“Until he got all rich and fancy so that he no longer understands the common person’s plight.
Stash probably doesn’t even practice any of these money-saving things he preaches any more!”
When I read things like this, I can’t help but laugh. Because on the one hand, when you put a bunch of personal life details online like this, being misunderstood is just part of the package. But on the other hand, if the critics could peek in and see our real lives – not just mine but those of all the Mustachians – they would have to give up their conspiracy theories and accept the fact that this stuff just works.
Because really, not much has changed when it comes to the basics. Like many MMM readers over the past twelve years, my total wealth level has increased pretty regularly. But also like many of us, I haven’t felt the need to change very much about my spending because I was doing my best to live an enjoyable life in the first place.
How have so many people found such great success? I think we Mustachians have something that’s a bit more rare and special than standard financial advice, which is what makes it work so well:
Standard Advice: Slash your spending and make sacrifices until you reach a certain savings percentage, and beyond that it doesn’t matter, it’s all personal choice. More income? Great, that means you don’t have to sacrifice as much! FatFIRE for everyone!
Mustachianism: Cultivate a love of efficiency, creativity, self awareness, and self improvement. Use this knowledge to improve your life in all ways, including those which help you live better even as your monthly expense rate drops over time.
So what does this mean in practice?
Well, I’ll give you some examples from my own present-day life. Things I do because I happen to enjoy them, which also happen to save a lot of money. Some of these are normal, some are silly and may end up in some future gossip magazine hit piece, but all of them happen to work for me, so the critics can be damned.
As I list each item, I’ll include an estimate of how much the activity saves me per decade, because you should always think at least in terms of decades.
To make that calculation yourself, just use the “rule of 172” – take a monthly expense and multiply it by 172 to estimate how much it would compound into over ten years, if invested.
1) Fixing my own House (and everybody else’s too)
Construction projects from recent years, at home and around the state.
I’m a big believer in self-sufficiency, and working to build up the skills to manage the most important parts of your own life without depending on too many things (or people) that are outside of your control. In other words, one giant recipe for a happy life is simply to Become a Producer of the Things You Most Enjoy Consuming.
And in my case, I happen to love houses. I like living in beautiful, functional spaces and sharing them with friends. But most houses are ugly and poorly designed when you buy them, so I realized that I also love solving problems and redesigning old buildings to become new again. I enjoy this process so much that I spend most of my free time doing it – on both my own properties and the homes of friends.
And I love teaching other people to gain power over their own houses too. It’s amazing how great people feel as they lose their fear and dependence on outside contractors, and gain the ability to fix and maintain things with their own two hands.
Savings: An average of $20,000 per year = $287,000 per decade
2) Craigslist and Community
Members of our coworking space, swapping valuable free stuff every day.
You know what’s great? Having so much money that you can buy whatever you want – high quality things which get delivered to your front door the very next day.
You know what’s even better? Not buying some of those new things, and instead finding ways to share, repurpose and buy equally high quality items from other people who don’t need them any more. All while building up your own community and creating new friendships in the process.
Craigslist, Facebook Marketplace, and even NextDoor all have Buy Nothing groups for most areas. In the MMM-HQ community, we run a Discord server with about 200 local people, who chat around the clock on a wide range of subjects. They help each other with major projects in one channel called #diyhowto, and give away and sell things on #forsale and #buynothing.
Although our private Discord group is my favorite, I also use Craigslist regularly, and probably save (and earn) a few thousand every year thanks to the habit:
Savings: About $42,000 per decade
3) Bikes over Cars
Sure glad I’m not stuck in a Jeep on these off-road trails!
We all know that Mr. Money Mustache’s biggest contribution to personal finance is to insist that bike transportation is the best way to get around. And I still feel this way. As we learned in The True Cost of Commuting, cars cost at least 50 cents per mile to operate, while bikes are much cheaper, mainly due to reduced depreciation and maintenance costs (which are even bigger than the gas savings).
I do still use bikes (or walking) for at least 95% of my local trips these days, but because I live in the center of a small city, my life is pretty local. So this still only adds up to about 2000 miles per year, a savings of “only” $14,000 per decade.
But when you choose active transportation, there’s much more to the picture than just cutting your car expenses. You’re changing everything about your physical and mental health picture for the better, which brings us to the next point of…
4) Muscle over Motor
Digging out the crappy old window wells to build a bigger terraced garden.
Although I’m no competitive athlete, whenever I see an option to make my body work a bit harder, I usually take it. Stairs instead of elevators, running the golf course instead of using a golf cart, moving my own furniture and appliances instead of calling a mover, shoveling snow and raking leaves instead of using a machine.
When I face a decision like this, I simply ask myself the question:
“Well, Mustache. Do you want MORE health and fitness, or LESS?”
Putting it in that context makes the answer obvious. Every bit helps, because when it comes to your body, the rule is pretty much use it or lose it.
But how much money does this save? There’s no real way to calculate it exactly, but I like to think of it this way: The US average health care spending is about $13,000 per person per year. My lifetime costs due to illness or medication so far have been just about zero, plus I know I’ve had more energy and greater productivity due to being healthy. Let’s just put it very conservatively and set the estimated savings and benefits at $10k per year which means
Estimated Savings: $140,000 per decade.
5) Saving Energy by Running my home like a Glamping Retreat
Outdoor cooking, showering, laundry and even a homemade gym? Why not?!
Here’s where things get a bit silly, but my level of joy is actually at its greatest.
My personality type is probably a weird combination of an engineer, a carpenter, an artsy hippie, and a mad scientist. Oh, and a devoted homebody too. Because of this, my favorite activity most days is to just run around my house taking care of things and trying new little experiments and improvements.
Sometimes I’ll cut a few big holes on on the South side of the house and install sliding doors and big windows to allow nice sunbeams and passive solar energy to get into my house and give me free heat in the winters. Other times it’s just smaller things to save energy and live more at at one with the seasons of my area:
optimizing the use of air conditioning by running fans at night and building heat tolerance during the days (we set the A/C to only kick on at about 80F)
Enjoying most of my showers outside, with free hot water from the 100 foot garden hose that happens to be coiled in a sunny spot
Cooling myself and get free energy boosts by jumping in the “cold plunge”, which is simply an unheated hot tub I have set up in my back yard
Doing most of my cooking and dining outdoors with an induction cooktop, gas grill, espresso machine, and mini convection toaster oven deal that I keep set up outside during the warmer months of the year
Drying 99% of my loads of laundry out on the line instead of using the clothes dryer
I even charge my car with a little off-grid array of solar panels set up in the driveway (from Craisglist, of course!), which gives me free electricity for driving without going through the permit-hell hassle of a full grid-tied system in my city’s currently solar unfriendly environment.
Even taken all together, these things are pretty small – the average combined gas and electric bill for my area is about $250 per month, while my usage adds up to about $75. So while we’re only saving about $30,000 per decade for what sounds like a lot of work to most people, I consider this to be the biggest win because I enjoy living in “MMM’s Energy Efficiency Playground” so much.
6) Local Living over Constant Travel
This little lake right behind my house is a great daily “vacation” which allows me to savor home life more and travel a bit less.
“Hey, we’re having a big back yard pool party next weekend to celebrate Amy’s graduation from kindergarten, can you make it?”
“OH NOOOO!!! We will be off in at Disneyland that whole week! We planned the trip months ago, I wish we could make it!
As I type this in the height of the summer season, I really feel this effect at its fullest: almost all of my friends are off on trips, and my guest suite here at home is almost constantly full. People are traveling a lot, and many of them sound like they wish they could spend a few more of their precious summer weeks and weekends at home.
I’ll let you in on a little secret: you can! The trick is saying, “no thanks” more often to plans that involve you being away, and “yes please” to things that let you stay at home. The benefits are numerous:
You nurture your local friendships more and meet new people who live nearby
You spend way less money on plane tickets, hotels, restaurants gasoline, and car repairs
Your levels of health and fitness can go way up because you aren’t missing workouts and spending hours sitting in plane and car and bus seats. And you can better control your meals – more salads with grilled salmon, less McDonald’s and Pizza Hut
You sleep better
And you have more time to take care of projects around your house where you learn more skills which compound for life
Estimated Savings: Even if you replace just two weeks of travel for a family of four, with equivalent time at home you might save $5,000 per year in direct costs and a further $5,000 per year in incidental benefits like the health and local friendships. This would work out to a shocking $143,000 per decade of wealth increase!
Of course, travel is generally a good thing for broadening the life experience of you and your kids. It’s worth spending on, lavishly at times. But the key is to balance it out and be discerning, keeping the most enriching trips and pruning a few off the bottom of the list. And remembering that home time is valuable and healthy too.
And Whoa! We’ve already built up a huge list and I feel like I was just getting started.
Cutting a friend’s hair at a group event: entertainment, education and free haircut in one!
Taken all together, we’ve already detailed things that compound to $656,000 every decade, which already more than double the median wealth that most American seniors have as they cruise nervously into their retirement years – after over 40 years of work!
And now that I’ve been writing this blog for over ten years myself, I can safely say that over $656,000 of even my most recent worth increases are directly attributable to these simple habits. The same ones many of us have been enjoying and preaching about all along, both before and after our retirement dates.
If money is in genuinely short supply, you could go a lot further than the examples in this article. And indeed, there’s a lot more laid out in this blog or the MMM Boot Camp email series.
But one of the points of Mustachianism is that you usually don’t have to try all that hard. Just tweaking your lifestyle to be slightly less ridiculous and more efficient than average is usually all it takes.
—
In the comments: what are your quirks and frugal indulgences? The things you do now to save money, or things you still do even after it’s no longer about the money? I often wonder how widespread this frugality-just-for-fun is. But since we Humans are a naturally curious and problem solving species in our natural state, I suspect there are many more of us out there.
Socially responsible investing (SRI) strategies help investors put their capital into a range of securities — e.g., stocks, bonds, mutual funds — that focus on socially positive aims: e.g., clean energy, air and water; equitable employment practices, and more.
Despite market volatility driven by interest rate changes and geopolitical conflicts in recent years, SRI investing strategies have garnered steady interest from investors.
Various analyses of SRI funds suggest that the philosophy of doing well by doing some good in the world may have an upside worth exploring.
What Is Socially Responsible Investing?
While SRI investing goes by many names — including ESG investing (for environmental, social, and government factors), sustainable, or impact investing — the fundamental idea is to channel capital into entities that are working toward specific environmental and/or social policies in the U.S. and worldwide. The aim of SRI is to generate both positive changes across various industries, while also delivering returns.
Generally, investors that embrace SRI strategies find ways to assess an organization’s environmental and social impact when deciding whether to invest in them. However, there are important distinctions between the various labels in this sector of investing.
Socially responsible investing can be seen as more of an umbrella term (similar to impact investing). Within SRI, some strategies focus specifically on companies that meet certain criteria — either by supporting specific practices (e.g., green manufacturing, ethical shopping) or avoiding others (e.g., reducing reliance on fossil fuels).
For that reason it’s incumbent on each investor to assess different SRI options, to make sure they match their own aims. This is no different from the due diligence required for anyone starting to invest.
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Interest in SRI Investing Strategies
The tangible merits of socially responsible investing have always been subject to debate. But in the last couple of years there has been criticism of some of the underlying principles of SRI, as well as questions about the overall financial value of this investing approach.
Nonetheless, the value of global assets allocated to ETFs with an ESG focus have shown steady growth in the last two decades. As of November 2023, according to data from Statista, the value of these assets was $480 billion — a substantial increase since 2006, when the value of those assets was about $5 billion.
And according to a report published in 2023 by Morningstar, a fund rating and research firm, investors in conventional funds as well as SRI funds are likely to see returns over time.
Recommended: Beginner’s Guide to Sustainable Investing
SRI vs ESG vs Other Investing Strategies
While the various terms for SRI investing are often used interchangeably, it’s important for investors to understand some of the differences.
Impact Investing
Impact investing is perhaps the broadest term of all, in that it can refer to a range of priorities, goals, or values that investors may want to pursue. To some degree, impact investing implies that the investor has specific outcomes in mind: i.e. the growth of a certain sector, type of technology, or societal issue.
Impact investing may also refer to strategies that avoid certain companies, products, or practices. This could include so-called sin stocks (e.g. alcohol, tobacco), companies that adhere to principles that are in opposition to an investor’s or institution’s belief system, and more.
Socially Responsible Investing
SRI or socially conscious investing are two other broad labels, and they’re typically used to reflect progressive values of protecting the planet and natural resources, treating people equitably, and emphasizing corporate responsibility.
While SRI can be considered a type of impact investing, there may be impact investing strategies that are diametrically opposed to SRI, simply because they have different aims.
ESG Investing
Securities that embrace ESG principles, though, may be required to adhere to specific standards for protecting aspects of the environment (e.g. clean energy, water, and air); supporting social good (e.g. human rights, safe working conditions, equal opportunities); and corporate accountability (e.g. fighting corruption, balancing executive pay, and so on).
For example, some third-party organizations have helped create ESG metrics for companies and funds based on how well they adhere to various environmental, social, or governance factors.
Investors who believe in socially responsible investing may want to invest in stocks, bonds, or exchange-traded funds (ETFs) that meet ESG standards, and track ESG indexes.
Sustainable Investing
Sustainable investing is often used as a shorthand for securities that have a specific focus on protecting the environment. This term is sometimes used interchangeably with green investing, eco-friendly investing, or even ESG.
Unlike ESG — which is anchored in specific criteria having to do with a company’s actions regarding environmental, social, or governance issues — the phrase “sustainable investing” is considered an umbrella term. It’s not tied to specific criteria.
Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR)
Last, corporate social responsibility (CSR) refers to a general set of business practices that may positively impact society. Often, companies establish certain programs to support local or national issues, e.g. educational needs, ethical labor practices, workplace diversity, social justice initiatives, and more.
Ideally, CSR strategies work in tandem with traditional business objectives of hitting revenue and profit goals. But since CSR goals are specific to each company, they aren’t formally considered part of socially responsible, sustainable, or ESG investing.
A Focus on Results
Investors may want to bear in mind that, with the steady growth of this sector in the last 20 or 30 years, there are a number of ways SRI strategies can come together. For example, it’s possible to invest in sustainable pharmaceuticals and even green banks.
Either way, the underlying principle of these strategies is to make a profit by making a difference. By putting money into companies that embrace certain practices, investors can support organizations that embody principles they believe in, thereby potentially making a difference in the world, and perhaps seeing a financial upside as well.
