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Best Interest Rates on Cash – December 2020

Here's my monthly roundup of the best interest rates on cash for December 2020, roughly sorted from shortest to longest maturities. I track these rates because I keep 12 months of expenses as a cash cushion and there are many lesser-known … [Read the rest]

Peerstreet Case Study #3: COVID-Era Commercial Property Foreclosure Disaster

I've invested over $50,000 of my "alternative" money into PeerStreet real estate notes because of the ability to diversify into 50+ different high-interest loans backed by physical real estate. Here is a case study shared by a helpful reader about a … [Read the rest]

Mediocre Target Date Retirement Funds? Replace Them When You Switch Jobs

If you have a workplace 401k/403b/457 retirement plan, there is probably a target-date fund (TDF) inside. TDFs provide a "set-and-forget" investment option that automatically adjusts the asset allocation over time as you move towards your target … [Read the rest]

Hyatt Hotels: 500 Free Bonus Points

Hyatt Hotels is having a "Global Day of Gratitude" on December 9th, and as part of that is giving out 500 bonus Hyatt points if you listen to one of their Headspace exercises (again, must be done 12/9): On December 9th: • Open the World of Hyatt … [Read the rest]

PeerStreet Review: Fractional Real-Estate Loan Returns (IRR) After 4.5 Years

Updated February 2021. I started investing in PeerStreet real-estate backed loans in July 2016. I've long liked the idea of hard money loans, but I wanted more diversification as opposed to tying all my money up with one single property. … [Read the rest]

Tesla S&P 500 Noise vs. Vanguard Total Market Quiet Simplicity

Tesla's stock value is up a whopping 600% in 2020 alone, with a current market cap of over $550 billion dollars and a P/E ratio of over 1,000. At this moment, it is worth more than Disney, Walmart, or Berkshire Hathaway. Even better, the S&P 500 … [Read the rest]

Giving Tuesday 2020: Double Your Impact With Matching Donations

Tuesday, December 1st is Giving Tuesday 2020, an international day about giving support through charities and nonprofits by donating money or volunteering your time. In case you aren't inundated with mailings already, this time of year is a big deal … [Read the rest]

Wishing You a Hopeful and Happy Thanksgiving

Imagine an aeroplane makes an emergency landing and breaks into three parts. As the cabin fills with smoke, everybody inside realises: we’ve got to get out of here. What happens? On Planet A, the passengers turn to their neighbours to ask if … [Read the rest]

Upsolve: Nonprofit Helps You File Chapter 7 Bankruptcy For Free

Upsolve is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization that helps anyone file for bankruptcy on their own behalf. They are not a legal service, but more of a free self-service software tool and step-by-step guide. Essentially "TurboTax for Bankruptcy", … [Read the rest]

Consumer Reports: Top 10 Most Reliable Car Brands and Models 2020

Consumer Reports provided some updated results from their 2020 Car Owner Survey in the public articles Who Makes the Most Reliable Cars?, 10 Most Reliable Cars, and 10 Least Reliable Cars. There are a few minor surprises, including a new brand in … [Read the rest]

Financial Planning Advice From Allan Roth’s 40 Years of Experience

Allan Roth is one of the financial planners whose independent opinions I have come to respect, and he shares seven takeaways from 40 years of financial planning. Financial Planning is an industry trade magazine targeted at (obviously) professional … [Read the rest]

Emergency Funds Are The First Building Block For Retirement

The Blackrock article Emergency Savings = Better Retirement? comes from Blackrock's department that helps companies manage their retirement plans. They propose the idea of creating a separate "sidecar savings account" in order to prevent early … [Read the rest]