Prosperity Podcast with Nicole Bremner

Nicole Bremner
  • 5.0 (4)
  • Entrepreneurship
  • Updated Weekly

The Prosperity Podcast is for ambitious individuals—entrepreneurs and professionals—who want to take control of their finances and create a life of freedom, security and meaning. It’s for those who believe that wealth is about more than just money, it’s about having the freedom to choose how you live, work and give. Whether you’re just getting started or you’re looking to rebalance your approach, this podcast is your guide to building long term, sustainable wealth. We talk about investing wisely, creating multiple income streams and designing a portfolio that reflects your values and your goals. Prosperity Podcast features honest conversations about money—how to grow it, how to keep it and how to enjoy it. Nicole Bremner is an investor, certified financial coach, author and mum of three. Having had a successful career in investment banking, like many women who take a ‘career break’ to have children, she found herself at a crossroads, not entirely sure what path to take next. Combining her financial knowledge with her passion for good architecture and design, Nicole was able to build on her experience and expertise to develop a new career, which fit around her children and spent the next decade building a multi million property portfolio in London.    Newly relaunched as  Prosperity Podcast, Nicole interviews some of the interesting people she has met while navigating her (sometimes turbulent) voyage through professional and family life. From charity founders and travelling investors to authors and young entrepreneurs, these are the real tales of real people finding their way in business. Join Nicole as she listens to their stories and the lessons they have learned along the way.    Instagram: http://instagram.com/nsbremner YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/NicoleBremner Facebook: http://facebook.com/nicolesbremner X: https://x.com/nicolebremner/ Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.co.uk/NSBremner/

  1. 4h ago

    Bricked It: The First £300,000 Is the Hardest Chapters 10-12 #189

    Send us Fan Mail Tailored strategies for every stage of the journey — small, medium and large pot investors — so you know exactly what's possible and what to do next, whether you're starting with £5,000 or £500,000. Three chapters this week, one clear purpose: meeting you wherever you are. Once you know your number from Chapter 9, these chapters map the road ahead for each stage. Small Pot (Chapter 10) — £50,000 to £250,000. If you're not there yet, don't despair; even £100 a month compounds faster than you'd think. Clear expensive consumer debt first, because no investment beats a 25–30% credit card. At £50,000 you've got a deposit for a first buy-to-let or buy-to-sell — though I gently remind you property isn't tax-efficient or divisible, so max your ISAs and pensions before you fall in love with bricks. Medium Pot (Chapter 11) — £250,000 to £500,000, where it gets interesting. More room to diversify, the power of leverage (and its risks — I'd keep debt around 50%), holding companies and SPVs, and a property-savvy accountant on your team. Protection matters here too: could your income cover the mortgage if something happened to you? Large Pot (Chapter 12) — £500,000 and above. A confession: I started my first professional project with £1.1 million, most of it from a Clerkenwell flat that doubled and a decade in banking. My first boss in Sydney told me the first A$300,000 is the hardest to make — after that, compounding does the heavy lifting. At this level, get the basics rock-solid: pay down your home, max every allowance, put protection in place, and hire a professional project manager (around £45,000 a year) so you own investments, not another job. Slowly does it. In this episode: Small pot: starting from £50k, clearing bad debt first, and why ISAs may beat bricksMedium pot: diversifying, sensible leverage, holding companies and protectionLarge pot: getting the basics right, the right structure, and outsourcing the job"The first £300,000 is the hardest" — and why compounding rewards patienceHow to keep moving up the ladder safely, at any starting pointA note on the voice: what you're hearing is an AI-generated version of my voice reading my own words. It's me — just not in the room. I'd rather be upfront about that than pretend otherwise. Every word, every lesson, and every mistake is mine. Which pot are you in, and what's your next step? Tell me on Substack at nicolebremner.substack.com, where paid subscribers get early access, extended commentary, and the chance to ask me anything. Subscribe wherever you listen so the finale lands automatically. Next week: the Conclusion — What to Do Next. Support the show Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this podcast belong solely to the host and guest speakers. The view and opinions of the guest speakers do not represent that of the host. Always do your own research.

