Search found 339 matches

by sfnerd
Tue Mar 05, 2024 5:52 am
Forum: Non-US Investing
Topic: [Foreign Bank Account Reporting for Spouses With Individual Accounts, combined over $10K]
Replies: 7
Views: 2434

Re: [Foreign Bank Account Reporting for Spouses With Individual Accounts, combined over $10K]

Thank you, sfnerd. Our two foreign bank accounts are both individual accounts with no joint authority. They are both non-interest bearing accounts so they don’t generate any income. We don’t live in a community property state in the USA. As I recall, the FBAR form asks us to report the highest value of the accounts in US dollars during the year. If the minimum reporting requirement is $10,000 and the highest value was, for example, only $8,000, it seems odd to report that below minimum sum. Again, many thanks! MichDad My pleasure. One other thing is that if there is joint ownership (even if the other person has no signatory authority), you may want to file as well, because technically you have authority over the account, even if it's not s...
by sfnerd
Sat Mar 02, 2024 11:14 pm
Forum: Non-US Investing
Topic: [Foreign Bank Account Reporting for Spouses With Individual Accounts, combined over $10K]
Replies: 7
Views: 2434

Re: [Foreign Bank Account Reporting for Spouses With Individual Accounts, combined over $10K]

FBAR is filed per person, so technically you could probably get away with not filing. However, if one of you has signatory authority over the other person's account, or if these accounts are community property (funded with income earned during marriage in a community property state), you will be beyond the $10k threshold and need to report. Honestly though, you should probably just file. It takes like 5 minutes and then you don't have to worry about it. It's not an IRS filing, so there are no other implications. Not filing an FBAR has some very serious (though rarely applied) penalties, including jail time. If you maintain foreign accounts, it's good to get into the habit of filing yearly. As far as tax is concerned, you should be already r...
by sfnerd
Sat Nov 04, 2023 11:27 pm
Forum: Non-US Investing
Topic: Question for Thailand Bogleheads
Replies: 15
Views: 5470

Re: Question for Thailand Bogleheads

... You probably already read about it but the rules are going to change apparently on the 1st of January. https://kpmg.com/xx/en/home/insights/2023/10/flash-alert-2023-189.html#:~:text=However%2C%20the%20new%20interpretation%20means,foreign%2Dsourced%20income%20was%20earned. (background: I lived and worked in Thailand for 6 years, but do not live there now) This law is going to be very interesting, and my bet is that it will be clarified and changed over the next few years. In its current form, it's very hard to enforce, and requires quite a bit of self reporting. How do you prove that the money you bring into the country is capital gains, interest, dividends, wages, or principle? At the moment, it appears this law will mostly be used to ...
by sfnerd
Thu Sep 07, 2023 5:03 am
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Engagmenet in 5 months - prenup questions for newbie
Replies: 105
Views: 11173

Re: Engagmenet in 5 months - prenup questions for newbie

Definitely not worth a prenup. I did one, but I was a bit older than you and had many millions saved, while she is a spender. I hope to never use the prenup!

Down the road, 150k won't seem like much at all to you. If you get divorced in the next few years, you most likely wouldn't lose the money either (if the lawyers don't take it).
by sfnerd
Mon May 29, 2023 11:58 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: "Should couples combine finances or keep personal accounts?"
Replies: 236
Views: 25898

Re: "Should couples combine finances or keep personal accounts?"

My wife has access to all of our marital assets, but she maintains separate accounts for her salary and spending. I make a lot of money, and she makes very little. I pay for all of the household expenses out of our marital accounts, and I place in a mutually agreed upon spending allowance into her accounts each month. My wife is not good with money. She spends, without fail, every dime of her salary and her spending allowance. If we were to put 10x the amount in her accounts every month. This is just the way she is, and has no desire to change or save or anything else. The separate accounts give her the "safety" to live out her spendthrift ways without the danger of ending up broke. If we didn't set it up this way, and she just sp...
by sfnerd
Sat Feb 04, 2023 10:45 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: What Age & How Much Money? (Your Plan)
Replies: 185
Views: 26022

Re: What Age & How Much Money? (Your Plan)