Socially Responsible Investment Examples
These days, thousands of companies aim — or claim — to embrace ethical, social, environmental, or other standards, such as those put forth in the United Nations’ Principles of Responsible Investing, or the U.N.’s 17 Sustainable Development Goals. As a result, investors today can choose from a wide range of stocks, bonds, ETFs, and more that adhere to these criteria.
Understanding SRI Standards
In addition, there are also standards set out by financial institutions or other organizations which are used to evaluate different companies. It may be useful when selecting stocks that match your values to know the standards or metrics that have been used to verify a company’s ESG status.
Depending on your priorities, you could consider companies in the following sectors, or that embrace certain practices:
• Clean energy technology and production
• Supply chain upgrades
• Clean air and water technology, products, systems, manufacturing
• Sustainable agriculture
• Racial and gender equality
• Fair labor standards
• Community outreach and support
Exploring Different Asset Classes
Investors can also trade stocks of companies that are certified B Corporations (B Corps), which meet a higher standard for environmental sustainability in their businesses, or hit other metrics around public transparency and social justice, for example. B Corps can be any company, from bakeries to funeral homes, and may or may not be publicly traded.
Companies issue green bonds to finance projects and business operations that specifically address environmental and climate concerns, such as energy-efficient power plants, upgrades to municipal water systems, and so on.
These bonds may come with tax incentives, making them a more attractive investment than traditional bonds.
Another option for investors who don’t want to pick individual SRI or ESG stocks is to consider mutual funds and exchange-traded funds (ETFs) that provide exposure to socially responsible companies and other investments.
There are a growing number of index funds that invest in a basket of sustainable stocks and bonds. These funds allow investors to diversify their holdings by investing in one security.
There are numerous indexes that investors use as benchmarks for the performance of socially responsible funds. Three of the most prominent socially responsible indexes include: the MSCI USA Extended ESG Focus Index; Nasdaq 100 ESG Index; S&P 500 ESG Index. (Remember, you cannot invest directly in an index, only in funds that track the index.)
Recommended: Portfolio Diversification: What It Is and Why It’s Important
The Growing Appeal of Socially Responsible Investments
While many investors find the idea of doing good or making an impact appealing, the question of profit has long been a point of debate within the industry. Do you sacrifice performance if you invest according to certain values?
Unfortunately, the lack of consistency in terms of what constitutes a sustainable or socially/environmentally responsible investment has made it difficult to compare SRI strategies to conventional ones. One financial company may use one set of criteria when developing its sustainable offerings; another company may use its own proprietary set of standards.
That said, as the universe of sustainable offerings continues to grow, it’s possible to create more apples-to-apples comparison sets. According to Morningstar data, sustainable equity funds saw median returns of 16.7% for 2023 versus 14.4% for traditional equity funds. The relative outperformance of SRI strategies was consistent across equity fund styles and most market caps, but particularly large-cap equities. Over 75% of SRI and conventional funds include large-cap equities.
In addition, sustainable fund assets under management (AUM) globally were up 15% over 2022, growing to $3.4 trillion.
The Evolution of Responsible Investing
Socially conscious investing is not a new concept: People have been tailoring their investment strategies for generations, for a number of reasons, not all of them related to sustainability. In fact, it’s possible to view the emergence of socially conscious investing in three phases.
Phase 1: Exclusionary Strategies
Exclusionary strategies tend to focus on what not to invest in. For example, those who embrace Muslim, Mormon, Quaker, and other religions, were (and sometimes still are) directed to avoid investing in companies that run counter to the values of that faith. This is sometimes called faith-based investing.
Similarly, throughout history there have been groups as well as individuals who have taken a stand against certain industries or establishments by refusing to invest in related companies. Non-violent groups have traditionally avoided investing in companies that produce weapons. Others have skirted so-called “sin stocks”: companies that are involved in alcohol, tobacco, sex, and other businesses.
On a more global scale, widespread divestment of investor funds from companies in South Africa helped to dismantle the system of racial apartheid in South Africa in the 1980s.
Phase 2: Proactive Investing
Just like exclusionary strategies, proactive strategies are values-led. But rather than taking an avoidant approach, here investors put their money into companies and causes that match their beliefs.
For example, one of the earliest sustainable mutual funds was launched in 1971 by Pax World; the founders wanted to take a stand against chemical weapons in the Vietnam war and encourage investors to support more environmentally friendly businesses.
This approach gained steady interest from investors, as financial companies launched a range of funds that focused on supporting certain sectors. So-called green investing helped to establish numerous companies that have built sustainable energy platforms, for example.
Phase 3: Investing With Impact
With the rise of digital technology in the last 30 years, two things became possible.
First, financial institutions were able to create screening tools and filters to help investors gauge which companies actually adhered to certain standards — whether ethical, environmental, or something else. Second, the ability to track real-time company behavior and outcomes helped establish greater transparency — and accountability — for financial institutions evaluating these companies for their SRI fund offerings.
By 2006, the United Nations launched the Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI), a set of global standards that helped create a worldwide understanding of Environmental, Social, and Governance strategies.
ESG became the shorthand for companies that focus on protecting various aspects of the environment (including clean energy, water, and air); supporting social good (including human rights, safe working conditions, equal opportunities); and fair corporate governance (e.g. fighting corruption, balancing executive pay, and so on).
Why Choose Socially Responsible Investing?
While the three phases of socially responsible investing did emerge more or less chronologically, all three types of strategies still exist in various forms today. But the growing emphasis on corporate accountability in terms of outcomes — requiring companies to do more than just green-washing their policies, products, and marketing materials — has shifted investors’ focus to the measurable impacts of these strategies.
Now the reasons to choose SRI strategies are growing.
Investors Can Have an Impact
The notion of values-led investing is that by putting your money into organizations that align with your beliefs, you can make a tangible difference in the world. The performance of many sustainable funds, as noted above, indicates that it’s possible to support the growth of specific companies or sectors (although growth always entails risk, and past performance is no guarantee of future results).
Socially Responsible Strategies May Be Profitable, Too
As discussed earlier, the question of whether SRI and ESG funds are as profitable as they are ethical has long been a point of debate. But that skepticism is ebbing now, with new performance metrics suggesting that sustainable funds are on par with conventional funds.
Socially Responsible Investing May Help Mitigate Risk
The criteria built into ESG investment standards may also help identify companies with poor governance practices, or those with exposure to environmental and social risks that could lead to financial losses.
Do Retirement Accounts Offer Socially Responsible Investments?
Generally speaking, individual retirement accounts may include socially responsible or ESG investment options. For example, when investing in different types of IRAs, e.g., a traditional, Roth, or SEP IRA, investors typically have access to all the securities offered by that financial institution, including stocks, bonds, and ETFs that may reflect ESG standards. The choice is up to individual investors.
That hasn’t always been the case with employer-sponsored 401k or 403b plans. But in 2023, the Department of Labor issued a rule allowing plan fiduciaries to consider ESG investment options for plan participants.
While some plans may now offer socially responsible or ESG investments, there is a push from some lawmakers to restrict or eliminate the availability of these funds. ERISA standards for retirement plans dictate that the investment options offered by employer-sponsored plans “must be based on risk return factors that the fiduciary prudently determines are material to investment value.” Some lawmakers argue that ESG funds are higher risk and not suitable for employees in company plans.
The Takeaway
Socially responsible investing is a broad term that can mean different things to different groups, but no matter which term you use — socially conscious investing, impact investing, ESG investing — it comes down to the compelling idea that by investing your money in organizations that match your values, you can make a difference in the world.
Ready to invest in your goals? It’s easy to get started when you open an investment account with SoFi Invest. You can invest in stocks, exchange-traded funds (ETFs), mutual funds, alternative funds, and more. SoFi doesn’t charge commissions, but other fees apply (full fee disclosure here).
Invest with as little as $5 with a SoFi Active Investing account.
FAQ
Is socially responsible investing profitable?
Socially responsible investing can be profitable, as multiple reviews of fund performance have shown over the last several years. That said, some believe that the financial strength of ESG or SRI strategies is debatable. While any investment strategy has its own risks, it’s best to assess them according to your own aims.
What is the difference between ESG investing and socially responsible investing?
Socially responsible investing is considered a broad term that can encompass a range of practices and standards. ESG investing stands for environmental, social, and governance factors, is a set of principles that is often used to assess how well companies meet specific, measurable criteria. While there is no single industry-wide metric for ESG standards, investors can consider various proprietary tools.
How many socially responsible investment opportunities are there?
It’s impossible to say how many SRI opportunities there are, as the stocks, bonds, and other securities that embrace ESG standards continue to grow. More than 120 new sustainable funds entered the SRI landscape in 2021, in addition to 26 existing funds that took on a sustainable mandate.
What is the socially responsible investment theory?
The theory behind socially responsible investing can be summed up by the old saying about “Doing well by doing good.” In other words, by investing in companies that support positive social and environmental products and policies, it’s possible to help investors realize a profit.
How do you start socially responsible investing?
Investors who are interested in SRI or ESG investing can begin by getting to know companies that adhere to certain eco-friendly or socially responsible standards. In addition, many financial institutions offer clients a way to screen for stocks or mutual funds that have an ESG focus.
Photo credit: iStock/luigi giordano
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In the era of remote work, having a functional and inspiring home office has become more important than ever. However, not everyone has the luxury of a spacious room to dedicate solely to work.
Designing a home office in a small space can be challenging, but with the right strategies, it’s entirely possible to create an efficient and comfortable workspace, whether that’s in your apartment in Orlando, your rental home in New York, or your home in San Francisco. Here are some tips, tricks, and ideas to help you maximize your small space and design a home office that boosts productivity and enhances well-being.
Create the perfect home office in a small space
“Make small changes at a time, test it to see what works, and adjust accordingly. Start small and build up, and keep a wishlist of desired products or features that you can iterate towards, little by little,” states Jose Munoz. “It’s important to remember that the setup will never be perfect or finished. No matter how much you improve it, you will see someone else’s setup and think, ‘Oh, I wish I had that.’ Enjoy the process, make it unique, and work for you.”
1. Choose the right spot
The first step in designing a small home office is finding the right spot. This could be a corner in your living room, a nook under the stairs, or even a closet. The key is to choose a location that minimizes distractions, offers enough privacy for focused work, and inspires you and your work.
“To me, the most important thing about a home office is to make it inviting, bright, and inspiring!” Katie Gardner with The Occassio Collective shares. “Pick the room with the most windows for plenty of daylight.”
2. Optimize vertical space
When floor space is limited, look up. Marcy with The Unpopular Mom recommends taking advantage of vertical space to in turn save space. “Create a space that will help to increase your productivity, your focus, and your drive,” Marcy shares. “Floating shelves can help save space and give more options when selecting your workspace.” By using vertical space, you can choose corners for office spaces. “Build a desk into the nook in the corner of the room, as little work nooks can be a very productive area,” Marcy explains.
3. Multifunctional furniture
In small spaces, furniture needs to be multifunctional. “Create a dual-purpose room to carve out an office space in your home,” Dawn Stewart with Crafidly recommends. “Any room can pull double duty without looking overstuffed with the right furniture and storage. A fold-out desk and a chic sideboard cabinet for storage may be all you need to add an office nook to your family room or bedroom.”
Multifunctional furniture is important for saving space too. “For a small home office, especially when working remotely, choose furniture that saves space and serves multiple purposes,” echoes Nguyen Le, marketing lead for Esevel Marketing. “Pick a small desk with built-in storage to keep your items organized. Consider a wall-mounted desk to free up floor space and make the room feel bigger. Use a foldable chair that you can store away when not in use. Add wall shelves to keep your workspace tidy and efficient. These tips help you stay organized and productive in a small space.”
4. Declutter, organize, and keep it simple
It’s especially important to not overcrowd the space, especially when crafting a small home office. “After working from home for the last six years, the biggest workspace realization I’ve had is that simplicity creates productivity,” Abby Flynn notes. “If you’re anything like me, you’ve been tempted to walk down the office supply aisle and purchase every little knick-knack and organizer for your home office. (It’s tax-deductible, right?!) But at the end of the day, a clean, simplistic home office with a few key pieces that inspire you will actually help you to do your best work,” Flynn explains.
In the same vein, a clutter-free workspace is essential for productivity. “In a small space, less is more,” Brittney Gaddis notes. “We find that clutter makes it difficult to think creatively. Stick with a clean space without a lot of knickknacks. If you are one to like lots of things, find organized ways to house them, such as on shelving around your office space that get them out of the way.”
Nikki Cox echoes this sentiment sharing that intentionality behind your office design assists in keeping your space clutter-free. “In my opinion, the most important thing you can do when decorating a small office space is to declutter what you are planning on putting in there,” Cox explains. “Intentionally choosing items that will add value to your workspace and omitting those that don’t. This alone will significantly reduce the need for lots of elaborate storage solutions and allow you to focus on creating systems for the things that truly matter.”
5. Tech-savvy solutions
Incorporate technology that saves space and improves efficiency. Wireless devices, such as a keyboard and mouse, can reduce cable clutter. A compact printer or an all-in-one device can save valuable desk space as well.
6. Creative storage solutions
Think outside the box when it comes to storage. “If your home office is short on square footage, think of your wall space as the backdrop to a storage haven,” The Working Stay at Home Mom recommends. “There are hundreds of clever wall storage solutions available that can help keep your workspace looking organized and stylish. However, keep in mind that the area in your peripheral vision should be free of clutter when looking at your screen. Too much visual stimulation can lead to a loss of focus and ultimately trample on your productivity.”
7. Flexible layouts
Flexibility is key in a small home office. Opt for furniture on wheels or lightweight pieces that can be easily rearranged. This allows you to adapt your workspace as your needs change.
“Working in a smaller space like an RV has taught me the value of optimizing every inch,” shares Tina Goyzueta. “I set up an outdoor tent equipped with a comfortable chair and table, creating a perfect workspace in nature’s embrace. Additionally, I rely on a versatile lap desk that allows me to work from virtually anywhere, be it inside the RV or while enjoying the great outdoors,” Goyzueta notes. “This flexibility not only boosts my productivity but also ensures I have a refreshing change of scenery whenever I need it.”
8. Don’t sacrifice style
There’s no reason you can’t make the most of a small office while keeping it a space tailored to you and your preferences. “Create a focal point with your desk space, allowing any adjacent zones to complement it in usability and design,” Jennifer with Our Blog Life shares. “Focus on functional items that double as decor, investing in items that solve an organizational problem while adding to your aesthetic. Add houseplants wherever you can — the benefits are endless.”
Crafting your perfect small-space home office
Designing a home office in a small space requires creativity and careful planning, but it’s entirely achievable. By using multifunctional furniture, keeping the area organized, and getting creative with storage solutions, you can create a workspace that is both functional and inspiring. With these expert tips, tricks, and ideas, you can transform even the smallest corner of your home into a thriving workspace.
