The Best One Yet - 🏗️“Let ‘em Build” — Minneapolis’ renter solution. Economics of the largest cruise ship. Coach Nick Saban’s football ROI.

Episode Date: January 16, 2024

American renters spend a record 30% of their paychecks on average on rent — But we’ll tell you how Minneapolis became a renters’ heaven.Royal Caribbean just received the biggest cruise ship ever: It’s 5x the size of the Titanic — So we’re looking at the Cruisenomics of how (and when) it actually makes money.And Nick Saban is done at the University of Alabama after 6 national championships there — What you don’t realize is the huge economic impact he had on Tuscaloosa, Alabama. $RCL $SPY $BXSubscribe to our newsletter: tboypod.com/newsletterWant merch, a shoutout, or got TheBestFactYet? Go to: www.tboypod.comFollow The Best One Yet on Instagram, Twitter, and Tiktok: @tboypodAnd now watch us on Youtube Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This is Nick. This is Jack. Welcome back. It is Tuesday, T-Boy, Tuesday, January 16th. Then today's pod, it is the best one yet. Nick and I are serving up the top three pop business news stories you need to know today. I'm sorry, Jack. Are you still on vacation over there?

Are you podcasting from like a ski chalet? What's going on, man? Yeah, I came down to my in-laws for the long weekend. So yes, that is my father-in-law's diploma in the background. It's like you're staying with some Swiss skiing family. cheese fondue in there as well, man? Nick, I actually recorded like a hundred podcast during the pandemic. This was my like safe sanctuary. It was incredible. I don't blame you. You have a good time this weekend? Was everything nice down there? We got five to eight inches on Friday night and another few

dustings the next couple days. It's all about the apprae vibes. First story for today's show. What have we got, Jack? For our first story, Royal Caribbean Cruises just launched the biggest cruise ship in the history of the world. So Jack and I crunch the numbers on a ship the size of five Titanic. For our second story, it's never been more expensive to rent in America. One city has the solution to fix renting, and that city is Minneapolis. Minneapolis is America's renter haven. There's a renter heaven up in Minneapolis. And our third and final story.

Last week, three of football's best coaches lost their job. So we're looking at the financial impact to coach Nick Sabin of Alabama. You don't want me to say roll tide, do you? I thought maybe we have to say roll tide. I'm not doing it. Not a lot. chance. You say roll tied. Roll tied. But besties, before we had that wonderful mix of stories to kick off the week. What a mix of stories to kick off the four day week. Love this mix of stories, Jack. Nick and I want to remind you about the job interview checklist. Here's what you need to bring

to a job interview. Jack, you got to bring a resume, a cover letter, and a firm handshake. And your parents. Yeah. Excuse me? What was that? Yeah, your parents. You need to bring your parents to your job interview. Yeties, get this. According to a survey conducted by Polford Fish, one out of five employers has seen an applicant bring a parent to a job interview. That's right. One out of five companies said one time, somebody showed up with their mom and dad to a job interview. Hey, you showed up with a suit and Susan, your mom. He showed up with a letter of recommendation and Fred, your father.

Who probably wrote that letter of recommendation? It's like in stepbrothers, but instead of John C. Riley behind you, it's your uncle. I think I could fix the whole Pam, Pam situation. I mean, Jack, what's going down in that interview room? It's like, uh, what's your greatest strength? My mom taught me to make my bed everyone. And what's your greatest weakness? I was bad at making that bed everyone.

Can you tell us about a time you made a mistake? Dad? You got this one? Yeah, if you bring your parents to a job interview, odds are you are going to get grounded. By the interviewer. So for Teen Boy, Tuesday, Jack and I, we got to know. We want to know we really need to know. If you shouldn't bring your parents to your job interview, which you shouldn't, what should you bring instead?

What accessory should you bring to an interview instead of your mother? Nick and I want to get your creative juices flow. So, Jack, maybe instead of your parents, maybe you bring your puppy. If you brought Fido to the office, you'd win major brownie points from those interviewers. I mean, unless your future boss is allergic, otherwise, maybe you leave the puppy at home. True. What if you brought bagels to the job interview for the whole office to enjoy? I mean, Jack, nothing screams go-getter like a dozen everything bagels from H&H.

That's a team player. We're hiring this guy. Bring bagels, get a bonus. And if you must bring a family member, here's our recommendation. Bring your grandma. There's no one who's going to be a better reference for you than Nana. So yet he's hit us up at Teaboy Pod on Instagram, Rex. We just got to know. What is the best interview accessory you can bring to your next interview?

What should you bring to that interview? Don't bring your trophy. Jack, let's hit our three stories. Actually, bring the trophy. Mom, they say, They're ready for us. Fifteen years before this song, two boys from the Northeast met in the dorm.

