Buckle up friends, because have I got an episode for you. This week I’m sharing all about some recent developments around casa House, including getting our home under contract to sell so that we can relocate to our dream hometown AND practice geoarbitrage at the same time. Talk about a win-win. Or a win-win-win-win-win…as the case may be!
So grab a cup of coffee, press play, and listen in on how I’m taking “live by design” to an entirely new level.
In this week’s episode I share about some big news! My family and I have decided to move out of the DC suburbs about an hour north to Gettysburg, PA. My husband and I are both alumni of Gettysburg College, so in addition to the area already feeling like home – we also get to practice geoarbitrage! What is that you might ask? Essentially, it’s purposefully moving to a lower-cost-of-living area, which we’ll be doing in order to move our big life goals ahead by leaps and bounds. Stick around in the coming years to see just what we’re going to make happen, but a few of our big, audacious goals include: having a paid for house, owning investment property mortgage-free, owning a yoga studio / co-working space, and so much more. All of these things we do in the name of freeing up our time from traditional 9-5 jobs (one day, that is) so that we can spend more time with our kids, give back to our community, and serve others well in accordance to the calling on our hearts.
Resource Roundup
Whether you’re a budgeting master or new to personal finance, there’s always room for improvement. I hope this resource roundup is helpful for you when choosing to live by design when it comes to your financial well-being!
“FIRE is an acronym which stands for Financial Independence Retire Early. There’s a growing movement of people who are practicing FIRE principles and retiring decades earlier than expected as a result.
Ambitious, often middle-income earners are using a simple formula of high savings rates (50-70% of their incomes) + frugal living (minimalism) + low-cost stock index fund investing (Warren Buffett’s standard investment advice) in order to reach financial independence within a short time period — usually around 10 years. For obvious reasons, FIRE is sometimes referred to as “the ultimate life hack.
While not all members of the fire movement embrace traditional retirement, the milestone for having reached FI (Financial Independence) is the moment when the money you earn from your investments will pay for your expenses. When you hit that tipping point, the choice to work or not work is now yours to make and you are in control of how you spend your time and your life.”
Ready to dip your toe into the Dave Ramsey or FIRE waters…or just learn more about these movements? Awesome! Here are three books I wholeheartedly recommend. They’re easy to read (or listen to on Audible), not crazy long in length, and provide tangible tactics to start making moves today.
Playing With Fire | The Millionaire Next Door | Your Money Or Your Life
*The above resources contain Amazon Affiliate links, which generate revenue to support the podcast with each purchase*
Joyful Corner
This week I’m grateful for the guidance of Young House Love. No, they have no idea who I am, but I’ve been reading their blog and listening to their podcast for years and I feel like I know them. Not only did they make me confident in all things DIY, but they taught me how to podcast (for reals, their course is the one I completed before starting all of this!), AND they have incredible resources on their website for all things life and home…including a killer guide on staging your home to sell. So a giant thank you for John and Sherry for their expertise!
A huge thank you this week to Brittany Frisch for being our Joyful Corner Listener Voicemail! As you heard in the episode, Britt’s an incredible photographer based in PA. Her images are light, bright, and airy and she can photograph my kids, seriously, like no one else (I still don’t know how she gets them both to look at the camera at the same time!). If you’re looking for a photographer for your business or family in the mid-Atlantic area definitely check her out! Her Instagram is sure to make you swoon with its beauty @brittanyfrischphotography.
Let’s Connect!
If you enjoyed the episode, take a screenshot and share it on Instagram. Tag me @livebydesignpodcast to keep the joy train rolling!
