The Wealthy Barber Returns [Paperback]

 

 

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I'm a personal finance author ("The Friendly Banker"). I've never met Dave and I know him only as most other Canadians do, as the author of an iconic masterpiece.

While I love to write, to sit down and actually read a book is a chore for me. Few books do a good enough job at capturing my interest to get me past the first few pages, let alone the first chapter. I`m a lousy reader. Yet, I read this book, cover to cover, in three nights with the television on and the sound muted, a miracle for me. I even missed a good portion of Monday Night Football. Need I say more? Well, I`m going to anyway.

The "The Wealthy Barber Returns" is written in a relaxed, humorous, conversational style that I found very appealing. It begins with some sage advice on the pitfalls of over-borrowing, describing the forces that draw us into debt traps and the basic human weaknesses that drive us to keep up with others in the quest to accumulate things that, in the end, are of little enduring value. I agree that the false sense of security provided by an abundance of available credit forms a dangerous mindset that can lead to disaster, especially when that credit line is represented by a mortgage on the home. For most people the concept of a Home Equity Line of Credit is too much of a temptation, leading to the illusion of short term gain followed by the reality of long term pain. Dave even takes a couple of refreshing swings at the banks for their tendency to want to lend us up to our rooftops. He recounts one story where a woman he sent to the bank to get a very modest secured line of credit was immediately up sold to the max despite her history of debt accumulation. I'm sorry to report that this is not uncommon. I was a consumer lender for 25 years and it was my job to maximize profit within a consumer loan portfolio. I was paid to lend as much as possible at the highest possible rate without causing losses and not to share that philosophy with my customers. My paycheque depended on it.

Once the notion that we must curtail spending in order to have any hope of saving is successfully driven home, Dave very effectively shows us how we can best turn that 10-15% of gross income (or more if we've started late) into a comfortable lifestyle in retirement. He delivers investment advice in a manner that is easy for most anyone to understand and his command of the subject truly inspires confidence.

Throughout this book I was struck by its honesty. Time and time again I was stopped in my tracks by things such as Dave`s description of his own lifestyle as well as his many insights into The Wealthy Barber and some of the experiences that came his way as a result of it. It takes an honest author to take a look at his own work years later and admit to a change of heart about certain things, especially when that work impacted so positively and so significantly on more than two million Canadians.

We live in difficult times. In my view, Dave has always expressed a deep and abiding concern about the financial well being of Canadians and the consequences that could follow if we do not change our habits. Thus, he`s given us another book, just at the right time, that will help us all reflect on the changes we need to make to secure a decent financial future.

Jim Rohn once said that we must all suffer one of two pains; the pain of discipline or the pain of regret. I prefer the former. It's a choice. What's your choice? Whatever it is it should be a conscious one and I`m confident that "The Wealthy Barber Returns" will help you make it.

Just finished reading The Wealthy Barber Returns. I couldn't set it down! I love the writing style with the short chapters and humour. The author has made saving and investing so easy to understand.I like this style even better than the story format in the original Wealthy Barber. This book has given me the motivation to get my finances in order. I can't wait to put the ideas in place. I loved the explanation on TFSA's vs RRSP's. Finally, it makes sense to me. What an amazing book! I am going to recommend it to everyone I know.

I read the original Wealth Barber just prior to getting into the financial advisory business back in '92 and couldn't help wondering how much value I could offer to clients if they just bought the book and followed Roy's advice on their own. Turns out even people who read it still need someone to save them from themselves! Chilton's new book, in sync with our over spending, under saving times, provides a reminder to all of us that maybe our grandparents were right - the best things in life...aren't things! Loved the section on index investing - it mirrors my own belief (backed by experience and research) that most investors would be better off tossing out their high priced mutual funds and just buy the whole market. My sister admitted that she finally understands what indexing is after reading this. Once again Chilton hits a home run with his easy-to-read style broken up into many entertaining chapters.

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5.0 out of 5 stars Great follow-up to the original
This is a great book. It is a succession of short chapters focusing on a variety of subjects related to/important for personal finance. Read more

Published 2 days ago by Dexter1110

5.0 out of 5 stars Outstanding
Another excellent book by Mr. Chilton. Although this book didn't have a fictional storyline, it was very informative, an update on the original. Read more

Published 15 days ago by Paul2012

5.0 out of 5 stars THANK YOU David Chilton!
THANK YOU David Chilton! Five Stars don't even begin to scratch the surface of the gratitude I feel towards David for this book. Read more

Published 1 month ago by Helene Rivest

5.0 out of 5 stars I'm Glad the Wealthy Barber Returned!
David Chilton's The Wealthy Barber Returns is an absolute gem'and so funny! As a woman who is not in the habit of reading books on personal financial planning, I couldn't put it... Read more

Published 2 months ago by Andrea

4.0 out of 5 stars Worthwhile
I had bought the first version when I younger, happily married, investing and buying a house. It helped me then. Read more

Published 2 months ago by Lola

5.0 out of 5 stars Great financial advice to live by!
After reading The Wealthy Barber many years ago when we were newly married and raising a young family, this book was our guidebook we used to plan our financial future. Read more

Published 2 months ago by Leslie

4.0 out of 5 stars Common sense way to manage your money
For the most part there is nothing earth shattering here, but this is a solid, very readable collection of common sense ways for saving your money. Read more

Published 2 months ago by Rodge

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent
Gave this as a gift and having checked with the recipient, the person tells me it was a great read. The Amazon price was considerably lower than other retailers.

Published 2 months ago by G. Nat Auger

2.0 out of 5 stars A bad follow up to the original
This book is a huge disappointment.

I am a big advocate of "The Wealthy Barber". It was a great book, well written and in a great format unlike a traditional personal... Read more

Published 2 months ago by Rajaijah

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Book!
This is a great book. Read his first one and thought it was great too. Very easy to read and gives you a good laugh too :)

Published 3 months ago by sassygurl

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