The first full week of January, 2023. Are you ready, folks? We sure are!

This last week we saw the market close slightly up, with solid gains for most crypto stocks. We’re not entirely convinced that this is the start of a long upward trend, however.

While we’re usually wrong about this one when it comes to crypto, here is something to consider. The IRS treats cryptocurrency as property. There are no wash sale rules. What does this mean? It means that on December 31st, you could offload all of your BTC that lost value and record the loss, then on January 1st buy it all back.

Not only that, but thanks to blockchain technology, you have four methods of calculating your cost basis. FIFO, LIFO, and combined average (the “normal” ones), but also specific identification.

So it’s possible you made overall gains on your BTC, but you can sell only the portion that you paid the most for - and potentially record a capital loss even when you made a profit! Amazing!

(We did not double check to see if this is possible with stocks as well. Logistically it probably is.)

1. ARR - $5.78, ex-div 1/13, monthly options, >20% annualized yield. This REIT has been paying $0.10/month reliably, and will do so again for January. Now if the share price stays this far below $10, we’re not entirely certain what to expect. Given that this purchase will average us down, we’re okay with it.
   

2. MVO - $14.81, ex-div 1/13 14.99% monthly options, annualized yield. This is an oil trust and, unsurprisingly, does pretty well. We just want to grab some shares before the price goes above $15. That’s not to say there won’t be a drawdown, but over the long-term oil tends to go one way.
   

3. CGAU -$5.78, quarterly dividends annualized at 3.63%, options trade monthly. We fully expect to see the share price of this gold stock to work its way back towards $9 over the course of 2023.

   Physical gold is always a good investment, but gold-based securities are a great way to maintain value while remaining liquid. Plus, it’s gold. Who doesn’t like gold? Come on, man! Buy some gold.

   It’s also a superconductor, so there’s that, too. Not really important to know from an investment perspective, but it kind of is. Nearly all of our modern technology utilizes gold (including catalytic converters) in some small, but measurable, quantity.
   

4. ASTR - $0.44/, deficient, monthly options. Why on Earth would we recommend this stock? They’re a company that aims to achieve “cheap” access to space through a mass production model. They’re currently under investigation and are facing a (likely) class action lawsuit.
   
   We’re not betting the farm here, but we’re going to take our first ridiculous risk of 2023.
   
   The first component here is that if we lose 100% of our investment, we’re fine with that.
   What we see as a possible positive outcome is another, better-ran space exploration/mining company buying up Astra and utilizing whatever assets and IP they have to achieve profit
   

5. AST - $4.75, options trade weekly. This space stock is a little more practical, and could benefit greatly from buying up existing satellite constellations for pennies on the dollar.
   ***We have absolutely no data to suggest that is even a remote possibility***
   
   This company engages in space-based wireless communications. As of mid-December, their ‘Bluewalker 3’ project is on target. This will be the first (and likely only, for some time to come) space-based broadband cellular telecomm service.
   
   They’re also collaborating with existing established telecommunications infrastructure companies such as Vodafone, Rakuten, and American Tower.
   
   We like this as a way of getting general exposure to “space stuff”, without waiting a decade or more to see significant gains through mining operations (yes, space mining is happening, slowly), and without the risks associated with a company that uses the “Trust me, Bro” model of financing.