Rob West Loss can change the way we see almost everything, including money. Hi, I'm Rob West. After being widowed twice, Rachel Faulkner Brown knows firsthand how grief can affect our emotions, our decisions, and even our finances. Today she joins us to share how financial mistakes and painful losses ultimately taught her a deeper lesson about stewardship, trust, and letting go of control. And then it's on to your calls at 800-525-7000. That's 800-525-7000. This is Faith and Finance on American Family Radio, biblical wisdom for your financial decisions.
Rachel Faulkner Brown is a speaker, Bible teacher, author and founder and executive director of Never Alone Widows, a nationwide ministry helping women find hope, healing, and community after loss. Widowed twice by the age of 31, Rachel has used her own story of grief and restoration to encourage thousands of women. She's also a national speaker for Folds of Honor, co-host of There Is More Podcast, and author of the 365-day devotional Widows Might. Rachel, really great to have you in the studio today.
Rachel Faulkner Brown Thanks, Rob! What an honor to be here. This is one of my favorite topics, actually.
Rob West I know it is.
Rachel Faulkner Brown Actually love it, which I know people would be like, "That's so weird", but I love it.
Rob West Oh, well we're so glad. And we were so thankful that you were willing to write for our magazine Faithful Steward, and I know that article is going to be a blessing to so many. But I want to start with this really striking line that you have in the article. You say, and I'm reading from it, "The day after Blair died, I threw away the Dave Ramsey envelopes." Dave is of course a good friend and that's the affectionate envelopes we all know that he uses and Larry Burkett used actually in in money management. But I want you to take us back to that moment. What was going on in your heart and what did that decision represent for you?
Rachel Faulkner Brown Wow. Gosh, I can go back to that moment like it was yesterday. That decision really represented taking back control, I think. And I think that's what grief causes widows to do, anyone to do really. You're just searching to make sense of what you've experienced and, you know, that day I was like, "All right, there's going to be enough." I don't have to do this anymore. I'm not in debt anyway. But we were just living like nobody else so that we could live like nobody else, honestly. I had gone to um Dave's conference when I was 21 years old with my brother and sister-in-law, that changed my life. So I was, you know, a steward, you would say, and Blair and I were, you know, living like that, and I was just like, "All right, well, I am done with this because it became, you know, I was always robbing Paul to pay Peter, right?" I was always swapping envelopes and it just was I I knew that feeding my children was much more important than getting the envelopes right.
Rob West He's got to work for you, right? And and you were taking control back of what system needed to work for you. I think it's also important for people to hear, because grief affects more than our emotions. You of course talked about how trauma impacted your memory and even your ability to handle everyday responsibilities. What did that look like for you in that season?
Rachel Faulkner Brown Yeah. I mean, I think at the end of the day, I had a lot of great help, um, but trauma impacts every area of your life. For me, I became emotionally just bankrupt. I would call it. I read Pete Scazzero's book Emotionally Healthy Spirituality and honestly, how you manage your money, it's wellness, right? I mean, I think it all relates back to how emotionally and spiritually healthy you are, and I just was extremely unhealthy emotionally. I wasn't feeling anything. So trauma was impacting and, you know, it was causing me to hide, it was causing me to feel a lot of shame and shame, which that is a a huge part of what I experienced, um, because I had a past that needed to be dealt with and hadn't been dealt with.
Rob West Wow. So much to unpack there. We've got just a few seconds left here before our first break. You know, from your experience, Rachel, and of course you've worked with thousands of widows, is one of the first lessons financially after loss to just simply slow down and avoid rushing into major decisions?
Rachel Faulkner Brown Oh my goodness, yes. I can distinctly remember driving to Atlanta and meeting with a financial planner and, you know, unfortunately a lot of times people want to rush you. And I was just so uneasy. I just knew my intuition was this is not what I should be doing right now. And had I invested in that moment, I would have lost half. It was 2008 when the bottom fell out. And I look back and I think, thank you, Lord, for the Holy Spirit. I mean, and and I think that's it, too. Listen to the Holy Spirit is such a big piece of stewardship.
Rob West Wow, this is so good. Well, we're going to take a quick break, but there is much more to talk about with Rachel Faulkner Brown, founder of Never Alone Widows right after this. Stay with us.
SEGMENT 2
Rob West Losing a spouse changes your financial life overnight. We're talking about finances when you're a widow today with my friend Rachel Faulkner Brown. She's a speaker, a Bible teacher and author and founder and executive director of Never Alone Widows. Be sure you check it out, neveralonewidows.com. Rachel, before the break we were talking about just the ability to give yourself a beat and not make those major financial decisions right away. At the same time, there are some things that simply can't wait. I mean, bills have to be paid, accounts need attention, insurance or estate matters need to be worked through. So how can a widow handle those immediate financial responsibilities without becoming just completely overwhelmed?
Rachel Faulkner Brown Yeah. First of all, I think you've got to be vulnerable with your finances. I think you've got to be vulnerable with the people who love you and let them in to help you. Because I did not have the brain breadth and depth to even get into the weeds to find the passwords. I mean, Blair died in an instant. I had no passwords, he managed all of our finances. So my two best friends came in, made this massive notebook of all of our investments. They called all the people to get all the— I mean it was kind of amazing. That was back in the day before you needed five certifications to get into an account, I think. Right. But that really changed the game for me because I had everything in one place. And so I would say my advice would be get someone to help you that is a trusted friend, not necessarily someone who needs anything from you, someone who wants something for you.
Rob West I love that. You also talk about this idea of a support circle that goes along with this. What else would you want to share about the importance of and just the practicalities of the support circle widows need to bring alongside them?
Rachel Faulkner Brown Yeah. Well I think you need a team, just like, you know, a lot of people have board of directors for their life right now. I think a widow needs a board of directors. She needs a financial person, she needs a therapist, she needs a, you know, she needs a a mothering coach. Like if, you know, I paid a lady to come in and watch me help my kids. I was like, help me understand my strong-willed child. I mean, genuinely, it's like we pay people to do lots of things. Why would you not pay people to help you do the things that are the most important and that set your future family up for success? It's a huge deal.
Rob West Yeah. It's so good. Now, of course, uh there are people that prey on vulnerable people in difficult circumstances. That certainly includes investments. You experienced a financial loss that was significant, and it was a ponzi scheme. Uh, walk us through what happened and how that affected you.
Rachel Faulkner Brown Well, I remarried 14 years ago, um, and my husband and I had made a decision, we had, you know, only invested in mutual funds in the S&P and, you know, just all the things, all the normal things, right? So we kind of started branching out, and this was the first time that I'd ever used, you know, that we'd ever made a decision to invest in something outside the norm. And it was a trusted family friend in the church, you know, leading Bible studies in our home. And, um, it was a scheme. I mean, I I don't know any other way to say it. I mean, it was like about $28 million, lots of investors, um, happened to go to trial during COVID, and so it really justice was never served, to be honest. But what I learned, honestly, Rob, is that, um, no matter how deeply I thought that was our safety net for my children's future, that was their future home, that was their future, whatever. Yes. Um, nothing can trump God's goodness, even when you lose. And I really did not learn that money was not mine until I lost it. I know that sounds crazy, but I always thought, this is ours, this is ours to steward, that's what we would say, those were the exact words. And none of it is ours. When you see yourself as I am just a colander of God's goodness. Yeah. Um, I am meant to flow with the riches of heaven are flowing through me. And I think that's the thing about the prayer that Jabez— I was actually reading that this morning in First Chronicles, and, you know, stewardship is a high calling. Yes, it is. And I just don't think God is like I think he wants to entrust you with much if he trusts you.
Rob West Yeah. Faithful in a little, faithful with much.
Rachel Faulkner Brown Yeah, and and and you can't enlarge your territory and do the things that that prayer says unless you're willing to be stretched and be uncomfortable.
Rob West Wow.
Rachel Faulkner Brown Losing was very uncomfortable.
Rob West I can imagine. And that then causes us to go back to this circle of trust and these counselors because you need somebody to run big decisions including quote financial and investment opportunities by, right?
