As an indicator of real wealth, happiness, or progress, GDP is worthless. All you have to do to raise GDP is to invite in more immigrants. As each one buses and schleps, total output goes up.
If nothing else, your column is a reminder of the pervasiveness of government’s intrusion into our lives. Love the anecdote of spending last days drinking wine, listening to music and dancing rather than being a prisoner of continuing care.
My sister, upon learning she had colon cancer, decided to go out on her feet. She was productive up until the last 7-10 days. Each has to decide for him/herself. My other sister was shocked at her sister's decision. Privately to my afflicted sister, I endorsed her choice 100%. Best always. PM
For the sake of appearances, government transfer payments are counted as GDP. Um, Houston, we have a problem: self-deception (the best kind, evidently).
Bill is right — GDP is a terrible indicator of real prosperity.
It rewards war, disasters, bureaucracy, and debt. If a government borrows $1 trillion, hires 100,000 administrators, and blows the money on make-work, GDP goes up even though the country gets poorer. That’s accounting, not economics.
There is a better way to measure whether a nation is actually getting stronger or hollowing itself out. Strip out the unproductive part of government spending, remove the second-round “GDP echo” that spending creates in the private sector, and penalize growth purchased with debt and inflation.
The result is a 0–100 score that measures real, sustainable prosperity instead of political bookkeeping.
I wrote about it here, including a scorecard for the U.S., Canada, France, Australia, Vietnam, Ireland, and Argentina:
Will they increase GDP when they start replacing humans?
-
And what about Ai, it has already begun to eliminate human job positions!
-
Seems the burden of hiring and maintaining humans (insurance, vacations, sick leave, PTO, cultural differences, sexual harassments, raises, occupational training, transportation, bad hygiene and habits, worker threats, etc...) will decrease... as the sale of robots contribute to GDP.
It seems the U.S. does not need is to import more humans...
"as the sale of robots contribute to GDP". For every "sale" of a robot there is a "cost-purchase" of a robot. Plus, what are you going to do with the human you put out of work? Haul them off to the landfill? The round trip cost of AI is going to surprise us.
AI is a fantasma bubble. It is the ultimate deception, an abrogation of human responsibility foisted on a machine, devoid of instinct, enlightenment or God.
Harold’s right that every “sale” has a counterbalancing “cost,” and Angry’s right that AI is coming whether we like it or not.
The real issue isn’t whether AI or robots raise GDP — they absolutely will, just like mass immigration does. The issue is who actually benefits and whether citizens’ real productivity per person rises or falls.
If a robot replaces a human and the profits stay concentrated at the top, GDP rises, but SPoPC — Sustainable Productivity per Capita — drops. You’ve gained output, but lost distributed prosperity.
That’s the trap we’re in now: confusing total output with shared progress.
AI might win the “21st-century war” for efficiency, but if the spoils don’t flow to citizens, we’ll have conquered nothing worth keeping.
You’re absolutely right — robot production will raise GDP. Every new machine sold counts as “growth.”
But that’s exactly the problem. GDP measures activity, not well-being. If robots replace human workers, total output might rise — but output per human falls. GDP climbs while the number of people earning, spending, or even participating in the economy collapses.
It’s the same illusion we already see with immigration and government spending: more motion, less meaning. GDP rewards production, not distribution. The wealth created by automation would flow to whoever owns the robots, not to the people replaced by them.
And since robots don’t buy groceries, pay rent, or take vacations, demand shrinks even as “productivity” explodes. A country can hit record GDP while its citizens can’t afford to live.
That’s why Sustainable Productivity per Capita (SPoPC) matters. It asks a simpler question:
Are people better off, or just the spreadsheets?
GDP can keep climbing right up until the last human is out of a job — and that’s not progress.
I don't know how productive government work is, but those legislators were getting paid for not being very productive for the last 6 weeks. And their earnings were included in the Government Dumbass Project (GDP). How valuable to our nation were their salaries? If they were so valuable, then why did it take them so long to accomplish the passage of ONE PIECE of legislation?
Then we have those government workers who didn't get paid in spendable currency units during those six weeks. Their income will show up in the later months of this quarter, so it won't cause a recession, such as it might if those payments got shifted to a subsequent calendar quarter. But why do we have to calculate these statistics on a quarterly basis? Not that it matters in the end, but it's all phony silliness, meant to falsify the numbers as much as possible.
Doomsday is in the US future. Politicians will never reduce spending because they lose votes. It would be wonderful if when a new budget is being discussed.
