Personal Finance Weekend Discussion and Victory Thread for the week of January 26, 2018 |
- Weekend Discussion and Victory Thread for the week of January 26, 2018
- Recently paid off my car and crunched some numbers... 2013 Nissan Altima TCO
- I got a $59 charge from a brewery I haven't been to in weeks. They said it's charges from 2017 that didn't go thru. Can they do this without notifying the consumer or the business?
- 50 year old construction worker with no savings, Zero Credit, and Just lost his house to foreclosure. What to do?
- $5,000 in debt left from $30,000! Worried i might have forgotten about other credits cards!
- Husband's company taking money out of paycheck to "offset the tax benefit" of having a company car. Please help me understand?
- How do I determine my self worth?
- Seeking life/career/financial advice
- I accidentally claimed tax exempt on my W4, what do i do now?
- Pay discussed in interview is not what I'm getting paid
- Alert for those with elderly parents.
- Is credit freeze the absolute best line of defense currently available for us?
- New General manager known for editing clock-out times
- Old Debt
- College student - Recently came into approx $6,000 from a $0 crypto investment, not sure how to move forward.
- Got a surprise debt from my out of business college, not sure if legit
- US New W-4 form in anticipation of 2018
- How to calculate mortgage early-interest payoff %
- Mom received a check that we suspect is a scam but can't be sure, how can we tell?
- Pay off student loans or purchase a car
- I may quit my job in 6 months. How do I prepare?
- 4 Year Old CT Scan Bill?
- 30k increase in salary?
- (UK) I feel extremely poor even though I am asset 'rich'
| Weekend Discussion and Victory Thread for the week of January 26, 2018 Posted: 26 Jan 2018 01:06 PM PST If you need help, please check the PF Wiki to see if your question might be answered there.This thread is for personal finance discussions, questions, and sharing your success stories:
A big thank you to the many PFers who take time to answer other people's questions! For past threads, please search the Weekly Archive. [link] [comments]  |
| Recently paid off my car and crunched some numbers... 2013 Nissan Altima TCO Posted: 26 Jan 2018 05:33 AM PST TL;DR: Owned Nissan Altima 5+ years, 100k+ miles... TCO: $0.39/mile I paid off my car loan in November 2017 and decided to see what the actual cost of the car was over the 5+ years that I've owned the vehicle. This was my first big purchase after starting my first job after college. I am an engineer and lived in a very low COL area when I purchased the car, yet gas was very expensive (rural upstate NY). Here are some pictures to help you understand my explanation. [EDIT] if you look at the graph and chart linked above, you see that I have a KBB resale value of $9000 (as of 1/26/18) that I factor in to the equation. This is subtracted from the total amount spent and then divided by the total miles to get the TCO/mile 2013 Nissan Altima 2.5SL Purchased in Burlington, VT but registered in NY Purchase Price & Financing Purchase price of the car was $24,349.82 after all of the applicable fees were added to the sticker price. I was very nervous having never bought a car before and was a little nervous negotiating, so I didn't do a very good job of getting the price down. (Having bought a car with my wife in 2017, I was much more informed and negotiated a better trade-in value of her old car) I put $4000 down after saving up for several months. Still living on a college student's budget but making engineering money allowed me to have a lot of expendable income that I stowed away to purchase the car. I had minimal credit, so I was given a 4.99% interest rate if I financed the car for 5 years through Nissan. [EDIT: Payment was $384/mo for 60 months with some months paying extra]
Gas Starting day one, I kept a Field Notes Traveling Salesman edition notebook in my center console and logged the date, mileage, $/gal and amount of gas every time that I filled up. Looking back on the graph, you really can see inflection points during some of my major life events (job changes, extended vacations, etc).
Maintenance, Insurance, etc I have tried to be very strict with my preventative maintenance on the car so that I can drive it for a loooooong time. I have gotten oil changes every ~6000 miles (full synthetic) and tire rotations on a similar interval. I have had to buy 2 new sets of tires over the 108,000 miles in 5+ years which have included free rotation, balance and nail repair (shout out Discount Tire!). General consumables, I have replaced myself including brake pads, air filters, cabin air filters, broken interior door handle, wiper blades. I have had 2 minor non-warranty repairs done on the car over 5 years which were paid for out of pocket.They were: A/C fan clutch & related parts ($1205) and dent on the driver F & R doors from being backed in to ($1318). Having only 1 mechanical failure after 108,000 miles is pretty impressive.
