dukeleto
15d ago
I’m not really sure if this counts as small but it’s definitely been on my mind and id like some advice on whether or not I am thinking about this clearly. I have lived in the Las Vegas metro area for the past two years and plan to remain here for the foreseeable (at least 5 more years) future, im thinking of buying a small house in a nice part of town and can just barely afford to do it.
I find myself hesitating on actually pulling the trigger because it would result in my current housing expense increasing from the 1.9K a month I currently pay to rent to 2.8-3.3K a month depending on what I actually end up buying.
I just can’t shake the sense that I would be buying at the top. This wouldn’t necessarily be an issue (I think its unlikely I would be laid off except in a case of extreme economic hardship) except that I am concerned that if the economy does dump I will be stuck in a high interest (looking at around 6.5%) loan which I wont be able to refinance if my home value drops enough.
The thing that’s annoying though is that this really is just a feeling and I cant find any actual evidence to suggest this area is actually about to undergo any kind of correction. Prices have increased a lot in recent years (up 40-50% since 2021) but this has happened in a lot of places, the regional unemployment is low and houses that get listed are selling.
Does anyone know what kind of metrics people who follow single-family real-estate sales actually follow? I appreciate that very competent people working at large financial institutions spend a lot of time and $ trying to price real estate accurately and I don’t expect to develop an institutional level understanding of these things. Im just trying to enter this with my eyes open and want to feel slightly less clueless, before making what will be my biggest financial decision to date.
Here are some metrics I have looked at:
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Regional unemployment https://www.bls.gov/eag/eag.nv_lasvegas_msa.htm (which is basically flat).
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Permits for new construction https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/LASV832BP1FHSA
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Case Schiller index calculated for Las Vegas metro area https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/LVXRNSA
dukeleto
24d ago
Is there actually punishment for buying non controlled drugs from abroad? A quick google search makes this seem like it would be trivial to do.
dukeleto
24d ago
This is the most obvious and correct thing to do. My health insurer would save 500-1000 dollars a year if this were permitted
I have been having back and leg pain for the last few months. It comes and goes (although seems to be triggered by running, which is a shame because I love to run) and can be extremely painful at times (on the order of not being able to walk). It’s always on the same side and the pain is severe enough that I think I must have a pinched nerve or something (I’m sure I haven’t sprained or torn a muscle).
I want to see someone about this and I’m not sure what sort of doctor I should start with. Is there any reason to goto a chiropractor, or should I just start with an orthopedic surgeon? I’m hoping this is an issue that is solveable with physical therapy.
dukeleto
2mo ago
I suspect a lot of it has to do with the numbers of uninsured and unlicensed motorists. I can’t actually find good #s on this so could be wrong, but im sure that the # of unlicensed and uninsured motorists has exploded since we no longer enforce laws against this in most large cities.
dukeleto
2mo ago
Testosterone replacement therapy helped me a lot, but mine was actually pretty low for my age group. It likely won’t do anything if yours is in range (and commits you to giving yourself weekly injections the rest of your life), so isn’t something to just jump right into
dukeleto
3mo ago
Metformin, is widely recognized as the only pharmaceutical drug currently in use with (modest), anti-aging effects. It’s my understanding that this is hypothesized to be primarily a result of its ability to reduce blood glucose.
Does anyone know if there’s any research into whether newer antidiabetic pharmaceuticals (like ozempic or trizepeptide) may also have this affect in non obese people?
dukeleto
3mo ago
I have always wanted to read Bruce Edwards Ivins book in the 2001 anthrax attacks, which has been completely impossible to track down. For this who are unaware, he was probably responsible for them but I would still enjoy reading his defense. I have no idea if the book is actually coherent, he had numerous mental health problems
dukeleto
3mo ago
You can grow hay/alphalpha on extremely marginal land, which is largely unusable for other crops. I’m not arguing that these crops never displace food commodities, but in general I would expect that farmers favor food crops which are typically more valuable.
dukeleto
4mo ago
Does cal tech still do this? I had heard that they had jumped on the social justice wagon and weren’t even excepting standardized testing scores for a while.
