Split (2)

train · 300k rows

conversation stringlengths 56 26.4k
User (dustwads_101): "I am 26 living in Canada. I have about $12K in savings and no debt. I pay all of my bills on time and have a stable paycheque every two weeks of $1300. I have read some of the guides and would like to start an emergency fund. I find that I have made budgets and spreadsheets and I have trouble sticking to them after a few months and then stop paying attention and fall 50, 60, $100 into overdraft every few months. I am looking for advice on how to manage better especially in regards to daily spending habits." Self: "What categories in your budget do you have problem adhering to?" User (dustwads_101): "Food is generally the kicker. If I eat out at a sit-down restaurant even once in a month it leaves me scrambling. I had never planned for it. Fast food does not help either. I had originally budgeted for once a week and the reality is closer to 2-3. Sure, $10 at a time doesn't seem like a lot, but it adds up. I can cook, I just travel a lot.\n\nAnother stressor is my cell phone bill. Without data, I can reduce it to 60$ a month after tax. With a data package, it is closer to $85. A few times last year I traveled to the US and incurred huge overage fees in the $200 dollar range. Poor planning on my part absolutely, but I needed to keep in touch with family and emotions took over." Self: "If you change your budget to reflect these realities, do you still have enough money for your life plans? If you can't afford to eat out even once, you should find some other places in your budget to cut.\n\nAre your travels for business or personal?\n\nWhen you travel internationally, you should use WiFi in lieu of roaming data plan. You can use a VoIP provider or voice/video chat services to keep in touch with family.\n\n"
User (PurplePango): "I don't think you have to put the contribution on your tax return, so how does the government know whether or not you contributed more than allowed, or made a contribution at all if you're above the income limit. Seems like it wouldn't be til an audit which could be 30 years later and would also be very difficult to track since you don't have to report the contribution." Self: "You may find these links helpful:\n\n- [Retirement Accounts](https://www.reddit.com/r/personalfinance/wiki/index#wiki_retirement_accounts) (articles on 401(k) plans, IRAs, and more)\n- ["How to handle $"](http://www.reddit.com/r/personalfinance/wiki/commontopics)\n\nI am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/personalfinance) if you have any questions or concerns."
User (PurplePango): "I don't think you have to put the contribution on your tax return, so how does the government know whether or not you contributed more than allowed, or made a contribution at all if you're above the income limit. Seems like it wouldn't be til an audit which could be 30 years later and would also be very difficult to track since you don't have to report the contribution." Self: "The brokers send a report to the irs in may" User (PurplePango): "And then they would check that against your reported income?" whiteraven4 (whiteraven4): "They can."
User (PurplePango): "I don't think you have to put the contribution on your tax return, so how does the government know whether or not you contributed more than allowed, or made a contribution at all if you're above the income limit. Seems like it wouldn't be til an audit which could be 30 years later and would also be very difficult to track since you don't have to report the contribution." Self: "The brokers send a report to the irs in may" User (PurplePango): "And then they would check that against your reported income?" DeluxeXL (DeluxeXL): "When you get your Forms W-2 (wage report) or 1099 (self employment report), and 5498 (IRA contribution report), the IRS also gets a copy of those. They can tell if you have enough/too much income to legally contribute."
User (financialplatypus): "Wondering if anyone might be able to help me here. I have 3 private student loans totaling somewhere between $40,000-$50,000 through different lenders. My parents went into a bankruptcy a few years ago and by rule that put these into deferment which will become default when the bankruptcy ends next year. I'd like to get some loans to send these for payment but obviously I know my options are limited. \n\nI know I can't get a traditional student loan consolidation because the debt is not in 'good standing' and I also ended up dropping out of school when my financial aid dried up. I do have a 750 credit score and $100k salary going for me so I wonder if there are any personal loan options. Looking at things like Lending Club or just asking a bank for a line of credit. I have about $50,000 in unused credit card limits (I churn...) but this seems like a horrendous solution to the problem. \n\nI have no problem actually paying these loans if they were in normal standing, but because of my parents poor financial decisions and my dad being cosigner I'm risking ruining my credit and finances if I can't come up with a way to do this.\n\nI guess my second option would be to try to pay these out of pocket, but if I skimped and scraped I probably would come up with $15,000 or so at most by the time these default, which wouldn't be enough to save me.\n\n\nAlso wondering if consulting an attorney to deal with these 3 companies I owe the debt to would be a wise move. Mostly they tell me since it's in bankruptcy (even though it won't get discharged) they can't give me much information or even confirm receipt of payments, so I want to make sure these get paid off. " Self: "You may find these links helpful:\n\n- [Student Loans wiki page](http://www.reddit.com/r/personalfinance/wiki/studentloans)\n- ["How to handle $"](http://www.reddit.com/r/personalfinance/wiki/commontopics)\n- [What's the best way to pay down my debt?](http://www.reddit.com/r/personalfinance/wiki/debt#wiki_what.27s_the_best_way_to_pay_down_my_debt.3F)\n\nI am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/personalfinance) if you have any questions or concerns."
User (financialplatypus): "Wondering if anyone might be able to help me here. I have 3 private student loans totaling somewhere between $40,000-$50,000 through different lenders. My parents went into a bankruptcy a few years ago and by rule that put these into deferment which will become default when the bankruptcy ends next year. I'd like to get some loans to send these for payment but obviously I know my options are limited. \n\nI know I can't get a traditional student loan consolidation because the debt is not in 'good standing' and I also ended up dropping out of school when my financial aid dried up. I do have a 750 credit score and $100k salary going for me so I wonder if there are any personal loan options. Looking at things like Lending Club or just asking a bank for a line of credit. I have about $50,000 in unused credit card limits (I churn...) but this seems like a horrendous solution to the problem. \n\nI have no problem actually paying these loans if they were in normal standing, but because of my parents poor financial decisions and my dad being cosigner I'm risking ruining my credit and finances if I can't come up with a way to do this.\n\nI guess my second option would be to try to pay these out of pocket, but if I skimped and scraped I probably would come up with $15,000 or so at most by the time these default, which wouldn't be enough to save me.\n\n\nAlso wondering if consulting an attorney to deal with these 3 companies I owe the debt to would be a wise move. Mostly they tell me since it's in bankruptcy (even though it won't get discharged) they can't give me much information or even confirm receipt of payments, so I want to make sure these get paid off. " Self: "Lending Club or a bank are likely your best bets (unless you own a home and can get a HELOC). If it doesn't look like a loan will close in time, you could use your credit cards as a temp stop gap."
User (financialplatypus): "Wondering if anyone might be able to help me here. I have 3 private student loans totaling somewhere between $40,000-$50,000 through different lenders. My parents went into a bankruptcy a few years ago and by rule that put these into deferment which will become default when the bankruptcy ends next year. I'd like to get some loans to send these for payment but obviously I know my options are limited. \n\nI know I can't get a traditional student loan consolidation because the debt is not in 'good standing' and I also ended up dropping out of school when my financial aid dried up. I do have a 750 credit score and $100k salary going for me so I wonder if there are any personal loan options. Looking at things like Lending Club or just asking a bank for a line of credit. I have about $50,000 in unused credit card limits (I churn...) but this seems like a horrendous solution to the problem. \n\nI have no problem actually paying these loans if they were in normal standing, but because of my parents poor financial decisions and my dad being cosigner I'm risking ruining my credit and finances if I can't come up with a way to do this.\n\nI guess my second option would be to try to pay these out of pocket, but if I skimped and scraped I probably would come up with $15,000 or so at most by the time these default, which wouldn't be enough to save me.\n\n\nAlso wondering if consulting an attorney to deal with these 3 companies I owe the debt to would be a wise move. Mostly they tell me since it's in bankruptcy (even though it won't get discharged) they can't give me much information or even confirm receipt of payments, so I want to make sure these get paid off. " Self: "I had a similar thing happen as I was applying to refinance mine... which caused my refinance to be denied. \n\nMine are coming out to default soon so I'm interested in this topic as well. "
User (iwantobewealthy): "This is a temporary account, because I don't feel comfortable posting on my regular account.\n\nI have recently inherited $50,000, tax free (estate), due to the death of a family member. Unfortunately, I never receive proper guidance on how to invest, budget or overall plan for an influx of money. I'd like to say I am looking for long-term planning but I wouldn't mind modest suggestions for short-term or mid-term planning as well. \n\nThank you /r/personalfinance for your [Windfall section](https://www.reddit.com/r/personalfinance/wiki/windfall) amd [Common Topics Area](https://www.reddit.com/r/personalfinance/wiki/commontopics). I'll be reading up on those this weekend.\n\nCurrent #s:\n\n* Savings: $17,000\n* Inheritance: $50,000\n* Roth IRA: $5,271.69\n\nThings to note:\n\n* 24yo\n* No debt\n* Not married\n* No children\n* Do not own property/real estate \n* No 401K plan active or inactive\n* Self-employed/business owner under an S-Corp filing a Schedule K-1 tax form annually\n\nShould I be investing in other areas besides a Roth IRA? If so, what would benefit me over the long-term.\n\nI need help with planning for the future as I'd like to nurture a 'nest egg' for myself and hopefully eventual a wife and child (maybe in my 30s).\n\nPlease help." Self: "You may find these links helpful:\n\n- [Retirement Accounts](https://www.reddit.com/r/personalfinance/wiki/index#wiki_retirement_accounts) (articles on 401(k) plans, IRAs, and more)\n- ["How to handle $"](http://www.reddit.com/r/personalfinance/wiki/commontopics)\n\nI am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/personalfinance) if you have any questions or concerns."
User (iwantobewealthy): "This is a temporary account, because I don't feel comfortable posting on my regular account.\n\nI have recently inherited $50,000, tax free (estate), due to the death of a family member. Unfortunately, I never receive proper guidance on how to invest, budget or overall plan for an influx of money. I'd like to say I am looking for long-term planning but I wouldn't mind modest suggestions for short-term or mid-term planning as well. \n\nThank you /r/personalfinance for your [Windfall section](https://www.reddit.com/r/personalfinance/wiki/windfall) amd [Common Topics Area](https://www.reddit.com/r/personalfinance/wiki/commontopics). I'll be reading up on those this weekend.\n\nCurrent #s:\n\n* Savings: $17,000\n* Inheritance: $50,000\n* Roth IRA: $5,271.69\n\nThings to note:\n\n* 24yo\n* No debt\n* Not married\n* No children\n* Do not own property/real estate \n* No 401K plan active or inactive\n* Self-employed/business owner under an S-Corp filing a Schedule K-1 tax form annually\n\nShould I be investing in other areas besides a Roth IRA? If so, what would benefit me over the long-term.\n\nI need help with planning for the future as I'd like to nurture a 'nest egg' for myself and hopefully eventual a wife and child (maybe in my 30s).\n\nPlease help." Self: "Can't give advice, but I just wanted to say I'm sorry for your loss. \n\nEdit: why the downvotes? Am I not allowed to give my condolences to someone who lost a family member?" User (iwantobewealthy): "Thank you, I greatly appreciate your words."
User (iwantobewealthy): "This is a temporary account, because I don't feel comfortable posting on my regular account.\n\nI have recently inherited $50,000, tax free (estate), due to the death of a family member. Unfortunately, I never receive proper guidance on how to invest, budget or overall plan for an influx of money. I'd like to say I am looking for long-term planning but I wouldn't mind modest suggestions for short-term or mid-term planning as well. \n\nThank you /r/personalfinance for your [Windfall section](https://www.reddit.com/r/personalfinance/wiki/windfall) amd [Common Topics Area](https://www.reddit.com/r/personalfinance/wiki/commontopics). I'll be reading up on those this weekend.\n\nCurrent #s:\n\n* Savings: $17,000\n* Inheritance: $50,000\n* Roth IRA: $5,271.69\n\nThings to note:\n\n* 24yo\n* No debt\n* Not married\n* No children\n* Do not own property/real estate \n* No 401K plan active or inactive\n* Self-employed/business owner under an S-Corp filing a Schedule K-1 tax form annually\n\nShould I be investing in other areas besides a Roth IRA? If so, what would benefit me over the long-term.\n\nI need help with planning for the future as I'd like to nurture a 'nest egg' for myself and hopefully eventual a wife and child (maybe in my 30s).\n\nPlease help." Self: "Can't give advice, but you may wish to look into precious metals right now. Prices are LOW, you can easily net a 25% increase if you buy silver or gold right now and just sit tight. I would recommend 5-10K in precious metals. They are untracebale, easily liquidable, and are currently in a LOW part of the market. It's basically like having cash that slowly accrues value. \n\nYou may also want to look into other commodities right now. Commodity prices are at a very low value right now - mining shares etc seem quite resonable - although you missed the bottom of that market. \n\nI would avoid any "mainstream" stocks, and stay the hell away from bonds.\n\nReal estate is probably a terrible idea right now, as the market is at an all time high - wait until the coming crash to buy a home.\n\nThe only good buys in the market right now seem to be commodities in my opinon, everything else is overpriced and due for a big correction.\n\nTBH real estate is a great idea if you can get a rental property - a decent hedge against inflation as well - but unfortunately prices are just absurd in the big bubble areas.\n\nYou should keep some of that in cash as well, maybe 5k or so - you never know if there's going to be a bank holiday.\n\nGood luck, the market is highly complex and we are nearing a market reversal and possible sovern debt crisis in europe.\n\n"
User (iwantobewealthy): "This is a temporary account, because I don't feel comfortable posting on my regular account.\n\nI have recently inherited $50,000, tax free (estate), due to the death of a family member. Unfortunately, I never receive proper guidance on how to invest, budget or overall plan for an influx of money. I'd like to say I am looking for long-term planning but I wouldn't mind modest suggestions for short-term or mid-term planning as well. \n\nThank you /r/personalfinance for your [Windfall section](https://www.reddit.com/r/personalfinance/wiki/windfall) amd [Common Topics Area](https://www.reddit.com/r/personalfinance/wiki/commontopics). I'll be reading up on those this weekend.\n\nCurrent #s:\n\n* Savings: $17,000\n* Inheritance: $50,000\n* Roth IRA: $5,271.69\n\nThings to note:\n\n* 24yo\n* No debt\n* Not married\n* No children\n* Do not own property/real estate \n* No 401K plan active or inactive\n* Self-employed/business owner under an S-Corp filing a Schedule K-1 tax form annually\n\nShould I be investing in other areas besides a Roth IRA? If so, what would benefit me over the long-term.\n\nI need help with planning for the future as I'd like to nurture a 'nest egg' for myself and hopefully eventual a wife and child (maybe in my 30s).\n\nPlease help." Self: "Get a brokerage acct. Put it in low expense ratio ETF's. Forget you have it. "
User (iwantobewealthy): "This is a temporary account, because I don't feel comfortable posting on my regular account.\n\nI have recently inherited $50,000, tax free (estate), due to the death of a family member. Unfortunately, I never receive proper guidance on how to invest, budget or overall plan for an influx of money. I'd like to say I am looking for long-term planning but I wouldn't mind modest suggestions for short-term or mid-term planning as well. \n\nThank you /r/personalfinance for your [Windfall section](https://www.reddit.com/r/personalfinance/wiki/windfall) amd [Common Topics Area](https://www.reddit.com/r/personalfinance/wiki/commontopics). I'll be reading up on those this weekend.\n\nCurrent #s:\n\n* Savings: $17,000\n* Inheritance: $50,000\n* Roth IRA: $5,271.69\n\nThings to note:\n\n* 24yo\n* No debt\n* Not married\n* No children\n* Do not own property/real estate \n* No 401K plan active or inactive\n* Self-employed/business owner under an S-Corp filing a Schedule K-1 tax form annually\n\nShould I be investing in other areas besides a Roth IRA? If so, what would benefit me over the long-term.\n\nI need help with planning for the future as I'd like to nurture a 'nest egg' for myself and hopefully eventual a wife and child (maybe in my 30s).\n\nPlease help." Self: "Can't give advice, but I just wanted to say I'm sorry for your loss. \n\nEdit: why the downvotes? Am I not allowed to give my condolences to someone who lost a family member?" Jacktheraperz (Jacktheraperz): "Just mention something like contact a professional financial adviser and then give your condolences. Kill two birds with one stone... I'm sorry OP, that came out wrong. " Self: "I'm fifteen, I really have no financial experience. I can offer some advice every 1 in 1000 posts, but it's not top level."
