Search found 670 matches

by Fishing50
Tue Mar 26, 2024 12:49 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Mega Thread on Speed of 2023 Tax Refunds
Replies: 52
Views: 6145

Re: Mega Thread on Speed of 2023 Tax Refunds

2/20 e filed with Turbotax & received by IRS
3/26 still only received by IRS…no further info on IRS.gov :(
by Fishing50
Tue Mar 19, 2024 6:32 am
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Need to replenish Emergency Fund
Replies: 24
Views: 2148

Re: Need to replenish Emergency Fund

I agree with others, no need to pay unnecessary taxes to replenish a taxable emergency fund if other accounts are available for withdrawal.

That Said, based on your current tax bracket a withdrawal might be a good idea if you are in the 12% tax bracket, which reverts to 15% in 2026. So you need to know your current tax bracket.

With TSP accounts, I assume pensions also.
Determine your tax brackets in future years.
One Salary & Pension.
Two Pensions & one SS
Two Pensions & two SS
Two Pensions, Two SS, & RMDs

20yrs from now RMDs will undoubtedly bring us higher tax rates with my COLA adjusted pension. 22% is likely our lowest tax bracket. With that knowledge, we choose to pay some taxes now. YMMV :beer
by Fishing50
Sun Mar 03, 2024 1:31 pm
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Military Retiree and my TSP Tax Exempt Balance changes daily
Replies: 13
Views: 1273

Re: Military Retiree and my TSP Tax Exempt Balance changes daily

Sorry to hear about your troubles.

Maybe avoiding CSR will help. I had good luck using TSP Portal to Rollover TSP to Schwab. https://www.bogleheads.org/forum/viewt ... p?t=382265

I chose a check to me for tax-exempt contributions, which was part of the traditional TSP rollover process. Then I used the 60 day Rollover to Schwab. My Schwab Rep highly recommended sending a check with a letter of instruction instead of electronic submission which could get characterized as a contribution which would exceed allowable limits.

No problems with 1099 forms from TSP or Schwab.
by Fishing50
Sun Feb 25, 2024 7:18 am
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Why Emergency Fund?
Replies: 80
Views: 8639

Re: Why Emergency Fund?

Wondering if someone could shed some light on what's the purpose of a designated emergency fund. A difference of $329,517 over 39 years, 7.14% more in total money. I wish I could say this was nothing for me but it seems very significant for a young investor who has decades of compounding ahead. I acknowledge that there's slightly extra risk of you needing to sell stock when markets are down, but it seems to be that it's a calculated risk that isn't likely to completely wipe you out if your portfolio is large enough, plus add the fact that you'll likely have more money to begin with due to no cash drag. Someone knock some sense into me please. Emergency Fund is for emergencies. If you have a secure job and taxable assets, you don’t need an ...
by Fishing50
Fri Feb 16, 2024 6:19 am
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Qualified eduction expenses for Lifetime Learning Credit?
Replies: 9
Views: 897

Re: Qualified eduction expenses for Lifetime Learning Credit?

Found a number that makes sense adjusting my qualified expenses in Turbo Tax.
Lifetime Learning Credit begins to accrue again, after my remaining institution payment & qualified expenses reach $2,569.

Seems like the $2,569 scholarship is counted twice. It reduces payments to the institution, then it is again counted against remaining qualified expenses.

I doubt Turbo Tax is making an error.
I assume it’s the IRS rule, that I’m unable to decipher from Form 8863 Instructions.
by Fishing50
Thu Feb 15, 2024 2:45 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Qualified eduction expenses for Lifetime Learning Credit?
Replies: 9
Views: 897

Re: Qualified eduction expenses for Lifetime Learning Credit?

Books are required for the course, so I believe they count. Turbo Tax has a separate entry for non required materials.
We're MFJ below the phase out.
by Fishing50
Thu Feb 15, 2024 10:47 am
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Qualified eduction expenses for Lifetime Learning Credit?
Replies: 9
Views: 897

Qualified eduction expenses for Lifetime Learning Credit?

