy: Utilize tools and structured approaches like the financial order of operations to prioritize financial decisions effectively.

• Future-Proofing: Anticipate future financial needs, such as saving for a down payment on an upgrade home, to ensure long-term stability.

By addressing these aspects, Brian and Bo empower listeners to approach moves with greater confidence and financial prudence, ultimately fostering a more secure and fulfilled life.

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Note: The Money Guy Show is hosted by Brian Preston and Bo Hanson, partners with Abound Wealth Management. The information provided is for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial, tax, investment, or legal advice.

Transcript

[Brian]

The hidden cost of moving.

[Bo]

Brian I am so excited to talk about this because life often throws us curve balls and we have to make giant life decisions. And sometimes those life decisions have hidden costs or hidden things that we need to think about to make sure that we're doing it well. And we love that we get to sit here and speak into those decisions you make. A matter of fact, we love that we can speak into all areas of your financial life. It's why every Tuesday morning at 10am we like to be in this live stream loading you up. So if you have a question you want to get our take on, you want us to weigh in on, make sure you get it in the chat right now. Because we believe that there is a better way to do money. So with that, I'm going to send it over to our senior content developer, Ms. Megan.

[Megan]

All right, we're gonna start off that was clean. We're gonna start off with a question from Thomas S. He says, my wife and I want to move from Chicago to Colorado. Are there certain things to look out for when moving away from family into a new area? We would line up jobs before moving and have plenty of savings. So what is there to think about when you're making a big move?

[Bo]

Man okay, this is a great question. It's so interesting. The way that Thomas phrased it. My mind immediately did not go to financial. Right. Like I was thinking, okay, what are the hidden costs of moving? And that sort of thing. The fact that Thomas said, my wife and I makes me think that they might be in the stage of life. Either they don't have children or perhaps they have not gotten to that stage yet. And so when you think about what are one of the things that we need to think about or some of the stuff that some of the, some of the ideas, there is a reality. I think a lot of people don't realize, and I don't think I even realized this until we moved from Georgia up to Tennessee. You just kind of take for granted the national, the natural social structure that's in place. If you stay where you were born, where you're from, you don't realize, oh, I've got mom and dad here and aunts and uncles and family members and cousins. And then you uproot and you move to a completely different area, completely different part of the country, completely different spot. And you're like, man, I don't really know anybody here. So things that I didn't think were going to be an issue all of a sudden become an issue if I Need help moving furniture, moving in. I don't have someone I can call to come help move in if I need help watching the kids or someone to step in. I don't naturally have that person in there. So my mind, the very first place that I went is just being realistic around okay, the things that might be easy and convenient and present right here where we are in Chicago that might not be in Colorado. And are we prepared for those things? Have we thought through the fact that that type of social structure won't be there?

[Brian]

Well, I can because we resemble this. We both have moved out of state away from family. I think a lot of for childcare purposes. Care.com is what we were using. That was a 10 years ago. I don't know if that's changed. If y'all leave in the comments where people if you move to a new community, what's the great go to resource to find babysitters, childcare and things like that because it is. You get comfortable leaning in on family and that's actually one of the great benefits of your kids being close to their grandparents and your cousins. I mean I resemble that growing up. I mean it's one of those great memories of having all those family get togethers. But let's get back to the financial part. I immediately wrote down housing. I know when I was moving from Georgia to Tennessee, I had a sum of money in my head we'll focus this on purchase and then I'll come to rent here in a second. That I thought would be reasonable. But then once I started looking at housing, it was amazing how my budget increased by 40% because it's just housing was a lot more expensive here in the Nashville area than it was south Atlanta. So just go ahead and prepare yourself. Go and start doing the research. Play around with the MLS system now.

[Bo]

From Chicago to Colorado, that may or may not be.

