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steadyeddy

I was a very regular buyer and seller on eBay in their earlier days. Then one day I realized the ratio of scams to legitimate transactions had grown too large to make the platform usable for an honest person. I'm convinced eBay management is facilitating a very profitable crime platform that caters ...

steadyeddy

Wow, I hadn't heard about this change! I curently have an app container labeled "apple bloat" that I wouldn't mind deleting completely. The stocks app is definitely in that container.

steadyeddy

Very linear. Surprisingly straight considering it's comprised mostly of equities.

steadyeddy

Exactly. The Verizon line charge after the $650 reimbursement remains $20/mo (the BYOD rate) rather than the $40/mo line charge for subsidized contracts. Verizon is simply paying $650 for an asset worth about $300 and not directly recouping the cost...just vying for market share. It's a pure win fo...

steadyeddy

I would blame travel costs and decline to participate.

steadyeddy

I wasn't going to upgrade to the iPhone 7 but since T mobile is essentially offering me $650 for my old iPhone 6+ to trade in, I cannot turn it down. 8-) This is huge and very good boglehead deal. I think everyone in this forum who currently owns a iphone 6 should jump on this deal and upgrade to i...

steadyeddy

I also planned to keep my iphone 6 for another year or two until I had a compelling reason to upgrade, but with Verizon offering a $650 trade-in credit, the only cost to upgrade is the sales tax which is less than the cost of replacing the battery to keep it running well for another two years. And t...

steadyeddy

This is person specific and dog specific, so no amount of reading can help you. If I were in your shoes I would shoot for a foster to adopt situation where you can test drive the dog and vice versa. Most volunteer rescue organizations (as opposed to shelters) use his model in my area.

steadyeddy

ogd, thank you for educating me! Very helpful!

steadyeddy

Wow is this thread depressing! :( My wife and I have put off traveling for the last two years in anticipation of a pregnancy that hasn't materialized. We're talking about a big vacation now, and I've been feeling cheap in light of likely infertility treatment costs. Thanks for the wake up call! :beer

steadyeddy

The surcharge is not going to the server, so I don't understand why it should impact the tip. Do you tip less when the menu price or sales tax increases? I never considered the impact of a $15 wage on tipping. Surely we can't be expected to tip the same amount? Although I'm reminded that my state pa...

steadyeddy

23 PTO days after 5 years (max is 30), and 9 holidays.

We can only roll over 5 days, so I have the kick in the pants I need to actually take the time off.

steadyeddy

You're contemplating paying $4,000 to have the use of $12,000 over a 7 year period, is that right?

steadyeddy

Sometimes an insurance company just decides it wants to get out of an area. They'll start dropping policies left and right for little things, or they'll drop all policies in an entire region. Maybe Traveler's had too many claims in OP's region last year. The OP is not insured by Travelers, but is c...

steadyeddy

I would definitely drive by it on different days and at varying times to get a feel for the area. There is a park like that less than a mile from my house that I would not want to live near. Dozens of cars parked on the street, litter everywhere, a loud ice cream truck circling it five hours a day, ...

steadyeddy

P.S. The random path finding is maddening if you let yourself watch it, but since it runs every single day, I imagine the routing evens itself out over time and every square inch of flooring gets covered multiple times a week. Just schedule it to run when you're not home so you can't watch it bumbl...

steadyeddy

A roomba always seemed like a silly novelty to me until we got a labrador retriever. Suddenly we needed daily vacuuming, and we're way too lazy for that. Our low-end $350 roomba runs every weekday at 9am while we're at work, and at 2pm on the weekends while we're typically out of the house. We don't...

steadyeddy

My experience and that of others I know is that today's buyers aren't that interested in creating "sweat equity" by fixing things themselves. Not even painting. And to the degree that they would, its easier for them to finance if its already done and built into their purchase price. Defin...

