Investing
Is Dividend Investing Worth It?
There’s nothing quite like the sweet promise of a predictable, steady, (and growing) dividend payment.
But is there more to dividend investing than meets the eye?
Sadly, yes. […]
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Stock Market
The Case For A 100% US Equity Portfolio
At some point, all stock market investors face the following question:
What is the right portfolio allocation between US and international equities?
As the data below shows, at the turn of the 20th century, the US stock market represented ~15% of the world’s total. […]
Investing
When Everything Goes Wrong (Or Why Some People Will Never Get Rich)
Our journey to wealth started in earnest about ten years ago. My wife and I had just moved to London. In our late 20s / early 30s respectively, we were about to embark on the next leg of our professional careers – and were […]
Real Estate
Real Estate Investing: Another Day, Another Property
Those readers who’ve been around this blog for a while know that I rarely take a break from regularly scheduled programming. In other words, I happen to be one of those (boring?) folks who like to stick to a schedule. Thus, when I do […]
Investing
The People Who Beat The Stock Market
The biggest refrain you hear from people who think you can beat the stock market goes as follows:
“By definition, 50% of investors do better than the market and the other 50% do worse. Surely it cannot be so hard to be in the first group.” […]
Financial Independence
Never Too Late: How To Build Wealth In Your 50s
Halfway through last year, I published a detailed guide on how to build wealth in your 40s.
The reader reaction was nothing short of overwhelming.
Numerous folks reached out to thank me for addressing an often-overlooked topic.
For some reason […]
Financial Independence
Dogs And Wolves
Fifteen or so years ago, I decided to burnish my educational credentials with an accounting designation.
Having survived the initial set of grueling exams, I was admitted to a year-long “professional development” program.
Sadly, that meant that once a month, I had to spend an entire weekend holed up in a nondescript conference room with a bunch of other accounting conscripts. […]
Financial Independence
How To Build Wealth In Your 30s: Updated For 2021
Are you looking for advice on how to build wealth in your 30s?
Not too long ago, I updated the blueprint on how to build wealth in your 20s.
When I first wrote that post, it was partially intended as a letter to my younger self, outlining all the things […]
Personal Development
The Best Strategy For Winning At Life
Every year, without exception, I see the exact same situation playing out at work.
Bright, motivated, and hard-working guys and girls begin their careers as investment banking analysts.
Almost immediately, the most ambitious and foresightful of the bunch […]
Investing
Why The Active vs Passive Investing Debate Misses The Point
Debating the merits of active vs passive investing has got to be one of the favourite – and entertaining – pastimes in the FIRE community. Clearly, the default stance is that passive beats active by a stretch. At the same time, take a closer […]
Financial Independence
Why FIRE Isn’t Fair
If you want to embark on a thankless affair, look no further than the pursuit of financial independence. There are a million constantly moving pieces being debated in the personal finance community. Persistent calls to “index and chill”. Heated discussions about safe withdrawal rates. […]
Investing
Lump Sum Investing: Why The Right Advice Is Also Wrong
Earlier this month, I set out to cross off a few items on my 2021 money agenda. As part of that (somewhat boring) exercise, I had to transfer roughly £150k from my wife’s workplace pension into Hargreaves Lansdown. Alongside Vanguard, Hargreaves is one of […]
Financial Independence
Why Your FIRE Number Is All Wrong
At first glance, it seems easy enough. Figure out your spending needs. Divide by the safe withdrawal rate (SWR). Done – your FIRE number is staring you in the face. But is it? Inspired by a couple of reader comments on this post, let’s […]
Financial Independence
The Journey To One Million: What I’ve Learned Along The Way
When it comes to building wealth, the first £100k is a critical stepping stone. But it is crossing the one million mark that makes you realize you are well on your way – at least in financial terms. […]
Investing
The Banker On FIRE Portfolio
One of the fundamental truths of being a personal finance blogger is that it invariably involves telling readers what you think. The internet, however, is a funny, opaque place. Things are not always what they seem. And for all you know, I could be […]
Personal Development
Losing Control
Last Friday was a long day for me. The first Zoom call of the day started at 7 am, courtesy of a demanding continental client with a penchant for early starts. A year ago, my secretary would have punted the meeting by a couple […]
Financial Independence
When A Million Is Not Enough
On Saturday morning, I woke up to an email from a long-time reader of this blog. To preserve anonymity, let’s call him Carl. Carl sent me a link to this story from the Sunday Times and asked for my views. I was still in […]
Financial Independence
The Road To Riches – Buy or Rent?
Of the many conceptual arguments playing out in the personal finance space, buying versus renting has got to be one of the longest-running ones. Based on what I have seen over the past couple of years, the “buyers” represent a solid majority. After all, […]
Financial Independence
Why Early Retirement Terrifies Me
Ahh, the sweet promise of early retirement. The date is January 31, 2020. The news outlets are slowly picking up coverage of the strange pandemic that’s shutting down Chinese cities and seems to be spreading beyond the country’s borders. I have zero time to […]
Financial Independence
What You Don’t See
A lifetime ago (i.e. back in my teenage days), I had a very short but highly memorable stint working for a moving company. The set-up was simple. The owner of the company, who doubled up as the CEO, CFO, driver, and mover, had offered […]
Financial Independence
A Vicious Circle
It has begun – and it’s relentless. It happens at nursery drop-offs and pickups. At playdates and playgrounds. At birthday parties and barbeques. And anywhere else where you might be unlucky enough to bump into an acquaintance with a child who turns 5 next […]
Financial Independence
Three Changes In Attitude On The Road To Financial Independence
For the vast majority of people, building wealth is an evolution, not a revolution. Unless you come into an inheritance, win a lottery, marry rich, or knock it out of the park with a highly speculative investment, you can expect the journey to take […]
Real Estate
Why (And How) I Bought More Real Estate In A Pandemic
Ever since starting this blog, I haven’t been shy about sharing my views on real estate investing. On one hand, it is one of the most effective ways to build wealth for retail investors. The first property we bought generated an over a decade. […]
Investing
Building Wealth With A Self Invested Personal Pension (SIPP)
When I first moved to the UK about ten years ago, I remember being mightily confused by the concept of a self invested personal pension, also known as a SIPP. I ended up parking my mental questions on the topic when I had realized […]
Financial Independence
Hunters, Farmers, And Financial Independence
A couple of years ago, I happened to attend a social event hosted by Lance Uggla. For those of you who haven’t heard of him, Lance is the founder and CEO of a business now known as IHS Markit, an S&P 500 constituent with […]
Financial Independence
When Your Money Makes More Money Than You
Let me take you on a day trip today. Assume you are making 40k a year in the currency of your choice. Being a smart and foresightful person, you sock away 25% of that amount, to the tune of 10k a year. You’ve also […]
Financial Independence
Pedal To The Metal: How To Build Wealth In Your 40s
Over the past year, I’ve published posts on the best ways to build wealth in your twenties as well as your thirties. Much as I hate to admit it, there will come a time when our glorious twenties and happy thirties will be well […]
