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kappy

Just adding this as a status update. I locked in 4.375% with the builders lender and close Monday. My current house is under contract to be sold at the beginning of September. If 15yr rates are down where they are now, I will be looking to refinance once it sells. While playing with the spreadsheet,...

kappy

Same here. Some of my friends are at least smart enough to get their full company match but many don't even do that

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kappy

GuyFromGeorgia, thank you. I made the table and that's exactly what I was looking for. My idea for going with a 30yr loan was simply a risk reduction measure. If I needed to, I could drop my payment down to the PITI amount if I lost my job or some other large expense popped up. A 15yr forces me into...

kappy

The last time I spoke with the rep, I mentioned that SunTrust was offering 4.125 while they offered 4.375. She said "oh yes I know, I have a friend who works there and we compare rates all the time." She said that she could talk to a manager to lower the rate and they would make sure it's ...

kappy

Yes, I'm sure they are built into the rate. I believe I may have found my answer but there's just no calculator that can compare paying extra on the principal of a 30yr loan vs refinancing to a 15yr. I used the brute force method and ran the mortgage calculator several times in different browser tab...

kappy

Hi everyone, I'd like to hear your thoughts on my mortgage situation. Age:32, single Salary $90k State: Florida Current house: mortgage of $1200 PITI including $200 on principal per month. I will receive ~$150k after paying off mortgage and agent fees when it sells. New house: $240k value, $190k mor...

kappy

It's 10% on the 1 or 2% cash back, not 11 or 12%.

kappy

Megacorp(s) here. I wouldn't ask for that raise now. I've never immediately received a raise for moving into a new position. The closest was the addition of a performance-based bonus at the end of the year for doing a good job in a supervisory role. Wait until you've been in the position a bit and p...

kappy

Good to know. I'm in the neighborhood of 35 days out. The builder anticipates closing at the end of July.

kappy

Thanks for the info. I finally got the call that I can lock in my rate next week and was wondering if there was something related to the recent rate hike that would make me want to lock in sooner rather than later.

kappy

I've been following interest rates and mortgage rates for nearly a year now after signing the contract to build a new home. It seems like the increases in interest rates late last year and early this year caused an increase in mortgage rates but the most recent fed rate hike doesn't seem to have don...

kappy

It is pretty amazing. When I first started working, I knew nothing of investing but my company offered a 50% match up to my contribution of 8% and I was not going to let that extra 4% get away. I think they automatically started you at 3% or so with a 1% increase every year unless you went in and ch...

kappy

I agree with the others that ask why invest it when dividends are less than the interest rate of your loan? If you want to invest, do it in a TSM or S&P 500, take dividends and put them towards the mortgage, then use your other income sources to make up the difference. At least then, you have a ...

kappy

*3!4!/5! wrote:How is interested accrued? If you cash out after, say 2.8 months, would you get the full 2.8 months interest, or would you just get 2 months interest because that's the number of whole months you were in?

Interest accrues daily.

kappy

Thanks. Learn something new every day...

kappy

I occasionally see comments on here that the Russell 2000 isn't a good index to track. Would anybody care to explain why I would or wouldn't want to use an index fund that tracks it for small caps?

kappy

corn18, I thought that's what I said but either way, we are in agreement. Pre-tax 401k $18000, Roth IRA $5500.

kappy

I believe what captpete means is that his 401k offers a Roth option for post tax money. This is an easy way to get money into a Roth but not the best way to maximize your tax deferred space if that's what you're trying to do. You can only contribute $18,000 to tax advantaged 401k's. I use 401k for a...

kappy

Ok, I finally made it through my plan documents. It allows in-service distributions every 3 months but I am not permitted to make after-tax contributions for another 3 months after a distribution. This is fine as my only contributions would happen towards the end of the year and I'd roll over at the...

kappy

Thank you. I have started reading up on mega backdoor roths and my plan documents. I currently have a traditional IRA and roth IRA at Vanguard as well as pre-tax 401k with my employer. It would seem this limits me to an in service distribution as I do not want to roll my traditional IRA into the 401...

kappy

Yes, this would be after-tax contributions to my 401k. The reason I ask is that I am maxing my pre-tax 401k based on my salary but my company takes the percentage based on my gross paycheck. I am salaried but can make OT and on weeks that I work OT, I end up contributing more to the 401k than I want...

kappy

I'm trying to understand how a post tax 401k works. After the 2015 IRS ruling that clarified how post tax 401k's can be rolled into a Roth after leaving an employer without paying taxes, are there any major differences between the two? Are dividends in a post tax 401k taxed or not?

kappy

I had a stroke of luck. I rebalanced some of my small cap into REIT before markets closed yesterday to meet my desired AA. It was a mini win for a day or two but in the grand scheme of things, won't mean a thing. It did put a smile on my face though.

kappy

Thanks for the replies. The warranty and return policy start date comment certainly makes it less tempting to buy early and store them. I might give AJMadison or ABT a try if their prices are still the best when I'm ready to buy. Since these would be delivered by truck whether I buy online or local,...

kappy

I changed jobs last year. My new 401k allowed me to contribute after a month of employment but they would not match until I was there for a year. There is also a 4 year vesting period on the match. The year wait for employer matching was the toughest part and I learned that it was a more recent chan...

