Search found 692 matches

by dad2000
Thu Aug 17, 2023 5:57 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: To be or not to be - MD vs Computer science
Replies: 358
Views: 33078

Re: To be or not to be - MD vs Computer science

To me, C.S./tech employment has always been cyclical. It's a given that you'll have to reinvent yourself if you want to stay in it for 30 years. I'm just about retired but have gone through 4 iterations myself.

The crystal ball for most careers is cloudy. I know plenty of people in healthcare, and Private Equity coming heavy into the industry is also causing a lot of disruption that many aren't happy about.

I think one can be entrepreneurial in either, but my advice is to pick the path you are more passionate about and not focus on the money. If you're good at what you do in either of those fields, the money (or satisfaction) will come.
by dad2000
Thu Jun 15, 2023 9:26 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: IRS Estimated Payments Fidelity Check Bounced (insufficient funds) - What Next?
Replies: 8
Views: 1394

Re: IRS Estimated Payments Fidelity Check Bounced (insufficient funds) - What Next?

Does this help?

https://www.irs.gov/taxtopics/tc206

If you are a few weeks late making an estimated tax payment, there could be a slight penalty.

I don't think this is something to panic over.
by dad2000
Tue Jun 13, 2023 4:43 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: CP14 (notice of unpaid taxes) but I'm in a disaster area with October due date
Replies: 42
Views: 4961

Re: CP14 (notice of unpaid taxes) but I'm in a disaster area with October due date

I got the CP14. Spent 2-3 hours each on hold on 2 different days. Never got to talk to anyone.

This is outrageous. How hard is it to add a zip code filter to the deadline algorithm?

Probably stupidly, I paid the $ because I didn't want the penalties and fines to keep piling up. I'll try to get my money back later though I doubt I'll have any success.

Years ago they had deposited a payment of mine but never gave me credit. Although I provided them with a copy of the cancelled check and sent numerous letters, they still claimed to have never received it. I eventually had to give up and pay 2x.
by dad2000
Thu May 18, 2023 1:36 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: What to do with my House?
Replies: 29
Views: 3531

Re: What to do with my House?

I know the Boston suburban market there pretty well. Lived there many years and owned a few houses.

You bought at the peak with lower mortgage rates. I'm not surprised that you would have to take a loss in this environment. Purchasing a rental property at these rates isn't particularly attractive.

Unless there is a very strong reason to move near family (ie medical, convalescence, etc.), I'd suggest staying put for a couple of years, then relisting.

Good luck.
by dad2000
Thu May 18, 2023 1:03 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: what do you do? Go to work and hire out vs do it yourself?
Replies: 50
Views: 4566

Re: what do you do? Go to work and hire out vs do it yourself?

These days, I've found that it is extremely difficult to find people who will show up, do the work correctly, and not completely rip me off. I'll spend more time looking for this person than it would to take to finish the job. It's better for my piece of mind to just do it myself it I can. For that reason, I end up doing most of the work myself. I have no major contracting experience, but am handy enough to have done a good number of projects involving plumbing, electrical, patching, painting, etc. Youtube is my friend. But it's all a cost/risk analysis. Gas I don't touch unless it's something simple like hooking up the grill or dryer. Structural... I do not touch. If I need an expensive or special tool that I'll never need again, I probabl...
by dad2000
Thu May 11, 2023 1:41 pm
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Treasury Direct OTP not being sent?
Replies: 62
Views: 7345

Re: Locked out of Treasury Direct account today

Fortunately no problem with mine.

They probably should have allowed the next login on each account to be case-insensitive, then forced a password change.

Oh well.
by dad2000
Tue May 09, 2023 12:15 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Recent job change and need for immediate renegotation
Replies: 52
Views: 5461

Re: Recent job change and need for immediate renegotation

To second others, attempting to renegotiate 2 weeks into a 2 month contract would likely be a catastrophic error. Stay in your lane and do the best job you can do under the constraints of the current contract. Keep your resume current and stay active in the job market. This will help you to ascertain your real market value and maybe find you a permanent better paying job. It's perfectly fine to renegotiate the next contract at the appropriate time, but I've never seen a 2-3x jump in that short of a period (with the exception of interns coming from near minimum wage), and I've hired hundreds of six-digit employees in my career. Is there not a program manager now, and wouldn't that likely be a permanent employee position rather than a contrac...
by dad2000
Tue May 09, 2023 11:13 am
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: Is CHARLES SCHWAB In Financial Trouble - Your Thoughts on the Subject??
Replies: 95
Views: 19004

Re: Is CHARLES SCHWAB In Financial Trouble - Your Thoughts on the Subject??

