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Kris-Fillip

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Thank You PF - E Fund Saved Just In Time for Emergency!

Thank you so much, /r/personalfinance! I discovered this sub my last semester of college, and graduated in December. I started my full time salaried position in January, and have been trying to get my financial house in order. Thanks to discussions about the importance of emergency funds, I made it a priority. Immediately after hitting the $1200 savings mark, my car broke down. I'm getting a few more opinions from shops, but it looks like it will take roughly $800-1,000 to fix. I am beyond thankful that I have this fund set aside. While I wish it had happened later in the year, this won't financially destroy me like it might have 6 months ago. It's not going on a credit card, it's being paid for in cash. Just another example to stress the importance of having an e-fund. It's currently saving my ass. Thanks again!

Congratulations on your steps to becoming a fiscally responsible individual. One small aside, if you have a cash back or rewards credit card, I would put the car repairs on that and then pay it in full. Cash is subprime my friend!

Very awesome. My wife an I have a savings account just for car issues that we auto draft $100 a month from our checking account into. It has saved us many times over.

personalfinance

mmcrowle

t3_23v37u

CyberneticDickslap

t1_ch0uss9

ch0uss9

ShepherdDerrialBook

t1_ch11i47

ch11i47

4% guaranteed return per year. Why shouldn't I do this?

A family friend is trying to sell me life insurance. Death payout is $500k. If I don't die then my payout after 36 years is $246k. My premium is $404 per month. So that's $174k of initial investment. Sounds like a total return of 141% in total after 36 years. In any case I can take the money out at any time it's not locked in. Return is 4% guaranteed per year plus an extra 1-3% depending on the market. He said there are no management or advisor fees. He probably gets a commission but we didn't discuss this. He said it's such a good deal he got it for his kids when they were young. What am I missing? Why shouldn't I get this? How can 4% be guaranteed per year when 30 year Treasuries only yield 3.1% right now? Link to marketing presentation: EDIT: Total return is 41% not 141%, sorry for the incorrect calculation and thanks for correcting me.

He is trying to sell you whole life insurance which makes a whole more money for him then it does for you. If someone else depends on your income (spouse, kids), get cheap TERM life insurance. Invest the rest in savings and retirement plans.

Did you read the first word on the marketing material? The very first word, it's in bold so you can't miss it. If 4% tempts you then you should definitely stay away from the dinners I get invited to once a week. They are selling guaranteed 12% returns, "with no risk". I'm waiting for the dinner that guarantees a 12% return on flying pigs. First off 4% is nothing to chase. My portfolio is currently producing almost 4.5% in dividends and I usually manage to get at least that in cap gains on top of it. Your "friend" is trying to sell you a whole life insurance policy which is the worst way to buy life insurance. He is no friend and you're not his friend, you're a mark.

investing

DrMcNutt

t3_81s5yg

sonnylax

dv4t5gy

txholdup

dv5zr1h

Got my Wife on the FIRE path!!! But we have a question for you regarding our long term path.

I (23M) sat down and evangelized the dreams of FIRE to my wife (24F) which she enthusiasitcally accepted. In our current situation we can FIRE in about 12 years so we got some way to go. We are at the early stages of our life and looking to buy a modest home in 2-4 years to turn rent into a mortgage we can start paying down. Since I'm a dual citizen (Canada + USA) we are looking at both Alberta/British Columbia and the Seattle/Portland PNW area. The question we are stumped on is: Does anyone know if there are signifigant advantageous or challenges in setteling in Canada vs the USA?

Free health care in Canada but higher taxes. Housing is out of control in Vancouver. Portland isn't very expensive but neither is rural Alberta/BC. There is a lot to consider. Even if you live in Canada you always have to file US taxes. Of course if you aren't working the free health care may put Canada in the lead. Wouldn't have to worry about taxes if you weren't working. Also if your investments were in USD it has historically been stronger than CAD. Right now that is a 20% discount.

WA has no state income tax and while property in greater Seattle area is expensive, it will increase in value more rapidly than other areas. Portland has more diamond in the rough property if you want a fixer upper, but higher taxes. Both have hot job market right now, so you can't go wrong. good luck!

financialindependence

FU2016

t3_4mu2ms

steveonomics

d3yaqol

Marinero7

d3yua0m

Advice on getting a car, please help. Very broke and don’t know all my options

My car crapped the bed last night, I’ve 300 dollars to my name until Friday when I will have 1,100 dollars. So I’m broke. I obviously need to get a car, I can’t afford a used car outright, is financing worth it? If so how should I approach? I work 35 miles away from where I live so obviously I need a car. Anything helps, please!

If you currently have 300/1100 dollars to your name, no bank is going to approve you for finance unless you have bank statements that show you'll be able to keep up your repayments

Do not finance a car, buy something on cash and get liability-only insurance on it (you will be responsible for your car's repair if you crash it and it's your fault). Financing will require a more expensive insurance (comprehensive and collision). &x200B You can probably get a car that gets you from point A to B in $1500-2000 but adding a little more ($3000-4000 total) will likely find you a more reliable car. See if you can get a personal loan for $1000 or so. Buy a manual (stick shift) car if you only have $1100. They have less demand because not everyone can drive a stick shift. &x200B Buy a 7-15 year old Toyota Camry or Avalon. Even older Camry and Avalon cars will be good. I had a 97 Avalon bought at 140k miles and gave it to my cousin at 165k miles, he is still driving it at 210k+ miles. The only maintenance costs have been an oxygen sensor, some new tires etc. He bought a 98 Avalon with lower miles for under $1800, I think that was two years ago. That car is also driving fine. When you are buying a used car pay attention to emission and safety inspection dates, tires, brakes, battery, check engine lights etc. If an inspection is needed immediately and it needs repairs, either pass on that car or do your homework on how much it would cost to fix to make it pass inspection and factor that in your purchase offer.

personalfinance

Fly_MartinZ

t3_99dp5w

Akephalos95

e4ms434

nova-geek

e4n0tl7

Moral Dilemma

I have recently entered into a sales contract with an elderly neighbor who has agreed to sell his condo for about 100k below market value. He is moving to a retirement community and had been procrastinating on selling the place. Neither he nor I have real-estate agent representation. I had the simple sales contract drawn up by a local attorney. I jumped at the opportunity for obvious reasons. He also actually told us that the very low price was the maximum that he would sell it for. He dismissed the notion that it was actually worth more when I suggested it to him. He's a humble man. Ultimately, I didn't fight him too hard because the deal was so unbelievable. He trusts me and he has expressed that he's happy to see a young couple move into the place he's owned for over 30 years. When we signed the contract - both parties fully understood the agreement and were very happy. He was happy to have lifted the burden of selling his place. My wife and I felt elated to be on the path to home ownership. However, now that the rush to sign a contract has ended, I feel a deep conflict about the situation. Did I just rob an old man of the equity in his home? Should I have pushed harder to make the deal more equitable for both parties? Did I dupe him on a 'neighborly deal'? Does he really not know what the fair market value is for his property? As a man almost 80 years old, perhaps his motivations are just different - not dollar driven. Now, I'm considering sitting down with him and asking whether or not he's leaving himself with enough money from the sale of this house to continue to live on where he is going next. I want to thank him and tell him how much this means to my wife and I make sure that he's comfortable giving us such a deal. I don't think he knows how much his place is really worth. We don't have to do any of this - obviously - the contract has already been signed. Should I give him the opportunity to break the contract and negotiate the price UPWARD? Or is ignorance bliss? If he's happy and we're happy has any wrong been done? What's the right way to show this man the respect he deserves?

We sold our old home last month, a log cabin on 3.75 acres. We had lived in it for 21 yrs. It needed a new roof and some TLC, but had a lot going for it even so. We never put the home up on the market, never listed it or advertized it. We were holding off until we had everything moved out to our new home. Then we found out our next door neighbor's daughter and family had been given 30 days to move out of the home they had been renting because it was being sold. They are good people and we knew how much they wanted to live closer to her parents so they could help them on their farm. To make a long story short, we sold it to them for 1/2 of the appraised value. Life isn't always about the money. My wife and I are in the lower part of middle class income and we work hard for what we have. But at the end of the day, we also try to extend a hand and help good people get through difficult times. I've listened to my siblings tell me I'm an idiot....however my wife and I are fully aware of what we are doing. Nobody took advantage of us. If you want to offer your friend more money, then do so. But do understand to those of us who have lived in our homes for many years, that having the home go to a younger couple who will appreciate it and raise a family there is important.

I think you did all you needed to do morally (at least given the description). Consider it part commercial, part gift. On that note, as others have suggested, it may nice of you to continue the relationship. I know when our neighbor sold his place, he was retiring and had already bought the new place, and had money, so he sold his house "for what he paid for it". Now he had lived in it for 20 years, so sold for about 150k, when it was worth at LEAST 250k in that market... the agent listed it for his requested price, and it sold in 4 hours of listing... so worse things could happen.

RealEstate

dcunderground

t3_1b1dby

[deleted]

t1_c92oncn

c92oncn

atcoyou

t1_c92ry4h

c92ry4h

My "financial advisor" signed me up for the wrong type of account despite my express instructions. What are my options?

I'll try to keep out the unnecessary details. My employer recently (5 months ago) started contracted a new company to run our retirement plans. They set each of us up with a "Financial Advisor" to get things started. When I met with mine, I told him I wanted a Roth account as opposed to traditional pre-tax. I verified the paperwork before I signed it. When I went to check on my account this past weekend, I noticed that all of my contributions were going to an account marked "Pre-Tax" and not the one marked "Roth". Turns out, he set up the wrong type of account for me, and my ~5 months of contributions have been going to a traditional account. When I asked him about this, he said he would "Look into it" and despite following up, I haven't heard anything. I have zero confidence in this person. I've already enlisted the help of my HR rep, who is great, but I want to make sure this gets taken care of properly. Is there a way to roll over funds from a traditional account to a Roth? If not, can I instead roll those into my personal Roth IRA? Is there any reason that "running out the clock" until the year is over would help my "advisor" cover his tracks or close some options that might be beneficial to me? The whole workplace shuts down next week. I want to have all the tools I need to make this right again! Help appreciated! If I've left out any important info, I'm happy to provide it.

If the paperwork you signed didn't authorize this transaction, then you need to bring this up with your head of HR immediately, since what they are doing is not technically a legal transaction and they need to deal with that situation.

First open a new roth 401k and put all new contributions in that. Roll over current 401k to IRA. Then convert IRA to roth. You will pay taxes on it now instead of at retirement.

personalfinance

ImADoctorNotASpatula

t3_3x4uat

yes_its_him

cy1j07o

Carfullofderps

cy1uwdv

Foolishly went to a stripclub, where they took my thumb print. The charges disappeared from my credit card statement. I'm worried about being sent to collections. Should I be?

As the title states, I went to a strip club in a different state (Arizona) and swiped my card. When they swiped, they made me sign a payment agreement (don't recall what exactly it said) and took my thumb print. I saw the charge pop up on my statement as "processing" for about a day, and then the charges just disappeared. Called the credit card company, and they have no record of it. Should I be worried? How can I resolve this (if there's anything to resolve) without calling the place and getting charged twice? I really don't want to be sent to collections. This was the dumbest thing I've ever done, and I'm trying to be "discreet" because I'm terribly embarrassed. Can they even send me to collections? Not sure how they would have my address, or any info not on the card (besides my thumbprint). Thanks.

Did you purchase anything at the strip club? Could be like a gas pump or a hotel where they put a 'hold' on your credit and it falls off when the charge comes through. If you bought nothing, it would just fall off. If you bought something, it will most likely show up if you give it a day or so.

