Could You Survive a Disaster?

The earthquake in Haiti is an immense tragedy. And the strength of the Haitian people to survive under such conditions is to be admired. We should all help in whatever way we can. But this catastrophe should make you sit back and think what you would do to provide for and protect your family if something similar happened in your community. Granted, the infrastructure in most parts of the U.S. is far better than in Haiti. However, look at what went on when Hurricane Katrina struck? Traffic was gridlocked, people had to be plucked from their rooftops, no food, no water, and looters ran amuck. No one is immune from disasters — be it a flood, a hurricane, a wildfire or a snow blizzard. And your best defense is to be prepared. That means becoming as self sufficient as possible. There are some up front benefits, too: It gives you a chance to save a few bucks on things like vegetables, and it gets you outside for some exercise and fresh air. After living through the Flood of the Century in 1995 and the hurricanes of 2004 and not having electricity for days on end, I’ve taken a number of steps. Here are just a few of them: • Solar-powered gated entrances to our property, • Generators to pump drinking water, run a small A/C, keep the refrigerator going, • Orange, tangerine, lime and avocado trees, • Chickens that produce eggs, • A month’s worth of can goods and MREs (meals ready to eat). We are fortunate to have a small river that’s full of tasty fish less than 200 yards from our back doorstep. And most recently we started a worm farm for bait and worm castings (poop) that’s great for composting. Of course there’s always more ... a solar powered water heater is next on my list. Ultimately I’d love to get completely off the grid so I could tell Florida Power & Light to take a hike. You might not be able or interested in some of the things I’ve done. Or maybe you want to do more. Either way, to help you get started on your road to self sufficiency, I suggest you read The Ultimate Suburban Survivalist Guide written by my good friend Sean Brodrick. Inside you’ll find all kinds of helpful hints that you can easily implement without spending an arm and a leg. Best wishes, George

A Real Deal on the Best Skiing in North America

Are you a snow ski enthusiast?

How does this sound to you:

• Lift tickets that only cost $54 (compared to $86 in Park City, $97 in Vail),

• $27/day equipment rentals,

• NO lift lines,

• Moderate temperatures, and

• Some of the best skiing in North America!

Check it out for yourself: http://www.brundage.com/the-mountain/

When a skiing friend told me about Brundage five years ago, I wasn’t too excited about the 7640 elevation. After all, other areas offer higher peaks. So the runs might not be quite as long as those found in Vail, Park City or Canada. But let me tell you, I’ve gone there twice ... and I absolutely loved it! And I can almost guarantee that you will, too.

What’s more, it’ll cost you a heck of a lot less than going just about anywhere else.

We have a condo in McCall, Idaho that sleeps 10 for March 15 through March 22.

If you, or anyone you know, is interested in tagging along (for all or just part of the trip) to share the cost of the rental car and food (the condo is already paid for!) and have a great time at a bargain basement price, let me know ASAP at: gdlambert@aol.com and I’ll answer any questions.

Best wishes,

George

Estate Tax Repeal Could Leave Surviving Spouse Flat Broke

At least for now, the estate tax has been repealed for 2010. So you might be jumping for joy at the thought of your family not having to pay Geithner a toll if you die this year. However, you better check your will and trust documents closely, because without an estate tax you or your spouse could end up flat broke.

Clever estate planners directed many clients’ plans to pass assets not subject to the tax to the children. The balance of the estate would go to the surviving spouse estate-tax free because of the unlimited spousal exemption. In 2009, that would have meant $3.5 million to the children and the balance to the surviving spouse.

Well guess what? If you have this provision in your estate plan and die this year, your children will get it all with your surviving spouse getting nothing!

Right now Congress is up to their eyeballs with ObamaCare. And after it’s passed, which I can almost guarantee, our overseers in Washington will be looking under every rock for every last tax dollar they can find. One Senator even promises that there won’t be a window where wealthy individuals who die can escape paying estate tax this year.

In the meantime, you should review your estate plan and get with your attorney, because counting on Congress to act could be a risky bet.

Best wishes,

George

Boomers Delaying Retirement

A survey by Sun Life Financial found that 65% of American workers will delay retirement by at least one year. That’s an 11% increase from 2008. Sun Life also found that 27% of Americans now believe they’ll have to work at least five more years because of the economic environment.

Indeed, this is disturbing. And it further boosts my story that anyone near retirement age needs to check out countries like Costa Rica.

You can read more about Sun Life’s Unretirement Index by clicking here.

Best wishes,

George

P.S. I’m now on Twitter. Follow me at http://twitter.com/efinancialwrite for frequent updates, personal insights and observations from my frequent travels around Costa Rica and other Latin American countries.

If you don’t have a Twitter account, sign up today at http://www.twitter.com/signup and then click on the ‘Follow’ button from http://twitter.com/efinancialwrite to receive updates on either your cell phone or Twitter page.

Bring Back Profiling

Remember the good old days when the only crazies you had to worry about on flights were the ones who wanted to take you on a detour to Cuba? You’d land in Havana, maybe get the chance for a cup of good espresso with a fresh cigar and then head back to the U.S.

