Search found 15052 matches

by anon_investor
Mon Mar 18, 2024 6:36 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Hospital Bill - Negotiation strategies?
Replies: 26
Views: 1660

Re: Hospital Bill - Negotiation strategies?

This has worked for me at some hospitals but not all: call their billing department and ask if you can get some kind of discount if you pay today. I was able to get 10%-15% off hospital bills doing this (paying via CC) at some hospitals. Some won't budge though.
by anon_investor
Sun Mar 17, 2024 10:41 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: Is active mutual fund’s capital gain always a bad thing?
Replies: 10
Views: 987

Re: Is active mutual fund’s capital gain always a bad thing?

retired@50 wrote: Sun Mar 17, 2024 10:37 pm
henryphseven wrote: Sun Mar 17, 2024 10:20 pm ... However, is it possible that active mutual fund’s capital gain may not be that bad?
If you intend to use an actively managed fund, which some members of the forum do, then do the smart thing and hold it in your Roth IRA. That way you don't have to worry about the tax consequences.

Regards,
+1. The unnecessary tax drag of actively managed funds compounded over many years in a taxable account compared to index ETFs or Vanguard index mutual funds will really add up and likely nullify any potential out performance and result in the high probability of under performance (then factor in the higher expense ratios).
by anon_investor
Fri Mar 15, 2024 7:24 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Bank of America/Merrill Edge - Preferred Rewards
Replies: 7041
Views: 878993

Re: Bank of America/Merrill Edge - Preferred Rewards

Hello everyone, I sold some company options and will have about $250K. Been thinking about changing banks for some time, and tempted to take advantage of the promos going on at the moment to get a nice cash bonus. Trying to decide between… CHASE - $900 bonus to open a new checking/savings accounts together. Seems easy to get. Also JPM promo for Self-Direct account that could net me $700. Premium Deposit at 4.42%. Also have several Chase credit cards - Amazon, Freedom, Freedom Unlimited, United (which think I might switch to CSP). Could earn $900 + $700 with the bonuses. BoA/MERRILL - I have the promo code for $750 new account with ME. Preferred Deposit 4.92%. I would get PH status in PR, but would require me to open BOA cards as I currentl...
by anon_investor
Mon Mar 11, 2024 7:44 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: perfect credit rating, can’t use my credit
Replies: 18
Views: 2316

Re: perfect credit rating, can’t use my credit

theplayer11 wrote: Mon Mar 11, 2024 7:29 pm your denials don't make sense to me..what cc company? What inquiries were recent? I get 4-5 cc a year, mostly from Chase about 3 months apart.
If OP opened 4 CCs 12 months ago, a few CC companies would auto deny. US Bank, Capital One and US Bank come to mind.
by anon_investor
Mon Mar 11, 2024 10:58 am
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Bank of America Outbound ACH Fee now zero!
Replies: 22
Views: 2010

Re: Bank of America Outbound ACH Fee now zero!

I've only been a credit union member for my entire life. I am surprised people would stick around with a bank that charges a fee for ACH. People also stick around with banks that offers them 0.01% APY on their savings accounts when other banks offer 500 times that! Some people like having branches (or are even convinced brick and mortar banks are "safer"), for some it's just inertia. I only have a BoA checking, because it is required in order for me to qualify for Preferred Rewards status (qualifying based on ETFs held at Merrill Edge). The main benefit is this I am getting a 75% boost to the cash back earned on my BoA credit cards (I have Platinum Honors level status). If not for this boost to credit card cash back, I probably w...
by anon_investor
Sun Mar 10, 2024 5:59 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: How Much Cash Do You Keep In Your Home?
Replies: 207
Views: 14915

Re: How Much Cash Do You Keep In Your Home?

At least enough cash to cover 1 monthly mortgage payment.
by anon_investor
Sun Mar 10, 2024 5:57 pm
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: What is the after-tax contributions limit for 2024?
Replies: 4
Views: 491

Re: What is the after-tax contributions limit for 2024?

worthit wrote: Sun Mar 10, 2024 5:55 pm BHs:

I will be contributing a total of $30,500 this year including my catch-up towards my pre-tax 401k as I am over 50. My employer allows after-tax contributions up to the IRS limits which seems to be $76,500 for 2024. This means I can contribute only an additional of $46,000 to my after-tax account and not the entire $76,500. Is my understanding correct?

TIA.
Does your employer also provide any contributions (e.g. match)? Those would also eat into the overall total annual 401k limit.
by anon_investor
Sat Mar 09, 2024 7:56 pm
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: How much do you spend a month on food?
Replies: 334
Views: 29230

Re: What's normal for grocery costs for a family?

