Happy Tuesday, happy people!

You’ve probably seen this list before — but it never gets old… 👇

Successful People:

• Want others to succeed too

• Adapt to and welcome change

• Share and discuss ideas

• Take responsibility for failures

• Never stop learning

• Compliment others

• Forgive people

Unsuccessful People:

• Want others to fail

• Are scared of change

• Gossip and share rumors

• Blame others for mistakes

• Think they know everything

• Criticize others

• Hold grudges

*******

Something to think about this week. Is there anything from the top list you can incorporate more of into your life? (or things from the bottom list you can shed?) 🤔

Alrighty… let’s get to the money stuff! 👇👇👇

TO DO

Cash in your foreign money 💴 

Hands up if you’ve got some random foreign coins and bills in a drawer somewhere left over from that international trip you took 10 years ago… 🙋‍♀️ 🙋‍♂️

Well, it’s time to take them to the bank and trade them in for US dollars. Then, either spend that money or put it to work in your investment account.

Even if it’s only worth a few bucks — keeping physical cash idle for years and years (no matter the currency) is against HTM rules. The reality of inflation ensures that the value only lessens over time. Exchange it —> then use it!

SAVING

Free Streaming Services 📺

Last week we talked about reading more books and the value of self-education… And today we’re telling you to forget all that crap and to watch lots of TV and movies instead! haha 🤣

We’re jk, obviously — Digital entertainment is a big part of people’s lives these days. And we’re not against paying for streaming services... But honestly, there’s a TON of awesome content out there available for FREE (if you’re ok watching occasional ads). It’s important to at least be aware.

It might not be available in 4k and you won’t find the latest hit releases. But these free platforms are always worth checking out before you sign up for a new service or pay to rent an old movie that’s available for free…

Here are the top free streaming services, most of which are available as apps on smart TVs, streaming devices, tablets, cell phones, etc….

Amazon Freevee: (Used to be IMDB TV) Includes live TV channels, older blockbuster movies and TV shows (Lost marathon anyone?), also some Amazon Original content as well as rotating monthly licensed movies.

The Roku Channel: Offers free movies, on-demand TV, live TV, and even some original content. One cool thing is they have a Live TV Channel Guide which lets you channel surf and see what’s playing across their 350+ channels.

Pluto TV: Owned by Paramount, has about ~250 curated TV channels and streaming content from various media divisions (BET, CBS, Comedy Central, MTV, Nickelodeon). They also have a TV Guide list allowing you to channel surf.

Sling Freestream: Offers 500+ free TV channels and over 40,000 movies across all genres. Although Sling offers free content, they do also promote paid subscription “add-on” channels frequently — so be careful you don’t get sucked into paying monthly for those!

Tubi: Like a free version of Netflix… You’ll find decent movies from big production companies like Lionsgate, MGM, Paramount, Warner Bros, etc. They still seem to be attempting to ramp up their content offerings.

Redbox & Crackle: These are owned by the same parent company, but are running as different apps right now. They have massive content libraries, but honestly, you won’t find any big recognizable hit films. Some great documentaries/biographies are available if that’s your thing!

Hoopla and Kanopy: These apps connect to your public library account! Movies, comics, audiobooks, and e-books, are all available. There’s also a lot of great content for kids!!!

Good luck and I hope you can find some fun and FREE content for your next movie night! 🍿

Related stuff:

• 🎥 Tom’s Guide: Best Free Streaming Services (a bit more info on each service including specific devices and app compatibility)

• 🛝 More Free Stuff: Local Free Services and Activities

TOGETHER WITH BETTERMENT

Make Your Money a Multitasker.

With Betterment's expert-built ETF portfolios, you’re automatically diversified across thousands of stocks and bonds at once. These expert-built portfolios are designed to help reduce risk, regardless of what’s happening in the market. Learn more.

