280. "We have $11M in assets. Why are we still living month to month?"

Money For Couples with Ramit Sethi

Ramit Sethi interviews Margo and Kevin, a high-earning couple with $11 million in assets who nonetheless struggle to save due to massive fixed

Key takeaways

• Margo and Kevin earn approximately $1.15 million gross per year but have only $50,000 in savings.
• The couple's fixed costs sit at 67%, driven largely by $160,000 in annual private school tuition and summer camps for five children.

Main topics

• High-income financial mismanagement
• Financial communication in marriage

Notable quotes

We are rich, poor people.

Conclusion

The episode demonstrates that high income does not guarantee financial

Transcript preview

Speaker 2 (0:00) What's the exact date where you will be debt-free? What's the exact date when you'll be rich? Most people don't think this is something you can plan for. It's just something one day in the future. Wrong! This is something you can plan for. In fact, I created Rich Life Road to 100K to show you step-by-step how to figure it out. In the program, we cover exactly what you need to focus on, how to accelerate your timeline so you can get there faster. and how to live your rich life along the way. Plus, we have tons of added bonuses in this program, like live weekly calls, access to a great community, and a library of vast content all at your fingertips. You can join this program today at iwt.com slash 100k. Speaker 1 (0:46) We're considered a top percent wealthy people. However, there's a struggle to pay the bills. We Speaker 3 (0:53) do spend. We Speaker 1 (0:53) go out Speaker 3 (0:54) for dinner a couple nights a week. We like to go away. Speaker 2 (0:56) You spend $30,000 a year on vacation? Speaker 3 (0:58) At the least. Kids get Speaker 2 (1:00) allowances. How much is their allowance? $300 a week. $300 a week? Speaker 3 (1:04) Yeah. Speaker 1 (1:04) The food is going up. Tuition bill goes up. And we have five kids to pay tuition for. You have five Speaker 2 (1:08) kids in private school? Speaker 1 (1:09) We live in a community where everybody sends to one of three schools. Speaker 2 (1:14) What's the phrase? Keeping up with the challenges. These numbers are very wrong. I don't Speaker 3 (1:19) know what Speaker 2 (1:19) I'm spending. Speaker 3 (1:20) He Speaker 1 (1:21) doesn't include me in the finances. He just gives me the brunt of his upset about it and his stress. We're definitely not on the same page. Speaker 2 (1:28) Not on the same page, not making progress. That's what I'm hearing. Yeah. You are spending far more than you make every single month. Speaker 1 (1:36) Now it makes sense. Your Speaker 2 (1:37) understanding of reality is so out of alignment with the numbers. You have five kids. You have very high expenses. You are in serious trouble. Speaker 2 (1:49) Deep down, a lot of us truly believe that if we just earned more money, our financial problems would disappear. I've talked to so many people who think if I just made $10,000 more, $20,000 more, $100,000 more, everything would be fine and I would stop worrying about money. Are you starting to get it by listening to this podcast? We find out over and over that this is simply not true. And today I'm talking to Margo and Kevin. 42 and 52 years old, they live in Brooklyn with their five children. And on paper, they have an incredible financial life. But beneath the surface, they describe themselves as rich, poor people. They spend virtually everything they make. They have very little set aside for their future. And despite years of earning more, they still feel like they're on a hamster wheel. The problem is, when we start looking at what they could actually change, They tell me that everything feels almost non-negotiable. Their kids' private school, their homes, plural, their vacations, even the community and lifestyle they've built their lives around. So today we're going to find out whether they can finally get together on the same page and make some extremely difficult financial choices or whether they don't want to change at all. And I want you to stay to the end because after our conversation, I asked Margot and Kevin to update me. on what changes they actually made. Now, let's meet Margot and Kevin. Who was the one who filled out the application to speak to me? Speaker 1 (3:20) Oh, me. Speaker 2 (3:21) You did. Okay. Let me read you something from your application that caught my attention. You wrote, at the moment, we are rich, poor people, high income