Hubub wrote: Sat Mar 09, 2024 6:02 pm Protein $87: protein powder and package of protein drinks
The protein drinks are expensive, why not just get giant tubs of protein powder and have the HS athlete put some in a shaker bottle for a school snack. That would save quite a bit.
by anon_investor
Sat Mar 09, 2024 4:45 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Pay Cash or Asset Backed Mortgage at 7.75% for a $1.5M home
Replies: 24
Views: 2218

Re: Pay Cash or Asset Backed Mortgage at 7.75% for a $1.5M home

wantrepreneur wrote: Fri Mar 08, 2024 8:04 pm The rate is from NASB, having talked to a banker and for 800+ FICO score. Absolute garbage and the banker knew it too. I will talk to a couple of more brokers and see what they say. I am not expecting anything less than 6.5% btw so the difference isn't huge.

On being able to deduct mortgage interest from taxes, peace of mind that a paid off house in a great area is more valuable to me, at the moment.
No brainer to pay cash. You can't get a guaranteed investment anywhere paying that high of an interest rate.
by anon_investor
Fri Mar 08, 2024 4:19 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: feeling stuck with kid expenses and this phase of life
Replies: 61
Views: 7379

Re: feeling stuck with kid expenses and this phase of life

OP, will you and your spouse's incomes not increase over time?

We have 3 kids now, and at first all the extra costs meant we saved less, but overtime with increases to income, we save much more than before kids.
by anon_investor
Tue Mar 05, 2024 10:19 pm
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Vanguard and Yubikeys
Replies: 9
Views: 967

Re: Vanguard and Yubikeys

The only way to secure your Vanguard account is to only use a Yubikey to login, add a Google Voice number as the SMS 2FA, then secure that Google account with a Yubikey.
by anon_investor
Tue Mar 05, 2024 8:34 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Mid-career change to law?
Replies: 127
Views: 11691

Re: Mid-career change to law?

OP here. It's been great reading all your unfiltered feedback. Most of the negativity has focused on the challenges of competing for a big law position and the subsequent workload on the partner track. Pursuing big law isn't my goal given my age and the associated timeline to make partner. My current position is very flexible. I would be interested in scaling back my current role to a bare minimum during law school (1 or 2 weekends a month), then splitting my work effort between my current role and a legal one. That way, I wouldn't have to replace my current income completely with a legal income. I can make $200k at my present job with minimal effort, leaving time to spend on a legal career initially in a small practice and potentially on ...
by anon_investor
Tue Mar 05, 2024 5:10 pm
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: tax reporting on NUA employee stock sale
Replies: 5
Views: 506

Re: tax reporting on NUA employee stock sale

RyeBourbon wrote: Tue Mar 05, 2024 4:51 pm If you sold it after one month in the taxable account, the gain for that month is a short-term gain.
+1. The rest of the gain above the "cost basis" is long term.
by anon_investor
Mon Mar 04, 2024 10:28 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Bank of America/Merrill Edge - Preferred Rewards
Replies: 7041
Views: 878993

Re: Bank of America/Merrill Edge - Preferred Rewards

sailaway wrote: Mon Mar 04, 2024 10:18 pm
anon_investor wrote: Mon Mar 04, 2024 10:16 pm
Count of Notre Dame wrote: Mon Mar 04, 2024 6:54 pm For those of you with the brokerage, are you able to buy low cost funds? I looked at moving my kids 529 plans but their funds have such high expense ratios that this move would be pennywise but pound foolish. The additional expenses incurred inside the fund (several thousand) would far outweigh the reward benefits.
I only hold low cost index ETFs in Merrill Edge brokerage account (e.g. VTI, etc.).
I kept the funds I transferred over initially, but also buy ETFs with new monies.
I converted my Vanguard MFs to ETFs before transferring since ME charges a fee to buy/sell Vanguard MFs (except for dividend reinvestment). This has worked out well since I sold some of the ETFs to tax loss harvest in 2022.
by anon_investor
Mon Mar 04, 2024 10:16 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Bank of America/Merrill Edge - Preferred Rewards
Replies: 7041
Views: 878993

Re: Bank of America/Merrill Edge - Preferred Rewards

Count of Notre Dame wrote: Mon Mar 04, 2024 6:54 pm For those of you with the brokerage, are you able to buy low cost funds? I looked at moving my kids 529 plans but their funds have such high expense ratios that this move would be pennywise but pound foolish. The additional expenses incurred inside the fund (several thousand) would far outweigh the reward benefits.
I only hold low cost index ETFs in Merrill Edge brokerage account (e.g. VTI, etc.).
by anon_investor
Mon Mar 04, 2024 6:42 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Bank of America/Merrill Edge - Preferred Rewards
Replies: 7041
Views: 878993

Re: Bank of America/Merrill Edge - Preferred Rewards

I'm not sure I'm following. Are you all saying you can purchase American Airlines eGift Cards for $100, and have that qualify as the airline incidental fee credit of $100? My reading of the terms of the card specifically say gift cards from affiliated airlines do NOT qualify as an incidental credit. What am I failing to understand? Thanks for any help!! Yes. I don't know if it's supported by the fine print, but this--and it has to be American Airlines gift cards, not other airlines (although the United Travel Bank also qualifies, I'm told)--is a well-known way to use the credit without actually traveling. If you plan to fly AA at some point, it works great; otherwise, the work-around is to sell the card, but the sites that buy gift cards o...
by anon_investor
Mon Mar 04, 2024 5:56 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Bank of America/Merrill Edge - Preferred Rewards
Replies: 7041
Views: 878993

Re: Bank of America/Merrill Edge - Preferred Rewards

News to me, but you're right. They're offering $78 for a $100 GC. The PR card is worth $17 a year (net cost after selling the gift card). Thanks for sharing, I used to get [$80] a couple of years ago, but I will take $78. I went ahead and sold 2 years worth of AA eGCs ($200) for $156. Since I got $3.50 cash back for the $100 AA eGCs, and am recouping $78, that works out to paying $18.50/yr for the PR, which works out to free since I do take advantage of the Global Entry credit. Win win. Premium rewards annual fee is $95, not $100. You’re getting an even better deal than you thought! Even better! PR is definitely a great all-around card, very happy to be able to offload 2x $100 AA eGCs. I only need to spend $1,543/yr on dinning/travel in or...
by anon_investor
Wed Feb 28, 2024 7:44 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Bank of America/Merrill Edge - Preferred Rewards
Replies: 7041
Views: 878993

Re: Bank of America/Merrill Edge - Preferred Rewards

Sign up for credit cards when opening checking account or ME brokerage account ? For new customer, aiming to quickly get PH status and features, 1 Sign up for BofA checking account and ensure you select to apply for preferred rewards during account opening process. 2 once you are up and running, and no identity verification issue with BofA, use same credentials to open ME CMA account. 3 if ME is also fine, start ACATS partial asset transfer from your ME account for > $100k assets. 4 Then apply for credit cards, if you want two of them, then apply for both one after the other on the same day in order of desired preference, since you will only be hit with one credit enquiry if done this way. 5 You should be up and running with PH status and ...
by anon_investor
Wed Feb 28, 2024 7:41 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Ally HYSA to Vanguard VMFXX
Replies: 9
Views: 1322

Re: Ally HYSA to Vanguard VMFXX

Fishing2retire wrote: Wed Feb 28, 2024 7:35 pm
the_wiki wrote: Wed Feb 28, 2024 5:44 pm Do you already have a Vanguard account?

You could also open up an Ally Invest broker account and purchase money market funds or short term treasury ETFs at Ally.
Yes I have both ally and Vanguard accounts
If you don't already have a Vanguard brokerage account, they may severely limit your ability to withdraw funds from the newly opened brokerage account after you deposit your funds. Just a warning if you plan to take any funds out shortly after depositing them.
by anon_investor
Wed Feb 28, 2024 6:29 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: Vanguard Customer Service Mega-thread
Replies: 1512
Views: 167410

Re: Does Vanguard offshore its CS?

thatbrian wrote: Wed Feb 28, 2024 6:23 pm
bondsr4me wrote: Wed Feb 28, 2024 6:13 pm
thatbrian wrote: Wed Feb 28, 2024 5:41 pm I just called Vanguard CS, and was connected with a person in India (I assume) who I couldn't understand. I hung up. I was planning to transfer 250k to Vanguard, but I'm not sure I want to do that if they offshore their CS.