I'm confused how lifetime learning credit is calculated. I attended an accredited institution, paid for some of my course work & books. Turbo Tax download version says I'm not eligible to claim an education tax break because : - Somebody else can claim me as a dependent (false) - Scholarship, grants, an other tax free assistance exceeds the education expense (Maybe. VA benefits are complicated, but Form 8863 calculations don't help explain.) There were no net qualified education expenses (What does this mean?) 1098-T from the institution shows I was at least 1/2 time student and made Box 1 payments: $3332 and Box 5 $2,569 (Veteran's Benefit scholarship), which correctly correlates to the $672.52 I paid the institution. Extra $470 for bo...
by Fishing50
Thu Feb 15, 2024 7:19 am
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Requesting Advice - Re-doing investment plan for Active Duty Military, retirement eligible
Replies: 23
Views: 2449

Re: Requesting Advice - Re-doing investment plan for Active Duty Military, retirement eligible

Yeah, taxable investing after maxing out other accounts is complicated…but cash holdings & emergency fund is often discussed on the forum. I’m truly a zero emergency fund guy. We have generous pension and extremely low withdrawal rate, retired at 54 yrs old. Future income will cover true emergencies (car repair, replace the furnace, etc) in a couple months. A new car, major home remodel are not emergencies, they require saving. Living within your means deferring some major expenses until money is saved. Fix the old car for $2000 instead of a new car loan for numerous years. Replace the furnace & live without the remodel. At 5% in a brokerage money market, you can hold an excessive amount ($50K?) of cash if you feel it necessary as ...
by Fishing50
Wed Feb 14, 2024 7:58 am
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Requesting Advice - Re-doing investment plan for Active Duty Military, retirement eligible
Replies: 23
Views: 2449

Re: Requesting Advice - Re-doing investment plan for Active Duty Military, retirement eligible

2. With money market rates at 5%, no problem holding some cash. Personally, I'd recommend getting the money invested until you have lumpy bills to pay...you can easily stop taxable investments for a couple months. I wouldn't borrow from TSP, I'd find money elsewhere. This where I'm a bit confused. I can't max out my retirement account contributions. If I put all of my savings into retirement accounts (and pay off the TSP loan) ... then I don't have many options for dealing with those expenses (replace a car, major home maintenance,etc). Where do I find money elsewhere? The only things I can think of are (1) a TSP loan, (2) withdraw Roth Contributions or (3) some kind of debt/financing. I assume the latter is generally a bad idea other than...
by Fishing50
Tue Feb 13, 2024 6:34 am
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Requesting Advice - Re-doing investment plan for Active Duty Military, retirement eligible
Replies: 23
Views: 2449

Re: Requesting Advice - Re-doing investment plan for Active Duty Military, retirement eligible

Welcome to the forum! I discovered the forum at the same point, without being selected for promotion...promotion came as an unexpected surprise. Staying in worked for us, each year is another 2.5% on the pension. I wouldn't recommend struggling along just for the pension, there's lots of opportunity out there. As explained above, tax efficient planning drives our decisions. Boring, tax efficient, total US equity index and Intl in taxable with dividends taken in cash to reinvest as needed for asset allocation or spent for lumpy expenses. If necessary, you can sell in taxable and buy equal amount in TSP to maintain equity allocation while getting out some cash to pay bills. TSP G Fund could be your only bond fund...everything else could be fu...
by Fishing50
Sun Feb 11, 2024 7:22 am
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: Moving Tax-Exempt TSP Funds (Combat Zone Contributions) to Roth IRA
Replies: 12
Views: 2028

Re: Moving Tax-Exempt TSP Funds (Combat Zone Contributions) to Roth IRA

Alan S. wrote: Sat Feb 10, 2024 4:32 pm What was done with the taxable earnings generated on the tax exempt balance?
Tax-exempt contributions, earn taxable earnings that remain with the Traditional TSP balance.
by Fishing50
Sat Feb 10, 2024 7:30 am
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: Moving Tax-Exempt TSP Funds (Combat Zone Contributions) to Roth IRA
Replies: 12
Views: 2028

Re: Moving Tax-Exempt TSP Funds (Combat Zone Contributions) to Roth IRA

Over the last few years, there has been a lot of information put out on how to pull out TSP money that is tax-exempt (combat zone contributions) and get it into a Roth IRA. It was my understanding that in years past, this effort took quite a bit of attention to make it happen, but I just did it and want to let folks know that the process now is extremely easy. - Log into TSP and select Withdrawals and Rollovers - I then selected a Partial Distribution as I still have Roth TSP money I wanted to keep in the TSP. - TSP will show you your Traditional Balance, with Tax-Exempt contributions, and also your Roth Balance. I chose to rollover my entire traditional balance. - During this process you'll need to identify where you want the funds to go ...
by Fishing50
Wed Jan 31, 2024 1:35 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: Moving Tax-Exempt TSP Funds (Combat Zone Contributions) to Roth IRA
Replies: 12
Views: 2028

Re: Moving Tax-Exempt TSP Funds (Combat Zone Contributions) to Roth IRA

Like you, I’m extremely satisfied with my transfer too. I made a similar move in 2022 without any problems. https://www.bogleheads.org/forum/viewt ... p?t=382265

