By simply putting $300 extra each month into shares of U.S. Bancorp, the firm that owns his mortgage, instead of paying off principal each month, this family member should end up with an extra $535,000 net in 30 years, plus own his house outright, and be collecting approximately $33,000 annually in cash dividends.
A member of my close family has been using a technique to build substantial wealth that doesn’t require a high income or any specialized knowledge, extra work, or effort. I was so impressed by the way he implemented this program, I thought I would share it with my other family and friends (as well as anyone else who reads my blog) without giving away who it is.
Each month, he has a house payment of approximately $1,500, payable to U.S. Bank. He decided that instead of making an extra $300 payment along with his regular mortgage bill to lower principal and pay the debt off early, he would instead establish a direct stock purchase plan and have that same amount automatically used to buy shares of U.S. Bancorp. He was convinced the balance sheet of the bank was strong, and the fact that the CEO earns more in cash dividends from his outright ownership of U.S. Bancorp stock made him feel confident that management would act in the best long-term interest of shareholders compared to other banks, where huge bonuses and perks rewarded failure.
The commissions charged for this service are negligible, typically $2 per transaction. This means that every year, he is investing roughly $3,600 in U.S. Bancorp common stock, with instructions that all of the dividends should be reinvested. The mortgage on his home loan is roughly 5.5%. How much will he make in extra profit from this transaction?
Let’s assume that shares of U.S. Bancorp will compound at 10% per annum, with the dividend reinvested, over the next 30 years. Based on his special “savings” program, when he pays off his home, the deed will be mailed to him and he will be completely debt-free. At the same time, this small direct stock purchase plan will have nearly $600,000 worth of shares of U.S. Bancorp common stock! Based on its historical dividend yield, this will generate roughly $33,000 per year in pre-tax income, or $2,700 per month. He will have paid an extra $100,000 or so in tax-deductible mortgage interest, so a net $65,000. Thus, this move gained him roughly $535,000 30 years from now simply because of how he invested his money.
To recap, he’ll own his home outright, have $600,000 in this account virtually no one knows about, and be earning $33,000 per year from checks getting mailed to him. This is on top of his businesses, retirement accounts, savings, and “real” money. You’d never know it. He drives a 10+ year old Ford, eats at McDonald’s, and lives on very little money each year.
This just goes to show you that most millionaires are regular people, statistically, that invest their money well. They are teachers, dentists, bankers, coaches, and business owners. Yet, when you tell people in the lower classes this, they refuse to believe it because of the image that Madison Avenue has sold them. They don’t realize that they are likely living in the same neighborhood as a millionaire, who drives a pickup truck and has more money than many of the professional sports players on the local NFL team.
In the United States, there are three times more millionaires living in homes that have a market value of under $300,000 than there are living in homes valued at $1 million or more. – Dr. Thomas J. Stanley, Stop Acting Rich … And Start Living Like a Millionaire
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