Bogleheads.org

Have you tried different browsers (Chrome, Firefox, Edge, Brave, etc.)? If the delay happens across the board, then it's a PC issue.

whodidntante wrote: ↑Sun Mar 26, 2023 10:19 pm Pretty tempting offer. $525 for 25k on deposit for 60 days. The downside is it appears to require opening an account in a branch.
https://bonusoffer.wf.com/savingsbonus? ... 1677364228

Since I'd have to pull $25K from another account yielding close to 5% APY, the actual bonus earned would be around $300, which is ok, but not that exciting, given a trip to the branch is required.

From the privacy concern, Brave is probably the best. Personally I use Chrome, as it makes things easier for me since I am deeply entrenched into the Google ecosystem and Google already has all my data.

Why complicate things? You can donate to the hospital yourself, using the proceeds you receive from renting your space, minus whatever you will owe in taxes from that extra income.

I took passport photos with my phone and printed them on photo paper, using an ink jet printer. There are many free apps for making passport photos that are super easy to use.

Thanks very much! If anyone has gone to a passport agency regarding "urgent within 14 day travel" if you can estimate how long of a wait in line and how long to get a passport that would be appreciated. You can't just show up at the passport center, you will need to make an appointment, and those are very hard to get. You can only schedule an appointment if you have a reservation in the next 2 weeks, and they will ask you for the reservation reference number when you call. The appointment lines open at 8 AM ET I believe, and it's recommended to call a minute before that exactly 2 weeks before the travel date to have the best chance of securing an appointment. They may still not have any appointments available in your preferred ci...

Car manufacturers often have attractive financing offers on new cars, which no banks or credit unions can come close to. Also getting financing through the dealer sometimes can give you a better price on the car.

For example, Nissan currently offers 0% APR financing on several models, including Rogue, Pathfinder and Altima:

https://www.nissanusa.com/shopping-tool ... deals.html

U.S. Bank is offering $600 bonus for a new checking account with 2 or more direct deposits totalling $10,000 over 60 days. Seems worthwhile for spending under 1 hour total time without tying up any money. You can transfer the money elsewhere right away and keep $0 balance until you get the bonus and then close the account, if you no longer need it. https://www.doctorofcredit.com/u-s-bank-600-checking-bonus-plus-35-49-portal/amp/ This deal is even sweeter considering that right now US bank is allowing initial deposit of up to $3,000 with a credit card. So a simple 2% cashback card such as citi double cash would give $60 cashback (tax free)! That's interesting. I wonder why the credit card issuer is treating this type of transaction as a pur...

U.S. Bank is offering $600 bonus for a new checking account with 2 or more direct deposits totalling $10,000 over 60 days. Seems worthwhile for spending under 1 hour total time without tying up any money. You can transfer the money elsewhere right away and keep $0 balance until you get the bonus and then close the account, if you no longer need it. https://www.doctorofcredit.com/u-s-bank-600-checking-bonus-plus-35-49-portal/amp/ This deal is even sweeter considering that right now US bank is allowing initial deposit of up to $3,000 with a credit card. So a simple 2% cashback card such as citi double cash would give $60 cashback (tax free)! That's interesting. I wonder why the credit card issuer is treating this type of transaction as a pur...

U.S. Bank is offering $600 bonus for a new checking account with 2 or more direct deposits totalling $10,000 over 60 days. Seems worthwhile for spending under 1 hour total time without tying up any money. You can transfer the money elsewhere right away and keep $0 balance until you get the bonus and then close the account, if you no longer need it.

https://www.doctorofcredit.com/u-s-bank ... ortal/amp/

BashDash wrote: ↑Fri Mar 24, 2023 7:05 pm Thanks for the help on my shop your way question ! Another one now...I'm looking for a card with a cell phone insurance ...when reading a points blog I read that chase freedom flex has it ...I already have this card in my sock drawer..... although mine does not say flex....is chase freedom the same as the flex? Thanks!

Wells Fargo Active Cash Visa offers cell phone insurance. It has 2% cashback on everything and gives $200 sign up bonus with $0 annual fee.

