Search found 831 matches
- Fri Jun 09, 2023 8:38 pm
- Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
- Topic: Blinds: Repair or Replace?
- Replies: 23
- Views: 1901
Re: Blinds: Repair or Replace?
In my experience super difficult to repair. Shades are very ver so tile. They can come in no cord options and different levels Iof light filtering. If you opt for blinds, plantation shutters are very easy to repair is damaged but are very expensive than shades or blinds.
- Tue Jun 06, 2023 6:57 pm
- Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
- Topic: Manager leaving - How to convince boss' boss and others that I am the right replacement
- Replies: 47
- Views: 4774
Re: Manager leaving - How to convince boss' boss and others that I am the right replacement
That an interesting conundrum. I had a similar situation. Manager/boss was leaving. Had been advocating for me to get a promotion, but was told it was not the right time. He left before “the right time” came. His replacement was hired and I essentially reached out to her to say “congratulations and let me know if I can be of any service.” I got the promotion soon after in part by the good word my manager had put in for me. When I got my promotion, a few people reached out to me to congratulate me and also to tell me to reach out if they could be of service to me. What I have learned from that experience. I think they probably do have some replacements in mind already. I did not work long enough with the new manager to audition for the promo...
- Thu Apr 06, 2023 6:06 am
- Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
- Topic: MBA in healthcare
- Replies: 16
- Views: 1523
Re: MBA in healthcare
It really varies. Most people get degrees locally. When I worked at a Ivy League affiliated academic hospital, everyone got their MBA there. Where I am now, most seem to have an MBA from this program i mentioned. I just don’t want to limit myself in case I want to move.GreendaleCC wrote: ↑Wed Apr 05, 2023 8:23 pm What types of schools / non-MD degrees do other hospital executives in your region have on their resumes?
- Wed Apr 05, 2023 8:20 pm
- Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
- Topic: MBA in healthcare
- Replies: 16
- Views: 1523
- Wed Apr 05, 2023 8:19 pm
- Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
- Topic: MBA in healthcare
- Replies: 16
- Views: 1523
Re: MBA in healthcare
My oldest is on the autism spectrum and I don’t see him doing well in such a large university at all. My youngest is extremely bright and likely Ivy League bound. They are 4,6, and 8 years out. I have no advice to offer, but I wish I knew what universities my kids were likely to get into...when they were 4. FWIW, I am on the autism spectrum and flourished at UCLA, then two other large universities for grad school. Then again, it's called a "spectrum" for a reason. You are fast. I edited my post about one minute in to say they are 4,6, and 8 years out meaning in 4th, 6th and 8th grade. We have many people on the spectrum in our family and they are all different. One says offensive things to us all the time and is completely oblivi...
- Wed Apr 05, 2023 7:46 pm
- Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
- Topic: MBA in healthcare
- Replies: 16
- Views: 1523
MBA in healthcare
I am on the semi fast track to be a CEO of a hospital or CMO of a health plan. I am looking towards an MBA or Masters for educational purposes as well as to boost my resume. I have an opportunity to get an MBA at a local university’s business school for free. Checking the rankings for business school it doesn’t seem to rank in the top 50. I have also applied to a IVY league Masters in health care delivery management program. It is NOT an MBA. I will apply for financial aid but it’s a long shot. The cost of the program is 88k. My employer will pay 10k of that. It won’t break us, but it won’t be pleasant either. I could possibly use the 529 from one of my kids. We have enough for each to go to our flagship state university and a “little extra...
- Wed Apr 05, 2023 7:28 pm
- Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
- Topic: Are Kia models still a good buy?
- Replies: 33
- Views: 4431
Re: Are Kia models still a good buy?
Bought one at MSRP. Marginal increase in insurance. Fingers crossed, this one lasts me a good decade or more.
- Mon Mar 27, 2023 11:51 am
- Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
- Topic: Are Kia models still a good buy?
- Replies: 33
- Views: 4431
Re: Are Kia models still a good buy?
