Search found 729 matches
- Sun Jan 31, 2021 7:15 am
- Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
- Topic: Market volatility due to GME/AMC - what to do?
- Replies: 30
- Views: 2280
Re: Market volatility due to GME/AMC - what to do?
In anticipation of this, i have moved my 401k from SP500 funds to stable value (4.5%). Do you have investments outside of your 401(k)? Do you have any allocation to fixed income? Are you saying your stable value fund pays 4.5%? Depending on what your global portfolio looks like that stable value fu...
- Sat Jan 30, 2021 6:44 am
- Forum: Personal Investments
- Topic: Concerned in GA
- Replies: 21
- Views: 4196
Re: Concerned in GA
Your current income of ~$4k/month (which will increase to ~$6k) exceeds your monthly expenses of $2k. Rather than withdrawing from your Roth IRA, consider using $20k of your $50k emergency fund to payoff today your $20k car loan at 3.28%. Then use your monthly excess of $2k-$4k plus your former car...
- Wed Jan 20, 2021 7:11 pm
- Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
- Topic: Buying a Rental Property - Math doesn't check out - Arguments for proceeding
- Replies: 7
- Views: 964
Re: Buying a Rental Property - Math doesn't check out - Arguments for proceeding
To clarify, you’re intending to initially live in the property and then rent it out once you buy a place to live in the part of town you want to live in long term?
- Wed Jan 20, 2021 6:55 pm
- Forum: Personal Investments
- Topic: Slightly Better Return/Slightly More Risk
- Replies: 10
- Views: 731
Re: Slightly Better Return/Slightly More Risk
If you’re willing to do some leg work you could transfer it between various bank savings accounts in order to get new account bonuses. That’ll goose your overall returns and three years is about the right amount of time to hit up all the usual suspects offering said bonuses. Typically you have to le...
- Wed Jan 20, 2021 6:50 pm
- Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
- Topic: Fed Retiree HSA - Dropping HSABank? Fidelity?
- Replies: 5
- Views: 420
- Mon Jan 04, 2021 8:59 pm
- Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
- Topic: International stocks will outperform US stocks in 2021
- Replies: 68
- Views: 6511
Re: International stocks will outperform US stocks in 2021
I’ve been predicting this for awhile - why stop now! Add me to your bandwagon.
- Sun Dec 27, 2020 3:50 pm
- Forum: Personal Investments
- Topic: Is this a case of SEP-IRA better than SOLO 401k?
- Replies: 5
- Views: 375
Re: Is this a case of SEP-IRA better than SOLO 401k?
2 - I am planning to convert the pre-tax SEP-IRA contribution into a ROTH account (along with the contribution for the backdoor). I will pay taxes on that conversion with money from a taxable account. This is the key to the analysis. If this is true for 2020 as well as any future calendar year then...
- Sun Dec 20, 2020 8:24 pm
- Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
- Topic: Buy I bonds (and/or EE bonds) if I have access to the TSP G fund?
- Replies: 7
- Views: 863
Re: Buy I bonds (and/or EE bonds) if I have access to the TSP G fund?
You may want to consider the current return from the G Fund vs. the current rate of inflation. o If only we knew that the status quo would persist . . . Very easy to correct after the first year: stop buying I-bonds, sell I-bonds, or both, and buy the fund. It really is that simple. Agreed - the ma...
- Sun Dec 20, 2020 10:41 am
- Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
- Topic: Buy I bonds (and/or EE bonds) if I have access to the TSP G fund?
- Replies: 7
- Views: 863
Re: Buy I bonds (and/or EE bonds) if I have access to the TSP G fund?
If only we knew that the status quo would persist . . .oncorhynchus wrote: ↑Sun Dec 20, 2020 9:58 am You may want to consider the current return from the G Fund vs. the current rate of inflation.
o
- Sat Dec 12, 2020 6:33 am
- Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
- Topic: Use retirement $ to pay off mortgage on rental condo?
- Replies: 25
- Views: 1475
Re: Use retirement $ to pay off mortgage on rental condo?
This is going to turn out to be a bad idea, but for people to be able to run the numbers and show you why you’ll need to provide your marginal tax rate (the “tax bracket you’re in” for federal and state taxes). If you’re not sure what your marginal tax rate is, you could provide your approximate inc...
