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    Home Unlabelled Personal Finance 30-Day Challenge #2: Check your percentages! (February, 2018)

    Personal Finance 30-Day Challenge #2: Check your percentages! (February, 2018)

    February 02, 2018

    Personal Finance 30-Day Challenge #2: Check your percentages! (February, 2018)

    30-Day Challenge #2: Check your percentages! (February, 2018)

    Posted: 02 Feb 2018 09:07 AM PST

    Compound interest is the eighth wonder of the world. He who understands it, earns it ... he who doesn't ... pays it. —someone

    30-day challenges

    We are pleased to continue our 30-day challenge series. Past challenges can be found here.

    This month's 30-day challenge is to Check your percentages! There are two different challenges this month depending on your position in the "How to handle $" list of steps.

    1. If you're on steps 0 through 3, do the first challenge. That's you if you're:

      • Building an emergency fund
      • Paying down expensive debt (interest rate over 10%)

    2. If you're on steps 4 through 6, do the second challenge. That's you if you're:

      • Saving for retirement
      • Investing for other long-term goals

    3. If you're not sure which challenge applies best to you (e.g., not saving for retirement yet, but don't have credit card debt), feel free to pick and choose from either challenge.

    4. Bonus points: do both challenges!

    First challenge

    Your challenge is to pursue improving your interest rates. You've successfully completed this challenge once you've done 2 or more of the following things:

    Second challenge

    Your challenge is to audit your investment expenses. You've successfully completed this challenge once you've done 2 or more of the following things:

    • Request a fee schedule/statement from your financial advisor (if you have one).
    • Request a fee schedule/statement from the administrator of your 401(k) or other employer-sponsored retirement plan (or find out your fees by logging into your plan account).
    • Look through recent statements to see if there are any charges you don't recognize.
    • Calculate your blended expense ratio.

    The idea here is that you might uncover some expenses you didn't know you were paying, which in turn might give you a reason to make a change for the better. The impact of costs on investments can be depressing. If you find a clean slate, sleep well knowing that your money is working for you first and your investment company second.

    More information on investment expenses:

    Challenge success criteria

    You've successfully completed this challenge once you've done 2 or more of the items from either the first or second challenge. You may substitute an item from the extra credit if you run out of items that apply to your financial situation.

    Extra credit

    submitted by /u/AutoModerator
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    Weekend Discussion and Victory Thread for the week of February 02, 2018

    Posted: 02 Feb 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:

    1. Make a top-level comment if you want to share something positive regarding your personal finances!

      Instead of posting individual threads for positive success stories of how you've funded your emergency fund, made progress on your debt, saved for a future goal, reached a certain net worth, or anything else you would like to share, let's consolidate everyone's stories into one weekly thread!

    2. Please make a top-level comment if you want to ask a question! Also, please don't downvote "moronic" questions! If you have not received your answer within 24 hours, you can feel free to start a discussion.

    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.

    submitted by /u/AutoModerator
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    [PA] Medicaid case worker just told me I will be owing $1,000/month due to a medicaid overpayment, on the verge of an emotional breakdown. Advice appreciated.

    Posted: 02 Feb 2018 11:39 AM PST

    Last year I finished college and wasn't making a lot of money so I applied for medicaid. After submitting all of my documents including my W2 (~$12,000 in 2016) and recent paystubs showing that I made less than 1300/month, I was approved.

    In October of this year, I picked up a lot of overtime in preparation for being out of work for an upcoming surgery and my income for the year shot up to ~$19,200. This is according to the woman at welfare, because I haven't received my 2017 W2 in the mail yet.

    Most months I was under the limit, but medicaid only looks at the year-to-date in order to calculate how much money you made every month. They said I made an average of ~$1600/month over the course of 12 months.

    So because I went over, the woman from Welfare called me and told me that I'll have an overpayment of $1,000/month to pay Medicaid back and that I'll receive paperwork in the mail.

    $1,000/month is literally what I take home every month if I'm lucky. I asked her how she expected me to pay that when I need to pay for car insurance, college loans, and now (most likely) health insurance.