Current Age: early 40s
Current Portfolio: $10m+ (liquid stock/bonds/cash is ~10m, illiquid assets are a probably worth a few million, maybe more)
Target for Retirement: I'm ready to stop when work no longer feels worth it
Target Retirement Age: I'll force myself to stop around 50 to pursue other life goals
by sfnerd
Thu Jan 05, 2023 2:54 am
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: REGISTRATION FOR THE 2023 BOGLEHEAD CONTEST
Replies: 672
Views: 40220

Re: REGISTRATION FOR THE 2023 BOGLEHEAD CONTEST

4907

My (most likely incorrect, but hey it's just for fun) guess: I think the market will dip as the economy works through a slowdown in the first half of the year, but will pick up as the fed starts to signal that they will consider lower rates in the future if the economy weakens further, the war in Ukraine starts to see a path to resolution, and as inflation dissipates. Then there will be a brief overheating, above 5000, but late in the year the fed will be like "wait wait wait, no soup for you" and the market will cool back to 4907.

OK, enough fantasy for me, back to work!
by sfnerd
Fri Dec 02, 2022 11:01 pm
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Vested Stock Options After Company Split
Replies: 3
Views: 496

Re: Vested Stock Options After Company Split

There is really no way to know this. Your options agreement probably says that they can do anything they want.

Practically though they would probably issue in proportion and expiration to the original option contract. The other thing they might make you do is exercise to obtain the new shares. Another possibility is that they give you more options in the original company (to offset the value lost in the spinout).

But really the only one who knows is the company, unless it's specified in your options agreement.

If you exercise the options though, you know for sure since it's publicly traded.
by sfnerd
Sun Aug 28, 2022 9:08 am
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Retire? 53 / M / $1.75M with AA 10% / 0% / 90%
Replies: 34
Views: 8425

Re: Retire? 53 / M / $1.75M with AA 10% / 0% / 90%

You'll be fine, but the 10% stock would scare me, personally. Like others have mentioned, inflation is really your biggest risk, and we're seeing now that it's not a small risk.

I would sleep better at a higher stock allocation (to me I feel less than 50% is risky; but every person is different). The fact is, even if your predecessors didn't live so long, remember that you might. General access to medicine, healthy food/water, and other factors might mean a longer lifetime. Add "luck" into the mix, and you could easily live to 90+.
by sfnerd
Fri Aug 26, 2022 12:25 am
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Buy SPIA now that rates have gone up?
Replies: 5
Views: 1233

Re: Buy SPIA now that rates have gone up?

It doesn't make sense to purchase an SPIA that starts paying immediately if you don't need the money now. I would keep the money (conservatively) invested based on the time you think you're going to retire, then purchase an SPIA at that point.

If you do the SPIA now, you're yielding 5.6%, but inflation is higher than that, and on top of it you're paying some tax on the distributions. So you get almost no benefit and you lose flexibility.

If you're absolutely sure you'll want to buy an SPIA though, purchasing one now that starts paying 10 years in the future (or whenever you plan to retire) might make sense. Personally I'd just wait though.
by sfnerd
Sat Jul 23, 2022 9:12 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Separate property and "fairness" in marriage
Replies: 129
Views: 13726

Re: Separate property and "fairness" in marriage

I'll make an assumption here that divorce is not anywhere on the horizon or in consideration, you just want to be "fair", and perhaps avoid potential uneasiness from perception that her money is used for everything while yours is "saved". I don't have legal advice, just will say what I think I'll do in your situation: your pre-marriage finances are close enough that combining everything and not ever worrying about it is the way to go. I'd decide to treat everything as joint (so everything is 50/50 if you need to split it in the future for whatever reason), and if she agrees and feels comfortable with the idea (you having slightly more going into marriage probably helps the conversation) I'd print out a note to the effec...
by sfnerd
Fri Jul 08, 2022 7:31 pm
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Retire at 43? Good idea?
Replies: 128
Views: 16199

Re: Retire at 43? Good idea?

You have plenty of money, and your portfolio is fine. I might exchange some cash for bonds, but frankly whatever you do will be just fine.

