Search found 31 matches

by MikeRes
Sat Jan 27, 2018 6:18 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Missing cost basis - stock option shares
Replies: 8
Views: 1003

Re: Missing cost basis - stock option shares

I have a very similar problem.
In the late 70's, early 80's I received shares through an ESOP.
I cannot find any of my records going back that far.
Stocks have been transferred through multiple brokerages and I have no idea of cost basis.

I plan to hold onto them until I'm gone at which point they will transfer to my wife who will get a stepped up cost basis.
Problem solved.
by MikeRes
Thu Mar 16, 2017 10:04 pm
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: How to know if power is cut to smoke detector
Replies: 35
Views: 13667

Re: How to know if power is cut to smoke detector

ThankYouJack wrote: I'm not sure, it only beeps once or twice after power is cut, but it does beep. Anyone know how smoke detectors beep?
If there is no battery and no electrical power then the beep is probably powered by on-board capacitors.
by MikeRes
Tue Jan 26, 2016 10:41 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: TurboTax Premier (for tax year 2015): Will it run on XP?
Replies: 14
Views: 1428

Re: TurboTax Premier (for tax year 2015): Will it run on XP?

I have installed and loaded TT Premier on a WinXP system and have not encountered any problems.
I have transferred my data from TT14 to TT15 and have just started my taxes - so far, so good.

EDIT: fixed typo
by MikeRes
Thu Aug 13, 2015 8:00 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Seeking advice in a hostile office now
Replies: 43
Views: 11117

Re: Seeking advice in a hostile office now

A couple of thoughts. 1. if they are out to get you, they will get you no matter what you do. 2. if they are not out to get you, then it doesn't much matter what you do. 3. NON-COMPETE - if you are in any position to negotiate when you are terminated/decide to leave then have your employer release you from any non-compete you may have (or, at least make it for the shortest duration possible). 4. NDA - if you are in any position to negotiate when you are terminated/decide to leave then have your employer release you from any NDA you may have (or, at least make it for the shortest duration possible). 5. HEALTH-CARE COVERAGE - if you are in any position to negotiate when you are terminated/decide to leave then have your employer increase the d...
by MikeRes
Thu Nov 13, 2014 10:28 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Health Insurance (Specialist "Out of Network" [error])
Replies: 43
Views: 7254

Re: Health Insurance Question (Specialist Deeme"Out of Netwo

@dabretty -
Don't waste your time and energy with the doctor's office nor with UHC.
Just write a letter to your state Insurance commissioner and explain that UHC is refusing to pay even though you have been treated by an in-network provider for an approved procedure,
That should get your situation resolved (favorably or otherwise) very quickly.
by MikeRes
Sat Oct 25, 2014 2:00 pm
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: File in Small Claims Court [against a cable TV provider]?
Replies: 8
Views: 1286

Re: File in Small Claims Court [against a cable TV provider]

Lon wrote:My bank records show that I paid a total of $226.50. Thing is----I have never received a bill from them.
If you have never received a bill from your cable company, then on what basis was the $226.50 paid to them?
by MikeRes
Mon Sep 22, 2014 10:48 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Medicare Plan D [Tale of Woe]
Replies: 21
Views: 2902

Re: Medicare Plan D Tail Of Whoa!

The only way to choose an OPTIMAL Part D plan is to use Drug Plan Finder at MEDICARE.GOV and enter all the drugs you are taking. The Plan Finder will list all the plans that are available to you in the order of lowest total annual cost to highest. The top three plans can be compared after making sure that all your medications are covered without any significant restrictions. This method ensures that you have the LOWEST ANNUAL COST for the prescription plan. Disclosure: I am a Certified Volunteer Medicare Counselor A minor corrective note. The Medicare Plan Finder (https://www.medicare.gov/find-a-plan/questions/home.aspx) will give you "the LOWEST ANNUAL COST for the prescription plan" ONLY at the time you visit the website. The i...
by MikeRes
Sun Sep 21, 2014 11:45 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Medicare Plan D [Tale of Woe]
Replies: 21
Views: 2902

Re: Medicare Plan D [Tale of Woe]

Very related "donut hole" Medicare question - I know that the amount actually paid by the Medicare recipient varies greatly depending on the exact plan the recipient is enrolled in. My question is about the "full price/cost" that is used by Medicare to determine entry into and exit from the "donut hole". Is that dollar amount the same or different for the exact same drug, dosage and number of days? This is one of the most annoying and unfair aspects of Plan-D. Medicare does not determine nor assign the "full price/cost" of a medication. The "full price/cost" of a medication (my plan refers to it as the Retail Price) is assigned by the Plan-D insurance provider. Each provider can have their ...
by MikeRes
Sat Sep 06, 2014 9:06 pm
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Help! Need to Calculate Money Owed To Me
Replies: 32
Views: 7573