First off, I wouldn't consider it embarrassing unless you were thrown out or ran up a massive bill that you cannot pay. It sounds as though you were coherent enough to remember the night, so there shouldn't be too many surprises. If there are incorrect charges, dispute it, otherwise expect to pay. It will likely show up under a very ordinary sounding name. They benefit from card charges flying under the radar. In the future, just bring cash and leave your ATM and credit card at home. It'll save you a lot of heartache. Same goes for gambling as well.

personalfinance

i_use_this_to_fap

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jaimefeu

dec4s0n

500feuilles

dece5es

(UK) Parent looking to buy a house, have asked me to sign on a mortgage to borrow a higher amount. How can this affect me?

Hi Everyone, My mother and her wife are looking to buy a house, but the cost is just above what they could afford with the current mortgage they've been offered. I was phoned this morning, and my mother has asked if I could "sign my name" so they could borrow more money to afford the property and has said "I won't hold any responsibility for repayments etc.". Is this true? As much as I'd like to help them obtain the dream home, I don't want to be tied to a mortgage or any such responsibilities at my age. I'm not sure of the specifics and could use some advice. Thank you, LCKellow1994

You would only have responsibility for repayments if they didn't pay. Which is a pretty realistic possibility in many cases. Especially when they don't qualify on their own. This would also be considered a loan you are responsible for, in terms of assessing whether you could get your own mortgage.

You won’t get any deals in the future to buy a home for yourself as your name would already be down on one. So any first time home buyer deals etc you won’t get

personalfinance

LCKellow1994

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yes_its_him

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2die4OG

dq7t80q

First time house buyer.

I have been looking to buy a house, as of now I’m trying to find one for the right price. I was curious what my budgets should be. I work 4 10 hours a day a week, and am able to work an extra day for 10 hours of overtime. Currently without overtime I make $1,784 a month. I have been looking into pricing and a 100,000 house could cost around ~$600 a month. Adding utilities, which I have not yet to pay, I would guess they would be around $150 for electric and water bills. Plus an internment bill, I’ll chalk that up to about $60, that is about ~$810. Is that number going to break me financially? Mostly my question is, what would be the most money I could spend, with still being able to live?

I wouldn't count on OT. OT is the first thing companies try to cut when new bean counters come in. Try to get what you want without OT, and wirk it while you can to save up. I used to never pull OT, but when I do it's nice to have-eapecially when you aren't relying on it.

Don't forget property tax and insurance - and mortgage insurance if you are not putting down enough to get out of that (I think it's 20% - can't remember at the moment). You may be able to find out what the historic bills have been on any house. I personally bought the cheapest house I could afford - the bank will approve you for quite a bit more than you'd think they would. I bought a house about 60k LESS than what they approved me for - don't get sucked into buying the most expensive house just because it's what you are approved for. I also have a roommate who pays the majority of my mortgage (which I totally recommend if you have someone you'd get along with). Is that $1784 gross or net? Also on a side note, lots of cities have first-time homebuyer classes - I took one and it was helpful for me to learn about how banks calculate the amount they'll lend, things to watch out for and the budgeting piece. Good luck! Oh and you'll want to budget for repairs - having a few thousand (at least) set aside for emergencies goes a long way towards peace of mind.

personalfinance

MajinTomHanks

t3_8jrftb

Johnezz

dz20p7z

Susantown

dz1zdh8

First year university finance suggestions?

I'm a first year university student with 9000 dollars saved up and four years of future university paid for. Any suggestions how to manage my money? I don't want to work in university because of how intense engineering is but I would like to keep a solid savings.

Hey there! 3rd year computer science student here!

Find, make an appointment with, and visit a financial advisor - specifically, a [Registered Investment Advisor]( This difference is critical. Most "Financial Advisors" are actually salesmen of financial institutions such as Charles Schwab, Edward Jones, etc. Their duty is to their employer - not to you. An RIA, however, has a fiduciary responsibility to you, not someone else. You may be reluctant to go spending some of that money on advice on how to protect and grow it, but whether it's an accountant, realtor, lawyer, or RIA, every dollar spent on obtaining the services of a professional in the field is at least two dollars saved from fixing any "did it myself" problems, errors, or oversights that could occur without them. You did a smart thing by not deciding that you alone knew how to protect and grow that money. You reached out here for advice. And now that advice is to do it again, but with a professional that specializes in exactly this.

personalfinance

KleanerOrCounted

t3_6t8mld

ellomeno_p

dlirehi

victorykings

dlisrpq

Do people REALLY have emergency funds with 20k+ just sitting there? How do you not touch it?

Hello hello! Really simple question I'm just having trouble wrapping my head around. &x200B I'm young, I make good money, I'm not BAD with money, but I've never had an emergency fund over 5k. I've come to realize my e-fund should be more like 25k+. &x200B What do you guys do to keep yourself from spending your emergency fund? It makes complete sense to have 6 months salary saved up for emergencies but the idea of having that much just... sitting there is a bit difficult. &x200B EDIT: Wow this kinda exploded! Thanks everybody for the advice and ideas. It's mostly a mindset change I needed. I think it will get easier once I actually get that much saved. I also plan to get an Ally account going this weekend and renew my efforts of getting this built up more.

It's kind of a self-correcting problem. Right now, you're imagining yourself with a $20k emergency fund and asking yourself how you wouldn't spend it. But when you actually have one, it will be because you've added to it over a period of years (likely), and will already be in the habit of not raiding it unnecessarily. It's a lot harder to establish the e-fund in the first place than it is to not spend from it once you've saved up.

After 3 years of making 50-60k I only had ~ 2 grand in my savings (I did pay off 12k in loans and contributed another chunk to my retirement a bit, but still). Then I did 3 things that changed my saving habits forever. 1.) I set up a savings account with a bank that wasn't connected to my checking account. This was infinitely better than seeing checking balance X, savings balance Y, total balance Z. When I did that I just looked at the total and rationalized that I would save up extra next month, never happened. 2.) I set up weekly auto transfers from my checking to that separate savings account. I then treated this as a bill. When I budget now I include it as a can not be altered transaction. 3.) I downloaded Personal Capital and linked up all of my accounts. Seeing the big picture was the missing link for me. Now it's super easy to check once a week Bonus: I always round up my savings account at the end of each payday to the nearest "normal" amount. i.e. if my balance ends on 615 I'll round that up to 750. It's not much but I am if I save an extra thousand dollars at year end, neat.

personalfinance

Zylea

t3_bzk3t7

thewimsey

eqt3slh

MirroredDoughnut

eqwarkh

Should I (29) pay my wife's (26) college tuition?

This is a throwaway account... My wife has found herself in some debt of $55k student loans to be exact. Some of this was before marriage, some after. The interest is very, very low (1.5%!), but the balance is obviously high. She still has 1.5 years left to go in her nursing program. I can pay her tuition so she doesn't have to take out more loans since the balance is already high. The question is - should I pay her tuition? $8,800/year cost of tuition at her university $81,000 my salary yearly $6,000 balance on my student loans at 2.5% $2,000 emergency $13,000 in ETF We don't have any other debts (cars are paid off, pay credit cards every month in full, etc.)

1.5% is a very, very low rate. You can do better than that with a CD. I would not be in any hurry to pay that off. If you do want to pay something, before you pay your wife's tuition, you should pay off your own student loans since they are at a higher interest rate.

Depends on monthly payment/interest paid estimates... How much is she saving towards retirement? Probably not much as as student. I would say pay for her 1.5 years remaining in cash, and put some money into a Roth IRA for her until she is employed. With such a low interest rate for the loans, and the power of compounding, that makes more sense to me.

personalfinance

pfthrozerk

t3_35uiwo

nick2253

t1_cr7wrky

cr7wrky

brohio_

t1_cr868ry

cr868ry

Americans who retire early how do you keep health insurance?

With ACA being what it is and too young for Medicare I was curious how Americans in this group manage their healthcare needs? I can see an unexpected healthcare emergency wiping out your savings with no insurance pretty quickly. I’m all on board that is just one of my big concerns.

I am 60. For my wife and I, we pay 34,800 in premiums. In addition, we have co-pays, Co insurance (large deductibles) and co-pays for medicine. No dental. No vision. It is our biggest expense by far, and the biggest challenge in retiring early. We are currently in a ACA plan offered by Blue Cross. Before that we were in a Blue Cross grandfathered plan, but last year, they quit offering the grandfathered plan. When I retired several years ago, the premiums were quite reasonable. They have been increasing by 15-30% a year for several years. Next year, the monthly payment is going down by $300 per month, but the copays and deductibles and copay percentages are going up, so it is only a cost decrease if we don’t get sick. We are trying to hang on until Medicare kicks in at 65. I am thankful that we have insurance. My wife has a pre-existing condition that would prevent us from getting insurance if the ACA was not in place. We are fortunate to have enough assets to cover this, but just barely.

I’m not that close to FIRE yet but I’m an owner/partner in my practice so don’t get any subsidized insurance. I could pay the full premium for myself and my kids that we subsidize for our employees - $1080 per month. Or I can buy off the exchange. Pretty sure we’re getting a bronze plan at $650/month with a 13,100 deductible. We might change our minds for 2020 when there’s a chance we’ll probably have another pregnancy/baby but for 2019 it’s a reasonable coverage for catastrophe and hopefully we have a healthy year. It’s also HSA eligible, so we can start putting that away and hopefully be able to save it long term.

financialindependence

ISUTri

t3_9w5f0n

mitnosnhoj

e9ht8yn

exhaustedinor

e9is08m

Looking to buy a house in <2 years. How should I save up for the down payment?

I currently am employed making $70,000 a year. I am paying off student loans and also saving for a future house down payment. I plan on buying a house within two years, once I am married to my now girlfriend and she is done with grad school. I know right now that I can comfortably afford houses in the price range I am looking at, but the down payment is another issue since it is a large one time payment. Right now I am just putting money in a savings account that I won't touch for any other reason than the down payment. My question is, should I keep the money in the savings account, or look for other ways of investing it until I am ready to use it?

Keep it in savings. You can't risk losing principal to short term volatility. For example, if you had your invested your money in the stock market last year and needed it to make a downpayment now, you would have lost 10% or more just this month. It's not a risk you can take for an expense that is expected to take place in the short run.

Forget the down payment. Live in a rural area and get your house with no money down at 3.5%. Not bad while interest rates are low. No telling what happens after election....

personalfinance

MTUsoccerFreak

t3_42snho

Chuck_Peligro

czcr2sl

ilovethevols

czcxhhn

For Those who have used Financial Advisors, What were some of the best advices that you have received?

What were some of the best advices that you have received?

"You don't need me, you're doing just fine on your own". Hourly CFA with whom I was doing an initial (free) consultation with to see if there were any improvements that he could suggest.

"Well, Mr BLANK you are half my age and have double my net worth...just keep doing whatever it is you have been doing and you will likely retire before I do"

financialindependence

goba101

t3_8hxibe

denali1

dyn9op0

Spartikis

dypgh29

Employer wants me to pay back money they overpaid me

I was hired as a 12 month employee in Kentucky. I was hired during the second quarter (so there were nine months remaining for the year). My contract was renewed the beginning of the next fiscal year. Upon receiving my End of Month paycheck I noticed it was several hundred dollars lower than the previous months. I asked the Finance department why this was. They called me in for a meeting at the end of the day and told me their computer had made a mistake and had calculated my pay as a 9 month employee and not a 12 month so I owe them ~$x,xxx overpayment to be paid back to them. I did not know I was being overpaid until the new pay year started. I have asked (since it was their error) if there is any negotiating the amount owed but they are not budging. What about the fact this money was reported as income for my family and therefore taxes were paid on it last year? Does the employer bear any responsibility or am I just to pay back the total amount wrongly paid to me?

