Welcome to this week’s edition of the Sunday Best where we read through the internet’s vast palate to bring you the best food for thought.
This week we consider the housing market, whether it’s worth buying and maintaining houses, the illusions of permanence and how life can turn upside down in a moment.
We’re also reading about investment advisers, asset allocations, what constitutes a good income and so much more.
Happy reading!
The Sunday Best 01/26/2025
In case you were thinking about the housing market, sales of existing homes in the US fell last year to the lowest level in almost three decades, as sky-high home prices and elevated mortgage rates squeezed home buyers.
Speaking of the housing market, would you rather spend your money on experiences you’ll remember for the rest of your life or furnaces, carpets, appliances, and dubious status?
Life tends to create the illusion of permanence; that what you have today will persist tomorrow. This extends far beyond the domain of possessions and into that of one’s identity. But what you’ll realize is that one day – whether it’s through a nearby fire or the finish line of existence – these attachments will be meaningless.
When it comes to retirement plans for self-employed physicians or those with side gigs, two popular options are the SEP-IRA and the Solo 401(k). Though both the Solo 401(k) and SEP IRA come with its benefits, there are some compelling reasons why the Solo 401(k) is more compelling than the SEP IRA.
Fund investors seem to be overallocated to stocks and lacking bond exposure. How far out-of-whack are fund investors’ asset allocations? $800 billion, give or take.
If you’re thinking 2025 is the year to transition into retirement, one of your first steps needs to be talking to your investment adviser. But when this person tells you that you can retire at the end of 2025, what do they specifically mean?
People make more money over time. Some make less. Some see their incomes jump around from high to low and back again. What you thought was a good income in the past might not get you as far in the future.
The Federal Reserve began to cut interest rates on September 18th. What is instructive is what has happened with bond yields, and the comparative moves in stock prices, since.
While the private markets appear to be getting increasingly efficient a strange thing is happening in the public markets. As companies stay private longer and the private equity markets grow the public markets are increasingly becoming a place where people gamble and engage in negative sum games that they may not understand as inherently negative sum.
Tax credits are often targeted to lower and middle-income individuals and households. Many people who are able to save aggressively towards financial independence have too high of income to qualify for these credits in their accumulation years, but there are still some tax credits that should be on your radar.
What happens when illness, injury, or other circumstances might prevent a physician from practicing their specialty? That’s where Own Occupation Disability Insurance (ODI) comes into play.