User (iwantobewealthy): "This is a temporary account, because I don't feel comfortable posting on my regular account.\n\nI have recently inherited $50,000, tax free (estate), due to the death of a family member. Unfortunately, I never receive proper guidance on how to invest, budget or overall plan for an influx of money. I'd like to say I am looking for long-term planning but I wouldn't mind modest suggestions for short-term or mid-term planning as well. \n\nThank you /r/personalfinance for your [Windfall section](https://www.reddit.com/r/personalfinance/wiki/windfall) amd [Common Topics Area](https://www.reddit.com/r/personalfinance/wiki/commontopics). I'll be reading up on those this weekend.\n\nCurrent #s:\n\n* Savings: $17,000\n* Inheritance: $50,000\n* Roth IRA: $5,271.69\n\nThings to note:\n\n* 24yo\n* No debt\n* Not married\n* No children\n* Do not own property/real estate \n* No 401K plan active or inactive\n* Self-employed/business owner under an S-Corp filing a Schedule K-1 tax form annually\n\nShould I be investing in other areas besides a Roth IRA? If so, what would benefit me over the long-term.\n\nI need help with planning for the future as I'd like to nurture a 'nest egg' for myself and hopefully eventual a wife and child (maybe in my 30s).\n\nPlease help." Self: "Is any of the inheritance in the format of a IRA or Roth IRA (in the name of the deceased)? IF SO, you'll have some very specific steps to take to transfer those funds into a "Inherited IRA/Roth IRA". Check out the results on this google search for the term [inheriting an ira](https://www.google.com/search?q=inheriting+an+ira).\n\nIF the funds in the inheritance is NOT in a IRA or Roth IRA, I would consider this approach given your age:\n\n* $5,500 - Max out your 2016 Roth IRA contribution\n* $5,500 - Max out your 2017 Roth IRA contribution\n* $39,000 - Invest in a Non-Retirement Index Fund Portfolio with the following allocation:\n\n\n$5,000 - Total Bond Fund \n\n$14,000 - 500 Index Fund\n\n$10,000 - Equity Dividend Income Index Fund\n\n$5,000 - NASDAQ Index Fund\n\n$5,000 - International Index Fund\n\n\nWhy I did the above?\nI like a keep it simple approach and lean towards mutual funds personally. Are these the perfect balanced portfolio. No way. Fidelity offers a ton of [low-cost index funds](https://www.fidelity.com/mutual-funds/fidelity-funds/why-index-funds) and even lays out hypothetical portfolios based on your [risk tolerance](https://www.fidelity.com/mutual-funds/fidelity-fund-portfolios/overview). I also imagine that sometime in the next 10 years you may need to sell off some of the assets in the remaining $39,000 to fund a down payment on a house. By keeping the investments in a non-retirement account, you'll be able to do this. I'm comfortable investing in these selections and not worry about 6-12 month losses at any time since you didn't mention any interest in saving for a house in the near term. IF you were going to purchase a house sometime in the next 1-2 years, I'd be more conservative in my recommended mutual funds such as Bond Index or the Equity Dividend Income Index Fund. \n\nYour light on funding your retirement. Give yourself a shot in the arm and allow those Roth IRA funds to grow tax-deferred for the next 50 years. Yowzers!\n\nSorry for your loss.\n\nnote:\n\nNot sure off the top my head if the Roth IRA max is $5,500 or $6,000 or a different amount.\n"
User (JesterOfTheSwamp): "I've been considering investing in a solar energy mutual fund for awhile now. My time horizon for this fund is easily 10+ years. Does anyone have any insight on these funds? Any recommendations?" Self: "You may find these links helpful:\n\n- ["How to handle $"](http://www.reddit.com/r/personalfinance/wiki/commontopics)\n- [Investing wiki page](http://www.reddit.com/r/personalfinance/wiki/investing)\n\nI am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/personalfinance) if you have any questions or concerns."
User (JesterOfTheSwamp): "I've been considering investing in a solar energy mutual fund for awhile now. My time horizon for this fund is easily 10+ years. Does anyone have any insight on these funds? Any recommendations?" Self: "What percent of this is of your overall portfolio? If it is over 5-10%, it would be nuts to put all your eggs in one basket like this. "
User (JesterOfTheSwamp): "I've been considering investing in a solar energy mutual fund for awhile now. My time horizon for this fund is easily 10+ years. Does anyone have any insight on these funds? Any recommendations?" Self: "Of course not. Lack of diversification is a real issue. It's like investing in just a tiny slice of a sector ETF. It isn't even a sector with a history of amazing gains. "
User (JesterOfTheSwamp): "I've been considering investing in a solar energy mutual fund for awhile now. My time horizon for this fund is easily 10+ years. Does anyone have any insight on these funds? Any recommendations?" Self: "TIL solar energy mutual funds exist. \n\na quick google search found that the Fidelity solar fund has a less than impressive history of ~4% annual growth since the fund was created in 1989. \n\nhttps://fundresearch.fidelity.com/mutual-funds/performance-and-risk/316390574\n\n\nso not the best investment option. \n\n" alzirrizla (alzirrizla): "i am no expert but i am guessing the OP is thinking forward not backwards...4% from 1989 might be expected as there was little usage or advancements... however with recent advancements in solar energy and the growing popularity of alternative power both in home and business usage... these funds might be cheaper to buy now and wait for better returns in 10+ years? ... i wouldn't bet the farm on it but a small risk now might be worth it in 10+ years..\n\n*edit to be clear i wouldn't make an investment that would jeopardize my retirement fund but i would be willing to invest what i was willing to lose..."
User (JesterOfTheSwamp): "I've been considering investing in a solar energy mutual fund for awhile now. My time horizon for this fund is easily 10+ years. Does anyone have any insight on these funds? Any recommendations?" Self: "Assuming that 80 percent or more of your holdings are in an S&P 500 or total market fund, if you wanted to take a flier on solar with maybe 3-5 percent, that's probably a reasonable risk.\n\nDo not miss the key that trying to pick winners is not often a good idea, so you want the bulk of your investing to be in indexes. That said, sometimes you get comfortable with a trend that isn't well represented in indexes (e.g. solar, GPUs in the machine learning space). On the other hand, if you like Apple, google, or Amazon, buy QQQ and capture most of the potential upside with the benefits of some diversification. \n\n2016 has been a really ugly year for solar stocks, and 2017 won't likely be better until it becomes clearer whether 2018 will be better for them. If I were investing in this area, I'd be looking for a company positioned (technology and balance sheet) to survive the carnage, and that's probably First Solar (do your own research, of course). " User (JesterOfTheSwamp): "Thanks for your reply. What is QQQ? Also, am I thinking unclearly when I actually like to hear solar stocks have not done well this year? I figure I'd be buying in at low prices, and with the intention to ride it out for 10+ years and with the diversification of a solar mutual fund, this appeals to me. Is my rationale incorrect?" FatalDosesOfOsmosis (FatalDosesOfOsmosis): "> What is QQQ? \n\nType QQQ into google and you will quickly see it's PowerShares QQQ Trust, Series 1 (ETF)"
User (JesterOfTheSwamp): "I've been considering investing in a solar energy mutual fund for awhile now. My time horizon for this fund is easily 10+ years. Does anyone have any insight on these funds? Any recommendations?" Self: "Look at Wunder Capital for an alternative way to invest in solar. It's fixed-income, but decent return.\n\nhttps://www.wundercapital.com/"
User (JesterOfTheSwamp): "I've been considering investing in a solar energy mutual fund for awhile now. My time horizon for this fund is easily 10+ years. Does anyone have any insight on these funds? Any recommendations?" Self: "Assuming that 80 percent or more of your holdings are in an S&P 500 or total market fund, if you wanted to take a flier on solar with maybe 3-5 percent, that's probably a reasonable risk.\n\nDo not miss the key that trying to pick winners is not often a good idea, so you want the bulk of your investing to be in indexes. That said, sometimes you get comfortable with a trend that isn't well represented in indexes (e.g. solar, GPUs in the machine learning space). On the other hand, if you like Apple, google, or Amazon, buy QQQ and capture most of the potential upside with the benefits of some diversification. \n\n2016 has been a really ugly year for solar stocks, and 2017 won't likely be better until it becomes clearer whether 2018 will be better for them. If I were investing in this area, I'd be looking for a company positioned (technology and balance sheet) to survive the carnage, and that's probably First Solar (do your own research, of course). " User (JesterOfTheSwamp): "Thanks for your reply. What is QQQ? Also, am I thinking unclearly when I actually like to hear solar stocks have not done well this year? I figure I'd be buying in at low prices, and with the intention to ride it out for 10+ years and with the diversification of a solar mutual fund, this appeals to me. Is my rationale incorrect?" Self: "Another commenter answered the QQQ question. Feed him or her a delicious upvote. \n\nIf the prices were merely low because they were on sale, that would be fine. However, prices are low because there are a lot of negative trends for solar in the short term, including eroding product advantages against Chinese competition, expiring subsidy programs that aren't likely to be extended, and low oil and natural gas prices that aren't likely to meaningfully increase in the near future. That's likely to drive some weaker a firms into bankruptcy or the arms of vulture acquirers. \n\nA mutual fund would diversify away some single-stock risk, but these trends apply to all of the players, and a solar fund is way too focused for meaningful diversification in the typical investing sense. That's why it has to be a 3-5 percent play tops. It's a straight up gamble, and you'd have to be comfortable with that. Given that, I suggested the best player (in my opinion), because they're not all going to survive.\n\nI'm very bullish on solar over the medium and long term, as the potential energy and cost curve will eventually price out nearly everything else. But it's going to be really ugly before it's really good, and it's also not entirely clear that amazing profits will ever be on the table. There's a difference between being a good futurist and a good investor.\n\nAgain though, it's imperative that this is a small part of your overall investing. Nearly everyone sucks at consistently picking winners below the level of broad indices, and that includes me and you."
User (JesterOfTheSwamp): "I've been considering investing in a solar energy mutual fund for awhile now. My time horizon for this fund is easily 10+ years. Does anyone have any insight on these funds? Any recommendations?" Self: "With OPEC's recent announcement it seems like a no-brainer, but speculating in energy stocks is how a lot of fortunes were lost. \n\nIf the company is physically making a product and has a market for it then I'd say that it is probably going to make money for you in the short term. If the company is researching and developing new products/technologies then there is considerably more risk, but also return. However you are talking about mutual funds. In my experience long term specialized funds don't perform as well as broader based funds (please don't give me a hard time for that statement, remember it is my opinion, yours will be different.) If you are an active investor ie. move funds around on a regular basis, then I would think a maximum 10 pct of your portfolio would be reasonable. Keep in mind that most solar stocks have had an abysmal track record the past 2 years and there isn't much indication that 2017 will be any better, but as I said before the OPEC announcement this week may change all that. Good luck! "
User (JesterOfTheSwamp): "I've been considering investing in a solar energy mutual fund for awhile now. My time horizon for this fund is easily 10+ years. Does anyone have any insight on these funds? Any recommendations?" Self: "TIL solar energy mutual funds exist. \n\na quick google search found that the Fidelity solar fund has a less than impressive history of ~4% annual growth since the fund was created in 1989. \n\nhttps://fundresearch.fidelity.com/mutual-funds/performance-and-risk/316390574\n\n\nso not the best investment option. \n\n" User (JesterOfTheSwamp): "There has been a lot of innovation since the eighties. " newalgier (newalgier): "It is exceedingly rare for technical innovators to reward their investors. In a fair world, if we lived in a morality play, the inventors and investors in inventors would earn the fruits of their technical prowess. But we live in the real world, where Microsoft made money from ruthlessly squeezing the fist of its market power.\n\nWe think of Apple, Oracle, Microsoft and how great it would have been to get in at the ground floor, but forget Commodore, Wang, and Sun. \n\nYou want to make money on solar? Get a subsidized solar array if you live in a region with subsidized feed-in tariffs. As the cost of solar drops, the winner will be the one firm that does it cheaper than everyone else... but there's no guarantee that this winner hasn't shattered investors along the way." alzirrizla (alzirrizla): "i believe the OP is talking about investing in a mutual fund that invests in solar energy companies. so instead of investing in a single company he would be investing in them all (well the ones the mutual fund covers)"
User (JesterOfTheSwamp): "I've been considering investing in a solar energy mutual fund for awhile now. My time horizon for this fund is easily 10+ years. Does anyone have any insight on these funds? Any recommendations?" Self: "I have no idea whether or not solar will outperform the market over the next ten years. I don't get the impression that you have anything more than a hunch either. So what you are really asking is whether or not you should reduce your diversification without a reasonable expectation of a higher return. The answer to that is always going to be no. Buy a broad market index and let it ride. \n\nIf you have some kind of non-public information about solar power or if you've done some kind of analysis that convinces you solar will outperform then go ahead and put a small portion of your portfolio (less than 5%) into it. But I wouldn't make this investment without a reasonable basis for it. "
User (JesterOfTheSwamp): "I've been considering investing in a solar energy mutual fund for awhile now. My time horizon for this fund is easily 10+ years. Does anyone have any insight on these funds? Any recommendations?" Self: "With at max 10% of all your invested money, and in a diversified fund, sure. "
User (DrunkDumby): "My debit card got stolen while out drinking and somehow the perpetrator got my pin number too, so the charges came through as Debit with Pin it looks like. When I woke up the next morning I immediately called the bank as I didn't recognize some charges and didn't have my card. I'm reading conflicting information about whether or not since I somehow let my pin get out they will refund me. I disputed one of the charges but the second charge is much bigger. When I spoke to the bank in the morning, they said they automatically put a stop on the card because they thought there was fraudulent activity. \n\nAnyone have experience with this? Any suggestions? " Self: "Wait and see what the bank says.\n\nAlso, my advice for the future, only use cash when you go out drinking." User (DrunkDumby): "You're right, I'm nervous about it. it's only ~$500 out of the $80k I have in the account, but the thought that some scumbag stole my hard earned money drives me nuts..." Self: "Why the hell do you have 80k in a checking account that's connected to a debit card? You're luckily he didn't do more damage. That's incredibly dangerous and frankly it's really fucking stupid. Even if you don't want to invest it for whatever reason, move it to a savings account or a checking account not connected to a debit card.\n\n> the thought that some scumbag stole my hard earned money drives me nuts...\n\nRegardless of what the bank decides, the guy still stole the money." User (DrunkDumby): "I have an 800 per 24 hour withdraw limit. It's one of those 3 in 1 accounts , the money is split evenly between a savings and a checking but all was accessible. \n\nAny suggestions for how to better manage it would be greatly appreciated!" Self: "Withdraw limit. That just means someone can't go up to an ATM and withdraw more. They can make a purchase for more.\n\nPlease read how to handle $ in the sidebar."
