Buy payphones and retire • Hacker News Board

Re: Buy payphones and retire

#351

Post by jamesfinlayson » Wed, Oct 30, 2024, 1:55 AM UTC

LightBug1 wrote: post #306

Dalewyn wrote: post #280

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Here's something to blow your mind: Out in the countryside, farmers have stalls where they put some of the day's harvest for sale. It's completely unmanned without surveillance and operates on the honor system; customers leave cash in a nearby container and take the produce they bought. Yes, it works beautifully because there are literally no bloody assholes uncivilized enough to be thieves. Vending machines are abun…

I've seen that on a trip to New Zealand actually. Was quite sweet. A tent full of strawberry punnets, with a little lockbox outside to put money in.

Common in Australia too - 60 to 90 minutes outside of capital cities and you should start seeing them.

Re: Buy payphones and retire

#352

Post by onetokeoverthe » Wed, Oct 30, 2024, 5:25 AM UTC

Place the vending machines/pay phones inside other locations...train stations, etc.

Re: Buy payphones and retire

#353

Post by [deleted] » Wed, Oct 30, 2024, 1:46 PM UTC

j0hnyl wrote: post #337

krageon wrote: post #329

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's not noticeably low when you're from a nice country. It'll be very noticeably low when you're from a nightmare place.

There are few places in the world where things won't be taken when left unattended.

[deleted]

Re: Buy payphones and retire

#354

Post by ElevenLathe » Wed, Oct 30, 2024, 2:08 PM UTC

thrance wrote: post #208

spacebanana7 wrote: post #166

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Another tangible example is renting a tractor to a farmer that couldn’t otherwise afford one. Their income from crop production goes up (even after tractor rental expenses) and society also gets more food.

But wouldn't it be even better if the farmer bought the tractor on a loan? Now the farmer keeps the entirety of his production and the guy that would have rented the tractor also has to work, further improving society.

The farmer is either renting the tractor or renting the money to buy the tractor. Which is better depends on details like the rate of the loan/rental and the expected utilization of the tractor.

Re: Buy payphones and retire

#355

Post by LoveMortuus » Wed, Oct 30, 2024, 2:36 PM UTC

I already know of dividends, but besides that and interest, I don't really know of many others.

Would love to hear some ideas for passive income that you have encountered and have experienced.

Re: Buy payphones and retire

#356

Post by loco5niner » Wed, Oct 30, 2024, 5:10 PM UTC

thrance wrote: post #208

spacebanana7 wrote: post #166

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Another tangible example is renting a tractor to a farmer that couldn’t otherwise afford one. Their income from crop production goes up (even after tractor rental expenses) and society also gets more food.

But wouldn't it be even better if the farmer bought the tractor on a loan? Now the farmer keeps the entirety of his production and the guy that would have rented the tractor also has to work, further improving society.

How is that different. In either case the farmer is paying someone (interest/rent) more for the use of the tractor than just outright buying it (which he does not have the capital to do).

Re: Buy payphones and retire

#357

Post by loco5niner » Wed, Oct 30, 2024, 5:11 PM UTC

thrance wrote: post #299

wezdog1 wrote: post #241

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Where does the interest go

To the person that made the loan, to compensate them for the risk they took. No need for anyone to profit from the work of another forever.

So it's ok to rent out money but not rent out tractors?

Re: Buy payphones and retire

#358

Post by cman1444 » Thu, Oct 31, 2024, 12:14 AM UTC

mhuffman wrote: post #342

TruffleLabs wrote: post #326

Vending machines are not passive! They need repair, management of the money, if they sell goods then they need restocking (and that restock needs to be purchased), and you have to negotiate for location location location. And if coins are involved there is work to collect the coins and get them to the bank. Lastly, running a vending machines company requires regular involvement to make sure everything is running.

This is still passive. This is similar to owning 10 apartment buildings. You have to hire managers to deal with all the day-to-day, but there is still money left over. You just have to make sure that they aren't stealing from you. Similar to a lot of investments, which I would also consider passive income. Even with stocks, you can't just sleep or you could end up in a bad way, but you are also not putting in 8 to 12…

Clearly it's a spectrum with one side being low intensity/low return, and the other being high intensity/high return. The only question is to ask yourself where you want to be on that spectrum.

Re: Buy payphones and retire

#359

Post by atlasmd » Thu, Oct 31, 2024, 10:54 AM UTC

lotsofpulp wrote: post #301

eru wrote: post #249

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> It would be bold to bet against a government not constantly decreasing the purchasing power of its currency to prop up asset prices, [...] That would only prop up assets prices in nominal terms, but doesn't have much to do with your retirement planning. (Unless your only alternative to index funds is sticking local money under your mattress; and you can't even think of sticking gold coins or foreign currencies unde…

Correct, but that accomplishes the goal of having a hidden tax (although more people are aware of it now) on earning income (since labor price increases lag asset prices increases). Just look at who the biggest winners pre and post Covid are. If you owned assets pre Covid, you are golden. The more you owned, the more guilded you became. Pretty much all government policy I see starts with the basis of how do we ensure…

ideally, direct care is saving more than it costs - $50 for unlimited visits, free telemedicine, no copays, all office procedures free, wholesale meds and labs for up to 95% less. Then you can lower your ins premiums by 30-60%.

Re: Buy payphones and retire

#360

Post by johnwalkr » Thu, Oct 31, 2024, 4:42 PM UTC

hyperhopper wrote: post #38

0cf8612b2e1e wrote: post #19

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I have also heard that vending machine locations are highly contested. You can buy the machine, but you are not going to have the pull to deploy it at the airport. Those contracts were signed long ago.

Then why are there so few? And containing such a small variety of goods? In Japan anywhere from a busy subway to a remote park, there will be rows of vending machines everywhere, with more varieties of sodas, coffees, soups, ice creams, candies, hell even clothes or meat! And those are just the common types. You're never far from what you want in an automated fashion. Why are we so behind in America when there seemin…

This is overselling the variety a lot. Hot and cold drinks including a couple of types of soup (sold only in winter) are everywhere. Cigarette vending machines are pretty common (usually located in front a tobacco shop). Ice cream and small snack vending machines often exist on a train platform but they are not common on the street.

Occasionally, a shop sells its sausage or something in a vending machine out in front. Sometimes, usually in a small town, you will see one that dispenses hot food like fries or takoyaki. School or work cafeterias often have a cup noodle vending machine for after-hours food but it's usually located inside. My guess for order of magnitude: if you train/walk around Tokyo for a week on vacation, you might see 5,000 drink vending machines, 100 cigarette vending machines, 10 ice cream vending machines, 5 snack vending machines and 3 total of any other type of food and maybe one selling something weird.