It’s Thursday, Thursday, Thursday, money nerds, and I’m back for more of the best personal-finance stories from around the web. Let’s dive right in.
On the importance of understanding your “bare-bones” budget. [Cash for Tacos] — “A bare-bones budget is a budget that consists solely of your financial obligations (debt repayments) and essential living expenses. All of the wants (like streaming services and going out to eat) that typically bulk up our spending are eliminated. With the wants eliminated, you will be able to see exactly how much your basic needs cost.”
Magazines are toast. [The Lefsetz Letter] — “I’m a magazine freak, I have more subscriptions than anybody I know. But not only do magazines keep biting the dust, like National Geographic Traveler, they’re reducing frequency. Sound & Vision…who knows how often it comes out anymore. Ski, same deal. They all keep reducing the number of issues you get per year. Entertainment Weekly is now monthly, I kid you not.” As a guy who used to subscribe to many magazines (and still loves them), I found this article interesting.
How much home can you buy for $500,000? [How Much?] — “Half a million dollars can get you over 3,000 square feet of home real estate in the United States, based on the national median price per square feet. That sounds like a big number, but when you consider that the 2018 median size of a new home in America is 2,386 square feet (which is 1,000 square feet larger than 50 years ago), it’s no surprise that mortgage debt has hit a record high.”
Surprising facts about everyday household objects. [Smithsonian Magazine] — “It might surprise us to know that, for our ancestors, many of the objects we take for granted, like napkins, forks and mattresses, were also once marvels of comfort and technology—available to only the few.” Forks were evil! Chopsticks came first! Keys were big! Plates were bread! Fun stuf…
And to wrap things up, here’s a three-minute video in which a variety of people (of all ages) answer the question, “What’s the best advice you’ve ever received?” I really, really like this.
The best advice that I’ve ever received? You are the boss of you. That is, nobody cares more about your life than you do. If you want to fix something that’s wrong in your world, it’s up to you to fix it. Don’t wait for anyone else to solve your problems for you. (“Treat people the way you want to be treated” is good too!)
That’s it for Thursday, Apexians. I’ll be back tomorrow to wrap up this week of money news.