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| Stat Of The Day |
| $200,000 |
| If you’re ready to swap your current digs for something smaller, you could cash in – big time. Stats show that downsizing from a four-bedroom to a two-bedroom home yields an average net gain of $200,000. And if you’ve got decades of stuff to clear out first? That could sweeten the deal even more. Scroll on to find out how. |
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| Four Generations, One Money Talk |
The old rulebook – get a job, buy a house, let it appreciate, retire comfortably – isn’t working the way it used to. And women across every generation know it.
In the first episode of a new HerMoney Podcast series, From First Paycheck to Forever Paycheck, in collaboration with AARP, Jean brought together four women representing Gen Z, millennials, Gen X, and baby boomers for an honest conversation about how they’re building wealth.
One theme came through loud and clear: it’s OK to let go of the idea that homeownership is the only path women should follow.
Ashley Parker, a Pulitzer Prize-winning staff writer at The Atlantic, spent her career navigating one of the most unpredictable industries there is – journalism – which taught her early lessons in financial flexibility and the importance of a fallback. She bought her first home at 35, and didn't sugarcoat what she found on the other side.
"My family of five – and now a dog – occupies three overpriced hallways, stacked one on top of the other," she said. And the hidden costs caught her off guard. "When you need new windows, it’s something like $20,000, and you’re not even overhauling a kitchen. All you have are windows that function so you’re no longer freezing."
But she was just as clear that not owning a home is nothing to be ashamed of. "I don't think it is necessarily the American dream to own a home. And I don't think people who can't own a home should feel bad, because you don't know other people's situations. And so you shouldn't feel like you're not succeeding because all these other factors are totally out of your control."
Stay tuned for upcoming episodes in the series featuring Parker, along with Hannah Williams, founder of Salary Transparent Street, Viviana Vazquez, creator of OverGenPoverty, and Carly Roszkowski, Vice President of Financial Resilience at AARP. |
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| This Week In Your Wallet |
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And for those still chasing homeownership, some are finding their way in by buying the property they visit on weekends. As The New York Times reports, priced-out buyers in expensive cities – think New York, LA, etc. – are skipping the local home they can’t afford and buying a vacation property instead. They use it when they can, rent it out the rest of the year to help cover the cost and eventually plan to move in for good. Take Janel Gallucci for example. In April 2019, she and her now-husband bought a home on Lake Tahoe for $470,000 – all while still renting in San Francisco, where a fixer-upper with no garage, yard or views would have cost her over $1 million. "I really felt that I had cracked the code to life," Ms. Gallucci said. "We can rent this house all summer and all winter, and then we get a free vacation house in the spring and fall."
Saving for retirement is hard enough without myths getting in the way. Erin Wood busted five of the biggest for HerMoney – including the idea that retirement is too far off to think about yet. Turns out, our brains treat our future selves like total strangers. We struggle to connect the 45-year-old we are today with the 65- or 85-year-old we’ll become, so saving now for "them" feels optional. The fix? Get to know the future you. "Imagine what your life might look like in three decades," writes Wood. "Imagine all your wrinkles and gray hair and what your priorities might be then. Writing a letter to your future self has been shown to help increase that sense of connection between present and future."
🚨 Want to take it one step further? Our FinanceFixx Pre-Retirement Checkup starts July 28. Reserve your spot here.
With more boomers looking to downsize, estate sales are having a moment. As NPR reports, they’re not just a goldmine for vintage finds; they’re changing how younger generations think about the stuff they accumulate. "I can only think about somebody else walking through my house one day…which gives you kind of a different relationship to your stuff," says Leah Hammond, an estate sale shopper in Washington, D.C. |
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| Things That Make You Money |
| And on the flip side, if you’re cleaning out, don’t donate these – sell them: |
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| What’s One Financial Task You’ve Been Avoiding? |
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We all have one. Maybe it’s checking your spending... Maybe it’s figuring out whether you’re saving enough to reach your goals… Or maybe it’s simply taking the time to log into five different accounts to see where your money is.
That’s why we love Monarch. It’s an all-in-one personal finance platform that brings together your bank accounts, credit cards, investments, loans, and more into one easy-to-understand dashboard. So instead of spending your time hunting down information, you can spend it making better decisions.
For a limited time, HerMoney readers can use code HERMONEYFAM to get your first year of Monarch for half off—just $50. Check it out! |
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| Ask Jean |
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| Q: |
Today’s question comes from Beth. She writes: "What are your thoughts on dental insurance? Is it better to tuck the money away in a savings account, or to have dental insurance for needs ranging from simple (x-rays/fillings) to extreme (root canal/caps)?" |
| A: |
The answer to this largely depends on your dental health and whether you can get coverage via an employer.
If your company (or your spouse’s company) is picking up most of the tab, I’d say take it. The same advice applies if you know you’ll likely need dental work in the future that your dentist hasn’t flagged yet.
That said, if you’re an adult with healthy teeth shopping for a private plan on your own, the math often doesn’t work in your favor. Premiums typically run $25 to $60 a month, and that can add up to more than you’d ever spend on routine cleanings.
The big thing to understand here is that dental insurance isn’t like your medical coverage. Medical coverage exists to protect you from a catastrophic bill that would decimate your budget. Dental plans are built more for maintenance.
Typically, plans cover 100% of your routine X-rays and exams. Yes, it sounds great, but once you factor in the premium, paying cash for cleanings can sometimes be the cheaper move. Fillings are usually covered at 80% and bigger procedures – like root canals – drop to around 50%.
Nearly every plan caps your annual benefit at somewhere between $1,000 and $2,500. If you need serious work done, you’ll likely blow through that, and you’re on the hook for the rest.
My take? If you skip the insurance, don’t just pocket the difference. Redirect it into an HSA or dedicated savings account so you have it to fall back on when a dental bill does show up. |
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| Submit your questions to Jean here. |
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