steadyeddy

You have to ask yourself who is going to buy the house. A large house in a nice neighborhood offers better ROI on improvements than a small home in a bad neighborhood. Handy people shopping in that nice neighborhood likely also have more cash to fix a home up themselves if you sell it as a blank can...

steadyeddy

I don't have an umbrella policy because I own a house. I have an umbrella policy because I drive a car. Honestly, I can't think of any even remotely likely accident on my (pool-less) property that would exceed my primary homeowners policy limits. Conversely, I could quite easily cause a wreck at 60...

steadyeddy

I don't have an umbrella policy because I own a house. I have an umbrella policy because I drive a car. Honestly, I can't think of any even remotely likely accident on my (pool-less) property that would exceed my primary homeowners policy limits. Conversely, I could quite easily cause a wreck at 60m...

steadyeddy

I have experienced the same issue, but only when I move around between different towers or wifi networks. If I am sitting at home on my own wifi network, I stay logged in between browsing sessions. Does this mesh with your experience, Almost there?

steadyeddy

If interest rates rise, demand will likely fall which we would expect to decrease house prices. But most people cannot afford to sell at a loss and might delay selling their house which will decrease supply which we would expect to increase prices. At that point in time inflation will also take off ...

steadyeddy

Were you hoping that at some point your siblings would declare you the winner and salute? Life is not a competition; you don't get a trophy at the end for doing it "better." Enjoy the journey.

steadyeddy

Rodc wrote:
Epsilon Delta wrote:
edge wrote:Where do you live that houses are less than 100$/sqft?

Between the Appalachians and the Sierras.

Skipping Chicago and Denver/Boulder.

You can nix Minneapolis and Austin while you're at it. And anywhere else with an abundance of well paying jobs.

steadyeddy

That's bizarre. If I walk into an open house of my own free will, I feel no duty to hire the putz standing by the island counter. Actually, I might just start hiding behind the front door of open houses and ambushing people that walk in. "Aha! You are now legally obligated to work with me to bu...

steadyeddy

In my area, homes in a particular neighborhood tend to be priced in a relatively tight range on a per square foot basis. This makes it easy to spot outliers. I also wouldn't be scared about putting in a fair (low) offer to an overpriced seller. Their agent likely knows full well the home is overpric...

steadyeddy

I want to share my experience in case it can help others. I've read these threads for years, but waffled on getting an umbrella policy because we are young with relatively modest assets and a low-liability profile (e.g. no kids, pool, boat, etc.). This year I finally asked my agent what an umbrella ...

steadyeddy

Kosomoto, you have asked whether we have a reason to believe international equities will not chronically underperform US equities in perpetuity. My question is whether you have a reason to believe they will. I believe that the global financial markets are relatively efficient and that globalization ...

steadyeddy

I've been spending some time on the MMM forums lately, and this whole thread is the perfect example of their perception of Bogleheads. Too funny! In fairness, I find the MMM groupthink to be quite judgemental and negative. No internet subculture is perfect, right? OP, you're probably doing well fina...

steadyeddy

Do you want asset price fluctuation (buy) and cash flow fluctuation (rent)? Pick your risk; neither is risk free. It should also be noted that home prices typically do not rise and fall with the same velocity as the stock market. Your example of a quick 50% gain or loss is unlikely, so the risk is o...

steadyeddy

We bought a starter home two years ago because it was cheaper than rent. I planned to upgrade in ~5 years, but I pretty much wanted a larger, nicer house within six months of buying. I should have waited (and not been so cheap). On the plus side, this house has significantly increased the trajectory...

steadyeddy

Step 1: Read Flash Boys by Michael Lewis Step 2: Recognize that you simply can't reliably make money against pros these days. Seriously, read it. And then if still think you can be a trading prodigy, you're far better off working for a hedge fund than trading your own little stake. It's a far easier...

steadyeddy

dc81584 wrote:At age 30, it's probably best to have an 80/20 allocation. Having a conservative portfolio at such a young age only guarantees you a lower long-term rate of return.

