Dearest readers, we are living at a time when our dear friends(????) who like to periodically hang out at Davos are trying to convince us that ownership does not equal happiness. Being as it may, there has been pushback on this idea ever since. Now, knowing that they never talk openly about things until they have already been going on for a while, I would like to share with you a true story told to me by a friend of mine that illustrates a clash between some old and new ideas of ownership. Then, I would like to ask all of you a question.
Without further ado...
My friend- let us call him Jack (because I like Jack Reacher, no other reason to be honest)- has a cousin who immigrated to Canada many years ago when real estate was cheap and career jobs were plentiful; let us call him George. Now Jack, he came to Canada much later than George and did not get the same head start that George had. George's parents, fairly well off, did not need to leave their home country and have instead helped George with a 20 percent downpayment for his first home, setting him on a path of upsizing until he got to a corner detached house in a very nice, well off suburb in an equally very nice, well off town. One year, George's father came to visit him for a few weeks. It was when George just moved into his corner detached dream home. George's father was impressed- rightfully so. What was not right, however, was George's prideful reaction. He looked at his dad and said "Look at everything I managed to achieve in such a short time here in Canada- much more so than you managed to achieve in a lifetime back in the old country!" Indeed, he was so proud of himself when he told Jack the entire story. Jack, being close with the family back in the old country, and quite familiar with both that country and his new home country of Canada, smirked and replied to George that he could not be more wrong! Dumbfounded, George asked Jack to explain the logic to him. "Easy enough", Jack said. "Your father owns everything he has outright. He has a detached house that is not too old by our old country's standards, a cottage, a car he bought three years ago brand new paid in cash and in full, and he had enough money to help you with your real estate journey. On the other hand, everything you have is owned by creditors. Don't believe me? Skip a payment and you'll find out how right I am soon enough." George was speechless, but not angry. He was eager to change topics though.
This story resonates with me for some reason. Should I be surprised though? Should you be surprised if it resonates with you as well? Is there something fundamentally human and eventually inalterable when it comes to the need for ownership? Is the need to own the things you have a necessary part of a healthy human condition and one of the keys to long term mental health? Can we function long term in a world where we own nothing, let alone be happy about it? So many questions, I know. I wonder if people will start to abandon things they cannot own. In my not so little corner of the world, more and more people are abandoning home ownership, car ownership and more. Do you think that whatever else they choose to own within their means will ultimately skyrocket as it consequently becomes more scarce and then gets picked up by the ultra rich, giving entire new asset categories justification for ever increasing values? I know, more questions.
But tell me, what do you think? Or simply, does this resonate with you as well?
Without further ado...
My friend- let us call him Jack (because I like Jack Reacher, no other reason to be honest)- has a cousin who immigrated to Canada many years ago when real estate was cheap and career jobs were plentiful; let us call him George. Now Jack, he came to Canada much later than George and did not get the same head start that George had. George's parents, fairly well off, did not need to leave their home country and have instead helped George with a 20 percent downpayment for his first home, setting him on a path of upsizing until he got to a corner detached house in a very nice, well off suburb in an equally very nice, well off town. One year, George's father came to visit him for a few weeks. It was when George just moved into his corner detached dream home. George's father was impressed- rightfully so. What was not right, however, was George's prideful reaction. He looked at his dad and said "Look at everything I managed to achieve in such a short time here in Canada- much more so than you managed to achieve in a lifetime back in the old country!" Indeed, he was so proud of himself when he told Jack the entire story. Jack, being close with the family back in the old country, and quite familiar with both that country and his new home country of Canada, smirked and replied to George that he could not be more wrong! Dumbfounded, George asked Jack to explain the logic to him. "Easy enough", Jack said. "Your father owns everything he has outright. He has a detached house that is not too old by our old country's standards, a cottage, a car he bought three years ago brand new paid in cash and in full, and he had enough money to help you with your real estate journey. On the other hand, everything you have is owned by creditors. Don't believe me? Skip a payment and you'll find out how right I am soon enough." George was speechless, but not angry. He was eager to change topics though.
This story resonates with me for some reason. Should I be surprised though? Should you be surprised if it resonates with you as well? Is there something fundamentally human and eventually inalterable when it comes to the need for ownership? Is the need to own the things you have a necessary part of a healthy human condition and one of the keys to long term mental health? Can we function long term in a world where we own nothing, let alone be happy about it? So many questions, I know. I wonder if people will start to abandon things they cannot own. In my not so little corner of the world, more and more people are abandoning home ownership, car ownership and more. Do you think that whatever else they choose to own within their means will ultimately skyrocket as it consequently becomes more scarce and then gets picked up by the ultra rich, giving entire new asset categories justification for ever increasing values? I know, more questions.
But tell me, what do you think? Or simply, does this resonate with you as well?