Bogleheads.org

Kenkat

You will get back any extra withholding that occurred due to the bonus when you file at the end of the tax year. It is all based on total income, tax due on that income and taxes withheld. Withholding more due to a bonus does not change the tax actually due and so it offsets. My company gives us an ...

Kenkat

whodidntante wrote: ↑
Wed Feb 20, 2019 6:42 pm

nisiprius wrote: ↑
Wed Feb 20, 2019 4:13 pm
Um, did anyone read the article?
There's an article? I thought we were supposed to argue about the provocative thread subject.

It’s fun if you also skip reading others’ posts as well.

Kenkat

You'll notice that there's often an extra click to get to the new stuff This is a symptom of mobile first design, where some of the things you can do with input devices (mouse / keyboard) for interaction don't exist on a small touchscreen. So instead.... extra clicks. What are these mouse and keybo...

Kenkat

Also it was widely said 15 years ago that Small Growth was a black hole to be avoided due to its poor risk adjusted historical returns. It occupies the bottom of the historical list. And guess where it finished over the past 15 years? That’s right, it finished first. Now I have owned small value for...

Kenkat

I am a believer that low cost, low turnover active funds can be good choices and I know this fund has a long and solid track record. That said, according to Morningstar, it’s comparable index is the Russell 1000 Growth Index and it has trailed that over the past 10 years. So the argument for it goin...

Kenkat

I think the paperwork is minimal (you’ve already done most of it) but you are correct on the stamp and trip to the post office.

Kenkat

Can you get Custodian A to issue you a check for $10 made out in the name of the account held at Custodian B (usually something like VFTC FBO Your Name) and either send it to Custodian B or send it to you and you can forward to Custodian B with a letter of instruction? I had a pension payout from an...

Kenkat

The Wizard wrote: ↑
Sat Feb 16, 2019 2:24 pm
Jet Blue is a budget carrier?

Perhaps low-cost carrier would be a better term and I do think they are trying to break out of that mold a bit but they still focus on a relatively smaller number of routes and flights per destination at a lower cost than the big airlines.

Kenkat

The biggest improvement you can make is to use unique passwords on any site that you care about or has important personal information on. If you want to use the same password for your ESPN account and your Yelp account, probably not that big a deal (although I wouldn’t even do that). But don’t use ...

Kenkat

dbr wrote: ↑
Sat Feb 16, 2019 2:17 pm
One could also take the approach that getting promoted into management can be a consignment to hell.

This is how I feel about management positions!

Kenkat

Budget airlines have fewer resources when things go not according to plan. If you are on United or Delta, they have enough other planes and crews to constantly be making adjustments. They will typically pay to put you on another carrier if they have to (and you push a little). That all costs money, ...

Kenkat

By picking the TSM and only the TSM you’ve bet on 1 box of the 9 style boxes. Sorry, this is incorrect. When you pick the Total Stock Market (TSM) index fund you participate (according to market weight) on ALL Morningstar style boxes: 24% Large Cap Value 26% Large Cap Blend 27% Large Cap Growth 05%...

Kenkat

The biggest improvement you can make is to use unique passwords on any site that you care about or has important personal information on. If you want to use the same password for your ESPN account and your Yelp account, probably not that big a deal (although I wouldn’t even do that). But don’t use t...

Kenkat

There’s a sting involved here that I get - someone else was picked before you were. You finished second, not first. It hurts. But as you said, she was deserving, and you were specifically told that you were still in line for something in the future. So - what to do? I would give it some time - let t...

Kenkat

This article really resonated with me. I just turned 55 myself and have been at my current company for what I can’t believe is 21 years. I’ve been through the post-911 bust, a merger, and the 2009 financial crisis. So, in other words, battle scarred but still employed. But I do get a sense that the ...