Overall, the Total Cost of Ownership comes out to $42,301.44 (see graphs for specifics) at time of writing with the odometer reading 108,657. This comes out to a TCO/mile of $0.39, which it significantly less than the IRS standard rate. I am happy with my purchase as it has been a very reliable car, HOWEVER I do not think that I will purchase a brand new car next time that I am in the market for a vehicle. Let me know what you think about my breakdown and my financial decision to buy a new car as a 22yr old individual. [link] [comments]  |
| Posted: 26 Jan 2018 07:18 AM PST I look at my checking account and I see 10 different transactions from this brewery with different amounts, all posted 1/25 (before they even opened)! I called them when they opened and apparently the credit card company didn't take those charges from my account when they were made (which could be from months ago because I go there a few times a month but haven't in the last 2 weeks). This is happening to a lot of customers there and no one has been notified. How can they charge for something that was purchased such a long time ago?? What if I needed that $59 to pay a bill? It's not my fault that they waited or forgot to take that money. Can they do this? What are my options? [link] [comments]  |
| Posted: 26 Jan 2018 12:22 PM PST Hello, Awesome people of Reddit. My Father is a single 50 Year Old Construction worker living in New York, with No Savings, Zero Credit, and Lost his house to foreclosure (The debt on the house is about 200k)(The bank has sold the house so I'm not sure if his debt on it goes away) He is expected to move out of the house within the next month or two. Additionally, I suspect his taxes aren't in order, and possibly owes the IRS a bit of money from under the table construction work (I discovered this after my dad couldn't provide me with his tax return information, which resulted in me being declined financial aid for college). While I love my father he is incredibly irresponsible financially (The House has been in foreclosure for 6 years and he has built no savings) Also, because of the type of work he does (With no Health insurance) I don't believe he will be able to keep it up. I'm his only son, and I'm only 24 trying to get my own life together. I fear my dad may have unreasonable expectations that I'll be able to take care of him which is simply not the case. So for those who have been in similar situations, or just have an idea in general of how my dad can get out of this massive hole. I'll appreciate any, and all advice. Thank You. [link] [comments]  |
| $5,000 in debt left from $30,000! Worried i might have forgotten about other credits cards! Posted: 26 Jan 2018 03:40 PM PST HI, I haave $5,000 in debt left. But now i am starting too worry what if i forgot a credit card. I am pretty sure i got them all. Does a credit report show every credit card or is there a way one wouldnt show? [link] [comments]  |
| Posted: 26 Jan 2018 01:33 PM PST My husband's company is providing company cars in a few months. Their pay system is changing because of it, and he will now get $100/month deducted from his paychecks to "offset the tax benefit". We're not really understanding how this works, and what it means. Could someone please explain what this means in simple terms? This is what the company car policy states: The IRS/CRA regulations state that the use of a company vehicle for personal use (including fuel) considered taxable income and must be included on the associates W-2/T4 form as taxable income. A personal use charge of $100.00/month (prorated as necessary) will be automatically deducted through payroll according to the regular pay frequency of the associate's base salary to offset the taxable income. The total taxable benefit calculation includes fair market value of the vehicle, business and personal miles driven, IRS/CRA lease value of the vehicle, and IRS/CRA value of the fuel used for personal use based on number of personal miles driven, value of insurance, tolls incurred, and the rental taxable benefit (if applicable). The total taxable benefit is then subtracted from the total personal use payroll deductions. The balance is the additional income that the associate is taxed on. If the total personal use charge withheld is less than the taxable benefit calculated, the difference will be added to the associate's W-2 as added income. If the associate pays more through the personal use charge than what the taxable benefit is, the associate will not receive a refund and will not be taxed on any additional income. I'm just not really understanding the whole concept, and what it means to have money taken out of the paychecks to "offset the tax benefit". [link] [comments]  |
| How do I determine my self worth? Posted: 26 Jan 2018 07:42 AM PST I've worked for a small business for almost 13 years. I've had 3 promotions in that time. I've been in the most recent position for almost 5 years. Any move up from here would require the removal of a couple of "lifers". So I've just started venturing into the job market. I figure I'm grossly underpaid because of the small business/family style company I've worked for, but I don't know by how much. What resources should I use to determine a fair salary for my experience? Edit: I'm looking for self market value. Not my self esteem. Edit2: I'd like to thank everyone for the advice. Seems like the best route is to check a few sites to get a ballpark idea and then let the my prospective employer start with the numbers and go from there. [link] [comments]  |