All of Schwab failing? Hype.

Have FDIC or NCUA insured accounts at 2 different banks (Schwab being one) for your cash and/or emergency funds.

Your securities are separate. You own them. As an additional safeguard, there is SIPC insurance of up to $500k.
by dad2000
Mon May 08, 2023 1:18 pm
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Market order that didn't execute
Replies: 5
Views: 1251

Re: Market order that didn't execute

Nasdaq accepts on-open and on-close order types that are executable only during the Opening or Closing Cross, respectively. Leading up to an open or close, Nasdaq disseminates information about any order imbalance that exists among orders on the opening or closing book, along with an indicative opening or closing price. In the Cross process, the opening or closing book and the Nasdaq continuous book are brought together to create a single Nasdaq opening or closing price.

I think it's possible that a delay in the dissemination of the price occurred at open but seems unlikely based upon your description of events. Push for the results of the formal inquiry.
by dad2000
Fri May 05, 2023 5:31 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: White Coat Investor - It's a lifestyle not a vacation
Replies: 45
Views: 11014

Re: White Coat Investor - It's a lifestyle not a vacation

If only life fit so neatly into 4 seasons. When I was younger, I took some chances and left solid jobs for the risky chance of a big payout. Worked my tail off 70-80 hours for several years. Luckily it paid off but there were no guarantees. But for very few professions (M.D. might be one of them), you have to strike while the iron's hot because you may never get a second chance and you don't know how long it will stay hot. Now I'm winding down. A vacation is a vacation. I don't bring the laptop. I might respond to emails or take a couple of calls, but that's it. 3 years ago, we were FI living in an HCOL area. But we decided we would be happier in a VHCOL area so we moved. I guess Autumn went to Summer, then we're back to Autumn again. I don...
by dad2000
Thu May 04, 2023 6:48 pm
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Help my niece choose a marketable college major
Replies: 173
Views: 14096

Re: Help my niece choose a marketable college major

Generally speaking, an undergraduate degree is not "job training" with the possible exception of engineering. If her goal is job training, rather than intellectual curiosity, there will likely be a poor outcome. Exposure to a wide variety of subjects and people and campus activities will help her pick a direction in life. I agree with arf410. I know its not a popular opinion on BH, but I fundamentally believe the education from going away for college is more about learning to live on your own, get along with roommates, make good decisions, and understand how to navigate the world in the safe confines of the university setting. IMO it's a terribly inefficient and expensive way to develop these life skills, and it is getting worse....
by dad2000
Thu May 04, 2023 6:23 pm
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Help my niece choose a marketable college major
Replies: 173
Views: 14096

Re: Help my niece choose a marketable college major

She doesn't come from money (low wage immigrant parents) and she is keen on majoring in something that will get her a decent job right after graduation. Generally speaking, an undergraduate degree is not "job training" with the possible exception of engineering. If her goal is job training, rather than intellectual curiosity, there will likely be a poor outcome. Exposure to a wide variety of subjects and people and campus activities will help her pick a direction in life. I agree with arf410. I know its not a popular opinion on BH, but I fundamentally believe the education from going away for college is more about learning to live on your own, get along with roommates, make good decisions, and understand how to navigate the world...
by dad2000
Thu May 04, 2023 4:50 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: In Hindsight, did you retire at the right time?
Replies: 109
Views: 12909

Re: In Hindsight, did you retire at the right time?

If we think of retirement as the binary decision to permanently leave the workforce, then I'm not retired. I'm a contractor about halfway through a glidepath from 40 down to 12 hours per week that I started at age 55 around the start of the pandemic. My work is fully remote. I've used the extra time to help my wife grow her side gig, help my kids as they progress through college, and up my endurance training to where I've officially become an ultra-endurance athlete. My bloodlines are blessed/cursed with extreme longevity and the science is still evolving on this, but I think my highest quality of life involves a lot of play, but balanced by a bit of mentally challenging work for the long term to stave off dementia. I should add that I coul...
by dad2000
Tue May 02, 2023 9:57 am
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Wife switched job. Should she move her Fidelity 401k over?
Replies: 16
Views: 1259

Re: Wife switched job. Should she move her Fidelity 401k over?

