The ‘Small’ Business Administration Is Now Bigger Than Walmart

The ‘Small’ Business Administration Is Now Bigger Than Walmart

Notes From The Field By Simon Black 

March 30, 2020  Bahia Beach, Puerto Rico

As you’ve probably already heard, the US government unleashed a giant tsunami of money on Friday, passing a $2 trillion stimulus bill to help boost the economy during the Covid pandemic.

Let’s put that number in context:

$2 trillion is more than it cost to wage 18+ years of war in Afghanistan and Iraq.

It’s nearly THREE times the size of the bailout from 2008.

It exceeds ALL corporate and individual income tax revenue collected by the IRS last year

We are clearly living in unprecedented times… and this bailout is equally unprecedented.

Among the bailout’s many provisions (which go on for more than EIGHT HUNDRED pages!) is a whopping $350 billion to the Small Businesses Administration.

The Small Business Administration is ordinarily a tiny federal agency. But this funding exceeds the budgets of the Army and Navy COMBINED. It’s 8x the size of the United States Marine Corps. It’s more than the entire market capitalization of Walmart.

You get the idea. The SBA just became one of the biggest organizations in the world.

Now, in normal times, the SBA’s mission is to help startups and small businesses obtain bank loans; it’s usually pretty difficult for a startup to borrow money from a bank loan because the business is too risky, and banks don’t want to lend.

So the SBA’s role is to provide a guarantee for the loan. They’re essentially telling the bank that if the business fails and doesn’t pay back the loan, the federal government (i.e. American taxpayers) will make up some of the difference.

This guarantee doesn’t make a small business loan risk-free for banks-- there are still things that can go wrong. But the guarantee helps reduce the risk.

But typically, in order to receive an SBA guarantee, business owners have to provide their own ‘personal guarantee’ to the government. In other words, if the business owner defaults, the government can seize their assets in order to recover loan losses.

That’s the way SBA loans normally work. But these times are not normal.

According to this new bailout legislation, “no personal guarantee shall be required,” and the government “shall have no recourse against any individual shareholder, member, or partner . . . for nonpayment”.

In other words, the legislation implies that these loans don’t have to be paid back.

Moreover, the law also states that “no collateral shall be required for the covered loan.”

So you don’t even need any assets to qualify. In fact you need barely anything to qualify… except a pulse.

According to the legislation, “any business concern, nonprofit organization, veterans organization, or Tribal business. . . shall be eligible to receive a covered loan” as long as you have fewer than 500 employees.

Honestly the only real requirement is that you have to keep paying your employees. That’s the entire point of the legislation-- lawmakers wanted to provide funds so that small businesses could continue paying workers.

The maximum loan amount is equal to your payroll costs over the last 12 months multiplied by 2.5.

*Payroll costs include salaries, wages, and payments paid to employees and independent contractors, including yourself, up to $100,000 each. It also includes medical insurance payments, retirement benefits, state/local tax, and payments for sick leave, family leave, or vacation.

*Payroll costs do NOT include federal income or unemployment tax withholdings, or compensation for employees based outside of the United States.

So if you had, say, $400,000 of qualifying payroll costs over the past year, your maximum loan amount is $1 million.

And the maximum interest rate (according to the legislation) is just 4%.

If you have a qualifying business and you want to apply for a loan, you can do so here:   https://covid19relief.sba.gov/

Now, I’m sure that plenty of people will use these loans as intended-- to stay in business, continue paying workers, etc. And eventually they’ll do the honorable thing-- pay the loans back, with interest.

But let’s be honest. Countless people are going to completely abuse this. They’ll borrow as much money as they can with absolutely no intention of paying back a single penny.

This means there’s going to be a ton of loan losses.

Remember-- banks are the ones who will be making these loans, using their depositors’ money. YOUR money.

And even with the SBA guarantee, there are still things that can go wrong. If the paperwork was wrong, if the loan wasn’t made in the prescribed way, if the business didn’t actually qualify, etc. the banks can still suffer losses.

