Earlier quoted context omitted.
> Do you view farmers the same way? Providing food for free is next on my list. I don't need labor. I just need clean energy and automation.
Uhh, and land.
Technically, not with hydroponics. I can build up.
62% of Americans Have Under $1,000 in Savings, Survey Finds
311–320 of 370 posts
Re: 62% of Americans Have Under $1,000 in Savings, Survey Finds
#312Earlier quoted context omitted.
> The only reason people need to rent is because of the requirements to own (down payments, emergency funds to cover your mortgage in tough times so you don't lose your equity) So, in other words, the landlord is selling a service? In exchange for a monthly fee, you don't have to do any of the crap (down payments, mortgages, property taxes, maintenance) it takes to own a home? Do you view farmers the same way? If it…
The landlord is selling the service of "having a lot of money". It's usury by the back door.
Not even having a lot of money. Their service is having a credit score high enough to obtain low-rate mortgages, which they then arbitrage against "market rate rent".
People complain we shouldn't subsidize people buying homes who can't afford them. Then why the f____ are we subsidizing landlords instead?
Re: 62% of Americans Have Under $1,000 in Savings, Survey Finds
#313Earlier quoted context omitted.
> Moreover, I don't think this article is actually talking about people who do save but just choose to save into high-return assets. I save 80-90% of my income, but it all goes into index funds. Does that mean I am not "a saver?" Not at all. This article is about people who aren't saving because they don't think its necessary or because they can't afford to. An emergency fund IS NOT an investment. It is insurance; tr…
> An emergency fund IS NOT an investment. Why should one have an "emergency fund?" I would genuinely love to hear a good argument for why keeping any cash assets when one has significant liquid investments, as I've never encountered one. Insurance companies invest their premiums. Why shouldn't I?
Insurance companies and banks are required to maintain a minimum amount of safe/liquid (read: cash) reserves.
> I would genuinely love to hear a good argument for why keeping any cash assets when one has significant liquid investments,
Can you describe an asset (besides US treasuries) that you can be assured of its value in a volatile market? Even money market funds have broken the buck before (~2008).
Re: 62% of Americans Have Under $1,000 in Savings, Survey Finds
#314Earlier quoted context omitted.
I'm really confused... The thing of value you are providing as a landlord is housing . How is it skimming? Putting money towards a house/condo instead of investing it in business has an opportunity cost. You lose out on the profits from dividends/interest/cap gains. That has to be replaced. If you charge too much rent, other people will under-cut you. The price is set by available housing. Where is the deceit? Do you…
It's got nothing to do with deceit or skimming, it's power . There is no fraud, it would be simply taking advantage of people beyond the amount of value that I would be interesting in providing. Your allusion to a market that would correct the price doesn't account for a market which no tenants can enter because none of them can afford the entrance (a 20% down payment). They'll get the benefit of housing no matter ho…
Not trying to change your mind, and I appreciate the chance for a dialogue... Your perspective seems based on the idea that housing (shelter) is a basic need and should be provided for, and at some fundamental level I'm inclined to agree. (In my mind, it would be pretty basic housing...)
I did want to call attention to your gas prices example... Gas prices are driven down to approximately the cost of getting more oil out of the ground, refining it into gasoline, and transporting it to your local Chevron. These are costs inherent to "making gas" - it's not free. The same goes for housing, so whether you'd have renters pay it or have the government pay it for them, someone's going to have to cut down trees, pour concrete, level land, install plumbing, etc.
This is this "value" of the housing I'm talking about, which is separate from the moral right to shelter that seems to guide your judgement on the issue. Thanks for being willing to engage me in the discussion!
Re: 62% of Americans Have Under $1,000 in Savings, Survey Finds
#315Earlier quoted context omitted.
Except that it's not rubbish. Most people do spend large amounts of their paycheck on things they don't need. Just because he makes good money doesn't mean his concepts of saving a large percentage of what you earn aren't sound. They apply to all income levels, even more so for the lower ones. Following his advice and sticking to a budget has gotten me from saving nothing every month to saving at least half of my tak…
> Most people do spend large amounts of their paycheck on things they don't need. Maybe. Or maybe they're spending their paycheck on things that they do need because they have to work for a living, they can't live by renting out their assets like MMM can. Example from the other branch: MMM can say "buy a bike instead of a new car" because he had the privilege of putting his "job" (rental properties) as close as he li…
Yes, we all have bills that need to be paid. But many people (especially those who aren't making great money) continually and stupidly buy stuff they don't need, not even realizing they can't afford it. You make 35k a year? Then you really shouldn't be buying a brand new iPhone with a large data plan, or a new car with monthly payments that eat away at your already limited income. Or maybe instead of going out for lunch everyday for work, you should pack something. People love to complain about not having money without taking any responsibility for their spending habits.