User (DrunkDumby): "My debit card got stolen while out drinking and somehow the perpetrator got my pin number too, so the charges came through as Debit with Pin it looks like. When I woke up the next morning I immediately called the bank as I didn't recognize some charges and didn't have my card. I'm reading conflicting information about whether or not since I somehow let my pin get out they will refund me. I disputed one of the charges but the second charge is much bigger. When I spoke to the bank in the morning, they said they automatically put a stop on the card because they thought there was fraudulent activity. \n\nAnyone have experience with this? Any suggestions? " Self: "Wait and see what the bank says.\n\nAlso, my advice for the future, only use cash when you go out drinking." User (DrunkDumby): "You're right, I'm nervous about it. it's only ~$500 out of the $80k I have in the account, but the thought that some scumbag stole my hard earned money drives me nuts..." Self: "Why the hell do you have 80k in a checking account that's connected to a debit card? You're luckily he didn't do more damage. That's incredibly dangerous and frankly it's really fucking stupid. Even if you don't want to invest it for whatever reason, move it to a savings account or a checking account not connected to a debit card.\n\n> the thought that some scumbag stole my hard earned money drives me nuts...\n\nRegardless of what the bank decides, the guy still stole the money." SiberianGnome (SiberianGnome): ">You're luckily he didn't do more damage. \n\nIt would have been especially hard for OP to spend more than $500 after blacking out. "
User (TheAwesomeRan): "I was wondering if enrolling in a comunity college course in finance is the way to go. If math is involved my brain stops working and i was wondering if anyone had any advice on how to get started. This is for personal finance not a career. I am in the Southeastern United States and 33 year old male if that helps any. " Self: "You may find these links helpful:\n\n- ["How to handle $"](http://www.reddit.com/r/personalfinance/wiki/commontopics)\n- [Investing wiki page](http://www.reddit.com/r/personalfinance/wiki/investing)\n\nI am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/personalfinance) if you have any questions or concerns."
User (TheAwesomeRan): "I was wondering if enrolling in a comunity college course in finance is the way to go. If math is involved my brain stops working and i was wondering if anyone had any advice on how to get started. This is for personal finance not a career. I am in the Southeastern United States and 33 year old male if that helps any. " Self: "Put money into index funds and don't worry about it. Stocks will just drive you crazy. "
User (TheAwesomeRan): "I was wondering if enrolling in a comunity college course in finance is the way to go. If math is involved my brain stops working and i was wondering if anyone had any advice on how to get started. This is for personal finance not a career. I am in the Southeastern United States and 33 year old male if that helps any. " Self: "Go read all of these articles (or buy the book) - http://jlcollinsnh.com/stock-series/\n\nI recently bought copies of the book for each of my kids. "
User (TheAwesomeRan): "I was wondering if enrolling in a comunity college course in finance is the way to go. If math is involved my brain stops working and i was wondering if anyone had any advice on how to get started. This is for personal finance not a career. I am in the Southeastern United States and 33 year old male if that helps any. " Self: "Maybe read stock markets for dummies. It will give you a basic understanding. Also, your first purchase should be cheap. A lot of people read a book and invest thousands of dollars and it is usually a disaster. \n\nAlso, I like to track stocks in a fake portfolio. There are apps etc out there that you can use. That way you can see how your investments would have paid off had you bought them." User (TheAwesomeRan): "> s. It will give you a basic understanding. Also, your first purchase should be cheap. A lot of people read a book and invest thousands of dollars and it is usually a disaster.\n> Also, I like to track stocks in a fake portfolio. There are apps etc out there that you can use. That way you can see how your investments would have paid off had you bought them.\n\nSo that would be better than a quick class?" Self: "I guess it depends on how you learn. I learn by jumping in as soon as possible and making mistakes along the way. " User (TheAwesomeRan): "Ill try but im too poor at the moment to make many financial mistakes. Haha" Self: "Oh, then perhaps the stock market isn't what you should do with your money. " User (TheAwesomeRan): "Ha thats why im trying to learn. Im interested in it but dont know anything at all about it. May as well be asking me how to build a space shuttle. " Self: "Ok here is something to do. I typically make a little money buying and selling Intel stock. Over the years it has served me ok. If you type INTC into google it will show you the price it is currently at. (1 point = $1.) So you could buy 1 share of intel stock right now for $34.16. Typically they want you to buy in shares of 100 or more but I rarely do. When you buy a small amount it is usually called an odd lot. You can buy your own stock online at places like Schwab.com. The site can also offer you tips and classes if there is one in your area. Typically it costs about $9 to purchase a stock. I mean, that is the commission they get. You have to set up an account that links with your bank account typically. ANYWAY, over the next few weeks watch INTC to get an idea how much money you would have made had you purchased it today for $34.16 (It's easier to understand if you assume you purchased 1 share for $34.16.) So tomorrow check and see how much you have made or lost. \n" User (TheAwesomeRan): "> . I typically make a little money buying and selling Intel stock. Over the years it has served me ok. If you type INTC into google it will show you the price it is currently at. (1 point = $1.) So you could buy 1 share of intel stock right now for $34.16. Typically they want you to buy in shares of 100 or more but I rarely do. When you buy a small amount it is usually called an odd lot. You can buy your own stock online at places like Schwab.com. The site can also offer you tips and classes if there is one in your area. Typically it costs about $9 to purchase a stock. I mean, that is the commission they get. You have to set up an account that links with your bank account typically. ANYWAY, over the next few weeks watch INTC to get an idea how much money you would have made had you purchased it today for $34.16 (It's easier to understand if you assume you purchased 1 share for $34.16.) So tomorrow check and see how much you have made or lost.\n\nWow thanks alot!\n"
User (TheAwesomeRan): "I was wondering if enrolling in a comunity college course in finance is the way to go. If math is involved my brain stops working and i was wondering if anyone had any advice on how to get started. This is for personal finance not a career. I am in the Southeastern United States and 33 year old male if that helps any. " Self: "Pick a vanguard target date fund." User (TheAwesomeRan): "No word of that made any sense to me sorry. Pretend im 3. " flat_top (flat_top): "These should get you started: \n\nhttps://www.reddit.com/r/personalfinance/wiki/commontopics\n\nhttps://www.reddit.com/r/personalfinance/wiki/readinglist\n\n" User (TheAwesomeRan): "Thank you. " Self: "https://investor.vanguard.com/mutual-funds/target-retirement/" User (TheAwesomeRan): "Thank you. "
User (cmaronchick): "This may be better for the psych subreddits, but here it is anyway. I remember my dad buying me a couple of investing books when I was in high school, and I couldn't crack them at all. Even now, when I have investing ideas that I KNOW I should do, I just have a hell of a time getting off the dime. For example, I asked a while ago about how to invest some gifts given to my kids, and I still haven't done anything with it.\n\nI'm sure it's related to being afraid of making the wrong choice, but even though I'm aware of the smart move (invest my kids' gift in an index fund), I just struggle to do so.\n\nAny ideas? Thanks in advance!" Self: "Start by reading these articles - http://jlcollinsnh.com/stock-series/\n\nOr you may need help with getting over your fear which is very different. Maybe research investor psychology?" SiberianGnome (SiberianGnome): "I wish this was the standard response around here. I don't know why people suggest any other material. Especially for beginners."
User (cmaronchick): "This may be better for the psych subreddits, but here it is anyway. I remember my dad buying me a couple of investing books when I was in high school, and I couldn't crack them at all. Even now, when I have investing ideas that I KNOW I should do, I just have a hell of a time getting off the dime. For example, I asked a while ago about how to invest some gifts given to my kids, and I still haven't done anything with it.\n\nI'm sure it's related to being afraid of making the wrong choice, but even though I'm aware of the smart move (invest my kids' gift in an index fund), I just struggle to do so.\n\nAny ideas? Thanks in advance!" Self: "Do you have any friends that have invest? Maybe being around people that have invested and had some success can help. I personally have had winner and loser years, but still believe that steady investing over an extended period will yield positive results in the long run."
User (cmaronchick): "This may be better for the psych subreddits, but here it is anyway. I remember my dad buying me a couple of investing books when I was in high school, and I couldn't crack them at all. Even now, when I have investing ideas that I KNOW I should do, I just have a hell of a time getting off the dime. For example, I asked a while ago about how to invest some gifts given to my kids, and I still haven't done anything with it.\n\nI'm sure it's related to being afraid of making the wrong choice, but even though I'm aware of the smart move (invest my kids' gift in an index fund), I just struggle to do so.\n\nAny ideas? Thanks in advance!" Self: "Don't bother thinking about it, hire someone." SiberianGnome (SiberianGnome): "Terrible advice " Self: "I mean they should probably use a service like betterment, wealthfront or something comparable from an individual. I think time would be better spent on personal investment on career or skills rather than learning something you aren't passionate about." SiberianGnome (SiberianGnome): "They can learn the basics of index funds easily enough and then dump their funds into a target date fund. No need to pay anyone to do it. Very little time committed. And you avoid being completely taken advantage of by some financial advisor. " Self: "I don't disagree with you. I underestimate the ability of someone with low interest to stay engaged and active."
User (cmaronchick): "This may be better for the psych subreddits, but here it is anyway. I remember my dad buying me a couple of investing books when I was in high school, and I couldn't crack them at all. Even now, when I have investing ideas that I KNOW I should do, I just have a hell of a time getting off the dime. For example, I asked a while ago about how to invest some gifts given to my kids, and I still haven't done anything with it.\n\nI'm sure it's related to being afraid of making the wrong choice, but even though I'm aware of the smart move (invest my kids' gift in an index fund), I just struggle to do so.\n\nAny ideas? Thanks in advance!" Self: "Start by reading these articles - http://jlcollinsnh.com/stock-series/\n\nOr you may need help with getting over your fear which is very different. Maybe research investor psychology?" User (cmaronchick): "That's a great suggestion. Thanks for the link as well."
User (cmaronchick): "This may be better for the psych subreddits, but here it is anyway. I remember my dad buying me a couple of investing books when I was in high school, and I couldn't crack them at all. Even now, when I have investing ideas that I KNOW I should do, I just have a hell of a time getting off the dime. For example, I asked a while ago about how to invest some gifts given to my kids, and I still haven't done anything with it.\n\nI'm sure it's related to being afraid of making the wrong choice, but even though I'm aware of the smart move (invest my kids' gift in an index fund), I just struggle to do so.\n\nAny ideas? Thanks in advance!" Self: "Talk to a therapist." User (cmaronchick): "That's good advice. Thanks."
User (cmaronchick): "This may be better for the psych subreddits, but here it is anyway. I remember my dad buying me a couple of investing books when I was in high school, and I couldn't crack them at all. Even now, when I have investing ideas that I KNOW I should do, I just have a hell of a time getting off the dime. For example, I asked a while ago about how to invest some gifts given to my kids, and I still haven't done anything with it.\n\nI'm sure it's related to being afraid of making the wrong choice, but even though I'm aware of the smart move (invest my kids' gift in an index fund), I just struggle to do so.\n\nAny ideas? Thanks in advance!" Self: "Don't bother thinking about it, hire someone." User (cmaronchick): "That's good advice. Thanks."
User (cmaronchick): "This may be better for the psych subreddits, but here it is anyway. I remember my dad buying me a couple of investing books when I was in high school, and I couldn't crack them at all. Even now, when I have investing ideas that I KNOW I should do, I just have a hell of a time getting off the dime. For example, I asked a while ago about how to invest some gifts given to my kids, and I still haven't done anything with it.\n\nI'm sure it's related to being afraid of making the wrong choice, but even though I'm aware of the smart move (invest my kids' gift in an index fund), I just struggle to do so.\n\nAny ideas? Thanks in advance!" Self: "Read The Intelligent Investor by legendary investor Benjamin Grahams. It should help you building a good financial discipline. " User (cmaronchick): "I tried to read it and found it WAY too dense. I know that it's important, but man that was a slog. I'll try it again, though, given your recommendation."
User (cmaronchick): "This may be better for the psych subreddits, but here it is anyway. I remember my dad buying me a couple of investing books when I was in high school, and I couldn't crack them at all. Even now, when I have investing ideas that I KNOW I should do, I just have a hell of a time getting off the dime. For example, I asked a while ago about how to invest some gifts given to my kids, and I still haven't done anything with it.\n\nI'm sure it's related to being afraid of making the wrong choice, but even though I'm aware of the smart move (invest my kids' gift in an index fund), I just struggle to do so.\n\nAny ideas? Thanks in advance!" Self: "Read The Intelligent Investor by legendary investor Benjamin Grahams. It should help you building a good financial discipline. " SiberianGnome (SiberianGnome): "Bad advice based on the question. He doesn't need to learn to pick stocks. He needs to develop a comfort level with basic investment tools like index funds inside of IRAs, 401ks, and 529 plans. " User (cmaronchick): "I appreciate your response. It's actually not even about the tools, but rather that there is some blocker that keeps me from even engaging."
User (cmaronchick): "This may be better for the psych subreddits, but here it is anyway. I remember my dad buying me a couple of investing books when I was in high school, and I couldn't crack them at all. Even now, when I have investing ideas that I KNOW I should do, I just have a hell of a time getting off the dime. For example, I asked a while ago about how to invest some gifts given to my kids, and I still haven't done anything with it.\n\nI'm sure it's related to being afraid of making the wrong choice, but even though I'm aware of the smart move (invest my kids' gift in an index fund), I just struggle to do so.\n\nAny ideas? Thanks in advance!" Self: "Read The Intelligent Investor by legendary investor Benjamin Grahams. It should help you building a good financial discipline. " SiberianGnome (SiberianGnome): "Bad advice based on the question. He doesn't need to learn to pick stocks. He needs to develop a comfort level with basic investment tools like index funds inside of IRAs, 401ks, and 529 plans. " Self: "Intelligent Investor is mostly about building a good financial mindset on long term value investment, it covers difference between speculation and investment, and warns the read common pitfalls for beginners. While it do cover quantitative side of trading, it heavily discourages reader to perform risky actions. The commentaries on the latest revised version covers index fund, real estate, retirement funds. " SiberianGnome (SiberianGnome): "I've read The Intelligent Investor and Security Analysis. I don't recall what is in each book. I do recall lots of talk about Me. Market. Lots about stock valuations, 50 cent dollars, being contrarian. From what I recall, he's mostly speaking to the "enterprising investor".\n\nOP does not need to spend 50 hours learning any of these things. He is not an enterprising investor. Most of us on PF are not enterprising investors.\n\nOP needs a comfort level with basic investment tools. The financial decisions he should be making are involve very little effort. " User (cmaronchick): "Thanks again. I think what I'm missing is the incremental victories. What I mean is that it seems like when you invest, you're in it for the long haul and you won't know for a while whether it was a good choice or not. For example, my understanding is that the market is due for a crash soon, and given the new presidential regime to begin, investor psychology may be to sell in advance of January 20. If I put my kids' money into an index fund now, would it be better to wait until a correction.\n\nThe point is that there doesn't seem to be any mile markers to tell you if you're on the right track, you know what I mean?" SiberianGnome (SiberianGnome): "Looking for a way to verify that your decision was correct is probably the biggest mistake investors make.\n\nIf your kids' fund goes down, that doesn't mean you made a bad choice. And if it goes up, that doesn't mean you made W good choice. When people see a fund decline, and then think it was a bad choice, they take the money out. That's the bad choice.\n\nTry reading this blog post:\n\nhttp://jlcollinsnh.com/2012/04/15/stocks-part-1-theres-a-major-market-crash-coming-and-dr-lo-cant-save-you/\n\nThe best time to put money away is yesterday. Today is the next best time. \n\nThe only thing to really worry about is giving yourself enough time to recover from that crash. Don't put something in the market if you know you need it in 2 years. You won't have recovered from that crash, if it happens. Do put it in the market if you need it in 15 years. " User (cmaronchick): "That is excellent advice. Thank you so much!"