Theoretically, there isn't much risk in consolidating though I admittedly use a few different brokerages for risk diversification.

Is there or could there be access to any unique fund (something like a TIAA QREARX comes to mind) or a brokerage window that you might later want but isn't available in the new plan?
by dad2000
Sun Apr 30, 2023 10:13 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: How to teach kids money management
Replies: 27
Views: 2525

Re: How to teach kids money management

If your concern is that the money burns a hole through their pockets, I'm not sure that it's purely money management. Your kids, like mine, probably live in a bubble of affluence. They need to see what life is like outside the bubble.

I think that having them get an entry level job is a valuable experience. They need to work with people who are mostly less fortunate than they are. Mine worked in food service, retail, etc. When they realize that a new iPhone costs 70 hours of hard work, they start to understand it better.
by dad2000
Sun Apr 30, 2023 9:57 pm
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Vanguard cost basis problems
Replies: 23
Views: 3327

Re: Vanguard cost basis problems

I just checked and I have the same issue with one of my five VG stock index funds.

I don't know how long it's been this way, but it could've been a while because it wasn't a holding where tax-loss harvesting would have been material.

Overall, I've observed enough bugs/anomalies/inconsistencies with Vanguard tech that I don't particularly trust it. At one time, they had all my holdings except for my 401K. But over time I've been favoring other brokerages and they are now a distant 3rd.
by dad2000
Sun Apr 30, 2023 2:35 am
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Private school..not sure about if we are thinking correctly
Replies: 134
Views: 12610

Re: Private school..not sure about if we are thinking correctly

Overall, you seem uncomfortable with the situation. Do you belong in this crowd? Do your kids belong in this crowd? Will they feel inferior or be ignored because they don't have the same toys as the rich kids. It doesn't sound right to me.

Focus on your values and the values you want your kids to have and get them in the right place. This very well could mean moving to another town. If it has a decent public school system, your kids will have a great opportunity either way.

Real estate in towns with good public schools generally appreciate and hold their value well. I can think of many worse investments.
by dad2000
Thu Apr 27, 2023 6:49 pm
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Yubikey only at Vanguard now possible.
Replies: 658
Views: 83805

Re: Yubikey only at Vanguard now possible.

I tested this out again today. Vanguard allows me to opt-out of security codes - indicating that I am able to do so because I have at least two security keys registered. This works perfectly fine when logging onto the Vanguard website; it works exactly as it should. However, I downloaded the Vanguard mobile app and attempted to log on. I entered my username, password, and answered a security question - and it allowed me to log on. No security key or any other additional authentication required. Wow, as stated would be sloppy IT and information security work and would appear to leave them open to substantial financial and legal risk, and opts to leave their customers under the same substantial risk. Cyber crime is a vigorous business and wi...
by dad2000
Thu Apr 27, 2023 4:18 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: When and how to shop around for a mortgage in a competitive real-estate market
Replies: 14
Views: 1333

Re: When and how to shop around for a mortgage in a competitive real-estate market

In hot markets most realtors will ignore anyone who is not pre-qualified for a mortgage. Unless they are paying cash, of course. No seller in a hot market is going to wait around for a potential buyer to qualify for a mortgage they need to support their offer. Because: they don't need to take that risk. It’s worth noting that you can (and I did) make an offer w no financing contingency but still get financing. You likely have time between offer acceptance and closing date to lock down your loan. This is a good reason to start networking with bankers and starting your prequalifying early. The risk is that you have already paid your earnest money but can’t get financing. Oops. Make sure that doesn’t happen Of course you can. I'm simply point...
by dad2000
Thu Apr 27, 2023 1:50 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Frustrating experience with Ally - can anyone relate?
Replies: 28
Views: 4156

Re: Frustrating experience with Ally - can anyone relate?

Sadly, there is so much online fraud these days, that I think it's inevitable that something like this will occasionally happen. I've had no problem with Ally but have had inconveniences with others.

Best thing to do is have a low cost contingency in place for anything important. I keep 60 days of emergency cash in a local credit union 2 miles away.

