As usual, we can blame it on COVID. Remember all the TP hoarding that happened right after all hell broke loose? People decided even the unpleasant stuff was more valuable than Platinum.
...and I was sitting pretty. Japanese washlets are amazing. Heated seat, heated water, blow dryer, and a built-in exhaust fan. TP was merely for drying off at best.
I should get someone to pay me to do cost analysis on how much is wasted on doing a cost analysis.
United Healthcare (insurance) has 400,000 employees. Let that sink in. How many $ that payroll must be, while not going towards actual patient care.
Known this for quite awhile, not just a realization, today.
But putting yourself into debt for ANY reason is a terrible idea!
Cars, you'll be in debt for years with high monthly payments.
Houses? Even worse! In debt for decades with high monthly mortgage payments that can easily increase over time.
Cars = Buy a used beater for cash.
Houses = Just get an apartment. No mortgage, no unexpected expenses such as a backed up septic tank that'll cost you perhaps 5 figures to fix. None of that!
Watches = If you're thinking of actually financing a luxury watch?.... Stop it. Get some help.
I'll actually disagree with you, somewhat. Leveraged debt is a good idea, as long as you're not greedy about it. Indeed, this is how much of Wall Street works.
Case in point: My fiancé's car.
We bought a used Mazda 6 in early 2021. With my credit card. That step scored us ~$1k in points/cash back.
IMMEDIATELY paid that off the following week before the statement hit, as I didn't want the hit to my credit score.
Within the next week we financed the car. 2.6% for a used car.
We took the cash from the financing and invested it.
Between inflation (CPI) and investing and credit card rewards, we've made ~106% gain. Back out the 2.6% for the loan and that's a 103% gain, and that's with CPI waaay underestimating inflation at 23% for that time period. I say it's closer to 40%. Yes, I know capital gains tax will catch up with me when we cash out the investments, but it's inconsequential compared to the gains on this deal. Essentially, free car.
Real estate is another one I'll disagree with you on, somewhat. You do need the right property, at the right time, at the right location. Just like college degrees, not every house/condo is a good investment. A 1 bedroom / 1 bathroom in this area rents for about $1500-$2500/month. 12 months @1500=$18,000. @ $2500 = $30,000. PER YEAR. $30k will buy you a decent used luxury car each year. After 10 years = $180k, $300k, respectively, with NO chance of you ever recouping that money. Yes, there are maintenance / repair costs, but there's very little chance they'd exceed $18k in a single year for that type of property. You also have no say in the upkeep of a rented unit.
At my fiancé's old place, the aircon was 40 years old. Her electric bills were >$200/mo for a 1 bedroom/1 bath. Of course it breaks in the middle of July going into a holiday weekend. The slumlord insisted on using 'his guy', who took 3 days to show up. He took one look, said it needed to be replaced. She was without aircon, in Florida, in July, for 8 days. The fixtures and fittings were equally tired and of dubious upkeep.
With my own condos, yes, when things break, I'm on the hook for it and am responsible for getting it fixed, HOWEVER, I have full say in that. I can paint the walls any color I want, I can move and remove walls. I have toilets imported from Asia with washlets. Appliances are imported and of good quality. The heat pump here is a multi-stage, variable-speed mutt of my special herbs & spices, hence the 50F dewpoint. Electric bills here in the summer are <$100/mo and this is a 3 bedroom condo, not her 1 bedroom postage stamp. Commercial PAR36 recessed ceiling lights, lighting control system. Music system throughout the condo. You're not going to get this in a rental. and my cost is substantially less. Property taxes were $3400 for the year, HOA fees were $355/mo. So $7,600/year ($633/mo) for this place. Much less than the $18k-$30k for a 1 bedroom, and this is a 3 bedroom/2 bath. My 1 bed/1 bath w/garage bachelor pad costs me ~$430/mo. Cheaper than renting a garage and storage units.
I'll sheepishly admit that I do have other condos where the HOA fees and taxes have become eye-watering, but I also have some which are much less than here. BUT, if I can get 2 months of seasonal rentals out of them, they're paid for. Any additional months is pure profit. Up until the hurricane hit, that's what I routinely did: I lived in one of the nice condos in the off-season then moved out for season to my 'bachelor pad' condo for 3 months. Traffic sucks in season, so it worked out nicely, even if moving out is somewhat of a hassle.
Luxury watches... I don't know that I'd finance one, however, they do make for a good alternate currency and investment if you buy the desirable ones. Rolex prices
have gone up about 550% in the past 15 years.