User (trd86): "Remembering about the John Oliver piece that aired a few months ago, I wanted to find out what my retirement fund is costing me.\n\nMy 401(k) is through Fidelity, and has a gross expense ratio of 0.100% and a net expense ratio of 0.070%. I believe that these are not that bad, but what other fees should I look into?" Self: "You may find these links helpful:\n\n- [401(k) Fund Selection Guide](http://www.reddit.com/r/personalfinance/wiki/401k_funds)\n- [401(k) FAQs](http://www.reddit.com/r/personalfinance/wiki/401k)\n- ["How to handle $"](http://www.reddit.com/r/personalfinance/wiki/commontopics)\n\nI am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/personalfinance) if you have any questions or concerns."
User (trd86): "Remembering about the John Oliver piece that aired a few months ago, I wanted to find out what my retirement fund is costing me.\n\nMy 401(k) is through Fidelity, and has a gross expense ratio of 0.100% and a net expense ratio of 0.070%. I believe that these are not that bad, but what other fees should I look into?" Self: "I read this article about John Oliver 401k that I thought was interesting hope it helps http://www.fisher401k.com/blog/john-oliver-401k"
User (trd86): "Remembering about the John Oliver piece that aired a few months ago, I wanted to find out what my retirement fund is costing me.\n\nMy 401(k) is through Fidelity, and has a gross expense ratio of 0.100% and a net expense ratio of 0.070%. I believe that these are not that bad, but what other fees should I look into?" Self: "Net expense is what you "pay." It comes out of the mutual fund price so you won't notice it. Fidelity has pretty good 401k selections. You are in good hands with a 0.07% net expense ratio. I'm working with 0.16% expense with Prudential for reference."
User (dannybloomfield): "There's 2 of us (maybe 3)... unlimited data would be ideal these days, if it's a nominal difference over a metered amount.\n\nGetting off a legacy AT&T family plan that had unlimited data, text, talk for years, so haven't payed attention to usage much.\n\nI know there's more options than the major carriers these days, but I can't imagine the coverage is the same once you leave a major metro area, access to service at retail outlets, etc...\n\nAm I buying into hype sticking to the majors?\n\nAll the comparison sites don't really differentiate the vendors and at the risk of sounding like an aging luddite, it's a bit overwhelming." Self: "Read or post in r/nocontract"
User (dannybloomfield): "There's 2 of us (maybe 3)... unlimited data would be ideal these days, if it's a nominal difference over a metered amount.\n\nGetting off a legacy AT&T family plan that had unlimited data, text, talk for years, so haven't payed attention to usage much.\n\nI know there's more options than the major carriers these days, but I can't imagine the coverage is the same once you leave a major metro area, access to service at retail outlets, etc...\n\nAm I buying into hype sticking to the majors?\n\nAll the comparison sites don't really differentiate the vendors and at the risk of sounding like an aging luddite, it's a bit overwhelming." Self: "Both my wife and son are on a VirginMobile plan. $30/month. Unlimited talk and text and data is capped at 1 Gig per month. Its worked really well. My son will exceed the data occasionally but it just reduces his data speed. The downside is we have to purchase the phone up front. We are in the mid-Atlantic area on the east coast and generally they have perfectly fine coverage. It may be worth your while to at least consider a non-major.\n"
User (joea121): "Good evening Reddit,\n\nI'm having difficulties understanding my current tax situation. I recently left my full time job to pursue other options. I left in October 2016 and joined a charity organisation in which I was to register as self employed. To cut a long story short, the role wasn't what I expected it to be and left after two weeks. I'm currently unemployed, and have taken up two months work in my uncle's soliciting company, in which he has also said I'm to register as self employed. \n\n My questions are, what exactly do I need to declare? If I need to register as self employed? Am I a sole trader or a partner in these two roles mentioned above? \n\nOverall from the charity work I earned £30 (from 2 weeks) and from the soliciting company I will earn £300 per week for 8 weeks.\n\nThanks. " Self: "You may find these links helpful:\n\n- [Tax Software Megathread](http://redd.it/41dew6)\n- [Taxes wiki page](https://www.reddit.com/r/personalfinance/wiki/taxes)\n- [Understanding tax brackets](https://www.reddit.com/r/personalfinance/wiki/taxes#wiki_eli5.3A_taxable_income.2C_tax_brackets.2C_marginal_tax_rates)\n- [W-4 IRS Withholding Calculator](http://www.irs.gov/Individuals/IRS-Withholding-Calculator)\n\nI am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/personalfinance) if you have any questions or concerns."
User (joea121): "Good evening Reddit,\n\nI'm having difficulties understanding my current tax situation. I recently left my full time job to pursue other options. I left in October 2016 and joined a charity organisation in which I was to register as self employed. To cut a long story short, the role wasn't what I expected it to be and left after two weeks. I'm currently unemployed, and have taken up two months work in my uncle's soliciting company, in which he has also said I'm to register as self employed. \n\n My questions are, what exactly do I need to declare? If I need to register as self employed? Am I a sole trader or a partner in these two roles mentioned above? \n\nOverall from the charity work I earned £30 (from 2 weeks) and from the soliciting company I will earn £300 per week for 8 weeks.\n\nThanks. " Self: "Were you paid gross or net? When they say self employed they usually mean you set up a a Ltd Company. Did you do this?" User (joea121): "Gross. I haven't payed any tax on these amounts thus far. I also haven't registered as self employed, I was unsure which form it is, either sole trader or partner."
User (theshowstoppa34): "Hey all, thanks in advance for answering this. \n\nI'm trying to save up for a house and get a down payment on by the time im 25. I work full time as a salesperson where i'm salary plus commission. \n\nI've applied for 2 credit cards and was denied for both. I currently have no credit, no debt, and the company i work for has been around for a long time and is well established worldwide. \n\nHeres my questions 1. Is there a reason anyone can think of why i wouldnt be approved for a card? 2. Would a credit card or line of credit be better to establish credit quickly? 3. Based off my background info (and anymore you might need) what would be the best way to do this? \n\nThanks again for the help." Self: "They almost certainly denied your applications because you have no credit history. A good way to build a credit history is to get [a secured credit card](https://www.creditkarma.com/credit-cards/secured-credit-cards), charge <10% of your available credit each month, and pay it off in full each month. " User (theshowstoppa34): "Thanks for the info ill give this a shot and see how it goes. "
User (Audiessy): "TLDR; I'm going through a break up with my ex who suddenly left me for someone else. He was more of a wiz on this and roped me into getting a Chase IHG credit card 2 years back. Blindly following is sort of biting me in the ass because I don't know a lot about credit cards and I didn't know it had an annual fee. While it may be worthwhile to have it, I'm not at the point in my life where I have the leisure to travel and would preferably not have the card at all. I have 85k points.\n\n1. Are there any ideas of what to do with the points since I don't have the need for hotel nights (Hah)? Is there a way to transfer them into something practical like gift cards or should I just close the card and lose the points?\n2. After having the card for about 2 years, is it bad to suddenly cancel it? Should I keep it?\n3. I have a Discover credit card that I pay promptly. Would canceling significantly decrease my credit score?\n\nPlease be kind. I know very little of the use of credit cards (I read the thread about how they work and I'm still a little confused) and I was kind of thrusted into this space. I read the guidelines and know this is commonly asked, but I hope this is unique enough of a situation.\n\nThank you." Self: "You may find these links helpful:\n\n- [Credit-related wiki pages](http://www.reddit.com/r/personalfinance/wiki/index#wiki_credit)\n- [Credit Cards](http://www.reddit.com/r/personalfinance/wiki/creditcards) \n- [FICO / Credit Scores](http://www.reddit.com/r/personalfinance/wiki/fico)\n- [Improving Credit Scores and Building Credit](http://www.reddit.com/r/personalfinance/wiki/credit_building)\n\nI am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/personalfinance) if you have any questions or concerns."
User (Audiessy): "TLDR; I'm going through a break up with my ex who suddenly left me for someone else. He was more of a wiz on this and roped me into getting a Chase IHG credit card 2 years back. Blindly following is sort of biting me in the ass because I don't know a lot about credit cards and I didn't know it had an annual fee. While it may be worthwhile to have it, I'm not at the point in my life where I have the leisure to travel and would preferably not have the card at all. I have 85k points.\n\n1. Are there any ideas of what to do with the points since I don't have the need for hotel nights (Hah)? Is there a way to transfer them into something practical like gift cards or should I just close the card and lose the points?\n2. After having the card for about 2 years, is it bad to suddenly cancel it? Should I keep it?\n3. I have a Discover credit card that I pay promptly. Would canceling significantly decrease my credit score?\n\nPlease be kind. I know very little of the use of credit cards (I read the thread about how they work and I'm still a little confused) and I was kind of thrusted into this space. I read the guidelines and know this is commonly asked, but I hope this is unique enough of a situation.\n\nThank you." Self: "That's a decent amount of points that I would hate for to go to waste. (Really sorry about your ex). So a couple of things: You don't lose the points if you cancel the card. The points are tied to your IHG account. They are hotel points now, hot credit card points.\n\nWhen I think of credit cards that are worth the annual fee, this is the first one that comes to mind. The annual fee is relatively low ($50? - I do personally have this card, btw), and it gives you one free night at any IHG property in the world, including the most expensive InterContinentals. Check your account if you have one of those certs (OP, I would pay you for that free night, not joking here). I think that's the real benefit of the card.\n\nNext, there may be a way to redeem your IHG points for other things, but I don't think there will be anything of value. Know anybody that you want to gift some hotel nights to? \n\nNext, credit history is certainly an aspect of your credit score. If this and the Discover are your only other cards, it may ding it a little bit. In the long run, it's not a huge deal. Perhaps you should contact Chase to see if you can downgrade it to a no-fee card like the Freedom." User (Audiessy): "Shit happens, haha. Wish it didn't take 3 years to be lied to though. \n\nAh thank you! For sure. I know it's completely worth that $49 a year. We were both young students, lived with our parents, used nice hotels monthly for.. well, activities, traveled a bit, made sense at the time. Just currently, it's more of a hindrance as I can't utilize it (more of a camping/backpacking gal). I have the free night in my account too for this year. You can transfer it? \n\nHonestly, my family isn't really well off financially and those are my priorities first. That relationship was my first and only taste of actual luxury (I consider it luxury) so I don't really have anyone I could gift it to. \n\nHm. Might be a good idea actually. I'll ask them about that. Thank you for all your help, it was very informational. "
User (Audiessy): "TLDR; I'm going through a break up with my ex who suddenly left me for someone else. He was more of a wiz on this and roped me into getting a Chase IHG credit card 2 years back. Blindly following is sort of biting me in the ass because I don't know a lot about credit cards and I didn't know it had an annual fee. While it may be worthwhile to have it, I'm not at the point in my life where I have the leisure to travel and would preferably not have the card at all. I have 85k points.\n\n1. Are there any ideas of what to do with the points since I don't have the need for hotel nights (Hah)? Is there a way to transfer them into something practical like gift cards or should I just close the card and lose the points?\n2. After having the card for about 2 years, is it bad to suddenly cancel it? Should I keep it?\n3. I have a Discover credit card that I pay promptly. Would canceling significantly decrease my credit score?\n\nPlease be kind. I know very little of the use of credit cards (I read the thread about how they work and I'm still a little confused) and I was kind of thrusted into this space. I read the guidelines and know this is commonly asked, but I hope this is unique enough of a situation.\n\nThank you." Self: "r/churning can help you out"
User (MysticCamel2022): "I'm going to a private university that costs about 44k a year. The school, through their grants, covers half of my costs, the other 20k ish is on me. I take about 5k from fed loans and the last 15k or so from Sallie Mae. \n\nI will be graduating may of 2018 (B.S. in dental hygiene) and I believe my total debt with be just about 100k. My intrest rates on the loans i have with them so far range from 8.5% to almost 11%.\n\nDoes anyone have experience with Sallie Mae? Were you satisfied? (As satisfied as you could be paying bills that is) Are there better options? And should I seek to consolidate all of the loans when i graduate? There should be 6 loans in the end.\n\nAlso, any general advice about loans or anything related is appreciated " Self: "You may find these links helpful:\n\n- [Student Loans wiki page](http://www.reddit.com/r/personalfinance/wiki/studentloans)\n- ["How to handle $"](http://www.reddit.com/r/personalfinance/wiki/commontopics)\n- [What's the best way to pay down my debt?](http://www.reddit.com/r/personalfinance/wiki/debt#wiki_what.27s_the_best_way_to_pay_down_my_debt.3F)\n\nI am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/personalfinance) if you have any questions or concerns."
User (MysticCamel2022): "I'm going to a private university that costs about 44k a year. The school, through their grants, covers half of my costs, the other 20k ish is on me. I take about 5k from fed loans and the last 15k or so from Sallie Mae. \n\nI will be graduating may of 2018 (B.S. in dental hygiene) and I believe my total debt with be just about 100k. My intrest rates on the loans i have with them so far range from 8.5% to almost 11%.\n\nDoes anyone have experience with Sallie Mae? Were you satisfied? (As satisfied as you could be paying bills that is) Are there better options? And should I seek to consolidate all of the loans when i graduate? There should be 6 loans in the end.\n\nAlso, any general advice about loans or anything related is appreciated " Self: "An undergrad degree isn't worth 100k."
User (callofhonor): "I went from making $13.25 per hour to $16 per hour at my work. I noticed even though I'm still claiming a 0 Fed/1 State deductions, my tax rate on my paycheck went from 19% to 29% and there's nothing to indicate an increase. Is this normal for going up in pay or am I getting screwed for no reason? It makes a $250 difference on my check." Self: "You may find these links helpful:\n\n- [Tax Software Megathread](http://redd.it/41dew6)\n- [Taxes wiki page](https://www.reddit.com/r/personalfinance/wiki/taxes)\n- [Understanding tax brackets](https://www.reddit.com/r/personalfinance/wiki/taxes#wiki_eli5.3A_taxable_income.2C_tax_brackets.2C_marginal_tax_rates)\n- [W-4 IRS Withholding Calculator](http://www.irs.gov/Individuals/IRS-Withholding-Calculator)\n\nI am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/personalfinance) if you have any questions or concerns."