dukeleto
4mo ago
Why is the verbal section so much more heavily g-loaded? Does it contain logic puzzles or something? I have never taken an sat (and took the act decades ago)
dukeleto
4mo ago
I assume it has a lot to do with the private universities, I mean Berkeley is basically a public ivy and they have 45k students.
dukeleto
4mo ago
I think you’re completely missing my point which is that it’s questionable that giving Israel a lot of money to destabilize the Middle East is a good idea (not the least of which is because you are mostly propping up Netanyahu). The us needs to be preparing to compete with China, not wasting our energies on regional fights in the Middle East and
As for Israel’s alleged strategic importance, every example you have was of Jews working in america. Israel itself is not particularly productive or important.
I’d also encourage you to look at the domestic Israeli political situation, before advocating American political involvement.
dukeleto
4mo ago
Fundamentally I think issues l should be viewed in the following light:
- Israel and Israel’s supporters (primarily American Jews and evangelicals), want the us to give Israel 15 billion dollars.
- This will enable Israel to expand their activities in the Gaza Strip and possibly invade Lebanon again and could easily end up involving the us in the region again.
I and many other Americans who don’t have any affiliation with Israel are asking if this is in our national interest. Many more democrats than republicans do not think it is and Democratic support is required to make this pass. Rather than debating this issue on its merits the adl and other Israel supporters are doing their best to make it a conversation about anti semitism. In my opinion suggesting that universities are antisemitic places is even more preposterous than suggesting that they are racist places and anyone who cares a wit about freedom of speech should should be concerned that the wealthy donors have this much influence over public institutions (by which I mean u penn.). I can’t believe that I am actually in support of something Harvard is doing (this is probably the first time ever), but it sort of refreshing that their endowment is so big that they can ignore these kinds of donor demands.
dukeleto
4mo ago
Thank you that is very interesting and was completely absent from my understanding of the situation. Shame no one has written a book on this.
dukeleto
4mo ago
Can anyone recommend any good books about the 1980’s and early 90s with a focus on what caused the Soviet Union to collapse ? I have just finished reading the Walter isacson Kissinger biography, and while Nixon/kissenger effectively curtailed Soviet influence in the 70s, I’m still amazed at how completely the Soviet Union collapsed by 1991. The usual story is that the ussr was unable to compete with the west and this somehow led to its collapse. I’m sure economic decline contributed to their decline, but would love to learn more about the other external and internal pressures which brought it about.
dukeleto
5mo ago
The part where we station 2 aircraft carriers to prevent Iran or another Arab power from responding to Israel or the part where we are now going to give Israel another 15 billion
dukeleto
5mo ago
I think that’s good news, anyone who thought it was appropriate to launch an 80 billion dollar startup under the auspice of a “non profit” belongs in jail for abusing non profit status.
dukeleto
5mo ago
I’m not motivated enough to write a detailed response so I’m linking to a news story if you’re interested: https://www.timesofisrael.com/for-writer-who-broke-epstein-case-a-rumored-mossad-link-is-worth-digging-into/amp/
I’ll also point out that I find it really suspicious that Israel suddenly has so much less influence than they did just 5 years ago. This could Just be a case of Bibi being incompetent.
dukeleto
6mo ago
As for # 6 there was a lot of speculation that Epstein had been employed by the mossad or some other intelligence agency (or agencies), specifically to get blackmail material. In which case he was killed to bury that connection.
dukeleto
6mo ago
How is the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam (I assume it’s open again)? Its the primary reason I would want to visit Amsterdam again
dukeleto
6mo ago
So if I’m reading that correctly it was us owned ammunition that was stored in Israel not a donation
dukeleto
6mo ago
They are now, but this nonsense about either deporting all of the Palestinians or maintaining a status quo in which the palestians are not Israeli citizens is basically a form of apartheid
dukeleto
6mo ago
I don’t know, I think that the time has come for them to decide: is Israel a democracy or not? If they want to continue down the pathway to become an apartheid theocratic state, then that’s their business but they should be called out for it or and shouldn’t continue to receive foreign policy deference and foreign aid in abundance. If they are going to remain a democracy that is excellent, and I believe will ultimately be revealed as the correct choice.
He is an Australian citizen
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