    She basically said that it wasn't her problem and to wait for paperwork in the mail.

    I guess it's my fault for making more than I should have. I had a lot of medical issues that I needed to take care of, so the medicaid was essential in helping me pay for surgeries, doctors appointments, etc. Even then, there was a lot of money that came out of my pocket because many places don't accept medicaid.

    Now I'm going to have to find a way to pay this money and I have no idea what to do. I probably can't pay what they ask. Am I going to jail?

    Is there any way for this to be forgiven? Given what's already on my plate, and my emotional and medical problems (currently see a psychologist and physical therapist regularly), I have no idea what to do.

    I haven't worked in a month due to my knee surgery and I'll only be working two days a week for the next month or two while I recover. I'm in a pickle.

    Welfare lady also said that my medical coverage will "roll over to the affordable care act" once my medicaid ends this month.

    I have no idea what's going on and I'm kind of freaking out because my mom is permenantly disabled and makes less money than I do. Any suggestions would be appreciated.

    Edit 1: Edited for accuracy.

    submitted by /u/ii-i
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    Joining finances when one partner budgets and the other doesn't

    Posted: 02 Feb 2018 06:17 AM PST

    Hi /r/personalfinance!

    My husband and I have been married for about two years and we just recently bought a house together. We have not joined our finances at all, but it's starting to get to be a pain having to pay bills and then get a check from my husband for half, or the other way around. We keep talking about joining finances to make this easier, but we have a couple of hurdles we need to cross and I'm looking for some advice.

    1. I budget religiously using YNAB. I don't necessarily stick to the budget I make and frequently move stuff between categories, but I'm at least cognizant of where the money I have is set to go and I have several categories that I know can't be touched. My husband has tried but doesn't really have any interest in tracking his spending or using the budget program. I don't necessarily have a problem with us joining finances and me handling the budget/account reconciliation side of things (I actually enjoy budgeting!), but I don't want my husband to feel like he needs my permission to spend money, and I am worried about the possibility that it will end up being me just basically tracking his spending rather than really working toward making sure we're setting enough aside for savings, etc.
    2. I love my bank, but it has its drawbacks. I currently bank with Ally and have a 0.10% interest rate on my checking account and a 1.35% interest rate on my savings accounts. That's great, except I have no way to deposit cash. It's rare that I get cash, but usually I have to give it to my husband to deposit and have him cut me a check if I want to put it in my bank account. My husband banks with a credit union but they don't have interest checking and their savings rates are lower and they have minimum balance requirements. If we combine our accounts at my bank (my preference) we'll just have to deal with having cash on hand, but I hate that. Would it be a bad move to get a checking account with a local bank just to deposit cash in to transfer it to my Ally account?

    Are there any other issues anyone's come across with joining finances that we should look out for? I read through a few older threads on this topic but nothing really jumped out as being my situation so I figured I would make a post and see what pf has to say.

    submitted by /u/PM_ME_YOUR_CUTE_CAT
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    Recently started a new part time job, and on my pay stub it says I only paid $.01 out of my paycheck for federal income tax

    Posted: 02 Feb 2018 09:02 AM PST

    Should I be concerned about this, is this an error, or is this legit?

    Numbers from my paystub/W4

    • $9.25/hour with gross pay of $142.45 and net pay of $123.49
    • No Dependents, my parents claim me as a dependent
    • I worked 15.4 hours, and paid $.01 for Federal Income Tax, $2.07 for Employee Medicare, $8.83 for Social Security Employee Tax, and $7.05 for State Income Tax

    I will be asking payroll what's up with this, but I can't immediately atm and figured being a little informed would help me in my situation. Thanks everybody for the advice!]