Re: Help! Need to Calculate Money Owed To Me

I saw him earlier today, and ....... we have come to a very satisfactory agreement. So, I'm happy to announce that there are some honest people in the world. (But, I've learned my lesson. No more loans to friends without a clear understanding and a contract.) I'm glad you're satisfied with the outcome. I'm wondering though if you care to share what the total amount of the various loans were and what the amount repaid was. One more thing. I'm not sure that you have learned your lesson. Let me fix your last sentence (it was too long): No more loans to friends! without a clear understanding and a contract. If you feel compelled to lend money to friends (or family) consider the money a gift and not a loan. If you get repaid say a quiet prayer ...
by MikeRes
Sat Jun 21, 2014 8:45 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Reasons to go with a local vs national mortgage lender?
Replies: 24
Views: 3237

Re: Reasons to go with a local vs national mortgage lender?

Van-Guard23 wrote:However, a couple of months down the road, the loan was sold back to Wells Fargo...and they couldn't or wouldn't match the lower rate to begin with. I would've thought they would rather do the refi in-house and match the rate offered by other companies but they opted to just "buy" the loan back from another company.
Are you sure that the mortgage was sold to WF?
Perhaps just the servicing of the loan was transferred to them.
by MikeRes
Sun Jun 15, 2014 8:19 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Help with individual long-term disability policy
Replies: 9
Views: 1564

Re: Help with individual long-term disability policy

Hoppy - A couple of points. Yes, you're correct about insurance companies not wanting to over insure you with DI since this might be an incentive to "injure" yourself or more likely a disincentive to return to work once disabled. Life insurance coverage is somewhat similar to DI. The insurance companies usually limit your coverage to 10-15 times your annual income. We don't want to incentivize you or your beneficiary to accelerate your demise, do we? The rules might be different to Whole Life and estate planning for the wealthy. The cost of DI coverage is not necessarily linear. It may not cost twice as much to double your coverage. Check with your agent. Lastly, you can always increase your coverage at a later date. However you m...
by MikeRes
Wed May 21, 2014 8:58 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Help with individual long-term disability policy
Replies: 9
Views: 1564

Re: Help with individual long-term disability policy

Well I've got a little surprise for you. Your group policy will most likely NOT replace 60% of your salary. Most likely your group policy has an offset provision that will reduce your payments by an amount equal to your Social Security Disability payments. That's the way most group disability policies work. The total amount you receive from SS Disability plus the amount from your group policy combined will replace approximately 60% of your salary. The way it works is that your private disability policy will factor in your group policy amount when determining the maximum amount for which they will cover you. The reverse is not true. Given the opportunity, what you want to do to maximize your private non-group disability coverage is to purcha...
by MikeRes
Wed Apr 09, 2014 1:08 am
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Front License Plates for new Subaru
Replies: 8
Views: 2073

Re: Front License Plates for new Subaru

I would think that any Subaru car dealer would have a solution available for you.
by MikeRes
Sat Mar 01, 2014 9:28 pm
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Will I (we) have enough (very long)
Replies: 10
Views: 2157

Re: Will I (we) have enough (very long)

I've paid into SS since I was legal able to do so. I would rather not have to depend on that or short/long term disability, but it is there for me to tap. I have tapped short term disability twice though in the past few years due to my inability to work at times. Refusing to deal with or preferring "not to depend on" your short/long term disability benefits and your SS Disability benefits is, at best foolish and at worst, financially irresponsible. You have prepaid for these benefits and services. You have worked for them and you have paid for them - why oh why would you flush these benefits down the drain? Let me ask you a question. You are paying for medical insurance. How come you are accepting their assistance in paying your ...
by MikeRes
Mon Dec 16, 2013 2:08 pm
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Fake Navy Vets Charity
Replies: 2
Views: 618

Re: Fake Navy Vets Charity

Assume that any charity that contacts you is a scam.
Whether by phone, email or snail mail, they are a scam.
Do not respond to them.

Give to the charity of your choice.
Do not be swayed when a charity contacts you.

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays.

Regards,
Mike
by MikeRes
Fri Nov 22, 2013 7:57 pm
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Notary made me raise my right hand and swear...
Replies: 14
Views: 3934

Re: Notary made me raise my right hand and swear...