You have to pay this amount back. If they are coding things properly (as negative income), there should be no tax consequence to you (you will pay less in taxes this year by the same amount you paid too much in the previous year). If this isn't the case, the IRS has a special deduction you can claim to make things right. Pretty much the only thing you can negotiate is how fast you repay them. They can't take you down below minimum wage.

You can't negotiate the total. You may be able to negotiate a time frame "budget is tight right now, I can only afford 50 a month. Can we work on a payment plan?" etc. Most places will work with you.

personalfinance

hippitydoo32

t3_4vtgm1

Mrme487

d6182np

FormalChicken

d61ecu7

55 year old dad has nothing saved for retirement.

My dad is 55 and has nothing saved for retirement. He makes 2600 per month and pays 1500 per month for our houses mortgage and we have 20 years left on that. He probably spends 600 on bills and then the rest for groceries and whatever he needs to spend it on for the house. He has 4 kids, me and 3 other siblings. I'm not old enough to work and my sister isn't either. The other two are able to work. I'm scared that when the time comes when he needs to stop working ( He's a mechanic and runs his own shop with his brother and they have no other workers), he won't have money for retirement and will have to fall back on us or other methods. when that time comes, I believe that we would be able to support him. Whenever I ask him about his retirement he doesn't say anything about how he's going to pay for the house and bills all that. Is it common for people his age to not have anything saved for retirement?

Kudos to you for looking so far ahead! I know a lot of people are saying he’s not your responsibility and from a legal standpoint they’re right. But I’m with you that I would feel heartbroken if I wasn’t able to support my parents or my wife’s parents (divorced and both re-married) when they get to a point where they need help. Everyone in my family is hard working and life dealt a different hand to each, no addictions or anything like that. You’re 13 and he’s 55 so you have a fair amount of time before this becomes a problem. I think the first step is to figure out what your dad’s social security will look like compared to expenses. Health care is a big one so inflate your estimate. Once you have an understanding of expenses and SS then you’ll understand the gap. (Another question is how much could they sell the shop for but ignore that for now cause we’re too far away to know). Honestly the most beneficial thing you can do is not worry about how much he’ll need, get a good degree in an industry has good incomes for its graduates and can’t be replaced by automation, then focus on creating a financially stable life for yourself. Once you’re financially stable you’ll be in a place to help your dad. To use an airplane analogy of what I mean, you have to put your own oxygen mask on before assisting others with theirs, even family.

How’s his health? It might not be a bad idea to get a quote on LTC. If he paid his credits into social security, he might be okay depending on expenses. I’d try and go online and see what his social security estimates are and estimate what his expenses will be later on when everyone moves out. Maybe he could down size his house at that time and lower his mortgage and use the rest to potentially help with expenses. Depending on how much cash would be left over after selling the house and down sizing, it might not be a bad idea to put it in an annuity with a guaranteed income rider at that point.

FinancialPlanning

CashewBaby

t3_bd9fvo

Ten4-Lom

ekwx4bt

Bodymindsoul8

ekwsxue

$DIS

So can anyone give me the bear case for this stock assuming it goes along with the acquisition of fox? Basically the deal will enable Disney to provide a direct to consumer service with a disgusting amount of exclusive content that they know how to monetize in ways that only Disney can. They can now offer new blockbuster movies exclusively through their service and I'm wondering if even movie theaters will have to subscribe if they want to put it on their big screens. That means that Disney can now use their best assets(movies that attract audiences of all ages and backgrounds) to increase subscriber growth and it also puts them in complete control of digital advertising(basically FANG's bread and butter) on their platform which i'm sure will be in very high demand from companies with a lot of money to spend. When you add all of that up with an already successful parks and resorts business, I just don't see how they can screw this up. There is nothing really stopping them from carving out a center in the digital space and perhaps joining FANG in those high price valuations. what am i missing here? I know that they are traditionally not a tech stock and that could be a challenge for them as they enter the space, but if they acquire fox, hulu will fall into their lap, and that is not a bad start. I know im assuming everything works out in Disney's favor, but if it does, please explain to me why you would not take a chance on disney priced at 14x earnings when netflix is 234x.

I find it funny how people ignore the other aspects of DIS. Its a hotel resort company, media company, theme park company, merchandise, Cruises, ect. I can't think of a single reason to be bear on this company. Best reason to think it would bear up would be a steady case of really bad PR, but with mouse lawyers and agencies I dont see that happening for a long time.

Look at all the content on Netflix. They spent 6 billion last year for all those shine new originals that would take you an entire month to watch. Amazon spent 4 billion. This year Netflix is spending 8billion on originals. For a years worth of Netflix subscription I can go to one Disney Park for 1 day. The value is just not there anymore for the consumer. The Fox deal is worth 70billion!!! That is nearly half the market cap of the company. There is no way Fox is worth this much. Disney should have just spent more money on originals and building the Disney universe. It is not a bad company but they are so far behind on the direct to consumer business and ESPN is still a mess. Maybe if their direct to consumer business becomes a success I’ll get back in but for now I don’t want to be a part of Disney.

stocks

digitalradiohead

t3_8v1wag

Thetetrisgod365

e1jvlkl

Parkitz

e1jxpxf

Savings account with Ally or Goldman Sachs Marcus?

Ally has 1.75% interest rate while Marcus has 1.8%, but Ally says they compound the interest daily. Marcus does not state this so does that mean they don't compound the interest daily? If the interest is compounded daily for Ally but not Marcus, does that make the savings account on Ally have a higher return than Marcus?

Ally has generally lagged behind Marcus in interest rates, but Ally offers more of a full-service banking experience (mobile app, checking account, checks, debit card, ATM fee rebates, 24/7 customer service). Marcus offers none of those things.

How are withdrawals with the two, minimum balance? I'm looking to put at least 15k into either, but probaby put a big portion of that to a car down-payment within the next 3-6 months. Currently just have a checking account with MB Financial and a roth with Fidelity.

personalfinance

irregular_regular

t3_8v6250

Econ0mist

e1kv13o

AyeEyecaptain

e1ly12j

My parents are broke and aging. How do I prepare?

My mom and dad are 57 and 50 living in upstate NY. Mom only has social security as income ($1k/month), Dad is a truck driver. They've lived check to check their whole lives, and now they're older. Thankfully, I (25) had the opportunity to go to college and land a good paying job as an engineer. My own $95k in student loans are way higher than average due to poor planning on my part (and parents, who never dealt with college and financial aid). While I make more than both of them, I'm tied up saving and paying debt. They've never asked me for money, but have alluded that they will eventually have to depend on me. They are staring down their 60s with no substantial savings. I'm sure I won't be able to afford supporting them. Because of these student loans I simply will not have a lot of money or assets in my lifetime - or at least for the long foreseeable future. How do I prepare for my parents no longer being self sufficient?

No better time to save than the present. Your folks need a crash course in financial literacy and likely will for the first time in their life need to figure out their budget. You can't and shouldn't bail out a sinking ship without plugging the leaks. Before any committment or even any desire to help you need to sit with the folks and understand their obligations, assets, budget, and retirement plan.

There are many safety nets. In many towns there is low-income housing, where you pay rent on a sliding scale, and nutrition supports such as meals on wheels and communal dining. They will have Medicare to pay their medical expenses once both are 65.

personalfinance

rainyforests

t3_ekxvmd

alexm2816

fdeamm5

myogawa

fdf004w

Moving to a new apartment; what else am I forgetting to do?

Aside from moving my stuff, I have to do the following: -Worked everything out with old/new landlords -Cancel old internet service -Start new internet service -Cancel old electric service -Start new electric service -Change mailing address & inform employer -Start new renter's insurance policy What else am I missing?

Please do not forget to take pictures of the entire apartment and double check for any damage. I recently moved out and had 400$ taken out of my security deposit for a damaged counter top that was already damaged when I moved in.

You also need to update your address on your driver's license. If you get pulled over and it hasn't been changed (they give you a 2 week grace period I think) you can be cited and are much more likely to be given a ticket for whatever it is you were pulled over for in the first place. If you are moving to a new area, depending on how far it is away from where you live currently, find the closest of the following businesses/government outposts to your new place: gym branch (may need to change gym membership depending on how far away you are moving) branch of your bank pharmacy/drugstore Post Office grocery store liquor store gas station Redbox oil change place go-to late night takeout place hair salon/barber shop Police station Fire Station Your voting location County Clerk's office (for car registration renewal) And whatever other businesses you visit frequently. I just moved last weekend and trust me, it sucks when you want to run errands on your way home from work and realize you don't know where you're going.

personalfinance

scratchy_mcballsy

t3_3258ze

gunthology

t1_cq7zs6i

cq7zs6i

ky_ginger

t1_cq82074

cq82074

Vesting in company match

The company I work for matches a percentage of my income that I put into my 401k account. We have a vesting schedule that starts at 33% of the match after 2 years and increases incrementally to 100% after 6 years. My question is - how are the market earnings handled on the company match? Say if I left my job after 2 years, would I lose 67% of the match as well as the earnings on that 67%? Maybe this is dependent on the company (and I could look my into my company's policy) but I was wondering if anyone knew how this was generally handled.

You need to take a step back and understand how the underlying investments work and not focus on their value. Each pay period, your 401k contribution is used to buy a certain number of shares at the market price of that day. For simplicity's sake, lets say they do a 6% match and the share price is $1. You put in $100, then put in $6, 106 shares are bought. Now, lets say it's been 2 years. 33% of the match is vested and let's say the share price has doubled to $2. You still own those 106 shares, but they're worth $212. You leave the company. You get to keep the 100 shares you bought with your contribution, now worth $200. You also get to keep 33% of the 6 shares bought with the match - so 2 shares, now worth $4. So, you keep shares worth $204. So yes, you "lose the earnings" on that 67%, because you lose the shares bought with the match money themselves, and thus their entire value, including any increase (or decrease) since the time of purchase.

I believe the company contributions are what would be withheld should you leave the job before full vesting schedule irrespective of market performance... i.e. You've contributed $10,000 with the company matching $2,000, but your portfolio is worth $13,000 ($1,000 earnings - 8.33%). You leave after year 2. You forfeit 67% of $2,000 or $1,340 (as opposed to 2,000 x 1.0833 x 0.67=$1451.62). I would read the employee handbook to see if there's any clarity there. My company has a vesting schedule and I'm pretty sure it works how illustrated above, but I would consult with HR to be 100% certain.

personalfinance

ecarmel

t3_1fekqw

c2reason

t1_ca9hy1a

ca9hy1a

sh1ft3d

t1_ca9hf0r

ca9hf0r

Will be graduating college soon, I have absolutely no idea what to do or expect. Any advice or tips I should know?

I will be graduating college in December, and I honestly have very little to no finanical knowledge or how to handle my money. I know the basics, but here's a little about me: I have a checking and savings account (that I have a bad habit of dipping into every once in a while....), I have a credit card and a credit score of 750, I will owe back about $14,000 in student loans, and I'll be looking for a job once I'm in my final semester or graduated fully. I'm quite terrified of adult life and I honestly don't know much of anything on how to handle my money, any random tips or advice I should know, almost nothing outside of the basics. Please help! Edit: sorry, dont lurk here a lot, should've lurked at the FAQ sidebar.

