Texas is such a big state, and with so many cities to consider, how do you narrow down where you want to live? It may come down to jobs, cost of living, community or something entirely different. No matter what, though, make sure Houston is toward the top of the possibilities.
Why you may ask, is Houston really a stand-out Texas city? From its food to its being the home of NASA to its assortment of neighborhoods to its nightlife. Tallying up the reasons to move to Houston will leave you with a long list of positives.
What will seal the deal for you?
1. You can afford to live here
Fitting into your budget is most likely the number one requirement of any city you decide to call home. You don’t need it cheap, but you have to afford it, right? Houston works.
Coming in below the national average for its overall cost of living, Houston also has affordable rent. With prices rising just slightly over last year, an average one-bedroom apartment carries a monthly rent of $1,287. For a two-bedroom, it’s $1,614 per month.
Other categories that make up the overall cost of living that are cheaper than average in Houston include food, transportation and healthcare.
2. Downtown has a lot going for it
A pretty expansive area, Downton Houston is home to Minute Maid Stadium, the city’s central business district and three major parks. It’s a draw for young professionals who lead an active life. You have the option to get outside at Market Square Park, Sam Houston Park and Graffiti Park, while also being close to plenty of bars, restaurants and coffee shops. Living here can also make your commute that much easier, especially if you can get around using the METRO.
3. Take it down a notch in quality suburbs
If you’d rather live city-adjacent, Houston offers so many idyllic suburbs that keep Houston proper within reach. These stretch out beyond those neighborhoods considered part of the city, which also provide some great places to live.
Since Houston is the fourth largest city by population and the ninth by actual land area, it’s no surprise that some of the best spots to live in aren’t technically in Houston. Two of the best suburbs are The Woodlands (about 30 miles from downtown) and Sugar Land (about 21 miles from downtown), two more reasons to move to Houston.
4. Plenty of jobs
Houston is a big place, which means a lot of space for major corporations to call the area home. There are actually dozens of Fortune 500 companies in Houston, including Sysco, Phillips 66, Hewlett Packard Enterprise and Academy Sports & Outdoors.
Job opportunities are one of the primary reasons to move to Houston for many. Major employers in the area include Walmart and Texas Medical Center. The city’s key industries are energy, healthcare and aerospace, which can bring in a hefty salary and provide job security and stability.
It pays to seek employment in Houston, and the median household income is $53,600.
5. You could work for NASA
Yes, you will need specific work experience on your resume, maybe a doctorate or two, as well. But, the reason aerospace is a leading employer in Houston is because it’s the home of NASA, situated about 25 miles from downtown, in Clear Lake.
Flashing a business card with The Johnson Space Center as your work address is pretty impressive. NASA is also constantly recognized as a great place to work, with plenty of opportunities for job growth.
6. No income tax required
This is a state-wide perk, but there being no income tax in Texas means those pulling in a nice salary in Houston get to keep more of their paycheck.
7. Weather worth moving for
Are harsh winters getting you down? Not in Houston. Here, the weather is pretty sublime. The average yearly high is a comfortable 78 degrees Fahrenheit, and the average low is only 60 degrees. There are about three months of winter, and three hotter months in summer. All the rest are in that sweet and comfortable spot where you might need a light jacket, but may also get away with a T-shirt and shorts.
There’s minimal rain, as well, and plenty of sunshine.
8. A fun place for foodies
Beyond the kolaches, barbecue and Tex-Mex, Houston has deep roots in Vietnamese food. You can find delicious pho and Viet-Cajun crawfish alongside homemade tamales and so many types of tacos.
Even though Texas barbecue usually takes the top spot, Houston elevates dining with its James Beard Award-winning chefs and upscale eateries throughout the city. You can grab oysters in River Oaks before venturing across town to the Sixth Ward for Vietnamese.
9. A sports team for every season
Sports fans rejoice! Houston has a team for you to root for no matter what sport you call your favorite. You can catch the Houston Astros as they round the bases at Minute Maid Park. They may only have one World Series championship under their belt right now, but another could be in their future.
Basketball fans can catch a Rockets game, and football aficionados can cheer on the Texans as they stomp through the AFC South. There’s even a Major League Soccer team, the Houston Dynamo FC.
10. A massive amount of museums
The amount of museums in Houston is worth taking note of. Museums not only offer ideal ways to spend a rainy day but are great places to take visitors.
Houston boasts a well-rounded Museum of Fine Arts, the Menil Collection with its free admission and variety of exhibits, the Museum of Natural Science, the Holocaust Museum, Space Center Houston and so many more.
11. Shop until you drop all over town
While you’ll find plenty of boutiques and smaller shops around Houston, the city does a great job of creating concentrated areas for some retail therapy, one of the many key reasons to move to Houston.
For some upscale shopping, check out the four blocks that make up GreenStreet or the River Oaks destination, Highland Village. There’s also solid shopping and dining in Rice Village and a great open-air market, Traders Village, which is open on weekends.
12. Strong schools
It’s not always the case that the public school system where you want to live meets your standards, but the Houston Independent School District (HISD) hits a lot of high notes. As the largest school district in Texas, it’s known for its AP program and stellar education.
When your kids are grown, if they want to stay local while getting a college degree, you can’t do much better than Rice University for a private school and the University of Houston for a public one. You’ll also find Texas Southern University and an assortment of community colleges.
13. An appreciation for the outdoors
With such perfect weather, it’s no surprise Houston has over 50,000 acres of parks within the city. It’s a perfect place to walk, run, bike and picnic. Some favorite parks around the city include Hermann Park in the Museum District and Tranquility Park downtown.
Hermann Park is a 445-acre paradise with a lot of surprises within. Make sure to visit the Bill Coats Bridge, the Friendship Pavilion and the Hawkins Sculpture Walk as you explore this wide expanse of green.
Digging into the city’s connection to the stars, Tranquility Park commemorates the Apollo 11 moon landing. Here you’ll find all kinds of water features to introduce a sense of calm right in the heart of the city. It’s the perfect oasis.
14. Position yourself for travel
Not only are there two major airports in Houston for when it’s time for vacation (or a business trip), but Houston is close to a lot of cool spots for a weekend road trip.
The two airports are the George Bush Intercontinental Airport and the William P. Hobby Airport. The George Bush is the busiest airport in Texas. Houston Hobby is smaller, with fewer flights, but its proximity to downtown can make it easier to get to.
When it comes to road trips, Houston is a great home base to explore more of Texas. You can head to:
College Station to visit Texas A&M and the George Bush Presidential Library and Museum
Waco and see what all the fuss is about with Chip and Joanna Gaines of HGTV fame
Galveston for a little time along the Gulf of Mexico
Texas City and its quieter beach vibes
Austin, the state capital, and an all-around fun destination
San Antonio for the River Walk, the Alamo and Six Flags Fiesta Texas
Dallas, if you’ve got a little more time to spend in the car
15. Act like a cowboy
Living in Houston lets you experience a piece of culture you can’t find in many other places. You can slide into a pair of cowboy boots, put on a cowboy hat and leave the house without the risk of any sideways stares. This is the home of the cowboy, so soak up the local rodeo and blast that country music. You can even finally take up horseback riding (in a Western saddle).
The Space City has so much to love
Houston is one of those magical places where you’ll continually find more reasons to call it home. It’s a big place (but what in Texas isn’t?) full of amazing communities and so much activity. There’s an opportunity for fun, work, culture and nature almost around every corner. Do you need any more reasons to move to Houston? Are you ready to love this city as much as the locals already do?
Depending on the loan amount you need and where you’re buying a home in Wisconsin, you may find it difficult to find financing beyond the conforming loan limits. This is where jumbo loans come into play.
What is a jumbo loan?
A jumbo loan is a type of mortgage that’s designed to help you finance the purchase of a home that exceeds the limits set by the Federal Housing Finance Agency. In Wisconsin, this type of loan is often needed for high-end homes or properties located in expensive housing markets. With a jumbo loan, you can get the financing you need to buy your dream home, even if it’s more expensive than what a standard mortgage can cover.
If you find yourself in a situation where the home you’re planning to buy requires borrowing beyond the conforming loan limit (CLL), then you’ll need to pursue a jumbo loan. But because of the larger loan amounts and increased risk for lenders, Wisconsin jumbo loans often come with higher interest rates and stricter requirements than conventional loans. For instance, a larger down payment and a higher credit score may be required to qualify for a jumbo loan.
What is the jumbo loan limit in Wisconsin?
In Wisconsin, the conforming loan limit is $726,200 across all counties. For example, the conforming loan limit in Dane County is $726,200, so if the loan amount needed is even one dollar more than this amount, it’s considered a jumbo loan.
As a reminder, the loan amount is what determines whether or not you’ll need a jumbo loan, not the price of the home you’re buying. So, if you were to put $50,000 down on a $750,000 home in Madison, the mortgage would be $700,000, which is under the conforming loan limit for this area. In this case, your loan wouldn’t be considered a jumbo loan.
You can find more information on the conforming loan limits specific to where you’re looking to buy a home in Wisconsin by using the FHFA map.
What are the requirements for a jumbo loan in Wisconsin?
As previously mentioned, the requirements for a jumbo loan are much more stringent than a conforming loan. Each lender may have different requirements or processes, but below are the typical requirements for borrowers seeking a jumbo loan.
Higher credit score: When it comes to applying for a jumbo loan, credit score requirements are typically more stringent than for conventional mortgages. It’s possible that some lenders may accept a lower score, a credit score of at least 720 is generally required to qualify for a jumbo loan. It’s important to have a strong credit profile and a solid financial history to increase your chances of being approved for a jumbo loan.
Larger down payment: When applying for a jumbo mortgage, keep in mind that down payment requirements are generally more substantial than for conventional loans. While the specific amount will depend on the lender and the borrower’s financial situation, many jumbo loan lenders require a down payment of at least 10%, and some require as much as 20% or more.
More assets: Jumbo loan borrowers are typically required to have additional assets. In particular, lenders may require borrowers to demonstrate sufficient liquid assets or savings to cover one year’s worth of loan payments.
