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To answer a few questions. I think his pension will be between 800 and 900 a month. He owns his own home. I will know what his social security is when his account is set up. Ad far as him posting himself, that is not going to happen. And he wouldn't read the book. Just the honest truth. I do like the idea of investigating the terms of his whole life policy.

Well that makes it easy then

Thanks for the response. In your opinion would I be avoiding any potential wash sales by the purchase of these funds?

He currently lives pretty comfortable off of $2200 of take-home money . Are these his take home wages or some other sources of income? He had heard that he would not get much Social Security because of the Windfall Elimination Provision. I told him that it was my understanding that he would get most of it because he had almost 30 years of service. I think he may lose roughly 15% to 20% overall. • He should talk with Social Security. This is too important for guessing games. • He should register with MySocialSecurity.gov Note that registration requires having a bunch of your personal financial history information to verify you are who you really are. • Human resources at the school or school district has got to have someone who can help ans...

I have a scenario that I think will interest some on hear. I am a teacher and had a maintenance worker approach me asking questions about his retirement situation. He worked for 27 years full-time in a job covered by social security. He had heard that he would not get much Social Security because of the Windfall Elimination Provision. I told him that it was my understanding that he would get most of it because he had almost 30 years of service. I think he may lose roughly 15% to 20% overall. He has never, according to him, received a Social Security statement. I helped him start the process to create an online account. My friend is 59 years old. He currently lives pretty comfortable off of $2200 of take-home money. He would like to consider...

I have these funds available in my Ohio Deferred Compensation 457 that I could use to simulate the U.S. Total Stock Market index fund at Vanguard. It would be helpful if anyone could give me an idea on the ratio of these when I purchase. U.S. Large Company Index Fund. .01 expense ratio. This fund attempts to match the S and P 500 Index U.S. Small/Mid Company Index Fund .02 expense ratio This fund attempts to match the Russell Small Cap Completeness Index As far as my international stock goes I have Vanguard Total International Index Fund. Here is what the 457 offers. I am not sure if this is essentially identical or not. Non-US Company Stock Index .05 expense ration. This fund attemps to match the MSCI ACWI ex USA Investable Market Index. I...

I can tell you the expense ratios for Vanguard funds in my 403B are very low, in the .03 to .10 range. I also pay $60 per year for the service as well. Our school district used to have only expensive vendors, but one of my fellow teachers approached the treasurer about adding Vanguard. She said she would add it if he found 5 other people to invest. He found the people, and it was added.

Thanks for the clarification so far. I will do some research on comparable funds and share with everyone in case I want to go that route.

During 2023, I will be in a situation where I plan on being in the 12% tax bracket, but do not plan on being in the 12% bracket moving forward. For those of you who are curious we have a rental business, with a lot of start-up costs that we will not have in the future. We also expect to make more money in the future than we will in 2023. In retirement, I also expect to be in the 22% bracket because of a pension for my wife and me that will pay 78% of our salary. Our rental income will increase in this time as we are adding two more AIRBNB rentals in the next 12 to 18 months. We are both 50 and will be retiring in 8 years from our teaching jobs. I have around 300K in a brokerage account. Much of this was inherited. The vast majority is in U....

Thanks Homestretch. This eases my mind. Sounds straightforward enough

I contacted Etrade. They do have the roth conversion in their Solo 401k plan and are sending paperwork. I could use some help though. From what I understand when I open a solo401k account at Etrade it will be in the same plan as I have now, even though the money will move from Vanguard to Etrade. Does anyone more familiar than I am have any advice on making sure I keep the IRS happy that my Solo401k is compliant?

I will be contacting E Trade and get the ball rolling

My brother can't because he won't have any income on paper this year. I figured this is a way to make a conversion and pay minimal taxes on it.

Thanks Home Stretch. You gave me a good place to start. I will look at E trade. My brother is younger than 59.5

After looking futher, it appears I may just be looking at a Roth conversion as opposed to a Mega BackDoor roth. Any help on this would be appreciated.

