Podcasts about Equifax

Today's episode includes reports on the 21 st Century ROAD to Housing Act moving along. Plus, Robbie interviews HELIX's Carl Markman and Frank Perugini on improving borrower and loan officer experiences, accelerating loan processing, and growth in some of the fastest-expanding segments of the mortgage industry. And we close with a look at why Agency MBS posted modestly negative performance last week.Thank you to Equifax, a global data, analytics, and technology company, helps mortgage lenders gain the borrower and market insights they need to improve efficiency and make accurate decisions. Access differentiated consumer credit data, powerful consumer and market insights, and income and employment data from The Work Number.The Chrisman Commentary is your go-to daily mortgage news podcast, where industry insights meet expert analysis. Hosted by Robbie Chrisman, this podcast delivers the latest updates on mortgage rates, capital markets, and the forces shaping the housing finance landscape. Whether you're a seasoned professional or just looking to stay informed, you'll get clear, concise breakdowns of market trends and economic shifts that impact the mortgage world.

Today's episode includes the practical realities of how advocacy gets done in the mortgage industry. Plus, Robbie interviews Class Valuation's Mark Walser on UAD 3.6: stages of panic versus planning, and what lenders can expect in the fall. And we close with a look at why investors and the Fed care about inflation.Thank you to Equifax. With Equifax's suite of mortgage solutions, mortgage lenders can use trusted, independently verified consumer and financial data and analytics to reduce manual processes, accelerate loan decisions, improve accuracy, manage risk, and enhance the borrower experience from initial application through ongoing loan servicing. The Chrisman Commentary is your go-to daily mortgage news podcast, where industry insights meet expert analysis. Hosted by Robbie Chrisman, this podcast delivers the latest updates on mortgage rates, capital markets, and the forces shaping the housing finance landscape. Whether you're a seasoned professional or just looking to stay informed, you'll get clear, concise breakdowns of market trends and economic shifts that impact the mortgage world.

What Exactly Is a Reverse Mortgage? Episode 387 – We hear so much talk these days about reverse mortgages. Are they worth looking into? For some people the answer is yes, but only if certain conditions are met. More SML Planning Minute Podcast Episodes Transcript of Podcast Episode 387 Hello, this is Bill Rainaldi, with another edition of Security Mutual's SML Planning Minute. In today's episode: so what exactly is a reverse mortgage? It's hard to miss all the talk these days about reverse mortgages as an income tool for retirees. Some experts like them, some experts don't. But what are they and how do they work? For many Americans, their biggest asset is the equity they have in their home. Some might not have saved much for retirement. But after years, perhaps decades, of living in the same home, they've built up their home equity through appreciation and amortization of their mortgage. When they look at their balance sheets, that becomes their biggest plus. What options do people have if they get to retirement age, have limited retirement savings, and realize that Social Security just isn't going to be enough? A reverse mortgage is one possible answer. A reverse mortgage is available for homeowners aged 62 and over. It is a way to fund retirement by borrowing against the equity you've built up in your home. The more home equity you have, the better. But it's certainly not for everyone. A reverse mortgage is not the same thing as a home equity line of credit, or HELOC. It's called a reverse mortgage because instead of you making monthly payments to the bank, the bank makes monthly payments to you. The income you get from a reverse mortgage is generally not taxable. You can use that income as needed to cover monthly expenses, including such things as home maintenance, property taxes, or, if needed, home health care expenses.[1] A reverse mortgage isn't free. The amount you owe against your house, which includes the principal and accruing interest, increases as you receive your monthly payments. So over time, your home equity decreases. You are essentially trading a little bit of your home equity every month for current income. Note that you typically don't have to repay the mortgage as long as you continue to use the home as your primary residence. But if you decide to sell your house or move out, the full balance will become due. If you die before you move out, in most cases your executor will sell the home and use the proceeds to pay back the accumulated reverse mortgage debt.[2] Reverse mortgages generally come in three different varieties. The first, and by far the most common, are loans overseen by the Federal Housing Authority. These are known as Home Equity Conversion Mortgages or HECMs. The homeowner has discretion over what to use the funds for, but before closing, they must meet with a counselor approved by the Department of Housing and Urban Development. This one requirement is designed to help curb fraud and abuse. HECMs account for approximately 95 percent of all reverse mortgages.[3] They are more regulated than other types of reverse mortgages and offer some extra protection. For one thing, neither you nor your heirs will ever owe more than the house is worth, even if it goes down in value. And if your lender goes out of business, the federal insurance program guarantees that you will still receive your monthly payments.[4] The maximum you can borrow under the federal program in 2026 is $1,249,125.[5] You will typically need to have at least 50 percent equity in your home (based on appraised value) to qualify. Reverse mortgages typically have adjustable interest rates. Note that the income from a reverse mortgage usually comes in the form of a monthly payment, but that's not a requirement. It can also be in a lump sum. The two other less common types of reverse mortgages are “single-purpose reverse mortgages,” which are backed by a nonprofit organization or a state or local government, and “proprietary reverse mortgages,” which are offered by private organizations without any government backing. Reverse mortgages have had a somewhat mixed reputation over the years. For one thing, the fees involved can be considerable. A reverse mortgage typically has origination fees, mortgage insurance premiums, closing costs and monthly servicing fees, all of which add up.[6] And there are still some scams out there. Some fraudsters will entice vulnerable seniors with misleading or fraudulent claims. One of those might be when a potential intermediary tries to get you into a reverse mortgage, then uses the money for some sort of “investment opportunity” that they control. They will then typically end up pocketing some of your home's equity themselves.[7] One way to avoid scams like this is to start with a trusted financial advisor or your current lender. Are there other potential solutions? Of course. The most obvious is, if possible, to save more at an earlier age and allow compound interest to work its magic. But for a lot of people, that's just not possible. For some people, a reverse mortgage is another option. There are caveats, but this may be a good choice in the right circumstances. A reverse mortgage is not the perfect solution, but for some, depending on their situation, it may be the most viable one. [1] Equifax Life Stages. “What is a Reverse Mortgage and How Does it Work?” Equifax.com. https://www.equifax.com/personal/education/credit/score/articles/-/learn/reverse-mortgage/ (accessed May 19, 2026). [2] Id. [3] Yale, Aly J. “What Is a Reverse Mortgage?” AARP.org. https://www.aarp.org/money/personal-finance/reverse-mortgage-guide/ (accessed May 19, 2026). [4] Id. [5] Johnson, Jamie. “HECM Loan Limits: What They Are and How They Work in 2026.” Themortgagereports.com. https://themortgagereports.com/124868/hecm-loan-limits (accessed May 20, 2026). [6] Miller, Peter G. “Reverse mortgage pros and cons.” Bankrate.com. https://www.bankrate.com/mortgages/reverse-mortgage-pros-and-cons/#cons (accessed May 20, 2026). [7] Goff, Kacie. “Reverse mortgage scams: What they are and how to avoid them.” Bankrate.com. https://www.bankrate.com/mortgages/reverse-mortgage-scams/#common-scams (accessed May 20, 2026). More SML Planning Minute Podcast Episodes This podcast is brought to you by Security Mutual Life Insurance Company of New York, The Company That Cares®. The content provided is intended for educational and informational purposes only. Information is provided in good faith. However, the Company makes no representation or warranty of any kind regarding the accuracy, reliability, or completeness of the information. The information presented is designed to provide general information regarding the subject matter covered. It is not to serve as legal, tax or other financial advice related to individual situations, because each individual's legal, tax and financial situation is different. Specific advice needs to be tailored to your situation. Therefore, please consult with your own attorney, tax professional and/or other advisors regarding your specific situation. To help reach your goals, you need a skilled professional by your side. Contact your local Security Mutual life insurance advisor today. As part of the planning process, he or she will coordinate with your other advisors as needed to help you achieve your financial goals and objectives. For more information, visit us at SMLNY.com/SMLPodcast. If you've enjoyed this podcast, tell your friends about it. And be sure to give us a five-star review. And check us out on LinkedIn, YouTube and Twitter. Thanks for listening, and we'll talk to you next time. Tax laws are complex and subject to change. The information presented is based on current interpretation of the laws. Neither Security Mutual nor its agents are permitted to provide tax or legal advice. The applicability of any strategy discussed is dependent upon the particular facts and circumstances. Results may vary, and products and services discussed may not be appropriate for all situations. Each person's needs, objectives and financial circumstances are different, and must be reviewed and analyzed independently. We encourage individuals to seek personalized advice from a qualified Security Mutual life insurance advisor regarding their personal needs, objectives, and financial circumstances. Insurance products are issued by Security Mutual Life Insurance Company of New York, Binghamton, New York. Product availability and features may vary by state.​ SubscribeApple PodcastsSpotifyAndroidPandoraby EmailTuneInDeezerRSSMore Subscribe Options

Welcome to a packed Monday edition of WHAT THE TRUCK?!?, hosted by Malcolm Harris and Michael Vincent! In this episode, we dive deep into a multi-state cargo theft operation that recently led to eight indictments in New York after diverting $4.5 million worth of freight—ranging from beef and copper to massive hauls of cigarettes. Michael also shares a frustrating personal story about the disappearing security of airport valet tickets after his $3,000 Martin guitar vanished on a direct flight. On a brighter note, we highlight the Broker Carrier Summit's exciting launch of the "Veterans in Logistics" initiative in Kansas City, naming John Tozer to lead the charge in connecting military veterans with great careers in transportation. Our first featured guest is small business credit fintech guru Gerri Detweiler, who explains why owner-operators must treat their business credit with the same urgency as their next load. Gerri breaks down how business credit reports are compiled behind the scenes by bureaus like Dun & Bradstreet, Experian, and Equifax to influence lenders, fuel card issuers, and insurance companies. Closing out the show is Aqil Naeem, founder and CEO of the e three group, the first AI transformation partner for middle-market and enterprise freight companies. Aqil explains that as traditional cybersecurity improves, sophisticated bad actors are pivoting to physical cargo theft because defenses in logistics haven't kept pace. ⁠Watch on YouTube⁠ ⁠Visit our sponsor - KOONER FLEET MANAGEMENT SOLUTIONS⁠ ⁠Subscribe to the WTT newsletter⁠ ⁠Apple Podcasts⁠ ⁠Spotify⁠ ⁠More FreightWaves Podcasts⁠ #WHATTHETRUCK #FreightNews #supplychain Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Welcome to a packed Monday edition of WHAT THE TRUCK?!?, hosted by Malcolm Harris and Michael Vincent! In this episode, we dive deep into a multi-state cargo theft operation that recently led to eight indictments in New York after diverting $4.5 million worth of freight—ranging from beef and copper to massive hauls of cigarettes. Michael also shares a frustrating personal story about the disappearing security of airport valet tickets after his $3,000 Martin guitar vanished on a direct flight. On a brighter note, we highlight the Broker Carrier Summit's exciting launch of the "Veterans in Logistics" initiative in Kansas City, naming John Tozer to lead the charge in connecting military veterans with great careers in transportation. Our first featured guest is small business credit fintech guru Gerri Detweiler, who explains why owner-operators must treat their business credit with the same urgency as their next load. Gerri breaks down how business credit reports are compiled behind the scenes by bureaus like Dun & Bradstreet, Experian, and Equifax to influence lenders, fuel card issuers, and insurance companies. Closing out the show is Aqil Naeem, founder and CEO of the e three group, the first AI transformation partner for middle-market and enterprise freight companies. Aqil explains that as traditional cybersecurity improves, sophisticated bad actors are pivoting to physical cargo theft because defenses in logistics haven't kept pace. Watch on YouTube Visit our sponsor - KOONER FLEET MANAGEMENT SOLUTIONS Subscribe to the WTT newsletter Apple Podcasts Spotify More FreightWaves Podcasts #WHATTHETRUCK #FreightNews #supplychain Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Today - A warning about how much information you give an AI chatbot. Artificial intelligence tools like ChatGPT, Claude, and Gemini have made getting financial advice faster and easier than ever. But as the AI gold rush heats up, a massive privacy risk is emerging. Clark breaks down the critical things you should never tell an AI chatbot.  Also - The anatomy of a Ponzi scheme that RIPPED OFF $140 million from “investors.”  Clark covers two massive fraud cases—Drive Planning and First Liberty—which collectively defrauded thousands of investors out of hundreds of millions of dollars. When inflation or economic uncertainty makes us feel insecure about our money, we become susceptible to smooth pitches. Clark reminds us of the ultimate golden rule of investing: any time someone promises you "guaranteed" double-digit returns with zero risk, it is a lie. Learn how these schemes operate so you can spot the red flags, protect your hard-earned savings, and secure your financial future. Plus, Lane (Clark's wife!) shares your #AskClark questions and Clark gives his take. All this and more on the June 1, 2026, episode of The Clark Howard Show. Submit questions: Ask Clark AI Privacy Risk: Segment 1 Ask Clark: Segment 2 Ponzi Schemes Steal Millions: Segment 3 Ask Clark: Segment 4 Mentioned on the show: Don't tell your AI chatbot these 5 things to keep your money safe  Where Should You Keep Your Cash Reserve? - Clark Howard 6 Things To Know About Series I Savings Bonds - Clark Howard How To Open a Roth IRA Anatomy of a Ponzi scheme How to Teach Young Kids About Money - Clark Howard How I Set My Teens Up for Retirement in 5 Minutes What Brokerage Do You Recommend for First-Time Investors or Kids? How To Freeze and Unfreeze Your Credit With Experian, Equifax and TransUnion Clark.com resources: Episode transcripts Community.Clark.com  /  Ask Clark Clark.com daily money newsletter Consumer Action Center Free Helpline: 636-492-5275 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Cherolle Prince, Director of Fraud and Identity Management at Equifax Canada, unpacks the alarming rise of first-party fraud — when individuals misrepresent their own identity or inflate their income to qualify for credit. With economic pressures pushing more Canadians to the financial edge, Equifax data shows first-party fraud is up over 30% year over year, doubling in both credit cards and banking. Cherolle explains how AI-powered detection tools and lender collaboration are fighting back, and why this growing trend ultimately tightens credit access for everyone — even those who play by the rules. Connect on LinkedIn(Cherolle), X, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, and LinkedIn(Equifax).

