May 26, 2026
Handpicked income ideas you can actually run with.

This week's picks share one trait: none of them are new. The S&P 500 has been returning 10% since 1957. The IRS tax exclusion for expats has been law since 1926. The landscaping business had 20 years of routes before anyone made an offer. The edge isn't discovering something nobody knows. It's executing the boring thing while everyone waits for something more exciting.

Researchers David Blanchett and Michael Finke studied how retirees actually spend money -- and the gap is staggering.

Retirees spend 80% of guaranteed income (Social Security, pensions) each year. But they draw only 2% of savings -- half the 4% rule financial planners typically recommend. On a $1M portfolio, that's $20,000 a year left untouched. Every single year.

This is not frugality. It's psychology. Guaranteed income feels like a paycheck you can spend. Savings feel fragile, like a number that could run out. The fix, according to Blanchett and Finke: build more guaranteed income layers before you retire. Not a larger savings balance -- a larger floor.

The goal is not $1M in the bank. It's $4,000-$5,000/month in income streams that arrive whether you work or not.

Via Blanchett and Finke / Retirement Income Institute (napa-net.org)

📈 Wealth Stream: $500/month in an S&P 500 index fund grows to $102K in 10 years, $343K in 20, and $1.13M in 30 -- on $180K contributed. Over 90% of active large-cap funds underperform the benchmark over 15 years. The edge is not picking winners. It is staying in the game. Via JL Collins / The Simple Path to Wealth (jlcollinsnh.com) and SPIVA U.S. Scorecard 2024 (spglobal.com)

Also consider → Motley Fool's compound interest calculator lets you model your exact scenario -- different contribution amounts, time horizons, and rates. fool.com/calculator/compound-interest

💼 Side Stream: Loan signing agents notarize mortgage closings at $75-150 per appointment. No degree. Startup under $800. Brian Schooley scaled from $1,500/month part-time to $10,000/month full-time using Snapdocs and Notary Rotary. Demand spikes with every rate cut cycle. Via Side Hustle Nation (sidehustlenation.com)

Also consider → Snapdocs publishes regional signing agent demand data -- useful for checking your local market before investing in certification. snapdocs.com

✍️ Creator Stream: Beehiiv's 2026 State of Newsletters report: paid subscriptions hit $19M last year, up 138% from $8M in 2024. Median creator reached first paid subscriber in 66 days. Extra Points -- a college sports newsletter -- earns $200K/year from 2,000 paid subscribers at $100/year. Niche beats reach. Via Beehiiv State of Newsletters 2026 (beehiiv.com)

Also consider → Ghost's creator economy report covers similar trends across its own platform for creators who want full ownership. ghost.org/resources

$132,900 -- the amount Americans living abroad can exclude from US federal income tax in 2026 via the Foreign Earned Income Exclusion. Two qualifying spouses: $265,800 combined. The FEIE has been in the tax code since 1926. About 9 million Americans live outside the US. Only ~739,000 file it.

Via IRS Publication 54 and Taxes for Expats (taxesforexpats.com)

Die With Zero by Bill Perkins

This week's Thursday pick was a 20-year-old landscaping business -- no website, 40% margins -- that the seller initially rejected. The buyer waited. One in-person visit closed the deal. Perkins' book makes the case for deploying capital at the right moment, not hoarding it until conditions are perfect. It's the book behind Thursday's question: what are you waiting for?

amzn.to/4ncKe4c

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The through-line this week: the best income moves were never announced. They've been sitting in tax codes, index fund prospectuses, notary certification handbooks, and landscaping route lists for decades. The common thread is not discovery -- it's the willingness to execute a boring thing while everyone else kept scrolling.

Pick one guaranteed income layer to research this week -- Social Security delay strategy, rental property numbers, or a one-hour annuity quote comparison. Start the research, not the decision.

Forward this to someone building their first income stream →

→ Tuesday: retirement income psychology -- comment RETIRE for the Retirement Income Map
→ Friday: IRS tax exclusion for expats -- comment NOMAD for the Nomad Banking Cheat Sheet
→ Saturday: niche newsletter income -- comment FREE for the Creator Revenue Stack
→ Follow @incomestreaming for daily income ideas.

Not financial advice. All ideas curated from third-party sources.

Via Blanchett and Finke / Retirement Income Institute | JL Collins / The Simple Path to Wealth | SPIVA U.S. Scorecard | Side Hustle Nation | Beehiiv State of Newsletters 2026 | IRS Publication 54 / Taxes for Expats

@incomestreaming · newsletter.incomestreaming.co