Bogleheads.org

If I type in vanguard.com, it takes me to https://investor.vanguard.com/corporate-portal/. In the upper right corner is a "contact us" hyperlink. It takes me to https://corporate.vanguard.com/content/ ... ct-us.html. On that page are a bunch of phone numbers. I'm not a Vanguard fanboy, but I don't believe they're hiding their contact info.

Thank you. That both are good definitely brings peace of mind. There probably isn't an absolute clear winner between the two, which says a lot.

Thanks again.

Thanks, Evergreen2022. I called Schwab and they confirmed ACH is one of several ways of making deposits to the account.

Thank you - appreciate your feedback.

Agreed both appear good and likely she'd be happy with either. There's great value in learning from others on the forum and their experiences, so would be grateful to hear from them about the decision between the two, especially if anyone feels particularly strongly one way or the other. Thanks again.

Thank you. Appreciate your thoughts.

Hi everyone, My wife will soon be starting a new job that offers a SEP IRA. The SEP IRA can be located in any brokerage of her choosing, and together we've narrowed down the choices to Fidelity and Schwab based on what appears to be high praise for their customer service. There are locations of each near where we live, so that doesn't factor in the determination. We're a little wary of Vanguard given the "mega thread" and related posts, but we're open to reconsidering. We've done a search of older posts to learn if there was a preference between Fidelity and Schwab or other recommendations, but we've been unable to reach a definitive conclusion. We have a few questions: * Which brokerage would you recommend for her SEP IRA and why...

I believe the issue may be related to the fact that your traditional IRA is on the mutual fund platform and your Roth IRA is on the brokerage platform. I do not believe you can execute a conversion between those two platforms. In other words, to perform the conversion, you would first need to transition your traditional IRA to the brokerage platform from its current location on the mutual fund platform. Once you’ve done that, the two IRAs can communicate with one another, so to speak. If I’m mistaken about any of this, I apologize and trust someone will be along to help.

I had to replace a GFCI in our house and the only one I was able to get at the time came with a built-in guidelight, so it functions as a nightlight in the dark. When there's ambient light, the guidelight dims. I got ours at Home Depot. Made by Leviton. Maybe this could help you.

https://www.homedepot.com/p/Leviton-15- ... /206000175

Agree with the arcing issue and the tape remedy. This combo GFCI at the very least eliminates one variable in the equation.

And, if we had the ability, to do something to help.

On the flip side, maybe the person who won’t give up their seat for the poor little kid has their reasons. I am claustrophobic and absolutely hate to fly. I only fly if I absolutely have to and book way ahead and pay extra for an aisle seat or lately first class. I’m not being mean if I don’t give up my seat.

Yes, I hear you. Absolutely. That's why I said "if we had the ability." Everyone's circumstances are different. I respect that.

Wow. You sound so casual that you asked others to move to accommodate you. I would not have moved. You mean you don't want to give up the aisle/window seat that you paid extra to get (and possibly booked early to get) for that primo middle seat that nobody wants? Hi there. I feel compelled to respond, and if I've misunderstood the intent of the quoted words, I sincerely apologize. We often don't know why someone else did whatever it is they did, and we often don't know why someone is doing whatever it is they're doing. Maybe a family is going on vacation, and they finally scrapped enough together after a long time saving to afford a trip, and they attempted to save some cash wherever they could. Perhaps they're going to a funeral for a fam...

From the movie The Madness of King George:

No life is without its regrets yet none is without its consolations.

You're welcome!
Yes, I wondered the exact same thing last year, the first time we used the PINs.

hudson wrote: ↑Fri Jan 14, 2022 9:02 am Use the 2022 pin to file your 2021 return?

Yes!