In fact, you have so much money that the most important thing is to just do what makes you happy. If that’s work, then work. If it’s something else, do that.

Not sure what business you are in, but one strategy might be to hire someone to run it (and incentivize them). Then you can gradually disconnect from the day to day work. If you find that you miss it, you can always go back to help growing the business. If not, let the new guy/gal fully take over.

Congrats on your success. Enjoy it!
by sfnerd
Fri Jul 08, 2022 8:37 am
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: 2 potential negatives to renting a house never discussed?
Replies: 34
Views: 4549

Re: 2 potential negatives to renting a house never discussed?

If you’re worried about moving, why not just do a longer term lease?
by sfnerd
Fri Jul 08, 2022 8:31 am
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Detroit area 3 day visit
Replies: 18
Views: 1633

Re: Detroit area 3 day visit

+1 for the DIA

Also this:
https://www.heidelberg.org/
by sfnerd
Thu Jul 07, 2022 10:34 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: [Allan Roth -- Why stay at Vanguard?]
Replies: 116
Views: 11752

Re: Why stay at Vanguard?

burritoLover wrote: Thu Jul 07, 2022 12:52 pm
rkhusky wrote: Thu Jul 07, 2022 12:48 pm
burritoLover wrote: Thu Jul 07, 2022 12:01 pm After learning about Fidelty's "lockdown" feature - it is making me want to switch. I had transferred some assets out of Vanguard and there was no warning whatsoever - no notifications, nothing - despite having notifications for other transactions. Just poof - gone.
Did you have Asset Transfer alerts turned on?
This was a while back - can't recall that specifically but I turned on all notifications at the time. But, regardless, there doesn't seem to be a way to lock-down a Vanguard account from being transferred out in the first place.
This is why I keep the lion’s share of my money with Fidelity. Their security is much better than the rest. Their tech is much better. No fees, and access to low expense ratio ETFs.
by sfnerd
Sat Jun 25, 2022 10:07 pm
Forum: Non-US Investing
Topic: At least -50% in next 2 years - Michael Burry and David Wright
Replies: 91
Views: 13335

Re: At least -50% in next 2 years - Michael Burry and David Wright

Michael Burry might be saying the sky is falling, but he’s also loading up on tech and travel stocks in his portfolio.

Remember that these gurus are making these high level predictions, but rarely are they “all in” or all out as the case may be.

These experts use complicated derivative strategies to try to profit if some of these big problems materialize, but usually only with a small portion of their capital.
by sfnerd
Sun May 22, 2022 6:43 am
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Booking.com vs. hotel website, number of guests
Replies: 20
Views: 2075

Re: Booking.com vs. hotel website, number of guests

Booking.com is definitely not a scam. It’s a publicly traded company (BKNG) and one of the biggest travel companies in the world (maybe the biggest… depends on the market).

The OP’s problems are probably due to a rate misconfiguration between booking.com and the hotel’s channel management software. The inventory appears to be available but then fails to secure the rate at the time of purchase.
by sfnerd
Sun Apr 10, 2022 2:49 am
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: What do you think of ITOT and IVV?
Replies: 44
Views: 4544

Re: What do you think of ITOT and IVV?

I just don't understand why they even made that law. If you take a loss and buy it back, that makes the cost basis lower. So when you sell the following year, you have higher gains, and puts the person in a higher tax bracket. Yeah I agree that even the idea of "capital loss harvesting" goes against the spirit of the law, because the IRS doesn't want you doing this at all. They just want you to unfairly take your money. Who signed this law into place anyways? They have the law because you don't actually have a capital loss. You aren't materially changing your portfolio, you just engaged in financial engineering to swap effectively the same assets. You are selecting when to realize losses, but not gains. TLH pairs are a hack aroun...
by sfnerd
Sat Apr 09, 2022 10:59 pm
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: What do you think of ITOT and IVV?
Replies: 44
Views: 4544

Re: What do you think of ITOT and IVV?