I was motivated to get independent control of Roth asset allocation, tax exempt contributions into Roth IRA, and maintain G Fund allocation with Traditional TSP funds to align with tax efficient fund placement.
by Fishing50
Sat Jan 20, 2024 7:40 am
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Hands off investment/savings plan
Replies: 7
Views: 1032

Re: Hands off investment/savings plan

Welcome to the forum. You’ll get more reliable advice if you post your portfolio in this format: https://www.bogleheads.org/forum/viewtopic.php?t=6212 Target date funds (TDF) are generally a good option, and particularly good for the hands off investor. For tax efficiency, they tend to be better held in retirement accounts (eg, IRA or workplace account like a 401k, 403b, 457 etc). However, they’re not wrong for a regular taxable account. TDFs with more distant dates have more invested in more stocks vs bonds, so tend to have better long term returns but are also more volatile, and you will see bigger price drops when the market goes down. If your funds are in a taxable account, you will need to pay tax on the capital gains (profit) you ear...
by Fishing50
Thu Jan 04, 2024 9:50 am
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Portfolio Review
Replies: 3
Views: 656

Re: Portfolio Review

You're doing great, keep investing.
1. I think 80/20 or 75/25 for life is good for you. You're earning and saving well.

2. +1 mike_in_ny thoughts on getting to the constituent ETFs instead of lifecycle funds. You will be able to optimize fund location with Roth accounts 100% equites for higher compound growth, and then TSP G fund for entire bond allocation.

3. You can probably stretch for a home with $2.3M for retirement and 529 plan. Expensive homes bring expensive taxes & repairs.
by Fishing50
Thu Jan 04, 2024 9:05 am
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Am I saving too much for retirement, or not enough?
Replies: 11
Views: 3197

Re: Am I saving too much for retirement, or not enough?

You're doing great...keep investing, the reality of pension and investment withdrawals will become clearer in the couple years before you retire. I stayed longer than expected for an unexpected promotion, which substantially increased my pension.

72(T) SEPP distributions are a way to get traditional money penalty free before 59 1/2yrs old
Roth Contributions can be withdrawn penalty free also...We're considering 6 digit withdrawal.

You received good advice about Roth vs Traditional TSP.
Not a stretch that you're pension will keep you in the 22% tax bracket in retirement.
by Fishing50
Mon Jan 01, 2024 9:48 am
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Am at 19/81; what should I do, please
Replies: 32
Views: 5466

Re: Am at 19/81; what should I do, please

Thanks for having read this far, and I appreciate your input. (Speak slowly and keep it simple, please. I'm obviously a novice investor.) -- Steve Steve- Gosh darn! With your portfolio, pension, and social security you've made some great decisions for a novice investor. I'm sure every investment has a story, but those stories are no longer important. We should look at what helps now that you've won the game. With your needs met with pension and social security, you can reasonably move to all Cash or all Stocks. I recommend simplification and some alternative things to think about...as a fellow military pensioner, I'll provide some thoughts. So where do I put it? Cash (MMF), bonds or stocks? Vanguard Federal Money Market Fund and CDs are pa...
by Fishing50
Fri Dec 22, 2023 12:03 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: VTSAX vs VTI
Replies: 40
Views: 7143

Re: VTSAX vs VTI

Parkinglotracer wrote: Wed Dec 20, 2023 7:25 pm I own vtsax in my inherited IRAs so I can do auto RMDs. Can’t do auto RMDs with ETFs.
I regret converting VTSAX to VTI in taxable…no longer can dividends be automatically transferred to my bank account. :oops:
by Fishing50
Thu Dec 21, 2023 1:33 pm
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Military Portfolio Year 5 Update
Replies: 8
Views: 1300

Re: Military Portfolio Year 5 Update

You’re doing awesome. You’ll be able to retire whenever you wish…extra service will bring a higher pension & larger nest egg. What’s the goal for GBTC and ARKX? From their current allocation, unlikely they will grow to match the outsized earnings of your other stocks, and they bring some uncertainty for distributions at tax time. You’ve won the game with your other stocks, a heavier dose of VTSAX will track the index and bring some dividends. You could increase risk, crank up the investment in them in hopes they beat the index for an amount of time. I recommend simplifying into US and intl market index funds. Roth TSP is likely the right choice thru 2025. Tax changes coming in 2026. If you are seriously considering 2028 retirement, some...
by Fishing50
Sun Dec 17, 2023 8:47 am
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Should I roll over Roth TSP into Roth IRA for Compound Interest?
Replies: 20
Views: 2802

Re: Should I roll over Roth TSP into Roth IRA for Compound Interest?