with no savings, and living month to month. Tell me about that. Speaker 1 (3:36) It's exactly what I wrote. Thank God. We're very fortunate to have a... a beautiful life and my husband makes a very nice living. He works really, really hard and he built everything himself. So, you know, it's, it's not anything that was given to us. It was something that was, you know, worked for. And in the grand scheme of things, looking, if you look at his income, you know, we're considered a top, whatever percent wealthy people. However, um, it's, there's a struggle to pay the bills month to month. Speaker 2 (4:08) So every month. he's trying to figure out how to pay the bills because he does the money? Speaker 1 (4:13) I don't know if it's month to month. It's more like at the end of the year when we're getting down to the bottom of things. Like, how is it that we're short? You're Speaker 2 (4:23) short at the end of the year. Speaker 1 (4:24) Well, Speaker 3 (4:24) there's not much left when there should be. Speaker 2 (4:27) Well, which is it? Are you short or there's not much left? Speaker 3 (4:29) I wouldn't say losing, Speaker 2 (4:31) but Speaker 3 (4:32) spending every single penny. Speaker 2 (4:34) Okay. And then what is a rich poor person? Speaker 1 (4:38) Somebody that lives a wealthy life, very comfortable lifestyle, owns homes, is able to go on vacations, and at the same time has such a high cost of living. So there's no savings. There's no cushion. Speaker 2 (4:56) Margot, when you wrote that application, what was going through your head? Speaker 1 (5:01) So for a long time, I've seen my husband just... you know, working really hard, making things work, keeping up a very, I would say, high lifestyle, paying the tuition bill, private school, and just trying to keep everything intact and keep everybody happy. Speaker 1 (5:25) I think he consistently would say, I don't understand. I don't understand. I don't understand. How is it possible? And so I started to listen to some podcasts on finance and just trying to figure out how I could help us as a couple, as a family financially, and try to shift the energy and shift it the way things are going so that we're- Speaker 2 (5:47) This application though sounds like there was some tough stuff going on. Like at the moment, we are rich, poor people. What was going on then? Speaker 1 (5:56) We have a very high tuition bill and we spoke about it, that that's a big, very big part of our income. And some, my dad helps with some of it. And we decided that we're going to, you know, take on the whole thing next year. So if that being the case, you know, that's going to be an even more difficult pill to swallow next year with everything going up. The food is consistently going up. Tuition bill goes up a little bit every year and we have, you know, five kids to pay tuition for next year. You Speaker 2 (6:28) have Speaker 1 (6:28) five Speaker 2 (6:28) kids in private school? Speaker 1 (6:29) Yeah. Speaker 2 (6:30) Oh, wow. Okay. So let me make sure I understand. Margot, your dad was helping with some of the tuition bill. You both decided we're going to do this on our own. And when faced with the costs of five kids in private school, knowing that even with the help from your dad, you were already not putting aside a lot of money. And now it's going to be even a bigger expense. You're like, what are we supposed to do? Speaker 1 (6:53) Exactly. Is Speaker 2 (6:53) that what brought you to applying to speak to me? Speaker 1 (6:56) Yes. Speaker 2 (6:56) Good to know. Kevin, what's your take on this whole situation as Margo described it? Speaker 3 (7:01) You know, as the kids get older, they get, it's more expensive to take care of them. So just maybe that pressure she felt of kids starting to go to college, getting Speaker 2 (7:11) older, Speaker 3 (7:12) having more needs. Speaker 2 (7:13) Who feels more pressure about money? Speaker 3 (7:15) Kevin. Speaker 2 (7:16) Ah, is that because you manage the day-to-day or what? Speaker 3 (7:20) It's been a part of my history, worrying about money. Speaker 2 (7:24) You worried for a long time? Speaker 3 (7:25) Yeah. It's always there somehow. Speaker 2 (7:28) But, Speaker 3 (7:29) you know, as I get older and I'm dependent on a business to keep performing, Speaker 2 (7:33) it Speaker 3 (7:35) becomes a question where, you know, when am I putting away savings and when is that going to benefit me? Speaker 2 (7:42) Gotcha. When you think about the word money and money in your relationship right