Andrew Lokenauth Website

Andrew Lokenauth

Finance Executive

Andrew Lokenauth is a Finance Executive who has over 15 years of experience working on Wall St. and in Tech & Start-ups. Andrew helps management teams translate their financials into actionable business decisions. He has held positions at Goldman Sachs, Citi, and JPMorgan Asset Management. He is the founder of Fluent in Finance, a firm that provides resources to help others learn to build wealth, understand the importance of investing, create a healthy budget, strategize debt pay-off, develop a retirement roadmap, and create a personalized investing plan. His insights have been quoted in Forbes, TIME, Business Insider, Nasdaq, Yahoo Finance, BankRate, and U.S. News. Andrew has a Bachelor of Business Administration Degree (BBA), Accounting and Finance from Pace University.

wikiHow's Editorial ProcesswikiHow partners with over 1000+ experts from a wide range of fields to ensure our content is accurate and based on well-established research and testimony. Content Managers conduct interviews and work closely with each expert to review information, answer reader questions, and add credible advice. Learn more about our editorial process and why millions of readers trust wikiHow.

Forum Comments (4)

How can I make money online from home?
There are a bunch of different side hustles you can do. One of the easiest and best side hustles for someone in college is to be an English teacher or an English tutor to foreign students. A lot of countries like China and India spend a lot of money to learn English. And requirements are pretty low. You have to be fluent in English. And most of these sites don't require a college degree. There are a bunch of websites where you can do this. If you go to Google and just type in being an English tutor to a foreign country, you'll see a lot of different options that pay very well. And it's something fairly easy that you can do from home. All you really need is your phone and an iPad or a computer. The websites usually give you the lessons.

There's also freelancing. You can go on websites like Fiverr to find jobs people need, like creating graphics for them or social media posts. In terms of freelancing, there are apps where you can do housework for people, anything from painting a wall in their house to mowing their lawn. You can sell items online or clothes that you no longer use. You can sell textbooks that you no longer use. If you rent a house or you rent an apartment with a spare room, you can always rent out a room in an apartment that you live in or you rent. You can start a small business and do anything like consulting. If you have a skill, talent, or knowledge, there are a lot of websites where you can put your information out there for people to find you. I know LinkedIn started a new service where you can tell it your skill set, and it will try to match you with people looking for those skills.
How do I even start saving for a house
When it comes to saving for a house, the most important thing is to figure out your monthly cost of housing. You don't want to overspend because if you overspend, you risk falling behind on payments and having the bank foreclose on your property. So, you want to work backwards.

So, you start with how much you'll be able to afford every month. And then once you get that number, then you can figure out how much you have for a down payment. An old school rule of thumb is 20% down.

I think that if you're a first-time home owner, you should put 3.5% down only because the time that it takes to save 20%, you might miss out on appreciation in your property. For example, if the property is $100,000, 3.5% is $3,500 whereas 20% down is $20,000. And that time it takes you to make an extra $17,000, which the average salary of an average American is $50,000, you might miss out on appreciation of the property. So, it depends on your situation. The most important thing in that scenario is to figure out how much you can afford to pay per month.
What are some fast ways to make easy money?
There are just a bunch of different side hustles out there, but teaching or tutoring English to foreign students is one of the best side gigs I could recommend. A lot of countries, like China and India, spend a lot of money to learn English. The requirements are pretty low for tutors and teachers. You have to be fluent in English and you need a computer, but beyond that there aren’t any super strict requirements and the pay is generally very good. Plus, you can do it from home!
Best way to make some extra money?
One strategy for making extra money is money flipping. A form of money flipping that has become popular is reselling items on Amazon or eBay. A quick trick to do this is there are a lot of apps that if you scan a barcode, it will tell you how much these items are selling online. So, if you happen to be in a store like Costco or Walmart and you see something like sales, you can quickly look up to see what Amazon and eBay are selling these things. A lot of times, Amazon and eBay will mark things up because of the convenience that they offer with two-day shipping. So, a quick way to make money is to look for items that are undervalued in brick-and-mortar stores but are marked up on online retailers or things on sale and then you just buy them out and you flip them online. That's called online flipping. A lot of people do it.

Another way that people flip money fast is through day trading. Day trading, like anything, you have to be very good at it. So, if you choose to day trade, invest in education, and learn how to read technical indicators or technical analysis. A lot of days traders lose money. So, if you go this route, be sure to educate yourself on it just you would with anything else in life.

Another way to flip money quickly is through real estate. Wholesaling real estate is a quick way. Basically, with wholesaling real estate, you're flipping real estate contracts. An example would be you convince Person A to sell you their house. You get that under contract for a price, let's say, $100. And then now you sell that contract to someone else for a higher price than $100. For example, Person B, you sell it to them for $120. So, now you make $20. Another way is you could just buy a distressed property, you can fix it off and then you flip it and you make money because you put the time and effort into remodeling it. Someone who doesn't want to put the time and effort in remodeling it, they will buy it from you. You make money that way.

A third way to make money, which is very illegal but you should watch out for it so it doesn't happen to you, is Ponzi schemes. Ponzi schemes or pyramid schemes are when people make ridiculous promises, they take money from you and then they give it to somebody else. So basically, you borrow from Peter to pay Paul. A lot of people do that, such as Bernie Madoff who has gone to jail. Most recently, Sam Bankman-Fried from FTX had done it with crypto and he's being tried in jail. So, Ponzi schemes or pyramid schemes are a quick way to flip money but watch out so it does not happen to you.

