The investment game, Inflation and the cost of goods.

[Vanraw]

Under the rule of the Roman Empire at the time of Christ (1st Century AD), one ounce of gold would have purchased a Roman citizen his toga (suit), a leather belt, and a pair of sandals. Today two millennia later in the west, one ounce of gold will still buy a man a suit, a leather belt, and a pair of shoes. Nothing has changed.

Its an interesting quote. Its all relative. For example, if I buy a house for 200k and it increases in value 5% a year, in 5 years its worth 243k. 43k profit seems nice. But if I sell it, and take the 43k profit, and in turn use it to buy a better house, I wont get one. Because the same house for 243k 5 years later is the same house I just sold. So its all relative.

Same goes for just about anything. Even a fixed rate CD return of 4% will only keep your money worth the same buying power it is when you put it in.

So in general, investing is just like gambling in Vegas. Its all about beating the house. I'm beginning to wonder though if that's possible, in the long run with standard investing. Sure, the are examples of people wh have made millions in the stock market, but there are more stories you don't hear about of people losing millions. And if everyone is making millions, then at some point there is always a big ole nasty correction. It happens all the time.

So beating the house is about timing. Timing the dips and timing the peaks. Calling the bottoms for me, has always been a fools game. The house always wins in the long run.

So what are the alternatives to gathering and keeping wealth? Meaning if it wasn't for real estate, Interest rate based investment, or stock market investment, what are the real alternatives?

I'm beginning to think that investment into small private businesses is the way to go. Enter the community and back strong business plans.