They had an idea to cause a cultural storm. It's the best one yet. 50% that's a fat tip. Tea Boy City on your at list. If you know, you know, because we're ready to go. We can't wait no more. So just start the show. Start the show.

For our first story, the largest cruise ship in history is about to take her maiden voyage. So we jumped into the numbers on Royal Caribbean's, icon of the seas. Jack, are we going to talk about Cruzonomics on this pod right now? You sure are. And Tom Cruise is not making an appearance in this story. But yetis, let's start by sprinkling on some context. The S&P 500. It is the 500 largest stocks in America. And here's the top three performing stocks last year in the S&P 500. First was Nvidia. AI chip stocks. Second was meta. The tech company. And third was Royal Caribbean

Cruises. Royal Caribbean, based out of Miami. Miami, Florida was the number three top performing stock in the S&P 500 last year. Royal Caribbean stock surged 160% last year on the high seas. Oh, Captain, my captain. But that's not even the news, Nick. What else we got, Jack? Royal Caribbean just received delivery of Icon of the Seas, the biggest cruise ship in human history. This cruise ship is a quarter mile long.

To get from the bow to the stern, you have to sprint like. like three minutes long. It's got seven pools, six water slides. Honestly, it looks like it was designed by like six flags and Carl's Jr. But hey, Billy Zane, can you tell us how big the ship is in terms of Titanic's? Yes, Kate Winslet, I can. This new huge ship is the size of five Titanic. To get to dinner each night, you have to commute, Nick.

They have eight different sections on the ship. They're called neighborhoods. That's how big the ship is, Yettys. This ship has over 2,000 rooms, which is more rooms. than the Marriott Marquis in New York City, the biggest hotel in New York. Yeti, he's added all up, and the biggest cruise ship in history is going to make Poseidon jealous. Now, Yeties, what Jack and I found fascinating about this story is that it cost $2 billion to make this ship. It's not only the biggest ship in world history, it's also the most expensive ship in world history.

Because $2 billion, that's 50% more than the previous ship record. So to break even, Royal Caribbean must make $2 billion in prehist ship record. profit, just to break even. So Jack and I, we crunch some numbers. We crunched the cruiseonomics numbers to find out when the ship is actually going to make money. First, Nick and I looked at the revenues. Ah, the revenue. How much money this ship is bringing in? The average ticket price to board this vessel is $350 bucks a night. And the ship can hold 7,600 passengers at a time. So besties whip out the whiteboard. If this ship runs all year long, it's going to bring in $1 billion in revenue. But that's not the end of the calculation. That's just the revenue. There's a whole bunch of

operating cost to run a cruise ship all year. I mean, Jack, you got to pay for the pool boys and the captain and the unlimited shrimp cocktail buffet. Nick and I jumped into Royal Caribbean's financials. 80 cents on every dollar they bring in goes to the cost. So, Yetis, when you take the revenues every year and you take the operating costs every year, Royal Caribbean is left with just $200 million. So if the ship costs $2 billion to build. Okay.

And it generates $200 million a year in profit. Okay. Then the ship pays for itself. after 10 years. Eddie, sit down, stand up, and sit back down on the poop deck. It'll take 10 years of partying cruises until the world's biggest cruise ship actually makes money. For the first 10 years, it's just paying off its debt.

The ship is like a college graph. It's not making a profit until after 10 years. Year 11, it finally turns to the green. So, Jack, can you walk the plank over there and tell us the takeaway for our buddies over at Royal Caribbean? Some industries think in quarters. This industry thinks in decades. Yet he's almost every company on Wall Street.

It plans in three-month increments. Quarterly earnings. Quarterly earnings reports, quarterly statements and quarterly goals. But funny thing, the cruise industry, it's playing a totally different game. The cruise industry doesn't think in quarters or years. It thinks in decades. The average ship for the cruise industry has a lifetime of 30 years it operates. It's a lot longer than a Fort Bronco, Jack.

first 10 years of that vessel, it's just paying back its debt, and the next 20 years, it's actually making money. So yet, he's one Royal Caribbean boat. It cost a whopping $2 billion to make, and a decade to pay off. And then two smooth decades of cheeseburger in paradise. That's not economics. That is cruzonomics. Most industries think in quarters, but cruises think in decades. For our second story, the most unhappy group of Americans in this economy? It's renters. We're going to commiserate, but we're also going to show one city that has solved the rent problem.

Hey, Eddie's, here's the thing about life that Jack and I have noticed. It's not about the numbers. It's about the vibes. Axios and the Harris Poll recently surveyed thousands of Americans, asking them not about their economic numbers, but about their economic vibes. This is what we thought was interesting. Instead of looking at economic data, they asked about how they feel about the economy. And here's the survey of results.

Republicans, rural Americans, and rentals. Renters are most unhappy with our economy. The three R's. And Jack, who was the least happy out of all of those R's that you just mentioned? Renters. It was renters. Yetis, 57% of America's renters described their financial situation as poor. Compare that to homeowners.