Lower debt-to-income ratio (DTI): When applying for a jumbo loan, Wisconsin lenders typically look for a borrower with a debt-to-income ratio (DTI) below 43%. Ideally, a DTI closer to 36% or lower is preferred. The DTI is calculated by dividing the sum of all monthly debt payments by gross monthly income. A lower DTI signifies a borrower’s ability to manage their current debt load while taking on additional mortgage payments. It also indicates greater financial stability and the ability to make on-time payments towards their jumbo mortgage.
Additional home appraisals: For a jumbo loan, a mortgage lender may require a second home appraisal to ensure that the property’s value is accurate. This is particularly true in places where there are few comparable sales. The appraisal acts as a second opinion and helps the mortgage lender to mitigate their risk. It’s important to note that the cost of a second appraisal may be higher than a typical home appraisal, particularly in areas with fewer sales.
Aspiring home owners are finding the housing market to be pretty grim lately. With record-high mortgage rates, expensive insurance, and a limited selection of pricey homes, many are staying put — whether they want to or not.
But the bleakoutlook could be a boon for Ikea, a budget furniture seller that appeals to people who need to furnish small spaces, can’t spend much and don’t expect products to last very long.
With “people maybe not being able to get into that dream house right now, whether for affordability or availability … they’re looking for solutions that might not be as permanent,” said Michael Brown, partner in the consulting firm Kearney’s consumer products and retail practice. He added that unlike its competitors, Ikea’s offerings work well insmallerspaces.“I actually think the environment is ripe for them to go and expand at this point in time,” he said.
In fact, the chain announced a $2.2 billion investment in the US market in April, its largest-ever investment in the country. Over the next three years, it plans to open eight large stores and nine smaller “plan and order points,” where customers can chat with design consultants and order products. It also wants to improve delivery and to open 900 new order pick-up locations.
“We see endless opportunities to grow” in the US, Tolga Öncü, head of Ikea Retail for the Ingka Group,Ikea’s Dutch holding company, said in a statement at the time.
Trading down
By charging ahead now, while home-ownership and renovations are out of reach forbudget-consciousAmericans, Ikea can reach more people who may be in the market for their products, and possibly hold onto those customers in the future.Plus, some of the things that people consider negative about Ikea could turn into positives.
At “low-cost discretionary retailers… products often feel very temporary and almost disposable for people,” said Karl Zimmermann, a partner at the consulting firm Bain with expertise in retail. But for some customers, a temporary option could be just the thing. A retailer like Ikea “could absolutely benefit from a period like this, where people are pulling back from bigger expenditures and doing smaller, more incremental moves to solve their needs,” he said.
“I don’t think that this is what [Ikea] would have picked in an ideal state,” said Sucharita Kodali, principal analyst at Forrester, a research and consulting firm, referring to the difficult housing market and consumers slashing spending in the space.But, “they’re at the low end, and they may be able to pick up some share from people who are trading down.”
At a place like Ikea, people may now be willing to trade their time and their energy for the lower price, noted Zimmermann.
That’s similar to the trade people are willing to make to shop at Aldi, a no-frills budget supermarket which is largely stocked with store brands and where items are stacked in cartons. When food inflation soared, so did Aldi’s sales. At this economic moment, “I can see concepts that are pointed … towards a lower-income consumer having tons of runway,” he said.
Those new plan and order locations could also be a draw.
“In the past, design services were mostly accessible to those that could afford them,” said Marisa Ortega, retail analyst at the research firm Mintel. “Now we are seeing more retailers offering this perk.”
Meanwhile, once-mighty retailers are feeling the pain.
After splurging on home improvement projects during the pandemic, consumers are pulling back. And those that invested in new decor a few years ago might not buy anything new for a while.
Home improvement retailer Lowe’s lowered its profit and sales outlook for the year in May, saying consumers were spending less on home improvement. Home Depot also posted disappointing sales for its first quarter and lowered its outlook for the year. Furniture retailerEthan Allen reported that in the three months ending on March 31, its net sales in retail fell 9.5% year-over-year.
Ikea, which is not publicly traded, reported that its retail sales rose by 6.5% in fiscal year 2022, but didn’t post quarterly results. Its competitors also saw sales rise last year.
A budget store can scoop up customers who are looking for cheaper alternatives, rather than abstaining from buying altogether. And with more locations and options, it can reach more people.
“Many companies hold back on spending during economic downturns,” Ortega said. “So this expansion can give Ikea a leg up to build stronger relationships with consumers and position itself for long-term growth.”
— CNN’s Anna Cooban, David Goldman, Nathaniel Meyersohn and Parija Kavilanz contributed to this report.
One of the fastest growing and largest mortgage lenders in the country goes by the name PennyMac, not to be confused with Freddie Mac.
If you’re wondering what the rather odd name means, it stands for Private National Mortgage Acceptance Co.
While the company started as a buyer of distressed mortgage assets after the mortgage crisis in the early 2000s, it wasn’t long before they were originating their own home loans.
Today, they refer to themselves as a “top 3 lender in the U.S.,” which is likely driven by their strong correspondent lending business.
They purchase home loans from small and mid-sized banks, along with credit unions and other smaller mortgage lenders.
But they’re also becoming a major retail mortgage lender as well, serving consumers directly and beginning to make a household name for themselves.
In fact, in October 2019 they broke their one-month record by lending more than $1 billion directly to consumers.
If you’re looking to purchase a home or refinance an existing mortgage, PennyMac might be a lender worth looking into.
PennyMac Mortgage Quick Facts
Publicly-traded mortgage company launched in 2008
Former Countrywide Financial CFO is their founder
A top-3 mortgage lender licensed everywhere but NY
Nearly 4,000 employees, headquartered in Westlake Village, CA
Funded $125B in home loans during 2021 (6th largest lender nationally)
Services more than $368B in home loans for its customers
First a little history on PennyMac, which only stretches back to 2008. But they’ve been busy since.
Back then, they had only 72 employees, however, that total included some major mortgage players, namely former Countrywide Financial CFO and COO Stanford L. Kurland.
This might explain their explosive growth from startup to now one of the largest (if not largest) correspondent mortgage lenders in the country.
They also launched a wholesale mortgage division in 2018 to serve mortgage brokers known as “PennyMac Broker Direct.” It is now known as PennyMac TPO.
So they offer mortgages via the three major channels, including retail, correspondent, and wholesale.
They are also a top-10 residential mortgage servicer with over $368 billion in portfolio, and a publicly-traded company, with two stocks on the NYSE.
How to Apply for a Mortgage with PennyMac
Can apply online or by phone or visit a local sales office
Loan application powered by Mortgage Access Center (m.a.c)
Allows you to check loan status 24/7 and upload key documents
Can view your credit scores and access W-2s from your employer via The Work Number verification
I always give props to lenders that let you apply for a mortgage directly on their website. It’s 2020, so if this isn’t an option, and you’re a lender, you better make it one.
With PennyMac, you can apply right away or get pre-approved online by creating an account and filling out a digital loan application.
If you’re old school, or simply need some guidance, you can also enter your contact information on their website and a loan officer will reach out to you to answer questions and get the loan process started.
It’s also possible to simply call them up to get connected with a loan officer to go over mortgage rates and available loan programs.
Those who are just sniffing around can take advantage of PennyMac’s Home Value Estimator tool, which provides its own home price estimate along with Zillow’s Zestimate and price per square foot.
So if you want to more details on what a potential home purchase will cost, or want to know what your current property is valued at, you can do so for free on their website.
Anyway, once you do apply, you can take advantage of their digital loan experience known as m.a.c., short for Mortgage Access Center.
To make the experience quicker and easier, they allow you to import bank statements from your online banking account(s) and verify W-2s via The Work Number.
You’re also able to securely upload documents, access your credit scores, and check loan status 24/7.
As your loan progresses, you’ll receive status notifications and update calls from your dedicated m.a.c team.
Types of Loans Offered by PennyMac
Conventional loans: conforming and jumbo loan amounts
Government-backed loans: FHA, USDA, and VA loans
Home purchase and refinance loans (cash-out is an option)
Variety of fixed-rate and adjustable-rate mortgages
Like most lenders, they offer both home purchase loans and refinance loans, in both fixed-rate and adjustable-rate options.
You can get both a conventional loan backed by Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac, or a government-backed loan via the FHA, USDA, or VA.
They offer conforming loans and jumbo loans, so those with expensive properties are good to go.
With regard to loan type, you can get a fixed-rate mortgage with various terms, such as 30-year, 20-year, and 15-year.
Or an adjustable-rate mortgage with an initial fixed-rate period, such as a 3/1, 5/1, 7/1, or 10/1 ARM.
PennyMac also recently rolled out a home equity line of credit (HELOC) product to customers in select states, claiming to be the only major nonbank lender to directly offer one.
They lend on primary residences, second homes, and investment properties, so you’re covered regardless of occupancy type.
PennyMac Mortgage Rates
One plus to using PennyMac is that they’re fairly transparent about mortgage rates.
If you go to one of their loan product pages, you’ll see today’s mortgage rates listed. Be sure to view the assumptions and recognize that they’re just sample rates that meet certain criteria.
You can also get a customized quote on their website in about 30 seconds by answering a series of simple borrower- and property-related questions.
While the interest rate may not be set in stone, you can at least get a good idea of how competitive they are relative to other lenders.
Once you get your rate quote, you’ll see several loan options such as the 30-year fixed and 15-year, and possibly some ARMs as well.
They list the interest rate, APR, and mortgage points required for the rate in question.
You can also view additional rates to see what the rate would be with fewer or more discount points.
Assuming you like what you see, you can apply right then and there, which is nice. Or you can call them or have them call you.
All in all, their mortgage rates seem to be competitive from what I saw relative to other lenders, but always take the time to shop around.
PennyMac Better Rate Promise and Close On-Time Promise
PennyMac also makes a lot of promises that they back with real money if they don’t live up to them.
Their “Better Rate Promise” is their promise to beat any competitor’s mortgage rate and/or lender fees.