now, what's the first word that comes to mind? Speaker 3 (7:48) We have fun with it. Speaker 2 (7:50) Money's fun. Okay. Stress. Fun, stress. Okay. How long has money been a source of stress for you? Speaker 1 (7:57) I think it was maybe a few years into the marriage where it started to become stressful for Kevin because I don't really deal so much with the finances. He's the one that makes the money and pays the bills. Speaker 2 (8:13) So is he the one who's stressed out about it? Speaker 1 (8:15) Yeah, but it causes stress in the relationship because when he's stressed about it, I'm the one who's running the home. So it becomes a questioning of what's, you know. Speaker 3 (8:27) Yeah, she gets the brunt of my wearing. So you Speaker 2 (8:30) get stressed, Kevin, and then you start asking questions. Why are we doing this? Can't she save money on that? Is that how it works? Speaker 3 (8:36) Sort of. Speaker 2 (8:37) So you get stressed about money, and then how does it rub off on her? Speaker 3 (8:40) I could get upset about it, be in a bad mood about it. You know, things like that, where she'll get the breadth of that. And Speaker 2 (8:48) then... Margot, you want to add anything? Speaker 1 (8:50) Yeah, it affects the dynamic of the relationship because once he's stressed about money, things just feel like they're constantly revolved around that. And it's, you know, you know, why is the bill this high? I don't know, hon. Let's look at it together. I brought it home. Why don't you look at it? You know, and it's like, oh, supermarket, supermarket, supermarket, meat bill, kosher meat in New York. Speaker 1 (9:14) We're feeding like an army in the house. And it's a lot. I don't know. I don't know what to say. Like I never and ever was like a rational spender. I Speaker 2 (9:25) was Speaker 1 (9:25) never one to like irresponsibly go shopping and buy myself things that I shouldn't. So it's kind of like we both don't know why we're in this position constantly. You Speaker 2 (9:35) feel confused? Speaker 1 (9:37) He's confused. I'm trying to— Wait, how come— Hold on. I have Speaker 2 (9:41) a Speaker 1 (9:41) question for you because this is twice now. Speaker 2 (9:42) So I asked, how do you feel about money? He goes, fun. You go, stress. But it's actually him feeling stressed. And then I go— It's fun to make Speaker 3 (9:51) it. Speaker 2 (9:52) It's fun to make it. Okay. And then I ask, you know, do you feel confused about money? You go, he feels confused. What do you feel? Speaker 1 (10:02) I feel that we live a very high lifestyle and in order to be able to keep... our kids in private school and keep this lifestyle, we have to find a way to make more income because it doesn't seem that there, to me, that there's anywhere very significant where we can cut. Speaker 2 (10:20) Do you agree? Speaker 1 (10:21) Yeah. Speaker 2 (10:22) Okay. Speaker 1 (10:23) Are we about to have the Speaker 2 (10:24) shortest conversation in the history of this podcast? Y'all just need to make another, what, million bucks? Another Speaker 1 (10:31) half a million, right. I call it a day. Speaker 3 (10:33) Very good. And so why not? Speaker 2 (10:35) And there's Speaker 1 (10:35) another something that we didn't mention was that we have plans to build a summer home. Speaker 2 (10:40) Okay. Speaker 1 (10:40) So we, and it's been in the making for a couple of years now. We're living in like this, the house, the way it is. And we would love to be able to fix it. That's a big, like big thing for us, but it's like, how? Okay. Speaker 2 (10:59) What's Speaker 1 (11:00) a Speaker 2 (11:00) time where the two of you recently. did not see eye to eye on something about money. Speaker 1 (11:06) Kevin thought that maybe it would be a possibility to move to New Jersey. It would bring our expenses way down because the schools there are a lot less than what we're paying in New York. And I don't want to move there. You don't want to move to Jersey? No. Speaker 2 (11:23) Okay. Why? Speaker 1 (11:25) It's just not for me. It's like really quiet and desolate in the winter. Slower pace. Quiet life. It's just I'm not ready to make that move. It's a big move. Yeah, the cost, the pressure would really decrease by a lot. I think that the cost of living would go down. But it's a very different lifestyle. How long did you Speaker 2 (11:43) talk about this and disagree about this? Speaker 3 (11:45) I brought it up a few times, but I knew it was off the table. She wasn't doing it. So I just gave up after a little