La chroniqueuse économie Marie-Eve Fournier traite d'une action collective majeure visant Equifax et TransUnion pour leur lenteur à corriger des erreurs dans les dossiers de crédit, une problématique qui peut coûter jusqu'à 150 000 $ en intérêts sur une hypothèque. Elle rappelle qu'au Québec, les plaintes doivent être déposées à la Commission d'accès à l'information. Voir https://www.cogecomedia.com/vie-privee pour notre politique de vie privée

In today's real estate market, you can get burned trying to “flip” homes. The reality of today's market means the math rarely works for the average investor. Clark explains when we'll see a healthy environment for investment. Also - The job market is wide open for those willing to roll up their sleeves. Despite foreboding headlines warning of grim prospects for graduates, young people are finding employment more easily than expected. This is especially true for teens looking for summer work. Due to labor shortages in the hospitality and restaurant industries, jobs are readily available. Clark discusses  where the summer (and year round) jobs are now.  Real Estate Investing: Segment 1 Ask Clark: Segment 2 Where The Jobs Are: Segment 3 Ask Clark: Segment 4 Mentioned on the show: Should You Pay Off Your Mortgage or Invest?  /  Calculator - Clark Howard Why Your Teen Needs a Summer Job Jobs Archives - Clark Howard Authorized User vs. Joint Account Holder - Clark Howard How To Prevent, Report and Repair Identity Theft - Clark Howard How To Freeze and Unfreeze Your Credit With Experian, Equifax and TransUnion Who Controls Gas Prices in the US? / NYT: Why Gas Prices Go Up Fast & Fall Slowly How To Save Money on Gas: 23 Ways - Clark Howard Don't Get Dinged at the Gas Pump by This Visa and Mastercard Policy Are You Getting the Best Discount Possible on Your Gas? Clark Howard's 'Half-Tank' Strategy To Save on Gas  Clark.com resources: Episode transcripts Community.Clark.com  /  Ask Clark Clark.com daily money newsletter Consumer Action Center Free Helpline: 636-492-5275 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Faire corriger une erreur à son dossier de crédit peut virer au cauchemar. Deux avocates québécoises veulent maintenant forcer Equifax et TransUnion à verser jusqu’à 10 000 $ aux Canadiens incapables de faire rectifier des informations inexactes depuis mai 2023, dans le cadre d’une action collective qui dénonce des pratiques jugées inefficaces et préjudiciables Entrevue avec Me Marie-Philip Simard, avocate au cabinet Klyden Légal. Regardez aussi cette discussion en vidéo via https://www.qub.ca/videos ou en vous abonnant à QUB télé : https://www.tvaplus.ca/qub ou sur la chaîne YouTube QUB https://www.youtube.com/@qub_radio Pour de l'information concernant l'utilisation de vos données personnelles - https://omnystudio.com/policies/listener/fr

François Lambert vs Québec solidaire. Equifax et TransUnion. DSN: Les entreprises québécoises écartées préparent leur ripostent Affaires et société avec Philippe Richard Bertrand, expert en commercialisation et en technologies. Regardez aussi cette discussion en vidéo via https://www.qub.ca/videos ou en vous abonnant à QUB télé : https://www.tvaplus.ca/qub ou sur la chaîne YouTube QUB https://www.youtube.com/@qub_radioPour de l'information concernant l'utilisation de vos données personnelles - https://omnystudio.com/policies/listener/fr

Friday - Clark Stinks day! Christa shares Clark Stinks posts with Clark. Submit yours at Clark.com/ClarkStinks.  Also today - While the widespread adoption of security cameras has revolutionized public safety, their application is spurring privacy debate throughout the country.  The rules of engagement for our data are dangerously lacking. It's time to demand clear state and local laws that delineate how this data is stored and shared, especially when private businesses are involved.  Clark Stinks: Segments 1 & 2 Security Camera Privacy Backlash: Segment 3 Ask Clark: Segment 4 Mentioned on the show: Simple Trick To Pay Down Credit Card Debt Quicker - Clark Howard How To Freeze and Unfreeze Your Credit With Experian, Equifax and TransUnion Should I Freeze My Credit With the Other Credit Bureaus? Privacy vs. Protection: Where Should We Draw the Line on Security Cameras? What Is a Roth 401(k) and How Does It Work? - Clark Howard Target Date Funds: Clark Howard's Favorite Retirement Investment How To Choose Funds in Your 401(k) (and How Not To) Fidelity Investments Review: Pros & Cons - Clark Howard Best 529 College Savings Plans By State Life Insurance Archives - Clark Howard Clark.com resources: Episode transcripts Community.Clark.com  /  Ask Clark Clark.com daily money newsletter Consumer Action Center Free Helpline: 636-492-5275 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The first of three episodes recorded at Google Cloud NEXT, Las Vegas in partnership with Kyndryl, the world's largest IT infrastructure services provider Host Russell Goldsmith was joined by: 1/ Kris Lovejoy, Global Head of Strategy, Kyndryl 2/ Vincenzo Forciniti, AI Adoption and Data Platform Leader, Fastweb & Vodafone 3/ Adrian Tatsch, VP AI Technology & Innovation, Equifax 4/ Patrick Bobrukiewicz, VP Data Services, Thrive Restaurant Group 5/ Kaapro Kanto, VP, Cybersecurity & Digital Platforms, DNA 6/ Brad Duff-Hudkins, VP Data Analytics, Next After Each of our guests offered a grounded, real‑world view of AI adoption at scale. The episode opens with Kris Lovejoy, Global Head of Strategy at Kyndryl, who outlines why digital sovereignty, geopolitical risk and regulatory pressure are reshaping enterprise architecture. She also breaks down the guardrails required for employee productivity tools versus mission‑critical agentic systems and why modernisation itself has become a security control. Next, Vincenzo Forciniti, AI Adoption & Data Platform Leader at Fastweb and Vodafone Italia, discusses the data‑unification challenges following Fastweb's acquisition of Vodafone Italia. He shares how the team built a shared data catalogue, why change management is often harder than technology, and how modernising legacy stacks is enabling scaled AI across SDLC optimisation, operations and customer‑facing processes. We then hear from Adrian Tatsch, VP of AI Technology & Innovation at Equifax, who explains how the company is connecting APIs to AI agents using Apigee MCP, and how Equifax's multi‑billion‑dollar cloud transformation has accelerated AI maturity. Adrian explains how Equifax is redefining human vs. non‑human work, upskilling, and measuring ROI across the organisation. Patrick Bobrukiewicz, VP of Data Services at Thrive Restaurant Group, shares a hospitality‑sector perspective on AI adoption. Kaapro Kanto, VP, Cybersecurity & Digital Platforms, DNA explains how DNA moved from traditional network operations to AI‑driven SecOps, enabling small businesses to benefit from enterprise‑grade detection, automation and response, and why the biggest barrier to AI maturity is shifting from pilot experiments to trusted, scalable operational models. And finally Brad Duff‑Hudkins, VP of Data Analytics at NextAfter, explains how his team used Google's data engineering agents to cut onboarding time from 2–3 weeks to just 72 hours, and why agentic AI is already unlocking faster, more personalised, more scalable data operations for lean teams. A fast, insight‑rich episode capturing the reality of AI transformation inside complex global enterprises, from security and sovereignty to data foundations, workflow automation and the future of human‑machine collaboration.

Hablamos con Ignacio Gil, Gestor de Cuentas Estratégicas en Equifax. Nos acompaña Inés Muñoz Vidal de Credit Logic

She watched a brilliant female CEO — strategic, skilled, accomplished — get pushed out of her company. And in that moment, Alejandra Torchia had a realization that changed how she thinks about her entire career: if it can happen to her, it can happen to any of us. A job title is the most fragile kind of power there is. The only power that can't be taken away is the one you build inside yourself. Alejandra is SVP of Technology, Global Infrastructure Solutions at Equifax, leading teams across multiple countries and continents. She also runs "I Am Remarkable" workshops — originally a Google initiative — helping professionals, especially women and underrepresented groups, learn to celebrate their own achievements out loud. She did not always find this easy. Growing up in Argentina, where the culture does not reward self-promotion the way the U.S. does, she spent years assuming her work would speak for itself. It didn't. In this episode, she shares what she learned late, by her own admission, and what she now teaches others from the start. You'll learn: Why waiting for others to recognize your achievements is a trap, and the mindset shift that breaks it The story of how she walked into a job interview at 22 with no experience and got hired on boldness and a single honest promise Why she left a well-paying job that supported her family to escape bias, and how she made that decision The difference between title-based power and internal power, and why only one of them survives a corporate restructure The single biggest leadership gap she sees across cultures, levels, and industries, and it's not what most leaders focus on How values contain ambition and keep influence from crossing into manipulation The practical system she teaches for tracking and sharing your own achievements before you forget them If you've been doing great work and waiting for someone to notice, this episode reframes that habit entirely. About Alejandra Torchia: SVP of Technology, Global Infrastructure Solutions at Equifax, Alejandra leads infrastructure teams across the globe. Originally from Buenos Aires, she moved to the U.S. seven years ago. She is an advisory board member of WATT (Women Advancing Technology Together) at Equifax, a board member of the Start House Foundation, an active facilitator of the I Am Remarkable initiative, and a member of Women in Technology (WIT) Atlanta. Connect with Alejandra on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alejandra-torchia-001954 Stop Waiting to Be Recognized: How Equifax SVP Alejandra Torchia Learned to Promote Herself — and Why You Need To

Jeremy Samuelson is the Executive Vice President of AI and Innovation at Integrated Quantum Technologies (CSE: ICS). Jeremy, a former AI leader at Equifax and Mastercard, invented VEIL™ (Vector Encoded Information Layer) - a breakthrough privacy-preserving framework to let AI models work with sensitive data without ever exposing raw information to security breaches.Episode Blog Post: https://www.sharesforbeginners.com/blog/samuelson-ics

Jeremy Samuelson is the Executive Vice President of AI and Innovation at Integrated Quantum Technologies (CSE: ICS). Jeremy, a former AI leader at Equifax and Mastercard, invented VEIL™ (Vector Encoded Information Layer) - a breakthrough privacy-preserving framework to let AI models work with sensitive data without ever exposing raw information to security breaches.Episode Blog Post: https://www.sharesforbeginners.com/blog/samuelson-ics

When negotiating a salary or a raise, most people don't know what they are up against.   Many companies purchase data from payroll processors and other sources to optimize salary expenses.   This info often includes previous job incomes and what increases you recieved. The info obtained by companies include address changes, credit card utilization, delinquent debt, and past due balances. This data aggregation determines the lowest salary you will accept.    The salary offered is typically about 3-6% above your minimum number. This is just enough to feel like you are negotiating.   Veena Dubai, a law professor, completed extensive research on algorithmic wage discrimination and found that when many employers in the same market use the same data vendors, it creates price-fixing of labor.   The company has the advantage with all the data. They know what you will settle for. You think you are negotiating. The system even accounts for your counter in advance.   You think your salary is based on the position; your knowledge and experience. It isn't. It is based on your desperation.   Salary optimization requires information. The primary source is a product called the Work Number. You can contact Equifax and freeze your info.    Take back control of your personal info, freeze your info and maybe even your salary negotiations!

Friday - Clark Stinks day! Christa shares Clark Stinks posts with Clark. Submit yours at Clark.com/ClarkStinks.  Also today - Scam artists are getting more sophisticated and they're targeting your retirement funds. Clark explains this digital crime wave and how fraudsters are using sophisticated tools & tricks to get into your accounts. The first step in protecting your money is being aware of some of the latest techniques these criminals use.  Clark Stinks: Segments 1 & 2 Scam Vigilance: Segment 3 Ask Clark: Segment 4 Mentioned on the show: 5 Best Robo-Advisors - Clark Howard When Is the Best Time To Collect Social Security? - Clark Howard Term Life vs. Whole Life Insurance: Understanding the Difference How To Buy Term Life Insurance in 7 Easy Steps - Clark Howard Fraud Is Skyrocketing: 5 Ways To Protect Your Hard-Earned Assets Why You Should Never Click on Random Text Messages thestreet: Vanguard warns fraud is quietly draining retirements now Protect Your Rights & Identity Archives - Clark Howard How To Freeze and Unfreeze Your Credit With Experian, Equifax and TransUnion Virtual Credit Cards: An Online Security Measure Worth Taking? Best 529 Plans by State: How Clark Howard Picks the Top College Savings Plans Clark.com resources: Episode transcripts Community.Clark.com  /  Ask Clark Clark.com daily money newsletter Consumer Action Center Free Helpline: 636-492-5275 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Send us Fan MailCheck us out at:  https://www.cisspcybertraining.com/Get access to 360 FREE CISSP Questions:  https://www.cisspcybertraining.com/offers/dzHKVcDB/checkoutGet access to my FREE CISSP Self-Study Essentials Videos:  https://www.cisspcybertraining.com/offers/KzBKKouvLinkedIn might be doing more in your browser than you think. We start with a report dubbing it “BrowserGate” a claim that LinkedIn quietly checks for installed Chrome extensions using hidden JavaScript, raising real questions about privacy, browser fingerprinting, and what platforms should disclose to users when collecting device level signals tied to real identities and jobs. From there, we shift into a core CISSP topic that shows up everywhere in real security work: implementing and supporting patch vulnerability management (CISSP Domain 7.8). We talk about why patching is not just maintenance, but a primary security control that shrinks your attack surface across the entire ecosystem, including servers, endpoints, cloud services, mobile devices, and OT/ICS environments where uptime and safety make patching harder. We also cover the uncomfortable reality of unpatchable legacy systems and how compensating controls like micro-segmentation and network isolation help manage risk when a vendor will never ship an update. We ground the conversation with the Apache Struts remote code execution lesson and the Equifax breach, then walk through a practical patch management lifecycle: evaluate applicability, test in non-production when needed, follow change management approvals, deploy with rollback plans, and verify with follow-up scans. You'll also hear clear CISSP-ready distinctions between hotfix vs patch vs update, authenticated vs unauthenticated vulnerability scanning, CVE feeds, CVSS prioritisation, MTTR metrics, and how to respond when a zero-day vulnerability has no patch yet. If this helps your CISSP prep, subscribe, share the episode with a study partner, and leave a review so more security learners can find it. What part of patch and vulnerability management is hardest in your environment right now?Gain exclusive access to 360 FREE CISSP Practice Questions at FreeCISSPQuestions.com and have them delivered directly to your inbox!  Don't miss this valuable opportunity to strengthen your CISSP exam preparation and boost your chances of certification success. Join now and start your journey toward CISSP mastery today!