Good idea. I will give them a call today. They must still be selling well because the dealer I talk to barely budged on pricing. They will not go lower than MSRP and then an additional 4k is tacked on for taxes and fees. I have had the same car for nearly 13 years and really would like to avoid a lemon.
- Mon Mar 27, 2023 10:31 am
- Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
- Topic: Are Kia models still a good buy?
- Replies: 33
- Views: 4431
Are Kia models still a good buy?
Are Kias still a good buy? Looking at 2023 Tellurides but heard that insurance companies are not insuring certain Kia models and years. Plus the increased theft.
Anyone purchase one recently who can share an anecdote?
Anyone purchase one recently who can share an anecdote?
- Wed Dec 28, 2022 9:47 am
- Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
- Topic: Kids, HCOL, & Savings
- Replies: 63
- Views: 7696
Re: Kids, HCOL, & Savings
For those with kids living in a HCOL area... Do you feel short of a massive windfall you are "locked in" to your lifestyle until your kids leave the house? We started saving early and earn a good amount each year but now that we are starting a family I do not feel like our life is that much different then others. I guess I thought (maybe being naïve) that at a certain income/networth life would start to feel different. In reality it doesn't, it feels almost exactly the same but with more responsibility. All this to say that I think I have realized that unless I start my own successful business I will really live the same lifestyle for the next couple decades if I want to save as aggressively going forward as I did the last decade...
- Sat Nov 05, 2022 9:24 pm
- Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
- Topic: First time homebuyers here: what info about the house should I ask the sellers at/before closing?
- Replies: 7
- Views: 929
Re: First time homebuyers here: what info about the house should I ask the sellers at/before closing?
Our sellers gave us the info to their landscaping company, house cleaners and contractors. We also got intel on the preschools on the area. Was not much to say about the house since they had only lived there for four year
- Mon Oct 31, 2022 8:49 pm
- Forum: Personal Investments
- Topic: 1.3M at 30 - what would you do?
- Replies: 158
- Views: 27998
Re: 1.3M at 30 - what would you do?
If I were you, I'd thank my lucky stars! Then I'd buy a Martin guitar and take lessons. Buy a piano and take lessons, Sing, and enjoy life. I'd get a personal trainer and stay in top shape. Enjoy bicycling. Throw a party. Hike the Appalachian Trail with a friend. The feeling of accomplishment is satisfying in work, investments, and meaningful hobbies and connections. Haha, I definitely do that quite a bit (thank my lucky stars). Your note about buying a piano is interesting - I played an instrument in high school, but haven't touched it since then. I've been seriously considering trying to learn piano / paying for lessons once or twice a week. I had hoped to hear in your updates that you were either donating more to charity or volunteering...
- Mon Oct 31, 2022 7:45 pm
- Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
- Topic: Anyone buy a much bigger house than they need?
- Replies: 133
- Views: 14116
Re: Anyone buy a much bigger house than they need?
Funny you should ask, we found ourselves in your exact same situation, 11.5 yeas ago. Loved the area but meant we were going with an oversized new build. At first the house felt massive. Parts of the home went unused for years. But a funny thing happens when you buy furniture, you start to use more of the house. When we moved in we had a 3 and 1 year old, we really didn’t need more than a one bedroom apartment at that point. All four of us were always in the same room at all times. Many of the rooms were empty. But then we had a third and now a teen and tween, and sometimes the house feels oddly small. And every room is now furnished, occupied and used. Matter truly expands to occupy the available space. Could we do with less, sure. But are...
- Sat Oct 29, 2022 4:24 pm
- Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
- Topic: Housing (2nd house) dilemma - seeking advice
- Replies: 21
- Views: 3111
Re: Housing (2nd house) dilemma - seeking advice
Why did you decide to build instead of buy an existing home? If I wasn’t particularly picky about home features, I would be inclined to sell and buy an existing home down the line. If this house is truly one of a kind, then I would rent it. There will be wear and tear over time from tenants who don’t treat it as if it is their own, but I think the wear and tear will be less than with it vacant. You don’t say what kind of work you do but I recently went to visit a friend of the family. Her daughter is a bit older than me, single with two homes: one a block away from her mom and the second home in another state. She is a consultant and can work from home but she spends time equally at both homes. Because she is single with no kids and works f...