(Taxpayers will obviously suffer huge losses as well.)

But despite these risks, the legislation specifically tells banks that “a covered loan shall receive a risk weight of zero percent.”

Translation: banks should count these small business loans as ‘risk free’ even though there’s a strong chance that tons of people will never pay them back.

The legislation also says that banks “shall not be required to comply” with accounting rules that require them to disclose when their loans go bad.

So the government is essentially telling banks to make loans to everyone, with no personal guarantee, no recourse, and no collateral… and to maintain these loans on their books as risk free. And even when these loans default, to continue reporting them as risk-free.

What could possibly go wrong???

It’s clearly a great time to be a borrower. That’s one thing we learn from bailouts—they’re always going to take care of people in debt, and help people go into more debt.

But it’s more concerning to be a depositor.

Even with the SBA guarantee, it’s obvious that banks are riskier than they want you to believe.

To your freedom & prosperity, Simon Black, Founder, SovereignMan.com

https://www.sovereignman.com/trends/the-small-business-administration-is-now-bigger-than-walmart-27604/

How Much Gold and Silver Should People Own?

How Much Gold and Silver Should People Own?

By Len Penzo

Ever since I started writing about the importance of owning physical gold and silver as insurance against the inevitable failure of the US dollar, I’ve been receiving an increasing volume of questions in my inbox from folks curious to know more about precious metals.

With that in mind, here’s one that I received last week from Joshua:

How much gold and silver should a person own? I’m 38, with a wife and three kids. My only debt is a mortgage and a small bank loan. Going by your prep list for a possible financial collapse, I’m well prepared.

My plan is to start buying precious metals mostly as an insurance against dollar devaluation. So how heavily should a middle-class guy be buying precious metals, assuming I have an extra $1000 per month?

There is no single right answer to how much gold and silver we should own, if only because there are so many variables that are dependent on personal circumstances.

Most of the so-called “experts” suggest holding no more than 10% of your net worth — excluding home equity — in precious metals. The biggest problem with that rule of thumb is that it’s virtually meaningless for folks who have a small or negative net worth. I also think it’s a bit too conservative considering the ever-growing risk of a currency failure.

The first step in determining the “right” amount of wealth insurance needed to survive a currency failure is to identify a realistic dollar-price of gold if it were based soley upon the actual currency supply and the amount of gold held by the US Treasury and world central banks. For that, let’s go to macroeconomist Jim Rickards, who deftly explains the calculation this way:

The combined M1 money supply in the world is about $24 trillion. That includes the United States, China, the Eurozone and Japan. Those four entities combine for over 70% of global GDP.

Now, the official gold in the world is about 33,000 tons (107 million troy ounces). That’s not counting private gold, because private gold is not part of the money supply.

Historically, central banks have run successful gold standards with only 20% gold backing; in most of the 20th century, the US had 40% gold backing.

I use the higher number, 40%, because I think a higher number might be needed to restore confidence in event of a collapse. The point is, 40% is a debatable, but reasonable figure.

Now, if you back 40% of the $24 trillion of (currency) supply with the amount of official gold, it implies a gold price around $9000 an ounce. But I predict $10,000.

So How Do I Arrive At $10,000?

That’s because I expect central banks to print a lot more money by the time this issue comes to a head. So, by the time the printing presses stop running around the world, that $9000 number will likely be in the range of $10,000.

The point is, $10,000 an ounce is not pie in the sky. It’s not a number I pulled out of a hat to get headlines. It’s the actual mathematical implied non deflationary price of gold. If you reintroduced a gold standard at a lower price, it would be deflationary. They’d have to reduce the money supply in order to bring it into alignment with the price of gold.

Others believe that confidence will only be restored if the dollar-price of gold is based upon 100% backing — at least for a short period of time — which would result in an equivalent minimum purchasing power of roughly $22,500 in today’s dollars.

Are those numbers a pipe dream? Perhaps, but I think they are close.

