Anyplace, a marketplace startup that offers people find flexible-term furnished housing, aims to draw digital nomads and other temporary residents to the fold. A recent email outreach from their PR company (EZPR) prompted the following early assessment.
Started back in 2015 with angel capital from East Ventures, Anyplace works with extended stay hotels, serviced apartments, furnished rentals, and co-living companies to supply turn-key mid-term accommodations, has just raised another $2.5 million. The round, headed by UpHonest, FundersClub, East Ventures, and others, should extend the startups reach.
The startup, which prides itself on its B2C core logic, is being billed as a predictability value over Airbnb and other shared property innovations. With a growing roster of longer-term stays from San Francisco to Guadalajara in Mexico, the company says they’re looking to expand to Europe and Asia by 2020. This may, in fact, come to pass, but “listing” 50+ properties in 9 cities for any rental marketplace should not be seen as a market takeover. The market for such an endeavor exists, but here’s where I see Anyplace in the current scheme of things.
The website traffic numbers at Anyplace do not speak of massive volumes of business people relocating at Anyplace offerings, but this says nothing for the company’s mobile app numbers. But, 6 reviews at the iTunes app store do indicate slow uptake, however. A slim Facebook (under 500 likes) presence, along with one social post per 3 months does not a modern digital age game changer make. Ditto for Twitter (111 followers), Instagram (35 subscribers – no posts), and LinkedIn (No posts). The lack of effort here is symbolic of companies I’ve seen hit the TechCrunch “dead pool” before.
In addition, the fact the Anyplace team is searching for backend and full-stack engineers willing who are founding members does not bode well for the extended development this far into the funding. What this means to me is that the CTO and co-founder Kouichi Tanaka is probably doing most of the app and backend development with a very small team. And while this is not a bad thing, it is not $2.5 million dollar investment level staffing. Looking at LinkedIn profiles for Anyplace employees I found the front-end user interface developer, a freelancer from Germany named Martin Broder, iOS engineer Arpit Agarwal, and front-end developer, Michal Ittah of the 17 employees listed for the startup.
I hate pouring cold water on a PR outreach since I once owned one of Europe’s most successful boutique hotel tech PR companies, but there’s some homework left to do at Anyplace, PR and otherwise. Short version, Anyplace needs to step up its game now. The fact they closed this round in 2018 and are only now reaching out for media is another negative for anybody who looks close. Given the massive potential for Alt Living innovations, Anyplace has a big potential, so my cautions should be taken with a grain of industrial salt.
This report at NFX reveals the positive side for Anyplace’s founder and investors. Lifestyle shifts, non-traditional transactions, technology empowered markets, and so forth – make Anyplace a good prospect. The downside is the lack of commitment of both funding and human resource. One thing I really like about this startup is its B2C heart – which flies in the face of Airbnb and the customary access economy giants. In my former business, hoteliers were literally freaking out over lost business to Airbnb. Anyplace-like value can mitigate at least some of this lost revenue. But that’s far off in my view, at a point when this startup has $100 million in funding and 25,000 Facebook fans.
As it stands, Anyplace needs a solid product, a solid marketing team, and a tech PR firm listed at O’dwyer’s if they can afford it. A final note, an old associate of mine, Jason Calacanis of East Ventures, has invested in some of the most successful startups in Silicon Valley history including; Uber, Facebook, and many others. One of Silicon Valley’s most ethical and intelligent investors, I’m surprised Anyplace is not farther along. Jason, get these boys some help, will you?
Phil Butler is a former engineer, contractor, and telecommunications professional who is editor of several influential online media outlets including part owner of Pamil Visions with wife Mihaela. Phil began his digital ramblings via several of the world’s most noted tech blogs, at the advent of blogging as a form of journalistic license. Phil is currently top interviewer, and journalist at Realty Biz News.
Real estate teams of all sizes continue to perform, according the Streamlined Quarterly Team Benchmarking Report, which looked at the financial performance of more than 200 teams across the nation.
Steamlined, based in Arizona, has a roster of hundreds of U.S. real estate teams and individual agents as clients for their accounting and bookkeeping services. The firm confirms actual financial and operational details of these businesses and assemble the data in useful benchmark studies to help their clients assess how effectively they are operating.
This is extremely valuable information, not only for teams but also for the brokerage firms with whom they are affiliated. A clearer understanding of the performance of teams helps everyone understand the impact of the growth of the organization and performance of teams and confirms the importance of LG in the industry.
Small teams lead in retained gross margin
The smaller the team; the higher the retained Gross Margin (GM) — what the team had after paying their internal agents. For teams under $300,000 in gross commission income (GCI), gross margin was 79.5%. while for the largest segment — those teams having over $3 million in GCI, the GM was 45.7%.
“Our view is that smaller teams generally have a closer-knit cultural fabric,” said Steve Murray, senior advisor to HW Media and a partner with RTC Consulting. “The relationships between the leader of the team and the agents of the team are necessarily tighter than larger teams with dozens or more agents. The value provided is more frequently reinforced. Some of these same trends have been noted among larger versus small brokerage firms for years based on data from RealTrends + Tom Ferry The Thousand and America’s Best agent and team rankings,” he adds.
How are teams spending money?
The largest expense for teams was employment cost — salaries, wages, employment taxes and contract labor. As a percent of GCI, the smallest teams had employment expenses of 11.2% of GCI, while the largest teams experienced costs of 17.4% of GCI. Much like any business, scale brings the need for higher personal costs.
“Larger teams have more personnel as the division of labor gets expanded as a firm gets larger. This is true not just for teams but for businesses of all shapes and sizes (outside of a few giant technology firms.),” says Murray. “The tasks handled by the leader of a small team are far more numerous and it is only when a team grows that these duties are dispersed to others in the organization. This factor enables a team to grow beyond the expertise of the owner of the team.”