User (callofhonor): "I went from making $13.25 per hour to $16 per hour at my work. I noticed even though I'm still claiming a 0 Fed/1 State deductions, my tax rate on my paycheck went from 19% to 29% and there's nothing to indicate an increase. Is this normal for going up in pay or am I getting screwed for no reason? It makes a $250 difference on my check." Self: "You pay more income taxes when you earn more money. \n\nNot just proportionally more, but actually your effective tax rate is greater.\n\nIf everyone had the same tax rate on every dollar they earned and no deduction or exemptions, then going from 13.25/hr to 16.00/hr would cause no increase. You'll see that your Social Security tax rate and Medicare tax rate did not change. The income tax effective rate did though.\n\nIf you graph income tax as a function of gross income, you'll see a connected series of segments. First a flat one, then one with slope 10%, then one with slope 15%, etc. Plot the point that represents your income and find your tax. Draw a line to the origin and that line's slope represents your "effective" tax rate compared to your gross income. If you increase your income, plot a new point, and draw a new line to the origin from it, the slope is steeper. In your case, the two points for your income at 13.25/hr and income at 16.00/hr are both on the segment with slope 15%, but drawing lines to the origin you will see they have different slopes.\n\nhttp://i.imgur.com/AsJ6Rql.png\n\nI'm not sure if 10% increase is entirely explained by this. There may be some other aspect that is playing a role in what you're counting as "tax" taken from your paycheck. Post how much income tax was withheld and what other things were withheld or subtracted (see paystub) if you want more detailed analysis."
User (givemeabudget): "Hey guys, I've been a long time lurker of PF and want to thank all of you in advance for taking time out of your day to provide any assistance. The help you guys provide people like me us tremendous! \n\nI'm posting a spreadsheet I made of our November expenses, debts, interest rates, and income. \n\nhttp://imgur.com/a/ALUFu (Total monthly income is $5k net, sorry!) \n\nMy husband and I both grew up with horrible spending habits and not knowing the true value of a dollar, we met young and have since carried our bad habits into adulthood. \n\nWe know that our extra-curricular spending has to be eliminated. Please do not be hesitant to go in on us (we probably need to hear it). We both have a 401(k) and a I have about $5k in savings. I'm not sure what other information you guys need, but I would definitely welcome any advice on sticking to a budget and best way to pay off our debt. \nWe want to buy a house and have kids, but I can't see that happening in our current situation. \n\nI have read about the different methods in paying down my credit cards, which would you guys recommend here? \n\nThanks again in advance, PF!\n\nJ&S \n\nPS - ATM is a vice we just quit. " Self: "You may find these links helpful:\n\n- [Budgeting wiki page](http://www.reddit.com/r/personalfinance/wiki/budgeting)\n- [Spreadsheets section of the Tools wiki page](http://www.reddit.com/r/personalfinance/wiki/tools#wiki_redditor_created.3A)\n\nI am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/personalfinance) if you have any questions or concerns."
User (givemeabudget): "Hey guys, I've been a long time lurker of PF and want to thank all of you in advance for taking time out of your day to provide any assistance. The help you guys provide people like me us tremendous! \n\nI'm posting a spreadsheet I made of our November expenses, debts, interest rates, and income. \n\nhttp://imgur.com/a/ALUFu (Total monthly income is $5k net, sorry!) \n\nMy husband and I both grew up with horrible spending habits and not knowing the true value of a dollar, we met young and have since carried our bad habits into adulthood. \n\nWe know that our extra-curricular spending has to be eliminated. Please do not be hesitant to go in on us (we probably need to hear it). We both have a 401(k) and a I have about $5k in savings. I'm not sure what other information you guys need, but I would definitely welcome any advice on sticking to a budget and best way to pay off our debt. \nWe want to buy a house and have kids, but I can't see that happening in our current situation. \n\nI have read about the different methods in paying down my credit cards, which would you guys recommend here? \n\nThanks again in advance, PF!\n\nJ&S \n\nPS - ATM is a vice we just quit. " Self: "So you bring home $10,000 and your total expenses are less than $4000? Or am I reading it wrong?" User (givemeabudget): "Sorry! I forgot to change the label in the final picture. That's monthly net income. "
User (givemeabudget): "Hey guys, I've been a long time lurker of PF and want to thank all of you in advance for taking time out of your day to provide any assistance. The help you guys provide people like me us tremendous! \n\nI'm posting a spreadsheet I made of our November expenses, debts, interest rates, and income. \n\nhttp://imgur.com/a/ALUFu (Total monthly income is $5k net, sorry!) \n\nMy husband and I both grew up with horrible spending habits and not knowing the true value of a dollar, we met young and have since carried our bad habits into adulthood. \n\nWe know that our extra-curricular spending has to be eliminated. Please do not be hesitant to go in on us (we probably need to hear it). We both have a 401(k) and a I have about $5k in savings. I'm not sure what other information you guys need, but I would definitely welcome any advice on sticking to a budget and best way to pay off our debt. \nWe want to buy a house and have kids, but I can't see that happening in our current situation. \n\nI have read about the different methods in paying down my credit cards, which would you guys recommend here? \n\nThanks again in advance, PF!\n\nJ&S \n\nPS - ATM is a vice we just quit. " Self: "Aside from the debts you owe, it looks like you guys could benefit from home cooking more. $400/month for eating out, but only $145 in groceries? It may seem small compared to your other line items, but budgeting your food spending is part of the same habit.\nP.S. dramafever? fellow kdrama fan, hello there!" User (givemeabudget): "Most definitely stuck out to me! We were just talking about this yesterday. Meal prepping and not eating out as much!\nHi there! Can't stop obsessing over kdramas! They keep sucking me in..."
User (givemeabudget): "Hey guys, I've been a long time lurker of PF and want to thank all of you in advance for taking time out of your day to provide any assistance. The help you guys provide people like me us tremendous! \n\nI'm posting a spreadsheet I made of our November expenses, debts, interest rates, and income. \n\nhttp://imgur.com/a/ALUFu (Total monthly income is $5k net, sorry!) \n\nMy husband and I both grew up with horrible spending habits and not knowing the true value of a dollar, we met young and have since carried our bad habits into adulthood. \n\nWe know that our extra-curricular spending has to be eliminated. Please do not be hesitant to go in on us (we probably need to hear it). We both have a 401(k) and a I have about $5k in savings. I'm not sure what other information you guys need, but I would definitely welcome any advice on sticking to a budget and best way to pay off our debt. \nWe want to buy a house and have kids, but I can't see that happening in our current situation. \n\nI have read about the different methods in paying down my credit cards, which would you guys recommend here? \n\nThanks again in advance, PF!\n\nJ&S \n\nPS - ATM is a vice we just quit. " Self: "I personally have been having a lot of success with YNAB together with reading Dave Ramsey's Total Money Makeover. Unless I'm missing something you have about $1,500 in money left over every month?"
User (296milk): "I have about 4k left on a 2 door car. At the time it was good idea, then a while later we had a kid and even though at 1 and a half years the hardest about having a baby with a two door are more than halfway over, I'm still thinking I want a four door car. I usually hear something about how your rent shouldn't be more than ~30% of your take-home or you shouldn't buy a home that's more than 3x your annual. Arguments about whether or not I should be even looking at another car aside, I'm just wondering if there's a general rule of thumb for whether I'm better off just waiting until the car is paid off before looking around or if I should do it now while still making payments." Self: "if you are upside down in the car, you may not have any choice. if the blue book value is more than what you owe though, generally you will be better off selling it in a private sale. You will almost always get less for it as a trade-in. "
User (296milk): "I have about 4k left on a 2 door car. At the time it was good idea, then a while later we had a kid and even though at 1 and a half years the hardest about having a baby with a two door are more than halfway over, I'm still thinking I want a four door car. I usually hear something about how your rent shouldn't be more than ~30% of your take-home or you shouldn't buy a home that's more than 3x your annual. Arguments about whether or not I should be even looking at another car aside, I'm just wondering if there's a general rule of thumb for whether I'm better off just waiting until the car is paid off before looking around or if I should do it now while still making payments." Self: "Okay lets just answer a few questions so people can really answer your question. What kind of car is it? Model and Year.\nAlso I would take this car to dealership and see what they are willing to give to you. \n\nRecently we owed the same for our small car. My husband used it as a commuter car and in the end he really wanted something bigger. We took it to a few places and they would only give us one or 2 thousand. We decided to keep it and pay it off. My sister lives with us so we'll let her use the car. I had the car refinanced to lower the price and interest.\n\nSee what the dealership is offering you so you would know how much will be added to another car if you choose to buy something else. You could always sell it on craigslist. I would try to get a loan through the bank."
User (296milk): "I have about 4k left on a 2 door car. At the time it was good idea, then a while later we had a kid and even though at 1 and a half years the hardest about having a baby with a two door are more than halfway over, I'm still thinking I want a four door car. I usually hear something about how your rent shouldn't be more than ~30% of your take-home or you shouldn't buy a home that's more than 3x your annual. Arguments about whether or not I should be even looking at another car aside, I'm just wondering if there's a general rule of thumb for whether I'm better off just waiting until the car is paid off before looking around or if I should do it now while still making payments." Self: "Better is to buy a used car with cash and never finance a car."
User (296milk): "I have about 4k left on a 2 door car. At the time it was good idea, then a while later we had a kid and even though at 1 and a half years the hardest about having a baby with a two door are more than halfway over, I'm still thinking I want a four door car. I usually hear something about how your rent shouldn't be more than ~30% of your take-home or you shouldn't buy a home that's more than 3x your annual. Arguments about whether or not I should be even looking at another car aside, I'm just wondering if there's a general rule of thumb for whether I'm better off just waiting until the car is paid off before looking around or if I should do it now while still making payments." Self: "It's a depreciating asset. If you trade out of it now you may be upside down. If you wait until the vehicle is paid off, you just paid into a vehicle you're going to get rid of anyway. \n\nIf you don't want the car anymore and can afford to get rid of it for something more practical, do it. Just make sure you do your homework before you get into your next car."
User (296milk): "I have about 4k left on a 2 door car. At the time it was good idea, then a while later we had a kid and even though at 1 and a half years the hardest about having a baby with a two door are more than halfway over, I'm still thinking I want a four door car. I usually hear something about how your rent shouldn't be more than ~30% of your take-home or you shouldn't buy a home that's more than 3x your annual. Arguments about whether or not I should be even looking at another car aside, I'm just wondering if there's a general rule of thumb for whether I'm better off just waiting until the car is paid off before looking around or if I should do it now while still making payments." Self: "Financing a car is never a good idea. Why would you finance a depreciating asset? A $2.5K car paid in cash will get you to point A to point B just fine. No need paying interest on a status symbol. Buy a watch or something instead. " wkacc220 (wkacc220): "Any watch that can be regarded as a status symbol probably costs more than financing a car. Almost every imaginable asset depreciates so why finance anything? Because it makes high priced items affordable." Self: "All real estate depreciates? Didn't know that. My house has appreciated 36.76% in 6 years not to mention I've been renting out bedrooms to pay the mortgage. \n\nYou can't do that with a car. " wkacc220 (wkacc220): "Did I say all real estate depreciates? Geez, I'm having trouble finding that statement." Self: "> every imaginable asset\n\nAlso how does it make something more affordable? It may make it more convenient to have it now, but it isn't more affordable.\n\nYou buy a $2,500 car in cash and save $30K over 5 years to buy a brand new car. In 5 years you own a brand new car and a second car you can sell or keep around as a beater.\n\nYou finance a new $30K car now. In 5 years you end up with a 5 year old car worth less than half that you spent over $33K for after interest. Not to mention the higher costs of insurance required because it's financed. \n\nPeople don't have the least bit of patience. I bet you would justify financing a $2,000 laptop as well because you need such an expensive thing to browse Reddit with and can't wait to save $2K. " wkacc220 (wkacc220): "> Almost every imaginable asset\n\nTry again sweetie "
User (296milk): "I have about 4k left on a 2 door car. At the time it was good idea, then a while later we had a kid and even though at 1 and a half years the hardest about having a baby with a two door are more than halfway over, I'm still thinking I want a four door car. I usually hear something about how your rent shouldn't be more than ~30% of your take-home or you shouldn't buy a home that's more than 3x your annual. Arguments about whether or not I should be even looking at another car aside, I'm just wondering if there's a general rule of thumb for whether I'm better off just waiting until the car is paid off before looking around or if I should do it now while still making payments." Self: "trading in a car to a dealership is always a money losing proposition vs selling it outright. "
User (Hipster_McTool): "I am 49 years old, and need to catch up on retirement big time. The good news is I just got a job with a substantial raise. My only debt is my $200K 15y Fixed Mortgage and a ridiculous interest rate. My credit is excellent.\n\nBut the new company only matches 401(k) at 3%. Is that a waste of time and would my retirement savings be better served directed elsewhere? Or go ahead and take their 3% and do other things in addition to try and catch up on the retirement savings I have ignored for way to long?" Self: "You may find these links helpful:\n\n- [401(k) Fund Selection Guide](http://www.reddit.com/r/personalfinance/wiki/401k_funds)\n- [401(k) FAQs](http://www.reddit.com/r/personalfinance/wiki/401k)\n- ["How to handle $"](http://www.reddit.com/r/personalfinance/wiki/commontopics)\n\nI am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/personalfinance) if you have any questions or concerns."
User (Hipster_McTool): "I am 49 years old, and need to catch up on retirement big time. The good news is I just got a job with a substantial raise. My only debt is my $200K 15y Fixed Mortgage and a ridiculous interest rate. My credit is excellent.\n\nBut the new company only matches 401(k) at 3%. Is that a waste of time and would my retirement savings be better served directed elsewhere? Or go ahead and take their 3% and do other things in addition to try and catch up on the retirement savings I have ignored for way to long?" Self: "Take their 3% match and invest what you can elsewhere in addition to it. If you contribute 3%, you are doubling your money immediately. Where else could you find that return reliably?" User (Hipster_McTool): "I thought the same, but wasn't certain whether to limit the contribution to the 3% match. Thank you for the sage advice." Self: "Regarding limiting it to the minimum for the match... that depends on the investment options available in your 401k. I'd try some upper midrange risk profiles and see if that helps get you caught up as well. "
User (Hipster_McTool): "I am 49 years old, and need to catch up on retirement big time. The good news is I just got a job with a substantial raise. My only debt is my $200K 15y Fixed Mortgage and a ridiculous interest rate. My credit is excellent.\n\nBut the new company only matches 401(k) at 3%. Is that a waste of time and would my retirement savings be better served directed elsewhere? Or go ahead and take their 3% and do other things in addition to try and catch up on the retirement savings I have ignored for way to long?" Self: "How bad is the interest rate on your mortgage? You may want to consider paying it off faster as opposed to investing in retirement accounts. Real estate can be a form of retirement investment too (though not the best for most people, that's why I ask)." User (Hipster_McTool): "Sorry...I was inaccurate. I meant it is a ridiculously low interest rate, so I don't really gain anything by accelerating the payoff. Sorry about that but thank you for the advice."
User (Hipster_McTool): "I am 49 years old, and need to catch up on retirement big time. The good news is I just got a job with a substantial raise. My only debt is my $200K 15y Fixed Mortgage and a ridiculous interest rate. My credit is excellent.\n\nBut the new company only matches 401(k) at 3%. Is that a waste of time and would my retirement savings be better served directed elsewhere? Or go ahead and take their 3% and do other things in addition to try and catch up on the retirement savings I have ignored for way to long?" Self: "You can get the 3% match and still contribute more if you want. (Assuming that 3% is less than the $18k limit)\n\n401k is a pretty good vehicle for retirement savings. The tax advantages are helpful."