    Edit: I talked to payroll and they confirmed what most of you guys said. I won't be making enough to need to file federal taxes, and that's why I'm only having $.01 cut out of my paycheck

    Edit #2: I just checked out my W-4 and it turns out I didn't check on the form that I do not anticipate needing to file this year, so that is also most likely the reason for the $.01 deduction

    submitted by /u/QueensCompanion
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    (US-GA) I received a W-2 for a company I didn't work for, I suspect my previous employer took my employment information and hired me under a outsourcing agency to avoid having to pay unemployment as I found out he has a history of mistreating employees

    Posted: 02 Feb 2018 04:42 AM PST

    So I received a W-2 from a company I didn't work for, the amount of money matches about what I made from my last employer who was a very shady guy. The company has HR Outsourcing in it's name. I think he hired me for certain contacts I had and I was capable of doing the job well but didn't want to pay for my salary long term and just wanted the help as he looked for someone cheaper. Also to avoid unemployment benefits. The funny thing is I got a w-2 from him but it was for the last check I got after threatening to sue him for pay owed.

    He still owes me pay, but I've been told hes bankrupt now and his house is in foreclosure so I dont want to waste my time.

    My question now is, do I need to file criminal charges for identity theft? Please help I never imagined something like this could happen.

    I will crosspost to legal advice

    Edit: I never signed a contract, I didn't "overlook" paperwork. I interviewed for a position with a company, got the position, did a W-2 upon hire. I literally said it wasn't disclosed and the most upvoted comments are assuming that I just overlooked something and I KNOW FOR A FACT THAT IS NOT THE CASE. There was no disclosure.

    submitted by /u/eCommManager
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    Strategy for getting a house in Seattle before the market turns into Bay area or San Jose

    Posted: 02 Feb 2018 10:02 AM PST

    My wife and I are 7 months pregnant with our first child and living comfortably and happily in our first home, a 3 bdr, 2 1/12 bath, decent neighborhood but close to lightrail (awesome for daily commute). House has gained about 210k in equity, I also have 100k in stock. No debt, perfect credit, and a retirement account on track with recommendations. That combined with the reality that Seattle is booming like never before without clear signs of impending "bubble" doom makes me think we should stretch a bit now to upgrade our house before prices get even higher. This is where I could use some advice. My wife and I have a combined salary of ~180k, very stable employment. With the other assets I listed above we can get a loan for 600k if we don't sell our house before we buy and 700k (with 20% down on both)if we do sell our house before we buy. Meaning we could potentially get into a 850k house, with a mortgage around 4,200 a mo. Currently, our Mortgage is 2,300, so this is quite a jump, especially if I factor in the cost of a new kiddo. I would love some advice from people in California or Seattle who have been financially stable and then dipped into a "house poor" state to get ahead while the door to do so was open. Was it worth the stress of having such a high mortgage payment? Any general or specific wisdom on people who've been through similar situations would be greatly appreciated. Thank you!

    submitted by /u/Markeboy
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    Paying down my bills.

    Posted: 02 Feb 2018 09:43 AM PST

    I posted yesterday regarding this and everyone was telling me to sell my car and I was hesitant at first even though I knew that was logical. It wasn't until I wrote that post and talked to my mom that I realized that I am paying 40k for my car without interest added on. That is ridiculous.

    I wanted to formally apologize and say you guys are right. Car Max would only offer me 24k even when I owe 33k still.

    I'm still looking around and considering the idea but I am not sure that I can afford to sell my car without losing 10k at least.

    With that said I'm going to do an edit in a few minutes with everything that was in my last post but I'm looking for other options. If any... Because I'm not losing 10k on a car.

    I'm sorry for the excuses and everything. It was hard to hear.

    Edit: I don't have that so I have to wait until I get home to retype it all up. I will have everything up by tomorrow.

    submitted by /u/DudeThatsErin
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    Rent or sell the NYC-area studio?

    Posted: 02 Feb 2018 07:54 AM PST

    My wife and I live right outside NYC and are moving from our studio co-op to rent a 2 bedroom apartment.

    We're trying to decide what the best course of action is for the studio. Some details...

