Looking for something a little bit spacey? Something that’s so far off the beaten path, it’s out-of-this-world cool? A dome home could be for you, as it conveys “rugged individualism” and “retro chic” all at the same time.
Architect, writer, inventor, and futurist Buckminster Fuller is credited with popularizing the geodesic dome home in the United States in the mid-1940s.
Since then, they’ve remained a source of fascination. The curved contraptions do have their advantages: The structure is self-supporting, and it is often less expensive to construct.
So for all you dreamers out there, here are five fabulous dome homes at prices ranging from $449,900 to $925,000, in all corners of the country. Take a look:
Price: $825,000 Luna Dome: This trilevel home is one of the larger ones we’ve seen, with four bedrooms and three baths in 4,560 square feet of living space. Its wide-open floor plan makes it seem even more spacious.
This particular specimen, called the Luna Dome, sits on a hilly, 5-acre lot, with spectacular mountain views from its numerous decks. It has a lower, walk-out level with a separate entrance; it could be an independent unit, featuring a living area, den, kitchenette, bedroom, and bath.
“This unique home has hosted people from all over the world and has proved to be a great investment opportunity,” states the listing.
It’s located about an hour’s drive from Denver and major ski resorts.
Idaho Springs, CO
(Realtor.com)
———
Price: $499,900 Ready for liftoff: We’re willing to bet you’ve never seen anything like this fully shingled, flying saucer-style dome home. It’s built of custom-cut components delivered in special containers, including windows from Denmark.
The traditional front door welcomes you into the futuristic-looking lair. But the use of knotty pine accents and oak flooring brings this four-bedroom, five-bath design back down to Earth. The soaring cathedral ceilings certainly add a sense of awe.
The 5-acre lot includes a metal building with a covered porch, an office, and plenty of storage, which can sometimes be an issue with dome homes—there aren’t a lot of corners where you can place your stuff.
The property is zoned for horses and is covered with native plants, which offer a tax benefit.
Somonauk, IL
(Realtor.com)
———
Price: $449,900 White House of the future: This special property doesn’t just have a wraparound porch—it also has a wraparound balcony and a wraparound driveway! That’s a lot of wrapping.
Built in 2013, this four-bedroom, 3.5-bath dwelling is equipped with solar panels, which provide energy for most of the home. There are even solar panels on the well that supplies water to the house and 4.5-acre property.
The lower level of this 2,900-square-foot abode appears to be a massive garage. It’s large enough for your cars, a couple of motorcycles, and a washer/dryer combo, or it could fit a skating rink.
The location is a relatively quick drive from Fayetteville, Huntsville, and Lynchburg.
Taft, TN
(Realtor.com)
———
Price: $925,000 Double-domed home: Each dome home is unique, of course, but this one caught our eye with its red, barnlike exterior and colorful, Space Age meets prairie style interior.
The larger dome has an open floor plan and a main-level primary suite. Two bedrooms, a bath, and a beautiful cupola can be found on the second level. The smaller dome has a garage, workshop, and two additional bedroom suites with kitchenettes.
The 29-acre property has off-the-grid features like geothermal heating and solar panels. There’s also a pond, pastures, and woods. The location is about an hour from Roanoke.
Natural Bridge, VA
(Realtor.com)
———
Price: $470,000 Geodesic classic: Based on the original works of Buckminster Fuller, this geodesic classic was built in 1995. The triangular skylights with wood frames accent the fact that you’re in someplace unique.
Set on 36 acres, the four-bedroom, two-bath, 2,782-square-foot home has an open floor plan. The kitchen is sleek, modern, and colorful. The ceramic tile floor is heated to keep you cozy and warm in the winter.
In the summer you can swim or fish in the nearby Neversink River. You can also enjoy the trails on your own property and those that wind through the adjacent nature conservatory.
The location is relatively close to the Pennsylvania state line and about 1.5 hours from New York City.
Whether you’re planning to visit your bank for a routine transaction, open a new bank account, or consult a financial advisor, it’s essential to know when banks are open or closed.
This article provides an overview of bank hours, bank holidays, and what services are available during federal holidays. We’ll also discuss online and mobile banking alternatives that can save you time and offer added convenience.
Factors Affecting Bank Hours
Bank Type: Local, Regional, or National
The operating hours of a bank can vary depending on its size and reach. Generally, local and regional banks have more restricted hours, while national banks may offer extended hours at select branches or have more locations open on weekends.
Geographic Location
Bank hours can vary based on the branch’s location. For instance, banks in urban areas may have longer hours compared to those in rural communities. Furthermore, specific financial institutions may adjust their hours in different regions or cities to better serve their customers.
Online vs. Brick-and-Mortar Branches
While traditional brick-and-mortar bank branches have set operating hours, online banks are accessible 24/7. If you have a bank account with an online bank, you can access your account and perform transactions without worrying about bank hours.
Regulatory Guidelines and Public Holidays
The Federal Reserve System regulates banks in the United States, and its guidelines influence bank hours. Banks usually close on federal holidays to comply with these regulations.
Typical Bank Hours
General Operating Hours for Most Banks
Banks typically open around 9 a.m. and close between 4 p.m. and 6 p.m. from Monday to Friday. Some banks may have extended hours on specific weekdays, opening earlier or closing later to accommodate customers’ needs.
Variation in Hours Among Banks
Different banks may have slightly different operating hours. It’s essential to check your bank’s specific hours, as there may be variations based on the factors mentioned above.
Weekend Hours
Many banks have limited hours on Saturdays, often closing around noon or 1 p.m. However, some banks do not operate on Saturdays at all. Sunday hours are even rarer, with only a few banks open on Sundays, typically in high-traffic areas like shopping centers.
Extended Hours for Select Branches and Services
Some bank branches may offer extended hours for specific services, such as drive-thru teller windows or customer service hotlines.
Federal and State Bank Holidays
Federal Bank Holidays
Banks close on federal holidays, as mandated by the Federal Reserve System. Here’s a list of federal holidays when banks typically close:
New Year’s Day
Martin Luther King Jr. Day
Presidents’ Day
Memorial Day
Independence Day
Labor Day
Columbus Day
Veterans Day
Thanksgiving Day
Christmas Day
If a federal holiday falls on a weekend, banks may close on the preceding Friday or following Monday. For example, if Independence Day falls on a Saturday, banks may close on the preceding Friday.
State-Specific Bank Holidays
In addition to federal holidays, banks may also close on state-specific holidays. It’s essential to check your state’s official holidays to determine if banks close on those days.
How Holidays Affect Bank Hours and Services
Banks may adjust their operating hours around holidays, such as closing early on the day before a holiday or staying closed the day after a holiday. Bank services, such as wire transfers and check clearing, may also be affected by bank holidays.
Online and Mobile Banking Availability
24/7 Access
Online and mobile banking platforms offer 24/7 access to your bank account, allowing you to perform transactions and access essential services even when banks are closed. This convenience means you don’t have to wait for banks to open to manage your finances.
Available Services
With online and mobile banking, you can:
Check account balances
Transfer funds between accounts
Pay bills
Deposit checks via mobile check deposit
Set up account alerts
Apply for loans or open new accounts
Monitor credit scores and reports
Limitations of Digital Banking Services During Bank Holidays
While digital banking platforms are accessible 24/7, some transactions may be delayed due to bank holidays. For example, wire transfers or check-clearing may take longer to process if initiated on a federal holiday or weekend.
Finding Your Bank’s Operating Hours
Bank Websites and Mobile Apps
Bank websites and mobile apps typically display their operating hours and holiday schedules. You can check these resources for accurate information about your bank’s hours.
Google Maps and Search Engine Queries
You can also find bank hours using Google Maps or by searching for your bank’s name along with the specific branch location. Search results often display the bank’s hours and contact information.
Calling the Bank’s Customer Service Line
If you cannot find the information online, you can call your bank’s customer service hotline to inquire about their operating hours and holiday schedule.
Alternatives to Bank Visits
ATMs and Their Services
ATMs are an excellent alternative to visiting a bank branch, as they’re accessible 24/7 and can perform essential services. These machines are typically located near bank branches, inside shopping centers, and at various other convenient locations. Some key services offered by ATMs include:
Cash withdrawals: ATMs allow you to withdraw cash from your bank account, providing quick access to funds when needed.
Deposits: Many ATMs accept cash and check deposits, making it easy to deposit money without having to visit a bank branch.
Balance inquiries: You can check your account balance and recent transactions at an ATM, helping you stay informed about your financial status.