bit. Speaker 2 (11:52) Is that a typical trend? You bring something up? Speaker 3 (11:55) No, this is a big move. you know, to do that. There's a lot of liquid sitting in the home. Figured if we sold it, invested some, and had a strategy of how to earn on that, Speaker 2 (12:06) it Speaker 3 (12:07) might bring the pressure down that we're under and just live a better lifestyle. A little lower key, a little less hectic. Speaker 2 (12:15) And Margot, you said no because you don't want to move there. I'm Speaker 1 (12:18) not selling my home. That's our, like, safety net. And it's an asset that... Hopefully it'll keep going up and we'll have it for, you know, our children, you know, down the road if we decide to move or to change, you know, our lifestyle and, you know, go somewhere else. We have an asset. I don't feel like- Isn't that what Speaker 2 (12:40) he was proposing? You have an asset. Yeah, but I'm Speaker 1 (12:42) not going to sell that now because we have a great home. We live in a really great block and a great neighborhood. The kids are happy. We're very comfortable. We have a lot of kids. Okay. So you want to Speaker 2 (12:52) keep it the way it is for now? Yeah. Speaker 1 (12:54) For now. And Speaker 2 (12:54) then I have a question. You mentioned we have this asset so that one day we may give it over to the kids. You have five kids in one house, the one we're talking about. Speaker 1 (13:01) Right. I Speaker 2 (13:01) know you have other houses, but this one, how do you envision distributing a house to five kids? Well, Speaker 1 (13:08) they'll sell it and they'll distribute the funds. Split the money. They'll split the money. Speaker 2 (13:13) Okay, cool. Have you talked about this? Speaker 3 (13:17) That's the plan, but not Speaker 2 (13:18) really. That's like the norm for where Speaker 1 (13:20) we come Speaker 2 (13:20) from. What does that mean, where we come from? Speaker 1 (13:22) Like we live in a community in Brooklyn where we all live in kind of like the same area. Speaker 2 (13:30) Yep. Speaker 1 (13:31) And my grandparents left their homes to my parents and my parents will probably leave, you know, their homes. And, you know, generally speaking, everything has... just consistently gone up in value. So this Speaker 2 (13:46) is what you've seen happen for generations. Exactly. That's the plan here. Okay. Margot, what feels most frustrating to you about your financial situation? Speaker 1 (13:54) The hamster wheel of constantly just trying to keep up, pay the bills. And at the end of the day, there's no savings. And it's the same thing year after year. And we need to educate ourselves. figure this out on our own because obviously nobody's going to teach it to us. And we have to have a plan. And it's enough is enough. Enough Speaker 2 (14:15) is enough. Enough Speaker 1 (14:16) is enough. Hey, Speaker 2 (14:17) I love that phrase. Enough is enough. Let's do it. You Speaker 1 (14:21) got to do it. Enough is enough. Speaker 2 (14:22) How long have you felt this way? Like, God, this sucks when it comes to money. You Speaker 1 (14:27) know, from where we come from, almost everybody sends to private school and everybody seems to be struggling to keep up, not just us. And if you think about it logically, it makes absolutely no sense. how we're just going and going and spending all this money every year. We don't have savings. Our kids are not set up. What is this doing for us? We want a certain future. And if we're not going to make the changes now, we're not going to get there. I mean, it's just logical. If you see where we are now and where we want to go, we're not kind of like on that path. Speaker 2 (14:57) I'm not sure what the dynamic is between the two of them because there's so much information coming at me. But a few things are clear to me already. They both have... a story about money. And I can tell that they have repeated this story a lot. And it is entertaining. I'm kind of enjoying it. But I'm wondering, when are we going to get to the real stuff? I mean, after all, the application speaks for itself. I think the way they set it up is this traditional sense of he makes it, she spends it. But I think there's something deeper beneath here. I just don't know what it is yet. Speaker 3 (15:31) We do spend. We go Speaker 2 (15:32) out Speaker 3 (15:32) for dinner a couple nights a week. Kids go, they come, they get allowances. How Speaker 2 (15:37) much is their allowance? Speaker 3 (15:38) They get my one in college and probably giving 300 