In this special edition of CyberWire Daily's 10th anniversary series, N2K CyberWire's Maria Varmazis and Dave Bittner discuss the biggest breaches over the past 10 years. The foundational 2014 Sony hack kicks off our conversation, then Maria and Dave highlight: the 2015 OPM breach, which exposed sensitive security-clearance data and was attributed to long-term access by China amid outdated government systems and security 2017's WannaCry and NotPetya's global disruption and Equifax's ongoing fallout the 2020 SolarWinds breach underscored supply-chain risks and raised concerns about potential personal criminal liability for CISOs. The conversation illustrates two main threat-actor categories—nation-state espionage and financially motivated criminals—and the increasingly blurred lines between them. Join us as we reflect on how the industry and cybercrime have evolved over the past decade. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Emmaline Aliff sits down with Cox Automotive Chief Economist Jeremy Robb to unpack the forces reshaping today's auto market—from affordability pressures and credit expansion to the growing wave of used EVs. As consumers navigate rising costs and lenders adapt to shifting risk, the conversation explores what's really driving demand—and what dealers and lenders should watch next.In this episode:What is driving the current auto market in 2026?The auto market is being shaped by a mix of macroeconomic forces, including inflation, interest rates, tariffs, and consumer affordability challenges. At the same time, credit availability is expanding, creating a complex environment where demand persists despite financial pressure.What is a K-shaped economy and how does it impact auto buyers?A K-shaped economy means higher-income consumers are thriving while lower-income consumers face increasing financial strain. In the auto market, this results in strong demand for high-end vehicles while affordability challenges push many buyers toward used cars—or out of the market entirely.Why is affordability such a major issue in the auto industry right now?Affordability is being impacted by rising vehicle prices, higher interest rates, increased insurance costs, and ongoing inflation. These combined factors are making it harder for many consumers to purchase or finance a vehicle.How is credit availability increasing despite consumer financial pressure?Lenders are expanding access by offering longer loan terms, financing lower down payments, and taking on more subprime risk. While this increases access to credit, it can also introduce additional long-term financial strain for consumers.What should dealers and lenders watch for in the second half of the year?Key indicators include interest rate changes, inflation trends, mortgage activity, and continued consumer demand. Lower rates and improved economic conditions could unlock stronger sales.

The mortgage industry is debating whether to move away from the long-standing TriMerge credit reporting standard. Wendy Hannah-Olson of Equifax speaks with mathematician and behavioral modeling researcher Joni Baker at Andrew Davidson & Company about new research analyzing credit score differences across the three credit bureaus. Their discussion reveals how shifting to single or bi-merge credit reports could affect loan qualification, mortgage pricing, and risk—potentially costing consumers thousands of dollars and reshaping how lenders evaluate credit.In this episode:Why are lenders debating moving away from the TriMerge credit report?Some policymakers and industry groups are exploring whether using a single credit report or a bi-merge report could reduce costs and streamline the mortgage process. However, new research suggests that using fewer credit reports may introduce pricing uncertainty, increase risk, and lead to inconsistent loan qualification outcomes.How different can credit scores be between the three credit bureaus?According to a recent study from Andrew Davidson & Company, credit scores across bureaus can differ significantly. In the data analyzed, 27% of consumers had score differences of at least 10 points between bureaus, 14% had differences of 20 points or more, and nearly 1 in 10 had differences of 30 points or more.How could moving away from TriMerge affect mortgage pricing?If lenders rely on a single credit score instead of the TriMerge median, borrowers could move between pricing tiers more frequently. In some scenarios, a change of just 10–20 credit score points could alter loan pricing, potentially affecting mortgage costs by $3,000 to $5,000 or more over the life of a loan.

What do Bigfoot and credit reports have in common? They're both surrounded by myths. While we may never settle the question of an eight-foot-tall creature wandering the woods, we can clear up the confusion around credit reports. On this episode of Faith & Finance, Neile Simon, a Certified Credit Counselor with Christian Credit Counselors, stops by to clear up some of the most common misconceptions about credit reports and credit scores. Understanding how credit really works can help you avoid costly mistakes and make wiser financial decisions. Myth #1: Paying Off Debt Instantly Fixes Your Credit Paying down debt is always a good step—but it doesn't instantly produce a perfect credit score. A credit score reflects your history of borrowing and repayment. Lenders use it as a snapshot of how responsibly you've managed credit over time. That means improvement takes patience. The most important habit is simple: consistently pay your bills on time. Over time, that steady pattern will strengthen your credit profile. And beware of anyone claiming they can “fix your credit overnight.” Building good credit always takes time. Myth #2: Credit Counseling Ruins Your Credit Score Many people fear that seeking help will damage their credit—but that's not true. Participating in a credit counseling program is considered a neutral mark on your credit report. What can affect your score is closing accounts, not the counseling itself. In fact, nonprofit credit counseling agencies often help people regain control of their finances through structured debt management plans. If you seek help, make sure the organization is accredited and nonprofit. That's why Christian Credit Counselors is the only organization we recommend for credit counseling and debt management.  Myth #3: Canceling Credit Cards Boosts Your Score Closing credit cards may seem responsible, but it can actually lower your credit score. Why? Because it reduces your available credit, which increases your credit utilization ratio—a key factor in credit scoring. If you have credit cards with zero balances and no annual fees, keeping them open can actually help your score. If you must close accounts, do it gradually—perhaps one every six months—to minimize the impact. Myth #4: Too Many Inquiries Hurt Your Score This myth was once more accurate than it is today. Credit bureaus now recognize that consumers shop for loans. If you're applying for a mortgage or car loan, multiple inquiries within a short window—typically about 45 days—are counted as a single inquiry. That means you can compare offers without damaging your credit score. And when it comes to checking your own credit report, that's considered a soft inquiry, which does not affect your score at all. In fact, it's wise to check your credit regularly to monitor for fraud or mistakes. Myth #5: You Don't Need to Check Your Credit If You Pay Bills on Time Even responsible borrowers should check their credit reports. Studies suggest that a large percentage of credit reports contain errors. Reviewing your report once or twice a year allows you to catch mistakes or fraudulent activity early. You can obtain free reports from all three major bureaus at AnnualCreditReport.com. Correcting errors can take time—sometimes up to 90 days—so staying proactive is important. Myth #6: All Credit Reports Are the Same There are three major credit bureaus: Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion. Each may contain slightly different information because creditors don't always report to all three bureaus, and updates may occur at different times. Different lenders may also use different scoring models depending on the type of loan—auto, mortgage, or credit card. For the most complete picture, it's wise to review all three reports. Myth #7: Divorce Automatically Removes Joint Debt Divorce agreements may divide debts between spouses—but they don't change the original credit contract. If your name remains on a joint account, you're still legally responsible for the debt. If the other person misses payments, your credit score can suffer too. That's why it's important to close joint accounts or refinance debts into one person's name whenever possible. Myth #8: All Negative Marks Disappear After Seven Years Some negative items disappear after seven years—but not all. For example: Chapter 13 bankruptcy: up to 7 years Chapter 7 bankruptcy: up to 10 years Positive closed accounts: can remain for 10 years The good news is that positive information usually stays longer than negative information, helping your score recover over time. Myth #9: You Can Pay Someone to “Fix” Your Credit Many companies promise fast credit repair—but most simply send dispute letters to creditors. If the information on your credit report is accurate, it cannot be removed. That means many consumers pay fees without seeing real results. The truth is, you can dispute errors yourself for free. Christian Credit Counselors provides free resources and sample dispute letters to help you correct inaccuracies. The Bottom Line Understanding how credit works empowers you to use it wisely. Credit reports aren't mysterious or magical—they simply reflect how consistently and responsibly you've handled debt over time. With accurate information, good habits, and a little patience, you can build a strong credit profile that supports your financial goals. And when challenges arise, seeking wise counsel and staying informed can help you move toward greater financial freedom. If you're struggling with credit card debt, Christian Credit Counselors can help. They've helped thousands of people get out of debt 80% faster while honoring their financial obligations. Visit ChristianCreditCounselors.org or call 800-557-1985 to learn more. On Today's Program, Rob Answers Listener Questions: My small retail business in a local mall is struggling as other stores close and sales decline. We're starting to lose money and take on debt. Should I consider closing the business and pursuing a new venture or a job to stabilize our family's finances? We've always tithed on our gross income. After selling our previous home, we made a non-taxable profit but used it to buy another home that still needs repairs and has a small mortgage. Should we tithe on that profit, or focus on maintaining the home and paying down the mortgage? Resources Mentioned: Faithful Steward: FaithFi's Quarterly Magazine (Become a FaithFi Partner) Christian Credit Counselors AnnualCreditReport.com  Our Ultimate Treasure: A 21-Day Journey to Faithful Stewardship Wisdom Over Wealth: 12 Lessons from Ecclesiastes on Money Look At The Sparrows: A 21-Day Devotional on Financial Fear and Anxiety Rich Toward God: A Study on the Parable of the Rich Fool Find a Certified Kingdom Advisor (CKA) FaithFi App Remember, you can call in to ask your questions every workday at (800) 525-7000. Faith & Finance is also available on Moody Radio Network and American Family Radio. You can also visit FaithFi.com to connect with our online community and partner with us as we help more people live as faithful stewards of God's resources. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Should You Use Your “Sacred” Retirement Fund To Save Your Business? & 2026 Jobs Outlook As rapid technological shifts ripple through every industry, many entrepreneurs are finding themselves in a temporary cash flow crunch. While retirement accounts are often viewed as a "sacred chest" that shouldn't be touched, Wes Moss explores how to strategically leverage your brokerage and Roth IRA accounts to bridge the gap. Also, Wes dives deep into the latest data from the U.S. labor market to see what it actually means for your portfolio. Despite some "ancient history" revisions from 2025 that initially painted a gloomy picture, the January 2026 jobs report tells a much more resilient story. Whether you're managing a business or a retirement timeline, understanding these labor trends is key to staying invested with confidence. Mentioned on the show: Asset Class Returns A Jack Bogle Lesson: Remember Reversion to the Mean How To Freeze and Unfreeze Your Credit With Experian, Equifax and TransUnion What Is Long-Term Care Insurance Cost & Coverage Plus, Christa shares your #AskWes questions and Wes gives his take. All this and more on the February 17, 2026, Ask an Advisor episode of the Clark Howard podcast. Submit your questions at clark.com/ask. We hope you enjoy our weekly Ask An Advisor episodes.  Let us know what you think in the comments!Learn more about Wes:  BOOKS BY WES MOSS   Wes Moss, CFP®  Wes Moss - Clark.com Learn more about your ad choices: megaphone.fm/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Ashley Sellers of Equifax sits down with Jordan Sullivan, Director of Retail Lending at CSL Financial, to explore how modern credit scoring is reshaping mortgage lending. As one of the first lenders to adopt VantageScore for underwriting, CSL shares real-world results, from higher approval rates and lower costs to stronger portfolio performance. The conversation dives into affordability, trended credit data, thin-file borrowers, and why delaying adoption of new credit models may be a competitive disadvantage for lenders navigating today's evolving credit ecosystem.Economist Justin Begley of Moody's Analytics provides our economic update.In this episode:Why did CSL Financial adopt VantageScore for underwriting?CSL Financial adopted VantageScore after internal testing showed it was a stronger predictor of credit risk than legacy models. The lender found it better aligned with borrower behavior and more effective for evaluating thin and non-traditional credit files.How does VantageScore help lenders approve more borrowers?VantageScore uses trended credit data to evaluate whether a borrower's financial behavior is improving or declining over time. This allows lenders to make more informed decisions than snapshot-based models, helping qualified borrowers who may have been overlooked receive approval.What results has CSL Financial seen using VantageScore?Since adopting VantageScore, CSL Financial has increased loan pull-through rates from approximately 8% to nearly 20%, while maintaining stable delinquency levels. The lender has also reduced credit-related costs and improved portfolio performance. Who benefits most from VantageScore-based underwriting?Borrowers with thin credit files, limited credit history, or past credit challenges benefit most. This includes younger borrowers building credit and older consumers who have paid off debt and have limited active tradelines.Why is delaying VantageScore adoption a competitive disadvantage?Lenders who delay adoption risk higher costs, lower approval rates, and less accurate risk pricing. Early adopters like CSL Financial report both operational savings and stronger credit outcomes, making modern scoring models a competitive advantage.

