After remodeling a fixer I bought in 2019 between 2019–2022, I swore I would never take on another remodeling project again. I hate remodeling with a passion, even though I'm always satisfied after the project is done. The delays, cost overruns, and people management completely bum me out. If you want to save your sanity […]
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One of the main reasons I refused to spend a small fortune renting a vacation property in Honolulu was because I wanted to stay in my childhood home. The home was built in 1986, when I was nine years old, and I’ve been going back almost every year since. But staying there isn’t just about […]
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How much money do you need to feel financially comfortable or wealthy? The answer depends on where you live, your household size, and your lifestyle desires, of course. However, according to the 2025 Charles Schwab Wealth Survey, Americans say it now takes a net worth of $839,000 to feel financially comfortable—up from $778,000 in 2024. More surprisingly, the […]
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I love index funds and ETFs for their low-cost nature and simplicity of ownership. However, if you want to build generational wealth before traditional retirement age, consider looking beyond just index funds and index ETFs. Since starting Financial Samurai in 2009, I’ve written extensively about investment strategies, financial independence, and retiring earlier to do what […]
The post The Richest People Are Not Index Fund Fanatics – Why Are You? appeared first on Financial Samurai.
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Imagine spending your life building wealth, investing in real estate, stocks, or your business, with the hope of leaving a legacy for your children. Then one day, you find yourself wondering: Will the government take a massive chunk of it anyway? If your estate is well above the federal estate tax exemption threshold — $30 million […]
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The value of owning a big, beautiful home is underappreciated. Somewhere along the way, society began favoring minimalism and smaller living spaces, often dismissing larger homes as “McMansions.” But after spending five weeks living in a much smaller space again, I’ve gained a renewed appreciation for the comfort, privacy, and functionality that a larger home […]
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One of the things that gives me great comfort about the health of the U.S. economy is our historically low household leverage. According to the Federal Reserve Board, household leverage is now at an 80-year low—a remarkable sign of financial discipline. So let me be the first to congratulate you for not loading up on debt like so […]
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A typical supercommuter spends 60–90 minutes or more one way commuting to work or school. As the cost of living continues to outpace wage growth, supercommuting is growing in popularity. According to a recent U.S. Census Bureau report, an estimated 5 million people are now supercommuters—up from roughly 3.42 million in 2012. I hate long commutes. Taking […]
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On July 3, the House narrowly passed the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA) with a 218–214 vote. According to the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office (CBO), the bill will add an estimated $3.3 trillion to the budget deficit over the next 10 years. Trump signed the bill the next day on July 4. To help pay for it, OBBBA […]
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If you became a newly minted millionaire, where would you migrate to? Due to inertia, I bet most of you would stay right where you are. A lot of us are afraid of change, which is why we stay at jobs we hate and suffer through broken marriages for too long. But how about being […]
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Ever since I left my day job in 2012, I’ve used a form of the dumbbell investing strategy to grow my wealth while protecting against large losses. It’s a framework that’s helped me stay invested during uncertain times—especially when I felt the urge to hoard cash or sit on the sidelines. If you’re in a situation […]
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