Don’t Buy Stocks — Buy These

With inflation for energy at over 25%, and general inflation nearly 8%, holding cash is a surefire way to throw away all of your hard work.

Your first reaction might be to invest your cash in the market — but you should only do that as a last resort. Because high inflation is bad for the economy, corporations and their stocks perform worse than normal.

If not cash or the market, what can you invest in? Physical things

And the best physical things to own are ones that produce (or save) significant value for you, such as solar panels or an electric vehicle.

Solar panels earn you money every month and hedge against energy inflation. Even in cloudy Pittsburgh, my Tesla solar panels will pay for themselves in less than 10 years. Over their 30 year lifespan, their electricity will cost a mere 8¢/kWh vs the US average of 12–15¢/kWh today (and far cheaper than what electricity will cost in 30 years). They’re the best $40k (or $400/mo) I’ve ever invested. If I didn’t already have panels, I would actively withdraw money from the market to install them.

If you don’t own your home, you probably still own a vehicle — and here’s your other big chance to put your money to work for you.

Electric vehicles protect you from rapidly rising gas prices. If you own a gas vehicle, you’ve no doubt felt the pain at the pump. That’s only going to get worse as fossil fuel reserve depletion accelerates. Plus, electric vehicles are a better hedge against inflation — used Tesla vehicles regularly sell for more than they cost new.

Increasing in value AND saving you money? Now that’s a good investment, no matter what the market does.