​

Financial Samurai

Slicing Through Money's Mysteries

Get Rich In September & Buy Nothing!

Updated: by 5 Comments

Valuations Gone Wild September
Valuations Gone Wild

I declare September frugality month. If I’ve learned anything from my 20+ years working, it’s that September and October are generally dicey months for people’s fortunes.

September has historically been the worst performing month for stocks on average since 1950.

9/11 wasn’t good, neither was September 15, 2008 when Lehman declared bankruptcy.

The expression, “Sell In May, but don’t forget to come back in September,” even arose. Since September typically underperforms compared to the rest of the year, many investors put cash to work this time of year.

Why? Buy low, sell high. If prices drop in September, it can be an optimal time to buy into positions if you anticipate prices to rise in the coming months.

Historical data can help you determine when to make trading decisions. Just remember that the market is unpredictable and past trends do not guarantee similar patterns will occur in the future.

September Is A Bad Month For The Stock Market

Since 1928, studies show that September is actually by far the worst month in the calendar year for performance at ~-1%. Sentiment can turn on a dime, and when markets rally 50%+ into the months of September and October, our risks may be greater than our rewards.

Although the COVID-19 global pandemic changed the world in 2020, stock markets are close to record highs in 2021, and volatility is back.

Even if the markets continue to rally and we aren’t fully invested, we can still win. If the labor market tightens, wages go up, and job security increases.  

That said, I plan to spend money on nothing except for food and shelter this September. That means no clothes, no new gizmos, and no unnecessary strolls to the mall. September is austerity month, and I’m going to bank all disposable income away! Who’s with me?

Recommendation

Track Your Wealth For Free: In order to optimize your finances, you’ve first got to track your finances. I recommend signing up for Personal Capital’s free financial tools.

You can track your net worth, analyze your investment portfolios for excessive fees, and run your financials through their fantastic Retirement Planning Calculator.

Those who are on top of their finances build much greater wealth longer term than those who don’t. I’ve used Personal Capital since 2012. It’s the best free financial app out there to manage your money. Try it for free today.

Planning for retirement when paying for private grade school
Link up your accounts and see whether you’re on track to retirement in great shape or in poverty

30 Minutes At Starbucks: Observing Day-to-Day Life

Updated: by 6 Comments

So here I am at Starbucks, testing to see if being here among the bustle of loungers helps gives me writing inspiration. They say it’s good to get out of the house once in a while to recharge the soul. I take the first seat that’s available, and what do I notice?

Hanging on the side of the chair, hidden behind the backrest is a white purse.  I look around wondering if someone had dared claim their space with something so valuable.  

Several minutes past, and I thought to myself definitely not. A poor woman must be frantically back-tracking where she could have misplaced her purse.  Eventually she would return, or will she?

Fear Of Making A Move

As I waited, I felt like a culprit. I didn’t want to take the purse and give it to the front counter. For what if in that instant, the woman popped into the store and saw me?

I’d be implicated as the thief and would have to explain myself.  Maybe she was simply taking a long time in the bathroom after a venti mint mocha frappuccino and had a very large husband to boot?  

I was trapped, and felt like I was on candid camera, being tested on what I should do.  The temptation to open the purse and reveal any treasures was not great.



Read More…

What Do Retirees Age 65-75 Do Compared To The Rest?

Updated: by 7 Comments

Retiring early is great. I’ve been writing about the FIRE movement since I first published this post in 2009. But what do retirees age 65-75 do that’s so great compared the the rest of us?

The Bureau of Labor Statistics & USNWR comes out with an interesting survey that seeks to find out what retirees age 65 to 75 do all day compared to the working and younger population. Apparently, not much more!

The BLS said retirees age 65-76 do more of the following: sleep, leisure sports, TV, and household activities and less work (duh) accounts for the biggest differences, a whopping 3 hrs!

In other words, whether you’re working or not, your life doesn’t change much except for the fact you don’t have to set the alarm clock anymore, and you get to watch almost 2 hours more of “Lost” and “24”! Got to love statistics. This average retirement sounds very boring, but then again by definition, average is boring!



