BiggerPockets Money Podcast

If you want to retire early, the Mad Fientist is your guide. For over a decade, Brandon, more commonly known as the “Mad Fientist,” has been running simulations, experiments, and exercises to discover which road to early retirement is the fastest. Now, in his forties, Brandon has time to reflect on what worked, what didn’t, and his regrets on the sprint to early retirement and financial freedom. And he’s also got a new update that’ll make your early retirement journey smoother. After tinkering with the beloved and rarely challenged 4% rule, Brandon decided it was time to sit down and calculate how much you really need to retire early. For decades, financial freedom chasers have been breaking their backs, trying to have as much stashed away as possible to enjoy their well-earned time off from work. But, it turns out that this number might be overinflated, and you can retire with much less than you think. That means your early retirement timeline just got a LOT shorter. In this episode, Brandon will describe why the 4% rule may be a bit too rigid, how to ensure you’ll have enough during early retirement, what to do during a market crash or correction, and why spending thousands of dollars on a coffee machine isn’t such a bad idea. If you want to maximize enjoyment in early retirement, instead of building a big bank account you probably won’t use, stick around! In This Episode We Cover Early retirement rules of thumb you MUST know when on the path to FIRE The 4% rule and why you DON’T need to follow it to a tee Retirement withdrawal rules and how much to spend during a crash/correction The skill of spending and what Brandon regrets most from pre-FIRE life Tracking your expenses and why knowing your costs is CRUCIAL to early retirement And So Much More! Links from the Show Mindy on BiggerPockets Scott on BiggerPockets Listen to All Your Favorite BiggerPockets Podcasts in One Place Join BiggerPockets for FREE Email Mindy: [email protected] Email Scott: [email protected] BiggerPockets Money Facebook Group BiggerPockets Money 119 - Coronavirus: Is It Time to Give Up on Financial Independence? w/The Mad Fientist BiggerPockets Money 161 - Backdoor Roths, Mega Backdoor Roths, and Roth Conversion Ladders w/The Mad Fientist The Problem with the 4% Rule (and Why You Could Retire Even Sooner) Hear Brandon's New Album! Try Baselane, the One Platform for All Your Property Banking & Finances Get to Early Retirement Faster with "Set for Life" Find Investor-Friendly Lenders BiggerPockets Money 18 - Accessing Retirement Funds Before Age 59½ with The Mad Fientist Check out more resources from this show on BiggerPockets.com and https://www.biggerpockets.com/blog/money-592 Interested in learning more about today’s sponsors or becoming a BiggerPockets partner yourself? Email [email protected] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Are you worried you won’t be able to retire at sixty-five? Feeling financially limited in your fifties and need a retirement plan so you can finally stop working? Well, we made this episode just for you. Today, we’re teaching you how to retire on time at age sixty-five (or even retire early!) if you’re starting from zero with no money to your name. We spell out exactly what we would do to go from a zero-dollar net worth to a million dollars in retirement! This is a step-by-step plan that anyone who wants to retire on time can follow. We’ll walk through two personas: Barb, a recently divorced stay-at-home mom reentering the workforce with a zero-dollar net worth. Then, we’ll touch on Sally, a six-figure income earner who also is starting from zero. Both scenarios take slightly different steps, so listen closely because your income level could completely change your money moves! Don’t give up on retirement! No matter your age, these simple steps can help get you to a financially stable (if not flourishing) position. We’ll talk about how to make more money, cut expenses, save every month, which investments you should prioritize for retirement, and what to do if you’re still in debt! In This Episode We Cover How to go from broke at fifty to millionaire (and retirement-ready!) at sixty  The one beginner-friendly investment that could make you richer (faster) than traditional retirement accounts  Starting a side hustle and how to make more money so you can retire faster  The passive, stable, and relatively safe investment that anyone can put their money into  When to pay off debt and which interest rates to prioritize first  How to become a personal finance genius in just a year simply by “listening”  And So Much More! Links from the Show Mindy on BiggerPockets Scott on BiggerPockets Listen to All Your Favorite BiggerPockets Podcasts in One Place Join BiggerPockets for FREE Email Mindy: [email protected] Email Scott: [email protected] BiggerPockets Money Facebook Group BiggerPockets Money 169 - Breaking the Taboo of Talking About Money with Friends, Family, and Bosses w/Erin Lowry  BiggerPockets Money 586 - Average Net Worth by Age (How Do You Compare?) Email [email protected] for a Free Copy of Set for Life Support Today’s Show Sponsor, Connect Invest, the Alternative Way to Earn Passive Income Through Real Estate Grab Scott’s Book, “Set for Life” Find an Investor-Friendly Agent in Your Area BiggerPockets Money 422 - The Late Starter’s Guide to Financial Independence (Even in Your 50s!) (00:03) Intro (02:21) How to Start from ZERO! (06:33) Stay-at-Home Mom, No Income, Divorced (20:08) Six-Figure Income, $0 Net Worth (27:32) Investing Your Money (31:34) Paying Off Debt (36:24) Want More Retirement Strategies? Check out more resources from this show on BiggerPockets.com and https://www.biggerpockets.com/blog/money-591 