AUTO INSURANCE HAS been getting more and more expensive in recent years. There are many reasons: New cars cost more, extreme weather, folks seem to be suing more often, and so on.
Our daughter Brenda called me, asking if I could look over her auto policy to see if there was a way to lower her premiums. We have our car insurance with the same company. On the company’s website, I came across something called “Safe Pilot.” Many insurers have similar programs.

This is a story of two home maintenance items. One that was immediate, and I addressed it, the other must be addressed soon. Here are our thoughts associated with how to proceed.
For the first project, I recently replaced a bathroom ventilation fan in one of our bathrooms. In the time we’ve owned this house it has gotten progressively louder. The bathroom in question is adjacent to our main living areas, so the noise is annoying.

I used to be a big fan of choice when it came to employee benefit plans including life insurance, health insurance and, of courses 401k investment options. 
When working I crafted a plan with lots of choices. Employees said they wanted choice, it was all the rage at the time. Our unions were not so thrilled, but went along. 
The unions were right and I was wrong. 
People may say they want choice, but when faced with it for very important decisions,

FATHERHOOD WASN’T one of my life goals. I didn’t feel like I had a wonderful childhood, so I didn’t think I had much to offer my offspring that would help them to lead a wonderful life. If children happened, okay, but it was never a goal.
My first marriage ended because I placed money over fatherhood. I thought not having kids would speed my path to wealth. My wife disagreed—and walked out.
When I met my current wife,

Gosh, is it just me? Am I the only one who wishes that the pace of tech “Progress” would just slow down? I mean, I just updated to the latest IOS version, and I just read that there its another one coming soon and I have yet to use a single new feature from the last one. All these tech changes make it harder to deal with life including ones money. Do you have your ID.ME credentials set up yet?

There’s an excellent article in today’s WSJ by Jonathan. Enjoy.
 

AN ANCIENT FINANCIAL concept is gaining newfound popularity.
In his book Politics, Aristotle related a story about a fellow philosopher named Thales, who lived about 2,600 years ago. One winter, Thales made a prediction about the coming olive harvest. He felt that it was going to be a strong year. But because recent harvests had been weak, most people disagreed with him. To Thales, this meant opportunity. He approached the owners of olive presses in his town with a proposition.

It’s over. I’m done with it. Done with what? Ruminating about how well I negotiated for the new car? Nope. Leaving the cell phone in that overpriced restaurant? Uh-uh. Then what is it I’m done with? Well, after months of deliberation with Alberta and our son Ryan (and with myself), I’ve decided to hang on to the family’s small residential rental properties rather than sell. Tax considerations trumped quality of life. There, I said it, as preposterous as it may sound.

I often read on HD and elsewhere about retirement and plans to retire in the early 60s and quite often in the 50s even a rare 40s. What happened? 
We live longer, we are able to sustain our health and stamina longer in most cases, many jobs have become less physically demanding than in the past and yet age 55 seems to be the new 65 for retirement – or has it?
One would think with the above changes and the generally poor nature of retirement financial planning,

I’VE BEEN HAVING DOUBTS about some of the financial decisions I’ve made. I don’t know if it has to do with age. They say you tend to lose confidence as you grow older. Life-altering events, such as the death of loved ones, health issues and retirement, can weigh heavily and sow doubt.
For instance, I’ve been thinking about whether I should have sold my condo in 2020, during the pandemic. If I’d kept it, it would be worth quite a bit today.

I have been getting more and more frustrated with many friends and relatives, I have tried, in vain , to share what I have learned from HumbleDollar, Ben Graham, William Bernstein , et.al..
I have decided that henceforth, whenever someone asks me what they should do with some cash, perhaps from the sale of a house in an estate sale, a small inheritance, or what investments to choose in a retirement plan, I now say, ”

Every so often, we get an outbreak of generational warfare here on HumbleDollar, with the site’s generally older readership decrying the financial habits of younger generations, while proclaiming that things were so much better when they were growing up.
I find this rather silly. As I see it, people don’t fundamentally change from one generation to the next. Meanwhile, we’ve seen extraordinary progress in recent decades, but that’s also meant new challenges. Consider eight points.

Jamie Dimon says, “The American dream is disappearing—and half the public no longer believes in it”.

Soaring costs of housing, child care, education, and health care are making it harder than ever for the middle class to achieve their dream. Pew research study found that while 64% of upper-income Americans say the American dream still exists, 39% of lower-income Americans say the same – a gap of 25 percentage points. About two-thirds of adults ages 65 and older (68%) say the American dream is still achievable,

THOMAS JEFFERSON once said that eternal vigilance is the price of liberty, and the philosopher Socrates opined that the unexamined life isn’t worth living.
Although they were talking about political freedom and personal philosophy, respectively, Jefferson and Socrates could well have been discussing personal finance. One of the best ways to engage in financial vigilance and self-examination is to keep a daily financial journal.
I’ve kept a personal journal since I was 14 years old,

Popcorn is a food item that in many cases, is marked up in price by an infinite amount. In many restaurants, pubs, etc., popcorn is available for free, yet, movie theaters sell a box for many dollars. Did you know that theaters make most of their money on food and drink, rather than the tickets? I feel that marking up prices to infinity, may be the reason.

2) I see many large pick up trucks, many with dual wheels,