The Road to Wealth: A Comprehensive Guide to Your Money

by Suze Orman

Suze Orman's #1 bestsellers The 9 Steps to Financial Freedom and The Courage to Be Rich changed the way people think about their money, helping them overcome their emotional roadblocks to financial freedom.

Now, Suze delivers a fully accessible and authoritative resource, loaded with information critical to every stage of readers' financial lives. The Road to Wealth provides readers with practical answers to all the questions they might-or should-have about their financial futures. Sound, straightforward, fiercely honest, and easy-to-understand, Suze's advice gives them the knowledge and power to:

€ Create a strong, debt-free foundation
€ Amass assets and protect them through economic downturns
€ Buy a home to provide for loved ones
€ Invest with confidence and navigate the market in good times and bad
€ Secure reliable income for their later lives

Genres: Finance, Nonfiction, Money, Personal Finance, Business, Self Help, Reference

608 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2001

About the author

Suze Orman (born Susan Lynn Orman) is an American financial advisor, writer, and television personality.

Reviews

[A.J. · Rating 4 out of 5]

I bought this on impulse over a decade ago, in the halcyon days of browsing and buying in brick-and-mortar bookshops. Suze Orman was only a vague name to me; I hadn’t, and still haven’t, ever even heard her voice. After giving the book a few initial glances, it lay very prettily for years, surviving my occasional purges.

Finally reading it was a dry affair, but what began as an expected exercise in skimming and skipping became a cover-to-cover read. As a sort of layman’s general overview textbook of U.S. personal finance, it’s very good. Orman is clear, concise and comprehensive (the subtitle is correct). Years ago I read The Pocket Idiot’s Guide to Investing in Stocks; I’d take Orman’s one chapter on the subject to that entire book.

Caveat - this book’s a bit outdated. I read the 2003 edition but currently there is no edition later than 2008. It stands up well enough though that I plan to get the later edition to keep as reference.

[Rachel Matsuoka · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book made me so angry. Because I really wish I'd read this 10 years ago. Or, honestly, all the information in The Road to Wealth should've been taught to us maybe senior year of high school but WASN'T. Everything in this book is extremely practical and empowering. If dealing with money, taxes, investments, accounts, credit, retirement, and home ownership, stocks, and beyond scares you like it does me, Suze Orman is a fantastic teacher who will help you get a good handle on adulting in this way. Unfortunately it is a little out of date because some laws have changed and inflation and the housing market has gone up, but it for the most part doesn't compromise the bottom line. I feel like I need a diploma after reading this. It was a LOT of new information.

[Bernie4444 · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you knew Suze

You would say this is one of her best books to date. She has broken out of the namby-pamby self-help mode into “The Road to Wealth” Yes she is still a “people first” person but this book concentrates on “Everything You Need to Know in good and Bad Times” There is nothing new in the book or anything that you can not find on your own; however it is well organized and explained. It is good to read what you know with a different angle or spin on the information. And yes, I did learn some new things and have helped with my view. This book is well worth the money even if you have things in control.

Since this book came out, she has also written, “The Laws of Money.” This book is designed around timeless principles so no matter when you buy it, it will be a useful guideline.

[Emily · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book had some good information, but the last chapter was a bit "off the rails," in my opinion. The chapter on annuities was particularly enlightening, as Orman does not recommend them. Even though the information regarding taxation may be changing very soon, this book provides a good primer for familiarizing oneself with all of the financial options available.

[Jessica · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book just didn't have enough new information for me to justify having read it. Maybe it would be beneficial someone who knew absolutely nothing about personal finance, but for anyone with even a modicum of knowledge, this book will be boring.

[Jodi · Rating 3 out of 5]

Less of a help guide to finances and more of a biography through a financial lens. Not what I expected at all, there are better books for those who want financial advice. Best for those who care about people's life stories

[Deenna · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ton of questions, but the answers are a paragraph or less. Better info on blogs

[Jayde Schwerin · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent read!

[Andrea · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very clear, easy to understand advice on basic financial situations. Only downside is that it is very out of date.

[Raven L. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great primer on money management. Not 5 stars but only because I think some of the rules for the more complex situations have changed.