- Sun Nov 29, 2020 7:56 pm
- Forum: Personal Investments
- Topic: Young investor needs help
- Replies: 7
- Views: 526
Re: Young investor needs help
Welcome to the forum. Answers: 1. No objection to using 100% stock in a Roth IRA. Is there a 401k at the job? If so, that would be a better place to hold bonds, assuming there is a decent choice. 2. The 500K range seems awfully high for an annual income base of $48K. Banks often don't like to rely ...
- Wed Nov 18, 2020 1:27 am
- Forum: Personal Investments
- Topic: 529 Plans and investing in equity
- Replies: 4
- Views: 457
Re: 529 Plans and investing in equity
Do some research on Coverdale ESA accounts which may provide a solution for this scenario.
- Sat Nov 14, 2020 3:45 pm
- Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
- Topic: FSA Surprisingly Better Than HSA?
- Replies: 9
- Views: 791
Re: FSA Surprisingly Better Than HSA?
What am I missing? You could say that the tax-free growth of HSA contributions is valuable, but I'm not sure it's worth being under an HDHP (for me personally). This is what you’re missing. FSA is essentially use or lose. Your plan may permit you to roll over up to $550 to the next calendar year, h...
- Tue Nov 10, 2020 10:41 am
- Forum: Personal Investments
- Topic: Converting to Roth
- Replies: 3
- Views: 455
Re: Converting to Roth
To my knowledge, the primary advantage to not commingling is asset protection/bankruptcy exemption based on state law. You’d have to balance the convenience of having just one Roth account vs the chances you would benefit from the previously referenced advantages. I think a logical person could choo...
- Sun Nov 01, 2020 6:59 am
- Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
- Topic: Ally Bank Removed Online Early Withdrawal From No-Penalty CDs
- Replies: 121
- Views: 11617
Re: Ally Bank Removed Online Early Withdrawal From No-Penalty CDs
I did two NP CD withdrawals in August and September at Ally. After waiting twenty minutes with a rep to do the September withdrawal I asked why I can’t withdraw online anymore. The rep told me it was for security issues. Some story about breaches and what not. Do I believe the rep? Not really. Do I...
- Thu Oct 29, 2020 6:09 pm
- Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
- Topic: FEHB and "coordination of benefits" with Medicare
- Replies: 11
- Views: 700
Re: FEHB and "coordination of benefits" with Medicare
None that I know of. You can either go plan by plan and look at the materials provided by the insurers (this isn’t as daunting as it may seem since at least in my opinion there’s only a handful of logical choices per state for most situations). Alternatively, you can spend a bit of money and get wha...
- Thu Oct 15, 2020 1:28 pm
- Forum: Personal Investments
- Topic: Extra $1000 a month. What do I do?
- Replies: 38
- Views: 3307
Re: Extra $1000 a month. What do I do?
I’d put it towards the mortgage. Maybe also refi into a 15 or 10 yr with a better rate? Your rate is good, however, so keeping the 30 yr and paying extra is also a good option IMO. +1 You could do a low cost refi into a 10 year mortgage at around 2.5%. You could earmark the 529 money for your oldes...
- Mon Sep 28, 2020 5:42 am
- Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
- Topic: Joe Montana vs S&P since 1981 $1 invested
- Replies: 28
- Views: 5809
Re: Joe Montana vs S&P since 1981 $1 invested
Tony lived in Miami not San Francisco. Though I do think his real estate also ended up being in unacceptable disrepair.
- Fri Sep 25, 2020 12:46 am
- Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
- Topic: Large Nest Egg...should I run a deficit to pay a larger mortgage?
- Replies: 40
- Views: 3118
Re: Large Nest Egg...should I run a deficit to pay a larger mortgage?
Alas, this isn't an option to do 2 separate loans....maybe a HELOC later? Yes, I would do the conforming mortgage plus a HELOC if you don’t want so much capital out of the market and in your house. You should be able to source a HELOC not considerably higher than 2.75% and the interest would still ...
