Search found 130 matches

by tony44
Wed Aug 17, 2016 7:21 am
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: What's Your Credit Card Rewards Strategy?
Replies: 7203
Views: 1422021

Re: What's Your Credit Card Rewards Strategy?

I use the Southwest Airlines Visa card. I pay my son's college tuition on it. I live in New York, he studies in Florida. I have not "paid" for a flight for him to come home yet. Too bad my daughter's school charged a 3% surcharge! I would have a lifetime of miles!
by tony44
Thu Apr 28, 2016 5:58 pm
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: IRA Conversion
Replies: 14
Views: 1801

IRA Conversion

I am 57 years old and a retired civil servant collecting a pension. My wife and I file jointly and will have a total earned income of 10k for 2016. All earned by her, BTW.
If I convert my tradional IRAS to Roth IRAS this year what tax consequences can I expect to incur? From what I am reading it looks as though I may be able to do this completly tax free. Or, will we be in the lowest tax bracket and have to pay that rate? What am I not understanding?
by tony44
Sun Jan 03, 2016 7:51 pm
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Taylor vs Martin Guitar
Replies: 19
Views: 5720

Re: Taylor vs Martin Guitar

I was in the same boat about 3 years ago. Was looking at Taylors and Martins. For some reason this one guitar kept calling me.....a Breedlove. Compared to the T's and M's I was trying this one got the nod. Picked one up in used, mint condition for $700. No regrets. Mr. Breedlove was once the main luthier at Taylor and started his own company. Highly recommended. Check one out!
by tony44
Sun Jan 03, 2016 7:44 pm
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: profitable hobby?
Replies: 119
Views: 17566

Re: profitable hobby?

Guitar restoration and modification. I pretty much specialize in Mexican strats because they're easy to verify as genuine (there are TONS of fakes out there....yes, even Mexicans) and cheaply bought on Craigslist. I tend to repaint the body in whatever color I fancy in acrylic lacquer color and nitrocellulose clear. I'll then upgrade pickups and clean the pots/switch/jack. I always level and crown the frets and usually roll the fingerboard edges. Replace the butterfly string tree with either a roller or button style from the early 50's. When it's done, I play it for a while, then sell at a profit on Craigslist. I typically buy for $200 and sell for $300 area. I like doing the work and seeing the outcome, otherwise the time involved isn't w...
by tony44
Tue Dec 22, 2015 8:54 am
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Is there much to do in Tampa, FL
Replies: 23
Views: 3384

Re: Is there much to do in Tampa, FL

Sorry for the duplicate
by tony44
Tue Dec 22, 2015 8:53 am
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Is there much to do in Tampa, FL
Replies: 23
Views: 3384

Re: Is there much to do in Tampa, FL

Downtown Tampa is awesome. Walk the Riverwalk and stop at Ulele Restaurant. Cross the Kennedy Blvd bridge and visit U. Tampa, especially Plant Hall. Walk over to the Convention Center and possibly take in a NHL hock game. Then hop the trolly to Ybor City for a Cuban Sandwich and a brew. Another must see is the Tampa Theater. Also head over to Soho for some nightlife. I love Tampa.
by tony44
Sun Dec 20, 2015 6:57 am
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Emergency Funds Are Bad! [Investopedia article]
Replies: 25
Views: 3948

Emergency Funds Are Bad! [Investopedia article]

http://www.investopedia.com/articles/pe ... er=YahooSA
Off all the things I disagree with the most this one really stands out...."93% of those who want jobs have them." Interesting statement. How do you interpret that?
by tony44
Thu Dec 17, 2015 1:03 pm
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Advice on Selling Engagement Ring
Replies: 73
Views: 8497

Re: Advice on Selling Engagement Ring

Re set the stone and give it to Mom.
by tony44
Wed Dec 16, 2015 2:33 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Help this Chicago firefighter figure out the chances I'll get killed...
Replies: 20
Views: 3471

Re: Help this Chicago firefighter figure out the chances I'll get killed...

My Brother Fireman, You are much better off in a busy firehouse and much safer too. You are surrounded by guys that have experience on the fireground. Experience is a most critical thing when the "stuff" hits the fan. Be safe. Train, and train some more. Critique your fires after the fact and never stop learning. Teach the new guys.

Take time to make time. NEVER run, think!

Tony
Retired Lt. FDNY
by tony44
Tue Dec 15, 2015 2:45 pm
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Accruing Credit Card Points & Miles on Autopilot?
Replies: 18
Views: 2738

Re: Accruing Credit Card Points & Miles on Autopilot?

My sons college accepts CC payments with no surcharge, a real bonus! Every time I pay his tuition we get a free flight for him from Southwest Visa. My daughter's school, however, charged a 3% surcharge. They got a check via snailmail. Man, wouldn't it be great if responsible people like Bogleheads could pay their mortgages on their CC's? My property taxes are also susceptible to the surcharge.
by tony44
Tue Dec 15, 2015 2:41 pm
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Too old to change career?
Replies: 23
Views: 3963

Re: Too old to change career?

I believe a change such as this can be really rejuvenating....at the age of 31 I went from bartending to being a professional firefighter for 20 years to being a Union Stagehand for 8 years and now I just play my guitar all day long. Change is good!
by tony44
Tue Dec 15, 2015 2:35 pm
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: What is the "Honda Accord" of bicycles?
Replies: 78
Views: 10140

Re: What is the "Honda Accord" of bicycles?

For pure durability go with a Cannondale. I used to burn through Treks like nothing.....My Cannondale is 20+ years old and still going strong. I'm about 220 lbs and used to ride hard. Now I use it as a road bike. Great product, can't say enough about em.
by tony44
Tue Dec 15, 2015 2:32 pm
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Flaunt Your High-Mileage Car
Replies: 945
Views: 151269

Re: Flaunt Your High-Mileage Car

2004 Jeep Grand Cherokee with 248,000 miles and still going strong. The best part?......I won this gem of a car in a contest!
by tony44
Fri Dec 11, 2015 9:01 pm
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: 10 Best Guitar Finger Style Tunes
Replies: 19
Views: 4834

Re: 10 Best Guitar Finger Style Tunes

Check out Martin Tallstroms arrangement of "Whiter Shade of Pale"
by tony44
Thu Dec 03, 2015 9:45 am
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Advice for A Young Entreprenuer
Replies: 12
Views: 2153

Re: Advice for A Young Entreprenuer

Thank you all for the replies! I will direct him to this thread so he can see for himself the best place around for free, sound advise!
by tony44
Wed Dec 02, 2015 3:36 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Advice for A Young Entreprenuer
Replies: 12
Views: 2153

Re: Advice for A Young Entreprenuer

The market he is targeting is basically the college frat/sorority crowd, the beach and surfer crowd as well as the lacrosse crowd. Basically himself! It's what he knows.
by tony44
Wed Dec 02, 2015 3:19 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Advice for A Young Entreprenuer
Replies: 12
Views: 2153

Advice for A Young Entreprenuer

Hello All,

My 19 year old son is a sophomore in college studying business. He has some money that he earned over the summers invested in VG's Total Stock Market Fund. He took some of his savings and designed some beach wear tee shirts and is selling them on his "company" website. He is very determined to "be his own boss".
He has new designs coming out soon and is doing okay with it. He has no business debt and wants to grow his company organically. Any entrepreneurs, businessmen or other people that did it in a similar way have any advise they can offer? Anything from tax advise, marketing or tactics will be highly appreciated. Anything at all.....
by tony44
Thu Nov 26, 2015 5:16 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Push child to avoid expensive college?
Replies: 210
Views: 23338

Re: Push child to avoid expensive college?

You hold the purse strings and you are the parent. You should help her make the right decision which is, in your case, a State school.
by tony44
Tue Nov 24, 2015 2:48 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: A Roth Conversion Question.....
Replies: 11
Views: 1345

A Roth Conversion Question.....

Is the amount of my conversion from a traditional IRA to a Roth IRA counted as earned income that may potentially put me in a higher tax bracket?

Example:

We file jointly. We will have earned income of 14k in 2015. This puts me in the 10% bracket. After about 18.5k the rate goes to 15%. If I convert 20k does that make my taxable income 34k, thus putting me to a higher bracket?

Thank you in advance
by tony44
Sun Nov 22, 2015 3:17 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: College Engineering Programs - how different are they?
Replies: 152
Views: 14915

Re: College Engineering Programs - how different are they?

[off-topic comments deleted by admin alex]
by tony44
Sun Nov 22, 2015 2:23 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: $1,000 in cash lost or stolen
Replies: 54
Views: 10656

Re: $1,000 in cash lost or stolen

I'm sorry for being a bit harsh here but isn't leaving ANY amount of cash in your care just plain dumb? Even though something is easy to steal does not make it okay to steal, this is 100% tour own fault. Like another poster said, look at it as a $1000 tuition payment.
by tony44
Fri Nov 20, 2015 8:33 am
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Photo Storage Options
Replies: 16
Views: 2047

Photo Storage Options

My dear wife has become quite the photographer but is jamming up my Mac with all her photos. Beside an external hard drive what gadgets do you photogs out there use to store your photos. Is there something that can also incorporate editing software? Thanks!
by tony44
Fri Oct 16, 2015 3:54 pm
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Earned Income and IRA's
Replies: 1
Views: 352

Earned Income and IRA's

I had earned income of only about 2k this year. My wife will have about 10-12k.....we file jointly. Can I still max out an IRA, that is in my name, to $6500 even though I only made 2k?
by tony44
Thu Oct 15, 2015 10:42 pm
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: hotel costs differ?
Replies: 17
Views: 2029

Re: hotel costs differ?

Hotels are notorious price gougers, in MHO......the Marriott nears my daughters college more than doubled it's rates around graduation time. I booked 2 rooms 9 months in advance and the rooms were not even available when I got there even though I had confirmation papers. They got us in to two, too small rooms and corporate got an earful from me when I got back home. To their credit, they comped the whole thing.
by tony44
Tue Oct 13, 2015 8:57 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: What do you guys do on the side?
Replies: 299
Views: 39549

Re: What do you guys do on the side?

I retired from my full time gig as a fireman to coincide with my daughter starting college. I run my house on my pension and work as a union stagehand to cash flow 2 college educations. Timing is everything......
by tony44
Wed Oct 07, 2015 11:02 am
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Insight on a IRA Conversion Ladder
Replies: 3
Views: 611

Insight on a IRA Conversion Ladder

I am seeking advice on IRA withdrawals and possibly doing an IRA conversion ladder.

Background:

Retired. Turning 57 this month. I collect a disability pension from a major municipality and have earned income of only about 2k for 2015. I file jointly and my wife earned about 12k in 2015.
I am aware I need to wait until I am 59 1/2 to withdraw.
I have about 400k in various Traditional IRAs with Vanguard.

If I started a conversion ladder now, what would be my tax implications? Would I pay earned income tax based on my earned income for the year 2015 only? Or do they consider my earned income history? Would I also have to pay capital gains tax?

Thank you in advance
by tony44
Sun Sep 27, 2015 9:02 am
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Using debit card(s) in France
Replies: 16
Views: 2448

Re: Using debit card(s) in France

Make sure your cards have "chips". And use the local "bureau de change" for Euros. I don't know if debit cards come with chips. Mine doesn't. I was recently in Provence and had not issues at all with either chipped cards of exchanging for Euros.
by tony44
Thu Sep 24, 2015 8:34 am
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Visiting New York in early November
Replies: 58
Views: 7698

Re: Visiting New York in early November

[OT comments removed by admin LadyGeek]
by tony44
Wed Sep 16, 2015 7:48 am
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: food allowance $ for child in college
Replies: 44
Views: 9075

Re: food allowance $ for child in college

My daughter is a recent grad and lived off campus for 3 years. I paid her rent and utilities and gave her 200 a month for food and socializing. She only needed more money 1 time in that time period. She gained some valuable life lessons. My son is a sophomore now. He gets a dorm with a meal plan and 75 a month. He also has money he made over the summer. Next year "if" he grows up a little he too can live off campus and will get the same 200 a month his sister got. They will not go hungry.
by tony44
Sun Sep 13, 2015 9:39 am
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Annuity Strategy Help
Replies: 6
Views: 742