a week too. Speaker 2 (15:43) 300 a week? Yeah. I was once 18 years old. Weren't you both? Speaker 3 (15:47) Yeah. Speaker 2 (15:48) Did you need $1,200 a month for food? It's not my place. I Speaker 3 (15:51) was working at 16 because I grew up without money. So I knew how hard it was to get 10 cents out of my dad. May he rest in peace. Because at 15, I was working for myself. I was all on my own. Speaker 2 (16:05) What do you think is stopping you from changing this financial situation? Speaker 3 (16:10) I like the fun. We like to go away. We go to Italy in the summers. We just got back from a fantastic ski trip in Europe. Speaker 3 (16:20) Those things are tempting to me. I spend on them. There are certain things we could cut out, but then I feel like we're just not enjoying what we like to enjoy. Speaker 2 (16:32) Is that the crux of it though? No, when Speaker 1 (16:34) we spend, we went to Europe because it was a quarter of the price as to go to Vail. So I was able to find, I sat and Speaker 2 (16:40) did the Speaker 3 (16:40) work. Speaker 2 (16:41) That doesn't work on me. It was Speaker 1 (16:43) a hundred percent. Speaker 2 (16:44) Margot, I'm going to repeat what you just said out loud so that you can hear yourself. Speaker 1 (16:47) I'm telling you. Hello, Speaker 2 (16:49) America. Instead of going to Vail, we decided to take our family of seven to Europe. Aren't we economically conservative? Care to respond? Speaker 1 (17:02) It was cheaper. Significantly cheaper. You're sticking with it. It was literally significant. Was it not significantly cheaper? All Speaker 2 (17:09) right. We all make our own decisions in life. God bless. All right. Shall we take a look at your numbers? Speaker 1 (17:15) If you'd like to. Speaker 2 (17:16) Oh, the mood shifted. That's interesting. How was it to... do the conscious spending plan together. Speaker 1 (17:21) We did not do it together. Speaker 2 (17:23) Okay. Now, I just want to point out, this is quite an interesting scenario because, Margo, you're the one who applied. Part of the instructions are that you should do the CSP together. Did you see that? Speaker 1 (17:33) Yes. So I was like, let's do this together. I don't, what do we have to do? Speaker 2 (17:37) Okay. And Speaker 1 (17:37) Kevin said, I'll do it. I'll take care of it. Speaker 2 (17:40) Why'd you say, I'll take care of it? Speaker 3 (17:42) Because if I went to her with a question about something, she doesn't have the answer. Speaker 2 (17:45) So? So, you Speaker 3 (17:47) know, on a... and what I'm spending a month on. Speaker 3 (17:51) for whatever, the cars, the subscriptions. It's not really aware. So Speaker 2 (17:57) it's like, don't ask her because she doesn't know. Speaker 1 (17:59) He wants to change, but I feel like he's not committed to just figuring it out with me somehow. How do other couples do this? Speaker 3 (18:08) I don't know. A lot of couples that we know are dependent on, of course, themselves, what they earn, but there's a lot of extra help in our community. Speaker 2 (18:19) Family. Family helps. Well, you guys, at least right now, for the moment, have a limited amount of that. So you don't know how other couples do it. Margot? Speaker 1 (18:30) This is a conversation that we have consistently. Speaker 2 (18:32) How Speaker 1 (18:32) is everybody else doing it? Like, you're making X amount. How is everybody else doing it? Is Speaker 2 (18:36) there possibly a podcast that shows in-depth what other couples talk about behind closed doors? No, Speaker 3 (18:41) like, we were home for Passover this year. And I kind of laid down in the middle of the street. And for days… There's no one in Brooklyn. Speaker 1 (18:49) We were maybe one of like 10 families. Everybody's away. How is everybody paying their tuition bill? Speaker 2 (18:56) Paying their summer homes Speaker 1 (18:57) and vacation… I'm sorry. Speaker 2 (18:59) Is this like a… Okay. I understand the curiosity. That is interesting. But is this like a woe is me? Like everyone else got to go on vacation? No, Speaker 3 (19:05) no. We do. Speaker 2 (19:06) We Speaker 1 (19:06) live… We're very appreciative of the lifestyle. We do vacations a lot. We're very… Speaker 2 (19:11) But you're wondering like how do they do it? Speaker 1 (19:13) But how does… Like you're making a nice… Salary. Like what's going, how is this possible? We're spending it. You're Speaker 2 (19:20) spending whatever you make. I'm Speaker 3 (19:21) not, there's a part of my brain that doesn't know how