Why does your home insurance keep going up when you’ve never filed a claim? Insurance agent Dan Sardilli joins Derek Mazzarella, CFP® and Kelly Turner to explain homeowners insurance and car insurance in plain English.

We cover how rate increases get decided (spoiler: Dan doesn’t have a knob in his office), what coverages A through F on your homeowners policy mean, replacement cost vs. market value, and why your insurance company can show up to inspect your roof. Kelly explains why your lender collects 14 months of escrow at closing. We also get into engagement ring coverage, car insurance liability limits, and the $45-a-year water backup coverage that paid out when both of Kelly’s sump pumps failed.

Plus: why budget insurance can cost you more when you file a claim, how Derek negotiated an extra $1,000 on his totaled ‘93 Civic, and the small devices that can lower your premium.

The big takeaway: insurance is meant to make you whole. If you snapped your fingers after a claim, you should be right back where you were five minutes before it happened.

Chapters
00:00 Intro: Meet Dan Sardilli
00:52 Why do my insurance rates keep going up?
01:41 How rate increases actually get set
03:11 Do wildfires and storms raise your rate?
03:35 Homeowners insurance coverages A through F
04:51 Loss of use: the coverage nobody knows about
06:09 Market value vs. replacement cost
08:14 Does insurance cover an old roof?
09:15 Roof age requirements and inspections
14:01 Escrow: why your lender collects 14 months
16:38 Paid-in-full receipt vs. paying at closing
18:56 Do you need to insure your engagement ring?
21:47 How much contents coverage do you need?
23:33 Car insurance deductibles and at-fault states
24:51 Liability limits and Kelly’s three-car pileup
28:20 Are car seats covered after an accident?
29:42 Budget vs. premium insurance companies
32:15 Yes, you can negotiate with your insurer
34:47 Why you should keep your receipts
35:52 Kelly’s flooded basement and water backup coverage
38:00 Devices that can lower your premium
40:06 Where to find Dan

Guest: Dan Sardilli, Sardilli Insurance Agency (Southington, CT) | https://www.sardilliagency.com/
Hosts: Derek Mazzarella, CFP® | Kelly Turner, Mortgage Broker (@CTMortgageMom)

Would you sign a lease with someone who won't tell you their credit score?

Derek and Kelly break down the financial red flags to watch for while dating, from the first few dates all the way to buying a house together. It starts with a guy who pretended to be an NFL wide receiver and scammed women out of $1.3 million. (Tip: if someone claims to be on the 49ers, check the depth chart.) Most red flags are less obvious than that.

We cover:

The partner whose lifestyle doesn't match their paycheck
Parent money and trust funds (and the strings that come with them)
Why the $200,000 wedding talk on date three is a red flag
What your partner's parents tell you about how they'll handle money
Why you should look at each other's credit before signing a lease
Splitting rent 50/50 when one of you makes $200K and the other makes $60K
Hidden debt, hidden accounts, and surprises on mortgage applications
Why buying a house before marriage needs a written agreement

The biggest red flag isn't debt or a low credit score. It's someone who's unwilling to have the conversation at all. Our rule of thumb: if you've been dating seriously for six months, it's time to talk money.

Kelly Turner is a licensed mortgage broker. Derek Mazzarella, CFP® is a financial advisor and author of Just Retire Already: An Unconventional Retirement Guide.

If this episode helped, like, subscribe, and send it to the friend who needs it (you know the one).

Chapters

0:00 Intro: The $46 New York strip
1:20 Today's topic: Dating financial red flags
1:45 The fake NFL player who scammed $1.3 million
2:41 When their lifestyle doesn't match their job
6:10 Parent money and trust funds: What are the strings?
7:03 Lifestyle expectations and the $200K wedding
9:24 Won't talk about money? Red flag
11:46 You probably handle money like your parents
14:12 Check your credit before you sign a lease
19:18 Splitting rent 50/50 on unequal incomes
20:50 Financial abuse and hidden money
23:54 Hidden debt and mortgage application surprises
26:58 Buying a house before marriage
29:49 Recap: What to watch for at each stage
32:41 The six-month money conversation
33:34 The "I'll figure it out later" red flag
34:33 Final thoughts

Connect with Us:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/derekmazzarella/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/millennialmoneymatterspodcast/reels/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/people/Millennial-Money-Matters-Podcast/61569837731004/?_rdr


Reach out to Kelly Turner at kturner@totalmortgage.com and Derek Mazzarella at dmazzarella@mygfpartner.com

Your household makes good money. So why is there nothing left at the end of the month?

Kelly kicks things off with a client story (shared with permission) about a mom who said, "When I was your age, I already owned two homes." So we did what any reasonable podcast would do and compared 1989 to 2026. It's not apples to oranges. It's apples to a couch.

We walk through what a typical millennial family in the Northeast spends each month: daycare, two car payments, travel sports, and the $12 DoorDash coffee. Add it all up and it lands around $13,000 a month. That's roughly $156,000 a year in take-home pay.

The good news? You're not alone, and there's plenty you can control. We cover the convenience tax, food spending, the birthday gift card hack, Buy Nothing groups, why your first car probably shouldn't be a BMW, and why none of your friends need to fly to Greece for your bachelorette party.

Nobody is judging your Toyota. Promise.

What's one expense that surprised you when you finally added it up?

Chapters

00:00 Kelly's accidental head coaching gig
03:36 "I make good money, so why am I broke?"
03:49 A client, her mom, and "when I was your age"
05:01 Apples and a couch: comparing generations
06:46 1989 vs. 2026: how family life changed
10:20 Starting life at 30 (with 10 years of debt)
12:54 Where the money goes: the millennial family budget
17:06 Paying for convenience: DoorDash, Uber, and the $12 coffee
22:13 The "little treat" life and why cooking saves money
28:36 Travel sports and the cost of kids' gear
31:01 Birthday parties and the gift card hack
33:31 Babysitters and swapping with friends
35:33 Influencer culture, hand-me-downs, and Buy Nothing groups
40:49 Cars: why under 30 shouldn't mean BMW
42:40 Destination bachelor and bachelorette parties
47:28 Nobody cares what you drive