Lead generation costs
What we found highly interesting is that lead generation expenses did not vary nearly as much as we would have thought between the smaller and larger teams. The percentage spent on lead generation by the smallest team category was 9.7% of GCI. The largest teams spent 10.2%. It makes sense that larger teams spend more absolute dollars on leads, but here scale does benefit larger teams.
Say Murray, “Lead generation is, of course, at the heart of a successful team regardless of its size. RealTrends has noted that as teams grow, they don’t require proportionately more spending as a percentage of gross revenues on lead generation for a few reasons. First, the cost per lead decreases as a team buys more of them.”
Second, generally larger teams have developed processes that enable them to process and capture more transactions per dollar spent on lead generation, “thus lowering the need to ramp up exponentially as they grow,” he says.
Operating expenses
In total operating expenses, when expressed as a percentage of GCI, the larger teams had the lowest number at 30.8% of total GCI spent on operations (these are costs not associated with the team’s agents.) The smallest teams spent 42.6%.
“There were no surprises in this category of expenses,” says Murray. “Larger teams are more efficient in operating overhead the same way larger brokerage firms have the same experience. Whether it be in accounting, marketing, occupancy, insurance, etc., larger firms will spend less per dollar of revenues than small entities.”
Extrapolating actual dollars is a bit imprecise but helpful. Taking the minimum of the smallest team and the maximum for the largest teams and the midpoint for the four categories in between, it indicates that actual dollar profits are $110,700 for the smallest teams and $444,000 for the largest teams.
In the middle, for example, teams producing between $550,000 and $800,000 in GCI showed a dollar profit on average of $226,800. It appears that while the largest teams, on average, are 275% larger in terms of GCI, they are only 96% larger in terms of their average profit.
Streamlined, RTC Consulting and HWMedia are teaming up to share this data with our readers to help create transparency in the results of over 200 teams. We will publish these results on a quarterly basis roughly 45 days after the end of each calendar quarter.
David Pittiglio is the CEO of StreamlinedBusiness Solutions.
In our latest real estate tech entrepreneur interview, we’re speaking with Stephen Arifin from The Closing Docs.
Who are you and what do you do?
My name is Stephen Arifin and I am one of the founders of The Closing Docs. Prior to serving as a software engineer at Microsoft, I had launched and supported several other revenue generating software tools. I am the technical founder and lead for our company. I graduated with an Electrical Engineering degree from the University of Texas at Austin.
I love bringing new technology and creative ideas into outdated industries, and that’s exactly what we’ve done with The Closing Docs. Our automation has streamlined the income verification process for companies managing more than 635,000 units.
What problem does your product/service solve?
The Closing Docs provides automated income verification to property managers and lenders. Historically, screeners and underwriters are collecting paper pay stubs and bank statements from applicants. This manual process is ripe for fraud, is really cumbersome and is burdened by many start/stop cycles in the set of related activities. By expediting deal closings and eliminating fraud, we have significantly compressed vacancy periods and underwriting cycles, getting applicants approved in minutes, not days or weeks. We provide a real solution to a very real and cascading problem. Even before COVID-19, pay stub fraud was on the march. And now, with rampant job loss, fraudulent pay stub and bank statement submittals are apt to increase in prevalence significantly. With the current rate of unemployment announcements, it is more important than ever to have a clear view of applicant income. The outdated method to verify an applicant’s income involves scanning or taking pictures of bank statements, W-2’s, and pay stubs. This form of income verification was a very manual process, which involved screeners deciphering bank statements and playing detective investigating whether the documents were falsified. Each applicant’s income documents arrived in a different format, which led to huge inefficiencies in approving a rental applicant. Many property managers also call the applicant’s employer, which can take days to get a hold of the right person in HR to confirm employment. Each day it takes to approve a tenant means your property is remaining vacant and not generating income. Using The Closing Docs, we pull the applicant’s bank statement data directly from the applicant’s bank account, with their permission. Since our data comes directly from the bank, our income verification completely eliminates fraud. Once the applicant decides to share the data, a standardized report is generated for the property manager instantly, verifying the applicant’s income in minutes rather than days. That means shorter vacancy periods, more income, and faster, more accurate data.
What are you most excited about right now?
Well, implementing new customers on first phone calls and inside of 30 minutes is pretty exciting – I’ve never experienced that before now! Property managers know how painful the income verification process is, and when they finally find a product that makes it easier by light years, their eyes spark up. It’s really fun to know you have true product market fit.
What’s next for you?
Growth, growth, growth. With the customer adoption and retention we’re experiencing, it’s time to grow the business hockey-stick style. We’re leveraging sales channels through integrations with a bunch of property management software programs, like Appfolio, Buildium, Yardi, and Propertyware, and we also support Chrome, Safari, Firefox, and Edge browsers for our integrations. We’re focused on increasing our sales and have expanded our marketing budget to expedite uptake.
What’s a cause you’re passionate about and why?
Being an entrepreneur myself, I’m extremely passionate about helping other entrepreneurs succeed. The best place I’ve found to give back in this way is through Seattle’s Community Carrot program.It takes another founder that’s been in the trenches to truly understand what starting a business is like. While building The Closing Docs, I’ve received a tremendous amount of support from my friends and family, along with other like-minded founders and mentors. Now, I am happy to step out of my way to help other aspiring entrepreneurs achieve their dreams.
Thanks to Stephen for sharing his story. If you’d like to connect, find him on LinkedIn here.
We’re constantly looking for great real estate tech entrepreneurs to feature. If that’s you, please read this post — then drop me a line (drew @ geekestatelabs dot com).
Every Realtor should write a book, including you! On today’s podcast with Chandler Bolt, the CEO of SelfPublishing.com, we discuss the benefits of writing a real estate book. Chandler also shares how any Realtor can write and publish a book in record time, even with no writing experience. Listen in and learn how a book will boost your business for years to come.