1. No more real increase in the budget from previous years. Any extra GDP, Not lies, but real GDP to lower the deficit.
2. If they cannot come up with a fair budget, it automatically goes back to the previous year.
3. No government shutdown at all. Start the budget discussion sooner. I like to dream big. As I said Doomsday in in the US future
Perhaps it's time for our Legislators to take a closer look at the effects of housing market direct ownership by the banks as Landlords. Is it approaching a monopoly? What would be an ideal proportion of housing assets held by banks to cash reserves or credit market tradable assets? Should society simply ignore the exponential rate of the development of cartel ownership over individual ownership of housing? If top-down housing ownership is allowed to continue to metastasize without any controls, doesn't it begin to look a lot like the old feudal system of landed Gentry and landless Serfs? How will that resolve?
Well, Bill has done it again. He hates the way the government measures our economic “progress.” Frankly, from all I’ve read in this comments bulletin board he is correct. Not my beef. Fact is I don’t rely on any GDP, XYZ or ABC to tell me how my economy is progressing and I suspect few others do either. It is a number that is thrown out at us, but it is as irrelevant as yesterday’s pollen count. My beef with Bill is he is a billionaire, self-made and owns a financial newsletter. What should we be using, Billy boy? You got where you are at by being pretty smart when it comes to money. Educate the great unwashed, not to mention under valued with a pearl of wisdom on what we should be apprised of the US economy. Once we know what to ask, we might actually start demanding of the political elites that kind of information rather than the claptrap we have been getting. Bill, you run a financial service. Start offering advice and helpful information to your readers [e.g. your customers] and save the criticism for someone who buys the politician’s claptrap.
I find it interesting the U.S. Housing valuation metric uses the Median and not the Mode. When discussing affordability the greatest number of houses sold at a given price is a more appropriate metric when measuring what the cost of a home for the “Common” Man.
Home buyers at the Median = 40 years of age. $425,000 is the Median Housing Price; at 40 years of age; seems plausible.
One would think; however, the cost of living sans house payment or rent has become much greater than when this ol' man grew up including a decade or so ago. Food, medicine, clothing.....you get the picture squeezes all families' budgets. Us peons income hasn't kept up with inflation at all and continues to fall behind. And, now we hear of huge lay-offs coming at Apple, Amazon, etc. The working man/woman doesn't have a chance these days. And, our Government (and it has been this way for decades) isn't focused on America. Those politicians and their elite managers are only focused on power and money and wars. It is truly heart-rendering to see what America has become. And, it isn't because us voters voted for the wrong candidates. Us voters get two (2) choices decided and funded by the money behind the politicians. Just shows - if one's eyes are wide open - where this is going and, unfortunately, rapidly.
LSO, this isn't new. When I was a kid, a pack of gum at the drug store or grocery store counter cost 5 cents (no bid-ask, either!). In the grocery the other day, it was $2. Candy bar was $3. I don't know, obviously, how many are sold. I bought my first car, new, cash, for $1900. Now, the median price, announced the other day, is over $50K. It's not just "unaffordable"; it's bonkers. This is what the experts and pundits in the day called "runaway inflation". It's not hyper-inflation, yet, but it has now taken on a life of its own. Like the Sorcerer's Apprentice scene in "Fantasia" (Walt Disney Productions 1940). Bonner's Law: When the money goes, everything goes. Best always. PM
Yep, Paul, spot-on. And the problem - unsolved currently - is spending is so far out of control it can't be contained. $500B in debt increase in the last 9 weeks. Our government is spending money like drunken sailors (and frankly, I have seen far too many drunken sailors and have been one a time or two) I fear I am giving "drunken sailors" the short end of the stick. Politicians go to Washington to do one thing - spend other people's money. Plain and simple. I don't see how this stops until the credit bubble explores and that is bearing down on us. The crash forces the fix and it will be ugly but that is the only way it is going to happen. And, the rest of the World is setting up a system bypassing the "Holy US$". Thinking and wandering how this unfolds is........wel, just ugh!
The pre-drunk, still sober, intending to be drunken sailor KNOWS going into shore leave that he is going to spend his money, because he has no other need or opportunity, and he knows he can come back to the ship where he won't need money, anyway, so, why not go temporarily wild? He's also limited in the amount of "damage" he can do, because his funds are limited.