[Brian]

I don't know. I think they both have had a nice run. Chicago is still expensive. Colorado, everybody you ask. I mean If I got 12 people in a room, probably nine of them are going to say they're moving to Colorado because it's just the views. It's a hot place to go without there. The other three are going to Nashville. The movers. By the way, if you're moving across state lines, there's different rules, regulations for interstate movers versus in state moves. And that was something that shocked me is because I've always well first move, I always did them myself. But then I realized once my friends got to a certain age and they start complaining about their backs that I needed to hire professional movers. It was easy to do it if you were just moving down the street. If you're moving seven miles down the road, it's very affordable to hire movers to do that for you. When you cross state lines, it doesn't work as well. So what I ended up having to do, because this is where I flexed my tight wide, took some risk. I paid professional movers to load up the U Haul and then I drove my. I know there's risks there because I'm the one driving this vehicle. But the cost savings was spectacular. And then I hired professional movers to help me unload the U Haul. So that's a hack because they're not allowed to drive across state lines unless they're licensed. And if you get those big interstate movers, the ones that show up with the semi trucks, you just be careful. There's a lot of crazy reindeer games that go on with that stuff. Furniture and decorating. We have done shows on funny quirky words that have financial concepts that show like the Diderot effect and others where you replace one thing you need to do more. I find when we move all of a sudden something that seemed completely comfortable, like your couch, your rugs, your chairs seemed all reasonable. But when you move to a new place, you feel like you need new stuff and that's expensive. So just pay attention. I would just go into, I would address every one of those elements, measure twice, cut once and plan for it. 3D glasses doesn't have to be for starting a company or doing anything crazy in life. It can be just, you want to move to a different state. So you're going to create a down to earth plan. You create the dream plan and everything works out with jobs and cash flow. And then don't forget the doo doo plan where maybe things don't go as well as you initially planned.

[Bo]

For the other thing in a new area, again, you have to again cost. I would think about, okay, what doctors are you going to see? What kind of doctors do you need to see? Are you moving to an area where there's doctors be available? And then even silly stuff like mechanics. You move away from an area that you're in, who's going to be the person that you take your car to? Are you going to get the oil change and that sort of thing? I'll tell you one of our biggest logistical hurdles that we have to like think through right now based because we don't, we don't live close to family. If my wife And I want to go on a trip. Like we want to go on a trip and not take the kids with us. It's always a two pronged thing. We have to figure out how do we get grandparents up here to watch the kids or how we get kids down to grandparents before you take a trip. So it's another, like, logistical thing you have to think through when you move far away from family. But it's not all bad. There's a lot of pros and it makes the time when you are together much sweeter. So kudos and congratulations to you guys for making a big change and I hope it goes awesome.

[Brian]

Well, I mean, this is extra, but we're on a live stream. A lot of people from California, I've heard, are moving here still. Are the grandparents now?

[Bo]

Oh, yeah.

[Brian]

We got the first wave where people who had school age children, but now the grandparents are moving here from California and to Nashville. And that's where the second wave. Because I'm like, who is paying for these houses at these prices? And that's. My builder friends have told me we've got the second level of migration going on now.

[Bo]

Interesting.

[Megan]

Did I tell you my parents are thinking about moving out here now?

[Bo]

See, there it is.

[Brian]

Whoa.

[Bo]

There it is.

[Brian]

That's a big deal. Come on.

[Bo]

Come on.

[Megan]

So we'll see how that goes.

[Brian]

Maybe we'll get to hang out more.

[Megan]

Yeah.

[Brian]

Like, we actually get to have break bread with time.

[Bo]

We're like, you want to go to dinner? And she's like, nah.

[Brian]

And then her parents showed up and we're like, oh, they didn't want us to be at dinner with them.

[Megan]

The barbecue made up for it. But now they're visiting pretty soon, so I'll have them stop by.

[Brian]

All right. We're excited.

[Bo]

Can't wait to break bread with them.

[Megan]

Yeah. All right, Thomas S. Thank you so much for your question. Hopefully that gives you.

[Brian]

Megan's gonna be like, gotta keep them away, keep them separated.

[Megan]

If you would like a money guy Tumblr, you can email winneroneyguy.com all right, y'all ready for the next one?

[Brian]

Yes, of course.

[Megan]

This is from Bob B. He says the wife and I are 44 and 48. We are on step three and we have a total of $74,000 in student loans. Given our ages, should we simultaneously pay down the loans while building our emergency fund and Roth ira?