Only 29% of homeowners described their financial situation as poor. And now, Yeties, when Jack and I saw these vibes, we wanted to jump in T-boy style to the plight faced by the American renter. These negative feelings felt by renters are totally justified by the data. Okay, get these numbers. Since 2020, the median asking price for a rental apartment, it's up 40%. Meanwhile, people's incomes over that same period are only up by 20%. Add it all up, and rent is significantly out pacing your paycheck out there.

And the result, renters now spend a record high percentage of their paychecks on rent. All right, Jack, what is that percentage exactly these days? If you're a renter on average, you're spending 30% of your income on rent. By the way, that's the average in America. Jack, if you're in like the West Village in New York City, I think it's like 130% of your income is spent on rent. Yeah, you're asking your parents for a check every month. Jack, I think there was a clause in our rental contract in the village

that we had to name our firstborn after our landlord. Burning 30% of your paycheck every month to pay rent, it's an awful feeling. But Yetis, as a fellow renter, I am happy to report, Jack and I have found a glimmer of light on the horizon. As interest rates dip next year, whichever one forecast they will, the rise in rent prices should slow down. Not too shabby for the one out of three Americans who are renting right now. But the real solution isn't waiting for interest rates to come down.

No, here's the funny thing. The real solution is one American city. It's a cold city, but it is a city. Jack, what is the takeaway for all our buddies who are renting? Look to Minneapolis. Minneapolis is a renter heaven. Yet he's the simple key reason for the surge in rent prices out there, it's basic supply and demand.

New home construction across the whole country just hasn't kept up with growth in our population. There was like simply just not enough homes. Like that is the core reason why prices are going up in the rental market. Except in one city. And what is that city, Jack? Minneapolis, Minnesota. Minneapolis, Minnesota, the fighting gophers.

That city, Minneapolis, passed multiple laws over the past decade to make it easier for developers to build new homes. There's less red tape, fewer chances for neighbors to block development. They let them build, and that's the mentality. They have a let them build mentality in Minneapolis, and it's working. Sit down, stand up and jump into one of the 10,000 lakes they got up there. Get these numbers, Yeties. Minneapolis has increased the number of houses and apartments they have by 12% in the past five years.

And that boost in supply has kept the... price of housing down significantly. They've built so many homes that the price of rent has risen just 1% in the last five years. So yeah, it is when we look at this case study, the solution to rent anxiety, it seems clear. Look to Minneapolis and let them build. For our third and final story, last week, we lost three of the most important football coaches in the history of sports. So Nick and I are looking at the wild economic impact of Coach Nick Sain. from Alabama. Jack, your coach Ritter is going to love this story. You tell him that we're going to do this story. You should DM me, man. D3 football, baby. Thanks for the casual shout out that I played

D3 football right there, by the way. Yeah, let's check the roster. Yet he's in the last 24 hours. What exactly happened, Jack? Three of the most successful football coaches left their positions. They were either fired or they quit. First, the Seattle Seahawks. They fired Pete Carroll, one of only three coaches to win both a national championship and a Super Bowl. And then the New England Patriots. They fired Bill Belichick, even after he won six Super Bowls with the team. And finally, the Alabama rolling tide. Coach Nick Sabin left the University of Alabama after winning seven national championships.

But yet, it is over the three-day weekend. Jack and I got curious about this situation, and we want to focus on Coach Nick Sabin specifically. His success on the field is well-known. But Coach Sabin's success in the local economy? Less well-known. Oh, the Bulldogs are not going to like this story, Jack. Nick Sabin arrived in Tuscaloosa, Alabama back in 2007. Yet he's back in 2007.

The population of this city, it was like a charming, cute, 89,000 people. Today, Nick Saban is leaving Tuscaloosa with a population of 111,000 people. That is a 24% population jump in just the 16 years coach Sabin's been at the university. That is huge population growth. After looking at the numbers, Jack and I think the cause of this city's huge population growth, it's the success of the football team. The university's slogan is now where legends are made. Jack, didn't Forrest Gump go to the University of Alabama?

Yes, he did. I'm pretty sure. They've got some credo here. There is some good data to back up that tagline. Well, that university loves the football program. They market the whole university as we're all tied. And that marketing boosted enrollment at the university. of Alabama from 25,000 to 40,000 students during Coach Sabin's tenure.

Coach Saban helped boost the enrollment by 60%. The University of Alabama's chancellor even said this during an interview with 60 minutes back in 2013. He said that Nick Saban is the best investment the university has ever made. Oh, and coach Nick Sabin, he was an investment because they invested millions. I'm sorry, tens of millions. I'm sorry, hundreds of millions. Over 16 seasons, Coach Sabin made 100.