Transfer funds: Some ATMs enable you to transfer funds between your accounts or even to other bank accounts.
Bill payments: Certain ATMs allow you to pay bills directly, such as credit card payments, utility bills, or loan installments.
Peer-to-Peer Payment Apps
Peer-to-peer (P2P) payment apps, such as Venmo, PayPal, and Zelle, allow you to send and receive money quickly without visiting a bank. These apps are especially useful during bank holidays when banks are closed. P2P apps offer several benefits, including:
Instant transfers: P2P apps enable instant money transfers between users, making it easy to send or receive money in real-time.
Mobile convenience: You can use P2P apps on your smartphone or tablet, allowing you to transfer money from anywhere with an internet connection.
Splitting bills: P2P apps make it simple to split expenses with friends, family, or roommates, eliminating the need to deal with cash or checks.
Direct Deposit and Automatic Bill Pay
Setting up direct deposit for your paycheck and automatic bill payments can help you avoid the need to visit a bank, ensuring your transactions are processed on time, even during bank holidays. These services offer several advantages:
Timely transactions: Direct deposit ensures your paycheck is deposited into your bank account on time, while automatic bill payments ensure your bills are paid before their due dates.
Convenience: Once you set up direct deposit and automatic bill pay, you don’t have to worry about visiting a bank branch or mailing checks, saving you time and effort.
Reduced fees: By paying bills on time through automatic bill pay, you can avoid late fees and penalties, potentially saving you money in the long run.
Better budgeting: With regular deposits and bill payments, you can better track your income and expenses, making it easier to manage your finances and budget accordingly.
What to Do if Your Bank Isn’t Open Today
If your bank isn’t open today due to a holiday or other closure, there are still several options available to manage your finances effectively. Here’s what you can do:
Use Online Banking Platforms
Most banks offer online and mobile banking services, allowing you to access your accounts, transfer funds, pay bills, and more, even when the bank is closed.
Visit an ATM for Essential Transactions
ATMs remain accessible 24/7 and provide essential services, such as cash withdrawals, deposits, balance inquiries, and in some cases, bill payments and fund transfers.
Utilize Peer-to-Peer Payment Apps
As mentioned, peer-to-peer payment apps, like Venmo, PayPal, and Zelle, enable quick and easy money transfers between individuals without the need to visit a bank.
Plan Ahead for Time-Sensitive Transactions
If you have a time-sensitive transaction, such as a wire transfer or a loan application, plan ahead and complete the transaction during bank hours or well before the bank closure.
Contact Your Bank’s Customer Service Hotline
If you require assistance and the bank isn’t open, try reaching out to your bank’s customer service hotline. Some banks provide support over the phone or through online chat services even during holidays.
Conclusion
Understanding bank hours, federal holidays, and how they affect banking services can help you plan your financial activities better. While brick-and-mortar banks have set operating hours, online banks offer 24/7 access to your accounts and essential services. By utilizing these resources and alternatives, you can efficiently manage your finances without being restricted by bank hours or holidays.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Are banks open on Christmas Eve?
Banks typically operate on Christmas Eve, but their hours may be shortened. It’s a good idea to check with your local branch for their specific hours on Christmas Eve, as they can vary depending on the bank and location.
Are banks open on New Year’s Eve?
Similar to Christmas Eve, banks are usually open on New Year’s Eve but may have shortened hours. It’s best to verify the operating hours of your local branch for New Year’s Eve to avoid any inconvenience.
Are banks open on Easter?
Easter is not a federal holiday in the United States, and most banks typically follow the federal holiday schedule. However, since Easter always falls on a Sunday, banks are generally closed, as most bank branches do not operate on Sundays.
Can I still use ATMs during bank holidays?
Yes, ATMs are available 24/7, even on bank holidays. You can use them for cash withdrawals, deposits, balance inquiries, and other essential services. However, keep in mind that some transactions, such as check deposits, may take longer to process due to the holiday.
Do bank holidays affect direct deposit?
Bank holidays can impact the processing of direct deposit transactions. If your payday falls on a bank holiday, it’s possible that your funds will be deposited on the preceding business day or the following business day. Check with your employer and bank to understand their policies regarding direct deposit and bank holidays.
What happens if a bank holiday falls on a weekend?
When a federal bank holiday falls on a weekend, banks usually observe the holiday on the preceding Friday (if the holiday falls on a Saturday) or the following Monday (if the holiday falls on a Sunday). Check your bank’s holiday schedule to confirm their specific observance dates.
Mrs. MM destroys a portion of our new house in a recent work session.
A few weeks ago, the MMM family lost about $12,000.
While this might sound like quite a bummer, the event wasn’t upsetting in the least. In fact, the days between that fateful event and today have been some of the most joyful and free days of our lives so far.
As you know, Mrs. Money Mustache keeps an old real estate license handy in her toolbelt. While she maintains the appropriate retired woman’s approach to the field, turning down business except in the case of helping the occasional friend who is buying or selling a house in our immediate neighborhood, she still finds herself helping out with a deal or two every year.
For the last few months, she has been touring houses with some friends who are currently renting a place nearby. They were shopping on the nicer side of our local neighborhood, which implies a 3-4 bedroom house in good condition at a price of around $400,000.
They shopped and shopped. Some places were perfect, but sold too quickly at a price just out of reach. Others were shabby and overpriced. There were various squawking battles from the colorful real estate agents and sellers involved in the process. Going through the all-too-familiar complications inspired my own article on how to buy a house.
At the end of it all, our friends decided to simply buy the nearly-new house they had been renting right in the same neighborhood for the past year. Their landlord had bought it just before the housing crash, and was happy to unload it now that our prices have recovered.
But the landlord proposed it as a private deal: cash would flow from buyer to seller, with no real estate agents on either side. With Realtors normally tacking a 6% commission onto every deal, this simpler arrangement would create a huge win/win situation for our friends and the homeowner.
The only problem was that Mrs. MM would no longer be eligible to receive her 2.8% paycheck, which is how a buyer’s agent normally earns a living. With a purchase price around $400k, this implies a loss of almost $12,000 in income. This fact was not lost on our friends.
“How should we handle this?”, they asked. “We don’t want you to get shafted after doing all this work – should we raise the selling price so you can get your commission? Should we renegotiate the deal harder so the landlord will pay you out of her cut?”
“Bah… don’t worry about it!”, said my wife. “We’re just happy that you found a place you like, and that you are getting such a great deal on it. Enjoy your new freedom from the grind of shopping and moving, and congratulations!”
.
That night she told me of her decision, and we both toasted some heartily filled wine glasses and had a laugh over the whole situation. We were glad our friends had finally found a house. We both knew that they would benefit from the lower purchase price much more than we would benefit from an extra twelve grand of before-tax income. There would surely be other deals and other windfalls in the future. And more importantly, we value the friendship and were very thankful that the sticky issue of money did not have to get in the middle of it. Friendships, businesses, and even families have been broken apart over much smaller sums.
I share this story because it is a particularly sweet illustration of the Position of Strength. It is an example of why financial independence, freedom from an addiction to ever-increasing luxury, and when you really think about it, all forms of strength are such incredibly useful things to build into your own life.
Looking back at my list of all the articles, I am starting to realize that this isn’t a personal finance blog or even a lifestyle design blog. It’s a neverending sermon on the joy of strength. Strength, also known affectionately as Badassity, is at the root of most of the joy in a human life. And weakness, which also manifests itself as Complainypants and Wussypants diseases, is what makes you unhappy. The solution to leading a great life is therefore so simple, it is almost insane that our entire society is geared to run directly against it.
So let us browse through a few of life’s most powerful sources of strength to soak up its amazing connection just about everything:
Money is the most acknowledged source of strength in modern society, for it gives you the power to get other people to serve you, and to do so with a smile.
An Abundance of Money is even more powerful, because you no longer find yourself feeling the need to act like a weenie in the pursuit of more of it. With this Abundance power, you can properly align your earning and your spending with your values, rather than just seeking out the cheapest option or trying to squeeze more money out of your customers, employees, or fellow citizens.
The Desire for Ever-Increasing Material Luxury is therefore a serious weakness. In the playground of life, there is a giant teeter totter. Mr. Abundance sits at one end of it, with his casually ripped physique, faded skateboarding shirt and scruffy facial hair. Mr. Luxury sits directly opposite him, clean-shaven in a 3-piece suit with those shiny pointy-toed business shoes and a rounded little beer belly tucked in behind a tight belt. You can never satisfy Luxury – there is always another level of fanciness to attain, and thus he can never have quite enough money.