- Thu Jul 21, 2022 4:24 pm
- Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
- Topic: Weird text before doctors appointment
- Replies: 9
- Views: 2303
Re: Weird text before doctors appointment
Some of those text message reminders are linked to the electronic medical record which may use a third party provider which got hacked. I have a small private practice and my EMR inexplicably stopped working for a day. A full day. For one day I was unable to check the schedule, make any new appointments or make changes to existing. I couldn’t reference my old notes, document new notes, and we couldn’t bill. We basically just accepted patients as they came and pieced together the reason for their visit based on my memory and their recollection. The reason why? Amazon web services was down. It affected my EMR, Delta airlines, Disney plus, and Instacart to name a few random unrelated sites. I had zero idea my EMR was linked in any way to Amazo...
- Mon Jun 27, 2022 5:31 pm
- Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
- Topic: Managing honey-do lists and other lists
- Replies: 53
- Views: 5679
Re: Managing honey-do lists and other lists
I am relatively newly married with small kidos and curious how you and your SO manage todo lists to make sure eachother are on the same page and things dont get forgotten to be done; maybe even prioritize different tasks to be completed. This could be things like multiple house projects that need to get done or are ongoing (both large and small projects), chores around the house, grocery list, and other random things that need to be accomplished. Are you using pencil and paper? Some sort of phone app? By memory? Thanks! I took a look at your question again and I suppose our “secret” is that we don’t do things together necessarily. We each have our own domain which evolved over time. I make my and the kids doctor appointments. My husband do...
- Mon Jun 27, 2022 5:18 pm
- Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
- Topic: Managing honey-do lists and other lists
- Replies: 53
- Views: 5679
Re: Managing honey-do lists and other lists
The number of responses here surprise me. We don’t make lists or hand each other pieces of paper. We just talk to each other. But honestly, I don’t think we have enough things to even put on a list. For sure there are certain things we just preferentially do. I can’t remember the last time I took out the garbage or changed the furnace filter and I can’t remember the last time my husband de-weeded the flower bed or booked travel tickets. For those random house issues that pop up like a hole in the drywall our kid made or a leaky faucet, we will comment to each other about it and one of us will express a desire to fix it or call someone to do so and it gets done. We are both very busy with work and kids so we usually do a recap Friday night o...
- Mon May 30, 2022 8:49 pm
- Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
- Topic: Private School for eldest daughter
- Replies: 79
- Views: 8764
Re: Private School for eldest daughter
You can afford it. I would send her because that’s where she wants to be. The outcome with regard to college will likely be the same if you sent her to public school or better. And I do believe that nothing guarantees success better than a desire to be where you are.
- Wed May 18, 2022 11:48 am
- Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
- Topic: What (if anything) are you reducing in your monthly spending?
- Replies: 150
- Views: 15142
Re: What (if anything) are you reducing in your monthly spending?
Am starting to think about it. I’ve noticed our weekly Instacart has grown from $150 to $200. Our gas bill was almost double the normal bill this time of year.
Unfortunately this year we committed to a vacation this summer and a kitchen reno. If I had a crystal ball, I likely would not have done either.
I’m a worrier at heart. I think we are fine. But the economic uncertainty makes me feel like we should be doing something and we might limit driving, adjust food shopping, cut down on some kids activities etc.
Every year I spend a few hundreds on annuals and plant them in our front yard. It’s a lot of hard work but I am always happy with the results. This year I am questioning whether or not it it is worth the expense.
Unfortunately this year we committed to a vacation this summer and a kitchen reno. If I had a crystal ball, I likely would not have done either.
I’m a worrier at heart. I think we are fine. But the economic uncertainty makes me feel like we should be doing something and we might limit driving, adjust food shopping, cut down on some kids activities etc.
Every year I spend a few hundreds on annuals and plant them in our front yard. It’s a lot of hard work but I am always happy with the results. This year I am questioning whether or not it it is worth the expense.