Have 2 credit cards and only use debit cards for ATM withdrawals.
by dad2000
Thu Apr 27, 2023 1:27 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Treating children financially equal
Replies: 259
Views: 21252

Re: Treating children financially equal

I have 2 in undergrad, one going to undergrad in a year. The deal I made with the kids when they were younger is that things would not be exactly equal. I would help them based on my determinations of value and ROI. For example, if you got in to one of the top private schools in a major with good ROI, I'd pay, otherwise you're going to state. So right now, I have enough to cover undergrad for all 3, all with roughly the same cost footprint. I have enough for one to continue on. Oldest wants to go to med school. Middle one will get a good STEM job with just the BS, so no grad school. Not sure about the youngest yet. The deal that I'm cutting with the oldest is that she's getting a loan from me. If the youngest ends up going to grad school, t...
by dad2000
Thu Apr 27, 2023 1:09 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: When and how to shop around for a mortgage in a competitive real-estate market
Replies: 14
Views: 1333

Re: When and how to shop around for a mortgage in a competitive real-estate market

Last month, I just sold in a moderately competitive market in NorCal and bought in a highly competitive market in SoCal. Our target range was $1.8-2.3M which got us a decent house in a nice neighborhood on a smallish lot, but certainly not mansion-esque. Based on the advice I was getting and what I saw in the market, I decided to get pre-underwritten mortgages lined up concurrently with both a local and national broker. I think this served us well. Our first offer was on a house that just hit the market. From what I understand they got 6 $2m+ offers that day, with one being an outlier about $150k higher than the remaining cluster of 5. We fortunately lost this one. We did end up getting a house we liked more a few days later where the selle...
by dad2000
Thu Apr 27, 2023 12:30 am
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Too nervous about giving up my passwords to use Personal Capital
Replies: 148
Views: 14197

Re: Too nervous about giving up my passwords to use Personal Capital

The risks with the PC linking vary by institution and connection type. First IMHO, the privacy of the data they have access to is by far the greatest risk. This would be true of any website that aggregates your information (like Equifax). As for the risks associated with possible fraudulent transactions because you've shared your passwords, I'll give two different examples: SCHWAB has a data sharing agreement directly with Envestnet/Yodlee whereby the data is shared via API. Your credentials are only used to authenticate to Schwab one time so that Schwab can provide an API access token to PC, allowing them to download your transactions. This is pretty safe. If someone steals the token, they can't use it to log into Schwab and execute trades...
by dad2000
Wed Apr 26, 2023 10:56 am
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Can someone explain how passkey works?
Replies: 3
Views: 723

Re: Can someone explain how passkey works?

For those who already use a password manager, I don't think passkey provides much of an upgrade in terms of phishing protection. But for those who type passwords instead of using a manager, there will be benefits. Same goes for password spraying. Those who use password managers likely generate unique passwords anyway and would be less susceptible. But as we now have observed with LastPass, password managers are not impervious. I use one, but it is not cloud based, and I configured my own sync across devices. I've been doing this for many years. To some, it was considered overkill, but retrospectively in seems perfectly sane now. Yubikey is probably still best for the types of accounts we discuss on this forum. I haven't checked this year, b...
by dad2000
Tue Apr 25, 2023 11:49 pm
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Can someone explain how passkey works?
Replies: 3
Views: 723

Re: Can someone explain how passkey works?

I'm oversimplifying it a little bit, but it's using public cryptography and a public/private key pair. When you establish your credentials with a site, your device generates a private key (stored on your device) and the public key (stored on the site's servers). Your account on the server can only be accessed/decrypted with a connection using the key pair. Perhaps a simple way of thinking about it is that there are 2 passwords needed to get to your account, and 1 is stored on each side in a password manager. Both sides would need to be compromised at the same time for credential theft (unlikely). Your private key can then be synced across your devices, presumably relying on the security of your underlying personal cloud account (ie Apple/iC...
by dad2000
Mon Apr 24, 2023 4:35 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: High Net Worth + High Spending: Early retirement or go back to work?
Replies: 67
Views: 11445

Re: High Net Worth + High Spending: Early retirement or go back to work?