Experian is one of those giant multinationals convoluted enough to have multiple CEOs all over the world, so first I asked Alex Lintner, Experian's CEO of technology and software solutions, to dig into the classic Decoder questions and explain how all of that even works. He oversees big operations like security and privacy, and now, of course, AI. If you want to participate in the modern economy — rent an apartment, buy a car, get a job, etc  — you're part of Experian's ecosystem, whether you like it or not. At its heart, Experian's core service is data about people and the choices they make. And this extremely valuable data weirdly makes Experian a part of your life  — a life that becomes much smoother if the data the company collects about you tells a good story.  Links:  Roughly half of Americans are knowledgeable about personal finance | Pew Research How Americans view data privacy | Pew Research Consumer voices on credit reports and scores | CFPB Mercedes-Benz CEO Ola Källenius on Decoder | The Verge The Palantir app ICE uses to find neighborhoods to raid | 404 Media T-Mobile customers exposed in major Experian breach (2015) | The Verge All the news about the Equifax breach | The Verge Subscribe to The Verge to access the ad-free version of Decoder! Credits: Decoder is a production of The Verge and part of the Vox Media Podcast Network. Decoder is produced by Kate Cox and Nick Statt and edited by Ursa Wright. Our editorial director is Kevin McShane.  The Decoder music is by Breakmaster Cylinder. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Friday - Clark Stinks day! Christa shares Clark Stinks posts with Clark. Submit yours at Clark.com/ClarkStinks.  Also in this episode, Clark shares a narrow set of strategies for becoming a landlord successfully in today's fraught housing market. To determine if a property is a viable investment, know the classic 1% rule. Clark Stinks: Segments 1 & 2 Investment Real Estate: Segment 3 Ask Clark: Segment 4 Mentioned on the show: How To Sell, Cancel or Get Rid of Your Timeshare How To Make Your Venmo Transactions Private Homeowners Insurance Archives - Clark Howard Teslarati: Tesla partners with Lemonade for new insurance program 10 Things Homeowners Insurance Doesn't Always Cover How To Freeze and Unfreeze Your Credit With Experian, Equifax and TransUnion Should You Invest in a Rental Home? Here's Clark's 1% Rule What Is a Solo 401(k) and How Does It Work? Roth vs. Traditional 401(k): What's the Difference? What Is a SEP IRA and Who Is Eligible? What Is the Highest Credit Score? Clark.com resources: Episode transcripts Community.Clark.com  /  Ask Clark Clark.com daily money newsletter Consumer Action Center Free Helpline: 636-492-5275 Learn more about your ad choices: megaphone.fm/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Recorded live at MBA Annual25 in Las Vegas, this special edition of the Equifax Market Pulse explores how data, workflow automation, and AI are reshaping mortgage lending. Tanja Cleve, SVP of Solution Sales at Equifax sits down with Craig Rebmann, Product Evangelist at Dark Matter Technologies, to discuss capturing data earlier in the process, automating complex borrower scenarios, managing costs in tight margin environments, and preparing lenders for the next market turn through smarter technology investments.In this episode:What is the biggest operational challenge mortgage lenders are facing right now?Beyond rates and affordability, lenders are grappling with process inefficiencies, higher fallout rates, and rising costs. This makes automation and better data workflows essential.How does capturing data earlier in the loan process help lenders?Early data capture allows lenders to assess risk sooner, automate pre-approvals, reduce downstream surprises, and create more productive borrower conversations upfront.How can automation support complex borrower profiles like self-employed income?Automation helps identify complexity early and uses tax and income data to streamline calculations, reducing manual review and improving underwriting readiness.How are lenders balancing innovation with cost control in a tight market?Many are focusing on capacity management, which used technology to increase efficiency with existing staff while remaining scalable as volumes return.What role does AI play in today's mortgage technology stack?AI is increasingly used to gather and prepare information, while humans remain essential for judgment, decision-making, and borrower communication.What is “agentic AI” and why does it matter for lenders?Agentic AI refers to systems that can take action—not just provide insights—while still operating within defined workflows and human oversight.How do integrations and APIs improve borrower experience?Connected systems allow data to flow in real time, trigger automations instantly, reduce back-and-forth, and give borrowers greater transparency throughout the process.

Bobby Deery sits down with Praveen Chandrahomhan, SVP of Origination Growth at Cotality, to explore how AI is reshaping mortgage lending. They discuss the rise of “micro AI” in origination, the balance between speed and empathy in the borrower journey, and why personalization and retention are becoming critical in a purchase-driven market. In this episode:How is AI changing mortgage lending?AI is improving customer service, underwriting, document processing, and workflow automation while keeping humans in the loop. AI helps lenders increase speed, accuracy, and empathy throughout the borrower journey.What mortgage challenges does AI help solve?The conversation highlights how AI reduces friction, improves clarity for borrowers, lowers operational costs, and supports more personalized experiences—especially in a highly regulated, purchase-driven market.Why are personalization and retention so important right now?With fewer refinance opportunities and evolving trigger legislation, lenders are prioritizing retention and relationship-based lending. AI-powered data and automation help lenders stay connected to borrowers across the full lifecycle of homeownership.

Emmaline Aliff of Equifax sits down with Matt Orlando, Chief Experience Officer at Informative Research, to unpack one of the most talked-about developments in mortgage lending: FICO's new Mortgage Direct Licensing program and what it could mean for lenders, credit providers, and borrowers.In this episode:What is FICO's Mortgage Direct Licensing program?FICO's Mortgage Direct Licensing program allows lenders and technology providers to license FICO scores directly, rather than receiving them solely through traditional credit reporting agencies. The program is still new, and its full impact on the mortgage ecosystem has yet to be determined.How could FICO Direct Licensing impact mortgage lenders?Lenders are still evaluating how the program will affect their overall cost of credit each month and whether it will increase expenses across the loan lifecycle.What risks does Direct Licensing introduce into the mortgage market?The program introduces risk across multiple layers of the ecosystem. Credit reporting agencies may now be asked to generate scores—something they have not historically done. Lenders must assess the reliability of these scores, while the broader mortgage market and borrowers face uncertainty as scoring responsibility shifts to a more fragmented landscape.How might borrowers be affected by these changes?Borrowers could ultimately bear higher costs if credit expenses rise for lenders. There is also risk tied to accuracy and consistency as new parties begin generating credit scores. The long-term borrower impact remains unclear.

Jennifer Henry of Equifax sits down with Christina Randolph of Freddie Mac to discuss how lenders can drive efficiency, improve data quality, and build resilience through digitization and automation. From reducing origination costs to leveraging tools like Loan Product Advisor, AIM, and verified income data, the conversation offers practical insights to help lenders prepare for the next market cycle while delivering a better borrower experience.In this episode:How are lenders improving efficiency in today's housing finance market?Lenders are improving efficiency by digitizing and automating key steps in the mortgage process, including underwriting, income and employment verification, and data validation. Tools that reduce manual documentation help lower origination costs, shorten cycle times, and improve consistency across fluctuating market conditions.What does resilience mean in the mortgage and housing finance ecosystem?Resilience means a lender's ability to perform consistently across economic cycles by managing risk, maintaining data quality, and using technology that scales with volume changes. A resilient mortgage operation is prepared for both market slowdowns and rapid growth without sacrificing loan quality or borrower experience.Why is loan data quality critical for mortgage lenders and investors?Loan data quality is critical because inaccurate or incomplete data increases defects, repurchase risk, and operational costs. Verifying income, employment, and assets earlier in the loan lifecycle helps lenders deliver cleaner loans, meet investor requirements, and reduce downstream risk.How can digital income and employment verification reduce mortgage costs?Digital income and employment verification reduce costs by eliminating manual document collection and repeated reviews. Lenders using automated, source-verified data can save hundreds to thousands of dollars per loan, reduce cycle times by several days, and significantly lower the likelihood of income-related defects.

This time of year tax forms start landing in your mailbox. Clark clears the confusion and misinformation around the IRS's Direct File vs Free File offerings. Also, a topic sure to generate a lot of Clark Stinks - Clark's opinion on why you should wait until age 70 to take social security - with two exceptions. Tax Filing Changes: Segment 1 Ask Clark: Segment 2 Social Security: Segment 3 Ask Clark: Segment 4 Mentioned on the show: IRS Direct File won't be available next year. Here's what that means for taxpayers Which Documents Should You Keep and for How Long? How To Freeze and Unfreeze Your Credit With Experian, Equifax and TransUnion Will Social Security Run Out? When Is the Best Time To Collect Social Security? Wait Until 70 to Claim Social Security. Don't Let These Myths Convince You Otherwise Where Should I Set Up My Health Savings Account (HSA)? Clark.com resources: Episode transcripts Community.Clark.com  /  Ask Clark Clark.com daily money newsletter Consumer Action Center Free Helpline: 636-492-5275 Learn more about your ad choices: megaphone.fm/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Recorded live at the 2025 MBA Annual in Las Vegas, this special episode of Market Pulse explores how down payment assistance programs can help unlock homeownership amid today's affordability challenges. Joel Rickman of Equifax sits down with Rob Chrane, Founder and CEO of Down Payment Resource, to discuss how lenders, real estate professionals, and technology can better connect buyers to thousands of available programs—and why awareness, education, and alignment are key to getting more families into homes.In this episode:What is down payment assistance, and how does it help homebuyers?Down payment assistance (DPA) includes grants, forgivable loans, and other programs that help cover down payments and closing costs. These programs can significantly reduce upfront cash requirements and make homeownership more accessible—especially for first-time buyers and middle-income households.How many down payment assistance programs exist today?According to Down Payment Resource's latest Homeownership Program Index, there are more than 2,600 active homeownership assistance programs nationwide, administered by over 1,300 state, local, and nonprofit organizations.Who qualifies for down payment assistance programs?Eligibility varies by program, but many programs serve more than just low-income buyers. Some programs:Have no household income limitsSupport middle-income and “missing middle” buyersApply to manufactured homes and multifamily (2–4 unit) propertiesAre available nationally or in high-cost housing marketsWhy don't more buyers use down payment assistance?The biggest barrier isn't funding—it's awareness. Many buyers (and even industry professionals) don't know these programs exist. Fragmentation, lack of standardization, and fear of complexity have historically limited adoption.How do lenders and loan officers use Down Payment Resource?Down Payment Resource provides tools that:Match borrowers and properties with eligible assistance programsIntegrate with loan origination systems (LOS)Surface vetted programs automatically during the lending processHelp lenders educate borrowers without adding operational burden

109 Contacts to Cashflow: 6-Figure Blueprint + Funding Secrets | Sam Sky   The Entreprenudist Podcast https://entreprenudist.com Running a business is easier when you understand how to turn your existing network into real revenue. In this episode of The Entreprenudist Podcast, we sit down with Sam Sky, CEO of Credit CRB, to unpack the system entrepreneurs use to turn their contact list into a consistent 6-figure income, without the stress, confusion, or guesswork. Sam also breaks down powerful strategies for securing high-limit, low-interest business loans, achieving fast credit repair results, and positioning your business for long-term financial success. In this episode, you'll learn: ✔️ How to turn your contacts into predictable income ✔️ Simple strategies to monetize your network ✔️ How to qualify for high-limit funding ✔️ The secrets to low-interest business loans ✔️ Fast credit repair techniques that actually work ✔️ How to leverage strong credit for business growth ✔️ Why most entrepreneurs leave money on the table Whether you're building a new business or looking to scale, this conversation will help you unlock funding, create cashflow, and use your existing relationships to grow a profitable company. ------------------------- About Sam Sky Sam Sky is the founder of Credit CRB which is known for the Highest-Level Credit Repair in The Country/serving judges, politicians, wealthy businesspeople, agents, and more. Secondly, they are a top tier business loan broker team, specializing in low interest business loans, even if there are blemishes on your credit. Real Deal - Sam Sky has sued and won or settled lawsuits with Equifax, Best Buy, Verizon, and More. Separately, Mr. Sky won a foundation rocking case against Suncoast Credit Union that put all lenders on notice. Author of the famous "The Credit Book", his accolades are on the company website, and the list is long. Podcast hosts book Sam Sky because he doesn't just talk about credit and debt, he demystifies it. He bridges the gap between business owners that want to scale, and some have challenges with complex financial needs all the way to everyday entrepreneurs who want the best rates and want to expand and align their business growth implementation plans.  ----------------  About the Host:  Randolph Love III is the Founder and CEO of ShieldWolf Strongholds, where he helps Franchisors, CPAs, Attorneys, Doctors, Realtors, Contractors, and other Business Owners, Entrepreneurs, Home Owners, and Retirees, secure lasting financial legacies.  He is also a trusted franchise consultant, author of the book The Miracle Money Vehicle: How To Make Money Make Babies, and host of The Liquidity Event, a premier gathering on business growth, financial independence, and legacy planning.  As host of The Entreprenudist Podcast, ranked in the Top 10% worldwide by ListenNotes.com, Randolph shares bold, practical insights that challenge traditional thinking. A sought-after speaker, his dynamic style empowers audiences to reduce taxes legally, grow wealth strategically, and take control of their financial destiny. Additionally, he is also the publisher of The Liquidity Journal, a dynamic publication for business owners, entrepreneurs, executives, retirees, and investors. Focused on leadership, strategy, systems, and motivation, it delivers actionable insights that empower readers to grow, lead, and innovate in today's business world.

