If You Are 5 Minutes Early... You Are Late

3-2-25

Opening Comments

My last note was about concierge medicine and the state of healthcare today. I received a great number of responses, and the overwhelming majority use a concierge doctor. One of the doctors I cited in my piece reached out (power of the RR). Dr. Jordan Shlain called me and added this “I started in 2002 taking care of a young tech entrepreneur and it has grown to over 1,200 families. The network I have built over nearly 25 years sets us apart. Our goal is to spend time on prevention and avoiding the healthcare system.” One of my readers sent me the chart from Visual Capitalist on healthcare spending and life expectancy. I have written about the topic a great deal and as you can see, the US spends materially more on a per capita basis and gets worse outcomes. The most opened links in my piece were the video of the ballerina dancing on ice and Jamie Dimon’s comments on government inefficiency and DOGE.

• Videos of the Day-Kobe Bryant was Tough

• If You Are Five Minutes Early, You Are Late

• Quick Bites

  • Markets

  • Inflation

  • Student Loans Impacting Credit Scores

  • Electricity and Gas Prices

• Politics

  • Zelenskyy/Trump/Vance Heated Discussion in Oval Office

• Middle East

• Other Headlines

• Health Related

• Real Estate

  • Rent Stabilized Building in NYC at a 97% Discount

  • Austin, TX Rents Collapsing

  • $65mm Venetian Islands (Miami) Listing

  • $26mm Brooklyn Townhouse

Videos of the Day

• Listen to this short video of Kobe’s former coach talking about Kobe playing through an injury. In the middle of the game, Kobe grabbed his shoulder and he refused to exit the game. He started shooting left-handed (making the basket). After the game, it was determined that Kobe played through a separated shoulder that required surgery and ending his season. On a related note, this short video was about Bryant’s view on the importance of work ethic which goes well with the theme piece today. I loved Kobe, his work ethic and his impact on the game of basketball.

  

If You Are 5 Minutes Early... You Are Late

I have been a stickler for punctuality for 40 years, and I am maniacal about it thanks to my mother, Pauline, who took punctuality to the next level. Years ago, I wrote a story about a job she helped me get as a busboy at the world-famous, “Chubby’s Too” restaurant on University Drive and Hollywood Boulevard in Pembroke Pines, Florida in 1984.

I had gone surfing with my friend, Mike, and we hit traffic on the way home. No cell phones in the olden days of horses and carriages. I got home at 4:45 pm, and my mother was in the front of the townhouse screaming at us. “The Rosen name will be mud in this town if you are late.” Mike nearly crapped his pants. I changed, he drove me to work, and I got there 5 minutes late but no one said a word. The manager had not even noticed I was a few minutes late, but that did not matter to my mother. When I got home from work, my room was torn apart from Pauline to send a message about taking your job seriously. Sadly, the message was received loud and clear, and I have turned into Pauline about being on time.

There is a Fortune article about Gen Z workers and their views on punctuality. The online meeting company Meeting Canary asked over 1,000 British adults about their attitudes to punctuality and almost half of those aged 16 to 26 said that being between five and 10 minutes late is just as good as being punctual. I can assure you, these kids did not have Pauline as a parent or they would know better. While around 40% of millennials said they are forgiving of colleagues running 10 minutes behind schedule, this dropped to just 26% for Generation X and 20% for baby boomers.

It’s not surprising that Gen Zers lack a strict sense of timing—they entered the workforce from the comforts of their home during the pandemic, where it was common courtesy to wait longer for people to dial into a meeting in case they were experiencing tech issues.

When my daughter had a job this summer selling clothes in Southampton, I made it clear she must be the first to arrive and walked her to work on many occasions. She was so punctual, she got there before the manager - and next summer, they want to give her a key to open the store. At JPM, I made it a habit to be one of the first in the office, often by 6:15 am. I wanted to set the tone for the trading desk and if the boss arrives early, it shows discipline.