Rachel Faulkner Brown Yeah. I will say we did that, and, um, it was kind of 50/50. Like sure, you can do this. Um, you know, I might I might wait, but I mean these are great people, you know. I mean, of course I was selling them to the person that I was talking to, because they were great people and they're leading Bible study in my house. But, um, there were there were some checks, you know, for from some people, and I wish that I had listened to that and just waited, right? Because I just don't think there's ever you may feel like you lose, like I waited on that investment or I waited on that real estate purchase and I lost it. Well, I mean, did you? Because the kingdom's not like that. There's always there's always yes, there is loss, but there's always gain on the other side of it.
Rob West Wow, that's good. Ruth Graham said, uh, patience is a weapon that causes deception to reveal itself. And I think that's a powerful truth.
Rachel Faulkner Brown That is so powerful.
Rob West All right, uh you had some other experiences along the way, there was overdrafts, there was a tax lien. Take us into some of those where the losses became the gain, that's what at least what you said in the article, I'd love to hear more about that.
Rachel Faulkner Brown Yeah, I mean I think at the end of the day, you know, I realized that after Todd passed away, my first husband, I mean shopping was the was the numbing. I mean, you know, I didn't use drugs or alcohol, I was just like, let me just go to TJ Maxx and Hobby Lobby all day, and and that was my drug. And, you know, ended up overdrafting very secretively. No one knew I was doing that. I mean I talk about it obviously now, but no one knew my finances, I didn't let anyone in, and that's why I say you can be vulnerable in your finances when you let other people in, because it is so important for there to be at least multiple people who know what's happening in your world. You are not clear-headed. And then, you know, when I went to sell my house in Columbus, we had paid it off because I'm a Dave Ramsey person. And, um, and I had no idea that you still had to pay property taxes, hello. I mean, I'm 30 years old, how would I have known that, you know, my husband was taking care of everything, clearly. And so I get to the and they're like, "Miss, Miss Faulkner, we could have sold your house on the courthouse steps." I'm like, "Please do not talk to me." That is so terrifying. And it wasn't much, but obviously I got to sell the house, pay that off, and, you know, I think at the at the end of it all, um, anything that the Lord has revealed, it has revealed his heart for my good. And, um, you know, having trusted people around me recognizing this is how you operate in pain, you tend to numb. You know, all of those things are just revelations of I want more for you than this.
Rob West We have just 30 seconds left. Uh, you point to Matthew 6 where Jesus says don't be anxious about what we'll eat or drink or where, but to seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness. How did that passage reshape the way you think about money?
Rachel Faulkner Brown Yeah. Again, I think at the end of the day, we have one goal. And it's to make him famous. And, um, it is all for his glory, how we use our money, how we use our time, how we use our talents and our treasure.
Rob West What a gift this has been. We're going to have you back real soon, but thanks for your time.
Rachel Faulkner Brown Thanks, Rob.
Rob West That's Rachel Faulkner Brown. You need to go to neveralonewidows.com. If you know someone who's a widow, perhaps that's your story. Rachel and her team are there to serve you: neveralonewidows.com. And then if you want to pick up a copy of this special edition of Faithful Steward, our magazine devoted to women and wealth, go to faithfi.com/shop. Back with your questions after this. Stay with us.
SEGMENT 3
Rob West Wow, what a great, uh, interview. What a great time with Rachel Faulkner Brown. She's a lot of fun. She has so much to say, though. What an incredible ministry. And if you're in that season of life, uh, check out her ministry, and I know it'll be a blessing to you, and I hope today what you heard was an encouragement.
We want to be here each day to cheer you on as you manage God's money, God's way. And we want to do that by pointing you back to God's word, by giving you practical help and guidance in the areas you're thinking about as you give, save, and spend God's money. And we want to do that recognizing God owns everything, so you and I, friends, have a really high calling, and that is we're money managers for the King of kings. That's a big deal.
And so we understand, and we accept that role, and we realize that our goal is that of faithfulness. Faithfulness with what passes through my hands. And just like God treats each of us differently, we have differing amounts. And so we say, "Lord, I want to be faithful with however little or however much you have entrusted to me."
And I want to do it in such a way that it honors and glorifies you because I know money is a good gift. Despite the fact that it can be dangerous, it is an opportunity for me to bring you glory, to love my neighbor, to bless my family, to create memories, to do all kinds of good things, so long as money doesn't sit on the throne of our lives.
But instead, God does, and Jesus is our ultimate treasure. That's really at the heart of what we want to do here on this broadcast and in this ministry day in and day out. And we do that in part by creating resources for you. And this is a really exciting week for us because we're launching our brand new field guide, How Do I Prepare the Next Steward?
Uh and it provides that practical guidance on passing the various kinds of wealth that you have. It's not just money wealth, it's faith, and character, and relationships. What does it look like to lean into that opportunity to transfer spiritual wealth that points to Jesus, and character wealth that cultivates wisdom, and relational wealth that helps others flourish, and financial wealth, which is a tool, not a treasure?
You're going to find thoughtful exercises from telling your faith story to mapping the people you've shaped on a relational guide, uh plus real case studies from families who have wrestled with this. And it ends with simple next steps for the next 30 days, because we want to remember that our one of our primary roles as a steward is to prepare the next steward.
And it's uh all week long our thank you to you when you make a gift to FaithFi at faithfi.com/give. Gifts of any amount today through the 31st, through Friday, uh we will put a copy of Field Guide number two, How Do I Prepare the Next Steward? in your hands as our way of saying thanks.
We're about $25,000 behind where we should be by the end of October, and so we're going to try to catch up this week. And so if you love the ministry, you've been blessed by something you've heard here and you'd like to make a gift and receive uh the field guide, How Do I Prepare the Next Steward?, just head to faithfi.com/give.
We saw about $2,000 come in yesterday. That's amazing. So we're about $23,000 away through midnight—well, 11:59—on Friday night. Uh just head to faithfi.com/give and whether you can give 20, or 200, or 2,000, no matter what your gift is, we'll put that field guide in the mail to you to say thanks. And uh we will move forward together to help God's people manage God's money, God's way. Faithfi.com/give.
All right, we've got lines open today. We're ready to dive into your questions: 800-525-7000. Again, that's 800-525-7000. We would love to hear from you. Uh let's go to Georgia. Anne, how can I help you?
Anne, are you with us?
All right, we're having a little trouble hearing Anne, so we'll work on that. And I'll share what's in the news today because uh there is something that's going to affect a lot of our listeners.
President Trump signed the Clergy Act into law on October the 20th. Now that's going to give certain ministers who previously opted out of Social Security an opportunity to rejoin the program. This is a big deal.
Beginning in 2029, eligible ministers will have a two-year window to elect future participation. Uh those who opt back in generally need about 10 years of covered work to qualify for benefits, and unlike most employees, ministers are considered self-employed for Social Security purposes, even when working for a church.
Some chose to opt out early in their ministries without fully understanding the long-term financial implications. Uh social security participation can provide valuable benefits, of course, retirement income, disability coverage, Medicare eligibility, survivor benefits for family members.
And our friends at Guidestone Financial Resources, which supported the legislation, are developing educational resources to help ministers understand their options and determine whether rejoining Social Security makes sense for their circumstances.
So if you're a minister or a church leader, we'd love for you to learn more about the eligibility requirements, the deadlines, the upcoming guidance. You'll find that at a dedicated webpage that our friends at Guidestone have put together.
Just head to guidestone.org/clergyact. That's guidestone.org/clergyact. But this is a big deal, new legislation signed into law, ministers who previously opted out of Social Security are going to have an opportunity to go back in. And so uh we would love for you to be able to take advantage of that if that's something uh that you would like to do.
Perhaps you're a minister or you have a minister in your life that you want to make aware of this. We don't want you to miss this uh because this is uh is a big deal.
All right, we're going to take uh our our next break here in just a moment, but this is a great time for you to call. We do have lines open. I believe we have Anne back on the line, so right after the break we'll be talking to Anne in Georgia.
And perhaps your question as well. Maybe you're thinking about paying off some debt and you're struggling with how to do it. Maybe you want to give more generously and you're wondering how to make that possible. Maybe you want to give out of your balance sheet an IRA through a qualified charitable distribution.
