Dear Plenty Community,

The start of February brings a taste of big changes. 

Let the trade wars begin: over the weekend Trump’s tariffs went in place. Immediately, Mexico mobilized 10k troops to the border and Canada approved $900M border plan to both prevent illegal migrants + drug activity (the stated catalysts for the tariffs). The US responded with a 30 day delay as the countries negotiate the 25% tariffs.

If US + Mexico tariffs are implemented, industries with lots of cross border activities will be forced to change and adapt quickly, or immediately lose money. Car assembly may require crossing the US-CA border as much as 8 times currently. Fruits and vegetables often cross the border depending on seasonality (ie. Tomatoes are imported from Canada in the summer months, then exported to Canada in the winter months).

Meanwhile, 10% tariffs on Chinese goods have been implemented and the Tax Foundation estimates that the tariffs on China alone will add $172 to the tax burden per U.S. household.

But it’s not all tough news - a recent report found that Millennials are doing better than any generation before them. But wealth locked up in retirement accounts and houses + loan repayments are making it feel more like “phantom wealth”. But just how well are we doing? 

This week, we’ll go deeper into:

• In the news: 

  • Millennials are doing better than ever

  • How do tariffs work?

• For your relationship:

  • What we wish we knew earlier, about setting goals as a couple.

• New to Plenty:

  • See and vote for our roadmap here; and see more ships below. 

As always, if you have ideas or questions you’d like us to answer, write in to [email protected] - I’d love to hear from you.

Cheers,

Emily

PS. Where couples money. Try Plenty today, for free

The “kids” are doing better than ever

The first time I heard someone say, “Millennials are building wealth faster than their parents did” I nearly choked on my avocado toast. We’ve lived through two recessions, ballooning student debt, and a housing market that seems determined to keep us guessing (and renting). But according to several new reports, it turns out more of us might actually be doing better than our parents / the Boomers were at our age—on paper, at least.

According to recent Federal Reserve data, Millennials have doubled their net worth—from $4.55 trillion to $9.14 trillion— primarily driven by home purchases by older millennials. But big cities often mean bigger prices leaving homeowners house-rich, cash-poor. Add in inflation, student loan payments, and the skyrocketing cost of everything from eggs to childcare, and few millennials are feeling “wealthy”.

Even though they don’t feel as wealthy, today’s millennials still have 25% more wealth than Gen Xers and baby boomers did at a similar age, according to a St. Louis Fed analysis. But a high concentration of cash in non-house assets may be contributing to a feeling of slow growth. As does the growing wealth inequality: where the top 10% have more than ever but the bottom 10% have less than boomers did at a comparable age.

The dust hasn’t settled yet: millennials are entering their highest earning years but with social security running out, retirement needs will be higher than ever. In times like this, it’s more important than ever to keep steadily investing.

How do tariffs work?

Tariffs are taxes on goods brought into the US. Historically, they were used to protect domestic industries, raise revenue, or gain leverage in negotiations. 

Who actually pays? When a product—say, a winter jacket—crosses the US border, the US adds a fee (ie. 25%). This fee may be intended to protect local businesses from cheaper foreign competition, generate revenue for the government, or serve as leverage in trade negotiations. Contrary to popular belief, exporters do not simply eat these costs. Instead, importers typically pay the tariff and then pass the resulting price increase on to consumers. So that $100 jacket may now cost $125.

If you can do it. So can we. While tariffs can give short-term relief to local producers, they often lead to tit-for-tat retaliation, escalating into full-blown trade wars. Which…. Is playing out. In response to U.S. tariffs, China has imposed 15% tariffs on American coal and liquefied natural gas, 10% tariffs on crude oil and agricultural machinery, and initiated an antitrust investigation into Google and Nvidia.

A return to 1993: the NAFTA (north american free trade act) established a treaty between the US, Mexico, and Canada and went live in 1994. The goal was to make the 3 countries together more competitive, by making it affordable to produce-what-you-produce-best then trade-for-the-rest. Consumers get lower prices, businesses have lower costs, and there’s  greater access to investment dollars in all countries. 

We’ll ultimately see what pans out after the 30 day grace period: if tariffs are implemented, it’ll be costly for everyday Americans. 

What we wish we knew earlier about setting financial goals as a couple

What if money talks could be as fun as planning our next vacation? 

Money in relationships can be stressful. By nature of being two people in your relationship, you’re naturally in opposing positions. No two people in a relationship will have all the exact same values, experiences, or preferences. That said, that doesn’t mean your money talks have to devolve to the dreaded: “you spent how much on what?” “Well… it’s my money.” “Then what about our goals?”

After many rounds and attempts at talking money, it clicked. What if we reframe everything as an adventure? Like the money decisions ahead, were fun… like planning what we can do on our next vacation? In my latest post, I share how we finally nailed our shared goals using a dash of visualization, a few sticky notes, and plenty of celebrations along the way. If you’re ready to make your finances feel more like a journey and less like a chore, come see how you and your partner can team up for smoother—and more fun— sailing.

🚢 Ship, ship, away! Over the past few weeks, we’ve shipped across desktop + mobile:

• A live roadmap for members to vote & submit ideas

• AI-based categorization

• Split transactions on desktop

• Refreshed transactions

• Next up: Transaction refresh, Budgeting

As always, we take feature requests & post our daily ships in our reddit: r/plenty

Plenty is a free money app helping modern couples budget, invest and plan for their future together. We bring the investment strategies and products of the wealthy to the everyday household. Plenty was started by a husband and wife team dedicated to growing together. For more information, visit withplenty.com. If you ever have any feedback or questions, please do reach out to us at [email protected].

At Plenty, no financial topic is off-limits for modern couples. We offer straight talk and judgment-free guidance to help modern couples navigate the tricky and important intersection of money and relationships. Join thousands of couples who’ve signed up for our free newsletter today.

Plenty was founded to democratize access to financial products and tools that accelerate wealth building.  Plenty Financial and affiliated entities. (“Plenty Financial”) provide a web, mobile, personal financial management, and educational platform to consumers; some of these tools are freely accessible to all consumers, others require a fee-based subscription. Advisory services are provided in the form of software-first financial planning and investment advisory services for fee-based Subscribers. Plenty Financial RIA, LLC is an SEC-registered investment Advisor. Registration as an investment adviser does not imply a certain level of skill or training. All investments made are legally owned by you. Investment accounts are not bank guaranteed or FDIC insured. Investments are held in accounts at BNY Mellon - Pershing, one of the world’s largest securities servicing companies and are SIPC insured. Please see Plenty’s full general disclosures here.