Interested in learning more about today’s sponsors or becoming a BiggerPockets partner yourself? Email [email protected] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Do you want to know how to save $1,000 a month (or more!) with simple spending and saving tweaks? Today, we’re giving you the BEST money hacks for 2025 from the expert, Chris Hutchins of All the Hacks! Some of these smart money moves will save Chris over $20,000 just next year, and that’s not even including all the other hacks he shared in this episode. The best part? These money hacks can help you retire early by substantially reducing your cost of living. Chris starts by sharing one of the most genius ways he’s making extra money. You could call it a side hustle, and Chris has a LOT of them to share. Then, we start taking HUGE chunks of money out of your monthly expenses as Chris shows you how to slash all your insurance costs, reduce your property taxes effortlessly, save tens of thousands a year on healthcare, and easily go out to eat for thirty percent less. If your 2025 goal is to save more, spend less, and get to FIRE faster, this is the perfect way to start, and missing out on these tips could cost you tens of thousands!  In This Episode We Cover Chris’s favorite side hustle of 2024 that’s making him extra money (nobody has thought of this!) How to slash your property tax bill in exchange for a couple of hours of your time Reevaluating your car insurance and why you MUST get new quotes ASAP Savvy healthcare hacks that could save Chris $24,000 this year alone  How to get a deep discount whenever you eat out (twenty to thirty percent off!) The one thing you can’t (and probably shouldn’t) hack  And So Much More! Links from the Show Mindy on BiggerPockets Scott on BiggerPockets Listen to All Your Favorite BiggerPockets Podcasts in One Place Join BiggerPockets for FREE Email Mindy: [email protected] Email Scott: [email protected] BiggerPockets Money Facebook Group BiggerPockets Money 473 - Holiday Shopping Hacks That’ll Save You Hundreds (or Thousands) This Season w/Chris Hutchins BiggerPockets Real Estate 783 - Home Buying Hacks: Finding The Perfect House (and Agent!) w/Chris Hutchins BiggerPockets Real Estate 955 - BiggerNews: Real Estate vs. Stocks, the Ultimate Wealth-Building Debate w/Chris Hutchins and The Motley Fool Why You Shouldn't Stop Working Once You Hit Financial Freedom w/Chris Hutchins All the Hacks  All the Hacks 34 - Insider Tricks to Healthcare, Prescriptions and Medical Bills with Marshall Allen All the Hacks 104 - Optimizing Your Insurance Policies (Auto, Home/Renters, Umbrella, Life, Disability, Pet, and Travel) All the Hacks 181 - Making an Easy $3k/mo from Online Deals with Kai Blueberry Pediatrics  in-kind - Restaurant Savings App Ownwell - Property Tax Reducer  Summer Health    Check out more resources from this show on BiggerPockets.com and https://www.biggerpockets.com/blog/money-590 Interested in learning more about today’s sponsors or becoming a BiggerPockets partner yourself? Email [email protected] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Alex Preziosi wants to reach financial independence by the age of forty-five, and with several hundred thousand dollars in retirement accounts, brokerage accounts, and savings, she’s on pace to do just that. But now, she’s thinking about quitting her W2 job. Can she still hit her FI goal? Today’s guest has good problems, but problems, nonetheless! Welcome back to the BiggerPockets Money podcast! Since we last spoke with Alex, she has made two major leaps on her journey to financial independence. First, she has taken up house hacking, which pays for most of her mortgage in an expensive area of the US. But that’s not all. She has also grown her side hustle as a real estate agent into a full-fledged business, where she now earns more than she does at her W2 job! These moves have only widened the gap between her income and her expenses, and, as a result, she’s sitting on an even bigger pile of cash. Now, Alex finds herself at yet another crossroads. Is her W2 holding her back? Should she pursue full-time entrepreneurship while she has such a strong cash position? Stay tuned as we dive into the numbers and try to figure out Alex’s best path to FI by forty-five! In This Episode We Cover The best path for Alex to reach financial independence by forty-five When to leave your W2 job and pursue full-time entrepreneurship How to lower (or eliminate!) your housing cost with the house hacking strategy Where to invest a large amount of cash (stock market versus real estate) Tax strategies that could help you save a fortune over your lifetime And So Much More! Links from the Show Mindy on BiggerPockets Scott on BiggerPockets Listen to All Your Favorite BiggerPockets Podcasts in One Place Join BiggerPockets for FREE Email Mindy: [email protected] Email Scott: [email protected] BiggerPockets Money Facebook Group How to Talk to Anyone Buy Scott’s Book “Set for Life” Find an Investor-Friendly Agent in Your Area BiggerPockets Money 395 – Finance Friday: House Hacking, Side Hustles, and the Path to FI by 45 w/Alex Preziosi Connect with Alex (00:00) Intro (01:14) Alex’s Money Journey (04:26) House Hacking Numbers (08:01) Money Snapshot (14:24) Leaving Her W2? (23:30) Buying More Rentals (29:57) Alex’s Investing Strategy (36:13) HUGE Cash Position (43:21) Connect with Alex! (44:57) “Unlock” Your Potential!   Check out more resources from this show on BiggerPockets.com and https://www.biggerpockets.com/blog/money-589 Interested in learning more about today’s sponsors or becoming a BiggerPockets partner yourself? Email [email protected] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices