enRICHed: volume 96

i have a concept of a plan…

Sep 15, 2024

Volume 96

Hey besties!

IT’S SWEATAH WEATHAH! Move aside, aperol spritz, it's officially pumpkin spice season, and I cannot wait to bundle up and take a long stroll during my favorite few weeks of the year. As we creep into hibernation season, it may be time to clean out your closet ahead of bunkering down for the winter, and I recently saw an INCREDIBLE TikTok that has completely changed how I decide what to keep vs. donate/give away. Instead of doing the Marie Kondo “Does this spark joy,” I now ask myself, “If this was covered in poo, would you wash it off or throw it out?” This has really helped me reframe what is actually most useful, beloved, and worth keeping in my closet and in my life! If you, like me, are nearing hoarder status, try this poo test on some of the items you don’t use but can’t seem to get rid of—it may help you finally say bye bye to the clutter taking up space in your home!

As a reminder:

HYCU, pronounced haiku: how the news impacts you and your wallet, aka How You Can Use
The Prosperitea: think discount codes, non-boring finance articles, sales, and personal links from the week. The fun stuff 😉
We love your comments, but please remember to keep it positive! And don’t take investing advice from anyone who isn’t your registered financial advisor!

Now that you’re up to speed, let’s get you enRICHed.

The Elon Musk x United Airlines WiFi Collab

United Airlines will start testing satellite WiFi from SpaceX’s Starlink on its flights early next year, CNBC reported Friday. Slay?
This collaboration is part of the airline competition to attract higher-paying customers like business travelers (i.e., people who need to make PowerPoints on their flights). Competitors like Delta and JetBlue have been investing in free and faster inflight WiFi, while Hawaiian Airlines has already inked a WiFi deal with Starlink.
United said it expects to have “gate-to-gate” connectivity with Starlink on over 1,000 planes, rolled out during the “next several years.”
HYCU; If you fly United, you know that WiFi has been a huge con of the airline—they usually charge $10 for domestic flight access and $8 for loyalty members. It’s not clear exactly how many planes will get WiFi in 2025, but sometime a few years from now, when we’re a little older and grayer, paying for WiFi on United flights will hopefully be a distant memory.

TikTok Back On Trial

TikTok and parent company ByteDance are back in the courtroom on Monday as they try to block a law that would ban the app on January 19, 2025.
The US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia will hold oral arguments then. Circuit Judges Sri Srinivasan, Neomi Rao and Douglas Ginsburg will consider the legal challenges brought by TikTok and users.
The company is arguing that the law is unconstitutional and violates Americans' free speech rights, calling it a “radical departure from this country's tradition of championing an open Internet.”
HYCU; In case you missed it or need a refresher, President Biden signed a law in April requiring ByteDance to sell TikTok or else it will get banned in January. There’s a clause that he can extend by three months if ByteDance progresses towards a sale. But ByteDance is fighting back through the legal route by appealing to the Supreme Court. They’ve asked for a ruling by December 6, so if the judges come up with a decision by then, it could basically overturn the impending law or modify it. It’s also a weird time, because obviously Biden isn’t going to be president anymore, and both VP Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump are literally using TikTok to appeal to voters. What a pickle we are in! All this because some boomers don’t understand the Internet. We will probably get more intel around this on Monday.

Refinance That House!

The 30-year fixed mortgage rate is at its lowest since spring 2023, and as the Fed gears up to make expected cuts to interest rates, certain homeowners should start teeing up for refinancing season.
Homeowners who secured mortgages when rates were peaking are likely to be the prime candidates for refinancing, CBS reported Thursday— that homeowners who had a $300k mortgage loan could potentially refinance to a new monthly payment of about $1,830 (down from $2,097).
Dropping mortgage rates also likely means an influx of prospective homeowners who were previously priced out of the market will be back on the hunt — better rates mean more opportunity for first-time buyers looking to invest in real estate.
HYCU; Now, nothing’s set in stone! We’ll know the exact number for rate cuts this week when the Fed actually gets together for their gab session. That said, if you are paying an atrocious 7.50% because you bought a house while interest rates were sky-rocketing, I would definitely recommend looking into your refinancing options. There will likely be multiple more rate cuts later this year and early next, so even if you want to wait a little longer in the hopes you’ll be able to refi to an even lower rate—it’s still good to get yourself acquainted with what the process would look like ASAP. If you’re planning on holding onto your mortgage for a long time, refinancing could save you BIG money over the years. And you know how I feel about saving money.

Boeing Strike Fall

Last week we talked about hospitality strikes, but this week, it’s hitting manufacturing, as 33,000 Boeing machinists have started walking off the job on Friday after they overwhelmingly rejected a proposed four-year contract with the aircraft manufacturer.
This is history in the making: it’s the first strike at the company in 16 years, and will basically stop commercial airplane production at one of America’s biggest manufacturing giants and its largest exporter, period. It’s quite literally a kick in the American economy’s crotch.
The contract the workers are fighting for includes clauses for job security because Boeing promised to build its next commercial jet at a unionized plant—but putting it in the contract means they can’t just suddenly change their mind. It would also give the workers guaranteed raises of at least 25% over the four years of the deal.
These measures make sense, in light of what’s happened. Boeing has been in hot water in recent months that has led them to bleed cash: faulty doors and two fatal crashes led to backlash around the company’s cost-cutting measures. This contract would protect workers from the slew of layoffs and labor outsourcing that Boeing (among several other corporations) have been suddenly switching to over recent years.
HYCU; This strike will not affect consumer travel! The Boeing planes you fly on have already been delivered—that said, hopefully no doors rip off this time around. This is a manufacturing strike, after all. The strike would mostly cause a delay in deliveries of jets promised to airlines, cutting off Boeing’s primary source of cash.

Commonly asked question: Brooklyn asks, “Hi Vivian, I recently noticed in one of my emails from my bank, that my brokerage account is *NOT* insured by the FDIC. I don't know much about brokerage accounts or how they can/should be insured, but I stumbled upon SIPC for brokerage accounts in some research and don't really understand the difference. So my questions are:

Should my brokerage account be insured?

If so, what is the difference between FDIC and SIPC insured? And,
How can I find a brokerage account that is insured? Like, is there a good comparison tool you could recommend to compare fees, rates, insurance etc.?

Any help is greatly appreciated! -Your soon to be rich BFF (manifesting), Brooklyn”

Hi Brooklyn! This is a great question! Your brokerage account will never be insured by the FDIC. The FDIC only insures checking and savings accounts—a.k.a. the cash in your bank accounts (up to $250k). This is separate from your investments. My favorite FDIC insured High Yield Savings Accounts are linked HERE!

As for the investments in your brokerage account, you are correct that SIPC insurance exists, but it only protects you as a customer against financial institution failure, not against losses in general. So what does that mean? Let’s say you add $100 into your brokerage account, buy one share of a $50 stock, and leave the remaining $50 in cash for other investing. That cash and your one share would be SIPC insured. If your brokerage (Fidelity, Vanguard, Schwab, etc.) went belly up, your cash and investments (up to $500k) would be protected. However, if your one share of that stock were to drop from $50 to $40, SIPC insurance would not give you that $10 back (SIPC insurance does not cover losses due to a decline in market value).

As with all types of investing, there is always risk, and unfortunately there are no brokerage accounts that will insure against losses. That being said, you should absolutely still be investing! It’s crucial for your own financial health and your eventual retirement. Investing helps you keep up with inflation, so your dollars don’t lose value over time. This lack of insurance might sound a bit scary, but in the long run, you need investments to be able to grow your wealth—and unfortunately, there are uninsurable risks that come with investing. I hope that helps!

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Rich Tip of the Week: Here’s how to get new skills so you can leave the job you HATE!
Hours after the presidential debate, I was locked in the VMAs, and I loved how many OG Britney Spears references there were…
The Emmys were last night, and the competition was stacked. I don’t know how they chose. I would’ve given everyone an award.
Wait, Tom Cruise did that Paris Olympics jumping-off-the-stadium stunt for FREE?
Products that SAVED MY LIFE this week:
- Wireless Bluetooth Audio Transmitter (Watch movies on planes with sound without wired headphones)
- Pimple Patches (Mt. Vesuvius is currently developing on my face)
- Fuzzy Birkenstocks (Do I even have to explain this one?)

SEE YOU IN THE COMMENTS BESTIES