Listen to today’s show and learn:
How Chandler Bolt got into book writing and publishing [4:16]
Chandler’s first successful company [8:47]
How to identify potential business opportunities and book ideas [10:27]
Why you should write a book [15:29]
Aaron’s books [20:05]
Marketing tactics for your first book [23:17]
How to write a book with no time and no writing experience [31:08]
How Aaron wrote his first book [33:00]
A FREE webinar on book writing for listeners [33:56]
Powerful books that Chandler helped publish [36:06]
Where to find and follow Chandler Bolt [39:06]
Final advice from Chandler Bolt [40:45]
Another reason to write a book: your legacy [42:14]
Chandler Bolt
Chandler Bolt is an investor, advisor, the CEO of SelfPublishing.com, and the author of 6 bestselling books including his most recent book titled “Published.”. Selfpublishing.com is an INC 5000 company for 5 years as one of the 5,000 fastest-growing private companies in the US.
Chandler is also the host of the 7 Figure Principles Podcast and the Self Publishing School Podcast. Through his books, podcasts, YouTube channels, and Self-Publishing School, he’s helped thousands of people write a book that grows their income, impact, and business.
He’s currently spending his time scaling Selfpublishing.com, a company he’s built from 0 to $43M+ in 8 years.
Related Links and Resources:
Thank You Rockstars!
It might go without saying, but I’m going to say it anyway: We really value listeners like you. We’re constantly working to improve the show, so why not leave us a review? If you love the content and can’t stand the thought of missing the nuggets our Rockstar guests share every week, please subscribe; it’ll get you instant access to our latest episodes and is the best way to support your favorite real estate podcast. Have questions? Suggestions? Want to say hi? Shoot me a message via Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, or Email.
SmartAsset Advisors, LLC (“SmartAsset”), a wholly owned subsidiary of Financial Insight Technology, is registered with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission as an investment adviser. SmartAsset’s services are limited to referring users to third party registered investment advisers and/or investment adviser representatives (“RIA/IARs”) that have elected to participate in our matching platform based on information … [Read more…]
It’s no secret that mental health is an incredibly important part of overall well-being. From anxiety to depression and beyond, our emotions, moods, and behaviors are impacted by how we take care of ourselves. But with all the demands on your time, it can seem daunting and overwhelming to give yourself the attention needed for good mental health—right? Wrong! There are some simple steps you can take each day that will help keep your brain in tip-top shape!
1. Work Out
One user shared, “Working out. Made all the difference.”
Another user replied, “I swear by this. Worst bout of depression in 2021 until I started exercising. Even now when I have a sh*tty day, an hour of exercise makes all the difference. It’s like the sweat washes away all the negative toxins from your body or something.”
One Redditor added, “This. I can’t stress it enough. I would work out 24/7 if I could as it just blocks out all my thoughts and lets me focus on the gains.”
Another commenter said, “That’s it. For me it’s really the feeling of being in control and actively working on feeling better. It also does something to your biochemistry that is extremely beneficial but if you just look at factors that lead to depression, losing control or feeling like other people determine your fate is quite at the top of the list. I feel like I’m turning that around somewhat by working out.”
2. Delete Social Media
One user commented, “Not having any social media accounts.”
Another Redditor asked, “Does Reddit not count?”
The OP answered, “I also deactivated all social media except for Reddit and Twitter (which I will soon deactivate too) I feel these two platforms are different in the sense that they don’t lead the users to constantly compare themselves or expose you to falsehoods of what a ‘perfect’ life others have. This wasn’t personally the reason I deactivated, for me it was a useless time suck that I just wanted to eliminate.”
3. Keep a Gratitude Journal
“Journal of gratitude. Writing in it every night before bed. Keeps me focused on positives,” one user replied.
One user added, “I moved to Japan. I originally visited temples and shrines because I like the environment and collecting the official seal from each. Somewhere along the way it turned into an exercise of gratitude. At each place, I think about how the aspect of the place is there for (Love, knowledge, travel, etc) has been good for me and give thanks. It gets really niche sometimes (Last month I went to a shrine about teeth!) but what that means is that there’s so much I realized I can be thankful for.”
Another user concluded, “I love this idea.”
4. Practice Sobriety
One Redditor added, “Sobriety. More than any other single change. Second biggest? Taking one or two meds that could help with the symptoms I couldn’t resolve myself.”
“Same. Got my 2 month chip today. It’s still new but yeah,” another user replied.
One user commented, “Congrats! keep it up! It just gets better.”
Another user added, “I can’t begin to tell you how much of a difference this has made for me. I am coming up on 9 months sober on July 5th. My psychiaTRIST kept asking me to quit the alcohol but I kept drinking for years. Now that I am feeling the benefits I am just blown away. I’ve already decreased my psych meds once and I feel like I am ready for another decrease.”
5. Get Professional Help
“Seeing someone about it,” one user commented.
Another Redditor replied, “Seeing a private therapist about it and starting ADHD medication the past 6 months has helped so much more than 5 years of various medication and therapy in the public psychiatry did it was truly wild the difference it made being properly medicated with something that actually worked for me (compared to all the antidepressants, antipsychotics and anxiety medications i’ve been on) along with a therapist who genuinely was willing to help me, rather than one who just wanted me out of the psychiatric system as soon as possible.”
One also confirmed, “Counseling really helps.”
6. Take Medications
One user commented, “My medication. Thank you Lithium and Seroquel for controlling my type two bipolar which enables me to participate in my life in a meaningful way. It has also made it possible for me to deal with unresolved issues and now I only need the meds listed above. Been almost twenty years now and not a hint of mania or depression.”
Another user replied, “How is your memory with seroquel? I’ve only been on a very low dose for 3 weeks but my memory is horrible all of a sudden. I’m also sleeping a lot.”
Another user shared, “It can take up to six weeks for it to reach therapeutic levels. The sleepiness will abate. I don’t recall specific memory issues when I started but I was also dealing with the memory issues of the depression I was slowly coming out of. Talk to your pharmacist about the side effects. They will know what you should be concerned about and what will pass.
“Getting the right meds at the right dose requires patience but it is so worth it. Hang in there. Being able to meaningfully participate in your own life once you get this sorted is a blessing I can’t describe. I am grateful every day for my meds.”