Continuing the FWIW theme...we efiled a couple of weeks ago with two 8606 forms. Got the accepted by IRS and state notifications via TT. We were expecting refunds from both, but those refunds were taking longer than normal. I checked our bank account a moment ago and both Fed and state refunds were there (when I'd logged on around lunchtime today neither was there). So I'm thinking the issue isn't with the IRS; rather, as @RonMexico speculated (and as folks over on the TT message boards) seemed to imply, the issue is internal to TT. Maybe I'm mistaken about all this, but wanted to share with the forum our single data point if it may be helpful.

There are lots of folks who know much more than I do about this stuff, but my sense is the empty value in line 8 of the form 8606 is likely not the issue, as that line is also empty on that form for my wife and me for our previous year's filing. FWIW.... I notice that in both of our Turbotax form 8606's line 8 was left empty but line 16 was filled appropriately: Line 8: Enter the net amount you converted from traditional, SEP, and SIMPLE IRAs to Roth IRAs in 2020. Also enter this amount on line 16 I noticed that too on my return, and I was speculating that this was the problem. I also did a Traditional-to-Roth conversion of pre-tax IRA contributions in addition to the post-tax/nondeductible contribution for the backdoor Roth, which I was af...

L82GAME wrote: ↑Sat Feb 06, 2021 3:09 pm Open up your return, and go to Federal (or if you have Turbotax Home and Business, go to Personal). Select "Other Tax Situations", and under "Other Return Info" select Identity Protection PIN. You can enter your PIN number there.

Yep, that was it - thank you!

Hi there everyone. I'm using the online version of TurboTax and just ran through doing our taxes (though I've not yet hit "file"). Like a number of folks, we signed up for an IRS IP Pin. When going through the Federal tax portion on TT, there's a place where it asks you if you've been a victim of identity theft and have an IRS IP Pin. The difficulty here is that this is a two-pronged question. We thankfully haven't been a victim of identity theft, but we do have an IRS IP Pin. If you answer "yes", you're prompted to input your six-digit Pin. If you answer "no", I'm unaware of anywhere else you'd enter the Pin. Did I answer correctly, even though it's not an entirely accurate answer, in order that I may input ou...

FWIW, we recently closed on a refi and used Amrock as they were less expensive by a couple hundred dollars. They were great: notary came to us, money back to us was wired on-time, funds for mortgage payoff were disbursed on-time, notification emails were sent to keep us informed as we moved through the process...we had no complaints. I also look at reviews and a number of negative ones sometimes give me pause depending on the nature of those reviews, but I also agree that folks are more likely to post on BBB if they encounter an issue. So...a sample size of one, but our experience with Amrock was absolutely fine.

Kevin M wrote: ↑Fri May 15, 2020 2:43 pm I'm pretty sure you can still set up limited agent authorization for non-trust accounts online. I recall doing that multiple times within the last year.

As I recall, you need a paper form to set up agent authorization on a trust account, and perhaps also for full agent authorization; at least that's what I recall in doing this on several accounts in the last couple of years.

Kevin

Thanks! Yes, that rings a bell: it's for full agent authorization.

I'm going to expose my ignorance on this topic. My DW and I are still on the OG platform. In it, we have: A joint taxable brokerage (all ETF's) A brokerage account is the new platform that Vanguard wants everyone to transition to. You're already on it (at least for this account). What you call "OG platform" is mutual-fund only, no brokerage or ETFs. So we are on both platforms at the same time with the same login. If we transition our ROTH/IRA's to the new brokerage platform: Can we add / still invest in MF's using the brokerage platform? Will anything change with our ROTH/IRA accounts at all? Do we gain or lose access to ANY funds whether they are ETF or MF form? Ignoring how information is accessed and the platform interface, w...

Could you give them a copy of your return just in case? Try e-filing tomorrow and/or Tuesday. See if the situation is resolved. If the e-filing goes through, great. They can then shred the paper copy. But if the problem persists and the e-filing continues to fail, they can then mail the paper copy. This way you cover all bases. Just a thought...

Thanks again, kaneohe. And thank you, basspond.