    11 min

  2. 4d ago

    Bricked It: The Female Tax and Why Your Money Is Your Responsibility Chapters 8 & 9 #188

    Send us Fan Mail Why no woman should outsource her financial future to a partner, the "female tax" quietly draining your savings, and the honest net-worth reckoning that lays the foundation for everything that follows. Two short, sharp chapters this week — and they belong together. Chapter 8, "A Man Is NOT a Financial Plan," is my plea to every woman listening. I share Anya, an intelligent businesswoman who runs her own PR firm yet has no idea what her family has saved or what her husband earns. And Dorothy, who never worked, reached almost 70 with nothing of her own — then divorced, bought a round-the-world ticket and backpacked across Europe at 70. I talk about the "female tax" — the hair, the Botox, the nails, the must-have handbag — and how mindlessly it drains what could be securing your future. The non-negotiable: keep three months of cash in your own account, not a joint one. A partner, however loving, is not a financial plan. Your money is your responsibility. Chapter 9, "Know Your Numbers," is where Part 3 begins and the work gets practical. No shame, no comparison — just an honest picture of where you stand. I walk you through building a simple net-worth statement (yes, the Birkin bags count as assets), set it against real ONS data on what Britons actually have saved by age, and show you how to find the money leaking out through forgotten subscriptions. By the end you'll know your number — and I introduce the three investor categories, small, medium and large pot, that shape the chapters to come. In this episode: Why outsourcing your finances to a partner leaves you dangerously exposedAnya and Dorothy: two women, two very different reckoningsThe "female tax" and the three-months-cash rule (in your own account)Building an honest net-worth statement — assets, debts, and your real numberHow you actually compare to the average Brit, by ageFinding the leaks in your spending, and the small/medium/large pot categories aheadA note on the voice: what you're hearing is an AI-generated version of my voice reading my own words. It's me — just not in the room. I'd rather be upfront about that than pretend otherwise. Every word, every lesson, and every mistake is mine. Worked out your number? I'd love to hear how it felt. Find me on Substack at nicolebremner.substack.com, where paid subscribers get early access, extended commentary, and the chance to ask me anything. Subscribe wherever you listen so the next episode lands automatically. Next week: Chapter 10 — Small Pot Investors. Support the show Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this podcast belong solely to the host and guest speakers. The view and opinions of the guest speakers do not represent that of the host. Always do your own research.

    11 min

  3. Jun 22

    Bricked It: The SAFER System, Strategy, Acquisition, Funding, Exit, Repeat Chapter Seven #187

    Send us Fan Mail The complete SAFER system — Strategy, Acquisition, Funding, Exit, Repeat — the framework I built after losing almost everything, walked through step by step with the real stories behind each one. Everything so far has been the why. This chapter is the how: the complete SAFER system, the framework I built after making just about every mistake possible across a decade and 110 properties. The whole point is that you work through all five steps before you invest a penny — not as you go. It's designed to screen out the deals that will hurt you before you're ever exposed to them. I take each letter in turn. Strategy — what your portfolio actually needs to earn to give you the life you want, across cash, equities, property and pensions (and why speculative bets should be no more than 5% of your net worth). Acquisition — buying smart, knowing your numbers, never budging on your upper price limit. Funding — and here I tell the gut-wrenching story of Pete, who borrowed from a loan shark he met in a Facebook group and lost his 83-year-old mother's entire £113,000 life savings, plus why I'll now only ever fund through a regulated bank. Exit — flexibility, plans A, B and C, and the time I held out for a higher price from a famous buyer (Ross from Friends, no less), got greedy, and lost the deal entirely. Repeat — review, refine, regroup, and the quiet power of compound interest. I also correct a mistake I made for years: no, holding residential property in a limited company does not protect it from inheritance tax. And I close with Barbara — 53, asset-rich, cash-poor, no home of her own — and the radical advice I gave her: sell the entire portfolio, buy a home outright, and live debt-free and in control. In this episode: The full SAFER framework: Strategy, Acquisition, Funding, Exit, Repeat — and why you run it before you investStrategy: what your portfolio must earn, and capping speculation at 5%Funding: Pete, the loan shark, and a mother's lost life savings — why I only fund through regulated banks nowExit: the David Schwimmer deal I lost by being greedy, and reading the marketThe inheritance tax myth about limited companies that even I got wrongBarbara's story: when selling everything is the SAFER moveA note on the voice: what you're hearing is an AI-generated version of my voice reading my own words. It's me — just not in the room. I'd rather be upfront about that than pretend otherwise. Every word, every lesson, and every mistake is mine. Want help applying SAFER to your own situation? Come find me on Substack at nicolebremner.substack.com, where paid subscribers get early access, extended commentary, and the chance to ask me anything. Subscribe wherever you listen so Chapter 8 lands automatically. Next week: Chapter 8 — A Man Is NOT a Financial Plan. Support the show Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this podcast belong solely to the host and guest speakers. The view and opinions of the guest speakers do not represent that of the host. Always do your own research.