@ neurosphere - since you had to provide an oath to get your document notarized, I'm wondering if there was any specific indication on the notarized document that it was an "affidavit" and not just an "acknowledgment".
by MikeRes
Sun Nov 17, 2013 10:06 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Firing an Advisor
Replies: 18
Views: 2587

Re: Firing an Advisor

grabiner wrote:wait for gains to become long-term (holding period of at least one month) before selling any other stocks.
I'm pretty sure you meant to say "holding period of at least 12 months".
by MikeRes
Sat Jul 13, 2013 6:13 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: I want term, they're pushing whole life.
Replies: 48
Views: 5812

Re: I want term, they're pushing whole life.

then what is your real question. Its a very bad investment. what don't you understand about that? My question is why is it a very bad investment? Why is his claim untrue? His claim being that their portfolio of private, non-marketable corporate bonds is a better fixed income investment than the bond funds I currently own. I'm new to this and I'm asking questions so I can learn. What don't you understand about that? Ask your insurance agent/broker to put IN WRITING whatever his claims and assertions are for the whole life policy he is trying to sell you. Since he is presenting this to you as an investment ask him to include information about expenses, returns and commissions. Also, if this whole life policy is backed by securities, has he p...
by MikeRes
Fri Jun 21, 2013 10:53 pm
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Good email program suggestions
Replies: 41
Views: 3736

Re: Good email program suggestions

Thanks for the feedback. I know some programs are online, ATT/Yahoo is, but I guess one of my questions would be is online really better then on computer. Paul Well, this is one time you can have your cake and eat it too. You can keep your email online (e.g., GMAIL, YAHOO, HOTMAIL/OUTLOOK) and also on your PC at the same time. If you are a typical user you get your email from your ISP's email servers. Your email address might be pkcrafter@[your ISP].com. You email ends up stored on your ISP's email server from which you are able to retrieve it and read it. I use GMAIL addresses for my email. I then use GMAIL to forward all my email to my ISP (it's a setting within GMAIL). I also have an email client on my PC (Eudora, it's similar to Thunde...
by MikeRes
Sun Jun 16, 2013 10:16 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Crazy reply from employer re 401k Index funds
Replies: 66
Views: 11132

Re: Crazy reply from employer re 401k Index funds

If the person that sent you that email works for the company, they just gave you financial advice. As such, they just broke their fiduciary responsibility and could conceivably be liable for any decisions you make based on that email. I will not comment on whether or not the VP of HR "broke their fiduciary responsibility". However, you have in your hands an email from an officer of your company stating "Our funds consistently outperform the market. Thanks again for your zeal. We will continue to look for the best options for all employees." This is tantamount to an iron-clad guarantee that all of their funds will beat the market. On the day that you retire/leave the company figure out if the funds you have investing, re...
by MikeRes
Fri Feb 01, 2013 12:09 am
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Microsoft Sec Essentials = Bad ??
Replies: 21
Views: 5427

Re: Microsoft Sec Essentials = Bad ??

HueyLD wrote:I had previously used Norton and McAfee, and they were both resource hogs. Fortunately a kind hearted soul on this forum recommended MSE to me and it has been relatively easy on resources.
I too have used both Norton and McAfee but stopped many years ago when they started gobbling up the system.
However, as of two/three years ago Norton has made significant improvements and is no longer a resource hog.
It's probably worth a second look at this point.

For what it's worth, I currently use MSE (can't beat the price), coupled with Malewarebytes Anti-Maleware and also with SUPERAntiSpyware.
All connections are wired and go through a router.
So far no infections.
by MikeRes
Thu Jan 31, 2013 7:44 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: PenFed 1.8 3 yr cd
Replies: 20
Views: 4706

Re: PenFed 1.8 3 yr cd

All the PenFed CDs have a six month penalty for early withdrawal except for the seven year CD which has a 12 month penalty. One of the things you can do to mitigate the penalty is to open multiple CDs at the time of purchase. So, if you plan on purchasing $100k worth of CDs, simply purchase 10 $10k CDs. Should you need to terminate early, just turn in CDs for the minimum amount you need to cash out. If you decide to take a first class, six month trip around the world and need $30k, you need only cash in 3 $10k CDs; pay the six month ETP on those three CDs and preserve your interest on the remaining $70k. Lastly I have had no trouble with PenFed CS. I have used then for CDs, autoloans, HEL and I'm considering refinancing my 10-year mortgage ...
by MikeRes
Tue Dec 11, 2012 9:58 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Question for the EAs on the forum.......
Replies: 6
Views: 1124

Re: Question for the EAs on the forum.......