[Bo]

Okay, so, Bob, it's going to be difficult to answer this exact question not knowing the other unique intricacies of your financial life, but fortunately we Recognize a lot of people find themselves in a similar situation to you. Man, I've got these things going on. I've got these competing priorities and I'm trying to think about where can my dollars be best utilized, what would be the best next use of my next dollar. That's why we came up with the financial order of operations. Brian, you hold the thing up. It's a nine step tried and true process about what think about doing with your next dollar. Where will your next dollar have the greatest value? Now you say you're in step three, Brian, step three is high interest debt. One of the questions I would have is Bob says that they have about $74,000 in student loans. I don't know what the interest rate on those student loans are. I don't know if that classifies as high interest debt inside of step three or if it might be low interest debt inside of step nine. So one of the things you have to figure out is okay, where do does that fall? And then once you figure that out, then you have to start to order your priorities. Okay, Based on where I am and why I ultimately want to go. How can I allocate my dollars in a way to move towards the priorities and goals that are the greatest to me, whether that be financial independence or becoming debt free, paying off the student loans. I think he has to layer his goals that way before he can decide exactly how to tackle them.

[Brian]

And I like his name is more Bobby because it's got the B. Bobby.

[Megan]

It was Bob B. Oh, it was Bobby.

[Brian]

I like that, kicks it up a level. But here's the way I would work through this triage because I think you're exactly right. You have to figure out is this low interest, high interest, so you can get out of step three, move into emergency reserves, which is step four, and then let's get into the fun exciting stuff of investing this Money with Roth IRAs, 401ks and so forth. What? Because 44 and 48, that's getting, it's not old because it's younger than me. So anything that is younger than me can't be old. But it is definitely getting far enough on a wealth multiplier scale. You got to get serious about your financial independence journey. And we got to quickly triage to figure out you behind the curve, on the curve or ahead of the curve because that's also going to have an influence on how that debt's paid down. Because you've really got to do. You got to hit it from multiple fronts here. And when we've tried to figure out, how do you tell people, are they ahead of the curve, behind the curve, or right where they need to be? The know your number course is really where we are. It's learn.moneyguy.com that way you can actually put in all of your variables. This is not, by the way, this is one that's once again, it's not just to sell this product to get it. It's so you know where you are. You're like, why in the world are financial planners giving us these tools when they obviously are just running a financial planning firm and this is feeding clients them. Yes, but we know that along the way, before you even need a financial planner, you're going to need something to take metrics. That's where the net worth tool comes in because it gives you a dashboard annually to look at. But then you need to have something that spot checks you much broader than just looking at on an annual basis. And that's where the know your number so you can actually take a measurement. And hopefully that's what I would use to kind of figure out the next phase of, is where to focus the next dollar is to use the know your number in conjunction with the financial order of operations. And I think you'll, you'll be able to know where to go. Bobby, Bobby, Bobby.

[Megan]

All right, thank you, Bobby, for your question. If you would like a money guy Tumblr, you can email winneroneyguy.com did he.

[Brian]

Put an exclamation at the end of the beat? Because it definitely should be Bobby, Bobby. To do it. Yes.

[Bo]

Don't give in to success. She did it. She went in. Hey, I got two quick things. One, if you've not subscribed, you should subscribe. We love knowing that you guys are out there. We want to know how many folks are like dialing into this. So don't just rent your seat, go and buy your seat. It's super cheap. All you gotta do is hit that subscribe button. That's the first. 2. Do you know what's happening next week? Do you know what's happening?

[Brian]

I know what's happening.

[Bo]

You know what's happening next week, Caleb, Next week.

[Brian]

You've got a birthday in the family. We got people coming back from maternity leave.

[Bo]

All these things are true.

[Brian]

And. And we have the world premiere of Making a Millionaire.

[Bo]

That's exactly right. If you've not gone to check it out, if you've not watched the trailer, if you're not excited about this, we'd encourage you to check it out because it has been a passion project of ours. We're so excited that we get to sit down with millionaires and millionaires in the making and kind of go through what's going on in their financial lives and how they get to where they are and what steps are necessary to get to where they ultimately want to go. And it's been fun. It's going to be awesome. We hope that you guys love it. If you've not marked your calendars, Monday, February 3rd at 8am 8am Central is the time that it's going to be released. We want you to know about it. We want you to check it out and we want to know what you guys think of it because ultimately, at the end of the day, we do this so that you can do money better.

[Megan]

Yeah. And it'll be available on YouTube and podcasts. So for podcast listeners out there, you'll have it on your regular Monday listening. And if you want to learn more about it, you can go to moneyguy.com makingamillionaire and all that stuff will be there. Alrighty. Y'all ready for the next one?

[Brian]

We're ready for this.