Thanks to mom, something major has to happen for me to be late. If I am, the parties I am meeting get a text apologizing for my tardiness, even if it is just a few minutes. Thanks Pauline; you turned your son into a punctuality freak. Sadly, this new generation does not agree with us on our views of being on time.

Quick Bites

• Nvidia had just reported minutes before my piece on Wednesday and the stock was largely unchanged. However, Thursday, Nvidia stock fell 8.5% despite strong earnings and forecast, bringing the stock -9% on the week after Friday’s rally. Also, Trump announced more tariffs and markets reacted negatively on Thursday with the S&P -1.6% and the Nasdaq-2.8%. Palantir was -11%+ on the week, after being on a tear for the past year. On Friday, core inflation came out in line with expectations at 2.6% and markets reacted positively. Friday saw some market volatility on the heels of economic data and a challenging Oval Office meeting with Zelenskyy. In the end, markets rallied into the close with indices +.8-1.6% on the day. I was surprised by the market’s reaction and would have thought the Oval Office chaos would have led to a sell-off. The 1st quarter is on track for negative GDP growth according to an Atlanta Fed indicator. On the week, the S&P fell 1%. The 10-Year Treasury yield continues to fall and closed at 4.21% after being 4.8% in January which helped stocks on Friday. Bitcoin has been hammered and after the Trump euphoria pushing it to $109k, it fell below $80k this week, but settled at $84k.

  

  

  

• Whether it’s a house or a carton of eggs, price growth is once again intensifying across a broad range of indicators. Much of that has to do with the same supply and demand factors and labor-market pressures that led to the initial inflation surge in the pandemic, while planned tariffs from President Donald Trump are heightening concerns that prices will rise even more. The scope of reports indicating a resurgence in price pressures — spanning from input costs to wage growth to inflation expectations — underscores the Federal Reserve’s intent to keep interest rates on hold for the time being.

  

  

• Americans with student loans are waking up to the reality that skipping payments comes with consequences again. The pandemic-era relief on federal student loans ended in October, starting the 90-day clock people have to make payments before their credit scores take a hit. Now that time is up, and borrowers are feeling the pain. About 43% of borrowers who owe payments on federal student loans haven’t resumed making them, according to an analysis of government data by VantageScore, a credit-score provider. That puts more than nine million people at risk of a serious credit-score drop, with two million of those on track to fall into subprime status. The cost of college is out of control, and many who attend should consider vocational school instead. The setbacks could have ripple effects throughout the economy, putting homeownership or a new car further out of reach for late-payers, who are largely ages 25 to 50. Lower scores can also mean lower credit-card limits and higher rates, which could be a drag on consumer spending, a crucial engine of the U.S. economy.

  

• I have written about the cost of living in various places. Obviously, housing costs, taxes, transportation and food play a big role. This piece outlines the cost of household electricity prices across the US and Europe. Note how expensive it is in Hawaii and Europe as well as California. Now, note Florida electricity prices are 37% of Hawaii or 52% of California. The 2nd chart shows average gas prices and again CA and Hawaii are the worst. I paid $2.70/gallon the other day near me, while CA averages $4.83. There is a funny video of Jimmy Butler (NBA Star) that was recently traded from the Miami Heat to the Golden State Warriors. He is filling up his tank in disbelief given the price. $145 to fill up his tank in CA. The last chart shows New Mexico oil production.

Politics

• Trump says Zelenskyy ‘is not ready for peace’ after Oval Office fight

  • MUST WATCH this video. It got very heated, and Zelenskyy left after a shouting match. JD Vance ran Zelenskyy over. Trump said, “Gambling with World War III.” We just normally do not see this kind of interaction with world leaders play out in public. Trump was rumored to be upset with Zelenskyy’s body language. I find it incredibly disrespectful that Zelenskyy never wears a suit and tie when meeting with world leaders. I am not opposed to the message and tone from Trump/Vance but felt it should have been done behind closed doors. Despite my concerns, markets rallied. Shocking. Zelenskyy went on Fox after the spat and thanked America and felt the relationship can be salvaged, but fell short of an apology. I just don’t see how this is a positive development, yet markets disagree with me.

