My local bank in NJ seems to be offering 2 to 2.25%. Problem is that you have to jump through some hoops to get this rate -- 10 check card transactions + one direct deposit per month.

Then again, 2% is pretty tame compared to 7+% that you can get from rental property these days (even with the market up a bit nationally).

I'm at the bottom of my career path right now so I don't have the money for a rental yet. But to be honest even if I did I'd rather put my money in an REIT and spread the risk within the real estate market. I invest 1/3 of my after tax income just into stocks because I have time to be aggressive, so I'll use REITs to protect against inflation when I'm closer to retirement.

Jealous ppl in NJ can get that much more cash back on checking accounts!

And I still think there's an opportunity cost when you get money from credit cards, even a 0% offer. The best thing you can do with money is make it work for you and make more money. The terms of 0% teaser offers though—12 months, 18 months—are never long enough to actually get the money in the markets and out safely making above inflation returns that keep your principal safe.

I use one of those cash back cards too though and they're pretty great. Since I budget I just pay for absolutely everything on it and have it set up to pay the balance in full every month. Budgetting is the absolutely best thing anyone can do for their finances IMO.

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1983 300TD 240k Thistle Green Auto (Euro) [sold]
1984 300D 240k Petrol Green Auto
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"You know, times are changing. Ladies can do stuff now and you're going to have to learn how to deal with it."
"What? Were you saying something? Look, I don't speak Spanish."

REITs are for suckers who want Wall Street scumbucket dirt to pocket 50% or more of their potential rental income. Also, leverage (mortgage/margin) rates are much better (lower) for personally/LLC owned real estate than equities. You're much more likely to cash-flow on a leveraged property investment than on an REIT bought on margin.

Sorry to put it so bluntly, but I tell it like it is. As far as spreading risk, you're trading one point of failure for another -- a market can crash, but a single corrupt and/or stupid business official can doom a company (or fund) to failure. Call it a Nick Leeson moment.

Lastly, don't know about you, but rehabbing property with my own two hands is actually really fun and relaxing for me. Call it a profitable hobby. Clicking on an E*trade account and buying/selling stocks, not so much.

People get to do what they want with their money. I do what I want. Frosty gets to do what he wants. You get to do what you want.

And to clarify: 1) I don't buy any of my investments on margin. 2) I invest in vanguard which is client owned and has low fees. 3) what little money I have in an REIT right now is in an international one, so I think the spread is pretty wide. 4) sure, the global real estate market can crash, which is why I have an equal amount of money in bonds in case of deflation, some in cash and the rest in stocks. I'll be fine.

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1983 300TD 240k Thistle Green Auto (Euro) [sold]
1984 300D 240k Petrol Green Auto
——————————————————
"You know, times are changing. Ladies can do stuff now and you're going to have to learn how to deal with it."
"What? Were you saying something? Look, I don't speak Spanish."

Again, I wouldn't lose sleep about the global market crashing. I'd lose sleep over one of the people running the REIT being a thieving or incompetent dirtbag. (And yes, it can often be one person who's responsible for killing a publicly traded entity.)

As far as margin, you can buy real estate with all cash, if you can afford it. But you can also "buy on margin" aka getting a mortgage, and realize positive cash-flow in a lot of areas. Positive cash-flow even if rents decline by 25 or 30%, I may add.

You guys playing around with revolving loans/unpaid credit card balances through a bank are gonna keep gettin' snakebit.

Bad enough having a credit card with one where you pay their balance in full each and every month. They'll still get to you every few years.

If you're paying 16% to 32%+ annually, somethin's done broke in your life financially. Open loans and owing money costing 16% to 32%++ per annum? -that be bad......

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'06 E320 CDI
'17 Corvette Stingray Vert

I do not have time for it but buying and selling can give you a really good return once you get familiar with it. I have always thought that if substantial returns are wanted you have to personally work with your money.

The fourteen year old I deal with a lot went out to some yard sales with me last Saturday. He purchased several electronic devices. Resold them by Monday on some vendor sites.

Cost him maybe twenty five dollars and he netted a couple of hundred. He may or may not duplicate this next Saturday. Depending if what he feels if available and easily re saleable is out there.

He is in school and has no part time job in a conventional manner yet always seems to have lots of money. Trading and selling enables this primarily. He seems to deal in high demand items for his generation to make resale of them easy. Return on investment for him of course is off the charts if you tried to calculate it over the full year. If he can compound say five dollars into what he does and what it becomes over a year. What the majority of us grown ups are doing is peanuts in comparison.

Singer sewing machine. Bought in NJ for $10. Motor brushes freed up. Resold to hipstah girl in Brooklyn for $200, bay-bee!

I have a credit card and pay it off in full every month. I pay no interest fees, it's safer than a debit card, and they have a reward program. I'm over 20,000 points, so I think it may be time to look at what I can redeem them for. I use it for the exact same stuff I used my debit card for: Fuel, groceries, and car/bike parts mostly. How will they get to me in a few years?

If you think that's bad, try looking at payday loans. Junior military personnel got in so much trouble with them that Congress made some changes to lending law that make it essentially illegal to make out a payday loan to an active member of the military.

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Whoever said there's nothing more expensive than a cheap Mercedes never had a cheap Jaguar.

83 300D Turbo with manual conversion, early W126 vented front rotors and H4 headlights 401,xxx miles
08 Suzuki GSX-R600 M4 Slip-on 26,xxx miles
88 Jaguar XJS V12 94,xxx miles. Work in progress.
99 Mazda Miata 183,xxx miles.