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Annuities can be very complicated. For starters, there are several different types. Also, depending on a whole host of factors—such as your age and health, your total savings, and your tolerance for risk—you might be better off bypassing annuities completely or using a mix of retirement investments, of which annuities are just one. A fee-only adviser doesn’t have an incentive to avoid annuities and also doesn’t get paid commissions for selling annuities. [2021] - Bill Perkins

Buying an annuity means you give the insurance company a lump sum—say, $500,000 at age 60—and in return you get a guaranteed monthly payout (for example, $2,400 each month) for the rest of your life. Annuities are essentially the opposite of life insurance. Thinking of annuities as insurance makes them a lot more sensible than thinking of them as investments—because as investments they are not good at all. But that’s not their goal—their goal is to insure you against the risk of outliving your money. [2021] - Bill Perkins

There is one life expectancy calculator the Society of Actuaries Web site recommends: the Actuaries Longevity Illustrator (http://www.longevityillustrator.org/). Based on your answers to just a few questions, it produces a chart that shows your probabilities of dying at different ages. If you’d like to get a more precise estimate of your life expectancy based on additional health factors, you’ll need to answer more health and lifestyle questions. One helpful tool is the Living to 100 calculator (https://www.livingto100.com). [2021] - Bill Perkins

You might discover that long-term care insurance costs less than you think, especially if you start paying premiums before you’re 65. [2021] - Bill Perkins

We recently purchased a year's worth of expat insurance from IMGlobal, up to $1,000,000 in coverage with a deductible of $2,500. the cost was $156 a month. [2019] - Kristy Shen

Travel Hacking: Apply for credit cards with big sign-up bonuses, match the required spending, then cancel the cards. Wait for 3-6 months and do it again. [2019] - Kristy Shen

Following the 4% rule still gives you a 5% chance of running out of money, due to a phenomenon known as sequence-of-return risk. Your backup plan: 1) Cash Cushion - A reserve fund held in a savings account that you can use to avoid doing a full portfolio withdrawal during down years. 2) Yield Shield - "Temporarily" pivoting your portfolio into higher-yielding assets: Preferred shares (e.g. XPF), REITS (e.g. XRE), Corporate bonds (e.g. XCB), Dividend stocks (e.g. XDV). The size of the Cash Cushion = (Annual spending - Annual yield of your portfolio) x Number of years it takes for a stock market to recover from a big crash (e.g. 5) [2019] - Kristy Shen

Put assets that pay interest or non-qualified dividends in your tax-deferred or tax-sheltered accounts. Put assets that pay qualified dividends in your normal investment accounts. [2019] - Kristy Shen

To get a more accurate estimate of your housing costs, use the Rule of 150: Take your monthly mortgage payment and multiply it by 150%. If the Rule of 150 monthly cost is higher than rent, rent. Otherwise, buy. Always "math shit up" before you buy. [2019] - Kristy Shen

If you find that your listing isn't getting enough bookings on Airbnb, you can look at alternatives, such as VRBO, HomeAway, FlipKey, and Booking.com to just name a few. However, putting your listing on multiple platforms requires the use of vacation rental management tools to help you manage the multiple listings and calendars to avoid double bookings and scheduling conflicts. These tools can be costly, so the option isn't idea for single listing hosts in low travel demand markets. [2023] - Symon He

To minimize your taxable Airbnb earnings, you must deduct all the allowable expenses from your gross Airbnb revenue. Allowable expenses items typically include the following: * Advertising and marketing * Airbnb hosting fee * Car expenses * Cleaning fees * Contract labor * Depreciation of all capitalized expenses * Education * Guest incidentals and amenities * HOA fees * Insurance * Laundry services * Legal & professional services * Meals and entertainment * Mobile phone and data plans * Mortgage interest * Office supplies * Permits and licensing * Property management or co-host fees * Property taxes * Repairs and maintenance * Subscription fees * Software * Supplies * Travel * Utilities [2023] - Symon He

GROSS EARNINGS (Rent - Hosting fee) + ADJUSTMENTS (Cleaning fee revenue, Additional revenue, Resolution credit or debit adjustments) = GROSS AIRBNB REVENUE (Gross earnings + All sources of revenue & refunds) - ALLOWABLE EXPENSES (Hosting fees, Utilities fees, Cleaner fees, Co-host fees, Rent, Property taxes, Insurance, Software costs, Supplies, Depreciation, etc.) = AIRBNB TAXABLE EARNINGS [2023] - Symon He