I just don't understand why they even made that law. If you take a loss and buy it back, that makes the cost basis lower. So when you sell the following year, you have higher gains, and puts the person in a higher tax bracket. Yeah I agree that even the idea of "capital loss harvesting" goes against the spirit of the law, because the IRS doesn't want you doing this at all. They just want you to unfairly take your money. Who signed this law into place anyways? They have the law because you don't actually have a capital loss. You aren't materially changing your portfolio, you just engaged in financial engineering to swap effectively the same assets. You are selecting when to realize losses, but not gains. TLH pairs are a hack aroun...
by sfnerd
Fri Apr 08, 2022 10:40 pm
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: The Bogleheads’ approach to laptops
Replies: 100
Views: 9307

Re: The Bogleheads’ approach to laptops

I have both a macbook pro and a lenovo carbon (lightweight business laptop). I have other laptops too, but those are my main ones.

Depends on how you use it... the macbook pro has a really nice, big screen. It's pretty good for coding if I'm not connected to monitors.

The Carbon is lightweight and small (much like a macbook air), cheap (relatively), and lasts a really long time (I've had several, I trade them out after 3 years for the new model, but the old one is always still going strong). For travel and around the house, I like the Carbon.

For most people, I'd recommend a light lenovo or hp notebook. I personally find the macs a bit heavy, slow to update, and generally fairly expensive for what you get.
by sfnerd
Mon Mar 28, 2022 11:11 am
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Does your employer have any bizarre rules for meetings with executive mgmt?
Replies: 39
Views: 3173

Re: Does your employer have any bizarre rules for meetings with executive mgmt?

The pin thing is super weird, mostly because it's a pin. What if you don't like holes in your shirts? What if you just lose it or it bends or something?

Crazy.

I wouldn't leave only because of the pin. If someone really wanted me to wear a pin I guess I would...

What if you poke yourself accidentally? Does the company health plan cover it?
by sfnerd
Mon Mar 21, 2022 10:45 am
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: How difficult is it to get a job in Tech if you are "older"?
Replies: 405
Views: 38217

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

To the OP: I'm sure you could get hired. I have hired a lot of older engineers, and if you have skills and drive, someone will want you.

It sounds like you're only 1 year away from retirement though, with a part time stint for half of it. You also sound demotivated. Personally in your shoes I'd call it a nice career and tough out the next several months. Finding a new job would probably just be wasting everyone's time.

Enjoy your retirement. After 33 years you deserve it!

:sharebeer
by sfnerd
Sun Mar 20, 2022 8:54 am
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: By age 70 how many times expenses?
Replies: 27
Views: 3623

Re: By age 70 how many times expenses?

I think 25 is a good goal to think about when you're young, but if you get to 70 it's probably a bit smaller, like 20-23x.

Realistically though, if I was 70 and still working, I'd be trimming my expenses to get down to wherever I could retire. At that stage if you have a sizable portfolio, the probability of enjoying excess savings is low.
by sfnerd
Sat Feb 12, 2022 7:43 am
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Garmin and Coros watches
Replies: 28
Views: 2161

Re: Garmin and Coros watches

Garmin here. I run, cycle, dive, and do a bunch of other stuff. The descent mk2 is awesome. Not cheap but it handles everything above and below water, so it's my go to.
by sfnerd
Mon Dec 27, 2021 6:06 am
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Fidelity vs Schwab
Replies: 80
Views: 10074

Re: Fidelity vs Schwab

Several threads comparing the two, so I'll keep it brief. I have large accounts (enough to get top treatment) at both. They are both really great (certainly the top 2).

If you're mostly going to be in the US, I prefer Fidelity (slightly better site, good products, great customer service).

If you're going to travel outside the US a good amount (several international trips per year) or live internationally (I live in Asia, and I traveled constantly pre-Covid), then definitely go with Schwab, as they handle international issues much better than Fidelity.

Honestly though, you can't really lose with either of them.
by sfnerd
Sun Dec 26, 2021 11:32 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Flying first/business
Replies: 79
Views: 8639

Re: Flying first/business

My point of the question was just to get personal opinions from people out there when they felt like hey I can spend 5K on this business class flight because its not a crazy amount of money or its not going to break the bank. If someone, tomorrow, asked if you would sit in a somewhat uncomfortable chair and read a book or watch a couple of movies for 7 hours, and they would pay you $5,000, what would you say? $700 an hour to read a book or watch movies is a pretty good deal, and most of us would take it. I have no problem flying coach for 2-4 hours domestic. International, I only hate flying overnight and to the east. Which unfortunately is most flights to Europe so far for me. No issues with flying west for 7-8 hours during the day... I w...
by sfnerd
Sun Dec 26, 2021 10:28 pm
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Global Entry- renew or not?
Replies: 92
Views: 8567

Re: Global Entry- renew or not?