Does Vanguard offshore its CS?
cheaper ain't always better....you'd probably be better off at another firm.
Yes, and yes.
Try Fidelity. US based CS, plus you can hold Vanguard ETFs and buy/sell fractional ETF shares, schedule ETF purchases by dollar amount.
by anon_investor
Sun Feb 25, 2024 7:09 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Fidelity as a one stop shop
Replies: 5973
Views: 1008821

Re: Fidelity as a one stop shop

Couldn't any random person with your account and routing number transfer money out of your account? Not any random person, but any bank can do so for their customers. The bank must know their customers, and the bank that initiates the transfer is on the hook if the transfer is fraudulent. I think lockdown is to prevent transfer of shares or assets from one account to another outside of the ACH system that debit cards use. --vtMaps Arguably, "any random person" could do this... Think about "automatic payments" pulling from a bank account - all that's needed is a routing number and account number - same things that are on a check. If I accidently, or fraudulently, entered in the wrong information, how is the business/bank...
by anon_investor
Sat Feb 24, 2024 11:11 pm
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: converting VTSAX to VTI inside of a traditional IRA at Vanguard
Replies: 43
Views: 5518

Re: converting VTSAX to VTI inside of a traditional IRA at Vanguard

critterdude311 wrote: Sat Feb 24, 2024 9:16 am Perfect, thanks for confirming guys!
When you call, if there is an option to be transferred to the trading desk during the phone menu, select that one, they're the only ones that can help do the conversion.
by anon_investor
Sat Feb 24, 2024 11:10 pm
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: converting VTSAX to VTI inside of a traditional IRA at Vanguard
Replies: 43
Views: 5518

Re: converting VTSAX to VTI inside of a traditional IRA at Vanguard

retired@50 wrote: Sat Feb 24, 2024 11:07 pm
seanbaby wrote: Sat Feb 24, 2024 11:00 pm Can someone please explain why this move makes sense?
Some investors prefer holding ETFs instead of typical mutual funds.

There is often a "portability" argument made, where if you hold ETFs you can move your accounts from one custodian to another with fewer hassles.

More details here: https://www.bogleheads.org/wiki/ETFs_vs_mutual_funds

Regards,
Yep, that is why I converted some of my Vanguard index MFs to ETFs before transferring them to another brokerage.
by anon_investor
Sat Feb 24, 2024 10:13 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: [Using PayPal to pay bills and earn 5% on credit cards]
Replies: 603
Views: 89372

Re: [Using PayPal to pay bills and earn 5% on credit cards]

^ I just checked and two of mine are also gone: water/sewer and, the big one, property tax. :( What's left is only our gas/electric. But even for that one, if I search for the company, it doesn't show up. I'll find out in a few weeks if I can still pay that remaining bill, but the value will be minimal, in any case. The credit card fee to pay it directly is not too bad. I'm probably only netting about 1% extra on it by paying through paypal. The utility company that disappeared has no CC payment option, only ACH, so being able to use PayPal Bill pay with my US Bank Cash+ was nice to get 5% cash back. Now I just have to pay directly with the utility company via ACH. :( My other 2 utility bills are still listed in PayPal Bill Pay, but I can ...
by anon_investor
Fri Feb 23, 2024 10:40 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: [Using PayPal to pay bills and earn 5% on credit cards]
Replies: 603
Views: 89372

Re: [Using PayPal to pay bills and earn 5% on credit cards]

Bummer, one of my utility companies disappeared from my saved bills, and it is no longer available to add back. It was fun while it lasted...
by anon_investor
Thu Feb 22, 2024 11:58 am
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: Fund exchanges broken? - Vanguard mutual fund account
Replies: 17
Views: 1271

Re: Fund exchanges broken? - Vanguard mutual fund account

Zdex wrote: Thu Feb 22, 2024 11:34 am There is a problem with Vanguard's backend today. Can't deposit money, can't withdraw money, and this likely is related to your fund problem, as we all are seeing the same message.

The Vanguard rep was pleasant enough. Said they are working on it, many are having the same problem, and no ETA on a fix. This is a significant problem, as it appears there simply is no movement into, nor out of, Vanguard funds, including the money market fund.
Yep, I am unable to do a Roth conversion today.
by anon_investor
Tue Feb 20, 2024 4:00 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Bank of America/Merrill Edge - Preferred Rewards
Replies: 7041
Views: 878993

Re: Bank of America/Merrill Edge - Preferred Rewards

tj wrote: Sun Feb 18, 2024 10:09 pm
hap_ca wrote: Sun Feb 18, 2024 10:05 pm
tj wrote: Sun Feb 18, 2024 9:51 pm
MisterBill wrote: Sun Feb 18, 2024 9:37 pm
tj wrote: Sun Feb 18, 2024 2:12 pm

Not possible? CardCash started buying them again.
News to me, but you're right. They're offering $78 for a $100 GC. The PR card is worth $17 a year (net cost after selling the gift card).
I guess it's inflation. I got $81 for a $100 card 2 weeks ago.
Ah nice, I was using Raise.com for awhile and they stopped accepting AA. Does CardCash payout immediately or is it posted for sale and takes awhile before you get paid?
I think it takes like a day.
FYI for people wondering, for me I sold my AA eGCs to Card Cash last night (Mon 2/19) and this afternoon (Tue 2/20) I got paid via PayPal, so less than 24 hours. Not sure if it is because I have sold AA eGCs to Card Cash twice in the past and also received payment via PayPal.
by anon_investor
Tue Feb 20, 2024 12:17 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Bank of America/Merrill Edge - Preferred Rewards
Replies: 7041
Views: 878993

Re: Bank of America/Merrill Edge - Preferred Rewards

You only use the card for dining/travel? No I use it as a catch all card when I don't have a different card that pays better than the standard 2.625% cash back that the PR offers (with Platinum Honors). The 2.625% cash back is excellent for paying taxes, licensing fees, etc. where the credit card fee is lower than 2.625% cash back. When I was referrencing dinning/travel, that is the extra 0.875% (3.5% total) cash back that the PR offers over the URC, which has a flat 2.625% cash back for everything and no $95 AF. The PR also has the added benefit of no FTF. If I am making $1,543+/yr in dinning/travel purchases on the PR, that is the breakeven for the $13.50/yr cost I would need to recoup to make the PR better than the URC (this is after fa...
by anon_investor
Tue Feb 20, 2024 12:14 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Chase Self-Directed Brokerage Account Annual Fee Question
Replies: 9
Views: 1314

Re: Chase Self-Directed Brokerage Account Annual Fee Question

Carno wrote: Tue Feb 20, 2024 11:07 am According to this link [https://www.jpmorgan.com/wealth-managem ... n-schedule] no annual fees show. However, based on your experience, if the Chase Self-Directed account has a $0 balance or is totally inactive, have you ever been charge an annual fee?
I have never been in that situation, but why not just hold a few shares of ETFs with dividend reinvestment on to avoid inactivity?
by anon_investor
Tue Feb 20, 2024 11:33 am
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Bank of America/Merrill Edge - Preferred Rewards
Replies: 7041
Views: 878993

Re: Bank of America/Merrill Edge - Preferred Rewards

Premium rewards annual fee is $95, not $100. You’re getting an even better deal than you thought! Even better! PR is definitely a great all-around card, very happy to be able to offload 2x $100 AA eGCs. I only need to spend $1,543/yr on dinning/travel in order to justify the $13.50/yr cost (not counting the GE credit, and just factoring in $3.50 cash back from the $100 AA eGC purchase, and the subsequent $78 proceeds from the sale to Card Cash). You only use the card for dining/travel? No I use it as a catch all card when I don't have a different card that pays better than the standard 2.625% cash back that the PR offers (with Platinum Honors). The 2.625% cash back is excellent for paying taxes, licensing fees, etc. where the credit card f...
by anon_investor
Tue Feb 20, 2024 11:24 am
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Ibonds - 0% Fixed rate Vintage - dispose or hold?
Replies: 16
Views: 1999

Re: Ibonds - 0% Fixed rate Vintage - dispose or hold?

Thanks everyone. It seems the better option for me is to hold to the 0% Ibond for now. I will purchase the 1.3% bond in April. If you had to choose between keeping the 0% or buying the fixed 1.3%, the answer would be to sell. If you can buy without selling, I'd do that for now. The inflation (adjustable) rate is likely to be pretty low in May. If they were to be issued now, the annualized rate would be between 0.40-0.50%. Inflation is likely to pick up a bit over the next couple of months, but without a big shock, it wouldn't be surprising to see a 2% annualized rate compared to 3.94%. If the inflation rate is indeed going to be 2%, with a 1.3% fixed rate the composite rate will be 3.3%. Whereas this "0% fixed rate" bond (was iss...
by anon_investor
Tue Feb 20, 2024 11:17 am
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Ibonds - 0% Fixed rate Vintage - dispose or hold?
Replies: 16
Views: 1999

Re: Ibonds - 0% Fixed rate Vintage - dispose or hold?

pyesquared wrote: Tue Feb 20, 2024 11:16 am
lakpr wrote: Tue Feb 20, 2024 11:11 am
pyesquared wrote: Tue Feb 20, 2024 11:11 am It worked out nicely, these I-bonds. I recently redeemed our 4, 10k bonds, netting around $5K and grabbed a 5.75%, 13-month CD at the local credit union with the cash. Guess I will be getting a 1099-INT.
No you will not. It is up to you to go to Treasury Direct website and download it.
Oh, thank you very much for that. I'll set up a reminder on my calendar.
TD did email me when it became available this year.
by anon_investor
Tue Feb 20, 2024 11:17 am
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Bank of America/Merrill Edge - Preferred Rewards
Replies: 7041
Views: 878993