That being said, I am confident that both silver and gold are extremely undervalued at today’s prices — especially when you consider the number of dollars currently in circulation and central banks’ sustained and coordinated currency-printing programs known as “quantitative easing.”

So, for my planning purposes, I take Rickards’ conservative approach and assume a post-reset purchasing power equivalent of $10,000 per ounce of gold.

I also conservatively assume that the gold-silver ratio will drop from roughly 80:1 today to 30:1 after the reset. I say “conservatively” because, since 1687 the average ratio has been slightly more than 27:1. If I’m right, and gold climbs to $10,000 per ounce, then the post-reset purchasing power of silver will be equivalent to $333 per ounce.

Based upon those assumptions we can determine how much physical gold and silver we need to get to the other side of a currency reset.

For example, if you want enough insurance to provide the equivalent purchasing power of, say, $100,000 after an economic collapse, then you’ll need to accumulate 10 ounces of gold (10 x $10,000).

On the other hand, five ounces of gold and approximately 150 ounces of silver (5 x $10,000 + 150 x $333) should get you $100,000 worth of insurance too.

See How That Works?

To continue reading, please go to the original article here:

https://lenpenzo.com/blog/id23998-economic-collapse-101-how-much-gold-and-silver-should-people-own-2.html

The Most Important Insurance We Never Buy

The Most Important Insurance We Never Buy

By Len Penzo

It’s ironic, but bankers and fiscally irresponsible governments despise gold and silver. Why? Because precious metals demand accountability, that’s why.

In short, gold-backed currencies force responsible governments to live within their means.

That is precisely why, back in 1971, Richard Nixon was forced to nullify the Bretton Woods agreement, which was signed at the end of World War II, and permanently close the gold window.

As you might expect, Nixon felt he had no choice. The US had been living well beyond its means for more than a decade, printing lots of federal reserve notes to pay for expensive endeavors the country couldn’t truly afford, like the Vietnam War and LBJ’s so-called “War on Poverty.”

That, in turn, led to an increasingly devalued US dollar. So, in order to preserve their wealth, many of the world’s central banks — led by West Germany, France and Switzerland — began redeeming their rapidly depreciating US dollars for the gold stored in Fort Knox; so much so that by the time 1971 rolled around, America had only half the gold reserves it did in 1960.

In fact, it’s been said that the gold outflow was so rapid, if it continued, America’s gold reserves would have been completely consumed within a few more years.

Of course, instead of closing the gold window and abandoning Bretton Woods, the US could have simply scaled back its spending — but that’s what happens when critical financial decisions are left to profligate politicians and their complicit central bankers.

Since abandoning its ties to gold in 1971, America has greatly expanded the size of the federal government, destroying the dollar’s utility as a store of value in the process — so much so that it takes $615 today to buy the same basket of goods and services that $100 would fetch in 1971.

The bad news is, savers, retirees and other folks on fixed incomes depend on their currency to hold its value; and if currencies depreciate too quickly, it leads to lower living standards — for almost everyone.

Over the past decade, the Fed’s printing presses have conjured more than $4 trillion in new money out of thin air — and that doesn’t bode well for the US dollar’s value and continued confidence in its future.

Unlike paper money, precious metals can’t be created out of thin air, and that makes them proven instruments of wealth protection; it’s why some people choose to keep a portion of their savings in gold and silver.

How Secure Are They?

To continue reading, please go to the original article here:

https://lenpenzo.com/blog/id22332-economic-collapse-101-the-most-important-insurance-we-never-buy-2.html

The 50 Biggest Money Mistakes Household CEOs Make

The 50 Biggest Money Mistakes Household CEOs Make

By Len Penzo

I’m not ashamed to admit I make mistakes. After all, everybody screws up occasionally; for us humans, mistakes come with the territory.

For example, I remember the time I decided it would be great fun to play Wii golf for eight consecutive hours. Unfortunately for me, my middle-aged left shoulder vehemently disagreed — after the fact, of course — and so I spent the next week popping acetaminophen tablets like they were M&Ms. I know.