I have read up on Mega Backdoor Roth's on this and other sites and I think I understand it in a general sense. I am plan administrator for my brother's Solo 401K plan. I am his unpaid financial advisor. He is self employed, and for various reasons he is going to show a loss this year. He has his solo 401k at Vanguard. I talked to them this morning and they do not offer Roth conversions in their Solo 401K plan. My brother has about $30,000 in the Solo 401K that is tax deferred. He also has money in the 401K in Roth dollars. My plan, if it is possible, would be to rollover his Solo 401K to a brokerage that offers Roth conversions and do a Mega Backdoor Roth for all of his $30,000 in tax deferred dollars.. Does this plan make sense and does an...

Thanks again for the responses. I would be comfortable spending down the brokerage account quite a bit before worrying about having enough liquidity. I also have a year's worth of an emergency fund.

To add some information, my wife and I have 8 years of teaching left and we will be 58. I anticipate having more than enough income from our pensions to cover expenses. We also have rental income of 40,000 as well. We just aren't paying taxes on it yet because of start up costs of a cabin and tiny house we rent on AIRBNB. We will not receive much social security, maybe 600 a month combined.

Here is my situation. Wife and I are both teachers. I expect our AGI after deductions to be around $120,000 for the 2023 year. Our cars, home, and credit cards are all paid off. We will both retire with a pension of about 78% of our salaries. We have about $400,000 in tax deferred 403B and 457 investments and $150,000 in Roth IRA and 457 Roth investments. We also have about $300,000 in a brokerage account. The reason more of the brokerage account is not in retirement accounts is that we inherited some money about 3.5 years ago. In the past, for two years we lived off of inherited money and moved nearly $160,000 into retirement accounts. I like the idea of having a brokerage account so I don't want to empty it by maxing out our contributions...

Great responses. It appears that I could use the AOTC since I did pay in December of this year for classes starting in January of 2023. As a side note, my son did take over half a full-time college load as a senior.

He was a high school senior and graduated in June of 2022. He took college classes during high school at the same university. Would this qualify as attending for 2022? Thanks

Thanks for the replies

My son just enrolled in college as a Freshman. I paid his tuition bill online with a credit card today so that I can utilize the American Opportunity Tax Credit. Although I made the payment today and the date listed is Dec. 31, 2022, it also says "January 3rd business day." Will I still be able to use the credit for the 2022 tax year? Any help appreciated.

We fill our own off of our 500 gallon propane tank

For any of those who have been wondering how this eviction turned out, everything worked out as well as could be expected. The tenants left a lot of trash behind, but there was no structural damage, rotten food, or animal droppings. The house is not in good enough shape to rent out without extensive renovations. The structure of the house is a log cabin built in the early 1830's. I didn't even realize that it had been in my family for over 100 years. We are considering completely gutting the house, putting it back to an original log cabin, and renting it out on AIRBNB.

Thanks for the responses. I am not blaming the company. I think they have no ill will in the 401k that they offer. It is a small company that honestly doesn't know any better. I posted this more for the general idea that groups like Voya take advantage of these types of companies. My son very well could have signed something to receive a "professional manager" who selects the funds. I think it was somehow through Morningstar. It is ridiculous paying 1.25% and not even being told who your advisor is or if you actually have a specific person. It is also frustrating that they throw in 10 or 15 funds and most people think they are on top of things and must know what they are doing.

My son just started a job. He is living at home, saving most of his paycheck for a house someday. He is also investment $80 a week into his companies 401k. They match up to $1000 a year, so he will be investment a little over $5000 a year. He works for a company with about 100 employees. The company is family owned and my son enjoys the job and the people he works for. He received his paperwork in the mail once his 401k was set up. The 401k is managed by Voya. When I asked him how he decided what mutual funds to buy, he said "what are you talking about?" Here is what his allocation was. Vanguard Small Cap Index Fund 8% Vanguard 500 Index Fund 7% American Funds New Perspective 24% American Funds Wash Mutual Fund 9% American Funds A...