    I bought the studio in 2013 for $58,000 Mortgage has been paid off Monthly maintenance fees (including taxes + utilities) = $400 a month

    Market rent is about $1100 / month Market sale price is probably in the $95,000 range

    Our new rent is going to be about $2,800/month (closer to NYC, luxury building, etc). We're thinking that the profit from renting out the studio will be nice extra cash to subsidize our rent but also thinking that selling it and banking the $85k-$90k would be nice. Just want to note that we can still afford the new rent even without the rental income (monthly take home pay is $10k excluding bonuses)

    The new apartment is about a 20 minute drive to the studio so we would be around if we need to be landlords. Although I'm not very handy, the co-op has a maintenance department that, in theory, is supposed to help with any small issues.

    Wanted to get PF's opinion on what the best option is here...

    submitted by /u/smallsketch
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    Need Advice: Am I spending too much on a car?

    Posted: 02 Feb 2018 04:54 AM PST

    Here's the gist - I need a new car. My current car is 10 years old, and constantly has problems. The car I want is a 2018 Mini Cooper, and it clocks in at $24,650. My situation: *Salary: $47,500 / yr *Debt: None *Bills: $560/month rent, $150ish all household bills, $120/month insurance *Savings account: ~ $20K *Checking account: ~$4k *Stocks: ~$6200 *401K: ~$5K

    I'm going to get straight to the point. Is it fiscally responsible for me to buy this expensive car? I've never purchased my own car before, and I've been saving so long that I want to get what I want. Just making sure that I'm not being stupid. Feel free to tell me that I am.

    Edit: I'm not buying the car. I'm going to be more sensible and buy a cheaper car. I appreciate all the real advice. But also, everyone is assuming I'm a dude. I am a woman, FYI.

    submitted by /u/peanut201
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    Received half of my torn up W2 and half of someone else's in the mail from USPS

    Posted: 02 Feb 2018 10:24 AM PST

    I'm sorry if this is the wrong place to ask this, but I'm not sure what I should do. I received an envelope in the mail from USPS that contained half of my mangled, torn up W2, and half of a stranger's W2. A message on the back of the envelope had a printed apology for damaged mail. I guess there was an accident and they mixed up pairing the halves together? Anyway, what should I do now? For all I know, they sent my missing half to someone else, with my name, address, and SSN included. Do I need to do something to protect myself? And is there something I should do with the stranger's W2 half?

    Update: I returned the other person's W2 to my post office. Not sure if they'll send it to him or shred it. As for me, I'm going to take some users' advice and freeze my credit, just for the tiiiiny chance something happens. As well as request a new W2 from my company and file my taxes asap. Thank you all for the advice!

    submitted by /u/tondalayo
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    Someone else claimed me as a dependent?

    Posted: 02 Feb 2018 10:24 AM PST

    Hey guys,

    So I filed my taxes and was awaiting the approval. Well, my return was rejected because my social was already claimed as a dependent on someone else's forms.

    "IND-516 - The taxpayer has already been claimed as a dependent on another return."

    I spoke with my parents and they said they did not claim me. I do not believe anyone else I know knows my social security number.

    What do I do?

    I was suggested to file via mail and wait until they request more information after seeing my SSN on two different tax forms.

    Thanks.

    submitted by /u/Intellz
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    Taxes on home just doubled - is there anything I can do to fight this?

    Posted: 02 Feb 2018 06:47 AM PST

    Question's as simple as the title - my taxes essentially doubled on my home, so now I'll have to pay nearly $10,000 extra a year in taxes.

    Has anyone had any success fighting this shit?

    State is Texas, if that helps.

    Edit: Apologies for the lack of info, here's some more stuff below after talking to my county appraiser:

    1. We have filed and been approved for the homestead exemption, apparently the mortgage company didn't confirm this fact when recalculating my taxes for the year.

    2. The increase in taxes is a result of an increase of my appraisal by almost 50%.

    3. Given the information here, I assume I can fight the new appraisal, but given that we put nearly 1/2 of the increased assessment into the home (improvements), I'm not sure whether or not I'll have a case.

    Thanks for all the info, and apologies again for not being clearer - I was seeing red!

    submitted by /u/REbr0
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    Just graduated undergrad, I have 117k in debt. Need advice.

