Crushing Debt

What documents need to be notarized? What can a notary do or sign, or not? How or when can notarized documents help you to get or remain debt free? On today's episode of The Crushing Debt Podcast, Shawn & George interview our friend, Amanda Loeffler, owner of I Need a Notary, a remote online notarization company.  That means Amanda can notarize documents anywhere and you do not need to be sitting...

Why are grocery prices so high? Is it because of tariffs? Is it because of supply chain costs, or the Bird Flu? And how can you continue to budget while the cost of most products continue to increase? On today's episode of The Crushing Debt Podcast, Shawn & George discuss these issues, including some strategies to deal with the rising cost of goods, including Budgeting Using Cash Envelopes (or a s...

Spring is when many people spring clean their home. But how many of us Spring Clean our finances? How many of us declutter our debt? April is also Financial Literacy Month, and for most of the Country April is the month when income tax returns are due.  Did you file on time, or did you file for an extension? On this week's episode, Shawn & George talk about how to spring clean your debt, which is...

How does your financial life change when you are childfree? What is the difference between FIRE and FILE? How does your investing change when you are childfree? How does childfree impact your estate planning and long-term financial goals change? How often have you asked a newlywed couple, "so when are you having kids?" How often have you asked a couple married long-term, "any plans for kids soon?"...

They took care of us, but what do we do when it's time to take care of them? Can you help care for your aging parents or grandparents, while also taking care of your kids? Do you find yourself a part of the "sandwich generation?" In this week's episode of the Crushing Debt Podcast, Shawn & George discuss the hidden costs and other pitfalls of helping the older generation, while still potentially t...

Did you get your 2024 Company Return filed on time in March, or at least get that extension filed? Did you already file your 2024 Personal Return, or are you waiting until the April deadline? What happens when you owe the IRS? This week's guest is Stephen Weisberg, who has over 10 years of experience representing individuals, businesses, and their owners with tax debt issues, audits, and other pro...

Are you single and looking to date? How do you manage your budget and expenses while trying to put yourself out there to find a new friend, a new relationship, a new romance? On this week's epsidoe, Shawn & George talk about your budget and dating (whether single or dates with your spouse). Some do's and dont's: DO budget DON'T fake what you cannot afford DO be upfront about your money, your budge...

How does a single mom, with a minor child, recover from overwhelming debt? Does more income, and multiple businesses solve financial problems? On this week's episode of the Crushing Debt Podcast, Shawn & George talk to Shannon Miller-Lutz, the founder of SML Coaching, who empowers individuals to shift their mindset, overcome obstacles, and take bold action toward success. Known for her natural abi...

Have you ever had a relationship that started out amazing, made you feel like you had everything you ever wanted, until one day you realized it was ruining your life? No, we're not talking about your ex, we're talking about your credit card! Let's talk about the warning signs of a  toxic  financial relationship and how to finally break up with  debt for good! At first, you go through the honeymoon...

What happens if you are in a situation where you need to sell your house?  You're in foreclosure? Or you've filed a bankruptcy? How can you avoid predators and scams if you're in a situation where you're forced to sell your home, or if you're in financial distress? This week's guest on the Crushing Debt Podcast is Sandra Cantu, who brings over 25 years of real estate expertise and a deeply persona...

What are some comfort lies you tell yourself about money? What are some future lies you tell yourself about money? What are some identity lies you tell yourself about money? In this week's episode Shawn & George talk about the money lies we tell ourselves.  Things like: I deserve it. I'll start saving when I make more money. Everyone has debt, it's normal. I'll work forever, so I don't need to sav...

What are the five money personas? What are the four "F's" of money (nots this is not an explicit] episode). How do dopamine, endorphins, oxytocin and seratonin factor in to your attitudes about money? On this week's episode of The Crushing Debt Podcast, Shawn & George talk to Gino Barbaro of the Jake & Gino Show to talk about your attitudes towards and relationship with money.  Gino is a published...