If you don't specify a specific check-out time, Airbnb defaults it to 12 p.m. local time. However, 12 p.m. may not give you or your cleaner enough time to clean, sanitize, and turn the property over before the next guest checks in, typically by 3 or 4 p.m. We recommend most hosts start with an 11 a.m. check-out time. Any earlier and you'll make your listing unappealing to potential guests. Make sure you clearly state your check-out time in your listing, in your house manual, and in your check-out communications. [2023] - Symon He

Most hosts are going to lean toward a small property management company that manages between 5 and 70 properties. This type of company is probably a good fit for anyone who has less than 20 properties that need managed. [2023] - Symon He

A smart lock is a lock that can be operated remotely and in most cases can be unlocked by guests via a mobile app or custom numeric code. Some smart locks such as the August lock (august.com) even integrate with your Airbnb account so that when guest books your property it automatically creates and registers them as a guest. Having a contingency plan in place is important in case something does go wrong. If you're going to use a smart lock or electronic coded lock on your door, we recommend having a lockbox somewhere else on the property as a backup option. [2023] - Symon He

We asked hosts from around the world what their best and most worthwhile Airbnb purchases were. Feel free to incorporate them into your Airbnb budget: * Increasing your listings maximum occupancy by replacing a normal couch with a sleeper sofa bed * Using automated dynamic pricing from providers, such as Wheelhouse (usewheelhouse.com) * Using messaging and calendar automation tools, such as SmartBNB (smartbnb.io) * Adding protective covers for mattresses and furniture (protect against spills, accidents, and bedbugs that require costly replacements or downtime for decontamination) * Having luggage stands [2023] - Symon He

With the Airbnb essentials, such as toilet paper, soap (for hands and body), shampoo, towels, linens, and pillows, you must always have enough for your guests for the length of their stay. They don't need to be expensive or come from recognized brands. For high-touch items, such as towels, pillows, and bedsheets, prioritize comfort over costs. A slightly higher replacement cost is well worth it if you end up receiving positive receives from guests. Get the fastest internet connection available to your property and purchases the fastest, multiband Wi-Fi router you can afford. Slow Wi-Fi alone can turn an otherwise 5-star guest stay into a 1-star review. [2023] - Symon He

According to iGMS, a leading vacation rental software, 59% of Airbnb listings have a security deposit. We suggest you identify a dozen of the most comparable listings in your market and note the security deposit levels they set. Start with at most the median rate. Keep your security deposit at no more than 25% of your average total booking. For example, if the average booking for our listing is 3 evenings at $150, then 25% of $450 is $112.50. For most listings, the ideal level is generally between $100 to $600 per booking, where the $600 levels are typically reserved for listings with average bookings well over $2,000. [2023] - Symon He

Airbnb currently charges most hosts a flat 3% of the gross bookings and most guests about 13% of the subtotal (the nightly rate plus cleaning fee and any additional fees) in North America. In other parts of the world, the host and guest fees range from 3-5% and up to 20%, respectively. Many hosts who tried but eventually stopped using Airbnb's Smart Pricing after they discovered that their listings were at times charging 40% lower than their optimal prices. Unlike Airbnb's Smart Pricing tool, 3rd-party dynamic pricing tools don't earn a service fee from the guests. The typical fee for 3rd-party pricing provider is 1% of gross bookings. [2023] - Symon He

The prime booking window for airline tickets is somewhere between 20 to 120 days, with the best rates occurring around the 80 to 90 days from the flight. Airbnb pricing has a similar dynamic when you optimize for temporarily during dates with unusually high travel demand, such as when your city has a special event that draws a sudden influx of travelers. Unlike the airline industry however, you won't typically see a large price hike for Airbnb bookings within the final 2 weeks prior to a special event. As the event approaches, you should reduce your pricing to ensure a booking rather than risk having an empty listing during an otherwise busy weekend. For pricing your Airbnb during special events, start high and then steadily reduce your pricing as the date of the event approaches. [2023] - Symon He