Real Money Talk - A fresh take on personal finance

Millionaire Teacher, Andrew Hallam, sits down with Jon Vassallo, VP of Partnerships at Ratehub.ca,  to discuss Andrew’s new book: Balance: How to Invest and Spend for Happiness, Health, and Wealth. The two discuss how to live a better life (money isn’t everything), how to align spending with values, and resolving anxiety around spending before diving into investments and socially responsible investing. [0:00] intro[3:22] Money mistake or makeup - cat litter and ponzi schemes [9:12] What compelled you to write your new book, “Balance: How to Invest and Spend for Happiness, Health, and Wealth” [11:58] The 4 quadrants of success in life: money, relationships, health, purpose (Iki gai) [13:38] Do you have a favourite chapter in the book? What the research says about delaying gratification.[15:20] Daniel Kahneman - Reflective happiness vs. experiential happiness. [19:10] What’s the first step to changing your money habits and getting your finances in order?How to align your spending with your values. [23:51] How do we resolve anxiety around our spending? How will tracking my spending affect my social life? [28:50] Do you have a gratitude journal? Should we be journaling about gratitude? [30:35] What is one thing you’re feeling grateful for these days? [32:12] What’s the difference between ETFs and Active Mutual Funds? [34:52] The Spiva persistence scorecard: https://www.spglobal.com/spdji/en/spiva/article/us-persistence-scorecard/ [https://www.spglobal.com/spdji/en/spiva/article/us-persistence-scorecard/] [36:55] We’re not designed to invest (and what we should do instead)[40:16] Does Andrew Hallam invest in Crypto? [42:22]   What is SRI (socially responsible investing)? Should we put money where our values are? Does SRI impact our happiness? [47:15] Why is Costa Rica such a happy country? [51:05] Rapid Fire Questions [58:37] Outro

Are you planning on buying a house in 2022? Is it a New Year's Resolution? Here's everything you need to know about buying a home from people that did it in 2021. Jessica Moorhouse is an award winning blogger, podcaster, and an accredited financial counsellor in Canada. Ratehub’s Director of Insurance, Matt Hands, sat down with Jessica to discuss the home buying process. Jessica sold her townhouse and bought a new house in Toronto this year in the wild and crazy market. Matt decided to leave Toronto after buying his house in London, Ontario. The two discuss the stress of buying a house, mistakes they made, how to save, how to find the best mortgage rates, and why working with professionals is critical to your home buying success. [0:00] Intro [0:36] A brief history of Jessica Moorhouse (from student debt to blogging to home buying) [2:30] MONEY MISTAKE OR MAKEUP [6:57] We’re supposed to buy a house, right? We’re preconditioned to buying one, but why? Why do we buy homes? Toronto vs. Vancouver. Jessica talks about simply buying land because houses are too expensive, but buys a townhouse in 2016. You don’t have to buy a house. [13:15] On housing affordability and choosing your lifestyle [13:43] Alterna Savings survey - scariest part of home ownership was saving up enough because goal posts keep moving. [15:12] If you decided to stay a renter, what are you missing out on? Rent vs. buy [17:50] Matt talked himself out of a property. What do we do about a non-buyer's regret? Maybe there are reasons you didn’t buy the place. Think beyond just the house. [19:55] How do you save for a house? How much should go towards buying a house? What questions do you need to ask regarding high-ratio mortgages, insurance, registered accounts, etc. [23:04] Did you tap into the first time home buyer's plan for your first home purchase? A loan you have to pay back. [24:35] How can the government help first time home buyers? Affordability is the problem, not incentives. Housing prices just continue to go crazy. [25:55] Fixed vs. variable rates - which one to choose? [33:45] How did you find the best mortgage rate? Online? Friends? Banks? [35:00] Why you should interview your financial representatives, agents, and brokers about mortgages and insurance [37:15] What are the hidden costs of home buying? Realtor fees, property taxes, land transfer taxes, and other closing costs. [41:30] Thoughts and considerations about buying a house in the city vs. out of the city. Businesses must adapt to changing work culture. [44:23] Let’s talk about bidding wars in your home buying journey. Emotional decisions. [46:51] Bully offers and the need to be aggressive when bidding [48:00] On the value of a great realtor [49:31] Blind bidding in Toronto. How much do you actually want for the house? Houses being underpriced to drive prices up. [51:00] The importance of making a list of everything you want in a home, including what you want in your future life. [53:36] What is going to happen to the housing market? Will prices continue to rise? Will it go down? Will the bubble burst? [54:42] I could’ve bought a house but glad I didn’t. [55:12] Differences in generations on housing vs. stock market. [57:25] Posted rates vs. finding the best mortgage rate for you [58:31] RAPID FIRE QUESTIONS * What’s in your wallet? * A book everyone should read? * What was your first job and what did you learn from it? * What is a commonly held belief about your industry or space that you passionately disagree with? * If you had one tweet that everyone in the world would read, what would it say? * What’s your number (to walk away from it all and live financially independent, never worry about money again?) * What do you want to be known for when you die? * Where can people find you if they have more questions? [1:08:07] OUTRO

