The war in the Middle East rages on, driving Brent oil above $100/barrel. Rising prices loom heavy over the horizon.

But at the same time, Elon Musk predicts that the economy will 10x in the next 10 years… unless World War III break out.

But those are future predictions based on data we don’t have yet. What we do know is that the median amount saved for retirement for 55-64 year olds is only $30,000.

That’s a tough spot to be in, but there may be a hopeful angle to that situation: today, we’ll cover how low retirement savings may create an REIT investment opportunity moving forward.

More below.

This is not financial advice. Always do your own research. Past performance doesn’t guarantee future results.

Unfortunately, the numbers look grim for retirees. You know as well as we do that $30,000 isn’t enough to retire on in this day and age. A lot of those people probably have mortgages on homes, meaning they’ll likely need to find a way to turn their primary residence into a source of retirement income.

This brings us to a growing structural shift: the "Institutionalization of the Starter Home." When a generation hits retirement age with $30,000 in the bank but $300,000 in home equity, the math points toward a "Sale-Leaseback" trend. We’re seeing more seniors choose to sell their homes to large-scale investors (like Single-Family Rental REITs) to unlock their cash while staying in the home as a renter.

For the investor, this creates a bit of a "dual-moat" thesis:

Rather than a "collapse," we might be looking at an even bigger transition toward a rental-first economy.

The bottom line: We don’t have to like the "death of the starter home" to recognize that it’s a massive structural tailwind for the companies that own them. In an era of low savings and high costs, these REITs are becoming the new "landlords of the American Dream." Also, if you didn’t know, Trump’s recent executive order about stopping institutions from buying single-family homes isn’t a “ban"; it’s just an order for the federal government not to assist companies in buying those homes. The more you know!

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US stocks were mixed on Wednesday as oil prices surged and investors digested fresh inflation data amid ongoing chaos in the Persian Gulf.

Oil jumped back into the high $80s after three more vessels were struck by projectiles near the Strait of Hormuz on Wednesday morning. That's at least 14 ships hit since the Iran war kicked off. Brent crude climbed to $89 per barrel while WTI hovered around $87.

February CPI came in exactly as expected, 0.3% month-over-month and 2.4% year-over-year. No surprises there, though the data doesn't capture the oil shock that's been rattling markets this month.

US tariff revenue fell again in February, dropping over $1 billion from January after the Supreme Court struck down President Trump's IEEPA-based duties. Total collections hit $26.59 billion for the month, the fourth straight monthly decline since October's $31.35 billion peak. About $166 billion in previously collected IEEPA tariffs remains in legal limbo as companies fight for refunds.

Papa John's rocketed 23% on reports that Qatari fund Irth Capital is preparing a $47-per-share takeover bid with Brookfield backing. That would value the pizza chain at roughly $1.5 billion, a 50% premium when the offer was submitted.

Elon Musk unveiled "Macrohard," a joint Tesla-xAI project targeting software disruption. Details remain thin, but the name alone is doing a lot of work.

Sports trading cards continue to deliver eye-popping returns for collectors and investors, with a Stephen Curry signed Logoman card selling for over $1 million at Goldin's latest auction. The 2024-25 Panini National Treasures 1/1 autographed patch card fetched $1,040,697, while Michael Jordan cards also dominated the auction with a 1997-98 SkyBox Metal Universe Precious Metal Gems card setting a record at $640,500 for a PSA-graded example.

The auction saw multiple records broken across different sports and players, including a Cooper Flagg rookie card at $366,000 and Shohei Ohtani rookie cards commanding nearly $400,000. Most remarkably, even collectibles adjacent to cards are gaining value; a 1983 Michael Jordan Sports Illustrated cover sold for $229,360, setting a record for the highest sale of any sports magazine. With new players entering the market and vintage cards appreciating steadily, sports cards remain one of the most accessible alternative assets for everyday collectors willing to grade, preserve, and hold cards from today's stars.

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Brandon & Blake of Invested Inc