Uh maybe it's a charitable gift annuity with the American Family Association. AFA Foundation would love to help you set up a charitable gift annuity where you get a partial tax deduction now, an income stream for life, and then everything remaining at your death will go to the transforming work of AFA as they engage the culture and share the gospel with God with uh people literally around the globe.
Um perhaps that's your question today. Whatever it is though, call right now. Our team is standing by and we're going to dive into those questions right after this break. Here's the number: 800-525-7000. We'll be right back.
SEGMENT 4
Rob West So glad to have you with us today on Faith and Finance here on American Family Radio. I'm Rob West. We're taking your calls and questions. We do have a few lines open, so if you've got a question, call right now 800-525-7000. That's 800-525-7000. Uh, we do have Anne now in Georgia. Anne would be delighted to take your call. Go right ahead.
Anne Hi. Uh, good morning. My question to you is we're currently building a home and the price is around 410,000. We have uh a retirement assets of 830,000. We have cash at hand now uh between our checking and our savings about 90,000. Um, we're going to be short by 65 and my husband is planning to retire January of 28. Now he turns 65 in January this coming January 27th, but we're trying to work one more year to get $400 more on a social security benefit plus payoff uh one of our vehicles and a student loan.
Rob West Okay.
Anne Um, and our current our current um cost of what we owe right now is around uh, I wouldn't say 45,000 and that includes our rent that we pay monthly. But my question is How would we finance?
Rob West What is the 45,000? Is that what you're spending on your lifestyle per year?
Anne Uh no, that's just a what we owe right now currently between two vehicles, paying rent and a student loan. So we don't have a lot of a lot of that's going to be gone by the time my husband retires. But my question to you is how would you take I have the availability to to have I I'd like to no mortgage, but I don't want to drain our little nest egg and you know, because my husband wants a little, you know, cushions. Uh, you know, there's several options and I'm just curious of what your best uh advice would be. We could finance it, you know, because it's five and a half and we could do a short-term 10 or 15 year. Um, or we can actually pull from one of our retirement plans because we do have access to 830 and we do have an individual one at 80 that's uh you know, but it'll be probably a hundred by the time he retires. Yeah. What would be your best advice um on you know, should I have a mortgage-free and empty some of my cash assets and my retirement fund? Um He's going to have about 35, you know, in social security. Um, I'm I'm fix to be 62 next year and I'm I'm I I want to know if I draw mine earlier, you know, that's I just think your advice on mainly the house today.
Rob West Yeah, yeah, very good. Well, I appreciate that and, you know, I think uh there's obviously several options here. Um, one would be to take that small 10 or 15 year mortgage could be an excellent compromise if you financed 65,000 at let's say 6.5%, that'd be $738 a month on a 10 year, a 15 year amortization would be about $566 a month. Um, and that would preserve your retirement savings, which I like a lot. The monthly payments remain relatively manageable. You could use your annual bonus to pay down the mortgage and then you maintain, you know, financial flexibility as you approach retirement and you don't pay, you know, unnecessary taxes, especially while you're still working and you're in a higher tax bracket. Uh, the 15 year offers the lower required payment, but then of course you could make additional principal payments and pay it like it's a 10-year, you could pay it like it's a 5-year. When you factor in the bonuses, I mean, you know, there's uh you don't necessarily have to keep it for 15 years. So I kind of like that combination strategy where you take out the mortgage, but we're using this the bonuses to try to, you know, get this paid down as quickly as possible. And I love him delaying social security to be able to wait um, and get that check up as high as you can and then the subsequent cost of living increases for both your benefit and his. Um, you know, I think the other option here is during this period between uh, you know, when he retires and when required minimum start, um, certainly between retirement and when social security starts if there's a gap there, that also might be an opportunity to convert some of that 830,000 in the traditional IRA uh over to a roth, and you would want to work with your CPA on that. But that could be another option as well while you're in this lowest tax bracket for a period of time uh and then that portion would no longer be subject to required minimums and, you know, all the things that come with that. But but getting back to the home, I kind of like this small loan unless you just have a conviction to get out of debt and stay there and then we would look at other options.
Anne Yeah. Well, out of that 830 that we do have for retirement, there is one account that my husband moved to a another investor and he guaranteed us, you know, 80,000 if we left it with him for 10 years. So that would limit us, I mean we would use the other retirement accounts, uh so we wouldn't lose that 320. Um, I mean we're not going to lose it, we just wouldn't get the 80,000 if we leave it there for 10 years. Um, yeah.
Rob West Anytime I hear the word guarantee Anne and my antennas go up. So I uh I would love love for you to know a little bit more about what that is and maybe you already do, but just just make sure you understand what's going on there.
Anne Yeah. One one one quick question. Also my husband um I took a whole life policy out for him and it renewed, you know, and then it turns into term. Um he uh has health issues and I can't get any other than the one that we can carry when he does retire from work, which is 100,000, but our our you know cost of living and having bills will be down. That that $300,000 life policy uh is costing us currently $600 a month. Wow. And we cannot sustain that in in retirement. Yeah.
Rob West I just don't know why you need it. What what's the purpose of it?
Anne That's what I'm saying. I don't think do we need it now? I mean
Rob West I don't think you do, because if something were to happen to either of you, you would have your social security plus the income that you would generate from the 830,000, you know, which, you know, that could throw off, I think easily, you know, somewhere around $40,000 a year. You're living modestly and so this policy was necessary during your working years, because if his income went away, you know, you would have had trouble maintaining your lifestyle. That's no longer true today. So if it has cash value that built up, let's get that out, but even if the at the very least all we're doing is just eliminating that high monthly payment, I don't think this is necessary. That risk no longer exists. It's like, you know, carrying car insurance, but then you sell the car and you keep paying the insurance. There's nothing to insure, because you don't own the car anymore and I think the same is true here.
Anne Okay. Thank you so much. You've been a great help and I appreciate you talking to me.
Rob West Absolutely. God bless you Anne and call anytime if I can be of assistance to you. Lord bless you. 800-525-7000 is the number to call. Let's go uh quickly to Texas. Gary, go ahead.
Gary Okay. I've talked to you before about this same subject.
Rob West Okay.
Gary But at the at this point this house that I moved in bought was they said was worth 200,000. Now rocket mortgage called me up and where they got this number, I'm not sure you'll probably know better than I would, but they said, well no the house what what we're looking at is worth um, mind you they called me, is mine is worth 220 to 230,000 in that range. We we he said she said that she had two different people or two different companies or something like this, uh to uh Let's do this.
Rob West I've got to hit a break here Gary, but I don't want to cut you off. So I want to hear the rest of your question and give you my thoughts. We're going to do that right on the other side of this break. Ronnie, come your way as well. We'll be right back. Stay with us.
SEGMENT 5
Rob West Delighted to have you with us today on Faith and Finance here on American Family Radio. Well, before the break we were talking to Gary in Texas. He's interested in a reverse mortgage, has some questions about the equity in his home and whether he would qualify. So Gary, give me a sense of your—your questioning, I think it sounds like what is the true value of your home, and you heard a number from somebody who reached out to you from Rocket Mortgage, is that right?
Gary Okay, yeah. And now, um, what—what's owed on the house is 160,000. Now, I'm not sure where they get these numbers from as far as the, uh, what the total is worth, but last time you told me you have to have at least half of it paid to qualify for this. Now, if I—I have 40,000, maybe 50,000, if I push it, uh, to put down if I wanted to, to bring that—that total cost down to 120,000, my question is, would that qualify me after if I did that?
Rob West Yeah, yeah. Yeah, there's no universal 50% equity requirement for an FHA-insured reverse mortgage. So, the lender calculates the eligibility based on several factors. Uh, it's going to come down to your age, the interest rates, the home value, the loan costs, and obviously the equity that's in the home. That 50% is just kind of a general guideline.
So, I think it would be worth figuring out, first of all, what is the home actually worth? I mean, Rocket Mortgage is throwing out a number. You could go to zillow.com and put in your address, see what they say just based on, uh, you know, comparative sales in your area. Ultimately, the lender would probably do an appraisal to figure out, you know, what—what the home is worth. Um, but that 50% target is an estimate, um, and—and a lot of other factors are going to determine what you actually need, could be a little more, could be a little less.