Here is a quick update. One of the brothers moved out about 6 weeks ago. I ended up giving them to May 2nd to move out, which I indicated to the remaining brother. I posted a 3 day notice to vacate on Monday May 2nd. The tenant indicated on the phone that he has vacated the property, but that he left stuff there. The brother who moved out 6 weeks ago is coming tomorrow to move stuff out of the house. I think the brothers had a falling out, so I remain cautiously optimistic that we can pull this off without legal action. I have been in touch with my attorney throughout the process. If they do not in fact, vacate the property, I can file an eviction notice with the court. My plan is to try to get them to remove everything as soon as possible,...

I am purchasing from the local vocational school. I did have my builder come out and inspect it with me. There are some minor issues the school is addressing, and students built it so it is not perfect, obviously. However, it is at a reduced cost to what I would pay on the open market

I appreciate the responses. I will check with an attorney on some of these issues. We have an 18 acre lake and a cabin we are currently finishing to rent out that is already on the proprty. We have utilities and a driveway run fro the road a 1000 feet already. We will pour a pad and put skirting around the trailer. The reason I am having so many questions is there are no tiny houses in the area

I live in Ohio and am looking at purchasing a tiny home that sits on a trailer. I did some internet research, but there are a lot of gray areas. The trailer will go on our property to rent out on AIRBNB and to use for family gatherings. It will be in a rural location with no zoning requirements. From what I have gathered, there will be no property tax because it is mobile. The trailer it is on has a title, which I would transfer into my name. Are there any other regulations or requirements that I would need to follow when purchasing the tiny home? Do I need to register the home somehow in addition to transferring the trailer title? I also know that the tiny house is certified by the organization NOAH for what it is worth. Any help or insigh...

As a side note, I am amazed by the numbers thrown around on here for people who live in a high cost of living area. I live in a 4000 square foot house, built in 1848. It was completely gutted and redone thirty years ago. It has mostly tiled floors, is trimmed in walnut milled from wood on our property, and has other upgrades. When my father passed away, my family moved into this house. I bet it would appraise for $500,000 at most. Three years ago we sold our 2700 square foot house for $275,000. I just can't fathom paying 10X the price for a house. Of course, I don't make a half a million a year either.

Thanks for the response. I guess I need to see what it costs to have survivor benefits with the pension. We will not need a lump sum of money. I guess I was thinking it would be a way to leave the surviving spouse, and eventually children some money. The survivor benefit may be the way to go, depending on the cost

I am a teacher in Ohio and have 8 years until I can retire at 35 years teaching. Many of my coworkers are retiring in the next few years. Our retirement plan pays 77.5% of our top 5 years of salary if a person teaches 35 years. Our retirement system offers the option of a one time Partial lump-Sum payment that would decrease the monthly benefit. There is a lot of math involved, but essentially if I were able to retire today with 35 years of teaching, I could take up to $200,000 in a one time payment. My monthly pension would go from $6000 per month to $4600 per month. My wife has taught the same amount of years as I have and will receive the same retirement. I am having a hard time deciding if the Partial Lump Sum Option is a good idea or n...

You would need to live in the house, as it needs to be your "primary residence."

My understanding is the 529 can be withdrawn without a penalty because the GI Bill is considered a scholarship

I was looking back at some of my posts and was really quite amazed at all of the things that I have turned to this forum over the past three years. I sounded like such a Noob on my early posts, and made the same annoying mistake many first timers make; posting before researching the Wiki page and how to post. Anyway, here is what I've learned so far from this amazing forum 1. How to invest a windfall 2. How to fix an inherited IRA that was withdrawn, then put directly into an IRA in my name(this was all done by a financial advisor) 3. Getting rid of my financial advisor (see item #2) and running my own 3 fund portfolio 4. How to set up an HSA and a solo 401k for my brother 5. How to depreciate inherited business property 6. The proper proce...

I teach in Ohio. We have low cost options in the 457 Deferred Comp program, but that was only recently added. Ten years ago we had the typical high priced 403B providers. My friend talked to the treasurer about adding Vanguard. She said she would when he found 5 other people to do it with him. He did and now I get to pay .03 to .08 expense ratios in my 403B. You could try a similar approach

I agree maybe it isn't worth messing with for $300 spread out over 27.5 years. However, I don't think I agree with Silversmurfer that since I got the wood for free, I should not claim it because if I do then everyone else has to pay for it. I am not trying to cheat the tax code. I am trying to maximize my tax savings and put this on the forum to ask help in doing that. I did not pay for 3 rental houses and 3 commercial buildings. Should I not depreciate them since I didn't pay anything for them?