In addition to the brilliant advice about reading the FAQ in the sidebar (which is seriously the best financial advice you'll ever get).. Get an internship, asap. If you get an internship now, your chances at finding a full-time job after college will increase tremendously. Also, get good grades. The difference between a 3.4 and a 3.7 could mean 10's of thousands of dollars. For the amount of extra time you spend studying, the returns you could get are huge. Also, start looking for a job WAYYYY before you graduate. You can put your graduation date on your resume, and tell companies that want to interview you that you can't start until you graduate, or that you could work part-time until you graduate (although that's less likely to work). Basically, start applying 3-4 months before you graduate. Or even start now. Talk to your school's career counselor a lot about jobs, but equally important, talk to them about your resume, and how to interview well, then do mock interviews. Make sure you have a great suit and wear a tie if you're a guy. The more job offers you get, the better. You'll get to choose a job you actually enjoy (which will help you perform better at work), and you'll get to start with a higher starting salary if you want it, which will significantly contribute to higher long-term earnings. Also, don't buy stuff you don't need. Look at every purchase, and consider how happy it makes you. If a $50 xbox game makes you $50 happy, then will buying a $30,000 car really make you $10,000 happier than a $20,000 car? Or would you rather have literally 200 more xbox games? Or a new giant TV every year for the next 10 years? Or whatever actually makes you happy? Most people spend money on things that they think are supposed to make them happier, without looking at what actually makes them happier, and therefore end up spending a lot of money on stuff that doesn't matter. So my best advice is, think about how happy something will make you before you buy it, then decide if it's worth your money.

I graduated a year ago and my top tips so far are: DO NOT wait until your last semester or after graduation. Do not start living above your means or go wild when you start making more money. I make double what I made when I was working full time in college, but I still stick to the same grocery budget and didn't move into a nicer, bigger apartment even though I can now afford it. I have made some allowances but I still try to stick to the broke college student mentality, so saving and making student loan payments aren't even a problem.

personalfinance

skullyD

t3_304ooh

IAmDanimal

t1_cpp2lx8

cpp2lx8

Mswindupbird89

t1_cppan18

cppan18

Don't want to be struggling 20 years from now...

I'm 27 years old, been married for 3 years now. I have a Son who is a year old. My wife doesn't work cause her mother is battling stage four Lymphoma and her brother is special needs so it occupies most of her time. I'm currently a salaried member of management. I work 45-60 hours a week depending on what's going on. I get 100% insurance cause my company is owned by a hospital which is great. The only thing they don't offer is any kind of 401k/ Retirement. I make 33280 a year and my job isn't usually difficult (now that we are properly staffed) It's not a staple job though. I (un-officially of course) know for a fact that my place of employment is a tax write off for said hospital. So who even knows if it will last. They have plans one day to gut my place of employment and make way for a new hospital to be built. It could be a year 5 years 10 years from now, who knows? Aside from saving how can I prepare for that? Are they legally obligated to offer me Any kind of severance package? I don't have any kind of degree to fall back on either. Just don't want my family to struggle one day seeing as I'm the soul bread winner, Thanks in advance

Oh my. 33k a year, salaried, is awful in a managerial position especially at a hospital. Do they pay out for overtime hours? That thresh hold is low enough that they should be. Do you have a college degree? Even if not, a management type position should be pushing 40k at least. Put some applications out and see if you get any bites. Look into government programs for taking care of dependent family members as well. Claim them on your taxes if you haven't been doing so. (Warning, may or may not be considered relationship advice) I will say, your hearts are in the right place but your money might not be. 33k is barely enough for one person, let alone essentially five (you, your wife, baby, plus two other dependents). Don't set yourself on fire to keep others warm.

You gotta increase your income substabtially with all of that on your plate. You have management experience, that's in some employers eyes as good as a degree so leverage it in salary negotiations. Apply to new gigs and make sure you proudly bold all of the skill sets that being a competent manager requires. A friend of mine has made it to MANAGER in every job he's had and now with those credentials, he's never out of work, no degree either.

personalfinance

mhunter0029

t3_6u0nql

thatonecoolkid99

dlp8u3o

TypicalBlaqMan

dlprl1x

Why do most people advocate for Roth IRAs and shy away from Traditional IRAs?

Here's what I was thinking about the situation: Contribute to both a Traditional and Roth. Once I retire, I can continue to let Roth sit and grow while I take out, say $2000 every month from Traditional. Per year, I would only be taxed for my $24000 income, thus avoiding high taxes. Any other money that I need can be withdrawn from Roth. Feel free to correct me or give input. I just started adulting and recently looked into retirement savings.

You have significant flexibility to withdraw your Roth IRA contributions prior to retirement. It's harder to do this with a Traditional IRA. Many people already make substantial pretax contributions to their employer's 401k. You can't deduct your Traditional IRA contributions above a certain level of income, if you are covered by a retirement plan at work. Traditional IRA's interfere with the backdoor Roth IRA for higher income earners. Traditional IRA's have required minimum distributions after age 70.5; Roth IRA's don't. Roth IRA withdrawals don't count as "income" so they don't increase taxes on your Social Security benefits or Medicare premiums (see IRMAA). Also, Roth IRA withdrawals don't reduce your ACA healthcare subsidies.

As the math shows throughout the thread, if you pay the same rate of tax on both sides then it doesn't matter when you pay the tax. You can pay all the tax up front or at any point in the middle or all at the end and it's a wash. I just want to focus on two reasons you might choose one or the other that people don't often point out. Firstly, If you put your money into traditional, it may happen that you are able to convert some portion of that money into after tax money at a rate of 0%. If you, for example, lost your job for one of those years, you would have an income of $0 for the year. You could take advantage of that by converting pre-tax money to post-tax. Each dollar you convert would be taxed like you added $1 of income. You would be able to move a significant chunk of that over at 0% and maybe another significant amount at 15% or something, depending on how much you were willing to convert at the rate of the next lowest bracket. You can't convert at a 0% rate if your money is already post-tax. As a further way to play this, you might put money in both types and in retirement withdraw only the amount from pre-tax necessary to stay in the 0% bracket and then withdraw the rest of the money you need from post-tax. That would be another way to potentially benefit from a 0% conversion rate on some portion of the pre-tax money. Yet further, you may just be able to live entirely off the Roth and every year convert the upper limit that you can cheaply convert to Roth. Secondly, taxes are likely to go up substantially. They are unsustainably low. We have borrowed a lot from our future selves and we will have to pay that back at some point. It's important to note, though, that tax law is subject to change. What exists now is not necessarily what the future is going to look like. The government may change some or all of this in the years before any of us retires. Given that, the best path for most people is probably going to be to try to get money as cheaply as possible into both types of accounts so as to have the maximum options open now and when the end game approaches and so as to limit our risk of being 100% on the wrong side of a major change.

personalfinance

pahtreeeck

t3_79kfns

Econ0mist

dp2nf3r

Raiddinn1

dp3qi3z

$10k for my newborn: invest in index funds or a saving account?

I have about $10k set aside for our newborn that may be used in 20yrs-ish. Does it make sense to grow this amount in an index fund considering the length of time? or should I be looking into high interest saving accounts?

High interest savings seems wasteful if you have 10 whole years. If you’re feeling risk-averse, though, split it up? Maybe half in an index fund for long term growth, half in a 5 or 10 year CD?

Follow up question for this thread... Is it an option to tuck away money for your child in your IRA since you can withdraw it penalty free for education expenses? Or am I missing something? I like the 529 idea but as a career military member I would not be surprised to see my children go a similar route. Looking for future options! Thanks in advance.

personalfinance

prove_it_with_math

t3_dd9s2x

more_d_than_the_m

f2ezk4n

[deleted]

f2f43xd

(DE) Use of Credit Card vs Debit Card in the US

Hello people, I do academic research in consumer finance and often read scientific articles that in some way or another include data on credit or debit card use. As I have never been to the US and I believe that these two types of cards are used differently in Germany than in the US, I would like to ask you (US-) Americans to provide me with some insights into the practical implications of credit vs debit card use. Specifically, could you please refer to some (or all, if you want to do me a favor) of the following questions: Besides cash, what is your primary source of payment, debit or credit card? What advantages and disadvantages do you see in the two systems? Is one particular type more suitable for certain types of payments, say internet transactions? Do social factors play a role, e.g. are you stigmatized as poor when you use a debit card? Which type of card bears higher monetary costs and does that affect your choice? The purpose of all this is just to give an outsider an idea of what debit and credit card usage means in daily life, something which you cannot really distill from wikipedia or academic texts on the matter. Thanks in advance =) EDIT: Thanks for the many replies. To sum up the most frequently posted infos so far: Credit Card use entitles you to payback bonuses or other reward programs which makes it more attractive. To my knowledge this is practically non-existent in Germany. Credit Card use requires you to pay the bills in time, which seems to be a non-trivial task. Follow-up question: Is there no way to have this done automatically? I am not sure how you guys call liquid, low interest-bearing savings accounts. Maybe call money accounts or money market accounts? Can you not keep, say, 1-5 monthly incomes in such an account and just have your monthly credit card bill directed to it? There seems to be no stigma attached to either one of the cards.

My primary source of payment is credit cards. My debit card is only used at ATMs if I need cash, which only happens a few times a year. One big disadvantage of a debit card is that if there's fraud, your money is gone. You're going to get it back eventually but you might bounce a check or something in the mean time. Big headache to deal with. With a credit card, the money never actually leaves your account so you can get it taken care of without it affecting any other payments. I see credit cards as more suitable than debit for every transaction I make, especially those with a bit more risk like restaurants where you hand your card to a person. I don't think there's any kind of social stigma with either type of payment. Others may have different opinions on that. Neither type has a "cost" per se but there are a lot more options for credit cards with rewards than debit, so that's one advantage for credit. There are debit cards with rewards as well but in my experience they seem to involve jumping through more hoops to get them (much like high-interest checking accounts)

Credit Card CC advantage: boost credit, get rewards, make purchases when you need them. Disadvantage: requires discipline, can cost you money if you don't have discipline, purchases take longer to show up DC advantages: more difficult to overspend if you don't have overdraft protection. Easier to budget, purchases show up immediately. Disadvantages: rewards system is usually not as good/non-existent, purchases can be made only when the funds are available. I would say credit cards are best for internet purchases, because if a fraudulent charge is made, you still have your money in the bank, and the CC company will fix it. I don't really see anywhere that a DC is advantageous for the buyer, but I usually use mine for extremely small purchases, as debit card purchases incur a smaller charge to the seller. "Do social factors play a role, e.g. are you stigmatized as poor when you use a debit card?" Absolutely not. I've never heard anyone say that. I know several people that don't have a credit card. "Which type of card bears higher monetary costs and does that affect your choice?" I do have one card that has a yearly fee of about $60. I get much more than that in rewards, so it's not a big deal, but at the same time it makes me use it more so that I get those rewards. As to your follow-up question: I can make a payment to my cards automatically, but only for a fixed amount. Since the amount I spend a month is never the same, this doesn't make any sense. My bank will alert me when I get a new bill, and the CC company sends me an email when I have a new bill. So if I miss a payment, it means I'm REALLY not paying attention.

personalfinance

yisthisnotanon

t3_14lpoj

WestTexasRedneck

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c7e7xt2

SovereignAxe

t1_c7eeu8u

c7eeu8u

Commercial Property In A Small Industrial Town Of About 4000, What Would You Do?