It can be even more costly when we make mistakes managing our personal finances; I know I still make them from time to time.

As this penny illustrates, even the United States Mint occasionally makes money mistakes.

Here are 50 of the biggest financial faux pas household CEOs make. How many of these apply to you?

1. Being impatient. People of modest means should understand two important facts: 1) we cant have it all at once; and 2) saving money takes time — sometimes lots of it.

2. Failing to read contracts before signing on the dotted line.

3. Using payday loans to cover temporary financial shortfalls.

4. Giving your kids everything they desire. It’s hard to get a feel for the value of a dollar when you grow up never wanting for anything.

5. Signing your tax returns without reviewing them — even when they’re done by a tax professional.

6. Buying a new car and selling it after only a few years. Buying new cars is costly because they can lose upwards of half their value by the time they are three years old.

7. Not doing your research before purchasing extended warranties.

8. Going into debt to purchase things that will decrease in value.

9. Maintaining memberships with monthly payments even though you no longer take advantage of them.

10. Using credit card convenience checks that fill your mailbox. You can reduce the temptation by stopping those dubious credit card offers and other annoying junk mail.

11. Failing to track your income and expenses.12. Not saving part of your income for retirement. Try saving at least 10 percent from every paycheck; it’s never too late to start.

13. Keeping cash in a low-interest earning savings account despite carrying a high-interest credit card balance. Use any savings over and above that needed for emergencies — and riding out a potential job loss — to pay off credit card debt.

14. Loaning money to friends and relatives.

15. Taking a loan from your 401(k) retirement fund to pay for current expenses.

To continue reading, please go to the original article here:

https://lenpenzo.com/blog/id13789-the-50-biggest-money-mistakes-household-ceos-make-2.html

How Will The Coronavirus Affect Your Personal Finances?

How Will The Coronavirus Affect Your Personal Finances?

 By J.D. Roth —12 March 2020 (updated 19 March 2020)

How quickly things change.

Last week, the coronavirus (or Covid-19, if you prefer) was a distant problem. It was something other people in other places had to wrestle with. Sure, there was a looming sense that maybe this runaway train was steaming our way, but it still seemed distant enough that maybe it'd stop before it reached us.

Not anymore. Now it's clear that the coronavirus isn't just headed to the U.S., it's already here in our communities.

I'm fascinated by the financial implications of the coronavirus. They're going to be huge — they're already huge — but I don't know who is going to bear the burden or how we, as a society, are going to make sense of this in the long run.

The stock market is tanking, obviously, and will likely continue to tank for some time. But I expect (hope?) that when the dust has settled, things there will largely return to normal.

Yes, I know it's impossible to make predictions about the market's direction. But I believe the current movement is largely due to the coronavirus and its immediate implications.

When this event has receded into the past — in a few months, say — I expect stocks to regain most of what they lost. Not all, but most. (And again: I could be full of shit. Don't make any market moves based on what I personally believe will happen. I'm just a random guy behind a keyboard.)

But outside the stock market, there are a whole host of financial implications. We're entering uncharted territory. I don't know what to expect, and I don't think anyone else does either.

Here are some of my questions.

What Happens When Events Are Cancelled?

Many places — including here in Oregon — are banning large gatherings.

What happens to gatherings that have already been scheduled? I expect some events (such as the Portland Timbers match on March 28th) will be postponed. This should have a minimal financial impact on all parties. It simply shifts all of the money-related stuff to a later date.

This has been one of the toughest articles I've ever written. As I'm sitting at my desk composing it, new updates to the situation are occurring. Just now, for instance, Major League Soccer announced that it's suspending the season for thirty days. Rather than re-write as news hits, I'm going to leave the article as it was in the moment I wrote it.

Other events, though, will have to be cancelled. What happens then?

For instance, Kim and I have tickets to see an April performance of The Illusionists at Portland's Keller Auditorium. This event falls inside the 28-day ban on large gatherings in this state. I highly doubt this event well be re-scheduled. I expect it to be cancelled.