Wesley Masters works on Redfin’s stellar Content Marketing team as a content writing specialist. She has been with Rent. since 2023 and her previous experiences include non-profit communications, graphic design, and content creation. Wesley lives in Atlanta, GA, and loves outdoor walks, hanging out with her loved ones, and finding new recipes to try on Pinterest. Her ideal home is a brownstone with contemporary interiors.
The most avid travel hackers often shoot me a skeptical glare when I utter the words “timeshare presentation” as a way to get discounted hotel stays and piles of points to use toward future travel.
The deal is pretty simple: receive a heavily discounted hotel or resort stay and other perks in exchange for attending a timeshare presentation — better known as a sales pitch.
The last email offer I received was in March 2023 from Hilton Grand Vacations. It dangled a three-night stay in Las Vegas plus 50,000 Hilton Honors points in exchange for $149 and sitting through a 90-minute talk.
Having attended four timeshare presentations over the last decade, I find that the discounted hotel stay and extra perks — like hotel points and discounted spa treatments or amusement park tickets — are worth my time. All you have to do is attend the presentation and say “no” (sometimes several times) if the timeshare is not right for you.
Here’s how to get nearly free vacations with timeshare presentations.
Determine the value of the promotion, then negotiate
I’ve successfully negotiated the terms of a timeshare presentation in the past, so I called Hilton to see if it could sweeten the deal with upgrades like more travel rewards points or food and beverage credits.
After reviewing the terms of my promotion — and with some very polite back and forth — I requested an increase to 100,000 points and a waiver on the additional resort fees of $34 per night. After a long wait, the sales representative’s supervisor approved the deal if I accepted it on the spot, which I did.
According to NerdWallet’s valuation, Hilton points are generally worth about 0.5 cent each, giving the 100,000 points an approximate value of $500. The nightly room rate over my travel dates was $249, plus $34 per night in resort fees. That gives this deal a value of over $1,300 in exchange for 90-minutes of my time and the $149 I paid for the package.
Understand the restrictions and limitations
Certain hotels require attending the presentation with a spouse, while others may have specific income requirements. Ask about blackout dates, package expiration dates and any other hidden fees (like those pesky resort fees).
For Hilton, I had to verbally confirm my income was above a certain threshold and attest that I hadn’t participated in another Hilton-based timeshare presentation over the past six months.
Once I purchased the package, Hilton gave me 12 months to use it. After my reservation in Las Vegas was booked, Hilton assigned a set date and time for the timeshare presentation. If you miss it, the company can charge the full cash rate for the stay and revoke any perks offered.
Also be aware that you won’t earn hotel points or elite night credits with the host brand for the promotional stay.
Know what to expect at the sales pitch
The pitch usually starts with an introduction to your salesperson and a general video or presentation about the company’s timeshare program. You’ll then be whisked away to an office, where the salesperson asks about your finances and travel habits. You’ll be introduced to a rubric of costs to stay at different tiers of properties — costs that may fluctuate seasonally or during periods of high demand.
Many timeshare companies, even Disney, have transitioned to a points-based system, where you buy points used to make reservations after you’re an “owner,” but be aware these points are independent of the chain’s loyalty program.
Once the salesperson estimates the cost required to live your best timeshare life, they’ll take you on a tour of a model property. You’ll then return to the office and be introduced to the “closer” — the person who ran the numbers and tries to pressure you into signing.
The sales professionals will tug at your emotions with aspirational travel fantasies while making you feel like family. Remember, they are incentivized by commissions to make you buy a timeshare through signing a contract that can last the rest of your life.
🤓Nerdy Tip
Timing the pitch using my phone allowed me to politely tell the salesperson their time was up once the required duration under the promotion elapsed (usually 90 to 120 minutes).
Be in the ‘no’
Timeshares are big business, with $10.6 billion in domestic sales in 2023, according to a 2024 study by the American Resort Development Association (ARDA), a trade association for the timeshare industry. For comparison, that’s similar to the annual revenue of Major League Baseball in 2023.
Hospitality companies wouldn’t offer these lucrative promotions unless enough people were buying what they’re selling.
Jason Gamel, president and CEO of ARDA, says that approximately 2 in 10 people decide to buy after a sales presentation. And that purchase, of course, comes with a financial commitment. The average purchase transaction was $24,170 in 2023, according to the ARDA study, with average annual interest rates near 15%.
This amount covers the initial cost to join the timeshare and the financing of the balance but does not include ongoing costs such as membership dues, maintenance fees or other required resort operation expenses.
If you’re not in the market for a timeshare, no sales pitch should persuade you to get one. Before the pitch, think (or talk) through the process of saying “no,” and if you have a spouse who’ll be attending, include them in the conversation.
Later, if you change your mind and decide to sign a contract, a state’s rescission laws could allow the contract to be canceled within a certain window after signing — usually between five and 10 business days.
“I think that’s important because it does help people evaluate whether they’re making the right decision for them, and it gives them a very easy way to say no after everything is said and done,” says Gamel.
Simply pack up and go
Despite skepticism from my travel-hacking cohorts, timeshare promotions allow me to save money on travel now and earn rewards to use for free travel in the future. The process won’t be for everyone, but if you’re willing to sacrifice a couple of hours and know the power of saying “no,” it could do the same for you.
WASHINGTON, D.C. (June 12, 2024) – Karen Kreutziger Powell, CEO of Flat Branch Home Loans, testified today at a hearing on pending legislation before the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs Subcommittee on Economic Opportunity.
Hearing details can be found here. Click here for Powell’s written statement.
[Note: Please find Karen Kreutziger Powell’s prepared oral statement below. She may add to or subtract from these remarks during the course of his testimony. Portions of the text may be omitted during the testimony.]
ORAL STATEMENT
Karen Kreutziger Powell, CEO of Flat Branch Home Loans
6/12/2024
Chairman Van Orden, Ranking Member Levin, and members of the Subcommittee, thank you for the opportunity to testify today on behalf of the MBA.
My name is Karen Kreutziger Powell. I serve as the Chief Executive Officer at Flat Branch Home Loans, an independent, residential mortgage lender, headquartered in Missouri and licensed in 38 states.
I have extensive experience originating, securitizing, and servicing VA Home Loan Program mortgages and am honored to appear before this panel.
MBA appreciates the focus of today’s hearing on proposed legislation aimed at authorizing a permanent partial claim program. This program is designed to give our nation’s heroes loss mitigation options comparable to those in other federal housing programs.
The VA Home Loan Program is a significant benefit earned by Veterans through their sacrifice and service. MBA recognizes the need to make this program more accessible, operationally efficient, flexible, and competitive.
This is particularly crucial during times of individual crisis for Veterans and their families, and it’s important this benefit is not diminished. That’s why I want to emphasize MBA’s strong concern that the VA Funding Fee should not be used for expenses unrelated to the home loan program.
MBA has worked closely with Committee staff on the topic of partial claims – and we are pleased to offer recommendations aimed at improving the proposed legislation. The VA may require additional resources from Congress to implement these suggested program improvements.
MBA welcomes legislation that authorizes a permanent partial claim for the VA Home Loan Program. A partial claim is a standard, simple, and time-tested foreclosure prevention solution available to borrowers in other federal housing programs but one that is missing from the VA’s loss mitigation toolkit.
It allows a borrower who has resolved a financial hardship to move missed payments to the back of the loan, without interest, following a period of forbearance. This helps borrowers get back on track with regular mortgage payments – or pursue a modification for a more affordable payment.
Despite the introduction of the VA’s newest loss mitigation program, known as VASP, MBA believes Veteran homeowners facing temporary financial hardship deserve access to partial claims to reinstate their loans and remain in their homes.
Access to both these solutions will provide struggling borrowers with a more durable set of loss mitigation options to preserve affordable homeownership.
We are, however, concerned that certain provisions of the current bill text, such as the repayment plan, could adversely affect Veteran homeowners, mortgage servicers, and the VA.
As drafted, this legislation adds hurdles that may negatively impact borrower benefits. These changes might be motivated by a desire to generate revenue through interest income, but VA will recoup the initial outlay most of the time, as a partial claim requires repayment at payoff, refinance, or maturity of the first lien mortgage. No other government program requires repayment with interest, and we urge amendments to the bill to achieve parity with other federal housing programs.
MBA appreciates your consideration of these recommendations. Our association and its members will continue to work with the agency, this committee, and other key stakeholders to ensure Veterans and their families have access to more affordable, sustainable homeownership opportunities.
The final topic I want to highlight today concerns the settlement agreement of the National Association of Realtors to resolve various class action lawsuits alleging antitrust violations. If approved, changes could impact decisions by sellers to cover buyer agent commission fees. VA’s regulations prohibit Veterans from paying fees or commissions to real estate agents in relation to a VA home loan.
This prohibition puts Veteran borrowers at a severe disadvantage, as they are prohibited from compensating real estate agents who guide them through the home-buying process. MBA is pleased that the VA has taken temporary measures to address the problem. We urge the VA to permanently amend its regulations.
Once again, MBA appreciates the opportunity to comment on the issues impacting the VA Home Loan Program – and the specific legislation before the Subcommittee today. We value our partnership with Congress and the VA to help Veterans utilize their earned benefit to achieve homeownership.
MBA looks forward to continuing to work with the Subcommittee to forge practical solutions and provide the VA with the necessary resources to implement changes and improve the Home Loan Program.
I look forward to answering any questions you may have on this or any of the proposed legislation.
Victor Ciardelli beamed as his mortgage company, Chicago-based Guaranteed Rate, launched a “financial wellness” and “personal well-being” app last fall before a live audience in Times Square with wellness celebrity Deepak Chopra.
“Something we are passionate about at Guaranteed Rate is caring about people and their overall well-being,” Ciardelli said in a video of the event posted online. “We wanted to make sure that we did something to help people in their general stress and alleviate pain.”
But in the days following the launch of the app, which offers home loan applications and other financial services alongside yoga classes and nutrition advice, Ciardelli wasn’t happy. Yelling at executive leadership on company calls, he referred to his employees as “failures,” complained that the team did not show him from a particular camera angle and said “Marketing is a f−−−ing disaster,” according to two executives who were on the calls.
Despite Ciardelli’s public remarks on the importance of personal well-being, many former employees told the Tribune they experienced or witnessed persistent verbal abuse and a misogynistic environment while working at Guaranteed Rate. As part of a Tribune investigation, reporters interviewed nearly 80 former employees and reviewed court records, internal company emails, written exit interviews and text messages.
Many of the former staff members who spoke with the Tribune described Ciardelli, the company’s president, CEO and founder, as a boss who was quick to berate, swear at and demean employees.
“Every person that works directly under Mr. Ciardelli is terrified of his potential anger outbursts,” one former assistant wrote to human resources after she was let go from the company a couple of years ago, according to an email reviewed by the Tribune.
Some former employees who spoke with the Tribune said they were driven to seek mental health care because of the work environment at the company; one former worker said she contacted a suicide hotline last year.
Multiple women who used to work at Guaranteed Rate, meanwhile, described working in a sexualized atmosphere where some male loan officers and managers made sexually explicit remarks to female employees, hit on them in the office or at work events, and commented inappropriately on their appearance — even, in one case, encouraging a woman to use her looks to help close a loan.
In February, a woman who used to work as a loan officer at Guaranteed Rate filed a lawsuit against two high-producing loan officers at the company, alleging sexual harassment and gender discrimination. Her complaint alleges one of the male loan officers sexually harassed her at a corporate event, that the other loan officer pressured her not to report the incident to human resources, and that for the remainder of her employment the man who made the remark used “gender-based and demeaning slurs to refer to” her and other women at the company.
Other former employees said they did not bring their complaints to human resources because they thought Ciardelli or other executives and managers meddled in the department’s business and might retaliate, with at least two former employees saying they’d observed how company leaders protected certain staff members. Others said they did complain but felt the department didn’t take the information seriously.
In response to a detailed list of questions from the Tribune, Ciardelli and Guaranteed Rate vehemently denied all of these allegations, describing the company as a positive workplace environment where women in particular are supported. The firm went to remarkable lengths to dispute the allegations, including sending the results of a worker satisfaction survey it conducted and forwarding more than 80 testimonials from current and former employees. Among them were five of Ciardelli’s current or former assistants, as well as numerous male and female executives praising his leadership and support.
The company also retained an outside law firm that, even before receiving the reporters’ list of questions, threatened to sue the newspaper for defamation.
Guaranteed Rate, whose corporate headquarters is in Chicago’s North Center neighborhood, has grown tremendously since its founding in 2000 to become one of the largest mortgage lenders in the country based on loan volume, according to industry news and data provider Inside Mortgage Finance. Its name has adorned the White Sox stadium since 2016, and as recently as 2018, Guaranteed Rate was named a Chicago Tribune Top Workplace — a distinction based on surveys conducted by an outside company, with no input from editorial staff on the selection.
Guaranteed Rate CEO Victor Ciardelli prepares to throw out the ceremonial first pitch at a White Sox home game in August 2016. The ballpark would be renamed after his company later that year. (Chris Sweda/Chicago Tribune)
Jason Scott, a former top-producing loan officer and director of VA lending, which provides home loans to military veterans and active-duty service members, at Guaranteed Rate said his earlier years at the company — when lower mortgage rates fueled industry growth — were positive. But Ciardelli’s outbursts and verbal abuse of employees grew more noticeable, he said, when rising interest rates started to erode those gains, especially after the boom years of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“I think crazy success just brings out who the real people are,” said Scott, who reported to Ciardelli in his director role and now works for CrossCountry Mortgage, a competitor of Guaranteed Rate. “What did you sacrifice to get there? Did you sacrifice your soul or your core values?”
Many other former employees who spoke with the Tribune did so on the condition they would not be named in this story, saying they feared Guaranteed Rate would sue them. Guaranteed Rate has filed lawsuits against former employees to claw back signing bonuses; it also has sued competitor New American Funding and former employees who have hired former Guaranteed Rate workers, accusing them of unlawful poaching.
Ciardelli declined to be interviewed without his attorney for this story. In response to written questions provided by the Tribune, he and the company suggested the criticism of Guaranteed Rate came from disgruntled employees who could not succeed in a demanding work environment within a challenging industry, or from people who now work for a competitor and therefore would benefit from disparaging the company.
“We hold ourselves and our team members to an incredibly high standard and are not apologetic about that,” Ciardelli said in his written responses, sent through the outside law firm retained to handle communications with the Tribune. “We also recognize … that to achieve great success, one must embrace a full ownership for their actions, both successful and otherwise to achieve growth and most important optimally serve our customers. We promote a transparent culture that supports all our team members toward that goal and welcome constructive criticism. As a result, we are not for everyone.”