Giving is a form of strength. When you say, “I have more than I need, and thus my desire to take should fade away as my desire to help out grows”.
Taking is therefore a form of weakness. On the playground, Luxury maintains just a little more desire to take, which competes with his desire to give. Meanwhile, Mr. Abundance is always working on needing less. The “taking” weakness continues to shrink, allowing him to invest more in his “giving” strength.
Health is a form of strength. With health comes a clearer mind, more energy, a greater range of options and comfort zones, and a longer time alive to enjoy the offerings and mysteries of this planet. Life can dish you a blow, and you can get up and get back to work.
Physical Strength is the part of health that is mostly ignored in the United States, yet it is the most useful and efficient component. Sure, aerobics and bicycling can keep the worst effects of early decay at bay, but lifting heavy old-fashioned barbells and dumbells is a much faster and more thorough way to keep all of your systems in working order and create a foundation for the rest of your life’s strength.
Skills are a form of strength. Each thing you learn to do improves your quality of life in astonishing ways, because it makes you stronger. If you are good at your job, you have the ability to earn lots money. But if this is your only skill, you need to outsource your food preparation, transportation, relationships, entertainment, and the repair and maintenance of everything you own including your own body. If your money supply fails or your hired specialists don’t do their jobs perfectly, your life falters. By insourcing all the basics required for happiness, you build a self-reinforcing resilient mesh of power that makes you happier, wealthier, and more interesting as well.
By now you are probably pretty excited about the Position of Strength, and you are ready to step into it. But there one point that underpins everything above, and it is the one our marketing engine works so hard to hide from you.
Voluntary Discomfort is the secret cornerstone of strength. We build our whole lives around increasing comfort and avoiding discomfort, and yet by doing so we are drinking a can of Weakness Tonic with every morning’s breakfast.
Discomfort is generally regarded as a bad thing. If you’re a mother of five in a developing country and you run out of food, or your children are injured or killed by disease or war, saying it absolutely sucks would be a great understatement. This is involuntary discomfort at its worst, and the resulting unhappiness makes perfect sense.
But when you, as a privileged rich-world resident walk into hardship and discomfort willingly, the feeling is completely different.
My favorite part of every weekday is cycling with my son to school. The morning temperature at this time of year is right around the freezing mark, and I make a point of wearing just a bit less warm clothing than I need for complete comfort.
“Don’t you need a bigger coat?”, my wife asks. “It’s freezing out there!”
But the feeling of cold wind on my skin is exactly what I need to feel alive in the morning. Pushing the frontier of comfort is a simple way of building strength, preparation for the coming winter, and by extension, happiness.
After all, my son and I could just as easily drive the car that 0.77 mile distance to the school, thereby avoiding all discomfort completely. Heck, I could start driving for all my errands around town just like a Car Clown. I could avoid the burning sensation of trying to lift the barbells in my garage and be more comfortable too. Sitting in my office typing this blog article is much more comfortable than lying in the crawlspace under my new house welding up the new structural supports, and it pays much better too. Perhaps I should also outsource the hard physical activity to a specialist. A 2014 Mercedes would be more comfortable than my 2005 Scion, a $2000 bike would out-cozy my $300 one, and in the summer my house would be more comfortable at 75 degrees than the 86 level where I currently consider turning on the air conditioning. It would be more comfortable to have a housekeeper and a chef, a private driver and a gardener, and these days we could even afford to add these comforts to our lives without the discomfort of having to work.
And yet we continue to not purchase any of them, and to do quite a bit of unnecessary work. Why? Have we developed some sort of insanity?
The answer is exactly the opposite: If you go back and look through those points which define the Position of Strength, you see that every bit of the conventional and comfortable path undermines that position.
Our entire culture teaches us to seek out all possible comforts, and to be unhappy when we don’t have them. And thus, it dooms us to a life of permanent involuntary discomfort, and therefore permanent weakness.
Living a life of weakness is not fun
Living a lifestyle of strength is extremely fun.
The only insanity is the fact that almost nobody chooses this option.
A new Zillow survey of landlords reveals the most burdensome rental management activities
SEATTLE, May 1, 2023 /PRNewswire/ — Peak rental season is approaching, and a new set of landlords could be entering the market. Zillow economists predicted that 2023 would bring a surge in first-time landlords after record-low mortgage rates spurred increased investment in second homes in 2020 and 2021. In March 2023, Zillow saw a 22% year-over-year increase in landlords listing their properties for the first time using Zillow Rental Manager (Zillow’s suite of free property management tools).
Zillow logo (PRNewsfoto/Zillow Group)
To provide insight into the commitment of managing a rental property to this new class of landlords, Zillow surveyed first-time and repeat landlords to learn what the most burdensome parts of the process are for them. The typical (median) landlord who completed the survey reported having two rental properties.
According to Zillow’s survey data1, almost all landlords (92%) said repairs or maintenance were among the top three most demanding responsibilities of managing a rental property, and 40% considered it the No. 1 most burdensome. Screening tenants (reading applications, completing background checks and credit checks) was a close second, with 71% of landlords reporting it among their top three most burdensome activities.
More than one-third of landlords (36%) said they wished they would have known how hard it would be to find reliable renters, and managing the rental (communicating with tenants, accounting, etc.) was more time-consuming than they had anticipated. Thirty-four percent also noted that they wished they would have known the leasing process (processing applications, scheduling tours, writing a lease, etc.) would take more effort than expected.
“Investing in a rental property can provide reliable income and housing for a renter who needs it, but it’s crucial for landlords to understand the responsibilities,” said Manny Garcia, a population scientist at Zillow. “Many landlords wish they had known more about the effort required to find tenants and keep the property in good condition.”
Staying on top of the needs of current tenants and leasing a rental take time and effort. Zillow Rental Manager provides landlords with the right tools to support them throughout the process, for free. In addition to offering housing providers an easy way to create their listing and get free access to the most visited rental network2, Zillow Rental Manager has a ton of resources available now (and coming soon) to help them manage their portfolio and optimize their investment. Among those resources:
Applications and Tenant Screening: Landlords using Zillow Rental Manager can enable Zillow’s universal application process for prospective tenants. Applicants pay a one-time screening fee on Zillow — and it doesn’t cost landlords anything. Landlords receive a potential tenant’s application, including a background check, credit report, eviction history and income verification.
Leases: Landlords can upload and sign an existing lease or customize a brand-new one. Zillow’s free online lease builder guides housing providers through each step of the drafting process, so they don’t have to guess what’s covered. In 34 states, landlords can access templates tailored to their region and customize based on parameters regarding parking, pets, etc.
Payments: Rent payments can be deposited directly into a landlord’s account when that landlord opts into payments via Zillow Rental Manager. Plus, renters can set up autopay so landlords know when they’ll get paid each month. Zillow’s online payments are free for landlords, and there’s no fee for tenants who pay with ACH. Tenants can also pay rent with a credit or debit card for a small fee.
Maintenance Tracker (coming soon!): When launched, landlords will be able to create a checklist of maintenance needs for each of their properties as well as track their tenants’ requests, keeping everything organized and in one place.
About Zillow Group Zillow Group, Inc. (NASDAQ: Z and ZG) is reimagining real estate to make it easier to unlock life’s next chapter. As the most visited real estate website in the United States, Zillow® and its affiliates offer customers an on-demand experience for selling, buying, renting, or financing with transparency and ease.
Zillow Group’s affiliates and subsidiaries include Zillow®; Zillow Premier Agent®; Zillow Home Loans™; Zillow Closing Services™; Trulia®; Out East®; StreetEasy®; HotPads®; and ShowingTime+℠ , which houses ShowingTime®, Bridge Interactive®, and dotloop® and interactive floor plans. Zillow Home Loans, LLC is an Equal Housing Lender, NMLS #10287 (www.nmlsconsumeraccess.org).
1 Zillow Group Population Science conducted a nationally representative survey of more than 1,000 U.S. adults who own at least one property that they rent out. 2Comscore Media Metrix® Multi-Platform custom-defined list: Zillow Rentals, the Apartments.com network, Rent., ApartmentList.com and Zumper Inc. Total Audience, January–-December 2022, U.S.
Cision
View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/landlords-sound-off-maintaining-properties-and-screening-renters-are-the-biggest-hassles-of-property-management-301811472.html
By Peter Anderson13 Comments – The content of this website often contains affiliate links and I may be compensated if you buy through those links (at no cost to you!). Learn more about how we make money. Last edited August 13, 2015.