So, I would recommend reaching out to our friends at Movement Mortgage, uh, Harlan Accola, who's on our program regularly and the team, uh, would be delighted to sit down with you, look at your specifics, and then help you plot a course. If you don't have enough equity today, what it would take for you to get there and then to put the reverse mortgage in place.
Um, so the—the website is Movement, excuse me, faithfi.com/movement, faithfi.com/movement, or if you want to hold the line, our team could give you the phone number. Um, but I think that 50% is not hard and fast, it really is just a guideline.
Gary Fantastic. Because when you said Zillow, I think that was what he said.
Rob West Zillow.
Gary Okay, yeah. So that's probably what she was looking at.
Rob West Yeah, zillow.com. Yeah, it's probably the—the most well-known of the sites that will offer an estimate—and that's all it is—of your home's value just based on the most recent market data of closed sales with comparable homes in your area. It's not a replacement for an appraisal, it's just, you know, a—a starting point, really. But it's going to get you in the ballpark, for sure.
Gary I—I appreciate your help, and I would like that phone number, please.
Rob West All right, hang on the line, the team will get it to you. And, um, thanks for calling today, Gary. If I can help further, let me know. Uh, let's go, uh, back to Georgia. Ronnie, go ahead.
Ronnie Hello. Good morning.
Rob West Hi.
Ronnie I have a—a question for you. I'm interested in a technology stock. It's, uh, BWXI.
Rob West Okay.
Ronnie And I'd like your recommendation on it.
Rob West Yeah. Uh, unfortunately, I don't give specific recommendations on stocks, um, and so that's just not a part of what we do here. Um, so you would want to know kind of what sector, uh, of the, uh, of the tech industry this is in. I'm just looking up BW, uh, did you say XI? Yeah, I'm—I'm—I'm not seeing it right off.
But, uh, essentially, in terms of the—the tech sector, um, you know, here's what I would tell you is, you know, I think there's, uh, plenty to be excited about in the technology sector. I mean, we've got a—a lot of promising long-term growth opportunities, whether it's semiconductors or cybersecurity or artificial intelligence, of course, cloud computing, you've got the energy infrastructure, um, but, you know, you've also got, uh, significant volatility when growth expectations aren't met.
So, I think you just need, at age 78, make sure that even if you, you know, are looking at a particular company that interests you, uh, just make sure that you're not too highly concentrated. So, I'd probably stay no more than 5% in any one company, and I would make sure that that's alongside a diversified investment strategy, um, where you've got a good mix of investments in both, uh, bonds and stocks.
And in the stock sector, you'd want to be still well-diversified there among, you know, the various sectors, including technology, uh, large and small cap, international and domestic. So, my approach is to make sure we heed, you know, Ecclesiastes 11:2 and don't have all our eggs in one basket.
But that doesn't mean if there was one particular company you were excited about, you couldn't, I'll say dabble in, uh, a particular company. I'd just make sure that you're not too highly concentrated, because with that concentration comes an inordinate amount of risk. But as to the particular company, I wouldn't be in a position, Ronnie, to weigh in on it. Uh, thanks for your call though, sir. Call anytime if we can help further. God bless you. Let's go to Texas. Hi Allen, go ahead.
Allen Yes, hello.
Rob West Hi.
Allen Uh, can—can you hear me okay?
Rob West I sure can, yeah.
Allen Okay, thank you. Rob, I listen to your program, uh, on a regular basis. I listen to—have listened over the years and I just love your program and I appreciate the information that you share. I learn so much all the time.
Rob West Thank you. That means a lot.
Allen My question deals with the, uh, a reverse mortgage.
Rob West Okay.
Allen And I was wondering if this is something that would be, uh, uh, something that my wife and I would should, uh, look into. Um, we have, our house right now is, uh, we have, uh, about, uh, 125,000 in equity in it right now, uh, with the—with the current balance. And I looked all this information up on the, uh, on the lenders, uh, on the app with the lender that we have right now.
Rob West Okay. And what do you believe it's worth? Do you have an idea?
Allen Yeah, it's about 120—uh, 100—I mean, I'm sorry, it's about 290,000.
Rob West Okay. All right. And what would you be looking for from the reverse, a line of credit for extra expenses, like a new roof or a trip periodically, or you're looking for a monthly income stream?
Allen Uh, we've been looking—would be primarily looking for a, um, uh, a line of credit.
Rob West Okay.
Allen And possibly to have, uh, you know, pull out a little cash, uh, to take care of a—of a couple of things that, uh, my wife wanted to, to do. One—one of them was, uh, dental work.
Rob West Okay. The other option, obviously, is if you did nothing more than just replace your existing forward mortgage that you're
making a payment on with a reverse, and you eliminated that monthly payment, would that suffice or do you need some funds beyond that?
Allen Well, that—that would be—would probably suffice, but we'd like to, uh, you know, in addition to that, uh, just set up a, uh, a possibly be able to set up a line of credit.
Rob West Yeah, yeah. Well, that's where the—the home equity conversion mortgage reverse for short can really be effective. I mean, you're in your 80s, you've got, uh, you know, more than 50% equity in your home, and so, you know, you would, uh, pay off your existing mortgage balance, um, and you would have, uh, the ability to eliminate that mortgage payment, and then establish a line of credit.
That line of credit would likely increase each year as your home appreciates, and so essentially what you're doing is tapping into that home equity. The payment becomes optional at that point, which for someone who, or a family who's not saved quite as much as they would have liked to for this season of life, and they're squeezed just to, you know, cover all the monthly obligations, including that mortgage, which, you know, more than 50% of retirees bring a mortgage now into this fourth quarter of life, that could go away.
And essentially, you know, you're just systematically pulling out some of that home equity. You still own the home, and when you pass away, whatever balance exists on that mortgage when the home is sold, after you and your wife have lived there for the rest of your life or until you decide, uh, to move out permanently, whatever's left after that mortgage is paid would be available to give to ministry, leave to heirs.
But what I find is that, you know, often your heirs don't want the house anyway, and they'd rather you enjoy this fourth quarter of life without having the strain that perhaps you have right now, and that's where a home equity conversion mortgage could be a solution here. So, I—I think you're heading in the right direction here, Allen.
Allen Okay, that—that's, uh, what my understanding was, uh, but I—I did speak with a, uh, uh, a Rocket Mortgage, uh, agent, uh, here in, uh, in Texas, and the information that you just gave me, he gave me some information that seemed to be contrary to that, and he was saying that with, uh, my situation it looked like we'd have to bring about $14,000, uh, to the table to be able to complete this, uh, reverse mortgage.
So, I'm just wondering, uh, I tried to get in touch with, uh, Harlan Accola, but, uh, the number that I called, nobody seemed to know, you know, who he was.
Rob West Oh, well, you must have had the wrong number then. Yeah, because he leads the team at Movement. You know what? I had written down 390. Did you say it was 290,000?
Allen 290.
Rob West Uh-huh. Yeah. So that would have been, uh, well, but if you've got a—so you've got 125,000 in equity, so you don't quite have 50%, you're at 43% of an equity percentage, and so that's probably why they said you need to come out of pocket. But there's still a possibility here, especially with you being in your 80s.
So let's do this. Hang on the line, my team will get your information and make sure you have the right number, and let's let Harlan and his team run the numbers and see if they can't work a scenario for you where you wouldn't have to come out of pocket to be able to put this in place. Uh, by the way, the website, if you want to learn more about Movement, is faithfi.com/movement. But Allen, thanks for your call, thanks for being a faithful listener, and hang on the line, we'll get you squared away, okay?
Allen Thank you so much, I appreciate your help.
Rob West All right. Hey folks, we're $23,000 away from our goal on Friday at 11:59. So if you would, uh, be willing to come in and support Faithfi, we'd be grateful. Every gift will send you our brand new field guide that just launched, "How Do I Prepare the Next Steward?" Just go to faithfi.com/give. Big thanks to Patty, Devin, Michael, Afton, and everybody here at Faithfi. We'll see you tomorrow.