- Mon May 02, 2022 7:14 pm
- Forum: US Chapters
- Topic: NE Ohio (Cleveland Area) Master Thread
- Replies: 255
- Views: 138893
Re: NE Ohio (Cleveland Area) Master Thread
I’d be interested in attending a meeting. Please keep me posted.
- Wed Apr 13, 2022 5:05 pm
- Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
- Topic: Outdoor Kitchen Add-On Too Much??
- Replies: 27
- Views: 3234
Re: Outdoor Kitchen Add-On Too Much??
As a homeowner myself I do think that putting effort and money into some sort of outdoor entertainment area is worth it. You've saved up for it for years, so this not some fad. I'd say go for it (I m assuming savings retirement-wise are taken care of). Out of curiosity though, what does such as an add-on kitchen consist of for 100-150k? Just in general terms is fine, since it seems you chose not to provide details of your project. As to your question, why does it matter what percentage of the home value it will cost? In the end, a buyer will have to like this entertainment area enough to buy the house. I for instance did not want a pool so excluded all of those houses that had one whereas the majority of people who put in a pool think it's...
- Sat Apr 09, 2022 6:20 pm
- Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
- Topic: Extensive unpermitted remodel being sold "as is"
- Replies: 98
- Views: 9939
Re: Extensive unpermitted remodel being sold "as is"
Thanks everyone, so many great comments! I looked at the house today and was told by the listing agent that the owner's friends came and did the remodeling some time in the last 7 years and are not contactable. In the "Seller's real estate information statement" it is written: "House sold as is. Remodel done without permit.--Kitchen + bathroom + A/C + hot water tank and some windows and lighting....seller never used fireplaces". It looks like they re-did pretty much everything in every room--The place looks totally immaculate, incredibly well-cared for, but I suppose we just don't know what lies beneath. A truly extensive remodel of the guts of the house, with no way to know how far we would have to go to get it up to c...
- Tue Mar 29, 2022 8:40 pm
- Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
- Topic: Treadmill desks - worth it or more trouble than they're worth?
- Replies: 10
- Views: 1756
Re: Treadmill desks - worth it or more trouble than they're worth?
I have one and I walk on it for about 1-3 hours/day. When I am not walking I typically just stand on it. I have never walked on it for a full 8 hours. The time goes by super fast and it feels effortless. But 3 hours is my limit. It starts to feel like work. I am told on conference calls no one can hear it, but I do and I find it distracting talking w someone. I use it but I think it’s because O I am a treadmill person. I have always like treadmills and running. And that is my go-to exercise when I have been hibernating all winter. If you are not a treadmill person or one who likes to exercise I don’t think it will be used a lot. And it’s not cheap. I got mine used for $1000.
- Mon Mar 28, 2022 8:28 pm
- Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
- Topic: Home options…thoughts?
- Replies: 20
- Views: 2277
Re: Home options…thoughts?
So it seems like the wife makes a lot of money but I’m having a hard time figuring out the cash flow. What do you net each month on the base salary and what percentage of the proposed mortgage payment is that? I’m a little uncomfortable with the 900k in one company stock and the 150k that doesn’t seem to be vested. Cash on hand seems low. Any other liquid savings? I wouldn’t feel comfortable with this. No house is perfect. Yes there are some things your house can’t offer you but there are some things the other house won’t either. Just stay in it long enough and you will start thinking, wouldn’t it be better if the house had xyz. We bought our dream home almost 11 years and at the time I thought it was perfect. Now I am annoyed it doesn’t ha...
- Wed Mar 23, 2022 10:58 pm
- Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
- Topic: Asking friends for donations
- Replies: 48
- Views: 4452
Re: Asking friends for donations
[ quote fixed by admin LadyGeek]
Email is perfect for this. Email with a brief description of the request. “Many of you knew my sister. My father is taking on this tremendous effort to recognize her and prevent another tragedy. If you would like to donate, here’s how.”
And that’s it.
The most uncomfortable part of asking for donations or help is watching someone squirm out of the request. Email/social media etc avoids all of this.