• Trump threatens to slap 25% tariffs on EU, says bloc was meant to hurt the U.S.

  • At the first Cabinet meeting, Trump said that duties against Canada and Mexico would take effect on April 2 and that his trade measures will include a 25% tariff on goods from the EU. I do not think tariffs on the EU are a great idea and the cumulative impact of tariffs will be inflationary. Trump suggested Mexico and Canada tariffs will begin on March 4th and an additional 10% will be placed on China.

  • ‘Buy Canada, Bye America’: Trump’s Taunts Spur Fury in the North

  • Trump signals U.S. and U.K. could reach ‘real trade deal’ without tariffs

  • China vows to retaliate as necessary after Trump threatens another 10% tariff

• According to this sworn testimony, over $2 billion in US taxpayer funding was sent by USAID to Hamas since October 7, 2023.

  • Listen to this video. This is awful. I am glad this administration is blowing up USAID. DOGE will crush fraud, waste, and abuse.

• Trump Warns 1 Million Federal Workers Might Be Fired in Wild DOGE Cabinet Meeting Monologue: ‘They Are on the Bubble’

• Mass firings across National Weather Service, NOAA ignite fury among scientists

• Trump administration, Musk’s DOGE plan to fire nearly all CFPB staff and wind down agency, employees say

• Judge orders Trump admin to rescind directing mass firing of federal workers

• Airbnb Cofounder Says He Wants to Apply His 'Designer Brain' to DOGE

• Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick just announced plans to use the Postal Service to conduct the Census instead of wasting billions.

  • USPS workers will also replace 20,000 Social Security workers. "We spend $40 billion every 10 years doing the census. And that means we hire 625,000 people. And they go, and they rent cars and gas, and you pay them food... They go to every household and count the people." "What department do we already have that already employs 625,000 people? It's got cars, already has gas, and goes to every household. [Answer: USPS]." Wait. Is someone using common sense in the US Government? I thought that was not possible.

• Concerning Tweet from Musk on FAA

  

• Trump’s Border Patrol chief reveals staggeringly low number of migrants released into US under his watch

  • This is a good thing. Open borders was bad policy that has led to murders, rapes, and assaults - all while costing Americans tens of billions of dollars. A country is not a country without borders. It is called, “common sense.” Come in legally just as my ancestors did.

• Would-be Trump assassin Thomas Crooks may have had accomplice, data shows, as investigators say FBI suppressing info

  • How is it possible that, 9 months after the assassination attempt, we have zero answers?

• Trump’s proposed ‘gold card’ visa comes with a hidden tax break for the wealthy

  • Gold-card holders would not be subject to taxes on overseas income.

• Trump has answered more than 1,000 press questions in first month

  

• 2 in 5 Americans say living in U.S. no longer enjoyable

• Republicans introduced a bill to increase the endowment tax from 1.4% to 21%. If passed, Harvard would go from paying ~$35m to $525m/yr in federal taxes (that’s 8.2% of its current operating expenses)

• Massive Sting Nets 25 Arrests and 1.7 Million Fentanyl Pills in Arizona

  • Officials said the latest enforcement effort marks the next level of cooperation among state and federal agencies.

• Biden aide admits administration was ‘gaslighting’ Americans by covering up alarm at his age and health

• Trump Shares Bonkers AI-Generated Vision For Gaza Utopia — Complete With Bearded Belly Dancers And Gold Statue of Himself

• Former Gov. Andrew Cuomo enters race for NYC mayor

  • He resigned from the governor’s office due to numerous sexual harassment allegations. Let us not forget about the numerous deaths Cuomo caused by forcing nursing homes to take COVID patients and then the blatant cover-up to hide the deaths. He also voted for controversial bail reform laws. Right now he is the front-runner. Of course he is. NYC deserves better. The latest polling has Cuomo with 38% of the vote and 26pts ahead of Zohran Mamdani. Currrent Mayor, Adams, is third with 10% of the vote.

