Originally posted September 14, 2020. Imagine sitting under a palm tree, toes in the sand, gazing across a turquoise sea with not a care in the world. Wouldn’t it be nice to feel like this most days of the week rather than only on vacation, especially in times like these? Now, I know it’s not exactly practical, even if you have a tropical island as the backdrop of your Zoom calls. But you’d be surprised at how much island life is right in front of your eyes. For example, when it comes to investing, my favored Prudent Man certainly stands alone as an island far away from your everyday … [Read more...]
Once Desolate Country Towns Now Overrun by People Trying to Escape the City
Small towns across America are dealing with something they haven't seen in a long time, population increases. For decades the United States have been urbanizing, as young people left their home towns in search of better opportunities in the nation's cities. Now, a mix of COVID-19 and riots and looting have driven them from the cities. They fled with their families to small country towns, seaside summer homes, and cabins in the mountains. In the Boston Globe, Vermont locals explain how they feel about the new influx of former city-dwellers who have turned up, filling their schools, roads, … [Read more...]
Who Wants to Live the Island Life? You Do: Part II
You read yesterday about how to live an "island life," whether that be on an actual island, or by simply protecting yourself from the dangers around you. One of the best parts of living on an actual island is access to the beach. But many islands with top beaches come along with a high cost of living. Thrillist has put together a list of the "World's Most Beautiful Beach Cities Where You Can Live for Dirt Cheap." There are some nearby places like Las Terrenas in the Dominican Republic, and some further afield like Canggu, Bali. The author writes: More than a few Americans fantasize … [Read more...]
Going Up to the Country: Real Estate Heads out of Town
You have decided to escape the city, and now you're looking for what Laura Forman at The Wall Street Journal calls "location, location, isolation." She writes: Real-estate searches are looking a lot different lately. For years, home values have been greatly influenced not only by finished square footage and acreage, but also by walk scores and community. The pandemic is turning those factors on their head—at least for now. Airbnb, for example, is now touting its ability to enable users to work from anywhere, no matter how remote, after years of inviting its guests to “live like a … [Read more...]
California’s Power Failure is a Preview of the Green New Deal
If you want to get a glimpse of what the Green New Deal will do to America, then take a look at California. The Wall Street Journal's editorial board writes: Electricity blackouts are awful at any time, but especially during an extreme heat wave and for reasons that are man-made. That’s what millions in California have been enduring in recent days, and their plight is a warning to the rest of America about the risks of Green New Deal policies. The California Independent System Operator (Caiso), which manages the state’s power grid, declared a high-level emergency Friday and Saturday … [Read more...]
With Headlines Like These, Is it Any Wonder Americans Are Escaping the City?
You know by now that Americans are rushing to escape the city. They're looking for a better America where they can raise their children, build their businesses, and retire in peace. The Wall Street Journal editorial board listed headlines from last week. Read them below and ask yourself, is it any wonder Americans can't wait to get away? July 21: “Authorities found the charred body of a man in the wreckage of a south Minneapolis pawnshop, nearly two months after the building was torched in the rioting that followed George Floyd’s death.” July 24: “A public hearing Tuesday night was … [Read more...]
Anyone With Success is Fleeing Blue State Cities
"I'm outta here." Those were the words Joe Rogan told his guest Joe De Sena recently. "Here" meant California, where Rogan has lived since 2003. Where is Rogan moving? Texas. Rogan's criteria for choosing his destination: Center of the country Easier to travel to both coasts A little more freedom An uncrowded area Implied in his point "a little more freedom" is the lower--read: zero--income tax rate in Texas. Rogan recently signed a mega-deal to move his popular podcast, The Joe Rogan Experience, to Spotify. The deal is worth $100 million, and moving to Texas could … [Read more...]
This Open for Business State Reels in More Investment and Jobs for its Citizens
You already have a good idea of which states are open for business, and which states are driving entrepreneurs and small business owners away. But when it comes to the benefits of being a Right to Work state with a pro-business atmosphere, you have probably heard about one state more than any other from Your Survival Guy. That state is, of course, South Carolina. Just look at some of the headlines you've seen here about South Carolina in the past: BMW Breaks Records in Right to Work South Carolina Right to Work South Carolina is Flooded in Jobs You Can Find a Better America in … [Read more...]
Your Country Home and Generational Wealth is up to You
If you own a waterfront home, or a mountain retreat, or some land with a barn not too from the city, then you know their values are going up. I’m seeing it here in coastal Newport at every turn with license plates from NY, NJ, MA, and CT filling the streets—the secret’s out. But most have been dreaming about the “lifestyle” for years. They just needed a push to get in the game. “If you’re on some kind of fence, Covid shoves you off of it,” explains Luke Siegel as he and his wife Johanna bought a home on 30 acres with a barn just north of NYC. (You can read about here). Sitting on the … [Read more...]
COVID-19, Riots, Accelerate the Escape from the City to Small Town, USA
Americans living in big cities in states where governors have gone wild with shutdowns, but allowed riots to rule the streets are trying to escape. The COVID-19 pandemic and the rioting that has followed it have accelerated the exodus from many of the big tax cities Americans were already trying to flee the big city blues. They're seeking some shelter away from it all. Many of them are heading to the suburbs or the exurbs, but many of them are also heading to the lower cost, smaller cities in the South, and West that were already popular destinations for escapees before chaos … [Read more...]