If they’re unable to do so, and you take your loan elsewhere, they’ll give you a $250 Visa gift card.
Their Close On-Time Promise is their promise to close your home loan on time. If there’s a delay that is their fault and not the borrower’s or a third party, you’ll be sent a $500 Visa gift card.
Both these promises, collectively known as “The PennyMac Promise,” only apply to home purchase loans, not refinances, and there are other various restrictions in the fine print.
PennyMac Mortgage Reviews
PennyMac has more than 19,000 customer reviews on SocialSurvey with a 4.57 out of 5-star rating.
They’ve also got a 4.25 rating out of 5 stars at Zillow based on 173 customer reviews. Many of those reviews indicate the interest rate and closing costs were lower than expected.
Additionally, they are an accredited business with the Better Business Bureau and have an A+ BBB rating.
They’ve got a near-4 star rating based on 421 customer reviews. But they’ve also got a healthy number of customer complaints, with more than 500 at last glance.
So you may want to dig through those if you’re concerned about their customer service.
PennyMac Pros and Cons
The Good Stuff
They openly display their mortgage rates
You can get a no-obligation quote on their website in seconds
Can apply online via digital loan process
Offer lots of different loan options for all types of borrowers
They service the home loans they originate
Free mortgage calculators and home estimate tool
Good customer reviews overall
Close On-Time Promise
Better Rate Promise
The Maybe Bad Stuff
Mortgage rates might not be the lowest
Lender fees are not listed on their website
Be sure to shop around the invoke the Better Rate Promise if necessary
One of the fastest growing and largest mortgage lenders in the country goes by the name PennyMac, not to be confused with Freddie Mac.
If you’re wondering what the rather odd name means, it stands for Private National Mortgage Acceptance Co.
While the company started as a buyer of distressed mortgage assets after the mortgage crisis in the early 2000s, it wasn’t long before they were originating their own home loans.
Today, they refer to themselves as a “top 3 lender in the U.S.,” which is likely driven by their strong correspondent lending business.
They purchase home loans from small and mid-sized banks, along with credit unions and other smaller mortgage lenders.
But they’re also becoming a major retail mortgage lender as well, serving consumers directly and beginning to make a household name for themselves.
In fact, in October 2019 they broke their one-month record by lending more than $1 billion directly to consumers.
If you’re looking to purchase a home or refinance an existing mortgage, PennyMac might be a lender worth looking into.
PennyMac Mortgage Quick Facts
Publicly-traded mortgage company launched in 2008
Former Countrywide Financial CFO is their founder
A top-3 mortgage lender licensed everywhere but NY
Nearly 4,000 employees, headquartered in Westlake Village, CA
Funded $125B in home loans during 2021 (6th largest lender nationally)
Services more than $368B in home loans for its customers
First a little history on PennyMac, which only stretches back to 2008. But they’ve been busy since.
Back then, they had only 72 employees, however, that total included some major mortgage players, namely former Countrywide Financial CFO and COO Stanford L. Kurland.
This might explain their explosive growth from startup to now one of the largest (if not largest) correspondent mortgage lenders in the country.
They also launched a wholesale mortgage division in 2018 to serve mortgage brokers known as “PennyMac Broker Direct.” It is now known as PennyMac TPO.
So they offer mortgages via the three major channels, including retail, correspondent, and wholesale.
They are also a top-10 residential mortgage servicer with over $368 billion in portfolio, and a publicly-traded company, with two stocks on the NYSE.
How to Apply for a Mortgage with PennyMac
Can apply online or by phone or visit a local sales office
Loan application powered by Mortgage Access Center (m.a.c)
Allows you to check loan status 24/7 and upload key documents
Can view your credit scores and access W-2s from your employer via The Work Number verification
I always give props to lenders that let you apply for a mortgage directly on their website. It’s 2020, so if this isn’t an option, and you’re a lender, you better make it one.
With PennyMac, you can apply right away or get pre-approved online by creating an account and filling out a digital loan application.
If you’re old school, or simply need some guidance, you can also enter your contact information on their website and a loan officer will reach out to you to answer questions and get the loan process started.
It’s also possible to simply call them up to get connected with a loan officer to go over mortgage rates and available loan programs.
Those who are just sniffing around can take advantage of PennyMac’s Home Value Estimator tool, which provides its own home price estimate along with Zillow’s Zestimate and price per square foot.
So if you want to more details on what a potential home purchase will cost, or want to know what your current property is valued at, you can do so for free on their website.
Anyway, once you do apply, you can take advantage of their digital loan experience known as m.a.c., short for Mortgage Access Center.
To make the experience quicker and easier, they allow you to import bank statements from your online banking account(s) and verify W-2s via The Work Number.
You’re also able to securely upload documents, access your credit scores, and check loan status 24/7.
As your loan progresses, you’ll receive status notifications and update calls from your dedicated m.a.c team.
Types of Loans Offered by PennyMac
Conventional loans: conforming and jumbo loan amounts
Government-backed loans: FHA, USDA, and VA loans
Home purchase and refinance loans (cash-out is an option)
Variety of fixed-rate and adjustable-rate mortgages
Like most lenders, they offer both home purchase loans and refinance loans, in both fixed-rate and adjustable-rate options.
You can get both a conventional loan backed by Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac, or a government-backed loan via the FHA, USDA, or VA.
They offer conforming loans and jumbo loans, so those with expensive properties are good to go.
With regard to loan type, you can get a fixed-rate mortgage with various terms, such as 30-year, 20-year, and 15-year.
Or an adjustable-rate mortgage with an initial fixed-rate period, such as a 3/1, 5/1, 7/1, or 10/1 ARM.
PennyMac also recently rolled out a home equity line of credit (HELOC) product to customers in select states, claiming to be the only major nonbank lender to directly offer one.
They lend on primary residences, second homes, and investment properties, so you’re covered regardless of occupancy type.
PennyMac Mortgage Rates
One plus to using PennyMac is that they’re fairly transparent about mortgage rates.
If you go to one of their loan product pages, you’ll see today’s mortgage rates listed. Be sure to view the assumptions and recognize that they’re just sample rates that meet certain criteria.
You can also get a customized quote on their website in about 30 seconds by answering a series of simple borrower- and property-related questions.
While the interest rate may not be set in stone, you can at least get a good idea of how competitive they are relative to other lenders.
Once you get your rate quote, you’ll see several loan options such as the 30-year fixed and 15-year, and possibly some ARMs as well.
They list the interest rate, APR, and mortgage points required for the rate in question.
You can also view additional rates to see what the rate would be with fewer or more discount points.
Assuming you like what you see, you can apply right then and there, which is nice. Or you can call them or have them call you.
All in all, their mortgage rates seem to be competitive from what I saw relative to other lenders, but always take the time to shop around.
PennyMac Better Rate Promise and Close On-Time Promise
PennyMac also makes a lot of promises that they back with real money if they don’t live up to them.
Their “Better Rate Promise” is their promise to beat any competitor’s mortgage rate and/or lender fees.
If they’re unable to do so, and you take your loan elsewhere, they’ll give you a $250 Visa gift card.
Their Close On-Time Promise is their promise to close your home loan on time. If there’s a delay that is their fault and not the borrower’s or a third party, you’ll be sent a $500 Visa gift card.
Both these promises, collectively known as “The PennyMac Promise,” only apply to home purchase loans, not refinances, and there are other various restrictions in the fine print.
PennyMac Mortgage Reviews
PennyMac has more than 19,000 customer reviews on SocialSurvey with a 4.57 out of 5-star rating.
They’ve also got a 4.25 rating out of 5 stars at Zillow based on 173 customer reviews. Many of those reviews indicate the interest rate and closing costs were lower than expected.
Additionally, they are an accredited business with the Better Business Bureau and have an A+ BBB rating.
They’ve got a near-4 star rating based on 421 customer reviews. But they’ve also got a healthy number of customer complaints, with more than 500 at last glance.
So you may want to dig through those if you’re concerned about their customer service.
PennyMac Pros and Cons
The Good Stuff
They openly display their mortgage rates
You can get a no-obligation quote on their website in seconds
Can apply online via digital loan process
Offer lots of different loan options for all types of borrowers
They service the home loans they originate
Free mortgage calculators and home estimate tool
Good customer reviews overall
Close On-Time Promise
Better Rate Promise
The Maybe Bad Stuff
Mortgage rates might not be the lowest
Lender fees are not listed on their website
Be sure to shop around the invoke the Better Rate Promise if necessary
Our goal here at Credible Operations, Inc., NMLS Number 1681276, referred to as “Credible” below, is to give you the tools and confidence you need to improve your finances. Although we do promote products from our partner lenders who compensate us for our services, all opinions are our own.
How Credible mortgage rates are calculated
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Here are the general steps to getting a mortgage:
Get a handle on your finances and credit. Add up your total monthly expenses and subtract them from your total monthly income to see how much you may be able to spend on a monthly mortgage payment. Check your credit score and report to correct any errors on your report and take action if you need to improve your credit score.
Get pre-approved for a mortgage. Although pre-approval doesn’t guarantee the lender will give you a mortgage, it’s a strong indication you’ll be able to qualify for one when the time comes. Having a pre-approval letter can make your offer more attractive to potential sellers.
Comparison shop. Once you’ve had an offer accepted on the house of your dreams, it’s time to compare rates from multiple mortgage lenders. Be sure to compare all the costs of a mortgage, not just the interest rate.
Complete the full application. You’ll need to provide detailed information about your income, savings, monthly expenses, and overall financial situation.
If you’re trying to find the right mortgage rate, consider using Credible. You can use Credible’s free online tool to easily compare multiple lenders and see prequalified rates in just a few minutes.
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The largest institutional single-family rental (SFR) operator in the country, Invitation Homes, is in the hot seat over its alleged failure to comply with building-permit requirements for rental properties it owns in California.
Another larger player in the space, Progress Residential, recently postponed a securitization transaction due to difficult market conditions. And yet another big force in the market, FirstKey Homes, is pulling collateral out of a 2021 securitization deal.