You’re finding good information, saving early is a key to success…being in Roth accounts is an added bonus because of tax free, compound growth. Consolidating TSP and Vanguard accounts will only improve performance by the slightly reduced expense ratios, you are splitting hairs. TSP has other benefits, most famously, access to G Fund which carries no risk of loss while earning intermediate term interest rates. G Fund is uniquely available at TSP, your 60yr old self may appreciate access to such a product. Keep a TSP account. For now you can keep it invested in a comparable target date fund. Target date funds are an awesome choice as a single fund that contains a highly diversified portfolio. You’ll notice numerous differences between TSP Li...
by Fishing50
Fri Dec 15, 2023 8:08 am
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Timing my direct transfer from TSP C to Vanguard IRA VTI
Replies: 5
Views: 830

Re: Timing my direct transfer from TSP C to Vanguard IRA VTI

I transferred in 2022 and received 1099s for both ends of the transfer.
Maybe it doesn’t matter if Vanguard receives it in 2024.
by Fishing50
Sun Oct 29, 2023 8:19 am
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: FERS Retirement...Have done everything right (I think) and still nervous..
Replies: 56
Views: 9774

Re: FERS Retirement...Have done everything right (I think) and still nervous..

Kevlar wrote: Sat Oct 28, 2023 1:51 pm Our HR rep has my retirement package on her desk; I tentatively told her Dec 30 this year, back in August and she told me to send the package signed with no date and call when I want to put a date on it..

A retired colleague reminds me that FERS retirements get COLA's too, but I just found out that I would have had to have retired in October to get the 2024 COLA.

To those in the know, is there a world where you'd stay one-more-year to increase a high-three if you were in my shoes?
If you don’t totally dread going to work each day, you could stay one more year to benefit from the COLA & 1 more year of TSP contributions. Looks like you need to be retired before October…so it will be a short year.
by Fishing50
Tue Oct 17, 2023 7:53 am
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Portfolio Review- Active-Duty Military
Replies: 24
Views: 3285

Re: Portfolio Review- Active-Duty Military

I love it, you're doing a great job...couple comments from an older guy enjoying military retirement. Stay in as long as your having fun. After we crossed 20yrs, we were blessed with good assignments and an unexpected promotion. That extra 10yrs of service has us fully retired at 52. You are probably on course for that decision younger than us. We were ( and still are) solidly in the 22% tax bracket, so I expect you have some bonus money our high spouse income also. You don't need an emergency fund with high income, high savings rate, secure govt job, and a taxable portfolio that can be tapped for any emergency. Get that money invested. https://earlyretirementnow.com/2021/05/26/the-emergency-fund-is-still-useless/ We've been taking our divi...
by Fishing50
Sat Oct 07, 2023 3:06 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: T. Rowe Price Brokerage Account
Replies: 7
Views: 1760

Re: T. Rowe Price Brokerage Account

Background: I've had accounts at TRP for about 13 years. Started out with a taxable mutual fund account, using TRP mutual funds. A couple of years later I discovered Bogleheads and decided to switch to Vanguard ETFs, so I opened a taxable brokerage account at TRP instead of moving everything to Vanguard. A bit later, I opened a brokerage Roth account. Now everything is in the brokerage accounts. The settlement fund for each brokerage account is the TRP Government Money fund (PRRXX), which actually resides in a mutual fund account. For my taxable accounts, I receive two Form 1099s at tax time. One is a 1099-DIV for the taxable mutual fund account which contains only PRRXX, and shows the dividends that PRRXX has paid. The other is a consolid...
by Fishing50
Sun Sep 17, 2023 7:29 am
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Contemplating retirement when I'm 51. Would you FIRE?
Replies: 25
Views: 6156

Re: Contemplating retirement when I'm 51. Would you FIRE?

Sure. Go for it. As long as you are able to keep your expenses under control, you don’t have anything to worry about. I will say that most people have a “travel and leisure” expense in their retirement budget, and you do not. For some retirees it’s their largest expense, even those without free health insurance. Even $200/mo in gas can go up sharply for day-trips once you find yourself with more free time to fill. I’ll edit to add that “considering taking on a part-time or another job” isn’t retirement as much as it’s quitting your job to find one you might like more. The part time job that is listed in my OP is a current moonlighting position. I'm currently working at a desk in the evenings which basically allows me to do my homework and ...
by Fishing50
Thu Sep 14, 2023 5:02 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Contemplating retirement when I'm 51. Would you FIRE?
Replies: 25
Views: 6156

Re: Contemplating retirement when I'm 51. Would you FIRE?

