jwithrow, Author at The Phoenician League

The Secret World of Mortgage Note Investing

As I’m sure we know well, when a homeowner takes out a mortgage to buy a property, the lender issues a promissory note that outlines all the terms of the loan.

That note is an asset. It gives the lender the right to receive the monthly mortgage payments that the homeowner makes, and it spells out the lender’s security interest in the underlying home as collateral should the homeowner default on their obligations.

However, lending institutions today only keep a small fraction of the mortgages they originate on their own balance sheet. That’s because holding mortgages reduces the capital they have available to make new loans, which is their core business.

For this reason, lenders sell most of the mortgages they create shortly after origination. And who do they sell these mortgages to?

Well, 80% of the time they package a group of mortgages together into mortgage-backed securities through a process called securitization. But the other 20% of the time, they sell each individual mortgage to investors.

Most often those investors are insurance companies, pension funds, and hedge funds. They tend to buy large blocks of mortgages in one sitting. But here’s the thing – there are no accreditation requirements. And that means individual investors can also buy mortgages at will. Anyone can engage in mortgage note investing.

Of course, most investors don’t realize that this is an option. And the prospect of buying a mortgage seems daunting. It sounds like it requires a lot of work and specialized knowledge. Not to mention the cost – doesn’t it require deep pockets to buy somebody’s mortgage?

From Bank Runs to Cash Flow – A Flashback to the 1980s

It was Friday afternoon and the financial markets had just closed for the day… but the mood was tense in the boardroom of Gateway Savings & Loan.

President I. Owen Funderburg knew he needed to steel his resolve, but he couldn’t help pacing nervously. He needed to find an answer to an unexpected problem.

The year was 1980, and the Federal Reserve (the Fed) had just raised interest rates again – sending shockwaves through the small thrift’s once-steady world.

Gateway’s ledger was bleeding red, and the phone lines buzzed with worried depositors demanding to withdraw their money. The threat of a bank run was imminent.

Funderburg understood the problem very well.

Gateway Savings & Loan had built a large portfolio of fixed-rate mortgages throughout the 1970s – when interest rates were more reasonable.

But with Mr. Volcker at the Fed hellbent on whipping inflation by raising interest rates dramatically, the bank’s short-term deposit costs now exceeded its loan yields… making its mortgage portfolio a millstone around Funderburg’s neck.

Bulletproof Money Session Three Summary

This session concludes the three-day financial workshop, shifting from building a secure financial foundation to creating financial independence with passive income and advanced tax strategies. It offers detailed, actionable steps, practical examples, and clear distinctions between real estate and mortgage note investing—all designed to accelerate your journey to consistent, tax-advantaged income.

1. Transition: From Security to Independence

Recap: Previous sessions established your cash warehouse (liquid reserves), gold and Bitcoin (reserve assets), and a permanent portfolio.
The next phase is generating passive income that can fully or partially cover your living expenses, freeing you from the need to sell investments or rely on the “retirement” model.
Key Principle: Don’t wait for a future retirement date—create multiple income streams now that let you “retire” at any age (or simply enjoy greater freedom).

Bulletproof Money Session Two Summary

This session dives into the actionable tactics for building genuine financial security, modeled on the robust strategies of the world’s best long-term business—property & casualty insurance. The hands-on workshop covers what assets to prioritize, how to structure your asset allocation, and step-by-step ideas for immediately enhancing your household’s financial security and independence.

1. Foundation: Lessons from the World’s Best Business

The Model:
The oldest, most resilient business—property & casualty insurance companies—have survived centuries and countless crises. Their “secret”?
- They receive money up front (premiums), forecast their liabilities, and then strategically invest the float again and again in a diversified, long-term portfolio.
- These investments compound their wealth and income, allowing them to grow stronger during both good times and bad.
Takeaway:
Households can mimic the insurance business for lifelong security: Cover fixed commitments, invest the “float” first, and harness compounding.

