Debt crisis, it won't go away by its self. I've read several articles that AI isn't as smart as people think it is. You also can't trust it to tell the truth. As long as AI contains self modifying code you can't make it follow any rules. However it can be useful as long as you're careful. I recently used AI to find a US customs code for something I was buying from Israel. I had done some research before I asked my question so I had a general idea what it might be. The first answer was almost right on, but when I asked it the same question again a few times, to see if I would get the same result, it started drifting further and further off track. On the other hand I had a subscription to satellite radio that expired. I was able to bargain the chat AI down to $6 a month for a year. The next day I received their final renewal offer in the mail for $8 per month. My brother did even better at $4.
My mother was taken in by $9.95 life insurance. Its not a scam as long as you don't buy more extra coverage "units". But that's exactly what happened. Every month she was sent notices telling her that funeral costs had increased and she should buy more "units", which she did. After two years, when we finally convinced her to cancel the plan , we found she could have saved the same amount of the insurance policy herself.
My mother sort of did the same thing. She even had a sermon outline for our pastor. We had very little to do after she died, except clean out and sell her house, which took a long time even though she wasn't a hoarder.
Peter Lynch's book, "One up on Wall Street" if you want to do your own stock picking on the side. Another, "The Book of Investing Wisdom", for an overview of a wide range of different types of investing. The chapters were written by the best investor of each type themselves, going all the way back to the 1800's.
I just watched WealthTrack this morning, which had Jonathan on as a guess a few times over the years. Retirement expert Christian Benz, from Monringstar was on, she recommended not to pay an active manager more than 1% of the total portfolio but to aim for 0.5% or lower so 0.58% is right in the ballpark.
It was really nice that you were concerned about your employee and helped her out. However, it was my experience that she probably didn't need to have credit score or credit card first to find a mortgage. Just the opposite, a mortgage first and then a card. The fact that she was free of debt would have actually helped her find a mortgage first. That was the way it worked when I was younger. I had no debt, and paid cash for everything. When I went shopping for a home loan I discovered the house would be collateral for the loan, (secured debt) unlike a credit card which is unsecured. What was most important to the bank was that I had a secure and steady job, little or low debt, and that the loan payment would not be more than a certain percentage of my income. After finding a loan and making a few payments, I decided I needed a credit card. I went back to the same bank and had no problem getting a card. The card started off with a low credit limit, but after paying my bill off every month for a while it started to rise.
You don't really own a house until the mortgage is paid off. Paying off my modest 15 year mortgage on a fixer upper house was one of the best things I ever did when I was younger. You have to take into account the total cost of loan debt service. On a 15 year loan you pay back roughly twice the amount of the loan, for a 30, its about three times. The earlier the mortgage is paid off the earlier the money that would have went for interest can be invested and take advantage of long term compounding. As you found out its a great relief not having a mortgage hanging over your head. Going into retirement debt free gives you a clean start on the next phase of life.
It can take awhile to get in "retirement" mode. Your whole working life the goal is to save, save, save, reduce expenses etc. Now retired, the goal is the opposite. It took me 2 or 3 years for that to sink in. You can't take anything with you when you die. Purchasing a new 2025, high quality vehicle (Honda Ridgeline truck) with a 10 year extended warranty has greatly improved my peace of mind when traveling.
That was an upgrade from a 96 Chey Lumina minivan with 318K miles which needed some restoral work for rust and a cracked windshield. It was on the verge of becoming undriveable. I'll still keeping it, the composite body panels can't rust which is a big plus here in rust belt Wisconsin. I few years before I retired and had no debt, I started purchasing first class airline tickets. They are so nice with the bigger seats and first-on-first off benefits and no baggage restrictions. I've also have been slowly increasing my trip time. The last two summers I've traveled from Milwaukee to upper Michigan to the Great Lakes Shipwreck Museum and the surrounding area including the Soo Locks. Last summer I also drove out to the outskirts Columbus Ohio for a wedding. I'm glad I took the time to drive into and walk around downtown Columbus taking pictures. I'll, never be there again. On the way back to Milwaukee, stopped off at the National Museum of the US Air Force at Dayton OH and then the Ark Encounter at Williamstown, KY.
The only dissent attempting to be stopped is when protesters forcefully, and illegally interfere with, or try to run over with their SUV's, ICE agents. Agents trying to do their jobs removing some of the over 10 million illegal immigrants let into this country by the previous administration. I wouldn't have left this comment if the up and down arrow system showed the number of negative arrows (which it used to do) instead of just the count of the positive ones.
Comments
Debt crisis, it won't go away by its self. I've read several articles that AI isn't as smart as people think it is. You also can't trust it to tell the truth. As long as AI contains self modifying code you can't make it follow any rules. However it can be useful as long as you're careful. I recently used AI to find a US customs code for something I was buying from Israel. I had done some research before I asked my question so I had a general idea what it might be. The first answer was almost right on, but when I asked it the same question again a few times, to see if I would get the same result, it started drifting further and further off track. On the other hand I had a subscription to satellite radio that expired. I was able to bargain the chat AI down to $6 a month for a year. The next day I received their final renewal offer in the mail for $8 per month. My brother did even better at $4.