7. Make New Friends
One Redditor shared, “Leave all my old friends behind and look for new ones to forget my old struggles. I know it’s bad but I don’t care. I love my two only friends and they are enough for me.”
Another user affirmed, “It’s not bad at all; sometimes you must leave people in the past.”
8. Positive Existentialism
One user stated, “Optimistic nihilism. One day I realized I’m not actually going to be here forever, and the things I do now aren’t going to matter in the long run. Did something embarrassing? So what, they’ll forget about it eventually. Made a mistake at work? Dude the bosses make way more money anyway, why should I care if I already gave it my all? I’ve learned that I can be a good person and still not give a shit, that the only opinion that matters is mine, and if someone wants to stomp all over that I don’t need them in my life. Edit: it’s officially called absurdism/existentialism! I recommend looking it up.”
One user responded, “I call this ‘zooming out’. I do it periodically. I think it’s healthy to recognize that each of us is 1 in 8 billion living people, probably 100 billion ever. That only spans a few thousand years. The world has been around billions of years before us, and will last billions of years after we’re gone. Our tiny planet is one of billions (trillions?) of planets that have existed or will exist. We are so small.”
Another user added, “Yes! So many people are miserable because they want to look good for everyone else, but what’s the point when in a year, a month, even a week from now no one will remember what you said or did. Most people are too absorbed in their own insecurities to focus on yours, and the ones that make it a point to focus on yours aren’t worth it. In the end, you’ll be gone and no one will remember you, even celebrities will be distant memories one day.”
9. Delete Toxic Messages
“Deleting my ex-wife’s emails without reading them,” one user commented.
Another user replied, “Boss move. Well done!”
10. Leave Unhealthy Relationships
One commenter posted, “Being single again. Two weeks after being dumped, I was still feeling less emotional distress than what I did on a regular basis while in that relationship.”
11. Plant a Flower
“Moving into a house with a garden after years in a flat, sitting out in nature is so relaxing, being able to enjoy the fruits of my labour by seeing the flowers and plants grow that I planted is so rewarding, especially when you see bees enjoying the flowers. I have honestly gone from around a 2-5 in mood up to a 9-10, even on the most difficult days, the garden is my sanctuary, I didn’t think it could make such a difference, but it does,” one Redditor added.
Another user added, “That’s happy! Nature makes such a huge difference in well being. Being outside pretty much immediately improves/regulates my mood.”
12. Go Outside Near Water
Another user shared, “Going to the beach.”
One added specifically, “Newport Beach, Crystal Cove Beach. . . California.”
“Little Corona,” another commenter responded.
One user suggested, “Rio Del Mar, Capitola, Santa Cruz CA.”
13. Meditate
“Meditation,” one user posted.
Another Redditor confirmed, “Yes meditation has done wonders. For me guided meditation. There are tons of free ones on YouTube. It can take a few times but it does help big time.”
One commenter asked, “Please suggest a good yt video if you can. If you don’t know of a good video, can you please take the pain of writing it? I will be so grateful…”
Another user said, “Look into Dr Joe Dispenza.”
14. Get a Dog
One user shared, “Getting a dog.”
Another user replied, “Ooff, so much agreement here. A dog gives you routine, which is key when your life is disrupted by big events.”
“Honestly, I’ve noticed my anxiety always gets a lot worse when I have no routine. Even little things like going to the gym/walking everyday, getting up at a certain time, etc helps me,” one commenter added.
Another Redditor responded, “I was going to write the same. My furry little friend has made a huge difference.”
15. Don’t Watch the News
One user suggested, “I stopped watching the news about 7 years ago. I cannot describe how blissful ignorance is.”
Another replied, “Fr tho.”
16. CBD
One user posted, “Unironically, smoking a bunch of weed. That’s not saying it’s a healthy way to go about it, but when I’m baked, I want to be as comfortable as possible. To get that, I actually had to clean my living space and do basic hygiene. Over time, taking care of those things was a bit easier because I wasn’t letting mountains of trash pile up. Cleaner space and slightly healthier living gave me a morale boost I wasn’t expecting and it pushed me to be more diligent in cleaning myself and my area. I’m still not in a great place mentally, but I’m leagues ahead of where I was a year ago.”
“Exact opposite for me. Weed takes away any energy I have to actually make my life better. It systematically ends up destroying any good intentions I have,” replied by one user.
17. Get a Better Job
“A better paying job with more interesting work, better coworkers, less hours and a boss who believes in making sure people have what they need to function instead of putting pressure on them. Give me far more time to be at home to take care of things there (and to chill, mind you) plus a bigger spending range and so much more happiness in the job itself,” one Redditor shared.
18. Quit a Toxic Job
One online user shared, “Quitting my job!! I’ve been at a new job for about three months now and have really been doing so much better. I had previously worked in an animal control facility for about 3.5 years. I had been promoted several times, was the head of my department and several unrelated projects and was completely overwhelmed. Asking for help because I didn’t have time to do everything I needed to was met with unhelpful answers about figuring out how to balance everything. Not having any ideas of how to balance it, I was literally told, ‘It’ll be easier when you figure out how to balance everything.’ I took a $4 pay cut to go to a new job. I’m the newest and dumbest person in an art department, have no customer interaction, and don’t see animal death daily. This is the best pay cut I’ve ever taken. I’m only now starting to notice how much the compassion fatigue at animal control was affecting me.”
19. Set Boundaries With Family
“Pulling away from family. I love them, truly, but no one needs constant reminders of mistakes in their teens when you’re almost 30. Not to mention I have the kind of family if I return such a favour that I am told I am a child for bringing up the past. I used to call my brother and sister almost daily and I stopped last month. Best decision I have made in a long time,” one user commented.
Do you have more healthy ways of keeping up your mental health aside from the list above? Share it in the comment section!
Source: Reddit.
These are 10 Things That Completely Destroyed The Love in a Relationship
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10 Actors and Actresses People Refuse to Watch Ever Again
We all have a favorite actor or actress, but most of us have a least-favorite as well. Check out this list of actors and actresses people never want to see performing again!
