Ready to take control of your finances in 2026? Mindy Jensen and Scott Trench are breaking down one of the most powerful tools for financial success: the personal financial statement. Think of it as your complete financial snapshot—tracking your net worth, cash flow, assets, and liabilities all in one place. The best part? They're giving you a free comprehensive spreadsheet to make it ridiculously easy.

This Episode Covers:

• What a personal financial statement is and why it's essential for reaching your 2026 FI goals
• How to calculate your net worth and track it over time
• Step-by-step instructions for filling out your financial statement spreadsheet
• Organizing your assets and liabilities in one powerful location
• Using cash flow analysis to understand where your money goes
• Tips for serious financial planning with your completed statement
• Access to the free comprehensive spreadsheet template at BiggerPocketsMoney.com/resources
• Mindy and Scott's recommended budgeting software, Monarch Money (use code 'Pockets' for 50% off Your First Year)

Whether you're just starting out or ready to level up your money game, this episode gives you the foundation you need.

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Sam and Carolyn reached financial independence in their thirties through frugality, real estate investing, and building side hustles that generated $10,000 per month. Then they made a bold move—quitting their jobs and briefly relocating to Canada.

This Episode Covers:

• How Sam and Carolyn house-hacked their way to a multi-property real estate portfolio

• The unconventional side hustles that generated $10K monthly in additional income

• Their complete financial strategy: savings rate, expense tracking, and investment allocation

• The decision to quit their jobs and achieve full financial independence in their thirties

• Why they moved to Canada and how universal healthcare and education factored into their FIRE plan

• Navigating the challenges of early retirement and aligning goals as a couple

• Building systems for long-term wealth preservation and flexible lifestyle design

• Lessons learned and advice for aspiring FIRE seekers

Whether you're just starting your FIRE journey or looking for creative ways to accelerate your path to financial independence, Sam and Carolyn's story offers actionable strategies you can implement today.

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Join Mindy Jensen and Scott Trench for a powerful conversation with Regina Moore, who achieved millionaire status before 35 through frugality and her career as a pharmacist. But when her young son was diagnosed with cancer, everything changed.

In this deeply personal episode, Regina opens up about how a healthcare crisis tested her Lean FIRE plan in ways she never anticipated. And how financial independence—despite not being a perfect shield—gave her family options during their hardest moments.

Her family was placed in an incredibly difficult position due to subsidy cliffs. The conversation highlights the practical realities Regina and others face, examines the structural challenges within current healthcare policy, and discusses potential solutions.

This episode covers:

• How achieving FI before crisis provided crucial flexibility

• The ACA subsidy cliff and impossible financial trade-offs

• Adjusting FIRE plans when life doesn't go as expected

• Why she's still grateful she achieved financial independence

• Systemic healthcare issues 

A must-listen for anyone pursuing financial independence who wants to understand what happens when real life tests your plan.

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Building a $2.5 million portfolio is hard. Spending it without running out? That's even harder.

Welcome to the 700th episode of the BiggerPockets Money Podcast! To mark this milestone, hosts Mindy Jensen and Scott Trench are tackling one of the most critical—and most overlooked—aspects of financial independence: decumulation. Most people obsess over building wealth but stumble when it's time to actually spend it. The withdrawal strategy you choose can mean the difference between a comfortable 40-year retirement and running out of money at the worst possible time.

In this episode, we cover:

• Sequential vs. blended vs. cyclical withdrawal strategies—which is right for you?

• How to create a tax-efficient drawdown plan that could save you hundreds of thousands

• The role of Roth accounts, traditional IRAs, and taxable brokerage accounts in your withdrawal strategy

• When to do Roth conversions and how to time them for maximum benefit

• Healthcare planning in early retirement and how it affects your withdrawal strategy

• Estate planning considerations and maximizing what you leave behind

• Real-world scenarios: what withdrawal strategies look like in practice

• The biggest mistakes retirees make in the decumulation phase

Whether you're just starting your FI journey or you're ready to retire next year, this comprehensive guide will help you spend your money strategically, minimize taxes, and make your nest egg last.

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Are you using the wrong retirement withdrawal strategy? Sequential drawdown—draining one account before touching the next—is the most common approach to early retirement, but it could be costing you tens of thousands in unnecessary taxes.

In this episode of the BiggerPockets Money Podcast, hosts Mindy Jensen and Scott Trench sit down with Enrolled Agent Mark to break down tax-efficient withdrawal strategies that maximize your retirement savings. Discover blended drawdown strategies and cyclical drawdown methods that optimize which accounts you tap first—Traditional IRA, Roth IRA, taxable brokerage, HSA—to minimize your lifetime tax burden.

This episode covers:

• Sequential vs. blended vs. cyclical retirement drawdown strategies

• How to optimize withdrawal order from retirement accounts (401k, IRA, Roth, taxable accounts)

• Tax-efficient retirement planning for early retirees and FIRE followers

• How to leverage today's historically low tax rates before they expire

• Healthcare costs in early retirement (ACA subsidies, Medicare planning)

• Asset protection and estate planning considerations

• Roth conversion strategies during low-income years

• How to avoid costly tax mistakes in the decumulation phase

Whether you're planning for financial independence, already retired early, or managing multiple retirement accounts, this tax optimization masterclass will help you keep more of your money and make your nest egg last longer.

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What would you do differently if you could start your FIRE journey over today?