to. Speaker 3 (19:26) Put aside and when I do and it's there It's just in the bank so that that doesn't do anything for us I will show you different ways of Speaker 2 (19:33) changing it but problem number one is that you did not actually do this together That is the problem when I met my wife Not surprisingly. I knew a lot more about money. It would have been really easy for me to be the money guy Hey, I'll do this. Give it to me. Blah blah blah. I have the thing that works already And what do you think would have happened had I done that? Speaker 3 (19:54) That just would have continued. Yeah. It would Speaker 2 (19:57) have been me being the money person for our entire relationship. She would have had no visibility. Once in a while, she would have probably gotten anxious, maybe disagreed with me. Maybe I would have said, ah, it's fine, blah, blah, blah, because I know all this stuff in my head. Maybe one day I get hit by a bus. Maybe she doesn't know what to do anymore. Maybe Morgan Stanley or, God forbid, Wells Fargo calls her up, tries to charge her 1.5 % AUM. She's defenseless, crying. Now we don't know what to do. Plus, she's paying AUM to a worthless financial advisor. What happens? I'm looking up from hell. I'm there because I didn't help my wife become equipped about money the way that I was. Not a good situation, especially if you yourself are not particularly equipped. Speaker 3 (20:36) Shall Speaker 2 (20:37) we change this? Yes, sir. Thank you. I don't know about you, but I'm finding the communication style pretty difficult. I'm not used to having couples who talk over each other and talk at me at the same time. It's a little overwhelming. And I think what's going on here is this need to share their story. Everyone feels like, I just need to make sure you know what's going on. And I also think there's a bit of, this is what the people around us do. And so this is what we've learned. And this is just natural. This is how our parents probably talk. This is how we talk. But I'm an outside third party. I'm here to gather information. I'm here to help. And part of what I suspect is going to happen in today's conversation is the stories they tell themselves. Everything. from the way they think about money to the way they communicate with me, with each other, those will probably need to come under question. They may need to change those things. At least that's my suspicion. We're going to take a look at the numbers right after this. One of the best things that my wife and I have spent money on is personal training. It has allowed us to stay on track, to be healthier, to build muscle. It's something that's just important. It's now part of our lives. Now, I know that not everyone is in the position to hire a personal trainer. It can get expensive. So when the Ladder app asked me to try it, I was curious about what it actually did. 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That's Nord, N-O-R-D, vpn.com slash Ramit. What's the exact date where you will be debt-free? What's the exact date when you'll be rich? Most people don't think this is something you can plan for. It's just something one day in the future. Wrong. This is something you can plan for. In fact, I created Rich Life Road to 100K to show you step-by-step how to figure it out. In the program, we cover exactly what you need to focus on, how to accelerate your timeline so you can get there faster, and how to live your rich life along the way. Plus, we have tons of added bonuses in this program, like live weekly calls, access to a great community, and a library of vast content all at your fingertips. You can join this program today at iwt.com slash 100K. Let's take a look at the numbers. Kevin, I would like you to read off the word in bold and the number next to it for this entire box, please. Go ahead. Speaker 3 (25:53) Assets, 11 million. Investments, half a million. Savings, it's about accurate. Wait, are you going to read the numbers? 