I don't see why the condo insurance coverage should be any different for an owner occupied property vs a rental one. Don't you have an HO6 policy already? All banks require it as a condition of mortgage. If anything, the personal property coverage can be reduced for a rental, since you won't have your personal possessions there, and whover is renting the condo from you should get a renter's insurance if they want to cover their property. As far as the replacement coverage amount, it should be enough to pay for repairing the internal walls and various fixtures in case of a fire or water damage. $80K seems like a good amount for a $300K condo. Rental property condo insurance is not ho-6, it's a different form. What's different about it? I've...

I don't see why the condo insurance coverage should be any different for an owner occupied property vs a rental one. Don't you have an HO6 policy already? All banks require it as a condition of mortgage. If anything, the personal property coverage can be reduced for a rental, since you won't have your personal possessions there, and whover is renting the condo from you should get a renter's insurance if they want to cover their property. As far as the replacement coverage amount, it should be enough to pay for repairing the internal walls and various fixtures in case of a fire or water damage. $80K seems like a good amount for a $300K condo.

windaar wrote: ↑Wed Mar 22, 2023 8:48 pm

bloom2708 wrote: ↑Wed Mar 22, 2023 8:21 amIf you have a Best Buy or Costco close by, I prefer that to shipping a TV.

I learned the hard way that Best Buy only has a 15 day return period. When my TV was installed there was a broken screen with no impact point. They refused to bend because it had been a little more than 15 days. That's a pretty small window. They won that battle but I've never darkened their door since.

It took you more than 15 days to realize the screen was broken?

New TV prices are the same at all major retailers because they are controlled by the manufacturer. I would never buy a large screen TV online and have it shipped to me because it's fragile and hard to ship back in case of any issues. I would only buy locally and pay extra to have the store install it in my home and set it up. That way, if there is something wrong with the TV, they will take it right back. A year ago I bought an 83" Sony OLED at Best Buy for $5,499. At the time they were running a special promotion on their credit card that gave 15% back in points, so I got $825 to spend at Best Buy. I also purchased their Totaltech membership, that gave me free wall installation, set up and haul away of the old broken TV, plus extended...

I would just be honest and tell the sales person that we are only there because of the free vacation and that we won't be buying any timeshares regardless of what they say in the presentation, so they shouldn't waste any time on us. If they keep on pressing, I'd be firm in saying "no, absolutely not, my mind is set, no matter what you say or do" while staying polite.

This is truly a first world problem. Like many people already said above, it makes more sense to develop a way to remind yourself to always take the phone with you when you hop in the car, instead of keeping a spare phone in the car just in case. What if you got a spare phone and then put it in your pocket as you exit the car and then forget to put it back in the car? Would you need to get a second spare phone in your car just case? Even if the worst case happened and you had an emergency while you left your phone home, it's not the end of the world. You can just borrow someone else's phone to make a call, as everyone carries phones these days, so you won't even have to go very far. Not very long ago, before cell phones became widespread, e...

Thinking of opening a CD with Ally at the 5% rate. However their stock is tanking and some on Twitter are saying their auto loan book is going south rapidly and thus a potential receivership is possible. I will invest under FDIC limits, so I know my initial capital is safe. But my question is, if I hold a 5% CD with them, and FDIC takes over, will I still hold a 5% CD with whoever takes over? Will I get back 5% APY interest at the end of term? It depends. If a failed bank is acquired by another bank, the acquiring bank has the option to pay out the principal and interest as of the date of failure, but they also could choose to not close the CDs. If no bank acquires the failed bank, then everything is liquidated and paid out to depositors--...

sperry8 wrote: ↑Mon Mar 20, 2023 3:06 am Thinking of opening a CD with Ally at the 5% rate. However their stock is tanking and some on Twitter are saying their auto loan book is going south rapidly and thus a potential receivership is possible. I will invest under FDIC limits, so I know my initial capital is safe. But my question is, if I hold a 5% CD with them, and FDIC takes over, will I still hold a 5% CD with whoever takes over? Will I get back 5% APY interest at the end of term?