I think chances of FIRE looks pretty good for you. We retired with a manageable mortgage payment. Focus on Roth IRAs in the 12% bracket, it’s a great option for tax free compound growth. You don’t list your spouses Roth IRA contributions, so I think you should decrease 457b contributions if necessary. Choose Roth 457b if available. Total portfolio size: $218,000 seems a little low for a lifetime of unexpected expenses. If you don’t need withdrawals, it can be ok. I think it gives you room to look for a job you prefer, instead of grinding it out every day. My biggest fear is leaving the workforce during my peak earning years, and regretting the decision as a broke old man. Highly unlikely, with a military pension…but I’ll never make that muc...
by Fishing50
Thu Aug 10, 2023 6:26 am
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Regret converting mutual funds to etfs at Vanguard?
Replies: 63
Views: 11269

Re: Regret converting mutual funds to etfs at Vanguard?

Northern Flicker wrote: Tue Aug 08, 2023 9:59 pm Probably not a showstopper for most, but distributions from ETFs at Vanguard are not eligible for automatic ACH to a bank account. This is not solvable by adding mutual fund shares.
Annoying, but not a show stopper. I really liked the mutual fund dividend payments ACH transfer into my bank account.
ETF conversion for Roth IRA consolidation at Schwab-awesome.
by Fishing50
Tue Aug 01, 2023 7:22 am
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Leaving Private Sector for Federal Job - Advice w/ 401k, TSP, and Cash.
Replies: 15
Views: 2283

Re: Leaving Private Sector for Federal Job - Advice w/ 401k, TSP, and Cash.

1 - Roth is probably the correct choice for TSP contributions in the 22% or 24% tax bracket for you with significant pension. BUT it’s kind of break even, you pay tax now at your expected future tax rate…which no one actually knows the future. We can reliably predict, you will never again be in the 12% tax bracket. In your situation with almost 50% retirement savings in Roth, I would choose Traditional for the immediate tax savings and start attacking the mortgage or build a large taxable portfolio. 2 - I like G Fund in TSP. In your situation, I’d roll the 401k to TSP to consolidate accounts. In 20yrs, I might roll TSP into a Rollover IRA to consolidate for RMDs. For now it’s G Fund. 3 - I’m confused on the purpose of this cash & how i...
by Fishing50
Fri Jul 28, 2023 9:00 am
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Leaving Private Sector for Federal Job - Advice w/ 401k, TSP, and Cash.
Replies: 15
Views: 2283

Re: Leaving Private Sector for Federal Job - Advice w/ 401k, TSP, and Cash.

1 - Roth is probably the correct choice for TSP contributions in the 22% or 24% tax bracket for you with significant pension. BUT it’s kind of break even, you pay tax now at your expected future tax rate…which no one actually knows the future. We can reliably predict, you will never again be in the 12% tax bracket. In your situation with almost 50% retirement savings in Roth, I would choose Traditional for the immediate tax savings and start attacking the mortgage or build a large taxable portfolio. 2 - I like G Fund in TSP. In your situation, I’d roll the 401k to TSP to consolidate accounts. In 20yrs, I might roll TSP into a Rollover IRA to consolidate for RMDs. For now it’s G Fund. 3 - I’m confused on the purpose of this cash & how it...
by Fishing50
Fri Jul 21, 2023 8:13 am
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Any reason to keep money in TSP?
Replies: 33
Views: 3923

Re: Any reason to keep money in TSP?

We kept TSP for our bond allocation in G Fund.
We got a $1500 cash bonus for moving most of TSP to Schwab.
by Fishing50
Mon Jul 17, 2023 10:53 am
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Retired Military w/Gov Contractor Job - Portfolio Questions
Replies: 52
Views: 6762

Re: Retired Military w/Gov Contractor Job - Portfolio Questions

I guess I'm not following the benefit of putting it into my Roth instead of (not in addition to) putting it into a Taxable. Right now I'm putting it into the Taxable so I will be able to take the contributions AND the growth out when that balance is equal to what I owe on the mortgage. If I put it into my Roth IRA, I'll have to wait a while longer to take out the balance of the mortgage without penalties. Am I wrong? You’re not wrong…but you are using funny accounting that works for you. Sure, it’s ok to keep it in taxable and pay off the loan when you hit your number. I like this plan because you also have other options in case of emergency for that taxable investment until you give that money to the mortgage company. We’ve got taxable as...
by Fishing50
Mon Jul 17, 2023 10:20 am
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Emergency Fund vs Taxable Account
Replies: 21
Views: 2493

Re: Emergency Fund vs Taxable Account

Here’s a blog post that deals with your dilemma.
https://earlyretirementnow.com/2021/05 ... l-useless/

I feel you need less EF than most because you have a reliable government job that reduces chances of being fired or laid off. As your taxable investments increase you’ll need even less EF.