[Jonathan Tucker · Rating 5 out of 5]

What is delivered in this book is a clear explanation and sound, sage advice. If you want to take control of your financial life and make realistic decisions that will help you to thrive, then you will want to read this book. I like the no-nonsense language. The book is easy to understand and the recommendations are easy to implement. Over the years since I first read this book, I have found it to be a good manual of reference.

[Melissa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Suze Orman is widely popular, being on the Today Show, Oprah, CNN, her own radio shows, etc. This is a really good reference book - I think I will be buying one for my own library. This is a large book (597 pages) and covers EVERY aspect of personal money from mortgages, savings, all insurances, stocks/bonds/mutual funds, etc. Very good reference on some tax laws that most people get confused on, and lots of great material for future reference (how to properly set up estates, wills, retirements, etc). Well worth your time in reading and even purchasing the book, even if you only use a part of it.

[Tony Bradshaw · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm two disks down, and I feel instead of a road to wealth that it's a get out of debt question and answer book. Anyone can google and find out all the information that is presented. It's also ironic that I am finding her peppy motivational style of speaking a little annoying when all she is saying is, "APR stands for Annual Percentage Rate....." It's like she's trying to make a phone book sound really interesting. Sadly, it's still a phone book in it's content (so far; hoping it gets better past the half way point so I can stomach the rest)

[Kelly McCloskey-Romero · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love Suze Orman! I think that she is right on with her empowering approach to personal finance. This book provides answers to so many questions that it can be a little overwhelming. It's like listening to hours and hours of her show. I like that format because it brings up scenarios that I don't even have the knowledge to imagine. For reading cover to cover, though, it's a bit daunting and sometimes boring. I liked reading it in small doses, skipping certain sections. Next I'd like to read a narrative book of hers that outlines principles rather than answering questions.

[Danni · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book had everything. It was also written in a language that was fairly easy to understand. It had buying a house, insurance, stocks and bonds, and investments. I don't think this book was meant to be read. I think that it is a reference. I sure learned a lot though. I didn't read all the chapters because some of them didn't apply to my life.

[Lori · Rating 4 out of 5]

After all of the things I've read of hers and about wills already, I felt like I already knew most of what was in the book, but I think it's more direct than her other books and that's what I like. I would suggest it to friends who haven't already done much reading on these topics or if they feel weak on just one topic to skip to that. Even I learned a few things I hadn't already.

[Victoria · Rating 4 out of 5]

I borrowed this from the library, but I think I am going to buy it. Has a wealth of information about personal finance in a digestable format. Good money management basics from making a budget to how to invest. Explanations of how the tools of the market work and how to use them.

[Case · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is great for anyone who has questions about loans, buying a house, getting married, moving in with someone, and a zillion other life decisions. I really enjoyed how open her writing was as she frequently said, "spouse, life partner" and had a section in there for gays.

[Lynn McGuire · Rating 4 out of 5]

Suze covers every topic related your and your families finances. I really enjoyed her section on the stock market - though I'm not investing in it at this time- I'll be ready to go when it shows signs of improvement. Also her section on wills, trusts and probate is excellent!

[Ashley · Rating 3 out of 5]

Found out I knew more about money management than I thought, but learned more. I really like the question-answer set-up, because i could skim and read what I felt was or could be relavent to me. Hoping to start looking into some retirement savings!!

[Heidi · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a reference book: look up your questions like an encyclopedia. It has good information and helped me understand my mortgage process better. I hesitate to buy it, though, because it will quickly become outdated as circumstances and policies change.

[Stefanie Jones · Rating 5 out of 5]

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[Stephanie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good flip through. More of a 'reference' book.

[Renee]

This is a revised edition of the book.

[Heather · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is laid out in question/answer form, so you don't have to read it straight through. It's great to use as a reference guide.

[Faye B · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book that gives you information on all your financial needs. Great to refer back to.

[Bridget]

Have this book

[Jena · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a great book. It sets a real high standard...too high for me...but I great way to look at finances and to help inplanning for the long term plan

[Amy · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book has a lot of good information...however, I found Orman's book for the "young, fabulous, and broke" to be more applicable to the situations of most people in their twenties.

[M · Rating 3 out of 5]

A lot of information - pretty easy to understand.
Did not answer a couple of questions I had & were hoping would be there.