User (Hipster_McTool): "I am 49 years old, and need to catch up on retirement big time. The good news is I just got a job with a substantial raise. My only debt is my $200K 15y Fixed Mortgage and a ridiculous interest rate. My credit is excellent.\n\nBut the new company only matches 401(k) at 3%. Is that a waste of time and would my retirement savings be better served directed elsewhere? Or go ahead and take their 3% and do other things in addition to try and catch up on the retirement savings I have ignored for way to long?" Self: "Max out your contribution. You are 49 years old...pay yourself first you will need everything that you can get in retirement and growing tax deferred is a great benefit for you."
User (Hipster_McTool): "I am 49 years old, and need to catch up on retirement big time. The good news is I just got a job with a substantial raise. My only debt is my $200K 15y Fixed Mortgage and a ridiculous interest rate. My credit is excellent.\n\nBut the new company only matches 401(k) at 3%. Is that a waste of time and would my retirement savings be better served directed elsewhere? Or go ahead and take their 3% and do other things in addition to try and catch up on the retirement savings I have ignored for way to long?" Self: "Beginning at 50 years of age, you can make an additional $6,000 per year contribution to your 401(k) up to a limit of $24,000 per year. In addition, you can contribute an extra $1,000 each year to your Roth/IRA for a total of $6,500 per year. At age 55, you are allowed to contribute an extra $1,000 per year to your HSA. There are ample opportunities to save in tax-sheltered accounts, plus you can always open a regular, taxable account to catch up even more. Never turn down free money, i.e. 3% match." User (Hipster_McTool): "Great advice. Thank you."
User (thenghiemdoan): "im 18 years old. i started learning about finances literally a year ago. can someone ELI5 what all these terms are? school didn't teach me a single thing. beware: there's a lot of questions that i'll be asking, but if you can answer them i'd really appreciate it, thanks. \n\nto begin:\n\nwhat are index funds? what's a roth IRA and what does that even mean? what exactly is a 401k? or a 201k? " Self: "Mutual funds buy stocks (say) in lots of companies, and people then buy shares of the mutual fund, so they get to participate in the stock market without having to buy stock individually in each company. \n\nIndex funds choose the companies they purchase stock of by following a specific list (index) -- such as top 500 companies by size. Since not much research and not many trades need to be made to keep this following its target, the cost of maintaining such a fund is less, so people are charged less for owning this kind of fund. In contrast, managed funds have teams of researchers choosing what they think will do well, and the costs associated with that are passed on to the mutual fund buyers.\n\nA Roth IRA is a retirement account you put money into. The money that goes in has already been taxed. When it's in the account you can invest it (or not) how you see fit. The growth while it sits there isn't taxed. And when you take money out after a certain age, it's not taxed, whether your original contributions or the growth. \n\nA 401k is a workplace sponsored retirement plan. You can have part of your salary put into it before paying taxes, if it's a traditional 401k. Like an IRA, you can choose what investments you have inside the 401k, though you are typically constrained to a small menu of choices offered by the plan. If you change jobs, you can move the 401k to a new 401k, or change it into an IRA. At retirement, you pay taxes on what you take out, whether representing contributions or growth, since you didn't pay taxes on your contributions when they went in.\n\nI don't know what a 201k is.\n\nThe wiki probably has more answers for you. Check the side bar under "more topics here.""
User (thenghiemdoan): "im 18 years old. i started learning about finances literally a year ago. can someone ELI5 what all these terms are? school didn't teach me a single thing. beware: there's a lot of questions that i'll be asking, but if you can answer them i'd really appreciate it, thanks. \n\nto begin:\n\nwhat are index funds? what's a roth IRA and what does that even mean? what exactly is a 401k? or a 201k? " Self: "Both Investopedia and Wikipedia are good resources to learn the meaning of these terms. \n\n-----\n\nAn index fund is a fund that tracks an index. \n\n1. A fund is a collection of money (from many people) for investing in a common set of securities. If a million people want to buy stocks of 500 biggest companies in the US, it is incredibly inefficient and costly for each person to individually buy company 1, company 2, company 3, ... company 500. Consider the trading costs.. each person would spend ~$5000 just to buy these stocks, multiply by 1 million. Instead, these people pool their money together as a fund and buy the companies as a collective investment.\n\n2. But how should the proportions be decided? Should the fund buy allocate 0.2% for each of the 500 companies? Should the allocation be weighted differently? This is where index comes into play. \n\n3. An index is a list of companies and their proportion. If those 1 million people wanted to invest in the 500 biggest companies in the US, one obvious way to measure bigness is the market cap (total value of all company stocks). A company with $100 billion out there should have more proportion than a company with $50 billion out.\n\n4. So, an index that lists the 500 biggest US companies has a list of the 500 biggest US companies and their proportion in the market.\n\n5. An index fund uses the money from those 1 million investors to buy the shares of those 500 companies according to the proportions indicated by the index list.\n\n-----\n\nTo understand Roth IRA, first you have to understand IRA. IRA = Individual Retirement Account. It is a special type of account that lets you deposit money that is not taxed now, but taxed when you withdraw after 59.5 years old. \n\nRoth IRA is a newer type of IRA that does the opposite of the traditional one: Roth IRA lets you deposit money that is taxed now, but you do not pay taxes when you withdraw after 59.5 years old. \n\nWhile money is in any IRA, the interest/dividend/growth generated are not taxed. This saves you headache when doing your taxes every year. You can also invest the money in any IRA. These investments will grow without you having to pay taxes every year.\n\nIf you ever have a (non-IRA) certificate of deposit, you would know that even if you don't take the money out, you are still taxed on the interests every year. You have to keep some money to pay taxes. This does not happen in an IRA.\n\n-----\n\nA 401k is similar to an IRA but can only be set up by your company. It has different rules but the main concept remains the same.\n\nA 201k is not a real thing. It's just what people jokingly or frustratedly call their 401k when their investments tanked by 50%, half of 401 rounded up.. get it?\n\n"
User (sylvanic_munk): "the last couple months have been very busy for me! i quit my job and started a new one. my first baby was born in october, and i turned 33 years old.\n\nI started my new job mid-november, and benefits would not kick in until the first of the next month (december). because of this and a few other reasons, the company offered a signing bonus to help cover the cost of cobra. what i did not realize is that uncle sam would take quite a large chunk of this money.\ncobra costs $1800 per month. the company cut me a check for $2500, of which i actually received $1300 (after taxes, etc.) i am left to cover the remainder of the year out of my own pocket, which is about $2500. this seems like waaay too much to pay for insurance. granted, i was on the best plan possible at my previous position because we knew we would have a baby this year. \n\ni have never dealt with cobra before, but this seems a little screwy. at this point, i have elected to get cobra but i have not paid any premiums. i have 45 days from the time i elected to receive cobra to make a payment, and it is retroactive. i dont really know what other options i have except to go out to the market and try and buy insurance myself. the plan i elected will continue my previous insurance, which we have met our deductible and now only have to deal with copay.\n\nif i buy my own insurance, i will have to compare premiums and make sure our doctors are in network... blah blah blah. i will also lose my $3000 deductable :( are there any other options that will not cost me $2500 to insure my family? please point me toward some resources! thank you!\n\n*i realize this is a complex situation i am in, so please ask questions if it will help!\n\nEDIT: sorry to be unclear... i did take a week off before starting my new job. as part of my hiring agreement, my new job agreed to cut me a check for cobra in lieu of providing health insurance this year. the company is being acquired, so all the employees are switching over to a new policy anyway. also, this is open enrollment time. SO instead of signing up for new insurance last month to be covered this month - just to turn around and start a new policy in january under a different carrier, i opted to just to cobra through the end of the year and do open enrollment with my new coworkers." Self: "You may find the [Health Insurance wiki page](https://www.reddit.com/r/personalfinance/wiki/health_insurance) helpful.\n\nI am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/personalfinance) if you have any questions or concerns.*"
User (sylvanic_munk): "the last couple months have been very busy for me! i quit my job and started a new one. my first baby was born in october, and i turned 33 years old.\n\nI started my new job mid-november, and benefits would not kick in until the first of the next month (december). because of this and a few other reasons, the company offered a signing bonus to help cover the cost of cobra. what i did not realize is that uncle sam would take quite a large chunk of this money.\ncobra costs $1800 per month. the company cut me a check for $2500, of which i actually received $1300 (after taxes, etc.) i am left to cover the remainder of the year out of my own pocket, which is about $2500. this seems like waaay too much to pay for insurance. granted, i was on the best plan possible at my previous position because we knew we would have a baby this year. \n\ni have never dealt with cobra before, but this seems a little screwy. at this point, i have elected to get cobra but i have not paid any premiums. i have 45 days from the time i elected to receive cobra to make a payment, and it is retroactive. i dont really know what other options i have except to go out to the market and try and buy insurance myself. the plan i elected will continue my previous insurance, which we have met our deductible and now only have to deal with copay.\n\nif i buy my own insurance, i will have to compare premiums and make sure our doctors are in network... blah blah blah. i will also lose my $3000 deductable :( are there any other options that will not cost me $2500 to insure my family? please point me toward some resources! thank you!\n\n*i realize this is a complex situation i am in, so please ask questions if it will help!*\n\nEDIT: sorry to be unclear... i did take a week off before starting my new job. as part of my hiring agreement, my new job agreed to cut me a check for cobra in lieu of providing health insurance this year. the company is being acquired, so all the employees are switching over to a new policy anyway. also, this is open enrollment time. SO instead of signing up for new insurance last month to be covered this month - just to turn around and start a new policy in january under a different carrier, i opted to just to cobra through the end of the year and do open enrollment with my new coworkers." Self: "Cobra just means you're able to keep your old insurance at the old rate. The cost hasn't increased at all. The only difference is your old company doesn't pay the portion of that insurance plan cost that they used to cover for you."
User (sylvanic_munk): "the last couple months have been very busy for me! i quit my job and started a new one. my first baby was born in october, and i turned 33 years old.\n\nI started my new job mid-november, and benefits would not kick in until the first of the next month (december). because of this and a few other reasons, the company offered a signing bonus to help cover the cost of cobra. what i did not realize is that uncle sam would take quite a large chunk of this money.\ncobra costs $1800 per month. the company cut me a check for $2500, of which i actually received $1300 (after taxes, etc.) i am left to cover the remainder of the year out of my own pocket, which is about $2500. this seems like waaay too much to pay for insurance. granted, i was on the best plan possible at my previous position because we knew we would have a baby this year. \n\ni have never dealt with cobra before, but this seems a little screwy. at this point, i have elected to get cobra but i have not paid any premiums. i have 45 days from the time i elected to receive cobra to make a payment, and it is retroactive. i dont really know what other options i have except to go out to the market and try and buy insurance myself. the plan i elected will continue my previous insurance, which we have met our deductible and now only have to deal with copay.\n\nif i buy my own insurance, i will have to compare premiums and make sure our doctors are in network... blah blah blah. i will also lose my $3000 deductable :( are there any other options that will not cost me $2500 to insure my family? please point me toward some resources! thank you!\n\n*i realize this is a complex situation i am in, so please ask questions if it will help!*\n\nEDIT: sorry to be unclear... i did take a week off before starting my new job. as part of my hiring agreement, my new job agreed to cut me a check for cobra in lieu of providing health insurance this year. the company is being acquired, so all the employees are switching over to a new policy anyway. also, this is open enrollment time. SO instead of signing up for new insurance last month to be covered this month - just to turn around and start a new policy in january under a different carrier, i opted to just to cobra through the end of the year and do open enrollment with my new coworkers." Self: "I guess I am lost, I thought COBRA was a state run low income insurance, why would it be more expensive than a private policy." dweed4 (dweed4): "No. COBRA is to keep the insurance you had at the previous job. Which is why its so expensive, you pay both your and the employer contribution."
User (sylvanic_munk): "the last couple months have been very busy for me! i quit my job and started a new one. my first baby was born in october, and i turned 33 years old.\n\nI started my new job mid-november, and benefits would not kick in until the first of the next month (december). because of this and a few other reasons, the company offered a signing bonus to help cover the cost of cobra. what i did not realize is that uncle sam would take quite a large chunk of this money.\ncobra costs $1800 per month. the company cut me a check for $2500, of which i actually received $1300 (after taxes, etc.) i am left to cover the remainder of the year out of my own pocket, which is about $2500. this seems like waaay too much to pay for insurance. granted, i was on the best plan possible at my previous position because we knew we would have a baby this year. \n\ni have never dealt with cobra before, but this seems a little screwy. at this point, i have elected to get cobra but i have not paid any premiums. i have 45 days from the time i elected to receive cobra to make a payment, and it is retroactive. i dont really know what other options i have except to go out to the market and try and buy insurance myself. the plan i elected will continue my previous insurance, which we have met our deductible and now only have to deal with copay.\n\nif i buy my own insurance, i will have to compare premiums and make sure our doctors are in network... blah blah blah. i will also lose my $3000 deductable :( are there any other options that will not cost me $2500 to insure my family? please point me toward some resources! thank you!\n\n*i realize this is a complex situation i am in, so please ask questions if it will help!*\n\nEDIT: sorry to be unclear... i did take a week off before starting my new job. as part of my hiring agreement, my new job agreed to cut me a check for cobra in lieu of providing health insurance this year. the company is being acquired, so all the employees are switching over to a new policy anyway. also, this is open enrollment time. SO instead of signing up for new insurance last month to be covered this month - just to turn around and start a new policy in january under a different carrier, i opted to just to cobra through the end of the year and do open enrollment with my new coworkers." Self: "Are your health benefits at the new job now in effect as of yesterday (12/1/16)? When did you leave your other job? usually your insurance won't end until the end of the month in which you terminated employment.\n" User (sylvanic_munk): "my previous plan ended on my last day. we have not been covered since then" Self: "When is the last day to pay the Cobra premium?"
