The RetireJapan Guide to NISA 1.0
It’s finally here Yesterday we finally got the RetireJapan Guide to NISA properly formatted. We sent a copy to everyone who was kind enough to buy the beta version (anyone who buys a RetireJapan Guide will get free updates whenever we publish a new edition), and we will be ending the special sale price of […]
Saving for Retirement
How much should you save for retirement? I believe everyone should be saving at least 20-30% of their income. By saving, I mean putting it away or investing it for retirement. If you are saving for a holiday, or a car, that is not saving. Neither is saving for a house deposit or similar. Saving […]
The Monday Read
Back to work I really enjoyed Golden Week this year. Managed to get out and do some stuff with the family. Sadly the next decent holiday is in August… Here are some links to take the sting out of being back at work 😉 Kind of grim: Akita town presented as a microcosm for future […]
Company Buyout
Dude, where are my shares? A nondescript letter arrived the other day referencing a company I bought last year. I glanced at it, and as is my wont, threw it away as I assumed it was telling me about a dividend. Fortuntely my subconscious noticed something and I fished it out of the bin. Ah, […]
Property Tax in Japan 2
All becomes clear Not where I live, unfortunatelyWe wrote about property taxes last year, but that post was somewhat hindered by the fact that I had misplaced or not received the breakdown of how the taxes were calculated. All is well now though, as the breakdown for this year has arrived. Feast your eyes on […]
The Monday Read
A festive read Well, hopefully you are enjoying a well-deserved break this week. Every year March/April takes me by surprise with its unremitting brutality. The golden week break seems divinely inspired 🙂 Here are this week’s links: What next? Robots can assemble Ikea furniture.Invest a lump sum or regularly over time? The luck of the […]
Crowdsourcing: One Million Yen
Help me, RetireJapan readers. You’re my only hope. A happy ‘problem’ to have today. Due to a fortunate series of events, it looks like I will have about a million extra yen this year. I’m wondering what I should do with it. Obviously if it were a million dollars, I would know exactly what to […]
Disability Insurance in Japan
What happens if you don’t die? Many people (maybe even too many people) have life insurance in Japan. Far fewer have disability insurance. Today’s post takes a look at some of the options if you are afraid of becoming permanently unable to work. Nenkin The national pension scheme includes disability insurance. This is shougai kosei […]
The Monday Read
So I guess summer is here now? Mid-April, and it is getting hot and humid here in Sendai (29 degrees today!). Insects are having a field day. Here are this week’s links. Can’t see this happening in Japan anytime soon:Â Asian companies ‘planning big shift to automation’.Automation accelerates! The verdict is in: AI outperforms human lawyers […]
Rich People
If you can’t beat them join them Rich people get richer. Normal people fall back. The system is rigged. It’s not fair. Someone should do something about it. The Guardian ran a fantastic incendiary article last week. According to the author, if present trends continue the top 1% will hold 64% of […]