Top 10 Worst Human Inventions of All Time
Some inventions are world-changing, and some of them, well, they change the world in the wrong ways. Here are some of the worst inventions Redditors could think of.
10 Famous Celebrities Who Look Like They Smell Terrible
We’ve all had moments of hygiene faux pas—but these celebrities just look like they don’t take care of themselves at all.
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Every fad has its time in the limelight, but some of them come and go faster than others; and some just need to die out right away. Check out this list of fads of which people were happy to see the last.
Over 10 million Americans are behind on rent due to the effects of COVID-19. The relief bill passed in late December extends benefits and protections to Americans hard-hit by the pandemic, including $25 billion in rental assistance funds.
Designed to help Americans who are struggling to afford rent and are at risk of homelessness, rental assistance funds are available for those who have lost income as a result of the pandemic and meet certain maximum income thresholds. Funds could cover up to twelve months of rent and utilities for those who qualify, plus an additional three months if funds are available.
What’s Ahead:
How to determine if you qualify for rental assistance
In order to qualify for rental assistance, you need to demonstrate that the pandemic has adversely affected you or your household. If a member of your household qualifies for unemployment or has otherwise lost their source of income, you may qualify.
Applicants also need to show that they’re at risk of becoming homeless by demonstrating past due rent or utility bills. Your household must make under 80% of the median income in your area in order to qualify, and funds will be prioritized for applicants making under 50% of the median income.
Your income can refer either to your total household income for 2020, or your monthly household income when you apply. If the assistance is based on your monthly income, you’ll need to document your income eligibility every three months.
How to apply for rental assistance
How you should apply for rental assistance depends on where you live. Different states and cities have different application processes, and many partner with existing organizations or charities in order to effectively distribute funds.
You can look up COVID-19 emergency rental assistance programs in your area using the National Low Income Housing Coalition’s rental assistance tool. If you’re having trouble finding a program, you can get in touch with your representatives, your state’s housing department, or local housing groups in order to get help.
Applications can be submitted by eligible individuals or by their landlords. If your application is accepted, funds will generally be paid directly to your landlord and service providers. You can reapply for additional assistance if necessary.
How much you could receive
Eligible applicants can receive as much as up to 12 months of assistance, plus an additional three months if funds are still available.
Payment for past-due rent that could result in an eviction is prioritized. This means that, while the actual funding amount depends on how much your rent and utility bills are, funding is designed to cover up to a year of rent and related expenses for Americans impacted by the pandemic.
What to do if you’re facing eviction
If you’re facing eviction, you should apply for relief funds as soon as you can. You should also fill out an Eviction Declaration Form and give it to your landlord in order to qualify for the extended eviction moratorium. The moratorium has been extended by President Biden until at least the end of March via executive order.
Individual states and cities may also have additional orders in place to protect renters against eviction. If your landlord refuses to comply with the eviction moratorium, you can get legal help.
What to do if you don’t qualify
Even if you don’t qualify for rental assistance, you could still be eligible for other pandemic relief programs. These include stimulus checks and expanded unemployment benefits.
Stimulus checks
Otherwise known as Economic Impact Payments, stimulus checks are available for Americans who meet certain maximum impact requirements. In addition to the $1,200 payments passed in the spring, many Americans are now eligible to receive an additional $600 thanks to the bill passed in December. You may qualify if your income is under $75,000 for individuals and under $150,000 for households. Parents and guardians can also receive $600 for each eligible child.
As part of President Biden’s proposed new stimulus package, Americans may also be eligible for an additional $1,400 check if the bill passes. This check, along with the previous $600 check, is designed to add up to a total of $2,000. However, the amount of this third check isn’t yet set in stone, and it may end up being higher or lower than $1,400 if the bill passes.
Unemployment benefits
The December relief bill also extended unemployment benefits after a gap in coverage. These benefits include an additional $300 per week on top of regular unemployment benefits, extending up to March 14th. The benefit is available for workers who earn at least $1 in state unemployment benefits.
Pandemic Unemployment Assistance for freelancers and self-employed individuals is also extended until March 14th. A new unemployment benefit for workers called the Mixed Earners Unemployment Compensation program, adds $100 to unemployment benefits for workers who are both traditionally employed and self-employed if they earn at least $5,000 in self-employment income per year and are already receiving Federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation.
Eviction moratorium
President Biden has extended the eviction moratorium until the end of March via executive order, and has also encouraged Congress to further extend it until September as part of the new stimulus bill. States and local governments have also issued their own eviction moratoriums. If you’re evicted for a reason other than failure to pay rent due to the pandemic, or are otherwise struggling to find housing, there are a variety of shelters and housing organizations that can provide temporary housing.
Other aid sources
If you’re struggling because of the pandemic, there are a variety of other local aid sources you should take advantage of it. These include:
Self Employment Assistance for individuals looking to start their own business after becoming unemployed.
U.S. Department of Labor employment or training programs.
Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) for current or expecting parents.
SNAP benefits.
Food banks like Feeding America and No Kid Hungry.
Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children.
The Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program.
Local 211 COVID-19 resources.
State resources for housing, food, and legal assistance.
Additional rental assistance on the horizon
According to Moody’s Analytics, Americans behind on rent owe a total of $57 billion in rent, utilities, and late fees. This means that the initial $25 billion designated for rental assistance in December likely won’t be enough.
President Biden has called for $30 billion in rental assistance as part of the latest stimulus package on the table. While this bill hasn’t yet passed, it could provide additional relief for Americans struggling to make rent each month.
Summary
If you’re behind on rent payments and worried about eviction, the latest round of COVID-19 rental assistance can help. If you meet certain eligibility requirements, you may be able to receive funds that cover up to twelve months of rental expenses, plus an additional three months if there are enough funds left over.
If you don’t qualify for rental assistance but are still struggling, there are other resources available to help. President Biden’s proposed economic rescue package could also provide additional assistance for Americans hard-hit by the pandemic.