I took the plunge & invested my EF & new car fund in 2003, and we’ve never sold the original shares that are up 434% today…not including dividends. We’ve cash flowed every emergency or planned purchases since then. We’ll likely never sell the shares due to high capital gains tax, but we enjoy taking the dividends in cash these days to pay expenses or save.
by Fishing50
Sun Jul 16, 2023 10:24 am
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Retire @ 51 y.o. w 75% of my salary or 61 y.o. w 100% or something in between
Replies: 38
Views: 4798

Re: Retire @ 51 y.o. w 75% of my salary or 61 y.o. w 100% or something in between

I don’t believe it’s a financial question either.

My last 10yrs in the military, we were blessed with good duty stations and an unexpected promotion. I did enjoy the work too, when work became a chore…we retired. The extra pension longevity is nice, but would not be worth suffering.

You could stay at work, and spend excess income test driving expensive travel to Europe and elsewhere while having an income. I assume you have lots of paid time off accumulated…
by Fishing50
Sat Jul 15, 2023 2:16 pm
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Retired Military w/Gov Contractor Job - Portfolio Questions
Replies: 52
Views: 6762

Re: Retired Military w/Gov Contractor Job - Portfolio Questions

Passing up Roth IRA contributions seems like a mistake. After 10yrs of Roth IRA contributions, you could withdraw the contributions and pay down the mortgage. The home equity will not provide tax-free, compound growth. We’re happy my pension pays the 3.1% mortgage which we’ll probably keep to the end. We have enough assets to pay off the mortgage, but that decreases options to spend Roth contributions or taxable monies during go-go years of early retirement. YMMV I though I would incur penalties if I withdrew from my Roth IRA before 59.5 to pay off the mortgage without penalties. I'm going to be 45 next month, and our plan is to pay off the house in six years. You would not incur penalties if you withdraw only contributions to Roth IRA. ht...
by Fishing50
Sat Jul 15, 2023 10:59 am
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Retired Military w/Gov Contractor Job - Portfolio Questions
Replies: 52
Views: 6762

Re: Retired Military w/Gov Contractor Job - Portfolio Questions

I like it, you’ve done a great job in the last couple months. I recommend funding His Roth IRA as a priority each year because contributions can be withdrawn tax free for any reason. You could reduce excess mortgage payments or His Roth 401K contributions. Thanks. I've looked at that. I'm putting as much as possible in the 401(k) (pre-tax, not the Roth 401(k)) to get under the AGI limit for the AOTC. This is the first my son is going, and we're not sure how much we'll have to pay out of pocket with his scholarships. If we end up not paying enough to get the credit, I will look at shifting to support my Roth. We're pretty intentional about making the extra principal a priority. I know it doesn't make sense math-wise, but it's a behavior goa...
by Fishing50
Sat Jul 15, 2023 7:19 am
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Retired Military w/Gov Contractor Job - Portfolio Questions
Replies: 52
Views: 6762

Re: Retired Military w/Gov Contractor Job - Portfolio Questions

cadinkis wrote: Fri Jul 14, 2023 10:30 am Update:

______________________________________________________________
Annual Contributions
$22.5k into his 401k (4% match)
$6k her Roth IRA
$3.3k Joint Taxable (This is half of our extra mortgage principal payment. The other half goes directly onto the principal.)
I like it, you’ve done a great job in the last couple months.

I recommend funding His Roth IRA as a priority each year because contributions can be withdrawn tax free for any reason.
You could reduce excess mortgage payments or His Roth 401K contributions.
by Fishing50
Fri Jul 07, 2023 11:58 am
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Portfolio question (considering military/govt pension)
Replies: 8
Views: 961

Re: Portfolio question (considering military/govt pension)

You are struggling with good questions. There probably are not clear answers at this point. Being retired military, we rented & invested in TSP, Roth IRA, & taxable each month. I never needed to decide to invest large taxable amount. We really like spending the dividends from our taxable accounts in early retirement, with the option to take capital gains if we need the money. Long way to say, you have a lot of taxable cash. I think you should get some invested. I understand the desire to buy a house. I recommend renting & investing excess money. If you spend that taxable money on a house & have a large mortgage…you are immediately in a less favorable position with less cash & big debt…probably committing to 20+ yrs of wo...
by Fishing50
Sun Jun 25, 2023 8:50 am
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Placement of funds in Taxable accounts
Replies: 21
Views: 2535

Re: Placement of funds in Taxable accounts

Since you have ample room in 401K, you could have taxable 100% equities.