Is now the time to refinance your mortgage? Only if you meet certain criteria. Clark breaks it down.  Also - Are you with what Clark calls a Giant Monster Mega Bank? If so, you may be paying fees you don't have to! Clark's overview of the banking industry makes it clear, the regional, super regional and giant banks are not your wallet's friend. Hear how people are migrating their money in a way that's comfortable for them - a method called “soft switching”.  Mortgage Refi Guidelines: Segment 1 Ask Clark: Segment 2 Banish Bank Fees: Segment 3 Ask Clark: Segment 4 Mentioned on the show: How and When To Refinance Your Mortgage: A Step-By-Step Guide Mortgage Refinance Calculator - With Cash Out and Points What Can I Safely Use for Peer-to-Peer Payments? How To Freeze and Unfreeze Your Credit With Experian, Equifax and TransUnion How To Switch Banks in 4 Simple Steps Best Online Banks: Free Checking and High-Interest Savings Accounts Best Cash Management Account: Comparing Vanguard, Fidelity, and Schwab Costco Travel: 5 Things To Know Before You Book When Do You Need a Travel Agent? Clark's Christmas Kids Clark.com resources: Episode transcripts Community.Clark.com  /  Ask Clark Clark.com daily money newsletter Consumer Action Center Free Helpline: 636-492-5275 Learn more about your ad choices: megaphone.fm/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What's awesome?  The trend of lifelong learning. And in this age of emerging AI disruption and uncertainty, it seems to be catching on. Later - Not awesome: Paying expenses for your adult children when it impacts your own financial well-being over time. How prevalent is this practice? Clark shares some surprising statistics.  Life Is For Learning: Segment 1 Ask Clark: Segment 2 Parental Funding: Segment 3 Ask Clark: Segment 4 Mentioned on the show: Where To Take Free Online Courses 12 Best College Scholarships Websites Plus Other Resources NYTimes: Why Are More Retirees Going Back to College? Why I Take Every Single Vacation Day (And You Should Too!) Is LifeLock Worth It?  /  Protect Your Identity Archives Why You Need To Lock Your Phone Number Today SIM Card Swapping: The Dangerous Cell Phone Scam How To Freeze & Unfreeze Your Credit With Experian, Equifax & TransUnion The Real Cost of Funding Adult Children: Postponing Retirement Fidelity Investments Review: Pros & Cons Roth vs. Traditional 401(k): What's the Difference? Is Chase Sapphire Reserve® Worth It? Clark.com resources: Episode transcripts Community.Clark.com  /  Ask Clark Clark.com daily money newsletter Consumer Action Center Free Helpline: 636-492-5275 Learn more about your ad choices: megaphone.fm/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Join Our FREE Start Repairing Credit Challenge: http://startrepairingcredit.com/Ever seen one of those “Click Here to Dispute” buttons on Equifax, Experian, or TransUnion's website and thought it looked like a quick and easy fix?Well, that innocent-looking button is actually one of the biggest traps in credit repair… and it could destroy your chances of getting real deletions in the future. When you click on it, you're not just starting a dispute. No, you're agreeing to the bureau's fine print, and trust me, the fine print is not something you want to agree to. That's why today, I'm breaking down why these online disputes fail, what rights you lose, and how to actually fix your credit in 2026, so that you won't become another victim of this predatory system. Tune in! Key Takeaways:00:00 Intro 01:10 Why Online Disputing Is a Trap 03:31 Why Online Disputes Fail 90% of the Time 06:38 The Power of Paper 08:27 My Final Point 09:03 OutroAdditional Resources:Get my free credit repair trainingAre These Viral Credit Repair Tricks Total Scams?Make sure to subscribe so you stay up to date with our latest episodes.

Today I'm joined by Alan Haig, President of Haig Partners. We dig into why Q4 buy-sell activity is suddenly exploding, which franchises are becoming “must-own” (and which aren't), how rate cuts are reshaping buyer math, and get a sneak peek at the latest Haig Report before its released. This episode is brought to you by: 1. Equifax - Fund More Auto Loans, Faster. Auto loan applicants are 40% more likely to be funded when instantly verified by The Work Number. You can get the data you need to know your borrower better and make fast, smart decisions. Equifax provides instant, secure access to verified borrower identity, address, income, and employment information, helping you move deals forward quickly." Visit @ https://carguymedia.com/3Lplzue to learn more. 2. Amazon Auto - With Amazon Autos, your dealership can reach more buyers, drive more sales, and deliver a modern, more delightful car-buying experience. Learn more @ https://sell.amazon.com/programs/autos⁠⁠⁠⁠ 3. Haig Partners - Since 2014, the Haig Report® has delivered expert analysis on dealership performance, market activity, and franchise valuations, offering a clear view of opportunities and challenges in automotive retail. Learn more in the full Q3 2025 Haig Report® by subscribing to receive it as soon as it's released. Visit @ https://share.hsforms.com/1AEDx2iJDSsibryqbI1HyCgnr2vn 4. CDG Circles - A modern peer group for auto dealers. Private dealer chats. Real insights — confidential, compliant, no travel required. Visit https://cdgcircles.com to learn more. Check out Car Dealership Guy's stuff: For dealers: Industry job board ➤ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠http://jobs.dealershipguy.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Dealership recruiting ➤ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠http://www.cdgrecruiting.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Fix your dealership's social media ➤ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠http://www.trynomad.co⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Request to be a podcast guest ➤ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠http://www.cdgguest.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ For industry vendors: Advertise with Car Dealership Guy ➤ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠http://www.cdgpartner.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Industry job board ➤ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠http://jobs.dealershipguy.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Request to be a podcast guest ➤ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠http://www.cdgguest.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Topics: 00:59 What defines the marathon's spirit? 02:53 Why did the CarMax CEO resign? 03:49 How is Carvana influencing the market? 07:14 Current state of the auto market? 11:14 Which brands are performing best? 21:40 Who is buying cars today? 26:51 Biggest opportunity in dealership sales? 29:05 Where are the hottest regional markets? 43:59 Future outlook for dealers? Car Dealership Guy Socials: X ➤ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠x.com/GuyDealership⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Instagram ➤ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠instagram.com/cardealershipguy/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ TikTok ➤ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠tiktok.com/@guydealership⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ LinkedIn ➤ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠linkedin.com/company/cardealershipguy⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Threads ➤ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠threads.net/@cardealershipguy⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Facebook ➤ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠facebook.com/profile.php?id=100077402857683⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Everything else ➤ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠dealershipguy.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

One decision you may be working on right now is where to stay during holiday or spring travel. Clark has some key advice if you're considering AirBnB or VRBO.   And - tomorrow is Veteran's Day. Clark shares advice and special warnings for those who have served our country. Airbnb & VRBO - New Rules: Segment 1 Ask Clark: Segment 2 Veterans Day: Segment 3 Ask Clark: Segment 4 Mentioned on the show: NYTimes: Oops, You Broke Something at an Airbnb. What Now? Clark Howard's New Airbnb Rule to You Need To Follow 3 Reasons You Should Never Book a Nonrefundable Hotel Room How To Find Cheap Flights in 3 Easy Steps Google Flights Launches New Tool for Finding Cheap Airfare Military and Veterans Guide: Free Resources for Your Finances-Clark.com Job-seeking servicemembers: Avoid scams while you search Want to support veterans? 4 tips for finding good charities Veterans and caregivers: Recognize VA benefits overpayment scams How To Freeze and Unfreeze Your Credit With Experian, Equifax and TransUnion Best Cash Back Credit Cards With No Annual Fee in 2025 Cash Back Credit Card Calculator - Clark Howard Clark.com resources: Episode transcripts Community.Clark.com  /  Ask Clark Clark.com daily money newsletter Consumer Action Center Free Helpline: 636-492-5275 Learn more about your ad choices: megaphone.fm/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Today's show features: Kable Derrow, Owner of Findlay Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram Will Holleman, Automotive Sales at Equifax Devin Kaulback, GM of Subaru of Niagara This episode is brought to you by: CR Stream – Put the power of multiple auctions in your hand! CR Stream multi-lists your inventory to OVE, SmartAuction, and Copart simultaneously. Capture vehicle photos, damage, details and pricing start to finish in under 10 minutes with the CR Stream iPhone and Android mobile apps. Pay only $150 sell fee when you vehicles sells at auction! visit https://crstream.com/ to learn more. Equifax – Fund More Auto Loans, Faster. Auto loan applicants are 40% more likely to be funded when instantly verified by The Work Number. You can get the data you need to know your borrower better and make fast, smart decisions. Equifax provides instant, secure access to verified borrower identity, address, income, and employment information, helping you move deals forward quickly. Visit https://carguymedia.com/3Lplzue to learn more. CDG Circles – A modern peer group for auto dealers. Private dealer chats. Real insights — confidential, compliant, no travel required. Visit https://cdgcircles.com/ to learn more. Car Dealership Guy is back with our second annual NADA Party—happening in Las Vegas on Thursday, February 5th. It's the hottest ticket at NADA 2026. Spots are limited and unfortunately we can't invite everyone —so RSVP today at https://carguymedia.com/cdglive and we hope to see you in Vegas! — Check out Car Dealership Guy's stuff: CDG News ➤ https://news.dealershipguy.com/ CDG Jobs ➤ https://jobs.dealershipguy.com/ CDG Recruiting ➤ https://www.cdgrecruiting.com/ My Socials: X ➤ https://www.twitter.com/GuyDealership Instagram ➤ https://www.instagram.com/cardealershipguy/ TikTok ➤ https://www.tiktok.com/@guydealership LinkedIn ➤ https://www.linkedin.com/company/cardealershipguy/ Threads ➤ https://www.threads.net/@cardealershipguy Facebook ➤ https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100077402857683 Everything else ➤ dealershipguy.com