40K Shares
My wife and I, along with a group of our friends, went to the Minnesota State Fair this past weekend. For those who don’t know the Minnesota State Fair is the largest state fair in the United States in terms of average daily attendance. Daily attendance can average anywhere from 100,000 people all the way up to 225,000 people or so – and yearly attendance can top 1.75 million people. In other words there are a LOT of people at the fair.
If you’re a Minnesotan, or grew up in the area, going to the state fair is an annual tradition that really can’t be compared to anything. There is so much to do. There are the sideshow attractions (bearded lady anyone?), the amazing food around every corner, the rides, and thousands of vendors hawking their wares.
There is so much to do that if you’re not careful, you can end up spending a lot of money.
Our Minnesota State Fair Costs – Broken Down
What can you spend money on at the state fair? First, there are the copious amounts of food to be eaten. Everything from alligator to camel to deep fried candy bars. Of course my favorite is the cheese curds, which I buy at least one of every year (see above).
Then of course there’s the cost for your ticket, the parking, rides and buying souvenirs at the hundreds of vendors and shops. If you’re so inclined there is also a beer garden.
Let’s look at the things my wife and I bought and paid for while we were at the fair this past weekend.
Parking. $10
2 tickets. $20
2 orders of cheese curds at “The Mouth Trap” cheese curd stand. $8
2 large pop. $6
Sweet Martha’s Bucket Of Cookies. $14
3 Beers. $15
Cheeseburger $3
Butterfly Building. $3
Scrambler ride ticket. $5
Tower of Terror ride ticket. $5
Egg Rolls. $5
So our day at the fair cost in the neighborhood of $110-$120 because I’m sure I’m forgetting a pop here or a corn dog there. Unbelievable how quickly the money slips through your fingers. Oh well, it only comes once a year and it’s so worth it!
Find Ways To Save While You’re There
While the fair isn’t always going to be cheap, you can find ways to make your fair experience more affordable.
Buy discounted tickets and a coupon book beforehand: The MN State Fair has advance discount tickets available for around a $3 discount per ticket, and you can also get discounts for vendors at the fair by buying a blue ribbon discount book for around $5.
Take advantage of free activities: There are a ton of things to do for free at the fair from the art exhibits, skateboarding shows, car shows, dog shows, lumberjack shows to free open air concerts and parades. If you’re looking to cut costs, find a few more of these activities and add them to your agenda.
Bring your own water to water/snacks: One way we save when we go to the fair is to bring a backpack with us with water and maybe even a couple of snacks. We do this especially in years where we’re trying to save. Otherwise some booths at the fair will give out free water.
Use the fair’s app to find food you have discounts for: The Minnesota State Fair has an app that you can use to find the food you want to eat, or to find attractions and merchandise. Scope out cheap eats beforehand using your coupon book, and map them out on the app.
Key To Not Letting Entertainment Costs Get Out of Control
The key to not letting miscellaneous entertainment expenses like our visit to the fair not get out of control is to make sure you’re budgeting for them every month.
At our house we budget for entertainment expenses every month, as well as allowing $100 each for my wife and I for “blow money”. In other words we can spend that money without having to check with the other spouse. If we don’t spend the money from month to month it adds up in our savings.
So when we have expensive months like this one where we spend a lot of cash on eating out, tickets for events and so on, it’s not a big deal. We have the money saved in our savings account, and everything is budgeted for. If we don’t have enough in the accounts to pay for our entertainment, we don’t do it!
It’s always so much more fun when everything is bought and paid for already – no credit needed!
Have your own tips and tricks for saving on your entertainment expenses, and making sure the costs don’t get out of control? Tell us what they are in the comments!
Congratulations to Master Sergeant (Retired) Gerald D. Hansen, the winner of The MilitaryVALoan.com Miltary Hero Award!
Gerald Hansen was nominated for his outstanding service to his community and his country. He spent twenty-one years in the United States Air Force with assignments to Holloman Air Force Base, New Mexico, Yokota Air Base, Japan, MacDill Air Force Base, Tampa, FL and Zweibrucken Air Force Base, West Germany. He retired in May 1990.
His awards and decorations include the Meritorious Service Medal with two oak leaf clusters and the Air Force Commendation Medal. He was promoted to Master Sergeant through STEPS (Stripes for Exceptional Performers) in August of 1983. He was also named as the Tampa Military Citizen of the Year for 1986. Mr. Hansen was named the Management Award recipient in 1995 from the International Builders Exchange Executives (IBEE), Tampa Bay Lightning Community Hero in 2017, Ring of Honor with the Buffalo Soldiers (The Woods & Wanton Chapter) in 2017 and was named the Bay Area Brotherhood Humanitarian Award winner 2019.
Hansen is the volunteer Executive Director for Paint Your Heart Out Tampa (PYHOT), an all-volunteer, nonprofit organization that benefits low-income and elderly citizens of Tampa by improving the exterior of their homes. Each year, Hansen freely gives more than 1,250 hours of time to the organization. Hansen has also successfully raised more than $14,000 for the Greater Tampa Bay Walk to Defeat ALS, was involved in three annual cleanups of Bayshore Boulevard on MacDill AFB, served as the Chairperson of the Preschool Education Board, and helped build playgrounds on MacDill AFB and in Clearwater.
“Jerry is the most unselfish person I have ever met,” his nominator wrote. “He has taught me more about generosity than anyone. The majority of Jerry’s time is spent behind the wheel of his car, picking up, dropping off supplies or materials needed from one organization to another. He is often delivering items to groups working with homeless or food banks.”
Congratulations to Gerald Hansen on being named The MilitaryVALoan.com Military Hero Award Winner!
MilitaryVALoan.com Military Hero Sweepstakes Official Rules
NO PURCHASE NECESSARY TO ENTER OR WIN. A PURCHASE WILL NOT IMPROVE YOUR CHANCES OF WINNING.
Eligibility: The TravelNursing.org Sweepstakes (the “Promotion”) is open only to registered nurses who are legal residents of the 50 United States and the District of Columbia (collectively the “Participating States”) who are 21 years of age or older (and located in the one of the Participating States at the time of entry. TravelNursing.org (“Sponsor”) and their respective parents, subsidiaries and affiliated companies, retailers, sales representatives, dealers, distributors, licensees and the advertising, fulfillment, judging and promotion agencies involved in the development and administration of this Promotion and each of their respective officers, directors, employees and agents (collectively, “Promotion Parties”), and their immediate family members and persons living in the same households of each (whether related or not) are not eligible. Void outside the Participating States and where prohibited by law.
Promotion Period: The Promotion begins at 12:00 a.m. Pacific Time (“PT”) on May 6, 2019 and ends at 11:59 p.m. PT on May 31, 2019 (the “Promotion Period”).
How to Enter: During the Promotion Period, go to https://www.militaryvaloan.com/blog/the-militaryvaloan-com-military-hero-award/ and locate the official entry form. Follow the on-screen directions, complete all required registration fields and submit to enter (“Online Entry”). Entrants must complete all required information. LIMIT ONE (1) ONLINE ENTRY PER PERSON/EMAIL ADDRESS. Nominations MUST be submitted online. Mail-in nominations will not be accepted. Nominations must be submitted on behalf of another person. Self-nominations will not be accepted. Nominations must be submitted in English only. Nominations may only be submitted in the name of a single person; group nominations are not acceptable. False or deceptive nominations or acts may render a nominee ineligible. All nominations become the property of MilitaryVALoan.com and will not be returned. MilitaryVALoan.com reserves the right to edit the nomination as it sees fit for use in publication or promotion. By submitting a nomination you agree to grant Sponsors the right without obligation, unless prohibited by law, to use the contents of your nomination, your name, voice, picture and likeness, without compensation, for the purpose of advertising and publicizing all matters related to the Awards Program and/or the Sponsors in any medium, throughout the world in perpetuity.
Grand Prize Drawing: On or about June 7, 2019, the Sponsor Review Panel (the “Panel”) will select one winning entry (the “Winner.”) It is the Panel’s s sole discretion to determine the winner.
