Get Out of Debt Guy

Being in debt feels like a dark hole, a deep pit, without hope or any way out. Struggling to find ways to make extra money can feel impossible as well. 

But the secret is both situations benefit from the same free tip Damon Day, and I talk about on this podcast.

Worrying about being scammed by a debt relief provider is a real fear. But what is a scam? That question is surprisingly more challenging than you might imagine.

In this podcast, Damon Day and I discuss why calling any debt rescue company a scam is so tricky. For example, if a company provides you with bad advice but doesn't take your money, does that make them a scam?

Here is the latest review from the Penny Stupid Project on mining Helium as a side hustle. Is it worth it?

Here is what you need to know before you start. If you're thinking about investing in helium mining, then you might be wondering if it's too late. In this podcast,

After learning about the helium mining industry, you'll be able to make an informed decision about whether or not it's worth investing in this exciting new industry. We'll also give you a glimpse at the helium HNT price prediction so you know exactly how much helium is worth right now.

Stay up-to-date on the latest helium mining news and make the right decision for you! Important links from this review: https://pennystupid.com/can-you-still-make-money-with-a-helium-miner/ https://explorer.helium.com/

Important links from this review:

We are checking in with you again to share this week's update on The Penny Stupid Project.

This week we give you the latest on our testing of retail arbitrage, Amazon FBA, driving for Lyft, and a brief mention of mining Helium cryptocurrency.

Getting out of debt can be tackled with several different approaches. One is reducing what you owe, but another is increasing income to help pay down the debt. Experience has taught me that a combination of both usually is the winning hand.

But making extra money is problematic when trying to do it through desperation rather than inspiration. So we aim to change that for you by showing you the way.

My friend debt coach Damon Day and I are working together to find side hustles you can explore to help make an extra $500 to $2,000 a month with your own side business or side hustle.

We are not selling anything, so don't worry. The advice you will hear is unbiased. We're starting from scratch on the different side hustles, so we will find the potholes so you can avoid them.

As Damon once said, Our side hustle is to try all the side hustles, so you don't have to.  So true.

Give me five minutes, and I'll help you to understand the complexities of the housing crisis we face in 2022 and why both home buyers and renters are finding it difficult to move ahead. It's complicated.

The word inflation is used all the time, but what does it really mean, how do we measure it, and what happens when we try to reduce it? Let's talk about it in today's shortcast.

Debt settlement is not a monolithic debt relief solution. I like to say debt settlement is like an onion. It has layers. 

There are several forms of tackling your debt using settlement. All are distinctly different, and understanding the differences is important to make the best choices for you and your situation.

For example, you could listen to someone on Facebook tell you what you should do to settle your debt. You might buy a book and try to learn how to do it yourself, or you might contact a mass market debt settlement company and get pitched some one-size-fits-none product. There are more variations.

Chapter two of my book, The Path to Happiness and Wealth. In this chapter, we take a more introspective look at the factors that drive money troubles and what prevents us from making ends meet.

The chapter has plenty of client examples that help to fill your quota of debt voyeurism and the ability to learn from situations others have faced.

I wrote this book in 2002, and it's funny to look back and witness the death of the mall. Maybe they will make a comeback. We shall see. So forgive my focus on brick-and-mortar shopping in this age of point-and-click. Still, the features that shopping creates still apply to online shopping.

I wrote this book in 2002, but the lessons and insights included are just as relevant today as they were then. I was awarded the Washington Post personal finance book of the month award for this book. It is a holistic look at the secrets to overcoming debt and finding a balance with money in your life. It’s a good book for people to read that might be having issues with shopping issues, compulsive spending, overspending, hidden debt, etc. 

For many years I've written about the tactic some debt relief companies use to trick consumers into signing up for some form of debt relief.

Consumers receive offers in the mail for a personal or debt consolidation loan and are told they don't qualify, but "we have a better program."

Today I wanted to share some life-altering low-stress advice on how to best deal with debt collectors. I think what I'm going to share will surprise you and be a big help if you or someone you know is getting calls from a debt collection agency. When it comes to debt collectors, not everything you believe is true. So let's put all the assumptions aside for this podcast.

This week on the Get Out of Debt Guy podcast, I want to talk with you about time running out, buying stuff for less than it costs, car payments over a cliff, and Baaaad people.

In this podcast, I want to share the following stories that may surprise you.

We will start with a loan advertisement that might appear in your mailbox and why you need to watch out. 

Then we will chat about what will happen with home prices in this uncertain economy. Will they crash? Let's take a look.

Next, I want to discuss how you might be inadvertently hurting people that help you. 

Finally, I want to wind up with a controversial topic with significant economic unintended consequences for both men and women. I bet this is going to give you information most have not considered.

One of the most dreaded words in the English language is budgets. 

So today, I want to share some unspoken truths about budgets and make a confession to you as well. 

The thought of a traditional or typical budget can create fear, shame, and stress for many. And that's just the tip of the iceberg. Budgets can also lead to fights, marital distress, and the absolute end of some relationships. It doesn't have to be that way.

But, when it comes to finding the person you love, opposites attract. For example, a fundamental law of love and money is whether spenders attract savers or are savers attract spenders. I don't know. It's a chicken and egg problem. But I know that people with very different beliefs about money are drawn to each other. 

There is more to being a budget planner than you would expect. Let's dive in and eliminate all your stress and guilt.

Today, we're going to be talking about credit repair, how to improve your credit score, scams to avoid, and what you should and should not do to help make your credit score as shiny as it should be.