These developments—and more—can be seen as cracks in the armor of a housing-industry sector that rose out of the ashes of the Great Recession and grew to become a thriving alternative for individuals locked out the home-purchase market by rapidly rising prices.
The market stresses facing the SFR sector now include decelerating rents, a rising cost of capital and a shortage of homes available to purchase — which has slowed property acquisitions and related securitization deals that help market players regenerate capital.
David Petrosinelli, a New York-based senior trader with InspereX, a tech-driven underwriter and distributor of securities that operates multiple trading desks around the country, said he expects the securitization market for institutional SFR players to “approximate a more normal market by summertime.”
“But the caveat, of course, is that all bets are off if there’s a more meaningful contraction in lending [in the wake of recent bank failures and other economic factors] because then you’re in serious trouble,” Petrosinelli added.
Inviting an SFR lawsuit
Invitation Homes earlier this year failed to convince a judge to dismiss a pending whistleblower lawsuit filed against the company in federal court in San Diego that alleges it made improvements at scores of properties in California without first securing required building permits.
The lawsuit claims further that the company “ignored permitting laws to avoid fees and increased taxes as well as to get renovated homes on the rental market as soon as possible.” The whistleblower litigation, known as a qui tam action — which allows private parties to sue on behalf of the United States — was filed under seal in state court in California in 2020 and moved last year to federal court — where the judge’s ruling denying dismissal of the case was handed down in January of this year.
The lawsuit is filed as a false-claims action on behalf of some 18 California cities by an entity called Blackbird Special Projects LLC, which discovered the alleged violations based on its examination of public records using artificial intelligence software. If successful in the litigation, Blackbird stands to get a cut of any recoveries for the local governments.
“To support these assertions, [Blackbird] used proprietary software to scour different rental listing websites such as Zillow.com and [Invitation Home’s] website to identify homes owned by defendant,” pleadings in federal court state. “[Blackbird] then used its proprietary ‘lookback’ technology to access pre-renovation images of the homes from a multiple listing service and compare them with post-renovation images from the rental advertisements.”
Invitation Homes declined to comment on specific allegations raised in the lawsuit, but a company spokesman did say the “allegations are without merit, and we intend to vigorously defend the company.”
“Invitation Homes is currently the largest owner of single-family, rental homes in the United States, with most of its homes located in California, Florida, Georgia, Texas and other Sun Belt states,” the federal lawsuit states. “In California, as of December 31, 2019, defendant [Invitation Homes] owned 12,461 single-family homes in over 100 cities.
“… By its failure to pay or remit inspection, permit fees, penalties and interest, Invitation Homes has defrauded cities and counties in California millions of dollars.”
By “renovating thousands of homes” absent obtaining building permits, pleadings in the case allege, Invitation Homes was able to “avoid revaluations that would have happened if permits were obtained, thus evading increased property taxes on improved properties.”
The Invitation Homes’ case is being watched closely by some players in the secondary market, where large SFR operators like Invitation Homes raise funds through securitization deals backed by their rental properties.
“The reason this matters is they [Invitation Homes] make representations and warranties into their securitization trusts that all work improvements are permitted,” explained Ben Hunsaker, a portfolio manager focused on securitized credit for California-based Beach Point Capital Management. “So, there are points where they may have to refinance securitization debt if this [litigation] goes sideways for them with unsecured corporate debt, and they go from 1% or 2% cost of capital to 7% or 8% cost of capital, and they also have to worry about their ratings then.”
Invitation Homes (IH) spent about $25,000 on renovations per home for its California SFR portfolio, pleadings in the lawsuit state.
“The vast majority of IH’s renovations required permits — including for demolishing and constructing sections of single-family homes, installing and demolishing pools, and significantly altering the electrical work— but permits were not obtained,” court pleadings allege. “Once the single-family homes were renovated without the required permits, IH rented them to tenants who were unaware of the unpermitted and potentially unsafe renovations.”
The federal judge now overseeing the case earlier this year denied a motion lodged by Invitation Homes seeking to have the case dismissed. As part of that ruling, the judge made clear that he wasn’t going to entertain any arguments by the defendant seeking to shift blame to contractors for failing to secure the building permits.
The judge states in his ruling, essentially, that even if independent contractors are responsible for the alleged failure to obtain building permits, that fact alone doesn’t absolve Invitation Homes of the responsibility to “do the investigating itself” to ensure permits were issued.
Industrywide turbulence
The lawsuit against Invitation Homes is not the only dark cloud hanging over the institutional SFR sector.
The securitization market for institutional SFR companies, which collectively represent some 5% of an SFR market composed of some 17 million properties, is currently in the doldrums. That’s largely due to a lack of housing available to purchase, and consequently a lack of new assets to securitize, according to market expert L.D. Salmanson.
Salmanson is CEO of Cherre, a data-integration and insights platform that works with major players in the real estate market, including insurers, asset managers, lenders and SFR operators. The company serves as a data warehouse and deep analytics platform that integrates client data with other public and private data sources to create powerful market assessment and forecasting tools.
“First of all, there’s been a massive slowdown in the purchase rate for the large [SFR] players,” Salmanson said. “What’s been causing the slowdown is not the [flat to decelerating] rental prices, although that is affecting it.
“Rather, it’s that there are a lot less people selling because they’re not getting the [higher] prices that they’re looking for [as home prices decelerate]. But that’s temporary. That’s not going to last.”
Last year, there were a total of 15 securitization deals involving large institutional SFR players valued in total at $10.3 billion, according to data tracked by Kroll Bond Rating Agency (KBRA). This year, so far, there has been one offering, a $343 million securitization deal by Progress Residential (Progress 2023-SFR1) that closed in late February, KBRA data show.
Yet even Progress, which has a portfolio of some 83,000 SFR properties, appears to be caught up in the SFR securitization stagnation. Hunsaker said one major SFR player a few weeks ago postponed a securitization deal, pulling it off the market prior to pricing due to market conditions.
That player, according to industry sources, was Pretium Partners-backed Progress Residential, and the deal was Progress 2023-SFR2.
Hunsaker added that another potential drag on the institutional SFR market is the fact that some single-family rental (SFR) operators are backed by investment firms that also invest in the commercial real estate market, which he said also is facing stiff headwinds now — particularly in the office and multifamily sectors.
For example, Bridge Investment Group Holdings early last year acquired Gorelick Brothers Capital’s estimated 2,700 SFR-property portfolio spread across 14 markets concentrated in the Sunbelt and Midwest. Bridge’s portfolio also includes investments in office and multifamily properties.
Likewise, SFR operator FirstKey Homes, with a portfolio of some 45,000 SFR properties under management, is an affiliate of Cerberus Capital Management, a global investment firm with approximately $60 billion in assets across credit, private equity as well as residential and commercial real estate interests.
KBRA reported last month that FirstKey Homes exercised a so-called “excess collateral release” [ECR] feature for a securitization deal dubbed FirstKey Homes 2021-SFR1. It was the first such ECR exercised across the 12 KBRA-rated securitization deals to date that have included such a provision.
“In connection with the subject transaction … the issuer requested release [via the ECR] of 729 properties from the collateral pool of 9,218 properties,” KBRA’s report notes. “Post release, the remaining 8,489 properties will collateralize the same debt of $2.06 billion [due to increased home values].
“…The analysis indicated that the [exercise of the] ECR, in and of itself, would not result in a downgrade.”
Hunsaker said for many SFR operators facing uncertainty now, the solution is to stop buying new properties if they believe their cost of capital is rising too much — absent home prices dropping enough in the future to make the numbers work.
“I think most of these [SFR operators] are capitalized for longer-term [property] holding incentives [and] … I don’t think these structures are set up to be forced sellers,” Hunsaker said.
He added that healthy home-price appreciation to date made it possible for FirstKey Homes to release the excess collateral from the 2021 securitization deal.
“But they weren’t releasing that excess collateral to sell the houses,” he stressed. “They’re releasing that excess collateral to put it on their balance sheet and reduce the amount of encumbered debt they have.”
FirstKey Homes does not share financial details about its operations for competitive reasons, a company spokesman said when asked to comment on the ECR transaction.
“What’s vital to remember is that across the SFR sector, investors are still active, albeit a bit more selective, with the belief SFR provides durable cash flows and stable occupancies,” the FirstKey spokesman added. “Additionally, with household formations significantly outpacing the decades-long low housing supply, it bodes well for continued strong demand for the high-quality single-family rental homes we provide our family of residents.”
The Disney and Universal resorts are complete with theme parks, restaurants and other attractions. On the surface, the two can seem pretty similar: Both offer rides themed around movies, both have options for adults and children, and both have locations in Florida and California.
However, the experience you’ll receive at each resort will differ greatly. Let’s look at Disney versus Universal, including the types of attractions at their theme parks and the prices you can expect to pay for each.
The main differences between Disney vs. Universal theme parks
Disney and Universal may have a lot in common according to the average theme park attendee, but there are two big differences that you’ll notice right away.
The first is that Universal tends to focus more on thrilling rides. It has massive roller coasters that far exceed anything Disney has to offer, especially because Disney focuses on more family-friendly attractions.
The second is that Disney doesn’t feature non-Disney intellectual property for its theming. Instead, it relies on its vast catalog of content to create rides and lands for guests to enjoy. This is not the case for Universal; its parks rely on elements from several studios for attractions.
Locations
Disney has 12 parks in six locations spread across the globe:
Anaheim, California:
Disneyland Park.
Disney California Adventure.
Orlando, Florida:
Magic Kingdom.
Disney’s Hollywood Studios.
Disney’s Animal Kingdom.
Disneyland Park.
Walt Disney Studios.
Tokyo Disneyland.
Tokyo Disney Sea.
Hong Kong:
Hong Kong Disneyland Park.
Shanghai Disneyland.
Attractions
Disney tends to focus on attractions the whole family can enjoy. While there are plenty of rides for those of all ages, there are also a whole host of other things to do. These include live-action shows, sing-along events, drawing lessons, Broadway-style theater, character meet-and-greets and more.
