The Sunday Best is a collection of articles I’ve curated from the furthest reaches of the internet for your reading pleasure.

Every week, I scan hundreds of headlines, read dozens of posts, and bring you the best of the best to save you time and mental energy.

Financial Independence (FI) is a primary focus, but it’s an awfully broad topic. I tend to approach FI and early retirement from a fatFIRE perspective and through the lens of a physician, so expect to see those biases in the selected articles.

Related topics that have become recurrent themes include early retirement, selective frugality, tax issues, travel, physician issues, and of course, investing.

For more great articles, take a peek at The Sunday Best Archives. Now let’s get to the best… The Sunday Best!

The Modern FImily reaches an all-important milestone. It’s Happening! We Reached FIRE and Retired Early In Our 30s! Jubilado!

Cris Gawlik spends at least 330 days a year outside of the U.S. to take advantage of the FEIE tax exclusion on much of her online income. She talks about her lifestyle with The Fioneers. Pursuing FI as a Nomadic Traveler.

A Purple Life, who I presume is also a Vikings fan, celebrates a milestone of her own. 2 Years Of Early Retirement: Finances, What’s Changed And What’s Next?

Mr. Money Mustache, who retired forever ago, contrasts the default lifestyle to a more evidence-based, science-backed lifestyle. They are worlds apart. Lessons From the Badass Muscular Neurobiologist.

I like to think that people who know how to stretch a dollar tend to be more imaginative, but they’ve been accused of being dishonest and unoriginal. You Spend How Much? Clearly, You Lack Imagination.

Fritz Gilbert with Retirement Manifesto, who recently went for a 3-mile swim and has previously run a full marathon, shares his workout routine and top tips on How To Get In Shape For Retirement.

Forget what you think you know about tax-friendly (and unfriendly) states. The landscape changes drastically when looking at retirement income, including pensions, dividends, social security, and more. From Kitces.com, The Most Tax-Friendly States For Retirees: How To Compare State Income Tax Options For Retiring Clients.

Where you live is just one small piece of the tax equation. The White Coast Investor shows us How to Use Tax Diversification to Reduce Taxes Now AND in Retirement.

Opportunity is knocking. Downtown Josh Brown, The Reformed Broker, wonders whether or not you’ll answer. The Investor Opportunity Index Hits a Two-Year High.

My Fundrise investment has given me a double-digit return in the nearly five years I’ve been with them, and it’s outpaced the S&P 500 by about 30% so far this year. Fundrise gives a nifty graphical and numerical display so you can Explore Client Performance Over Time. See also their Q3 2022 – Letter to Investors.

• Bonus: Invest as little as $10 and receive $10 in bonus shares using our PoF referral link. You do NOT need to be an accredited investor to invest in a diversified real estate portfolio with Fundrise.

Jonathans Clements has been writing about personal finance for a long time. He spent years with the Wall Street Journal before starting Humble Dollar. Three topics, in particular, have been beaten to death, and he’s about had it with these Tiresome Debates.

Two of my favorite people got together for a conversation about doctors and their side hustles. Check out The Physician Philosopher Podcast about creating freedom after feeling trapped. Physician Side Gigs with Dr. Peter Kim.

• Related: TPP’s revamped and improved Alpha Coaching Experience has opened for the final time in 2022. Find out all that’s new for this edition of ACE and how to get a month of free coaching.

Who wants to learn from a millionaire? How about five of them? Another batch from ESI Money:

• Millionaire Interview 325
• Millionaire Interview 326
• Millionaire Interview 327
• Millionaire Interview 328
• Millionaire Interview 329

Ascent equity in Phoenix

Site sponsor Ascent Equity Group offers a value-add multifamily deal with NET 15-17% IRR and an average cash-on-cash of 7.14%. The projected hold time for the deal is 3 years, with a ten-year loan so the deal can ride out anything the universe throws at it. The minimum investment is $35,000 and you can fill out this form if you are interested.

• 120-unit deal in Glendale, a Phoenix submarket. This submarket is rated as one of the hottest growing in the nation.
• The plan is to hold for 3 years but could be held longer for infinite return (ie. cash-out refi).
• Cost segregation and bonus depreciation will be done (this might be the last chance before bonus depreciation decreases).
• Investor level returns are projected to be 15-17% IRR and EM ~ 1.5-1.7x (after all fees and waterfall).

If interested, please fill out this form. Please reach out to Ascent at info@ascentequitygroup.com if you have any questions.

The Pumpkin Hour

This Halloween, you can either hand out candy to wreak havoc on kids’ teeth, or you can hand out the perfect collection of spooky stories to expand their minds! Our friend Mark Milbrath has put together another stellar storybook centered around his favorite holiday.

My boys have enjoyed his books for years. We pre-ordered The Pumpkin Hour and they both read it cover to cover (via Kindle) the day it was released. They give it two enthusiastic thumbs up, and are happy to see The Tricker make a return.

A paperback version can be had for just $10, and, at the moment, the Kindle version is only 99 cents! You can still get past books in the series, including The Pumpkin Master, The Pumpkin Room, and Pumpkin Spirits for $2.99 on Kindle or under $10 if you prefer paper.

Make your kids’ next story hour a Pumpkin Hour, and let us know how they liked the book!

Going The Distance

I’m going the distance. I’m going for speed. I [won’t be] all alone — ALL ALONE — all alone in a time of need. I’m racing and pacing and plotting a course. I’m going the distance — 26.2 miles, to be precise.

Going back to the beginning of July, I’ve run 391 miles in three and a half months to prepare for this day. If you’re reading this on Sunday morning, I’m likely in the midst of a 4-hour jog around Grand Rapids. If you’re reading this on Sunday afternoon, I’ll likely have a beer buzz and/or be sleeping.

If you’re curious, I imagine results will be available at some point on the race website (I’ll be the only Dahleen running), and I’ll post an update here when I get a chance.

This race seems to be full of personality, and instead of simple time-based pacer runners, they have runners running at the pace of past celebrity marathoners. I’ll be happy to beat Kevin Hart, happier to best Will Ferrell, but, surprisingly, George W. Bush will almost certainly cross the finish line before I do.

I plan to leave Oprah and Al Gore in the dust, so there’s that. Please send warm thoughts; it’s supposed to be in the 40s throughout the morning.

Post-Race Update

That went well.

About a month ago, I did not think I could break four hours in a full marathon. I’d never run a marathon before, and breaking that barrier sounded really hard.

Five weeks later, 10 pounds lighter, and with ideal weather, I broke the four hour mark with 15 minutes to spare. I’m not going to lie; I’m proud of me. And slightly buzzed. 🍻

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Have an outstanding week!

-Physician on FIRE