| Seeking life/career/financial advice Posted: 26 Jan 2018 03:45 PM PST So I'm 21 years old, I'm beginnng my "adult life" and want any and all advice I can get to be successful sooner rather than later in life. I'm willing to do whatever is necessary to become successful, I just need some guidance in taking the right steps. Currently, I work in outside sales with a commission only based pay structure for a moving company where I give estimates/close sales of high dollar moves. (typically $2k-$5k and I collect 10%) .. Prior to this I was the General Manager for a well known gym and oversaw a multi-million dollar facility a long with the operations manager working beside me. That basically sums up my work experience in my adult life, and I suppose my greatest skills would be sales, customer service, management and team building. I have no college education, not that I'm opposed to it- it just hasn't been feasible with how much I work and the bills I have to pay. I'm looking for any type of advice, whether it be career advice, what to put my money towards, what type of lifestyle to pursue, etc.. If anyone has the time I'd just love to hear some insight from people who've found ways to be successful and would be willing to share with me. Also, at both jobs I've averaged about $50k/year.. maybe a little more at the gym but I was working 55-70/hours a week to achieve that. [link] [comments]  |
| I accidentally claimed tax exempt on my W4, what do i do now? Posted: 26 Jan 2018 05:27 PM PST I know I'm stupid. I don't remember doing this, but apparently when I applied for my job I checked the box that asks if you are tax exempt. I definitely am not. I've been working this job for about 8 months or so now, before that I worked another job that I paid the full amount of taxes at. I work part time, earn minimum wage and haven't ever made enough money to be required to file taxes before. This year I am pretty sure I made over $10,000 (but maybe not, and definitely not by much) so I think I do have to file taxes. I checked my payslips and it looks like I've been paying a small amount of taxes on my paychecks but certainly not the full amount. I'm guessing I probably owe about $1,000 which I cannot afford to pay right now. My first thought was that if I just don't file taxes this year, will the IRS even notice? Is this a viable option? If not, or if I am required to file, what should I do? Edit: Just to clarify, I meant that if I didn't make enough money to be required to file taxes and so I don't and the IRS doesn't get my tax info (but not by illegally failing to file) will they notice that I haven't been paying taxes this year? [link] [comments]  |
| Pay discussed in interview is not what I'm getting paid Posted: 26 Jan 2018 11:35 AM PST So about a month ago I had a job interview and the pay discussed was $14-16/hr. My boss had me do a working interview for over two weeks before she even hired me on officially. I was only hired on officially as of one week ago exactly. I got my paycheck today and it said that I'm making $13/hr. I'm not confrontational my nature and I don't know what to do about this, or even if I should do anything about it. Personally I think that I should be making at least the $16 for the position in working at. Help! Update- talked to my boss and she said "other people that work here now and for longer are getting paid $13 and I didn't feel right to hire you on at a huge rate. I told her that her job posting itself said $13-17 and I gave you my requirement during my interview which was a minimum of $14. And she finally concerted to give me the $14 and after 90 days do an eval and give me a raise at that time. [link] [comments]  |
| Alert for those with elderly parents. Posted: 26 Jan 2018 03:01 PM PST Anyone with elderly parents please be aware of a magazine subscription scam. I recently discovered (as I have only just started helping my 80+ year old mother with her checking account), her bank has been posting a monthly electronic check for a "magazine service" company. These checks are for $95.52 EACH month. I googled the company and the BBB has complaints dating back to 2009. These complaints are similar in that they are the same monthly amount and from checking accounts of elderly people. When called the company doesn't answer the phone and won't return messages. I spoke with my state's attorney general today and they recommended the following; contacted her bank and put a stop payment on the checks (interestingly enough each electronic check has been numbered 0000, so they stopped payment on all checks with that number), write a letter and send it certified mail demanding the subscriptions be canceled. Has anyone else had to deal with this type of scum? If necessary or allowed, I'll name the culprits. Thank for your attention. [link] [comments]  |
| Is credit freeze the absolute best line of defense currently available for us? Posted: 26 Jan 2018 04:22 PM PST I know most things are not perfect, but doing some research into credit monitoring products and services, I realized that most of them are useless poo poos. That leaves me nowhere but the arena of credit freezing. I'm sure this isn't perfect either, but is this the most effective means currently available to defend my identity? [link] [comments]  |
