Acorns: 14 million customers, $27 billion saved
The Acorns financial app has over 14 million all-time customers who have collectively saved and invested over $27 billion on the platform.
Where this was said
Acorns, Smalls, Talkspace Ad Reads
At 21:01 · chapter starts 20:15
The hosts work through three sponsor reads with their characteristic looseness. The Acorns read leans into Bobby's regret about not saving earlier in his career, with the app's $5 signup bonus and 14 million user stats as the headline. The Smalls cat food read lets Bobby mention his three cats — Gunner, Me, and Bojo — and lament their lack of toned muscles. Talkspace gets the most earnest treatment, with Bobby sharing he had therapy earlier that day and noting that processing trauma through talk therapy prevents it from becoming physical illness later.
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$50K Holy Land trip on $200K nest egg
An 85-year-old nursing home resident wants to spend $50,000 — a quarter of his entire $200,000 nest egg — flying 10 family members to the Holy Land.
$31.9 million in forgotten 401(k)s
An estimated $31.9 million worth of 401(k) balances have been abandoned by former employees and are sitting unclaimed.
Debt paid off: $72K in 6 months
Matt from Chicago paid off $72,000 in debt in 6 months by working 12-hour days, 7 days a week, then funded an emergency fund and pre-paid a Costa Rica vacation.
80-hour work weeks to pay off house
Matt continues working 80+ hours a week after becoming debt-free in order to pay off his house by age 40, against his fiancée's wishes.
Couple: $180K debt + pregnant
Elizabeth and her husband in Nashville carry $180,000 in combined debt — $115K in student loans plus medical bills and a car — and just discovered she is 5 weeks pregnant with their second child while also having a 4-month-old.
Extra debt payment margin: $747/month
Despite $180K in debt and a surprise pregnancy, Elizabeth's EveryDollar budget shows a $747.39 monthly surplus on top of minimum payments and living expenses.
Side hustle income: $1,900/month
Elizabeth and her husband earn $1,900 per month from side hustles — she does Lyft and house cleaning while he does additional gig work — on top of their regular income.
Gold average return since 1971: ~7.8%/yr
Gold has averaged approximately 7.8% annual return since 1971 when the U.S. dollar was untied from it, which George Kamel notes is lower than historical stock market returns.
House paid off in 26 months
George Kamel shared that he and his wife paid off their own home mortgage in 26 months — far ahead of their original 4-year goal.