Thanks for the responses. I am going to renew it online and hope that I don't need an interview. I am not sure why you would for a renewal unless you were convicted of a crime or had odd travel patterns. At my initial "interview" they asked almost nothing. Even if you need an interview it's super easy. 5 minutes on Zoom. They basically asked me one question: was my travel for work or pleasure? I think I had to do the interview because I've visited some places like China, Saudi Arabia, etc. several times which might be suspicious. Or it might be random. Either way it was quite simple. Just have your passport and other documents ready to show. Thats interesting. I spent 6 months traveling back and forth to KSA once a week and didn'...
by sfnerd
Sat Dec 25, 2021 10:07 pm
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Global Entry- renew or not?
Replies: 92
Views: 8567

Re: Global Entry- renew or not?

michaeljc70 wrote: Sat Dec 25, 2021 9:37 am Thanks for the responses. I am going to renew it online and hope that I don't need an interview. I am not sure why you would for a renewal unless you were convicted of a crime or had odd travel patterns. At my initial "interview" they asked almost nothing.
Even if you need an interview it's super easy. 5 minutes on Zoom. They basically asked me one question: was my travel for work or pleasure?

I think I had to do the interview because I've visited some places like China, Saudi Arabia, etc. several times which might be suspicious. Or it might be random. Either way it was quite simple. Just have your passport and other documents ready to show.
by sfnerd
Fri Dec 24, 2021 11:29 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Fidelity free Turbotax [2016 - 2021]
Replies: 1053
Views: 147450

Re: Fidelity free Turbotax

I downloaded successfully last week. I've always had it with Fidelity since moving some money there about 6 or 7 years ago. I've always had more than 2m with them (so always private client), so I don't know the cutoff for free TT but it seems like it is around 1m from what friends have noted.
by sfnerd
Fri Dec 24, 2021 11:07 pm
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Global Entry- renew or not?
Replies: 92
Views: 8567

Re: Global Entry- renew or not?

I just renewed a few months ago. I was surprised to see they offered zoom interviews. It was super easy. It already paid off as it saved me an hour long wait entering the US, plus a few TSA precheck flights inside the states, so already worth it in time saved for me.

Totally worth it if you fly a bit and hate waiting for things 😀
by sfnerd
Wed Dec 08, 2021 3:38 am
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Rent or buy a tux for a fancy wedding
Replies: 48
Views: 4078

Re: Rent or buy a tux for a fancy wedding

I bought a tux over 10 years ago for ~$1800, and I've probably worn it 30 times. It is still in great shape and looks good. While I didn't intend for it to be a good financial decision, it was. A lot of galas and other formal events I guess. If you're going to be attending black tie events more than a couple times in the next 5-10 years, definitely buy. It's a good investment and you'll look good because it will be a more modern look and it will be tailored to you. If you have a tux and the significant other says you're going to a black tie wedding or something it's nice to know you don't have to worry about what to wear. With rentals, just make sure you find a good spot. Often it's hard to find a place that has decent tuxedos. Some make it...
by sfnerd
Sat Nov 06, 2021 11:57 pm
Forum: Non-US Investing
Topic: Retirement planning for Expat to Bolivia
Replies: 19
Views: 3139

Re: Retirement planning for Expat to Bolivia

First - living outside of the US is a fun and exciting thing. I moved to Thailand with my wife in our mid 30s, and it's been great (and Thailand was spared a lot of the problems of the pandemic during 2020 as they locked borders, so long story short we were able to enjoy the islands and countryside while the rest of the world was locked down). We will probably move countries (to Singapore, HK, Philippines, etc.) at least one time to experience more of the region. We did it a bit differently though in that (a) we're not retired, we work in Asia, and (b) we have enough money to retire virtually anywhere if we want to. While I can't comment on retirement, I can give some info on living abroad in general. Here are some thoughts: Include trips b...
by sfnerd
Thu Nov 04, 2021 12:19 am
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Downshifting in early 30s (Am I Delusional?)
Replies: 85
Views: 11640

Re: Downshifting in early 30s (Am I Delusional?)