I am roughly an 8 year older version of you. Kids in college but I may be helping with post-grad schooling. Live in HCOL area ($2M+ house), no debt, 30x expenses in the portfolio, additionally had $150k/kid in 529. A few years ago, I decided to continue working, but part time and consulting. I try to take on projects where I can make a difference while avoiding the grind. Take a couple more months to decide. Unless you can productively fill all your free time, not working is likely to bother you for some time. The additional time I'm able to invest in my kids has provided better ROI than any job could. With my current schedule, I have enough time to pursue hobbies, really help the kids, and bring in enough money to take away any anxiety abo...
by dad2000
Sun Apr 23, 2023 1:05 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: If your net worth is over $3 million, how did you do it?
Replies: 913
Views: 239041

Re: If your net worth is over $3 million, how did you do it?

Took risks early on in my career. 1. Left active duty enlisted military after 4 years, forfeiting opportunity for 20 years and a pension. 2. After 3 years and 2 promotions, left a decent paying government job (~$120k in 2023 USD) where I could've put in my 20 years and collected a pension. 3. After 2 years, left a decent paying job (~$140k in 2023 USD) with a prestigious privately owned organization. 4. Ended up at a tech startup with a couple other 20-somethings who I thought were smart. Sold it. Now semi-retired, net worth several multiples of $3M, but it wasn't easy. I did finish college concurrently with #2 at average public school. Worked really hard (80 hrs+) for the first few years of #4. Most people thought I was crazy for leaving #...
by dad2000
Sun Apr 23, 2023 12:51 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Are there real benefits of attending an expensive college?
Replies: 245
Views: 18787

Re: Are there real benefits of attending an expensive college?

Probably rehashing here, but my take: 1. Real benefits for an expensive prestigious college (ie top Ivy, Stanford, MIT, etc.)? YES 2. Real benefits for an expensive NON-prestigious college? NO, unless you have very unusual concerns about safety for your son. But based on the information provided, we can't really provide a good answer, nor do I think this is the most important question. What does your son want to do? For example, if he plans on grad school or a specific field (say medicine), then focus on the best feeder schools to get him to the next level. Apply to a couple reaches, several targets, and a couple safeties. It's so competitive these days that there is no guarantee of acceptance at the in-demand institutions. Worry about the ...
by dad2000
Thu Apr 20, 2023 3:25 pm
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: When Is A New M.2 SSD Needed For PC?
Replies: 26
Views: 2492

Re: When Is A New M.2 SSD Needed For PC?

If you have a name brand SSD, it probably comes with a management/monitoring utility. Unless it is reporting critical errors or that the SSD is near the end of it's usable wear, then leave it be.

SSDs wearing out is a purely theoretical proposition for most users. My M.2 is 5 years old. I am a remote tech worker and use my system quite heavily between work and hobbies. My Kingston utility says I have 93% of my usable wear left. So in all likelihood, it will outlive me.

Just regularly back up your stuff either to the cloud or an external SSD (encrypted), and you'll have far more important things to worry about.
by dad2000
Wed Apr 19, 2023 11:02 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: How Do I Buy a House?
Replies: 10
Views: 1585

Re: How Do I Buy a House?

Congratulations on the new family member!

I do not think you should buy a house right now.

Given that your income base is fairly risky (as exhibited by 2022), it's prudent to have AT LEAST a 12 month emergency fund set aside before purchasing. Since you've been averaging $90k/year of annual income and have saved only $60k, I'm assuming that you need about $80k to cover existing expenses. Factor in additional expenses due to the baby, and I'd say your first order of business is to get your emergency fund up from $60k to $100k.

Then you should start setting aside a down payment. Also consider seeking employment that gives you more reliable income.
by dad2000
Sun Apr 02, 2023 9:49 am
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: College decisions - Computer Science, non-elite, West Coast
Replies: 326
Views: 36433

Re: College decisions - Computer Science, non-elite, West Coast

I currently have kids in the UC and CSU systems. Many in my family have attended as well. My son is a CS major at a CSU. Some general comments and observations: 1. Getting classes in impacted majors at UCs and CSUs is always going to be a challenge. If your kid is not extremely persistent and willing to fight for slots, he should not attend either. If he is, then they can be great values. 2. At the risk of sounding like a jerk, the CS majors at the public schools are on average far brighter and better students than the general student populace. High stats kids get rejected everywhere for CS in the UC and CSU systems. My son applied to CS at 10 state schools (didn't even bother with UCB, UCLA, UCSB, UCI, UCD) and only got accepted at 2. He's...
by dad2000
Sat Apr 01, 2023 9:49 am
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: I just added a bank account on treasurydirect.gov!
Replies: 98
Views: 18495

Treasury Direct - adding a new bank

[Merged into this on-going thread. Moderator Pops1860]

I had wanted to add a new bank account to our Treasury Direct accounts for many years and the process was torturous because of the Medallion Signature requirement.