Ciardelli specifically denied berating staff, yelling at executives after the app launch or ever calling employees “stupid” or “failures.” He quoted the company’s chief operating officer, Nik Athanasiou, as saying: “I have worked with Victor for 15 years. No one is in more meetings with him than me. I do not ever recall an instance where Victor was abusive toward another employee.”
Ciardelli also pointed to the company’s anti-discrimination and anti-harassment policies and said neither he nor any other executive interfered with human resources.
In response to questions from the Tribune about women’s complaints, including being subjected to sexually explicit comments and working in a “boys club” atmosphere, Ciardelli wrote that such allegations are “simply not true.” The company “has not, does not, and would not objectify women or put them in uncomfortable personal or professional situations,” he wrote.
Ciardelli also highlighted the large number of female loan officers working at the company, their professional success and the testimonials from female employees. When the Tribune asked to speak with four of those women, only one — Rola Gurrieri, the company’s New Jersey-based chief fulfillment officer — agreed to be interviewed without outside counsel or management present.
Regarding the lawsuit filed by former Guaranteed Rate loan officer Megan McDermott, the company told the Tribune it had “found no evidence supporting Ms. McDermott’s allegations of sexual harassment or gender discrimination” after conducting a “comprehensive investigation.”
Guaranteed Rate also sent a general statement detailing the company’s business philosophy, which includes a “fierce commitment to excellence.” Employees who do not “meet our core values or our quality standards” find it challenging to maintain job satisfaction at the company, it said.
“Many of these employees walk away not feeling good about the company which is a natural emotion when faced with a reality that their standards and the company standards are not aligned,” the statement said.
But many of the former employees who spoke with the Tribune described a cutthroat work culture they said could be frightening and upsetting, with several attributing that culture to Ciardelli’s laser focus on making money and growing Guaranteed Rate.
A sign is installed at the White Sox stadium in October 2016 to proclaim its new name: Guaranteed Rate Field. (Zbigniew Bzdak/Chicago Tribune)
The former assistant who emailed human resources asked not to be identified in this story, fearing it might jeopardize her current job or trigger retaliation from Ciardelli. In that email, the woman wrote that she was “constantly on edge and terrified to have an interaction with Mr. Ciardelli” and that she had “consoled each assistant on his team that endured the wrath of Mr. Ciardelli’s behavior.”
“I hope that my experience will open your eyes,” she wrote.
Flying too close to the sun
In an interview with the Tribune in 2014, Ciardelli made plain his ambition to grow the company.
“If you can’t handle it, you shouldn’t be here,” Ciardelli said. “Instead of feeling like, oh, we care about people’s feelings and all that, it’s all about results.”
In the same article, Ciardelli said he worked constructively with his employees when issues arose at work. “There’s no drama involved; there’s no yelling,” he said. “Let’s fix the issue and move on.”
But multiple former executives and employees told the Tribune Ciardelli regularly yelled at and verbally attacked executives and other employees in person and on company calls, sometimes in front of hundreds of people, with the calls following the app launch just one example.
Some former and current employees told the Tribune they tried to avoid Ciardelli because they were scared of his temper.
Scott, the former director of VA lending who worked at Guaranteed Rate from 2017 until he resigned in 2022, splitting his time between offices in Hawaii and Colorado, called Ciardelli a “bully.”
Scott told the Tribune that, during one call, Ciardelli took an executive “to the woodshed and just eviscerated him verbally,” saying things such as “I can’t believe you are this stupid.”
“(Victor) throws the grenade and then he leaves the room,” not giving people a chance to explain or talk through the issue, Scott said.
At the time of Ciardelli’s 2014 Tribune interview, Guaranteed Rate had 2,500 employees nationally, 1,050 of whom were based in Chicago, according to Tribune archives.
The company grew to employ 9,708 people nationwide at its peak in 2021, Guaranteed Rate told the Tribune in May. Part of the company’s growth stemmed from its acquisitions of other mortgage companies: Manhattan Mortgage and Superior Mortgage in 2012 and Stearns Lending in 2021.
Victor Ciardelli, shown in 2014 at Guaranteed Rate’s headquarters, told the Tribune that year that he had ambitious plans for the company and “if you can’t handle it, you shouldn’t be here.” (Abel Uribe/Chicago Tribune)
Guaranteed Rate also partners on mortgage services with some of the largest real estate companies in the country. Including the people working in those partnerships, Guaranteed Rate had 14,264 employees at its height in 2021.
Like other mortgage companies, Guaranteed Rate has suffered a significant decline in business over the last two years, stemming from mortgage rates that have more than doubled from their record lows during the pandemic.
As mortgage rates soared in 2022 and 2023, the firm implemented thousands of layoffs, with only 3,871 workers remaining as of April, or 5,756 among all its companies, excluding contractors, as of May, according to the company.
Yet Ciardelli’s volatile behavior predated the stressful times in the housing market, according to some people who worked for Guaranteed Rate. Many people who “fly too close to the sun” — a metaphor some employees used to describe working directly with Ciardelli — eventually leave, they said.
People who work in personal and executive assistant roles for Ciardelli rarely last long in their jobs, with many leaving after less than a year, former employees said. Some referred to Ciardelli’s assistant position as a “revolving door,” and the LinkedIn profiles of multiple former assistants show short stints with the company.
More than two dozen executives and senior loan officers have left the company over the last decade, with a significant exodus occurring in the past two years. Multiple former executives and loan officers — including Scott — told the Tribune they left because of Ciardelli’s verbal outbursts and what many described as a workplace where they felt bullying and misogyny were tolerated. Most now work for competitors.
Ciardelli and other executives sometimes would disparage people who left the company, according to Scott.
“I would be like ‘Guys, did anybody ever think about reaching out to them before they left and having an exit interview with them?’” Scott said. “You are talking about a person that was a top producer here that you loved them as long as they produced, and now that they leave, they are an enemy? … They are leaving for a reason.”
In Ciardelli’s written responses to Tribune questions, he said allegations of a toxic work environment or bullying on his part are “not aligned with Guaranteed Rate or my leadership.” He said neither he nor other executives have disparaged former employees when they left the company.
In response to a question about assistant turnover, Ciardelli wrote that he has worked closely with five “primary” assistants since 2000. “As is the case with any demanding support roles, there has been some turnover with secondary and tertiary assistants, but nothing that is abnormal or unexpected,” he wrote.
One testimonial sent to the Tribune was from Melissa Czaszwicz, who said she worked for Ciardelli as an executive assistant in the early 2000s. She wrote that she had a positive experience working closely with Ciardelli, who she said was especially supportive when she had children.
“Never did I witness anything inappropriate or out of line,” said Czaszwicz, who still works at Guaranteed Rate.
‘Mental health has suffered’
Some former employees who spoke with the Tribune said they were driven to seek mental health support during and after their time at the company because of the negative work environment they experienced at Guaranteed Rate.
Most of those who shared their experiences worked for an executive who has a close working relationship with Ciardelli. Former workers said this executive also verbally abused staff and was prone to volatile mood swings.
One told the Tribune she texted and called a suicide hotline last year while working at the company because of verbal abuse from the executive; she shared the texts she sent with the Tribune.
In her resignation email, sent to the executive and to the human resources department last year, she wrote: “My mental health has rapidly declined due to the way I have been treated and spoken to in the last couple of months.”
Another employee from the same team wrote in a 2019 resignation letter sent to the executive, human resources, Ciardelli and others that his “mental health has suffered.”
Founded in 2000, Guaranteed Rate grew to become one of the largest mortgage lenders in the country but has suffered a decline in business as mortgage rates have soared in the last two years. (Brian Cassella/Chicago Tribune)
In the resignation email and in an interview with the Tribune, the former employee said his boss gave him the runaround when he asked for time off to attend his mother’s chemotherapy appointments and complained to other employees about his requests.
Other employees discouraged him from requesting leave directly from human resources, warning him he would be fired if he went around the executive, according to the email.
Alyssa Ortiz, another former employee, said working with this executive was like being in an “abusive” relationship, being yelled at one minute and being invited for drinks the next.
“Everyone has gotten … chewed out and left crying,” said Ortiz, who worked for Guaranteed Rate from 2017 to 2019.
Ortiz told the Tribune that human resources and Ciardelli had been notified of this executive’s verbal mistreatment of employees but did nothing. She and about a dozen other former employees told the Tribune they felt Ciardelli protected this executive because of their working relationship.
In a written exit interview from 2020, one employee from the same department described how the executive would discuss former employees’ exit interviews with current employees.
“This created a fear for us to go to HR for anything moving forward,” the employee wrote.
Ciardelli said the company was not aware of any incident in which an executive read former employees’ exit interviews aloud; he said Guaranteed Rate “would never support this practice.”
Dozens of employees have left the executive’s department since 2017, according to interviews with former workers and LinkedIn profiles. The executive has since been promoted, the executive’s LinkedIn profile and the company’s website show.
In 2018, the head of human resources at the time took away the HR representative working with the executive’s department because of “risks” the executive posed to the company, according to an email reviewed by the Tribune.
“I can’t in good conscience keep allowing (the executive) to drag other employee (sic) into … schemes,” the former HR head wrote. “And by schemes I mean risky bull−−−−.” The department would have no assigned human resources representative after that, according to the email.
In correspondence with the Tribune, Guaranteed Rate described the company as a positive workplace where abuse and harassment are not tolerated and where complaints to human resources are taken seriously.
“We are not perfect by any means, but we do work hard to listen to our employees and make sure they feel supported,” a company spokesperson wrote in an email to the Tribune in April. “Most of all, we have no tolerance for any form of bullying, harassment or mistreatment. It is not who we are or who we want to be.”
Some of the employee testimonials provided by Guaranteed Rate expressed similar sentiments. For example, Mohamed Tawy, a branch manager and senior loan officer who has been with Guaranteed Rate for three years, wrote that the culture at the company is the best he has experienced in his 15-year career.
In an interview with the Tribune, Tawy said: “As a top producer … and I’m also a minority myself, I haven’t felt anything or seen anything that makes this company in any way negative for anybody that’s different. … I’ve seen here all that matters is that you do a good job, your production is good and that you follow the protocols and the rules, and I’ve seen people succeed with that more than any company I’ve been with.”
The Guaranteed Rate spokesperson also shared the results of an employee experience survey conducted in February. According to the company, the average rating for the culture at Guaranteed Rate was 8.49 out of 10, with nearly 75% of 3,745 employees responding. Those ratings were based on employees’ stated level of comfort providing feedback and/or concerns, how much they felt supported by the company in maintaining a healthy work-life balance and their sense of Guaranteed Rate’s commitment to promoting diversity and inclusion.
The email from the spokesperson said the company received “a countless number of positive comments and appreciation for their leaders, teams and our overall culture.”
In response to Tribune questions, Guaranteed Rate said in May that the survey was anonymous and it was analyzed by its “employee experience team.” The company did not provide the Tribune with a complete set of responses from the survey, but it volunteered that employees used the word “toxic” to make a negative comment about Guaranteed Rate in only 14 of the more than 5,000 written responses provided to three open-ended survey questions.
‘Mortified and disgusted’
Megan McDermott, a single mother of three, met her supervisor at Guaranteed Rate, Jon Lamkin, in person for the first time at a corporate event in December 2015, according to the lawsuit she filed in February.
When Lamkin heard the age of her oldest child, the suit alleges, he said: “You should have known better than to let some guy’s d−−− c−−− inside you.”
According to her lawsuit, McDermott reported the comment to Joseph Moschella, a regional manager and senior loan officer at Guaranteed Rate who was responsible for McDermott’s region while she worked at the company. Moschella, the suit alleges, “pressured” her not to make a formal complaint of sexual harassment to human resources.
McDermott told the Tribune she was “mortified and disgusted” after Lamkin made the comment.
“The irony here is that Jon should have known better than to treat an employee the way he did rather than telling me I should have known better to become a single mother at 20 years old,” McDermott said, “which is vile. … He set the tone the first day I met him of the power Joe and Jon had over my career.”
Megan McDermott, shown in March in New Jersey, has filed a lawsuit alleging she was “subjected to a sexual and gender-based hostile work environment” at Guaranteed Rate and did not receive the same opportunities, treatment and pay as male loan officers. (Brian Cassella/Chicago Tribune)
As McDermott went on to become a top-producing loan officer for Guaranteed Rate in New Jersey, her suit alleges Lamkin subjected her to abuse by “regularly screaming at her and using gender-based and demeaning slurs to refer to” her and other women at the company.
Her lawsuit alleges she was “subjected to a sexual and gender-based hostile work environment” by Guaranteed Rate, Lamkin and Moschella. Her suit also alleges McDermott did not receive the same opportunities, treatment and pay as male loan officers, which some other female loan officers told the Tribune reflected their own experiences as well.
McDermott did not lodge a complaint after Lamkin’s comment because she “believed she would be retaliated against” if she did so, the suit states. When she did report to HR around 2019 that Lamkin had engaged in “abusive behavior,” the department “failed to do anything to investigate or curtail Defendant Lamkin’s behavior,” the complaint alleges.
“Joe encouraged me not to go to HR because of the damage it would do to Jon’s career,” McDermott said. “Ultimately, all that they were worried about was Jon, his reputation and his career versus reporting inappropriate behavior.”
Guaranteed Rate told the Tribune in its May response that Lamkin’s comment was “nothing more than a single off-color joke,” that McDermott accepted an apology from Lamkin and that Moschella “encouraged” McDermott to contact human resources if she was “still upset.”
The company said it “could not find any record of Ms. McDermott making any form of complaint to the company’s human resources department in 2019, either verbally or in writing.”
McDermott told the Tribune she helped build Guaranteed Rate’s business in north Jersey from the ground up and said she loved the work until she found out she was not being treated equally as a woman.
“I believe management did not want to see me succeed, didn’t take me seriously and made decisions that negatively affected me and my children financially,” said McDermott, who now works for CrossCountry Mortgage, a competitor. “I ultimately left GR because I could no longer work in an environment where I was not valued and leadership felt that they could exploit me.”
Moschella and Lamkin are still employed at Guaranteed Rate. They did not respond to a Tribune request for comment. Guaranteed Rate told the Tribune in May that it had investigated McDermott’s allegations of sexual harassment and gender discrimination and found that “there is no evidence that Mr. Lamkin or anyone else at Guaranteed Rate ever created a hostile work environment for women.”
