The Money Maps Podcast with Xerxes

Episode 1 of my three part series of Millennials and money is a conversation with Angela Hacche, a Millennial money coach. Angela shares how she became motivated at a young age to help people, in particular women, get a handle on their finances. You’ll hear her personal journey, what motivates her to help others, and her thoughts and experiences in working with Millennials. We go over how small fi...

Purchasing life insurance is an important decision to protect your loved ones, the people you leave behind when you’re gone. You’ve asked yourself, “Do I need life insurance?” Well, if you answered yes and are ready to take the next step in getting life insurance coverage, the next question to ask is, “How much life insurance do I need?” In this episode, I go through a few different ways and a ser...

President Joe Biden’s massive $1.9 trillion stimulus package was recently signed into law, providing much-needed financial relief for many Americans. This includes qualifying taxpayers to receive $1,400 per person, with the same amount paid out per dependent. What do you do with this third round of payments? If this is a lifeline to making ends meet, there’s an obvious use of the money, easing thi...

The decision to purchase life insurance stems around the question, “Do I need it?” People buy all types of insurance – auto, home, and health insurance, for themselves, with the hopes that they would never need to use it. But when it comes to life insurance, it’s always certain that at some point, our time on this earth will come to an end. It’s not a matter of if, but when, and since the “when” i...

Life is challenging as it is, let alone working through the costs of the unexpected we hope to not experience. Luckily, there’s insurance in lots of these cases. We buy cell phone insurance if we break or lose our phone, home insurance in the event of water damage from a pipe burst or a storm causing havoc, life insurance if we are suddenly taken away from the world, but what about insurance if we...

Investing to help secure your financial future requires having clear and defined goals, time, patience, and the ability to handle risk and uncertainty. Investors often forget these things and make decisions that may harm the long-term performance of their portfolios. Professor C. Thomas Howard, CEO of AthenaInvest and Professor of Finance at the University of Denver, joins me on this episode as we...

Most people work for their money. Many don’t allow their money to work for them. In this episode, I’ll go over the importance of investing and how putting your money to work for you can help secure your financial future. Investing helps you grow your wealth, provide for an additional stream of income, and combined, can provide peace of mind in achieving financial security. Andrew Cohen educates us...

Living in the moment may require financial resources… The golf hobby in my case, a Netflix subscription, world travel, or weekly restaurant visits with friends and family. These are the wants in life I want people to experience that can create memories to cherish. In this episode, I’ll remind you how I suggest budgeting your income for these life enhancements and hope that you’ll find the freedom...

For many, purchasing a home could be the biggest financial decision of your life. I’ll talk about several things to consider when it comes to renting versus owning a home. Beyond making financial sense, I’ll touch on the financial commitment with home ownership, the intangibles, day-to-day responsibilities as a homeowner, and some thoughts on renting flexibility. Quite frankly, there may be no rig...

Debt can be a major financial and emotional hindrance when it comes to pursuing financial goals. In this episode, I will talk about what debt is, having good versus bad debt, and ways to manage and eventually eliminate debt.

When it comes to paying for college, there’s a lot to consider by way of savings programs. In this episode, I welcome my first podcast guest, Phil Maliniak, my business partner and financial advisor with our independent firm, Wealth Avenue. Phil, a father of two, reviews 529 plans, Coverdell ESAs (education savings accounts), UGMA and UTMA accounts, permanent life insurance policies, as well as a...

Pull out a pen and paper! Financial advisors do more than just invest money and offer insurance solutions. This episode is packed with a list of 70+ items on what a financial advisor can do for you. I hope this list helps you become equipped in thinking about your goals, addressing areas that are important to you that perhaps you didn’t know were important to address, or when it comes to asking qu...

I'm a firm believer in living your best life today. As a matter of fact, I highly encourage that you budget your income so that you can cover the expenses associated with some of the activities that give us joy in this very moment. This episode dives deep into the 50/30/20 budgeting framework – 50% of your net income to cover essential expenses, 30% to the enhancements in life, and saving 20%...

An emergency fund or cash reserve is an important aspect to the foundation of a financial plan. Why should you have one? Aside having a lump sum of cash, how do you build a reserve? How much of an emergency fund should you have and maintain? If you have a healthy stash of cash, what opportunities can you now consider?

The starting point to having a financial plan is first understanding your current financial situation. This episode will go over what to evaluate when it comes to your current financial situation, reviewing your assets, liabilities, income, expenses, and your insurance policies, what is your net worth and how often should you track, implementing a 50/30/20 budget plan, and having a cash reserve.

What is a financial plan? Why should you have a financial plan? I’ll discuss this separately in six key financial areas: 1) the basics - current situation and cash flow, 2) risk management and transferring the risk via insurance, 3) college funding, 4) investment planning, 5) retirement savings and retirement income planning, and 6) estate and tax planning. This episode may trigger you to revisit...

Life takes us through many journeys. This episode is about the survival to significance path with a financial spin on it. I'll take you through the five steps of this path – survival, stability, security, success, and significance. Could a change of mindset, getting involved with a life or business coach, or even help from a financial professional help you move forward? I'll also share s...

In this first episode of The Money Maps Podcast with Xerxes I want to share my story – my upbringing, career path, community involvement over the years, professional successes and accomplishments, and why I decided to start an educational podcast about finances.