It's November, and holiday shopping is underway. How do you make sure your packages aren't stolen? Also, now that we're in Black Friday month - there's a major hazard to avoid while purchasing online.  Thwarting Porch Pirates: Segment 1 Ask Clark: Segment 2 Warning: BNPL aka Pay In 4: Segment 3 Ask Clark: Segment 4 Mentioned on the show: Avoid Porch Pirates With These Delivery Options From Amazon, UPS, FedEx and USPS⁠ How To Freeze and Unfreeze Your Credit With Experian, Equifax & TransUnion⁠ ⁠Should I Freeze My Credit With the Other Credit Bureaus?⁠ 12 Keys To Keeping Your Home Wi-Fi Network Safe and Secure Why 'Buy Now, Pay Later' Worries Clark Howard What is hospital medicine, and what is a hospitalist? Clark.com resources: Episode transcripts Community.Clark.com  /  Ask Clark Clark.com daily money newsletter Consumer Action Center Free Helpline: 636-492-5275 Learn more about your ad choices: megaphone.fm/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Friday - Clark Stinks day! Christa shares Clark Stinks posts with Clark. Submit yours at Clark.com/ClarkStinks. Also today - What are the chances of full recession, what's the extent of it  now, and how can you prepare?  There are some key steps to take.  Clark Stinks: Segments 1 & 2 Recession Planning: Segment 3 Ask Clark: Segment 4 Mentioned on the show: How To Freeze and Unfreeze Your Credit With Experian, Equifax and TransUnion Should I Freeze My Credit With the Other Credit Bureaus? Streaming TV - Clark.com Why You Need To Check Your Credit Report Today Credit Karma Review: Free Credit Score and More at Your Fingertips Axios:The 22 states close to (or in) recession Credit Card Balance Transfer Calculator Loan Payoff Calculator  /  Make A Budget - Clark.com 10 Ways To Save on Prescription Drugs 3 Reasons You Should Never Book a Nonrefundable Hotel Room Clark.com resources: Episode transcripts Community.Clark.com  /  Ask Clark Clark.com daily money newsletter Consumer Action Center Free Helpline: 636-492-5275 Learn more about your ad choices: megaphone.fm/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Learn how to get and read your free credit reports and spot red flags so you can protect your score and money. How do you set a realistic budget for a big life event without guilt? What's the foolproof way to get and read your free credit reports? In this episode, hosts Sean Pyles and Elizabeth Ayoola discuss wedding budgeting and credit monitoring to help you protect your finances. They open by discussing trip and wedding budgeting trade-offs, like how to prioritize comfort, set spending caps, and decide when to splurge. They share tactics for separating wedding and honeymoon costs, using cash gifts and registries wisely, and staying flexible when real prices blow past early estimates. Then, NerdWallet lead writer Amanda Barroso joins Sean and Elizabeth to answer listeners' questions about how to access and monitor their credit reports. They explain the difference between reports and scores and do a live read-through of Sean's Experian report. They cover how to get free weekly credit reports, how to spot hard vs. soft inquiries, what truly matters to your score, what to ignore, and step-by-step moves to dispute errors with the right bureau(s) fast. NerdWallet's list of the best high-yield savings accounts: https://www.nerdwallet.com/banking/best/high-yield-online-savings-accounts  Standout high-yield CDs: https://www.nerdwallet.com/m/banking/standout-cd-rates-2  Enter your deposit, CD term and APY to see what interest you would earn on a certificate of deposit with NerdWallet's free CD calculator: https://www.nerdwallet.com/banking/calculators/cd-calculator  Want us to review your budget? Fill out this form — completely anonymously if you want — and we might feature your budget in a future segment! https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScK53yAufsc4v5UpghhVfxtk2MoyooHzlSIRBnRxUPl3hKBig/viewform?usp=header In their conversation, the Nerds discuss: free credit report, credit score, FICO vs VantageScore, how to read a credit report, dispute credit report errors, credit freeze vs lock, Experian, Equifax, TransUnion, hard vs soft inquiry, identity theft credit report, free weekly credit reports, adverse action notice, credit utilization, bank app credit score, frozen credit report, collections on credit report, mortgage on credit report, mixed credit files, verify identity for credit report, step by step read credit report, remove errors from credit report, how to check credit score for free, VantageScore 3.0, FICO score 10T, credit bureau upsell, lock vs freeze security, and travel budget planning. To send the Nerds your money questions, call or text the Nerd hotline at 901-730-6373 or email podcast@nerdwallet.com. Like what you hear? Please leave us a review and tell a friend. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Food prices continue to rise - and Team Clark continues to find ways to help you control those costs.  Also today, something else costing more - electricity. With winter weather on the horizon how do you keep yourself warm and avoid setting your wallet on fire? Clark discusses ways to help you use less electricity. Grocery Savings: Segment 1 Ask Clark: Segment 2 Home Power Bills: Segment 3 Ask Clark: Segment 4 Mentioned on the show: How to Save Money on Groceries: 22 Clever Ways Aldi products have a new look / Aldi rebrands its private-label products Credit Karma Review: Free Credit Score and More  /  How To Monitor Your Credit How To Freeze and Unfreeze Your Credit With Experian, Equifax and TransUnion How To Save Money on Utilities   /   Electrify Now Heat Pumps  /  Want a heat pump? This startup just cut the cost in half Is It Ever OK To Co-Sign a Loan With a Family Member? Clark.com resources: Episode transcripts Community.Clark.com  /  Ask Clark Clark.com daily money newsletter Consumer Action Center Free Helpline: 636-492-5275 Learn more about your ad choices: megaphone.fm/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Keith sits down with Terry Kerr and Matthew Vanhorn, the leaders of America's oldest turnkey real estate provider, Mid South Home Buyers, to unpack the practical systems that keep thousands of rental units profitable and tenants happy. With national renter mobility dropping, longer stays are now the norm. Average resident stay is 4 years—double the industry average, thanks to proactive maintenance and relationship-driven management. Instead of fighting for eyeballs on Zillow, they target HR departments at hospitals, universities, and major employers, tapping into pre-screened, income-verified tenants with stable paychecks and predictable work schedules. Invest where returns still make sense. Visit midsouthhomebuyers.com to book your investor tour and get $500 off your first property. Resources: Switch to listening to the podcast on the Apple Podcasts or Spotify app, as the dedicated GRE mobile app will be discontinued at the end of the month. Show Notes: GetRichEducation.com/576 For access to properties or free help with a GRE Investment Coach, start here: GREmarketplace.com GRE Free Investment Coaching: GREinvestmentcoach.com Get mortgage loans for investment property: RidgeLendingGroup.com or call 855-74-RIDGE  or e-mail: info@RidgeLendingGroup.com Invest with Freedom Family Investments.  For predictable 10-12% quarterly returns, visit FreedomFamilyInvestments.com/GRE or text  1-937-795-8989 to speak with a freedom coach Will you please leave a review for the show? I'd be grateful. Search “how to leave an Apple Podcasts review”  For advertising inquiries, visit: GetRichEducation.com/ad Best Financial Education: GetRichEducation.com Get our wealth-building newsletter free— text ‘GRE' to 66866 Our YouTube Channel: www.youtube.com/c/GetRichEducation Follow us on Instagram: @getricheducation Complete episode transcript: Keith Weinhold  0:01   welcome to GRE I'm your host. Keith Weinhold, learn about how to cut your rental property vacancies and keep tenants twice as long. Why Memphis, Tennessee stays the cash flow King, and exactly where to find really low cost, quality properties today. That make sense from day one today on, get rich education.   Keith Weinhold  0:26   You know, most people think they're playing it safe with their liquid money, but they're actually losing savings accounts and bonds don't keep up when true inflation eats six or 7% of your wealth. Every single year, I invest my liquidity with FFI freedom family investments in their flagship program. Why fixed 10 to 12% returns have been predictable and paid quarterly. There is real world security backed by needs based real estate like affordable housing, Senior Living and health care. Ask about the freedom flagship program. When you speak to a freedom coach there, and that's just one part of their family of products, they've got workshops, webinars and seminars designed to educate you before you invest. Start with as little as 25k and finally, get your money working as hard as you do. Get started at Freedom family investments.com/gre, or send a text now it's 1-937-795-8989, yep, text their freedom coach, directly. Again, 1-937-795-8989,   Corey Coates  1:39   you're listening to the show that has created more financial freedom than nearly any show in the world. This is get rich education.   Keith Weinhold  1:49   Welcome to GRE from New York's Long Island Sound to Washington's Puget Sound and across 188 nations worldwide. I'm Keith Weinhold, and you're listening to get rich education. There's an economic trend that you need to be aware of. We're going to talk about how you can play it in this era, sources ranging from Redfin to Housing Wire and others, you know they're all in agreement that the transiency rate, that mobility rate for Americans, is down. And what that means is, when people find a place to live, whether they're a property owner or a renter, they are staying put longer. They put this big, heavy anchor down, and that kind of goes along with employment. Although the unemployment rate is low right now, there aren't very many people moving jobs or changing jobs. So the rate of hiring is low, that's bad, but the rate of employer firings is low, that's good. So on balance, Americans are keeping their job if they've already got one, and they're keeping their home if they've already got one. But because movement has slowed, as we are in this slower housing market, I'll drastically oversimplify here. All right, a few years ago, you might have had a tenant stay for two years, and then there would be a one month vacancy between tenancies today, double both of those. You're more likely to see a four year stay, but two months between vacancies. So your occupancy rate, therefore, is the same in both scenarios, but there's less movement. Again, oversimplifying, but you can see the effect a longer vacancy period is bad, a longer tenant retention period is good, all right. Well, how do you increase your tenant's length of stay and decrease that vacancy in order to be more profitable as an investor and yet give your tenant a satisfactory experience too well. One thing that you can do is list your vacant unit with an employer. Yeah, advertise it through a local stable company. You're going to end up with higher quality tenants. See, there's already this built in screening that was done for you. The employer basically did that for you. So when you work directly with especially hospitals, universities, corporate campuses or military bases, what you're doing is you're fishing from a pond of already vetted, income verified and drug screened candidates. See these tenants what they had to do. They already had to pass HR background checks and employment verification in order to get their job. So for you, that saves you both risk and time compared to the you know, the Craigslist style roll the dice crowd. Now, Of course, we cannot discriminate against certain groups of people, and we'll get into that shortly. But of course, steady employment equals steady rent tenants sourced through employers. They usually have reliable paychecks, often through direct deposit. They've got predictable work schedules, and there's going to be less income volatility. So that means that you'll have fewer late payments and lower eviction risk. And some landlords, you know what they do, they even structure rent payments through payroll deduction. I mean that essentially automates the rent collection. Yes, you can do that. Employees who move for a job, they often sign longer leases, because relocating again would be a hassle. So many will stay in your unit as long as they stay employed. That could be two years or five years, especially in the health care, education and tech sector. So less turnover means fewer make ready costs for you, fewer showings and just more ease and peace of mind. So advertising through employers that is a really low competition marketing channel as well. You know, most landlords, they blast their listings on Zillow apartments.com or maybe Facebook marketplace. Well over there, your post is just one out of hundreds, instead of all that competition, what you're doing is you're finding quiet, uncrowded channels when you utilize these employer housing boards and their HR relocation departments, and this way you can even get inside that company's internal newsletters so you're reaching renters before they can even start scrolling listings over on Zillow and see employers love this too. It's not like the employer is having to do a favor for you. They love it, because when they can help new hires or transferees find housing, it's better for that company. It reduces the employee's stress. It improves the retention at that company. If they have an employer that's satisfied and has a good place to stay, and it really boosts that company's recruiting success. So you're helping yourself, you're helping that company, and you're helping their new employee, which is your tenant. So this makes HR departments. They are surprisingly receptive to you. They might even circulate your listing internally or add you to their housing resource list. So this is a perfect fit for these hands off turnkey investors. So if you're doing that or you're managing properties remotely, this employer outreach, it really gives you a nice extra layer of reliability. And as far as the people that will be your tenants, think about nurses, engineers. IT staff, sometimes teachers, sometimes military based personnel. I mean, they are all ideal long term tenants. Now the way that you can actually do this and put it into practice is identify major employers that are near your property, that could be hospital systems, that could be universities or manufacturing plants, then contact their HR or the relocation department, and after that, it's not hard just provide them with a concise PDF or a one page flyer with your property photos and the monthly rent amount. And one thing you can do, and you should in this case, is put the distance or the time it takes to travel to the employer from your rental unit, and then add your contact info. That is exactly how you do it. You can offer a small incentive, like $50 off the first month for employees. So this is a slick way to advertise your vacancy with employers and make you more profitable over time.    Keith Weinhold  7:02   Now today, we're going to talk to who is actually America's oldest turnkey real estate company. As far as we know, they're based in Memphis, Tennessee, and we'll learn how they advertise a vacant unit and screen prospective tenants and place them and maintain their units over time. They are called mid south homebuyers. You've heard them on the show before, and because of their success, both investors and other real estate companies, they actually listen in intently to what these people have to say. I mean, others study them and learn from them. These are the people other companies study, and you're still going to hear from their principal and their sales lead about reducing your vacancy time and increasing your tenant duration. And, you know, it's just kind of funny how often Memphis, Tennessee, which is where they're based, how often this comes up in cash flowing real estate conversations that you have out there over time? I mean. And Memphis consistently has the best cash flow, maybe, amongst any substantial Metro in the nation. We'll just say among metros that are big enough to have a major pro sports team. I mean, Memphis does have the NBA Grizzlies. There aren't many other cities that can even compete with Memphis as the cashflow King, although there are some that you can work into the conversation. Indianapolis, Cleveland and Oklahoma City are some of those places. Now, before we're done, you'll also learn about how, even following this generation's big inflationary wave, how purchase prices are still as affordable as they are in both Memphis and Little Rock. I mean, this is going to make you ask out loud today, how could they still be so low? We'll also talk about conventional, enduring property management techniques today, now next month here on the show, we're going to talk about how you can use AI to self manage your properties, and that show next month is going to be with an expert straight from Silicon Valley. We're going to talk to the CEO of hemlane then and their AI driven property management software. She used to work for Apple, and she's got a Harvard Business School degree. That is next month today. It's about tried and proven techniques to make you more profitable as an investor   Keith Weinhold  11:24   I'd like to welcome in longtime friends of the show, with the emphasis on long time since they were first here with us, nearly 11 years ago, They are those ever steady property providers based in Memphis, mid south homebuyers. They also serve Little Rock, Arkansas. I have physically walked their offices and properties in person myself. They are, in fact, America's oldest turnkey real estate provider. And it's the return of their founder and principal, Terry Kerr and a second guest who you'll meet shortly, Terry, welcome back on of the show.   Terry Kerr  12:04   Thanks so much, Keith, so glad to be back.   Keith Weinhold  12:07   Congrats on your success. Your model and operation is prominent and exemplary nationally. You've now grown to 110 w2 employees there, and your 13 plus year property management guru who's been leading that entire division is now your sales director. It's terrific to introduce him to the world today. Matthew Van Horn,   Matthew Vanhorn  12:31   Keith, so great to be on here. Long time listener of the show. Really great to meet you.    Keith Weinhold  12:36   Yeah. Appreciate it now you'll soon be listening to yourself on the show. GRE, listeners are familiar with the turnkey real estate model. What you do is buy a distressed property, you rehab it, and then you place a tenant in the property, and you hold on to that for investors across the nation for the production of long term cash flow. Well, let's get an update between Memphis and Little Rock. How many properties do you hold under management for investors now and then? What percent are single family rentals versus other types?   Terry Kerr  13:07   Right now, we're about 57 maybe a little closer to 5800 and the vast majority of them are single family houses. I'm going to say probably. What 5% are duplexes? Matthew, something like that. Yeah, something like that. So no other multis, just single family, most of them rehabs. And of course, now we're doing a new construction direct to rental as well.   Keith Weinhold  13:29   Interestingly, with 58 to 5900 rentals, I mean, you can easily sort of be your own surveying outfit in an informal way, in finding out what's happening with the market, what all the dynamics are. So why don't we start at the beginning, when you're marketing and advertising and looking to place a tenant, tell us about just what you look for, just what you need to avoid. I mean checking for the tenant. That typically involves an employment check, a credit check, a rental history. Sometimes something might appear like a red flag, say, a 590 credit score. Would you always accept tenants in that condition? Because there are times when there are extenuating circumstances when a tenant with a 590 credit score actually might be a good placement. So tell us more about that screening.   Terry Kerr  14:17   As you know, it is renters that drive our returns as investors, and so selecting the right renter is where the money is made in this business, for sure, we are doing as much screening as we can for our renters. There's a lot that goes into that. We actually have a whole processing department. You know some people here who spend their whole day working in the processing division. And what you really got to watch out for, as far as red flags, is just fraud. There are so many ways you can use machines to defraud, and we have people who are able to detect and weed out the bad actors there, but we know what works really well. We have, for instance, in. Arkansas, the main employer of our residents is Baptist Health Medical Center, and we love our healthcare workers there. So that's a place that, you know, starting from the marketing side, we're going to dial up our marketing in those places we're going to go to the HR department, or we're often in the HR department of Baptist Health Medical Center, pushing and asking for referrals from them, you know. And same with just referrals in general, good tenants tend to refer other good tenants. We're of course, looking for strong income that we can verify. And more than anything, we're looking for strong, credible current rental history, so someone who's paying the rent today somewhere to a verified landlord, not their sister, you know, but a very verified landlord. That's the big thing, Keith.   Keith Weinhold  15:50   Tell us more about that. That's great that you're being proactive and getting right in there with a stable, steady employer. That is where our rent comes from. After all, are there any other red flags, maybe things that people would not think about identifying as a red flag when it comes to that employment, in that credit, in that rental history   Matthew Vanhorn  16:11   one reason I bring up the localized marketing that some people may not think about is that renters who move from Out of state often will land in a place and then stay there for one year, which is fine, but then they often don't renew their lease and they'll move somewhere else. Now, of course, what we have to do above all is we have to be legal, you know, so we can't discriminate against someone from coming from out of town, but what we can do is dial up our localized marketing so that we're getting people who are in the neighborhood, who love the neighborhood already where they are, and so that contributes to longer residence days, and it's just little things like that. Once again, you're looking for employment that you can verify, so that you know that you're getting a quality renter.   Terry Kerr  16:59   I'll also say that one of the ways that we try to attract the most potential residents we can is by having a free application. So typically, a property management company is going to charge, you know, 50 to 75 bucks per applicant. And we're very fortunate that we've get a terrific deal from Equifax, because we're also lenders, we do some lending to our investors, which gives us a really good deal on paying for credit checks. And so we waive those fees for our residents. And so a lot more folks are going to apply with us, because it doesn't cost them anything to apply. And of course, the more people that apply, you've got a much better shot at a filling the property quicker, but also finding a much better resident.   Keith Weinhold  17:44   well this is a great part of building the connection. One of the first interactions they have with you is realizing that you don't have any application fee. And AI can be great for marketing and for doing things like writing listing descriptions, but you build that human connection there. For example, you do in person showings. You invite prospective tenants in current tenants into your physical office, kind of replacing society's trust crisis with humanity.   Matthew Vanhorn  18:14   Yes, that's right, Keith. In the last 12 months, we've spent more money than ever on technology, so we are leaning heavily into creating the systems and processes that allow us to get to our service quickly. And at the same time, we've invested more into staffing up in the past 12 months, into inviting people into our office, you know, and we can still do everything remotely. We can do it virtually for folks who want that, we found that a lot of residents love to look us in the face, and they like to come down to our office, and they like to sit across from Karen and across from Gabby, and they just love the personalized experience that we give them. It's hard to quantify it, Keith, but I just really believe that it drives longevity, right?   Keith Weinhold  19:04   Having a face behind that rental because your properties are freshly rehabbed, or, in some cases, they're new builds, so hopefully you won't have too many tenant service calls once they do become a resident, and you don't need to interact with them all the time, though you're there for them, but once you have chosen a tenant, and that tenant is placed, you know somebody has to be the adult in the lease, and we sincerely hope that the tenant is one of them. So with regard to that, how do you help ensure that tenants keep making on time payments, and you can keep tenants and not get ones that break the lease. So can you speak to us about that, how you can help identify that in the screening and then that ongoing relationship?   