    35 min

  4. Jun 18

    Bricked It: It's All About People Chapter Six #186

    Send us Fan Mail People are the most unpredictable part of any investment. The story of a contractor whose gambling brought a project down, and why a good contract — not a handshake — is the safety net that saves you. A hard truth opens Part 2: partner with the wrong people, or without the right contracts, and you'll fail no matter how well you do everything else. Because once you're relying on someone, you've handed over control. I tell the story of Evan, a contractor and close friend of my head builder, who I trusted to run an East London extension. When his team stopped showing up, we discovered he had a serious gambling problem and had gambled the wages and the client's funds — a devastating situation for everyone, Evan included. No amount of planning could have foreseen it. But it taught me something blunt: in any relationship where money is involved, even the closest bonds can break. Look at failed marriages and contested wills if you need proof. So how do you protect yourself? Not with a handshake — with a contract. Sit down with a good lawyer, work through every eventuality, and put protection procedures in place before anything goes wrong. I share the example of Dale and Luke, two partners who wanted to skip planning their exit. When their partnership later frayed, the exit strategy we'd insisted on meant they could part ways amicably — a near-perfect uncoupling. Those mechanisms are priceless. In this episode: Why people are the single most unpredictable part of any investmentThe contractor whose gambling brought a whole project down — and what it cost everyone"Trust no one": why money tests even your closest relationshipsWhy a handshake is worthless and a proper contract is your safety netDale and Luke: how an exit strategy turned a failing partnership into a clean breakA note on the voice: what you're hearing is an AI-generated version of my voice reading my own words. It's me — just not in the room. I'd rather be upfront about that than pretend otherwise. Every word, every lesson, and every mistake is mine. Been burned by a partnership or saved by a contract? Tell me on Substack at nicolebremner.substack.com, where paid subscribers get early access, extended commentary, and the chance to ask me anything. Subscribe wherever you listen so Chapter 7 lands automatically. Next week: Chapter 7 — The SAFER System. Support the show Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this podcast belong solely to the host and guest speakers. The view and opinions of the guest speakers do not represent that of the host. Always do your own research.

    7 min

  5. Jun 15

    Bricked It: The Real Deal Chapter Five #185

    Send us Fan Mail Why the property millionaires on your feed haven't weathered a storm — and the real, unglamorous story of my own 15 years in property: the accidental wins, the nightmare flat, and the lessons that built the SAFER system. Scroll through Instagram and you'll find no shortage of self-proclaimed property millionaires promising you the pot of gold from a single seminar. This chapter is my answer to all of them. Here's a tip I share early on: run their name through Companies House and look at the actual accounts — the cash reserves, the liabilities. You'll often see a very different picture from the one on the feed. I don't think most influencers have bad intentions; the problem is many of them have never weathered a real storm. They haven't seen what a 15% market drop does to someone who's highly geared. I have. So I tell you my real story — the whole, unglamorous path. Becoming an accidental landlord with a Clerkenwell flat that sold for double (property's easy, right?). The Hackney flat I bought from a distressed seller that became a years-long nightmare: non-paying tenants for 15 months, four trips to court, damp, and roughly £50,000 I'll probably never recover. The Austrian ski apartment I bought while heavily pregnant and couldn't even view. An assisted sale that worked out well for everyone. And how all of it taught me I'm simply too soft to be a landlord. Fifteen years, the wins and the failures, plus the mistakes I've learned from others — that's the foundation the SAFER system is built on. In this episode: The Companies House trick for checking if a "property millionaire" is the real dealWhy influencers who've never weathered a downturn are the most dangerous to followMy accidental-landlord beginnings — and why "property is easy" is a trapThe Hackney flat from hell: 15 months of unpaid rent, four court cases, £50k underwaterWhy blind hope doesn't pay the bills, and how my real track record shaped the SAFER systemA note on the voice: what you're hearing is an AI-generated version of my voice reading my own words. It's me — just not in the room. I'd rather be upfront about that than pretend otherwise. Every word, every lesson, and every mistake is mine. Spotted a too-good-to-be-true pitch lately? Tell me on Substack at nicolebremner.substack.com, where paid subscribers get early access, extended commentary, and the chance to ask me anything. Subscribe wherever you listen so Chapter 6 lands automatically. Next week: Chapter 6 — It's All About People. Support the show Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this podcast belong solely to the host and guest speakers. The view and opinions of the guest speakers do not represent that of the host. Always do your own research.