- Thu Sep 24, 2020 12:36 pm
- Forum: Personal Investments
- Topic: Pay more on 2.49% car loan or invest in taxable?
- Replies: 33
- Views: 2644
Re: Pay more on 2.49% car loan or invest in taxable?
I would pay off the loan and if you have any bonds funds, reduce any money going to bonds by an equivalent amount and instead have the money going into equity funds. +1 I’d pay off the car as well. In my view, one of the major paradigm shifts of this low interest rate environment should be to commi...
- Sun Sep 20, 2020 7:25 pm
- Forum: Personal Investments
- Topic: Any (legal) “loophole” for unused 529 funds?
- Replies: 14
- Views: 1494
- Sat Sep 19, 2020 7:57 pm
- Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
- Topic: Aggressive SL Debt Pay down v. Not meeting other goals
- Replies: 40
- Views: 2330
- Wed Sep 16, 2020 4:56 pm
- Forum: Personal Investments
- Topic: Prepay student loans OR megabackdoor Roth? (26 y/o in Biglaw; 190k salary; 180k debt)
- Replies: 82
- Views: 5357
Re: Prepay student loans OR megabackdoor Roth? (26 y/o in Biglaw; 190k salary; 180k debt)
Conservative investments at your age in Roth is a waste. You have time on your side. Your Roth space should be 100% equities. You are better paying off your loans than wasting roth space in that manner. Not if it’s a side fund earmarked for paying off his student loans in the event of an unexpected...
- Wed Sep 16, 2020 2:26 pm
- Forum: Personal Investments
- Topic: Prepay student loans OR megabackdoor Roth? (26 y/o in Biglaw; 190k salary; 180k debt)
- Replies: 82
- Views: 5357
Re: Prepay student loans OR megabackdoor Roth? (26 y/o in Biglaw; 190k salary; 180k debt)
Does the above at all affect your advice? If it doesn't affect your advice, then is that because you think it's unlikely that I'll be to fully psychologically equate the Roth IRA amounts with paying off my debt [if so, I think that that's a fair point] or is it instead for some other reason? Thank ...
- Sun Sep 13, 2020 4:59 am
- Forum: Personal Investments
- Topic: Ally Bank Not Reliable
- Replies: 50
- Views: 5140
Re: Ally Bank Not Reliable
I have never done business with Ally Bank, so I have no first hand experience with them. Since joining bogleheads, I have been mystified by the way that many of our members put Ally on a pedestal, just as they do with Vanguard. Whether or not Vanguard should be on a pedestal is a different topic, b...
- Thu Sep 10, 2020 5:21 pm
- Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
- Topic: Should we buy a $3M+ house with parental help?
- Replies: 167
- Views: 12237
Re: Should we buy a $3M+ house with parental help?
+1 I guess I’m confused, since when can’t $800k per year in income service a $1.5M mortgage? [OT comment removed by moderator oldcomputerguy]
- Fri Sep 04, 2020 5:09 pm
- Forum: Personal Investments
- Topic: Continue to save in Tax Deferred Accounts?
- Replies: 19
- Views: 2267
Re: Continue to save in Tax Deferred Accounts?
Do you currently file your taxes as a single? Any chance you’ll get married in the future?
- Thu Sep 03, 2020 5:58 pm
- Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
- Topic: 1031 exchange, LLC and buying out partners?
- Replies: 27
- Views: 1698
- Thu Sep 03, 2020 4:57 pm
- Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
- Topic: Federal Health Ins For New Young Federal Employee
- Replies: 15
- Views: 846
Re: Federal Health Ins For New Young Federal Employee
If he’s healthy GEHA High Deductible Health Plan is a no-brainer. Includes basic vision and dental coverage (obviating need for FEDVIP) and funds the HSA with $900 (lowering the net overall premium). Your son should consider fully funding the HSA and investing the money at TD Ameritrade (GEHA facili...
- Tue Sep 01, 2020 7:42 pm
- Forum: Personal Investments
- Topic: New Member- Thinking of Leaving Asset Builder-DFA
- Replies: 3
- Views: 312
Re: New Member- Thinking of Leaving Asset Builder-DFA
If it was me I would go with option 2 in this case and slowly move into a 3 to 5 fund port after you understand the tax ramifications better. +1 Option #2 is the best path forward. Perhaps overtime you’ll become more comfortable with using ETFs which is probably a better long term solution than the...
