http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/32505284/ns/business-the_new_york_times/
Excellent article Chris…Thanks for posting it.
Here’s an intersting bit of info…
If in the year ONE (1) AD you took an amount of money equal to a modern PENNY and compounded it yearly at 3 %…
There is NOT THAT MUCH MONEY ON THE PLANET…ALL currencies added together…EVERYTHING INCLUDED!!!
This is how CYCLES function…I live in New England…IN Newport Rhode Island you can visit the SUMMER COTTAGES of the Vanderbilts, Astors and the other SUPER RICH of the early 1900’s…When the depression hit…These folks lost MILLIONS…and continued to lose millions for decades.
On the other hand…The years following the depression BUILT todays modern middle class. Those super rich from the early 1900’s had a 30 year run…The Middle class in comparison had a 60 year run.
Now we are repeating the cycle that took place in the 1930’s. Instead of a new BOAT and a NEW CAR…The STATUS symbols of 2009 are a PAID OFF MORTGAGE and NO DEBT!!! People are learning that there really are consequences for their actions and mistakes. For SOME these lessons will be life changing and lasting…For others, they will be meaningless.
The part that blew me away was when they talked about that software mogul who went from being worth $100M to only 4M. That is a 96% drop. Talk about wanting to jump out a window… I know 4M is a lot of money, but the lifestyle you get accustomed to at 100M is SIGNIFICANTLY different than that of of the one you live when you have 4M.
Yea, talk about a wake up call…
Some GREAT LESSONS in that piece…Especially for Real Estate investors…ie…When you’re out of MONEY…You’re out of the GAME!!!
Having a $200,000 cash cushion is to me, mandatory!! Without that $200K of dead money I wouldn’take the risks I do on some of the properties I buy. I find that having that cash (just for Real estate flipping) creates an enviroment where I can concentrate on the DEAL without having to worry about the MONEY…If the deal is good the money is there…BUT…If you’re worrying about money (the way the guy in the article is now) you are at a sizeable disadvantage.
I deal with a few investors on deals and they have been real reserved about how much they wanna spend.I try to keep the ball rollin and keep spirits up,if you let it judge when you’ll invest you never will.It’s hard to keep it sane knowing that I’m more up on what the govt & economy is doing than they are.Another unwelcomed obsticle we have to work through…rock on capitalism,don’t give in.
Liberals should be happy. Those rich bastards are getting what they deserve! SALUTE OBAMA!
Hoosier… lol…
From the article…
“The rich, as a group, are no longer getting richer. Over the last two years, they have become poorer.”
Oh no! Now what mantra are they going to come up with?!
Here’s one…
I can’t finish my flip so I spend all my time on REICLUB!!!
fdjake… gosh, why do you have to make everything so personal?
Im sure Postive will finish his flip eventually 
lol jp
HOOSIER…
Are you sh*ttin me???
You whine about more crap than any 200 teenagers I know!!
Yeah Yeah Yeah jake, keep sippin the haterade. I wouldnt say I whine that much… come on.
On a side note,I personally agree with almost everything Positive says. You rock, postive!
Fdjake,
“You whine about more crap than any 200 teenagers I know!!”
Do you not see the absolute irony of how you whine the MOST about other people whining? LOL… as a matter of fact, if you type your name and “whine”, “whiner” and “whining” in on the search bar, you’ll embarrasslingly find that is the case… may want to go back and “modify” some of those posts to bring the numbers down… :biglaugh :lol
“On a side note,I personally agree with almost everything Positive says. You rock, postive!”
Now you’ve done it… you’ve unleashed the vitriol of the “great in his own mind” Fdjake towards you… you sure you are ready for this??? :biggrin
WOW…
Positive, you’ve got an 18 YEAR OLD fan!!!
Fdjake,
“Positive, you’ve got an 18 YEAR OLD fan!!!”
That’s your response?!.. lol :biglaugh :lol
From what I’ve read from him, he is more in line with the thinking of the founding of the country than you are at 42 years old… that’s gotta’ be quite humbling… WHAT AM I THINKING, we’re talking Fdjake, here…
Like I said - the search bar is your enemy FDjake… think about that reality…
I’ll take that any day over YOUR enemy…
THE TRUTH!!!
You can have Hoosier…He’s a PERFECT match for you…He talks and talks but DOES NOTHING too!!!
A match made in heaven…Where ABORTION IS NEVER LEGAL! :biggrin
“I’ll take that any day over YOUR enemy… THE TRUTH!!!”
LOL… the reason the search bar IS your enemy Fdjake, because it SHOWS who is telling the truth and being consistent… like I said - “think about that reality”… Fortunately, you are not one of the moderators here, because based on your track record, I wouldn’t put it past you to find a way to “modify” people’s posts… nice try though, junior…
Notice I am the one TELLING people to use the search engine… NOT you… Hmmm, I wonder WHY… :bs :biglaugh :lol
Never mind the search engine, you are caught ALL THE TIME adding words to people’s posts in your responses, and false accusations that you NEVER back-up, and mysterious PM’ers who leave you flapping in the breeze… so even WITHOUT the search engine, EVERYONE’s got your number, FDjake…
“You can have Hoosier…He’s a PERFECT match for you… He talks and talks but DOES NOTHING too!!!”
He’s his own man, and doesn’t need to be “taken”… But I’d be happy to have an 18-year old politically aligned with me whose thinking is in line with the founding of the country, than someone who wants the government to do it all, even THOUGH the vast majority of the programs it supports BEYOND their constitutional role FAIL miserably…
What you ADVOCATE people DIED in service of their country to protect us from…
Aside from that, he has shown that he can save money when he wants to, and at such a young age he will making a GREAT living as a nurse… if he continues with the saving, he’s got an extremely bright future, whether he “agrees” with the self-proclaimed great Fdjake or not… :rolleyes
I just finished HS and am a full time college student, hardly counts as doing nothing in my opinion. Sure, I didnt do the painting thing (called them 3 times, couldnt get a response), but come on jake… stop bein silly.
That’s truly a good article. But I think its important to remember a few differences between the wealthy and the middle class.
First. The wealthy (generally) have a much different view about money and how its made. They have a great respect for money. They use money as an employee whos job is to go out and make more money (when directed properly). The middle class (generally) has to work more hours for money and reduce expenses to create moe money. You can only cut so much and work so long. But money is the hardest worker if directed and respected properly.
Second. When you start to define wealth, the middle class’ wealth is genrally tied to their home and 401k. The Richs’ wealth is also tied to stocks and RE but on a much larger scale. According to the article, the rich won’t return to their pevious levels without a bubble in the finacial markets. This will happen. it always does during these economic downturns. The rich accumulate assets like stocks and RE during these times. Its also during these times that the poor and middle class sell these asstets out of fear or desperation (Just like Potter did in “Its a Wonderful Life”). This accumulation will payoff during the next boom in these assets. The rich will continue to get richer because they know how to control their emotions of fear and greed when it comes to money. The Poor and middle class do not… generally. I also think that when the credit markets get moving again, most people will not have learned their lesson and continue the same behavior because their view about money hasn’t changed.