    10 min

  6. Jun 11

    Bricked It: It's All About Balance Chapter Four #184

    Send us Fan Mail Why a balanced financial life — liquidity, tax, priorities, legacy and your relationship with debt — beats chasing any single asset, and the Freedom Triangle that taught me money was only ever one third of the picture. Too much of anything is dangerous — diet, exercise, even water. Investing is no different. This chapter is about balance, and why it's the foundation of freedom rather than the enemy of it. I break down what a genuinely balanced financial life looks like. Liquidity first: cash is queen, and three to six months of accessible savings is what lets you handle life's surprises without panic-selling. Tax efficiency next — using your ISA allowances, getting advice on whether to hold property personally or through a company. I'm candid here about being on benefits not so long ago, and why I'm now happy to pay tax. Then the part that changed me most: the Freedom Triangle — money, time and place. I'd always believed money alone bought freedom. A week on my partner Paul's boat, sailing from Ibiza to Cartagena with no phone signal, taught me otherwise. It was the first time I'd slept properly in months. It made me ask the question I want you to ask too: are your investments working for you, or are you working for them? What's your real hourly rate — and would the numbers still stack if you costed your time honestly? I finish with legacy and your relationship with debt, including the years I spent shuffling £32,000 of credit card debt between 0% offers, and the mental space that clearing it finally gave me. In this episode: Balanced liquidity: why cash is queen and how much you should keep accessibleTax planning, ISAs, and personal vs. company ownership — plus my own benefits storyThe Freedom Triangle: money, time and place, and the sailing trip that reset meAre your investments working for you? Calculating your true hourly rateLegacy and inheritance (a question I'll answer in Chapter 7), and knowing your honest tolerance for debtA note on the voice: what you're hearing is an AI-generated version of my voice reading my own words. It's me — just not in the room. I'd rather be upfront about that than pretend otherwise. Every word, every lesson, and every mistake is mine. What does balance look like for you? Tell me on Substack at nicolebremner.substack.com, where paid subscribers get early access, extended commentary, and the chance to ask me anything. Subscribe wherever you listen so Chapter 5 lands automatically. Next week: Chapter 5 — The Real Deal. Support the show Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this podcast belong solely to the host and guest speakers. The view and opinions of the guest speakers do not represent that of the host. Always do your own research.

    15 min

  7. Jun 8

    Bricked It: Forewarned Is Forearmed Chapter Three #183

    Send us Fan Mail The five risks every property investor needs to see coming — from chasing shiny pennies and dressing up bad deals to running out of contingency, getting trapped without an exit, and flying too close to the sun. If Chapter 2 was what went wrong, this chapter is how you see it coming. I open with the hardest lesson I learned: mistaking luck for skill. When I started out in Hackney, everything I touched turned to gold — and I believed that was talent. It wasn't. Hackney property prices rose 104% between 2009 and 2016, and I happened to be standing in the right place. Hindsight made that painfully clear. From there I walk through the five risks that catch almost everyone out, mapped to the SAFER system. Shiny Penny Syndrome — chasing the latest strategy whether or not it suits your life (like Maria, who wisely walked away from rent-to-rent). Being honest about a deal's real numbers instead of putting lipstick on a pig. Holding a proper contingency, because every project runs over. Staying flexible on your exit — I tell the story of a South Kensington project that fell from a £5.25m valuation to a £3.2m sale during lockdown. And resisting the urge to scale too fast and fly too close to the sun. I'm not anti-property. I'm pro-property — just no longer evangelical about it. Realistic, awake to what can go wrong, and determined to make you aware too. In this episode: Why mistaking luck for skill is the most dangerous trap of allRisk 1 — Strategy: Shiny Penny Syndrome and choosing what actually fits your lifeRisk 2 — Appraisal: being brutally honest with your numbers (the "yellow cars" problem)Risk 3 — Funding: always hold a 10% contingency and 3–6 months of cashRisk 4 — Exit: planning multiple exits so a market shift can't sink youRisk 5 — Repeat: slow and steady, and knowing when a strategy has stopped workingA note on the voice: what you're hearing is an AI-generated version of my voice reading my own words. It's me — just not in the room. I'd rather be upfront about that than pretend otherwise. Every word, every lesson, and every mistake is mine. Have a risk you keep running into? Tell me on Substack at nicolebremner.substack.com, where paid subscribers get early access, extended commentary, and the chance to ask me anything. Subscribe wherever you listen so Chapter 4 lands automatically. Next week: Chapter 4 — It's All About Balance. Support the show Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this podcast belong solely to the host and guest speakers. The view and opinions of the guest speakers do not represent that of the host. Always do your own research.

