Business
Trade Wars Could Be What The Housing Market Needs To Heat Up

As a stock market investor, I’m disappointed in the new tariffs President Trump has imposed—10% on imports from China and 25% on imports from Mexico and Canada, including a 10% duty on Canadian energy imports (oil, natural gas, electricity). If these tariffs persist all year without resolution, corporate earnings could take a 2%-3% hit, which means a similar drop in the S&P 500 or more wouldn’t be surprising.
As expected, the retaliations came fast. Canada’s soon-to-be-gone Prime Minister Trudeau hit back with matching 25% tariffs on $155 billion worth of U.S. imports, targeting alcohol and fruit, which could significantly impact major U.S. exporters.
Meanwhile, Mexico’s President Sheinbaum rejected Trump’s claims about Mexico collaborating with criminal organizations and implemented her own retaliatory tariffs on U.S. goods. She also suggested the U.S. should focus on fighting domestic drug trade and money laundering rather than blaming Mexico.
We should expect retaliatory measures from China soon. In the last U.S.-China trade war, many American businesses and consumers bore the cost of tariffs on Chinese goods through higher prices, while some Chinese exporters lowered prices to stay competitive.
This is the classic “standing at a concert” analogy—if one person stands up, the row behind them has to stand up too, leaving nobody better off. Tariff wars tend to follow the same pattern, so the logical outcome is a compromise. The question is: how long will markets have to endure the uncertainty before that happens?

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Trade Wars May Boost the Housing Industry
Everyone knows tariffs hurt the global economy, which is why a rational Trump will likely negotiate a compromise. However, with new tariffs on European goods also on the table, it’s unclear how quickly world leaders will reach an agreement before consumer confidence takes a major hit.
Despite the market disappointment, as a real estate investor, I see an upside: trade wars could fuel a housing boom.
Initially, Treasury bond yields may rise due to short-term inflationary pressure on imported goods. But in the medium term, as trade tensions escalate, capital should flow from riskier assets like stocks into Treasury bonds, pushing yields lower. If fears of a global slowdown intensify, mortgage rates could drop significantly, improving affordability and spurring demand for housing.
When housing affordability increases, so do real estate transactions, remodeling projects, furniture purchases, landscaping jobs, and mortgage originations. The housing industry is a key driver of the U.S. economy, typically accounting for 15%–18% of GDP. With an existing housing shortage and years of pent-up demand, lower rates could reignite bidding wars nationwide.

Real Estate As A “Bonds Plus” Investment
I’ve never been big on bonds (~2% of my net worth) because I prefer higher-risk, higher-reward investments. I see real estate as a bond alternative, offering potential appreciation, rent increases, and tax advantages. Over the past 22 years, my real estate holdings have outperformed Treasury bonds and the aggregate bond index, and I expect that to continue.
Of course, owning physical real estate isn’t passive. This past weekend alone, I spent three hours painting my old house after my tenants moved out. Next up: replacing grout, power washing, deck touch-ups, and landscaping the front yard. While I enjoy presenting a great product, the maintenance work takes time away from other pursuits.
As I get older, I find myself naturally shifting toward more online real estate investments and away from physical property ownership. The appeal of a simpler, lower-maintenance life is growing—just like the housing market might if mortgage rates drop.
Taking Advantage of the Stock Market Sell-Off
During his previous term, former President Donald Trump initiated major trade conflicts, most notably with China, starting in July 2018. The U.S. imposed tariffs on approximately $550 billion worth of Chinese goods, while China responded with tariffs on about $185 billion worth of U.S. goods. The tensions caused market volatility before culminating in the Phase 1 trade deal in January 2020, which eased some disputes.
On July 18, 2018, the S&P 500 stood at 2,800 before selling off to 2,485 by December 18, 2018—an 11% decline. However, by January 2020, the market had rebounded to 3,300, delivering an impressive 32% gain. If history repeats itself, a 10%+ correction could present a strong buying opportunity.
Market pullbacks always feel painful in the moment, but they’re nothing new. Since 1950, the S&P 500 has experienced a correction (declines of 10% or more) roughly every 19 months. Since 1980, the average intra-year decline has been 14.3%, making double-digit drops relatively common. Meanwhile, bear markets (declines of 20% or more) occur about once every six years on average.
Given that I’m currently underweight public equities, I’m eager to buy the dip. But what excites me even more? Buying the dip for my kids—a move I hope they’ll appreciate 10-15 years down the road when they’re in high school or college.
Readers, how long do you think this trade war will last? Will it push capital into real estate and drive home prices higher? How are you positioning your investments?
Disclaimer: This is not investment advice to you, only my thoughts about how trade wars can affect different risk assets. Please do your own due diligence and invest according to your risk tolerance and financial goals.
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Business
Uber CEO Wants to Partner With Tesla, Musk on Autonomous Vehicles