Back in 2013, Scott was fresh out of college house hacking his way to financial independence, while Mindy and her husband were deep into their FIRE journey documenting it all on their blog. Fast forward to 2025—both are financially independent, but if they were starting from scratch today, they'd make some serious changes.

Welcome to the BiggerPockets Money Podcast! In this episode, Scott and Mindy reveal what they'd do differently starting their FI journey in 2025. The fundamentals still work—frugality, saving, investing—but the tactical strategies? Those have evolved dramatically.

In this episode, we cover:

• The real estate strategies Scott would prioritize in today's market
• Stock investments and portfolio allocation for 2025
• How AI and technology are reshaping the path to FI
• The biggest regrets—including times they wish they'd spent MORE
• What still works from 2013 vs. what's completely outdated
• Lifestyle changes they'd make earlier in the journey
• Updated timelines and expectations for achieving FIRE today

Whether you're just starting out or already on track to financial independence, this episode gives you a fresh roadmap for building wealth in today's world.

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What happens after you achieve financial independence? Former Facebook employee turned comedian Paul Ollinger discovered the answer wasn't what he expected—and it completely changed how he thinks about money, work, and happiness.

This Episode Covers:

• Why financial autonomy beats wealth accumulation—and what that actually means for your daily life

• The psychological challenges of early retirement nobody talks about (and why having a plan is non-negotiable)

• How he navigated major financial decisions in high-cost cities like New York without sacrificing his goals

• The truth about happiness and wealth—does more money actually make you happier?

• How to prepare for life's unexpected curveballs that can derail even the best financial plans

And SO much more!

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Will 2026 healthcare costs destroy your FIRE plan? Enhanced ACA tax credits expire in 2026—meaning health insurance premiums could DOUBLE or TRIPLE overnight. This healthcare subsidy cliff threatens millions who depend on affordable marketplace coverage.

In this episode of the BiggerPockets Money podcast, Mindy Jensen and Scott Trench interview Matt McGough from KFF to break down the 2026 healthcare crisis and what you can do NOW to protect your early retirement.

This Episode Covers:

• Who gets hit hardest by 2026 healthcare premium increases

• Exact cost projections for early retirement health insurance in 2026

• Actionable strategies to prepare NOW for rising healthcare costs

• Which FIRE strategies still work after ACA subsidy changes

• Affordable health insurance alternatives for early retirees

• History of ACA subsidies and why they're expiring

• Steps to protect your financial independence from the healthcare affordability crisis

And SO much more!

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Think you need a six-figure salary to retire early? Think again. Middle school teacher Andrew Luman is achieving financial independence and retiring at 50—all on a teacher's salary. In this episode of the BiggerPockets Money podcast, hosts Mindy Jensen and Scott Trench unpack Andrew's complete FIRE strategy, proving that early retirement isn't reserved for high earners.

In this episode, you'll learn:

• How Andrew discovered the FIRE movement and started his financial independence journey

• Building wealth on $35,000 a year: Andrew's early budgeting strategies

• The power of a high savings rate and how to achieve it on a modest income

• House hacking explained: How Andrew used a multi-unit property to eliminate housing costs

• Real estate investing for teachers and average income earners

• Portfolio breakdown: Andrew's asset allocation and investment strategy for early retirement

• The four-day work week advantage and how it accelerated his path to FIRE

• Choosing time over money: lifestyle decisions that make early retirement possible

• Side hustles for FIRE: Which ones are worth it

• Cash management strategies for approaching financial independence

• Approaching your FIRE number: What the final stretch looks like

And SO much more!

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Time's running out on 2025, and there are critical financial moves you need to make before December 31st. In this episode of the BiggerPockets Money podcast, Mindy and Scott walk you through the essential year-end tasks that could save you thousands of dollars and keep your FIRE goals on track. These aren't just suggestions—they're time-sensitive opportunities that literally disappear when the calendar flips to January 1st.

Whether you're aggressively pursuing financial independence or simply want to optimize your money, ignoring these year-end deadlines could cost you big. The good news? Most of these tasks take less than an hour to complete, and the payoff can be substantial.

In this episode, you'll discover:

• How to maximize your tax-advantaged retirement accounts before contribution deadlines
• Why you need to spend every dollar in your FSA or lose it forever
• Tax-loss harvesting strategies to offset gains and reduce your tax bill
• Strategic charitable giving tactics that benefit both you and your favorite causes
• When and how to rebalance your investment portfolio for optimal performance
• Critical Roth conversion considerations before year-end
• HSA contribution limits and why maxing out matters for FIRE
• Required minimum distribution rules you can't ignore
• How to bunch deductions to maximize tax benefits
• The BiggerPockets Money End of Year Checklist

And SO much more!

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Pay off your mortgage or invest? If you're pursuing FIRE, you've wrestled with this question. A paid-off house means thousands extra in your pocket each month and a lower FIRE number. But investing that same money could build significantly more wealth and get you to FIRE with a bigger nest egg. So which strategy wins?

To help you decide, Scott built a brand-new mortgage calculator that accounts for interest rates, investment returns, and taxes. He and Mindy use it to analyze real-world scenarios—high mortgage balances, different life stages, various risk tolerances—proving there's no one-size-fits-all answer.

In this episode, you'll learn:

• Who should prioritize paying off their mortgage early

• The hidden pros and cons of each strategy

• Why your timeline to FIRE changes everything

• How to use Scott's calculator for your specific situation

• Different paths for those retiring soon versus decades away

Whether you want maximum wealth for a luxurious retirement or just want to quit your job as fast as possible, we've mapped out strategies for both.

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