Post: Is AI going to affect our investments
Link to comment from March 2, 2026
My mother was taken in by $9.95 life insurance. Its not a scam as long as you don't buy more extra coverage "units". But that's exactly what happened. Every month she was sent notices telling her that funeral costs had increased and she should buy more "units", which she did. After two years, when we finally convinced her to cancel the plan , we found she could have saved the same amount of the insurance policy herself.
Post: The $9.95 scam…
Link to comment from February 28, 2026
My mother sort of did the same thing. She even had a sermon outline for our pastor. We had very little to do after she died, except clean out and sell her house, which took a long time even though she wasn't a hoarder.
Post: Your two best investing books—and do you also keep an End-of-Life “family binder”?
Link to comment from February 7, 2026
Peter Lynch's book, "One up on Wall Street" if you want to do your own stock picking on the side. Another, "The Book of Investing Wisdom", for an overview of a wide range of different types of investing. The chapters were written by the best investor of each type themselves, going all the way back to the 1800's.
Post: Your two best investing books—and do you also keep an End-of-Life “family binder”?
Link to comment from February 7, 2026
I just watched WealthTrack this morning, which had Jonathan on as a guess a few times over the years. Retirement expert Christian Benz, from Monringstar was on, she recommended not to pay an active manager more than 1% of the total portfolio but to aim for 0.5% or lower so 0.58% is right in the ballpark.
Post: The High Cost of Financial Advice: A Tale of Two Portfolios Revisited
Link to comment from February 7, 2026
It was really nice that you were concerned about your employee and helped her out. However, it was my experience that she probably didn't need to have credit score or credit card first to find a mortgage. Just the opposite, a mortgage first and then a card. The fact that she was free of debt would have actually helped her find a mortgage first. That was the way it worked when I was younger. I had no debt, and paid cash for everything. When I went shopping for a home loan I discovered the house would be collateral for the loan, (secured debt) unlike a credit card which is unsecured. What was most important to the bank was that I had a secure and steady job, little or low debt, and that the loan payment would not be more than a certain percentage of my income. After finding a loan and making a few payments, I decided I needed a credit card. I went back to the same bank and had no problem getting a card. The card started off with a low credit limit, but after paying my bill off every month for a while it started to rise.
Post: The Debt Free Penalty.
Link to comment from January 24, 2026
You don't really own a house until the mortgage is paid off. Paying off my modest 15 year mortgage on a fixer upper house was one of the best things I ever did when I was younger. You have to take into account the total cost of loan debt service. On a 15 year loan you pay back roughly twice the amount of the loan, for a 30, its about three times. The earlier the mortgage is paid off the earlier the money that would have went for interest can be invested and take advantage of long term compounding. As you found out its a great relief not having a mortgage hanging over your head. Going into retirement debt free gives you a clean start on the next phase of life.
Post: The $8,000 Cost of Peace of Mind
Link to comment from January 24, 2026
It can take awhile to get in "retirement" mode. Your whole working life the goal is to save, save, save, reduce expenses etc. Now retired, the goal is the opposite. It took me 2 or 3 years for that to sink in. You can't take anything with you when you die. Purchasing a new 2025, high quality vehicle (Honda Ridgeline truck) with a 10 year extended warranty has greatly improved my peace of mind when traveling. That was an upgrade from a 96 Chey Lumina minivan with 318K miles which needed some restoral work for rust and a cracked windshield. It was on the verge of becoming undriveable. I'll still keeping it, the composite body panels can't rust which is a big plus here in rust belt Wisconsin. I few years before I retired and had no debt, I started purchasing first class airline tickets. They are so nice with the bigger seats and first-on-first off benefits and no baggage restrictions. I've also have been slowly increasing my trip time. The last two summers I've traveled from Milwaukee to upper Michigan to the Great Lakes Shipwreck Museum and the surrounding area including the Soo Locks. Last summer I also drove out to the outskirts Columbus Ohio for a wedding. I'm glad I took the time to drive into and walk around downtown Columbus taking pictures. I'll, never be there again. On the way back to Milwaukee, stopped off at the National Museum of the US Air Force at Dayton OH and then the Ark Encounter at Williamstown, KY.
Post: Spending Without Guilt: An Overlooked Retirement Skill
Link to comment from January 24, 2026
How come only positive up arrow counts are being displayed?
Post: Financial Happiness
Link to comment from January 24, 2026
The only dissent attempting to be stopped is when protesters forcefully, and illegally interfere with, or try to run over with their SUV's, ICE agents. Agents trying to do their jobs removing some of the over 10 million illegal immigrants let into this country by the previous administration. I wouldn't have left this comment if the up and down arrow system showed the number of negative arrows (which it used to do) instead of just the count of the positive ones.
Post: Financial Happiness
Link to comment from January 24, 2026