Rob West Loss can change the way we see almost everything, including money. Hi, I'm Rob West. After being widowed twice, Rachel Faulkner Brown knows firsthand how grief can affect our emotions, our decisions, and even our finances. Today she joins us to share how financial mistakes and painful losses ultimately taught her a deeper lesson about stewardship, trust, and letting go of control. And then it's on to your calls at 800-525-7000. That's 800-525-7000. This is Faith and Finance on American Family Radio, biblical wisdom for your financial decisions.
Rachel Faulkner Brown is a speaker, Bible teacher, author and founder and executive director of Never Alone Widows, a nationwide ministry helping women find hope, healing, and community after loss. Widowed twice by the age of 31, Rachel has used her own story of grief and restoration to encourage thousands of women. She's also a national speaker for Folds of Honor, co-host of There Is More Podcast, and author of the 365-day devotional Widows Might. Rachel, really great to have you in the studio today.
Rachel Faulkner Brown Thanks, Rob! What an honor to be here. This is one of my favorite topics, actually.
Rob West I know it is.
Rachel Faulkner Brown Actually love it, which I know people would be like, "That's so weird", but I love it.
Rob West Oh, well we're so glad. And we were so thankful that you were willing to write for our magazine Faithful Steward, and I know that article is going to be a blessing to so many. But I want to start with this really striking line that you have in the article. You say, and I'm reading from it, "The day after Blair died, I threw away the Dave Ramsey envelopes." Dave is of course a good friend and that's the affectionate envelopes we all know that he uses and Larry Burkett used actually in in money management. But I want you to take us back to that moment. What was going on in your heart and what did that decision represent for you?
Rachel Faulkner Brown Wow. Gosh, I can go back to that moment like it was yesterday. That decision really represented taking back control, I think. And I think that's what grief causes widows to do, anyone to do really. You're just searching to make sense of what you've experienced and, you know, that day I was like, "All right, there's going to be enough." I don't have to do this anymore. I'm not in debt anyway. But we were just living like nobody else so that we could live like nobody else, honestly. I had gone to um Dave's conference when I was 21 years old with my brother and sister-in-law, that changed my life. So I was, you know, a steward, you would say, and Blair and I were, you know, living like that, and I was just like, "All right, well, I am done with this because it became, you know, I was always robbing Paul to pay Peter, right?" I was always swapping envelopes and it just was I I knew that feeding my children was much more important than getting the envelopes right.
Rob West He's got to work for you, right? And and you were taking control back of what system needed to work for you. I think it's also important for people to hear, because grief affects more than our emotions. You of course talked about how trauma impacted your memory and even your ability to handle everyday responsibilities. What did that look like for you in that season?
Rachel Faulkner Brown Yeah. I mean, I think at the end of the day, I had a lot of great help, um, but trauma impacts every area of your life. For me, I became emotionally just bankrupt. I would call it. I read Pete Scazzero's book Emotionally Healthy Spirituality and honestly, how you manage your money, it's wellness, right? I mean, I think it all relates back to how emotionally and spiritually healthy you are, and I just was extremely unhealthy emotionally. I wasn't feeling anything. So trauma was impacting and, you know, it was causing me to hide, it was causing me to feel a lot of shame and shame, which that is a a huge part of what I experienced, um, because I had a past that needed to be dealt with and hadn't been dealt with.
Rob West Wow. So much to unpack there. We've got just a few seconds left here before our first break. You know, from your experience, Rachel, and of course you've worked with thousands of widows, is one of the first lessons financially after loss to just simply slow down and avoid rushing into major decisions?
Rachel Faulkner Brown Oh my goodness, yes. I can distinctly remember driving to Atlanta and meeting with a financial planner and, you know, unfortunately a lot of times people want to rush you. And I was just so uneasy. I just knew my intuition was this is not what I should be doing right now. And had I invested in that moment, I would have lost half. It was 2008 when the bottom fell out. And I look back and I think, thank you, Lord, for the Holy Spirit. I mean, and and I think that's it, too. Listen to the Holy Spirit is such a big piece of stewardship.
Rob West Wow, this is so good. Well, we're going to take a quick break, but there is much more to talk about with Rachel Faulkner Brown, founder of Never Alone Widows right after this. Stay with us.
SEGMENT 2
Rob West Losing a spouse changes your financial life overnight. We're talking about finances when you're a widow today with my friend Rachel Faulkner Brown. She's a speaker, a Bible teacher and author and founder and executive director of Never Alone Widows. Be sure you check it out, neveralonewidows.com. Rachel, before the break we were talking about just the ability to give yourself a beat and not make those major financial decisions right away. At the same time, there are some things that simply can't wait. I mean, bills have to be paid, accounts need attention, insurance or estate matters need to be worked through. So how can a widow handle those immediate financial responsibilities without becoming just completely overwhelmed?
Rachel Faulkner Brown Yeah. First of all, I think you've got to be vulnerable with your finances. I think you've got to be vulnerable with the people who love you and let them in to help you. Because I did not have the brain breadth and depth to even get into the weeds to find the passwords. I mean, Blair died in an instant. I had no passwords, he managed all of our finances. So my two best friends came in, made this massive notebook of all of our investments. They called all the people to get all the— I mean it was kind of amazing. That was back in the day before you needed five certifications to get into an account, I think. Right. But that really changed the game for me because I had everything in one place. And so I would say my advice would be get someone to help you that is a trusted friend, not necessarily someone who needs anything from you, someone who wants something for you.
Rob West I love that. You also talk about this idea of a support circle that goes along with this. What else would you want to share about the importance of and just the practicalities of the support circle widows need to bring alongside them?
Rachel Faulkner Brown Yeah. Well I think you need a team, just like, you know, a lot of people have board of directors for their life right now. I think a widow needs a board of directors. She needs a financial person, she needs a therapist, she needs a, you know, she needs a a mothering coach. Like if, you know, I paid a lady to come in and watch me help my kids. I was like, help me understand my strong-willed child. I mean, genuinely, it's like we pay people to do lots of things. Why would you not pay people to help you do the things that are the most important and that set your future family up for success? It's a huge deal.
Rob West Yeah. It's so good. Now, of course, uh there are people that prey on vulnerable people in difficult circumstances. That certainly includes investments. You experienced a financial loss that was significant, and it was a ponzi scheme. Uh, walk us through what happened and how that affected you.
Rachel Faulkner Brown Well, I remarried 14 years ago, um, and my husband and I had made a decision, we had, you know, only invested in mutual funds in the S&P and, you know, just all the things, all the normal things, right? So we kind of started branching out, and this was the first time that I'd ever used, you know, that we'd ever made a decision to invest in something outside the norm. And it was a trusted family friend in the church, you know, leading Bible studies in our home. And, um, it was a scheme. I mean, I I don't know any other way to say it. I mean, it was like about $28 million, lots of investors, um, happened to go to trial during COVID, and so it really justice was never served, to be honest. But what I learned, honestly, Rob, is that, um, no matter how deeply I thought that was our safety net for my children's future, that was their future home, that was their future, whatever. Yes. Um, nothing can trump God's goodness, even when you lose. And I really did not learn that money was not mine until I lost it. I know that sounds crazy, but I always thought, this is ours, this is ours to steward, that's what we would say, those were the exact words. And none of it is ours. When you see yourself as I am just a colander of God's goodness. Yeah. Um, I am meant to flow with the riches of heaven are flowing through me. And I think that's the thing about the prayer that Jabez— I was actually reading that this morning in First Chronicles, and, you know, stewardship is a high calling. Yes, it is. And I just don't think God is like I think he wants to entrust you with much if he trusts you.
Rob West Yeah. Faithful in a little, faithful with much.
Rachel Faulkner Brown Yeah, and and and you can't enlarge your territory and do the things that that prayer says unless you're willing to be stretched and be uncomfortable.
Rob West Wow.
Rachel Faulkner Brown Losing was very uncomfortable.
Rob West I can imagine. And that then causes us to go back to this circle of trust and these counselors because you need somebody to run big decisions including quote financial and investment opportunities by, right?