Quick clarification, these properties have been in my family for decades and I'm to inherit them in the future. &x200B As the title notes, this is a multi billion dollar industrial town with a neighborhood along for the ride. At one point I was optimistic that I could make something out of it, an artistic old town kinda thing, a social landscaping of creatives, just got an old school barber shop that moved in. With that being said, part of me thinks it is a lost cause. The industry is a chemical plant and god knows it's good for no ones' image, much less their health. The plant also provides clients to these businesses and without it, it'd probably be worst for me financially. Yet, awhile backI thought I had the potential to change the perception. We have 6 commercial spaces so far, many empty, I think that is the worst thing. I'd give away rent, abatements just to add some life to the block but I don't know if this can ever be more than what it is?

Rent isnt what will make or break a brick and mortar once its up and running but the upfront costs of a commercial lease will deter a new business. Maybe write some extremely backloaded leases to get people in and established at manageable costs

In my experience with commercial spaces in, I guess you'd say, slow areas, often you cant give away the space for lease, but an owner/occupant could be interested in buying and opening their own thing. If I were you I'd sell. Sometimes properties are liabilities, not assets, in terms of taxes, other carrying costs, and future Capex spending.

realestateinvesting

satorisoul

t3_c7fztq

YodelingTortoise

esew6i1

mnhqmqo

esf6lra

What to do to ensure basement is ok...

I may be buying a house with living space in the basement. I've never had this before. There's carpeting and paneling. When I looked at it, there was a very slight musty basement smell, and they had a dehumidifier running. I will, of course, hire an inspector; but what, if anything, can I do prior to the inspection and what should I make sure the inspector checks to ward off any future basement issues? EDIT: Great answers! TY everyone.

Check the baseboards for signs of warping or discoloration. Check the paint, particularly at the corners, for signs of bubbling. Buy a cheap moisture detector from a big box home improvement store and bring it with you when you meet the inspector at the house for the home inspection. They make versions that you can put up against the wall and it'll tell you the moisture reading. Just be careful with it as you can scratch a wall with them if they're too cheap. You might mention to the inspector (or their company) that they had a dehumidifier running and you detected a musty smell in the basement so they pay extra attention. Check the ceiling of the basement for signs of water damage. Discoloration, a section that looks freshly painted (indicating they just painted over a leak) or a part of the ceiling that looks different from the rest (they cut out a wet section and replaced it). You need to look over the disclosures and see if they disclosed any past water damage as well.

ask your inspector if they have an infrared camera, it's a great way to detect moisture/issues behind the walls. it's not 100% foolproof, but it does pick up things one can't see. had a client check one out of the local library. I had no idea that was an option...probably not an option these days since libraries are closed, but for lurkers good info to tuck away.

RealEstate

LiarsAreLosers

t3_g176ye

Sir_Stash

fndvg1s

novahouseandhome

fnecthi

My bank (which uses ChexSystems) is going to send my account to ChexSystems because I allowed someone to deposit what turned out to be a bad check. What do I do?

I'm unemployed. I haven't been able to find a reliable way to earn money. My brother told me that a co-worker of his would be able to give me some money. I gave my brother all of the information to give to him. A check was deposited, but it was not added to my account balance despite it being posted to my account. I went to my bank, and they said it was bad check. Because I gave someone access to my account, I was not able to file a police report or do a fraud claim, and they said that without those two things they can't do anything other than closing the account and sending it to ChexSystems. And they said that I can't open an account with any bank for the next 5-7 years. I did some research, and what they said was not entirely true. I can join banks that don't use ChexSystems. And I already knew about pre-paid debit cards. I can get them from regular banks, even. Also, I suspect that I could join a bank or credit union that does use ChexSystems if I can do it before my finalizes the closing of my account. All I'm asking: what do to manage my money?

Unemployed customer with small account attempts to deposit a bad check. Customer later tells a story about how it wasn't me, it was a friend of my brother. Not really a friend, just a guy he knows. Sounds like a customer the bank would want to report and stop doing business with. Did you not suspect a problem when someone is unable to deposit a check without seeking out a co-workers brother to do it for him? Sounds like all kinds of banking red flags here. Seek another account as quickly as you can. Banking without banks is difficult.

You are now "unbanked". You'll need to use prepaid cards and check cashing services until this clears, or a "second chance" checking account if you can find one. An authorized user of your account attempted to deposit a fraudulent check. The bank is in the right here.

personalfinance

RJSAE

t3_5zkod3

mist987

deytqq6

TheSpoom

dez4w8r

If i am an employee and work from my home office 20% of the time, use my own phone, internet and computer that time, can I be deducting some of those costs on my taxes?

Edit 1: Thanks everyone for the responses. Clearly I need to speak to my tax accountant and the sticking point is that I am not obligated to work from the home office by my company. Edit 2: I am in the US, NY State - I always assume NY makes everything more difficult.

Potentially, but in all likelihood, no. There is an allowance for a home office deduction in the IRS code. There are two ways to calculate the deduction. The simplified method simply looks at the square footage of your home office (max 300) * $5 for a maximum deduction of $1,500. You can also attempt to determine your actual costs, the methods for which you should talk to a CPA or tax professional. The issue you will likely run into is two fold. First, the home office deduction is what is called a 2% misc itemized deduction. This means that all the expenses in this group are only deductible to the extent they exceed 2% of your AGI. For instance, if your AGI is $50,000, and you have $1,500 of home office deduction, then you would only get a deduction of $500.($1500-(50,000*.02)). However, that is not the only limitation. The deduction is also an itemized deduction, and therefore you only get a benefit if you do actually itemize your deductions. Itemized deductions include charity, mortgage interest, state taxes and other items. If your total itemized deductions are over the standard deduction, then you would get some tax benefits. In short, you have to jump through quite a few hoops in order to actually get any tax benefit. If you think you might be able to, I would talk with a tax professional and go over your tax return. Source: I am a CPA and tax accountant.

I'm sure there are more qualified people in this thread, but my fiancée is an accountant and I have talked to her about this. From what I understand, claiming a home office is a red flag to the IRS and a sure way to guarantee an audit. You have to have a room in your home that is dedicated to being a home office. You basically cannot use it for anything else and it has to be dedicated as your workspace. Most people have their home office double as a guest room or something, so that rules them out.

personalfinance

pmdt7

t3_6pgph4

illachrymable

dkp5pw2

norain91

dkq3g30

Kinda curious about moving into a studio apartment

I'm looking to move out of my parents' place for the first time in my life, other than college and grad school. I'm 32 and live in the Bay Area. I've been living with my parents for so long for a couple of reasons, but the biggest are: to save money, because rent is insanely high in the Bay Area certain mental blocks and mental health issues One advantage of having lived with my parents for so long is that I've saved a lot of money over the years that would have otherwise gone towards rent, living expenses, etc. Anyway, I'm looking to move out because I'm in a much better place than I have been since I finished college. Specifically, I'm looking at one-bedroom apartments and studio apartments. Is there any sort of...stigma associated with studio apartments? Like, at a certain point, does a person get "too old" for studio apartments? Are they considered "junior" apartments?

No. If anything, especially in the Bay Area, having your own studio or one bedroom with no roommates is only available to those with a much higher than average income and level of financial stability.

Check out the east bay for sure. Oakland isn’t much cheaper than SF but I do think you get more for your money. Have to factor in commute costs. Where do you work?

personalfinance

3s5e_throwaway

t3_f7emfl

aliquotiens

fiarlao

OtherSideofSky

fib8p8w

Question on calculating estimated taxes

I live in NY and work primarily as a freelancer. My income jumped this year to around 62k after graduation, however since I work as freelancer I have no money withheld from my checks. I've been setting aside 30% of my income since I started working last fall of 2013 and did fine for taxes, but I'm a bit confused over my estimated taxes for this year. I went through the info available on the IRS' website and after calculating everything, I estimated I should owe a little over 10.5k as I'll be in the 25% tax bracket this year. However, when I did a test run on TurboTax, it estimated my taxes at 18k. Granted, I didn't fill out any other info or deductions, I just entered in my salary and breezed through all the pages to get a number as fast as possible. I also found this withholding calculator from the IRS for 2014 income tax returns, and based on a 62k income, with no deductions, filing single, I should owe 8.3k in taxes. Here's the withholding calculator: Any idea why I'm getting such radically different results? I made my first quarterly payment last month for 2.7k (2.1k for the fed, 600 for NY state) based on the 8.3k figure I received from the IRS withholding calculator (8,300/4 = 2,070), but as I'm currently budgeting 30% of my income just for taxes, I have a lot of cash left over in case I need to increase my payments for the remaining 3 quarterly payments this year.

You're going to owe about 9k just in payroll taxes, and I imagine roughly the same amount in federal income tax (maybe less, I'm just estimating off the top of my head), and then some number of thousands in New York state tax. All in, I imagine your grand total of income related taxes would be a little shy of 20k, depending on state.

The $8.3k sounds closer to the correct amount. Tax rates are tiered as another person said. Plus they aren't based on your gross, you get the standard deduction and personal exemption which subtract about $11k from your AGI already. Then you deduct any tax deferred contributions to retirement vehicles or anything of the like. That's your taxable income.

personalfinance

[deleted]

t3_2402ma

hydrocyanide

t1_ch2aex1

ch2aex1

noueis

t1_ch2bgem

ch2bgem

Employer will not allow 401K contributions

My wife works for a small company that has been hit hard the last two years. The owner of the company will not allow the employees to contribute any money to the 401K plan. The financial company that manages the plan claims this is illegal, but that there is nothing they can do about it. What are our options? Can we contribute without going through the company owner (who manages the payroll)? Last year, we just said "Fuck it" and started an individual IRA. It would be nice to be able to contribute $16k to the 401K instead of the $5k limit on the IRA. Can we get the money out of this plan and into something we can manage ourselves? If the plan is still active, and she is still employed with the company, it seems like we are stuck.

She needs to start looking for a new job. Whenever employer resorts to doing something like this, it's very likely that such business might no longer exist in the near future.

It is possible for a company to freeze their plan, but there are certain disclosures that should be made to all employees before freezing the plan. You may want to inquire with the Department of Labor as they are the ones that govern 401(k)s. Also, it may not be a bad idea to look into doing an in service withdrawal/rollover out of the plan and in to an IRA. Keep an eye out on the fees that get charged to your wives account. Companies can charge their 401(k) plans for various plan expenses that are normally paid by the company.

personalfinance

TheAminal

t3_1gaj52

ed_lv

t1_caicav0

caicav0

Jimrod04

t1_cailog0

cailog0

Do you ever trade opposite of the headlines?

For those of you who are seasoned, bitter, and angry traders like me, do you ever trade opposite of what you see on "financial" news programs or news sites? I have done it many times and done well doing so. Right now on CNBC.com, the headline is "brace for a correction". Well, I've positioned myself for the correction a couple of weeks ago. However, I'm tempted to get out of my positions now that I see this headline. I'm thinking we could see a 2 to 3% rally on Monday. Another example is NVDA. One "expert" was saying to buy NVDA a few days before earnings...which caused alarm for me since I was in NVDA already. Just before earnings, a billionaire announced he was shorting the hell out of it. I got out before the big nose dive. I'm curious about the experiences of others when it comes to "financial news".

There's a style of investing called the contrarian approach, there's even a fund $FCNTX; of course it applies to stocks and more toward a long term approach. I have done some simulations but I never achieved results good enough or consistent enough to pull the trigger, however at times when I feel that the market is overreacting to something I might take a position contrarian to the overall market, but it's a on case-by-case basis and rarely. I am long on $TSLA and the experts have had bad rating ever since I can remember.

