The Dollar DerailGuide Financial Planning's Ben Wacek joins Zach Ashburn of Reach Strategic Wealth on Christian financial podcast The Dollar Derail for some quick conversations to change your financial train of thought.
How can you prepare to deal with car salesmen, financing, maintenance, and repairs? When it comes to buying a new car, most of the system is set up to encourage extra spending. In this episode, Ben and Zach discuss how much of your budget your car payments should make up, how you can decide what you need out of a car, and how you can work to feel good about your next purchase.
One of the most common, and sometimes most pressing, questions we get as professionals comes from people concerned with where to put their money to work. In this episode, rather than talking about a specific investment, Ben and Zach walk through some of the ways they might help clients identify what investments might be appropriate for their situation.
In this special episode recorded in January 2020, Zach interviews rockstar-turned-pastor Stephen Christian of Anberlin. Stephen shares his path into music and how he developed his passions, he speaks honestly about achieving success in the music business, how the lifestyle challenged his identity and his faith, and what his transitions in life have taught him.
Managing risk is a challenging but important subject. When you've decided that caring for your family's needs means buying or updating your life insurance, you will have to choose what type of insurance suits your situation best. In this episode, Ben and Zach talk through what exactly life insurance is, what purposes it can serve, and how you can go about choosing the right type for your family.
Many people are excited to cross the threshold into 2021, but how can we start this new year well? Ben and Zach draw from their experience helping clients discover, clarify, and pursue their goals to discuss effective goal-setting and vision-casting. Making your pursuit intentional is your first step toward success.
A thoughtful year-end review of your household finances can be a great way to learn from the past and set the stage for a successful new year. In this episode, Ben and Zach offer tips and strategies to make the most of your time spent reflecting on 2020, whether you are a big picture thinker of love getting into the details.
If you are going to trust your financial advisor with your personal information and money, how do you pick a good one? Balancing the varying levels of experience and expertise as well as the personalities and beliefs among potential advisors can be a significant challenge, especially as you look for your first advisor. In this episode, Ben and Zach walk through some of the differences between advisors and some valuable questions you can ask to feel confident in your conversations.
In this unscripted episode, Ben and Zach discuss the principles and challenges of values-based investing and their personal journeys with the subject. Sometimes called ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance), SRI (Socially Responsible Investing), or BRI (Biblically Responsible Investing), aligning your portfolio with your values may not be simple, but it may allow you to make a greater impact with your resources.
Your credit score is one area of your finances that has a ripple effect into other areas. A poor credit score means less borrowing capacity, higher interest rates, higher payments, less cash on hand for your daily needs, less funds available to invest, and may even impact your standing with employers and landlords. In this episode, Ben and Zach talk about what factors impact your credit score, simple steps you can take to improve your credit score, and when you should make sure you stop obsessing about this number.
Times of transition can be difficult but they can also present good opportunities for wise financial moves. In this episode, Ben and Zach talk through the options you have for your 401(k) when you leave a job and how you can make a confident decision for your money.
In this episode, Ben and Zach have an unscripted conversation about the journey that people go on seeking good financial information. Bringing anyone, including a professional advisor, into your financial life is a big decision and here we talk through some of the steps that you might take as you consider if you should and what it would look like if you did.
Handling your money well with your spouse represents one of the biggest opportunities to do great things with your dollars. In this episode, we go over some of the strategies that may be successful in managing your household finances but then go deeper to discuss how to trouble-shoot your existing system so that you can continue to improve your relationship with your money.
Are you leaving money on the table during tax season? In this episode, Ben and Zach talk through the steps and mindset that may benefit taxpayers as they seek to improve their outcome. You'll hear some practical steps along the way as they discuss a better question to change your perspective on tax planning.
In this listener-requested episode, Ben and Zach have a spontaneous conversation to openly discuss when it might be "right" to make what feels like the wrong financial decision. They draw on their experience as planners to talk through when these decisions show up and how we can develop a framework to weigh them in a healthy way.
Budgeting and cash flow are some of the most foundational areas of personal finance but they are a consistent challenge. They are made even more difficult if your income varies from paycheck to paycheck or month to month. In this episode, Ben and Zach offer two different approaches for those on a variable income to budget successfully and some thoughts for how we can all engage with our money more personally.
Buying a house is likely the largest purchase you will ever make and it can be a very emotional one as well. You aren't just making a purchase, you are creating a home for yourself and your family. In this episode, we discuss why asking "how much can I afford?" may not be the best starting point to get the best result. We mention the financials that lenders are looking for and compare and some additional considerations buyers need to make.