We really like total international stock index and S&P 500 which was a tax loss harvesting partner in taxable. Most positions were created thru DCA, and smaller lots created larger lots during tax loss harvesting. Foreign tax credit for the international fund is nice. We may never sell the oldest lots that have significant capital gains.
by Fishing50
Fri Jun 23, 2023 7:25 am
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Convert TSP to Roth IRA- 5 year Rules
Replies: 15
Views: 1425

Re: Convert TSP to Roth IRA- 5 year Rules

Welcome to the forum. As others have said, I don't see any reason or advantage in laddering multiple Roth IRAs. I went through this very process last year, and here's how it worked for me: I transferred a single amount from TSP to Traditional IRA (as an aside, this amount was large enough to get a $4000 bonus from brokerage firm). That is my "Rollover IRA," as the recipient of direct transfer that maintains tax-deferred status. From there I am converting strategic amounts to Roth IRA, staying below threshold that will bump into next tax bracket and/or trigger IRMAA penalty. I expect this to go on for several years. But these conversions all go into single Roth IRA (not a "Rollover"). I didn't completely empty out TSP ac...
by Fishing50
Mon Jun 19, 2023 7:17 am
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: For those of you in early retirement, what is your Asset Allocation and withdrawal rate?
Replies: 88
Views: 14056

Re: For those of you in early retirement, what is your Asset Allocation and withdrawal rate?

80/20

Leaving the workforce during my peak earning years, I’m most concerned about our portfolio keeping pace with inflation if we need money in 40yrs.
by Fishing50
Thu Jun 15, 2023 5:39 am
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Federal Employment: Top of Pay Ladder vs Career Progression
Replies: 6
Views: 1197

Re: Federal Employment: Top of Pay Ladder vs Career Progression

It’s a quality of life decision. Chasing the highest salary isn’t worth increased stress if option provides enough.
You can always change jobs in the future if opportunities arise.
FERS pension vests after 5 yrs…but you don’t have stay if the 5 yr handcuffs are too burdensome.
by Fishing50
Thu Jun 08, 2023 7:21 am
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Potential loss of gain risk from transferring from 401k to IRA/TSP
Replies: 4
Views: 581

Re: Potential loss of gain risk from transferring from 401k to IRA/TSP

I’m extremely satisfied with my Roth IRA consolidation at Schwab from TSP.
I hold Vanguard funds and received a transfer bonus.
https://www.bogleheads.org/forum/viewt ... 8#p7034588
by Fishing50
Wed May 24, 2023 5:05 am
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Career Advice
Replies: 18
Views: 2313

Re: Career Advice

Nords posts on this forum, and he’s the author of Military Guide to Financial Independence & Retirement. The book will describe options if you choose Military Service.

At your age, choose whichever option you enjoy most. I think the USCG offers a more diverse range of options.

Having achieved 30yr Military pension, it was diversity within my career field that kept me satisfied at work. If you are only working to achieve retirement, and you dread your work…it’s best to find more healthy alternatives. For Military, Reserve affiliation can ease the career pressure, while preserving the pension.
by Fishing50
Wed May 24, 2023 4:51 am
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Portfolio Advice: 6 years to retirement
Replies: 21
Views: 5312

Re: Portfolio Advice: 6 years to retirement

G Fund is unique. Consider rollover from 401K or tIRA accounts to TSP for G Fund.
Pros & cons of TSP are often discussed on this forum, so I’ll avoid that topic.
You can search the forum and decide for your self.
by Fishing50
Wed Apr 26, 2023 7:16 am
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Portfolio Review Request
Replies: 4
Views: 909

Re: Portfolio Review Request

I've been retired for about a year now. I'm 53 yrs old in a similar position with pension covering our needs, portfolio is for discretionary spending. Awesome to have expenses covered by SS and small pension. Emergency Fund is commonly discussed. I don't see the need for people with reliable monthly income and a large taxable account that can be tapped for bulky expenses....especially when you are eligible to withdraw money from retirement accounts. I say get the money invested. Big ERN influenced my thinking: https://earlyretirementnow.com/2021/05/26/the-emergency-fund-is-still-useless/ Emergency fund is for emergencies. 3 months expenses in cash may be reasonable for you, especially with known, upcoming expenses. I don't think Roth conver...
by Fishing50
Sat Apr 15, 2023 3:35 pm
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: SIMPLIFY NOW: TSP & VGD to FID; MF to ETF etc
Replies: 9
Views: 1072

