Brown Ambition Mandi Woodruff and Tiffany Aliche

We're still out of breath from the election, but we are breathing a little easier. But Covid-19 is on the rise again and the holidays are coming up. It's going to be a hard year for family gatherings (or lack thereof). We hope you stay safe and give yourself some time off if you can. But we still need to find time to celebrate the good things. And one super good thing we can celebrate is Tiff released the cover for her book, Get Good With Money (2:15)! The book is coming in March 2021. But in the meantime you take the financial wholeness quiz to see how close you are to being financially whole.
We've got some great questions for you this week like:

(25:00) I’m just having a lot of trouble saving money. Is it actually possible for me to save money when there just doesn’t seem to be enough?

(31:20) I own a home that’s in need of a LOT of work. I took a home equity loan for the repairs. I haven’t spent the money yet because of the pandemic. Should I hold onto that money or go ahead with the repairs?


Check out these links for more info:
BA Episode with Christina and Amon from Our Rich Journey
Our Rich Journey
Our Rich Journey Jr
What's a Home Equity Loan?
Pixel LabCorp Covid-19 Test
Neal Katyal on IG
Stay Tuned with Preet Podcast

It's over! And we're breathing, at least a little. We made it y'all. It's been along four years, but Black folks (Black women specifically) pulled through and helped take this thing over the top for us. We hope wherever you are, you're able to relax and release some tension. But work is NOT over! There are two really important runoff elections happening in Georgia (16:20). These elections will help determine control of the Senate, and that could make a HUGE difference for what the next two years (at least) look like. Here's a great article describing how you can help even if you don't live in Georgia. Let's WORK.
And we've got some great questions from you guys this week too:

(38:54) I’ve got 40k in the stock market, should I pull some of that money out for a down payment on a house?

(46:28) Yesterday I was fired from my new job. I experienced so much hate from the white women in the office, I think because of the election. Do you know anywhere I can go work and feel safe as a black woman?


For further reading, check out:
https://www.navipsych.com/
https://www.higherheightsleadershipfund.org/
https://sheshouldlead.com/
https://therapyforblackgirls.com/
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Don’t forget about our new merch store. Use the promo code BROWNAMBITION15 to get 15% off your BA swag at https://brownambitionstore.com/
And please support our sponsors:
http://rothys.com/brownambition
http://betterhelp.com/brownambition – Special offer for Brown Ambition listeners, get 10% off your first month
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Election day is over. All that's left is for us to send some love to our future selves and hope things haven't gotten too wild. We're trying to focus on what's good. Like the fact that 115 BIPOC women are running for election this year! (8:47). And at least we know where people stand. It's no longer impolite to talk politics, and honestly we're here for that. Regardless of what happens in the election, let's take a minute to breathe, then get ready to get back to work. Because there's much more to do.
In the meantime, we're here to answer your money questions! This week we'll talk about:

(20:57) I have about $4,300 of credit card debt between two cards with high interest. Is it a good idea to get a personal loan with a lower interest rate to consolidate that debt?

(26:20) - I own 4 timeshares, but now I realize they’re a waste of money. Do you have any good advice for how I can get out of them?


To learn more, check out these links:
Options To Get Out of Your Timeshare
The Master Investor
Farnoosh
Greenwood Bank
Magnify Money's list of Black Owned Banks
Tela Holcomb
Higher Heights Leadership Fund
---------------------------------------------
Don’t forget about our new merch store. Use the promo code BROWNAMBITION15 to get 15% off your BA swag at https://brownambitionstore.com/
And please support our sponsors:
http://rothys.com/brownambition
http://betterhelp.com/brownambition – Special offer for Brown Ambition listeners, get 10% off your first month
http://fiverr.com – Receive 10% off your first order by using our code BrownAmbition

The Election is coming up y'all (and no we're not going to stop talking about it). Do you have a plan to vote? Do you have a plan B? Check out iwillvote.com to make sure you're registered, find ballot drop off locations, and get all the voting information you need. Let's DO this.
And not to flex, but Tiff was on Good Morning America last week (1:00:38). Its a great segment where she gets to share her story, some basic budgeting tips, and celebrate the HUGE positive impact she's had for Black and Brown women all over the country. Check it out here.
The questions we cover this week are pretty great too. We'll cover:

(32:36) - what’s the best retirement account for someone who’s only a few years away from retirement?

(41:20) - Because of covid, I’ve gotten generous refunds on stipends from my school, what should I do with this extra money sitting in my savings?


To read and learn more, check out the links below:
The Noodle Budget
Roth IRAs
Higher Heights Leadership Fund

Before we begin this week, we need to have word about knowing what you're worth. Its Covid and times are tough, but some people (big companies) are acting wild trying to take advantage of people. Also you'll remember awhile back, a listener wrote in asking about draining her 401k to pay off her debt. The BA fam cam through and someone offered to buy a grocery card for her (25:40). Y'all are amazing.
Then it's on to your questions. This week we've got:

(28:22) I’m shopping for a home, I’m trying to decide if I should take on a renovation project. How do you find a good Reno team that will do a good job and not take advantage of you?

(38:12) Is a 529 plan a good way to save for college for my 2 year old granddaughter? (read more about 529's here)


Don’t forget about our new merch store. Use the promo code BROWNAMBITION15 to get 15% off your BA swag at https://brownambitionstore.com/
And please support our sponsors:
http://rothys.com/brownambition
http://betterhelp.com/brownambition – Special offer for Brown Ambition listeners, get 10% off your first month
http://fiverr.com – Receive 10% off your first order by using our code BrownAmbition

Election time is approaching (and we're not going to shut up about it)! Are you registered? Do you have a plan? Do you have a plan B? Let's DO THIS. If there was a time to be extra, that time is now. Talk to your family and friends and do everything you can so we might be able to breathe some sigh of relief in a month or so.
Aaaaaaanyway...
We're back to answer your questions this week, and we got some juicy ones like:

(19:00) My husband are looking to be first time homebuyers and we have some different ideas about how to get educated, is there a such thing as a home buying adviser?

(27:40) My husband wants to invest our emergency fund, but I want to keep it liquid, what's the best thing to do?


Also check out this essay that mentions Brown Ambition!
And don’t forget about our new merch store. Use the promo code BROWNAMBITION15 to get 15% off your BA swag at https://brownambitionstore.com/

And please support our sponsors:
http://rothys.com/brownambition
http://betterhelp.com/brownambition – Special offer for Brown Ambition listeners, get 10% off your first month
http://fiverr.com – Receive 10% off your first order by using our code BrownAmbition

And for more info on the SARS Police in Nigeria, you can read up on them here