I wasn't aware there were any guarantees in this business!

steadyeddy

You need to recognize that retirees today were investing during a huge and prolonged bull market. They would be crazy not to wish they'd had more equities IN HINDSIGHT. It's like asking Bill Gates' longtime pal if he wished he'd invested early-stage. But go look at all the posts from the spring of 2...

steadyeddy

I don't think the banks will be impressed that you're debt free with a smaller down payment. They would probably rather see the full 20% down with a higher debt-to-income (since a house 2.5x salary won't be stretching affordability anyway). In other words, check whether paying PMI is really cheaper ...

steadyeddy

Let's try not to assume the worst in people, folks. Posts that imply the OP is a negligent parent or a criminal when all he or she did was ask a question in good faith are not what I hope to see from this community.

steadyeddy

The results are in!* Get a CR-V: 14 votes Get an SUV/Minivan: 12 votes OP is an idiot for asking: 1 vote OP can't afford a new vehicle: 1 vote :P Seriously, thank you all for your input. We were already planning to wait until after a birth to buy the new vehicle, but now I'm thinking maybe we should...

steadyeddy

We give regularly to several charities (we use billpay to automate the checks going out) and then give larger gifts at the end of the year. I definitely need to look into bunching though.

steadyeddy

My wife and I are planning to have a child in the next year or two and will buy a new vehicle when he or she arrives. At that point, we'll be a family of 2.5, so we really won't need a much space. Even a sedan would be fine, but I'm thinking something like a CR-V would allow us to strap in a car sea...

steadyeddy

I think higher education will bifurcate [more] as we move forward. HYPS will keep doing what they're doing and the worlds elite will attend at any price. Education for the masses will get cheaper and more career oriented.

steadyeddy

I understand your hesitation because that's a huge chunk of your portfolio, but with CD's I think you just have to roll them over at the best available rates when the time comes and then consider breaking them if rates rise enough to justify it. And keep in mind, we're talking about a fraction of a ...

steadyeddy

I have multiple "worthless" degrees that have nothing to do with my current job. I've done well because I: 1) Have a college degree 2) Made myself more valuable than my coworkers in any job I've worked 3) Have been lucky I will say that an increasing number of job postings in the business ...

steadyeddy

Groceries have averaged $352/mo for my spouse and me over the last 12 months, and that number includes alcohol, toiletries, cleaning supplies, paper products, etc. Restaurant meals have averaged an additional $349/mo over the same time period. We like good food and good friends to share it with! :sh...

steadyeddy

Great discussion. I really enjoy the healthy tension between intelligent viewpoints here. Here are my thoughts: 1. Every time I do a thought experiment about making a sector bet, I quickly conclude there are too many variables for me to accurately predict the future. Eventually I'll either experienc...

steadyeddy

I'm just a few years older than you, so I know what it feels like to have more internal drive than external opportunity. And it's good to be young and hungry. A chip on your shoulder and a fire in your belly can help you work hard to get ahead. But I recommend going from 0 to 1 and then 1 to 2 and s...

steadyeddy

My company offers the option to buy extra PTO during open enrollment, and I always do. Purchased time is used last after all other PTO, and any unused purchased time can be cashed out in December. I figure buying it gives me a year long option to choose time or money. If I do not buy it I can only c...

steadyeddy

My spouse and I will be funding our Roth IRA's for 2015 soon. In the past we have funded Ally CD's with a 5 year term. This year I am considering starting a myRA instead. Both options offer a ~2% return, but the myRA offers it without threat of early withdrawal penalties should I choose to roll the ...

steadyeddy

For what it's worth, paying 400% more than Medicare through private insurance doesn't shock me. I've seen instances where Medicare reimbursement is 10x lower than private insurer rates.

steadyeddy

No matter the outcome, I can't imagine there would be any political will to literally take money from retirees.

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