You'll find that negative headlines sell the best because people aren't that excited to hear the bull market is firmly intact which is pretty boring. When they say "a new high was put in a correction is imminent" that sells based on emotion. I don't trade either for or against the news. The news is already late by the time we get it, anyway.

options

padraigmarcus

t3_6tgqwz

PM_ME_BOOBPIX

dlkkdqy

BikiniATroll

dlo0ouo

Why would boss warn against Roth 401k?

So our company just opened up 401k options for everyone. After reading as much as I could, I decided to chose the Roth 401k option with an aggressive portfolio. I am a 25 yrs old making just under 50k a year. Now, why would my boss call me and the one other guy who chose a Roth in to his office, to be sure thats what we wanted? He made it sound like we werent going with the best option. Originally he pushed me towards the traditional 401k, and he seemed to make a fuss when I changed to a Roth. Any ideas as to why he like the traditional 401k better?

He probably doesn't understand that sometimes post-tax contributions can be the better strategy. Whether or not you should contribute to a Roth account or a traditional account is addressed in the FAQ: [Roth or Traditional?](

It depends upon what your life goals are. I contributed to a Roth 401k before I discovered /r/financialindependence. Now I understand that I'm never planning on drawing a salary in retirement that's larger than what I currently make. And while there's something to be said for the tax strategy diversification, I'll have more than enough in Roth IRAs.

personalfinance

kaiju21

t3_2tq9xi

aBoglehead

t1_co1byel

co1byel

peterlundgren

t1_co1ewy8

co1ewy8

Is my Dad taking advantage of me?

For the past 2 years and 5 months my dad has been dealing with a Workman's Comp issue that has kept him totally out of work since October 2017. As of March 2018, when he filed for Total Temporary Disability he was supposed to receive payments of $500/week from Workman's comp. He was receiving 2/3 of his salary for his primary job while he was on disability. He was supposed to make about $6000/month before expenses. He is not receiving the $2000 a month from Workman's comp. Right now because of this he is receiving $4000/month before taxes. Due to misguided financial decisions and unforseen circumstances, he is paying about $4800 in either bills, loans, insurance, groceries etc. I am working a job where I can make around $500 per month after taxes. He wants me to refrain from spending my money so that he can use it when his bank account gets closer to negative. He will not refinance anything, and every time I am paid he mentions me not spending any of it. He also wants me to take out a subsidized/non-subsidized Stafford loan (whichever means no interest during school) so that we can use it in an emergency. It's difficult for me to trust him with my money because of his poor financial decisions. Is taking a Stafford loan a means to build credit at a young age? I will not be using the money for schooling if my dad gets his way. Please help me see if he is using me. I am 18 years old in a trade school with free tuition, my father let's me use one of his cars anytime I need it, I live with him as I always have and he pays for nearly all of my expenses. I.e I don't have much expenses other than food and gas. Tl;dr I think my dad wants to take advantage of my money and student loans because of his circumstances. I know a little bit about finances but I don't know enough to tell if this is a bad decision.

Do not take out any loans. If your dad wants you to pay him rent, that is something reasonable for you to do since you are living in his house and using his car. But do not take out student loans or private loans. Don't open any credit cards for your dad to use. Suggest he cut back on monthly expenses.

He also wants me to take out a subsidized/non-subsidized Stafford loan (whichever means no interest during school) so that we can use it in an emergency. It's difficult for me to trust him with my money because of his poor financial decisions. OMG NO Detach yourself from your dad's horrendous finances as soon as you can. Don't take any loans to help him, nothing of the sort. Do not share bank accounts, he is going to bleed you dry.

personalfinance

Shakeybalance

t3_9ddxmm

hopingtothrive

e5h2r0t

AssaultOfTruth

e5hmi92

Car Debt is Ridiculous, can I sell or trade my vehicle?

Hi PF, First time poster here, let me start by saying i'm an a huge dumbass (at least 23 year old me was). I am now 25, I make 65k a year income from my job and the first thing I did with my new job was buy a brand new 2015 Chevy Camaro (I know I know....). At the time I was living with my parents and it was my only payment so it didn't seem like a big deal when I was pulling in more money than I had ever seen in my life a month. My car cost 24,xxx$ I have an auto loan with Chase with an interest rate of 7%. I pay off my loan monthly but at this point in my life my circumstances have changed drastically. I moved in with my GF and moved to a new state, blowing through all of my savings in the process. My question is basically this, I pay ~460$ a month on my auto loan and another ~260$ on insurance (Florida). I owe about 19.5k still on the car, is there anyway to slice this where I could trade in or sell my car to get rid of this loan? I tried re-financing but my bank (Chase) could only offer me like 5% intereset and an increase in my loan term length AND they would only cover like 17k (I would need 2.5k out of pocket which I dont have at the moment). Needless to say, I love my car. It puts a smile on my face everytime I get in it. However, I spent a ton of time worrying about it (It's the nicest thing ive ever owned) so I sink all kinds of $ into the car wash a month, cleaning supplies & other random things to protect it. At this point I just need to get a more practical vehicle and get rid of paying this absurd amount every single month. Is it better for me to stick it out and just pay it off? Or should I try to sell / get another vehicle?

I will be the voice of dissent here and ask: Do you like it? If you like it, KEEP IT. Wow, you'll be in debt for a little bit. What does that matter? Are you still putting money into savings? Investing for retirement? Paying your bills on time? You are aware of the cost and as long as you aren't starving, keep it. When you pay it off, keep it forever. It's your baby now. Cars aren't a good investment, but if you LIKE IT and it BRINGS YOU JOY, just keep it forever. Don't forget that after you've paid it off, you own it! It doesn't vanish. Try to lower your insurance cost (call up a few different places for quotes, BUT DON'T CUT YOUR COVERAGE) and set a strict budget for your maintenance. Shop around at different banks and see if you can get the whole amount refinanced.

If you're looking to refinance, DCU is a great credit union to do it through. I only had 6 months of credit history (1 CC & my auto loan) & they took my interest rate down from 10.xx% to 2.49%! I lowered my interest rate, monthly payments, AND loan term. Can't recommend them enough. Plus the first $750 you keep in their saving account earns 5% interest, so that's a bonus. Edited to add: I probably had 9 hard inquiries on my credit because I was desperately looking for a refinance. I'm in TX & they're a NH/MA based CU, so I did everything online.

personalfinance

lelcatz8966

t3_67gdhc

SignorJC

dgqdr0c

Potato__Bender

dgqu13y

How often does a buyer lose their earnest money due to lender's negligence?

[WA] I've met with a real estate agent. He asked if I had talked with any banks and I mentioned Bank of America. He immediately shot down the idea and advised that I go with one of the local credit unions. One of the reasons was that the lender could take a long time to do the closing paperwork and they could lose my earnest money. He said that one of his local lenders are faster with their paperwork and therefore more reliable. He cited an example where one of the clients from a different office lost their earnest money. He told the story twice on two different days each with a different dollar amount. I tried searching for these type of scenarios online and I haven't been able to see an example. Is the real estate agent just bitter about the bailout and/or wanting to get a kickback from one of his lender friends? This whole conversation seems really odd. I know some people may not want me to do business with BoA but let's just focus on what the real estate agent is telling me.

Not sure about the likelihood of failing deal. But big banks can definitely be more bureaucratic or incompetent. Whereas local agents you may know it's a competent/trusted person. I know of a few close calls nearing the closing deadline, where things missed by the mortgage agent could have derailed the deal.

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RealEstate

jdelator

t3_6zq5nl

intheyearbrothousand

dmx6p4u

LocationBot

dmx6lj4

Is Apple Pay a good secure system?

The drop of the Apple Card has respired an old debate in my family, electronic vs physical banking. My parents are very 'old fashioned' and don't trust the security of Apple Pay, or even using any app that is hooked up to a bank account because "HACKERS!" Where as I my self lean towards trusting the security measures. Currently I haven't pulled the trigger on shifting to electronic banking and credit cards because I really don't want to make a rash choice and screw myself over. Do y'all trust the Apple Pay system? Would you advise moving my banking to the electronic form? I honestly am fairly lost on which is the better option right now.

Apple Pay is very safe because the merchant never sees your credit card. On the larger issue, it isn’t that running around with wars of cash was ever very safe. Banks are not immune to concerns but as institutions go they are among the most secure whether online or otherwise. Credit cards usually don’t hold you responsible for fraudulent transactions. This is 2019. But, your choice of which decade or century to belong to. I’ve been leading edge for years and never had an issue.

I have terrible luck getting my credit card s stolen, typically from physical transactions as far as I can tell. I really like Apple Pay's one-use tokens and use it whenever it's available now. I'm kind of a Luddite in some ways (you couldn't pay me to put an Alexa in my house) but in this case the new way is obviously more secure.

personalfinance

Gizen_14

t3_ctr4hi

Clherrick

exmxaon

hethuisje

exoo0nf

I just found out that I owe my former employer $10k. Am I able to fight this? If not, should I apply for a personal loan?

Before I start asking everyone for some advice, I want to first thank this thread for helping as much as you guys have. My parents didn’t have much of an education and weren’t able to teach me anything about finances, so everything I know about PF comes from you. In the 1.5 years since I’ve graduated from college, I’ve been able to pay off $8,000 in student loans, increase my credit score by more than 80 points, contribute to my 401k, open an IRA, and start an emergency fund. What I’m even more grateful for is that I’ve been able to use all of this information to help my parents. Together we decreased their debt, opened them an IRA, automated their payments, and started their first-ever emergency fund. The reason this is not in a Triumphant Thursday, however, is because I was just informed from my past employer that I owe them more than $10,000. With my offer came a relocation stipend. In order to receive this relocation money I had to sign a contract stating that I would repay them the money (plus taxes) if I left within three years. After being in the training program for more than a year, it was obvious that it was not working for either party. My boss informed that I was being let go, but she would let me resign. I then asked if I would still have to repay the relocation stipend. She got back to me and told me that after speaking with HR, I wouldn’t have to repay the money. I moved cities, found a new job, and never looked back…until today. I received a bill from HR telling me I have yet to pay the relocation stipend. I immediately called the HR person who sent me the letter and she was unaware of my situation at all and tells me that my former boss did not have the authority to waive the payment. She insists that I signed the contract and that I have to repay, regardless of what my former boss told me and whether I left voluntarily or involuntarily. 1) I probably know the answer, but is there any way I can fight this? It’s my signed contract vs. a phone call I had with my boss months ago, so I'm not too hopeful. 2) What’re my best options in securing capital to pay it back? I have $600 in my emergency fund (I had a larger amount but I moved to NYC and had to pay a down payment along with my security deposit) and ~$2000 in investments (401k & IRA). I’m assuming I should liquidate all my assets and then apply for a personal loan. Where’s the best place to get one? 3) 23yrs old, $50k income, 9.2k in student loans at average 3.4% interest, Credit score is ~750. Thank you in advance for all the help/advice.