• LA Homeless Officials caught embezzling MILLIONS

  • Huge contracts to her husband. Nothing to see here folks.

Middle East

• Iran Has Enough Highly Enriched Uranium for Six Nuclear Weapons

  • Iran boosted stockpile of near weapons-grade fuel by 50% since October, according to a UN report. What could possibly go wrong with Jew and American hating leaders in Iran having nukes?

• Shocking Gallup survey finds 60% of Dems are anti-Israel — first time ever for major US political party

  

• Pro-Hamas protesters seize control of historic Barnard academic building and assault college employee

  • My wife graduated from that school. How any Jew would have any desire to go to Columbia or Barnard is beyond me.

• Top CUNY honchos OK’d antisemitic Hunter College course

• Antisemitism Task Force

  

Other Headlines

• Worries Mount That Trump Agenda Is Testing Economy’s Resilience

  • While it’s too soon to tell if growth is in trouble, ‘soft’ survey data and markets show growing concern.

    

• Egg prices could still jump 40% this year, as Trump admin shares $1B bird flu plan

  • It will cost more than $1 for an organic egg at this rate. Trump could be forced to import eggs from Canada, according to this article. Walmart CEO warns food prices are causing 'frustration and pain.'

• The good times are over for the world’s largest ocean carriers as pricing plummets

  • If you go back to COVID, rates were astronomical. China to LA was over $20,000 in 2021 and now is now $3,477 for the same 40-foot container.

    

• Shares of British aerospace giant Rolls-Royce hit all-time high on upbeat outlook

• Block’s 28% plunge in February leads fintech sell-off, while Stripe shows benefit of staying private

• Microsoft is shutting down Skype after a 21-year run

  • At one point, I used Skype all the time. They got smoked.

• OpenAI just released GPT-4.5 and says it is its biggest and best chat model yet

• Intel's $28 Billion Ohio Factory Delayed Again, Won't Open Until 2030

• Warby Parker at Target: First shops coming to select Target stores in 2025

  • I love Warby Parker. I will not buy my glasses anywhere else.

• Blackstone’s Schwarzman Takes Home More Than $1 Billion Again

  • To be fair, $916mm was in dividends given he owns 20% of the company.

• Chicago teen charged as serial murderer: ‘Difficult to comprehend’ six killings

• Accused NYC career criminal with over two dozen busts finally locked up — for suspected murder while wearing ankle bracelet

• Girl, 15, raped in NYC stairwell by parolee out 1 month after sexually assaulting boy, pushing him off roof

  • How many examples do we need of the justice system failing citizens?

• FBI withheld ‘thousands of pages’ of Jeffrey Epstein docs, Pam Bondi says — and she’s demanding they be turned over

• Car-hating NYC bureaucrats quietly making congestion worse with plan to cut vehicle lanes

• Americans’ trust in the mass media at its lowest point in more than five decades.

  

• Fired CBS News reporter Catherine Herridge reveals photos of files on Hunter Biden, COVID origins seized by network: ‘Attack on investigative journalism’

  • Major news organizations misled America. What are the consequences?

• Jake Tapper Tries To Make Millions Exposing Biden’s Cognitive Decline After He Spent Years Hiding It

  • Here is a video of Tapper yelling at anyone who questions Biden’s cognitive abilities. So, he lied to us for years and now is writing a book about it.

• Jeff Bezos Announces That Washington Post Opinions Will Now Exclusively Celebrate the Glories of Capitalism

  • Numerous people have resigned due to the recent changes.

• Paramount ends DEI policies, cites Trump executive order

• 2-time CEO shares the two red flags he sees in job interviews: They can reveal ‘problem’ candidates

• 401(k) millionaires jump 27% as workers keep saving through bumpy markets

  • Take a long-term view, and the power of compounding is real.

