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The sell-off in equities intensified on Friday following weaker-than-expected July job numbers. The unemployment rate ticked up to 4.3%, leading investors to wonder if the Fed has been too slow to start cutting rates. Expectations are now back to three rate cuts by the end of the year, with a 99% certainty that the first cut will happen in September.
On the one hand, we're lamenting our losses in the public equity market. On the other hand, we're relieved as the 10-year bond yield has dropped, falling from a high of 4.18% earlier in the week to 3.79% today. Consequently, mortgage rates are expected to decline by about ~0.4%, providing a boost to real estate owners. Note, the 10-year bond yield got up to a high of 4.62% on May 29, 2024.
If you're wondering how I'd invest my cash right now, you can check out “How I'd Invest $250,000 Today.” I've updated it with my latest thoughts on various asset classes. As a moderately conservative investor, this is how I'm investing my money. Please seek professional guidance from someone who understands your individual situation, risk tolerance, and financial goals.

Being “Othered” Is Disappointing
As an Asian American who attended high school and college in Virginia, I've experienced being “othered” by people who felt I didn't belong. This was a stark contrast to my earlier years in Taipei and Kuala Lumpur, where I was part of the majority.
This disconcerting feeling drove me to excel in college to secure the best job possible. The occasional sense of not belonging further motivated me to save and invest as much as I could to gain financial independence. Hooray for letting uncomfortable situations lead to personal growth!
So when I saw a 2021 clip of JD Vance denigrating child-free women with cats, I immediately felt disappointed and saddened. I know many men and women who simply haven't found the right person to have children with. As a stay-at-home dad since 2017, I've heard from numerous women about their struggles with conceiving and carrying babies to term, including my own wife.
Demographic Changes
JD Vance's “othering” of child-free women doesn't seem like a good strategy to win votes. I understand his point about the importance of having children to support our elders, increase productivity, pay taxes, and help carry the nation forward. Countries like China, which had a one-child policy for decades, are now facing the consequences of a prolonged low birth rate.
But there's no need to denigrate others when there are so many reasons why someone might not have children, including simply not wanting to. Forcing people to have children and penalizing them with higher taxes, as Vance has suggested, is cruel and unnecessary.
If you are a child-free woman or man, know that you belong just as much as anyone else. And if you chose not to have children, good on you! Don't let anybody tell you otherwise.
To support the child-free and hopefully make some people smile, I decided to write “The Economics Of Being A Childless Cat Lady Or Gentleman.”
Rising Money Dysmorphia
Part of pronatalism, the practice of encouraging people to have children, may lead to money dysmorphia in many younger folks today. Money dysmorphia is a negative and unrealistic perception of one's financial wellness or position.
Maybe your parents had you in their late 20s or early 30s. But with student loan debt, expensive housing costs, and politicians telling you to have children, you might feel like you're not doing as well as you actually are.
For those trying to achieve FIRE (Financial Independence, Retire Early), after over a decade of saving and investing as much as possible, you might still feel far behind despite having more wealth at your age than the average person. Part of the reason is inflation moving the goal post, as it has done with the cost of healthcare and college tuition far surpassing the overall yearly inflation rate.
Being A Personal Finance Enthusiast Can Lead To Money Dysmorphia
But another reason for your potential money dysmorphia may be due to reading newsletters like this one. Since the summer before college, when I got in trouble with the law, I've been obsessed with building wealth so I could one day be free. I figured that if I had enough passive income, nobody could ever encage me again. As a result, a lot of the financial goals I discuss on Financial Samurai are aggressive, and these targets may make you feel inadequate.
I'm sorry for this. Please understand that these financial goals come from my own trauma growing up and my fear of forever being entrapped by a system that won't let me be. If you must compare yourself financially to others, then compare yourself with people as similar to you as possible. This includes age, sex, race, parental wealth, educational attainment, and occupation.
Chances are, if you're highly into personal finance, you have some level of money dysmorphia. Here's my new post, “Money Dysmorphia May Be Growing Inside You,” to learn more about this growing topic.
Mental Health Epiphany
Finally, I had an epiphany this week after writing about parental existential crisis, money dysmorphia, and being othered. These issues can hurt your mental health if not addressed. If your mental health deteriorates significantly, you may need to seek counseling or professional therapy, much like you would see a doctor for a physical ailment.
However, before you do, especially if you have debt and dependents, I strongly suggest you lock down a life insurance policy first. Once you've secured a life insurance policy, you can then maximize your health insurance to treat whatever mental or physical issues you have.
I was denied an affordable policy after seeing a sleep doctor in 2015 for my snoring. The doctor charged my insurance company $3,600 for a sleep study, which concluded I had severe sleep apnea. As a result, when it was time to renew my 10-year term life insurance policy, the monthly premium rate I was offered was 12 times higher ($40 vs. $480)!
I had to go through the ordeal of meeting with a new sleep doctor and undergoing another weekend sleep study in hopes that my sleep apnea had subsided. Thankfully, it did, and I was able to reapply for life insurance with Policygenius, securing a more affordable term life insurance policy for $110/month (down from $480/month, despite being older).
Mental health is just as important as physical health. It's also worth knowing that if you apply for life insurance, your visits and treatment plan will be recorded and reviewed by the underwriting department. The fewer doctor's visits you have, the cheaper your life insurance premiums will likely be.
To Your Financial Freedom,
Sam
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