Airline credit cards typically offer standard benefits, like bonus miles on airfare purchases, free checked bags and priority boarding. But one of the most valuable perks any airline credit card can offer is a companion ticket that can cut your cost of travel in half.
Thanks to its high welcome bonuses, earning structure and airfare discounts, the British Airways Visa Signature Card has long been considered one of the best credit cards from a foreign airline offered in the U.S., especially when you consider British Airways’ extensive U.S. route network. But it also comes with one of the most interesting companion travel benefits: the Travel Together Ticket.
The rules around redeeming this perk have recently been improved, and it is now easier to use and more valuable than ever.
Here are the details on this companion deal and how to maximize it.
How to earn the British Airways Travel Together Ticket
U.S.-based British Airways Visa Signature Card cardholders who spend $30,000 on their card in a calendar year can earn a Travel Together Ticket (posted within 4-6 weeks). The voucher is valid for outbound travel up to 24 months from the issue date (the return flight can be after that).
The British Airways Visa Signature Card offers 75,000 Avios after spending $5,000 in the first three months and exclusive offers when flying the carrier, such as a 10% discount on British Airways flights originating in the U.S., up to $600 in statement credits for award flight taxes and fees every year and earns 3 Avios per $1 spent with British Airways, Aer Lingus, Iberia and Level. The annual fee is $95.
Only the main cardholder with a registered address in the U.S. is eligible to earn the Travel Together Ticket; additional cardholers are not. Only one voucher can be earned each calendar year, even if the cardholder spends more than $30,000 on the card.
Rules for redeeming The Travel Together Ticket
The Travel Together Ticket comes with several conditions worth considering when it comes time to redeem it, some of which are positive and some negative.
Previously, these vouchers could only be applied to award bookings using British Airways Avios and on British Airways-operated flights. However, this rule has recently been relaxed, so they can now be redeemed on flights operated by Aer Lingus and Iberia, though note you must still book your flight(s) through British Airways Executive Club.
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The Travel Together Ticket differs from other companion tickets, which are more like a two-for-one paid deal. In this case, you’re getting a two-for-one award redemption but are still responsible for the taxes and other carrier-imposed charges on your ticket (which can be substantial). This also means you’ve got to find two awards open on the same itinerary in the same cabin. If you wish to travel in first class, two award seats on the same flight can be tough to come by.
For solo travel, you can redeem it for 50% of the Avios required for one passenger, which is a handy perk if you would rather travel alone and save Avios.
Previously, the voucher could only be used on round-trip itineraries originating in the United States. However, this rule has also recently been relaxed, so voucher holders can now commence their itinerary anywhere in the world that British Airways, Iberia or Aer Lingus operates from (provided there is Avios availability).
Your companion must be booked in the same cabin on your itinerary (unless you redeem it for solo travel). So if you book a business-class award for yourself, you must find a second one for your companion on the same itinerary. Stopovers are allowed.
Though the terms are not explicit, you should plan to have your card open and in good standing at the time your want to use your Travel Together Ticket.
Related: How to avoid fuel surcharges on award travel
When it makes sense to redeem the Travel Together Ticket
Now we come to the real question: Is it worth using the Travel Together Ticket? The answer depends on how you plan to redeem it.
British Airways awards are notorious for high taxes and surcharges on flights through London. While this generally makes economy awards a bad value, it can still be worth paying less than $2,000 per person to fly in business or first class as part of an award ticket compared to shelling out the cash fare, which will be many thousands of dollars, especially with premium fares across the Atlantic as high as they currently are.
BA introduced a new option in 2022 called Reward Flight Saver to use more Avios to reduce the cost of the taxes and surcharges on Avios redemptions.
British Airways award availability between the U.S. and Europe tends to be much better than what U.S. and other European carriers make available. So if you want to book an award, your chances of finding it are good.
The other key benefit is that British Airways has retained an award chart, so you can be confident of how many Avios you will need on any day — no 400,000 points per flight pricing with this program.
Related: Dynamic pricing vs. fuel surcharges — which is the lesser of two evils for your next redemption?
Now, let’s take four scenarios and compare the cost of using the Travel Together Ticket compared to purchasing airfare to determine whether this is a good deal.
To make things simpler, we’ll look at a single route from Atlanta (ATL) to London Heathrow (LHR) over a single set of dates in November since award availability was open across all four cabins offered by BA on these flights (these are off-peak dates). The taxes and fees are typical examples of what you would expect to pay, both for two people traveling together and solo travelers, given the ticket can also be redeemed for solo travel.
First up, economy. A round-trip award on this itinerary for two people using the lowest surcharge Reward Flight Saver option would cost 120,000 Avios plus 300 British pounds ($393) in taxes/fees.
If you were using this as a Travel Together Ticket, you’d still be paying 60,000 Avios plus $393 for two tickets. This is because you would only be charged the Avios for one passenger but the fees, taxes and surcharges for both. Compare that to the regular economy fare on the same dates of around $1,000 per person for non-stop flights and this would be a great way to use Avios to save hundreds of dollars.
If you are a solo traveler, you can redeem the Travel Together Ticket for 30,000 Avios plus $196 in fees, taxes and surcharges, saving over $800 on the cash fares for the same flight.
Related: A review of British Airways’ A350 in economy from London to Dubai
Now for premium economy. Here’s a sample award from the same week that would cost 190,000 Avios plus 660 British pounds ($864) for two passengers.
A paid fare on the same dates would be $1,813 per person, so $3,626 for two passengers. With a Travel Together Ticket for two passengers, you would be charged 95,000 Avios plus $864, saving you thousands off the cash ticket.
Solo travelers could redeem 45,000 Avios plus pay $432 in taxes and surcharges, another excellent way to save big on the $1,813 cash fare.
Related: Is British Airways premium economy worth it on the Boeing 777-300ER?
In business class, British Airways will charge 360,000 Avios plus 900 British pounds ($1,179) in taxes and surcharges for two passengers at the Reward Flight Saver rate.