In my innocence, and ignorance, I truly did expect The Crash would be years ago, decades ago, as imprudently as we were conducting ourselves. Shows what I know. Remember the old saying, "Water, water everywhere and not a drop to drink?" or "My kingdom for a horse!"? We have all the money in the world and can't buy anything. The Crash will be different. There will be goods and services aplenty, for awhile, anyway, but no one (relatively speaking) will be able to buy them. And if the suppliers reduce prices to sell, they, the sellers, go broke. The other side of the coin comes up.
Here's the way I see it playing out: despite the inconvenience and the annoyance of inflation, I, and most everyone I know, have managed to progress in life and remain comfortable and secure. My kids are grown and are outright prosperous. Sure, it has wrought havoc on investments and stability, but most of us have gotten through relatively unscathed. I'm not rich, but I'm certainly comfortable. I do what I want, when I want, for the most part. I'm healthy, not as vigorous as 20 years ago, but doing well. I think all that changes with the crash. I think when everything goes to money heaven, and the wiggle room is all gone, we (most of us, not all) are going to suffer, and suffer mightily. I don't know, honestly, what I'll do, because I don't know specifics. But I think I'm in for the biggest challenge of my life, IF The Crash comes. Recalls the song lyric, "You picked a fine time to leave me, Lucille." I think that's why we have strung this thing out for as long as could be done. Best always. PM
Thank you, Paul. Well-thought. Since me and my remaining friends are almost entering our 9th decades and, some, are already there. Most of have been living on fixed incomes (social security, pensions (maybe), money saved/401ks, and limited investments. People 65 and older are struggling differently with limited opportunity to increase income, if any at all. Many used to live successfully without drawing from their 401ks or investments. That has changed and continues at a rapid pace. The young coming out of college are finding many entry level positions are now occupied by AI and this trend is going to continue.
It is going to get worse before it gets better and by no means through any government causation. The government just wants to spend, spend, and spend other people's money. And, threatening the world - Ukraine, Gaza, Iran, Lebanon, Nigeria, Burkina Faso , Venezuela, Colombia, and the list goes on.
Hopefully and shortly, the focus comes back on America and not just AI and AI data centers. The middle class needs opportunities and I just see that not being a priority at all. As always, one ol' man's opinion.
LSO, I admire many things about you that I have learned in these exchanges: 1) you are a NAVY man, for which I am thankful.
2) you are thoughtful and reflective in your approach to challenges.
3) you are powering through to the end.
At or near 90, you come across as someone 20 years younger, determined and full of energy and with a can-do attitude. Please keep it up. Best always. PM
P.S. My Mom is 97 and still living in the house she and Dad built in 1960, and still driving when she has to. PM
I understand your point however I would be remiss if I did not remind you we are discussing only Housing Prices not healthcare, food, transportation etc.
Of course. From this ol' man's view, separating housing affordable for the first time or upgrading middle class family misses the point. Budgets for us peons are all encompassing and today most families are struggling to make end meets. Car delinquencies are up. Rent delinquencies are up. Credit card minimum payments are up. Food prices are increasing. So isolating housing affordable given most of us peons know costs of daily life continues to spiral out of control it is hard to max out the family budget with a new mortgage. Or maybe I just don't get it!
A house purchase is a decision to live a certain way. A friend of mine rented a unit to a 28 year old and he arrived with 2 duffle bags, 1 box of kitchen wares, blue tooth speaker, laptop and a leased Toyota. His choice was clearly work, don’t accumulate a bunch of stuff. Be agile and move to the best opportunity.
Individuals make choices based on their own particular brand of insanity. Lumping in non essential items into the house metric is B.S.
Using the Median house value of $425,000 makes the Lion’s Share of the bewildering herd to appear helpless hapless and fighting for a can of Spam on the street. This is not the case!
If nothing else, your column is a reminder of the pervasiveness of government’s intrusion into our lives. Love the anecdote of spending last days drinking wine, listening to music and dancing rather than being a prisoner of continuing care.
My sister, upon learning she had colon cancer, decided to go out on her feet. She was productive up until the last 7-10 days. Each has to decide for him/herself. My other sister was shocked at her sister's decision. Privately to my afflicted sister, I endorsed her choice 100%. Best always. PM
It’s a blessing to have a choice…not everyone does.
Choice is always abundant.
For the sake of appearances, government transfer payments are counted as GDP. Um, Houston, we have a problem: self-deception (the best kind, evidently).
Bill is right — GDP is a terrible indicator of real prosperity.
It rewards war, disasters, bureaucracy, and debt. If a government borrows $1 trillion, hires 100,000 administrators, and blows the money on make-work, GDP goes up even though the country gets poorer. That’s accounting, not economics.