Guaranteed Rate also said in a statement that it complies with state and federal equal pay laws. The company said an “outside law firm” had reviewed its 2023 pay data and found it compliant with state equal pay laws.
In his written responses, Ciardelli highlighted the high percentage of female loan officers at the company in comparison to its competitors and said “our women originators thrive more than at any mortgage company in the industry.”
Employee statements provided through Guaranteed Rate’s attorneys included testimonials from dozens of women. Some noted the existence of the company’s employee resource group for women, GROW, while others cited the presence of women in leadership roles throughout the company.
“In addition to my professional growth I’ve experienced, I am equally grateful for the respect and dignity with which I have been treated as a woman in the workplace,” Jaime Kinman, a senior loan officer, said in her statement. “In an industry where gender biases still exist, I have never once felt marginalized or overlooked because of my gender.”
Gurrieri, the company’s chief fulfillment officer, said in an interview with the Tribune that she “never one time” experienced misogyny at the company.
“I got promoted when I’m six months pregnant,” she said. “That’s unheard of.”
Gurrieri, who has worked for Guaranteed Rate for more than six years, described Ciardelli’s leadership style as “extremely passionate.”
“There’s never been a day where I ever felt disrespected or not appreciated,” she said.
According to a former top executive who reported to Ciardelli for many years and a former human resources employee, a handful of loan officers at Guaranteed Rate were known sexual harassers, making women feel uncomfortable with inappropriate touching and unwanted advances in work settings.
But that behavior was rarely addressed, the former workers believed, because the men were friends with Ciardelli or were high-producing loan officers — each responsible for bringing in tens of millions of dollars in loan volume. Some of these loan officers still work at Guaranteed Rate.
Ciardelli called these allegations “simply not true” and said they were contradicted by the employee testimonials provided through the company’s attorney.
“They are also inconsistent with the recollections and experiences of multiple former HR professionals,” Ciardelli wrote.
A ‘sex-driven’ culture
In interviews with the Tribune, multiple former employees described a “boys club” atmosphere at Guaranteed Rate; Scott, the former director of VA lending, said there was “a lot of misogyny.”
Jessica Moreno, a former Chicago employee who started at Guaranteed Rate at age 23, said she was the first in her family to get a corporate job. Within a year of starting her job, she said, she was paying the mortgage on her family home.
But in her department, Moreno said she experienced a “sex-driven” culture.
“All the guys were just like, tongues on the floor,” said Moreno, who worked for the company for about four years starting in 2014. Her workplace was “like a men’s locker room, and women were in it,” she said.
Jessica Moreno, shown in April in Arizona, worked for Guaranteed Rate for about four years starting in 2014. She said male co-workers and managers hit on her and made comments on her appearance. It was “like a men’s locker room, and women were in it,” she said. (Brian Cassella/Chicago Tribune)
Male co-workers and managers would hit on her and make comments on her appearance, calling her pretty, Moreno said. Comments made at Christmas parties or happy hours could be crasser, she said.
“You’ll get, ‘Oh, I’ve always wanted to f−−− you,’” she said.
Moreno said she once overheard a male manager describe a woman who had interviewed for a job as a “fox.” Another time, she said, a manager invited a female massage therapist to the office; Moreno remembers male co-workers commenting on the therapist’s body, too.
Soon after she’d started at Guaranteed Rate, Moreno said, she met with HR to make a complaint about a manager who swore at and belittled her. The HR representative brushed off her concerns in that meeting, she said.
“After that, I felt so discouraged to never even speak up again,” Moreno said.
Moreno ended up leaving her position before taking a job working for a Guaranteed Rate loan officer; she said she was terminated after clashing with the loan officer’s assistant.
Some female former employees of Guaranteed Rate said they understood looks to be a currency within the company.
One former Chicago employee said a manager encouraged her to text a selfie to a client after hearing the client flirt with her over the phone and say he’d be inclined to speed up the loan process if he knew what she looked like.
The employee said she sent the selfie, and the manager then pushed her to go along with the client’s harassment until the loan closed, she said.
After receiving the photo, the client responded, “As pretty as you are I can’t believe some man hasn’t run off with you just howling away,” in a text reviewed by the Tribune. Later on, after sending her forms, the client texted her: “You said I would get another pic when I sent you the forms so?”
The employee said another manager in her division would frequently flirt with her and comment on her appearance. He once texted her to “stop losing weight damn it” and another time texted her that she “broke (his) concentration,” according to texts reviewed by the Tribune.
Another former Chicago employee remembered a manager telling her, while she was pregnant with her first child, “Whatever you do, don’t get a C-section — you’ll never wear a bikini again.” The employee went out on maternity leave days later. She said she did end up needing a C-section and remembers the manager’s comment echoing in her head as she was wheeled back for surgery. Two people the woman told about the incident at the time corroborated her account in interviews with the Tribune.
Several former employees in the marketing department, including two men, told the Tribune Ciardelli made comments about workers’ ages. One employee got Botox and fillers after Ciardelli told employees they were “too old” and likened the marketing department to his “grandmother’s mortgage company,” according to former marketing department employees.
In his written responses, Ciardelli said “Guaranteed Rate is committed to fostering an environment that promotes diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility. We maintain a comprehensive set of employment policies aimed at providing a work environment free of unlawful harassment and discrimination, where all employees treat one another with dignity and respect.”
Guaranteed Rate’s corporate headquarters is in Chicago’s North Center neighborhood in a building with a rooftop gathering space. (Brian Cassella/Chicago Tribune)
A spokesperson said in the April 1 email sharing the employee survey results that the company had launched “even more initiatives to ensure we have a positive work environment,” including anti-harassment training, training for the human resources team “to take proper and appropriate steps and best practices for investigating and responding to employee complaints” and reminders to employees on how to report harassment or abuse.
“Our executive team has emphasized to Human Resources that all complaints should be investigated, and any form of harassment and misconduct should be dealt with swiftly – and all managers and employees who are not acting in accordance with our values be rooted out of our organization,” the spokesperson wrote.
In the company’s May responses, it said these initiatives were launched in 2023 and were to “expand and enhance” the existing training program.
All Guaranteed Rate employees must complete “harassment and discrimination prevention training” upon being hired and on an annual basis thereafter, according to the company’s May response. The company said Guaranteed Rate has an “anti-retaliation” policy that prohibits retaliation against employees who report alleged harassment or discrimination or participate in an investigation into the conduct. The company also noted it has an ethics hotline through which employees can make anonymous complaints.
“We respect and treat all employees equally no matter their sex, color, or creed,” Ciardelli wrote.
In the last 10 years, Guaranteed Rate has not settled any lawsuits involving claims of a hostile work environment, according to the company. Guaranteed Rate’s response stated that within that time frame, the company settled six claims involving allegations of a hostile work environment, including arbitration cases as well as claims filed with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and state and local agencies. The majority of those claims were brought by male employees, and one was resolved in Guaranteed Rate’s favor, the company said.
Guaranteed Rate employees are asked to sign mandatory arbitration agreements when they are hired, but sexual harassment claims and claims filed with the EEOC and similar state agencies are not subject to arbitration, according to Guaranteed Rate’s May responses.
‘Positive thinking’
Publicly, Ciardelli presents himself as a champion of a positive work environment — an image the company has encouraged employees to promote.
In an email sent in February by a company executive and obtained by the Tribune, employees were encouraged to share a Forbes article featuring Ciardelli; the email provided step-by-step instructions for posting it on social media.
The story, published Feb. 7, was titled “Guaranteed Rate Founder Is All In On ‘Positive Thinking’ This 2024” and described his leadership style as “Chicken Soup for the Mortgage Industry.”
“I communicate the power of positivity and gratitude to everybody around me: employees, friends, family members, everyone,” Ciardelli was quoted as saying.
Less than 24 hours after it went live, the article disappeared from the Forbes website. The site provided no explanation, but one former Guaranteed Rate employee told the Tribune former workers had written to the author about factual inaccuracies.
On Feb. 8, a Guaranteed Rate executive sent another email encouraging employees — again with step-by-step instructions — to delete any social media posts linking to the article.
“We are working with Forbes to resolve and will let you know when it will be reinstated,” the email said. “We apologize for the inconvenience, and we will send out a new link as soon as it’s available.”
The Forbes contributor declined to comment for this story. Forbes told the Tribune the article was taken down because it did not adhere to the company’s “editorial guidelines” and did not respond to further questions.
The article has yet to be republished, but Guaranteed Rate still wants people to read it. The company shared it in a PDF on its LinkedIn page.
Welcome to NerdWallet’s Smart Money podcast, where we answer your real-world money questions. In this episode:
Learn how moving could benefit you if you feel compelled to relocate due to safety concerns — and how to budget for a sudden move.
How do you financially and emotionally prepare for relocating due to safety concerns?
What are the financial impacts of such a forced move?
Hosts Sean Pyles and Alieza Durana discuss their experiences planning finances for relocations to help you understand the complex challenges faced by individuals seeking safer environments, particularly in the LGBTQ+ community.
Alieza begins by interviewing G Chesler, a non-binary trans person, about their move from Washington DC to Portland, Oregon, providing valuable insight into the necessity of finding a supportive community, navigating healthcare and identity respect, and the emotional relief of living in an affirming environment. Their conversation reveals the deep emotional impact of living in a state that does not recognize or respect one’s gender identity, the struggles with accessing appropriate healthcare and the powerful sense of belonging found in a more accepting community.
Then, Alieza speaks with Lindsey Young, founder of the LGBTQ+ focused financial planning and investment management services firm Quiet Wealth, about the financial aspects of relocating for safety. They discuss creating a relocation financial plan, managing the costs associated with a sudden move and the importance of building a supportive community in the new location. They also focus on how to minimize income loss, budget for moving expenses and strategically utilize debt. This episode addresses two pressing issues for the LGBTQ+ community: the urgency of relocating due to hostile environments and the strategies to mitigate the financial strain that accompanies such a move.
Check out this episode on your favorite podcast platform, including:
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Episode transcript
This transcript was generated from podcast audio by an AI tool.
Sean Pyles:
There are lots of reasons you might choose to move. A new job, a desire to live in a different part of the country or world. But for some people it doesn’t feel like a choice. They’re moving because their states, their neighbors have made them feel unwelcome and even unsafe.
Today we’re looking at the financial ramifications of moving, because as a member of the LGBTQ+ community, sometimes it’s not an option to stay put. Welcome to NerdWallet’s Smart Money Podcast. I’m Sean Pyles.
Alieza Durana:
And I’m Alieza Durana.
Sean Pyles:
Alieza, welcome to the host chair here at Smart Money.
Alieza Durana:
Thanks so much, Sean. Glad to be here.
Sean Pyles:
Well, today addressing a difficult decision that some members of the LGBTQ+ community have to face: whether to move to another state because of laws that are unfriendly or even hostile to them. This decision can cause a lot of financial upheaval while they search for safety. Alieza, you came to us a while ago with the idea for this episode. Can you share with us a bit about why?
Alieza Durana:
Absolutely, Sean. This is a personal decision my family is facing in Utah. In January, we had a sober conversation with close friends about the safety of our queer Latina family in our current political climate. G, who you’ll meet shortly, offered us their home in Portland if we ever needed to make a quick exit from the state.
Sean Pyles:
Well, Alieza, I’m really sorry to hear that you and your family are facing such a difficult decision in the place that you’ve called home. And unfortunately we know that your situation isn’t unique in today’s political climate.
Alieza Durana:
And Sean, there are statistics to back up the needs some LGBTQ+ people have to move. In just the last two years, the number of states banning gender-affirming care has jumped from four to 25. That’s half of US states. Two thirds of states have laws that use a person’s HIV positive status to penalize certain activities.
And a 2024 Washington Post analysis of FBI crime data showed quadrupling hate crimes in K-12 schools in response to restrictive laws. My wife and I now have a child whose safety at school is at the top of our minds. A survey back in 2017 by NPR and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation found that threats, harassment and violence were reported as a part of everyday life by more than half the LGBTQ+ community. So the idea that many in our community feel they have no choice but to move isn’t surprising.
Sean Pyles:
It’s certainly not. All right, well we want to hear what you think too, listeners, to share your stories and ideas with us, leave us a voicemail or text the Nerd hotline at (901) 730-6373. That’s (901)-1730 N-E-R-D, or email a voice memo to [email protected]. So Alieza, where do we start today?
Alieza Durana:
To set the scene, we’re speaking to a dear friend of mine who did exactly this. They moved away from a place where they felt unwelcome. I met G Chesler at a yoga retreat in Shenandoah, Virginia. We quickly realized we were neighbors in Washington DC and had been attending the same concerts and movie theaters for years.
G uses they/them pronouns and is a filmmaker and professor. We happily fell into a friendship, which became especially important to me as I came out to my family and got married to my wife, Haley. My family, unfortunately couldn’t handle it and coming out resulted in an estrangement from certain members of my family of origin.
Around that same time, G began their own transition and came out as non-binary. Unfortunately, they also faced cruelty and rejection from their family of origin. As hard as that was, our friendship helped me get through that difficult time. In March of 2020, my wife and I moved from my hometown of Washington DC, to her home state of Utah, to be closer to her family who generously welcomed our love.
So as unusual as it may sound, my adopted family in Utah absolutely provided us a refuge and support away from my father’s bigotry and cruelty to start over. Not long after, G and their partner moved from DC to Portland, Oregon. We’ll hear about that decision in our conversation to come. G, so glad to have you here on Smart Money.
G Chesler:
Oh, thanks Alieza for welcoming me to the program.
Alieza Durana:
Could you tell us a little bit about what inspired your recent move?
G Chesler:
Yeah, sure. I mean, it’s long and complicated. It intersects with disability and gender and the Covid pandemic. In short, I have a position that allows me to work remotely because I am disabled and I was working remotely from Washington DC to my university in Virginia. And it was Covid times. DC was a city that was impacted in so many different ways, particularly overlapping with the administration.
I had transitioned gender publicly and I had asked my employer in Virginia to change my pronouns in my records because whenever I go to the doctor or deal with my retirement accounts, I was having a lot of difficulty because my gender was reflecting my gender assigned at birth. And in my personal life, I was just having trouble navigating spaces.
I just felt like as a trans person with a trans partner, I would be better served living in an environment where my gender was understood, where I could have healthcare providers understand my pronouns and not question them. And we started thinking together about where that might be.
Alieza Durana:
Wow, it sounds so incredibly difficult, the things that we take for granted of being recognized and affirmed and being able to access services that had become so challenging and scary in some ways for you, especially crossing those borders between DC and Virginia and the benefits and protections that they offered you or didn’t.