    Posted: 02 Feb 2018 12:39 PM PST

    I am currently working contracting with an industrial reality company making roughly 3 grand a month. I have no savings. Rent for 500 a month. I have a vehicle In my name making up 27k of my debt. That will be sold as soon as possible unless someone has a trick that could help me keep it. Other than that nothing in my name. Most of my debt is student loans both private (48k) and federal (37k). 5k in debt chalked up to stupid purchases and Cards. I graduated with a Psychology degree and need to achieve a graduate degree in order to pursue my goal of being some form of therapist. What kind of actions do I need to take?

    Edit: Graduated in December. loan repayment begins in June. Will not be able to contract while in School.

    submitted by /u/toxic_pockets
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    Wells Fargo pays the piper

    Posted: 02 Feb 2018 05:38 PM PST

    Breaking news that Wells Fargo will face unprecedented actions caused by their abuse of consumers.

    Asking for real, why do you bank with them?

    https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-wells-fargo-fed/fed-orders-wells-fargo-to-halt-growth-over-compliance-issues-idUSKBN1FM2V9?il=0

    submitted by /u/jumbofob
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    Seeking reviews of Dave Ramsey’s budget app.

    Posted: 02 Feb 2018 09:57 AM PST

    Has anyone used Dave Ramsey's "Every Dollar" budget app? I'm a total newbie at budgeting. I only have one more CC to pay off and then I'll be completely out of debt. I'm looking for a simple, easy to use, budget spreadsheet or app to help me meet my financial goals this year. Any other app suggestions or links to budget sheets are very much appreciated.

    Thank you to the moderators and participants in this sub, you all inspired me to really buckle down and gain more control of my finances.

    submitted by /u/LeonaLux
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    I'm 18 and trying to start saving for retirement as early as i can.

    Posted: 02 Feb 2018 07:20 AM PST

    No one in my family has any idea how this kind of thing works (poor family from SC), but i know it's more complicated than putting money in a savings account. Can anyone here explain my options because i have no idea where to start? I have a minor part time job (like 200 a month just whenever i have time to tutor)

    submitted by /u/Sharpscore
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    I got an income form from my university for what I thought was a scholarship and I did not pay taxes on it. It was a large sum. Please help

    Posted: 02 Feb 2018 05:14 PM PST

    I just received a 1099 form from my university that says the $15,000 I got over the summer is taxable. I was assured when I committed to the program the money was not income; rather, it was scholarship funds and would not be documented as such. Now I get this in the mail, and I did not pay a dime in taxes. What do I do? Who can I ask for help? I'm freaking out here because I am a college student whose roommate just bailed on our lease which means I have to cover all of rent and the termination fee. I already pulled a loan to pay all of this off, and now I might have to pay taxes on $15,000 of income? I couldn't afford it if that's the case. Any help or suggestions are welcome.

    submitted by /u/PM_ME_YOUR_CHEMICALS
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    I have $168,000 left on my mortgage. Loan amount was originally 188,000 but house is worth $200,000, which is a conservative estimate. Due to certain financial situations, we really need access to that $30,000 equity. What are our options, if there are any?

    Posted: 02 Feb 2018 09:01 AM PST

    Waiting on a raise for 8 months. Am I being taken advantage of? What approach should I take?

    Posted: 02 Feb 2018 08:44 AM PST

    I'll try to keep this succinct. I work as part of a digital sales ad-operations team, trafficking online sales campaigns. I set up campaigns, monitor, optimize, provide reporting, etc.

    I was promoted into this department from another department at the same company, 7 years ago. I've had one small bump in pay (like the $1000 range) about 4 years ago if memory serves correct. I have received no other pay increases. Annual reviews by our company were cancelled several years ago (probably around the time I had my last little bump in pay).

    Back at the end of May 2017, I went to my boss requesting a pretty significant raise (about 20% of my current salary), due to my current workload. She understood where I was coming from, but expressed that the only way she felt she could get me more money is if I took on this new product from our "Chicago" team (we coordinate with another team like us based out of another major city, not Chicago just using this as a protective measure). The new product was managing all of the $2k per month Facebook marketing campaigns sold via our company. The agreement was that I would manage the new workload during a beta test, and then the raise would come after reviewing my performance during the beta test.