| New General manager known for editing clock-out times Posted: 26 Jan 2018 01:15 AM PST Recently at work we have been switching management around and now have a new general manager who came to us from another store. This guy's philosophy is if you are staying past an hour after close to clean up (food industry), then you are taking too long and should clock out and continue to finish the job. People had told me in the past that if you do not clock out and complete the job, he will go in the computer and roll your time back the next day when he comes in. What can I do if this ends up happening to me? I can't really afford a lawyer but I damn sure can't afford to have my hours rolled back when I have been spending that time actually working. I am looking into getting another job but in the meantime I need to know what kind of protections I have, I can't go to the guy above him because he is very dismissive about our concerns. Thank you for your help. [link] [comments]  |
| Posted: 26 Jan 2018 05:47 PM PST So when I was 18, I took out a couple credit cards and a small loan of $2,000 from my local credit union. I ended up defaulting on everything. Including a car loan where I had to give it up for repossession. I ended up making the decision of not paying any of them back. It's been about 4 years. I figured I would let it just fall off my credit report. I had: Discover $1,000 Macy's $400 Target $300 Best Buy $1,200 Sprint $2,000 Credit Union $2,000 Car Note $13,000 I had various reasons why I fell behind and just had a really rough couple of years. I'm now currently 23 going on 24. Only bill I pay now is my phone bill which is $50. I know opening so many credit cards and defaulting wasn't smart, but is leaving them be, the best decision ultimately? What else could happen at this point? [link] [comments]  |
| Posted: 26 Jan 2018 08:51 AM PST So I sat on some ETH from back when it was basically worthless and since I don't know the crypto market well I want to cash out. Seems like I'll have around $6,000 from it. Maybe closer to 7. I don't have any pressing bills to pay (2nd year in school). How should I move forward with this money? I'm not great with money so I would appreciate any advice. [link] [comments]  |
| Got a surprise debt from my out of business college, not sure if legit Posted: 26 Jan 2018 06:29 PM PST Recently got a combined loan notification from my out of buisness college that I graduated 6 years ago from. If its important, Westwood College and C/o unisa inc. Due 2/1 they day I owe about 175.00 and 3425.00 At the same time, I also got separate collections notices from a place called "deville asset management" already trying to collect with interest. As far as I knew all of my debt was thrown under the navient net and I shouldn't owe any more. The numbers don't align with any of the existing loans under navient. I've read on here to send a debt validation letter via certified mail with return reciept and plan to have it out Monday for each. Is there anything else I should be doing at this moment? [link] [comments]  |
| US New W-4 form in anticipation of 2018 Posted: 26 Jan 2018 01:27 PM PST Heyo, big fan of the sub and I've received tons of great advice here. So I just wanted to start with a thanks! I received a heads up from my company's HR department about potentially needing to re-examine my withholding allowances due to changes under the Tax Reform bill that recently passed. For background, I earn just over $60k annually (including bonus), am married (spouse doesn't work), and have two children under 17. Last year I only had 4 allowances under my W-4. According to the draft of the form I found on the IRS website, I calculated myself out to actually have 8 allowances. I would definitely like to match my income tax as closely as I can to my liability, so that my paychecks are maximized. I'm trying to begin saving now that I have a budget under control, and don't like relying on getting a "windfall" tax refund, as that always ends up covering some emergency that happened in the months leading up to tax season. Should I shoot for my the maximum amount of allowances, or lowball it for the risk of being under withheld? [link] [comments]  |
| How to calculate mortgage early-interest payoff % Posted: 26 Jan 2018 10:33 AM PST I am trying to calculate when it isn't worthwhile for me to pay down principle on my mortgage anymore. I am only (just under) 3 years into a 30 year mortgage, and right now according to a spreadsheet I downloaded(here). For every dollar I pay this month extra , I save $1.66ish on interest, which sounds like a 166% return on my investment. I pay the dollar for dollar on principle + not having to pay 27 years of interest on it. I'm just trying to get a clear picture of the progression of the decline and trying to figure out where my "break even" point is. My spreadsheet script fu/calculus is terrible. [link] [comments]  |
| Mom received a check that we suspect is a scam but can't be sure, how can we tell? Posted: 26 Jan 2018 12:23 PM PST My mom received a check in the mail a couple months ago and put it in her drawer and forgot about it. Her memory isn't the best, so, she doesn't remember who sent it or what it's for. It's a cashier's check from the "state employees credit union". Printed in her name. It has a heat reactive watermark (rub red image, fades with heat) and looks pretty legit. It's for $1,946, very specific number. She's afraid to try and deposit it because she thinks it's a scam and she will now owe that money back somehow, as if maybe someone took out a loan in her name. How can we figure out what this is for/if it's real? [link] [comments]  |