So, what happens when this event is cancelled?

Under normal circumstances — if the event were cancelled for any other reason — I'd expect to receive a refund for the ticket price. But what about now? Will ticket holders still receive refunds? Or will the production company say, “Sorry. This is beyond our control. You're out of luck.” I can see that happening. And I'm not sure I'd complain.

What about St. Patrick's Day? I consider this kind of a silly holiday, but it's a Big Deal to a lot of people.

Perhaps because it occurs in early spring, St. Patrick's Day fosters events with large crowds. Here in Portland, that means the Shamrock Run, in which 30,000+ people gather in the cold and the rain to run through downtown. That's been postponed. And Savannah, Georgia, home to the second-largest St. Patrick's Day parade in the country, just cancelled the event.

To continue reading, please go to the original article here:

https://www.getrichslowly.org/coronavirus/

What’s the Best Way to Give a Financial Gift?

 What’s the Best Way to Give a Financial Gift?

By Anum Yoon

When it comes to gifts, we all know it's the thought that counts -- which is why there are certain self-described gift-giving mentors who don't encourage financial gifts. Of course, those same folks have probably been on the receiving end of monetary ... ifts and were ecstatic.

As with all things in life, there’s a right way to give a financial gift, and a lot of that has to do with the recipient and their age. Here are some things to consider for the next time you reach into your wallet for a gift:

Gift a 529 Account

Parents of newborns have a lot on their minds. They might not be thinking about that kid’s college education just yet at least, until they master the art of the diaper change!

 As a supportive friend or family member, you can help get them started on that looming tuition bill by providing them with information about a 529 college savings plan. Once they’ve set up that account, you can then be the first contributor.

All you need is the account number to make a transfer. This is actually one of those financial gifts you can keep coming back to every year. By the time the little one is ready for college, they could have a very decent nest egg.

Give Cash to Young Ones

Cash in an envelope is such a wonderful surprise. That’s true at any age, but it works especially well for younger recipients. It’s a great way to start teaching kids the value of money. They’ll be faced with an immediate choice: spend or save. If they have their eye on a special gizmo, then saving will be the only way to go. That cash also helps with math skills, as it assigns numeric values they can see.

To continue reading, please go to the original article here:

https://lenpenzo.com/blog/id40674-whats-the-best-way-to-give-a-financial-gift-2.html

Economic Collapse 101: Ten Ways to Prepare for the Unknown

Economic Collapse 101: Ten Ways to Prepare for the Unknown

By Len Penzo

Economic Collapse 101: Ten Ways to Prepare for the Unknown

By Len Penzo

Most folks are really good about making sure they have the proper amount of insurance for their home and automobiles. But when it comes to ensuring the survival of their family in rough economic times, well … not so much.

It’s no secret that recent volatility in the world financial system has more than a few people openly talking about the threat of an economic collapse — and I’ve been explaining for several years now why I believe an economic collapse is inevitable.

If history is any guide, the good news is that it won’t result in a complete breakdown of society. Argentina has suffered through multiple collapses of its own economy through the years and life goes on — but it remains less than idyllic there.

Nobody can say exactly how the collapse of the “almighty” US dollar will unfold, but you can bet that most people will be unprepared if and when it happens. If we’re lucky, it will happen one weekend after the-powers-that-be announce a bank holiday followed by a complete fully-controlled system reset that results in significantly lower standards of living for everyone.

If not, collapse will be much more chaotic …

The worst part of any such chaotic, unplanned, economic collapse occurs in the first few weeks after the initial event that precipitates the crisis. It could be an extremely volatile and scary time — especially in major metropolitan areas — as people caught unprepared end up roaming far and wide, searching for the most basic of necessities, and doing whatever they must to ensure their survival until a new currency is eventually established that helps repair the broken supply chains.

Until that occurs, however, most people will have to rely on the black market for almost everything, but life will go on, and goods and services will continue to be traded — just far less efficiently than before.