Re: Bank of America/Merrill Edge - Preferred Rewards

News to me, but you're right. They're offering $78 for a $100 GC. The PR card is worth $17 a year (net cost after selling the gift card). Thanks for sharing, I used to get [$80] a couple of years ago, but I will take $78. I went ahead and sold 2 years worth of AA eGCs ($200) for $156. Since I got $3.50 cash back for the $100 AA eGCs, and am recouping $78, that works out to paying $18.50/yr for the PR, which works out to free since I do take advantage of the Global Entry credit. Win win. Premium rewards annual fee is $95, not $100. You’re getting an even better deal than you thought! Even better! PR is definitely a great all-around card, very happy to be able to offload 2x $100 AA eGCs. I only need to spend $1,543/yr on dinning/travel in or...
by anon_investor
Tue Feb 20, 2024 10:23 am
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Bank of America/Merrill Edge - Preferred Rewards
Replies: 7041
Views: 878993

Re: Bank of America/Merrill Edge - Preferred Rewards

Has anyone done a conversion from Premium Rewards to Ultimate Cash Rewards? I don't want to pay the annual fee anymore now that it's not possible to sell AA gift cards easily. Do you lose reward points during the conversion process? Not possible? CardCash started buying them again. News to me, but you're right. They're offering $78 for a $100 GC. The PR card is worth $17 a year (net cost after selling the gift card). Thanks for sharing, I used to get [$80] a couple of years ago, but I will take $78. I went ahead and sold 2 years worth of AA eGCs ($200) for $156. Since I got $3.50 cash back for the $100 AA eGCs, and am recouping $78, that works out to paying $18.50/yr for the PR, which works out to free since I do take advantage of the Glob...
by anon_investor
Tue Feb 20, 2024 6:45 am
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Do you use a second refrigerator/freezer?
Replies: 74
Views: 4598

Re: Do you use a second refrigerator/freezer?

We are transitioning to a new (to us) home which comes with a supplemental side-by-side refrigerator freezer in the garage. When I was growing up we had a freezer in the garage for storing frozen surplus fish and berries (both harvested during summer). I know a lot of people have a second fridge/freezer. Do you need them? For what do you use them? We are only two people. I can see maybe putting extra drinks in there but or having overflow space for a party but otherwise it seems a bit wasteful. I already shut off the freezer side. Maybe we don't need this giant white box taking up space in the garage and running up our electric bill, eh? For 2 people, it is probably unecessary. We have large house hold, so having an extra fridge/feeezer is...
by anon_investor
Mon Feb 19, 2024 9:52 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: [Using PayPal to pay bills and earn 5% on credit cards]
Replies: 603
Views: 89372

Re: [Using PayPal to pay bills and earn 5% on credit cards]

czaj wrote: Sun Feb 18, 2024 11:44 pm
tj wrote: Sun Feb 18, 2024 10:46 pm People were using this to pay credit card bills with a credit card?
Nope, PayPal won’t allow that. You can use a debit card though, so if you have a debit card that gives rewards.

I used to do this using the Coinbase card, but Coinbase stopped giving rewards on these transaction types.
Haha, that would be awesome to pay CC bills with another CC without fees, you could just keep paying CC bills with a different CC and never have to actually pay LOL.
by anon_investor
Mon Feb 19, 2024 9:37 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Bank of America/Merrill Edge - Preferred Rewards
Replies: 7041
Views: 878993

Re: Bank of America/Merrill Edge - Preferred Rewards

MisterBill wrote: Sun Feb 18, 2024 10:04 pm
tj wrote: Sun Feb 18, 2024 9:51 pm I guess it's inflation. I got $81 for a $100 card 2 weeks ago.
Not sure what infraction would have to do with it. I'm sure it's a matter of supply and demand. More supply = lower prices offered.
There are definitely a ton of AA eGCs that people haven't been able to move in a couple of years, so I wouldn't be surprised if they offer even less soon.
by anon_investor
Mon Feb 19, 2024 9:23 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Bank of America/Merrill Edge - Preferred Rewards
Replies: 7041
Views: 878993