- Sat Mar 19, 2022 6:30 pm
- Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
- Topic: Reasonable annual spend in VHCOL?
- Replies: 87
- Views: 7287
Re: Reasonable annual spend in VHCOL?
I’ve thought about this. I like to keep an extra cushion of money in my checking account, which floats in amount depending on how close we are to tax deadlines (I’m paying quarterly taxes, sometimes a good amount); how close I am to charitable giving target dates; and other sporadic concerns that occur to me. I think I’m pretty good about depositing roughly 25-30% of gross (pre-tax) income that arrives in my checking account into various investments. But it is staggered, depending on how comfortable I feel about looming immediate expenses. I started doing this after having to take money out of taxable bonds one year to meet tax needs. theorist, I think you are doing it wrong. You are in a "spend first and save later" mode. You sh...
- Thu Mar 17, 2022 6:28 pm
- Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
- Topic: Retired doctors 40s-50s?
- Replies: 26
- Views: 5760
Re: Retired doctors 40s-50s?
I am a physician in a busy stressful job and feeling burned out. Unfortunately there aren’t any good lifestyle-friendly job options in my field in my geographic area. I’m starting to think about retirement in my early 50s. I’m interested in hearing the experiences of other doctors who retired relatively young. Do you enjoy retired life? Did you lose your sense of identity? Did you have any regrets about retiring early? Any surprises or things that you didn’t consider before retiring that became an issue? You may want to consider non clinical careers. Utilization review would be one of them. If you just search medical director-utilization review, the opportunities will present themselves. Many if not most are remote. I had the idea to retir...
- Wed Jan 19, 2022 9:19 pm
- Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
- Topic: un-solicited email re. mortgage, should I worry ?
- Replies: 14
- Views: 1701
Re: un-solicited email re. mortgage, should I worry ?
Today I received three un-solicited emails from mortgage corporations, thanking me for my inquiry. They have my correct name and address, but a phone number that is incorrect (one I typically give out when some online merchant wants a phone number with an order). Should I be worried about this, per identify theft and such, and if so, what should I do ? I called one company and they were nice and promised to take me out of their system. Another kept trying to get me interested in a mortgage even though I kept telling them "no". No one could tell me where they got my info. All I can imagine is that I have made recent inquiries to two brokers of tax-free 1031 exchanges ('trusted intermediary"), not for my home, but for an undev...
- Wed Jan 12, 2022 2:21 pm
- Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
- Topic: Ideas for organizing one's home
- Replies: 47
- Views: 4970
Re: Ideas for organizing one's home
I would highly recommend Joshua Becker’s uncluttered course. His blog is becomingminimalist.com. Next 12 week course starts 1/18. PM me for a coupon code for 25% off the $99 course. His course goes far beyond a 30 day organizing/decluttering challenge. It forces you to change your thinking about possessions in a way that you as an aspiring minimalist/stoic would likely appreciate. For me I took his course because I am not a naturally organized person. Kind of a slob really. However I was not a hoarder nor was I sentimental, so I ignored the decluttering part and thought I could organize my way through life. It was overwhelming with all the duties that motherhood/career person/homeowner involved. I was reminded of my post college life when m...
- Wed Jan 05, 2022 8:25 am
- Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
- Topic: Tax math question for 529
- Replies: 4
- Views: 851
Re: Tax math question for 529
All are in public school. We already contributed for 2021. I have >300 days to decide what to do for 2022. Just having a hard time figuring out if the $480 tax savings is worth investing the $12,000 on which the earnings I will have to pay a 10% penalty.
- Wed Jan 05, 2022 8:22 am
- Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
- Topic: Talk me into/out of a bigger house (yet again)
- Replies: 44
- Views: 4635
Re: Talk me into/out of a bigger house (yet again)
If you want a bigger house to suit your lifestyle right now, do it. If you want a bigger house to suit a future lifestyle, don't do it. Simple as that.
We purchased a home because I was tired of living with my landlord's paint color and appliance choices, so trust me there are dumber reasons to move than wanting a little extra space for yourself.