If you’re more of a fan of larger rides, there are still some options. Though huge thrill rides aren’t Disney’s forte, you’ll still see large roller coasters, drop towers and simulated flying experiences. These are fewer in number than other attractions but well worth the wait.
Food and beverage
Gone are the days when theme park food was relegated to the greasy, overpriced hot dog and crusty french fries. Although still expensive, Disney has spent the past few decades revamping the meals it serves to guests.
This means you can take some time out of your day to enjoy a meal at a fine steakhouse, watch teppanyaki being cooked at a Japanese restaurant, taste the gray stuff at the Beast’s castle or drink California wines on a Tuscan terrace.
Of course, it’s still possible to enjoy the standard turkey leg and churro, but this is an option rather than a necessity.
Price
The cost to visit a Disney theme park is going to vary greatly depending on which one you visit. In the U.S., expect to pay upward of $104 for a single-day ticket to Walt Disney World or Disneyland.
Locations
Universal has a smaller footprint than Disney, with six parks spread over five locations:
Burbank, California:
Universal Studios Hollywood.
Orlando, Florida:
Universal Studios Florida.
Universal’s Islands of Adventure.
Singapore:
Universal Studios Singapore.
Osaka, Japan:
Universal Studios Japan.
Universal Beijing Resort.
Attractions
Although Universal has its own share of family-friendly rides, it does differentiate itself from Disney with much more thrilling attractions. This can be seen with roller coasters such as the Jurassic World VelociCoaster, which has won several awards.
Universal is also home to the “Harry Potter” franchise and has done an admirable job designing Diagon Alley and Hogsmeade, complete with the ability to ride the Hogwarts Express.
Though Universal does have some shows and character meetings — such as taking a photo with a velociraptor — as a whole, its parks focus more on attractions rather than other types of entertainment.
Food and beverage
While Universal is doing its best to catch up with Disney on the food and beverage front, it’s still not quite up to par. Universal has a few good restaurants — especially those in the “Harry Potter”-themed areas — but for the most part, the food will be what you expect in a theme park.
One notable exception is Mythos, which is in Universal’s Islands of Adventure. This restaurant continues to win awards for best theme park restaurant, beating other park restaurants worldwide.
Price
The cost for Universal tickets is also going to vary based on which park you’re visiting and when. However, in the U.S., tickets for the Universal Orlando Resort and Universal Studios Hollywood start at $109 for one day.
Disney vs. Universal, recapped
Disney and Universal may have a lot in common in that they offer theme parks in multiple locations around the world. However, the experience you’ll get with either brand is going to differ.
If you’re more interested in large rides like roller coasters, Universal is going to be your best bet. The same is true if you’re a big fan of Harry Potter.
If you don’t mind some of the more family-friendly rides or you have little ones to bring along, Disney may be a better option. Along with better food options, Disney provides a range of nonride attractions, including the ability to meet some of its most famous characters.
(Top photo courtesy of Universal Studios)
How to maximize your rewards
You want a travel credit card that prioritizes what’s important to you. Here are our picks for the best travel credit cards of 2023, including those best for:
Out of 72 million Millennials in America, roughly 600,000 are already millionaires according to Coldwell Banker.
Like the generation they represent, Gen Y’s own one-percenters come from diverse backgrounds and share a bootstrapping attitude to building wealth and success. Their paths to riches range from the tried-and-true to the clever and lucky; some of their methods are merely admirable, while others are easily repeatable.
So who are the Millennial millionaires? How did they build their fortunes, and what can we learn from them?
Let’s investigate six Millennial millionaires, their paths to wealth, and extract one takeaway from each journey.
What’s Ahead:
Jeremy Gardner: crypto
In 2013, at age 21, Jeremy Gardner bought some bitcoins from a friend purely out of curiosity.
At the time, all he really knew about “crypto” was that it was the preferred currency of Silk Road, a darknet eBay for drugs and illegal activity. Shady traders on Silk Road liked Bitcoin because it was unregulated and difficult for authorities to trace.
The FBI shut down Silk Road in 2013 but Bitcoin lived on – and soon, Gardner began to see its true merit.
“There was this realization that I could — with just an internet connection— exchange value with anyone in the world who also has an internet connection,” he told Business Insider. “No longer did I have to rely on a centralized intermediary, a troll under the bridge, such as a bank or a government.”
Gardner converted all of his cash and holdings into Bitcoin and dedicated his life to evangelizing cryptocurrency. He won’t share his net worth publicly, but considering Bitcoin traded for as low as $50 in 2013 and now hovers around $50,000, it’s safe to say he’s beyond mere “millionaire” status.
So what does a crypto millionaire do all day?
At the time of his Business Insider interview, Gardner lived in a three-story townhome in San Francisco dubbed “The Crypto Castle.” He claims that most of the other tenants who have rotated in and out of the Castle have become millionaires as a result of cryptocurrency investing.
Despite residing in one of the most expensive cities on earth, Gardner’s biggest living expense was apparently “alcohol.” That’s because he loves taking people out to party, wax poetic about crypto, and pick up the tab.
During the day, Gardner worked “fairly full-time” at venture capital firm Blockchain Capital, which focuses on seeding crypto-based startups, for a salary of $0. He’s since moved to Miami for the lower cost of living.
Even at the time of his interview in 2017, Gardner acknowledged the possibility of a bubble popping – it may be at $60,000, $100,000, or $500,000 – so to protect his wealth, he has plenty of cash on reserve. That cash will continue to pay for his living expenses and, of course, be used to scoop up more Bitcoin after the bubble bursts.
What we can learn from Jeremy Gardner’s millions
An investment in cryptocurrency can provide generous returns, but it’s not without risk or challenges. Cryptocurrency investments are not FDIC-insured, for example, and the regulatory landscape is still unfolding.
Still, crypto can lend some high-risk, high-reward diversity to your portfolio. I’ll be covering crypto in more detail in the coming months, so stay tuned.
Shan Shan Fu: pandemic-based startup
Chinese-American immigrant Shan Shan Fu, 33, was already working hard enough when the pandemic hit in Q1 2020. Her mother and father had been an engineer and a doctor back in China, respectively, but since their degrees weren’t recognized in America they had to work in grocery stores to make ends meet. Their salaries plummeted but their work ethic stayed the same.
Inspired by her folks, Fu took on a second role in addition to her hard-enough nine-five consulting job. As soon as the pandemic hit, she saw an immediate need for high-quality, breathable face masks. So from five to one each night for seven months, she built and launched Millennials In Motion, a boutique mask and fashion vendor.
Her income from Millennials In Motion soon surpassed her consulting salary, so she left her steady gig to focus on growing her startup.
Shan Shan Fu’s financial success is doubly impressive considering everything working against her during the pandemic. She already had a full-time job, the economy was tanking, and she was an Asian woman, suffering from increased judgment and discrimination due to increasing anti-AAPI bias.
“When you immigrate from China, it’s already so difficult because you’re judged based on how you look, your accent. Your education isn’t valued as much as if [it were from the U.S.],” she told CNBC. “It’s tough to go through so much adversity and be hated on for [a pandemic] that has nothing to do with you…”
Launching Millennials In Motion wasn’t Shan Shan Fu’s first financial success. Fu briefly lived in Vancouver, where she spotted a beautiful condo for an affordable price. She called it “the Millennial dream” and sensed it would be a good investment. It was – since she bought it for $500,000 in 2015, the condo has more than doubled in value.
Technically speaking, Ms. Fu is barely a millionaire – in fact, I’d estimate that after being hammered by self-employment taxes, her net worth might have lost a digit. But I have no doubt that she’ll rebound immediately; if she can launch a successful one-woman startup during a pandemic, the sky’s the limit.
What we can learn from Shan Shan Fu’s (eventual) millions
There are four traditional paths to becoming a millionaire in this country: earning, investing, launching a successful business, and inheritance. Most rich Americans got that way by picking one, maybe two lanes at max so they can work less and stay focused. Ms. Fu is unique in that she built wealth equally between lanes one, two, and three throughout 2020. But even someone with a work ethic as incredible as Ms. Fu realized that 17-hour days aren’t worth it for any amount of money, and focusing on two lanes is just fine.
Keith Gill: high-risk stock trading
Keith Gill is the only person on this list that I can provide an almost precise net worth for, down to the penny.
That’s because Gill is the de facto leader of the infamous amateur investing subreddit r/wallstreetbets where he posts his portfolio on a semi-regular basis. Gill’s “GME YOLO” updates show how he’s turned a $53,000 investment in GameStop stock into $25+ million, peaking at $50 million in February.
Granted, Gill’s “GME YOLO” updates only reflect his GameStop holdings, not his entire net worth. Still, it’s pretty safe to say they represent the majority of his net assets now, and that he’s definitely a Millennial millionaire several times over.
Gill, 34, got his Reddit username from the investing term “deep value.” Deep value investing involves building a diverse portfolio of cheap, undervalued stocks.
Calling upon his experience as a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA), Gill noticed that GameStop stock (GME) had become severely undervalued in 2019, so he bought up 50,000 shares plus 500 call options. He didn’t just “YOLO” his cash into the wind, either, justifying his move with trends and data in a video he posted to his YouTube channel under the pseudonym Roaring Kitty. Critically, he never said he was sharing advice – just educational material.
Gill’s early investment in GameStop, and frequent posts justifying his positions, are credited with stimulating the now-famous GameStop short squeeze of Q1 2021. The movement got so serious that Gill was called in to testify to Congress on February 18th alongside Robinhood co-founder Vladimir Tenev. His two most famous quotes arising from his testimony are “I am not a cat” and “I like the stock.” To date, no legal action has been taken against Gill, and the day after his testimony he doubled his position in GameStop to 100,000 shares.
In many ways, Keith Gill was the hero Reddit needed in 2021. By all accounts, he’s just a normal guy who wants to promote financial literacy, notably the deep value investing strategy of seeking out undervalued stocks. He lives in a normal house in Brockton, Mass with a wife and young daughter, and despite their best efforts, the hedge funds have failed to charge, muzzle, or discredit him. He’s also made a lot of normal people a lot of money during a crippling pandemic.