Today I logged in, clicked "Add Bank Account", answered a challenge question, then entered the info, selected it as Primary, hit submit. Done.

I did a quick search in the forum and didn't see anything regarding this change, but other complaints about the medallion requirement suggest the change happened within the last year.

If it's old news, sorry and we can close the thread.
by dad2000
Fri Mar 24, 2023 5:22 pm
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: College bound son for CS [Computer Science]
Replies: 205
Views: 16780

Re: College bound son for CS

He could have a successful career graduating from either school however everything else being equal, Purdue would open more doors.

But school is a very personal choice and his success depends on a lot more than school reputation.

Has he reached out through social media to CS majors at both schools? Does he have a feel for how easy or hard it will be to get the classes he wants? Would he thrive in a more competitive environment like he might find at Purdue?

I wouldn't base the decision much on geography. Both places are accessible and weather is similar.
by dad2000
Fri Mar 24, 2023 4:47 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: I don't have to worry about living past 80, even if I retire at 46 with just 23X
Replies: 285
Views: 29436

Re: I don't have to worry about living past 80, even if I retire at 46 with just 23X

IMHO, there are far too many future unknowns to rely on this plan. Also, hiking/climbing is not without risks (and possible medical expenses).

I'm in my 50s and have cut myself down to part time work. I'm an endurance athlete and focused on ultra trail-running for the last 12 months, so not dissimilar to what you do. I found plenty of time to work a 60% schedule while competing in 15 races. And that's with a wife and kids.

Working 5 more years part time will vastly increase your margin for error. I plan on doing that til I'm 60.
by dad2000
Thu Mar 16, 2023 7:35 pm
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: All investments at Fidelity - is that prudent?
Replies: 16
Views: 2729

Re: All investments at Fidelity - is that prudent?

Agree that short term inaccessibility is the main risk. I also like having multiple brokerages due to possible issues with fraud or cybersecurity.

In terms of cybersecurity posture, I feel that Vanguard is behind Schwab and Fido. I do think that all 3 are "too big to fail".
by dad2000
Thu Mar 16, 2023 7:26 pm
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Is it worth it to use a realtor?
Replies: 112
Views: 9228

Re: Is it worth it to use a realtor?

I think a good realtor is worth it. You need to invest a little time in finding the right one. Ask the right questions and give them a little homework. You'll find the one who understands what you want. On my last transaction, I was able to negotiate a commission 0.75% below average for the area and I got what I wanted out of the sale. This time you'll be renting in between. Do your homework on the areas and consider the rental a test run of the area before buying. There is a wealth of information available now for buyers. Schools, crime maps, fire/flood/earthquake/landslide risk, local newspapers all online. Also, hop onto Reddit and research the neighborhoods. You'll find lots of people talking about what they like and don't like about th...
by dad2000
Mon Dec 05, 2022 10:39 am
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: xfinity internet quality
Replies: 10
Views: 971

Re: xfinity internet quality

I've had Xfinity in various locations due to owning a summer home as well as relocating to a different state. Every home has been in moderately dense/suburban areas on the East and West coasts. I didn't really have viable alternatives to Xfinity in every case. The 5G on my smartphone isn't robust enough for primary use. My 2 cents: 1. The customer service is usually atrocious no matter where you live. I've had no-show for installation appointments, poor follow-up, ridiculous troubleshooting suggestions, etc. 2. When the service works, it's pretty fast, at least on the downloads. But I've had many outages, none of which were related to my home or equipment. In 2020, I had a string of about 30 outages in 90 days, averaging 1-4 hours in durati...
by dad2000
Wed Aug 17, 2022 11:21 am
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: Low Tech Asset Allocation
Replies: 24
Views: 1857

Re: Low Tech Asset Allocation

It's mostly about risk tolerance. No calculator can help with this. Unless you really know yourself, it can be hard to gauge.

I started phasing into retirement last year. I did not panic in 2008 nor earlier this year so I feel like I understand my tolerance well.