My understanding is that the Fed doesn't pay any interest, but whatever interest your CD had accrued before the bank is taken over by the Fed will be paid out to you, and the CD will close without any early withdrawal penalty.

At least if you forget to close the CD and it renews at 0.3%, the early withdrawal penalty won't be much

I find air mattresses very uncomfortable. Just get a foam mattress topper, like the one below, but you can lay it directly on the floor. Twin XL size would be perfect for an adult, and the fact it's trifold makes it easy to transport.

4 Inch Trifold Memory Foam Mattress Topper with Cover, CertiPUR-US Certified, Twin XL,White https://a.co/d/2nfmMNm

Ally Money Market account is currently paying 3.8% APY. It offers free checks and a debit card that reimburses other bank's fees. I have my paychecks direct deposited into that account, and I use it to pay bills via ACH. It suppors Zelle payments, too. It's a checking & savings account all in one.

One card that hasn't been mentioned in this thread is the U.S. Bank Altitude Reserve Visa. It gives 3% cashback on all mobile wallet purchases (Apple Pay, Samsung Pay, Google Wallet), and if you redeem the points for travel, it has the 1.5 multiplier, which means 4.5% cashback. That's huge because that means that you can earn at least 3% cashback virtually anywhere you shop in person, as most places accept mobile wallet payment. There are no caps either. That includes Costco, since it's a Visa card. The annual fee of $400 seems high at first glance, but they give you automatic $325 in annual credit to offset any travel and dining purchases, so the real cost of the card is just $75. The card also gives 3% cashback on travel (worth 4.5% if po...

Jags4186 wrote: ↑Sat Mar 11, 2023 12:13 pm

b4nash wrote: ↑Sat Mar 11, 2023 7:36 am

b4nash wrote: ↑Thu Mar 09, 2023 5:24 pm If you’re stashing money at Ally, you should open 4% no penalty CDs.

Now at 4.75%

And I’m the dope who bought the 13 month 4.8% penalty CD. Which as soon as I can cash out at face value will do and go into the NPCD.

Why forfeit 2 months of interest? You will still come out ahead by keeping the 13-month CD.

I was expecting a package yesterday that required a signature, so I made sure that I was home to sign for it. Imagine my surprise when I got a text message from FedEx, that they attempted to deliver the package, but nobody was home. There is just no way that was true because I was home at the time, and there wasn't a tag left on my door. It was raining pretty hard, so the lazy FedEx driver probably didn't want to get out of the truck. I called FedEx and filed a complaint. Hopefully the driver will get reprimanded, but I doubt it. I then drove to the FedEx distribution center to pick up the package myself because I don't trust FedEx delivering the package. Whenever I get a choice of which shipping company to use, I always choose UPS because ...

Lastrun wrote: ↑Sat Mar 11, 2023 9:05 am

b4nash wrote: ↑Sat Mar 11, 2023 7:36 am

b4nash wrote: ↑Thu Mar 09, 2023 5:24 pm If you’re stashing money at Ally, you should open 4% no penalty CDs.

Now at 4.75%

I think this is the highest spread I have ever seen between the savings account and the NPCD.

This is pretty crazy, considering their 12-month regular CD is only paying 4.5%.

Is utilization evaluated based on the statement balance, or just whatever the highest balance during a billing cycle was? Because if it's the statement balance, then my utilization is a lot lower than I previously said. Because when I pay my bill I'm at like 30% to 50% of my available credit, but the statement balance is typically a lot lower, like in the 5% to 15% range of my available balance. This is because my statement closing dates are always some date between the 17th and the 21st of the month (it is a different date every month), and I pay my bill usually around 10 days before that, so there are always some new charges between when I pay the bill and the statement date. So if I make a payment closer to the statement closing date, I...

I'm using around 30% to 50% of my available credit every month. Is that bad for my credit score? I pay in full once a month, so I don't pay any interest. If I paid twice a month, would it be the (credit score) equivalent of using only 15% to 25% of my available credit since my balance would always be lower? Your credit utilization is high, which negatively affects your credit score. Most credit cards report your statement balance to the credit bureaus, so you would want to lower your statement balance. Look up the date when your statement closes and make a payment in the amount equal to your current balance on the morning of your statement closing date. Unless you have any pending transactions, your statement will show $0 balance and no pa...