50,000, yeah. Debt, 2.3 million. Speaker 2 (26:05) Total net worth, Speaker 3 (26:07) 925. Speaker 2 (26:09) 9.25 million. Okay. What do you think about those numbers? Speaker 3 (26:13) I think they're beautiful, but they're on paper. They're in our homes. Paper Speaker 2 (26:17) wealth in your homes. Speaker 3 (26:19) In my investments. Okay. Speaker 2 (26:21) My Speaker 3 (26:22) assets, we'll call them. Speaker 2 (26:23) Margot, what do you think about those numbers? Speaker 1 (26:25) Just the savings is ridiculous. Okay. I guess in comparison to the assets. Yeah. And... What Speaker 2 (26:34) about the good stuff? Speaker 1 (26:35) Yeah, that's good. Yeah, thank God. Speaker 3 (26:36) At the end of the day. Thank Speaker 1 (26:37) God. I don't know. We're fortunate. This is the most Speaker 2 (26:39) depressing. How many digits in this number? One, two, a lot. A lot of digits. Speaker 1 (26:44) I never heard a more depressing answer. Thank God. Ah, f**k. Speaker 3 (26:47) That's the response? No, it's good. We're very, very appreciative of what we have. Speaker 1 (26:51) We really are very Speaker 2 (26:52) fortunate. Speaker 1 (26:52) And Speaker 3 (26:53) we did pump a lot of money into those assets. All right. What are the Speaker 2 (26:57) assets, by the way? Speaker 1 (26:59) It's Speaker 3 (26:59) homes and my business. We have two. Just the two homes. Two homes. Speaker 2 (27:03) How much are those worth total? Speaker 3 (27:08) Between, I'd say about nine, eight and nine. Speaker 2 (27:10) Nine million for the two homes. Yeah. Great. And then the business, you valued at two million? Yeah. Okay. How did you value that? I Speaker 3 (27:16) was offered a buyout at that number. Speaker 2 (27:19) Oh. But I didn't take it. We have a real business value on this show. Amazing. Yes. Too many times people come on the show, they go, I make 150K. That's probably worth $22 million. I go, what the f**k? Ah, whatever. No, I had an offer that I Speaker 3 (27:32) declined. Speaker 2 (27:33) Amazing. All right. Well done. Your investments at 500K, what are those investments in? Stocks. Okay. Like a 401K type of thing? Speaker 3 (27:42) It's not 401Ks. It's in… Speaker 1 (27:44) It's my personal. Speaker 2 (27:46) Between both. Individual stocks. Yeah. Individual stocks. Got it. Savings at 50K. Low compared to assets. I think you recognize that, Speaker 1 (27:53) Margot. And then what's the debt? 2.3 million. What is that? Speaker 3 (27:56) That's just the mortgages. Speaker 2 (27:58) Okay. Two mortgages. Yeah. 9 million value. 2.3 million left. to pay. Yeah. What's your interest rate on both of those? Speaker 3 (28:06) They're fantastic. So that's why. Tell me. You know, it was during COVID. So the rates were cheap. 2.75. Yeah. Great. Speaker 1 (28:13) Well Speaker 2 (28:13) done. All right. Let's take a look at Margo. Can you read off the combined gross monthly income, please? Speaker 1 (28:21) Zero. Speaker 2 (28:22) Yeah. That's interesting. Y'all make $0 gross? Speaker 3 (28:27) I put the net. Speaker 2 (28:29) The net is 50K a month. Yeah. Where's the gross? Speaker 3 (28:33) It's probably 70, 60s. Speaker 2 (28:38) You make 60K gross and 50K net? I don't think so. What's your gross income per year, ballpark? Speaker 3 (28:44) Let's call it... Speaker 3 (28:48) 700. Do you pay Speaker 2 (28:49) yourself a salary? Speaker 3 (28:50) Yeah, of course. That is the salary that I pay myself. Speaker 2 (28:54) 50K net is the salary you pay yourself. Speaker 3 (28:57) And are you Speaker 2 (28:58) an Speaker 3 (28:58) S Speaker 2 (28:58) -corp? Yes. Okay. You take distributions as well? Yes. How often? Speaker 3 (29:03) I get it in once a year. Speaker 2 (29:05) How do you decide how much you can take? Speaker 3 (29:07) It depends what's there at the end of the day. Speaker 2 (29:10) That must be tough for planning. Speaker 3 (29:12) Yes, because the business fluctuates. There's years, we'll have an incredible year, we'll be able to pull a lot more. Speaker 2 (29:19) And Speaker 3 (29:19) then there's challenging years with, you know, all that's gone on in the business that I'm in. Tariffs plays a big role, shipping, the consumer. Speaker 2 (29:31) What kind of business are you in? Speaker 3 (29:31) I do wholesale. Speaker 2 (29:33) Wholesale. Okay, so you have stuff you're importing certain types of goods. Tariffs have affected those goods, Speaker 3 (29:39) making it Speaker 2 (29:39) more expensive. Speaker 3 (29:40) Is Speaker 2 (29:40) your net income down over the last, say, year or two? Speaker 3 (29:45) Yeah. Speaker 2 (29:46) Okay, got it. We're Speaker 3 (29:47) going Speaker 2 (29:47) to find out the approximate gross monthly income that you would make in order for you to net 50K. Okay? And we're going to put it in. We might be right or wrong. It depends. But considering I don't see any pre-tax deductions like a 401K. It will be relatively straightforward given that you live in New York, etc. So we'll be able to extrapolate that. That will clarify a lot of stuff. So y'all are making about $96,500 per month. Gross. How