Thanks Karen! I can’t agree with you more about the importance of communication. You raise an excellent point that it does change. Matt and I are continually sitting down together and reevaluating our goals and focus. Thanks so much for commenting!!

Jason, Thanks so much for your comments! Yes, one way to shift a spouse’s skepticism is to get them involved, which you have done! I love that quote: “people fear what they don’t know!” I can’t agree more! All the best to you and your wife! Thanks again for commenting! Liz

Jason, Thanks so much for your comments! Yes, one way to shift a spouse’s skepticism is to get them involved, which you have done! I love that quote: “people fear what they don’t know!” I can’t agree more! All the best to you and your wife! Thanks again for commenting! Liz

Kristi, Good for you and your husband! Yes, I agree with you. Sometimes, one of us feels a bit “off” and it just means we need to sit down and align our current focus/goals. Thanks for reading and commenting! All the best to you and your husband!! Liz

Hi Steve, I am so happy to help you and your wife. When I first worked full time with my husband I had certain “job titles” and some of these roles did not work for us. The second time around I made sure my role was clearer and it aligned to my strengths and areas that I was passionate about. Sometimes in a small business, you do what you “have to do” so to speak! However, as you grow and develop your business and roles – continue to focus on what one another is good at! Hope that helps! Congrats on the little ones! Matt and I have a 15 month old and are enjoying him while growing our business! Liz

Hi Deshan, Thanks so much for watching the video and your comment. And yes, I have experienced couples where one partner is OK with earned income while the other partner wants to focus more on passive income. I think the most important conversation a couple needs to have (before the earned vs passive income discussion) focuses on what one another values. Some partners value security and comfort the most. Other partners value growth and expansion. I think it is incredibly important that a couple gets really (I mean really) clear on what one another truly values. Along with this discussion point is to discuss where you want to be as a couple in 3, 5, 10 years. Earned income, passive income, etc are simply paths to help us achieve our goals and what we want out of life. I hope this helps. Please let me know! Thanks, Liz

Hi Dan, Great questions!! The earned income, passive income, wealth building discussion is useful even if you and/or your spouse are still working full or part time. To answer your first question – when one or both spouses work full time (non REI jobs) I would consider that earned income. I like to explain earned income is trading your time for money. This can be consulting work, a W-2 job, or in the real estate world – flipping a house, wholesaling a deal, or selling a property. When my husband and I started out, I worked full time as a consultant and the money I made for our family was “earned income.” At the same time, my husband’s efforts in our real estate investing company was focused on the other two categories – passive income and wealth building. As I have stepped away from full time consulting (I still do some consulting), we (as a couple) are still focused on all three categories. While we do have passive income coming in from our rental portfolio, we are also focused on REI earned income strategies (fixing/flipping property) to earn chunks of cash for our business. Our ultimate goal in 5 years is to decrease the need for “earned income” strategies, and just be focused on passive and wealth building strategies. There is no “right or wrong” here. However, it is critical to have clarity with this topic that way you can remain focused on the real estate investing activities that will help achieve your specific goals. I can’t tell you how important “focus” is in this business. I hope this helps. Please let me know. I am happy to help further!! All the best, Liz

Thanks Larry for watching and commenting! Much appreciated! All the best to you!! Liz

Thanks Larry for watching and commenting! Much appreciated! All the best to you!! Liz

George, My husband and I have been working together for over 10 years. We continue to learn better ways of communicating and working together. The journey has not ended. Focus on progress, not perfection. Good luck!! Liz

Karen, You are so welcome! I can’t tell you how important it has been for my husband and I to be on the same page with our real estate business. Our business (and each of us individually) are continuously evolving. One major decision I made recently had a lot to do with our earned income goal. I probably would not have made this decision had we lacked clarity on the % of earned, passive, and wealth building. Glad to hear this exercise helped. All the best to you and your husband!! Liz

Jesse, So glad to hear that you enjoyed the post and exercise. Please comment after you and wife go through the exercise and how it helped you! This inspires others to take action! Good luck!! 🙂 Liz