It’s time to lean back, relax and enjoy a little Joe …
Welcome to another exciting edition of Black Coffee, your off-beat weekly round-up of what is going on in the world of money and personal finances.
Well … another busy week is behind us. So with that in thought, let’s start this party!
The reality is simple. It is cheating that it is hard work.
– Lauryn Hill
Sometimes it is not to make people believe a lie – it is to make people fear the liar.
– Anne Applebaum
Credits and depreciation
Credit: Have you seen this? American drivers are expected to release the smallest part of their disposable income to gasoline this year than in the past two decades. The EIA has projected that Less than 2% From the personal disposable income of people will be spent on gasoline in 2025, at an average 2.4% during the previous decade and the lowest share since 2005, apart from the pandemic year of 2020. But again, everything is relative, right?
Debit: In the meantime, a model that is used to predict social security (SS) adjustments (SS) (SS) (cola) that recipients can expect An increase of 2.7% In 2026. Last year the SS Cola was 2.5%. Anyway, it will be lower than the inflation calculated by the deliberately modest CPI set by the government and then easily used by the federal bureaucrats to calculate those annual SS colas. On the other hand, most people know they should never believe everything Our so -called authorities tell us. For example …
Debit: In other news we see that shortages in the European schedule capacity are still a problem thanks to the transmission of intermittent wind and solar energy. As a result, energy prices Keep risingAnd power accounts have been raised as continent politicians sacrifice just reliability of the network to combat the alleged ‘climate crisis’. As a result, the only other alternative is without more fossil fuel plants coming online, increasing the number of nuclear plants. The bad news is That The option takes more than 15 years to relieve the current vulnerability of the network. Despite these irrefutable facts, others continue to demonize fossil fuels and their producers. Imagine that.
Gary Larson – The other side
Credit: With that in mind, Zero heg I experienced this week that: “After this huge (green energy) Boondoggle, what are the Europeans left? Look no further than Spain: a fragile, maximum schedule that threatens to be that paralyzing the economy Because current restrictions block new factories and data center -builddouts. Well done, Brussels-it is almost as if this so-called ‘green’ policy was never intended to succeed, but rather to castrate the EU. “Well … it certainly seems that way.
Debit: Speaking of accounts, the average single-family home owner now almost pays $ 2370 for real estate insurance Every year – that has risen 70% since the pandemic. In fact, the premium increases have exceeded inflation far over the same period; In the first half of this year, they rose by 4.9% alone, and more than 11% of a year ago. And you thought high house prices were a problem.
H/T: @bethechain
Credit: In the meantime, the Dow, S&P 500 and Nasdaq on Wall Street finished the week All-time highlights. For the week, the Dow rose by 1%, while the S&P 500 and Nasdaq covered their third consecutive weekly profits, respectively 1.2%and 2.2%. To be honest, it looks like it Nothing Can stop one of the most important US stock indices at the moment. Does anyone want to guess why that is? What is that? Yes … you are after that … you speak so that everyone can hear you:
Debit: Since 2008, stock market investors have of course been saved by the FED every time an economic crisis threatened to settle earlier market outputs. The resulting moral danger Today, the investors of today trained to take bigger risks because they believe that the Fed has their backs. At the same time, the US government expects other countries and private investors to continue to cover absolutely amazing debts. The bad news is the Fed and the American treasury more more on losers. Talk about playing a losing game …
Debit: Indeed, the stock market is in a constant and Nearly-up-up uptrend Since the Fed the market started to support extra liquidity every time the economy caught a pinch. As a result, macro analyst Jesse Columbo points out that “the Buffett indicator is a stunning 214, which is 149% above the long-term average of 86, dating from 1971. This level is even higher than the peak of the 1990 Dot-Com bubble, which ended in a devastated crash.” Yes … but everyone tells us that this time it is different. They better hope.
H/T: Jesse Columbo via Substack
Debit: Unnecessary to say that minimizing economic delays through the pressure presses of the Fed has come at a steep costs. You only have to look at the $ 37 trillion national debt To see that. For those who do not count at home, a stack of $ 37 trillion in accounts from the US dollar (USD) would reach the moon ten separate times. Let alone the national debt not Include more than $ 100 trillion in non -famous obligations that the US will also be on the hook in the coming years. In the meantime …
H/T: @duedilgenceguy
Credit: Talked about the $ 37 trillion national debt, Sprat Macro analyst Paul Wong warned of the upcoming effects of the last bullet of the Fed in the Chamber, which started to implement it this week when it leaves the rates with 25 basic points: “Financial repression and tax dominance (has) direct consequences for the USD. Suppressed yields reduce the real return on American assets, which weakens the profession of the USD. Stablecoins supported by T-Bills expand the delivery of USD-like instruments, making their scarcity premium becoming obsolete. And with fewer foreign investors who anchor the market, the USD could lose its stabilizing role. ” Do you think?