Yes: I found an option to add in the amount on the state return without having to also add it into the fed return.

Took me a while to figure out the SWAN acronym despite reading BH almost daily!

Thank you, kaneohe! Very helpful thread you pointed me to. Appreciate it! Yes, confirmed: the refunded amount does not need to be added back to our federal taxes. However, some more digging seems to indicate it is taxable at the state level. I'll see if Turbo Tax allows me to bifurcate the entries (i.e., don't need to deal with it at the fed level, but look to see if there's a way to add it in at the state level). If not, I'll just bite the bullet, enter it at the fed level, and pay the extra fed tax in order that the refunded amount will flow through to the state entry. It's not a huge sum of money, and I'd rather not worry. I'm pretty darn certain it's taxable at the state level, so I'd rather overall pay a little more than necessary and ...

Hi everyone, I'm working on our taxes and have a question. We moved last year and received a 1099-S (proceeds from real estate transaction). In box 6 (buyer's part of real estate tax), there is an amount included ($X). The instructions for box 6 say, in relevant part, "If you have already deducted the real estate tax in a prior year, generally report this amount as income on the 'Other Income' line of the appropriate tax form. For more information, see Pub. 523, Pub. 525, and Pub. 530." This describes our situation, so I pulled up the publications and began reviewing them. We itemized deductions last year. Pub. 525 appears the most on-point, and I've read and re-read it several times but am having a difficult time understanding ho...

Yet another vote for Aeropress. Been using one for years - love it.

To more closely approximate espresso, just decrease slightly the amount of water you use.

two bi-annual property tax bills Pet peeve of mine... Unless you're paying property taxes once every 2 years, you should be saying semi-annual. I know that common usage in American English has created a second meaning for "bi-annual", "bi-monthly", etc., but it is really an incorrect usage that causes unnecessary ambiguity, even if it has become accepted. "Bi" means 2. "Semi" means half. Bi-annual = every 2 years. Semi-annual = every half year. Agree it can be confusing, and common usage has conflated "biannual" with "biennial". Biannual properly means twice per year, though as you note it's taken on a second meaning, with ambiguity as a result. Biennial properly means once every ...

I learned recently about this:

https://citiquiet.com/

They have offices in different locations around the United States, so perhaps one of those offices is close to you. The person who told me about these windows said they really work. I have no experience with them whatsoever. Just want to share another potential option.

It's been 20 years since I've been there, so my experience is outdated by the looks of earlier posts, but there were no ATMs when I was there, and no one accepted credit cards - cash was it, and it was bricks of cash. Literally bricks. The black market was definitely a thing, and of course it paid a better rate, but an earlier post indicates that that no longer exists.

The people I met were incredibly kind and gracious and welcoming, and the history and culture are simply incredible. I had an absolutely amazing time. But some areas weren't the safest back then, so you had to be a little careful of what you were doing and where you were going, though perhaps that's changed.

Thanks, retiredjg! Makes sense. There's comfort in knowing others have experienced the same.

Thanks again!

Thanks, Duckie, appreciate the help!

Yes, that's what we did, and doing that does bring us to the next screen asking if we made nondeductible contributions to our IRAs, just as is shown in TFBs guide. And going to the tools/preview option in TurboTax does show that it is reporting the backdoor Roth correctly and is computing the taxes correctly. I was concerned by the questions it posed (and how they were posed) that weren't displayed in TFB's guide, and don't want to make a mistake.

Thanks again!

Hi everyone, I'm working through our taxes on TurboTax regarding correctly reporting a backdoor Roth. I always review TFB's guide before diving in (https://thefinancebuff.com/how-to-report-backdoor-roth-in-turbotax.html). In the step-by-step instructions he displays a screen shot that asks if he took a qualified disaster distribution in 2016. He did not, so he clicks the "no" radio button, noting on his blog that he was not impacted by a disaster. Our situation is identical, so we also click the "no" 'button. TFB's guide then shows that the questions move on to whether he made any nondeductible contributions to his IRA. When we click "no" to the questions regarding qualified disaster distribution in 2016, howev...

You can get a mixing valve installed on the water heater itself which will allow you to use a smaller water heater. With the mixing valve installed, you turn up the heating elements to max temperature. The mixing valve is adjustable. It operates by mixing the max heated hot water in the tank with cold water that's incoming into your home, and sends that mixture to your taps. This way a smaller tank functions as if it were a larger tank that doesn't feature the mixing valve, because you're not draining all of the water heated to, say, 120 degrees, for a shower, but rather a smaller amount heated to, for example, 140 degrees, mixed with lower temp water that's piped into your home. Because you use less of the heated water, you can use a small...

If Taylor is in, it must be repeated,
this thread is not likely deleted.

Bogleheads is sometimes so darn serious,
but I am smiling reading nisiprius.

I've learned something here about balance and money,
it's important to save but to also enjoy the ride, honey.

[None of my rhyming is very witty, but this thread really made me smile. And there are some good nuggets of wisdom here, too, contributed by folks much better at rhyming than myself!]

I noticed that even after you get the federal entered correctly, you then need to go to state and tell TurboTax the basis again Sincerest apologies. Is this accurate? I've handled the backdoor roth in TT for the past few years. I initially ran into some difficulty my first time through, but eventually got it figured out. But I don't recall in the state section ever having to re-input the info that I previously entered into the federal portion. I just did our taxes a couple of weeks ago and have been waiting for TT to make form 8606 available, so my memory is pretty fresh, but perhaps I'm just dense. I also just re-reviewed the Finance Buff's how-to and didn't see anything there about inputting info for the state portion, either. Is anyone ...

Have a look at bringatrailer.com. I've neither bought nor sold via their service, but I do enjoy looking at their offerings. They've evolved into a lot more of an auction style format from their more humble beginnings. They conduct auctions of cars, so it's similar to eBay in that sense, but there's a real community of incredibly knowledgeable people who are members of the site and who comment on cars on offer and ask questions of the sellers. You can submit your car to them and if they accept it, they'll run the auction for you. Check their site, but if memory serves, it's normally $250 for the seller to list his/her car. The winning bidder pays them a five percent fee on the winning bid, from a minimum of $250 to a max of $5K. They're cur...

I've found this thread intensely fascinating. Count me in the camp of those who have argued that a person's personality and character are much more important - and yes, much more valuable - than the dollar value of student loan debt. If she's "wonderful" as you say, then I'm mystified about what there is to discuss. If I were her, I'd wonder what was wrong with your personality and character if you were considering breaking up due to student debt. Let me take a slightly different perspective than the other posters here with whom I'm in agreement. It seems very much as if you're assuming that you'll enjoy a perfect financial life and suffer no setbacks or hiccups. None of us has a crystal ball. What if something happens to you that...

Simply don't cut it too close. This type of automatic payment is supposed to have a guaranteed crediting date. This totally takes the whole timing issue out of the picture. There's no such thing as cutting it close in this kind of setup. Assuming the money is in the bank that I have permitted them to pull from, the payment is supposed to be deemed paid on time, 100% absolutely guaranteed, period. If I can't rely on that, I really can't deal with that payee. Sure you can. Just set it up to pay a few days before the due date. Then you don't have to worry about it. By choosing the actual due date leaving no room you are cutting it too close. No, just no. This is 100% on BoA, and OP is right, there is no such thing as "too close". Th...

Also, you can preview your 1040 and see what's on lines 15a and 15b.

I had this issue a couple of years ago - assistance from folks on this board helped me to figure out where I went wrong and I eventually got TT to treat everything correctly. I'm in a rocking chair at the moment on my iPhone trying to get our little one to go to sleep, so I'm not much help beyond asking if you checked out TFB's "how to report a Roth conversion in TT" webpage. Also you can search for the thread I started about this topic when I encountered that difficulty. In the meantime I'm sure someone smarter than I am will be along soon to lend a hand, but I'll also check in later to see, just in case. Maybe I can walk you through it.

