Houseonomics: Why Owning a Home is Still a Great Investment.

This book provides unconventional wisdom about buying and owning a home. Unlike other home-buying guides, HOUSEONOMICS doesn’t tell dreamers that they can get rich overnight by flipping homes. Our core audience is people thinking about buying a home to live in for many years. They do not need to hear get-rich-quick schemes that are literally too good to be true. They do need to hear that it is still okay to buy a home. And learn how to get the most value from their house.

We wrote this book to help people answer these questions—and many more. We explain the principles that can help people make informed financial decisions about their homes, so that they can not only enjoy their homes but profit from them, too.

Excerpt:

“Our homes are where we eat, sleep, play, love, laugh, and cry. Where we read books, grow tomatoes, and play cards. Where we can be alone or with our families. Where we can be ourselves. Our homes are also the biggest financial investment most of us will ever make, and often the most profitable one too. Yet, many people don’t really understand financial decisions involving their homes. Is now a good time to buy a home? What is our home really worth? Should we use a real estate broker or try to do it ourselves? Should we choose a fixed-rate or adjustable-rate mortgage? A 30-year or 15-year loan? Should we refinance now that interest rates have fallen? Should we pay off our mortgage early? Should we remodel the kitchen? Is a vacation home worth it? What about a rental property? What can a retired couple do when they barely have enough income to pay their bills and are living in a home worth hundreds of thousands of dollars?

What is Houseonomics?

We might have called this book “Home Economics” since house usually refers to a detached structure and home is a broader term that also includes apartments, condominiums, duplexes, and other residences. But home economics has traditionally been associated with making biscuits and sewing clothes, and this book is definitely not about baking and sewing. So we considered “House Economics” and thought it would be interesting to merge the words into Houseonomics, pronounced house-o-nomics. This book is about houses (and other homes too), and it is about many of the major economic decisions we make regarding our houses.

This book is not encyclopedic. That would be tedious to write and boring to read. Instead, we have put together a collection of useful principles, handy tips, and memorable stories—things that can really make a difference.

Who’s Looking Out for You?

A lot of people earn income from other people’s homes: the contractors who build and remodel homes, the real estate agents who bring together buyers and sellers; the bankers who lend money to home buyers; the fund managers who trade mortgages among themselves, the agents who sell homeowner insurance. They often offer you advice—on building, remodeling, buying, selling, borrowing, refinancing, insuring. But their advice is suspect. Are their recommendations for your benefit or for theirs?

We don’t have any conflicts of interest. We won’t profit from you buying a house, remodeling your kitchen, or choosing a 10-year mortgage. We will profit if you find this book useful and recommend it to your friends. So that’s our goal: to give you useful tools and insights that you can use to make informed decisions. If we can achieve that, you will spread the word.”

You can read more about the book at www.houseonomics.com .

Divorceonomics: Why you Need a Financial Neutral for your Divorce

This is a book about dividing assets as fairly as possible in a divorce situation. It is a must-read for collaborative divorce attorneys and financial neutrals involved in collaborative divorce.

In a collaborative divorce, couples try to reach an agreement that is fair and reasonable, instead of paying lawyers to argue with each other. This book will help you find such mutually beneficial agreements. If you have wrestled with child custody issues, you know that all hours are not equal. A weekend hour is not the same as a weekday hour. A daytime hour is not the same as a nighttime hour. A spring vacation hour is not the same as a school day hour. The same is true of money: all dollars are not equal. This book explains how couples can take into account such issues as taxes, liquidity, and moral hazard when they are valuing their assets. It also explains why it may make sense to trade assets for income, and it suggests some negotiating strategies that work.

Excerpt:

“Some marriages end amicably. Both parties realize that they have grown apart (Who is the same at 55 as they were at 25?), and realize that they would be happier living apart. But most marriages end bitterly. The person you thought you could change never changed. The children are driving one person nuts. One person has a drug problem or a drinking problem. One person is abusive. One person has fallen in love with someone else. One person can’t keep his pants on. Whatever the reason, your spouse is a jerk and you want to stick it to him or her. Understandable, but the more belligerent you are, the more the lawyers are going to walk away with.

Sometimes, It’s Just Not Worth Arguing About

George and Mary were married 18 years and raised three children together. They had a house full of treasures and trash. George, the anal one, made an exhaustive list of every ball, book, and bicycle; every sock, shoe, and sweater; every doorstop, doodad, and dust-catcher. Because they were too angry to talk to each other, they had their lawyers exchange dozens of belligerent letters arguing over who would keep the deflated volleyball, muddy soccer cleats, and balsa Eiffel Tower. Because neither would compromise, they spent several thousand dollars arguing over garage sale residue. Sometimes, it's just not worth arguing about.

Idiosyncracies in Investing – How to Make Money off Idiosyncracies in the Market

Coming soon...

Your Abundance Map – A Personal Path to Abundance

Coming soon...