Matthew Vanhorn  19:47    I will say that perfect vetting does not necessarily lead to perfect collections, because it turns out that every one of our residents, they are humans, and as humans, we run into things you. Know, divorce can happen. Relationship breakups can happen, job losses happen. Just very human things happen. And so we like to stay in touch with our residents as often as possible, and very much encourage an open line of communication. We very much believe in compassion based collections here at Mid South. And so when residents fall upon hard times, we are truly there for them. Memphis actually has more nonprofits per capita than any place in America then. So when residents do fall on hard times, you know, and it happens, we're actually able to reach out. We have connections with several agencies that can help with rental assistance for renters who need it, we found that by pouring into our staffing with the resident support and solutions department that we've had a lot of success in collecting just by keeping that relationship intact when the pandemic hit. For instance, and I know that's been a few years from now, and maybe we all want to forget it, our collections rate actually went up during that time, and I attribute that largely to the fact that, number one, we had a relationship in place with our renters. We staffed up, and matter of fact, we had a full time person just working to get rent assistance for those renters who kind of had been disenfranchised by the pandemic   Keith Weinhold  21:26   during pandemic times or post pandemic times whenever it is us as investors, we're always interested in reducing that vacancy time. We seem to be in a period, at least nationally, where when people get a hold of a place, they want to keep it and hold on to it. In a lot of markets, the duration of a tenancy has been increasing. So despite what era that we're in, can you talk to us about some of the best practices for how you reduce the vacancy time? Because we all know vacancy and turnover is our biggest expense over time. As investors,    Terry Kerr  21:58   I like to say, you know, at the heart of what we do is making sure that when a hard working, single mother comes home at the end of the day, she can give her child a hot bath. And that's not possible if the water heaters out. And that's just one example, but our main job is to give a good quality of life to the residents that we are caring for, and if we can do that, and if we can treat them with respect when they do fall on hard times, like Matthew said, they're going to want to renew the lease. So we have got a almost twice the average length of stay as the industry average, which is we've got about a four year average resident stay. And when folks move out of a mid south house, it's not because they can find a better value they're going to get. They're already in the nicest house on the street. And if something breaks, we're out there lickety split to fix it. When folks move out of a mid south house. It's either because they're downsizing. Kids are moving out, or they're going up because they're having their family increases and they've got to move up, or maybe something happens to them, like Matthew mentioned, you know, death, divorce, disability, these things happen, right? But no one's moving out because they can find a better value or because they're not getting the service or respect that they deserve.    Keith Weinhold  23:25   That says a lot. Being managers of 5800 to 5900 properties, which gives you this sort of canvassing or de facto surveying ability that you have. What are we seeing for the direction of rents? We'll get into rents and prices later, because nationally, rents are just holding steady. They're really not rising very much. What do you see there?   Matthew Vanhorn  23:49   Yes, we saw them fairly stable. Over the course of 2024 I have started to see an uptick here in the past few months, I will say, which is encouraging for investors, for sure, each month, I'm looking at all of the renewal rates personally, to kind of look at that, engage the market. And like you said, it really is helpful. I mean, yes, we have all the tools, Zillow, rentometer, all these things, but there's nothing like just our own data of seeing, hey, what's the house across the street renting for? You know, how long did it take for that to rent and incorporating that into our data. And right now, our houses are moving at a faster pace on the leasing tip, which rent increases tend to follow that    Keith Weinhold  24:30   when it comes to optimizing rents, a lot of that coming back to reducing vacancy time. There are a number of strategies that one can employ now it's not with you guys, but I have a single family rental home in another market, and one promotion that that manager is running and encouraged me to participate in is a 50 inch flat screen TV having that and giving it away to the tenant. Somehow, that only costs $250 so I decided to do that. At for a vacancy that I have there in that market. Now, some investors might say, you know, why am I buying TVs for a tenant? I'm already providing them with a place. If the rent is 1500 bucks, a $250 TV only costs five days of vacancy, and that helps me reduce that vacancy period. Might even make a tenant want to stay longer, so sometimes you got to be thinking about how your tenant thinks, and you can come up with inventive ways to reduce vacancy. Do you have anything like that, any small concession that you've offered or have needed to offer in either market?   Terry Kerr  25:33   Well, we haven't done anything like that, Keith, but what we do like to do, and Matthew mentioned this earlier, is as great tenants tend to refer other great residents, and so we have a referral bonus that we pay out to our residents that refer other folks to us, and that does not come out of the pocket of our investors, that comes out of our pocket, because it's our job to make sure that We rent these properties as quick as we can to qualified residents.   Keith Weinhold  26:04   One thing that I've liked about Memphis, which few markets have, is that it's embedded within renter culture in Memphis, since it is such a renter city, that renters travel with their appliances, like the refrigerator, in their stove, in their dishwasher, which always seems crazy to me, so you're not providing those appliances. It seems like that fact alone might help with resident retention in Memphis. They're just less likely to move when they have more stuff to move.   Matthew Vanhorn  26:35   Yeah, it's really true. Yeah. And the longer people stay, the longer they tend to stay as funny as that sounds. And yeah, that's something that we found even in our new construction homes where we do provide the appliances we've been finding in many instances, still the residents are coming with their own appliances. And so we're storing our appliance, our brand new appliances, in our warehouse.   Keith Weinhold  26:58   Wow, yes, that's just something that you don't see in other places. And when it comes to retention, we're interested in maintaining the property like you talked about being proactive with are there some other things you do to help ensure that the maintenance expenses stay lower throughout the lifetime of that investor ownership? How do you approach that?   Terry Kerr  27:16   It really starts with doing a full blown rehab, right? So every once in a while, you know, we'll have houses that, you know, have some age on the components. But when we do a rehab, everything is brand spanking new, like a new roof, gut, the kitchen, got the bathroom, you know, all new electrical, all new plumbing, all new HVAC, a new water heater the whole nine yards. So it starts there, and then when a property turns over, we go into the property, and we are looking for safe and clean, right? So we want to make sure to keep the water out. We want to make sure that everything is safe and the property is tip top and super clean. Fortunately, the folks that are maintaining the houses for our investors. The technicians are the same technicians that did the renovations on the property, right? And it's the same materials. Yeah, it's like, we have an assembly line and a junky house jumps on the assembly line, and we rip everything off, and all the same materials jump back on the house. So we're able to keep costs low because of that, and also because the labor that we end up having to pay the technicians typically is a lot less than normal, because they're used to working on the same water heater, the same HVAC system, you know, the same furnace, the same dishwasher. So our volume model kind of helps with that.   Keith Weinhold  28:39   Oh, if you were listening closely, yes, what a huge efficiency that can be. You fellas, have any last thoughts about efficient property management, since that's what you've led for more than 13 years, Matthew,   Matthew Vanhorn  28:51   I resonate with what you said about how many investors overlook vacancy costs when properties turn over. And so I think it's just getting your rents right on the money, maybe just a little below, can actually drive returns, as opposed to maybe trying to get an extra 25 bucks more, which takes you three weeks longer to rent. You actually did not come out ahead in that, in that scenario, Keith   Keith Weinhold  29:14   today, with inflation, a $25 difference, I mean, we're down to what 12 hours of vacancy is, really how we're talking about there Property Management turning a passive income into an active lifestyle since forever. That's what they do. Property managers are the people that have never met a maintenance issue that waited until business hours. So that's why I'm grateful that my managers do what they do for me. That's what we're talking about today. More when we come back with Terry Kerr and Matthew Van Horn of mid south homebuyers, I'm your host. Keith Weinhold   Keith Weinhold  29:45   if you're scrolling for quality real estate and finance info today, yeah, it can be a mess. You hit paywalls, pop ups, push alerts, Cookie banners. It's like the internet is playing defense against you. Not so fun. That's why. It matters to get clean, free content that actually adds no hype value to your life. This is the golden age of quality email newsletters, and I write every word of ours myself. It's got a dash of humor. It's direct, and it gets to the point because even the word abbreviation is too long, my letter takes less than three minutes to read, and it leaves you feeling sharp and in the know about real estate investing, this is paradigm shifting material, and when you start the letter, you'll also get my one hour fast real estate video course, completely free as well. It's called The Don't quit your Daydream letter. It wires your mind for wealth, and it couldn't be simpler to get visit gre letter.com while it's fresh in your head, take a moment to do it now at gre letter.com Visit gre letter.com    Keith Weinhold  30:56   the same place where I get my own mortgage loans is where you can get yours. Ridge lending group and MLS, 42056, they provided our listeners with more loans than anyone because they specialize in income properties. They help you build a long term plan for growing your real estate empire with leverage. Start your pre qual and even chat with President chailey Ridge personally, while it's on your mind, start at Ridge lending group.com that's Ridge lending group.com   Tom Wheelwright  31:31   this is Rich Dad Advisor Tom wheelwright. Listen to get rich education with Keith Weinhold, and don't quit your Daydream.   Keith Weinhold  31:37   welcome back to get rich education. You've got the pleasure of listening to the voices of America's oldest turnkey real estate provider mid south homebuyers based in Memphis, Tennessee, and some years ago, they branched out to Little Rock, Arkansas as well, just about a two hour road trip west of Memphis. When us as investors buy a property, we've got to be cognizant of the fact that that property swims in an economic ocean, and therefore job vibrancy is, after all, how the tenant pays the rent. So tell us about economic developments in Memphis and Little Rock, because there are some exciting ones.   Matthew Vanhorn  32:24   So yeah, both in Memphis and in Little Rock, we've got the roads, we've got the rivers, we've got the rails, which drives both Memphis and Little Rock as distribution hubs here in the middle of America. And so of course, FedEx famously has their headquarters here in Memphis. Many of your listeners will know it's the largest cargo airport in America. We've had a resurgence of X. AI has actually come to Memphis and built the world's largest supercomputer here in Memphis, and they're actually working hard now on building a second called Colossus two, which is going to be even larger. They're saying it may hold as many as 1 million Nvidia chips, which I can't do that math, but that's a lot of money. And so x AI is has quickly become the second largest taxpayer here in Memphis and in Shelby County. And 25% of those tax proceeds, by the way are going, they're earmarked to go right into that local community beside where the plant is, and all the development is in Little Rock. You know, of course, it's Arkansas's largest city. It's the capital city, and so by nature of that, there are many stable state government jobs there that is a bulwark of the economic development there. There is a actually Fintech startup space is big in Little Rock as well. Lockheed Martin has been doing developments there, so a lot of aerospace development around Little Rock. Folks who look at our homes will also notice that we are in Jacksonville, which is a suburb of Little Rock that's anchored by the Air Force base there in Jacksonville. And there's actually a large munitions supplier there, Sig Sauer, which provides a lot of jobs to the locals there. And our number one, I may have mentioned it earlier, our number one employer in Central Arkansas is actually Baptist Health Medical Center. And just generally speaking, health care workers make up the largest portion of our residents in Central Arkansas. So a lot of great economic drivers that we're seeing bringing renters to Little Rock and and new jobs there. As a matter of fact, not just that, but I noted recently that the cost of living in Little Rock is now 10% below the national average. I think we had a report on our website a few years ago that it was 6% and that's actually. It's only becoming more favorable to live in Central Arkansas.   Keith Weinhold  35:04   You're talking about stable and growing drivers here, AI related businesses and healthcare. Let's talk about those rents and prices. Because really, this is one reason why national investors are so drawn to that area. It's that high affordability and that high ratio of rent income to purchase price. So what sort of rent and price ranges are we looking at in both markets now,   Matthew Vanhorn  35:29   it's not the same as it was when I started here in 2012 Reds have increased and so, you know, average rents around here start around 900 and now we're going up to about 1700 toward the high end there. And you know, the great news is that incomes have increased as well, and so our renters are able to afford this just as well as they were before. Or maybe even better, like I mentioned, cost of living in Arkansas has actually improved. And so what that means is people are actually making more money compared to the rent, even though rents have increased, which I believe is good news for investors, and it's been good news for us as a management company, as I think that contributes to the resident longevity there, once again,   Keith Weinhold  36:17   nowhere in the nation Do we hear enough about increased affordability stories, which is exactly what you have when your income rises faster than your rent, which is a harbinger of being able to increase the rent in the future. Tell us more about the rent in price ranges in both markets.   Matthew Vanhorn  36:35   In Memphis, if you get a two bed, one bath, you can often find that for as low as 808 850, something like that. As you step up into a three bed one bath, that's going to be somewhere between 1000 1200, depending on where you are in the city, there in Memphis, if you're in our new construction homes, those can range between 1395 all the way up to 1850 once again, depending on the size of the construction and the location out in Arkansas, rents tend to be just a little bit higher than in Memphis. So you see the rent starting there around 950 and going up to just under 2000   Keith Weinhold  37:19   and we're interested in that capital price, because a lot of times, investors think about their purchase through that perspective of the ratio of the rent income to the purchase price.   Matthew Vanhorn  37:30   As far as sales price goes, Keith, we started right around $100,000 on the low end, and those can range up to 240,000 thereabouts, on the high end, if you're talking about a new construction, three, two with a two car garage in an appreciating area. You can see that sort of range in Memphis, very similar, very similar. We have some of our smaller rehabs starting as low as 100,000 and going up to about that $215,000 range.   Keith Weinhold  38:04   Now, I would imagine, in the inflationary era that we're still in, that you get investors that call in there, and you do have these robust interactions with investors, where you talk with them on the phone like a human being, and people that say, come on. How can you get a respectable tenant in a single family rehab rental home that only costs $120,000 How do you handle questions like that?   Matthew Vanhorn  38:30   That's the whole job here is explaining that Sure, no where our renters are living. It's the best home that they've ever lived in, and it's it's in a affordable area. It's in an area where their friends live, where you just have workforce, just blue collar, but beautiful neighborhoods where they live. And I mean, they're proud to call these houses their home, and for many, it really is their dream home.   Keith Weinhold  38:55   People mold their lawns. The streets aren't littered with trash. I know where you guys invest. I've been on the streets there with you, checking them out. What percentage of investors finance the property, and how has that changed over time?   Terry Kerr  39:09   I'm going to say that it's probably about 75% finance, 25% cash. A lot of your listeners come with their own mortgage broker. The ones that don't, we have our tried and true mortgage brokers. Interest rates are not 4% anymore, and some folks are are wanting to pay cash, and they do, and some of them will pay cash, and then, you know, plan on refinancing later. But right now, that's probably about 25% cash, 75% finance.    Keith Weinhold  39:36   Yeah, it's interesting to see that direction, since rates did begin to get higher in 2022 you have this robust interaction with investors, but that doesn't only have to be over the phone. You guys are so proud of what you do that you've long offered investor tours. In fact, now you're doing more of those investor tours than you ever have. I believe you're doing 11. In tours per year in Memphis, and five in Little Rock as well.So tell us about that.    Terry Kerr  40:04   I guess it was maybe seven or eight years ago. We're so stoked that everybody wants to buy houses from us, and we've got, you know, a short wait list, and that's awesome, but we want folks to come visit us, and so, you know, we just started offering folks $500 off of the purchase of their first home, if they'll just come visit us. And so we know it's in our best interest to try to get to know our investors on a personal level, and the investors that do come to visit us, and we're able to pull back the curtain and show them, you know how operational efficiency benefits them as investors. I think they appreciate it, and then we do also just kind of like the nerd out on the nuts and bolts of the business. So it's fun to be able to pull that curtain back.   Keith Weinhold  40:48   Now, you don't have to be an investor to come on the tour, either prospective investors or regular investors that are already there can come on the tour. Is the Tour Free? Absolutely. So the tour is free, and you get a $500 credit if you end up purchasing there. Most investors never come physically see the property at all, but you sure can do that, and they make it really easy for you. Well, this is going to help a lot of people, especially when we think about how to manage the tenant and reduce our vacancy time in today's era. Before I ask how our listeners can learn more about you. Do you have any last thoughts at all about anything that we discussed management or properties or tenants or anything else? Maybe I did not think about asking you.   Matthew Vanhorn  41:32   I'll just go back to Keith talking about how well staffed we are here at Mid South. I think that's where we stand. Apart from a lot of our competitors is that we're not just two or three guys in an office here, we have over 100 employees. It takes speed to deliver good service. Service leads to satisfaction. Satisfaction leads to the residents staying. The resident staying leads to stacks of cash for you as investors, and the only way you can do that is if you're staffed up properly. And so that's something that you want to ask if you're ever vetting another property manager, is what does your staff look like? And really understand, can they actually provide the service to their residents and to their investors that they're reporting?   Keith Weinhold  42:17   You have helped more of our listeners than any other provider in the nation, certainly over 100 of them, perhaps hundreds by now. I'm not really sure if listeners want to get a hold of you, what's the best way for them to do that?    Terry Kerr  42:31   Invest at mid southhomebuyers.com   Keith Weinhold  42:34   that's a great starting place for you. And that way you can take a look at properties, get thinking about the market. Learn more about their management and get a hold of them. Terry and Matthew, it's been valuable as usual. Thanks so much for coming out of the show.   Matthew Vanhorn  42:49   Thank you, Keith.    Terry Kerr  42:49   Thank you, Keith.   Keith Weinhold  42:56   Oh yeah. Sharp insights from Terry and Matthew at mid south homebuyers today, waiving their application fee means more applicants, a bigger renter pool to choose from, which either shortens your vacancy time or it's going to get you a better quality tenant. Now, a lot of people, they think that real estate is unaffordable and even impossible, but few make it easier and more affordable than these people. And I think I shared with you before that, an 18 year old guy who I do know and have talked to in person, he bought his first ever rental property from mid south homebuyers. So it's kind of interesting. His goal was to own his first rental property when he was 18, and he closed just in time the day before his 19th birthday. I think he's age 20 now, but because fully renovated single family homes can be bought in a range of about 100 to 220k here, and you will put 20 to 25% of a down payment on that your monthly rent is about eight tenths of 1% of that purchase price. Okay, so that's renovated, and then new builds sell in a range of 200 to 260k rent to price ratios on those are a little lower. They're point seven five or so. Now we are here in an era where mortgage rates are in the low sixes for owner occupied that means you'll pay closer to 7% on income properties. But if you go new build, which is really something I've been suggesting to you for a while, if you can swing it, those rates are as low as five and a quarter percent for qualified buyers here, yes, at these low Memphis and Little Rock prices, they've got a few duplexes usually available as well, renting your residence. It's just something that's sort of in the culture there in Memphis, and that's why they're confident in offering a number of guarantees for investors. They just do things that. That other providers don't do in the rare event that your property is occupied and then it somehow falls vacant during your first year of ownership. Their releasing fee is free. They also have a guarantee that you will cash flow after you close. They have a one year bumper to bumper warranty on the renovations we're talking about from the doorknob to the ductwork, and there's a lifetime 90 day occupancy guarantee. What that means is, if your property were ever vacant for that long, they would start paying rent to you on day 91 but you know what's amazing? It's easy for them to offer that they'll tell you that they've never had to pay out on that, because they've never experienced the vacancy of more than 55 days. Just amazing. And all those guarantees I just told you about that is in writing on their website. So if you want to get a hold of them, there's virtually no one else in the nation that makes it easier and more affordable. I believe that's an email address that Terry gave there. Again, it is invest@midsouthhomebuyers.com their website is, as you might have guessed, midsouthhomebuyers.com that's midsouthhomebuyers.com interestingly, you can even look at their income properties. There some provider websites don't let you do that. And again, they offer free tours, and if you prefer, their phone number is 901-306-9009, this week, you learned some great techniques for reducing your vacancy and being more profitable, as well as a provider that can deliver it for you. Should you so choose? The proverb goes, give a man a fish and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime. Well, you've got the option of doing either one or both today, until next week. I'm your host. Keith Weinhold, don't quit your Daydream.   Speaker 1  46:59   Nothing on this show should be considered specific, personal or professional advice. Please consult an appropriate tax, legal, real estate, financial or business professional for individualized advice. Opinions of guests are their own. Information is not guaranteed. All investment strategies have the potential for profit or loss. The host is operating on behalf of get rich Education LLC, exclusively you   Keith Weinhold  47:27   The preceding program was brought to you by your home for wealth building, get richeducation.com  

