Financially rigged games

• Credit Cards – The national average is 15% interest.
• Buying a new car – The average car payment is $485 over 86 months. Cars lose an average of 40% of its value in the first 4 years.
• Leasing a car – Residual value (how much it will be worth when the lease ends); the lender may figure that a car selling for $30,000 today will be worth $15,000 4 years from now, and will calculate monthly payments to cover that loss in value.
• 30 year mortgages – You can save over $85,000 in interest alone just by switching to a 15 year fixed rate (example used: 3% interest on a $200,000 house).
• Personal Mortgage Insurance (PMI) – There simply is no need for it if you can be patient and put 20% down on your house.
• Out of State Tuition – Average price is about $16,000 per semester for an out-of-state public university. That is about $9,000 more per semester for in-state universities.
• FICO scores – You could have an income of over a million dollars this year with no debt and have a FICO score of 0. This is not a true measurement of wealth.
• Waiting on Social Security – Those who are starting out in the work force can put away $100 a month in growth stock mutual funds with a long track record with returns in the 12% range will retire as millionaires. It is that simple. If you can’t put $100 away right now, can you do $80? $60? Just start putting something away.

Resist the foolish choice. Be patient. Challenge the status quo. Ask the question do I really need to play this game? Is there a different game I can play? Do not accept or comply with the idea that you need to have something. We are all smart and very capable people.