Financial Street

Rule No. 1 - Do not run out of cash.

This is how it works in theory. Fractional reserve banking is a bit more evil.

Reality is too many high income earners are living paycheck to paycheck and can only dream of doing this. Time to get off the treadmill.

@zbonecantswim I watched a guy get fired mid-meeting and the conference room was so full he couldn’t get out so he had to sit there for another 15-20 minutes and listen to the CEO rant. I vowed that would never be me.

Dude one of my co workers just got up and quit mid meeting. Dropped call, starting packing up his desk. Got up, left his laptop and badges behind and Irish goodbye’d the office #BeastMode

@JohnWake Can you form a new “household” if there is no house to form it in?

Study finds US does not have housing shortage

@WadingSmith Does this mean you like fractional beef reserves?

I don’t like fractional reserve banking, however I do endorse banking freezer beef.🥩

@GrainStats But did they correct for taxes to reach the real price of diesel which is the market they are trying to illustrate.

the masses will learn about cash basis one step at a time

@themoviedadsc Leave super early in the morning. Kids will sleep the first 5 hours. Find a fun / silly stop along the way. Like the world’s largest of something.

Legitimately now considering driving 14.5 hours to Ft. Lauderdale this coming weekend vs. flying. Drive is brutal, but my worst nightmare is getting caught in this TSA mess flying with 3 young kids Question to those who've been flying. Is it really that bad right now?

@joeknowsthemrkt Did you price rent increases into the rental number? Rent goes up, our mortgage payment won’t. Also, were you able to itemize on your taxes as a result of your mortgage interest (few can)?

Homeownership 3 years in review: Still The Truth Year 3. Two kids. One HVAC. One fence. A microwave. And a floor we haven’t replaced yet but know we will. Here’s the honest math: Over 3 years, renting this same house would have cost roughly $47,100 out of pocket and we’d walk away with zero equity. Owning it cost us $71,600 in mortgage, taxes, insurance, HOA, and maintenance — plus a $2,000 floor replacement we know is coming before we sell. Call the real number $73,600. Our equity position? We paid $200K, owe $189K, and the house is worth roughly $205K today. That’s about $16,000 in equity. Net cost of owning vs renting: $57,600 vs $47,100. Renting still wins by about $10,500 over three years — and the gap got slightly wider this year, not smaller. So why own? We brought both of our kids home from the hospital to a place that was ours. We haven’t moved in 3 years. Nobody told us we couldn’t paint the walls. That stability has real value — it just doesn’t show up in a spreadsheet. The honest take: renting is not throwing money away. If your time horizon is short, it might genuinely be the smarter financial move. Homeownership is paying a premium for stability, control, and the long game. Just make sure you know that going in. We’re running out of space within the next 2 years- with a 2-year-old and a 4-year-old by that time so this chapter is wrapping up within the next couple of years. When we sell, I’ll run the full numbers. That’ll be the real report card. PS. Priced in Bitcoin, this house was ≈₿7.14 at acquisition. Today at $66,800/BTC it’s ≈₿3.07. Still a 57% drawdown.

@nickgerli1 Missing the impact of inflation and real wages as it relates to home prices.

The thing everyone gets wrong in the housing market is they think it's about mortgage rates. When it's actually about prices. Buyer demand is at record lows because prices (inflation-adjusted) are at record highs. No one wants to buy a house they know it will be worth less in 3-4 years. Meanwhile, mortgage rates around 6% is abundantly normal for the U.S. going back 100+ years. That's why movements in mortgage rates (either up or down) aren't having any material impact on sales right now. Meanwhile, if you manage to bring prices down meaningfully, the buyers will flood back.

@DaveShapi Crazy how few actually see the offense.

2 years. This is a chart crime.

@SteveOnSpeed More families would do better to have their kids remain at home longer, build savings, and never have a mortgage.

Say what you will, but I’ve never regretted buying in cash and not paying a mortgage.

@ThinkAppraiser But does redoing the kitchen help? Asking for a friend.

80-85% of the appraisal value is the land in some areas. The house is almost worthless lol

@DividendGrowth Was truly and awful situatation for those retiring at that time.

During the dot-com bubble, the Nasdaq 100 $QQQ peaked in March 2000 Then fell by 80% in less than three years, after the tech bubble burst It took 15 years for the index to recover to its former highs That's a long time

@Govindtwtt This is the thinking of losers.

Everyone says “AI will take all the jobs.” If that happens… how does this future actually work? No jobs → no income → no spending. So who buys things? Who pays rent? Who keeps the economy moving? What am I missing here?

@TaylorLewan77 Likely a low estimate. Real number will be closer to $400. Bookmark this and remind me I was right in 2055.

I might be an idiot for not knowing this but who are we in debt to and can they ever call on this debt to be paid?

@KurtSupeCPA This is why multigenerational housing makes sense. Also understanding the concept of economic outpatient care is important when subsidizing adult children. At 38, probably not an issue.

Couple comes in for their annual review. $2.8 million. Well invested. Solid Pension. Completely on track. I ask the question I ask everyone. "How is your daughter doing?" Mom's face changed first. Their daughter is 39. Hasn't asked for anything. Never complained. But she's been in the same apartment for six years. Daycare alone is $1,800 a month. Down payment feels impossible. Dad said "we always figured she'd get it eventually." I pulled up a simple chart. Statistically they live to 88. She inherits at 56. Maybe 60. At 60 her own retirement is eight years away. The money that could change everything at 39 arrives when her finish line is already close. Neither of them had ever seen it framed that way. The annual gift exclusion is $19,000 per parent per child. They can move $38,000 a year to her. No gift tax. No estate implications. Over ten years that's $380,000 transferred while they're healthy enough to watch it matter. Dad looked at his wife. "Why are we waiting?" Most families leave everything at death because nobody showed them the math of giving it while they're alive.

@mhp_guy The quality of so many new houses is incredibly poor. Props to this builder for stepping up. You could be renting and the landlord doesn’t care about fixing it.

So ya wanna be a homeowner? Our home is <10 years old. The sewer line disconnected from the foundation & caused a 35 foot “belly.” AKA the toilets won’t flush anymore, because gravity. Insurance nor warranty will cover it. Cheapest quote was $25k. Tons of digging. Thankfully the builder is being a bro and covering half of it. Still in favor of owning, but the costs add up!

@YIMBYLAND Do they know it is not square?

This single-stair 6-plex is incredible. We should do whatever it takes to make it possible to build 100,000 of these across California:

@dollarsanddata You are assuming individual consumers are the only players on the demand side, leaving out the realm of corporate and investment buyers.

This is the big problem I see with U.S. housing. If incomes can't support prices, something has to give. While wealth transfers can offset this temporarily, most people won't have such a windfall. If incomes don't rise, prices will fall in many areas.

@middle_class_us Look up the redneck inflation index.

They tell you inflation is at 2.7%. Groceries are up 50 to 100%. Rent is up 40 to 60% in most cities. Insurance is up 30%. Who do you believe? The government or your bank account?