If you have 2m at 35, and plan to retire at 65, you need about a 5.5% rate of return to hit $10m. Obviously if you want 10m nominally, the rate of return is nominal. If you want 10m in today's purchasing power, you will need a 5.5% real rate of return. [Excel formula: =FV(0.055, 30, 0, -2000000)]. This assumes you never touch this money, and never add to it (get a job that pays the bills but not much more). Is a 5.5% return possible? Definitely. Will it happen? Who knows. You're trying to guess at a lot of variables (stable job for 30 years, retirement date, returns, etc.). If I were you I'd model my expenses over time and run some "what if" scenarios (job loss, illness, etc.) to be sure. However, if you don't have crazy expenses,...
by sfnerd
Fri Oct 29, 2021 3:13 am
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Considering Moving Banking to Schwab
Replies: 26
Views: 4739

Re: Considering Moving Banking to Schwab

I have a fairly complicated financial life (live abroad, visit US often, lots of stuff going on in the US) and Schwab works for me (no traditional bank in the mix).

Schwab is great.
by sfnerd
Sun Oct 24, 2021 3:12 am
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: How to deal with people saying you were wrong about bitcoin?
Replies: 5
Views: 1570

Re: How to deal with people saying you were wrong about bitcoin?

Just tell them that you're focused on long term investing, and that you can get to your goal without taking on too much speculative risk.

There are a lot of things to focus on in life. The great thing about a buy and hold index strategy is that you don't need to do much at all. Risky and speculative assets take a lot of time to research and manage. I'd rather spend that time on other stuff.
by sfnerd
Sat Oct 23, 2021 11:01 pm
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Relocating to Bay Area - Where to live (Rent)?
Replies: 45
Views: 3812

Re: Relocating to Bay Area - Where to live (Rent)?

I agree with the other posters here saying to avoid the bridge, but with the caveat that from SF it might not be bad (you would be going in the opposite direction of traffic). However, given that you don't want to live in the city, Marin, San Rafael, Novato, etc. will probably be your best bet. The commute from East Bay isn't terrible, but can sometimes get bad around holidays and stuff. Before you buy, make sure you feel like you'll be with your company for several years (as much as it's possible). When I lived in SF I knew TONS of people who had purchased in the north or east and now had to travel south, and vice versa. They were all pretty miserable. Good luck. The Bay Area is absolutely wonderful, and I hope you love it as much as we di...
by sfnerd
Sat Oct 16, 2021 1:10 am
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: US Health Insurance while overseas?
Replies: 7
Views: 1451

Re: US Health Insurance while overseas?

Hello - I'm an expat, so I've had to research this quite a bit. If you will only be gone from the US temporarily (3-6 months or less), you probably want to keep your insurance and also get cheap travel insurance. This will allow you to be treated in the US for any long term conditions (say you get cancer while abroad), while the travel insurance will cover small things wherever you travel (your US insurance may as well, so check with them). If you are relocating, you can get an international policy that will cover you abroad, and potentially in the US too, but this is more expensive. Check with either Cigna or Aetna International for quotes (there are others too). Whatever you do, make sure you have a core insurance policy wherever home is....
by sfnerd
Sun Oct 10, 2021 12:16 am
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: You retired with only 5x - 10x. Now what?
Replies: 304
Views: 38813

Re: You retired with only 5x - 10x. Now what?