There is a better way to measure whether a nation is actually getting stronger or hollowing itself out. Strip out the unproductive part of government spending, remove the second-round “GDP echo” that spending creates in the private sector, and penalize growth purchased with debt and inflation.
The result is a 0–100 score that measures real, sustainable prosperity instead of political bookkeeping.
I wrote about it here, including a scorecard for the U.S., Canada, France, Australia, Vietnam, Ireland, and Argentina:
https://lucaskandia.substack.com/p/a-better-metric-than-gdp-sustainable
And I’ll warn you — my home country, Canada, does not look good once you take the government-funded illusion out of GDP.
BPR uses immigrants to explain GDP rise.
What about humanoid robots?
Will they increase GDP when they start replacing humans?
-
And what about Ai, it has already begun to eliminate human job positions!
-
Seems the burden of hiring and maintaining humans (insurance, vacations, sick leave, PTO, cultural differences, sexual harassments, raises, occupational training, transportation, bad hygiene and habits, worker threats, etc...) will decrease... as the sale of robots contribute to GDP.
It seems the U.S. does not need is to import more humans...
"as the sale of robots contribute to GDP". For every "sale" of a robot there is a "cost-purchase" of a robot. Plus, what are you going to do with the human you put out of work? Haul them off to the landfill? The round trip cost of AI is going to surprise us.
To my point... we need not concern ourselves with allowing more immigrants or the low birth rate...
Ai will only surprise if we allow it to by not thinking ahead.
-
BPR seems at odds with other information media telling me we are in a novel 21st Century style war with China and Ai will be the defining factor.
If true, we ought to be "capexing" even more...
AI is a fantasma bubble. It is the ultimate deception, an abrogation of human responsibility foisted on a machine, devoid of instinct, enlightenment or God.
...perhaps what you write is true, but it's here!
-
IMO Ai is a natural progression of evolution.
-
We have created images of ourselves... (sound familiar?)
-
Robots are an extension of humans, they (we) likely will ultimately outlive the human race as cyborgs.
Both of you raise valid points.
Harold’s right that every “sale” has a counterbalancing “cost,” and Angry’s right that AI is coming whether we like it or not.
The real issue isn’t whether AI or robots raise GDP — they absolutely will, just like mass immigration does. The issue is who actually benefits and whether citizens’ real productivity per person rises or falls.
If a robot replaces a human and the profits stay concentrated at the top, GDP rises, but SPoPC — Sustainable Productivity per Capita — drops. You’ve gained output, but lost distributed prosperity.
That’s the trap we’re in now: confusing total output with shared progress.
AI might win the “21st-century war” for efficiency, but if the spoils don’t flow to citizens, we’ll have conquered nothing worth keeping.
You’re absolutely right — robot production will raise GDP. Every new machine sold counts as “growth.”
But that’s exactly the problem. GDP measures activity, not well-being. If robots replace human workers, total output might rise — but output per human falls. GDP climbs while the number of people earning, spending, or even participating in the economy collapses.
It’s the same illusion we already see with immigration and government spending: more motion, less meaning. GDP rewards production, not distribution. The wealth created by automation would flow to whoever owns the robots, not to the people replaced by them.
And since robots don’t buy groceries, pay rent, or take vacations, demand shrinks even as “productivity” explodes. A country can hit record GDP while its citizens can’t afford to live.
That’s why Sustainable Productivity per Capita (SPoPC) matters. It asks a simpler question:
Are people better off, or just the spreadsheets?
GDP can keep climbing right up until the last human is out of a job — and that’s not progress.
...lazy folks will appreciate being serviced and DIY folks will be amazed at the
opportunities robots offer.
Robots require maintenance, lubricants, energy, nuts and bolts.
Humans will still seek groceries, leisure and dwellings - demand will not shrink.
The dual needs of humans and robot may indeed grow GDP...
What won't be ubiquitous are mundane repetitive low intellect jobs.
Uneducated folks will likely be the underclass to robots and spreadsheets.
Likely more class separation and disparity...
I don't know how productive government work is, but those legislators were getting paid for not being very productive for the last 6 weeks. And their earnings were included in the Government Dumbass Project (GDP). How valuable to our nation were their salaries? If they were so valuable, then why did it take them so long to accomplish the passage of ONE PIECE of legislation?
