Good morning, wonderful people!!

“The badass in me recognizes the badass in you”

A few reminders in case you forgot:

• You are a smart worker

• You’re good at solving problems

• People look up to you

• And they want to be around you!

• You’re a positive thinker

• You’re making a difference!

• You are authentic, designing a custom and happy life for yourself, which attracts all types of cool and interesting people into your circle.

You are a badass. Keep doing what you’re doing. 💪

OK, stepping off the soapbox now, let’s get to the money stuff! 👇👇👇

TO DO

Get a Price Protection Refund 💸

Did you buy something substantial over Black Friday or Cyber Monday?…

Many retailers offer a “price guarantee”… Which basically means that if they drop the price shortly after you buy something (within 30-60 days), they’ll refund you the difference between what you paid and the new lower sales price.

To do this week: Go back and check the current price of any items you’ve already purchased. If you got the lowest price, congrats! But if it’s available now at a cheaper price, see if the retailer has a price guarantee and get that refund!

HOUSING

Saving Money on Rent 🏡

Good news for all you renters out there… Certain markets are starting to see rental price decreases according to the Apartments.com Rent Report for Nov 2023, with prices dropping consistently for 4 months in a row! The WSJ also just reported that tenants are starting to get concessions from landlords again, which is awesome.

Even with this great news, it doesn’t mean that everyone’s rent will magically get cheaper without any effort on your part. But there are a few techniques that savvy renters can use to benefit and save money on rent instead of just hoping for market conditions to swing in their favor…

A while back we interviewed Justin Pogue, author of the book Rental Secrets. He shared a few tips that you, yes you, can use to negotiate your rent.

• Move at the right time- Rent prices tend to be higher when more people are moving at the same time. For example, tons of folks move in May and June as they graduate from college. And often parents will try to move before school starts in September. By moving during the winter, you’re more likely to secure lower rent prices due to decreased activity/demand.

• Try reducing costs for your landlord- When landlords set their rental prices, they often account for maintenance work and other costs associated with renting out that property. For example, if they are renting a home with a yard, they might factor in the cost of having a professional come weekly to maintain the yard. You can offer to do some of this work yourself in exchange for reduced rent.

• Only rent a place with amenities you will use- Some bigger apartment complexes or communities might come flush with amenities like pools, gyms, playgrounds, or tennis courts. All of these factor into the price of rent - even if you don’t use them. It’s important to rent a place that only offers amenities you plan to use regularly.

• Ask to get fees waived- While they may not be able to reduce your rent, some property management companies may be able to offer to waive certain fees for you, like the application fee or a pet fee. If you don’t ask you can’t score the savings!

• Look after the place- When you rent, especially from a mom-and-pop landlord, you are living in someone’s investment. Because of this, it’s crucial to take care of it by keeping it clean and calling when issues arise before they worsen. If you do so, they may be less likely to raise rent for you when it’s time to renew your lease.

• Negotiate for perks- Even if your landlord can’t offer a lower rent price, you can still try to negotiate for bonuses that make it feel like you’re getting more bang for your buck. For example, you can try to negotiate for an extra parking space, additional repairs to your unit, or even a potential discount for paying early.

• Sign a longer lease- Vacancy is the landlord’s enemy. If you’re willing to stick around for two years instead of one, not only will your rent amount be locked in, but you might also be able to score a price break on the monthly rent amount. It can’t hurt to ask!

• Be willing to walk- The best deal might not be where you’re currently living. Scour Zillow and Redfin to see if you can get a better deal around the corner or in another neighborhood. Moving isn’t fun, but the savings you can garner might make packing and renting a U-Haul worth it.

For any of you who might be moving or signing a new lease in 2024, happy negotiating! Doing a little homework to see what the rental market looks like where you live and thinking outside the box could save you some $$$ or help you get a better deal down the street.

More Resources:

• 📚 Book Rec: Rental Secrets - Reduce Your Rent & Get Better Value, by Justin Pogue

• 🎧 HTM Ep 761: Navigating a Broken Housing Market w Lance Lambert

TOGETHER WITH COPILOT*

Your Personal Finance Co-pilot

🤖 Imagine having an AI-powered budgeting app that gets smarter and more helpful as it learns more about you. Well, that’s what Copilot does!!!