I think the OP is asking "what would you do with your portfolio" in this situation. Obviously if you are at 5-10x after accounting for Social Security and pensions, you are at risk of running out of money. The result of running out of money might not be that bad (if you have decent SS or a pension, you can still survive and eat, etc., and probably live a good life), or it might be really bad (small or no SS or pension, high non-covered medical expenses, etc.). As others have mentioned, plenty of people are in this situation. Remember that the SWR is quite conservative, so things might just work out. The more likely scenario is that the person will need to drastically reduce spending as they age. At 10x (again, assuming SS is alrea...
by sfnerd
Wed Oct 06, 2021 9:38 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Is Software Development/ Programming Oversaturated?
Replies: 209
Views: 21511

Re: Is Software Development/ Programming Oversaturated?

I've worked in software engineering for about 25 years, and I've spent the last decade+ growing running massive engineering teams (many hundreds) for large companies around the world. I spend most of my time hiring engineers and leaders for these companies. We are nowhere near saturation; the return on investment for engineers is still really, really good. Demand is high. At the same time, supply is low. I live in Asia because it's much easier to hire engineers here. In the US, hiring 100 engineers is a very difficult thing to do. Here it's much easier (but still a challenge of course). I truly believe that in the future software engineering will be something that most educated people do... there will still be "software developers"...
by sfnerd
Sun Oct 03, 2021 9:16 pm
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Do we trust Firecalc?
Replies: 60
Views: 9745

Re: Do we trust Firecalc?

samsoes wrote: Sun Oct 03, 2021 5:57 pm
adamthesmythe wrote: Fri Oct 01, 2021 11:57 am You can't trust software if you haven't worked through the source code yourself, right?
Sounds about right.

I've fixed so much of other people's code over the years I felt like a garbage man at times. Give me your garbage, and I'll make it smell pretty.
I'm not sure you understand what a garbage man does :D

Kidding. I'm a software engineer also :sharebeer
by sfnerd
Wed Sep 29, 2021 7:17 am
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Sold my Business and currently have no Income, but 3m in cash
Replies: 93
Views: 13986

Re: Sold my Business and currently have no Income, but 3m in cash

Agree with the others.

Here's what I'd do:
- sell the crypto
- pay off the debt
- invest the entire balance in a 75% stock / 25% bond portfolio (or 80/20 or more aggressive if you intend to work eventually)
- draw 3-3.5% / year and you have 100k+ in yearly income
- never worry about your portfolio again, other than periodic rebalancing

Cheers!
by sfnerd
Tue Sep 28, 2021 5:38 am
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Taxes On Stocks When Changing to US
Replies: 4
Views: 388

Re: Taxes On Stocks When Changing to US

First - you probably need to consult a tax professional who is well versed in non-US citizens residing in the US.

I believe that if you sell it while a US tax resident, you'll be subject to capital gains on the amount of the sale, which means from the original basis (in your example, if you sell at $100 it is a break-even sale and no capital gains, so no tax).

Generally the best thing to do is to avoid selling foreign-held assets while you're a US tax resident.

But again, consult a tax expert, since laws can vary by investment type and your personal situation.
by sfnerd
Mon Sep 27, 2021 11:20 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Career Advice Needed - Sr. Director to VP
Replies: 16
Views: 3400

Re: Career Advice Needed - Sr. Director to VP

Two words: executive recruiters.

I would find recruiters who look for these positions, and get on their radar.

Additionally, make sure your LinkedIn profile is up to date and polished.
by sfnerd
Wed Sep 22, 2021 11:21 pm
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Best place to be a Snowbird if money is no object
Replies: 129
Views: 15944

Re: Best place to be a Snowbird if money is no object

Based on your list, I'd do the "beach cities" of LA... Manhattan Beach, Malibu, etc.

These places are absolutely beautiful and vibrant.

Airport is very close (Manhattan Beach to LAX is 10-20 minutes or less, depending on traffic, and LAX connects everywhere).

Restaurants are great.

Theater and arts are really good.

Beach cities are walkable, with great nature. Weather is great.

Santa Barbara and SD are also nice, but they don't meet your culture and airport requirements as well as the LA beach areas.
by sfnerd
Fri Sep 17, 2021 10:17 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Do you get a raise before being fired?
Replies: 47
Views: 7535

Re: Do you get a raise before being fired?