2. Strategic Wealth Diagram—The Bulletproof Structure

Diagram Walkthrough:
- Income/Nest Egg flows into a series of “buckets”:
  - Cash Warehouse
    Keep reserves for emergencies/opportunities. Consider money market accounts (for liquidity) or, preferably, max-funded whole life insurance (“IBC” policies) for tax-efficient, liquid compounding.
  - Gold Reserve & Bitcoin Holdings
    These form the “reserve assets”—your personal hedge against inflation and economic shocks. Both are savings, not speculations, and function as the foundation for preserving purchasing power.
  - Permanent Portfolio/Equities
    A small (typically 8–20%) allocation to high-quality, dividend-producing stocks, selected for long-term themes—not quick trades.
  - Investment Real Estate & Mortgage Notes
    Vehicles for future passive income (to be discussed in depth in Day 3).
  - Alternative Investments
    Optional: things like Timberland, collectibles, new asset classes. Add for extra diversity, not as your core foundation.
- Monetary Flow:
  - Consistently direct new surplus cash into these “buckets” in order of priority, just like an insurer invests surplus before discretionary spending.
  - As invested assets spin off returns and income, re-cycle those for further compounding.

Bulletproof Money Session One Summary

This session is the introduction to the “Bulletproof Money Three Day Challenge” with Joe Withrow, focused on building true financial security and rethinking conventional retirement planning in the new economic era post-2022. The session blends personal experience, economic history, and practical challenges, laying the foundation for actionable strategies in the subsequent days.

1. Setting the Stage

Personal Connection:
Joe broadcasts from his off-grid, solar-powered office in Virginia, emphasizing authenticity and transparency.
Event Structure:
Three interactive workshop sessions: ~45-60 minutes teaching, followed by live Q&A (no scripting).
Emphasis is on actionable advice, not sales pitches.

2. The Big Economic Shift (2022)

Historical Turning Points:
Key monetary events: 1971 (Nixon shock/gold standard removal), 1980s-2022 (falling interest rates), 2008 (zero interest rate policy, Bernanke era), LIBOR scandals, and—most crucially—the full rollout of SOFR (Secured Overnight Financing Rate) in 2022.
2022 as a Breaking Point:
- SOFR replaced LIBOR, ending an era of easy central bank manipulation of long-term interest rates.
- Long-term rates are now market-driven, influenced by inflation, government fiscal health, and global trust.

The Skim Economy is Shattering

Let’s take a moment to pull back the curtain on “Retirement Inc.” — the Wall Street-created ecosystem that now controls most Americans’ life savings.

For decades, financial professionals have told people to trust their future to 401ks, IRAs, and various kinds of funds. First it was closed-end mutual funds… then open-end mutual funds… then index funds… then target-date funds… then exchange-traded funds (ETFs)… and then leveraged ETFs.

The industry just continued to put out a deluge of new financially engineered products for decades – each one sold as the “next big thing”. But what always went unsaid is that this system was designed to keep Americans stuck in the rat race for 30 or 40 years, paying hefty fees to Retirement Inc. the entire time.

What we’re talking about here isthe skim economy.

Think about the average American’s 401k. Every month workers automatically contribute more money to their 401k, and most employers then match that contribution up to a certain amount.

But before those dollars have a chance to grow, a slice is carved out to provide fees for the fund provider, the plan administrator, the custodian, and in the case of actively managed funds, the fund manager.

These fees can range from 0.5% up to 2% or more. Over a 30+ year career, that skim quietly siphons off hundreds of thousands—even millions—of dollars from the nest egg.

And this happens regardless of how the funds perform because fees don’t stop in down markets. Retirement Inc. gets paid no matter what.

Worse, many conventional financial advisors are compensated based on what products they sell, not how well their recommendations perform. That’s why so many portfolios are stuffed with high-fee offerings, annuities, and packaged products – instead of customized strategies tailored to create financial freedom.

Then to put a bow on top of the multi-generational skim economy, retirees are forced to sell off a portion of their financial assets held in qualified retirement accounts each year to satisfy minimum withdrawal requirements.

This triggers taxable events, which siphons hard-earned money away and shrinks the asset portfolio each year. Is it any wonder why most retirees are afraid of outliving their money?

A few figures to consider:

Old Money Secrets: Six Timeless Principles for Financial Freedom

The self-help industry has been preaching “financial freedom” for roughly thirty years now. In that time, I’ve read countless books geared towards this wonderful idea.

Think and Grow Rich… The Richest Man in Babylon… Rich Dad, Poor Dad… the 4-Hour Work Week… and my personal favorite, The Instant Millionaire.

You’re probably familiar with these titles as well. And I bet you have your favorites.

But I have to ask – with all this material on financial freedom, why do so few ever seem to get there? After all, these books each make it sound so simple.

And to be sure, it is simple. The name of the game is simply to build extra income streams such that your passive income exceeds your expenses.

It’s an easy concept. So why do so many fall short?