I'm using around 30% to 50% of my available credit every month. Is that bad for my credit score? I pay in full once a month, so I don't pay any interest. If I paid twice a month, would it be the (credit score) equivalent of using only 15% to 25% of my available credit since my balance would always be lower? Your credit utilization is high, which negatively affects your credit score. Most credit cards report your statement balance to the credit bureaus, so you would want to lower your statement balance. Look up the date when your statement closes and make a payment in the amount equal to your current balance on the morning of your statement closing date. Unless you have any pending transactions, your statement will show $0 balance and no pa...

You need a hobby, something you enjoy doing that is not a chore that you can look forward to.

Another point to consider is whether you will need to get a rental while your car is in the shop. If your insurance doesn't include the rental coverage, then you will have to pay for it out of pocket and then work with your insurance to collect the reimbursement for your rental from the other party's insurance through the subrogation process. You won't know what the other insurance's limits are for the rental until all is said and done, so you're running a risk of not getting compensated 100% for the rental cost. If you file a claim with the other party's insurance, you won't have that problem. They may even pay the car rental company directly.

Depends on your collision deductible. If it's greater than $600, then your insurance won't do anything. They will just tell you to file a claim with State Farm. I had a similar thing happen to me a few months ago. The driver who hit my car accepted all responsibility. I opened a claim with my insurance, they estimated the damage, but since the total was less than $1,000 (my deductible amount), they told me to file a claim with the other driver's insurance. I did, and they sent their own assessor, who actually estimated a higher total. I got the check in the mail a few days later.

Ally raised the interest on their Money Market account to 3.5% APY, while keeping the Savings at 3.4%. These accounts used to have the same rate for as long as I remember. The Money Market account offers the same features as Savings, plus free checks. If you're already keeping money at Ally, might as well move them from Savings to Money Market.

dvvader wrote: ↑Wed Feb 22, 2023 6:48 pm Of all the modern safety features, I find it to be least useful, especially when the indicator light is located someplace other than the side mirrors.

You can't possibly be serious. The most useless/worthless safety feature is Lane Departure Warning, hands down.

I don’t understand the use case. I would never trust an electronic device and change lanes without looking. And as such, if I am going to change lanes, I am going to look anyway. Plus, you should have been watching your mirrors and surroundings and know someone was entering the zone anyway. But if it keeps people from running into me, I am all for it. It's a Convenience item not a safety item as the marketers promote it as. If you are not completely in control of your car you shouldn't be driving. Relying on some electronic device for a sometimes life or death decision is pure stupidity. Bob It makes driving safer pure and simple. Vehicles in your blind spot are easy to miss no matter how attentive you are. I wouldn’t buy any new car witho...

I am thinking about moving my emergency cash from Ally to Fidelity. The amount is $50K and it's currently sitting in a No Penalty 11-month CD earing 4.00 APY. I like the simplicity of it and I am happy with Ally, but I could be earning higher interest elsewhere. I am in California and my tax bracket is 24%. Can you recommend the best Fidelity fund for me? I see quite a few funds being recommended in this thread, but I am not sure how to evaluate them and what to look for. Will I need to constantly check the current yields every few days and switch from one fund to another? I'd like to avoid that and put the money in a fund that has been consistently beating high yield savings accounts.

Samsung Galaxy Buds Pro 2 are excellent. They are more comfortable and sound better than any other Samsung wireless earbuds.

Or if you don't want to buy new headphones, you can still use your wired ones with an adaptor, like this one: Anker USB C to 3.5mm Audio Adapter

https://money.usnews.com/credit-cards/articles/how-do-refunds-work-on-a-credit-card Do Credit Card Refunds Count as a Payment? According to Pendergast, a credit card refund to your account is considered an account credit, not a payment. That means you'll still need to make the minimum payment due in order to avoid missing a payment. Adams adds that if you make a purchase but opt to return the item after your current billing period ends, and you end up accruing interest or other related fees on the account in the meantime, the credit would not offset these charges. "In effect, the returned purchase credit will be put on your bill, but the associated interest and fees (if applicable) will remain because of your use of the credit line,&qu...

