Lifestyle »

Although we’re seeing a slide in oil this past week, relatively high gas prices are here to stay. Many people are trading in their cars for fuel sipping alternatives. Hybrids like the Toyota Prius and Camry hybrid are a good start to alleviate some dependency on oil, but a full electric vehicle is a much better alternative and frankly its the future of cars. Full electric vehicles have huge advantages over anything with a combustion engine. Electricity is cheaper than gas because it is renewable through solar and wind rather than depending on a finite source. We don’t have to import it either. Electric cars pollute less than combustion engined versions, but most importantly, they are more reliable than what we drive around these days. Maintenance is significantly less because there just aren’t as many moving parts, meaning you don’t have to do oil changes every 3000 miles! So although a hybrid does get more MPG than a full gas powered car, buying one is like buying a half finished piccaso painting. The future is the electric car.

Cost analysis

Hybrids are a lot more expensive than full gas powered cars. For most of the hybrids I’ve looked at, they are so much more expensive that it’ll take you 4-5 years to make up the difference in gas savings. Also, remember that during resale, you don’t get the full premium back, so the more you spend the more you lose in depreciation. Electric cars will initially come at a premium as well, but the on-going costs are far less than a hybrid. Maintenance will be a fraction of a hybrid, but yes you still need to get new tires and brakes. They get the equivalent of hundreds of miles per gallon, and cost a few cents per mile to drive. The electric car wins big-time when it comes to overall cost. So electric is the way to go right? Well, not quite. Not now at least.

Not Ready for Showtime

Besides pure numbers, there are other issues with electric cars that prevents them from being the new standard at the moment. For one, most electric cars are slow, maxing out at around 30-40 mph. Go at that speed around where I live and you’ll be the horn blowee every time you go out. Apparently that isn’t stopping this Houston doctor. That tiny car looks great to drive around private property like a corporate park or an airport, but I wouldn’t drive that thing on the streets. That brings up the subject of safety. Its just too dangerous driving something that size without doors. There is only one company that I can think of who offers a truly complete electric car, and that is the tesla roadster, made by a company founded by Elon Musk, who also co-founded paypal. Their roadster offers ferrari-like performance with the attributes that any self-respecting environmentalist will appreciate. While this particular car is in a high price range category, the company has said that they will be releasing a full line of economical cars very soon. GM and ford watch out.

What to Buy?

Once Tesla starts whooping the other car brands, everyone will be releasing full electric models. The electric car is the future, but I wouldn’t get one right now because they are slow, unsafe and still rather expensive upfront. I wouldn’t consider a hybrid either. Thats like buying the very best cell phone just before colored screen versions came out. Remember those days? I remember spending a few hundred bucks on a shiny motorola V60, then everyone had colored screens and mine was stone age material. If I had to choose a new car right now, it would be a gas sipping, low maintenance, reliable 4 cylinder. Then a few years later when Tesla rolls out their full line, I’d likely buy on of those, or any other full electric car on the market. And no, I wouldn’t miss driving to the gas station to fill up.

Lifestyle, Personal Finance, Real Estate »

I’ve always been an advocate of trying new things. You never know or learn unless you try. I’m sure you noticed that I haven’t been writing here for about a month now. That’s because I’ve been the busiest I’ve ever been in my 24 years of life. I’m constantly juggling my business development and personal life, but on top of that I’ve been planning the big move. Thats right, remember almost a year ago I wrote that I was planning to leave San Francisco to build wealth. I can’t believe it has been over a year since my girlfriend and I conceived this idea which initially started off as a joke. We sat in my tiny condo looking at big homes in Houston and I said we should move. She said yes we should and that was the beginning of a crazy journey. I’m proud to say that during this time I have sold my condo and we’ve purchased a dream house a little over a month ago. We moved all our stuff over and we’re ready to enjoy our new lifestyle. I’m still in CA until the 22nd, then I’m staying in the Houston area for a while. Looking back at the whole journey, I can’t be more pleased.

Numbers Don’t Lie

I estimated that by simply moving, the difference in total wealth accumulation over the course of our lifetime would be in the millions easily. Don’t take my word for it, other sources have been writing on the topic of costs of living as well. Maybe its the slow economy, but recently I’ve noticed many articles are now being written about cities with low costs of living. Yahoo Finance had an article about the best cities for your job. For just about every position they have listed, Houston is in the top 3 and places like San Francisco and New York at the bottom 3. The salary figures took into account cost of living, which make true salaries of high priced cities like SF and NYC much lower than places with lower costs of living. For example they state that for a financial analyst in Houston, the true salary adjusted for cost of living would be $72,000. In San Francisco the salary is higher, at $77,500 but after a cost of living adjustment it is a mere $45,300. Here is another article about the best wealth building cities for you to consider.

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Investing, Personal Finance »

The following is a guest post from Aaron Stroud at On Financial Success

Financial matters have a reputation for being complicated. Ill-deserved or not, financial success requires that we consistently make the right choices. Unless you’re content to settle for water cooler advice or willing to do the research, you’ll need to know how to find reliable financial advice.

Many people rely on media gatekeepers and financial “advisors” for help. But the media specializes in selling advertising and many financial advisors are simply salesmen, not investing experts.

And while most of us think we’re savvy enough to avoid promises of high returns with little risk, fast paths to wealth, and strategies for beating the market, the line between scam and savvy investing is often blurred.

Here’s three tips for finding a reliable financial advisor.

First, avoid everyone who promotes a strategy for beating the stock market. Millions are spent every year feeding this myth because hundreds of millions are made off the people who fall for it.

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Consumerism »

I admit it: I spent pretty much all of last night drooling over cell phones: the n95, the iPhone and half a dozen shiny new toys. I don’t need to change phones yet, but pretty soon, it looks like I’m going to have to break down and buy something that I can both send email with and fit in my pocket. I’ve held out for quite a while, convincing myself I could do without. And I’m pretty sure that this decision isn’t about giving into my technolust. I’ve checked my motives, and I’m sure I’m going to buy a phone for the right reasons.

But as nice as these gadgets are and despite the fact that it’s almost a justifiable business expense, I’m planning to hold out at least until August to make a decision on what I want. I’ve been doing my research and picking the brains of a few people who know a thing or two about cell phones. And all my research tells me to wait.

In the past, I’ve put off purchases for a variety of reasons:

• Waiting until I can afford to plunk down cash and avoid interest.
• Waiting until an expected price drop kicks in.
• Waiting until I can talk an employer into buying it for me.
• Waiting until I’ve heard feedback about new features and new bugs.

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