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!

 

 

 

Mike from the Friends on FIRE podcast shares a reassuring guest post with Budgets are Sexy, detailing what it was like growing up with two “stay-at-home” parents, much like my kids are now doing. My Parents Retired at 42: What I Learned Growing Up in a FIRE Family.

 

Physician retires and sees his own job posted for 22% more than he made at the height of his career. Dr. David Graham, the FI Physician, realizes just how much he was underpaid in Doctors Retiring Early Because of Covid.

 

They’re not ready to retire anytime soon, but could the time be right to transition to an entirely different field of work? FIRE Crossroads 007: $2 Million Net Worth at Age 39. Time for a Career Change?

 

Her student loans were charging 0.15% and 0.59% interest, and Dr. Pay it Back and his wife chose to eliminate those balances. In what world does this make any sense? Let him explain: We Paid Off My Wife’s Loans.

 

Did you know that this week was “Talk Money Week”? Me, neither, but that’s basically every week for me. The Female Money Doctor introduces Talk Money Week – How To Feel Better About Money Conversations with children, significant others, and more.

 

Do other people want to hear you talk about money, though? Isn’t that an off-limit topic for most? No, says The Physician Philosopher. 5 Myths Surrounding Teaching Others About Money.

 

I’m constantly talking and teaching on money topics. This week, I shared the step-by-step process I used to invest in a very safe fixed income vehicle paying 7.12% for the next six months. How (and Why) to Buy I Bonds from Treasury Direct.

 

I Bonds have some tax advantages, especially if you redeem them for education costs (with limitations — see above post). 529 plans also have tax advantages, even if you don’t use them for education costs. The Resource Planning group broke them down into two parts. Good and Bad Reasons Why High Income Earners Miss the Opportunity With 529 Plans – Part I & High Income Earners Fail to Appreciate the Math of 529 Plans – Part II.

 

Passive Income MD is talking — as he is wont to do — about syndications this week. What Does it Mean To Be a Limited Partner in a Syndication?

 

Speaking of syndications, the latest offering in Washington, D.C. from Crowdstreet will be the closest residential housing to the White House when complete. The projections of a 22.6% target IRR will just more than double investors’ money in 4 years if executed according to plan.

 

Real estate is one alternative asset class I’ve gotten into more in recent years. The other is venture capital; I’ve invested in a number of deals with Republic Capital and I’m invested in Republic.co itself. The College Investor breaks down the basics. What Is Venture Capital? (And How To Invest).

 

Both real estate and venture capital are optional asset classes. It’s best to start with the basics, as this early-career veterinarian has done quite well. FIRE Starter 007: An Emergency Vet in the Pacific Northwest.

 

At the other end of the spectrum, I interviewed a retiree who’s cruising along with annual spend of < 1.5% of her assets. Post FI Notes 007: An Exceptionally Low Withdrawal Rate & No Desire to Spend More.

 

Our Post FI Notes interviewee is a millionaire several times over. Here are another 5 millionaires that might be able to teach you a thing or two. From ESI Money:

• Millionaire Interview #266
• Millionaire Interview #267
• Millionaire Interview #268
• Millionaire Interview #269
• Millionaire Interview #270

 

 

The Chase Sapphire Killer?

 

A brand-spanking new card, the Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card, looks like a strong one-card solution that could potentially replace more expensive cards like the Chase Sapphire Reserve (CSR), the Platinum Card from American Express (rates and fees), and other premium credit cards.

What makes this particular card so great?

You get at least 2 points per dollar spent, a value of 2% of each dollar spent. Compare that to the 1.5% back on most categories for the CSR.

The CSR carries a $550 annual fee. After the $300 travel credit, the effective fee is $250. Every 4 years, you can bring that down to $150 with a Global Entry credit of $100 if you use that service (which I highly recommend).

The Venture X carries a $395 annual fee. Capital One also gives you a $300 credit on travel booked via the Capital One Travel search engine, and they give you an annual point bonus of 10,000 points  — a $100 value. That makes the effective fee -$5 ($5 in your favor) after your first year.

You can earn a 75,000 point welcome bonus ($7500 value) when spending $4,000 in the first three months with the Venture X. And, like the CSR, they also offer reimbursement of up to $100 for Global Entry or TSA Pre✓.

The best perk of the Chase Sapphire Reserve and AmEx Platinum cards is the unlimited airport lounge access. The Venture X offers that, too, via the Priority Pass lounges and new Capital One lounges that are in the works (the first recently opened at DFW). All of this for an annual fee that can be more than offset with some easy-to-redeem perks for anyone who travels at least once a year.

Chase still has the best travel perks and there are some random perks with the Sapphire Reserve and Sapphire Preferred cards like Peloton credits and Doordash discounts, but those are benefits that I could live without.

I think the Venture X could be an excellent, simple, one-card solution for excellent travel rewards, including valuable Priority Pass lounge access.

 

 

 

I’m On a Boat

 

The other day, for the first time in over three years, my family and I boarded a cruise ship. I’ve got my swim trunks, and my flippy-floppies…

Back when I had limited vacation time and we were somewhat restricted by the school calendar, cruises were not my favorite type of trip. Don’t get me wrong; I do enjoy them, but if I’m taking maybe two real vacations per year at most, I like to have a little more freedom and less structure than a cruise can typically offer.

Life is different now. I have unlimited vacation time. I only answer to one boss, and she loves it when we go on cruises. The kids do, too, and they are getting more and more independent by the day to the point where I’m a little sad when they ditch us every chance they get.

 

 

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A post shared by Physician on FIRE (@physicianonfire)

 

I was a little leary as to how this would go in the midst of the pandemic, but I’ve been very pleased with the experience thus far. The last thing the cruise industry wants is a COVID outbreak, so they take every precaution within reason, including ensuring that every passenger 12 and above is fully vaccinated.

We’re having fun and wishing we had been able to take that 30-day cruise to Shanghai that we had scheduled over one year ago. Perhaps another lengthy cruise will be in our future. Until then, I’ll enjoy the shows, pools, and ridiculous number of delicious delicacies offered up by the Mariner of the Seas.

 

 

Have an outstanding week!

-Physician on FIRE

 

To see rates and fees for featured cards from American Express: Platinum Card from American Express (rates and fees).