For Christmas,Buy Your Kid a Junior Golf Membership

Hello my Peoples,

I am in the holiday spirit and feel like blogging away. I am originally from a good old black southern environment and this time brings back special memories. We were kinda of poor but never knew it because my mom was the ultimate spendthrift. We knew what we were getting for Christmas in June because my mom would layaway Christmas gifts 6 months early and it was mainly clothes with like one toy. My toys were always Tonka, because they were hard to destroy. I am talking about the old Tonka vehicles made of metal not these plastic ones today. My mom worked 6 days a week and during Christmas the department store where she worked would stay open until 9 pm. On Christmas eve, it would close at 5 pm and that's when the fun for us but added work for mom would begin. She would cook all night long and wrap gifts before we woke up. In the morning we would wake up to the smell of country ham, cheesy eggs, biscuits and salty herring(never knew how the fish mixed in).

We made it because my father and mom had built our home and paid it off before he died when I was young, so that allowed my mom to raise 5 kids on her check and Social Security from my father. When mom wanted to buy furniture or clothes she would lay them away, but she bought the best. She would always say "If you buy quality goods like the white folks, then it will last." That is one thing she learned working in the houses of wealthy white people, they don't waste money just because they have it. When she was recommending something, she would say "That's what they are......." which meant that is what the white folks are doing. But, you know what; her philosophy got me into some of the best colleges, great organizations and allowed me to traveled to Europe and have a heck of a good life.

So, why do I say for Christmas, buy your kid a junior golf membership? Because, "That's what the white folks are doing." They have almost surrendered basketball and football for now until they can figure out how to change the rules of the game. Has anyone noticed how the free little leagues that we grew up with are being replaced with high priced travel teams? They are pricing us out. Now a days if you don't pay for kid to go to the expensive summer camps your kid better be the next Lebron because the high school and college coaches recruit from the camps for soccer, football and basketball. They are on these coaches radar in middle school. The game is changing and we don't know the new rules. But, let's talk golf.

Golf country clubs are looking to increase participation in the sport and the fertile territory is the young. If they get them introduced to the game, they have players who will pay for 40-50 years and will also draw in parents. The normal annual membership to the average golf club can range from $1000 to $20,000, but junior memberships can cost as little as $200 a year. Of course, you need to get the kid lessons with a pro(not too expensive,check out First Tee), but this will be the best investment you ever spent. You will introduce your child to a whole different world and, if they play in junior tournaments, to some of the best golf courses in the country. They will meet future pro golfers and make great connections. If they are good, they can receive full scholarships to some of the best colleges. You guys should follow the other black guy on the PGA Tour(besides Tiger), Harold Varner III. This brother graduated from East Carolina and made about $2 mil last year. So even though I like team sports like football or basketball, golf and tennis are the best defenses against bias and racism. In team sports, your playing time depends on whether the coach likes you or thinks you can contribute to the team. So many talented players waste their time on the bench with dreams deferred. But with golf and tennis, you don't need permission. Your destiny is in your own hands and if you hit enough balls and play enough tournament, you will get better. Now, I do have to warn you that at times you and your kid will be the only black faces in the clubs and tournaments, but this only teaches your kids tenacity and by the most people are polite and helpful. The Asian parents will embrace you also. In golf , the one with the lowest score wins. No one can prevent your kid from playing and its a lifetime sport and it is never to late to start them. Trust me, you will have a better time walking 18 holes with your kid rather than watching him ride the bench for 10 minutes of playing time. Parents, if you have girls, golf is where it’s at. The sisters can dominate. Trust me they can do more with golf than cheerleading. My boss never asked me to go cheerleading after work. You  will be raising strong sisters. Did you know that a black woman owns the golf course that the Arnold Palmer Invitational was played at and tha Condolezza Rice is a member at Augusta National, one of the most exclusive golf club in the country.

So, for Christmas, go get that golf membership and don't forget the clubs.
Finally, because you are reading this blog, I know you will have a frugal Merry Christmas.