Credit: It is clear that writing is on the wall for the future purchasing power of the Fiat USD. And yet an invalid general public is still not interested on the basis of the lack of company use reported by precious metal coin and bullion retailers. History tells us that the audience shall Eventually wake up with what happens with the Fiat -currency for which they work and use daily to store their wealth. The only question is: at what price will they finally decide to buy their asset insurance? Well … assuming it is still available.
H/T: Goldsilver.com
By the figures
A new study by Wallethub has identified the US states with the healthiest housing markets. Here are the States with the ten lowest mortgage -like rates in the nation in the last three months of 2024:
10 South Dakota
9 Indiana
8 Maine
7 Delaware
6 Oklahola
5 Arizona
4 North Dakota
3 Vermont
2 Wyoming
1 Montana
Source: Wallethub
The question of the week
Last week’s survey result
Are you planning to move to a new state after retirement (or have you moved) to a new state?
More than 1900 Len Penzo Dot Com readers answered last week’s level question and it appears that more than 2 in 5 of you intend to go to a new state in retirement, or has already done that. Although I am retired and live in California, which is one of the states with the highest load in the nation, the extremely low real estate tax help to moderate the pain here.
When You Have a question that you would like to see here, send it to me Len@lenpenzo.com And make sure you place “question of the week” in the subject line.
Useless news: Doctor Check-Up
An 80-year-old Rancher from Oregon goes to the doctor for a check.
The doctor is surprised in what good form the man is and asks: “How do you stay in such a great physical state?”
“I am a rancher. I get up well for the daylight riding and recovering fences and if I don’t do that, I will hunt or fish in my spare time.”
He pauses and then said: “In the evening I have a beer, a shot whiskey and then take a warm bath just before I go to bed, and that’s why I am in such a good shape.”
“Well”, the doctor said, “I am sure that will help, but there must be more to it. How old was your father when he died?”
“Who said my father is dead?” Said the rancher.
The doctor is surprised. “You mean that you are 80 years old and your father is still alive? How old is he?”
“He is 102,” said the old cowboy. “In fact, he worked with me this morning, and then we went to a roadhouse for a while and had five beer pints and that’s why he is still alive. He is also a rancher and he hunts and fishes too!”
“Well,” says the doctor, “that’s great, but I’m sure there is more going on than that. What about your father’s father? How old was he when he died? ‘
“Who said my grandfather’s death?” The rancher shot back.
In surprise, the doctor asks: “You mean that you are 80 years old and your grandfather is still alive?”
“He is 118 years old,” said 80-year-old Cowboy.
The doctor is currently becoming frustrated: “So I think he would also hunt you this morning?”
“No, Grandpa couldn’t go this morning because he is getting married today.”
At this point the doctor is close to losing it. “Get getting married? Why would a 118-year-old man on earth want to get married?”
The 80-year-old Rancher replied, “Who said he wanted that?”
(H/T: Dave)
Squirrel
Too cute …
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More useless news
Here are the top – and lower – five Canadian provinces and areas in terms of the average number of pages that are viewed here at Len Penzo Dot Com in the last 30 days:
1. Prince Edward Island (2.13 pages/visit)
2. Newfoundland & Labrador (2.03)
3. Nova Scotia (1.91)
4. Northwest Territories (1.75)
5. Quebec (1.61)
9. Ontario (1.41)
10. British Columbia (1.40)
11. Alberta (1.38)
12. Nunavut (1.33)
13. Yukon (1.00)
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(The best of) Letters, I get letters
Every week I have the most interesting question or comment – assuming that I get one, that is. And people who are lucky to have the only question in the mail bag, get their letter here emphasized whether it is interesting or not! You can reach me on: Len@lenpenzo.com
Mr. Wonderful (Don’t look at me; that’s what he calls himself) has dropped this strange note in my inbox:
Do you have a change for a hunger?
Uh … if you are so great, how is it not that you are not married? Every married man I know has an empty wallet.
If you enjoyed this edition of Black Coffee and found it informative, send it to your friends and family. Thank you! 😀
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Photocredit: stock photo
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