    As of September 2017, I started the supposed beta test, taking on new Facebook ad-campaigns. I'm now managing around 70 campaigns, with a total monthly budget of around $80,000. In addition to my other workload (which I'm still tackling), I'm managing probably close to $150,000 in monthly budget, certainly well over $1M annually, in all of those online campaigns.

    Towards the end of 2017, I was beginning to grow a bit frustrated that I hadn't heard more. In my opinion, I had been VERY patient during this process, so I've asked my boss for an update. She mentioned she would talk to her bosses, and try to get a definitive end date on the beta test for the new product. I was receiving great reviews in terms of my performance on the new products. She said she expected to have more information for me by the end of the year. Ok.

    So first week into January, I still hadn't heard anything. I reached back out to my boss, trying my best to keep my tact, but likely coming off a bit more frustrated. My point to her was, I've now been tackling this beta test for 4+ months. I first went to her for a raise 8 months ago. Yet, I still have no definitive timeline on when the end of the beta test is, am I getting a raise, how much, when? She once again said she understood my frustration, and wanted me to know she's going to bat for me. She went back to her bosses, and then brought information back to me that yes, they are officially adding me to the team on the new Facebook product. She said she's have further details for me in a week.

    A week goes by. No further details. This is extremely frustrating. I reach back out to my boss for a status update. I once again explain how the ambiguity of all of this is really frustrating me, and I apologize for coming off as so impatient. I explain I like to think I've been extremely patient during this entire process, I just really want more information about the current status of things. I'm told more info is coming, but more info never does. Yet, the workload continues...

    My boss ended up reminding me that she's provided a recommendation on the increase to her superiors, and they are reviewing and need to approve before the pay increase and title change can be made, including announcement to the company (this mention surprised me a little). She also literally said "it's not like I'm just asking for a small increase."

    What I don't understand, is that still ZERO details have been provided on what the raise they are supposedly trying to give me is. ZERO details have been provided on what the title change will be. ZERO info has been provided on an acceptable time frame for this information to be reviewed and approved or rejected.

    My last exchange with my boss on this matter was 8 days ago. I'm at the point where I want to reach out for yet another status update. In my opinion, it is at the point that this is rather exceptionally unprofessional overall. I'm not trying to point fingers at any one person, but just overall they are not handling this very well. And in many ways, I feel that their lack of transparency with me, and their ambiguity has really made me more impatient at this point then I ever would have been.

    Should I reach back out to my boss? What should I say/focus on? I'm basically walking a tightrope where I want to play nice to get a once-in-a-lifetime raise that I can be proud of, but I also want to continue to bring focus to my valid reasoning that this is not being handled well at all, and it's inducing quite a bit of frustration. I also want to hint towards the idea that if there is no foreseeable timeline in place for me to receive approval on the raise, then perhaps it is appropriate for me to request them sending the new workload back to "Chicago". I mean, this only seems fair. I was told they were adding me to the team officially, so the beta test is over after 4 months now, as far as I'm concerned. I've shown I can tackle this workload proficiently.

    Or, am I in the wrong? Do I need to demonstrate even more patience here? Please provide your insights and recommendations.

    submitted by /u/do_you_even_climbro
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    Dental insurance is refusing to pay for a tooth implant because it's a baby tooth that needs to be extracted.

    Posted: 02 Feb 2018 04:11 PM PST

    I have a few baby teeth that never had adult teeth grow under them. I have to have one baby tooth extracted and an implant put in, and apparently my dental insurance told my dentist that they won't cover it because it's a baby tooth rather than an adult tooth.

    Can I do anything?

    submitted by /u/cucumbercrumb
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    (USA) 24, Looking for personal loan to pay off $6k credit cards

    Posted: 02 Feb 2018 06:44 AM PST

    Hey all!

    I accumulated about $6k of credit card debt while in university. I have enough money to make the payments each month, but the interest rates are so high that I'm basically just swimming upstream. I.e. I make a payment of $150 a month, but then get $80 of interest charged.

