Some Common Sense Advice From Two Billionaires
.Some Common Sense Advice From Two Billionaires
Notes From The Field By Simon Black December 13, 2021
Elon Musk didn’t have a care in the world last week as he hilariously mocked questions in a live interview with the Wall Street Journal.
The Journal’s reporter had essentially prepared a number of softball questions designed for Elon to praise the US government’s new ‘Build Back Better’ bill.
If you haven’t heard, the legislation contains a number of provisions which should greatly benefit Tesla, including major subsidies to build electric vehicle charging stations across the US.
But Elon had no interest in the puff piece.
Some Common Sense Advice From Two Billionaires
Notes From The Field By Simon Black December 13, 2021
Elon Musk didn’t have a care in the world last week as he hilariously mocked questions in a live interview with the Wall Street Journal.
The Journal’s reporter had essentially prepared a number of softball questions designed for Elon to praise the US government’s new ‘Build Back Better’ bill.
If you haven’t heard, the legislation contains a number of provisions which should greatly benefit Tesla, including major subsidies to build electric vehicle charging stations across the US.
But Elon had no interest in the puff piece.
“Unnecessary,” he interjected when the reporter started to ask what he thought of the subsidies.
“Do we need support for gas stations? We don’t. So there’s no need for support for a charging network. I’d delete it. Delete.”
This left the reporter flummoxed... how could Elon possibly not be excited about “free” government money that would support his business?
But Elon’s point seemed completely lost on her.
“Seriously we shouldn’t pass it,” Elon continued, almost exasperated.
“If we don’t cut government spending, something really bad is going to happen. This is crazy. Our spending is so far in excess of revenue its insane. You could zero out all billionaires in the country... you still wouldn’t solve the deficit.”
So the reporter said, well, let’s change the subject.
Elon then sounded-off on issues like the rise of China and corresponding decline of the US. He also called declining birth rates “one of the biggest risks to civilization.”
Now, Elon Musk is a famously eccentric character.
But another more ‘traditional’ billionaire is also on board with this ethos.
Ray Dalio founded and runs the largest hedge fund in the world, Bridgewater Associates.
He has been very vocal over the past several years about the pathetic state of US government finances, and obvious shift of wealth and power away from the US.
For example, last year he published an article which asks, why in the world would you own bonds?
Dalio points out that, buying US Treasury bonds (which is tantamount to loaning money to the federal government) USED TO BE a good investment, back when America was actually creditworthy.
But now when you buy bonds, you’re loaning money to the largest debtor that has ever existed in the history of the world... and in exchange you are receiving return that is well below the rate of inflation.
Dalio points out that people still value US government bonds because of “the ‘exorbitant privilege’ the US has had being the world’s leading reserve currency, which has allowed the US to overborrow for decades.”
But there are signs of the changing global wealth and power dynamic, as international investors are starting to shift to Chinese bonds.
That’s a major theme in Dalio’s new book, Principles for Dealing with the Changing World Order: Why Nations Succeed and Fail.
Dalio has made it his life’s work to understand debt and political cycles, in order to foresee risks that others miss, and better serve his clients.
He makes a lot of the same assertions that Elon makes; for example, Dalio explains that economies, governments, and civilizations move in cycles. And in simple terms, there are good parts of the cycle, and there are bad parts.
The good part of the cycle is characterized by peace, prosperity, and production. The bad part includes recession, depression, inflation, social conflict, and war.
If you think about US history, we can see that the 1920s were a ‘good’ part of the cycle. The 1930s and 1940s were bad— the Great Depression, World War II, etc.
Then the 1950s and early 1960s were good again. The late 1960s through the early 1980s were bad, marked by extreme social turmoil, geopolitical conflict, and stagflation.
The mid 1990s through the mid 2010s were generally quite good, especially from an economic perspective.
Now we seem to be in transition once again to a bad part of the cycle— social conflict, inflation, geopolitical tensions, and more.
Dalio’s book, which I highly recommend reading, lays out a very clear case of what is happening right now, and why.
His ideas are quite similar to much of what we have been writing about for so long here at Sovereign Man.
And Dalio has suggested some of the same solutions that we’ve discussed in these pages.
First, education is critical: it’s imperative to understand how these cycles work in order to be prepared for what’s coming.
Mindset is also key: There’s no reason to panic. The world is not coming to an end. But it IS changing. Rapidly.
Dalio writes that the transition from the good part of the cycle to the bad part are rarely smooth or peaceful. And they often coincide with a shift of wealth and power.
And the United States, while still strong, is clearly losing its wealth and power thanks to its historical debt, massive deficits, an utter embarrassment in Afghanistan, the rise of Marxism, ridiculous ‘woke’ national priorities, etc.
For these reasons, it makes sense to take rational steps to mitigate these long-term risks.
Investors frequently diversify their portfolios to reduce risk; they spread their assets around different companies, different sectors, and even different asset classes, in order to ensure that they’re not over-exposed to a single set of risks.
Similarly, our approach at Sovereign Man is to diversify your geographic/country risk as well.
Give serious thought to the long-term risks where you live. Will your home country experience social conflict, inflation, capital controls, or war?
The good news is that not all countries are going through the same part of their cycles. By taking a global view, you can avoid the worst of the economic shifts that Elon Musk and Ray Dalio are talking about... and what we’ve been writing about for years at Sovereign Man.
This could mean securing foreign citizenship or residency, to ensure you always have another place to go, just in case you ever need the option.
It could mean using alternative assets like crypto or precious metals as a hedge against inflation. Or investing internationally to reduce exposure to your home currency.
The key idea is— don’t put all of your eggs in one basket... especially when that basket is the largest debtor in world history that’s blindly racing as fast as it can into a fiscal abyss.
To your freedom, Simon Black, Founder, SovereignMan.com
https://www.sovereignman.com/trends/some-common-sense-advice-from-two-billionaires-34097/
How to Avoid the Gift Tax
.How to Avoid the Gift Tax
Eric Reed Thu, December 9, 2021,
The gift tax is a tax levied on any unilateral transfer (a gift) from one person to another. This applies to any kind of taxable assets, including cash, securities and real estate. When the gift tax applies, it is the donor who pays, meaning that if you give a taxable gift you owe any applicable taxes. If you receive a gift, it is rare, if ever, that you owe taxes. It is exceedingly rare for someone to owe money due to the gift tax.
This tends to apply only to the wealthiest of households due to the tax’s high exclusions. This is because the purpose of the gift tax is to prevent wealthy families from avoiding the estate tax by simply gifting all their money to each new set of heirs. Here’s what you need to know.
How to Avoid the Gift Tax
Eric Reed Thu, December 9, 2021,
The gift tax is a tax levied on any unilateral transfer (a gift) from one person to another. This applies to any kind of taxable assets, including cash, securities and real estate. When the gift tax applies, it is the donor who pays, meaning that if you give a taxable gift you owe any applicable taxes. If you receive a gift, it is rare, if ever, that you owe taxes. It is exceedingly rare for someone to owe money due to the gift tax.
This tends to apply only to the wealthiest of households due to the tax’s high exclusions. This is because the purpose of the gift tax is to prevent wealthy families from avoiding the estate tax by simply gifting all their money to each new set of heirs. Here’s what you need to know.
Consider working with a financial advisor as you seek ways to transfer wealth to family members or loved ones.
What Is the Gift Tax?
Per the IRS, this is a tax levied on “[a]ny transfer to an individual, either directly or indirectly, where full consideration (measured in money or money’s worth) is not received in return.” If you give something of value and get less than it is worth in return, it is considered a gift and may be taxable under this law.
Importantly, this applies if you give something of value and get a nominal amount in return. (In law this is called a “de minimis” transaction.) For example, say you want to give your children the family house. Instead of giving it outright you sell it to them for $100. You do this because ordinarily a property sale doesn’t trigger the gift tax. From a legal standpoint the parties have exchanged assets so the only relevant tax would be on any capital gains.
However, in this case the sale price had no bearing on the fair market value of the property (otherwise known as “full consideration”). As a result you would owe taxes on the difference between the house’s sale price ($100) and its fair market value. Structuring this sale specifically to avoid the gift tax would be a form of felony tax fraud.
This is a particularly common type of tax evasion among family businesses and within closely held real estate companies.
To continue reading, please go to the original article here:
9 Secrets of Self-Made Millionaires: What You Need to Know
.9 Secrets of Self-Made Millionaires: What You Need to Know
Written by Connor Brown November 14, 2021
Approximately 12 million American households have a net worth of at least $1 million. Of these, 80%+ are self-made. It stands to reason then that those self-made millionaires know something about wealth creation. Today, I am sharing nine secrets of self-made millionaires to help you develop the financial habits you need to know to become financially successful as well.
1. Millionaires Think Differently
While many would have you believe large salaries and fancy degrees drive that millionaire status, that could not be further from the truth. No, instead, millionaire status is the result of discipline and thinking differently over decades.
9 Secrets of Self-Made Millionaires: What You Need to Know
Written by Connor Brown November 14, 2021
Approximately 12 million American households have a net worth of at least $1 million. Of these, 80%+ are self-made. It stands to reason then that those self-made millionaires know something about wealth creation. Today, I am sharing nine secrets of self-made millionaires to help you develop the financial habits you need to know to become financially successful as well.
1. Millionaires Think Differently
While many would have you believe large salaries and fancy degrees drive that millionaire status, that could not be further from the truth. No, instead, millionaire status is the result of discipline and thinking differently over decades.
Millionaires set clear visions for where they want to go, and then they put plans in place to help them get there.
When Elon Musk started Tesla, his vision wasn’t to become a billionaire many times over. No, his vision was to accelerate the world’s transition to the use of sustainable energy. Tesla has become little more than a side effect of that vision.
You, too, can set a clear vision for the things you want in your life. As it relates to money, that vision is usually about what you want money to provide. For example, you may want to experience grand vacations, or you may want to quit working for money earlier in life. These are the visions. Once you understand what you’re aiming for, you can put plans in place to get there.
2. They Set Clear Financial Goals
What’s the difference between a wish and a goal? A wish is something you want, while a goal is something with a concrete plan in place to achieve a want.
In this respect, millionaires work differently. They set actionable goals and put specific plans in place to get there. For example, the average millionaire spends six hours a week exercising. Is this because they love exercising? Probably not. But they know they must put in the work to achieve what they want (health, in this case).
You, too, can adopt this millionaire habit. With your finances, for example, it makes sense to plan far into the future. Once you do, you can take concrete actions in the near term to meet your long-term goals.
As you plan your financial goals, get clear on what you need vs. what you want and what you spend vs. what you earn. These simple steps will set you up to achieve your long-term financial vision.
3. Millionaires Track Their Spending
To continue reading, please go to the original article here:
https://afterschoolfinance.com/secrets-of-self-made-millionaires/
15 Mortgage Questions To Ask Your Lender
.15 Mortgage Questions To Ask Your Lender
By Karen Doyle Oct 28, 2021
Asking the right questions could save you money on a home.
Buying a house is exciting — but it’s also a big decision. Whether you’re looking for a new home or refinancing your current one, choosing the right mortgage is one of the most important aspects of the process, so it helps to be prepared. To ensure you get all the information you need as you’re making decisions when buying or refinancing a home, you need to know the right questions to ask.
Here are 15 questions to ask a mortgage lender, which will help you learn how you can save money when buying a home.
15 Mortgage Questions To Ask Your Lender
By Karen Doyle Oct 28, 2021
Asking the right questions could save you money on a home.
Buying a house is exciting — but it’s also a big decision. Whether you’re looking for a new home or refinancing your current one, choosing the right mortgage is one of the most important aspects of the process, so it helps to be prepared. To ensure you get all the information you need as you’re making decisions when buying or refinancing a home, you need to know the right questions to ask.
Here are 15 questions to ask a mortgage lender, which will help you learn how you can save money when buying a home.
1. How Much House Can I Afford?
Before you can buy a house, you need a realistic idea of how much you can afford to spend on a house, as well as how big of a mortgage you can get. To do this, you should meet with mortgage lenders before real estate agents. You can get pre-qualified for a mortgage, meaning you’ll know exactly how much money you can borrow and therefore spend on a home.
By getting pre-qualified, you’ll be better prepared for the homebuying process and appear more appealing to sellers. Because this is one of the most important mortgage loan questions, make sure you ask it based on the amount of monthly payments you know you can handle. Before you go to a lender, analyze your budget and determine the amount you’re comfortable with, as well as how much money you’ll be able to put down.
A rule of thumb is to spend 25% or less of your net income on your mortgage. That means if you make $100,000 a year and you pay $20,000 in taxes, your net income is $80,000 and you should spend $20,000 on your mortgage annually. That amount works out to a monthly payment of $1,666.
2. What Kind of Loan Should I Get?
Among questions for mortgage lenders, this one is important. The two basic types of mortgages are fixed and variable rate. A fixed rate has the same interest rate for the term of the loan, which might be 15, 30 or even 40 years. With a fixed-rate mortgage, your payments remain the same for the life of the loan.
To continue reading, please go to the original article here:
15 Mortgage Questions To Ask Your Lender
.15 Mortgage Questions To Ask Your Lender
By Karen Doyle Oct 28, 2021
Asking the right questions could save you money on a home.
Buying a house is exciting — but it’s also a big decision. Whether you’re looking for a new home or refinancing your current one, choosing the right mortgage is one of the most important aspects of the process, so it helps to be prepared. To ensure you get all the information you need as you’re making decisions when buying or refinancing a home, you need to know the right questions to ask.
Here are 15 questions to ask a mortgage lender, which will help you learn how you can save money when buying a home.
15 Mortgage Questions To Ask Your Lender
By Karen Doyle Oct 28, 2021
Asking the right questions could save you money on a home.
Buying a house is exciting — but it’s also a big decision. Whether you’re looking for a new home or refinancing your current one, choosing the right mortgage is one of the most important aspects of the process, so it helps to be prepared. To ensure you get all the information you need as you’re making decisions when buying or refinancing a home, you need to know the right questions to ask.
Here are 15 questions to ask a mortgage lender, which will help you learn how you can save money when buying a home.
1. How Much House Can I Afford?
Before you can buy a house, you need a realistic idea of how much you can afford to spend on a house, as well as how big of a mortgage you can get. To do this, you should meet with mortgage lenders before real estate agents. You can get pre-qualified for a mortgage, meaning you’ll know exactly how much money you can borrow and therefore spend on a home.
By getting pre-qualified, you’ll be better prepared for the homebuying process and appear more appealing to sellers. Because this is one of the most important mortgage loan questions, make sure you ask it based on the amount of monthly payments you know you can handle. Before you go to a lender, analyze your budget and determine the amount you’re comfortable with, as well as how much money you’ll be able to put down.
A rule of thumb is to spend 25% or less of your net income on your mortgage. That means if you make $100,000 a year and you pay $20,000 in taxes, your net income is $80,000 and you should spend $20,000 on your mortgage annually. That amount works out to a monthly payment of $1,666.
2. What Kind of Loan Should I Get?
Among questions for mortgage lenders, this one is important. The two basic types of mortgages are fixed and variable rate. A fixed rate has the same interest rate for the term of the loan, which might be 15, 30 or even 40 years. With a fixed-rate mortgage, your payments remain the same for the life of the loan.
To continue reading, please go to the original article here:
8 Rules For Saving, Borrowing And Spending Money
.8 Rules For Saving, Borrowing And Spending Money
Liz Weston of NerdWallet Sun, December 5, 2021,
The best personal finance advice is tailored to your individual situation. That said, a few rules of thumb can cut through the confusion that often surrounds money decisions and help you build a solid financial foundation.
The following guidelines for saving, borrowing, spending and protecting your money are culled from nearly three decades of writing about personal finance.
8 Rules For Saving, Borrowing And Spending Money
Liz Weston of NerdWallet Sun, December 5, 2021,
The best personal finance advice is tailored to your individual situation. That said, a few rules of thumb can cut through the confusion that often surrounds money decisions and help you build a solid financial foundation.
The following guidelines for saving, borrowing, spending and protecting your money are culled from nearly three decades of writing about personal finance.
1. PRIORITIZE SAVING FOR RETIREMENT
In an ideal world, you’d start saving with your first paycheck and keep going until you’re ready to retire. You also wouldn’t touch that money until retirement. Even if you can’t save 15% of your pre-tax income for retirement, as recommended by Fidelity and other financial services firms, anything you put aside can help give you a more comfortable future. Aim to take full advantage of any company match you get from a 401(k) at work — that’s free money — and borrow against or cash out retirement funds only as a last resort.
2. SAVE FOR A RAINY DAY
You may have read that you need an emergency fund equal to three to six months of expenses, but it can take years to save that much. That’s too long to put off other priorities, like saving for retirement. A starter emergency fund of $500 can be your first goal, and then you can build it up. While you’re saving, try to create other sources of emergency cash, such as a Roth IRA (you can pull out your contributions at any time without taxes or penalties), space on your credit cards or an unused home equity line of credit.
3. SAVE FOR COLLEGE
Got kids? Open a 529 college savings plan and contribute at least the minimum, which is typically $15 to $25 a month. Retirement savings comes first, but anything you can save will reduce how much your child may need to borrow. Also, research shows the simple act of saving for college increases the chances that a child from a low- to moderate-income family will go to college.
To continue reading, please go to the original article here:
https://www.yahoo.com/news/liz-weston-8-rules-saving-031237764.html
The 5 Fastest Ways To Become Rich, According to Experts
.The 5 Fastest Ways To Become Rich, According to Experts
Bob Haegele Sat, December 4,
With the new year fast approaching, many of us are likely starting to think about our finances. In particular, you may want to increase your net worth or even get rich. After all, getting rich will allow you to not only have more financial security but also have more options. And, of course, you would have the ability to spend on more of the things you want.
The problem with the idea of getting “rich,” though, is that it takes a lot of time and effort. Get-rich-quick schemes are almost always nothing but a way to prey on those who are struggling financially. Unless you are born into a wealthy family and a large inheritance is passed to you, you will likely have to become rich through a combination of hard work and financial diligence.
The 5 Fastest Ways To Become Rich, According to Experts
Bob Haegele Sat, December 4,
With the new year fast approaching, many of us are likely starting to think about our finances. In particular, you may want to increase your net worth or even get rich. After all, getting rich will allow you to not only have more financial security but also have more options. And, of course, you would have the ability to spend on more of the things you want.
The problem with the idea of getting “rich,” though, is that it takes a lot of time and effort. Get-rich-quick schemes are almost always nothing but a way to prey on those who are struggling financially. Unless you are born into a wealthy family and a large inheritance is passed to you, you will likely have to become rich through a combination of hard work and financial diligence.
In reality, there are arguably no secrets to becoming rich. Time-tested approaches are generally your best bet, and our experts confirmed that. They outlined some of the best ways to become rich (relatively) quickly.
1. Avoid (and Pay Down) Debt
Debt is not necessarily bad in all instances, but it is something to be avoided most of the time. For instance, student loans can be beneficial if the principal and interest rate are not excessive and they help you pursue a lucrative career.
“Some experts would contend that student loans are bad debt, but I disagree,” said Robert Johnson, chairman and CEO at Economic Index Associates. “I would categorize modest student loan debt as being ‘good debt.’ In my opinion, student loans get a bad rap.”
Again, the emphasis is on how you use them. Student loans can certainly be bad if the numbers don’t work in your favor. “There is no doubt that the system has been abused and that some students have accumulated a mountain of debt and have earned degrees that simply won’t provide the earning power to pay that debt back,” Johnson said.
To continue reading, please go to the original article here:
https://finance.yahoo.com/news/5-fastest-ways-become-rich-130041478.html
Defining Success
.Defining Success
Nov 17, 2021 by Ted Lamade Managing Director at The Carnegie Institution for Science
What does success look like these days? Is it obtaining a certain number of followers? Getting a specific number of “impressions”? Becoming a YouTube sensation? Passing a piece of legislation purely along party lines? Doubling or tripling your money on a meme stock or an NFT? Generating first quartile (or better yet, first decile) performance for a trailing twelve-month period?
Before you answer that, let me tell you about three people who appear to have very little in common, but are all connected by achieving a unique type of success that is too often overlooked.
Defining Success
Nov 17, 2021 by Ted Lamade Managing Director at The Carnegie Institution for Science
What does success look like these days? Is it obtaining a certain number of followers? Getting a specific number of “impressions”? Becoming a YouTube sensation? Passing a piece of legislation purely along party lines? Doubling or tripling your money on a meme stock or an NFT? Generating first quartile (or better yet, first decile) performance for a trailing twelve-month period?
Before you answer that, let me tell you about three people who appear to have very little in common, but are all connected by achieving a unique type of success that is too often overlooked.
The Highest Grossing Actor of All-Time
If I asked you to name the highest grossing actor of all-time, who would you guess? Tom Cruise? Julia Roberts? Tom Hanks? Each has won an Oscar and was the highest paid actor in Hollywood at some stage, but none are even in the top ten. That title goes to an actor who has never won an Oscar, has made far less per film than other leading stars, and whose films have on average grossed roughly half of Cruise’s, Roberts’, and Hanks’.
So, how did he do it? By sustaining a successful career for more than four decades through remarkable stamina and flexibility.
Samuel L. Jackson’s films have generated more than $20 billion dollars (and over $27 billion if you include cameos and voice acting roles). For comparison sake, films starring Cruise, Hanks, and Roberts have generated roughly $10.5, $7.7 and $6 billion respectively (link).
The secret to Jackson’s success? Starring in a lot of movies that have done better than average, a few blockbusters, and in a wide variety of roles, from action blockbusters to dramas, comedies, superhero movies, and animated films. This means roles such as Carl Lee Hailey in A Time to Kill, Zeus Carver in Die Hard, the voice of Frozone in The Incredibles, Nick Fury in Marvel movies, and of course, Neville Flynn in Snakes on a Plane.
PGA Money Leader
Around the same time that Samuel L. Jackson was hitting his stride, a golfer on the PGA Tour was doing so as well. Yet, if you ask any golf aficionado who the most successful players in the 1980’s were, they would likely rattle off names like Tom Watson, Greg Norman, Seve Ballesteros, or Nick Faldo. Few would say Tom Kite.
On the surface this is understandable. Physically, he was unimposing at 5’9 170 pounds and wore coke bottle glasses. He didn’t win a single major during the decade and won far fewer tournaments than his peers.
Yet, he still managed to finish near the top of the money list each year and was the first golfer to amass $6, $7, $8, and $9 million dollars in career earnings. So how did he do it? Like Samuel L. Jackson, Kite simply showed up more often than most, was willing to try new approaches (i.e., club combinations, fitness regiments, psychiatry, etc.), and almost always finished “in the money”.
To continue reading, please go to the original article here:
Why It’s Not Quite Time To Panic About Inflation
.Why It’s Not Quite Time To Panic About Inflation
By Emily Stewart Nov 10, 2021, 5:05
How to think about rising prices, explained by an economist who thinks about this all the time.
Rising prices are definitely a thing right now, and it’s hard not to let a little bit of worry creep in. The United States isn’t experiencing 1970s-level spiraling inflation, but for people leaving the grocery store or a restaurant, the receipt is often a little bit higher than it used to be.
The consumer price index, which measures what consumers pay for goods and services, rose by 6.2 percent from a year ago in October, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the quickest annual clip it’s risen since 1990. Over the course of the month, prices crept up by 0.9 percent.
Why It’s Not Quite Time To Panic About Inflation
By Emily Stewart Nov 10, 2021, 5:05
How to think about rising prices, explained by an economist who thinks about this all the time.
Rising prices are definitely a thing right now, and it’s hard not to let a little bit of worry creep in. The United States isn’t experiencing 1970s-level spiraling inflation, but for people leaving the grocery store or a restaurant, the receipt is often a little bit higher than it used to be.
The consumer price index, which measures what consumers pay for goods and services, rose by 6.2 percent from a year ago in October, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the quickest annual clip it’s risen since 1990. Over the course of the month, prices crept up by 0.9 percent.
The data shows prices are up almost everywhere, including gasoline, energy, shelter, food, and new and used cars and trucks. Among the few price indexes to decline were airline fares and alcoholic beverages.
October’s inflation numbers came in above economists’ expectations, and to politicians, the media, and other observers, they are a bit jarring — especially those who have been arguing that much of the current inflation in the economy is temporary.
There are a lot of open questions in the pandemic economy, including what’s going on with supply chains and labor, and inflation remains an issue no one is quite sure how to solve. Regardless of what the experts say, for regular people, the economic landscape can be a little nerve-wracking, especially when it comes to prices. Inflation makes people feel bad about the economy, even when there is plenty to feel good about, too.
I reached out to Claudia Sahm, a senior fellow at the Jain Family Institute and former Federal Reserve economist, to ask how to parse the latest inflation numbers. Sahm isn’t an inflation hawk and has for some time pushed back against fearmongering on the issue, but she acknowledged that the October situation isn’t good.
Wages aren’t broadly keeping up with inflation across all jobs, though they are in some sectors, such as hospitality. However, Sahm notes, the economic situation — and pandemic situation — is much better for many people this year than it was last. She’s not hitting the panic button on prices, but she worries about the implications for the reconciliation bill in Congress, and emphasizes that the Fed is paying attention to what’s going on.
Our conversation, edited for length and clarity, follows.
https://www.vox.com/the-goods/2021/11/10/22775092/inflation-cpi-october-economy-biden-fed
The Problem With America’s Semi-Rich
.The Problem With America’s Semi-Rich
By Emily Stewart Oct 12, 2021
This story is part of a group of stories called “The Goods”
America’s upper-middle class works more, optimizes their kids, and is miserable.
It’s easy to place the blame for America’s economic woes on the 0.1 percent. They hoard a disproportionate amount of wealth and are taking an increasingly and unacceptably large part of the country’s economic growth. To quote Bernie Sanders, the “billionaire class” is thriving while many more people are struggling. Or to channel Elizabeth Warren, the top 0.1 percent holds a similar amount of wealth as the bottom 90 percent — a staggering figure.
The Problem With America’s Semi-Rich
By Emily Stewart Oct 12, 2021
This story is part of a group of stories called “The Goods”
America’s upper-middle class works more, optimizes their kids, and is miserable.
It’s easy to place the blame for America’s economic woes on the 0.1 percent. They hoard a disproportionate amount of wealth and are taking an increasingly and unacceptably large part of the country’s economic growth. To quote Bernie Sanders, the “billionaire class” is thriving while many more people are struggling. Or to channel Elizabeth Warren, the top 0.1 percent holds a similar amount of wealth as the bottom 90 percent — a staggering figure.
There’s a space between that 0.1 percent and the 90 percent that’s often overlooked: the 9.9 percent that resides between them. They’re the group in focus in a new book by philosopher Matthew Stewart (no relation), The 9.9 percent: The New Aristocracy That Is Entrenching Inequality and Warping Our Culture.
There are some defining characteristics of today’s American upper-middle class, per Stewart’s telling. They are hyper-focused on getting their kids into great schools and themselves into great jobs, at which they’re willing to work super-long hours.
They want to live in great neighborhoods, even if that means keeping others out, and will pay what it takes to ensure their families’ fitness and health. They believe in meritocracy, that they’ve gained their positions in society by talent and hard work. They believe in markets. They’re rich, but they don’t feel like it — they’re always looking at someone else who’s richer.
They’re also terrified. While this 9.9 percent drives inequality — they want to lock in their positions for themselves and their families — they’re also driven by inequality. They recognize that American society is increasingly one of have-nots, and they’re determined not to be one of them.
I recently spoke with Stewart about America’s 9.9 percent — the people who are semi-rich but don’t necessarily feel it. We talked about fear, meritocracy, and why the 9.9 percent are so obsessed with nannies. Our conversation, edited for length and clarity, is below:
So, to start out, you write about the 9.9 percent and a “new aristocracy” in America. Who are these 9.9 percent?
The statistical side of it is very imprecise. I don’t think of the 9.9 percent as just everybody who has more than a certain amount of money and less than another amount of money.
I see it more as a culture, and it’s a culture that tends to lead people into the 9.9 percent of the wealth distribution. It’s a cultural construct that is defined by attitudes toward family, toward identity issues about gender and race, by education and educational status and the idea of what constitutes a good career, which is mainly professional and managerial.
What does the culture look like? How do these people separate themselves out?
The guiding ideology is essentially that of a meritocracy. The driving idea is that people get where they are in society through a combination of talent and work and study. The main measures of that are educational attainment and material well-being, and anything that we provide to society or other people is on top or on the side of that and is a reflection of our own virtue and not in any way necessary for social functioning or part of a good life. It’s always, essentially, a sacrifice.
The obvious place to look for it is the whole college admissions game. But I think that’s kind of limited, too. I put a lot of emphasis on the family aspect because I think that’s a place where you really see in operation the attitudes and practices that go into child rearing and family formation.
To continue reading, please go to the original article here:
https://www.vox.com/the-goods/22673605/upper-middle-class-meritocracy-matthew-stewart
5 Things You Can Learn From Previous Generations’ Money Mistakes
.5 Things You Can Learn From Previous Generations’ Money Mistakes
by Mike Brassfield Senior Writer November 22, 2021
Let’s make it clear right off the bat: Your generation is the best generation, OK? And no matter which generation you happen to belong to, there’s plenty you can learn from the financial mistakes of previous generations, who all behaved in financially unwise ways.
If you’re Gen Z, you can avoid the house-hunting regrets of millennials. If you’re a millennial, you can learn from the credit card disasters of Gen X. If you’re Gen X, there’s still time to avoid repeating the retirement mistakes of the baby boomers. And if you’re a boomer, hey, you already know everything, right?
Kidding, y’all! We’re just kidding! (Full disclosure: The writer of this piece is Gen X, so he doesn’t really matter.)
5 Things You Can Learn From Previous Generations’ Money Mistakes
by Mike Brassfield Senior Writer November 22, 2021
Let’s make it clear right off the bat: Your generation is the best generation, OK? And no matter which generation you happen to belong to, there’s plenty you can learn from the financial mistakes of previous generations, who all behaved in financially unwise ways.
If you’re Gen Z, you can avoid the house-hunting regrets of millennials. If you’re a millennial, you can learn from the credit card disasters of Gen X. If you’re Gen X, there’s still time to avoid repeating the retirement mistakes of the baby boomers. And if you’re a boomer, hey, you already know everything, right?
Kidding, y’all! We’re just kidding! (Full disclosure: The writer of this piece is Gen X, so he doesn’t really matter.)
What can we learn from previous generations’ financial mistakes?
1. Gen Z? Avoid Millennials’ Regrets
If you’re Gen Z, you can avoid the house-hunting regrets of millennials.
A survey of homebuyers in 2017 found that 57% of millennial homeowners surveyed would have done something differently if they got a do-over on the home buying process. More than a quarter — 28% — wished they’d saved more before making the purchase.
It’s easy to automatically sock away some savings with an app like Aspiration. With a digital Aspiration account — a hybrid of checking and savings — you can earn up to 20 times the average interest on your savings balance. (The FDIC reports that the average account earns just .05%.) You also get a debit card that earns you up to 5% cash back on purchases.
You can automatically sock away some savings every payday. It takes five minutes to sign up.
2. Millennial? Avoid Gen X’s Credit Card Hell
So, we’re obviously not going to talk about millennials like, you irresponsible kids and your avocado toast. The fact is, elder millennials are pushing 40 these days. Millennials are middle management now.
So it’s not too late to avoid being sucked into the credit card hell that mauled Generation X so badly. And I say that as a member of Generation X.
To continue reading, please go to the original article here:
https://www.thepennyhoarder.com/bank-accounts/generation-money-mistakes/?aff_sub2=homepage