The Economics of Dating

This is a hilarious post on craigslist.An economic analysis of "gold digging" in NYC and enjoyable nonetheless. The posting is interesting, but the response is the best.

THIS APPEARED ON CRAIG'S LIST RECENTLY.

What am I doing wrong?


Okay, I'm tired of beating around the bush. I'm a beautiful
(spectacularly beautiful) 25 year old girl. I'm articulate
and classy. I'm not from New York . I'm looking to get married to a guy
who makes at least half a million a year. I know how that sounds, but
keep in mind that a million a year is middle class in New York City, so
I don't think I'm overreaching at all.

Are there any guys who make 500K or more on this board? Any wives? Could
you send me some tips? I dated a business man who makes average around
200 - 250. But that's where I seem to hit a roadblock. 250,000 won't get
me to central park west. I know a woman in my yoga class who was married
to an investment banker and lives in Tribeca, and she's not as pretty as
I am, nor is she a great genius. So what is she doing right? How do I
get to her level?

Here are my questions specifically:

- Where do you single rich men hang out? Give me specifics- bars,
restaurants, gyms

- What are you looking for in a mate? Be honest guys, you won't hurt my
feelings

- Is there an age range I should be targeting (I'm 25)?

- Why are some of the women living lavish lifestyles on the upper east
side so plain? I've seen really 'plain jane' boring types who have
nothing to offer marri ed to incredibly wealthy guys. I've seen drop dead
gorgeous girls in singles bars in the east village. What's the story there?

- Jobs I should look out for? Everyone knows - lawyer, investment
banker, doctor. How much do those guys really make? And where do they
hang out? Where do the hedge fund guys hang out?

- How you decide marriage vs. just a girlfriend? I am looking for
MARRIAGE ONLY

Please hold your insults - I'm putting myself out there in an honest
way. Most beautiful women are superficial; at least I'm being up front
about it. I wouldn't be searching for these kind
of guys if I wasn't able to match them - in
looks, culture, sophistication, and keeping a
nice home and hearth.

* it's NOT ok to contact this poster with services or other commercial
interests

PostingID: 432279810

THE ANSWER

Dear Pers-431649184:

I read your posting with great interest and have thought meaningfully
about y our dilemma. I offer the following analysis of your predicament.

Firstly, I'm not wasting your time, I qualify as a guy who fits your
bill; that is I make more than $500K per year. That
said here's how I see it.

Your offer, from the prospective of a guy like me, is plain and simple a
cr@ppy business deal. Here's why. Cutting through all the B.S., what you
suggest is a simple trade: you bring your looks to the party and I bring
my money. Fine, simple. But here's the rub, your looks will fade and my
money will likely continue into perpetuity...in fact, it is very likely
that my income increases but it is an absolute certainty that you won't
be getting any more beautiful!

So, in economic terms you are a depreciating asset and I am an earning
asset. Not only are you a depreciating asset, your depreciation
accelerates! Let me explain, you're 25 now and will likely stay pretty
hot for the next 5 years, but less so each year. The n the fade begins in
earnest. By 35 stick a fork in you!

So in Wall Street terms, we would call you a trading position, not a buy
and hold...hence the rub...marriage. It doesn't make good business sense
to "buy you" (which is what you're asking) so I'd rather lease. In case
you think I'm being cruel, I would say the following. If my money were
to go away, so would you, so when your beauty fades I need an out. It's
as simple as that. So a deal that makes sense is dating, not marriage.

Separately, I was taught early in my career about efficient markets. So,
I wonder why a girl as "articulate, classy and spectacularly beautiful"
as you has been unable to find your sugar daddy. I find it hard to
believe that if you are as gorgeous as you say you are that the $500K
hasn't found you, if not only for a tryout.

By the way, you could always find a way to make your own money and then
we wouldn't need to have this difficult conversation.
With all that said, I must say you're going about it the right way.
Classic "pump and dump."

I hope this is helpful, and if you want to enter into some sort of
lease, let me know.

How to get up, eat breakfast and get ready for work in 5 mins!

This might be useful for the time-strapped Singaporeans.  I love the neck tie shortcut.

What Celebrity Deaths Teaches You About Managing your Finance

Unless you’ve been living under a rock without access to radio, TV, the internet, Twitter, or Facebook for the last week you know that several celebrities have passed away from various causes.

As a society we’ve lost TV pitchman Billy Mays (heart disease), entertainer Michael Jackson (who knows), actress Farrah Fawcett (cancer), entertainer Ed McMahon (no formal reason given), and comedian Fred Travalena (cancer).

Death isn’t a fun topic, but I think there are some lessons to be learned from these celebrity deaths. Here’s a list to start with.

5 Financial Lessons from Celebrity Deaths

1. Money isn’t everything. All the money in the world doesn’t matter. All five of these celebrities made a ton of money during their lifetimes. As nice of a lifestyle as they got to live using that money it still did not prevent death. (Hint: nothing prevents death forever.) The pursuit of money, in the end, is fruitless.

2. If you don’t have your health, you have nothing. Of the five listed above only one, Ed McMahon, likely died of old age. The rest died of some sort of medical issue. Mays and Jackson were just 50 years old. In theory they should have had many more years to live on this earth. All the money in the world can’t stop cancer.

3. Life insurance and health insurance are really important. The likelihood of average folks like you and I having to worry about millions of dollars is slim-to-none. But we may suffer from the same health issues that these celebrities did. Heart disease in America? Check. Cancer? Check.

Now imagine if you didn’t wake up from going to sleep last night. Would your family be covered with a term-life insurance policy on you? If you were diagnosed with cancer today would you have health insurance to cover your treatments? Bottom line: skimping on insurance is not the way to go.

4. Having an estate plan is key. Again, imagine you didn’t wake up this morning. Does your spouse know where the will is? (Do you have a will?) An estate plan maps out for the courts exactly how you want your estate — your belongings and money — handed out. Do you want to give it all to your spouse? Do you want to leave some for the kids? Have you appointed a guardian for the kids?

The Jackson case is a perfect example of this — his mother has won temporary custody of the children and control of the estate. But is that what the will said to do?

5. Get your financial house in order. You can be “rich”, but still severely in debt. There is a significant difference between appearing wealthy and being wealthy. Jackson was $400 million in debt when he died last week. Ed McMahon was in the news a few months back for being on the brink of foreclosure on his mansion. These are two individuals that made millions upon millions of dollars and still were in debt.

The Correct Financial Path

Learn how to get out of debt, stay out of debt, and build wealth. Here’s an idea: spend less than you earn. These principles apply no matter your income level. You hear stories of professional athletes that get paid millions of dollars in bonuses and salaries… and ten years later they are filing for bankruptcy. Turn around and you hear stories of school teachers retiring on a healthy nest egg, then donating millions of dollars to their schools.

Use these deaths as a reminder that you’re not going to live forever. That today could be your last day living. Use this knowledge to not only make the most of every day, but to get your finances straightened out now rather thanlater.

Best Advice: Buffett; invest emotion-free

Dun mind the South African ad at the front, once that passes, you'll get to see Buffett.