mobility.

Many Punjabi immigrant men in the 1990s were single, so their living costs were low and medallions were also affordable. As a result, a handful of my dad's friends and cousins were able to get them early on. Since my pops had move over with his family and had me and my younger sisters shortly after, he didn't have the same luxury of being able to buying when the cost was low.

He never forgot his dream though.

Around the early 2010s, the city released a new group of medallions to the market. Medallions were a way to regulate supply and demand. And since demand had increased a ton and supply had virtually been constant since the Second World War, they were trying to compensate. Being in a much betterfinancial position in 2014, my pops put his turban in the ring for an auction that was happening.

Lo and behold, he was able to win a bid, get his savings together, and finally became an owner of a taxi medallion-- meeting his multi-decade old dream. My cousin had just arrived from India. In efforts to make his transition easier and give us both an asset to hold onto, he purchased it in our names.

Nothing makes a Punjabi father more proud to know he left his family in a better condition and did all that he could.

The medallion he bid for cost more than $700K, roughly about $100K at point of sale, for a handicap accessible medallion. One of the highest ever prices historically.

Sounds absurd, right?

Why NYC taxi medallions