Rachel Faulkner Brown Yeah. I will say we did that, and, um, it was kind of 50/50. Like sure, you can do this. Um, you know, I might I might wait, but I mean these are great people, you know. I mean, of course I was selling them to the person that I was talking to, because they were great people and they're leading Bible study in my house. But, um, there were there were some checks, you know, for from some people, and I wish that I had listened to that and just waited, right? Because I just don't think there's ever you may feel like you lose, like I waited on that investment or I waited on that real estate purchase and I lost it. Well, I mean, did you? Because the kingdom's not like that. There's always there's always yes, there is loss, but there's always gain on the other side of it.
Rob West Wow, that's good. Ruth Graham said, uh, patience is a weapon that causes deception to reveal itself. And I think that's a powerful truth.
Rachel Faulkner Brown That is so powerful.
Rob West All right, uh you had some other experiences along the way, there was overdrafts, there was a tax lien. Take us into some of those where the losses became the gain, that's what at least what you said in the article, I'd love to hear more about that.
Rachel Faulkner Brown Yeah, I mean I think at the end of the day, you know, I realized that after Todd passed away, my first husband, I mean shopping was the was the numbing. I mean, you know, I didn't use drugs or alcohol, I was just like, let me just go to TJ Maxx and Hobby Lobby all day, and and that was my drug. And, you know, ended up overdrafting very secretively. No one knew I was doing that. I mean I talk about it obviously now, but no one knew my finances, I didn't let anyone in, and that's why I say you can be vulnerable in your finances when you let other people in, because it is so important for there to be at least multiple people who know what's happening in your world. You are not clear-headed. And then, you know, when I went to sell my house in Columbus, we had paid it off because I'm a Dave Ramsey person. And, um, and I had no idea that you still had to pay property taxes, hello. I mean, I'm 30 years old, how would I have known that, you know, my husband was taking care of everything, clearly. And so I get to the and they're like, "Miss, Miss Faulkner, we could have sold your house on the courthouse steps." I'm like, "Please do not talk to me." That is so terrifying. And it wasn't much, but obviously I got to sell the house, pay that off, and, you know, I think at the at the end of it all, um, anything that the Lord has revealed, it has revealed his heart for my good. And, um, you know, having trusted people around me recognizing this is how you operate in pain, you tend to numb. You know, all of those things are just revelations of I want more for you than this.
Rob West We have just 30 seconds left. Uh, you point to Matthew 6 where Jesus says don't be anxious about what we'll eat or drink or where, but to seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness. How did that passage reshape the way you think about money?
Rachel Faulkner Brown Yeah. Again, I think at the end of the day, we have one goal. And it's to make him famous. And, um, it is all for his glory, how we use our money, how we use our time, how we use our talents and our treasure.
Rob West What a gift this has been. We're going to have you back real soon, but thanks for your time.
Rachel Faulkner Brown Thanks, Rob.
Rob West That's Rachel Faulkner Brown. You need to go to neveralonewidows.com. If you know someone who's a widow, perhaps that's your story. Rachel and her team are there to serve you: neveralonewidows.com. And then if you want to pick up a copy of this special edition of Faithful Steward, our magazine devoted to women and wealth, go to faithfi.com/shop. Back with your questions after this. Stay with us.
SEGMENT 3
Rob West Wow, what a great, uh, interview. What a great time with Rachel Faulkner Brown. She's a lot of fun. She has so much to say, though. What an incredible ministry. And if you're in that season of life, uh, check out her ministry, and I know it'll be a blessing to you, and I hope today what you heard was an encouragement.
We want to be here each day to cheer you on as you manage God's money, God's way. And we want to do that by pointing you back to God's word, by giving you practical help and guidance in the areas you're thinking about as you give, save, and spend God's money. And we want to do that recognizing God owns everything, so you and I, friends, have a really high calling, and that is we're money managers for the King of kings. That's a big deal.
And so we understand, and we accept that role, and we realize that our goal is that of faithfulness. Faithfulness with what passes through my hands. And just like God treats each of us differently, we have differing amounts. And so we say, "Lord, I want to be faithful with however little or however much you have entrusted to me."
And I want to do it in such a way that it honors and glorifies you because I know money is a good gift. Despite the fact that it can be dangerous, it is an opportunity for me to bring you glory, to love my neighbor, to bless my family, to create memories, to do all kinds of good things, so long as money doesn't sit on the throne of our lives.
But instead, God does, and Jesus is our ultimate treasure. That's really at the heart of what we want to do here on this broadcast and in this ministry day in and day out. And we do that in part by creating resources for you. And this is a really exciting week for us because we're launching our brand new field guide, How Do I Prepare the Next Steward?
Uh and it provides that practical guidance on passing the various kinds of wealth that you have. It's not just money wealth, it's faith, and character, and relationships. What does it look like to lean into that opportunity to transfer spiritual wealth that points to Jesus, and character wealth that cultivates wisdom, and relational wealth that helps others flourish, and financial wealth, which is a tool, not a treasure?
You're going to find thoughtful exercises from telling your faith story to mapping the people you've shaped on a relational guide, uh plus real case studies from families who have wrestled with this. And it ends with simple next steps for the next 30 days, because we want to remember that our one of our primary roles as a steward is to prepare the next steward.
And it's uh all week long our thank you to you when you make a gift to FaithFi at faithfi.com/give. Gifts of any amount today through the 31st, through Friday, uh we will put a copy of Field Guide number two, How Do I Prepare the Next Steward? in your hands as our way of saying thanks.
We're about $25,000 behind where we should be by the end of October, and so we're going to try to catch up this week. And so if you love the ministry, you've been blessed by something you've heard here and you'd like to make a gift and receive uh the field guide, How Do I Prepare the Next Steward?, just head to faithfi.com/give.
We saw about $2,000 come in yesterday. That's amazing. So we're about $23,000 away through midnight—well, 11:59—on Friday night. Uh just head to faithfi.com/give and whether you can give 20, or 200, or 2,000, no matter what your gift is, we'll put that field guide in the mail to you to say thanks. And uh we will move forward together to help God's people manage God's money, God's way. Faithfi.com/give.
All right, we've got lines open today. We're ready to dive into your questions: 800-525-7000. Again, that's 800-525-7000. We would love to hear from you. Uh let's go to Georgia. Anne, how can I help you?
Anne, are you with us?
All right, we're having a little trouble hearing Anne, so we'll work on that. And I'll share what's in the news today because uh there is something that's going to affect a lot of our listeners.
President Trump signed the Clergy Act into law on October the 20th. Now that's going to give certain ministers who previously opted out of Social Security an opportunity to rejoin the program. This is a big deal.
Beginning in 2029, eligible ministers will have a two-year window to elect future participation. Uh those who opt back in generally need about 10 years of covered work to qualify for benefits, and unlike most employees, ministers are considered self-employed for Social Security purposes, even when working for a church.
Some chose to opt out early in their ministries without fully understanding the long-term financial implications. Uh social security participation can provide valuable benefits, of course, retirement income, disability coverage, Medicare eligibility, survivor benefits for family members.
And our friends at Guidestone Financial Resources, which supported the legislation, are developing educational resources to help ministers understand their options and determine whether rejoining Social Security makes sense for their circumstances.
So if you're a minister or a church leader, we'd love for you to learn more about the eligibility requirements, the deadlines, the upcoming guidance. You'll find that at a dedicated webpage that our friends at Guidestone have put together.
Just head to guidestone.org/clergyact. That's guidestone.org/clergyact. But this is a big deal, new legislation signed into law, ministers who previously opted out of Social Security are going to have an opportunity to go back in. And so uh we would love for you to be able to take advantage of that if that's something uh that you would like to do.
Perhaps you're a minister or you have a minister in your life that you want to make aware of this. We don't want you to miss this uh because this is uh is a big deal.
All right, we're going to take uh our our next break here in just a moment, but this is a great time for you to call. We do have lines open. I believe we have Anne back on the line, so right after the break we'll be talking to Anne in Georgia.
And perhaps your question as well. Maybe you're thinking about paying off some debt and you're struggling with how to do it. Maybe you want to give more generously and you're wondering how to make that possible. Maybe you want to give out of your balance sheet an IRA through a qualified charitable distribution.
Uh maybe it's a charitable gift annuity with the American Family Association. AFA Foundation would love to help you set up a charitable gift annuity where you get a partial tax deduction now, an income stream for life, and then everything remaining at your death will go to the transforming work of AFA as they engage the culture and share the gospel with God with uh people literally around the globe.