From the BC floods to the Wet Bandits flooding the basements in Home Alone—how does your home insurance work with natural disasters and climate change? What risks does Christmas pose to your house? What happens if your gifts get stolen? What do you do in case of a break-in? Do you really have to shovel your sidewalk? Do more fires happen at Christmas? What about hosting parties and serving alcohol? Director of Sales at RH Insurance (www.rhinsurance.ca [http://www.rhinsurance.ca]), Morgan Roberts, sits down with Director of Insurance at Ratehub.ca (www.ratehub.ca [http://www.ratehub.ca]), Matt Hands to answer all kinds of home insurance questions you never thought to ask before. [0:00] Intro [1:35] Money Mistake or Makeup [4:45] On home insurance and flooding (especially with BC floods) [6:11] Will your rates increase when claims happen elsewhere? [9:07] What is overland water? What is sewer backup? Do you need it? How much does it cost to add to your policy? [13:00] Who to contact about changes to your home insurance policy? [14:41] How does the insurance industry adapt and change to major weather related events and climate change? [16:30] When should you change your coverage limits? How often should you change them? [17:10] If you do renovations, do you need to speak to your insurance broker or agent? [19:38] Do you have to use a restoration specialist provided by the insurance company? Or can you use your own contractors? [21:44] What is the average cap, or return, due to water damage in your home? [22:45] Following a flood, do you have to submit a full list of everything you have and supply it to the insurance company for a full claim? [23:45] Can you shop around if you find you're not getting enough coverage? What are the standards in the insurance industry? Compare home insurance quoteshttps://www.ratehub.ca/insurance/best-home-insurance-quote [https://www.ratehub.ca/insurance/best-home-insurance-quote] [25:47] If you have to rebuild, do you have to rebuild on your property or can you take your money and go live elsewhere? [27:40] Where do you stay while your house is being rebuilt? [30:43] What are acts of god? What's the difference between an act of god and a peril? [34:29] Is house maintenance still required when dealing with home insurance? How long can you be away from your house without checking on it? What about snowbird insurance? [36:38] What is covered when your home is broken into? Describe Home insurance for break-ins. Do you need extra contents insurance for an engagement ring? What should I communicate to my insurer? [40:51] What do insurance companies recommend to protect your home? during the holidays? Do you get discounts for security cameras? Do you need to shovel your sidewalk? [43:28] Does home or auto insurance cover someone slipping and falling on your property? How much extra coverage do I need and how much does extra liability cost? Does home or auto insurance coverage kick in if something is stolen from your car? [48:55] Five wishes for 2022 [57:06] Outro

Ramit Sethi, author of “ I will teach you to be rich” recently tweeted out: 3 signs someone is financially sophisticated. 1. They know their numbers cold: Savings rates, asset allocation, debt payoff date, goals. 2. Creative, even extravagant spending on the things they love. Not penny pinchers. They have a point of view. 3. They actively work on their money psychology. If you don’t know these numbers, you worry about spending (whether it’s too much or too little), and you avoid living your life because, ya know, money, well - I hope this short podcast will help. November is financial literacy month in Canada. I could hit you with statistics on Canada's debt ratios, our salaries, and who’s budgeting or not, but we can save that for the written reports. Instead, here are the 10 steps to financial independence. Wherever you are in your journey, explore each step on your own for more details. Sign up for newsletters, follow money influencers on social media, read Ratehub.ca’s blog, and if you immerse yourself in the subject, I promise you will get to where you want to be faster. Knowing your money is good for your bank account, and your mental health will thank you even more. The problem isn’t having wealth, it’s when wealth becomes a source of fear, greed, and dictates how you behave. Wealth is a tool, so let’s sharpen our knives and cut the fruit fresh from the tree. So, set the goal, practice the habits and you’ll achieve success. It’s all a journey. Take any small steps and you’re moving in the right direction. * Step 1: Paying off debt & negative net worth * Step 2: Zero net worth - budgeting * Step 3: A plan for your paycheque * Step 4: Starting your emergency fund * Step 5: Setting up sinking funds * Step 6: The value of your first 100k * Step 7: FIRE: Financial independence, retire early * Step 8: On housing - house vs. apartment * Step 9: Insurance on your wealth * Step 10: Plan to die with zero

With vaccines rolling out for 5-11-year-olds, we may be nearing the end of the COVID pandemic. It’s been a time of juxtapositions. The burnout of finally being able to work from home, social distancing with your closest friends and family, and the great resignation from a tenured job – change has been the only constant in our stay in place lives. And now, the urge to splurge is on, treat yo’self. We’re tired of the puzzles, the paint by numbers, we want to revenge spend. According to a Bank of Canada survey, many Canadians expect to spend a lot more. Sure, almost 27% plan to spend more at restaurants, going to the movies, and other social get-togethers. And It’s kind of obvious another 21.5% of Canadians plan to spend more on travel. And why not? The average household savings rate went up to 13.10%, up from the 59-year average of 7.78% But, with the cost of inflation, from the food we buy to the gas to heat our homes going up 5-20% - how do we stay in control while living the life we so desperately want? Today on the show, I interview Cait Flanders. She used to splurge. She partied too much, she was maxed out financially, and, eventually turned herself into her own test subject to find her true self She paid off 30k in debt, became self employed, and is now living a life true to herself. She documented her unravelling and subsequent rebuild in her best-selling book, The Year of Less. Then, in her next book,  The Joy of Opting Out she helps you walk the same path, or trail because, “doing the opposite of what everyone around is doing is difficult” as she says. [2:25] Money mistake or makeup [4:10] Are we immune to what the media says? [5:51] Where should we start with new money habits? What was your process for spending less? [9:55] What needs to break before you start? [12:00] Actionable tips to get started on yourself [18:11] Setting rules & challenging yourself [21:42] How to make the big decisions easier (paying off debt, saving for a home, preparing to quit) [26:03] How do you define your values? [30:53] What is the joy of opting out? How is it different from the Joy of missing out? [35:43] Change travels with loss. How has embracing your changes enriched your life? [39:21] How do we know we're walking the right path? How do we know when to continue with our new challenge? [45:04] How do you stay on track and focused on your goal? [49:20] Do you have regrets? [52:49] Rapid fire questions [1:04:23] Outro