15 Aug 07
Originally posted by HolyTTell them, not us.
What's the deal with the $1000 for a lifetime membership with USCF? Or $1200 if you do the $120/year for 10 years?
The yearly fee is $41 (discounted), so you'd wait 24 years to break even -- more, if you consider net present value (for you bean-counters).
15 Aug 07
Originally posted by HolyTThese long-term comparisons can really be a nightmare to tackle. You start by using the standard compounding and annuity equations. But the trick is that you have to make some very important predictions that will greatly affect your calculated results. Remember, GIGO (Garbage In, Garbage Out).
What's the deal with the $1000 for a lifetime membership with USCF? Or $1200 if you do the $120/year for 10 years?
The yearly fee is $41 (discounted), so you'd wait 24 years to break even -- more, if you consider net present value (for you bean-counters).
1) How long will you be a member of the USCF?
1a) How long do you plan/expect/hope to live, and do you think that you might tire of chess and quit chess at some later time? Keep in mind that right now you might be enthusiastic about chess and can't imagine ever leaving the hobby. But some people do change hobbies after a period of time.
1b) Will the USCF even exist for the remainder of your life? Don't forget that the USCF came close to going under just a few short years ago. If that happens, will your life membership be worth anything?
2) Will this money be coming from discretionary funds or savings funds? (If the money is coming from discretionary funds that you'd otherwise just blow on frivolous junk, then you probably don't have to consider the lost opportunity cost.) However, if from savings, then what after-tax investment return would you expect to make if the money wasn't spent on USCF membership? (That is, you have to compare all of the USCF options with the opportunity cost of the money compared to investments.)
3) And even if you only compare the two life options, you still need to assume an inflation rate for the next 10 years, and also make a guess concerning whether the USCF single-year rate will increase at the inflation rate, faster than the inflation rate, or slower than the inflation rate.
After making all of those assumptions and cranking through the calculations, the result will only be a best guess with a high degree of uncertainty, since the assumptions tend to be on the unknowable side. Or, if the task seems too daunting, you could just go with your gut feeling and not worry about it. 😉
15 Aug 07
1 edit
Originally posted by masscatLife was simpler waaaay back then. 🙂
And to think all I did was send them a $10 check every year.
But seriously, I think that cheap, simple policy that you were offered probably got the USCF into trouble. I think they found out later that they were selling life memberships too cheaply, and now they are having to deal with the legacy costs of that bad decision.
15 Aug 07
Originally posted by HolyTlol..the uscf has their hands full making it possible for life memberships to work, otherwise they lose money, as they have been with it
What's the deal with the $1000 for a lifetime membership with USCF? Or $1200 if you do the $120/year for 10 years?
The yearly fee is $41 (discounted), so you'd wait 24 years to break even -- more, if you consider net present value (for you bean-counters).
15 Aug 07
Originally posted by HolyTI am a lifetime member, having paid merely 2x regular dues for 10 years. Now I believe it is 3x.
What's the deal with the $1000 for a lifetime membership with USCF? Or $1200 if you do the $120/year for 10 years?
The yearly fee is $41 (discounted), so you'd wait 24 years to break even -- more, if you consider net present value (for you bean-counters).
Nevertheless, I don't think I would do the same today. The USCF is not adapting quickly to the Internet. I would not be surprised if they become irrelevent within 10 years and perhaps go bankrupt. My lifetime membership only last as long as the USCF.