ptgatsby
Well-known member
- Joined
- Apr 24, 2007
- Messages
- 4,476
- MBTI Type
- ISTP
Some people, myself included, read the pre-2008 tea leaves (and profited from it) pretty damn well.
Well, any edge can earn you infinite money, though small edges require many iterations. Any idea what yours is?
Ok, yeah, if you want to become wealthy in a step-by-step fashion then surely it's much better if you start young (and you're also more likely to hit and ride a boom).
FWIW, you are also more likely to hit bad times, which can be equally devastating (or worse). There is a presumption of political security in the states. It is the surest way to become wealthy though.
In general, I'd save less and spend more investing in oneself when young. It's the safest investment and can be as simple as getting a computer, taking a course, getting certified... or just consuming the savings to volunteer in different areas. The states includes lots of options, I believe, aside from the Peace Corps. Lots of strategies, but better than working and stocking money, for the most part.
Well technically this is fraud, lol (especially if you write off your own income as a "business expense" - which I don't think can be done either, tbh).
It is fraud but not terribly uncommon. People get caught all the time.
All you need to do is find a way to get your income going to a company, then pay yourself an income from the company. You lose on fixed overhead, but expenses inside the company are pre-tax. It's been cracked down on a lot as far as I know... it's something you read more in books because it's very dangerous in practice. This doesn't apply as much for professionals who need to limit liability - most of those professions have somewhat different tax handling situations.
In short, to really make it work you need to do it with large numbers... and the larger the numbers, the more likely you are to get caught. No one cares about a few meals being mis-charged but that's because a few meals are barely profitable.
Structuring around taxes is only really worthwhile once you are already wealthy.