You will not believe the craziness the Department of Education is undertaking to forgive student loans for many while punishing the folks that are in the most financial need. In today's podcast, I talk about how insane this is. 

If you owe Parent PLUS loans, you can forget about reasonable forgiveness of student loan debt. Parents are being left out in the cold.

Speaking of folks left out in the cold, mobile homeowners are looking at exploding rents while the top 5 percent of income earners are living paycheck-to-paycheck.

Today Damon and I talk about how to boost your income with side hustles. But, it does not have to be a painful experience. Success is a mindset, and the opportunity to make more money is as close as your smartphone.

There is no shortage of apps and things you can do to raise money. From selling stuff to offering a service, there is a little something for everyone.

This podcast is unusual since it starts with some behind-the-scenes audio that usually gets cut and vanishes forever.

Today we need to have an honest discussion about the largest growing scam category. Once you finish learning about it in this podcast, you will have to help spread the word to friends, family, and people you know. Don’t let them become a victim.

Although cryptocurrency has yet to become a mainstream payment method, reports to the Federal Trade Commission show it’s an alarmingly common method for scammers to get peoples’ money. 

Since the start of 2021, more than 46,000 people have reported losing over $1 billion in crypto to scams – that’s about one out of every four dollars reported lost.  That’s more than any other payment method. The median individual reported loss? A whopping $2,600. Bitcoin was the most prevalent requested cryptocurrency by scammers. Seven out of ten requests were for Bitcoin, 10 percent were for Tether and 9% were Ether.

As big as those numbers are, they still don’t give us a complete picture of the scam losses with crypto. The vast majority of frauds are never reported so if we are just looking at reported numbers, it is a small percentage of total losses.  

Crypto has several features that are attractive to scammers, which may help to explain why the reported losses in 2021 were nearly sixty times what they were in 2018. 

Losses continue to accelerate. In the first quarter of 2022, crypto scam reported losses are almost $330 million. If it continues at this rate 2022 should end with about $1.5 billion in reported losses.

There’s no bank or other centralized authority to flag suspicious transactions and attempt to stop fraud before it happens. 

Crypto transfers can’t be reversed – once the money’s gone, there’s no getting it back. And most people are still unfamiliar with how crypto works. These considerations are not unique to crypto transactions, but they all play into the hands of scammers.

Reports point to social media and crypto as a combustible combination for fraud. Nearly half the people who reported losing crypto to a scam since 2021 said it started with an ad, post, or message on a social media platform.

During this period, nearly four out of every ten dollars reported lost to a fraud originating on social media was lost in crypto, far more than any other payment method. 

The top platforms identified in these reports were Instagram (32%), Facebook (26%), WhatsApp (9%), and Telegram (7%).

Of the reported crypto fraud losses that began on social media, most are investment scams.

Indeed, since 2021, $575 million of all crypto fraud losses reported to the FTC were about bogus investment opportunities, far more than any other fraud type. 

The stories people share about these scams describe a perfect storm: false promises of easy money paired with people’s limited crypto understanding and experience. 

Investment scammers claim they can quickly and easily get huge returns for investors. But those crypto “investments” go straight to a scammer’s wallet. People report that investment websites and apps let them track the growth of their crypto, but it’s all fake. Some people report making a small “test” withdrawal – just enough to convince them it’s safe to go all in. 

When they really try to cash out, they’re told to send more crypto for (fake) fees, and they don’t get any of their money back.

Romance scams are a distant second to investment scams, with $185 million in reported cryptocurrency losses since 2021 – that’s nearly one in every three dollars reported lost to a romance scam during this period. 

And many have an investment twist too. These keyboard Casanovas reportedly dazzle people with their supposed wealth and sophistication. 

This strategy is called “pig slaughtering.”

This story caught my attention and the ability to attend any state college or university and get free child care is a major policy change that can help lift people up without going into massive debt. For people that are looking to have a chance at a better future by attending vocational training, technical schools, or higher education, this state might be your new home.

Child care is so expensive and a roadblock for many people trying to make the leap from welfare to work. State-paid childcare can help many working families get ahead. 

Well, the lessons have been learned about being a crypto trading whiz. I talk about what I learned and have come to conclude. I also answer CM's question about IADT for-profit student loan forgiveness options, and how creditors now have to be able to support automated credit denials.

Tina wanted to know if she should deal with her debt using debt settlement or bankruptcy. 

The topic of if student loans should be forgiven is a hot topic right now. On one side people are demanding some level of forgiveness. On the other side, student loan forgiveness should not happen because it is not fair to truck drivers.

No question has been asked more often over my decades of helping people with money, credit, and debt issues than is it is better to rent or buy.

The best answer to that question is yes because arguments can be made on both sides of that issue. So, let's talk about it and help you to see the situation in a way you might not have before.

Today, my concern for your finances is over credit card balances and interest rates rising. People are not prepared for what is coming, and I want you to be ready.

The latest figures are out from the Federal Reserve report on consumer credit. The G19 information looks at what types of debts are rising and which are falling.

Company Illegally Charged Consumers for Credit Advice, Filed False ID Theft Reports, and Pitched Them on Fake Business Opportunity.

On the show today Damon Day and I focused on reduced mortgage payments for people behind on their federally backed mortgage loans after Covid forbearance ends, why it is so easy to make bad emotional decisions, and adios to FedLoan Servicing.

Steve Rhode

Get Out of Debt Guy