Kenkat

You’ve said yourself that you are financially secure, have a 10 year old car with 240k, and want a new vehicle. I think you can buy a new vehicle. It’s not like you are trading in a brand new car. We are all faced with consumption choices every day - you are making a choice, not a reckless one by an...

Kenkat

You only need to get 6 more months out of that car to cover a $1000 repair in my opinion because anything new or newer used will easily cost you $2000 / yr., even keeping it for 10+ years. Realistically, you can probably easily get another 3+ years out of that car if you don’t want to lay out the ca...

Kenkat

The flip side of “you are underpaid, we are giving you a raise” is “you’ve been getting screwed for awhile now on pay”. A retroactive increase is some acknowledgement to the employee that management realizes that and wants to make amends.

Kenkat

Someone claims that Vanguard Capital Opportunity (VHCOX) and Vanguard Health Care (VGHCX) have vastly outperformed VTSMX, Vanguard Total Stock Market for some period of time. Vanguard's prospectuses clearly show it is only appropriate to compare the returns of those funds to their chosen benchmarks...

Kenkat

You could have one of the components that the belt drives starting to go bad. Water pump would be a likely suspect at that age if it hasn’t been replaced before. There’s also belt tensioners that could be starting to go bad.

Kenkat

Having posted here for a long time, and on the Morningstar board before that, my frustration is that there are those that insist that there is no way that Vanguard’s low cost active funds could perform in line with their low cost index funds. Even when Vanguard releases information that basically s...

Kenkat

However, I have no interest in convincing anyone that already believes indexing is the best way to invest, anything to the contrary. I will say that there are many active funds that are well known (usually already closed to new investors) and I and many others have been happy to receive returns tha...

Kenkat

Nobody including Vanguard knew which funds would outperform until they did. But some people can pick the best performers after the fact and call them 'secret funds'. Well in Dan Wiener’s case, he didn’t pick these funds after the fact. He posted them in a newsletter for many years and has a good tr...

Kenkat

lol, another Dan Wiener thread. If you type his name in the search box, you will find a ton of material discussing his opinions. In a nutshell, there are no "secret funds". He advocates for actively managed funds over index funds. His previous Growth portfolio recommendations have included heavy sl...

Kenkat

The expense ratio difference is close to irrelevant in my opinion. Both are good companies; I have accounts at both as a result of an inheritance that was held at Fidelity. We left it there as there is not really a compelling case for moving it in my opinion.

Kenkat

This is Dan Wiener’s newsletter; he has been around for a long time and actually has a pretty good track record - i.e., not backtested but real portfolios from newsletters going back a number of years. Whether he provides better risk adjusted returns is a different argument. He’s been discussed at l...

Kenkat

Box 1 on the 1098-T does not have to match what you actually claim. In fact, it usually does not due to books, for example, that are purchased from other sources or other expenses not directly tied to the institution. So, I don’t think this is a red flag. You can probably make a case that the ship m...

Kenkat

I’m a huge fan of Anthem Room Correction software for those looking to upgrade amps or processors. This is a good, related, point. Well-applied equalization can make a big difference in how your system performs. In addition to Anthem's tool, Audyssey Room Correction is available in Denon and other ...

Kenkat

I believe that the children would be non-spouse beneficiaries and be allowed to transfer the distribution to an inherited IRA in their names and take distributions based on their life expectancy. I don’t know the specifics of the TSP, but there is wording in the PDF that indicates that is allowed. M...

Kenkat

Yes. We got to know each other and hung out together for a couple years. It was obvious we were a match. This is how my wife and I did it back in the day, 30+ years ago. Dated for two years, engaged for another, met each other’s families, etc. Got to really know one another and past the infatuation...

Kenkat

It is possible that you have clogs in the gas line but often a low flame is an issue with the gas valve and/or regulator depending on the system employed. A regulator system has a safety that is pushed open when sufficient pressure builds up; this prevents the release of gas if a leak exists. If the...