Um perhaps that's your question today. Whatever it is though, call right now. Our team is standing by and we're going to dive into those questions right after this break. Here's the number: 800-525-7000. We'll be right back.
SEGMENT 4
Rob West So glad to have you with us today on Faith and Finance here on American Family Radio. I'm Rob West. We're taking your calls and questions. We do have a few lines open, so if you've got a question, call right now 800-525-7000. That's 800-525-7000. Uh, we do have Anne now in Georgia. Anne would be delighted to take your call. Go right ahead.
Anne Hi. Uh, good morning. My question to you is we're currently building a home and the price is around 410,000. We have uh a retirement assets of 830,000. We have cash at hand now uh between our checking and our savings about 90,000. Um, we're going to be short by 65 and my husband is planning to retire January of 28. Now he turns 65 in January this coming January 27th, but we're trying to work one more year to get $400 more on a social security benefit plus payoff uh one of our vehicles and a student loan.
Rob West Okay.
Anne Um, and our current our current um cost of what we owe right now is around uh, I wouldn't say 45,000 and that includes our rent that we pay monthly. But my question is How would we finance?
Rob West What is the 45,000? Is that what you're spending on your lifestyle per year?
Anne Uh no, that's just a what we owe right now currently between two vehicles, paying rent and a student loan. So we don't have a lot of a lot of that's going to be gone by the time my husband retires. But my question to you is how would you take I have the availability to to have I I'd like to no mortgage, but I don't want to drain our little nest egg and you know, because my husband wants a little, you know, cushions. Uh, you know, there's several options and I'm just curious of what your best uh advice would be. We could finance it, you know, because it's five and a half and we could do a short-term 10 or 15 year. Um, or we can actually pull from one of our retirement plans because we do have access to 830 and we do have an individual one at 80 that's uh you know, but it'll be probably a hundred by the time he retires. Yeah. What would be your best advice um on you know, should I have a mortgage-free and empty some of my cash assets and my retirement fund? Um He's going to have about 35, you know, in social security. Um, I'm I'm fix to be 62 next year and I'm I'm I I want to know if I draw mine earlier, you know, that's I just think your advice on mainly the house today.
Rob West Yeah, yeah, very good. Well, I appreciate that and, you know, I think uh there's obviously several options here. Um, one would be to take that small 10 or 15 year mortgage could be an excellent compromise if you financed 65,000 at let's say 6.5%, that'd be $738 a month on a 10 year, a 15 year amortization would be about $566 a month. Um, and that would preserve your retirement savings, which I like a lot. The monthly payments remain relatively manageable. You could use your annual bonus to pay down the mortgage and then you maintain, you know, financial flexibility as you approach retirement and you don't pay, you know, unnecessary taxes, especially while you're still working and you're in a higher tax bracket. Uh, the 15 year offers the lower required payment, but then of course you could make additional principal payments and pay it like it's a 10-year, you could pay it like it's a 5-year. When you factor in the bonuses, I mean, you know, there's uh you don't necessarily have to keep it for 15 years. So I kind of like that combination strategy where you take out the mortgage, but we're using this the bonuses to try to, you know, get this paid down as quickly as possible. And I love him delaying social security to be able to wait um, and get that check up as high as you can and then the subsequent cost of living increases for both your benefit and his. Um, you know, I think the other option here is during this period between uh, you know, when he retires and when required minimum start, um, certainly between retirement and when social security starts if there's a gap there, that also might be an opportunity to convert some of that 830,000 in the traditional IRA uh over to a roth, and you would want to work with your CPA on that. But that could be another option as well while you're in this lowest tax bracket for a period of time uh and then that portion would no longer be subject to required minimums and, you know, all the things that come with that. But but getting back to the home, I kind of like this small loan unless you just have a conviction to get out of debt and stay there and then we would look at other options.
Anne Yeah. Well, out of that 830 that we do have for retirement, there is one account that my husband moved to a another investor and he guaranteed us, you know, 80,000 if we left it with him for 10 years. So that would limit us, I mean we would use the other retirement accounts, uh so we wouldn't lose that 320. Um, I mean we're not going to lose it, we just wouldn't get the 80,000 if we leave it there for 10 years. Um, yeah.
Rob West Anytime I hear the word guarantee Anne and my antennas go up. So I uh I would love love for you to know a little bit more about what that is and maybe you already do, but just just make sure you understand what's going on there.
Anne Yeah. One one one quick question. Also my husband um I took a whole life policy out for him and it renewed, you know, and then it turns into term. Um he uh has health issues and I can't get any other than the one that we can carry when he does retire from work, which is 100,000, but our our you know cost of living and having bills will be down. That that $300,000 life policy uh is costing us currently $600 a month. Wow. And we cannot sustain that in in retirement. Yeah.
Rob West I just don't know why you need it. What what's the purpose of it?
Anne That's what I'm saying. I don't think do we need it now? I mean
Rob West I don't think you do, because if something were to happen to either of you, you would have your social security plus the income that you would generate from the 830,000, you know, which, you know, that could throw off, I think easily, you know, somewhere around $40,000 a year. You're living modestly and so this policy was necessary during your working years, because if his income went away, you know, you would have had trouble maintaining your lifestyle. That's no longer true today. So if it has cash value that built up, let's get that out, but even if the at the very least all we're doing is just eliminating that high monthly payment, I don't think this is necessary. That risk no longer exists. It's like, you know, carrying car insurance, but then you sell the car and you keep paying the insurance. There's nothing to insure, because you don't own the car anymore and I think the same is true here.
Anne Okay. Thank you so much. You've been a great help and I appreciate you talking to me.
Rob West Absolutely. God bless you Anne and call anytime if I can be of assistance to you. Lord bless you. 800-525-7000 is the number to call. Let's go uh quickly to Texas. Gary, go ahead.
Gary Okay. I've talked to you before about this same subject.
Rob West Okay.
Gary But at the at this point this house that I moved in bought was they said was worth 200,000. Now rocket mortgage called me up and where they got this number, I'm not sure you'll probably know better than I would, but they said, well no the house what what we're looking at is worth um, mind you they called me, is mine is worth 220 to 230,000 in that range. We we he said she said that she had two different people or two different companies or something like this, uh to uh Let's do this.
Rob West I've got to hit a break here Gary, but I don't want to cut you off. So I want to hear the rest of your question and give you my thoughts. We're going to do that right on the other side of this break. Ronnie, come your way as well. We'll be right back. Stay with us.
SEGMENT 5
Rob West Delighted to have you with us today on Faith and Finance here on American Family Radio. Well, before the break we were talking to Gary in Texas. He's interested in a reverse mortgage, has some questions about the equity in his home and whether he would qualify. So Gary, give me a sense of your—your questioning, I think it sounds like what is the true value of your home, and you heard a number from somebody who reached out to you from Rocket Mortgage, is that right?
Gary Okay, yeah. And now, um, what—what's owed on the house is 160,000. Now, I'm not sure where they get these numbers from as far as the, uh, what the total is worth, but last time you told me you have to have at least half of it paid to qualify for this. Now, if I—I have 40,000, maybe 50,000, if I push it, uh, to put down if I wanted to, to bring that—that total cost down to 120,000, my question is, would that qualify me after if I did that?
Rob West Yeah, yeah. Yeah, there's no universal 50% equity requirement for an FHA-insured reverse mortgage. So, the lender calculates the eligibility based on several factors. Uh, it's going to come down to your age, the interest rates, the home value, the loan costs, and obviously the equity that's in the home. That 50% is just kind of a general guideline.
So, I think it would be worth figuring out, first of all, what is the home actually worth? I mean, Rocket Mortgage is throwing out a number. You could go to zillow.com and put in your address, see what they say just based on, uh, you know, comparative sales in your area. Ultimately, the lender would probably do an appraisal to figure out, you know, what—what the home is worth. Um, but that 50% target is an estimate, um, and—and a lot of other factors are going to determine what you actually need, could be a little more, could be a little less.
So, I would recommend reaching out to our friends at Movement Mortgage, uh, Harlan Accola, who's on our program regularly and the team, uh, would be delighted to sit down with you, look at your specifics, and then help you plot a course. If you don't have enough equity today, what it would take for you to get there and then to put the reverse mortgage in place.