How long will it take for things to get back to a relative state of normalcy? That’s anybody’s guess, but I’ve been preparing under the following assumptions:

A collapse of the US dollar will not — repeat, WILL NOT — result in a Mad Max end-of-the-world scenario

Supermarket shelves will remain empty for six months

With that in mind, here’s how you should consider preparing for a collapse — in order of descending importance:

Water. If you’re dependent on your local municipality for water, what will you do if a lack of spare parts shuts down the water system for a week or two? If the situation is dire, you can get by on about one quart of water per day.

However, ideally you should prepare to have at least one gallon per person per day for at least two weeks, preferably four. You should also purchase a heavy duty filter to purify additional water. Top-of-the-line water filters that will purify up to 13,000 gallons cost roughly $250.

Food. In the opening days and weeks of the crisis, the last place you’ll want to be is anywhere near a supermarket, fighting clueless hooligans or hoards of looters and panicked people. Some of the cheapest food available on a cost per calorie basis is white rice.

And while canned food is preferable to dry, dehydrated, and freeze-dried vittles because it’s ready to eat and doesn’t require other valuable resources to prepare such as heat and water, it’s also much more expensive. That being said, while there may be occasional utility disruptions due to a lack of spare parts, I don’t expect catastrophic failures.

You should have at least a six-month supply of food on hand. Remember: Even if the food shortages fail to manifest themselves or are quickly extinguished, the food you store will come in handy if you find yourself unemployed and unable to afford, say, $30 for a loaf of bread.

Warmth.  Although I live in a warm weather climate, I realize many people don’t. If you live in an area with extremely cold winters, make sure you have a sufficient supply of wood or heating oil on hand.

Medications.  If you need prescription medications, make sure you have enough to get you through until the supply chains are restored. Make sure you always have an extra bottle or two of aspirin, cold medicine and vitamins. You should also have a decent first-aid kit and, if at all possible, a supply of antibiotics on hand.

To continue reading, please go to the original article here:

https://lenpenzo.com/blog/id18329-economic-collapse-101-ten-ways-to-prepare-for-the-unknown-2.html

The 13 Most Important Items To Keep in a Fireproof Safe

The 13 Most Important Items Everyone Should Keep in a Fireproof Safe

By Len Penzo

For some people, it’s tough letting go. Of anything.

Take my wife, for instance; she saves everything.

The other day the Honeybee showed me her baseball ticket from our very first date way back on September 24, 1995.

And if I ever feel oddly compelled to scrutinize the birthday card I received from my mother-in-law in 1998, I can rest easy knowing that the Honeybee has it dutifully stored upstairs in our bedroom closet.

What’s that? You say you’re looking for the operating instructions to a vintage Easy Bake oven, circa 1986? If I’m not mistaken, they’re in our closet too, not far from the rest of those 643 old birthday, Christmas, Easter, and Mother’s Day cards she’s been saving that nobody will ever look at again.

Protecting the Important Stuff

I’m a bit more judicious than the Honeybee when it comes to saving things — and I use a fireproof safe for the most important stuff.

Of course, no strongbox can hold everything — and so that demands a bit of discretion when deciding what to put in them. Here are some of the more important things you should consider protecting:

Birth certificates. Your birth certificate is proof that you are a citizen of the country you live in. Lose it, and you’ll have a difficult time getting a passport, or landing a job that requires proof of citizenship.

Property titles. Yes, home deeds and car titles are replaceable, but why go through the hassle if you don’t have to?

Insurance policies. Home, life and auto insurance policies are a key part of any financial back-up plan. If your house burns down or has been burgled, the first thing you’ll want to get your hands on is a copy of your home insurance policy and your agent’s phone number.

House photos. Speaking of insurance, photos of the interior and exterior of your home are invaluable for reporting losses due to fire or theft to your insurance company. If possible, keep them on electronic storage media like a thumb drive or CD.

