WELCOME TO BUDGETS ARE SEXY! If you like talking about budgeting, saving, early retirement, getting out of debt, hustling, and all things money, you will probably like this site. If you think money is lame, you probably won't.

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Would You Rather Lose Your Phone, Wallet, or Car Keys?

July 6, 2020
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Hmmm. Interesting question. Back in the day, my wallet was the most important thing I carried around. I still remember my first wallet, one of those waterproof tri-fold velcro ones that carried my student ID and some train tickets. (Maybe also a few cut-out pictures in there from skateboard magazines — you know, the important stuff). But that was before everyone had cellphones. These days, […]

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How to Save Money on Air Conditioning … and Fun Tips to Stay Cool This Summer

July 3, 2020
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Summer is here! And we’re all looking for ways to stay cool, save money on air conditioning, and have some fun while doing it! If your home has air conditioning, we’ve got a few tips to reduce your summertime energy costs and maybe even increase the life of your AC unit. For those of you with no air conditioning, don’t fear … I’ve lived without […]

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2020 Money Goals: Mid-Year Review/Revise/Remove!

June 29, 2020
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Happy Monday, personal finance nerds! This week we cross over the halfway mark for the year 2020. Oh man, what a crazy year it’s been so far. When I sat down and wrote my 2020 money goals back in January, I had no clue about the poopstorm of events we were about to experience … One of the biggest stock market crashes in history Immediately […]

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How to Turn Your Side Hustle Into Passive Income

June 26, 2020
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[Welcome to Side Hustle #81, where Zach from Four Pillar Freedom stops by to share his experience — and tips — on how to “productize your knowledge.” We’ve covered tutoring as a side hustle before in different flavors (#14 & #74), but Zach’s approach goes beyond trading time for money … and turns his work into passive income, bringing in money while he sleeps! For […]

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!! Exclusive (Totally Made-Up) Interview With Prince Harry and Meghan About Financial Independence!!

June 22, 2020
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Hey, everyone! For a little light-hearted fun, today’s post is a 100% made-up interview/story. But there’s a kernel of truth to it! Harry and Megs have indeed announced that they are pursuing financial independence, and I’m a massive supporter of this decision. FIRE is ultimately about freedom, and I’m stoked that people with fame and all different income levels are figuring it out. If I […]

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Slow down … FIRE is not a race

June 19, 2020
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(FYI … “Sank Farten” means “slow down” in Swedish. I’ve been yelling it at speeding cars on my street lately, but I just get strange looks in return :)) When I first stumbled across the FIRE movement, I’ll admit I was a little narrow-minded. I thought the goal of FIRE was to accumulate an insane amount of savings to reach financial independence as fast as […]

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Things I learned while taking a sabbatical

June 15, 2020
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Since taking time off of work, I’ve had a ton of epiphanies. Most of them happened within 90 days of quitting my job. But even now, after a two-year sabbatical, I’m still discovering new things about my relationship with “work.” Let’s rewind a bit … Thinking about taking a sabbatical from work It was early 2018 and I was feeling run down, unappreciated, and a […]

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Engagement Rings 💍 A Contest + Fun Facts

June 12, 2020
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Happy Friday, y’all! Here are some fun facts about engagement ring bling to take your mind off of this yo-yo stock market! But first, let’s have a little Budgets Are Sexy competition … Do you think you could win one of these engagement ring categories if you’re stacked up against other Budgets readers? Keep in mind that the average engagement ring cost was $5k (WOAH) […]

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Can you retire with a mortgage? How about 15 mortgages!?

June 8, 2020
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Good morning, all. Happy Monday! Some of you are excited to learn more about real estate investing. I’m no expert, but I do have a few rental properties and will share my experiences (and screw-ups) over time. I know real estate investing isn’t everybody’s cup of tea, so I’ll keep posts like this light and sporadic. (Plus, J Money will kill me if I turn […]

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My $14,000 Dog, Cooper

June 5, 2020
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How much do dogs cost? Last month we had to rush my dog to the vet. Well actually it was my wife who took him to the vet … I’m a huge wimp when it comes to blood and doctors and stuff. Anyway, Cooper had ripped off one of his dew claws at the dog park. He was born with a few extra toes on […]

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Elvis has left the building … but the show must go on!

June 1, 2020
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One random Wednesday morning, I was checking my spam email folder and came across an interesting message. It was from a guy saying he worked at “Soapbox, a Motley Fool company.” He said that he checked out some of my writing, liked my positive vibe, and wanted to talk about an “opportunity to become the new face/voice of a blog they recently purchased.” This didn’t […]

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Farewell, my friends!

May 29, 2020
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Well this is The Day, my friends!! 12 years, 3 months and 17 days since writing my first post here, and now it’s time to say farewell! Eek! We sure had fun though, didn’t we??? And got a lot OLDER in the process? Lol… I started this blog in my 20s and ended in my 40s! With kids and a mortgage and a dog! :) […]

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Ask Me Anything!

May 28, 2020
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Hey guys!! Tomorrow’s my last day here!! If there was anything you ever wanted to ask me, now’s your shot! :) Can be about money, biz, love, life, kids, mohawks – whatev! If I can legally (and consciously) answer you, I will ;) Drop your questions down below in the comments or via email, and I’ll answer each and every one of them and then […]

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“My financial journey began when my father passed away 1.5 yrs ago”

May 27, 2020
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Morning, fam! So we got this entry into our giveaway-palooza last week (winners listed here btw), and after reading it I couldn’t help but pry a little and share her story ;) Here’s her original note below, followed by my peppering of questions which led to a bunch of great tips and resources from Kylee. Hope this helps you along your own journey! J-MONAY! Good […]

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