| Pay off student loans or purchase a car Posted: 26 Jan 2018 06:05 PM PST Hello everyone, long time reader first time poster. So without getting into too much backstory, my grandfather passed away last year. After dealing with the emotional and physical side of things, my Dad and his brothers put my grandpa's estate up for sale. The house ended up selling and my father and his brothers ended up splitting money from the sale. I didn't think too much of it until I went back home over holiday break to visit. Well lo and behold my parents decided to break the news that they wanted to share some of the money from the house sale and they gave me the choice of either paying off my student loans in full or the chance to replace my current car. Now some details of the inheritance along with my current financial situation:
My question for all of this would be what exactly should I do with this inheritance? It seems my parents have given me only those two choices so I was looking to get other opinions. If anybody has any car suggestions I have no issues with used cars vs new cars. My only preference is that if I do look into getting a car, I wish for it to be some form of alternative fuel such as a hybrid. Thank you for reading [link] [comments]  |
| I may quit my job in 6 months. How do I prepare? Posted: 26 Jan 2018 07:33 PM PST Long story short: not happy at the job I'm at, haven't gotten a raise in nearly 3 years, and no opportunities for growth/promotions. I do not think asking for a raise would be enough to make me want to stay at this point. I have enough experience to start applying for non-entry level positions (this is my first post-grad job). This could happen as early as this summer. My stats are as follows:
I am only quitting if I get a job lined up beforehand. Right now I make $1,700/mo (rent/utilities covered), and could potentially make $3,400-$3,700/mo (rent/utilities paid by me). I am single, no kids, and have a good safety net built up. Apartments in the area I'm looking in run $1,200/mo for one bedrooms. Insurance would be around $100-$130/mo for my car, car payment staying the same. Insurance (paid for before taxes) would be comparable as well. Is there anything else I need to plan for? Anything I should be cognizant of? [link] [comments]  |
| Posted: 26 Jan 2018 05:46 PM PST I was called today by the local hospital saying that there is a bill that they just got around to processing from April 18th, 2014. This was the year that 4 abscesses were found on my liver at the age of 29 that could have been cancer, but ended up being an infection. The bill is for $467. I'm almost sure due to how that year went that I paid my max out of pocket through my insurance. If I can find the spreadsheet that I was maintaining for all of my payments, this will be easy. If I can't find that, how long do insurance companies typically hold on to past EOB? Isn't there some sort of time limit that they have to process this? I can understand that there's going to be some delay in the billing process but 4 years? That's freaking ridiculous. [link] [comments]  |
| Posted: 26 Jan 2018 03:08 PM PST I received a promotion that came with a large increase in salary. I went from 45k a year to 75k. I live in California, married, no children and still can't afford to buy a home where I live. After looking at the numbers, I will be paying about 20k in taxes. My spouse and I both work. She makes about 30k. I currently claim 2 on federal and 1 on state. I put 5% in my 401k and Pay our Health insurance. Should I make adjustments to my w-4? Is there anything I can do to keep more of my $? Thanks [link] [comments]  |
| (UK) I feel extremely poor even though I am asset 'rich' Posted: 26 Jan 2018 03:47 PM PST I have been lurking around this forum but this is my first posting on this sub so please forgive me for any errors. As the title suggests, I wonder if anyone is going through or feeling the same way as I do and if there is anything I am doing wrong? I am in my 30s and I live life feeling I cannot 'enjoy' life. By that I mean I feel that I am always cash poor or I find myself left literally with just 30 pounds in the bank account to last me through the final week before my next paycheck comes in (a not so infrequent occurrence). I find myself in a very odd situation where I have assets and passive income but I am 'poor' in terms of my day to day living expenses. The income I generate from work and from my passive income is more than enough for my expenses but I seemingly struggle to reach that state where I 'feel' financially comfortable. I have two overseas properties generating profits for me, I have a large stock portfolio, investment holdings in crypto, and money in P2P lending generating passive income for me. But I find myself saving most of my money either for further investing/savings or pouring it further into my stocks so much so that I find myself unable, unwilling to budget money for 'daily' living expenses. It feels like I am trying too hard to invest and generate income to the point of paranoia. Am I? I beat myself up when I spend money going on holidays or have a meal that costs £20. I feel insecure from time to time and commit to saving and investing more and more and I feel like I don't know when to stop or to balance having money in the bank for the month. Any advice is greatly welcomed. Thank you for reading. [link] [comments]  |
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