Try taking a look at the usenet newsgroup misc.taxes.moderated.

If you don't have a usenet reader you can use Google Groups - https://groups.google.com/forum/?fromgr ... .moderated.

This usenet group consists of EA, CPAs, and Tax.Lawyers.
It is moderated (as the name implies) and filters out spam, frivolous questions and erroneous/improper responses.
by MikeRes
Sun Mar 18, 2012 11:07 pm
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: 70 yr old needs help with allocation
Replies: 19
Views: 1567

Re: 70 yr old needs help with allocation

If your mom is already 70 years old you're not going to have much choice but to start withdrawing fron her traditional IRA.
The IRS mandates that you start withdrawing from a traditional IRA once you reach 70 1/2.
Google "Required Minimum Distribution" .
by MikeRes
Sat Jan 21, 2012 12:29 am
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Turbo Tax vs.CPA
Replies: 33
Views: 4708

Re: Turbo Tax vs.CPA

TurboTax does in fact offer Audit Defense for an additional $39.95/return.

http://turbotax.intuit.com/support/iq/A ... 12590.html
With Audit Defense, you never have to meet with the IRS. TaxResources takes care of everything, so you can:
Submit your return and relax
Save thousands of dollars on representation fees if you're audited
Rely on full-service representation, not just support or tips


I have no idea what the quality of this service is nor whether it is worth it.
by MikeRes
Sat Jan 21, 2012 12:20 am
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Short Term Disability Coverage/Companies?
Replies: 17
Views: 3084

Re: Short Term Disability Coverage/Companies?

You could try pricing a LTD with a short waiting period (30-days??) for your wife.
Make sure it covers pregnancy as a disability and waives premiums in the event of a disability.
When the wife returns to work you could cancel the LTD policy and let the wife then pick up both STD and LTD through work.

All of this would depend on the cost of the policy and its terms and conditions.
It would be best to explore the possibilities with an independent insurance agent.
by MikeRes
Sat Jan 21, 2012 12:09 am
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Client refusing to pay invoice
Replies: 39
Views: 3920

Re: Client refusing to pay invoice

Sign the NDA, but make it conditioned on receiving payment in full.
That should satisfy all parties.

If you're willing to write-off the client, and give new meaning to the term "burning your bridges", then in exchange for signing the NDA after the fact let the client know that you have repriced your services (after the fact) to $1000.
Let him know that since he has requested that you give up rights that weren't discussed before the work started you now need to reassess your pricing strategy.

Your other two choices are just sign the NDA and try to patch things up; or, forget about collecting the $400.
by MikeRes
Sun Nov 20, 2011 6:37 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: fiduciary responsibility for parent
Replies: 43
Views: 3686

Re: fiduciary responsibility for parent

The question has to be asked; what is your objective in having your mother gift money to the children. Is is to reduce her estate to minimize estate taxes or is it to help qualify for Medicaid should the need arise. Others have focused their responses toward the estate tax issue. If however your concern is having Medicaid help pay for assisted living expenses (should the need arise) then you would want to continue gifting your mother's money to you and your siblings ASSUMING YOUR MOTHER AGREES TO THIS. Realize that if you're trying to prepare for Medicaid assistance that you should speak to an Elder Care Attorney as soon as possible. Additionaly, even if your mother gifts the money to her children I would still view it a her money. What my ...
by MikeRes
Tue Aug 23, 2011 9:17 pm
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: any self-taught scientists?
Replies: 42
Views: 6069

If your goal is to educate yourself (and it doesn't matter if you get a degree), then contact local community colleges and universities about auditing their classes.
If you audit, the cost per credit is usually very low.
by MikeRes
Mon Aug 15, 2011 10:27 pm
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Home security safe
Replies: 24
Views: 3875

Whatever safe you get, make sure that it is not only fireproof but also waterproof.
As long as your house is not lost in a forest fire your local fire department likely will be flooding your house with water.
by MikeRes
Wed May 18, 2011 10:41 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Disability Insurance when already covered by a group plan
Replies: 26
Views: 3143

You are correct. If you have a group disability policy in place - whether an employee provided group disability policy or a private organization group disability policy - then the maximum coverage you can receive will be limited. As other posters have pointed out, any payments you receive from a group disability policy will be offset (i.e., reduced) by an amount equal to any payments you receive from Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI). Therefore, if at all possible, opt out of your group policy. Work with your HR department to see if this is possible, and if so exercise that option. Once you are without group coverage apply for a personal disability policy choosing the options you want that your pocketbook will allow. A good indepe...