[Megan]

All right. This is from Colton J.

[Bo]

He says y'all ready for this.

[Brian]

Is that what he did? Is that what he did?

[Bo]

Did he just do that? Just want to make sure that is like his third or fourth pop song. Like, like old pop song reference this morning.

[Brian]

I love it.

[Megan]

It says, My wife, 25, and I, 23, are closing on a house in 20 days. Congratulations, Colton. We have a high household income of 135,000 and save 22% of our income.

[Brian]

Boom shakalaka.

[Megan]

We want to upgrade in four to seven years when the kids come, do we pay down the 7% mortgage or do we invest?

[Bo]

Hmm. So one, let me just give this was Colton, right?

[Megan]

Yeah.

[Bo]

Let me just give you guys some attaboys because that's amazing. To be 25, 23 years old, to be buying your first house, making $135,000, saving 22%. That, like all across the board, that just screams to me financial mutant. So good job. Like you are. You have figured this out earlier then most folks. I mean, most folks don't start taking their finances seriously till what, early 30s. First time home purchasers I think is on average was at 36 right now. Something like that. So you guys are well ahead of the curve but you are facing a unique thing because home prices have increased over the past couple years and interest rates have also increased. So you're looking at it sounds like a 7% mortgage. And I imagine in your mind you're trying to think, okay, is that 7%? If I'm following the financial order of operations. Brian, can you hold the thing up? If I'm following the foo and I'm doing the stuff I'm supposed to be doing, does a 7% mortgage count as high interest debt? Is that something that I should be aggressive in paying off or at 25 and 23 years old, have I gone to moneyguy.com resources and checked out the wealth multiplier? And I know just how powerful every one of my dollars can be if I put it to work for me as opposed to satisfying that 7% debt. I imagine there's some tension trying to figure out which one makes the most sense. Which one. I know I have my thought, but I was going to. Do you want to say what you.

[Brian]

I mean, I don't mind sharing. Mortgage debt is one of those unique debts that look interest rates start settling down, you're going to be able to refinance. That's why I don't, I don't immediately classify a 7% mortgage as high interest debt is because, I mean, by the way, I resemble this. I mean one of my. My first house that I ever bought, my mortgage rate was six and three quarters on it. But I was still funding my. Because I'm old enough that I was even investing right before the Roth came on the scene. But yes, I was still funding Roth IRAs with that. So, you know, I have a no hypocrite policy. And that's why I want to make sure that the financial order of operations syncs with what you're doing in your journey to build financial independence and wealth. And that's why I would focus on doing the financial order of operations. Don't treat that 7% as itself necessarily a step three, even though I know you hear 7% but realize potentially now most people don't itemize deductions on that anymore. But still it's one of those things where I think with the refinance opportunity, I wouldn't classify it there. That's my easiest takeaway from that.

[Bo]

I agree. And then I love that you're already kind of beginning with the end in mind. You said that here in the next four to seven years we're probably going to upgrade. We're going to think about once kids come, we'll maybe move out of this house. Now, in full disclosure, I really like the idea of that being closer to the seven and the four because we always Say that when it comes to buying a home, you want to make sure it's a long term decision. You want to make sure you can see yourself there for at least five to seven years because there's no guarantee that four years from now the housing market will have agreed with you and everything would have gone the way and it would have gone up in value. But if you can stretch out to seven years, I think you, you know, you save yourself from a little bit of that risk. But I would even encourage you as you think about the way that you're accumulating in the way you're building, having a goal to be able to know, okay, when we upgrade, when we move to that second home, when we decide to do that, we know we've got to come up with a 20% down payment because it's an upgrade home. What decisions are we even going to begin making today after we close on this home so that we're prepared for that 20% payment seven years in the future? So I love that you're even thinking through that and going down that, that line of thought.