Are there any other specific events that prompted you to say, I need to move to another state? Is there anything else about your experience living in Washington DC as a trans person that was really significant for you?
G Chesler:
I mean, I know a lot of queer folks in DC. I know several trans people in DC. But it never felt like the majority, right? It never felt like I was part of the fabric of a community as a trans person, as a non-binary trans person, which is how I identify. But ultimately one of the deciding factors was when my employer told me that my pronouns might confuse my retirement holder, TIAA-CREF, if they really changed them in the records. That took me back. It was so strange.
It was like, wait, what are you saying about my retirement account right now? So on the financial side, that was a big red flag to me. The other one was that the state refused to change my pronouns even though I have a DC driver’s license with an X marker, but they just wouldn’t do it. And they were like, well, you could take it up with the state diversity office or what have you.
And I just thought, I’m not going to be that case, am I? I tried to find other colleagues in the LGBTQ group who were having similar challenges. I couldn’t find them, and around the time I had transitioned publicly, I had come to Portland and I walk into a cafe and there’s a sign on the register that says, please use they/them pronouns for all employees unless they tell you otherwise, and we’ll do the same for you.
Please feel free to tell us what your pronouns are. It was like, wait, what? And then I went to the work event. Everybody has their pronouns on their name tags. The bathrooms are not gendered. It was like, oh, this actually is a reality that exists elsewhere. I am a reality elsewhere.
Alieza Durana:
All of the hoops that you are being made to jump through just to exist, they were suddenly gone, it sounds like.
G Chesler:
Yeah, they were already set up. They were already in the future. I often talk about Virginia as a place of the past and certainly I have a lot of privilege as a white person working there, but that state has quite a legacy of enslavement and of white supremacy and of hetero patriarchy.
I remember being hired to teach in Virginia and my colleague’s like, “You’re going to help change things here.” And I believe that I do as a remote educator, but I do get to work from a place where I feel seen and safe and in community.
Alieza Durana:
Absolutely. Were there any primary financial concerns that came up for you when you were thinking about your move or leaving Virginia and DC and going to Portland? If you wouldn’t mind speaking to that.
G Chesler:
While I’m a university educator, I’m also a student loan holder, and so at the time of my hopes to move, I still had my student loan. I also had owned an apartment in DC and I was attempting to sell it at a time when people were not living and working in DC as readily as they had once lived and worked because it was the pandemic.
So the challenge I was facing was living in a city where folks who might want to buy my apartment or condo were not readily available. And I had to wait about nine months to be able to sell that condo at a profit, which meant I was living with my partner across town so that people could come and go and see my place whenever they needed.
And I just found that one of the primary things that supported the move was community. I did have queer community in DC, I did have specifically one or two people who really wanted this to work out for me, even though they were sad to say goodbye. So having community to support the move was one element financially. There were just a lot of expenses we had to figure out like where are we driving, where are we flying? Finding a shipping company that we could trust, deciding on all the ways to get your things across the country. It involved a lot of steps and it involved a lot of expense.
Alieza Durana:
That makes a lot of sense, especially moving so far. So switching gears a little bit back to when you stepped foot in Portland and people had their pronouns and there were places for you to use the restroom, just like basic human rights that were being fulfilled for you in this new space, can you tell us what your experience has been like living in Oregon now for several years? How has it affected your quality of life?
G Chesler:
There’s no way to describe the sense of calm and peace that I’ve experienced when I don’t feel like my existence as a trans person is a question. And for me as a disabled person, the care that I receive in western healthcare systems and then non-western healthcare systems, I need to be seen in my full humanity to be actually cared for.
And data shows that trans people are less likely to see physicians. So I’ve moved to a place where I have experienced some discomfort from some physicians, but I don’t have to see that person anymore because there’s so many options. And that’s been a primary shift. Seeing a queer therapist or a queer psychiatrist for my medications or queer and trans body workers, it’s so different.
Alieza Durana:
And what a relief to not anticipate an experience of discomfort or discrimination or yeah, that refusal that you’ve encountered so often in the past. I’m wondering if you just wouldn’t mind commenting on if you hadn’t felt so welcome and at home in Portland, do you feel that because it has been so welcoming that it’s been worth, let’s say, the financial sacrifice of moving? Do you feel that the cost was ultimately worth it and how might that have been different at a different place?
G Chesler:
Yeah, I think I’m a strange person in that I really like moving. It’s always been worth it to me to move. I really love meeting new people. I love what new spaces have offered me in my life, but I didn’t think I was going to leave DC. I was like, oh, DC, I was almost there for 10 years. It felt like home. I had so many solid friendships. I had a chosen family.
I would move to Portland in a second again, even given the expense. It’s been really helpful to move to a place where things cost less. I feel like I already save. I save 10% on everything that I spend because Portland doesn’t have a sales tax. So right away I’m making a financial savings. The cost of housing here is less. There’s lots of public services that are readily available. Public transit works day to day. There’s just a lot less.
There’s also exchange networks. People are really sharing food. They’re growing food in their gardens and they’re sharing it. They’re making things for each other and trading and I have become part of networks of trade for food and services, things like that, that I’m stunned exist.
It’s nice to live in a place where people really are in community with each other, where they have time, they take the time they need to live a good life. So I think there’s things that you can’t put a dollar value on, but when you start seeing your savings increase, you realize, wow, that very difficult, challenging move I had to spend a year honestly preparing for and saving for and figuring out was worth it.
Alieza Durana:
I know that you mentioned that you’re working remotely. How has your job or career impacted? Would you mind just describing for our audience? Did that affect your salary at all?
G Chesler:
Yeah, so I’ve heard of folks who move from one city to another whose employers say that they will adjust their salary for the new cost of living in a new city. I know that exists. Where I am employed, I am already underpaid by about 20% of what I should earn because of gender parity issues at my employer. And I say that being the only non-binary person I know at my employer, but at my rank of professor. But there are significant gender parity issues that existed at my hiring and then my position. So yeah, so that’s one of the things.
Before I moved, I made sure that I had a remote work agreement that my employer had signed. I also have disability accommodations which allow for remote work. So I have two layers of protection for this decision as well as being a tenured professor, which has another layer of protection. I’ve created online curricula since I got here. So what I’m doing is also using my new strength as an online educator to benefit the department because I feel like a lot of the students that I work with have part-time, full-time jobs, have families or are trans and also don’t want to come into the classroom environment or are disabled and want to learn remotely.
I’ve found that a lot of the students that I’m now serving kind of parallel my own experience. Where I work, I wouldn’t have had a bathroom within a quarter mile of my actual physical office that I would use. The only gender-neutral bathroom that I could use was four buildings away on a big campus.
So I was also deciding as a trans person, as a gender non-binary person, what does an accessible workplace look like for me? But anyway, working remotely has been secured on several levels and I wouldn’t have moved without that protection. So that was important to get into place and it took several months to prepare as well.
Alieza Durana:
My final question for today is just what advice would you have for someone who feels that they might need to make a similar move but are looking at their financial situation and wondering if it’s possible or not? It sounds like you found it really rewarding and you took a lot of steps to get there, but if you wouldn’t mind just elaborating a little bit.
G Chesler:
Yeah, I think that the primary question to ask is do you want it to be better? Do you want to at least try to make it better, to really believe that you deserve it, that you deserve to feel secure or that your child deserves to feel secure and what is it going to cost to make that happen? There are lots of pieces that have to fall into place.
They can be hard to put together, but you deserve it and you’re worth it and your child is worth it. So okay, number one, accept that. Number two, find a network. Build a network. I was moving to a place where I knew two people who said they had my back. So they were like, my first plan was I moved to an Airbnb for two months.
That was a very expensive choice. And also I knew it’s what I needed to land comfortably and quickly for an amount of time I believed I needed to find permanent housing. So that was a primary expense upfront. So in preparation for that Airbnb move, I lived with other folks rent-free for two months to be able to pay for that move. Knowing when your income is going to replenish is a big question as well.
Alieza Durana:
Well, G, thank you so much for joining us today. Is there anything that I didn’t ask you that you want to mention about your move or this topic or experience before we wrap up?
G Chesler:
I think it’s worth it to say the words out loud and to see it as a possibility that moving could benefit you. There’s a strange amount of shame that’s projected on people who decide to move. It’s almost like you’re giving up or you’re running away, but my goodness, you are so not running away. You really are moving towards the knowledge that it’s not going to be perfect, but it can be better.
And I know that phrase is really loaded, it can be better, but when you find your community or you find that everyday ease of life and it happens bit by bit by bit, it makes it feel right, it makes it feel worth it, and it makes me know that I’m worth it. As a trans non-binary person, I get to live in a community that sees me, that is me, that includes members of my community. My community is full of trans people. And so it does exist right here in the U.S. And when you are in community, you then can heal and renew your power.
Alieza Durana:
Well, beautifully put G. thank you so much for joining us today.
G Chesler:
Thanks for these questions and for sharing this information. I really hope that what I’ve said can help some folks see their way.
Alieza Durana:
I think it absolutely will.
Sean Pyles:
I can really relate to G’s experience of discovering a new level of belonging when you move to a place that has more people who are just like you. It reminds me of when I moved to San Francisco after college and I realized suddenly that there were a lot more gay men in the world than I’d ever truly realized.
And it made me feel part of a community and a lot less like an outsider. With that comes a sense of safety and just ease in your day-to-day life that’s really hard to find elsewhere.
Alieza Durana:
I can too, and it’s something I long for now. You mentioned not feeling safe around our neighbors and coincidentally just last week, our HOA announced a new policy recommending neighbors call the police on anyone who, “looks out of place” in an effort to deter burglaries.
We’re challenging the policy, but it’s particularly scary for my family because we are different and we’re also a multiracial family. So my wife and I are thinking about moving again, but it’s a big, hard and expensive decision.
Sean Pyles:
Yeah, I’m so sorry that you’re dealing with that, Alieza. That’s really rough. And unfortunately your experience and G’s are not unique in today’s day and age. And there’s a lot to think about if someone is feeling like they need to make a similar move and there can be real financial costs on top of the mental and emotional cost of feeling like you have to move out of necessity.
Alieza Durana:
That’s for sure. So now we’re going to hear from Lindsey Young. She’s the founder of Quiet Wealth, an investment advisor and a financial planning firm primarily serving LGBTQ+ households. Lindsey goes by the pronouns she/her, and we’re going to get some advice for how to prepare for this eventuality should it become necessary.
Sean Pyles:
That’s coming up in a moment. Stay with us.
Alieza Durana:
Lindsey Young, so glad you could join us on Smart Money today.
Lindsey Young:
Thanks. Pleasure to be here.
Alieza Durana:
Could you tell us if you have any stories you can share about clients who have gone through this as a financial planner and investment manager?
Lindsey Young:
I actually have worked with a couple of clients who have decided that they didn’t feel safe where they wanted to leave and they engage with me in order to come up with a plan to move to somewhere else, but also make sure that they weren’t falling behind financially when they were making that move.
Alieza Durana:
Could you share a little bit about what were some of the primary financial concerns in those situations? What were you helping your client plan for?
Lindsey Young:
So I’ll talk about a specific situation of a client who was a nurse practitioner. She was living in a red state and did not feel comfortable living in that state anymore given the legislative developments in that state. And so she identified, first of all, where she wanted to move to. And her situation was she had actually bought a house a couple of years before this, and so she still had a very large mortgage.
In addition, she still had a lot of student loan debt that she was dealing with as well. And so finances between paying for student loans as well as paying for the mortgage finances were very tight. And so part of the reason that she engaged me was to come up with a financial plan to make sure that she actually wasn’t going to just run out of money from the move.
So I worked with her over the course of about four or five months or so all the way from the time when she decided that she was going to do this through selling the house, through the move and then through actually getting to where she is living right now and she’s made a very successful transition.
Alieza Durana:
So it sounds like housing and employment are maybe two of the concerns that come up typically as people consider moving. You mentioned owning a house. What are some top steps that you would advise people to think about as they prepare financially for this kind of life change?
Lindsey Young:
So the first thing I think is to first figure out where you’re going to go because that’s going to determine a lot of things. And I think that there’s a couple of different variables to think about. One is job opportunities. Given your field, are there going to be jobs that you can do there and you should be checking and seeing how many opportunities are there, go onto job boards and see if there’s opportunities that are going to be there.
The second thing is cost of living. Keep in mind that particularly relative to a lot of red states, blue states, particularly in areas that are more progressive, tend to be fairly expensive. So you actually may need to make more money in the place that you’re going to live than what you’re currently making right now. And then the final factor is to consider an existing network of friends and family of where you’re going to go to.
Having an existing network is a huge benefit as opposed to going to some place where you know no one. And so you factor all three of those things into determining where to go. Once you know where to go, that can start to build a plan because you can start to figure out, okay, what’s the cost going to be to move there? What are my costs going to be once I’m living there? And those are very important factors in developing an overall financial plan going forward after the move.
Alieza Durana:
I wonder, how is your advice the same or different if you have some time to prepare versus someone who feels that they have to move suddenly due to safety concerns?
Lindsey Young:
Yes, absolutely, and I do recommend if you can even take a week or two to develop a plan, it can save you a lot of money as opposed to just leaving one day. A couple of big things that can happen when you take action before planning is that you don’t necessarily set goals for yourself in terms of trying to reduce the amount of cost from the move.
Even taking a week or two to develop a plan for that is really important. Sometimes it’s unavoidable, for safety reasons you feel like you have to move in fairly short order. So I think a couple key things. One, really try to minimize the time that you’re not working. When you move there, you’re probably not going to have a job set up. Get any job, just try to start bringing in income to minimize the loss from the move, to get working.
Also, minimize expenses, opt for a relatively cheap and flexible housing option going forward rather than trying to kind of plant roots immediately. Look for kind of interim solutions that provide flexibility. Those would be some of the things that I’d probably offer advice on if someone feels like they need to move immediately.
Alieza Durana:
This question may seem kind of basic for members of the community, but I’m wondering for allies, if you could just talk about what are some of the challenges that the LGBTQ+ population is facing that is different from other people in the country right now and that’s sort of inspiring a desire to move?
Lindsey Young:
There’s a lot of laws that are being passed that are not friendly. Everything from bathroom bills to taking away trans-affirming healthcare. These are really, really tough laws that are getting passed, especially for members of the transgender community. I myself am transgender and so it’s very painful to see what’s going on in red states.
And so I completely understand the need to move and it is just really painful to see the actions that are taking place in a lot of state legislatures these days. Hopefully you do have some credit cards available, and look, for this type of thing, in terms of making this move happen, I’m completely okay with people taking out debt if they need to move quickly and go somewhere else.