In today's episode - do you consider steaming TV as a monthly essential? You won't believe how many of us do. So how do you spend less to watch your favorite shows?  And later - does certified pre-owned actually mean anything when you're considering a used vehicle purchase? Clark explains how the CPO program began, and how it's become very problematic. Your Streaming Costs: Segment 1 Ask Clark: Segment 2 CPO Vehicles: Segment 3 Ask Clark: Segment 4 Mentioned on the show: STREAMING TV - Clark.com What Disney's New Price Hikes Mean for Your Favorite Streaming TV Bundles Best Free Streaming Services in 2025: Movies and TV for Cord Cutters 4 Things To Know Before You Buy a TV Antenna Clark Howard Is Making These Changes to His Streaming TV Strategy How To Freeze and Unfreeze Your Credit With Experian, Equifax and TransUnion Certified Pre-Owned Vehicles: What You Need to Know Before You Buy Should You Buy an Extended Warranty on Your Car? Are Car Wash Memberships Worth It? Clark.com resources: Episode transcripts Community.Clark.com  /  Ask Clark Clark.com daily money newsletter Consumer Action Center Free Helpline: 636-492-5275 Learn more about your ad choices: megaphone.fm/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Friday - Clark Stinks day! Christa shares Clark Stinks posts with Clark. Submit yours at Clark.com/ClarkStinks. Also in this episode - Football season means Clark is back to watching TV, and he's got clarification on some offers in ads you're likely seeing too.  Clark Stinks: Segments 1 & 2 “FREE” Phones? Not Really: Segment 3 Ask Clark: Segment 4 Mentioned on the show: 4 Things To Know Before You Buy a TV Antenna How To Watch Local Channels Without Cable Report: The Most Affordable Places To Live in America 5 Money Mistakes To Avoid When Traveling Best Way To Exchange Dollars for Foreign Currency & When To Exchange 5 Money Tips To Know Before You Travel Abroad Why You Should Never Use a Debit Card To Pay for Anything The Best Phone Plan For You - Compare Phone Plans Should you ever get a "free" phone from a wireless carrier? How To Monitor Your Credit   /   How To Get a Free Credit Report How To Freeze and Unfreeze Your Credit With Experian, Equifax and TransUnion What Is an HSA Account and How Does It Work? Clark.com resources Episode transcripts Community.Clark.com  /  Ask Clark Clark.com daily money newsletter Consumer Action Center Free Helpline: 636-492-5275 Learn more about your ad choices: megaphone.fm/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, football is in full swing, and so is something very troubling. People are losing enormous amounts of money on electronic gambling. Clark discusses how the nature of modern gambling can increase the risk of gambling addiction, and steps to take if this is a concern.  Also - How accurate are credit reports by the 3 credit bureaus? What you don't know about your credit report can hurt you. A Clark assignment. Sports Gambling: Segment 1 Ask Clark: Segment 2 Credit Report Accuracy: Segment 3 Ask Clark: Segment 4 Mentioned on the show: Resource: Pause Before You Play Best Online Banks: Free Checking and High-Interest Savings Accounts How To Buy a Used Car How To Get a Free Credit Report Credit Karma Review: Free Credit Score and More at Your Fingertips How To Freeze and Unfreeze Your Credit With Experian, Equifax and TransUnion Why Clark Howard Wants You to Set Up a 'Financial Chromebook' How To Bring an Old Laptop Back to Life for Free Clark.com resources: Episode transcripts Community.Clark.com  /  Ask Clark Clark.com daily money newsletter Consumer Action Center Free Helpline: 636-492-5275 Learn more about your ad choices: megaphone.fm/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Ever wake up Monday regretting how much you spent over the weekend? Today Clark re-examines the no spending trend through a needs-vs-wants traffic light lens as a smart way to think about spending.  Also today  - Travelers are being heavily targeted at ATMs & check outs. Clark shares an easy way to protect your wallet and identity when out & about - and why this is necessary now more than ever.  Mindful Spending: Segment 1 Ask Clark: Segment 2 ATM Pickpockets: Segment 3 Ask Clark: Segment 4 Mentioned on the show: Should you buy it? If you answer 'yes' to these questions, probably not What Can I Safely Use for Peer-to-Peer Payments? Can I Use an Online Will Maker or Do I Need an Attorney? How To Create a Will Online  /  Wills & Funerals Archives How To Freeze and Unfreeze Your Credit With Experian, Equifax & TransUnion NYTimes: Help! A Pickpocket Used My A.T.M. Card, and Citi Won't Cover It. Unpack these cybersecurity tips for a stress-free vacation Why It's a Great Time To Get a Cheap Ticket to Europe How To Pack a Carry-On the Right Way Clark.com resources Episode transcripts Community.Clark.com  /  Ask Clark Clark.com daily money newsletter Consumer Action Center Free Helpline: 636-492-5275 Learn more about your ad choices: megaphone.fm/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices