How to get rich without getting lucky • Hacker News Board

Re: How to get rich without getting lucky

#351

Post by [deleted] » Fri, Jun 01, 2018, 5:38 PM UTC

sametmax wrote: post #299

notyourwork wrote: post #291

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This depends on where you live though. Midwest basically required a car, living in Seattle and SF my wife and I never need a car. It’s not always as simple as grouping a population. America is big and diverse.

I just came back from the valley, and I get that the american society and infrastructure is encouraging the to use a car. Like Australia. I also get that, living in a city in France, it's easier to avoid having a car. yet I note that you could have a motorbike. You could not have kids. You could move close to your work. You could move in an area requiring less car. You could change your job to one not needing a car.…

[deleted]

Re: How to get rich without getting lucky

#352

Post by snark42 » Fri, Jun 01, 2018, 5:44 PM UTC

wtvanhest wrote: post #325

tudelo wrote: post #270

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If in-state tuition is 11k (my case), you don't think you can make that while going to school? Granted, I worked and of course, there were other expenses, so I didn't get out loan free. But it's possible if you're some sort of penny-pinching masochist...

The math is very simple, you need about $30k/year which is $50k pre-tax. That is 50 hours a week at $20/hour with no weeks of vacation + school. It is extremely difficult to make $50k/year with no degree or experience. That is almost the house hold median income in the US (2 people working). (Currently: $59k/year)

> The math is very simple, you need about $30k/year which is $50k pre-tax.

This is wrong.

$30k - $12k standard deduction = 18k taxable, 0% tax on 0-$10k, 12% tax on $10k-$18k = -960 taxes owed, then you get 2500 American Opportunity Credit or $2000 Life Long Learning Credit. So if you earn 30k as a "full time student" you would take home ~$31k less 0-10% state income tax on $18k

Re: How to get rich without getting lucky

#353

Post by simonebrunozzi » Fri, Jun 01, 2018, 5:45 PM UTC

If you have a decent chance of getting rich (read: well-paying job or income source), then the biggest impact on your "wealth" is going to come from two things: your ability to invest wisely, and your ability to optimize your taxes. (that's my two cents, of course - happy to be challenged on these two assumptions).

Most investing relates to Real Estate. I've been involved and knee-deep into real estate investments for most of my life, as someone who had always wanted to "get rich" (not obsessively, but still with a strong focus). I am not rich now, but I can't really complain.

Most real estate investments are made in a silly way. Most of the people I gave advice to showed me countless mistakes on the way up. They could be way richer if only they spent a few dozen hours more on understanding investing or specifically real estate investing.

The most common mistake involves the usual "rent vs buy" dilemma. It's a hot debate every time it comes up. There are plenty of "online calculators" that are supposed to help you figure out what's the best decision. However, most people ignore important factors that go beyond the financials. I believe this is important, and in fact I wrote an extensive blog post trying to list a dozen important questions to ask yourself when you are considering whether you want to buy a house or not [0]. I don't mean to self-promote here, that blog post was the result of a few hours of work, prompted by the N-th discussion on the subject, and I believed there was a need to put something clear in writing.

Now, when someone asks me for financial advice that relates to real estate, I point them to the blog post first, and then I'm happy to discuss more if they need to.

[0]: https://medium.com/fabrica/the-rent-versus-buy-dilemma-12-im...

Re: How to get rich without getting lucky

#354

Post by mrlala » Fri, Jun 01, 2018, 5:47 PM UTC

Who cares about being "rich"? What you want is to be comfortable, and ENJOY YOUR FREAKING LIFE.

Re: How to get rich without getting lucky

#355

Post by oliwarner » Fri, Jun 01, 2018, 5:47 PM UTC

melling wrote: post #344

oliwarner wrote: post #297

Isn't this the tenth how-to-get-rich post today? I guess that's fairly standard, and I ignore them, but they're getting votes today. I'm a little surprised that —since every other thread on HN is about hacking your diet/wardrobe/matress to counteract the crushing depression you get from your job— nobody is putting one and one together. There is more to life than money. I don't want to sound too hippy but there is. Th…

No one said that money was the most important thing. You added that. Then you proceeded to tell everyone else how they should live their lives. Understanding how to effectively generate wealth, build companies, etc is something that has certain advantages. For instance, this will allow for more time to appreciate the other things in life. Warren Buffett spends most of his day reading, which he loves to do, for exampl…

Buffet?! Sure. He's both from an influential family and was a prodigy for business. He's also been very lucky. If you think you can course-correct your life to rival a Buffet just by the power of these self-help articles, you're a fantasist.

I'm not telling anybody to do anything. Just opining my view that outright happiness is not a hard state to reach. One can be content with very little. When your goal in life is "more", fulfilling it is nigh on impossible.

But you do you.

Re: How to get rich without getting lucky

#356

Post by _Microft » Fri, Jun 01, 2018, 5:51 PM UTC

executesorder66 wrote: post #130

imgabe wrote: post #75

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Paying people to work for you is unethical?

Some would argue that if you make a profit from it, then yes it is unethical. If worker A makes product P, and you sell product P for $1000. And then you pay worker A $800 for the work, you make $200 profit. Worker A did $1000 worth of work, but only got paid $800. You did $0 worth of work (with regards to actually making P) but you got $200. Hence it is unethical.

I understand what you are saying but I disagree.

Your value is facilitating the whole enterprise, providing customers a way to get the work done, taking the risk of finding customers and other uncertainties of business while giving someone a place where she can earn these $800. If you had not done that, she would not produce the work and someone would not be able to buy it.

This is where your value comes from.

Re: How to get rich without getting lucky

#357

Post by moate » Fri, Jun 01, 2018, 5:52 PM UTC

sametmax wrote: post #299

notyourwork wrote: post #291

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This depends on where you live though. Midwest basically required a car, living in Seattle and SF my wife and I never need a car. It’s not always as simple as grouping a population. America is big and diverse.

I just came back from the valley, and I get that the american society and infrastructure is encouraging the to use a car. Like Australia. I also get that, living in a city in France, it's easier to avoid having a car. yet I note that you could have a motorbike. You could not have kids. You could move close to your work. You could move in an area requiring less car. You could change your job to one not needing a car.…

Yes/No?

Keep in mind, the shift from farming being a major employment sector happened while the current US infrastructure was being built. The highways and population distribution were in part because of that. Also the US is one of the world's largest in area, and while urbanization is being pushed due to changes in the labor needs, it's something that happens over time not over night.

As for "you could do X" most of your statements aren't really proof of an American obsession with cars, just a different infrastructure choice relative to other nations.

http://www.nationmaster.com/country-info/stats/Transport/Roa...

The US has 27% more cars than France per capita. That's statistically significant and reflects difference in city planning/culture, but IDK that I'd draw the same conclusions as you.

Re: How to get rich without getting lucky

#358

Post by [deleted] » Fri, Jun 01, 2018, 5:55 PM UTC

simonebrunozzi wrote: post #353

If you have a decent chance of getting rich (read: well-paying job or income source), then the biggest impact on your "wealth" is going to come from two things: your ability to invest wisely, and your ability to optimize your taxes. (that's my two cents, of course - happy to be challenged on these two assumptions). Most investing relates to Real Estate. I've been involved and knee-deep into real estate investments fo…

[deleted]

Re: How to get rich without getting lucky

#359

Post by moate » Fri, Jun 01, 2018, 5:55 PM UTC

HeyLaughingBoy wrote: post #302

sametmax wrote: post #280

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Can your family live with one car It's really funny to read that. It's probably very american to think 2 cars per family is the norm. I think if I group the 10 adults I see the most on average, we own 2 cars together. And we are all between 30 and 55.

"Norm" is probably more than two cars. I have a 17 year-old. When he gets his license, we have a car waiting for him (OK: it needs a bunch of repairs, but whatever). Right now, it's a pain in the ass to drive him places (like to & from work). In my neck of the woods, the average is probably 4-6 cars per family.

National statistics disagree with you. IDK what your neck of the woods is, but there's millions of people who live in urban areas in which car ownership is completely foreign that bring those averages down.

http://www.nationmaster.com/country-info/profiles/United-Sta...

Re: How to get rich without getting lucky

#360

Post by s73v3r_ » Fri, Jun 01, 2018, 5:56 PM UTC

frgtpsswrdlame wrote: post #194

Someone1234 wrote: post #185

Earlier quoted context omitted.

In the US insurance companies themselves are meant to fight to keep prices down, but right now due to a miscalculation during the creation of Obamacare ("Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act") they're incentivized to INCREASE medical costs... Why? The 80/20 Rule ("Medical Loss Ratio" rule). > The 80/20 Rule generally requires insurance companies to spend at least 80% of the money they take in from premiums on h…

So insurance in the US wants to take even more than 20% as profit? Am I correct in thinking that this actually makes socialized systems more efficient? They never have to front any profit overhead.

No, they want to grow the costs so that same 20% represents more money.