• Third-party apps offering hard-to-get NYC restaurant reservations fuming over Hochul crackdown

• YouTube star MrBeast is raising money at a $5 billion valuation

  • I have written about Jimmy Donaldson multiple times, and his story is remarkable. Dropped out of college to become a massive influencer with a huge following. His company’s $5bn valuation is no joke.

    

• A Disney Worker Downloaded an AI Tool. It Led to a Hack That Ruined His Life.

• Spring Break Travel Costs Reach Record Levels in 2025

• Katy Perry, Gayle King and Lauren Sánchez to Fly Into Space on Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin Next Mission

• Here’s what’s inside the more than $200,000 Oscars gift bag given to Timothée Chalamet, Ariana Grande and other nominees

  • Can I get nominated for an Oscar please? Show airs 7pm Sunday EST.

    

Health

• Bolivian community with just 1% dementia and the ‘healthiest hearts in the world’ follow this diet

• The best — and worst — things to order at 6 fast food restaurants, according to an oncologist

• Centenarians share their longevity formula: ‘Staying busy gives you purpose’

Real Estate

• A rent stabilized building in East Harlem sold for $285k or 97% less than the prior sale from 2016. The 29-unit building at 312 East 106th Street, an 83% rent-regulated property tucked between Central Park and the East River, sold for $285,110. The deal shakes out to a paltry $9,827 per unit. Assets with a similar share of rent-regulated apartments sold for $110,694 per unit on average in 2024, according to a recent report by brokerage Ariel Property Advisors. Thanks to incredibly stupid rent regulations from 2019, combined with higher interest rates, these rent stabilized buildings a have seen a sharp decline in value. On the office front in Manhattan, two office buildings sold for a 68% discount to the 2017 price. Empire Capital Holdings agreed to buy the properties — at 229 W. 36th St. and 256 W. 38th St. — for less than $50 million, according to people familiar with the matter. That price would be at least 68% below the roughly $157 million the buildings last sold for, in 2017.

• In the midst of a pandemic-era population surge, rents jumped a staggering 25% in 2021 in the Texas capital for one of the biggest increases in the nation. But a development boom and new policies encouraging housing density have sent vacancy rates soaring. Now, landlords are struggling to fill gleaming new developments and offering major discounts to lure newly empowered renters. Nowhere in the country have rents declined as much as they have in Austin — now 22% off the peak reached in August 2023, according to Redfin. The median asking rent is $1,399 per month, down $400 in less than three years.

• Pending sales dropped 4.6% from December to the lowest level since the National Association of Realtors began tracking this metric in 2001. While weather may have been a factor, sales rose month-to-month in the Northeast. Home prices have been easing over the last few months in certain areas, with more sellers cutting prices, but nationally they are still higher than they were a year ago. This link outlines a lot of date from the AEI Housing Center on home inventory and pricing and has good charts.

  

• A Trump appointee listed a house in Miami on the Venetian Islands. They paid $29mm and put $15mm into the 15,000 ft home and the property is listed for $65mm. The house looks amazing.

• A Brooklyn Heights townhouse quietly hit the market in early February for a staggering $26 million — setting its sights on becoming the priciest home ever sold in the borough. If the six-story stunner at 295 Hicks St. sells at asking, it will shatter Brooklyn’s current residential sale record, which was set in 2021 when a five-story brownstone at 8 Montague Terrace traded hands for $25 million.

  Unlike its record-holding predecessor, this townhouse is brand-spanking-new.

  The land it stands on alone fetched $4 million in 2021, and the home has since been meticulously constructed to blend historic charm with state-of-the-art luxury. The place looks amazing. However, you will never see me spend $26mm to live in Brooklyn. For that price, I am living in Manhattan.

© 2025 The Rosen Report LLC. All rights reserved. Does not constitute investment, financial, legal, or tax advice. Consult with your lawyers and professional financial advisers. Rosen Report™ #766 ©Copyright 2025 Written By Eric Rosen.