Then we have those government workers who didn't get paid in spendable currency units during those six weeks. Their income will show up in the later months of this quarter, so it won't cause a recession, such as it might if those payments got shifted to a subsequent calendar quarter. But why do we have to calculate these statistics on a quarterly basis? Not that it matters in the end, but it's all phony silliness, meant to falsify the numbers as much as possible.
Doomsday is in the US future. Politicians will never reduce spending because they lose votes. It would be wonderful if when a new budget is being discussed.
1. No more real increase in the budget from previous years. Any extra GDP, Not lies, but real GDP to lower the deficit.
2. If they cannot come up with a fair budget, it automatically goes back to the previous year.
3. No government shutdown at all. Start the budget discussion sooner. I like to dream big. As I said Doomsday in in the US future
Perhaps it's time for our Legislators to take a closer look at the effects of housing market direct ownership by the banks as Landlords. Is it approaching a monopoly? What would be an ideal proportion of housing assets held by banks to cash reserves or credit market tradable assets? Should society simply ignore the exponential rate of the development of cartel ownership over individual ownership of housing? If top-down housing ownership is allowed to continue to metastasize without any controls, doesn't it begin to look a lot like the old feudal system of landed Gentry and landless Serfs? How will that resolve?
Well, Bill has done it again. He hates the way the government measures our economic “progress.” Frankly, from all I’ve read in this comments bulletin board he is correct. Not my beef. Fact is I don’t rely on any GDP, XYZ or ABC to tell me how my economy is progressing and I suspect few others do either. It is a number that is thrown out at us, but it is as irrelevant as yesterday’s pollen count. My beef with Bill is he is a billionaire, self-made and owns a financial newsletter. What should we be using, Billy boy? You got where you are at by being pretty smart when it comes to money. Educate the great unwashed, not to mention under valued with a pearl of wisdom on what we should be apprised of the US economy. Once we know what to ask, we might actually start demanding of the political elites that kind of information rather than the claptrap we have been getting. Bill, you run a financial service. Start offering advice and helpful information to your readers [e.g. your customers] and save the criticism for someone who buys the politician’s claptrap.
I find it interesting the U.S. Housing valuation metric uses the Median and not the Mode. When discussing affordability the greatest number of houses sold at a given price is a more appropriate metric when measuring what the cost of a home for the “Common” Man.
Home buyers at the Median = 40 years of age. $425,000 is the Median Housing Price; at 40 years of age; seems plausible.
One would think; however, the cost of living sans house payment or rent has become much greater than when this ol' man grew up including a decade or so ago. Food, medicine, clothing.....you get the picture squeezes all families' budgets. Us peons income hasn't kept up with inflation at all and continues to fall behind. And, now we hear of huge lay-offs coming at Apple, Amazon, etc. The working man/woman doesn't have a chance these days. And, our Government (and it has been this way for decades) isn't focused on America. Those politicians and their elite managers are only focused on power and money and wars. It is truly heart-rendering to see what America has become. And, it isn't because us voters voted for the wrong candidates. Us voters get two (2) choices decided and funded by the money behind the politicians. Just shows - if one's eyes are wide open - where this is going and, unfortunately, rapidly.
LSO, this isn't new. When I was a kid, a pack of gum at the drug store or grocery store counter cost 5 cents (no bid-ask, either!). In the grocery the other day, it was $2. Candy bar was $3. I don't know, obviously, how many are sold. I bought my first car, new, cash, for $1900. Now, the median price, announced the other day, is over $50K. It's not just "unaffordable"; it's bonkers. This is what the experts and pundits in the day called "runaway inflation". It's not hyper-inflation, yet, but it has now taken on a life of its own. Like the Sorcerer's Apprentice scene in "Fantasia" (Walt Disney Productions 1940). Bonner's Law: When the money goes, everything goes. Best always. PM
Yep, Paul, spot-on. And the problem - unsolved currently - is spending is so far out of control it can't be contained. $500B in debt increase in the last 9 weeks. Our government is spending money like drunken sailors (and frankly, I have seen far too many drunken sailors and have been one a time or two) I fear I am giving "drunken sailors" the short end of the stick. Politicians go to Washington to do one thing - spend other people's money. Plain and simple. I don't see how this stops until the credit bubble explores and that is bearing down on us. The crash forces the fix and it will be ugly but that is the only way it is going to happen. And, the rest of the World is setting up a system bypassing the "Holy US$". Thinking and wandering how this unfolds is........wel, just ugh!
The pre-drunk, still sober, intending to be drunken sailor KNOWS going into shore leave that he is going to spend his money, because he has no other need or opportunity, and he knows he can come back to the ship where he won't need money, anyway, so, why not go temporarily wild? He's also limited in the amount of "damage" he can do, because his funds are limited.