Prizes, Approximate Retail Value (“ARV”) & Odds: One (1) Grand Prize: The SEVENTY2™ Survival System. Total ARV $349.99. No substitution, cash redemption or transfer of prizes is permitted except at Sponsor’s sole discretion or as provided herein. If a prize, or any portion thereof, cannot be awarded for any reason, Sponsor reserves the right to substitute a prize of equal or greater value. All federal, state and local taxes, and all other costs associated with acceptance or use of the prize(s), are the sole responsibility of the winner(s). Arrangements for delivery of prize(s) will be made after winner validation. LIMIT ONE (1) PRIZE PER PERSON/EMAIL ADDRESS/HOUSEHOLD. Odds of winning a prize depend on the number of entries received. At the Sponsor’s discretion, unclaimed prizes may not be awarded.
General Rules: All applicable federal, state and local laws apply. The potential winner will be contacted by telephone, email, regular mail or overnight mail, and may be required to complete, sign and return an affidavit of eligibility, a liability release, and where lawful, a publicity release within a stated amount of time. The return of any notification as undeliverable or failure to respond to notices or return any required documents in a timely manner or a determination that a potential winner is ineligible or not in compliance with these Official Rules, as determined solely by the Sponsor, may result in disqualification of the winner and forfeiture of the corresponding prize, and the choosing of an alternate winner. By participating in this Promotion, entrants agree to abide by and be bound by the Official Rules and decisions of the Sponsor which shall be final in all matters relating to the Promotion. Promotion Parties are not responsible for: (i) electronic or digital transmissions or entries that are lost, late, stolen, incomplete, illegible, damaged, garbled, destroyed, or misdirected or for non-delivered or postage-due mail; (ii) any problems or technical malfunctions, errors, omissions, interruptions, deletions, defects, delays in operation of transmission, communication failures (including but not limited to failures or malfunctions of phone lines, telephone systems or other communications systems), destruction of or unauthorized access to, or alteration of, entries, or for printing, distribution or production errors; (iii) failed or unavailable hardware, network, software or telephone transmissions; (iv) damage to entrants’ or any person’s computer; (v) causes beyond Promotion Parties’ reasonable control that jeopardize the administration, security, fairness, integrity or proper conduct of this Promotion; (vi) incorrect or inaccurate entry information whether caused by entrants or by any of the equipment or programming associated with or utilized in the Promotion; (vii) any typographical or other error in the printing or advertising related to the Promotion, in the administration or execution of the Promotion, or in the announcement/notification of prize winners; (viii) by any human, or other error, which may occur in this Promotion or (ix) cheating or fraud by any participant. All incomplete or non-conforming entries will be disqualified.If for any reason this Promotion cannot be executed as planned, including but not limited to infection by virus, bugs, tampering, unauthorized intervention, fraud, technical failures, or any other causes beyond the control of Sponsor that corrupt or affect the security, administration, fairness, integrity, fairness or proper conduct of this Promotion, or if this Promotion is compromised or becomes corrupted in any way, electronically or otherwise, Sponsor reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to void suspect entries/entrants and/or modify, suspend and/or terminate this Promotion. If the Promotion is terminated before the stated end date of the Promotion Period, the Sponsor will select the winner in a random drawing from among all eligible, non-suspect entries received through all entry methods combined as of the time/date of termination. Sponsor reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to disqualify any individual who tampers with or attempts to tamper with the entry process, who acts in a disruptive or unfair manner, or who attempts to enter using any automatic or programmed entry method, or any entry service. CAUTION: ANY ATTEMPT BY ANY PERSON TO DELIBERATELY CORRUPT OR UNDERMINE THE LEGITIMATE OPERATION OF THE PROMOTION MAY BE A VIOLATION OF CRIMINAL AND CIVIL LAWS. SHOULD SUCH AN ATTEMPT BE MADE, SPONSOR RESERVES THE RIGHT PROSECUTE AND SEEK DAMAGES FROM ANY SUCH PERSON TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW. In the event of a dispute regarding the identity of the person submitting an entry, the entry will be declared made by the person in whose name entry was made.
Release & Waiver: By participating in this Promotion, entrants agree to release, discharge and hold harmless Promotion Parties from and against any and all liability, loss, injuries or damages associated with participation in this Promotion or the acceptance, possession, use or misuse of any prize received in this Promotion. By participating in this Promotion, entrants waive all rights to claim punitive, indirect, incidental and consequential damages, attorneys’ fees or any damages other than actual out-of-pocket costs incurred to participate.
Publicity: Acceptance of a prize constitutes permission for the Sponsor and its agencies to use winners’ names, voices and/or likenesses for purposes of advertising and publicity in all media now known or hereinafter invented without territorial or time limitations and without additional compensation or notice, unless prohibited by law.
Privacy: The personal information collected through this Promotion is subject to Sponsor’s Privacy Policy located at https://www.militaryvaloan.com/privacy.html. By entering this Promotion, you agree to the use of your personal information as described in the above Privacy Policy. In the event of any conflict between these Official Rules and Sponsor’s Privacy Policy, these Official Rules shall take precedence.
Choice of Law and Jurisdiction: This Promotion is offered only in the United States and is governed by the laws of the State of Washington. By entering, entrants irrevocably consent to the sole and exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of the State of Washington located in the county of King County for any action, suit or proceeding arising out of or relating to this Promotion.
Winners’ List: To view the winners’ list for this Promotion, please visit https://www.militaryvaloan.com/blog/the-militaryvaloan-com-military-hero-award/. The winners’ list will be available after winner validation has been completed.
Sponsor: Full Beaker, Inc., Bellevue, Washington 98004.
Medicare is one of the biggest government programs in the United States. It provides health care to millions of senior citizens across the country. It gives them health care coverage that they would be able to afford otherwise.
While Medicare is an excellent program that helps protect seniors from massive hospital bills, but it doesn’t cover everything. In fact, there are a dozen different expense categories that they don’t cover. Those groups could leave you with thousands and thousands of dollars of debts.
Every year, the cost of health care continues to rise. There is nothing that you can do stop the rising costs, but there are some ways that you can protect your finances from being wrecked by those bills. One of the best things that you can do is purchase a Medigap insurance plan. These policies will give you additional health care coverage that will work with your traditional insurance policy.
What is a Medigap Policy?
Medigap policies are sold by private insurance companies across the nation. These plans work as an add-on to your Medicare Parts A & B. They don’t replace the original coverage. You will still have to pay the monthly premiums.
The goal of Medigap plans is to fill in all of the coverage holes left behind. There are ten different Medigap plans that are sold, and they are denoted by a letter of the alphabet, A through N. All of the plans offer different coverage or cover portions of various expenses. Some of them are going to cover 100% of certain categories, while others are going to only pay for 80% of them.
Medigap Plan D
Now that you know the basics of Medicare Supplemental insurance policies, we can look at the specifics of Plan D. Before we get started, it’s important that you understand the Medigap Plan D is not the same thing as Medicare Part D. These plans are very different, but a lot of applicants tend to get the two confused, for obvious reasons.
Medigap Plan D is one of the “middle of the road” supplemental plans. It’s not the smallest, but it’s also not the most comprehensive. There are a few key coverage categories that you should be aware of to ensure that you’re getting the best supplemental plan for you.
Medicare Supplemental Plan D is going to pay for necessary expenses like your Part A hospital coinsurance and costs for an additional 365 days after your original Medicare expires. If you’ve ever spent a night in the hospital or several nights, then you know how expensive it can be to stay. If you’re hospitalized for several days or even several weeks, you’ll find yourself with a massive bill in the mail. Your original Medicare Parts A and B are only going to cover a short stay in a hospital, but depending on the condition, you could be there for a lot longer. That’s where your supplemental plan will come in. It will give you the additional coverage that you need to offset those expensive hospital bills.
Your Medigap Plan D will also pay for Part A hospice care coinsurance or copayment and your Part A deductible. Neither of these is going to be massive expenses, but having coverage for them is going to keep more money in your pockets. More than likely, you won’t be required to pay your Part A deductible. Depending on the services that you need from hospice, you could end up with thousands and thousands of dollars out-of-pocket, but that’s where your Medigap coverage comes in.
Additionally, Plan D pays for your Part B copayments or coinsurance. If you go to the doctor or hospital, you’ll be required to pay copayment fees, but if you have Medigap coverage, then your plan is going to pay for those bills. The more that you go to the doctor, the more that you’re going to pay, and the supplemental coverage can help protect your savings account from being drained by hospital bills.
One of the most notable coverage areas of the Plan D policy is the foreign travel emergency costs. Technically, this plan is going to cover 80% of those foreign emergency costs. While it only pays for 80% of those costs, it’s the most protection that you can get, regardless of which plan that you buy. If you plan on doing a lot of overseas traveling in your retirement, it’s important that you have this additional coverage. If something were to happen to you while you were on vacation, your Medicare is not going to pay for any of that.