However, if you’re going to do that, before you take out the debt and before you do the move, hopefully, you should really create a plan, a budget on a month by month basis for how you’re going to pay back that debt over the next two years. And keep in mind, it’s not just the expenses of the move, it’s the fact that you’re going to have lost income for a certain amount of time because of the move.
It’s inevitable. It could be a couple of weeks, it could turn into a couple of months. There is going to be lost income there. And what you’re trying to do is minimize that gap and really set a goal for how much of a loss you’re going to have during that gap period. And then come up with a plan where within a year or two you’ve paid back all the debt that you had to take out in order to make the move.
Alieza Durana:
What about any non-monetary steps that might be helpful in preparation for a move? You mentioned connecting with community, including your family of origin or chosen family, whatever, whoever’s important to you. Could you talk a little bit more about how that can be helpful in getting to a new place?
Lindsey Young:
It’s just always helpful to have a connection or two of people that you know in the community because they can introduce you to other people. There’s certainly other ways to do that. There’s obviously, particularly in a lot of blue states, there’s lots of support organizations within the LGBTQ community.
There’s pride centers. Here in Maryland, there’s lots of transgender support groups if you’re in the transgender community. So there’s many options, and I think it’s really important when you arrive in a new state, find opportunities to connect with people. It can even be connecting if you have, there’s some activity that you enjoy doing.
Find ways that you can get involved in doing that activity with other people. Just start building a community there. So be proactive in really trying to find communities that you can get involved in because when you’re by yourself, that is generally not a good thing either for your personal life or even for your finances, I find.
Alieza Durana:
I wonder if you have any other final advice for someone who might be living in a situation that could become unsafe because of local and state laws. Is there anything else that you haven’t mentioned that you would like to say to those folks?
Lindsey Young:
The only thing I say is that I completely can understand why you might not feel comfortable living in those states. And even if it’s a situation where it’s not a near-term safety issue, but you just don’t feel comfortable, that is completely understandable. The only thing I would recommend is that it is going to be a financial cost, generally speaking, to make that move, and incurring that cost is okay. It’s really important that you create a budget to understand what that cost is and to find a way to repay that cost over time. That from a financial planning perspective is the most important thing.
Alieza Durana:
Lindsey, thank you so much for helping us out today.
Lindsey Young:
Thank you for having me on.
Sean Pyles:
My big takeaway from Lindsey’s interview is that while a crisis can require immediate action, planning, even just a day of it, can help you land on your feet and make sure that your next steps are in the direction that you want to go long-term.
Alieza Durana:
But beyond planning, even if money is tight, Lindsey reminded us to seek out community and see how we can support each other through mutual aid during this difficult time. As G mentioned, we can and should imagine life can be better or at least less scary for our beautiful community.
Sean Pyles:
And this really is a difficult subject to have to talk about, much less face. So we really appreciate you bringing this to us, Alieza. I hope listeners come away with a better understanding of what some members of the LGBTQ+ community are being forced to deal with in states across the country. And if you are among them, hopefully this episode gives you some ways to cope and potentially prepare.
Alieza Durana:
Thank you, Sean. I’m really glad we were able to do this.
Sean Pyles:
And as a resident of the Pacific Northwest, I say welcome to Oregon, G.
Alieza Durana:
For now, that’s all we have for this episode. Do you have a money question of your own? Turn to the Nerds and call or text us your question at (901) 730-6373. That’s (901) 730 N-E-R-D. You can also email us at [email protected]. Also visit nerdwallet.com/podcast for more info on this episode. And remember to follow, rate and review us wherever you’re getting this podcast.
Sean Pyles:
This episode was produced by Tess Vigeland. I helped with editing. Chris Davis helped with fact checking. Sara Brink mixed our audio and a big thank you to Nerd Wallet’s editors for all their help.
Alieza Durana:
And here’s our brief disclaimer. We are not financial or investment advisors. This nerdy info is provided for general educational and entertainment purposes and may not apply to your specific circumstances.
Sean Pyles:
And with that said, until next time, turn to the Nerds.
The average annual cost for a homeowner to perform maintenance on their single-family property has grown 26% over the past four years, faster than the rate of inflation, a Bankrate study found.
Nationwide, the current average cost for maintaining a typical single-family home is $18,118 per year, the Bankrate Hidden Costs of Homeownership Study reported. Using an average property value of $436,291, it means the buyer is paying $1,510 per month in addition to their mortgage payment in homeownership costs.
Back in 2020, before the pandemic-fueled run-up in home prices, it cost $14,428 annually for maintaining or repairing a typical single-family home, equivalent to $1,202 per month.
The cumulative rate of inflation, as measured by the Consumer Price Index, from 2020 until now is 21.7%.
The report’s calculation assumes that the homeowner pays 2% per year of their home’s average value on these costs.
“While homeownership is worth the financial sacrifice, homeowners also need to be aware of the ongoing expenses that go along with owning property,” said Jeff Ostrowski, Bankrate analyst, in a press release. “After you achieve homeownership, you need to fatten up your emergency savings account for all those surprise repairs.”
Incentivizing homeowners to create emergency savings accounts to deal with unexpected events including job loss helped to reduce mortgage default rates, a 2018 JPMorgan Chase study claimed.
While describing these as the hidden costs of homeownership, some of the items used in the calculation are typical beyond maintenance costs, such as property taxes and homeowners insurance, the T&I portion of the mortgage payment. However, rising costs here have been seen as a stressor on troubled homeowners, a panel at a Mortgage Bankers Association conference noted earlier this year.
Some of these other costs are also common (although not necessarily a part of depending on the agreement) to renting a home, such as electricity, internet and cable television service. Many renters also have an insurance policy to cover their personal property.
In a related Bankrate report that came out at the end of May, while 24% of home purchasers said they put aside money to pay for home repairs and maintenance, 19% have needed to take out additional debt for these costs.
Of that second group, 60% financed through credit cards, one-third took out a personal loan, while 25% obtained a second mortgage (respondents were able to make more than one choice for this question).
There’s also a generational divide among those seeking financing. Gen Z makes up the largest cohort of those having to take out debt, at 31%, followed by 26% of millennial homeowners.
At the other end of the spectrum is Gen X, at 19%, and the baby boomers at 13%.
“There’s no question whether these hidden costs of homeownership, involving plumbing calls, appliance replacement or repair, or getting a new roof or HVAC, will occur,” said Bankrate Senior Economic Analyst Mark Hamrick in a press release. “The key questions involve timing and costs. Planning for the expenses, including through dedicated savings, can help affirm the positive experience of what many consider the American dream, which is homeownership.”
The same generational divide exists among the savers, with the younger groups actually claiming a higher rate, 30% of Gen Z and 25% of millennials, while the baby boomers had 24% and Gen X trailed at 20%.
“By avoiding the elevated cost of borrowing, homeowners can hold onto more of their money, which is almost always a good thing,” Hamrick said.
TPO, MERS Review, LOS Products; Fannie/Freddie Changes; Rates React to Jobs Data
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TPO, MERS Review, LOS Products; Fannie/Freddie Changes; Rates React to Jobs Data
By: Rob Chrisman
Fri, Jun 7 2024, 11:44 AM
Huh? Michigan passed California in legal weed sales? The folks here in San Diego don’t seem to mind, and many on the street are doing their part to keep up as they have for a long time. The only thing constant through time is change… And time flies. Chuck Norris is 84 years old. Jerry Seinfeld is 70. Vanna White is 67. “Captain Jack Sparrow” is 60. LOs and lenders know that business is cyclical and are working on positioning themselves for the next refi wave. Some top LOs and lenders are now doing 20-30 percent of what they were doing in the pandemic years of 2020 and 2021. The numbers over the months and years bear that out: Curinos calculates that May 2024 funded mortgage volume decreased 5 percent YoY and increased 9 percent MoM. In the retail channel, funded volume decreased 10 percent YoY and increased 9 percent MoM. (Curinos sources a statistically significant data set directly from lenders to produce these benchmark figures.) Today’s podcast is found here, and this week’s are sponsored by Visio Lending. Visio is the nation’s premier lender for buy and hold investors with over 2.5 billion closed loans for single-family rental properties, including vacation rentals. Hear an interview with reporter Steven Rappoport on the current home-equity market and how technology in the space is evolving to help originators win business.
Software, Products, and Services for Lenders and Brokers
If you’re tired of long contracts, failing implementations, or having to change your process to fit your Loan Origination System, maybe it’s time to see what happy Byte clients have known for years in this video. You don’t have to keep suffering with a slow, expensive LOS platform or sacrifice functionality to lower your costs. Designed to be both powerful and flexible, the Byte LOS platform gives you total control over your loan process and the freedom to do business the way YOU want. If you’re a savvy, independent-thinking lender with an uncompromising ideal of how you want to run your operation, request a demo or visit bytesoftware.com to learn more.
“Act now and unlock big savings! Schedule your firm’s 2024 MERS Annual Report Review with TENA Companies, Inc. today. Each year, MERS requires its members to submit an Annual Report. If you are the named servicer on 1,000 or more active MINs as of March 31st, 2024, you must have your MERS Annual Report reviewed by a qualified third-party review firm and completed by December 31st, 2024. Get ahead of the curve and secure a significant 40 percent discount on your 2024 MERS Annual Review by partnering with TENA and providing all required documentation by August 31st. Our streamlined process minimizes your workload: simply provide the required documentation, we’ll handle the rest! Since 1982, TENA Companies, Inc. has been the mortgage industry’s trusted leader in Quality Control Audit Services and Software. Ensure your firm remains in compliance for 2024: Contact TENA today to learn more and lock-in your early-bird discount.”
Rocket Pro TPO prioritizes affordability with its popular ONE+ by Rocket Mortgage product. Eligible clients can put just 1 percent down, with Rocket Pro TPO covering an additional 2 percent as a grant, not a loan or lien. This means clients start building equity from day one. As interest rates fall and clients choose to refinance, they benefit from built-in equity. Stay informed with the latest industry updates and market trends on the Rocket Pro TPO YouTube channel. Looking to elevate your business? For exclusive opportunities, partner with Rocket Pro TPO and gain access to its Pro Performance Sales Training on June 25th, designed to move buyers from no to yes, and boost success in the mortgage industry. Sign up now for Rocket Pro TPO’s IGNITE Live training on July 9th to discover more about their innovative offerings. Contact Rocket Pro TPO today to explore partnership opportunities that can benefit both your clients and your business.
Freddie and Fannie Updates
FHFA announced that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac (the Enterprises) will enhance their Flex Modification policies to allow more borrowers facing longer-term hardships to achieve meaningful payment reductions. The updated Flex Modification policies will promote sustainable homeownership and the safety and soundness of the Enterprises.
Freddie Mac Resolve®: Deed-in-Lieu of Foreclosure Data Validation and Eligibility Error Messages Reference: This reference provides Resolve users with a quick way to view detailed, actionable feedback messages, including possible causes and next steps.
Freddie Mac Resolve®: Charge-Off Request Validation Error Messages Reference: This reference provides users with a quick way to view detailed and actionable feedback messages for data validation and eligibility errors, including possible causes and next steps.
Freddie Mac Loan Selling Advisor® Seller User Roles Job Aid: Learn about the Seller user roles for Loan Selling Advisor. Share this job aid with your administrator for user role provisioning in Freddie Mac Access Manager.
In alignment with Freddie Mac and at the direction of FHFA, Fannie Mae issued Lender Letter (LL-2024-02): Updates to Determining the Flex Modification Terms to expand borrower eligibility and provide more equitable payment reduction to eligible borrowers. Key changes include revising the mark-to-market loan-to-value (MTMLTV) based requirements and incrementally applying the terms to target 20 percent P&I payment reduction. Servicers may implement these changes starting Nov. 1 but must implement them by Dec. 1.
Fannie Mae Desktop Underwriter/Desktop Originator Release Notes, DU Version 11.1 July update.
Fannie Mae’s down payment assistance tool makes it easier to explore and compare various down payment assistance programs. You and your borrowers can compare up to four different options and see a side-by-side view of features, including maximum amount of assistance, household income limits, and more.
Fannie Mae’s May Quality Insider features the defect trends we are seeing in our post-purchase loan file reviews. Read the article to understand these issues and learn some of our best practices to help manage risk and improve loan quality.
Pennymac posted 24-53: Updates to Conventional LLPAs stating it will add a new ‘HomeReady’ LLPA to the ‘LLPAs by Product Feature for All Eligible Loans’ Grid, effective for all Best Efforts Commitments taken on or after Monday, June 3.
National MI announced updates to the TrueGuide® which include changes and clarifications on AUS and Non-AUS Loans. For details, view National MI Announcement: UW 2024-02.
Newrez announced Conforming Loans underwriting guideline updates in Newrez Correspondent 2024-033.
Effective with announcement 202405021-CL, AmeriHome has removed and clarified certain Conventional and Non-Delegated overlays.
Capital Markets
The global rate-hiking cycle is seemingly done as the strength of labor markets around the globe weakens. The European Central Bank, in a widely expected move, cut its benchmark rate 25 basis points to 3.75 percent yesterday. It was the ECB’s first rate cut since 2019, though the central bank was quick to caution investors that it is not committing to any predefined rate path and that forward looking policy will remain data dependent, all but ruling out another cut for July. That came on the heels of the Bank of Canada cutting rates on Tuesday. June fed funds futures don’t see a cut when the Fed meets next week. However, markets are now pricing in nearly two full 25 basis point cuts before year-end as this week’s weaker than anticipated private payroll readings from ADP and a decrease in job openings have investors excited about the prospect of rate cuts from the Fed. Today’s jobs data will give the Fed its last major indicator before next week’s meeting.
Speaking of that jobs data, the first Friday of the month brings payrolls, and the economy added +272k, much stronger than expected, jobs throughout the month of May versus 185k expectations and 175k previously. The unemployment rate was 4.0 percent when it was expected to remain static at 3.9 percent. Average hourly earnings (+.4 percent) when it was seen increasing 0.3 percent month-over-month and 3.9 percent year-over-year versus 0.2 percent and 3.9 percent previously. BLS data suggests that U.S. payroll gains were not as robust as reported in 2023, and the overestimate may have been 60k a month. This would indicate that the job market is weaker than the Fed thinks, though the central bank does understand that job gains and pay growth are slowing going into the second half of the year, and there are notable pockets of weakness tied to both producers and consumers.
Later today brings wholesale inventories and sales, the Fed’s release of Q1 Flow of Funds, and consumer credit for April. After the employment data Agency MBS prices are worse .250-.500 from Thursday’s close, the 10-year is yielding 4.41 after closing yesterday at 4.28 percent, and the 2-year is at 4.84.