What we can learn from Keith Gill’s millions
While Keith Gill’s gambit certainly paid off, it’s important to remember that r/wallstreetbets is full of terrible advice, too. Tons of people lose their livelihoods chasing meme stocks and trends, so it’s better to get your lols from WSB and investing guidance from a professional wealth advisor.
A better takeaway from Gill’s millions (that’s fun to say) is that financial literacy pays off. Even though he’s the figurehead of a subreddit that celebrates badly-researched trades, Gill did do his research on GameStop and it paid off. So if you’re looking to build wealth as an amateur investor, be like Gill – not like WSB.
Amandla Stenberg: entertainment
Remember Rue from The Hunger Games movies? Yeah, she’s crushing it now.
Born in 1998 to an African-American mother and Danish father, Amandla Stenberg got her name from the Zulu word for “strength.” Living up to her namesake, she followed her global debut in The Hunger Games by starring in Everything, Everything as Maddy, a young woman homebound by a debilitating medical condition.
Although her portrayal of Maddy won her universal acclaim and further propelled her to stardom (and millionaire status), Steinberg has garnered more well-deserved attention for her outspoken philosophies and political views.
Steinberg identifies as non-binary, preferring the pronouns “she/her” or “them/they,” and has used her newfound stardom to spread pro-acceptance and feminist messaging. In 2015 she published a five-minute YouTube video titled Don’t Cash Crop My Cornrows, directly confronting the disconnect between cultural appropriation and cultural acceptance of black Americans.
On a smaller but similarly profound note, Steinberg announced in 2017 that she’d stopped using a smartphone in favor of a “dumb phone.”
“I’m legitimately concerned about my generation and how phones are going to affect us psychologically.” she told Bust in an interview. “I think [social media] is a very important tool. But at the same time, I think it can create some serious effects on our mental health.”
Amandla Steinberg, who straddles the line between Millennial and Gen Z, evokes the best possible definition of “woke.” She carries a torch of acceptance and critical thinking for both generations, using her wealth and stardom to propel society forward in the right direction.
What we can learn from Amandla Steinberg’s millions
As a “Millennial millionaire,” Steinberg exemplifies how wealth, power, and influence can absolutely be forces for good. She may not give us a clear path to riches, since acting isn’t exactly a reliable cash cow – but she sure as hell shows us how to use it.
Whitney Wolfe Herd: dating apps
Are billionaires still millionaires? Asking for a friend.
Whitney Wolfe Herd was a millionaire, at least, before the Bumble IPO in February 2021. Then, in the ring of a bell, 31-year-old Wolfe became a bonafide billionaire and the youngest woman to take a company public ever.
Unlike Kylie Jenner, nobody dispute’s Whitney Wolfe Herd’s wealth or authenticity. Wolfe launched her first business in college when she began selling bamboo tote bags to benefit victims of the BP oil spill. Two years later, she joined an incubator where she became the third employee of a new Millennial-focused dating app. The app was all about immediate sparks, so she came up with the name Tinder.
Despite Tinder’s explosive growth, Wolfe Herd resigned just two years later and sued her former partners for sexual harassment. The whole nasty episode inspired her to move to Austin and launch a female-friendly dating app called Moxie. The name was taken, unfortunately, so her second choice was Bumble.
Between 2015 and 2019, Wolfe Herd swept awards and collected accolades for her unstoppable momentum in the male-dominated tech industry. In September 2019, she even testified before the Texas House Criminal Jurisprudence Committee on the topic of explicit images sent within dating apps, further championing efforts to protect women from sexual harassment online: all before her 29th birthday.
When Bumble finally launched a successful IPO, Wolfe Herd’s hefty stake in the company reached an estimated value of $1.5 billion. But despite her 10-figure wealth and barrier-shattering success, Whitney Wolfe Herd’s path to riches is actually pretty old school.
What we can learn from Whitney Wolfe Herd’s (many) millions
If you work in a startup environment, ask for stock options. 10 years of startup salaries probably represent less than 0.05% of Herd’s net worth; the rest is entirely stock.
I myself have a few friends who were the 9th or 17th or 31st employees of no-name companies that have since become big-name companies. Even those that didn’t become Pinterest or Bumble were often bought out, resulting in massive capital gains for early employees and seed round investors. So just a few years of hard work in the right startup can make you a millionaire: as long as you get that stock!
Todd and Angela Baldwin: just save and invest
Todd Baldwin, 28, started out shoveling manure for $3 an hour. Today, his annual income exceeds $600,000. His wife Angela makes six figures also, which the couple can afford to put entirely into savings.
Todd and Angela began their relationship with a combined household income well under $100k. They couldn’t afford to live alone in Seattle, so they bought a $500k home with a small $19,000 down payment and rented out the other rooms to make their mortgage payments.
But by keeping their costs low and crushing it at work, the Baldwins were able to earn more, save more, and buy more. Within a year they invested in a second property. Now they have six.
Three factors enabled the Baldwins to keep purchasing property and build their real estate portfolio:
Their increased earnings at work.
Rent payments from tenants.
Their dedication to frugality and simple living.
Interestingly, Todd credits number three as their primary factor for success. For example, in college he couldn’t afford to take his soon-to-be-wife out for fancy meals, so he took a side gig as a mystery shopper. Now, instead of paying $60 for a nice meal, he’s paid $60 to take his wife out and report his experience. She doesn’t mind and enjoys their “free dates.”
Todd and Angela now live in a much nicer $900,000 duplex, but they still rent out their spare bedrooms, even their converted garage to cover 100% of their mortgage. The couple shares a 2009 Ford Focus, and Todd wears a $12 wedding band made of rubber.
Personally, I admire the Baldwins’ dedication to frugality – but if you find their lean lifestyle to be a bit… restricting, know this: as a result of cost-cutting, they’re able to save 80% of his income and 100% of hers. Even if they bought a pair of matching Mercedes and gave their roommates the boot, they’d likely still save more than half of both of their salaries.
The couple’s ultimate goal is to own 6,000 apartments by the time Todd turns 60, which would bring in $9 million a month in rent. If they pull it off, they’d be fast on their way to becoming a billionaire power couple: too recognizable to keep power shopping.
What we can learn from Todd and Angela Baldwin’s millions
The Baldwins aren’t startup heroes, lottery winners, or crypto zillionaires. Their path to riches didn’t even involve luck or months of 17-hour days. All they did was save and invest, save and invest.
The single most common path to becoming a millionaire in America is to invest 20% of your income for 30 years. The Baldwins were just a bit more aggressive (to say the least), investing 80% of their income for five years and counting. But the core principle still stands – you don’t need a six-figure salary, a massive inheritance, or an early stake in Bumble to get rich; just patience and the most fundamental investing knowledge.
Summary
The Millennial millionaires range from sage opportunists to Hollywood activists; glass ceiling-smashers to frugal investors. Their pathways to wealth are as diverse as the generation they represent, but each of the one-percenters on this list shares one thing in common: a plan.
When it comes to building wealth, luck plays a surprisingly tiny role, if it even factors in at all. Nobody on this list waited for luck; instead, they did their research, executed upon an opportunity, and worked hard for that second comma in their bank statement.
“Where are you from?” It’s a common question when you meet someone new while traveling. And it’s an easy question for most people. But for me, it’s complicated if I want to give more details than “the United States.”
After all, my husband and I gave up our Austin, Texas, apartment in June 2017, sold or donated most of our belongings and then set out as digital nomads on July 2, 2017. So, excluding some extended time living with family early in the coronavirus pandemic, we’ve traveled full time while working remotely for the last six years.
In 2020, I wrote about my first three years as a digital nomad. But in this story, I’ll look back at the past six years. In doing so, I’ll discuss how I became a digital nomad, some of my travel statistics and how travel has changed for me during the past six years.
How I became a digital nomad
On a bus from Aguas Calientes to Machu Picchu in Peru in 2013, I first heard of a gap year or sabbatical year. I hadn’t gotten into points and miles yet, but my husband and I loved the idea of taking a year off to travel after I finished graduate school. Well, fast forward four years to 2017, when it was time to leave on our “gap year.” By this time, we were already working as writers in the award travel space.
So, we hit the road as digital nomads instead of taking a gap year. And we quickly fell in love with the freedom and flexibility of the lifestyle. I appreciate experiencing different cultures, landscapes, experiences and cuisines daily. And I’ve found that frequently visiting new destinations inspires me.
I also enjoy using the topics I write about — points, miles, credit cards and elite status — on a daily basis. We make award redemptions most weeks (and often multiple times a week), and we’re constantly traveling. So, I know many of the airline, hotel and credit card programs I write about from personal experience. And I’m personally invested when these programs change or devalue their rewards.
Points and miles certainly fuel some of our travel. But we also book paid flights and nights when it makes sense. After all, we only have a finite amount of points and miles, and we’ve found that paid partner-operated premium-cabin flights are often the best way to earn airline elite status.
Related: 6 ways award travel and elite status pair well with my digital nomad life
1,121,959 miles on 575 flights
Over the last six years, I’ve taken 575 flights on 62 airlines to 180 airports in 58 countries. I’ve taken so many flights in the last six years that my flight map is difficult to read.
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I flew 1,121,959 direct flight miles in the last six years, with an average flight distance of 1,951 miles (about the distance from Atlanta to Los Angeles). My longest flight was 9,532 miles, from New York to Singapore. And my shortest flight was just 11 miles from Tahiti to Moorea in French Polynesia.
But my most memorable flight was on Sri Lanka’s Cinnamon Air from Polgolla Reservoir Aerodrome (KDZ) to Koggala Airport (KCT) on a Cessna 208 amphibious caravan.