kappy

Currently, I can get the appliances locally on sale for the same price as online. I haven't tracked them long enough to see if the online prices swing like the local sale prices. Assuming the price is similar, the main thing I'd be saving is the 7% tax. Whether I buy locally or online, it would be d...

kappy

I'm in the process of building a house and didn't feel like lumping thousands of dollars of appliances that last <10 years into a 15-30yr mortgage. I'll need to buy the washer/dryer and refrigerator myself. I'm trying to find the best deal even if it means buying before the house is complete then ju...

kappy

Great info everyone. Dad was the higher earner and plans to hold off until 70 to take SS. I'm sure they will be fine either way but I'm just trying to help them plan for a decade or two down the road and I'm not confident their Fidelity advisor has their best interests in mind. It sounds like a Roth...

kappy

Thanks for the advice. It does look like they will be in the bottom of the 25% bracket in the few years before RMD's kick in with moms pension and their other income.

kappy

I was talking with my mother today about my parents finances and had some questions before giving any real advice. Both parents are mid 60's. Dad retired a couple years ago and mom retires later this year. They have around $1M in IRAs and mom has a pension that will cover their basic necessities. Mo...

kappy

House age matters a lot. I'm in the middle of the state in a house built in the late 80's (value ~250k). Insurance is over $1500 a year even after $800 was knocked off after a wind mitigation inspection. I'm building a house a few miles from the coast with similar value. Insurance will be under $100...

kappy

I knew nothing about investing for the first several years of my working life other than the fact that I should invest as much as possible in my 401k. The target date funds were perfect for me. When I did finally find Bogleheads and start learning, I was happy to find the expense ratio was under .15...

kappy

I think it comes down to the fact that a company can let you go at any time, especially in the first 90 day window. Honestly, it seems worse to take a job, get trained, assimilate into the new system, and then take another offer after only a year. There is a risk of burning bridges but this is reall...

kappy

Along those lines, it would be interesting to see how an 80/20 or 60/40 portfolio compares over the same timeframe.

kappy

I bought in 2003. Wish I had bought more but I'm hoping to get AAPL down to 10% of my portfolio by the end of this year

kappy

It would take at least a 20% increase in overall compensation to make me move and I'm not overly ecstatic about my current employer. I wonder what millenials get each time they move besides another bullet on their resumes. Seems like it's a lot of work to jump ship every two years and I question wh...

kappy

I opened up my Ally savings account earlier today. The process took 15-20 minutes and was very easy. You will need the account and routing number of your current bank for an initial deposit.

kappy

1%? How do you manage that? My property taxes are 3% of my annual income. I agree with the constant expenses but higher earnings as you get older but inflation does hurt you. I remember having a conversation with an older co-worker who had worked at the company since 1964 (both direct and contractor...

kappy

Thanks. I just set up the account; should have done it months ago. There's interest to be earned!

kappy

I want to open an online savings account with Ally for the 1% rate. The initial money will be for the down payment on a house (3-6 months out) and then I will use it for emergency fund money after that. I do have a couple questions mostly stemming from the house... 1. Does opening this account put a...

kappy

Older millennial here. My parents can only retire now because of social security. They just topped $1M, which would not cover their costs in retirement at 4%. This includes pensions, as like many boomers my mom paid into a defined benefit pension for years only to have the terms repeatedly changed ...

kappy

Thanks everyone. Sounds like there are some varied experiences with Scottrade. I use them infrequently but I want to start pulling money from this taxable account every year to fund my Roth IRA at Vanguard. I won't be moving funds frequently but it will be going on for many many years to come.

kappy

Question for all you Scottrade users... I have an individual taxable brokerage account with them and would like to withdraw some funds. It has been quite a few years since I last did this and it wasn't very straightforward back then. Now it seems like the easiest way is to open a Scottrade bank acco...

kappy

My dad drove one for a few years before he retired and still has it for most trips around town. He would charge it up to 80% every day and it worked fine for his 20 mile commute each way. He would get home with maybe 20 miles (of 100) left. The original battery was replaced under warranty when it fa...

kappy

Thanks. I'm leaning towards a large lump payment. My financial situation is good and job is reasonably secure. I keep a 1 yr emergency fund on top of taxable investments so having immediate equity in my new house is worthwhile.

kappy

I'm in the process of building a house and am interested in Bogleheads views of paying down the mortgage. New house will be ~$235k. I will be paying 20% down with money from my savings account and once I sell my current house, I will have ~$90k available after building up the emergency fund and payi...

kappy

Thanks pascal. Mini heart attack averted!

kappy

HI everyone. I have a few questions regarding contribution limits. This year has been busy for me finance-wise and I'm worried I missed something that will cause me problems come tax time. Is the $18,000 IRS contribution limit the combined limit for both pre-tax 401k plus Roth 401k? Do Roth IRA cont...

kappy

From what I understand, the company match can go over the personal $18k limit. There is a combined limit of $53k that includes all personal and company contributions. Also, some companies match per pay stub, not year. This means if you hit $18k in July and then stop contributing for the rest of the ...

kappy

I've worked at a couple companies and interviewed with others. All major S&P 500 players. Straight out of school, we needed a 3.0 GPA to get a job. Since then, other than listing GPA on a bio, no other school related performance was asked. SAT/ACT was never asked of me and I never bring it up wh...

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