Trivial for a lot of people, sure, but imagine the difference between not knowing what an investment account is and knowing that you've got $250 in one that you can contribute more to.
So..a 401k
At least the 401k is pre-tax. This on the other hand is taxed on both ends. Maybe I am missing something, but I really don’t see the upside.
If you add in the 1000$ that treasury plans to invest starting next year, that is $1250 compounded at 5% annually after 18 years to $3008.27. It's probably still not a "head start" given that inflation is assumed to nominally rise at 2.5 to 3.5% annually and will take a bite out of what the real value is worth in 18 years. Good intentions but misplaced as others have stated. Investing in other ways to provide upward economic mobility will provide much better ROI for the society than allowing most of the wealth to accrue to a handful of people
> If you add in the 1000$ that treasury plans to invest starting next year, that is $1250
This is largely separate from your point, which is good, but the $250 is for kids that won't get the $1000. The $1000 only goes to kids born between 2025 and 2028.
Yes, but if you then put in just $5.00 / mo , it jumps to ~$2,300 , a 3.8x increase.
If you put in $30.00 / mo , a dollar a day, then it goes all the way up to $10,700 , a 18x increase (42x over the $250)
Look, we can play with numbers all day long here.
The fundamental difference is the additional contribution amount. Finding just a little bit here and there makes a huge difference.
And getting people into the habit of putting a set amount away each month is the key. Priming this habit, getting folks to look past the next 2 weeks, to just consider the adult they are raising, I think that will be hugely affective.
I may not like what the current administration is doing in a lot of things. But for this little one thing, I can at least applaud this little one thing. I think it will really help out a lot of people in more than just the pure cash.
A little help for millions likely ends up mattering for some of them. It’s a head start in that it removes a single minor issue, shows the value of compound interest in a more tangible way, or possibly gets them to retirement weeks/months earlier.
Obviously many people are happy to spend whatever, but with 25 million people you’ll see a wide range of personalities and life situations. Imagine an otherwise identical life without 600 dollars of credit card debt, that’s a worth quite a bit over time and will likely apply to some of these individuals. Perhaps a musical instrument or similar purchase will end up really helping someone kid, you never really know.
One of the most important benefits will be the example being set.
People will have a visible example of the power of compounding. It’s just a shame there isn’t more time in the equation so they could see the real magic happen.
Did you know that at typical market rates, someone saving $1000 at age 20 would have $64,000 at age 62?
Even more illustrative, if the same person waited until age 27 to save the same $1000, they would only get 32k. If they started at 34, they’d only get $16k!
The importance of time as the secret ingredient is the best kept secret ( that’s endlessly explained by people like Warren Buffett ). Hopefully these accounts will help the message stick.
But what if 10 or twenty of them want to start a company? Maybe they have some savings or can get parents to chip in or a grant, but they can’t open a store and work it, or start a landscaping business or a software company.
I mean you could buy books your first semester of your $75k/year freshman year of college though! Think of all the new Calculus that'll be in the 23rd edition of the standard textbook that costs $150. /s
piker|3 months ago
codeddesign|3 months ago
najarvg|3 months ago
magicalist|3 months ago
This is largely separate from your point, which is good, but the $250 is for kids that won't get the $1000. The $1000 only goes to kids born between 2025 and 2028.
Balgair|3 months ago
If you put in $30.00 / mo , a dollar a day, then it goes all the way up to $10,700 , a 18x increase (42x over the $250)
Look, we can play with numbers all day long here.
The fundamental difference is the additional contribution amount. Finding just a little bit here and there makes a huge difference.
And getting people into the habit of putting a set amount away each month is the key. Priming this habit, getting folks to look past the next 2 weeks, to just consider the adult they are raising, I think that will be hugely affective.
I may not like what the current administration is doing in a lot of things. But for this little one thing, I can at least applaud this little one thing. I think it will really help out a lot of people in more than just the pure cash.
Retric|3 months ago
Obviously many people are happy to spend whatever, but with 25 million people you’ll see a wide range of personalities and life situations. Imagine an otherwise identical life without 600 dollars of credit card debt, that’s a worth quite a bit over time and will likely apply to some of these individuals. Perhaps a musical instrument or similar purchase will end up really helping someone kid, you never really know.
RickJWagner|3 months ago
People will have a visible example of the power of compounding. It’s just a shame there isn’t more time in the equation so they could see the real magic happen.
Did you know that at typical market rates, someone saving $1000 at age 20 would have $64,000 at age 62?
Even more illustrative, if the same person waited until age 27 to save the same $1000, they would only get 32k. If they started at 34, they’d only get $16k!
The importance of time as the secret ingredient is the best kept secret ( that’s endlessly explained by people like Warren Buffett ). Hopefully these accounts will help the message stick.
stetrain|3 months ago
aksss|3 months ago
qntmfred|3 months ago
> beginning next year, the U.S. Treasury will contribute $1,000 to the Invest America account of every baby born on or after January 1, 2025
hopefully more people/organizations will decide to contribute as well.
LastTrain|3 months ago
newsclues|3 months ago
But what if 10 or twenty of them want to start a company? Maybe they have some savings or can get parents to chip in or a grant, but they can’t open a store and work it, or start a landscaping business or a software company.
xqcgrek2|3 months ago
throwforfeds|3 months ago