Safe deposit box keys. Not having access to your safety deposit box during an emergency is not only inconvenient, it can be costly, as the boxes will have to be forced open and replaced at your expense.

Social security cards. Your social security number is required to get a job, collect social security benefits and receive certain other government services. That’s why the US Social Security Administration strongly advises people to not carry the cards on their person.

Passports. Getting a new passport on short notice, while not impossible, is still a tough order. Even expedited passports can take as long three weeks to process.

To continue reading, please go to the original article here:

https://lenpenzo.com/blog/id6051-what-to-keep-in-your-fireproof-safe-2.html

If You Think It’s Too Late, Think Again. There’s Still Time

If You Think It’s Too Late, Think Again. There’s Still Time

Notes From The Field By Simon Black 

March 23, 2020  Bali, Indonesia

[Editor’s note: This letter was written by Tim Staermose, Sovereign Man’s Chief Investment Strategist and Editor of the 4th Pillar newsletter.]

I’m writing from my remote rural villa in Southern Bali. I made a mad dash to get back here from Hong Kong before the borders effectively shut to visitors, and airlines cancelled virtually all flights.

Nearly a quarter of a million tourists and other temporary visitors have left Bali in February and March, and no one has come in to replace them.

Up to 80% of the island’s economy relies directly or indirectly on the tourist trade. So, it’s going to be very hard for most people here to make ends meet for as long this coronavirus pandemic, and the extreme government measures instituted to try and deal with it, last.

My family and I are fine, and we are well prepared to ride this sort of thing out. But I do fear a break down in law and order if the shutdown goes on for months.

Mentally, I was prepared for this sort of event. I had a plan to deal with it. And I am in a position of relative strength. Though, the scale and speed of the complete meltdown of the world economy and financial system has surprised even me.

It’s like a giant rolling earthquake striking one country after another, pushing health systems to the brink and wrecking the economy.

Amazingly enough, there are still countless people in the world who are not taking this seriously and are cluelessly going on about their lives as if there won’t be any consequences.

They’re like ostriches with their heads stuck so far down in the sand they can’t see what’s right in front of them.

As a Sovereign Man reader, I know you’re different. You’ve hopefully already made preparations with things like cash and gold, and have also taken the opportunity to sell marketable investments prior to the crash, just as we have been writing about.

If you haven’t, there are still things you can do.

When I was in Hong Kong briefly last week, I was very surprised to find that I was still able to buy physical gold at the bank, and at only a minor mark-up above the spot price. (I often buy gold coins at Wing Hang Bank on Queens Rd Central).

While people have been stripping the shelves bare of toilet paper and instant noodles, they have apparently not been buying gold. Yet.

But as Simon will no doubt be discussing later this week, we predict that precious metals are going to very valuable as this crisis continues to play out.

The economic effects alone will be devastating. Central banks will have to print trillions of dollars, euros, etc. to bail out EVERYTHING, from big airlines to small businesses.

And that bonanza of paper money will have a big impact on gold and silver prices.

Moreover, in a crisis, it makes sense to have at least a portion of your precious metals holdings in a place that’s readily accessible to you… for example, in a safe at home.

(That’s also a great place to store some physical cash, which makes sense to own in case the banks start having problems too.)

So, if you haven’t done these things yet, you’re not too late.

My take is that we’re still early in this crisis. And as the old saying goes, the wise man does in the beginning what the fool does in the end.

To your freedom & prosperity, Simon Black, Founder, SovereignMan.com

https://www.sovereignman.com/trends/if-you-think-its-too-late-think-again-theres-still-time-27572/

What to Do if the Coronavirus Outbreak Is Affecting Your Finances

What to Do if the Coronavirus Outbreak Is Affecting Your Finances

Lisa Rowan   3/12/20

All jokes about Netflix and social distancing aside, the coronavirus outbreak is causing financial uncertainty for a lot of people. From workers who rely on tips to events staffers for now-canceled festivals and trade shows, there are plenty of scenarios where the income you can typically count on may not come through.

