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July 14, 2015
Opinion: Here’s how you can be ‘The Millionaire Next Door’
The word “millionaire” used to evoke a world of extravagant wealth. But, these days, it’s nothing special, as everyone needs to save at least $1 million for retirement.
Schedule for Week of December 22, 2024
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Happy Holidays and Merry Christmas!
The key economic report this week is November New Home Sales.
*----- Monday, December 23rd -----*
8:30 AM: *Chicago Fe...
4 hours ago
5 comments:
319 million Americans apparently need to to save $1 million each for retirement.
It's only $319 trillion in today's dollars. What's the worst that could happen?
The average net worth including all US assets is about $388,000 per:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Financial_position_of_the_United_States
If we neglect liabilities we get up to $845,000. So we just need to cancel all debt and then own 118% of all assets in our savings. Then we can all sit back and relax in our retirement years. Seems reasonable.
fudge_hend,
The average net worth...
I had an epiphany regarding averages in my first college calculus-based physics class. We had just taken our first test. The next day, the professor came in and wrote 60 on the wall. He then said that was the average score on the test. He was not happy.
Being an introvert, I was sitting in the back row at the time. The guy next to me asked what I got. Thanks to the extra credit problem (no debt pun intended), I said 110. I really popped his bubble. He only got 105. One could feel both of our gears instantly turn. What would have been the average if neither of us had been there? He was a math major and we became lab partners, contributing to the test score inequality.
In the lab, I learned something new on the first day. It would seem that the average score was indicative of something else. Apparently, it was possible for two people in a calculus-based physics lab, seemingly chosen at random, to not figure out how to light a small bulb given a wire and a battery. Seriously. We were asked for help. I don't mean to sound snobby, but wtf! How can one make it through life that far without being curious about it at some point? Especially if one is planning to take a physics class in college?
So we just need to cancel all debt...
I we cancel all the debt then I am broke.
What if we just pretend to cancel all the debt and pretend to sit back and relax in our retirement years? ;)
After all, we love action movies, especially ones where we are sitting on the edge of our seats tensed up like a coiled spring waiting to snap! Hahaha! Sigh.
That's the beauty of averages. It doesn't include any information about the distribution. Neither the future nor our retirement savings are as evenly distributed as we'd like. Or maybe they are, it depends where you are on the distribution. As long as I get wealthier we are all on average better off. So for the greater good of the average I propose the Fed should be providing me a stipend for the greater good.
I've worked in academia in the past and I always reported scores as the highest value and the standard deviation. Sure it would be nicer to provide the mean and the standard deviation, but that would be too easy.
fudge_hend,
So for the greater good of the average I propose the Fed should be providing me a stipend for the greater good.
At great personal sacrifice, I am also willing to accept a stipend for the greater good. I won't like it, but will do whatever it takes to help improve the average person's standard of living. Now, if only we could convince a few billionaires to do it too, lol. Sigh.
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