Read More…

Grab Bag Weekend: The Woman I Love Is So Powerful!

Updated: by 3 Comments

Question: A reader shoots me an e-mail with the subject, “The woman I love is so powerful, how much should I spend on her engagement ring?”

I get a lot of emails and can’t answer every single one. But that intriguing subject caught my eye. Buying an engagement ring is a big decision. And I’ve helped several friends go through the process. So I wanted to learn more about this reader’s situation and see how I could help out.

The Woman I Love Is So Powerful

The Woman I Love Is So Powerful

The reader writes, “Sam, how’s it going man? I just found your blog searching for diamond engagement rings and I want to thank you for your “Bling Bling” article.

I’m wondering, what size rock do you think I should get for my woman?

I ask because the woman I love is so powerful. She makes literally 5X more than me and is a Senior Vice President at one of the major retail companies.

She has over 100 people working for her in the marketing department. I’ve seen her crack the whip on others before, and it’s scary! However, when she’s with me, she’s a completely different person. A jokester, goofy, and SO caring.

I love her to death, and I want to give her the best. But, I’m a middle school teacher, and only make $47,000 a year! I can maybe spend $10,000, but that’s going to be really tight for me, and basically wipe out my savings. We’re both in our mid 30’s and have been dating for over 5 years now. Thoughts?  Thanks! John”

How Much Should You Spend On An Engagement Ring?

When you’re in love, there may come a day when you too want to pop the question. But before you do, you need to get an engagement ring. And engagement ring shopping can be a daunting task!

Perhaps you also are wondering, “The woman I love is powerful too! Is she going to expect a huge rock?” Getting up the courage to pop the question is hard enough. You don’t want unnecessary stress about finding the right engagement ring and going broke trying.

Engagement Ring Guides

Here are some great articles I’ve written on engagement rings.

Start Your Marriage Off Right

Once you pop the question and get an emphatic “YES!” be sure to consider having a budget wedding so you don’t go into debt. There are many great advantages to having a simple wedding!

Focus on your financial future and long-term marital happiness. That’s what my wife and I did and we’re so happy we started our marriage on the right foot.

I also highly recommend you check out my top financial products recommendations. Then, check out these articles on family finances for more inspiration.

Make Your Powerful Woman Happy

The woman I love is powerful too and I’ve learned so much from her. When we first met, however, neither of us had any money. We met in college and grew our careers alongside each other.

We’re both frugal by nature and share similar financial goals. This has helped immensely in our relationship, desire to save and invest, our net worth targets, and overall happiness.

Now in case you’re curious, here’s how I responded to John’s email about engagement ring shopping for his powerful woman.

Response: Hi John, thanks for your e-mail inquiry. Welcome to Financial Samurai! First of all, I want to commend you for being a school teacher. The state should be paying you guys the big bucks, and not Andrew Hall from Citigroup his $100,000,000 bonus!

There are several ways to answer your question, so let me offer some suggestions. I asked your question to a number of my female friends today as well so I can give you a balanced answer.



Read More…

Cash For Clunkers = Personal Finance BOMB!

Updated: by 10 Comments

Cash for clunkers was a failure. Let’s discuss the cash for clunkers program in more detail.

The latest development in the “Cash For Clunkers” legislation is that it may be extended for one more month until labor day. Under the program, buyers of new cars and trucks can get rebates of $3,500 to $4,500 by trading in older models that are then scrapped.

Seriously though, is this multi-billion dollar government works program just money spent to appease the car lobbyists? Or is the goal really to get old cars off the streets and save the environment? The good thing is that these old cars are getting scrapped.

Otherwise, if you trade in your gas guzzling SUV for a Honda Civic, you’ve NET ADDED to the world’s pollution because someone is still driving your old car, and the new Civic still emits waste!

This is what I’ve never understood about the “holier than thou” crowd who buys hybrids like the Prius. It’s great that you are driving an environmentally friendly car, but if you start looking down on non hybrid drivers with disdain, that’s hypocritical. Buying a new Toyota Prius simply adds to pollution if you don’t scrap your old car.