Kenkat

You can also switch this and do it with much less risk. Place the bet at the beginning instead of the end and you can still double your money but with much less risk. For example, place that $5 bet and turn it into $10. Then invest it the Boglehead Way and you will have twice as much in the end as t...

Kenkat

Hopefully the 401k was rolled into an individual IRA rollover account at MetLife and not cashed out and then put into the variable annuity. If the variable annuity is held as an IRA *, she should be able to roll it into her own IRA account and/or potentially into the TSP. Can you get a hold of a sta...

Kenkat

Buy a hot tub and keep it outside and running all winter.

Kenkat

Be aware that there will likely also be substantial social security survivor benefits for your wife and children that can be claimed. I would just put a payoff into either Lifestrategy Income or a Treasury Money Market fund as suggested above until things get sorted out. There is plenty of money ava...

Kenkat

When I bought a used car about two years ago, I primarily looked on cars.com and cargurus.com. Most dealers seem to advertise there and you can get a good idea of pricing if you do enough research on those sites. Edmunds.com and kbb.com are additional sites to get pricing information. I haven’t boug...

Kenkat

If the institution reports amount billed, you have to record your actual expenses paid in that tax year based on your own records. The amount billed is not really relevant and I don’t really know why the IRS allows that option. The college my two sons attend used to report amount billed but switche...

Kenkat

If you take a settlement, it will affect your credit score much more than paying in full. It shows up as a settlement vs. a late pay or not at all depending on how the debt collector agrees to report it.

Kenkat

If the institution reports amount billed, you have to record your actual expenses paid in that tax year based on your own records. The amount billed is not really relevant and I don’t really know why the IRS allows that option. The college my two sons attend used to report amount billed but switched...

Kenkat

The amount in Box 1 will typically not match what is actually claimed. Some institutions report based on amount billed, which as discussed, has no direct bearing on what was actually paid and is eligible to claim. Even for institutions that report based on amount paid, there are often other items su...

Kenkat

No, the tax credit is based on the year in which the tuition was paid, not which semester year it applied to. If you did not qualify for the AOTC in 2017, in retrospect, it probably would have been better to pay the Spring 2018 in 2018, not 2017. Too late to do anything about that now. Did he have t...

Kenkat

The main thing wrong with active funds, whether they are equity or bond funds, is not the they are actively managed, it is that they are high cost. An active bond fund, or equity fund for that matter, managed to be low cost and low turnover, can be expected to have similar performance to its corresp...

Kenkat

In addition to savings rate, which I agree is critical, I would also add the time is also very important. Starting early is probably the single biggest reason why I am where I am at today. At age 55, my current savings rate is close to irrelevant as compared to the total nest egg. In the beginning, ...

Kenkat

It usually varies between 4-6 weeks expenses.

Kenkat

There are many worse things you could do with the money and few / none better. Investing at an early age is probably the single biggest reason I have gotten to my current solid financial situation. Money = options. More money = more options.

Kenkat

I think you have a good handle on the financial aspects of this. You can perhaps sharpen the pencil a bit more, but it is obviously better to keep driving an older car from a financial perspective. At some point, I think you have to apply a practical test as well: 1) Do I still feel safe / is the ol...

Kenkat

The Wizard wrote: ↑
Sat Feb 02, 2019 10:55 am
I keep both a pickup truck and a Mustang in my driveway

This is a good situation

Kenkat

I like the Weatherunderground mobile app on my iPad and Android phone.

Kenkat

bsteiner wrote: ↑
Mon Jan 28, 2019 10:19 am
I'm not sure I understand what the original poster is referring to, but TOD and POD accounts can defeat a carefully designed estate plan, and can cause lots of problems.

Used properly, they can also be part of estate plan design.

Kenkat

It is hard to say. The internet has changed pricing of used cars somewhat. Some dealers will price them aggressively to move stock quickly; others will go the traditional price high and haggle / discount. The best thing you can do is research to know what the particular model you are looking at is g...

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