With the 50% reduction in Avios with the Travel Together Ticker, you would still be charged a huge 180,000 Avios plus the full $1,179 co-payment. However, with cash fares on these dates close to $4,000 each roundtrip in business class, you would still save thousands of dollars using the voucher.
For solo travelers, just 90,000 Avios plus under $600 in taxes and fees saves versus $4,000 for a cash ticket is a great deal.
Related: British Airways’ Club Suites don’t disappoint: On board a retrofitted 777 from London to New York
Reward Flight Savers are not offered in first class, so while you’ll only need marginally more Avios than the business class rates above, you must pay the full fees, taxes and surcharges. For two passengers using a Travel Together Ticket this would be 170,000 Avios roundtrip plus an eye-watering 3,263 British pounds ($4,279).
While this would represent a decent saving on the cash fares of almost $6,000 per person, given the thousands of dollars of surcharges you must pay for a first class redemption, using the voucher for business class instead would be a much better deal.
How to earn Avios
If you want to use a Travel Together Ticket but don’t have enough British Airways Avios in your Executive Club account, British Airways is a transfer partner of Capital One, Chase Ultimate Rewards, American Express Membership Rewards, Bilt Rewards and Marriott Bonvoy, making Avios one of the easiest currencies to earn.
Points transfer from Chase, Bilt and Amex at a 1:1 ratio (in addition to occasional transfer bonuses of up to 40%), while Marriott points transfer to Avios at a 3:1 ratio. Plus, you’ll get a 5,000-Avios bonus for every 60,000 Marriott points transferred.
The following cards all currently offer strong welcome bonuses that you could easily convert to Avios:
American Express® Gold Card: Earn 60,000 Membership Rewards points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first six months of account opening. Terms apply.
The Platinum Card® from American Express: Earn 80,000 Membership Rewards points after you spend $6,000 on purchases within the first six months of card membership. Check to see if you’re targeted for a 125,000-point welcome offer through CardMatch (offer subject to change at any time). Terms apply.
Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card: (see rates and fees) Earn 75,000 bonus miles once you spend $4,000 on purchases within the first three months from account opening.
Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card: (see rates and fees) Earn 75,000 bonus miles once you spend $4,000 on purchases within the first three months from account opening.
Chase Sapphire Preferred Card: Earn 60,000 bonus points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first three months from account opening.
Chase Sapphire Reserve: Earn 60,000 bonus points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first three months from account opening.
Ink Business Preferred Credit Card: Earn 100,000 bonus points after you spend $8,000 on purchases in the first three months from account opening.
Bottom line
The British Airways Visa Signature Card’s Travel Together Ticket can save you thousands of dollars on British Airways, Iberia or Aer Lingus flights from anywhere in the world by allowing two passengers to travel together, in any cabin with award availability and only pay the Avios required for one passenger. The spending requirement to earn the perk is high, though.
Following last years Reward Flight Saver rollout to allow passengers to reduce the notorious BA carrier-imposed surcharges by paying more Avios, this voucher is a valuable credit card perk for economy, premium economy and business class flights. However, the savings are less in first class as the Reward Flight Saver option is not available.
If you are young, you may not think you need to invest or open a retirement account. You probably think it is easier to worry about it five years from now — or ten. You’re wrong. Time is on your side now, especially when it comes to compound interest.
No matter what your age,now is the time to begin saving for retirement. In The Automatic Millionaire, David Bach writes, “The single biggest investment mistake you can make [is] not using your [retirement] plan and not maxing it out.”
Saving is the Key to Wealth
The only way to attain the wealth you desire is to spend less than you earn and to save the difference. The rich are not rich because they earn a lot of money; the rich are rich because they saved a lot of money.
You may be skeptical. I was once skeptical too. But many books I have read on the subject of wealth-building have convinced me — books like Stanley and Danko’s The Millionaire Next Door make it abundantly clear that it isnot a high income that leads to wealth — though, obviously, a high income does not hurt — but saving.
Those who become wealthy do so by spending less than they earn. There is no other source of saving, and, by extension, of building wealth.
If saving is the key to wealth, then time is the hand that turns the key to unlock the door. There is no reliable method to quick riches. There are, however, proven methods to get rich slowly. If you are patient, and if you are disciplined, you can produce a golden nest egg that will hatch later in life. It might appear that the pittance you save now could not possibly make a difference, but that is because you haven’t considered the extraordinary power of compound interest.
The Power of Compound Interest
The best way to ensure your future financial success is to start saving today, even if all you have seems like a paltry sum. “The amount of capital you start with is not nearly as important as getting started early,” writes Burton Malkiel in The Random Walk Guide to Investing. “Procrastination is the natural assassin of opportunity. Every year you put off investing makes your ultimate retirement goals more difficult to achieve.”
The miracle of compound interest is the secret to getting rich slowly. Even modest returns can generate real wealth given enough time and dedication … mainly time.
On its surface, compounding is innocuous, even boring. “So what if my money earns less than 3 percent in a savings account?” you may ask. “What does it matter if it averages 8 percent annual growth in a mutual fund? Why is it important to start investing now?”
In the short-term, it doesn’t make a huge difference — but don’t let that fool you. On the slow, sure path to wealth, we need to keep focused on long-term goals. Short-term results are not as important as what will happen over the course of 20 or 30 years.
Related >> Find the best high-yield savings account for you.
Growth of a Single $5,000 Contribution
For example, if 20-year-old Britney makes a one-time $5,000 contribution to her Roth IRA and earns an average 8 percent annual return, and if she never touches the money, that $5,000 will grow to just under $180,000 by the time she retires at age 65, as you can see from this chart:
You can see how the money earned dwarfs the initial investment more and more as time goes by.
If she waits until she is, say, 40 to make her single investment, that $5,000 would only grow to less than $40,000. (On the chart, the red dotted line shows you the total value after 25 years is still less than $40,000.) Waiting 20 years will cost her more than $130,000 in “free” money. Time is the primary ingredient to the magic that is compounding.
