The Monday Read

So much for the rainy season being over

Picture


I hope everyone in western Japan is okay and things recover quickly. The images on TV and online are pretty horrendous.

​Here are this week’s links:

  1. Shinsei Bank has time to research stuff like this as they frantically dismantle their product and get rid of everything that made them good: results of the 2018 salaried worker pocket money survey.
  2. I was meaning to write about this but someone beat me to it. Doomed to depreciate: The limited life span of a Japanese home explained.
  3. ​Some timely reminders: little money rules.
  4. There are advantages to making your money slowly: Sustaining Wealth is Harder Than Getting Rich.
  5. The present is good: More Things I Don’t Miss.
  6. How to become financially independent: ​IF YOU WANT FIRE, KNOW AND CONTROL THE BURN.
  7. This will be massively disruptive. Improve your chances of being okay by working on your financial situation. Deep Learning Is Going to Teach Us All the Lesson of Our Lives: Jobs Are for Machines.
  8. A bit dark, but something we all need to think about in advance: letting go.
  9. Another solid millionaire interview.
  10. Make yourself financially robust: Profiting From the Next Recession.
  11. Big fan of this approach (similar to kaizen): This Coach Improved Every Tiny Thing by 1 Percent and Here’s What Happened.
  12. We investors have it so good now: The Privilege of Knowledge.
  13. Make sure your risks are compensated. Investing for beginners: Uncompensated risk.
  14. I just buy the whole world and don’t worry about it too much: A Short History of Foreign Stock Market Corrections.
  15. Don’t touch it! Why Your Investment Portfolio Is Like A Bar of Soap.
  16. Not sure if I should reopen this wound… Which is Better: Paying Off a Mortgage or Investing More?
  17. Diversification FTW: Some Considerations For Investing Globally.
  18. Interesting hustle money interview: ESI Scale Interview 20.
  19. More confirmation that you should bank with a bank and invest with a broker: 銀行の投資信託、４６％の個人が「損」 金融庁問題提起.
  20. This turned out to be a very kind letter: Netflix CEO Reed Hastings Responds To Whitney Tilson: Cover Your Short Position. Now.
  21. Maslow’s hierarchy of needs vs. money: Happiness is Somewhere Between Having Too Much and Having Too Little.
  22. Some advice for Johnny Depp: Made $650 Million? Here’s How to Keep It.
  23. This might actually be good for anyone buying stocks for the next decade: Brace for a lost decade for U.S. stocks, warn Morningstar strategists.
  24. The climate seems to be destabilizing: ​Red-hot planet: All-time heat records have been set all over the world during the past week.

Anything good in there? My favourite was probably the medicine one (#8), but there are at least half a dozen excellent links in there this week. Enjoy!

6 Responses

  1. Enjoyed #2. Very informative and accurate, although from my POV focuses strictly on the dollars-and-cents aspect. As a homeowner since 1995, yes I will be in the hole if/when I sell, but although this may be rationalization on my part, it fails to take into consideration tangibles/intangibles like having a roof over my head, having a house built to my preferences (architect-designed, built by a major ‘maker’), living in a quiet, green neighborhood, with nice neighbors, and bonus, our very own view of Mount Fuji from all rooms in the house (and no, I don’t live in Gotemba). The “loss,” amortized over the no. of years I will have lived here, represents what would otherwise have gone to rent (yes, I know, there was/is the interest on the mortgage), having to pay lease renewal fees, etc.
    Yes, I’m happy and very satisfied with my house, which is very well built and will definitely last more than 30 years (now in year 23 of occupancy).

    1. Good to hear it worked out for you. I think everyone needs to make their own decision on housing, there is no ‘correct’ answer.
      However, in Japan, I think if you won’t be able to live there for at least 2-3 decades it might be better to rent…

  2. Although I don’t comment often, I always enjoy your weekly emails and the articles you find.
    I agree with Julie that #2 is interesting. My wife and I have been in our house for over 7 years. Although we didn’t get a home of particular design, we wanted one built to western standards with conveniences like central air. We’re still pleased with what we got. We look to live here for 25 years, figuring that health problems will probably push us into a single-story place by then. We don’t expect to get anything like we’d get in the states, but we’re trying to do periodic maintenance it to maximize possible value.
    Additionally, #5 brought back some memories, especially the reference to cartoons.

  4. “The climate seems to be destabilizing”
    Thats a scary thought.
    But then again, Donald Trump says there is no global warming, actually he once said “we need global warming”
    So I guess this article must not be correct…

    1. Heh. Indeed. And black is white, and white is black. Oceania are our friends now.