Cash For Clunkers Was No Good

The only way you’re going to really make a difference is if you scrap your old car and just take public transportation and ride a bike! Again, I’m absolutely for driving a nice low emissions car, but the fact of the matter is that these cars are expensive. I’m not spending $30,000, and if you look down on someone who can’t afford the $7-10,000 premium for hybrids then shame on you!

The real problem with this legislation is that it’s giving money to people who don’t need it. If you are driving a car valued at $4,500 or less, it’s probably unlikely you can afford to buy America’s average car price of $25,000! I strongly suggest you stick with my 1/10th rule, which states that you should spend no more than 1/10th your gross income on cars.



Read More…

The Dumpster Of Treasure: Finding Wealth Everywhere

Updated: by 9 Comments

A funny thing happened yesterday when my friend and I were waiting for a space in the club parking lot. We were doing some stretches outside when an old man with a bamboo stick over his shoulder and too medium bags at each end came tiptoeing in.

Where in the world was he going, we asked ourselves. Our eyes followed him to the back corner of the lot, which extends around and into the club. Like a ninja, he proceed to jump into the big recycling dumpster and start rummaging!


There is a dumpster of treasure everywhere we go. You just have to keep searching for those multi-bagger unicorn stocks.

After about 5 minutes, he popped out, and those medium sized bags on each end morphed into bags the size of his own body. This time, he happily walked away and didn’t tiptoe around us.

Cool, he’s decided to lessen the dumpster’s load and take some plastic bottles and cans for himself. Maybe the old guy can get some trade in value for his stash, although I can’t imagine very much.

The friend and I are still waiting for a spot 5 minutes later when ANOTHER man with bamboo stick and plastic bags on each end comes marching in. This fella was younger, perhaps in his 30’s and could literally have been the older man’s son.

He didn’t do any tiptoeing, he just marched right in and climbed into the dumpster. After about 10 minutes, he threw himself out, and muttered in disgust, “Don’t people recycle anymore?!” and walked away.

We felt a little out of place as we continued to stretch our hamstrings on the pavement floor. Was the parking lot camera rolling, and we were being tested on whether we’d be the recycling police? Nah, it was just a little bit of reality.



Read More…

Time Accelerates, Let’s Not Waste It

Updated: by 2 Comments

It’s kind of crazy that I first wrote this post on July 11, 2009. I was miserable at my job and the financial crisis caused me to lose 35% of my net worth in six months. The one thing I’m supremely aware of now that I’m a father is that time accelerates. We need to live our lives to the fullest, and not waste time.

Time Accelerates Every Day We Live

Have you ever woken up one day and asked yourself, “Where did all the time go?” We look at old photos and sometimes surprise ourselves with how young, or how good we looked back then. Not to worry, I still say we look pretty good today.

Time is like an oil field which eventually gets depleted. And sadly to say, the depletion rate accelerates! If for simple math’s sake, we were to live till 100, the first year of our life takes only 1/100 of time. Yet, the 51st year of our life is takes 1/50th, and our last year is takes up 1/1, or 100%.

Today’s challenge is to simply accept the fact we only have one shot at life, so we might as well do the best we can. If we have an urge to put things off until tomorrow, just finish it today. If we want to learn a new sport and get better, hurry up and practice! Don’t let your guitar gather dust and that rose go unappreciated.

Seek Financial Independence

I strongly believe that financial stability is achieved through a mindset and a way of life. Like trying to lose weight by just going on a temporary diet, it just won’t work in the long run.

It takes many simple steps to change one’s mindset. The first simple step is just reading as much as you can about the various situations on the many different blogs here: .

Readers, have you achieved financial stability through a change in mindset? What are the main differences between the new you and the old you?

Update 2021: It’s crazy how quickly time has flown. I’ve been retired since 2012 and now have two kids I love so much!

Check out: The Secret To Your Success – 10 Years Of Commitment

Also check out the top financial products to help you reach financial freedom sooner.

Keigu,

Sam @ Financial Samurai – “Slicing Through Money’s Mysteries”

Follow on Twitter @FinancialSamura and subscribe to our RSS or E-mail feed.

Buy this not that WSJ bestseller 728