Um, so the—the website is Movement, excuse me, faithfi.com/movement, faithfi.com/movement, or if you want to hold the line, our team could give you the phone number. Um, but I think that 50% is not hard and fast, it really is just a guideline.
Gary Fantastic. Because when you said Zillow, I think that was what he said.
Rob West Zillow.
Gary Okay, yeah. So that's probably what she was looking at.
Rob West Yeah, zillow.com. Yeah, it's probably the—the most well-known of the sites that will offer an estimate—and that's all it is—of your home's value just based on the most recent market data of closed sales with comparable homes in your area. It's not a replacement for an appraisal, it's just, you know, a—a starting point, really. But it's going to get you in the ballpark, for sure.
Gary I—I appreciate your help, and I would like that phone number, please.
Rob West All right, hang on the line, the team will get it to you. And, um, thanks for calling today, Gary. If I can help further, let me know. Uh, let's go, uh, back to Georgia. Ronnie, go ahead.
Ronnie Hello. Good morning.
Rob West Hi.
Ronnie I have a—a question for you. I'm interested in a technology stock. It's, uh, BWXI.
Rob West Okay.
Ronnie And I'd like your recommendation on it.
Rob West Yeah. Uh, unfortunately, I don't give specific recommendations on stocks, um, and so that's just not a part of what we do here. Um, so you would want to know kind of what sector, uh, of the, uh, of the tech industry this is in. I'm just looking up BW, uh, did you say XI? Yeah, I'm—I'm—I'm not seeing it right off.
But, uh, essentially, in terms of the—the tech sector, um, you know, here's what I would tell you is, you know, I think there's, uh, plenty to be excited about in the technology sector. I mean, we've got a—a lot of promising long-term growth opportunities, whether it's semiconductors or cybersecurity or artificial intelligence, of course, cloud computing, you've got the energy infrastructure, um, but, you know, you've also got, uh, significant volatility when growth expectations aren't met.
So, I think you just need, at age 78, make sure that even if you, you know, are looking at a particular company that interests you, uh, just make sure that you're not too highly concentrated. So, I'd probably stay no more than 5% in any one company, and I would make sure that that's alongside a diversified investment strategy, um, where you've got a good mix of investments in both, uh, bonds and stocks.
And in the stock sector, you'd want to be still well-diversified there among, you know, the various sectors, including technology, uh, large and small cap, international and domestic. So, my approach is to make sure we heed, you know, Ecclesiastes 11:2 and don't have all our eggs in one basket.
But that doesn't mean if there was one particular company you were excited about, you couldn't, I'll say dabble in, uh, a particular company. I'd just make sure that you're not too highly concentrated, because with that concentration comes an inordinate amount of risk. But as to the particular company, I wouldn't be in a position, Ronnie, to weigh in on it. Uh, thanks for your call though, sir. Call anytime if we can help further. God bless you. Let's go to Texas. Hi Allen, go ahead.
Allen Yes, hello.
Rob West Hi.
Allen Uh, can—can you hear me okay?
Rob West I sure can, yeah.
Allen Okay, thank you. Rob, I listen to your program, uh, on a regular basis. I listen to—have listened over the years and I just love your program and I appreciate the information that you share. I learn so much all the time.
Rob West Thank you. That means a lot.
Allen My question deals with the, uh, a reverse mortgage.
Rob West Okay.
Allen And I was wondering if this is something that would be, uh, uh, something that my wife and I would should, uh, look into. Um, we have, our house right now is, uh, we have, uh, about, uh, 125,000 in equity in it right now, uh, with the—with the current balance. And I looked all this information up on the, uh, on the lenders, uh, on the app with the lender that we have right now.
Rob West Okay. And what do you believe it's worth? Do you have an idea?
Allen Yeah, it's about 120—uh, 100—I mean, I'm sorry, it's about 290,000.
Rob West Okay. All right. And what would you be looking for from the reverse, a line of credit for extra expenses, like a new roof or a trip periodically, or you're looking for a monthly income stream?
Allen Uh, we've been looking—would be primarily looking for a, um, uh, a line of credit.
Rob West Okay.
Allen And possibly to have, uh, you know, pull out a little cash, uh, to take care of a—of a couple of things that, uh, my wife wanted to, to do. One—one of them was, uh, dental work.
Rob West Okay. The other option, obviously, is if you did nothing more than just replace your existing forward mortgage that you're
making a payment on with a reverse, and you eliminated that monthly payment, would that suffice or do you need some funds beyond that?
Allen Well, that—that would be—would probably suffice, but we'd like to, uh, you know, in addition to that, uh, just set up a, uh, a possibly be able to set up a line of credit.
Rob West Yeah, yeah. Well, that's where the—the home equity conversion mortgage reverse for short can really be effective. I mean, you're in your 80s, you've got, uh, you know, more than 50% equity in your home, and so, you know, you would, uh, pay off your existing mortgage balance, um, and you would have, uh, the ability to eliminate that mortgage payment, and then establish a line of credit.
That line of credit would likely increase each year as your home appreciates, and so essentially what you're doing is tapping into that home equity. The payment becomes optional at that point, which for someone who, or a family who's not saved quite as much as they would have liked to for this season of life, and they're squeezed just to, you know, cover all the monthly obligations, including that mortgage, which, you know, more than 50% of retirees bring a mortgage now into this fourth quarter of life, that could go away.
And essentially, you know, you're just systematically pulling out some of that home equity. You still own the home, and when you pass away, whatever balance exists on that mortgage when the home is sold, after you and your wife have lived there for the rest of your life or until you decide, uh, to move out permanently, whatever's left after that mortgage is paid would be available to give to ministry, leave to heirs.
But what I find is that, you know, often your heirs don't want the house anyway, and they'd rather you enjoy this fourth quarter of life without having the strain that perhaps you have right now, and that's where a home equity conversion mortgage could be a solution here. So, I—I think you're heading in the right direction here, Allen.
Allen Okay, that—that's, uh, what my understanding was, uh, but I—I did speak with a, uh, uh, a Rocket Mortgage, uh, agent, uh, here in, uh, in Texas, and the information that you just gave me, he gave me some information that seemed to be contrary to that, and he was saying that with, uh, my situation it looked like we'd have to bring about $14,000, uh, to the table to be able to complete this, uh, reverse mortgage.
So, I'm just wondering, uh, I tried to get in touch with, uh, Harlan Accola, but, uh, the number that I called, nobody seemed to know, you know, who he was.
Rob West Oh, well, you must have had the wrong number then. Yeah, because he leads the team at Movement. You know what? I had written down 390. Did you say it was 290,000?
Allen 290.
Rob West Uh-huh. Yeah. So that would have been, uh, well, but if you've got a—so you've got 125,000 in equity, so you don't quite have 50%, you're at 43% of an equity percentage, and so that's probably why they said you need to come out of pocket. But there's still a possibility here, especially with you being in your 80s.
So let's do this. Hang on the line, my team will get your information and make sure you have the right number, and let's let Harlan and his team run the numbers and see if they can't work a scenario for you where you wouldn't have to come out of pocket to be able to put this in place. Uh, by the way, the website, if you want to learn more about Movement, is faithfi.com/movement. But Allen, thanks for your call, thanks for being a faithful listener, and hang on the line, we'll get you squared away, okay?
Allen Thank you so much, I appreciate your help.
Rob West All right. Hey folks, we're $23,000 away from our goal on Friday at 11:59. So if you would, uh, be willing to come in and support Faithfi, we'd be grateful. Every gift will send you our brand new field guide that just launched, "How Do I Prepare the Next Steward?" Just go to faithfi.com/give. Big thanks to Patty, Devin, Michael, Afton, and everybody here at Faithfi. We'll see you tomorrow.
Loss can change the way we see almost everything—including money. After being widowed twice, Rachel Faulkner Brown knows firsthand how grief can affect our emotions, our decisions, and even our finances. On this Faith & Finance on AFR, Rachel joins Rob West to share how financial mistakes and painful losses ultimately taught her a deeper lesson about stewardship, trust, and letting go of control. Then, it’s on to calls.
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