Also, if you've read more of his stuff you'd know he worked for a decade before he retired, saving up a significant portion of his income by staying frugal. He didn't just magically have two houses to rent out.
I'm not sure where the insane hatred towards renting out a property is coming from. A lot of the time the landlord doesn't actually make much money off of it. Even if the rent covers their mortgage payment (which it often doesn't), if something serious breaks or needs to be repaired, they're on the hook for that and may end up losing money on it that year.
Re: 62% of Americans Have Under $1,000 in Savings, Survey Finds
#316Earlier quoted context omitted.
I'm sorry you don't follow, but it should be fairly obvious that stocks can crash, bond markets can collapse, and home prices can plummet, whereas money in FDIC insured savings accounts would only be lost in the event of a catastrophic, country-jeopardizing event, in which case we'll all have bigger problems. I'm not meaning to attack anyone personally, I just think this survey is trying to suss out what percentage o…
Not even the worst stock crash in history was a 99% drop. Also, you are almost 100% wrong about the intention of the article. It's not that they're trying to make some point about people's poor asset allocation, it's just sloppy reporting. If their actual point was that people had too much money invested, wouldn't the most obvious and actionable advice for the "What to Do If Your Savings Fall Short" section be to sel…
The attitude you're bringing to this conversation makes me entirely unwilling to continue. Sorry.
Re: 62% of Americans Have Under $1,000 in Savings, Survey Finds
#317Earlier quoted context omitted.
6 months is usually far too long to keep in direct cash / savings. I think 2-3 months direct cash/savings/checking is fine, then move excess cash to CDs or something semi-liquid. You totally CAN get money out of CDs, just sometimes lose your interest. If you have some kind of CD ladder or such going on - you can have a new CD coming out every 1-3 months anyway, which will give you the cushion you need after savings r…
I disagree with this. If you are semi-retired like me, you need to have enough cash on hand to weather a market downturn of 1-3 years. That way you are not selling stocks at fire sale prices to keep a roof over your head and food on the table.
Who said anything about the stock market? Short term CDs usually have a fixed rate, you don't ever sell them at a firesale price.
Re: 62% of Americans Have Under $1,000 in Savings, Survey Finds
#318Earlier quoted context omitted.
I disagree with this. If you are semi-retired like me, you need to have enough cash on hand to weather a market downturn of 1-3 years. That way you are not selling stocks at fire sale prices to keep a roof over your head and food on the table.
Who said anything about the stock market? Short term CDs usually have a fixed rate, you don't ever sell them at a firesale price.
CD's are terrible investments at the moment. A 1 year CD doesn't offer a much better rate than a FDIC money market account, and I certainly would not invest in a longer term CD at the moment.
When interest rates tanked, I moved all of my CD's to money market accounts when the term was up.
What is key is to only open a money market account at an institution with a long term track record of staying above average on rates compared to thier competition. You want to avoid the institutions which constantly raise and (and then lower) thier rates. Bankrate.com is a good way to research these.
Re: 62% of Americans Have Under $1,000 in Savings, Survey Finds
#319And people wonder why they say Tech is out of touch. Reading the comments here is a great demonstration. Examples: > who uses savings accounts anymore? > Cash on hand or it's invested in stocks, bonds and my home. > The truth is you're losing more money by not having any of it generating higher potential yields. > the total net worth of my wife and me is many orders of magnitude greater than what our savings account…
> We try our hardest to minimize problems that we ourselves don't experience rather than work on the very real, very clear, issues at hand.
>This feels like we have a maturity and empathy problem as an industry to me...
Fully agree.
Re: 62% of Americans Have Under $1,000 in Savings, Survey Finds
#320Earlier quoted context omitted.
Who said anything about the stock market? Short term CDs usually have a fixed rate, you don't ever sell them at a firesale price.
CD's are terrible investments at the moment. A 1 year CD doesn't offer a much better rate than a FDIC money market account, and I certainly would not invest in a longer term CD at the moment. When interest rates tanked, I moved all of my CD's to money market accounts when the term was up. What is key is to only open a money market account at an institution with a long term track record of staying above average on rat…
A 1 year CD is a terrible investment, but a lot of 5 year CDs have very generous early withdrawal penalties. Unless you are making over 2% in your FDIC-insured money market account, a 5 year CD is probably a better investment.