    18 min

  8. Jun 4

    Bricked It: The Road From Where You Are Chapter Two #182

    Send us Fan Mail The honest other half of the story: a £120m portfolio, a partner I should never have trusted, the phone call that exposed it all — and the five mistakes that cost me everything before I built the SAFER system. This is the chapter where I tell you what actually happened. My story is a tragedy in two halves. The first — the meteoric rise — is my first book, Bricking It. By 2017 I had a share in a property portfolio of 110 properties across 10 projects, worth around £120 million. From the outside, life looked perfect: the home, the health retreats, the booked-solid speaking diary. Below the surface, my marriage was crumbling and I'd become someone I didn't recognise. Then it unravelled. I'd handed control to a business partner I trusted completely. In September 2018 a fellow investor called me about some transactions that didn't add up, and standing in my perfect kitchen I began reconciling payments that revealed a systematic, long-running fraud. What followed was years of David-and-Goliath battles — debt collectors, bailiffs turning up during the school run, and the slow, public undoing of everything I'd built. I won't pretend it was anything but a very dark place. But I'm still standing, and this chapter is me handing you the lessons so you never have to learn them the way I did. In this episode: The two halves of my story, and why the title of my first book makes me cringe nowWhat £120 million really meant — and the press misquote I want to correctTrusting the wrong partner, and the phone call that exposed a fraudThe five mistakes that cost me everything: giving up control, over-investing in one asset, mistaking luck for skill, having no systems, and failing to bring stakeholders with meWhy "being on the right side of the law" didn't protect me — and how the SAFER system was born from the wreckageA note on the voice: what you're hearing is an AI-generated version of my voice reading my own words. It's me — just not in the room. I'd rather be upfront about that than pretend otherwise. Every word, every lesson, and every mistake is mine. If this one lands close to home, I want to hear from you. Find me on Substack at nicolebremner.substack.com, where paid subscribers get early access, extended commentary, and the chance to ask me anything. Subscribe wherever you listen so Chapter 3 lands automatically. Next week: Chapter 3 — Forewarned Is Forearmed. Support the show Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this podcast belong solely to the host and guest speakers. The view and opinions of the guest speakers do not represent that of the host. Always do your own research.

    12 min
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About

The Prosperity Podcast is for ambitious individuals—entrepreneurs and professionals—who want to take control of their finances and create a life of freedom, security and meaning. It’s for those who believe that wealth is about more than just money, it’s about having the freedom to choose how you live, work and give. Whether you’re just getting started or you’re looking to rebalance your approach, this podcast is your guide to building long term, sustainable wealth. We talk about investing wisely, creating multiple income streams and designing a portfolio that reflects your values and your goals. Prosperity Podcast features honest conversations about money—how to grow it, how to keep it and how to enjoy it. Nicole Bremner is an investor, certified financial coach, author and mum of three. Having had a successful career in investment banking, like many women who take a ‘career break’ to have children, she found herself at a crossroads, not entirely sure what path to take next. Combining her financial knowledge with her passion for good architecture and design, Nicole was able to build on her experience and expertise to develop a new career, which fit around her children and spent the next decade building a multi million property portfolio in London.    Newly relaunched as  Prosperity Podcast, Nicole interviews some of the interesting people she has met while navigating her (sometimes turbulent) voyage through professional and family life. From charity founders and travelling investors to authors and young entrepreneurs, these are the real tales of real people finding their way in business. Join Nicole as she listens to their stories and the lessons they have learned along the way.    Instagram: http://instagram.com/nsbremner YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/NicoleBremner Facebook: http://facebook.com/nicolesbremner X: https://x.com/nicolebremner/ Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.co.uk/NSBremner/

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