Some of the other expenses that you plan will pay for is the first three pints of blood for any medical treatment that you may need. After the first three pints, your Original Medicare should pay for any additional pints. Pints of blood can be expensive depending on how many that you need, but your Medigap coverage coupled with your traditional coverage will cover those bills.
The last portion of expenses that the plan will cover is any skilled nursing facility care coinsurance that you would be responsible for paying for. Depending on the type of skilled nursing facility care that you need, it could end up being a massive bill.
What Medicare Supplemental Plan D Doesn’t Cover
There are also a few key expenses that a Medigap Plan D won’t cover, and those coverage gaps could drain your savings account. One of the most notable expenses is the Medicare Part B excess charges. When you go to a doctor or hospital, and you receive any service, there is a pre-determined amount that Medicare will pay for those services. Legally, the doctor or hospital is allowed to charge up to 15% more than that pre-determined amount, and the amount that is above the amount is called excess charges. Without Medigap coverage, you would be responsible for those bills, and because Plan D doesn’t pay for those charges, you would have to pay for those out-of-pocket.
Deciding which Medigap Plan is Right for you
It’s important that you choose which of the ten plans are going to work best for you. There are several key factors that you should consider to ensure that you’re getting the best plan for you. I know that picking between these plans can be difficult, but there are a few key categories that you should review before you apply for any of them.
The first thing that you should look at is your finances. The primary goal of your Medigap plan is to protect your savings account from the mountain of debt that a hospital could give you. While it’s one of the best ways to give you additional coverage, the supplemental plan shouldn’t break your bank every month. Make sure that you look at your budget and calculate how much money you can spend on your Medigap plan.
The next thing that you should consider is your health. If you’re in bad health and you have several dire health complications, then you should consider purchasing a more comprehensive policy that is going to give you the additional coverage that you need. If you’re in excellent health with no pre-existing conditions, then you can consider risking a smaller plan with a cheaper monthly premium.
Open Enrollment
Enrolling in one of these Medigap policies is very simple. The Medicare supplemental agent can walk you through the whole process, but it’s important that you apply during your Medigap Open Enrollment period. This is a 6-month time frame that beings the month that you turn 65. During this time, the insurance company can’t decline your application, regardless of your health or any pre-existing conditions that you have. If you’re in poor health, this could be the only chance that you have to get supplemental coverage.
Additionally, during your open enrollment, the company can’t charge you more for your plan, even if you have severe health problems. If you wait to purchase one of these plans, it could cost you thousands of dollars more every year. If you want to save money, don’t weight to apply for your coverage.
Any Questions?
Medigap plans are one of the best ways to protect your retirement savings and ensure that you can live out your retirement dreams. The older that you get, the more that you’re going to spend on health care and related medical costs. Don’t’ let those expenses ruin your retirement.
If you have any questions about Medigap coverage, please feel free to contact an experienced Medicare Supplemental insurance agent near you or me today. It’s vital that you get the proper coverage.
Last Updated on February 24, 2022 by Mark Ferguson
Making one million dollars in a year seems like an impossible goal for many people. I am a real estate agent and I could not even fathom making that much money five years ago, but now it is one of my goals. One of the great things about being in real estate is there are so many ways to make money and there is no ceiling to how much you can make. As a real estate agent and real estate investor, I run my own business and the amount of money I make depends on how well I plan, the goals I set forth and the work ethic I possess.
The median income for a full-time Realtor is $54,000 a year, but many agents make much more money than that. My real estate team routinely sells over 200 houses, which brings in over $650,000 in real estate commissions from almost 25 million in sales volume. I did not personally make over $600,000, because I had to pay commissions to my team, I had expenses, and had to pay our staff. However, there are many agents all over the United States making at least one million dollars a year as real estate agents. The best part is you do not have to have a college education or even a high school education (depending on the state). You do have to work hard, plan well and be a great networker.
How much money do the best agents make?
Even though I think over $600,000 in gross commissions and 25 million in sales volume was pretty good, it is not even close to what the top agents in the country make. The top agent in the country had over $1,400,000,000 in sales volume in 2016 and the 250th ranked agent had over $60,000,000 in sales volume according to the Wall Street Journal top 1,000 agents. It is important to know the Wall Street Journal does not include all the top agents in their figures. They only count agents that apply to the Wall Street Journal or that they find through their own searches. Many top agents who do not apply or are missed by the publication are left off of the list and some agents ask not to be included as well.
It is not just the top real estate agents in the country that make a lot of money. My office has 45 agents in it and most of them are part-time agents. However, we had four agents who made over $300,000 last year.
How much in sales volume do you need?
Sales volume is the dollar amount of the homes sold by a real estate agent, not the money a real estate agent makes. On my REO listings, I get paid between 1 percent and 3 percent for selling a house and my average commission is about 2.7 percent of the sales price. It is important to remember there is no typical sales commission and all commissions are negotiable. If we use these same numbers as I have for the 250th agent in the country, they would bring in $1.6 million from a sales volume of $60,000,000. There is a good chance a retail agent who is not specializing in REO listings is making more than a 2.7 percent commission on each deal. We will assume they are making 2.7 percent to be on the conservative side.
The top agent in the country may be bringing in over $18 million a year in real estate commissions from 60 million dollars in sales volume. To sell that many homes that agent has to have a large staff and other agents that he is paying out of the 18 million.
Does an agent that sells $60 million worth of homes net over one million dollars?
Even though a real estate agent who sells $60,000,000 worth of homes will most likely make $1.6 million in commissions, they don’t get to keep all that money. A real estate agent has many costs and may have to pay a split to their broker if they do not own their own office.
A real estate agent that sells that many houses will also need help. Unless your average house sale is one million dollars or more, you must have help to complete that many transactions. I have two full-time assistants and I don’t come close to that much sales volume, but I also have a relatively low median price. A real estate agent will have to pay for marketing costs, MLS fees, staff, office fees, licensing fees and more which I discuss here. If you run a real estate team, you will also not earn all the commissions coming in, because you have to pay part of the commissions to agents on your team who are actually selling houses and doing the work.
A general rule of thumb in the real estate world is an agent needs to sell $50 million worth of homes to net one million dollars a year. Net profit is what is left over after all expenses are paid and is what is important to any business owner. Going by that math, there are at least 250 real estate agents in the country making at least one million dollars a year. However, when we consider some other factors, there may be many more agents making over one million dollars a year.
How many real estate agents make one million dollars a year?
It is hard to figure out how many agents net one million dollars a year because the Wall Street Journal does not include every agent on their list. The expenses and team structure for every real estate agent is also going to be very different. Some agents may need $1.5 million in commissions to make one million dollars net and others may only need $1.2 million in commissions to net one million dollars. Another consideration is the Wall Street Journal list I have been discussing only includes individual agents. There is also a Wall Street Journal list that includes real estate teams. There are another 250 teams on that list with over $60 million in sales volume.
Even though the agents on a team split commissions, I would bet 95 percent of the team leaders are still making over one million dollars a year after expenses. That means there are at least 500 real estate agents making over one million dollars a year in the United States. The great part about running a team is you can have others do most of the work and make most of the money for you!
If you are interested in taking online classes, Real Estate Express offers very affordable classes in most states.
How many houses does a real estate agent need to sell?
To make one million dollars a year as a real estate agent you have to sell a lot of houses. However, how many houses you have to sell you depends on how expensive the houses you sell are. If your average sales price is one million dollars, you only have to sell 50 houses a year to make one million dollars a year. Most agents are not in an area that will allow them to sell 50 one million dollar houses a year. In my area, there aren’t that many million-dollar houses selling in an entire year by every agent combined.
In my area, the average sales price is around $200,000, which would mean I would have I sell 250 houses a year to reach $50,000,000 in sales volume and make one million dollars a year. However, since I sell REOs, my sales price is lower than the median sales price. I would have to sell over 300 homes in a year to make one million dollars net. 300 houses is a lot to sell in one year, but it is possible and one of my goals! The top team in the country in 2013 run by John Murray, sold over 1,200 homes!
For a real estate agent with a median house price sale of $400,000, it gets much easier to make one million dollars a year. That agent would only have to sell 125 houses a year to reach one million dollars in net income. Selling over 125 homes a year is tough, but it is not an impossible task either. You would have to sell just over 10 houses a year to reach 125 sales for the year and two to three houses a week. Selling two to three houses a week takes time as an agent. You have to build relationships, generate leads and take care of your clients. If you do all of those things, it is not difficult to sell that many houses.
