How a Metro Detroit Dad’s Podcast Turned Debt into Family Time

Andy Hill turned his financial journey into a tool to help families achieve freedom and quality time together with his blog and podcast.

Michigan resident Andy Hill, a husband and father of two, started podcasting and blogging about money in 2016. At the time, his family was in $50,000 of debt.

Within four years, Hill was out of debt and had given up his full-time job to fully invest in his podcast and blog, Marriage, Kids and Money.

“l combined becoming debt-free, achieving Coast FIRE (saving enough in a retirement account so that continuing contributions became optional), and becoming mortgage-free to work part-time and live full-time,” Hill said.

In 2022, Hill added financial coaching to his repertoire. 

He is on a mission to teach parents how to gain financial freedom to spend less time working and more quality time with their families.  

Sound too good to be true? Read on to see how Hill provides everyday families with a tool kit to live the good life.

What inspired you to create Marriage, Kids and Money?

Photo provided by Andy Hill

When Nicole and I got married, we combined our finances, and at that time, we had about $50,000 of student loan debt and car debt. 

When we got married, we enjoyed utilizing our combined finances to “live for today,” and we didn’t care too much about financial planning. We just wanted to be a young, happy couple and enjoy our time together.

It wasn’t until we learned that we were gonna be parents with our first daughter, Zoe, that something sort of clicked in our brains. We realized that we’re not just living for ourselves now. We are bringing a human into this world, and we need to figure out how to help her have the best life possible. 

So, I started looking into financial sources for inspiration because I’ve always been interested in personal finance. I just kind of lost my way in my 20s a little bit because my income wasn’t that high, but my desires were high.

And I found some resources and some support. I remember watching the Susie Orman show a lot and being inspired. 

I got inspired to learn how, if we could work together to decrease our debt, increase our savings, and even plan for our daughter’s future, we could have a better future together as a family. 

So, when I started working with my wife on that, I got excited. I had been looking for a hobby; I was like, man, I was inspired by a lot of these creators and people putting out their stories as well as other people.

Describe your podcast.

My podcast is called Marriage, Kids and Money. It’s focused on helping young families build wealth and happiness. I believe that by getting our financial lives in order, we can utilize our money to spend according to our values, both in terms of money and time.

So, when we have control of those things, I believe it can offer a better opportunity for a happier and more fulfilling life. 

Now, does more, more and more money make for more happiness? It gets to a point where you can’t push the boundaries further, but I believe when you feel like you have more control of your money and build your wealth to a point, you can craft a better life for your family.

Describe what financial freedom has brought you. What do part-time work and full-time living look like?

I can spend more time with my aging parents and just have a little bit more space and margin in my life to do the things that better serve me and my family.

Sometimes, parents can get a little overwhelmed with work, which pushes everything else aside.

We realized that we need to focus on things that are better for our health and our family. So, that’s our mission right now.

It’s not too much different, probably than what a majority of people do. I just think we have more time for it. 

Before our call, I was able to drop my kids off at school, and then I just went for a run in the middle of the day. And I get to have a conversation with you right now, and then it’s a half day at school, so I will pick up my kids in about 30 minutes. 

How did we even figure that out before? Financial security has allowed us to maybe feel a little less stressed about it all. 

So it’s not massively different. I just think that we’ve given ourselves a little more margin in our lives. 

But in August, I won’t be creating content or conducting coaching calls. Instead, I’m going on a road trip with my kids!

What are you hoping to teach your kids about money?

We’re having conversations with them around financial literacy and financial topics that help them understand that money can be used as a tool to help them craft a life they love. So, if they’re not feeling happy with where they are or where their life is headed, they can use money to help them get somewhere better.

They have their own bank accounts, debit cards, investment accounts and autonomy regarding money.

Of course, we’re here to help them make smart decisions and help them along the way, but we feel like the best way to teach them is through our example and for them to make mistakes with money when they’re young. 

They’re making a $10 mistake today instead of a $10,000 mistake in their 30s. 

Fast Talk with Andy

Your favorite word: 

Action.

Your favorite place to vacation with the family: 

Marquette, MI

Your favorite podcast besides your own:

The Happiness Lab

Your secret obsession: 

Board games

Your personal tagline:

Carpe Diem

What you hope your kids say about you to their friends: 

My dad is someone that I can rely on. 


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Steffy McCourt
Steffy McCourt
Steffy McCourt brings over 15 years of experience in education, parenting, and travel writing for esteemed publications like We Are Teachers and LA Family Travel. Recognized for her commitment to advancing literacy and writing skills, Steffy is honored to be a Fellow of the National Writing Project. She collaborates with educators nationwide to enhance teaching practices and empower student writers.

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