In my innocence, and ignorance, I truly did expect The Crash would be years ago, decades ago, as imprudently as we were conducting ourselves. Shows what I know. Remember the old saying, "Water, water everywhere and not a drop to drink?" or "My kingdom for a horse!"? We have all the money in the world and can't buy anything. The Crash will be different. There will be goods and services aplenty, for awhile, anyway, but no one (relatively speaking) will be able to buy them. And if the suppliers reduce prices to sell, they, the sellers, go broke. The other side of the coin comes up.
Here's the way I see it playing out: despite the inconvenience and the annoyance of inflation, I, and most everyone I know, have managed to progress in life and remain comfortable and secure. My kids are grown and are outright prosperous. Sure, it has wrought havoc on investments and stability, but most of us have gotten through relatively unscathed. I'm not rich, but I'm certainly comfortable. I do what I want, when I want, for the most part. I'm healthy, not as vigorous as 20 years ago, but doing well. I think all that changes with the crash. I think when everything goes to money heaven, and the wiggle room is all gone, we (most of us, not all) are going to suffer, and suffer mightily. I don't know, honestly, what I'll do, because I don't know specifics. But I think I'm in for the biggest challenge of my life, IF The Crash comes. Recalls the song lyric, "You picked a fine time to leave me, Lucille." I think that's why we have strung this thing out for as long as could be done. Best always. PM
Thank you, Paul. Well-thought. Since me and my remaining friends are almost entering our 9th decades and, some, are already there. Most of have been living on fixed incomes (social security, pensions (maybe), money saved/401ks, and limited investments. People 65 and older are struggling differently with limited opportunity to increase income, if any at all. Many used to live successfully without drawing from their 401ks or investments. That has changed and continues at a rapid pace. The young coming out of college are finding many entry level positions are now occupied by AI and this trend is going to continue.
It is going to get worse before it gets better and by no means through any government causation. The government just wants to spend, spend, and spend other people's money. And, threatening the world - Ukraine, Gaza, Iran, Lebanon, Nigeria, Burkina Faso , Venezuela, Colombia, and the list goes on.
Hopefully and shortly, the focus comes back on America and not just AI and AI data centers. The middle class needs opportunities and I just see that not being a priority at all. As always, one ol' man's opinion.
LSO, I admire many things about you that I have learned in these exchanges: 1) you are a NAVY man, for which I am thankful.
2) you are thoughtful and reflective in your approach to challenges.
3) you are powering through to the end.
At or near 90, you come across as someone 20 years younger, determined and full of energy and with a can-do attitude. Please keep it up. Best always. PM
P.S. My Mom is 97 and still living in the house she and Dad built in 1960, and still driving when she has to. PM
Brother Paul writing some good stuff.
I take after you, is all. Best always. PM
I understand your point however I would be remiss if I did not remind you we are discussing only Housing Prices not healthcare, food, transportation etc.
The mode would be an interesting number.
Of course. From this ol' man's view, separating housing affordable for the first time or upgrading middle class family misses the point. Budgets for us peons are all encompassing and today most families are struggling to make end meets. Car delinquencies are up. Rent delinquencies are up. Credit card minimum payments are up. Food prices are increasing. So isolating housing affordable given most of us peons know costs of daily life continues to spiral out of control it is hard to max out the family budget with a new mortgage. Or maybe I just don't get it!
Plausible, yes. Doable, no. That's the whole premise of our "system". Looks good, but isn't practicable. Best always. PM
A house purchase is a decision to live a certain way. A friend of mine rented a unit to a 28 year old and he arrived with 2 duffle bags, 1 box of kitchen wares, blue tooth speaker, laptop and a leased Toyota. His choice was clearly work, don’t accumulate a bunch of stuff. Be agile and move to the best opportunity.
Individuals make choices based on their own particular brand of insanity. Lumping in non essential items into the house metric is B.S.
Using the Median house value of $425,000 makes the Lion’s Share of the bewildering herd to appear helpless hapless and fighting for a can of Spam on the street. This is not the case!
Absolutely brilliant.
I personally concur. Home purchases are a personal decision. Not a requirement. Or a necessary goal for every individual in the course of their life.
https://lucaskandia.substack.com/p/the-homeownership-trap-an-849000
I’m NOT a free subscriber. I’ve been a paid subscriber for longer than Bonner has used this crap service!
Yep Bill... what a grift it is...