I frequently fly American Airlines and often use Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport (ATL) when visiting family. So, it’s not surprising that my three most frequent routes by flight segments are between American Airlines’ hubs and Atlanta. Here’s a look at my top 10 most frequent flight segments over the last six years:
New York’s LaGuardia Airport (LGA) to/from ATL: 15 flights
Dallas Fort Worth International Airport (DFW) to/from ATL: 11 flights
Charlotte Douglas International Airport (CLT) to/from ATL: 10 flights
Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KUL) to/from Kualanamu International Airport (KNO): 10 flights while I earned Malaysia Airlines Enrich Gold status in 2019
Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) to/from ATL: Nine flights
Las Vegas’ Harry Reid International Airport (LAS) to/from LAX: Eight flights
DFW to/from LGA: Six flights
London’s Heathrow Airport (LHR) to/from LAX: Six flights
Hong Kong International Airport (HKG) to/from Da Nang International Airport (DAD): Six flights booked during Cathay Pacific’s New Year’s deal in 2019
DFW to/from LAS: Five flights
And my loyalty to American Airlines AAdvantage and its Oneworld partners shows when you look at the airlines I flew most by flight segments:
American Airlines: 224 flights, including reviews of American’s A321T business class, 787-9 business class, 777-200 business class with B/E Aerospace Super Diamond seats, 787-8 Main Cabin Extra, 757-200 Main Cabin Extra and 757-200 business class
United Airlines: 31 flights, including reviews of United’s 787-8 economy class and 757-200 economy class
Southwest Airlines: 29 flights, including a review of Southwest’s 737-800 from Oakland, California, to Newark
Malaysia Airlines: 26 flights
Qatar Airways: 23 flights, including reviews of Qatar Qsuite on a 777-300ER and Qatar Qsuite on an A350-1000
Delta Air Lines: 22 flights, including when I was one of the first American tourists to fly to Italy on a COVID-19-tested flight
British Airways: 20 flights, including a review of British Airways’ A380 economy class
Cathay Pacific: 17 flights
Japan Airlines: 14 flights, including a review of Japan Airlines’ 777-300ER premium economy
Qantas: 12 flights
However, if you look at the airlines on which I flew the most mileage, the ranking is a bit different due to some mileage runs:
American Airlines: 404,296 miles
Cathay Pacific: 104,481 miles
Qatar Airways: 89,630 miles
British Airways: 53,357 miles
Delta Air Lines: 49,603 miles
United Airlines: 42,237 miles
Singapore Airlines: 36,176 miles, including a review of Singapore Airlines’ A350-900ULR premium economy
Japan Airlines: 33,756 miles
Air Canada: 30,792 miles
All Nippon Airways: 28,938 miles
I track all my flights in OpenFlights. So, although it’s relatively easy for me to gather statistics on my flights, I don’t have a simple way to determine the amount I paid in points and cash for my 575 flights during the last six years.
Related: The best credit cards for booking flights
1,103 nights in hotels
I’ve spent over half of the last six years living out of hotel rooms. In particular, I’ve spent 894 nights at 75 major hotel brands within the last six years. And I’ve spent 209 nights at other brands and independent hotels.
Here’s the breakdown of my stays by loyalty program and brand over the last six years, including notes about my favorite programs.
390 nights at 15 IHG brands
Holiday Inn Express: 120 nights
Holiday Inn: 66 nights
InterContinental Hotels & Resorts: 51 nights, including five nights at the InterContinental Hayman Island Resort in Australia, four nights at the InterContinental Phuket Resort in Thailand, four nights at the InterContinental Phu Quoc Long Beach Resort in Vietnam, three nights at the InterContinental Danang Sun Peninsula Resort in Vietnam, three nights at the InterContinental New York Times Square in New York and two nights at the InterContinental Fiji Golf Resort & Spa in Fiji
Candlewood Suites: 28 nights
Hotel Indigo: 26 nights, including five nights at the Hotel Indigo Austin Downtown-University in Texas and four nights at the Hotel Indigo Birmingham Five Points South – UAB in Alabama
Staybridge Suites: 22 nights
Crowne Plaza Hotels & Resorts: 19 nights, including three nights at the Crowne Plaza Beijing Wangfujing in China and three nights at the Crowne Plaza Times Square in New York
Holiday Inn Resort: 19 nights, including 10 nights at the Holiday Inn Resort Kandooma Maldives in the Maldives
Voco: 11 nights, including six nights at Voco Gold Coast in Australia
Regent: Nine nights
Kimpton Hotels & Restaurants: Eight nights
Six Senses: Six nights, including four nights at Six Senses Laamu in the Maldives and two nights at Six Senses Yao Noi in Thailand
Atwell Suites: Two nights at Atwell Suites Miami Brickell in Florida
Avid: Two nights at Avid hotel Oklahoma City — Quail Springs in Oklahoma
Even: One night
Over the last six years, I’ve stayed 161 paid nights at IHG properties for an average of $152 per night. The least I paid was $48 per night at the Holiday Inn Express Berlin — Alexanderplatz in Germany. And the most I paid was $1,564 per night during a review of the InterContinental Maldives Maamunagau Resort in the Maldives.
Meanwhile, we redeemed IHG points for 209 nights over the last six years, including 36 fourth-night-free rewards. On average, we redeemed 15,591 IHG points per night. We also redeemed 20 anniversary nights over the last six years, including at the InterContinental Bora Bora Resort & Thalasso Spa in French Polynesia and the Kimpton De Witt Amsterdam in the Netherlands.
You might wonder how we earned so many IHG points and anniversary nights. We maximize IHG promotions to earn points on stays. And we often buy points during IHG points sales with a 100% bonus when we can do so for 0.5 cents per point. As for the anniversary night certificates, we both have multiple IHG credit cards, so we’ve each earned two anniversary nights for most of the last six years.
We frequently stay at IHG One Rewards hotels and resorts due to the high value we often get when redeeming IHG points. But, with the launch of the new IHG One Rewards program last year, we are also getting good value from the annual lounge membership you can select through IHG’s Milestone Rewards program after staying 40 nights in a year.
Related: 9 budget strategies for getting the most out of your points and miles
209 nights at other brands and independent hotels
These days, we usually stay at major hotel brands to earn and use elite status perks and benefit from the consistency provided by these brands. But we often stayed at independent hotels when we first hit the road as digital nomads in 2017. And even now, we sometimes find ourselves in a destination without major hotel brands or where staying at a property outside our brand loyalties makes the most sense.
For example, we couldn’t pass up staying in a twin cell at YHA Fremantle Prison in Australia and a robot hotel in Japan. Likewise, staying within Addo Elephant and Kruger national parks in South Africa let us maximize our time seeing wildlife in these parks.
We often book these stays through online travel agencies since we don’t have to worry about missing out on elite status benefits and earnings while staying at properties outside our primary brands. For example, we’ll sometimes book through credit card portals to use credits, like the $50 hotel credit each account anniversary year on the Chase Sapphire Preferred Card. And we’ll occasionally book through American Express Fine Hotels + Resorts to snag extra perks and use the prepaid hotel credit we get each calendar year as a perk of The Platinum Card® from American Express. We’ll also sometimes use Rocketmiles to earn American Airlines miles and Loyalty Points on our stays.
On average, I paid $83 per night on these stays. But, my least expensive night was $18 per night for a private room with a shared bathroom at Stella Di Notte in Belgrade, Serbia. And my most expensive night was $235 per night at the RLJ Kendeja Resort & Villas in Liberia during PeaceJam.
203 nights at 21 Marriott brands
Over the last six years, I’ve stayed 140 paid nights at Marriott properties for an average of $121 per night. The least I paid was $44 per night at the Four Points by Sheraton Bogota in Colombia. And the most I paid was $350 per night during a review of the Waikoloa Beach Marriott Resort & Spa in Hawaii.
Meanwhile, we redeemed Marriott points for 49 nights over the last six years, including six fifth-night-free benefits. On average, we redeemed 16,167 points per night on Marriott award stays. We also redeemed 14 free night awards we earned through Marriott credit cards and promotions over the last six years.
Related: Here’s why you need both a personal and business Marriott Bonvoy credit card
115 nights at 6 Choice brands
Ascend Hotel Collection: 54 nights, including 28 nights at Emotions All Inclusive Puerto Plata in the Dominican Republic, nine nights at Gowanus Inn & Yard in New York (no longer bookable through Choice Hotels) and three nights at Bluegreen Vacations Fountains in Florida
Comfort: 37 nights, including 19 nights in Japan
Quality Inn: 13 nights
Cambria Hotels: Four nights
Rodeway Inn: Four nights
Clarion: Three nights
Over the last six years, I’ve stayed 34 paid nights at Choice Privileges properties for an average of $93 per night. The least I paid was $54 per night at the Comfort Hotel Airport CDG in France. And the most I paid was $239 per night at Cambria Hotel New York — Times Square in New York.
Meanwhile, we redeemed Choice points for 81 nights over the last six years. On average, we redeemed 9,531 Choice points per night. I’ve found I can get excellent value when redeeming Choice points for unique redemptions and for stays in Japan, Europe and destinations that typically feature high paid hotel rates. So, as with IHG, we often buy Choice points during sales or through Daily Getaways promotions.
87 nights at 11 Hyatt brands and partners
I didn’t stay much with World of Hyatt until the program offered reduced qualification requirements and double elite night credits in early 2021. I earned Globalist status in 2021 for far fewer nights than is usually required, but I’ve prioritized maintaining it due to the on-site perks it provides.
I’ve stayed 53 paid nights at Hyatt properties for an average of $139 per night over the last six years. The least I paid was $24 per night at the Excalibur Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas. And the most I paid was $353 per night at Hyatt House New York/Chelsea in New York.
Meanwhile, I redeemed Hyatt points for 27 free nights over the last six years. I’ve found some excellent Category 1 Hyatt hotels that provide wonderful value on award stays. So, it isn’t surprising that I’ve redeemed 5,563 points per night on average and just 3,500 points per night for nine nights. Additionally, I redeemed seven free night certificates that I earned through Hyatt credit cards, Hyatt Milestone Rewards and the Hyatt Brand Explorer promotion over the last six years.
