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Monday Night Finance- Volume 49

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Monday, 25 January 2021 / Published in Monday Night Finance

Monday Night Finance- Volume 49

The 10 Steps I Took to Quit My Job to Start My Business

If you are a regular reader of Monday Night Finance, you know that we often talk about side hustles. A side hustle is a way to earn income outside of your traditional 9-5 job. The side hustle could take many forms, from driving Uber to starting a blog or other online business. Side hustles can be a way to pay for some unexpected expenses that come up. Or if your income from your day job covers your expenses, you can side hustle to pay down debt or grow your savings/investments. If you are a successful side hustler, your side hustle might grow big enough that it could cover your living expenses or maybe even surpass your income from your day job. In that case, you might want to quit your day job and move into self-employment. If you’re thinking about quitting your day job for your side hustle, you’ll want to check out this case study.

One year ago I decided to quit my job and work on my small business full-time. After 15 years of working as an event marketing professional, I decided that I was ready for a new chapter in my life. ~Andy Hill, Marriage, Kids, and Money

Andy Hill has run the Marriage, Kids, and Money podcast since 2016. In 2020, he decided to step away from his 6-figure marketing job to focus on his online business full time. In this article, Andy talks about the steps he took to make this the reality. The first steps involve laying a solid financial foundation so that he can take risks. Their family has no debt and they have paid off their entire mortgage. They also have a solid plan for retirement investments, with plenty of money in their IRAs, 401(k)s, and money in a taxable account from an employee stock options plan. Beyond that, they spent quite a bit of time researching healthcare options. (They get their health insurance through the ACA exchange.) Finally, they are in-tune with their budget (Interested in budgeting? Try CountAbout) have a year’s worth of cash in a high interest savings account to help them in case they hit a rough patch.

5 Financial Goals To Prosper In 2021

Did you reach your financial goals in 2020? Chances are you didn’t; a recent study stated that over 50% of people did not reach their financial goals in 2020. Now that 2020 is in the rearview mirror, it’s time to look to the future. Did you set financial goals for 2021? Do you have a plan for how you are going to reach those goals?

Spend some time reviewing hits and misses from 2020. Hits are financials goals you met or exceeded, and misses are areas where you need improvement. Then move on with a targeted financial plan using the following 5 smart financial goals for 2021. ~Beyond Pennies

The first step is to take stock of your finances. Do you have credit card debt? If so, paying that off should be a top priority. Can you set a course to pay off your credit card debt this year? You may want to spend some time with a budgeting app (like CountAbout) to help you look at your spending and saving patterns. Every little bit you can find to put towards paying off credit cards will save you money over time in reduced interest payments. Already free of credit card debt? Then it’s time to set savings and investing goals. Can you set an amount of money that you want to save by the end of 2021? Once you’re regularly setting money aside, you’ll want to invest the money so that inflation won’t erode its value. If you’re unsure of where to start with investments, the article suggests some good resources for beginners. Finally, if you want to supercharge your savings goals for 2021, you might want to consider starting a side hustle. This extra income can really help accelerate wealth.

How To Invest In Real Estate With Little Or No Money

Real estate can be a great way to build wealth. Theodore Roosevelt said, “Everyone who invests in well-selected real estate in a growing section of a prosperous community adopts the surest and safest method of becoming independent, for real estate is the basis of wealth.” These words are still true today. Unfortunately, most forms of real estate investing require a large initial investment. For example, rental properties typically require a 25%-30% down payment. If you don’t have access to that amount of cash (or you don’t want to tie up all your assets in a single investment) it might seem like you can never invest in real estate. However, you can still invest in real estate with limited capital if you know the right techniques.

Investing in real estate usually requires money. Typically, you need at least a 25% down payment for buying a rental property. ~Financial Freedom Countdown

This article by Financial Freedom Countdown presents 20 different ways to invest in real estate with little to no money. No matter what your financial situation is, there will surely be one opportunity that would fit you. If you are handy and interested in flipping houses, the article presents about five different ways to get short term financing to flip the house, including living in the house while you flip it. If you’re not handy, maybe you’d like to run an AirBnb or have a long term lease to rent out rooms in your own house (i.e. house-hacking). If you feel more comfortable with pooling money with other people, you could invest in a Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT) or crowd-funded real estate. Check out the article for the perfect fit for your situation.

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What you can read next

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Reviews

Shirley Hou
CountAbout was Perfect
15-03-2017

I was looking for finance software to use as treasurer of the parent-teacher association at my child's school. CountAbout was perfect - it had all the register features and download capabilities that I was familiar with from desktop Quicken, but it has the advantage of being in the cloud so I can use it from any computer.

 
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Amanda Sherlock
25-08-2020

I started using Quicken in 1987, before I had my own PC. I continued using it for years, frustrated by the frequent breaks in the synchronization. Finally I took the leap and used Mint for a year or two. Free software is worth as much as I pay for. Finally, in 2019 I found Countabout. The synchronization is great and I am happy to have a product that's easy to use and reliable. The customer support is excellent and very responsive to my questions.
There aren't as many bells and whistles as Quicken but the simplicity outweighs the complications.

 
Barbara Ann Feeney
16-05-2016

I switched from pencil and paper on grid accounting paper, then to a Google spreadsheet, then to CountAbout. Really happy with how this app makes it easy to track how I doing, staying (or not) on budget.

 
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Steve P.
22-09-2017

My search for a cloud-based alternative to Quicken is over! Very easy to transfer my Quicken data and customize my account. Thank you CountAbout!

