Have you thought about how the new year will impact your wallet?
If you haven’t, I got you covered.
“Today, wealth is in information. And the person who has the most timely information owns the wealth.” -Rich Dad, Poor Dad
This blog is about equipping you to earn all you can and to keep most of what you earn. Part of that mission is keeping you informed about the marketplace.
LinkedIn recently put together a really good list of 50 big ideas to look out for in 2018.
Here are 5 ideas that jumped out at me from the list:
Idea #5: The gig economy gets volatile.
“As companies such as Uber and Airbnb move closer to long-awaited IPOs, they’ll be pressured to ratchet up profits. For drivers, hosts, grocery deliverers and others who depend on these platforms, that will likely mean lower pay, says former Google HR chief Laszlo Bock, now CEO of startup Humu.”
I love what the gig economy has done for the everyday American. I feel like 2017 was the year of the side hustle.
If you haven’t heard of the term “gig economy” it simply refers to the broader market of freelance work. In other words, it is where individuals are essentially functioning as their own business with the help of a third party platform to deliver the goods and services.
Think of companies like Uber, Airbnb, and Etsy. I am sure you know these companies well.
The gig economy has grown to the point where Wall Street is picking up on this phenomena, meaning more competition and lower profits for the “gig” professional.
Look out for price increases in 2018 for these “gig” services you enjoy.
Idea #6: Airlines won’t roll out new fees; they’ll quietly expand existing ones.
“U.S. airlines, flush with record profits, will be reluctant to introduce new fees for fear of a consumer backlash. Instead, look for them to quietly expand or increase existing charges, says travel columnist Christopher Elliott.”
Watch out for this one if you are a frequent flier. But, if an expansion of miscellaneous fees occurs in 2018, it won’t happen all at once.
Make sure to do your homework before booking your flight. My favorite site for airline price comparison is Kayak.com.
Idea #9. Bitcoin comes back to earth.
“The cryptocurrency that looked unstoppable in 2017, rising from below $1,000 at the start of the year to nearly $19,000, will crash in 2018, warns Danielle DiMartino Booth, president of Money Strong and a LinkedIn Top Voice.”
As I said in an earlier post, just stay away from bitcoin. Most of us don’t have money to lose. When I wrote the article the price was at $19000 in mid-December. At around Christmas, it dropped to $13000. Currently, it is sitting at around $16000.
That’s a 30% swing in value in a couple of weeks. Bitcoin will continue to be volatile in 2018.
Idea #17. The Housing Market will continue to be a seller’s market.
“The only asset that is still made locally, by hand, with utterly unique characteristics, is a house. It’ll be a seller’s market for years to come.”
– Glenn Kelman, CEO of Redfin
Houses, especially in cities like NYC and SF, are appreciating in value like crazy. This trend will probably continue into 2018.
So if you have plans to sell your house this year, be patient and wait for the best offer you can get. On the other hand, if you are in the market for a house in a major city, jump on it sooner rather than later.
Doesn’t look like houses are getting cheaper anytime soon.
Idea #41. The (new) great migration begins.
“Now in 2018, this great migration will reshape the country. Silicon Valley will start to leave Silicon Valley, Wall Street will start to leave Wall Street. explosive growth in places like Denver, Detroit, Houston, Nashville, Pittsburgh and Salt Lake City.”
– Glenn Kelman, CEO of Redfin
This great migration also points to a sellers’ market for houses in the cities mentioned by Kelman. In addition, this migration may bring an influx of jobs and commerce to these areas. If you live in one of these cities, get ready for many new faces in the neighborhood.
Look for the gig economy to grow in these areas. Nick from Side Hustle Nation has a list of gigs you can do to get a boost in income.
Idea #48. You may buy your cheapest car in years.
“As the economy recovered after the Great Recession, pent-up demand for cars led to a surge of leasing deals. Now, prepare for a glut of used cars on dealer lots, said Mays, senior consumer affairs editor at Cars.com. On top of that, automakers are also resorting to heavy discounts for new cars. All of which leads to one conclusion: 2018 should be an auto buyer’s market.”
This is very interesting. While there is a sellers’ market in the housing industry, the auto industry has transitioned to being a buyers’ market. I wanted to buy a car in 2017, but I am glad I held off.
2018 may be the year you can get a really good deal on a car.
Wealth Rehab’s Big Idea for 2018
I believe 2018 will be the year of the financially conscious individual. As I have noticed the growth of Rockstar Finance over the past year, there seems to be an ever-growing audience of people who want to get better at managing their money. Rockstar has a total of +1400 finance blogs that it tracks.
So there are a lot of people talking about money, and there are even more people reading about money.
I believe that this year financial literacy will become in style.
What do you think the new year will bring?
