[Post 274] 29 years old and already $200,000 in debt... Either get rich or have no future | Undercover Korea

Summary

A lot of Korean 20-somethings are already heavily in debt in their 20s and 30s. They can't buy a house on their income anyway, so they're trying to hit the jackpot in stocks. They don't even realize they're addicted.

[Post 273] How Americans Are Struggling With Car Loans

Summary

More than 100 million Americans have an auto loan and auto loan debt in the U.S. is at a record high of $1.56 trillion. Between the Covid-19 pandemic, supply chain issues, alleged predatory lending practices, inflation, and the Federal Reserve's interest rate hikes, getting an auto loan is getting increasingly difficult and costly. CNBC spoke with Chase Auto and Toyota Financial Services to learn what's happening in the auto loan industry and what consumers can do to make sure they're protected.

[Post 272] How America Plans To Get Teens Back To Work

Summary

Small businesses across America — stores, restaurants, seasonal businesses such as ice cream shops — are still having trouble filling low-level positions, the kinds of jobs that would typically be filled by teen workers.

The labor force participation rate for workers ages 16 to 24 has plummeted over the past 20 years. The Covid-19 pandemic in 2020 caused another big drop in youth workers. There's been a slight uptick in teens returning to work since then, but youth employment rates have yet to rebound from historically low levels.

According to the Economic Policy Institute, the labor force participation rate among 16- to 24-year-olds has fallen from 65.8% in 2000 to 55.6% in 2022. To boost youth employment, lawmakers in at least 10 states have pushed bills to loosen child labor laws and protections to increase youth labor participation.

[Post 271] Where Thousands Of Tech Workers Went After Mass Layoffs

Summary 

Tech companies shed more than 386,000 jobs last year and in the first half of this year. And that number is climbing. But while layoffs have taxed workers, a booming artificial intelligence market is giving the industry a renewed sense of optimism. Generative AI startup deals announced or finalized In the first quarter of this year totaled more than $12 billion compared to about $4.5 billion invested in the space last year, according to PitchBook. Amazon, Alphabet and Microsoft have also made significant AI investments. So how have layoffs impacted tech workers and what will the AI boom mean for their future? Watch the video to learn more.

[Post 270] How The Rich Use Debt To Make Billions - Best Tips and Tricks

Summary

Everyone seems to hate debt, yet, the richest people in the world all LOVE debt. Why? Because debt is a beautiful thing that anyone can use to their advantage.

Not too long ago, a very wealthy man wanted a new yacht. Not just any yacht- the world’s largest super sailing yacht, which features three decks, a swimming pool, a helicopter landing pad, and a kinetic-propulsion system. The massive vessel known as Y721 was built in a Dutch shipyard near Rotterdam and made headlines when it was revealed that he was considering dismantling a historic bridge to get the yacht to sea. 

The plan was ultimately scrapped after public outcry, and Y721 was quietly towed to a different shipyard for its finishing touches. 

But that’s not really the strangest thing about JB’s newest toy.Jeff Bezos,the founder of Amazon is an insanely wealthy man who could easily hand over the $500 million in cash to pay for his megayacht. But instead, he took out a loan to finance the build. Why would someone worth nearly 150 billion dollars take on debt?! I mean, someone call Dave Ramsey! 

The first way you can leverage debt to create wealth is by tapping into your home’s equity.

If you bought your house years ago, and have been making your full mortgage payments regularly, chances are you’ve built a substantial amount of equity in your home. Maybe it’s almost fully paid off. And this is a HUGE opportunity to grow your wealth.

You can use your home to build another income stream. Your primary home continues to appreciate in value, and so does your second property. 

Another way to use debt as leverage with the equity you have in your home is to obtain a home equity loan. A home equity loan comes as a lump sum of cash. It’s an option if you need the money for a one-time expense, like a down payment on a second property or a major renovation. These loans usually offer fixed rates, so you know precisely what your monthly payments will be when you take one out.

One thing rich people LOVE to do with debt is to use it to build an entirely new stream of income or expand on existing streams of income. You can use this same technique with your own business. This is how people end up owning multiple franchise locations, expanding their business product line, and doing a massive increase in hiring across their businesses.

But perhaps the most well-known and highly divisive way the rich leverage debt is by using it to avoid paying taxes. Jeff Bezos didn’t pay income tax from 2016 to 2018. And Warren Buffet paid only $23.7 million in taxes between 2014 and 2018, despite his wealth increasing by $24.3 BILLION during that time. 

First, when it comes to non-salary-related income, only profit is taxed. That means that while you can report a very high revenue at the end of the year, you can also offset the amount of taxes that you owe by reporting a very high total amount of expenses. Let’s take the example of Jeff Bezos, who, in 2007, paid zero dollars in federal income tax, according to ProPublica’s investigation. That year, Amazon’s stock nearly doubled. And Bezos reported $46 million in income, mostly from interest and outside investments. That entire amount was off-set by various expenses.

Using debt to grow even richer is just one of the things that the rich do to grow their wealth. But don’t do something ONLY because you see rich people doing it, because sometimes, rich people can give HORRIBLE advice. Check out my video about why you shouldn’t take financial advice from the ultra wealthy, I’m sure you’ll love it.

[Post 269] Being scammed led two Hwa Chong boys to set up sneaker marketplace now valued at US$80m | LWS

Summary

Richard Xia co-founded sneaker and streetwear e-marketplace Novelship because sourcing limited-edition apparel online left him susceptible to scammers. So far, it has raised US$23 million in funding, and rapper Snoop Dogg recently became a partner.

[Post 268] China’s Unemployed Youth: Why There Aren't Jobs For New Graduates | Money Mind | Full Episode

Summary

One in five young people in China’s cities is unemployed – and the situation is expected to get worse before it gets better. Why can’t China find enough jobs for its youth? If the city is lacking job opportunities, could the countryside offer greener pastures? Plus, meet China’s “full-time children” – young people finding job options closer to home.