I agree the coworker is nuts. In well over 2 decades in technology management, and having managed thousands of tech staff a an exec at megacorps, I just haven't seen this sort of thing occur. While I have moved people to different teams when there is a bad dynamic, it's really rare to move people into new positions for this reason. Frankly, if someone is a problem, it's very easy to let them go. Giving someone a private office and a raise would be absolutely counterproductive in dealing with a problem employee, and only make it far more disruptive to fire them. It would also make management look bad, like they failed at restructuring a team/area. This colleague is probably full of (ahem). If I were you, I'd ask the colleague where they got ...
by sfnerd
Wed Sep 15, 2021 7:14 am
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: FEIE, physical presence test in first year
Replies: 8
Views: 1070

Re: FEIE, physical presence test in first year

With your dates, an October extension is the way to go. You actually get an automatic extension (with no need to file) until June, but that will be too early for you.

It really depends on the tax rate in your new place of residence on whether or not it's worth it. If you're in a high tax locale, it might not be worth it to do FEIE in the first year (or even in subsequent years).

Congrats on the new gig, and good luck!
by sfnerd
Thu Sep 09, 2021 7:51 am
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: Chinese real estate about to go *pop*?
Replies: 56
Views: 8518

Re: Chinese real estate about to go *pop*?

Here in Bangkok, Thailand, you can look outside of your window and see entire 30+ story buildings with almost no occupied units, only a few lights on. Still, ownership of these units is high, and they aren't cheap (USD 200k-1m per unit in the central areas of town). For the past five years I've been certain that a reckoning is coming, and that prices will implode. The comparatively low rents here don't justify these high prices. However, a few things about Asia that I've learned in the past 5 years: Asian property investors often are very wealthy, and have "diamond hands" Property taxes in Asia are either low or non-existent, making holding this property very cheap (Thailand is just now adding a small property tax on second reside...
by sfnerd
Wed Sep 08, 2021 10:49 pm
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: [Software] Virtual Machines - Run a computer within a computer
Replies: 48
Views: 5566

Re: [Software] Virtual Machines - Run a computer within a computer

Another recommendation for WSL2 for development. On my home laptop I have WSL2 running Ubuntu, and it's really cool. I can run my IDE (IntelliJ and VSCode) natively on windows, but compile/execute/run on Ubuntu. It's far more convenient than Linux VMs, which was my setup previously. To access files from Windows you can just go to \\wsl$\Ubuntu\home\username\. From the Linux side it's just /mnt/c/Users/username. Super simple, and I set it up in like 5 minutes. You can also have Docker run on top of WSL2, so if you do stuff with containers this is really convenient. I'm doing all of this from Windows 10 Home, so no need to have Pro or anything either. Since it's so easy to set up, I definitely recommend giving it a try: https://docs.microsoft...
by sfnerd
Tue Sep 07, 2021 5:02 am
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: [Is it worth flying first class?]
Replies: 265
Views: 30164

Re: Never fly first class

Nowadays I generally fly first / international business all the time. I use points where possible to upgrade, but pay cash when needed. In general, domestic FC is just not worth it unless you are a big person (tall or wide). It's just a bigger seat, and some better food (but you can get better to take with you anyway, so not that important). However, since the pandemic started, the quality of passenger behavior in the US has deteriorated significantly. With fighting onboard, people that don't want to follow airline policy (masks etc.), and other issues, it becomes worth it to actually pay to have a quieter experience. Eventually I think this will die down (I hope), but until then I don't mind shelling out a few hundred extra dollars to avoi...
by sfnerd
Fri Sep 03, 2021 11:23 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: Investment Approach to counter Hyperinflation and USD Collapse
Replies: 127
Views: 11960

Re: Investment Approach to counter Hyperinflation and USD Collapse

...At that time, I may choose either to remain here or move to another country. In that situation how can I setup my investment portfolio so that I wouldn't loose everything that I have?... By choosing that country now , and doing whatever you need to do to move a significant percentage your assets into an account and firm that are domiciled in that target country now . This is just my idea. I'm not acting on it myself. But it's where the logic seems to lead. How you would go about doing it is not trivially obvious. It probably requires physical presence in the target country to open the account. As usual, nisiprius has the wise and logical answer. I'm an expat, and I have several friends who are in the 9+ figures club, and a few of them w...