Well, now that we're off to a great start to David Bach Day at Free Money Finance, I wanted to keep up the momentum by posting a three-part interview I had with David.
The interview was conducted via email, though that wasn't David's wishes. He actually intended to (and wanted to) call and TALK to me. As you can imagine, I was THRILLED. However, our two scheduled phone calls were cancelled, one for a reason I can't remember and the latter because CNN wanted him to be on a program during that time. Since CNN has a bit bigger reach than Free Money Finance, I could certainly understand. ;-)
Finally, he had a FIRM day/time that he could talk to me -- and I was busy. Darn! So I emailed him the questions and he sent them back a few days later. It actually made it easier for me to post this (copy and paste), but I still would have LOVED to have talked to him.
Ok, enough rambling from me, let's get to the first part of the interview followed by some of my comments at the end. Here goes (BTW, I've added in links to what he said where appropriate):
Free Money Finance (FMF): To start, please tell Free Money Finance readers what's going on with David Bach -- other than writing books, give us a few details on what you do and why you do it.
David Bach (DB): First, let me thank you for your positive review of my new book.
The Automatic Millionaire Homeowner is the seventh book in my “Finish Rich” series, so writing has kept me pretty busy over the past few years. I’m also a contributor for Yahoo! Finance and contribute a bi-weekly column called “The Automatic Millionaire.” And I do a lot of speaking around the U.S. and in Canada. Over the next month, I’m visiting 14 cities across America as part of my “Great American Homeowner Challenge” tour, in which I’m giving free financial literacy seminars. And I’m also currently taping a seven-part series with Oprah Winfrey called “America’s Debt Diet.” I do each of these things for the same reason – to try to educate ordinary Americans about money so they can improve their lives and achieve financial security.
FMF: Why this book now? Why a real estate book?
DB: Two reasons. First, I believe that the single most important financial decision a person can make over the course of their lifetime is to buy their own home, and I wanted to develop a book to take people by the hand and show them how they can build wealth through real estate. Second, I write my books in response to the kinds of questions that people ask me, and over the last few years I’ve had many, many people tell me that they were looking for a book that would simplify the home-buying process for them and lay out in concrete terms the steps they can take to make owning their own home a reality.
FMF: What do you hope to accomplish with the book?
DB: I wrote The Automatic Millionaire Homeowner as part of my mission of trying to help 10 million Americans over the next three years to become first-time homeowners who can share in the American dream. I often say that homeowners get rich while renters remain poor, and while that may sound harsh, it’s true. Homeownership is the single greatest difference between the “haves” and the “have-nots” in American society, and my goal is to give ordinary people the basic education and confidence they need in order to be able to share in the American dream instead of just watching from the sidelines.
FMF: How important is home ownership in the “Finish Rich” equation? Is it more important than the latte factor? More important than saving automatically?
DB: I see homeownership as the bedrock of anyone’s financial plan, but all three of the things you mention are equally important and they all work together to the same end – to live and finish rich. Basically, if people do just three things, they will be squarely on the path to becoming a millionaire. Those three things are 1) to “pay yourself first” by making regular contributions to a retirement account such as a 401K; 2) to make it automatic so you don’t have to rely on discipline to succeed; and 3) to buy a home and set up an automatic bi-weekly mortgage payment system. Very few people take advantage of bi-weekly mortgages, but it is the simple secret to shaving years off the life of your mortgage loan, savings tens of thousands of dollars in interest payments, and being able to retire early if you so wish.
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As you can imagine, I'm loving this so far. Good, basic financial advice that works. I agree with JLP, David Bach is a common-sense guy who offers solid financial advice.
Click here to read part 2 of this interview.
This series is brought to you by Emigrant Direct.
Congratulations, great interview and great blog, I am glad I found this.
Michelle Dunn
Author
Posted by: Michelle Dunn | April 01, 2006 at 07:58 AM