[Brian]

I'll give one other angle. Just as the older sentimental person here now kids are about to le the house. Is that because I see, wait, you know, four to seven years potentially. And I don't know if that's when they starting to have kids or you just, that's when you have enough kids that you need to upgrade. But I do want to encourage financial mutants. Sometimes we try to control everything in life so we put off having kids until we have everything accounted for as now a 50 plus year old financial mutant. I would tell you, I kind of wish because we were married four to five years before we had our first child and I kind of look back and I go, we probably could have stacked another child in if I would have gotten to work sooner on that part of it. So I just, I just share that with you. Just because kids, I know they're hard now. I'm not taking away from the messy middle because Bo's in the messy middle right now and I see all of his. It's kind of entertaining to watch some of it. I shouldn't say that out loud. No, it is, but it's. But you do get to a point where your kids get older and you're gonna be like, man, should we have stopped it? 1, 2, 3. Just give yourself enough time to where. Because the time goes quick. I would just say that. And for our second child, we found out it was a. And this sounds horrible to say out Loud. I can't even. I was like, why did it take us until geriatric pregnancy? Oh yeah, they dropped that bomb on you and you're like, what? And so just realize this stuff, that's just life advice. It's not financial. It's more of just sentimental, 50 something year old thinking about children.

[Bo]

Love it.

[Megan]

Great. Colton, it sounds like you're doing a great job. Congratulations on the new house and thanks for asking your question. If you would like a money guy Tumblr, you can email winneroneyguy.com you wanna.

[Bo]

Hear a wild stat? No, I did not fact check this. This is why you have to be careful what you guys put in the chat. Because I might just say it out loud and assume that it's fact, but I know enough. I think this is right. We have a good friend of the show, Brian, who mentioned this in the chat. Did you realize first podcast episode ever of the Money Guy show was released on January 30, 2006. So we are almost to the day. 19 years. Isn't that kind of cool?

[Brian]

I knew it was January and I Knew it was 2006. I didn't know the actual date.

[Bo]

I just thought that was interesting. Here almost to the day, we're two days away. I just thought that was wild. So many, many, many, many moons ago. Brian, thanks for noting that and calling that out. And if you're wrong, then sorry that I said it in front of you.

[Brian]

Well, I mean it's called within a few days definitely if we were playing horseshoes. So I mean, I wouldn't doubt January 30th.

[Megan]

Yeah, I knew it was in January, I just didn't know the date.

[Bo]

Would you have thought back then 20 years, 19 years in the future, this is where you'd be sitting doing this. How wild is that?

[Brian]

No, I mean this was just supposed to be a hobby. That's why everybody thinks. It cracks me up when we get to people reach out because they like you guys are marketing gurus and we're like, that's what we are. Or are we just so nerdy? And I always wanted to be a school teacher and sometimes you end up. That's why when we do these fire episodes, it cracks me up that I think about all the people who have done fire, but then they don't really go fire because they go ham on social media. You just find something else with writing content. And there's nothing wrong with that. It's just that I think it's kind of interesting that somehow I got blessed and fortunate enough That I kind of figured out this hobby that was a career before everybody else did. I mean, because that's what most people who are good with money end up them becoming bloggers, YouTubers, podcasters. Somehow we cut the corner off all that.

[Megan]

Well, we're all very thankful for your hobby, Brian.

[Brian]

It's all. I mean, plus now I think about, I was selling it short on just wanting to be a classroom teacher because this thing, guys, what was it last year was 16 million unique people just on YouTube alone.

[Bo]

It's wild.

[Brian]

You think about a classroom. How many teachers? Because I always. And not to get too sentimental with this part of it, when I was on the school board, we had a star. My favorite event was the star Student breakfasts, where the kids from all the high schools with the highest sat, the perfect score because they all turned out to be like perfect SAT scores. And they'd get to bring their favorite, their most impactful teacher to this breakfast. Is this something that they do in other districts? Yeah, it was my favorite event because then they would let the teacher and the students speak. And what was crazy to me, because I was on the school board for seven years, you would see the same teachers repeated at multiple breakfasts. And I was like, holy cow, this teacher is obviously a superstar because why is this teacher impacting these high caliber students to the point that they're now telling what made them reach these levels of education? And I always used to say it's so unfair that wouldn't it be nice if every student could go be with those star teachers who are repeat offenders of getting in there and obviously impacting these kids. And I think it's something, I like to think in my own little way we get to do that in some ways, you know, because when I read the comments and reviews on Millionaire Mission and people, now look, we get picked on because everybody's like, if you listen to the show, this is not new. Like, duh. I mean, I've been doing this. You just said almost 20 years. I've probably given you every ounce of my heart and soul. I gave you extra stories. That's what really. But it is one of those things where we've tried to really pour it on for you guys.

[Bo]

Love it.

[Brian]

Yeah.

[Megan]

Great. Y'all got ready for the next question.