Over the last 12 years, I adjusted from 70/30 to 57/43 and plan to land at 55/45, mainly by adjusting contributions. No knee-jerk changes.
by dad2000
Tue Aug 16, 2022 1:32 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: Wade Pfau's Retirement (2.2% SWR, Annuities)
Replies: 644
Views: 44708

Re: Wade Pfau's Retirement (2.2% SWR, Annuities)

2.2% SWR is apocalyptic and I'm not buying, especially for Bogleheads. Maybe for people who are financially illiterate and have not positioned themselves for retirement. I'm using 3.3% and will adapt as necessary. If I assume that returns will be that bad, I wouldn't retire until I am debt free, mortgage and all. That's my plan anyway, and I assume the same for many BHers (except for possibly a small mortgage). We are likely in the top decile in terms of retirement readiness. No matter the conditions, our financial quality of life in retirement is likely to remain in that top decile. Other than an unanticipated and crippling medical expense, our spending will adapt to the conditions. If we can't make it, then the world won't be worth living...
by dad2000
Thu Mar 03, 2022 8:12 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: When do you pay your credit card bill?
Replies: 194
Views: 16405

Re: When do you pay your credit card bill?

I got screwed over once by some sort of glitch resulting in a late payment.

Call me insane, but I send payments from 2 different bank accounts for each of the 3 cards we use. I send $100 from Bank A two weeks before the statement closing date, then pay the full balance 5 days before the due date from Bank B.
by dad2000
Thu Mar 03, 2022 8:05 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: How difficult is it to get a job in Tech if you are "older"?
Replies: 405
Views: 38225

Re: How difficult is it to get a job in Tech if you are "older"?

I'm a mid-50s "Tech" executive that has fortunately done well and reached FI a while ago. I'm ramping down like OP. My advice to OP is to stick it out for the year. If you're bored at work, find something exciting and/or challenging to do with the extra 2 days off. It's not worth the reboot unless you plan to work several more years. Tech is a very broad term. Some areas have more ageism than others (this has already been covered). If you have cloud, big data, or cybersecurity skills, I think you can last into your 60s. Software dev is going to be more challenging unless you can morph into doing dev-ops work tied in with the previous areas I mentioned. I can also tell you that the quality of the applicants to college CS programs h...
by dad2000
Thu Feb 03, 2022 8:56 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: Is the Fama French model still alive?
Replies: 71
Views: 7341

Re: Is the Fama French model still alive?

As someone who has spent 25 years around hedge funds and quants, if there was any money to be made on this model, it's probably gone and not worth pursuing. They all carved it up to the point that the remaining premium doesn't overcome the additional costs of the strategy. Just grab a 3-4 fund cheap portfolio and sit on it. I have a story to tell... when the fantasy sports betting (Fanduel, etc.) thing became popular, I had an idea about how to win regularly on the daily NBA games. I wrote some software to scrape data, did some testing, and came up with an efficient optimizer. I tested the model on small bets (like $100/day) for about 20 days and won almost every day. I started upping the bets (thousands per week) and continued winning big ...
by dad2000
Fri Jan 28, 2022 4:59 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Should I let go of new accountant? Hire new or File my own taxes?
Replies: 14
Views: 1697

Re: Should I let go of new accountant? Hire new or File my own taxes?

Itemization wasn't difficult. It's just a matter of keeping all the records throughout the year followed by a bunch of data entry. I figured that if I hired a pro, I'd have to be organized enough to give them all my records anyway. At tax time, it takes me under an hour to gather everything together and 90 minutes to data enter, verify, and efile.

As a poster mentioned, you have some judgment calls. It sounds like you are early in your career and can expect your marginal tax bracket to increase over time. If you're depreciating your home office, the current sale exclusion is $250k/500k (though that may change in the future). All factors to consider.
by dad2000
Fri Jan 28, 2022 12:25 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Should I let go of new accountant? Hire new or File my own taxes?
Replies: 14
Views: 1697

Re: Should I let go of new accountant? Hire new or File my own taxes?