 
‏@davepurcell
15-11-2016

I rarely tweet endorsements, but -- after years of using/hating Quicken, Countabout is awesome for tracking home budget/finances. Thx!

 
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Richard Luna
03-02-2021

I'm a one-person real estate brokerage and having accurate financial records and being able to easily search transactions and generate reports is crucial. I'd been using Quicken for Mac for 10+ years and wanted to migrate to using a Chromebook instead of a Mac, to do that I had to find a replacement for Quicken.

The replacement had to be online; available from my phone, tablet, etc., and no software installations almost every year. I immediately dismissed any 'free' financial software (Mint, etc.) - I believe that you get what you pay for and there is no such thing as 'free.'

I settled on Tiller and CountAbout and subscribed to both; I quickly decided that a spreadsheet is not what I wanted. I wanted something that worked a lot like Quicken and CountAbout fit the bill. It took me awhile to fully embrace it but once I did I've been very happy and would not go back to Quicken even if they offered a fully online version. The few times I've had a question about using CountAbout I've always gotten a response by the end of the day - and often in an hour or less. If feels like I'm working with a small enterprise that's interested in putting out a superior application, improving it and solving issues and responding to questions. I'm very satisfied!

 
David M.
16-07-2016

CountAbout is as easy to use on my mobile as it is on the desktop and it provides me with the same or better information than Quicken.

 
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Jim Powell
17-03-2018

Vastly superior to the execrable Quicken, which caused me to have to choose a new bank password every time I used it. CA is fast, simple, and all you need unless you have a complicated investment portfolio. Its almost fun!

 
Nate E.
05-02-2016

Fantastic! I finally found a great replacement for Quicken! CountAbout is entirely cloud-based, so you can access it from whatever OS you happen to be using. And the mobile app isn't hamstrung like Quicken's. No looking back for me, this is a great app and a great service!

 
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Jeffrey Wilk
02-04-2018

Great product and great customer service. Thanks!

 
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Keith Hurst
22-05-2020

I've been trying to ditch Quicken for years, finally a worthy replacement, but it's so much more, so clean and intuitively designed. I was really surprised and delighted to find a full featured iphone app that meets all my needs.

 
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Nancy
10-08-2018

I love CountAbout! I have hated Quicken for years, but didn't have an alternative. Now I do! I love that the cost is only $9.99 per year for the basic service (which is all I need). You can upgrade for more features, if you need them. But for personal use, the basic plan is just fine. When I found CountAbout, I gleefully gave Quicken the boot and I haven't looked back or missed it at all. Bye bye Quicken!!!

 
Widgets to Compare Monthly Spending in Active Categories
17-02-2017

Huzzah! I can add widgets now and already made one to compare my monthly spending in my active categories to my budget. Excellent. That tool is one of my favorite features in a personal finance product.

 
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Ann
28-06-2021

Countabout's concept is awesome. I track checking and credit cards by transactions, and investments by total only. The reason for four stars is that periodically the investment accounts refuse to update the correct amount. Then, I have to unlink the account, delete the account then set up the account a second, third or fourth time. Often times, when trying to link a new account, CA logs me out. If you have patience, CA is a hundred times better than Quicken, but not yet perfect. Still trying to set up a credit card account after 6 attempts. At some point, it will click.

 
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Dana Linder
29-03-2019

This is an incredibly well thought out program.

It imports QIF files perfectly. I tried a number that failed miserably.

It has a function that emails reminders about scheduled transactions. That is an extremely useful function that I hadn't seen anywhere.

Tech support is second to none. All my questions were answered in detail within hours (sometimes minutes).

The companion phone app is very simple. You can browse, search, enter transactions and see scheduled transaction. That's really all you need on the phone.

It's one failing for me is that I have a transaction that I have a transaction that occurs on the 3rd Wednesday of the month, and it's not possible to set that up. It's easy enough for me to change the date of next transaction when I enter the current one.

I am extremely impressed with the company. The trial is free for 15 days. You have nothing to lose.

 
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Colin R. Vine
13-07-2021

I have been using Countabout Basic for a few months now and love the program. It is far and away better than any other personal finance program I have used.
I would recommend Countabout to anyone. Give it a try. The web interface is easy to use on my Chromebook and on my Android phone and tablet.
When I have had a query, the company has written back almost instantaneously. Great service!

 
My Bank Tracker
24-11-2016

...you won’t be bombarded with ads when you log in. Mint, for example, uses targeted ads to help keep the platform free. All in all, CountAbout could be a good choice for Quicken and Mint users who want to start fresh with their finances without losing their past transaction history.

 
Mark Goldfarb
20-01-2017

I love the software – nice and clean – the categories was a must have that your competitors are lacking.

 
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Wayne Everett
07-02-2022

I have been using Countabout for over 2 years. I got sick of quicken continuing to "improve" itself with crap I did not want, even if they did not increase their costs constantly. Countabout has done everything that I need. I have 20+ accounts linked and all is great!

 

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CountAbout® is an easy-to-use online personal finance application that imports data from Quicken and Mint and automatically downloads data from banking, credit card, and retirement accounts. With no software to install, we’re anywhere you have an Internet connection. Our platform is stable, secure, and totally private. Our dedicated customer service team is friendly, knowledgeable, and quick to respond.

Never lose track of your finances, or the big picture, with CountAbout. Sign up for a free 45-day trial today.

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