You need to only communicate with them in writing. I also wouldn't agree to pay them back without putting up a fight. Write out a timeline of events, as specifically as you can. Make an appointment with a lawyer (ideally who handles labor law). Review the timeline/your case with lawyer. If you have a shot at fighting it, they'll tell you. It could be as simple as starting slowly....paying for lawyer to write/send a letter on your behalf to the previous employer. The old employer may just decide it's not worth it if it's going to involve time/legal expenses. If that doesn't work, then negotiate a payment plan.

you can definitely fight it, but it might cost you more time and money. maybe post on r/legaladvice (IANAL: it doesn't matter if your former boss had the authority to waive it or not, if you thought he had the authority then you should be okay) Also, send an email back to that HR detailing/recapping your conversation and their response. Start creating a paper trail, even if you don't intend to fight it. if you do pay this back - see if they will prorate the amount, and work with you on a payment plan. explain your income situation, agree to a payment plan that doesn't require you taking out a personal loan.

personalfinance

PresidenteScrambies

t3_5alxqi

JCDexter

d9hik7l

aLx_why

d9hitch

Downturn in Europe Vs. Potential Downturns in US

I was reading a blog post that talked about how the downturn that occurred in Europe in the late thirties was devastating and that investors were wiped out, never to recover again. What factors are present in the US that may bring about a similar situation? - Sovereign debt crisis is one.. - Others? Counter point to the first one - USD is still a reserve currency and US is still an economic powerhouse. The US still has international competitiveness? The US can always debase its currency to be in a better borrowing state? &x200B Interested in this question because everyone gets scared and pulls out money if they think the future is bleak, time and time again, the future isn't as bleak but there is potential for black swan events that may place the US in a late thirties Europe situation. &x200B &x200B

Let's look at reasons why the States might not do so bad Represent 50% of global equities Boast the largest and most modernized military Have massive (and I really mean massive) reserves of land with natural resources Innovation powerhouse for the last 100 years Largest GDP out all other countries by a long shot [And it's the most transparent, especially compared to China]( Have global strike reach and countries dependent on your ability to buy from them The Swiss bank account of all corrupt nations Credit rating literally below god Took two country toppling credit squeeze events without a hiccup Literally, control space communications with most satellites. [US - 533, China - 133]( Yeah, I think the States will be just fine

The EU will eventually disband probably as a result of the global downturn. The PIGs cannot finance their debt and the north can/will not bail them out. We will have PIGxit along with Brexit and maybe Frexit. The euro will tumble. German banks will become insolvent. Asset prices will crater causing more defaults and insolvency. So the US/Trumps unwillingness to continue to go into deeper debt to finance the rest of the worlds growth is like a heroin addict going cold turkey.

investing

snailmailz

t3_b7ui6y

bliss19

ejufc4v

bionista

ejudymt

What would you do if you weren't indexing at all?

Looking to hear from those who are predominantly or completely indexing their portfolios. Seems like a pretty methodical, probabilistic bunch, so your alternatives to indexing must be fairly prudent too, right?

An index ETF is just a tool/shortcut for diversification, which is among the closest one gets to a "free lunch" for improving long term returns without increasing risk, for non-specialist investors. Before there was low cost index funds, human managed mutual funds were the default way for small investors to get diversified returns. The first was MITTX, first offered in the 1924. Putnam investor group has the oldest surving fund PINVX, dating back to 1925. Note- management fees/expense ratios on funds add up for larger investors. There is a tipping point where larger investos can reap additional returns through direct investing, even if it is largely through replication of an index, as transaction fees tend to be less significant than ongoing admin costs at scale.

I would look for a well diversified, low turn-over fund that covers Canada, US, and International (Canadian Investor). Turnover really shouldn't matter in a tax-sheltered investment but I would think more turn-over means more costs meaning higher fees for me. &x200B Basically an index fund except since it's not allowed I would choose an active fund sharing similar beliefs.

investing

philmustang

t3_awjrne

TheEverHumbled

ehn0sfe

davefromsk

ehn9ay1

Are high utility bills an acceptable reason to break a lease early?

I'll give you a little context here, I am a grad student living in a small studio apartment. I moved across the country to come to grad school in the South because I got a full scholarship to a school I am very excited about. Before I accepted their offer I came to visit for a couple days to check out the school and look for an apartment. I had to find an apartment fast because the next time I would be coming back would be on the day I was going to move there. Luckily I found a small studio apartment that had cheap rent and was in a good location. Unfortunately I have since discovered that the utility bills for the apartment, specifically the electric bill, are very very high. My electric bills for the last four moths have been $120,170, $270, and then $70 respectively. I don't spend a lot of time in the apartment, and I turn everything off when I leave. I leave most appliances unplugged when I'm not using them, and only ever have one or two lights on when I'm home. I have a computer I use pretty frequently that is hooked up to a power strip that I turn off if I'm going to be gone for any extended period of time. The house that the apartment is in has central air, and it runs a lot during the hot Southern summer, which I assumed to be the culprit. The problem is that the air conditioner doesn't seem to be particularly effective. It struggles to keep the apartment cool and on hot days it can't seem to get the indoor temperature down to where the thermostat is set. Say it's 99 outside, and I set the thermostat to 75, the actual temperature will hover around 85 all day while the air conditioner chugs away. I brought this up to my landlord, and he had his mechanic look at it, but supposedly they've done all they could to improve the effectiveness of the air conditioner. It's winter now so it has cooled off a bit, but those bills crushed my meager grad student budget. As a student, I live off of student loans that are dispersed four times a year, and my budget is designed to get me from disbursement to disbursement. I'm going to come up short on some bills before my next disbursement in large part because I hadn't budgeted for an electric bill in the hundreds. My peers in similar apartments (and often much larger apartments) pay $40 to keep their apartments cool in the same heat. It's clear that my landlord has no intention of replacing the air conditioner or doing anything more to improve my condition. So my main questions is, is this a reason to break my lease early and find a new place? If challenged, is this a legitimate grievance or am I opening myself up to a whole new world of hassles by trying to leave early?

The problem might not be the AC. Your apartment might be poorly insulated. Honestly. As someone living I those southern summers. I never put the AC below 82. I can't imagine setting it to 75

We experience the same thing in Orlando, the only way to really fix it is insulation, you can pick up reflective material that goes on the windows to redirect sunlight, and because you run the a/c constantly even getting clear film (usually for keeping heat in up north) covers for your single paned windows will help some, if the landlord does this he can even get a discount from the electric company. The other trick is if you want to get out of the lease it's easy enough to show that you got a job 50+ miles away (that's what it is here), then it's legal to break the lease. In other words fake a new job and move.

personalfinance

a-c-moore

t3_2nyf7w

brokenscope

t1_cmi26sv

cmi26sv

Ashe_Faelsdon

t1_cmipode

cmipode

How stupid is it to be in this market with a 2-3 year time horizon?

Instead of just letting my future down payment for a home just sit in a savings account I had the bright idea of finally entering the market to give it a small boost, but I did so at the worst time apparently. Here are my current positions: AAPL NVDA WFC V MSFT SCHK SCHG SCHB BOTZ Just started in October and I’m red across the board right now. Lost a couple hundred bucks and have been putting more in every pay check to at least lower my avg cost. I wouldn’t be concerned if this were for long term, but all of this volatility makes me uneasy with such a short time frame to work with.

TECH is taking a pretty big hit and there is an argument to be made that its is pretty inflated. However, 3 years is a pretty good time frame. Lets play out your worst case scenario and things continue to decline for whatever many various reasons we can pick from. A full blown bear market (20%) losses, the typical bear market recovery is 367 days. So like a year. Given your long time line you would still be OK. NOW! Here's the catch, you got to be able to stomach losses like that and not panic sell thinking you are stopping the bleeding. That is where most people fail. Good luck!

OVER THE NEXT TWO TO THREE YEARS THERE IS A SIGNIFICANT PROBABILITY STOCKS WILL GO DOWN. It is probably less than 50%, but that is too short of a timeline to be invested in assets that should be held for at least 10 years. You've only lost a couple hundred so I'm assuming you don't have too much money saved, but you need to hold stocks for at least 5-10 years.

stocks

JustJeezy

t3_8abgw3

audihead

dwxb7ag

thebub77

dwxottj

Car Insurance - How Often to Switch?

Curious how others handle their car insurance and how often they switch carriers? I am going to start shopping around for another carrier to see if I can get a cheaper rate, but am curious how often you switch your carrier and how you handle when they raise your premiums?

Here's a tip: If you happen to own any Berkshire Hathaway stock, even a fraction of a B share, you can get a huge Geico discount. I get quotes every time our policy is up for renewal from several companies and no one has ever been able to beat Geico in the 6 years we've had the Berkshire discount.

I worked in insurance so I have some insight. Usually I’d say look yearly. If I remember correctly most companies would have rate changes every 3-5 months and usually the client would get hit for the change at renewal. If you have a lot of crap on your record it’s tough to say since most companies don’t want to insure you as you’re a risk but if you drive fairly safe changing companies should always get you a good rate. Also new clients would get the best rates since they get better discounts.

personalfinance

PVM889988

t3_806yld

Oddballforlife

dutucfr

pugmommy4life420

dutwek4

24M and paid off my car, now debt free- what to do about comp/collision auto coverage?

Hi everyone, just looking for some advice here on /r/personalfinance because I recently paid off my car, which is a 4 door sedan from 2014 and its estimated KBB value is still around $12,000. I currently pay quite a lot for auto insurance, $883/6 mo, or around $150/mo. My comprehensive and collision premiums are set at 500/500 as I was required to have that as long as the bank held the title to the vehicle. I'm now debt free and looking to lower my monthly expenses; if I were driving a beater car, I think the choice would be pretty clear, but it's still worth quite a lot so I don't want to drop my coverage completely. Here are my rough savings and expenses: Income: ~ $2200/month Expenses: ~ $1400/month Emergency fund/savings: $6,000 Checking: $2,000 Investments: $3,500 Auto insurance: Current: 500 comprehensive, 500 collision: $883/6 months Possible changes: 1,000 comprehensive, 1,000 collision: $75 savings over 6 month period 2,000 comprehensive, 2,000 collision: $179 savings over 6 month period Drop comprehensive and collision coverage: $533 savings over 6 month period

Whatever you do, do not drop collission and comprehensive off of that car. It's too new and is worth to much. I don't think you should go higher than the 1k deductible either. Really, you should call around to other companies to see if you can get a cheaper rate on the 500 deductible. Insurance companies, at least in regards to cars, don't honor long term customers by lowering their rates. They constantly raise the rates over and over. Check around and see if you can find a cheaper rate, and also call your company and ask if you are missing any discounts. Certain companies give up to 20 percent off just to have your bill and policy emailed to you instead of getting a hard copy.

Like others have mentioned here, I would not drop comp/collision based on the info you've posted here. The car is still worth quite a bit. I'd shop around, calling three or four major insurance companies to see what they can offer you. I'd generally stick with larger companies known to be reputable. Cheapest price =/= best coverage or best value. Stay away from the places offering insurance policies for "$17/month." (Or similar). These don't really exist, and the ones that can come close are absolutely bare bones policies. Things that have an affect on your rate in a nutshell are: the area you live your age who lives in your household with you your car driving history (accidents and tickets) length of time you've had continuous insurance coverage Source: am licensed insurance agent in 27 states

personalfinance

panda531

t3_55tp1h

veganbum

d8djv3x

glide_right_by

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I am 17 and this is my current plan for life. I seek suggestions/thoughs/guidance on how to procced in successful actions.