Re: Annuity Strategy Help

Thank you! This is a great start. I have fairly substantial assets with VG and have had both of my kids open accounts there as well. Plus with the possibility of moving my MIL's assets there I'm sure they would be of help. I will contact them this week and get the ball rolling.
by tony44
Sun Sep 13, 2015 8:58 am
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Annuity Strategy Help
Replies: 6
Views: 742

Re: Annuity Strategy Help

Yes.....thanks but I think I'm getting ahead of myself with this. When we get this ironed out and the money is sitting where she really wants it we can address giving some away.....and my fee, of course!!!!!! :beer
by tony44
Sun Sep 13, 2015 8:48 am
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Annuity Strategy Help
Replies: 6
Views: 742

Re: Annuity Strategy Help

I am not sure.....feel free to elaborate. We are more concerned with the immediate tax issues and long term investing.
by tony44
Sun Sep 13, 2015 8:39 am
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: What bed did you get your toddler and how long did you use it?
Replies: 47
Views: 8829

Re: What bed did you get your toddler and how long did you use it?

We bought both of our kids decent quality platform beds, twin size. Both kids are grown now and those 2 beds are still in their respective rooms. They will grow into them but never really grow out of them unless the kid is really big. My son is 6'1" and 190 lbs. It is not an issue at all.
by tony44
Sun Sep 13, 2015 8:31 am
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Annuity Strategy Help
Replies: 6
Views: 742

Annuity Strategy Help

Greetings all. I could really use some help with an issue my mother in law approached me with yesterday. She has a total of 4 annuities through the K of C totaling about 200k. They were left to her by her late husband. She recently turned 71 and has passed the age where mandatory withdrawals should have been done. I have no annuities and don't know much about them except for the research I have been doing for the last 24 hours. Can these be rolled over into a IRA at Vanguard? What tax consequences should she expect for her tardiness? Is a CPA the best person to handle this for her? They are very conservatively invested with a 3.5% rate, guaranteed. Her comfort zone for volatility is low. She has other passive income that she lives off of. S...
by tony44
Mon Aug 17, 2015 3:46 pm
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: 10-day NZ trip (Aug 28-Sep 7) suggestions?
Replies: 5
Views: 841

Re: 10-day NZ trip (Aug 28-Sep 7) suggestions?

You may want to check into seeing if having a "chip" credit card is a must like it is in Europe.
by tony44
Fri Aug 14, 2015 12:42 pm
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: College savings
Replies: 40
Views: 4252

Re: College savings

First of all, ALL colleges give some kind of academic package. Nobody pays the full list price. It is still a lot of money but you don't need 200k per kid. My daughter went to a private engineering school in the northeast. The "price" was 56k a year. I got her through on about 120k, a that is a lot!
by tony44
Thu Aug 13, 2015 8:46 pm
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: 2008 Honda Accord with only 10K miles. Any major service needed?
Replies: 56
Views: 12952

Re: 2008 Honda Accord with only 10K miles. Any major service needed?

investor wrote:Sure, dealers will fix all the problems. They will probably also fix many problems that you do not have. Take it to an independent. Dealerships make a very large part of their profits from the service department. To do that they must fix something…..

investor
My dentist does the same thing....wants to fix things that aren't broken. Of course, these broken things are not covered by my insurance.
I, too, have a car thats been sitting. This all seems like some good advice.
by tony44
Thu Aug 13, 2015 7:30 am
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Maximizing space in a small house
Replies: 39
Views: 7709

Re: Maximizing space in a small house

1700sq ft is small? I guess my 1186sq ft is really small! The key to maximization of space is "stuff". Don't buy more stuff and get rid of old stuff. A lot of stuff is stupid and adds up. For instance, my wife bought a "pickle" fork. A regular fork was not good enough for her to garnish her hamburger. This is the stuff that needs to go.
by tony44
Wed Aug 12, 2015 12:56 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Your First Job
Replies: 113
Views: 12651

Re: Your First Job

In the seventies at the age of 15 I was a busboy at the Blue Bay Diner. Long Island Expressway and Francis Lewis Blvd
by tony44
Tue Aug 11, 2015 4:45 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: Investment journal?
Replies: 4
Views: 899

Re: Investment journal?