Q&A Comments (44)

Can I learn financial modeling myself?
Well, you can through video and written tutorials, but try to verify the credentials of who's making these materials. The best place for me to learn it was in school, from professors that knew how to do it or textbooks that had information that was checked.
What are other possible ways of finding a job as an investment banker?
You could message hedge funds on LinkedIn. First, look to see who they are investing in and then connect with them regarding the reasons you liked who they invested in. For example, if a hedge fund made a large investment in Tesla 10 years ago, you could send a message saying, “I noticed that you have a big position in Tesla. I really liked the stock because X, Y, Z.” Then you pitch your case that way. That is a nontraditional method.
How do you know when it's safe to invest in a stock?
I think the number one thing is the financial health of a company. The most important thing is to check for revenues increasing on a quarter-by-quarter basis. Another very important thing about a stock is the management team. If you open a stock 10K, which is published once a year, they have an analysis of the management team. You want to read about them to get an idea about where they worked before and their credentials. This helps you understand if they're fit to run a company. You also want to look at valuations. You can check PE ratio and PEG ratio as a good way to compare different companies across the same industry in order to see how undervalued or overvalued they are.
See more comments

Co-authored Articles (106)

A Beginner’s Guide to Candlestick Patterns

Your technical analysis cheat sheet to all types of chart patternsThere are two basic forms of information that traders rely on: fundamental analysis (FA), the study of a company’s financial books and ratios, and techn...

How to

Win at Sports Betting

Betting on sports games is a hobby for many, and most people just consider it to be a fun and friendly past time. But there are ways to consistently make money on sports betting, and the tricks are understanding betting ...

How to

Find Your Bank Account Number

Finding your bank account and routing numbers is easy to do, even if you don't have access to a check. There are several ways you can locate the numbers, including online, and we'll walk you through each one step by step...

11 Ways to Send Money Without Revealing Your Identity

Tips to help you send money anonymously both online and offline There are plenty of reasons you might want to keep your personal details on the down low when you send money. Maybe you want to surprise someone but don’t...

How to Write a $1,000 Check

Fill out any check over $1K with these steps If you need to write a check for $1,000 or more, it’s important to fill it out correctly so there’s no trouble processing it. All you have to do is put the full amount as...

How to

Make Fake Money

Fake money is a great prop for games, educational exercises, and stage performances. However, you must carefully follow all legal rules and regulations when preparing your own play money. Start the process by dying paper...

How to Get in Touch with Bank of America

Reach out to your bank via phone, their website, the post, and moreIf you’re a customer at Bank of America and you need to ask a question, leave feedback, or discuss an issue with your account, there are a number of wa...

How to Recover or Reset Your PIN Number: 3 Easy Ways

Financial literacy expert Andrew Lokenauth explains how to get a new PIN for your cardWhenever you apply for a credit, debit, or banking card, you’re typically assigned a 4- or 6-digit personal identification number (...

How to Tell if a $5 Bill is Real or Counterfeit

Learn how to spot fake cash (and what to about it)Think you found a counterfeit bill? The best way to spot a fake $5 bill is to examine its security features, like the watermark or security thread. The designs and securi...

How to Find Out If Your Old Premium Bonds Are Worth Anything

Track down the quid you deserve with this simple guide Hoping to claim prize money from old premium bonds? You're in luck, because it's super easy to do! Every month, premium bonds are put into a monthly lottery drawing ...

How Rich Will I Be Quiz

You might not be part of the 1% right now, but could you be in the future? Do you have the signature traits of a millionaire…or even a billionaire? Answer these quick questions, and we’ll tell you how rich you (migh...

How to

Find Your Credit Card Account Number

If you have a credit card, you may need to know your account number to pay your bill or to access your information. Luckily, it’s easy to find your account number with or without your credit card on hand.

Your Authoritative Guide to Pricing (& Selling) Used Furniture

Financial literacy expert Andrew Lokenauth explains how to determine a fair price for your used furnitureFinding the perfect price for selling furniture can be difficult. You can't exactly sell at market value, and you d...

How to Check If a 1 Dollar Bill Is Real

An in-depth guide to detecting counterfeit $1 bills One dollar bills generally are not counterfeited because of their low value, so it’s unlikely that you’ll ever encounter one. However, there have been cases of it ...

How to

Detect Counterfeit US Money

If you have a bill in your possession and are unsure of its authenticity, follow these steps to certify the real value of your money. It is illegal to possess, produce, or use counterfeit money; if a prosecutor can prove...

What Is a Birth Certificate Bond?

Learn if you can claim your birth certificate bond (and if they exist)The story goes that back in 1933, the US federal government dropped the gold standard. To prevent bankruptcy, the US sold debt in the form of bonds ba...

A Simple Guide to Depositing a Check on Cash App

Plus, find out how long Cash App takes to deposit a checkDo you want to deposit that physical check while you're on the go? Use Cash App! Cash App allows you to deposit paper checks in just a few quick, easy steps. Keep ...

How to Send Money with Zelle: Quick & Easy Guide

Plus, all your questions about Zelle answeredWant to send money to friends or family and make sure they get it ''fast''? If both your and your recipient's banks support Zelle, you can transfer money from your bank accoun...

4 Reasons Why Venmo Declines Your Prepaid Card + Workarounds

Learn why your prepaid card isn't working with Venmo If you've tried to use a prepaid card on Venmo, you may have run into an error that says your card is declined. This is certainly a frustrating error to encounter, es...

How to Activate an ATM Card From Any Bank

Activate your new ATM card from the comfort of your homeWhether you’re starting a new bank account or your old debit card just expired, it looks like it’s time to activate your new ATM card. This process is super sim...
See more articles