User (sylvanic_munk): "the last couple months have been very busy for me! i quit my job and started a new one. my first baby was born in october, and i turned 33 years old.\n\nI started my new job mid-november, and benefits would not kick in until the first of the next month (december). because of this and a few other reasons, the company offered a signing bonus to help cover the cost of cobra. what i did not realize is that uncle sam would take quite a large chunk of this money.\ncobra costs $1800 per month. the company cut me a check for $2500, of which i actually received $1300 (after taxes, etc.) i am left to cover the remainder of the year out of my own pocket, which is about $2500. this seems like waaay too much to pay for insurance. granted, i was on the best plan possible at my previous position because we knew we would have a baby this year. \n\ni have never dealt with cobra before, but this seems a little screwy. at this point, i have elected to get cobra but i have not paid any premiums. i have 45 days from the time i elected to receive cobra to make a payment, and it is retroactive. i dont really know what other options i have except to go out to the market and try and buy insurance myself. the plan i elected will continue my previous insurance, which we have met our deductible and now only have to deal with copay.\n\nif i buy my own insurance, i will have to compare premiums and make sure our doctors are in network... blah blah blah. i will also lose my $3000 deductable :( are there any other options that will not cost me $2500 to insure my family? please point me toward some resources! thank you!\n\n*i realize this is a complex situation i am in, so please ask questions if it will help!*\n\nEDIT: sorry to be unclear... i did take a week off before starting my new job. as part of my hiring agreement, my new job agreed to cut me a check for cobra in lieu of providing health insurance this year. the company is being acquired, so all the employees are switching over to a new policy anyway. also, this is open enrollment time. SO instead of signing up for new insurance last month to be covered this month - just to turn around and start a new policy in january under a different carrier, i opted to just to cobra through the end of the year and do open enrollment with my new coworkers." Self: "Your employer was paying for part of your insurance. With COBRA, you pay your amount plus the amount your employer was paying for you, plus 2%.\n\n> instead of signing up for new insurance last month to be covered this month - just to turn around and start a new policy in january under a different carrier, i opted to just to cobra through the end of the year and do open enrollment with my new coworkers.\n\nThat was an expensive choice, because it means you must pay for all of the insurance. Had you gone with the new employer's insurance right away, they would have been paying part of it. Sounds like you got your new employer to pay something to offset that, but you forgot to account for taxes, since a payment like that is ordinary income that is taxed.\n\nIt is unclear when you quit. You said you started the new job in mid-November. If you quit in November, you shouldn't have needed COBRA at all, since the insurance at your old company would normally continue to the end of the month. Then your new company would pick it up on December 1.\n\n\n"
User (sylvanic_munk): "the last couple months have been very busy for me! i quit my job and started a new one. my first baby was born in october, and i turned 33 years old.\n\nI started my new job mid-november, and benefits would not kick in until the first of the next month (december). because of this and a few other reasons, the company offered a signing bonus to help cover the cost of cobra. what i did not realize is that uncle sam would take quite a large chunk of this money.\ncobra costs $1800 per month. the company cut me a check for $2500, of which i actually received $1300 (after taxes, etc.) i am left to cover the remainder of the year out of my own pocket, which is about $2500. this seems like waaay too much to pay for insurance. granted, i was on the best plan possible at my previous position because we knew we would have a baby this year. \n\ni have never dealt with cobra before, but this seems a little screwy. at this point, i have elected to get cobra but i have not paid any premiums. i have 45 days from the time i elected to receive cobra to make a payment, and it is retroactive. i dont really know what other options i have except to go out to the market and try and buy insurance myself. the plan i elected will continue my previous insurance, which we have met our deductible and now only have to deal with copay.\n\nif i buy my own insurance, i will have to compare premiums and make sure our doctors are in network... blah blah blah. i will also lose my $3000 deductable :( are there any other options that will not cost me $2500 to insure my family? please point me toward some resources! thank you!\n\n*i realize this is a complex situation i am in, so please ask questions if it will help!*\n\nEDIT: sorry to be unclear... i did take a week off before starting my new job. as part of my hiring agreement, my new job agreed to cut me a check for cobra in lieu of providing health insurance this year. the company is being acquired, so all the employees are switching over to a new policy anyway. also, this is open enrollment time. SO instead of signing up for new insurance last month to be covered this month - just to turn around and start a new policy in january under a different carrier, i opted to just to cobra through the end of the year and do open enrollment with my new coworkers." Self: "Wait, why would you opt for COBRA instead of just starting insurance in December? So what if you only had insurance for one month and then had a new plan with a different carrier? It would have been less expensive.\n\nAnyway, I would not enroll in COBRA yet. If something comes up, then enroll in COBRA retroactively. (Be forewarned, it will be a bit of an administrative headache) If not, you saved some money."
User (sylvanic_munk): "the last couple months have been very busy for me! i quit my job and started a new one. my first baby was born in october, and i turned 33 years old.\n\nI started my new job mid-november, and benefits would not kick in until the first of the next month (december). because of this and a few other reasons, the company offered a signing bonus to help cover the cost of cobra. what i did not realize is that uncle sam would take quite a large chunk of this money.\ncobra costs $1800 per month. the company cut me a check for $2500, of which i actually received $1300 (after taxes, etc.) i am left to cover the remainder of the year out of my own pocket, which is about $2500. this seems like waaay too much to pay for insurance. granted, i was on the best plan possible at my previous position because we knew we would have a baby this year. \n\ni have never dealt with cobra before, but this seems a little screwy. at this point, i have elected to get cobra but i have not paid any premiums. i have 45 days from the time i elected to receive cobra to make a payment, and it is retroactive. i dont really know what other options i have except to go out to the market and try and buy insurance myself. the plan i elected will continue my previous insurance, which we have met our deductible and now only have to deal with copay.\n\nif i buy my own insurance, i will have to compare premiums and make sure our doctors are in network... blah blah blah. i will also lose my $3000 deductable :( are there any other options that will not cost me $2500 to insure my family? please point me toward some resources! thank you!\n\n*i realize this is a complex situation i am in, so please ask questions if it will help!*\n\nEDIT: sorry to be unclear... i did take a week off before starting my new job. as part of my hiring agreement, my new job agreed to cut me a check for cobra in lieu of providing health insurance this year. the company is being acquired, so all the employees are switching over to a new policy anyway. also, this is open enrollment time. SO instead of signing up for new insurance last month to be covered this month - just to turn around and start a new policy in january under a different carrier, i opted to just to cobra through the end of the year and do open enrollment with my new coworkers." Self: "It's so expensive because you're paying the entire premium instead of your company paying part. If you don't want to pay that much, find something cheaper in the market place. That will require figuring everything out again. People switch doctors all the time.\n\nEdit: Wait, I'm confused. Aren't you just on a new plan through your new job now? Why do you need cobra or the market place?" User (sylvanic_munk): "sorry, see the edit. i do not have coverage currently" Greellx (Greellx): "Are you prone to illnesses frequently that require medical attention? If I'm not mistake, you aren't penalizes for not having health insurance for 90(?) days.... Can't you ride it out until your new insurance kicks in? Sorry if I missed something here." onekrazykat (onekrazykat): "Co-worker got dinked for not having coverage for 30 days." Greellx (Greellx): "When? And where to they live? In the United States "Under the ACA, you can go up to three months in a row and not have to pay a penalty on your federal income taxes for being uninsured."" onekrazykat (onekrazykat): "It was some time last year that the coverage lapsed, Ohio. He received the ding in the mail recently (or at least I heard about it recently)"
User (sylvanic_munk): "the last couple months have been very busy for me! i quit my job and started a new one. my first baby was born in october, and i turned 33 years old.\n\nI started my new job mid-november, and benefits would not kick in until the first of the next month (december). because of this and a few other reasons, the company offered a signing bonus to help cover the cost of cobra. what i did not realize is that uncle sam would take quite a large chunk of this money.\ncobra costs $1800 per month. the company cut me a check for $2500, of which i actually received $1300 (after taxes, etc.) i am left to cover the remainder of the year out of my own pocket, which is about $2500. this seems like waaay too much to pay for insurance. granted, i was on the best plan possible at my previous position because we knew we would have a baby this year. \n\ni have never dealt with cobra before, but this seems a little screwy. at this point, i have elected to get cobra but i have not paid any premiums. i have 45 days from the time i elected to receive cobra to make a payment, and it is retroactive. i dont really know what other options i have except to go out to the market and try and buy insurance myself. the plan i elected will continue my previous insurance, which we have met our deductible and now only have to deal with copay.\n\nif i buy my own insurance, i will have to compare premiums and make sure our doctors are in network... blah blah blah. i will also lose my $3000 deductable :( are there any other options that will not cost me $2500 to insure my family? please point me toward some resources! thank you!\n\n*i realize this is a complex situation i am in, so please ask questions if it will help!*\n\nEDIT: sorry to be unclear... i did take a week off before starting my new job. as part of my hiring agreement, my new job agreed to cut me a check for cobra in lieu of providing health insurance this year. the company is being acquired, so all the employees are switching over to a new policy anyway. also, this is open enrollment time. SO instead of signing up for new insurance last month to be covered this month - just to turn around and start a new policy in january under a different carrier, i opted to just to cobra through the end of the year and do open enrollment with my new coworkers." Self: ">cobra costs $1800 per month. the company cut me a check for $2500, of which i actually received $1300 (after taxes, etc.) i am left to cover the remainder of the year out of my own pocket, which is about $2500.\n\n1) You won't need COBRA coverage through the end of the year - only for the gap period - and THEN only if you incur treatment the bills for which might be paid in part/in full by your COBRA coverage\n\n2) "taxes, etc" should not reduce your $2,500 check by $1,200. Something fishy there."
User (certainpossibilities): "So I've been obsessed with basketball my entire life, and still am. I've played and coached, and my dream was to work for a college team as a career. I worked my way up through my bachelors degree and was hired by a D1 school as a video coordinator. I am also getting my MBA from this school as I work. After about 6 months of working with them it's very hard seeing myself continue on this path. I have found the sacrifice needed to get to the place I was dreaming of is far greater than I had thought. I have decided to leave after this season, as the pay is equal to about $3.25 an hour and I'm working 70+ hours a week, my work/life balance is hard for me to handle and I can't save anything for my future.\n\nI'm not in an awful spot, as I'm only 22, I still have about $12k invested and $3k in my bank, and I got lucky and found an ultra cheap apartment. Now for the purpose of this post, what is the best way to get back into the realm of regular employment? I am an MBA candidate with no post-baccalaureate experience outside of working in athletics. I want to work in corporate finance, and had a lot of extra curricular engagements that I took part in while i was in my undergrad, like being a TA in the statistics department, an analyst type position with the dean of the business school, and the head of student managed investments. Is there a way that I could sell my current employment and the fact that I am an MBA candidate that would make me look more valuable? \n\nThe sad thing is I declined some of the offers of graduate schools that I was accepted into because I was offered a basketball job, and the schools are far beyond the one I am in now :/ " Self: "Don't think of it as you've been set back or that you're off your path. The path to success is not straight. You've simply come to a bend (or even a hard turn) but your path continues.\nYour post is your answer. You are an MBA candidate who has TA'd in the statistics department, etc. Be confident in how you present yourself and you'll be fine." User (certainpossibilities): "Should I be looking for an entry level job then? Or something higher because I am an MBA candidate? I guess I'm just not sure how to evaluate myself in terms of the job level I should be looking for." Self: "No harm in aiming high but I would say entry level. As you stated, no experience (actual employment experience) in said field. " User (certainpossibilities): "That's what I was thinking, but I just don't want to settle if I can actually obtain a higher level."
User (certainpossibilities): "So I've been obsessed with basketball my entire life, and still am. I've played and coached, and my dream was to work for a college team as a career. I worked my way up through my bachelors degree and was hired by a D1 school as a video coordinator. I am also getting my MBA from this school as I work. After about 6 months of working with them it's very hard seeing myself continue on this path. I have found the sacrifice needed to get to the place I was dreaming of is far greater than I had thought. I have decided to leave after this season, as the pay is equal to about $3.25 an hour and I'm working 70+ hours a week, my work/life balance is hard for me to handle and I can't save anything for my future.\n\nI'm not in an awful spot, as I'm only 22, I still have about $12k invested and $3k in my bank, and I got lucky and found an ultra cheap apartment. Now for the purpose of this post, what is the best way to get back into the realm of regular employment? I am an MBA candidate with no post-baccalaureate experience outside of working in athletics. I want to work in corporate finance, and had a lot of extra curricular engagements that I took part in while i was in my undergrad, like being a TA in the statistics department, an analyst type position with the dean of the business school, and the head of student managed investments. Is there a way that I could sell my current employment and the fact that I am an MBA candidate that would make me look more valuable? \n\nThe sad thing is I declined some of the offers of graduate schools that I was accepted into because I was offered a basketball job, and the schools are far beyond the one I am in now :/ " Self: "you don't mention the nature of your undergrad degree, but why not start looking for careers in that neighborhood? a general business degree, if that's what you earned, gives you a lot of options. sometimes you've got to take whatever entry level job you can get but that doesn't mean you're stuck there the next 40 years. you can always look for promotions or stepping up. \n\nand you can still be involved with basketball, maybe just as a hobby rather than a career. " User (certainpossibilities): ">and you can still be involved with basketball, maybe just as a hobby rather than a career. \n\nThis is what I plan on doing :)\n\nand my undergrad was in finance, I had a couple investment internships, but my school was a small private one so there was no such thing as recruiting from any investment management firms sadly. Corporate finance gives me more options, though I'd take either."
User (harpyeaglelove): "So I have around 40k in student loans to my name. I am indeed struggling to pay these loans right now, and noticed that my bank is offering a refinance option.\n\nIs there any catch to this refinance? For example, if I trade in my 1) federal government student loans and 2) Navient private loans for this Citizens bank loan, is it just a personal loan now? \n\nI know rates are increasing and may very well be 1% higher within the next few weeks if this historic bond sell off continues.\n\nDo you think I should look into this option? Are there any caveats?" Self: "You may find these links helpful:\n\n- [Student Loans wiki page](http://www.reddit.com/r/personalfinance/wiki/studentloans)\n- ["How to handle $"](http://www.reddit.com/r/personalfinance/wiki/commontopics)\n- [What's the best way to pay down my debt?](http://www.reddit.com/r/personalfinance/wiki/debt#wiki_what.27s_the_best_way_to_pay_down_my_debt.3F)\n\nI am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/personalfinance) if you have any questions or concerns."
User (harpyeaglelove): "So I have around 40k in student loans to my name. I am indeed struggling to pay these loans right now, and noticed that my bank is offering a refinance option.\n\nIs there any catch to this refinance? For example, if I trade in my 1) federal government student loans and 2) Navient private loans for this Citizens bank loan, is it just a personal loan now? \n\nI know rates are increasing and may very well be 1% higher within the next few weeks if this historic bond sell off continues.\n\nDo you think I should look into this option? Are there any caveats?" Self: "Theres usually a tax credit for paying interest on student loans. Youd lose that.\n\nLose the ability to be as flexible in your payments as you could be with the gov loans as well" Jordaneer (Jordaneer): "A tax credit is never going to be worth nearly as much as an interest rate that is half what he is currently paying, losing federal protections on income based repayment and deferment would be my main concern." Self: "true, and yes i agree the deferment and income based repayments etc are more important"
User (harpyeaglelove): "So I have around 40k in student loans to my name. I am indeed struggling to pay these loans right now, and noticed that my bank is offering a refinance option.\n\nIs there any catch to this refinance? For example, if I trade in my 1) federal government student loans and 2) Navient private loans for this Citizens bank loan, is it just a personal loan now? \n\nI know rates are increasing and may very well be 1% higher within the next few weeks if this historic bond sell off continues.\n\nDo you think I should look into this option? Are there any caveats?" Self: "I don't know what your career is, but when my wife refinanced to navient, she lost out on the opportunity for $5,000 of loan foregovess as a public employee. \n\nDepending on the size of your loan, 3% may compensate for that. " User (harpyeaglelove): "I don't have a career and am kind of screwed, so IDK maybe it's better to just defer these loans indefinitely and not refinance and be forced to pay each month."
User (Cut___off): "I was recently cut off by my parents after a lifetime of basically limitless resources. I am struggling during this transitionary period in my life and really have no idea what I am doing. I have always had everything provided for me from laundering to drivers. I recently moved away from my parents to a small one bedroom apartment and got my first job at Rick Owens in Manhattan a small high end clothing boutique. My job pays $22 an hour.\n\n\nCash on hand 6400\n\nRent 1500\n\nTrain ticket 257\n\nSubway 108\n\nPhone 60\n\nI will provide more information upon request.\n" Self: "Are...you paying rent? I don't understand the question. You have bills. You pay said bills. Are you struggling to find money for your bills?\n\nI don't understand how a train ticket varies from the subway. You need to take 2 trains?" User (Cut___off): "Yes I am paying rent I have to pay for the NJ transit then once I get to the city I have to pay for the subway."