How likely is it to make this much?
It takes a lot of work, planning, and some luck to make one million dollars a year. Most agents won’t make $100,000 a year, as the median income is $54,000 for a full-time Realtor, but most agents are not good agents. They don’t take care of their clients, follow up with leads or plan their business. If you use systems, train your team and set goals it is definitely possible to make one million dollars or more a year as a real estate agent. Most real estate agents will never come close to making one million dollars a year, but remember most agents are part-time and most agents do not treat being a real estate agent as a business. I can almost guarantee you are not going to make one million dollars a year in the corporate world unless you become a CEO or get lucky with stock options. How long will it take someone to become a CEO and how much of their path is determined by their hard work or politics within a company? Real estate lets you create your own path to success with no one else to answer to.
[embedded content]
How else can you make money?
This article has discussed how to make one million dollars a year from selling houses as a real estate agent, but real estate agents can do much more than sell houses. I fix and flip 10-15 houses a year and I wrote an article about what it takes to make one million dollars a year flipping houses. I also own 11 rental properties and I wrote about how to make one million dollars from rental properties here. I hope to make over one million dollars a year very soon, by using a mix of selling houses, fix and flipping homes, buying rental properties and income from other sources like BPOs and my blog. Even if you never get to a point where you can make one million dollars a year from just selling houses as an agent, simply being an agent opens up doors that will allow you to add income streams and make more money in other businesses.
Why I love the business
One reason I think being a real estate agent is better than working in the corporate world is that there is no ceiling with real estate. There is no limit to the amount of money you can make in real estate as an agent, investor or business owner. In the corporate world, it is going to be tough to ever make one million dollars a year unless you start your own corporation or become a CEO. I learned in college the way to become CEO is to work 80 hours a week for 25 years. I don’t want to work 80 hours one week out of the year, let alone for 25 years. Plus there is no guarantee you will make CEO or even keep your job in the corporate world.
There is no guarantee you will make one million dollars a year as a real estate agent either. I think you have a better chance of becoming wealthy by creating your own business than by working for someone else, and becoming a real estate agent is one of the best ways to start your own business.
When looking at overall financial planning, life insurance coverage can be an integral part. That’s because the profits from a life insurance policy can be used for a multitude of things, including the settlement of debt by survivors, ongoing payment of everyday bills by a spouse and other dependents, and/or for paying one’s funeral and other financial expenses.
In fact, even when just factoring in potential final costs, the dollar figure can often be more than $10,000 given the expense of a memorial service, flowers, and transportation, as well as a burial plot and headstone. (If an individual requires any uninsured medical or hospice expenses, the cost can be even higher for those you leave behind).
Before committing to acquire a life insurance policy, it is important to ensure that you are choosing the right type and amount of coverage. It is also essential to take a closer look at the insurance company you’re considering making your purchase through.
That is because you want to ensure that the insurer is secure and stable financially and that it has a reliable, positive name for paying out its policy holder claims. One insurance carrier that has a 100+ year history, and that meets these criteria – is Mutual Trust Life Insurance Company.
Table of Contents
The History of Mutual Trust Life Insurance Company
Mutual Trust Life Insurance Company traces its roots back to 1904. Over the past 110+ years, the company has grown and expanded exponentially, and it now offers its life insurance and annuity products in 49 of the U.S. states, as well as the District of Columbia.
Today, Mutual Trust is a wholly owned subsidiary of Pan American Life Insurance Group (PALIG), which is a leading provider of insurance and financial services throughout the Americas. Mutual Trust is headquartered in Oak Brook, Illinois.
Mutual Trust Life Insurance Review
As its name implies, Mutual Trust Life Insurance Company is a mutual insurer. This means that the company has no shareholders, by rather it exists for the benefit of its policy holders. And, while not guaranteed, policy holders may be eligible to receive dividends from the company. These may be taken in the form of cash, or used for increasing the amount of insurance coverage that they have.
For the year 2016, Mutual Trust Life Insurance Company continued to experience positive financials, with a 16 percent increase in sales, and continuation of its dividend scale – even considering the historically low-interest rate environment in the United States.
At the end of 2016, Mutual Trust Life Insurance Company held capital more than $900 million, and assets of over $5.5 billion (when combined with that of Pan American Life Insurance Group). The company has also maintained a risk-based capital ratio of more than 600 percent.
With that in mind, Mutual Trust Life Insurance Company is a financially stable company. It also pays out its claims promptly to its policy holders and their beneficiaries.
Insurer Ratings and Better Business Bureau Grade
Due to its firm financial footing, Mutual Trust Life Insurance Company has attained outstanding ratings from the insurer rating agencies. These include an A (Excellent) from A.M. Best Company and an A (Stable) from Fitch Ratings.
Also, even though Mutual Trust is not currently an accredited business through the Better Business Bureau (BBB), the BBB has given the company a grade of A+. This is on an overall grade scale of A+ through F. Over the past three years, Mutual Trust has only had to close out one customer complaint through the Better Business Bureau (which occurred within the previous 12 months). This claim was based on problems with the company’s products and services.
Life Insurance Policies Offered by Mutual Trust Life Insurance Company
Mutual Trust Life Insurance Company offers a wide variety of life insurance policies to choose from. These include both term and permanent coverage. With term life insurance, you will have death benefit protection, without any cash value or savings build up. This can help to keep the policy affordable.
Term life insurance offers protection for a set number of years. The term life insurance plans that are offered through Mutual Trust Life Insurance Company have the options of 10 years, 15 years, 20 years, and 30 years. During the time that is chosen, the death benefit on the policy remains level, and the amount of the premium will not increase.
After the time has elapsed, policy holders have the option of keeping the coverage as an annually renewable plan, which provides a level amount of death benefit until the insured turns age 98. (The premium will, however, increase over time with this option).
These policies also have the option of being converted over to a permanent life insurance policy, without having to provide evidence of insurability. This conversion may occur at age 65, or at the insured’s issue age plus the length of the level premium period plus five years – whichever is the earliest.
There are also individual riders that may be added to one’s term life insurance policy through Mutual Trust. For example, with the addition of the optional waiver of premium rider, conversion is guaranteed – even if the term insurance policy is under a waiver claim. In this case, the premiums on the permanent policy can continue to be waived (provided that certain conditions have been met).
Mutual Trust also offers permanent life insurance coverage. With this form of life insurance, there is a death benefit, as well as a cash value component in the policy. Mutual Trust Life Insurance Company has a focus on offering whole life insurance through its Horizon Value plans. Here, the amount of the policy’s death benefit is guaranteed never to decrease (if the premiums are paid).
Also, the monetary value can increase on a tax deferred basis. There will be no tax due on the growth in the assets that are inside of the cash value unless or until they are withdrawn. Policy holders can either borrow or withdraw cash from the policy, for any need that they wish, including the payoff of debt, the supplementing of retirement income, or even for taking a pleasant, long-awaited vacation.
Also, because Mutual Trust Life Insurance Company is a mutual insurer, those who own a whole life plan may be eligible to receive dividends (although dividends are not guaranteed). When receiving a bonus, it is a return of premium, so it will not incur income tax.
The Horizon Value whole life insurance policies from Mutual Trust offer several additional benefits, including non-forfeiture, which means that the policy holder may opt to obtain either a reduced paid-up policy, or a term policy if his or her plans or budget changes.
Policy holders may also choose to add an accelerated death benefit rider – with chronic and terminal illness provisions – if they want to customize their coverage further. These options are available at no additional premium cost. With this type of addition, it can be possible to accelerate a portion of the policy’s death benefit if the insured becomes chronically, permanently, or terminally ill. Funds can be used for paying medical bills, or any other need that the policy holder sees fit.
Other Products and Services Sold
In addition to providing an extensive list of life insurance policy options, Mutual Trust also offers retirement annuities. Today, given our much longer life expectancies, one of the key worries of those who are retired (as well as those who are planning to retire soon), is outlasting their income.
An annuity can help with alleviating that concern by providing the option of a fixed lifetime income – regardless of how long you live. These products also offer certain tax advantages during the savings (or accumulation) phase.
Mutual Trust offers the Integrity Plus Series of flexible and single premium deferred annuities. With single premium annuity, only one single payment is required, while a flexible premium product allows you to make deposits over time.