- Sun Aug 23, 2020 9:34 am
- Forum: Personal Investments
- Topic: Am I being too conservative?
- Replies: 19
- Views: 2229
Re: Am I being too conservative?
30F with a DH and 2 year old Making 160k a year between the two of us House of 425k is paid off Only debt is 9k on a tractor loan at 0% APR My asset allocation was 90/10 and the 10% was in IBonds. However after maxing out 401ks/IRAs/529, I only have about 10k extra a year and I'm questioning whethe...
- Sat Aug 22, 2020 10:31 am
- Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
- Topic: Traditional Mortgage or HELOC for a Smallish Figure?
- Replies: 10
- Views: 709
Re: Traditional Mortgage or HELOC for a Smallish Figure?
HELOC is probably the best option. Cash out refinances tend to have higher interest rates and will also have closing costs associated with them. HELOC probably won’t have closing costs, and although the interest rate is often variable you can probably find a rate that is competitive with the cash ou...
- Thu Jul 30, 2020 1:49 pm
- Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
- Topic: House Sale Proceeds?
- Replies: 4
- Views: 398
- Sun Jul 19, 2020 4:09 pm
- Forum: Personal Investments
- Topic: I strayed..
- Replies: 10
- Views: 2682
Re: I strayed..
Perhaps you could sell the ETFs and buy your life strategy mutual funds with the proceeds. You’d have to realize about $1,400 in short term gains by doing so. On a tax adjusted basis you still come out ahead of the life strategy fund so alls well that ends well as they say.
- Sat Jul 18, 2020 10:21 am
- Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
- Topic: DFA Entering ETF space
- Replies: 37
- Views: 4099
Re: DFA to launch active ETFs
This seemed inevitable. If they end up fleshing this out to the point that regular old retail investors can invest with DFA I wonder what that does to their mutual fund business model? Seems like they’d almost have to stick to core type ETFs.
- Wed Jul 15, 2020 5:02 pm
- Forum: Personal Investments
- Topic: Partial Conversion to Roth with no tax
- Replies: 6
- Views: 671
Re: Partial Conversion to Roth with no tax
If you can convert at 0% federal tax rate you should do it but do be aware that you may end up owing state tax on the conversion.
- Sun Jul 12, 2020 1:02 pm
- Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
- Topic: Should my Mother file form 706?
- Replies: 6
- Views: 479
Re: Should my Mother file form 706?
if these transfers qualify for the marital deduction (outright transfers to US citizen spouses do), it may not be too bad to get the 706 completed. If the whole estate qualifies for the marital deduction, you’d be porting all of his unused exemption to your mother. Assuming no prior taxable gifts, ...
- Thu Jul 09, 2020 6:38 pm
- Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
- Topic: Should my Mother file form 706?
- Replies: 6
- Views: 479
Re: Should my Mother file form 706?
The upside of filing the 706 is that your mother’s heirs will receive the benefit of $11M+ estate tax exemption, even if the estate tax exemption amount is reduced in the future. I personally think it’s worthwhile insurance. If you don’t want to pay someone to file the 706 for you try filing it out ...
- Mon Jul 06, 2020 8:42 am
- Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
- Topic: Should I look at mortgage refinance? (I suspect no)
- Replies: 42
- Views: 3007
Re: Should I look at mortgage refinance? (I suspect no)
With your interest rate that high vs prevailing levels, I'd say you should very much refinance. You can choose to go the "no-cost" route, where you will sell points (accept a slightly higher interest rate vs the prevailing 2.5% for 15 year mortgage). Maybe you end up getting 2.75% or some...
- Sun Jul 05, 2020 4:45 pm
- Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
- Topic: Simple retirement plan. Crazy idea?
- Replies: 49
- Views: 6061
Re: Simple retirement plan. Crazy idea?
Seems like an awfully logical plan to me. I’m sure there’s plenty of details you could nit pick over and try to optimize, but that approach is probably good enough in most situations.