I've kept one since 1993 when I was single and had a total of 16k to my name. It is updated quarterly with footnotes entered for historical events like new Presidents, work promotions and Sept. 11th. It is an excellent "at a glance" tool to view my overall accumulation of wealth. It is especially helpful to show young people that are close to me what can be accomplished with regular savings to help them understanding the benefits of investing.
by tony44
Tue Aug 11, 2015 2:29 pm
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Good Solo Vacation
Replies: 15
Views: 2918

Re: Good Solo Vacation

Skiing in the Rockies gets my vote
by tony44
Tue Aug 11, 2015 2:24 pm
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Anyone not own a Smartphone
Replies: 76
Views: 7629

Re: Anyone not own a Smartphone

I have a Kyocera flip phone with unlimited text and talk for $30 a month including taxes. It matches my 2004 Jeep with 250k miles and my 2003 Buick LaSabre quite well. A love moseying along without a care in the world in either vehicle and my flip phone. A lot of people I know think I'm having a rough time financially. Little do they know...
by tony44
Wed Aug 05, 2015 8:47 pm
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Paris Itinerary questions
Replies: 33
Views: 3215

Re: Paris Itinerary questions

I was in Paris 2 weeks ago.It was filthy. Went south to Provence. It was awesome!
by tony44
Tue Aug 04, 2015 10:36 pm
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: College applications: Extracurricular activities, Athletics
Replies: 9
Views: 1663

Re: College applications: Extracurricular activities, Athletics

A note about athletic scholarships. Only Division I and II schools offer athletic scholarships. Division III schools and the Ivies do not offer athletic scholarships at all. And unless the sport your kid plays is fully funded, like Division I football, you may only be offered a partial scholarship. Lacrosse, for instance only has a total of 14 1/2 scholarships for an entire roster of 20-50 kids. And Division II lacrosse only has 14. Getting a partial scholarship is still a great thing but the vast majority of your grants will be from academics.
by tony44
Wed Jul 29, 2015 12:11 pm
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Deleted
Replies: 43
Views: 7851

Re: Major home renovation your thoughts

Sprinkler systems are extremely expensive and not really necessary in a single family unit. Maintain the house properly, from the wiring to the usage. No candles....etc. Window bars are a complete nightmare. They are death traps. Fire departments routinely dispatch an extra unit when window bars are in play at a working fire specifically to remove window bars. Home protection is one of the reasons for the 2nd Amendment.
by tony44
Wed Jul 29, 2015 10:37 am
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Am I just getting old?
Replies: 19
Views: 3054

Re: Am I just getting old?

Ok.... I'll get with the times. I'm a Fire Suppression Engineer, Emeritus.
by tony44
Wed Jul 29, 2015 9:24 am
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Am I just getting old?
Replies: 19
Views: 3054

Re: Am I just getting old?

All great answers and all from a different perspective. Thanks.....where the heck are my glasses?
by tony44
Wed Jul 29, 2015 7:46 am
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Am I just getting old?
Replies: 19
Views: 3054

Am I just getting old?

Often, when speaking to younger people about what they do for a living, I just have to scratch my head and wonder. Am I getting old or has the world really changed that much? Or are job titles just newly adopted, politically correct names for the jobs that we have been doing all along? I was a fireman. My wife is a library clerk. Many of my friends are plumbers, engineers, cops or teachers. These jobs need no explanation. But what on Earth is a "Section Supervisor for a networking group?" My daughter recently graduated from college and is working a a software engineer. Many of her friends are working as or seeking jobs similar to the aforementioned Section Supervisor for a networking group. I don't know what the heck these kids ar...
by tony44
Sun Jul 26, 2015 4:12 pm
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Recommendations for gas grill
Replies: 63
Views: 10539

Re: Recommendations for gas grill

Wait until October and get them for half price at Home Depot or Lowes