A lot of anxiety given the events of last night and this morning for many Americans. Not knowing who the next President is going to be can be nerve-wracking.
Everyone seems to have their own resources to check on the status of the election, my favorite is the FiveThirtyEight live reporting blog… linked here. I’d like to think that it is the most un-biased source of information, but some of the reporters do skew a bit to the left after I did some research on them, full disclosure.
In Non Election-News
In California, it’s projected that Prop 22 will pass, a measure which exempts Uber and Lyft from classifying drivers as ‘full time employees’ for drivers - both shares of Uber and Lyft are up huge today.
Currently there’s a welcome offer for the Chase Sapphire Preferred card - 80,000 point signup bonus, but it’s ending on November 8. More explained, below.
Great article from the BBC on the upside of being anxious: Why ‘healthy neurotics’ can thrive in stressful times.
Oregon becomes the first state to legalize ‘magic mushrooms’. Is this a new business opportunity in Oregon perhaps?
Personal Finance: Are Credit Card Sign-Up Bonuses Worth It?
Credit Card bonuses, like the one mentioned above, can be worth it so long as you’re going to spend the required amount to unlock the bonus and you were planning on getting a new credit card anyway.
The last thing we want to do is sign up for a credit card that we *don’t* need.
The way the math works is this: 100 points is the equivalent of 1 dollar. So an 80,000 signup bonus if you spend $4,000 in the first three months is the equivalent of receiving $800 dollars back (80,000 points / 100 = $800) for your spend. The points can be used within the credit card’s portal for travel, gift cards, online purchases, etc. It’s a good way to earn rewards for spending you already do.
In fact, most credit cards give you rewards back because they know that the majority of people who sign up for a credit card will leave a balance from month to month, thus accruing interest - and therefore making the credit card company profit.
In order to make the rewards/cashback of a credit card financially worth it for US - we need to hit a few criteria:
We pay off our balance in full every month.
We’re disciplined enough to not spend money that we don’t have.
We do enough regular spending where we can qualify for sign up bonuses or cashback to justify having a credit card.
Our credit score is not negatively impacted by opening a new card (you don’t already have too many existing cards).
If you’re able to use a credit card responsibly, it can actually make you money for your spend, but if you can’t - it can cost you money.
WFH Station of the Week
I like the vibes of this because it was taken at night. With the time change this past weekend, it’s a cozy and intimate space for Winter!
In Case You Missed It - The Top Five Credit Cards for Gen-Z (11:03)
This video is for Zoomers with no credit, or people starting out with credit.
Thanks for being here amidst all the Election coverage. See you next week!
- Humphrey