Articles about wealth building, investing, and saving
1 in 10 Japanese estates now hit inheritance tax — double the rate from a decade ago. A salaryman from a low-income family explains why he supports paying it, while most loudly oppose
What Barista FIRE looks like from inside Japan's salaryman culture: real numbers, real constraints, and why the math surprised me
Japanese variable-rate mortgages have two 'safety' mechanisms that actually hide rate increases behind a fixed payment facade. How they work, and why 80% of Japanese borrowers don't understand what they signed.
Japan started collecting a new childcare support levy from every worker's paycheck in April 2026. I broke down the costs and benefits for my own household — the math surprised me.
A Japanese salaryman with ¥50M in assets breaks down education costs, school choices, and why he refuses to call it an "investment"
Why this dual-income Tokyo family of three spends ¥170K ($1,130) a month on food — twice the national average — and refuses to cut back. Full line-item breakdown.
A 40-something salaryman breaks down his ¥350K take-home pay and explains why he stopped caring about raises
Should you take iDeCo as a lump sum or pension in Japan? Short answer: for retirement benefits under ¥20M, lump sum wins. Full math on a ¥10M retirement + ¥10M iDeCo case — including the 10-year rule and the 19-year reverse rule no one mentions.
With a 0.6% variable-rate mortgage in Japan, should I prepay or keep investing in index funds? Eight years of real decisions, including getting rejected for mortgage insurance because of a therapy visit.
A Japanese index fund investor faces the Hormuz Strait blockade, surging gas prices, and a $4,700 portfolio loss. Why dollar-cost averaging proved its worth — and why he didn't change a thing.