If you’re lucky, it’s a minor inconvenience. But if it’s causing you greater stress than just having to tighten your purse strings for a few weeks, there are resources you can turn to for help.

If you can’t work

The U.S. Department of Labor has granted states the ability to change their laws so people can get unemployment benefits during the pandemic.

People who can’t go to work because of precautions around the coronavirus and those who are temporarily quarantined can apply for unemployment benefits. If you have to leave your job completely due to risk of exposure or because you need to care for a family member, you’re also eligible to apply for benefits.

Go to your state’s unemployment application site for specific details. If you visit Benefits.gov, you’ll be able to see a directory of every state’s unemployment insurance program website along with quick information like phone numbers and application URLs.

If you’re hungry or can’t afford food

If you need immediate access to food, call the USDA National Hunger Hotline at 1-866-3-HUNGRY (1-866-348-6479) or 1-877-8-HAMBRE (1-877-842-6273). The hotline can provide info in English and Spanish and is open from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. Eastern time.

To apply for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), contact your state’s SNAP office. You can find your nearest office via this directory..

If you don’t feel well

Congress is working on passing a bill that would cover the cost of coronavirus testing for everyone, regardless of healthcare plan, including doctor and ER visits. People on high-deductible plans would be able to access the test and related care without meeting their deductible, and people without insurance would be able to get tested for free.

But don’t wait for Congress to act if you don’t feel well. If you experience symptoms of the coronavirus, call a local walk-in clinic to talk through the next steps for your situation. If your town has a free clinic, they may also be able to direct you by phone. And of course, if you’re having a medical emergency, call 911.

If you can’t pay your bills

To continue reading, please go to the original article here:

https://twocents.lifehacker.com/what-to-do-if-the-coronavirus-outbreak-is-affecting-you-1842297383  

Majority of Americans Have Cried Over Money

Majority of Americans Have Cried Over Money, Study Says

Dhara Singh Reporter  Yahoo Money October 21, 2019

 Pass along the tissues, because Americans aren’t afraid of letting the tears roll when it comes to finances.

Seven in 10 Americans said they have cried about money in their lifetimes, according to a recent online survey of 1,004 Americans by Compare Cards.com. Many cited worries over their job or making ends meet.

And household debt, which peaked at $13.86 trillion in the second quarter, weighed the heaviest on Americans. Almost a third admitted to crying over this looming concern, according to the survey.

“So many people’s financial margin for error is so slim that an unexpected car repair can be a real hardship,” Matt Schulz said. “Then, if you factor in things like job loss or a medical emergency, that can make things even worse.”

Which debt hurts most?

Credit card debt evoked the second-most tears. One in 5 Americans said credit card debt – which increased $18 trillion since the 2008 – has made them cry.

Student loan debt – which hit a $1.48 trillion in the second quarter – followed, with 13% of Americans naming it as a top stressor.

Students wearing academic regalia attend their graduation ceremony at the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA), June 14, 2019 in Los Angeles California. - With 45 million borrowers owing $1.5 trillion, the student debt crisis in the United States has exploded in recent years and has become a key electoral issue in the run-up to the 2020 presidential elections.

"Somebody who graduates from a public university this year is expected to have over $35,000 in student loan debt on average," said Cody Hounanian, program director of Student Debt Crisis, a California NGO that assists students and is fighting for reforms. (Photo by Robyn Beck / AFP) (Photo credit should read ROBYN BECK/AFP/Getty Images)

Melanie Lockert, founder of the blog deardebt.com, is familiar with that student loan stress. After graduating with a master’s degree from New York University, she was $81,000 in the hole. Even after she shrunk the debt to $68,000, she still couldn’t look at the remaining huge balance.

“I deleted my Mint.com [account], because I was completely in denial paying off debt,” said Lockert, who is now debt-free. But “denial always catches up to you.”

Who’s the most emotional?

To continue reading, please go to the original article here:

https://money.yahoo.com/cried-over-money-182455308.html