User (Cut___off): "I was recently cut off by my parents after a lifetime of basically limitless resources. I am struggling during this transitionary period in my life and really have no idea what I am doing. I have always had everything provided for me from laundering to drivers. I recently moved away from my parents to a small one bedroom apartment and got my first job at Rick Owens in Manhattan a small high end clothing boutique. My job pays $22 an hour.\n\n\nCash on hand 6400\n\nRent 1500\n\nTrain ticket 257\n\nSubway 108\n\nPhone 60\n\nI will provide more information upon request.\n" Self: ">What do I need to know about starting my finical independence?\n\nOf primary importance is to spend less than you earn. You should set up a [budget](https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1l7LY4BO-YiWebz3-VIHQwgEQOYpMqpYbT4V5DwLRG7c/edit#gid=1951939627) where you keep track of how much money you have coming in and what you spend it on. I notice you didn't list any expenses for food, entertainment, or subscriptions (netflix, prime, spotify, etc.) Make sure you keep track of when your bills are due and pay them on time. If you use a credit card, pay it off in full every month.\n\nHave all of your income going into one checking account that you pay all of your bills from. Get a separate savings account where you put extra money until you have enough cash to cover 6 months of expenses. After that open an IRA and start saving for retirement. \n\nYour rent is pretty high for your income. If you can move you might want to look in to a roommate situation. If you cannot move you might need to consider getting a second job if you cannot afford all of your living expenses.\n\nLearn how to cook. Watch YouTube videos, read cooking blogs, etc. This will save you money over going out to eat.\n\nDo you have any specific questions you'd like answered? " ctarbet (ctarbet): "This is good except for the retirement part. OP's primary goal is to develop a career which probably means education / training. Retirement is not a high priority." Self: ">OP's primary goal is to develop a career...Retirement is not a high priority.\n\nI didn't see OP mention anything about goals or priorities. Retirement is an eventuality that should be prepared for starting as early as possible." ctarbet (ctarbet): ""Retirement" is just financial end-of-life. A career is the best way to secure your financial future. You want OP to save a few hundred a month...big deal! I want OP to double income through training or education and save a few thousand per month." Self: ">You want OP to...I want OP to...\n\nDid you ever think about what OP wants? OP didn't say anything about wanting to go to school. " ctarbet (ctarbet): "I'm pretty sure that $22 / hour in Manhattan is effectively minimum wage. There must be a plan to move beyond that. It doesn't have to literally be school, but the clear request is help becoming financially independent. School, training, military, internship, apprenticeship. "
User (terriblesubreddit): "Received a second bill from a medical provider and 8 days letter received a letter from an attorney/what I assume to be a collections agency for the amount due on the bill that has a due date 15 days from now. should I contest what they are claiming I owe after paying the original bill or throw out the collection letter?" Self: "You may find these links helpful:\n\n- [What's the best way to pay down my debt?](http://www.reddit.com/r/personalfinance/wiki/debt#wiki_what.27s_the_best_way_to_pay_down_my_debt.3F)\n- [Dealing with collections](http://www.reddit.com/r/personalfinance/wiki/collections)\n- [Credit Repair](http://www.reddit.com/r/personalfinance/wiki/credit_building#wiki_i_have_bad_credit.2C_and_i_am_looking_to_repair_it.)\n\nI am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/personalfinance) if you have any questions or concerns."
User (terriblesubreddit): "Received a second bill from a medical provider and 8 days letter received a letter from an attorney/what I assume to be a collections agency for the amount due on the bill that has a due date 15 days from now. should I contest what they are claiming I owe after paying the original bill or throw out the collection letter?" Self: "Yes. Often debt, especially medical debt, is sold at pennies on the dollar. That way the hospital gets paid immediately and the collection agency bears the risk of collection. It makes you wonder why they just don't offer that deal to the orignal patient. \n\nedit: I think John Oliver did one of shows on this topic." User (terriblesubreddit): "even if you had paid the bill before the due date?" Self: "yes, this shit is done with spreadsheets by an underpaid or overpaid clerk. The left hand has no idea what the right hand is doing. Accounts receivable and the group that sells the debt might not even be in the same department.\n\nunfortunately, you need to do the following up. you need to give a copy of your receipt to the debt collector showing that they're trying to collect on a debt that is already paid. They should be harassing the hospital for selling them a settled debt.\n\nHowever depending on the debt collector, some are real POS, they may continue to harass you until you pay them.\n\nGood luck."
User (terriblesubreddit): "Received a second bill from a medical provider and 8 days letter received a letter from an attorney/what I assume to be a collections agency for the amount due on the bill that has a due date 15 days from now. should I contest what they are claiming I owe after paying the original bill or throw out the collection letter?" Self: "Yes. Often debt, especially medical debt, is sold at pennies on the dollar. That way the hospital gets paid immediately and the collection agency bears the risk of collection. It makes you wonder why they just don't offer that deal to the orignal patient. \n\nedit: I think John Oliver did one of shows on this topic." User (terriblesubreddit): "even if you had paid the bill before the due date?" HiTechObsessed (HiTechObsessed): "Did you pay in full the amount due already to the hospital? Do you have a receipt showing that?" User (terriblesubreddit): "I have a confirmation code and the receipt is in the mail"
User (RaffoSS): "Hello Reddit,\n\nI'll start by saying that i'm a complete ignorant on financial matters, but i'd like to hear an opinion regarding my situation:\n\n* 27 years old\n* Going to move from Italy to Spain in 3 months with my GF to live there permanently, i hope\n* No kids planned, i hope\n* No plan for a house at the moment\n\nSo...as I am quite good with budgets and savings, I've managed to put aside some cash in my account. I have around 20'000€ that i'd like to preserve (not invest) for 10-20 years:\n\nThe thing is, i'm kind of scared of EU' situation...I don't trust banks, nor companies, nor the € or any other FIAT currency for that matter.\nSo what's a good way to secure my savings from a possible (as ignorant as i might be, this is what i perceive) EU downfall? What's a good way to keep my spending power in case of a crisis and € devaluation?\n\nI'm skeptical about storing 20'000€ in BitCoins, so i'd like to buy Gold/Silver and have it delivered to me once i move to Spain.\n\nPros of Gold/Silver\n\n* Physical goods in my hands\n\n* 20'000€ would be around 20 1oz gold coins...it's not an impracticale weight to move/hide\n\n* kinda stable currency\n\n\n\n\nCons of Gold/Silver\n\n* I don't know if i'll need to pay taxes for owning gold/silver or fill any other documents beside my income papers\n\n* I'm scared of confiscation in case i inform authorities and the time of crisis hits us.\n\n* Theft from burglars\n\n\nWhich ideas or advices could you give me? Do you have any personal stories in which your gold stack helped you in dire situations?\n\nSorry for my english, not my 1st lang.\n\nTL;DR Which precautions should i get in order to guard my savings from a € crisis similiar to Venezuela' situation nowadays?\n\nThanks\n" Self: "Maybe try https://www.reddit.com/r/eupersonalfinance/ "
User (RaffoSS): "Hello Reddit,\n\nI'll start by saying that i'm a complete ignorant on financial matters, but i'd like to hear an opinion regarding my situation:\n\n* 27 years old\n* Going to move from Italy to Spain in 3 months with my GF to live there permanently, i hope\n* No kids planned, i hope\n* No plan for a house at the moment\n\nSo...as I am quite good with budgets and savings, I've managed to put aside some cash in my account. I have around 20'000€ that i'd like to preserve (not invest) for 10-20 years:\n\nThe thing is, i'm kind of scared of EU' situation...I don't trust banks, nor companies, nor the € or any other FIAT currency for that matter.\nSo what's a good way to secure my savings from a possible (as ignorant as i might be, this is what i perceive) EU downfall? What's a good way to keep my spending power in case of a crisis and € devaluation?\n\nI'm skeptical about storing 20'000€ in BitCoins, so i'd like to buy Gold/Silver and have it delivered to me once i move to Spain.\n\nPros of Gold/Silver\n\n* Physical goods in my hands\n\n* 20'000€ would be around 20 1oz gold coins...it's not an impracticale weight to move/hide\n\n* kinda stable currency\n\n\n\n\nCons of Gold/Silver\n\n* I don't know if i'll need to pay taxes for owning gold/silver or fill any other documents beside my income papers\n\n* I'm scared of confiscation in case i inform authorities and the time of crisis hits us.\n\n* Theft from burglars\n\n\nWhich ideas or advices could you give me? Do you have any personal stories in which your gold stack helped you in dire situations?\n\nSorry for my english, not my 1st lang.\n\nTL;DR Which precautions should i get in order to guard my savings from a € crisis similiar to Venezuela' situation nowadays?\n\nThanks\n" Self: "Gold is a horrible thing to own because you can't sell it when times are bad, you can't eat it when times are bad, and it doesn't appreciate when times are good. Do a 50/50 total bond market / total stock market split."
User (RaffoSS): "Hello Reddit,\n\nI'll start by saying that i'm a complete ignorant on financial matters, but i'd like to hear an opinion regarding my situation:\n\n* 27 years old\n* Going to move from Italy to Spain in 3 months with my GF to live there permanently, i hope\n* No kids planned, i hope\n* No plan for a house at the moment\n\nSo...as I am quite good with budgets and savings, I've managed to put aside some cash in my account. I have around 20'000€ that i'd like to preserve (not invest) for 10-20 years:\n\nThe thing is, i'm kind of scared of EU' situation...I don't trust banks, nor companies, nor the € or any other FIAT currency for that matter.\nSo what's a good way to secure my savings from a possible (as ignorant as i might be, this is what i perceive) EU downfall? What's a good way to keep my spending power in case of a crisis and € devaluation?\n\nI'm skeptical about storing 20'000€ in BitCoins, so i'd like to buy Gold/Silver and have it delivered to me once i move to Spain.\n\nPros of Gold/Silver\n\n* Physical goods in my hands\n\n* 20'000€ would be around 20 1oz gold coins...it's not an impracticale weight to move/hide\n\n* kinda stable currency\n\n\n\n\nCons of Gold/Silver\n\n* I don't know if i'll need to pay taxes for owning gold/silver or fill any other documents beside my income papers\n\n* I'm scared of confiscation in case i inform authorities and the time of crisis hits us.\n\n* Theft from burglars\n\n\nWhich ideas or advices could you give me? Do you have any personal stories in which your gold stack helped you in dire situations?\n\nSorry for my english, not my 1st lang.\n\nTL;DR Which precautions should i get in order to guard my savings from a € crisis similiar to Venezuela' situation nowadays?\n\nThanks\n" Self: "Bitcoins are a lot easier to move around the world or exchange to/from fiat currency than gold, and as long as you have a trezor hardware wallet (costs about $90) they will be 100% safe from hackers. Do more research nonetheless, people on /r/bitcoin will answer any questions you have. Good luck."
User (RaffoSS): "Hello Reddit,\n\nI'll start by saying that i'm a complete ignorant on financial matters, but i'd like to hear an opinion regarding my situation:\n\n* 27 years old\n* Going to move from Italy to Spain in 3 months with my GF to live there permanently, i hope\n* No kids planned, i hope\n* No plan for a house at the moment\n\nSo...as I am quite good with budgets and savings, I've managed to put aside some cash in my account. I have around 20'000€ that i'd like to preserve (not invest) for 10-20 years:\n\nThe thing is, i'm kind of scared of EU' situation...I don't trust banks, nor companies, nor the € or any other FIAT currency for that matter.\nSo what's a good way to secure my savings from a possible (as ignorant as i might be, this is what i perceive) EU downfall? What's a good way to keep my spending power in case of a crisis and € devaluation?\n\nI'm skeptical about storing 20'000€ in BitCoins, so i'd like to buy Gold/Silver and have it delivered to me once i move to Spain.\n\nPros of Gold/Silver\n\n* Physical goods in my hands\n\n* 20'000€ would be around 20 1oz gold coins...it's not an impracticale weight to move/hide\n\n* kinda stable currency\n\n\n\n\nCons of Gold/Silver\n\n* I don't know if i'll need to pay taxes for owning gold/silver or fill any other documents beside my income papers\n\n* I'm scared of confiscation in case i inform authorities and the time of crisis hits us.\n\n* Theft from burglars\n\n\nWhich ideas or advices could you give me? Do you have any personal stories in which your gold stack helped you in dire situations?\n\nSorry for my english, not my 1st lang.\n\nTL;DR Which precautions should i get in order to guard my savings from a € crisis similiar to Venezuela' situation nowadays?\n\nThanks\n" Self: "If you are not entirely sure about Bitcoin, just try to understand that you only need to put a small amount in as a hedge.\n\nThere is no scenario where Bitcoin still exists 20 years from now but hasn't increased in value by orders of magnitude.\n\nBitcoin will either be utterly gone or a decentralised fixed quantity digital asset beyond the control of governments will have proved itself over the course of almost 30 years.\n\nThe idea that it would remain a paltry $12billion asset is absurd.\n\nSo yeah, you don't by any means need to save all your money in Bitcoin, but anyone not putting a small percentage into it is making a poor financial decision."
User (valtny): "Any tips that will help me out in the long run will be really appreciated. If it helps for context I want to have my own film/tv production company when I'm older." Self: "Financial tip: don't choose a job market that is extremely saturated or hard to get into." User (valtny): "I have a 'more realistic' plan as well but college debt scares me. Social Media seems to be a good but hard route to take, which would mean a result of no debt. But as ideal as it is, I'm scared to even try to get into it because I don't want to end up focusing and giving my time to something that never happens. Then I'd be 40 and probably very much in debt, still thinking I can thrive with some social media marketing thing. I don't know, just my thoughts."
User (valtny): "Any tips that will help me out in the long run will be really appreciated. If it helps for context I want to have my own film/tv production company when I'm older." Self: "Whatever you buy as a want today, you may have to sell to pay for a need tomorrow...you remember this and you'll be fine kid...."
User (valtny): "Any tips that will help me out in the long run will be really appreciated. If it helps for context I want to have my own film/tv production company when I'm older." Self: "Don't get a degree that's costs a crap ton and doesn't have an obvious career path. Everyone seems surprised by student debt after the fact."
User (valtny): "Any tips that will help me out in the long run will be really appreciated. If it helps for context I want to have my own film/tv production company when I'm older." Self: "As an almost 40 year old man, I'd advise you to avoid credit card debt whenever reasonable. I have never had more than $1000 in credit card debt in my entire lifetime. I have two cards that I have set to automatically pay off at the end of the month, and I use those cards for daily purchases. I know way too many people who are dealing with massive debt because they saw credit cards as free money and eventually realized that they have to pay it back. Live below your means. You don't need a fancy car or a pair of sweet kicks. You need a roof over your head, food in your belly, and maybe a car to get around in. Bank everything else. If the shit hits the fan and you're out of a job, it's nice to have a warchest waiting for you." User (valtny): "Thank you!" DarkLink1065 (DarkLink1065): "You do want a credit card, you just have to make certain you don't do something stupid with it.\n\ncredit cards help you build a credit history to improve your credit score, but make sure you aren't constantly maxing the card out and always always always pay the card off on time. "
User (valtny): "Any tips that will help me out in the long run will be really appreciated. If it helps for context I want to have my own film/tv production company when I'm older." Self: "How is your situation at home? If you and your parents don't mind you living at home and they don't charge you much to stay with them, live with them for as long as possible. If you can save up a bunch of money while staying at home, you will put yourself at a huge advantage going forward.\n\nI saved the vast majority of my money working part-time jobs while staying at home, and despite still being a low-wage worker (25-27k), I'm on track to have my house paid off by the time I'm 38."

Subsets and Splits

No community queries yet

The top public SQL queries from the community will appear here once available.