What the Old Money Knows That Most Don’t

Ever noticed how, no matter what tumult hits the headlines—recessions, market crashes, rampant inflation—there are certain people, certain families who never seem to be impacted much?

The mainstream culture chocks it up to them “having money”… but that’s not at all the case.

The “old money” – those schooled in the principles of wealth preservation within the current system – they know better than to “have money”. Because money is constantly under attack by inflation.

Instead, they have assets… and those assets provide them with access to money should they need it. That’s the big secret hidden in plain sight.

And more than just having assets, the old money relies on:

From Financial Security to Independence – Cash Flow Investing

How many times have we heard about somebody who hit it big, only to spend it all and eventually run out of money?

It happens all the time to people who win the lottery. I know a few investors who have had this experience also. And there are more than a few entrepreneurs who have risen to fame and fortune on the back of their start-up… only to ride the escalator back down the other side.

When we look at those experiences, it’s like a see-saw pattern. We can clearly see the rise and fall.

I know those experiences are limited – most of us haven’t hit it big only to go broke again. But then when I look at the conventional retirement planning model, I see the exact same pattern – just over a longer timeline. Here’s what I mean…

With qualified retirement plans like 401ks and IRAs, you work hard for years to build up assets in your account. According to Retirement Incorporated, the name of the game is to get your accounts up to a big enough number so that you have enough money to retire.

Then what happens when you retire?

According to this model, you are supposed to sell off a portion of your assets each year, pay taxes on the sale, and then use the proceeds to live on. And if you do that, your assets diminish every year that goes by.

That’s the see-saw. If you follow the conventional model, your assets go up while you’re working… then they go down when you retire.

No wonder so many people feel anxious as they approach retirement – they sense deep down that something about this model is fundamentally flawed.

So let’s shift the paradigm.

Wealth-Building Strategies from a 270-Year-Old Playbook

You might be surprised to learn that many of the world’s best wealth-building strategies don’t come from Wall Street banks, hedge funds, or tech companies… they come from old-school insurance companies.

Numerous insurance companies still in operation have been around for well over a century now, having endured wars, depressions, massive inflation, and political upheaval. And get this – there are a handful of insurance companies who have been in existence for over 200 years. That’s incredible to think about.

This comes as a surprise to many because insurance companies are boring. No father ever thinks, “I want my son to go into insurance when he grows up”.

But the fact is, the best-run insurance companies are financial juggernauts. And that’s because they quietly wealth-building strategies that follow a few timeless principles:

1. The Power of Consistent, Strategic Allocation

Every year, insurance companies use actuarial science to fine-tune exactly how much capital must be set aside for expenses, how much must be stored in protective assets, and how much can be deployed for growth and extra income. This discipline creates a system that grows even in periods of chaos.

2. They Never Gamble on Paper Wealth Alone

Insurance companies don’t bet the farm on the direction of the stock market. Nor do they rely exclusively on their bond portfolios. Instead, they build a robust balance sheet by strategically investing in assets that preserve purchasing power and continue compounding, no matter what happens with the markets or the economy.

3. Reinvesting for Generational Wealth

Unlike Wall Street firms and hedge funds, which are slaves to quarterly results, mutual insurance companies are structurally designed for the long haul. They build permanent portfolios designed to warehouse and grow wealth for centuries. Then they systematically reinvest interest payments and dividends to create a self-reinforcing system.

Wealth-Building Strategies That Work

You don’t need to be an insurance company to put these same wealth-building strategies to work. To the contrary, we can make our personal finances bulletproof by following the same model.

A New Playbook For a New Economic Era

Remember when “stocks always go up and interest rates always go down” was economic reality? With a few brief interruptions, that dynamic persisted for almost 40 years – powering through through booms, busts, and all manner of geopolitical events.

This came to be accepted as “normal”, and Retirement Inc. sold the idea that we should funnel all our savings into qualified retirement accounts and leave it there for decades. You only lose money if you sell, became the mantra.

To be fair, that conventional advice has worked out okay for people up to this point. And by that, I mean it hasn’t been a total disaster. I know plenty of people feel good about how many dollars they’ve amassed in their 401k and their IRA accounts.

But from my vantage point, a tectonic shift has quietly remapped the entire landscape of finance and the concept of retirement… and I suspect Retirement Inc.’s model will be rendered obsolete over the next 40 years. We’re now entering into a new economic era.

As for why, we have to rewind to 2022…