Reclaimed wood is absolutely ridiculous in price. These boards are 12 feet long and treated. They sat at a football field in bleachers for decades and they are still better than new 2x4's. We have some old barns that people are constantly trying to buy for the siding and the hand hewn beams.

My understanding is that it does not matter what he paid for the wood. Upon his death we would receive a stepped up basis upon his death. If I personally got the wood for free, I would not try to use it as a write off. To me, it would be no different than depreciation that we are using on equipment that we inherited and used for a topsoil business.

My father passed away a little under three years ago. Although the boards are doing the work of new lumber, I think I will value them around 1/3 to 1/2 of the value of new lumber? Does that seem a reasonable estimate for the cost basis? I realize it is a lot of guesswork. I would think that a value like that would be easy to defend.

Thanks Gill. I was unclear on that in my post. So I can use this reclaimed wood as part of my cost basis for the cabin?

I spent quite a while on Google and can't find an answer to the following question. My brother and I are having a cabin built to rent out on Airbnb. We are currently framing the basement, which has ten foot tall ceilings. I priced 2"X4" by 10 feet and they were $13 a piece. We decided to use 2"by8" by 10 feet boards that my deceased father got when the local school replaced their old wood bleachers with metal ones. We ripped these 2"by8" boards in half and are using them to frame the basement. My question is can I use this as a tax deduction? My thought process is that the property was inherited so we would get a stepped up basis at the time of my father's death. We went through this process with heavy equipmen...

I mow my own lawn. On one property where our house is located we have 4 acres, with several barns, garages, a pool, and decks. At our other property, which has an 18 acre lake, we have about 6 acres to mow. We have an industrial 0 degree turn John Deere mower and a 38 horse power Massey Ferguson tractor with a pull behind mower. Mowing is about a 4 hour job, with weed trimming and weed spraying another 4 hours. But we spray 3 to 4 times a year, and weed trim mabye every 3 weeks, except by the house. As a teacher, I enjoy it in the summer, but it gets to be a lot during the school year, especially as I coach high school football

The lot would probably be worth 25k, so yes we would

We have three rentals, one of which I have recently discussed on here in a different thread. The price of a good tenant is very valuable, at least in our case. We get $700 a month in rent for a farm house. We could most likely rent it out for $1000 without it sitting vacant very long. We raised it from $650 this year to the $700, which they were fine with. The tenant pays on time, does side work for us as a mechanic, and fixes most everything in the house, we just pay for materials. He has redone the kitchen floor, replaced some drywall, and snaked the septic system the past year. These were all things that needed to be done. He keeps the place looking good and always pays on time and in cash. I think we are making up the $300 a month in th...

Update: We had a meeting with the two brothers, an older sister who acts as a guardian of sorts, my brother and me, as well as my aunt, who has known the family since they moved in 60 years ago. The meeting went very well. The tenants are going to be out very soon. One brother is moving in with his sister, and one of the brothers is getting help with finding a place from his daughter, who lives in the area. I told them not to worry about paying rent this month, and offered to remove anything that they do not want to keep, at no cost. It was a very civil meeting. I feel like they will follow through, but we´ll wait and see.

There is a family member who has helped the tenants in the past. I have been in contact with her and she is a reasonable person. There is no mental health issues per say, but there is some issues with alcohol. I do want them out, but also want to be a human being about it.

The value of the property would be in the lot itself. We would be in no hurry to tear down the structure, but would, of course, follow any laws in doing so. We are capable of doing the work ourselves. It is in a rural location, with no zoning, so that helps. I have had a few informal discussions with an attorney friend who is well versed on the subject of evictions. The two brothers who live there do not necessarily think that they are getting a good deal, but there is a responsible family member who does appreciate the situation. Letś say that we offered them cash to leave the property. Would it make sense to draw up some type of agreement, and have it signed with a notary?