Congrats on your new(ish) job. I'm self-taught in finance (with help of BHers of course) and have found that I prefer to do my own taxes. Doing my own taxes helps me plan better. I've had W2s, 1099s, K-1s, etc. I find that it's not too bad with Turbotax Premier. Filing has become easier over the years with the brokerage and W2 downloads as well as the standard deductions replacing itemizing for many. What seems to be more complex than filing the taxes is the tax planning... making sure that we use all resources available to reduce our tax burden and optimize retirement. This has included 401k, 403b, 457, IRAs, backdoor Roths, HSAs, 529s etc. I find that the biggest deductions I get (beyond the obvious standard one and retirement contributio...
by dad2000
Wed Jan 26, 2022 5:28 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: Target date funds ... so much for "set and forget" [and WSJ article]
Replies: 567
Views: 67539

Re: Target date funds ... so much for "set and forget" [and WSJ article]

I haven't paid attention to my investments or tax-planning as much as I used to. I just happened to come back here today after starting taxes yesterday and caught this story. Ouch. Target date funds made sense to me except for those whose entire savings were in their 401k plan, and even then it's usually possible to lower expenses by purchasing 3 index funds. I've always thought that diversification meant more than holding index funds. I diversified across brokerages (The big 3) and TreasuryDirect once net worth hit $1M. There is risk across brokerages, fund managers, and individual funds. Am I smart enough to quantify each risk? No, but I know they exist. Human error, cybersecurity and fraud are the most obvious to me. Unfortunately, there...
by dad2000
Wed Sep 29, 2021 12:37 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: To be or not to be - MD vs Computer science
Replies: 358
Views: 33078

Re: To be or not to be - MD vs Computer science

I'm just curious as to why a decision has to be made at this point.

A bright kid in high school can certainly concurrently excel in HS Science, Math, and C.S. As long as there is some depth to his college applications, he can stay in the game for both.

I succeeded in my career and built a lot of wealth largely because I had a passion for what I was doing. He should take the next year to explore both tracks via shadowing, internships, extracurriculars to find his passion. Trying to get rich doing something you don't enjoy isn't a good way to spend life.
by dad2000
Wed Sep 29, 2021 12:17 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Any Regret Over Being Too Frugal?
Replies: 220
Views: 25644

Re: Any Regret Over Being Too Frugal?

In my 50s in good health. No regrets.

It depends on the person, and even though I handle stress relatively well, I still put tremendous value on reducing it. We've seen quite a bit of financial devastation with the crash of 2008 and the pandemic, but we've coasted through with no financial worries. We own our home and have no mortgage or debt.

My wife likes to spend, and I'm the frugal one. We've struck a good balance, but have always maxed out retirement contributions and filled our kids 529s.

We take at least 2 quality vacations each year (except recently due to pandemic). Those are important.
by dad2000
Wed Sep 22, 2021 3:52 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: If I transfer $1M into vanguard, does that get any resource perks?
Replies: 16
Views: 2720

Re: If I transfer $1M into vanguard, does that get any resource perks?

I'm with VG, Fido, and Schwab and have been so for 15+ years though I started with VG for their low fees. Fees are really de minimus with all 3 at this point.

If you are looking for resource perks, I agree with others that Vanguard is not the place to go. Both Fido and Schwab have been better for me. Their local presences also give some level of comfort to my spouse.

Overall, I think Fido and Schwab have better technology than Vanguard.

I also have a background in cybersecurity. Vanguard is lagging in that regard. Nobody is bulletproof, but I think Fidelity has a definite leg up.

I haven't used Vanguard Trust services yet though I've heard great things about them. That might be a reason for me to stay.
by dad2000
Wed Mar 11, 2020 3:48 pm
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Retirement plan / AA checkup
Replies: 2
Views: 540

Re: Retirement plan / AA checkup

Well in a short span with this AA, I've gone through bull and a likely bear.

Looking back, I feel like I gauged the risk well and am happy with where I sit. I've had to ignore all the web advice that my AA was too conservative and that I was giving up a better retirement.

Pick an appropriate level of risk and stay the course.
by dad2000
Tue Jun 04, 2019 1:25 pm
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Walking Cities, potential for retirees
Replies: 102
Views: 13338

Re: Walking Cities, potential for retirees

I can think of dozens of cities, and there are plenty more I haven't been to. More importantly, your lifestyle needs to be compatible with the area.

I suggest taking a quiz that asks good questions and provides meaningful results. I like this one:
https://www.best-place-to-retire.com/pl ... etire-quiz

Then research neighborhoods in the areas that meet your criteria.