Do you get a tax refund every year?  Is that a good thing? If you're in financial distress, what can you do with your tax refund? On this week's episode of the Crushing Debt podcast, Shawn & George talk about tax refunds, how tax refunds are treated in Chapter 7 or 13 bankruptcy, what to do so that your refund is less but your take-home pay is more, and other topics related to bankruptcy. For exam...

Do you want an extra hour each day for yourself? For your employees? Do you know the purpose of work meetings? Who spends more time working on priority activities? How is AI changing productivity? The three areas of life that people tend to focus on the most: (1) body image, (2) time management and (3) financial management. On this week's episode of the Crushing Debt Podcast, Shawn & George spend...

What will Monday, January 20, mean for you? What political party has a majority in the Federal House of Representatives and Senate? What political party has a majority in the Florida House of Representatives and Senate?  In your home state?  And what will that all mean for you, your family, your wallet? Back in Episode 440, Financial Literacy and Politics, Shawn and George discussed similar issues...

Happy New Year! What Resolutions did you set for yourself this year? What is it about the New Year that makes us want to set Resolutions? How can you ensure that your resolutions don't drift away after a few weeks or months? On this week's episode of the Crushing Debt Podcast, the first of 2025, George and Shawn talk about mindset, momentum and motivation, celebrating small victories, learning fro...

Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah, and Happy Holidays from all of us at The Crushing Debt Podcast.  We hope you had a great holiday season. This is our last episode of 2024, but we'll be back next week with all new episodes and some great content for 2025. The holiday season brings a lot of things - family, presents, food, songs, and especially movies! There are some great holiday movies - Home Alon...

What goals did you accomplish in 2024? What financial accomplishments did you achieve in 2024?  What were your financial wins? What goals will you set for 2025? In our second to last episode for 2024, Shawn & George talk about their own personal and business financial goals, for themselves, their families, their companies, and for the podcast! What do you want to see from our show in 2025 (and bey...

What is it like to rebuild after a foreclosure, after a bankruptcy? What is the real cause of foreclosure, bankruptcy and financial distress? While we have talked about these topics before, this week's guest overcame all of it to form a non-profit that helps people who find themselves in this situation. This week, Shawn & George interview Michael Russell, with Hope 4 Harship, and also the Presiden...

Welcome to December! We hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving holiday and you were able to reflect on what you are thankful for this year. Now we focus on the holidays, which means buying gifts (which is amplified in Shawn's household with the addition of multiple family birthdays in the month of December). How do you control your holiday spending?  Do you control your holiday spending? In this w...

Happy Thanksgiving from all of us at the Crushing Debt Podcast! What financial milestones did you hit this year? What financial wins did you have this year? Do you look forward to Black Friday, or do you dread it (and do you notice that it gets longer and longer every year)? How do you save money or stretch your budget every year during the holidays? George and Shawn talk about all of these topics...

Red or Blue? Republican or Democrat (or some other political party)? Our goal on this week's episode is not to debate one candidate over another, or one party's philosophy over another's, but we did think we would take time after the recent election to talk about the various fiscal policies proposed or promoted by the candidates. How will President Trump's reelection impact areas like: Crypto Gas...

How do you teach your kids about money? How do you teach your kids to save money? Is it better to invest in a Certificate of Deposit (CD), Money Market Account, IRA, College Plan, or something else?  Do your kids know the "Rule of 7?" This week's Crushing Debt Podcase episode is inspired by Shawn's son's Bar Mitzvah, where he received quite a bit of money in the forms of gift cards, checks, cash,...

What is Zombie Debt? How do you resurrect your finances after debt rises from the grave? How do you protect yourself from old debt? What happens when debt expires? Happy Halloween!!  Debt doesn't have to be scary, but debt that resurrects itself can be.  What is more scary than debt is burying your head or ignoring your debt.  In the State of Florida, debt is valid for 20 years from the time a jud...

How can you get the government to give you money to pay rent, mortgages and utilities? Is grant money easy to get?  Do you have to pay it back? This week's episode is one of the few that carry an "Explicit" tag, so if you don't like the occassional bad word, please skip today's episode and we'll talk to you again next week. This week's guest is Matthew Lesko, a renown expert in government grants a...