Ok so this is all i have planned and thought abοut my future. Opportunity 1 Ok so my father currently has his own business. It is related with selling wine which is a product that "doesnt die" on the market. He has also invested there and it is generally a job i could follow on and do which i would really like and could provide me a descent income , even when i m studying in the univsersity. Opportunity 2 So as i said i m going to university next year and i want to study programming , i really like it. As a result finding a job related to it is the second opportunity. Drawbacks of first opportunity : Even if it is job that can provide me a great income , follow great responsibilities that reach the point where you work for 12 hours a day in order keep your clients satisfied.Trust me i know that.Meaning even if u have the paper u ll have limited to time to go travel around the world or take a break.In other words - enough money - no time. Drawbacks of second opportunity : Since i live in Greece there is not much of hiring staff around. And as much as i d love to programming i d probably have to move abroad in order to find a job with a descent income. My final thought is to study programming while gettting to know my father's job better , get experience and work there half time while studying.After that continue with his job and have programming as a hobby for my self which could turn out in a job thing in case i need a back up, which i think i wont.So programming better stay as a hobby. All in all , good thing with wine thing job is that you are a boss of your own and can manage around your play in the buisness. Maybe after a bit of planning better in the future , be able to find time for travels too. Programming will always be a second solution i think which i could use in many ways. Thanks for reading. What are your thoughts/suggestions/ideas/guidance for me ? Thanks again

Go to university. Study/major in business, minor in Computer Science, or vice-versa. Programming is something you can do anywhere, and if you show promise, you can be hired to do freelance from your home. Business theory will help you to expand your business or perhaps better understand the processes you may experience as a business owner. I know from experience that learning from professionals with mastery will improve your ability in both fields. Additionally, please make sure to improve your communication and composition skills. While among the less marketable skills, without it, you will fail. I don't care if you learn these in English or Greek. Become comfortable with reading the classics, with trying to understand art, with practicing music. These are things you can do passively that will aid you immensely and develop your inner personality. Being a human is such a gift, and it is so wonderful to have cognitive experiences. Don't take them for granted. Manage your time well, invest yourself in the things you believe matter, and best of luck.

A wine shop just opened in my neighborhood. The guy who opened it was a computer programmer for years (in his 40's) he hated it and left for his true passion of wine.

personalfinance

DefinitelyNotCake

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Worth balance transferring something to a 0% interest card?

I got my first credit card last year and I jumped at the opportunity. It was a small $500 limit card through Capital One, and it was just something for me to throw gas in the car and what not. Fast forward a year now, they've upped my limit a bit and I now have around $750 limit on it. I have a 25% interest rate. I use it now for lunch most days and what not. I've racked up a small amount on it($400 or so) and I'm paying it off in chunks. I just recently got something in the mail from discover(one of those spam fake credit card things) and I sat down and read into it. This card that I called about has an 18% interest rate after the first year, 0% intro APR for the first 14 months, 0% fee on balance transfers for the first year, cash back on all purchases with rotating bonus purchases, etc. Would it be worth balance transferring my $400~ or so debt to this new card and paying it off with no interest? I don't want to mess anything up with my credit score by doing anything wrong. I'm currently at a 714 TransUnion and 664 Equifax. I have a 707 FICO score based on Discover's Scorecard. Any help would be greatly appreciated as I normally don't handle any of the money situations.

Adding another card could improve your credit score as it will increase your total available credit and decrease utilization. There could be a small hit from the hard inquiry but that will go away in about 6 months. In short balance transferring to another card could save you a little on interest. Keep in mind most of those balance transfer cards charge you a fee to transfer a balance, so there could be a one time hit when you first transfer it over. The more important thing though is that you pay your balance off in full and no longer carry a revolving debt.

balance transfer charges a transaction fee the transaction fee is pretty low and definitely beats your rate transfer it over and pay it off (it was 1.5% for me). just be good about it (divide the months that it is interest free, then just make that payment each month). i bought my car on credit card, and since it was a used car, it was way cheaper than trying to finance it... though my car payment is amusingly high... expect to take a hit when you carry that balance though... my score dropped well over 100 points due to the utilization being high...

personalfinance

Bewmkin

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As a single person, should I claim more on my W2?

I currently claim 1 and I usually get back a small refund every year. Should I start claiming more and taking that extra money and investing it (of course saving a certain amount for paying back taxes in April) instead of giving the government and interest free loan every year?

Everyone is saying W-2, I think you mean W-4. You should definitely adjust your W-4 withholding allowances to minimize your refund. Otherwise you are lending the government money at a 0% interest rate.

financial guy here who has dealt with some tax issues: Claiming dependents is for withholding purposes. there is no fraud in what you number you choose to have withheld. when you file your taxes in April, you will note 1, for yourself and the amount of money you owe to the govt will be determined (after proper deductions)

personalfinance

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OldCheswick

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How much are the medical expenses for childbirth?

My wife and I are on track to being debt free by the time we are 30 (Hurray!). Next goal- children! What should I expect when it comes to the medical expenses involved in child birth? How should I prepare? What type of insurance coverage should I make sure we have? I have no clue when it comes to any of this, so all advice is appreciated.

Family Doc here. Highly variable. You may want to read this article which goes into some typical numbers: However, the question really should be directed at your insurance company and not reddit as the biggest factor of your out of pocket expense will depend on your insurance plan. I will say this, do not plan on having a child without insurance. I've worked in a hospital and I've seen multiple cases in the NICU with bills over $1 million.

This is more covering the pregnancy, birth and first couple months based on our experience with our son. This is more for once you're closer, but talk with your insurance provider about what things will cost during the pregnancy/delivery. Plan on probably $1,000 for the different ultrasounds and tests throughout the course of the pregnancy. Add in the cost of any classes you might take (highly recommend taking some, even if you don't think you'll need them). Your actual cost for the birth and postpartum will depend on your insurance, hospital, and the delivery itself. My wife had to be induced, had some slight complications during labor/after delivery, and we were in the hospital for 4 days. Out of pocket cost was about $2,300 after insurance but we may still have another bill coming from the anesthesiologist that was $8,000 before we sent them our insurance info. If you're interested in using a doula, that will have an additional cost as well. Talk to your employers about parental leave and figure out what kind of time off and compensation you'll get. Look into childcare costs in your area. For us it's $900 and we're on the cheap end. One of the places we looked would have been $1350. Start looking early. In our area there's a huge demand and not enough supply. We had to start looking when my wife was 2 months pregnant. We looked at 5 different daycares and only 2 could guarantee that they'd have openings when it was time for our son to start 9 months later. The rest were either full or put us on a waiting list. Started getting calls back from the wait list places after our son was already in daycare. Plan on spending anywhere from $75-$125 per month for diapers. This will change as they age. At daycare they'll change the baby less than you probably would at home and you'll notice you aren't buying diapers as much. If you're doing formula, you'll have to account for that. And any other baby food once they're on solids (we're just getting into that.. so far it has cost us $2). If you're planning on breastfeeding, plan on paying for extra snacks. Women's metabolisms kick into high gear while breastfeeding. I would also plan on $100-200 of misc. baby expenses for the first few months. You don't know how they're going to grow or how big they'll be when they come out. You don't know what kind of things they'll be receptive to (swaddles, swings, white noise, bath time, blankets, pacifiers, etc.). No matter how well you think you're prepared after your baby showers, you'll still find things that you need. You'll be able to save money on things like eating out and going out to do things because you'll do them a lot less frequently, but when you do go out it will likely be more expensive unless you have a free babysitter.

personalfinance

hitechredneck1590

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Good idea to drop 15k at once on my student loan?

Hi PFer, long time lurker here, and let me just say thank you for all the wonderful financial advice this subreddit has given me :) So my situation is this: I'm reaching a point in my savings account where I can fully pay off the remainder of my student loan debt, which will both be around 15k in a few months. At the moment, I'm putting $500/month towards my loan (min is 240) but I'm only able to pay double this time around because I got a new better paying job. I've also been putting $1000 each month in savings. Student loans are overall about 6.8%. What are your thoughts on cleaning out my savings to 0 so that I can finally get rid of this debt once and for all? Keep in mind I have no other debt, no car payment...etc. I also fully max out my Roth IRA and contribute to 401k at least to match. I won't have an immediate emergency fund but my 3 credit cards I do have (Amex, master, visa) have a total credit limit of $71k. So I'm thinking that can be used as my emergency fund IF something bad happens (hopefully it doesn't!) Just not sure what to do at this point, I know my loan isn't too much, but I still feel chained to it. Any advice appreciated... Thank you all!! EDIT: wow!!! Thank you all so much for your advice, this is seriously incredibly helpful for me, and in fact adds some validation to some tactics I wanted to do in the first place. A little background of this helps: I'm 26, living in Los Angeles working as a UI designer for a tech company. Annual income is 100k. Rent at my apartment is $1400, and I also give my mom $200 a month to help pay mortage at my parents house. I have a decent car that doesn't break too often, but I do commute to work and spend around 50-60 on gas per week. I have no other debt besides student loans, I wiped out 10k in CC debt not too long ago which I'm really proud. Max Roth IRA and contribute 401k up to match. What I think I'll do is keep 5k, throw 10k at the loan, and pay 1000/month until loan is gone while putting 500/month back into my savings... Essentially swapping the values. Then when it's all done, put $1500/month straight into my savings and I will no longer have the headache of giving sallie Mae my money!

Instead of waiting to have a full amount, why don't you just leave about $2K buffer in your savings account, and put everything else towards the student loans immediately. After that, until the loans are fully paid off, keep your emergency fund at $2k, and keep putting every available penny towards your loans. Makes no sense to keep money in the low interest savings, while you're accruing a lot of interest on your student loans.

You can withdraw your Roth contributions if there's a real emergency. Since you'd free up $500/month to go with the $1000 you're already saving, you're in a great place. You also have the back up credit in case there is something short term. Do you have wife/kids/house to worry about? If not, I"d wipe it out now. That stuff accrues interest daily.

personalfinance

heythequickness

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My Manager Cut My Hours to Give his son more hours?!

Okay, so I’ve been working part time at a restaurant for almost 8 months now, and the situations been up and down. Usually the assistant manager makes the schedule and has been giving me four days a week and I’ll work for about 15ish hours, but recently, I’ve been working 3 days a week and at first I said I’ll give it time it must be a labor thing, but today I found out the manager has been making the schedules to increase his son’s hours >:(. The manager is an asshole and his son is lazy. I want to call th assistant manager and say something like : hey is it possible I can work four days a week again? I won’t be confrontational or anything but it’s bullshit that everyone who was hired around the same time I am is working four days a week and I’m the only one who’s not. I am overthinking this? Or is it smart to call and bring it up.

Don't approach it from a why is the son getting hours and just be real, ask for more shifts explain that you like working here but need more hours to pay xxxxxx bills to live. They will be less likely to be defensive and you still have a chance at getting time back.

Honestly a similar thing happened to me when I worked at a New England coffee chain. I was getting a solid amount of hours for a couple months until this guy started working again, then my hours were cut in half. He had taken the entire football season off and was still in high school, I was a college student with bills to pay and had never been able to just take a whole quarter off work to play sports. I guess I felt like I was entitled to the hours and for good reason because for the next two weeks when I came in my co-workers would tell me how awful he was and how little work he did and how he didn't know what he had been doing and I mysteriously got my hours back. Long story short it's because your manager sucks and isnt going to change. Polish up your resume and look for more solid work.

personalfinance

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How would you teach someone with no experience to invest in stocks?

I'm building an app to educate inexperienced investors about the stock market and helping them build their own portfolio. Where would you start if you were in my shoes and what kinds of tools and topics would you consider absolutely critical?

How to identify when a stock is overpriced and those that are fair value Golden rules to follow (e.g. why investing in penny stocks is not a good idea) Learning the concept of support and resistance Learning to identify when a stock is being hyped up and why it's generally a good idea to stay away from IPO's Identifying the different type of stocks on the market (dividend vs growth stocks) and how they can tailor to different types of investment strategies

It was like discovering America when I learned how to properly short a stock. It added so much to my market perspective and helped me better pick stocks to buy as well.

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Anarcho_Capitalist

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