During an earnings call last month, Tesla CEO Elon Musk said that the electric vehicle maker would start offering paid rides in June for its full self-driving robotaxi service. Now Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi is making it clear that he doesn’t want to compete with Tesla — he wants to partner with the company to offer robotaxi rides through Uber’s ride-hailing platform.
“Listen, no one wants to compete against Tesla or Elon if you can help it,” Khosrowshahi told technology analyst Ben Thompson in an interview published in Thompson’s newsletter Statechery on Thursday. “Their capabilities are pretty extraordinary, but I think the same economic laws apply to them.”
Related: Uber’s CEO Says Human Drivers Have About 10 Years Left Before They Will Be Replaced
Khosrowshahi said that Tesla would benefit by allowing its robotaxis to offer rides through Uber. Instead of riders accessing the robotaxis solely through the Tesla app, they could tap into rides with the self-driving cars through Uber too.
Working with Uber could help maximize Tesla’s profits by expanding its reach. Uber completed an average of 33 million trips per day, according to the company’s latest earnings report.
“That is going to create much, much more revenue,” Khosrowshahi stated. “Ultimately that’ll increase the value of the Tesla so that the residual value of that car improves.”
Khosrowshahi added that if Tesla puts their robotaxis on Uber’s network, the self-driving cars would join 150,000 other Tesla vehicles on Uber today, adding to an established presence.
Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi. Jose Sarmento Matos/Bloomberg via Getty Images
This isn’t the first time Khosrowshahi has indicated an interest in partnering with Tesla. In an interview with the Financial Times that aired in October, Khosrowshahi said that he would “love” to bring Tesla’s robotaxis to Uber when the technology was ready. He said that he aimed to collaborate with the autonomous industry, pointing to partnerships announced in late 2024 with Alphabet’s Waymo and Cruise.
Uber already has robotaxis on its app in certain areas through its partnerships, including Phoenix, Arizona, and Austin, Texas. The company put its own dreams of building a self-driving car to the side in 2020 when it sold its autonomous vehicle research division to self-driving startup Aurora.
Khosrowshahi told the Wall Street Journal last month that autonomous vehicles would take over Uber rides in the next 15 to 20 years, putting human Uber drivers out of work.
Khosrowshahi took over Uber in 2017, leading the company to its first annual operating profit in 2023. After reporting a loss of $1.8 billion in 2022, Uber reported an annual profit of $1.1 billion in 2023 and $2.8 billion in 2024.

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Business
Hot Tip: StackSocial Just Dropped the Price of a Babbel Lifetime Subscription

Disclosure: Our goal is to feature products and services that we think you’ll find interesting and useful. If you purchase them, Entrepreneur may get a small share of the revenue from the sale from our commerce partners.
Being able to communicate across languages is a necessity for business owners who want to expand into international markets, manage a diverse team, or make connections around the world. Free options like Duolingo are available, but they’re free for a reason.
If you want a language learning platform that takes itself seriously, try Babbel. Developed by more than 100 expert linguists, Babbel provides 10,000+ hours of lessons across 14 languages. Plus, the price for a lifetime subscription just dropped. Instead of paying $599, it’s now just $129.99.
What makes Babbel a worthwhile investment?
Whether you’re aiming for fluency to negotiate with international clients or just need essential phrases for business travel, Babbel’s lessons are tailored to practical, real-world scenarios. Topics range from professional conversations and navigating meetings to cultural nuances.
Babbel gives you 14 languages to choose from, including
- French
- Spanish
- German
- Italian
- Russian
- Danish
Business owners don’t have much time to spare, but tight schedules still have room for a few language lessons when they’re only 10 to 15 minutes long.
The app works seamlessly on smartphones, tablets, or desktops, and your progress syncs to your account. Offline access also means your team can make productive use of travel or downtime without requiring Wi-Fi.
Babbel goes beyond traditional learning methods, incorporating speech recognition technology to refine pronunciation and cultural understanding. This helps make sure that users not only learn vocabulary but also communicate authentically, avoiding misunderstandings that can arise in cross-cultural interactions. That’s especially important in high-stakes conversations in the professional sphere. Personalized review sessions reinforce key concepts, making the learning process both efficient and effective.
Use code LEARN40 by February 17 at 11:59 p.m. PT to get a Babbel lifetime subscription for $129.99.
Babbel Language Learning: Lifetime Subscription (All Languages) – $169.99
StackSocial prices subject to change.

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Business
Automate Your Job Search and Get More Interviews for Only $40

Disclosure: Our goal is to feature products and services that we think you’ll find interesting and useful. If you purchase them, Entrepreneur may get a small share of the revenue from the sale from our commerce partners.
If you’re trying to move up in your career with a new position, you can get up to three times more job interviews by using LoopCV, the company claims. A lifetime subscription to the Premium Plan is on sale for only $39.
Since you’ll have lifetime access to LoopCV, you can use it to search for jobs throughout your career. It’s connected to more than 30 platforms and job boards, including LinkedIn, Indeed, Monster Jobs, Workable and many more. There is even a LinkedIn Apply extension included.
The monthly allowances are 50 job title searches and 300 emails or applications. You can create a custom email address just for your job searches, label some applications high-priority, and even perform global searches for remote jobs worldwide.
First, create a profile and upload a resume or CV. Then choose your settings, including locations, job titles, and other options. Once LoopCV shows you jobs that fit your criteria, you can apply for them manually or let LoopCV apply for you.
LoopCV allows you to apply automatically to just the jobs you like best, via email or by filling out application forms. When the program applies automatically, it uses your resume or CV. You can literally apply to hundreds of jobs at a time.
LoopCV also provides you with data that can help you improve your odds of getting interviews. It gives you statistics on which resumes/CVs got the most attention, how many companies opened the emails you sent, how many replied, and more. This allows you to A/B test various email and resume/CV versions so you can use the one that works best.
Get a lifetime subscription to the LoopCV Premium Plan while it’s available for just $39.
LoopCV Premium Plan: Lifetime Subscription – $39
StackSocial prices subject to change.

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