INVESTING

Costco Gold Bars 🌟

Last year, Costco started selling 1oz bars of 24-karat gold to members online. They’ve been a huge hit. Costco sold $100m worth of bars in just 3 months!

But is physical gold a good investment?

Here’s a fun chart from Charlie Bilello, comparing the historical growth of Gold prices vs Costco company stock👇👇👇

To put this in dollars: If you bought $1,000 worth of Gold back in Dec 1983, it would be worth about $4,134 today.

But if you invested $1,000 in Costco stock you’d have $1.16 MILLION today. 😳

Of course, past performance doesn’t mean that we’ll see the same results going forward… But it’s certainly interesting to compare what is commonly thought of as “safe” assets like gold to “risky” ones like stocks.

Trying to avoid risk —> is actually the riskiest thing you can do over the long haul. Strange how that works 🤔.

(oh, BTW if you invested $1,000 in the S&P500 back in Dec 1983, it would be worth about $70k with dividends reinvested. Not as impressive as the returns of Costco stock but FAR better than owning gold.) 

Related Stuff:

• 💸 Single Stocks: You love a brand, should you buy its stock? (psst… No. While familiarity with a company can be a starting point, you should avoid making one-dimensional investing decisions)

• 📉 HTM Blog: Index Funds for Beginners

ICYMI

News from around the interwebs…

All-Time Highs! 📈
After a 2-year bear market, the S&P500 is now back at an all-time high! Soooo… What happens now? A quick history lesson from Ben Carlson.

Vanguard 😇
Why doesn’t Vanguard let its customers buy the new Bitcoin ETFs?… This isn’t the first time they’ve refused to offer speculative products to their clients. Cool story here from Morningstar.

Latte Factor ☕️
Will making coffee at home (instead of buying it out every day) make you a millionaire? Here’s the real math… A great reminder that tiny savings every day can help you build a huge fortune over time.

Hot Housing 🏡
Zillow just released its Top 10 Housing Markets for 2024, with Buffalo, Cincinnati, and Columbus topping the list.

Indexing FTW 🙌
A decade ago, passive funds held about a quarter of the US mutual fund and ETF market. Now, they’ve just passed 50% and are crushing their actively managed counterparts. Great to see more investors are jumping on board the “index and chill“ train!

SL Debt 👩‍🎓
Beginning in February, certain student loan borrowers who have spent a decade in repayment will get their debt forgiven. Here’s what to know about the 10-year timeline.

HOW *YOU* MONEY

Alex, 29 years old, Hartford CT 🏙️

Occupation: Grants and Contracts Administrator at a University
Salary: $75,000/yr

Paycheck deductions: ~$1,500/m which covers all taxes, retirement plans, medical, union dues, etc.
Housing: Split housing costs with my partner. We each pay $875 a month
Other Debts: Student loans $170/month. Car loan is $172/month and will be paid off within a year.
Living expenses: ~$400

Leftover savings each month: $1,400 (which I feel very lucky and grateful to have)

How are you investing your excess savings each month?
$583.33 a month into my Roth IRA, $600 a month to save for a house down payment, and $60 a month into a taxable brokerage account. The remaining $150 a month stays in my checking account for any additional infrequent or irregular purchases or expenses.

Biggest “craft beer equivalent” splurge:
Running shoes and race registrations. I'm running my first Marathon (Chicago) this year!

Best savings hack/advice:
I stopped drinking alcohol 4.5 years ago and have saved lots of money. I also eat a vegetarian (on the way to being vegan) diet and my grocery expenditures are much lower than those in my social circle with meat-heavy diets.

Biggest money challenge right now?
Saving up for a down payment on a house while also realizing it's a high-interest rate environment for borrowers.

**How do YOU 🫵 handle your income/savings/investments? We’d love to hear about it & share your story — Fill out this HYM form! (Don’t worry, we won't publish anything without you approving it first)**

Thanks for reading! Wishing you a fun-filled week ahead!! 💪

Best friends out!