Re: SIMPLIFY NOW: TSP & VGD to FID; MF to ETF etc

Fishing50, Thanks for the reply, definitely the path of experience I'm looking to learn from! -We are retired O-6's but under the Guard/Reserve system you draw your retirement pay at age 60 reducible by certain Active Duty service periods. -Bond allocation philosophy: Both Treasury and ANG retirement are backed by the same govt and therefore are risk equivalent. Our combined ANG pay will be $9000/mo or $108,000/yr. Using a rough ROT of 3.5% withdrawal rate, $108k/0.035= $3mil bond equivalent. That might actually underestimate the bond equivalency as the 3.5% withdrawal math generally retains a significant equities % to continue growth and offset inflation. Additionally, If some sort of simultaneous Dot.com/Banking/Sep 11/COVID doomsday wer...
by Fishing50
Sat Apr 15, 2023 8:11 am
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: SIMPLIFY NOW: TSP & VGD to FID; MF to ETF etc
Replies: 9
Views: 1072

Re: SIMPLIFY NOW: TSP & VGD to FID; MF to ETF etc

You've got a good plan. Once your retire from ANG, you can separate Roth, Trad, and tax exempt TSP balances. I completed the round trip, bringing some traditional back to TSP for G Fund allocation. Here's my transfer story to Schwab https://www.bogleheads.org/forum/viewtopic.php?p=7034588 We chose Schwab for the customer service representative assistance during TSP transfer & transfer bonus. Once Roth TSP was at Schwab, I converted VG Roth IRA holdings to ETFs and consolidated at Schwab with Vanguard ETFs. Happy to have Roth IRA consolidated, and simplified. I also converted individually owned taxable brokerage VG MFs to ETFs. I regret this choice, because at VG ETF dividends cannot be automatically transferred into my checking account ...
by Fishing50
Wed Mar 22, 2023 7:43 am
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Five-Year Portfolio Checkup
Replies: 3
Views: 847

Re: Five-Year Portfolio Checkup

1. I like 75% stocks/25% bonds. You’ve already won. High stock allocation hopefully insures inflation matching returns, which is our answer to longer term care insurance. 2. I’m a firm believer in simplicity…aligned with tax efficient investing & investment location. Taxable all equities, Roth IRAs all equity, TSP G Fund for bond allocation, & then asset allocated with remaining TSP. We have a total stock market matching equity allocation. 3. G Fund is stable value allocation. Growth will come from equities, especially a high equity allocation. G Fund provides stability to take additional risk. 4* I think it’s mental accounting. Our G Fund value is large enough to cover any concerns. Taxable accounts provide additional dividend inco...
by Fishing50
Wed Mar 22, 2023 7:19 am
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: TSP to ROTH IRA
Replies: 6
Views: 978

Re: TSP to ROTH IRA

With 60% of retirement money in Roth, I don’t think you need to worry about more conversions.

She could contribute to Roth TSP, which I don’t recommend. I’m calculating her deduction is in the 24% tax bracket, maybe getting you into the 22% bracket. That’s deductible savings worth taking.

Traditional TSP may be helping you stay within Roth IRA income limitations also.

I recently opened Rollover IRA at Schwab for possible conversions. With DW new part time income, and a new inherited IRA…we’ll probably not be choosing conversions anytime soon. The primary reason for the move to Schwab was to separate tax exempt contributions https://www.bogleheads.org/forum/viewt ... 8#p7034588
by Fishing50
Wed Mar 22, 2023 7:01 am
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Experience using Navy Fed as a hub 'bank' - esp if using Banktivity
Replies: 12
Views: 1598

Re: Experience using Navy Fed as a hub 'bank' - esp if using Banktivity

I’m a HUGE NFCU fan. They have been my primary Direct Deposit institution for 32 years. Refunded ATM fees kept me with them. I quit using quicken for banking, but It still tracks my investments with 30 years of cost basis. I find online info to be good enough for banking. I’ve had no problems with Bill Pay, that I use for all our bills. It’s transparent to me whether it’s an electronic transfer or a mailed check. They hold our mortgage, which is convenient. I’ll never bank with USAA after they refused a mortgage refinance in 2010. They used an arbitrary 90% Loan to Value multiple, after Obama authorized over 100% as allowable. Hours of negotiation with a company that touts services for ‘members’ had me furious over not refinancing $50K LTV....