Re: Bank of America/Merrill Edge - Preferred Rewards

Has anyone done a conversion from Premium Rewards to Ultimate Cash Rewards? I don't want to pay the annual fee anymore now that it's not possible to sell AA gift cards easily. Do you lose reward points during the conversion process? Not possible? CardCash started buying them again. News to me, but you're right. They're offering $78 for a $100 GC. The PR card is worth $17 a year (net cost after selling the gift card). Thanks for sharing, I used to get [$80] a couple of years ago, but I will take $78. I went ahead and sold 2 years worth of AA eGCs ($200) for $156. Since I got $3.50 cash back for the $100 AA eGCs, and am recouping $78, that works out to paying $18.50/yr for the PR, which works out to free since I do take advantage of the Glob...
by anon_investor
Sun Feb 18, 2024 10:22 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: [Using PayPal to pay bills and earn 5% on credit cards]
Replies: 603
Views: 89372

Re: [Using PayPal to pay bills and earn 5% on credit cards]

I have lost the ability to schedule future payments on PayPal Bill Pay for my utility bills. I can make same day payments still.
by anon_investor
Sun Feb 18, 2024 6:22 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: 1M in I bonds maturing with Vanguard frequency of trading question
Replies: 6
Views: 1522

Re: 1M in I bonds maturing with Vanguard frequency of trading question

I have 24 10K I Bonds which mature in 2030-31. I read through the existing threads about withdrawal strategy which I already planned. I will cash in 3 bonds annually over 8 years starting at about 100K in year 1 ending around 150K in year 8. I guess bracket creep and NIIT are necessary evils. IRMAA gets reimbursed by my retiree health plan so I'm good there. Now for the question. This amount will be deposited annually in VTSAX in my taxable brokerage at VG. At the same time, I will be selling the same amount in my tax deferred to keep my asset allocation in sync (VTSAX to VBTLX). Will all this pass the VG frequency of trade policy? Also, at around the same time I usually pull my RMD from VTSAX tax deferred put it in my taxable settlement a...
by anon_investor
Fri Feb 16, 2024 8:46 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Merrill Edge - 1099 Timing
Replies: 11
Views: 908

Re: Merrill Edge - 1099 Timing

FootballFan5548 wrote: Thu Feb 15, 2024 2:49 pm Thanks for the replies... .I'll keep waiting. I don't hold anything too funky, no REITs. Just 4 individual stocks, and Vanguard/iShares ETFs I only buy, and rarely sell, maybe 4 sells all year last year.

I'll just keep checking until it's ready,

Thanks
I got mine 1/25, but I only hold some Vanguard and Fidelity index equity ETFs and a BlackRock money market fund. Are any of the ETFs bond ETFs by any chance?
by anon_investor
Fri Feb 16, 2024 1:07 pm
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Quaker Recall Refund
Replies: 37
Views: 20758

Re: Quaker Recall Refund

runner3081 wrote: Fri Feb 16, 2024 7:23 am
anon_investor wrote: Tue Jan 30, 2024 11:19 am I finally got an email back from them today, which included the following sentence:
We reviewed your submission, and you will be receiving compensation in the mail in the next 8-10 weeks.
I assume they are mailing some kind of coupons.
No coupons yet, I submitted in mid-December.
They said to expect something in 8-10 weeks, but that was only 2 weeks ago. I bet I won't get anything until April. I wonder what they will send, coupons that I can use at Target is good enough for me.
by anon_investor
Thu Feb 15, 2024 11:27 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: FDLXX 90.39% state tax exempt in 2023
Replies: 29
Views: 2840

Re: FDLXX 90.39% state tax exempt in 2023

And therein lies the rub. If the fund you're referencing is SNSXX, Morningstar reports that the return in 2023 was 4.73%. At Vanguard, the 2023 return (of VUSXX) is listed as 5.05%. So even if Schwab is listing USGO at near 100% and Vanguard is at 80%, you clearly would have come out ahead at Vanguard. Morningstar is also listing Fidelity's FDLXX as returning 4.67% in 2023 (with 90% USGO). So technically, the after-tax return is really the only return that matters. Furthermore, what happened in 2023 may not happen in 2024. True that after-tax yield is what matters. But I think one of the factors for some of these Fidelity funds is that they are auto-liquidating or core funds within a Fidelity account and so can be held instead of cash to p...
by anon_investor
Wed Feb 14, 2024 4:32 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: [Using PayPal to pay bills and earn 5% on credit cards]
Replies: 603
Views: 89372

Re: [Using PayPal to pay bills and earn 5% on credit cards]

