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Thanksgiving is a day to share a meal with family and friends and reflect on all the things we have to be thankful for. With the economy hitting a brick wall, that may seem a tall order this year. But at least for today, put aside worries about your plummeting portfolio, sinking home values and increasing job insecurity. Even when it comes recession, there are reasons to be thankful. Here are seven things I'm happy about that are occurring now due to the economic slowdown:
Stocks are cheap. We may not have seen the bottom yet (hopefully we have), but this could be the stock buying opportunity you've been waiting for. The trailing price-earnings ratio of stocks in the Standard & Poor's 500 is 11. Don't throw all your investable assets in the market all at once, but start nibbling here and there on strong companies that have been slammed by the economy -- like General Electric (NYSE: GE), Research In Motion (NASDAQ: RIMM), Intuitive Surgical, or just a broad index fund -- and hold on for the ride. (For more ideas, see our Stocks To Buy category.)
Gas prices are falling. Last summer, gas prices nationally averaged over $4 a gallon. My mother-in-law was panicked she couldn't afford to stay in her house this winter due to heating oil costs. Now gas is at $1.87 on average nationally and heating oil costs are about 20% lower than last year. Fact is, the price of crude is tied to expectations for economic growth. In recession, demand for crude falls globally and gas and heating oil get cheaper. Then, in a nice virtuous cycle, lower energy prices put more dollars in consumers' pockets and help fuel a bit more spending.
Barack Obama was elected President. Even supporters of Senator McCain can give thanks that we have a fresh face in the White House who is bringing in lots of new talent and bold ideas to tackle our economic woes. Pollsters may disagree, but the fact the market crashed three weeks before the election probably helped seal Obama's victory. Barack is inheriting a pile of problems to deal with, but I think he is up for the challenge.
Homes are getting more affordable. As a homeowner myself, I feel the pinch of declining real estate prices. But I have hopes of getting out of my 'starter' apartment one day and I stand a better chance of that if prices come down. In high-demand markets, I think real estate prices should stabilize soon and if they get a little cheaper in the meantime, it will only make homes more attainable for all those Americans still hoping for a piece of the dream on terms they can afford.
Frugal living is better for you. Vices are expensive. Drinking and smoking are budget busters. The main reason restaurant food tastes better than your own home cooking is probably because they use more butter, salt, oil, cream and cheese than you never would at home. So stay home, eat right, quit smoking and drinking and save money. Words to live by (or at least consider) in a recession.
Crass consumerism is out of fashion. Now that Thanksgiving is here, the full furor of holiday-related spending is about to be unleashed. But this year, bargains are in and brand names are out. Thousands of families are planning on scaling back on the Christmas bonanza. That may not be good for retailers this year, but if it keeps more people out of debt and enables them to better weather the economic downturn in the months to come, then I'm thankful for that.
We appreciate our jobs (or our unemployment benefits) more. Have you noticed that the usual water cooler complaining has cooled off this year? Suddenly it doesn't sound so smart to complain about your job or your boss. Such kvetching can be draining. It's good for business and morale that people are more committed to doing a good job. Even if they don't love their job, they recognize that having benefits is a good thing. If you were unfortunate enough to lose your job, you can find reason to be thankful, too. Unemployment benefits for about 1.2 million Americans were extended last week.
Homes are getting more affordable. As a homeowner myself, I feel the pinch of declining real estate prices. But I have hopes of getting out of my 'starter' apartment one day and I stand a better chance of that if prices come down. In high-demand markets, I think real estate prices should stabilize soon and if they get a little cheaper in the meantime, it will only make homes more attainable for all those Americans still hoping for a piece of the dream on terms they can afford.
Frugal living is better for you. Vices are expensive. Drinking and smoking are budget busters. The main reason restaurant food tastes better than your own home cooking is probably because they use more butter, salt, oil, cream and cheese than you never would at home. So stay home, eat right, quit smoking and drinking and save money. Words to live by (or at least consider) in a recession.
Crass consumerism is out of fashion. Now that Thanksgiving is here, the full furor of holiday-related spending is about to be unleashed. But this year, bargains are in and brand names are out. Thousands of families are planning on scaling back on the Christmas bonanza. That may not be good for retailers this year, but if it keeps more people out of debt and enables them to better weather the economic downturn in the months to come, then I'm thankful for that.
We appreciate our jobs (or our unemployment benefits) more. Have you noticed that the usual water cooler complaining has cooled off this year? Suddenly it doesn't sound so smart to complain about your job or your boss. Such kvetching can be draining. It's good for business and morale that people are more committed to doing a good job. Even if they don't love their job, they recognize that having benefits is a good thing. If you were unfortunate enough to lose your job, you can find reason to be thankful, too. Unemployment benefits for about 1.2 million Americans were extended last week.
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Reader Comments (Page 3 of 3)
12-04-2008 @ 4:53PM
frances said...
greed ! this is what happens when we want more and more...............
12-09-2008 @ 8:45PM
Nancy said...
So many people believed Obama's fancy words without looking deeper. I must have heard 100 times that all his porgrams will be paid for by "the money being spent in Iraq" He's proposed about 20 X that much already and that's not counting the bailouts and what he wil spend in afghanistan. But I guess a Democrat war doesn't count. And for all of us with tax deferred annuities, IRA's Keoghs, 401 K's, 403 B's , whatever : The democrat congress is hard at work looking at ways to "nationalize" those plans to get their hands on the money. Thats'' why they may really want more economic chaos and stock collapse, then they can come in an "rescue" us with guaranteed 3% govt. retirement accts. And guess what, if they take away the tax deduction for private retirement accts, right here we have a large "tax increase" Sneaky. The we have the so called "universal" health care (Health care and health insurance are NOT the same) which will basically just extend Medicaid to more lower income people, the rest of us will pay even more taxes to cover it, and sure "you can keep your own plan" what he doesn't tell you is that the private plans will be even MORE expensive with all the new government mandates like we already have in New York and New Jersey. So most of us will indirectly be forced into the govt. program . The ONLY thing the liberals want us to have choice in is abortions. Think about it. Everything else they need to "protect" us ad make the decisions. The Democrats have gone on record (Hillary, etc) thattheyare opposed to tghe flex accts and Medical Savings Accounts , which were started by GW and are very popular with people. Look up the "universal" health plans that have been proposed or tried in various states and read what "universal" means. They're also going bankrupt in fact California couldn't even afford to start one.