The Monday Read: Swimming Upstream?
When life is hard, keep going This week I published a quick blog post on a topic I have been thinking about for a while. For a laugh I gave it a clickbaity controversial title, and of course it has become the most successful post I have ever made on social media, getting hundreds of […]
The Monday Read: This changes everything
What if you didn’t have to do it, but rather got to do it I have it pretty easy in life. I got a good start, have been more than averagely lucky, and have made a few good moves. I wake up when I want, pretty much do what I want, and have very little […]
2023 Roundup
All in one place This is the RetireJapan roundup post for 2023. We’ll be going through some successes and failures, as well as my lists of favourite blog posts and videos. Here is the 2022 post if you want to see what that year looked like. 2023 was the year of rapid evolution I finally […]
Progress Report 2023
The Progress Continues It’s the blog post none of you have been waiting for 😉 This year once again I am publishing my personal financial progress report post. You can see last year’s post here (and follow the chain back through time if you are interested -the first was in 2017 or so). I find […]
Making a Will in Japan
The notary public option A few months ago, I made a shocking discovery: there was a good chance that when I died, all my assets would go to the Japanese government and my family would get nothing. (don’t panic, this is extremely unlikely to apply to you) The reason for this is my very particular […]
Guest Post: What happens to iDeCo if you die?
iDeCo and other DC pension accounts are NOT treated like other assets when someone dies. Read about designating a beneficiary and making sure your assets are covered.
The Monday Read: Finding Treasure
Welcome to The Monday Read, RetireJapan’s weekly collection of content, musings, and links related to personal finance and life in Japan. That dragonfly was just sitting on the fence when I got to work. I guess it was too hot for dragonflies as well as humans that day. Recently I find myself stopping to take […]
The Monday Read: Borrowing Nice Things
Welcome to The Monday Read, RetireJapan’s weekly collection of content, musings, and links related to personal finance and life in Japan. Last week I needed to drive somewhere and my wife was using her car. There is a Toyota Rentacar just down the street, so I booked a car through them. You get a slight […]
The Monday Read: Life-changing books
A life-changing book is not a term to throw around lightly. I feel like I might have read one this week (details below). Other life-changing books include Your Money or Your Life, one of the first personal finance books I read, and one that might have had the largest effect. Another was Minako Takekawa’s iDeCo […]
Saving for Your Child’s Education in Japan
Options and Recommendations As a parent living in Japan, one of the biggest concerns you may have is how to save money for your child’s education. Educational expenses in Japan can range from a couple of million (going to public schools and avoiding expensive after-school activities and cram schools) to close to 100 million yen […]