    That said, I understand personal loans have much smaller interest rates, and was wondering if it would be a good idea to take out a loan and pay off the cards (and then cut them off and put them in a box...).

    Do you think this is a good idea? If so, what personal loan service might you recommend? I get advertisements for things like LendingClub all the time but I want to weigh my options.

    Thank you so much!

    submitted by /u/hareandanser
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    Maxed Credit Cards, No Savings, New Job that pays a lot more, what should I prioritize first?

    Posted: 02 Feb 2018 05:43 PM PST

    Full Story: Recently I was living paycheck to paycheck, and supplementing my income with my credit cards. I always figured it will be "until I get a new job," then I'll pay off my credit cards.

    It took a long time before I finally went out and got a new job, now I have a whopping $20k in cc debt, $0 in my savings, and less than $1,000 in my checking.

    I realize how terrible this is, and am pretty ashamed of myself for letting it get this bad. I want to make this better by paying off my credit cards, and ultimately saving the 6 months minimum I should have in my savings.

    I got a new job, and after adding up my monthly expenses, including minimum payments, I will have about $700 extra at the end of the month, and am not sure where it should go first:

    • Is it better to just save all of it for the first couple months, in case the new job doesn't work out, then after that, start payingT more on the credit cards?

    • Put it all towards my credit cards (I'm worried about this, in case the new job falls through I won't have any cash to fall back on)?

    • Split it, and put like $200 extra towards my credit cards, and $500 in my savings until I have a comfortable amount saved up, then start putting more towards the credit cards?

    • Or is there a better option for me to do?

    TL;DR Should I prioritize cc debt, or my savings first? Or should I prioritize both the same?

    submitted by /u/1Maple
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    Should I buy a car with cash, or finance it to build my credit?

    Posted: 02 Feb 2018 07:22 PM PST

    I am looking to buy a used car, and while I can buy it in full with cash, someone suggested I consider financing it to build up my credit score (particularly for buying a house in the future). Up until now, my credit portfolio has been based only on my credit cards which I pay off every month in addition to some minimal student loans that I paid off shortly after graduating. Should I diversify my credit portfolio and finance the car or buy it in cash?

    submitted by /u/py258
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    Confused by my student loan breakdown statement. Also would like some advice on repayment of 50K+.

    Posted: 02 Feb 2018 07:19 PM PST

    Here is the breakdown from Nelnet

    Loan Type DIRECT LOAN STAFFORD - SUB Interest Rate 5.750%

    Outstanding Principal Balance $3,421.81

    Unpaid Fees/Other Charges (if applicable)* $0.00

    Unpaid Interest to be Capitalized $0.00

    Interest Not Capitalized $244.40

    Estimated Interest Accrual Over Loan Term $1,423.41

    Interest Paid as of 04/06/2017 $402.56

    Total to be Repaid $5,089.62

    Now can I pay off the principal balance and then the loan is done or do I have to pay the total to be repaid? As far as interest rates go they are different ranging from 4%-6.5%. Do I knock off the 6.5% loans first or am I thinking about this all wrong? For income I am just under 40K a year based on this years tax information.

    I read through the rules but I apologize if I am breaking any. This is the first time I have been able to start paying back aggressively and would like to know where to begin.

    Current income to get an idea of where I can start paying off of. 2.6K in checking 15K in savings

    submitted by /u/ghostrider90
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    Private Mortgage Insurance - Removal

    Posted: 02 Feb 2018 06:50 PM PST

    I live in Colorado, I purchased a home at the end of 2015. Prior to closing the lender told me I could just order a new appraisal each year until I hit 20% equity. When I did I could request to remove the PMI prematurely and it wouldn't be based off the sales price or even the original appraised value.

    I got a letter in the mail today stating that the only way to remove PMI is for the loan to be 80% of the lesser of, the sales price or original appraisal. What the hell is going on because google seems to go both ways. Is this state specific or is it at the discretion of the bank? I'm with Chase if it matters. Anyone run into this shit? Thanks.

    submitted by /u/Macgruber57
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