Good morning, HTM Family!

Here’s a quote that’s been on my mind recently:

“Butterflies can't see their own wings. They have no idea how truly beautiful they are, but everyone else can see.

People are like that as well”

🦋 ~Naya Rivera. 🦋

A few quick reminders for you…

• You are more beautiful than you realize

• And smarter, and more capable too!

• People recognize your awesomeness

• Your only limits in life —> are the ones you’ve made up in you head. It’s time to adjust them!

It’s gonna be a great week! Let’s get the money stuff! 👇👇👇

TO DO

Go Policy Shopping 🚘…

David R. posted in the HTM Facebook Group last week:

“Listened to Joel and Matt's recent Friday Flight about shopping around for car insurance and WOW, I just got 50% savings over a 6-month period!”

This week: Spend a few minutes calling around to different insurance companies and comparing rates. It’s one of the easiest ways to potentially save hundreds of dollars.

Get on it! 💵

REAL ESTATE

The Rise of “Rentvesting”

It’s incredibly tough for young folks to buy a house in the priciest US cities these days. The entry point into buying your first home has risen substantially.

And even if they can afford one, is buying an expensive primary residence a good investment? (In most major US cities, the answer is no. Renting is a financially smarter move vs. buying)

This is where rentvesting comes in…

Simply put, rentvesting is choosing to be both a renter and an owner. You rent the house you want to live in. And buy/own in more cost effective areas where it’s a better investment.

Picture this: Instead of owning one single expensive home that you live in, why not own 2-3 inexpensive investment properties that other people live in? It might sound crazy, but you’d be crazy like a fox to go this route.

Depending on where you buy, the incoming rent from those investment properties could fully cover (or more) the cost of renting an awesome home for yourself in a more expensive city.

Here’s why younger folks like this strategy:

• You get all the lifestyle benefits of renting (flexibility, cheaper, can live and move around wherever)

• Still get exposure to real estate and building home equity

• Can enter the real estate market at a cheaper price point, and scale over time

• Financially, you can achieve a better overall ROI

That being said, owning rental properties is not without it’s downsides!

Just like house-hacking, rentvesting might be more of a temporary solution that allows you to get started in real estate. Ideally, it’s a stepping stone to eventual long-term ownership of a primary home, if that’s your goal.

Something to learn more about if you feel “boxed out” of buying a home where you live. Check out our full post on rentvesting!

TOGETHER WITH BETTERMENT*

Put your money to work

Betterment’s financial experts and automated investing technology are working behind the scenes to make your money hustle while you do whatever you want. Learn more

CAREER

Emotional Intelligence = Pay Bump 👩‍💻

Today’s chart is from a recent study on Emotional Intelligence, which compared people’s EQ scores to their annual incomes.

In terms of dollar value, the study found that people with high EQs make an average of $29,000 per year more than people with low EQs.

On average, every point increase in emotional intelligence adds $1,300 to an annual salary. 👇👇👇

When most people think of increasing their income they focus on hard skills, not so much soft skills. But both are really important for a thriving career.

How can you improve your EQ?

• Self-awareness: Pay attention to your thoughts, emotions, feelings in various situations. Pause before acting when you’re stressed, angry, and reconsider the best response. Journaling is a great activity for self-awareness!

• Self-management: Use that self-awareness to make positive changes in your behavior. Like avoiding situations you know are stress triggers, or arranging your tasks to match your moods during the day. Self-care activities and setting boundaries helps you be the best you.

• Social awareness: Practice active listening, being present, reading the room, paying attention to people’s body language, remembering names, surrounding yourself with diverse groups of people.

• Relationship management: Give compliments, be uplifting, encouraging, forgiving, and supportive of what others are trying to accomplish. Lead by example.

Of course, personal growth like this doesn’t happen overnight.

But slowly working on your emotions and how they’re expressed in the workplace will go a long way toward making you a more valuable employee and will propel you to make more money over time too.

Related stuff:

• 📺 TedX Talk: 6 Steps to Improve Your Emotional Intelligence (video, ~17 mins)

• 📚 Awesome Book: Captivate: The Science of Succeeding with People (Vanessa was a keynote at FinCon a few years back, She is awesome. Here’s her TedX Talk too!)

• 🧑‍💻 HTM Blog: Negotiating a pay raise at work

ICYMI

In other news…

Tight Christmas 😉
A new Bankrate survey finds that 1 out of 3 folks are planning to spend less this holiday season. And many are starting to shop early to snag good deals! We love this — having a holiday spending plan really helps avoid shopping hangover come new year.

401k Millionaires 💸
There are more 401k millionaires than ever, says the latest Fidelity report. And it’s not just because of all-time-highs in the market — American’s investing habits are getting better, with the avg Fidelity 401k savings rate at 14.2%!

Election Anxiety 😬
An interesting article in the WSJ talking about how ‘election fatigue’ is causing overspending issues. I know this isn’t everyone’s situation, but a good reminder to not let politics (or any news headlines for that matter) turn your finances upside down. Focus on what you can control. 💪

“Dorm Insurance” 👨‍🎓
For those of you heading back to live on campus (or if you have kids in college), here’s a guide on whether you might need “dorm insurance”. In many cases, personal property (kids electronics, etc) might be covered under the parents’ existing home insurance policy!)

True Wealth 🌴
A great read from Tony Isola: Wealth is a Single Player Game. “Only you can define what truly makes you happy. Happiness is the ultimate single-player game. Since external validation is nonexistent, you compete against yourself.”

FEEDBACK

1-Click Poll 🤷‍♂️

We’ve been putting out this newsletter for a little over 2 years now… We truly hope you’re enjoying it.

But to keep things fresh and interesting, we’d love your input on the topics we cover.

If you have a sec, click one of the below topics you like most. It’s a 1-click poll, but if you want to give more feedback there’s a space for that on the next page.

Thank you for helping shape the future of this newsletter.

Cheers for reading! Wishing you all a productive week ahead, crushing your goals and celebrating your wins! 🦋

Best friends out! 🍻