40 nights at 10 Wyndham brands
Days Inn: 10 nights
Ramada: Nine nights
Ramada Encore: Five nights
Microtel: Five nights
Club Wyndham: Three nights
Super 8: Three nights
Viva Wyndham: Two nights at Viva Wyndham Azteca — All-Inclusive Resort in Mexico
Baymont: One night
Howard Johnson: One night
Travelodge: One night
Over the last six years, I’ve stayed 29 paid nights at Wyndham properties for an average of $103 per night. The least I paid was $48 per night at the Days Inn Guam-Tamuning in Guam. And the most I paid was $200 per night during a review of the Viva Wyndham Azteca — All-Inclusive Resort in Mexico.
Meanwhile, we redeemed Wyndham points for 11 nights over the last six years. On average, we redeemed 9,068 points per night on Wyndham award stays. And we love getting a 10% redemption discount when we redeem Wyndham points as a benefit of our Wyndham Rewards credit card, as this brings an award night that would typically cost 7,500 points down to just 6,750 points.
32 nights at 6 Hilton brands
Over the last six years, I’ve stayed 18 paid nights at Hilton properties for an average of $130 per night. The least I’ve paid was $58 per night at the Hilton Jaipur in India. And the most I paid was $168 per night at the Hilton Niseko Village in Japan.
Meanwhile, we redeemed Hilton points for eight nights over the last six years, including one fifth-night-free benefit. On average, we redeemed 46,250 points per night on Hilton award stays. We also redeemed six Hilton free night certificates that we earned through Hilton credit cards over the last six years for excellent value at the Conrad New York Midtown, the Conrad Maldives Rangali Island and the Hilton Maldives Amingiri Resort & Spa.
The average amount we redeemed per night with Hilton Honors is significantly higher than with other hotel loyalty programs. This, combined with my struggle to get more than TPG’s valuation (0.6 cents per point) when redeeming Hilton points, is why I don’t frequently stay at Hilton brands despite having Hilton Diamond status through a Hilton credit card.
19 nights at 4 Accor brands
Ibis: 12 nights
Mercure: Four nights
Grand Mercure: Two nights
Ibis Budget: One night
Over the last six years, I’ve stayed 19 nights at Accor properties for an average of $56 per night. The least I paid was $36 per night at the Ibis Muenchen City Nord in Germany. And the most I paid was $84 per night at the Ibis Madrid Alcobendas in Spain.
8 nights at 2 Best Western brands
Best Western: Six nights
Best Western Plus: Two nights
Over the last six years, I’ve stayed eight nights at Best Western properties for an average of $78 per night. The least I paid was $57 per night at the Best Western Amsterdam Airport Hotel in the Netherlands. And the most I paid was $147 per night at the Best Western Plus Mountain View Auburn Inn in Washington.
452 nights camping
When I became a digital nomad in 2017, I didn’t think there was any chance I’d camp 452 nights in the next six years. And even three years ago, I’d only spent three nights tent camping for a concert at The Gorge in Washington state and three nights in a rental RV doing a relocation from Las Vegas to Denver.
But, as it became apparent the coronavirus pandemic would affect international travel for more than just a few months, my husband and I tried out a six-night RV relocation rental in July 2020. Then in August 2020, we decided to buy the same RV model we’d relocated.
When we bought our Class C RV, we expected we’d sell it as soon as international travel to most destinations became relatively simple again. But, we discovered we enjoy working remotely from our RV while in the U.S. We’ve now spent 440 nights camping in our RV since buying it — 97 nights in 2020, 234 nights in 2021, 80 nights in 2022 and 29 nights so far in 2023.
Nineteen nights in our RV have been free at locations (like select Walmarts, select Cracker Barrels and businesses that participate in Harvest Hosts) that allow RVers to stay overnight upon asking permission. We’ve also spent 37 nights sleeping in the driveways of friends and family while visiting them.
But we usually find paid RV campsites with power and water. We’ve paid for campsites on 393 nights as follows:
171 nights at city and county campgrounds ($32 per night on average)
133 nights at U.S. Army Corps of Engineers campgrounds ($27 per night on average)
66 nights at state park campgrounds ($34 per night on average)
37 nights at private campgrounds ($52 per night on average)
Four nights at national park campgrounds ($48 per night on average)
On average, we’ve paid $33 per night for our RV campsites. The highest we paid was $104 per night at Orlando / Kissimmee KOA Holiday in Florida. And the least we paid was $17 per night at Shady Grove Campground in Cumming, Georgia, during a half-off promotion.
Related: The cheapest place to stay at Disney World is a tent — so I tried it
443 nights with family and friends
One aspect my husband and I appreciate about being digital nomads is seeing our family more than when we lived in one place. Here’s a breakdown of our nights with friends and family over the last six years:
July 2 to the end of 2017: 32 nights
2018: 90 nights
2019: 83 nights
2020: 167 nights
2021: 29 nights
2022: 27 nights
So far in 2023: 15 nights
We spent significant time with each of our parents in March through August of 2020 as much of the world locked down. However, the nights since August 2020 are lower than pre-pandemic since we now stay in our RV (either in the driveway or a nearby campground) while visiting most friends and family members.
Related: 43 real-world family travel tips that actually work
104 nights in transit
Over the past six years, I’ve spent 101 nights in flight or sleeping in airports. I typically avoid overnight flights, but sometimes overnight flights are unavoidable (and they’re enjoyable if I book a lie-flat seat or luck into a row to myself in economy).
If I have an overnight layover at an airport, I’ll book a hotel if the layover is long enough and I can find a modestly priced hotel on-site or with a free shuttle. But sometimes the layover is too short, or it just doesn’t make sense to get a hotel. In these cases, I’ll usually sleep in a lounge — ideally one with a sleeping area or at least lounge chairs — or in a Minute Suites (or a similar type of space) that participates in Priority Pass.
I’ve also spent three nights on trains, including two on the Amtrak Empire Builder from Portland, Oregon, to Chicago and one on a Trans-Mongolian train from Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, to Hohhot, China. I thoroughly enjoyed both experiences, so it’s surprising that I haven’t taken any other overnight trains in the last six years. However, low-cost flights on many routes served by overnight trains often make flying a more convenient and less expensive alternative.
Related: 11 of the most scenic train rides on Earth
90 nights in vacation rentals
Vacation rentals are the accommodation of choice for many digital nomads, especially those who stay in each location for at least a month and appreciate having their own kitchen. And I spent 39 nights in vacation rentals in 2017 after becoming nomadic July 2.
However, one particularly bad Airbnb experience in 2018 and an increasing interest in hotel elite status caused me to switch most of my nights to hotels instead of vacation rentals. I stayed in vacation rentals for 17 nights in 2018 and 20 nights in 2019. I only stayed in one vacation rental each in 2020 (for three nights), 2021 (for two nights) and 2022 (for two nights). And so far, I’ve only stayed in one vacation rental (for seven nights) in 2023.
On average, I paid $53 per night for vacation rentals across my six years as a digital nomad. My least expensive vacation rental was $17 per night for a private studio apartment in Da Nang, Vietnam, that I booked through Airbnb. And my most expensive vacation rental was $129 per night for a waterfront apartment in Auckland, New Zealand, through Hotels.com.
I’ll still stay in vacation rentals when they’re my best option. But I generally prefer to stay at hotels for consistency and to earn and use my elite status perks.
Related: When a vacation rental makes more sense than a hotel
259 cities in 52 countries and territories
Finally, let’s talk about destinations. Over the last six years, I’ve visited 259 cities in 52 countries and territories. Here’s a look at the number of nights I stayed in each:
1,253 nights: United States of America (including 318 nights in hotels or vacation rentals)
88 nights: Germany
69 nights: Japan
56 nights: Australia
54 nights: South Africa (including 32 nights in or near South African national parks)
36 nights: Dominican Republic
27 nights: Maldives, Thailand
24 nights: Spain
22 nights: Hong Kong, Malaysia
21 nights: New Zealand, Serbia, Vietnam
20 nights: Canada, Colombia, Italy
19 nights: India
18 nights: Netherlands, United Arab Emirates
16 nights: Singapore
14 nights: Bahamas, French Polynesia, Indonesia
13 nights: Fiji, South Korea
11 nights: Brazil, Mongolia
10 nights: China
Nine nights: Bulgaria, England, France, Pakistan
Eight nights: Bosnia and Herzegovina, Latvia, Liberia, Mexico, Sri Lanka
Seven nights: Greece, Guam
Six nights: Turkey
Five nights: Belgium, Marshall Islands
Four nights: Sweden
Three nights: Argentina, Chile
Two nights: Panama
One night: Ethiopia, Finland, Ireland, Northern Mariana Islands, Taiwan
As you can see, I would have spent the most time in the U.S. even if the coronavirus pandemic hadn’t kept me in the country for much of 2020 and 2021. And interestingly, even my most visited country outside the U.S. (Germany) accounted for just 88 nights across the last six years.
I also visited 14 other countries and territories before becoming a digital nomad. So, although I’m not striving to visit every country in the world, I’ve visited 66 different countries and territories so far. My husband and I are trying to visit a few new-to-us countries each year while also returning to some of our favorite destinations like Germany, Japan, South Africa, Australia and Hong Kong.
Related: The 18 best places to travel in 2023
Bottom line
I feel incredibly thankful for the last six years I’ve spent as a digital nomad. I’ve grown significantly as a person and content creator while traveling full-time.
And I’ve had some amazing experiences, including swimming with manta rays in French Polynesia and the Maldives, watching a sea turtle dig a nest and lay her eggs on a Florida beach, staying at some awesome resorts (Six Senses Laamu, Six Senses Yao Noi and Alila Fort Bishangarh immediately come to mind), and overnighting in second-class hard bunks on a Trans-Mongolian train.
But it’s not these epic experiences that keep me on the road. After all, I could enjoy many of these experiences on vacation. Instead, the daily things like being surrounded by languages I don’t know, enjoying delicious local foods and exploring new cities and neighborhoods on foot keep me attached to the digital nomad lifestyle.