Here, I’ll say it: I would be willing to pay more taxes. Surprised? Well, there’s a catch. I’ll be willing to pay more taxes if it was combined with reduced government SPENDING to help eliminate federal debt. That’s a small ‘catch’ for ordinary Americans balancing their own checkbooks, but a seemingly impossible catch for politicians. I’m honestly amazed at the amount of taxes the Democrats … Continue reading Tax Increases
Our FIRE friend, PhysiciansOnFire.com, hosts a Facebook group called ‘FatFIRE’. It’s a place for folks living comfortably, financially independent & retired early (or aspiring to be) can discuss different personal finance topics. It’s a remarkable group with over 18K subscribers. A few days ago, someone posted an interesting question: “What % of your assets are in cryptocurrencies?” (Excluding real estate). I’ve had a long-running interest … Continue reading How Much Are People Betting On Cryptos?
In investing, it is often better to be lucky than right. I was very lucky with some predictions that I made this exact week last year and doubly lucky that the market didn’t behave the way I thought it would! Simply put, I predicted that Biden would win the Presidency, that there was a good chance the Democrats would take Congress, and they would work … Continue reading Great Timing (Accidentally)
I went to buy a Coke at a convenience store this week and the clerk accidentally said “good morning” when it was already pushing 1pm. When she realized her mistake, she happily said, “I guess time is going by fast … which is good for me!” Such is the nature of selling your time to your employer (or your clients). Time going by fast should … Continue reading Don’t Wish Your Time Away
That’s a picture of the pool house in our neighborhood. Our development is a great place for raising kids, although we are out of that business now. Other people our age are starting to move to smaller places. Sometimes we feel like we should downsize too, but I don’t think the benefits play out very well for us in today’s housing market. We’ve looked around. … Continue reading No Benefit To Downsize
For someone that writes a personal finance blog and loves driving, you would think I would be more attuned to gasoline prices than I am. My wife can always tell you what the current gas prices are, but I seldom even notice how much I’ve paid to fill the tank. If you also haven’t been paying attention, gas prices are up almost a full dollar … Continue reading Concerned About Gas Prices Yet?
I am so old, I can remember the day that Dow Jones Industrial Average permanently broke the milestone value of 1,000. It was in December 1982 – when I was still in high school. I was enough of a business & investing geek even then to recall reading about it in the newspaper. Now, with the DJIA pushing almost 35x that landmark, I’m astounded to … Continue reading Stock Market Volatility
Anyone that has tried to make a major purchase recently – a home, remodel, new vehicle, or electronic purchase – knows how tight supply is for everything after the pandemic. At the same time, investors are wringing their hands over rising inflation. With that in mind, I was surprised to see this JP Morgan chart on the US personal savings rate. People are doing a … Continue reading Sudden Savings Surprise
Thinking about retirement? Friends of mine are. I enjoyed a frosty refreshment with an old friend recently and he said, “I never thought about retirement until you retired. Since then, I think about it almost every single day”. Another friend recently called and commented, “we haven’t talked in a while, but I have to tell you – your early retirement is never far from my … Continue reading Very Visible Early Retiree
I’m am more than a little perplexed at how the media reports on early retirees. Most articles do their best to talk people OUT of saving up to be financially independent and enjoy the rest of their life in retirement. This article from AARP is no exception. You would think that an organization seeking to represent people in retirement (politically and otherwise) would be a … Continue reading WTF AARP?
