by G. Brian Davis | Last updated Mar 16, 2026 | Personal Finance, Spark Blog |
The Short Version: A Pew survey found 72% of Americans have a negative view of the economy, with nearly 40% expecting things to get worse. Meanwhile, the S&P 500 is near all-time highs. Pessimism at extremes is usually wrong. March 2009 felt apocalyptic… and...
by G. Brian Davis | Last updated Mar 11, 2026 | Personal Finance, Spark Blog |
The Short Version: Over $500 billion in commercial real estate loans come due between 2025 and 2027. Operators who borrowed at 3% now face refinancing at 6-7%. The math doesn’t work anymore. When operators can’t refinance profitably, they sell. And when...
by G. Brian Davis | Last updated Mar 10, 2026 | Personal Finance, Spark Blog |
The Short Version: Morningstar, Schwab, and Morgan Stanley are all forecasting higher volatility in 2026. Three straight years of double-digit S&P gains have stretched valuations, and a 12-15% correction is widely expected. Most people think they’re...
by G. Brian Davis | Last updated Mar 4, 2026 | Personal Finance, Property Management, Spark Blog |
The Short Version: Not every home improvement is actually an improvement. Some upgrades shrink your buyer pool and drag down your resale value. Over-personalization, high-maintenance features, and garage conversions are common culprits. Buyers see the cost of undoing...
by G. Brian Davis | Last updated Mar 3, 2026 | Personal Finance, Spark Blog |
The Short Version: I bought about a dozen rental properties in the mid-2000s. I overleveraged, bought in rough neighborhoods, and had no idea how to actually forecast cash flow. I made every rookie mistake in the book. When 2008 hit, I got crushed from both...
by G. Brian Davis | Last updated Feb 28, 2026 | Personal Finance, Spark Blog |
The Short Version: The expenses that derail most people’s finances aren’t the big, obvious ones. They’re the small recurring charges that slip through unnoticed month after month. Subscriptions you forgot about, food delivery fees, snack runs, daily...