Would I understand right that one needs to use Chase Freedom/Flex (Q1 2024 only) via Paypal to get 5% cash back but does this 5% work for paying bills? 5% cash back for PayPal using Chase Freedom/Freedom Flex was for Q4 2023. I believe it has been for Q4 for a few years. And using PayPal Bill Pay did triggered the 5% cash back. Q1 2024 has different 5% cash back catagories, so you would only get 1% cash back right now. It's been paypal in the 4th quarter for at least the past 3 years. I have gotten 5% cash back paying property tax using 3 chase freedom cards through paypal in Dec. 2021, 22, and 23. On an ongoing basis, I get 5% on our gas/electric and water/sewer bills using US Bank Cash+, with utilities selected as a 5% category. I could ...
by anon_investor
Wed Feb 14, 2024 7:47 am
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: Great call Vanguard
Replies: 16
Views: 2269

Re: Great call Vanguard

In before the lock!

Vanguard doesn't allow the purchase of those tripple leveraged ETFs either.
by anon_investor
Wed Feb 14, 2024 7:45 am
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: [Using PayPal to pay bills and earn 5% on credit cards]
Replies: 603
Views: 89372

Re: [Using PayPal to pay bills and earn 5% on credit cards]

mander75 wrote: Tue Feb 13, 2024 11:01 pm Would I understand right that one needs to use Chase Freedom/Flex (Q1 2024 only) via Paypal to get 5% cash back but does this 5% work for paying bills?
5% cash back for PayPal using Chase Freedom/Freedom Flex was for Q4 2023. I believe it has been for Q4 for a few years. And using PayPal Bill Pay did triggered the 5% cash back. Q1 2024 has different 5% cash back catagories, so you would only get 1% cash back right now.
by anon_investor
Fri Feb 09, 2024 12:03 am
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Law School Debt: Is It Worth It?
Replies: 115
Views: 10474

Re: Law School Debt: Is It Worth It?

I'm not an attorney, but my career has interfaced with attorneys in a big way. You need to do a self-assessment of your intellect and conscientiousness. If you are top of your class material, then attending a prestigious law school certainly would be a good ROI because you would be recruited for prestigious positions. If you are average now (for law school entrants), you probably won't be more than average in law school. As such, you probably won't gain entry to prestigious post-JD employment opportunities. You might be better off attending your state school and focus on networking opportunities for working within your state. You can have a great career going to a state school. Good luck. ETA: Another factor in favor of the low cost option...
by anon_investor
Thu Feb 08, 2024 12:42 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Law School Debt: Is It Worth It?
Replies: 115
Views: 10474

Re: Law School Debt: Is It Worth It?

Miguelito wrote: Thu Feb 08, 2024 12:31 pm Not a lawyer, but I can tell you for a fact that this is not always the case. I know a lawyer who worked at BigLaw for over a decade and when looking to lateral, firms cared not just about where they went but also GPA.
Interesting your friend said that. When I was interviewing for in-house positions with large public companies, my law school GPA never came up. Although, I did go to a T20 law school with an excellent national reputation and was coming from BigLaw (already an experienced attorney). I wonder if I had gone to a less prestigious law school if I would have had to provide my GPA.
by anon_investor
Thu Feb 08, 2024 12:38 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Law School Debt: Is It Worth It?
Replies: 115
Views: 10474

Re: Law School Debt: Is It Worth It?

Re public interest (mentioned above): it's worth noting that public interest is not necessarily an easy thing to get a full time job doing (other than perhaps local public defenders). The marquee public interest jobs like being a staff attorney at an organization like the ACLU (or many other well known organizations) are actually harder to get than biglaw and care about top school credentials. Only an handful of organizations have the funding for a full time attorney, and those jobs are coveted. Also worth noting that the top schools often have public interest loan forgiveness programs that can nullify any cost difference. Federal, state, or local government is what I had in mind. Something with a solid middle class pay plus pension and de...
by anon_investor
Wed Feb 07, 2024 10:51 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Law School Debt: Is It Worth It?
Replies: 115
Views: 10474

Re: Law School Debt: Is It Worth It?

OP, I will share my personal experience ~15 years as an attorney. Many of the points are similar to other posters. I had the option of a T20 with a partial scholarship (~25% scholarship) vs. lesser law schools with significant scholarships (bringing costs down to $30k to $0 total). -T20 is not the same as T10. There are a number of schools that bounce around between T20 and T30, those schools are less prestigious than say the T10, and those top jobs everyone talks about are only going to go to the top ranked students. Also, depending on what region you want to be in, the state law school may actually offer better job placement in that region than some T20, due to stronger alumni networks. - Be wary of the scholarship terms. The T20 had a gu...