Growth of Annual $5,000 Contributions with Compound Interest
Compounding can be made even more powerful through regular investments. It is great that a single $5,000 IRA contribution can grow to more than $170,000 in 45 years, but it is even more exciting to see what can happen when Britney makes saving a habit. If she were to contribute $5,000 annually to her Roth IRA for 45 years, and if she left the money to earn an average 8 percent return, her retirement savings would grow to more than $2 million, as you can see from this chart:
A golden nest egg indeed! She will have more than eight times the amount she contributed. Again, the dark green portion of the chart dwarfs the light green, which is the money she put in.
This is the extraordinary power of compound interest.
Related >> See a guide for Roth IRA rules and requirements.
The cost of waiting one year
It’s human nature to procrastinate. “I can start saving next year,” you tell yourself. “I don’t have time to open a Roth IRA — I’ll do it later.” But the costs of delaying your investment are enormous. Even one year makes a difference. Every year that Britney in the example above waits, she loses one year at the end of the chart. In the first example representing a single investment, waiting one year will cost her almost $14,000 (the column highlighted in red).
Like many people, she may be tempted to think she is only losing the first year’s return, i.e., around $400, but that isn’t the case. She is actually losing the last year’s return ($14,000), not the first. That is a steep price to pay for a single year of procrastination.
The difference is even more dramatic when you look at what Britney loses by waiting a year even though she contributes regularly to her savings. If Britney makes annual contributions of $5,000 to her Roth IRA as shown in the second example, waiting just one year will cost her more than $150,000! That is probably more than her annual income.
There is another way to look at the cost of procrastination. If she still wanted to have a $2 million nest egg at age 65 but she waits five years to get started, her annual contributions would have to increase to nearly $9,500 — that’s almost double! And if she were to wait until age 40, she’d have to contribute nearly $55,000 a year!
How to Get Rich Slowly
You can make compounding work for you by doing a few simple things:
1. Start early. The younger you start, the more time compounding has to work in your favor and the wealthier you can become. The next best thing to starting early is starting now.
2. Make regular investments. Don’t be haphazard. Remain disciplined, and make saving for retirement a priority. Do whatever it takes to maximize your contributions.
3. Be patient. Do not touch the money. Compounding only works if you allow your investment to grow. The results will seem slow at first, but continue on. Persevere! Most of the magic of compounding returns comes at the very end. Compounding creates a snowball of money. At first, your returns seem small; but if you are patient, they will become enormous.
The GRS Introduction to Roth IRAs Series
Understanding how important it is to get started saving for retirement, check out the rest of our Roth IRA series to learn about how to start your Roth IRA, which investments are best, and other general questions about these great accounts.
Part 1: The extraordinary power of compound interest Part 2: What is a Roth IRA and why should you care? Part 3: How to open a Roth IRA (and where to do it) Part 4: Which investments are best for a Roth IRA? Part 5: Questions and answers about Roth IRAs
Two years ago when I bought my People 150cc scooter, I was teased ceaselessly by my car-loving friends. It wasn’t so long ago that gas was under two dollars a gallon, and the need for more efficient wheeled transportation wasn’t as “in your face” as it is now. Today, when my friends talk about my scooter (or my wife’s) it’s to ask where I got it, for how much, and how much we save by having them.
J.D. recently mentioned he was thinking of forsaking his dream of a Mini Cooper for a scooter instead, but he had some questions. How much money would he save? Could we quantify with some certainty the impact of a scooter on one’s budget? Here’s my attempt based on my experience.
Safety First
First, I’d like to talk about a few misconceptions. Scooters are not necessarily slow-moving vehicles. Your speed depends on your engine size. I’d think of them more generally as small motorcycles. You’re exposed to the elements (more so than a car), and you’re giving up the “safety” of a steel box, but you are getting a more maneuverable vehicle.
I’d strongly encourage anyone riding a scooter to take a motorcycle safety course, such as the one given by the Motorcycle Safety Foundation. Safety, either in a car or a scooter, depends greatly on the operator. In my opinion, driving a scooter is no different (in terms of safety) than driving a motorcycle.
In my four years operating a scooter, I have not been involved in any accident. I’ve been able to avoid unsafe motorists better than I would be able to in a car. I don’t feel any more unsafe operating my scooter, but I’ve had many years of experience, and that confidence can create a noticeably different ride. I would expect first-time riders to be much more nervous.
Pinching Pennies
But the big question here is: How much can one save if you go from a car-centric lifestyle to a scooter-centric lifestyle?
First, purchasing a scooter will cost significantly less, even for models that can keep up with highway traffic. The average new four-door sedan costs about $20,000. A scooter that can achieve a constant speed of 70mph and legally be driven on interstate highways will cost around $3,000. Costs for used vehicles of both classes can vary by large degrees, but the scooter will always be an order of magnitude cheaper. Thus, a scooter can more easily be financed directly out of pocket, avoiding an expensive car loan.
Operating a scooter — gas, insurance, maintenance — is also much cheaper than operating a car. Astonishingly enough, the difference in just one year represents a brand new Buddy 125 (a scooter I highly recommend).
Not Quite Car-Less
However, transferring to a scooter is just one lifestyle choice. We can choose to locate ourselves so that we can walk to work and shop using a rolling cooler. We can locate near bike-friendly areas and strap storage racks to our bikes. We have many choices. None of these choices allows for long-haul, heavy or large lifting, however.
My wife and I have a car, along with our scooters. While seldom used except for long trips and large item hauling needs, we do need a car for those purposes. But we are better off using our scooters, bicycles, and legs for daily commutes and grocery store visits.
J.D.’s note: After our discussion of high gas prices and alternative transportation, not only did Stephen volunteer to share his experiences above, but Bev Brinson sent me a copy of her book, The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Motor Scooters. It’s a great introduction to the subject. If, like me, you’re interested in scooters, but don’t know where to start, borrow a copy from your library.