We just got my wife a newer Acura that has it. At first I thought I wouldn’t like it, but after just a few days I love it and wish my car had it. It’s like having your own spotter in a tower. (NASCAR reference) It’s another one of those things that I never knew I wanted. Then when I got it, I couldn’t ever live without it again. Same with airbags, electronic stability control, HID headlights, and speed sensitive cruise control. Sure I drove over 100,000 miles without any of those things. But I wouldn’t do without them now. The speed sensitive cruise and heated steering wheel are definite one I didn’t know I needed. A heated steering wheel is a nice feature, but I've never been a fan of cruise control. I like to stay engaged when I am drivi...

This is one of the two most useful safety features (along with the rear view camera). I wouldn't buy a new car without it.

In all likelihood, credits for returns are not counted as payments. So if you plan to pay $20, make sure that you don't charge anything else to that card before the closing date of the current billing cycle, so your closing statement balance is $0. Or if you do make charges, make sure to pay the remaining $70 before the statement closes to avoid the finance charges. If you don't make a payment of at least $30 and your next statement balance is not $0, you will likely also have to pay a penalty, in addition to the finance charges.

Heads up. Ally's 18-month CD is now 5% APY.
https://www.ally.com/bank/high-yield-cd/

bradinsky wrote: ↑Fri Feb 17, 2023 8:16 pm Use it for the hit & run damage, if necessary.

Unless the other driver accepts the responsibility, you can forget about getting your deductible back, as well as anything else that your collision policy doesn't cover. The insurance company won't do any investigation, and even if they somehow got the contact information of the other driver, he or she can simply deny everything. I recommend installing a dash camera to have the video evidence in cases like this one.

Routine maintenance for luxury cars costs the same as for non-luxury brands. You can do that anywhere. An oil change is an oil change. The only thing that matters is the type of oil and how many quarts of oil you need. I drive an Infiniti, and my local dealership sends me various coupons all the time. For example, I recently used a coupon for $50 fully synthetic oil change and $10 tire rotation. I enjoyed free coffee and snacks while waiting for my car to get serviced. The dealership always performs a free multi-point inspection and gives me a report of everything they checked and any issues found. They also wash the car for free with any service. They offer a free shuttle service to my home, if I don't want to wait at the dealership, and p...

AmEx customer service is the best. Most things can be resolved via chat, and there is never any wait time.

I like https://wildforkfoods.com. Very reasonable prices for good quality meat. They have a good variety, including the cuts, such as Picanha, that are not available at most places.

This is bizarre. They already have the estimate from their approved body shop, so they should be able to send you a check for that amount. Whether you actually repair the car is none of their business. You may just decide to drive the car with a bent fender and pocket the money.

Get the $1,800 check from the insurance and then find a shop that can replace the fender with a salvaged part. You will probably come out ahead.

SmileyFace wrote: ↑Thu Feb 09, 2023 6:35 pm

anon_investor wrote: ↑Thu Feb 09, 2023 6:30 pm

SmileyFace wrote: ↑Thu Feb 09, 2023 6:28 pm

fetch5482 wrote: ↑Thu Feb 09, 2023 6:26 pm

SmileyFace wrote: ↑Thu Feb 09, 2023 6:25 pm Got my email today for the full $500. I moved everything out (except $5) a few days after 1/15 (required date). I will keep the account open to repeat next year.

Same, except I left $0.01 behind

LOL. I don't know why but for some reason I always think of $5 as the minimum to hold an account. Now that my $500 just landed maybe I will remove $504.99!

$5 means you will probably get 1 penny of interest a month.

I think decades ago I had an account that required a $5 minimum - ever since then - I leave $5 in these accounts to come back and get the bonuses. Ally may leave the account open with $0.

Credit unions usually require a minimum of $5 on deposit to maintain membership.