$130 million from the University of Alabama. Coach Nick Sabin was the highest paid public official in the entire United States of America. The highest paid public employee in the U.S. coached football. That is an investment. And this is our takeaway. So Jack, what's the takeaway for all our buddies who are fans of football? Coaches are winners. Stadiums are losers.

All right, yeah, it is. Just to make this clear again, Coach Sabin boosted Tuscaloosa's population by 24. percent and the university's enrollment by 60%. We agree with the University of Alabama Chancellor about the incredible ROI of Nick Sabin. The winning coach ignited economic growth after two decades of stagnation in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. So the investment in this head coach paid off with huge economic benefits. On the other hand, when cities and universities invest in stadiums, they usually don't pay off. Just look at the Olympic villages, scattered across the world that have like no use today after all the money they spent.

on them. They spent like millions, billions on these stadiums and they're like, then nothing happens for years. And you've seen it with plenty of taxpayer-subsidized pro football stadiums in the U.S. too. Yeah, it is. That is why Jack and I think winning coaches can change a city's fortunes. But new stadiums can't? Coaches are winners. Stadiums are losers. And Jack still doesn't want to say roll tide. I'm not going to. You're not got it. Jack, can you whip up the takeaways for us to kick off the week?

Royal Caribbean Cruises just received the biggest cruise. in the world called Icon of the Seas. It is, it's Cruzonomics. Most industries think in quarters, but this one thinks in decades. For our second story, renters are bummed about this economy, because they're spending a record 30% of their paycheck on rent. But yet is the solution is happening in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Minneapolis is a renter heaven. Let him build. And our third and final story is Nick Saban. He reinvigorated economic growth in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. Because coaches are winners, new stadiums or losers.

But besties, this pod's not over yet. Here's what else you need to know today. First, Delta just announced its best year since the Wright brothers. Get this. Delta pulled in $4.6 billion of profit last year. Delta says that air travel is now

20% above pre-pandemic levels. And second, Al Gore is leaving Apple's board of directors because get this, he is too old. for the board of directors. It's an inconvenient truth for the former vice president. Good point, Jack. Apple has a company policy. You can't be on the board of directors if you're over 75. I guess happy birthday, Al Gore. And finally, a goodbye to fruit stripe gum. Yeah, it is after 54 years,

the iconic zebra tattoo gum is ending. Fruit stripe. It was famous for three seconds of flavor. And then he just keep chewing for a little while longer. It was a fun three seconds. Thanks, fruit striped. Best three seconds of my life. Now time for the best fact yet. This one's sent in by Yeti Michael Castronovo from lovely Brooklyn, New York. And this fact is about Rolex, the famous watch company. Rolex, if you got to ask the price, you can't afford it. But where did the name Rolex come from?

The word Rolex, like is it a person, a place, a type of watch? What's going on with the word Rolex, Jack? The name Rolex came from a walk. Get this, Yet this, Yeties. In 1905, Rolex's founder, Hans Wildorf, was just strolling the streets of London. He was thinking about what he should name his company, and he said, Rolex. The name, apparently, he just made it up out of nowhere while he was walking around.

Like, Rolex doesn't mean anything. It means nothing. Rolex means watch company. A hundred years ago, Rolex's founder came up with the name Rolex, literally just walking on a commute. It just came to him. Yeties, you are looking fantastic today. And for Tea Boy Tuesday, remember, Jack and I want to know,

what is the best accessory to bring on a job interview? If you're not going to bring your parents, What are you going to bring? Hit us up at Instagram at T-Boy Pot. We want to know what accessory would impress that interviewer. Don't forget this. Remember, bagels bring bonuses, right, Jeff? Every time.

Bring that sesame seed our way. Hit us up at T-Boy Pot and Nick and I. We'll see you tomorrow. And cupcakes cash checks. Bring in the cupcakes too. And before we go, a happy birthday to Yeti, Kara Samuels, who's turning 30 down in sunny San Diego. And happy birthday to Ken Lerner.

from Shenyang, China. And a happy 10th birthday to our buddy, Drew Klein, who's celebrating down in Dallas, Texas. Happy birthday to Caleb Alter, who's celebrating in Princeton, Illinois. And a happy birthday to Al Ingram over in Burlingame, California. Congratulations to Andre Gonzalez of Atlanta, Georgia, who's changing careers at the age of 30. Andre, you got this perfect time to switch it up. And to anyone else, celebrating something today, make it a T-boy. Celebrate the wins.

and bring some bagels into the office. This is Jack. Nick and I both own stock of Apple, and we both own ETFs of the S&P 500. Also, I said Haven. You said Heaven. Is that synonymous? Do they mean the same thing?

I guess Heaven is a haven, but not all Havens or Heavens. It's a square rectangle situation. It's a square rectangle situation. Someone's going to fact-check us on this one, Jack.