Thanks, Choy. I didn't realize to click there. I saw the little green dots signifying the features. That must be why they phrase it as "additional help":

Additional Help for investment sales such as stocks, bonds, royalties, mutual funds and employee stock plans.

I read it entirely differently! As in, this is an add-on that you don't get with the lower level product. I suppose the additional help is more interview-style questions or something similar to help guide one through the process.

Thanks again, Choy, and sorry again, Infomom2, for the initial misinformation.

Maybe I'm mistaken about the download/CD version?

I apologize if so.

No matter whether it's the online or the download/CD version of TurboTax, if you sold stock, it appears you do need the Premier version.

See here for the comparisons:

https://turbotax.intuit.com/personal-ta ... re/online/

https://turbotax.intuit.com/personal-ta ... e/desktop/

I can't speak to other tax prep software, as I'm familiar with only TT.

Edit to add: see Toons beat me to it!

Another option you could look into is to have a mixing valve installed. Or if it can't be retroactively installed, to purchase a water heater that features a mixing valve. A plumber told us that this is an effective way to have a 50 gallon tank produce the equivalent hot water volume of a larger capacity tank. I don't know any more about these valves than this, as I haven't looked any further into them, but I'm planning to, as we may swap out our water heater for a new one with this type of valve during the upcoming summer.

abuss368 wrote:

BrandonBogle wrote:

abuss368 wrote:I am curious how many people run baking soda and vinegar in their dishwasher to keep it clean.

I never have, but I'm now thinking maybe I should?

Indeed. Now I want to find my instruction book!

Hah! I literally just had the exact same thought!

I am very saddened to hear this. Wishing the greatest comfort to you and your family. Thank you for your selfless contributions and assistance to others.

Ours was also a quite a bit lower compared to past years.

Really interesting thread, and a topic I often think about. I agree with several posters that the driver is the single most important safety "feature". If you're an aware and attentive driver, you're going to be a safer driver. And you'll avoid many accidents. Until you don't. No matter how good and safe a driver you are, you can't 100 percent control for the person who isn't. If that person hits you.... The new safety tech (blind spot monitoring, rear cross traffic alert, lane keep assist, etc.) are nice. But what concerns me more are crash test results. Within the past couple of years (I believe it wasn't more than three years ago) a new test has been implemented: the partial-offset frontal collision. As a result, automakers are...

I'm also curious to hear what others may have to say. I use an Aeropress every morning. I drink my coffee black and without any sugar, but my wife loves cappuccinos and lattes, so this would be good to learn so I could make one for her. The only "trick" I can offer regarding the making of the actual coffee is that I grind the beans to nearly the finest size possible. It makes plunging the Aeropress a little difficult, but the resulting coffee is super dark and rich.

Edited: I scanned the thread pretty quickly and obviously missed jhfenton's post regarding using an 11sp sprocket on a 10sp cassette. I'm sorry for that. I looked again just now for that post but I'm clearly still missing where that is (or maybe I'm just not following what was explained). In any event, happily it sounds as if the OP has a number of hopefully viable options that can save him/her the $75 cost of a new cassette.

batpot wrote: that's why i said replace the 11 and the 12.
with this:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/381725020052

Sorry if I missed that. Only thing is, isn't OP's cassette a 10sp? The ebay product is for 11sp. My cycling days are long behind me, but will an 11sp locking ring work properly on a 10sp cassette? I honestly don't remember the answer to this question. My sense is that the spacing (and maybe the locking threads themselves?) will be off due to the thinner individual sprockets (to be able to fit in 11 gears in the space previously occupied by 10 gears), but I may well be mistaken, and it'll work fine. I just don't remember after all this time.