I’m not romanticizing what these guys did. I’m sure it was terrifying. And sadly some passengers died. I just want to make a point.

But at least the hijackers had somewhat plausible explanations for their actions.

For example,

On February 16, 1970, man who was born in Cuba, with wife and two children, successfully hijacked a 727 from Newark to Cuba;

In April 1970, a man who diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia hijacked a plane on a sightseeing tour with his wife pulling a gun on the pilot demanding to be flown to Cuba. He told Cuban authorities “he felt persecuted as a black man in America and had heard that things would be better in Cuba.” Cuba suspected him of being a spy and deported him 1976. On arrival he was arrested for the hijacking by the FBI. He was freed in 1981 after spending years in jail and a mental hospital;

And on July 31, 2001, John Milo Reese stole a plane from Florida Keys Marathon Airport with the reported intention of delivering a pizza to Fidel Castro in an attempt to kidnap the Cuban leader. After crash-landing on a Cuban beach, he was returned to the U.S., where he was convicted of transporting a stolen aircraft, and was sentenced to six months in jail. In a later interview, he admitted to being slightly intoxicated and having lost his bearings in the air.

Now compare these to what Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab did on Christmas Day. It wasn’t to be with family; it wasn’t for political freedom; it wasn’t even to score with a hot chick! He said he was depressed and looking for a new jihad. Give me break.

As is typical for the terrorists of this decade, it was to destroy what the U.S. stands for. And he wasn’t just willing to die for his distorted belief, he wanted to die. How off the wall is that!

Now as traveling boomers, we’ll have to pay the price. I’m not looking forward to being told I can’t go the bathroom within one hour of my arrival time. Nor will I be able to rummage around in my backpack for a snack or a paperback. And I can’t even put a blanket or pillow on my lap!

If the TSA thinks these kinds of ridiculous rules will stop someone who wants to die, they’re wasting their time and our money. Profiling passengers while they’re in the airport is the only strategy that has a chance of working.

Look, if the overwhelming majority of terrorists to date were males of German-English background with blond hair and blue eyes and in the 50-60 age bracket, I’d have absolutely no problem with being pulled aside for a vigorous search. That is, as long as every one who fit the profile was treated the same way.

I’ve traveled to places like Hamburg, London, Santiago, Lima and Panama way before today’s terrorists were a glimmer in their fathers’ eyes. And I can tell you that even back then countries in Europe and Latin American could’ve cared less about hurting the feelings of anyone who gave the slightest indication of being up to something wrong.

And even today, Costa Rica, which doesn’t have an army, puts handguns on the hips of workers who man the security check points. Do you think they practice racial and ethic profiling? I can almost guarantee it.

However, that’ll never happen here. We live in a country that’s now afraid we might offend certain groups. Yet those same groups use that fear against us. Go figure.

So in the meantime, they best you can do, fellow travelers, is to stay alert. And just hope the screaming baby sitting in its mother’s lap next to you doesn’t need a diaper change 59 minutes before your flight is supposed to land.

Happy Traveling,

George

Merry Christmas!

Wishing you and yours a safe, a healthy … and a very Merry Christmas! George and Linda

Gold Isn’t the Only Way to Protect Your Nest Egg

Remember back in 1980 when inflation almost hit 15%?

Retirees on fixed incomes felt it the most. Imagine what it was like to have your food, electricity and prescription costs going up each month while your pension, Social Security and interest income stayed the same. The inflation numbers are pretty mild now. But as our Federal deficit continues to swell to historic highs, many investors fear that the inflationary times of the 1980s are coming back. And that could help explain why gold has been on a run … up almost 30% this year. Now the gold bulls are screaming: “I told you so!” However, as often happens when everyone thinks that something is a great idea, a buying frenzy might be evolving in gold ... I’m not saying you shouldn’t own gold. What I am saying is that if you’re one of the 76 million boomers on the verge of retiring, you might want to consider another way to protect your next egg from what is sure to be skyrocketing prices during your retirement years. Real estate has taken a bloody beating over the past three years. In fact, U.S. homeowners have lost about $5.9 trillion since the housing market’s peak in March 2006. And foreclosures continue to rise. But there are pockets in the U.S. that are starting to stabilize. You can see the numbers for yourself by clicking here. Meanwhile, other parts of the world are already seeing property values turn around. In China, prices are soaring! So much so that Chinese investors are lining up for buying tours in the U.S. to take advantage of real estate deals here. Even London is starting to see a comeback. Developers can’t keep up with the demand for small, single-family homes. There are other hot markets, too: Israel’s residential real estate went up 13.7% in the third quarter. Singapore’s jumped 15% at the same time. Now you’re probably not going to travel to Shanghai, London or Tel Aviv to get your piece of what could be the next global real estate boom. But you can buy stocks in some of the companies that are involved in these markets. These could include developers, real estate agencies and home builders. Mutual funds and exchange traded funds (ETFs) specializing in these areas can be a great way to go too. The point I want to make is that gold is not the only way to protect your retirement portfolio from runaway inflation. And real estate could offer some of the best bargains we’ve seen in a long time. Best wishes, George