[Brian]

I guess we could have probably used that as the closing. That wasn't. That was a good setup to get the energy going. So I'll be all right now, though.

[Megan]

We'll cut it to the end.

[Bo]

I was just throwing an interesting statistic. You're a big stats guy. I'm just throwing it out there.

[Megan]

Sentimental guy, you know.

[Bo]

All right, there's one more aside because I said, I'm. Guess what my kids just got yesterday. This one is because you'll appreciate this. No, the Guinness Book of World Records. Like, my. My wife has shown them this literally for the last 24 hours. My kids are coming. Dad, did you know that the longest fingernails on earth are. And they'll fill in the blank. Dad, did you know the most marshmallows ever consumed? And they're like, just one after the other.

[Brian]

Is this all because y'all went to the circus and they said in the middle of the circus performance that he was gonna ride the highest unicycle in Guinness Book World. And the way they presented is like, he's gonna break it right here. And I was like, well, I know Bo came to the 1:00 circus. I'm at the 3:00 circus. Beau's probably sad that he's actually choosing my 3 o'clock circus to break the record.

[Bo]

No, he broke it in mind.

[Brian]

See, he just sat up a little bit higher. But is that what made the girls think that they need to read the Guinness Book of World Records?

[Bo]

I guess so. But that's been it. Just because it reminds me, I could see if we had a copy of the Guinness Book around here.

[Brian]

Tell me.

[Bo]

Brian would not walk around all day being like, did you know?

[Brian]

Well, they've actually, I've heard they changed the rules, though, because they so many people that were breaking things that were dangerous that they've actually modified to where.

[Bo]

Oh, really?

[Brian]

There's some records they won't let you break anymore because it was getting to be dangerous.

[Bo]

Did not know that.

[Brian]

I don't know.

[Megan]

Interesting.

[Brian]

That's. That's not. I would. I would fact check.

[Bo]

No, my kids have not gotten. Because I know this is coming. Because I remember being a young child doing this. I know it's getting. Going to be at the point where they're going to start figuring out which ones they want to try to break. Like, this is going to happen. They're going to see something and they're like, oh, dad, we can, you know, we can stand on one foot the long or whatever.

[Brian]

And I'm trying to remember, like, I was at Talladega one year watching a NASCAR race, and they're like, and we're going to break the Guinness Book of World Record for me. And the most people who do it. I can't even remember what we did. I don't know if we broke it or not, but that was my only touch with Guinness Book of World Record. So if Talladega is in there, I'm going to go to the Talladega. Broke some record being at the Talladega Speedway. If it's in the Guinness Book World Records. I was there for whenever that happened.

[Megan]

I feel like if you broke it, you would remember it, right?

[Brian]

I don't remember what they had us do. I can't remember if. Who knows with Daryl White could have been boogity boogity booga. I don't know. We could have done. We could have done whatever. I don't remember what it was.

[Bo]

None of them got that job. I thought that was hilarious. Okay, that part was all for free.

[Megan]

Love it. This next question is in the theme of moving. So it says I have a new job opportunity, but the job may not be available in my city, so I may have to move my wife and I don't know if we should sell our house or try and rent it out. What should we consider? And this is from John M. Okay.

[Bo]

So, Brian, I think it'd be interesting if we walked through because a lot of people face it. You live this. You actually had to face this decision of do we sell a house or do we potentially rent a house? How do we know which way to go? How do we know which one to do? I think we're going to talk about the mathematics behind it. Like how do you know mathematically which one might. What might be optimal. But I do think there is a there, there is a behavioral thing that you need to think about. No matter which way the math would have you lean, no matter which way the math would suggest you ought to go. One of the things you ought to just think through is do I behaviorally want the. And I'm going to use the word hassle. It doesn't have to be that way. But do I want to be a landlord? Some people fall in love with this idea of, okay, I'm going to keep my house, I'm going to rent it, and I'm going to have rent coming in and that rent is going to cover the mortgage. And then I'm going to watch the house, appreciate, and it's going to be amazing and everything's going to work out. But do you really want to be the person who's having to source your tenants? Do you want to have to pay a management company? Do you have to want to have someone else live in your house and potentially damage things that you are going to be Responsible to repair. So you have to work through the behavioral piece. First of no matter what the math says, is this something that I'd be willing to do? And once you arrive at the conclusion that okay, maybe I'd be willing, then I think there's some math you can work through when you make this determination.