Employment
“Are you exceptional at building and leading origination teams and are currently working for a company that doesn’t recognize your value as a manager? At Planet Home Lending, we understand that strong local leadership moves the dial on national success. You bring the insights from Main Street; we provide a dynamic platform where your ideas fuel product innovation and shape our operational strategies, all within the framework of a financially stable, multichannel ecosystem. Contact Senior Vice President Doug Long at (407) 399-5505 and explore how joining Planet can propel your career. Let’s build success together!”
A very well capitalized, mid-sized IMB servicing 100 percent of its loans in-house without a sub-servicer, headquartered in a Rocky Mountain State, is looking to acquire smaller retail IMBs who would prefer to focus on production and at the same time gain operational efficiencies. Understanding that every company has a very unique culture, the IMB is willing to allow these IMBs to operate with a large degree of autonomy, allow you to keep your trade name, and treat you as your own company. Geography is not an issue. We believe that a larger company forcing their culture upon the company being acquired never works over the long term. The vision is for this IMB to hit $5 billion in annual volume with likeminded people, and it has no desire to grow beyond that volume as the President “wants to be big enough to be a player, yet small enough to keep our soul.” Confidential inquiries should be sent to Chrisman LLC’s Anjelica Nixt for forwarding.
“Jim Bromwell has joined employee-owned USA Mortgage as a Regional Manager. Working from offices in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast, the 29-year industry veteran is tasked with growing USA’s presence in markets in the Eastern United States. ‘USA Mortgage is a 100 percent employee-owned company where the employees truly have a voice and a genuine ESOP account,’ he said. ‘I feel USA Mortgage is one of the top platforms in the industry centered around adding value to Loan Officers and their partners. It has a significant presence in the Midwest and is well positioned to grow across the country, which is exciting! While the company is large, it has the “hometown” feel that is appealing in today’s market.’ Founded in St. Louis in 2001, USA has offices in 34 states and is licensed in 49 states plus the District of Columbia. To initiate a confidential conversation about joining USA, contact us here.”
A growing mortgage lender on a mission to be a top player in the wholesale channel is in search of a Head of Operations who’s a strategic mastermind. With at least 5 years of experience leading and wrangling the complexities of wholesale and non-delegated lending, you see technology as your key to unlocking growth (think AI, automation, the whole efficiency toolkit). You thrive on streamlining processes, making approvals super-fast, and motivating your team to break records with infectious enthusiasm. You must be obsessed with the customer experience. This ain’t your average mortgage gig. We’re on a quest to change the game. Ready to join the adventure? Confidential and serious inquiries can email Chrisman LLC’s Anjelica Nixt; please specify the opportunity.
Vienna and now Norway? SNMC Sets the Standard for Industry President’s Trips. Upon return from the SecurityNational Mortgage Company’s 2024 President’s Trip to Vienna, Austria, SNMC President Andrew Quist unveiled an equally extraordinary journey for 2025. How can we possibly top the unforgettable experience of Vienna? An exclusive 7-day cruise from England to Norway. SVP, Joel Harward noted, “Vienna was a fantastic trip where so many great memories were created. The 2025 Norway cruise we just announced reaffirms SNMC’s dedication to motivating our top salespeople and the value we place on celebrating our President’s Club qualifiers.” To explore more about SecurityNational Mortgage Company’s commitment and track record of renowned sales trips, you can click here to learn more today!
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Inside: Learn how to save $5000 in 6 months by following these easy, useful tips. Get a head start on saving for your money goals and save more.
It is no secret that saving money for the future has never been more important.
The Recession of 2008-2009 and the upheaval in 2020 brought a significant increase in how we think about long-term investing, retirement readiness, and the importance of saving for emergencies.
Savings is not easy, and it takes time to save up for your dream future. Saving can seem frustrating at times with all the forms of fees and interest rates.
But saving even a little bit each month will go a long way so don’t give up!
While these are often looked at as individual or personal concerns, they can easily be translated into family finances with some simple changes to your spending habits.
Save $5,000 in six months requires a little bit of discipline, some careful planning, and actual execution.
While it is possible to save money without any difficulty, some additional effort can help make this goal much more attainable.
If you are looking for ways to save money, this post has quick tips that should help you cut down on spending while still getting your needs met.
We will give you seven simple steps that anyone can follow in order to start saving more money today so they have enough saved for their desires.
How to save $5,000 in 6 months
If you are looking to save $5,000 in 6 months, it is important to set a specific goal for yourself.
For example, if you want to save $1,000 per month, write down that goal in your calendar or on paper. Another option is to save more upfront and less throughout or vice versa.
To save $5,000 in a year, there are only 7 easy steps to follow.
You just have to commit to the money saving plan.
This post may contain affiliate links, which helps us to continue providing relevant content and we receive a small commission at no cost to you. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. Please read the full disclosure here.
1. Why Save $5,000?
Saving money is a lot easier than you think.
I’ve seen it happen time and time again: people make the mistake of thinking that saving money will be difficult or take too long, but they often realize how wrong they were once they start making progress.
To keep your motivation moving forward, you need to decide why are you starting to save money. What are the exact reasons for saving 5000 in 6 months?
Action Step: Write down your reason for saving $5k in 6 months.
2. Designate a Separate Bank Account
Next, you have a plan of where you want the money to go. You cannot just assume you will leave it alone in your checking account or won’t touch the case..
Put all your extra income in a separate bank account. If you have extra money at the end of the month, roll it over and put it in savings.
Action Step: Open a separate bank account.
3. Review Your Budget
Next, you need to review your budget for the last month. Take note of the expenses that are missing from this month’s plan.
You must be spending less than you make.
Since you are adding a saving goal of 5000, you must spend less than your current expenses plus your monthly saving goal.
Look for expenses to cut; if needed, you can drastically cut expenses.
Now, make your new budget based on this month’s income, saving goal, and expenses. You can use this budget to calculate your monthly spending plan for the next month!
Action Step: Create a new zero based budget based on this month’s income and expenses with a priority to your saving goals.
4. Set Goals
You need to set goals on how fast you are going to save money. You need set time deadlines and protect that money for this saving challenge.
Other goals you need to set include:
How to reduce expenses
How to increase income
You can make progress much faster by kicking off your saving period with a no spend month.
Action Step: Create your money goals to make saving 5000 in 6 months actually happen.
5. Create Your Action Plan
You need to find ways to save at least $500 per month. That happens one of two ways – either reduce spending or increase income.
Now, you must decide are you going to save money when you get paid or whatever is left at the end of the month.
Regardless of what you choose, you must stick to your action plan. Period.
The recommendation is to save a determined dollar amount each time you are paid. At the end of the month, if you have money left over, then you can save the extra amount.
Below we will list specific tips and examples of ways to save more money.
Action Step: Write out how you plan to save money. Don’t just keep the plan in your head. Actually, write it and post it somewhere you see it often.
Many people prefer one of these challenges to save $5k:
6. Make Periodic Transfers to Savings Account
In order to be successful, you must actually move the money to another account.
On payday or a certain day of the month, you need to deposit money into your designated $5k bank account to complete this challenge.
This is something you need to set up in advance!
Action Step: Make it a habit to make transfers to that saving account. That is how you consistently save money and not spend it. Build good habits.
7. Reward Success
Keep yourself motivated with a celebration.
It’s a “treat” that should not cost a lot of money.
Reward success for creating the proper money habits just like rewarding your kids for doing well at school. It’s important to make sure that you are rewarding the right things, and not just because it feels good.
You can earn a reward for every month that you stay on track to save $5,000 in a year.
You will be happier and more motivated to complete the $5000 saving challenge. In addition, it will keep you saving money and increasing your saving percentage each year.
This is exactly how to make saving money always fun!
Action Step: Select your rewards for each month of completing the transfer of money! This is your reward for sticking to saving 5000 in 6 months.
Bonus Tip – Tell Others for Accountability
Tell a close family member or friend about your money goal. They are the people closest to you and help build support for your cause.
You need to be on the same page with your spouse or partner. So, make sure that you are aiming and wanting to achieve the same savings goals.
How can I save 5000 fast?
You are ready to start saving money fast.
But the reality is not everyone has that extra money at their disposal (especially right now). What are some things you will need to get started on this challenge?
Saving 5000 in 6 months is possible by simply following these steps:
-Save $193.00 per week.
-Pay off your debts each time they come due, including all credit card and loan balances. This will make sure you don’t stop your money saving plan.
-Save $500.00 each month for a total of $6,000.
-Shred old receipts and throw away your bank statement to avoid seeing your balance.
-Use your savings to buy a mutual fund that will provide an average annual return of 5% over the next year.
Tips to Save 5000 in 6 Months:
Saving money is hard. It is not easy to find ways that are both quick and easy, but also useful in the long run.
That said if you’re struggling with your finances these days I have got a handful of quick-and-easy tips for saving thousands of dollars each year without much effort at all!
Just think about how many times a day you might be tempted by an impulse purchase or two.
You probably don’t make them every time because it would cost too much. But if you start thinking about these small purchases as a cost of living, it’s easy to see how the little things add up, and why saving money is so important.
Reduces expenses by $500 each month.
Increase income with overtime, find a side hustle or a 2nd job to make an additional $500 a month.
Limit Groceries Costs: Cancel food delivery service, resume weekly meal prep, and limit store visits.
Transportation: Consolidate trips, limit toll lane usage and take the free buses instead of Uber.
Memberships: Canceled unused memberships and subscriptions.
Credit card rewards: Redeem credit card rewards to help fund the things you cut from your budget or items for reward milestones.
Limit Impulse Purchases: Wait 24 hours before buying things.
Stop Getting Takeout Foods: Cook at home and save the difference.
Review Bills: Review bills and see if you can change plans or save money. There are many areas to look at, such as insurance plans, cell phone plan or other expenses. See if there are cheaper alternatives out there with better services for your family.
Sell Extra Stuff: Sell off extra things you no longer need and make a little bit of pocket money. You can sell your old clothes, shoes, books, games consoles or other items on sites like Amazon or Craigslist to earn some extra cash.
Side Gig Ideas: Side gigs can help you meet your savings goals. You might be able to make $5,000 or more in 6 months by doing something you are already doing. There are easy ways to earn a few extra dollars per day, so save up your money and get started today!
Start Investing: While you won’t make money fast, you will be making money on your money. That is called passive income and something everyone needs to learn. Start investing with this easy to follow course.
How to Save 5k in 6 months Chart
This chart provides a quick, easy, and useful guide for saving 5000. There are many ways to save 5000 in 6 months.
By Month – Same Amount
Total
Month 1
$834
$834
Month 2
$834
$1,668
Month 3
$833
$2,501
Month 4
$833
$3,334
Month 5
$833
$4,167
Month 6
$833
$5,000
This is how you can save up to be debt free or have a rainy day fund or larger emergency fund.
By Month – Lump Sum Amount
Total
Month 1
$1,500
$1,500
Month 2
$500
$2,000
Month 3
$500
$2,500
Month 4
$1,500
$4,000
Month 5
$500
$4,500
Month 6
$500
$5,000
Find more money saving charts.
How to save 5000 in 6 Months Bi Weekly?
Have you ever thought about how to save money, but all of the saving advice is based on month? Do you know what the best ways are or do not know where to start?
This is how to save 5000 in 6 months bi-weekly income.
Since you will be paid 13 times over the 6-month time period, you would have to save $385 from each biweekly paycheck.
How to save $5000 in 6 Months Bi Weekly?
Total
Week 1
$385
$385
Week 3
$385
$770
Week 5
$385
$1,155
Week 7
$385
$1,540
Week 9
$385
$1,925
Week 11
$385
$2,310
Week 13
$385
$2,695
Week 15
$385
$3,080
Week 17
$385
$3,465
Week 19
$385
$3,850
Week 21
$385
$4,235
Week 23
$385
$4,620
Week 25
$380
$5,000
All of the other steps apply to make this saving challenge happen.
How can I save $5,000 in 6 Months with Envelopes?
The 100 day envelope challenge is super popular right now.
To save $5,000 in 6 months with envelopes, you have one of two options either to save daily or weekly with a random drawing of an envelope.
Consistent Amounts Weekly Envelope to Save $5000:
Write the numbers 1-26 on each envelope.
For each envelope, you will save $193.
If you prefer to round to a flat $200 each week, you will save $5,200 or an extra two hundred dollars.
Various Amounts Weekly Envelope to Save $5040:
Write the numbers 1-26 on each envelope.
Envelope #1 you save $70.
On each envelope, you add another $10 to the previous amount. (Envelope #2 = $80, Envelope #3 = $90, etc)
On envelopes #24, 25, and 26, you save $300 those weeks
Don’t lose your envelopes!
How can I save $5,000 in 3 months?
Feeling a little bit more ambitious! That is great!
The 100 day money saving envelope challenge saves exactly $5,000. The idea is to save $100 every day for 100 days and then spend the saved amount in one month on whatever you need or want.
Learn more about the 100 day money challenge.
However, this is not feasible for many people because it takes a lot of discipline to do that consistently.
How to Save 5000 in 6 Months Calculator
A calculator helps a person figure out how much they can save in six months.
You know your income and expenses. Grab our free budget sheet and a calculator to figure out how much money you can save.
Saving $5,000 under 6 months is not attainable for everyone because some people will give up after 3 months when they realize how much sacrifice was involved with their savings plan.
That is where you need to stay strong and realize that even accomplishing 30% or 70% of your goal is more than doing nothing and saving zero dollars!
What will your life be like if you reach that goal?
Motivating yourself through small goals is easier when the reason why you’re saving is clear. Talk with family or friends about your reasons for wanting to save more and what it means to you.
More than likely at the end of saving 5000 in 6 months, you have done one of the following:
Whatever your goal is, that is the reason to stay motivated!
Update your progress on saving by sharing monthly updates of your savings progress as well as any important financial news that could inspire others!
Time to Save 5000 in 6 Months
The best way to save $5,000 in 2021 is to live below your means by not spending more than you earn.
Saving money is a great first step, but the next step is to invest your money.
Investing in the stock market is a good way to make sure your savings will grow and you can also take advantage of compounding interest.
This post provides seven quick tips for getting started with your savings goals in no more than 30 minutes a day over the course of six months (which adds up to about $500).
Are you up for the $5k money challenge?
Know someone else that needs this, too? Then, please share!!
Did the post resonate with you?
More importantly, did I answer the questions you have about this topic? Let me know in the comments if I can help in some other way!
Your comments are not just welcomed; they’re an integral part of our community. Let’s continue the conversation and explore how these ideas align with your journey towards Money Bliss.