- Tue Jun 30, 2020 7:46 pm
- Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
- Topic: Whether to ditch FEGLI at age 62
- Replies: 2
- Views: 348
Re: Whether to ditch FEGLI at age 62
If you have an heir that you would like to have the money, and assume an age of death far beyond how long you think you’ll live, you can calculate the ROI on what the tax free death benefit will be based upon the remaining premiums to be paid. All premiums that have been paid to date are a sunk cost...
- Wed Jun 24, 2020 9:28 am
- Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
- Topic: What loan product to choose?
- Replies: 4
- Views: 235
Re: What loan product to choose?
It all depends on how certain you are about how long you’ll be in the home. I don’t think the current delta (either across the board or the specific rates you quoted) between adjustable rate and fixed rate mortgages adequately compensate the borrower for assuming the interest rate risk (at least the...
- Sat Jun 06, 2020 8:21 pm
- Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
- Topic: Federal employees- will mypay allow you to over contribute to HSA?
- Replies: 11
- Views: 609
Re: Federal employees- will mypay allow you to over contribute to HSA?
Did you make any overpayment for the full year ($7100 family or $3550 individual)? This also includes contributions made by your plan. If the answer is no, then just reduce future contributions to not exceed yearly limits. If the answer is yes, fill this form out: https://www.hsabank.com/hsabank/~/...
- Sat May 30, 2020 12:14 pm
- Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
- Topic: Best One Stop Shop w/ banking & leveraged funds
- Replies: 12
- Views: 1181
Re: Ally vs. M1 (One Stop Shop w/ banking & leveraged funds)
I know there’s a lot of threads on one stop shops you’ve probably reviewed. Based on what you posted seems like Schwab is the best fit. Schwab Bank also offers a 1.5% cash back credit card that’s probably good enough if you really want everything under one roof.
- Wed May 20, 2020 6:25 pm
- Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
- Topic: what to do about 1000s of dandelions/weeds?
- Replies: 60
- Views: 5144
Re: what to do about 1000s of dandelions/weeds?
With two acres I’m afraid you’ll have to choose between chemical pesticides or dandelions.
- Mon May 18, 2020 8:38 pm
- Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
- Topic: Roth IRA Contributions vs. HELOC
- Replies: 7
- Views: 389
Re: Roth IRA Contributions vs. HELOC
Wife: Where’s our emergency fund?tashnewbie wrote: ↑Mon May 18, 2020 8:28 pm Is she comfortable (temporarily) depleting your EF to repair deck?
Lloyd: That’s as good as an emergency fund, that’s an IOU. See this? That’s a deck, 10 thou, might want to hang on to that one.
- Mon May 18, 2020 8:21 pm
- Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
- Topic: Mortgage - 15 year versus 30 year if both at same interest rate
- Replies: 26
- Views: 3783
Re: Mortgage - 15 year versus 30 year if both at same interest rate
Yes. Pay extra principal to true up to the 15 year monthly payment if you want it to be a 15 year mortgage and it will turn out the same.
- Mon May 18, 2020 8:19 pm
- Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
- Topic: Roth IRA Contributions vs. HELOC
- Replies: 7
- Views: 389
Re: Roth IRA Contributions vs. HELOC
You could finish off your 2019 Roth contributions using your emergency fund and leave the contributions invested in a money market fund until your emergency fund is replenished. This makes sure you beat the contribution deadline, an if you need the emergency fund you can always pull the money back o...
- Mon May 18, 2020 4:53 pm
- Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
- Topic: Rethinking Fees and Challenging the Status Quo with Rick Ferri
- Replies: 4
- Views: 1030
Re: Rethinking Fees and Challenging the Status Quo with Rick Ferri
Link doesn’t appear to be working.
- Sun May 17, 2020 4:46 pm
- Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
- Topic: Turned down for Amex Blue Cash Preferred CC...
- Replies: 12
- Views: 1504
Re: Turned down for Amex Blue Cash Preferred CC...
I wish I had the discipline like many of you have to keep up with what Discover IT is covering this quarter. I'm lucky if I keep my passport and drivers license current b :| That’s understandable and reasonable. For what it’s worth, DoubleCash/IT/Freedom is probably the best “good enough” combo tha...