We purchased a home because I was tired of living with my landlord's paint color and appliance choices, so trust me there are dumber reasons to move than wanting a little extra space for yourself.
- Tue Jan 04, 2022 8:09 pm
- Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
- Topic: Tax math question for 529
- Replies: 4
- Views: 851
Tax math question for 529
I am trying to figure out if it is worth contributing to my children’s 529. Between our contributions and that of the grandparents, they “probably” have enough. We can cash flow the rest or pull from savings if need be. The kids have an average of 150k in their accounts and they are in 7th, 5th and 3rd grade. Grandparents are still making contributions, 15k per kid per year. Unknown how long they will continue to do so. They are nearing 80. We do not plan to leave the money to potential grandkids. Too many unknowns. Our kids may not have kids. Secondly having had kids at an older age, we may not even get to meet future grandkids and if we do it is highly doubtful we will even make it to their high school graduation. With that sobering thoug...
- Sun Dec 12, 2021 7:15 am
- Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
- Topic: selling newly purchased home asap
- Replies: 32
- Views: 5402
Re: selling newly purchased home asap
Get out now even if you take a small loss. If you feel this bad about it, delaying the sale by another two years won’t make you feel better.
- Sun Dec 05, 2021 5:25 pm
- Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
- Topic: Remodel or move (take 2)
- Replies: 22
- Views: 2785
Re: Remodel or move (take 2)
How did a 150k renovation you talked about in 2020 become a one million dollar renovation? Is the 150k renovation still on the table? I agree you will have to move out and if you move out for a year, will the neighborhood remain the same, meaning will the kids still remember the neighbors kids or have developed new friendships? Will they still go to the same school? If no, then move.
- Wed Dec 01, 2021 8:06 pm
- Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
- Topic: Best decision(s) in your financial life
- Replies: 278
- Views: 33064
Re: Best decision(s) in your financial life
Many have said it above, but no kids. Those that say kids are not expensive are delusional, naive or both. Not saying they aren't worth it, just that indeed they are a large expense. "Expensive" is pretty subjective, the cost of raising a child varies dramatically, especially on here where many are expecting to pay $250k+ for undergrad alone. Our kids have (to date) cost a fraction of any estimate to raise (and college is already covered) and we have more financial resources before age 40 than we're ever likely to spend. Those who chose not to have kids, different strokes for different folks :sharebeer The quote should have read delusional, naive, or lucky. Having a kid with a health issue is both financially and emotionally deva...
- Fri Nov 12, 2021 4:05 pm
- Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
- Topic: Winter gear & frugality
- Replies: 41
- Views: 4498
Re: Winter gear & frugality
Don’t buy him any gear unless you know he is into winter sports. People fall into this trap all the time. If only I had a peloton I would workout more and so on and so on. Never happens. Kid needs snow pants, ski jacket, gloves and scarf. That’s it. My kids would sled down a hill on their bare bottom if I would let them. If your kid enjoys sledding, the 5.99 sled would do just fine. If it hasn’t broken yet then it means they haven’t used it enough. They break super easily, usually after a day of sledding. And that begs the question, why is it sill intact? Do they just not like sledding? Lastly, I wanted to learn to ski my entire childhood. Never had the opportunity so when my kids were old enough I enrolled my kids in skiing classes and ren...
- Sun Oct 31, 2021 9:21 pm
- Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
- Topic: Decluttering your life (financial and otherwise)
- Replies: 17
- Views: 3008
Re: Decluttering your life (financial and otherwise)
[quote=veindoc post_id=6304233 time=<a href="tel:1635697935">1635697935</a> user_id=111966] I recently took a decluttering course and it has been a game changer with regard to my house. Would also love to know what course this was. I’m blanking on the exact name of the course. I think it was just called Uncluttered but it is a 12 week course run by Joshua Becker who writes the blog “becoming minimalist”. The course is not trying to make you a minimalist, it simply teaches you how to look at your stuff and declutter. For example avoiding duplicates, reflecting on how just having one of something truly makes you take care of it or be mindful of it since there is only one versus having 12 screwdrivers and seemingly never able to fin...