Copilot automatically tracks your spending, analyzes the data, then creates personalized budgets that are realistic and achievable. It also keeps tabs on all your investments and net worth over time so you can track progress towards your major money goals.

Right now, Copilot is available for iPhone and Mac (they’re working to expand this to Web and Android shortly!). You can take them for a free 60-day test drive with code HOWTOMONEY. After that, it’s $95 per year, less than $8 a month.

If you’re a current Mint user and want to move to a serious budgeting app, you’ll love Copilot!

INVESTING

Crystal Balls and Tea Leaves 📈

Brace yourself: It’s that time of year again when all the nerdy Wall Street analysts and supposed trading geniuses tell us what’s going to happen in the stock market over the next year.

Here’s an overview of the biggest firm predictions, showing the growth/decline they expect for the S&P 500 at the end of 2024… 👇👇👇

(We were going to add Robert Kiyosaki’s prediction in there too but there’s not enough red in the color pallet to accurately depict his economic outlook 😅)

Sooo… Who do you think will be right and who will be wrong?

Actually, a better question… Does it really even matter!?!!

As a long-term investor, all you really should worry about is long-term averages. Changing your future plans based on short-term predictions is like letting a toddler dictate your life choices. You’ll end up in tears!!

This isn't to say predictions are inherently worthless – some can be insightful and informative. But here are a few things to keep in mind…

1. The stock market is a complex beast. Nobody can predict what happens, not even Wall Street geniuses. (Great study here — Out of 2,132 actively managed mutual funds, ZERO beat their market index over 5+ years)

2. Generally, the more research you do and the more you tinker with your portfolio, the worse your returns will be. (play this market timing game and you’ll understand)

3. Worry about the stuff you CAN control —> Investing early, investing often, saving more, earning more, and filling your days with the things that bring you true joy!

All in all, your newsfeed will be full of talking heads and charts with lines as we head into 2024… Use these predictions as a source of entertainment, not letting them control or influence your investment decisions.

Related Stuff:

• 🤯 Expectations Gap: Here is what retail investors think their portfolio will return each year. (based on a 2023 global survey)

• 🎧 HTM Ep 734: Turning thousands into millions (if you are going to shake up your portfolio, listen to this insightful ep first)

• 🔮 Just for fun: Here are your 2024 Financial Horoscopes.

ICYMI

In other news…

Nov Inflation 📊
Here’s a chart breaking down November’s inflation report, with lower gas prices being the biggest downward force.

Housing Crash 🏡
An interesting poll from Lending Tree finds that 35% of Americans *want* the housing market to crash next year. For homebuyers, this would give them cheaper prices, and for homeowners, this could reduce their rapidly increasing property tax bills!

Prescription Drugs 🙌
CVS just announced plans to overhaul its pricing model for prescription drugs, promising simpler pricing and more transparency in early 2024. They’re a bit late if you ask us (GoodRX, CostPlus, etc. have already been crushing it so it’s about time the bigger drug stores caught up!)

Ivy League 👨‍🏫
How rich is Harvard? Here’s how their $50 billion endowment stacks up against other top private schools in the US. 😳

Mint Deadline 📲
Intuit has extended the shutdown deadline for their Mint Budgeting app, so you can keep using Mint until March 23rd, 2024. (Gives you a little more time to check out new awesome apps like Copilot!!)

FRIENDS OF HTM

Sean Mullaney — aka “FI Tax Guy” 🤓

Most people approach tax planning on a short-term, year-by-year basis. But taking a step back and thinking about some longer-term tax strategies could work out much better for you in the long run.

We recently interviewed Sean on the podcast, and if you missed the episode it’s definitely worth your time to go back and listen — especially if you’re self-employed.

Sean is a fiduciary financial advisor who also writes at FITaxGuy.com. Let him help you reduce your tax liability!

That’s it for now! HAPPY HOLIDAYS!!!!!!! And remember, the best way to have yourself a merry little Christmas ---> is to focus on what everyone else wants. 💪

Best friends out! 🍻