All the annuities that are offered by Mutual Trust Life Insurance Company allow for the following:
Tax deferred gain inside of the account. This means that as your money grows, there will be no taxes due on the gain until the time of withdrawal. This can allow for funds to grow and compound exponentially over time.
Principal guarantee. This means that your money will be safe inside of the annuity, regardless of what occurs in the market – or even in the overall economy.
No upfront sales charges. With no sales charge or commission to pay up front, all your deposited funds can start working and earning interest right away.
Low minimum contributions. If you do not have a lot of money to start with, you can still purchase an annuity from Mutual Trust. That is because the flex annuities offered by the company can begin with a minimum premium of just $300, and the single premium annuity products may be started with a minimum contribution of $5,000.
Choice of different payout options. When the time comes to start withdrawing money from the annuity, there are a variety of different options to choose from. These can include taking out the entire lump sum or taking out an income stream on an annual, semi-annual, quarterly, or monthly basis. There is also the lifetime income option whereby the insurance company will continue to pay out an income to you for as long as you live – regardless of how long that may be. This can help with reducing the worry of outliving your retirement income.
Death benefit. Upon the passing of the owner/annuitant, the accumulated annuity value can pass directly to a named beneficiary (or more than one beneficiary). This can help to avoid the expense and the delay of having to go through probate.
How to Find the Best Premium Rates on Life Insurance Protection
If you are seeking the best premium rates on life insurance protection from Mutual Trust Life Insurance Company – or from any insurance carrier – it is typically recommended that you work with an independent life insurance agent or broker. You will be able to choose from many different policies, insurance companies, and premium costs – and from there you can decide which will be the top option for you.
When you are ready to purchase, we can assist. We are an independent insurance brokerage, and we work with many of the best life insurance companies in the market place today. We can provide you with all the essential factors you need for making a well-informed life insurance buying decision. We can do so for you swiftly and efficiently – all from your computer. If you are ready to see what coverage and premiums you qualify for, then just simply fill out our quote form to get started.
We understand that the purchase of life insurance may not always be an easy task. There are many different variables to choose from – and you want to make sure that you are going with the best plan possible for you – and your loved ones – needs.
But the good news is that – even with all the plans and alternatives to consider – this process can be made much easier when you are working with an expert in the field. So, contact us today – we’re here to help.
There is a lot of questions about Medicare and the coverage that it provides. It’s a confusing program that has left millions of seniors with confusion about their health care and the services that they cover. While you may not know it, your Medicare Parts A and B don’t pay for all of the expenses that you may encounter. In fact, there are about a dozen different categories that original Medicare doesn’t pay for, and those categories could leave you with some massive bills.
There is nothing that you can do about the rising cost of health care, but there are some ways that you can protect yourself from having your savings account drained. One of the most popular ways to protect yourself is to purchase a Medigap insurance plan. These policies will give you additional coverage and help will in the holes left behind by Medicare.
What is a Medigap Plan?
Before we look at the specifics of Medicare Supplement Plan B, let’s take a broad view of Medigap plans and how they operate. These additional insurance plans are sold by private insurance companies, and the goal of these plans is to give you additional coverage that traditional Medicare doesn’t.
There are ten different plans that you can choose from, and they are all denoted by a letter of the alphabet, A – N. These policies are standardized by the government, which means that they are going to be identical, regardless of which company that you purchase them from.
The older that you get, the more money that you’re going to spend on medical expenses and health care, and those expenses could quickly drain your retirement savings and turn your retirement dreams into a nightmare, but that’s where these Medigap plans come in.
Because these plans are sold by private insurance companies, the available options and the prices are going to differ depending on where you live and the company that you choose. Because they are standardized, the only difference in companies is going to be the premiums amount. It’s easy to see why you should compare dozens of companies before you pick the one that’s going to work well for you.
Medigap Plan B
Now that we’ve looked at the basic of Medicare supplemental plans, we can look at the details of a Medigap Plan B. Each of the available plans is different, and some of them provide more coverage than others. Plan B is one of the most basic plans, which is going to leave more coverage gaps. Because it provides less coverage, they are also going to have cheaper premiums. Plan B is an excellent way to get additional support without paying the larger premiums.
Plan B is going to cover the basic expenses like Medicare Part B copayments and coinsurance fees. This is one category that every Medigap plan is going to pay. It’s not a massive expense, but having those copayments paid for can keep hundreds of more dollars in your pocket depending on how often you go to the doctor.
Another expense that is coverage by Medigap Plan B is the first three pints of blood that you get if as a hospital inpatient or outpatient treatment. Your traditional Medigap Plan should cover the blood after the first three, which means that the blood will be completely covered if you’re ever in need.
Medigap Plan B will also pay for several Medicare Part A expenses that enrollees would be responsible for otherwise. Supplement Plan B will pay for the Medicare Part A deductible (which you probably wouldn’t be paying otherwise) and Medicare Part A hospital coinsurance for up to 365 days after your Medicare benefits have expired. If you’ve ever spent a night or two in the hospital, you know that it can be an expensive stay. If you’re stuck in the hospital for more than a few days, then it can be a massive bill at the end, but thankfully, your Plan B Medigap policy can offset those bills.
The last portion that your Plan B will pay for is any hospice care coinsurance or copayments. Once again, this would probably be a relatively small fee that you would encounter, but having your Medigap plan cover, it is going to keep some extra money in your pocket.
What Plan B DOESN’T Cover
Because Plan B is going to be one of the smaller plans, there are a few key categories that it won’t cover. It’s important to take note of these before you purchase one of these plans. One of the most notable is the Medicare Part B excess charges. When you go to the doctor and receive a service or treatment, there is a pre-approved amount that Medicare is going to pay for that service. Legally, the doctor is allowed to charge 15% more than that pre-approved amount, and any money above that amount is considered excess charges. Not every doctor or hospital is going to have these excess charges, but if you run into any of them and you have a Medigap Plan B, then you have to pay for these expenses out-of-pocket.
Another key coverage gap with Medigap Plan B is the foreign travel emergency care. If you plan to do a lot of traveling in retirement, then it’s important that you get a supplemental plan that covers foreign emergency care. In the vast majority of cases, traditional Medicare plan is not going to pay for any of those hospital fees if you’re outside of the United States, which can lead to massive hospital bills and a ruined vacation. If you have a comprehensive Medigap Plan, like a Plan F, then some of these expenses will be covered. None of the plans will pay 100% of it, but you can get some protection.
Deciding Which Medigap Plan is Right for You
It’s important that you pick the perfect supplemental coverage for you and your health care needs. There are several different key factors that you should review before you purchase any Medigap plan.
The first thing that you should do is calculate your budget and decide how much you can spend on supplemental coverage every month. The purpose of your Medigap plan is to protect your savings account, but your insurance plan shouldn’t break your bank every month. Make sure that you get a plan that will fit comfortably in your budget without stretching your finances.
The next thing you should look at is your health and family history. If you’re in poor health or you have any pre-existing conditions that could cost you massive medical expenses, then you should consider investing in a larger comprehensive supplemental plan. On the other hand, if you’re in good health and your family history doesn’t have a trend of poor health, then you could risk buying a smaller plan that leaves more coverage gaps but saves you money.
Open Enrollment Period
After you’ve decided which type of plan that you’re going to purchase, you will need to enroll in that plan. That’s easy to do. All you have to do is contact a Medigap agent, and they will take care of the application process for you. It’s a simple process, that is similar to purchasing a life insurance policy.
What’s important is the WHEN you apply. It’s vital that you sign up during your Medigap Open Enrollment period. This is a 6-month window that begins the month that you turn 65. During this period, the insurance company can’t decline your application, regardless of how poor your health is or any health problems that you have. During these six months, any Medigap plan that you want to purchase is guaranteed acceptance.
Additionally, if you purchase a Medigap plan during these six months, the company can’t charge you higher premiums, even if you aren’t in great health. After the open enrollment period is over, then your application will be treated as a normal application, which means that you could get much higher rates for your coverage. Taking advantage of the six months could save you thousands of dollars.
Questions or Concerns?
These Medigap plans are one of the best ways to get additional coverage that Medicare doesn’t offer. While Plan B might not be the best supplemental coverage for you, it’s important that you find the plan that will. I have reviewed all of the options that you can choose from.
If you have any questions about Medigap plans or supplemental coverage, feel free to contact me, or you can contact a Medigap agent. They can answer any of those questions that you may have and ensure that you’ve got all of the information that you need.