- Sun Oct 31, 2021 11:32 am
- Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
- Topic: Decluttering your life (financial and otherwise)
- Replies: 17
- Views: 3008
Decluttering your life (financial and otherwise)
I recently took a decluttering course and it has been a game changer with regard to my house. It’s much easier to clean and to find things. I am now looking to find other ways to declutter my life. My mother in law recently visited and I was worried she would be bored being home alone during the work day. I shouldn’t have been concerned. She really only needs a few things to occupy her day. Meanwhile I run around like a chicken with my head cut off. I hired a PA to help manage my office. We will see how that goes. Kids activities are restricted to a 10 mile radius. I finally automated my utility bill payments. I resisted not doing so so that I would review the bills monthly but I don’t. I just pay blindly. I am thinking of cutting my 13 cre...
- Sat Oct 16, 2021 9:10 pm
- Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
- Topic: Ways of successful entrepreneurs
- Replies: 48
- Views: 4387
Re: Ways of successful entrepreneurs
Risk taking and optimism. My husband has a ton of ideas. It seems every year he comes up with something along the lines of, you know what needs to be invented? And they all sound plausible. However he will never act on them. He starts ruminating about the money involved, gets nervous, starts with the self-doubt and then ultimately someone else executes or we realize it wasn’t as plausible as we thought it was. He has been musing about another idea that actually I am excited about too and I asked him how much he was willing to lose. What would be tolerable? The answer was at first zero but in further reflection he said maybe $50,000. So now we are working on fitting his idea to match a $50,000 investment. But I give it a 50-50 shot he will b...
- Sat Oct 09, 2021 7:13 pm
- Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
- Topic: Starter home in 2021 a bad idea?
- Replies: 32
- Views: 3773
Re: Starter home in 2021 a bad idea?
Where are you living now? If you “anticipate” moving from starter to dream home in 3-4 years, I would stay put.
- Mon Oct 04, 2021 3:39 pm
- Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
- Topic: It's "too hard" [what investment actions are not worth the time]
- Replies: 6
- Views: 1372
Re: It's "too hard"
Many things in investing are outside my experience and competence. And I often ask myself questions like: "why bother?" and "what's the point?" Morningstar (7/14/2021), "My 'Too Hard' Pile Is Pretty Big", link . "A few weeks back, I opined that commodities-tracking investments belong in the “too hard" pile--a term coined by Charlie Munger to describe investments that just aren’t worth the effort because they fall outside of the Berkshire Hathaway team’s circle of competence." I get the point of the article, and it's a fine article. My first thought is many people will put index investing into the "too hard" pile and rely on someone else to manage their investments for them (for a hefty...
- Tue Sep 28, 2021 5:38 am
- Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
- Topic: Having “The Talk” [with an elderly parent about Inheritance]
- Replies: 101
- Views: 32070
Re: Having “The Talk” - no, not that one
Speaking from experience, I would make it my goal to make a list of all open accounts, including account numbers and other relevant details, while your parent is still of sound mind and able to do so. If they are comfortable with giving you approximate dollar value, that is helpful as well. At some point, they may be unable to provide this due to cognitive decline and then it becomes very difficult to get a handle on this information. Thanks - she has lists of all of this, as does her lawyer. Fortunately she isn’t seriously ill, she is just being proactive. Dont be afraid to ask pointed questions. My father has been talking about in drips and drabs and it’s maddening. I have no idea exactly how much he has and what he wants to do with it. ...
- Mon Sep 27, 2021 8:26 pm
- Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
- Topic: When is it time to upgrade your house?
- Replies: 69
- Views: 8534
Re: When is it time to upgrade your house?
I get an inkling here or there when I see a home with a pool or the latest finishes but I think it would be hard to find a better home. We have enough bedrooms, big kitchen, large backyard etc. And we can also remodel if need be. So the added expense never quite seems worth it to me. Plus we are so close to paying off our home, that I can’t imagine starting all over. We have been paying double the mortgage for ten years. I’m looking forward to the day to get the cash back in our pocket. We may not even know what to do with all the money.