Happy Holidays and remember what James Brown said, "Santa Claus goes straight to the Ghetto",

Frugal Frank OTBS

Everybody Wants to Be Rich

Hello My Peoples and others,

With this year drawing to a close, Frugal Frank OTBS just wanted to drop a note. As my mother used to say, "Everybody wants to get rich, but we settle for a black man's heaven". We spend too much time projecting wealth rather than having it. During my years talking to people about investing money and planning for their financial future, I found that many people that I talked to wanted to project more wealth than they really had. I would visit people living in $500,000 homes and a driveway full of high end vehicles with no savings and very little retirement. Even though they were educationally at the top of their professions, they were financially ignorant. I would get the same spills, "I see myself doubling my salary in five-ten years and I am not in a position to do more investing yet." or "I already have this great annuity through my bank." Others would present me with some great investment they saw on television or heard at the barber shop like Silver Eagle coins, Bitcoin,  or Pyramid church schemes.

Now, I know that this blog is not palatable to all that read it. It's not meant to be. One of the reasons I got into investments was to help my people, but then I found out that a lot of them didn't have enough money to support me, so I had to turn to the man. Yes, the man. The truth is that the real "man" sees colors in green. If you are credentialed and smart they will write a check without blinking because if you have old or conservative money you know how to make more. They are not new to the game and so they know about investing and growing wealth. Now for some hard truth. Our people are behind the eight ball on financial awareness. We depend too much on banks and investment advisors to educate us.

If you have less than than a million, you are not generating enough income for your advisor, investor or counselor to make a living on. (Yes, they make money off of you) They will either try to put you in high commission products or sell you a plan or multiple products. With a little education you can invest and get pretty good returns yourself. And you should monitor your investments every 2-3 months.

Another hard truth is that if you haven't accumulated $100,000 in retirement by age 30, you should find you a job you love and keep working. Retirement with no money looks like a Walmart greeter.

So, with this knowledge do the following for Christmas:
1. Buy yourself some books on investments,if they suggest annuities skip them
2. Have a family meeting and review your finances
3. Figure out how to increase your retirement savings to 15%
4. Get yourself some insurance

Peace out,
Frugal Frank OTBS

Frugal Frank OTBS where have you been?

Hello my Peoples,

Frugal Frank on the black side back for 2017. What a year, Dow at 22000. So, for those of you who listened to my previous blogs and stayed in the market you should be closer to that million or two. I am in the liberal land of New England with high minimum wages and good health insurance plus excellent public schools. In this blog, I will share a few things I learned over the first half of this year.

First GEICO is now my favorite car insurance company. I dropped my independent agent with the M-F 8-5 hours and got 24hr quick response service. My last add on vehicle  was done at 3am in the morning and was approved in less than 1 hour with the policy emailed to me. No lie, I saved $2000 a year for 3 vehicles with a teenage driver.

2nd lesson learned for 2017;  I have gone back to car dealerships to service my vehicles. Because dealerships are really going after the auto maintenance and repair business, dealerships have lowered repair prices and increased quality and customer service. With the new technology in todays cars, old repair shops can't keep pace on diagnostics and tend to waste your dollars fishing for solutions. I have to give credit to my wife, after a few repairs from our previous mechanic where the Honda was returned with grease smudges and high cost, she checked Yelp for a dealer. After months of reviewing repairs and comparing bills for similar work, we switched all vehicles and are very pleased. The plus is that the dealers are linked into the same systems, so if you need a repair in another state your records are accessible.

3rd lesson; Hisense  makes a better and cheaper flat screen than Vizio. I paid $398 for my 50 inch and after 3 years it is still showing a great picture. So for those of you who are still waiting to buy that flat screen, go ahead and take that plunge.  If you are nervous about reliability, buy it at Costco(they add a 1 year additional warranty), buy it with a credit card(add another 1year additional warranty). (Amex and Visa for sure).

4th lesson; Cut your cable and stop watching all that news babble talk. You can get a balance from PBS Newshour and you can spend the rest of your time reading, biking or playing tennis and golf. Some summer reading books I suggest: The Black Count, The Capitol Men, Hidden Figures and the Miseducation of the Negro.

Well my time is up but I promise to stay connected this time.
Stay Frugal my friend

Frugal Frank OTBS