[Brian]

Well, my experience here is first of all doing rental property out of state or out of town where you have to drive 30, 40 minutes to go see it at a, you know, is less than ideal because you, you with rental property, you like to be able to go check on the property from time to time just to make sure everything's in good order and good standing. So moving out of town is, that's one box in the con is that this will not be a local property that you're managing. So that, that's, that's definitely in the con column. Also for my, for my situation, I had was moving to a different state. I was moving to Tennessee. And I'll be honest, the house just wouldn't sell. I had it redone. Like we repainted all the walls, we changed the colors to make them more neutral. You know, we redid all the hardwoods. This house felt new on the inside and we couldn't sell it for the right price. And I was like, man, you couldn't build this house for what we're trying to sell it for. So this is just a disconnection from value versus where the market is right now. So I was left with. And there was no gain, by the way, because I prepaid all my negative equity from the great recession and the big downturn in real estate. So for me it was, I rented it too, because I could get rent to capture paying the mortgage that was still on it, plus make sure I'm not selling at a value that was disconnected from the reality of what it would cost.

[Bo]

So you're a landlord not because you, not because you wanted to be necessarily, but because the price is.

[Brian]

Yeah, because look, if I had a gain like I guarantee, I would have to think that John is probably facing a situation just because we came through this post, you know, inflationary period. He's probably sitting on a rather large gain. And that actually would work in the benefit of selling the property because the government does let you have that up. If for a married couple, up to a half a million dollars tax free gain, that's worth a ton. But if you were in a situation like I was where you didn't have any gain, you were going to take a bath on the Selling this house at a huge loss, it seemed more reasonable for me to find a really good family, give them a really good deal. But it was a good deal for me. They would take care of the house. Now, even with that said, here's the problem with rental property. Great family rented our house. But remember, I had repainted all the walls, I had redone all the hardwoods. They had pets, they had things that happened. The hardwoods had to be completely redone after they left again. So that was 5, $6,000 after they moved out that we had to do. So way I would look at this is I was really lean heavily on the tax free gain and then take that into consideration. Then ask yourself, do you want to go through the hassle of being a real estate landlord and you know, and balance it? Because I've done it, it is a lot of work, you know, and I even had really good tenants. I mean, because by the way, when the HOA reaches out and says, hey, your tenant has a boat in the driveway, you have to be the jerk that says, hey, you can't have a boat sitting in the driveway. You got a boat.

[Bo]

Does your tenant have a boat in the driveway?

[Brian]

They had a boat in the driveway for a little bit. You know, because the HOA reaches out to me, you know, on these things, you know, wind blew a shutter off. You know who they reach out to me. So, I mean, it's one of those things where. And I'm out of state, I have to find somebody to repair it. You know, just be aware that what you're getting into with the hustle factor.

[Bo]

Then the other thing I'll throw on there is do you need the money from selling the house? So obviously, if you're moving somewhere else and you have to buy a new home and you have to come up with a down payment and you need the re. Some people might not, need not, might not be in a position where they can leave all the equity they have in their current house tied up in the current house. So even if renting sounds great, and that's something you're interested in, something you want to do, you may very well be in the scenario where, man, I really need the proceeds from selling that house to be able to launch in this new city in this other state, in this other area that I'm going to move to. So make sure that you are also making wise financial decisions based on where you are in your financial order of operations. Because what you don't want to do is try to keep the rental property because you like the tenants of that and you want to think about being a landlord and then all of a sudden you get yourself into a pickle where now you have two mortgages that you're responsible for. You're stretched too thin and you've not been following the financial order of operations. You don't have a fully built emergency fund. You haven't put enough down in your house. You didn't keep your housing costs down low because that type of scenario can put you in a pretty, pretty precarious situation really, really fast. The Money Guy show is hosted by Bryan Preston and Bo Hanson. Brian and Bo are partners with Abound Wealth Management. Abound Wealth Management is a registered investment advisory firm regulated by the securities and Exchange Commission. In accordance and compliance with the securities laws and regulations, Abound Wealth Management does not render or offer to render personalized investment or tax advice through the Money Guy Show. The information provided is for informational purposes only, may not be suitable for all investors, and does not constitute financial, tax, investment or legal advice. All investments involve a degree of risk, including the risk of loss.