- Wed Sep 22, 2021 6:10 pm
- Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
- Topic: Closing a solo 401k, concern for backdoor roth pro rata and SEP going forward
- Replies: 5
- Views: 762
Re: Closing a solo 401k, concern for backdoor roth pro rata and SEP going forward
Betterment has very cheap 401ks. if you wanted to open up one for you and your employees. I’m in a similar situation. Had a solo 401k and now need to close or convert it since I have employees who will soon qualify. The other small business 401ks were prohibitively expensive but Betterment is less than $1000/year.
Otherwise I don’t see any issues with your plan.
Otherwise I don’t see any issues with your plan.
- Fri Sep 17, 2021 7:20 pm
- Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
- Topic: Hospital Bill Nonsense [Appealing a hospital bill]
- Replies: 67
- Views: 7410
Re: Hospital Bill Nonsense [Appealing a hospital bill]
It’s likely related to a facility fee. If the outpatient clinic is associated with a hospital, you will be charged more than an office not associated with the hospital. You can google facility fee to learn more about the controversy behind the billing. The outpatient clinic I went to does not charge facility fees. They are associated with, but not part of the hospital. I would double check, especially if they are associated with the hospital. It’s a major issue in that many patients go to outpatient offices thinking they will be charged less but CMS allows hospitals to charge these additional fees in hospital associated outpatient offices. Here is an article explaining this gotcha fee. https://www.medicaleconomics.com/view/facility-fees-fa...
- Fri Sep 17, 2021 4:54 pm
- Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
- Topic: Hospital Bill Nonsense [Appealing a hospital bill]
- Replies: 67
- Views: 7410
Re: Hospital Bill Nonsense [Appealing a hospital bill]
It’s likely related to a facility fee. If the outpatient clinic is associated with a hospital, you will be charged more than an office not associated with the hospital. You can google facility fee to learn more about the controversy behind the billing.
- Wed Sep 01, 2021 5:01 pm
- Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
- Topic: 80K annual living expenses in a MCOL area too much ?
- Replies: 57
- Views: 5336
Re: 80K annual living expenses in a MCOL area too much ?
OP, I struggle with this as well. I consider myself frugal but we spend over 100k a year. We save well over 50% of our gross so it’s not a problem, but the annual spending seems high. On a day to day basis we are frugal. We eat at home 99% of the time. We don’t buy expensive clothing and in fact my spouse and I rarely “update” our wardrobe with new clothing seasonally. We spend next to zero on personal care. I even recycle back to school supplies. Kids are in public school. We still have the original Xbox whatever it is called although my son has been asking for the newest game system - switch something or another. I drive an 11 year old car, my husbands vehicle is now five years old. HOWEVER, kids are involved in a slew of extracurricular ...
- Fri Aug 27, 2021 4:32 pm
- Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
- Topic: How do I Manage/Motivate My Contractor?
- Replies: 36
- Views: 3813
Re: How do I Manage/Motivate My Contractor?
Keep bothering them. Don't be afraid to show your frustration, without be too rude. Thanks for all of the input. I think that the above is going to be key, and may be a challenging balance to strike. The work that has been done so far is of good quality, the charges so far seem fair, and as best I can tell other contractors in the area are flush with work so finding one to finish the project may be a real obstacle. This plan may not be fail safe but it seems to be the best plan so far. Yes. I wish I had done this when renovating my commercial building. I was polite for the first five months of my supposed two month renovation. But after realizing the place looked exactly the same every day for 14 days in a row, which is to say empty and va...
- Sun Aug 08, 2021 6:13 am
- Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
- Topic: Buying options - neighbors house is going up for sale
- Replies: 12
- Views: 2931
Re: Buying options - neighbors house is going up for sale
Can you get a mortgage with less than 20% down? Perhaps not with the best rate. How will you pay for the Reno if you don’t have enough for a full down payment. I would choose the route with the best interest rate you could get. With regard to renting, do you really want to live so close to potential tenant?
- Thu Aug 05, 2021 6:29 pm
- Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
- Topic: Summer child care ideas?
- Replies: 32
- Views: 3498