Personal Finance 30-Day Challenge #7: Find and participate in a FREE activity in your area! (July, 2019) |
- 30-Day Challenge #7: Find and participate in a FREE activity in your area! (July, 2019)
- Weekday Help and Victory Thread for the week of July 01, 2019
- Found out my predecessor earned 37% more than I earn now. How do I approach this for negotiations?
- [Debt] Mom owes 480,000, wants me to cosign
- Do not use TrueCar
- Nearly everybody is attempting to separate you from your hard earned money. Prevention begins by tracking it.
- How $300 in damage to your car can cost you thousands.
- Finance company trying to bill me for services never rendered PLEASE HELP
- How do I give somebody $5K?
- Why WOULDN'T I put my life's savings in a high yield savings account? (what are the drawbacks?)
- 19yr old trying to go to college
- Does anyone have good book recommendations about financial matters,money managment etc. Books you wished you had earlier that could've helped you/or you read recently.
- Need help resolving my debt.
- Grandma makes it sound like I'm a beneficiary in her trust but....
- 20yrs old, feel like i got scammed by Primerica with 401k and life insurance
- Got an unexpected $40k in cash
- I'm in so much debt and I need help!
- I'm 22 and have 10K in student loans and 10K in TDAmeritrade
- Graduate student scholarship is taxable income? (US-PA)
- Is Ally Bank F*#&ing Me?
- Am I an idiot? Have I been stupidly missing out on the benefits of a Roth IRA??
- Was told I would get a raise at my 1 year, now told everyone gets raises at the end of the calendar year
- Genuine question: I don’t understand why I’m struggling to live comfortably while making retirement savings while others making same pay as me live so luxuriously and own homes
- How to build on a solid financial foundation? Early 30's, recently married, no kids (yet).
| 30-Day Challenge #7: Find and participate in a FREE activity in your area! (July, 2019) Posted: 01 Jul 2019 06:11 AM PDT 30-day challengesWe are pleased to continue our 30-day challenge series. Past challenges can be found here. This month's 30-day challenge is to Find and participate in a FREE activity in your area! Some suggestions on how to do this:
The goal of this exercise is to show you that spending money isn't required to have a full and healthy life. Challenge success criteriaYou've successfully completed this challenge once you've done one or more of the following things:
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| Weekday Help and Victory Thread for the week of July 01, 2019 Posted: 01 Jul 2019 04:09 AM PDT If you need help, please check the PF Wiki to see if your question might be answered there.This thread is for personal finance questions, discussions, and sharing your success stories:
A big thank you to the many PFers who take time to answer other people's questions! [link] [comments]  | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Found out my predecessor earned 37% more than I earn now. How do I approach this for negotiations? Posted: 01 Jul 2019 07:32 AM PDT A little over a year ago, both my wife and I were unemployed with our first child on the way. I landed an interview, but thought I bombed it. But two weeks later, I got a phone call from HR double checking my salary requirements. I replied with $60k, which was about 10% more than I made at my previous job. I thought there would be some negotiating, but they sent me an offer letter with the full 60k. I obviously accepted. Fast forward a year. I love my job and the people I work with. Everything is great. I have access to my predecessor's inbox to be able to find pertinent information/conversations regarding old projects. One day while doing exactly that, I saw an electronic copy of her W2. I really shouldn't have clicked it, but my curiosity got the better of me and I saw that she earned over 80k in base salary. Obviously I got a bit of sticker shock, then a little jealous. Without addressing salary at all, I asked my manager how my work compares to that of my predecessor. I know she was well liked and good at her job, so I wanted to double check that there were no gaps in job responsibilities or performance that could be used to justify a lower pay grade. My manager assured me that my performance has been equal in most cases and even exceeds in a few areas. So I guess my question is this. In the next month or so, I have an official performance review with the head of HR, my boss, and the owner of the company (small business, approx $20mil in sales annually.) How can I use this new found knowledge to approach this conversation? Obviously I am not going to mention the W2. I have been very happy with this company and have no desire to leave. I don't even truly feel underpaid. But now that I know that I left money on the table, I want to see what we can work out. Thanks for your thoughts! [link] [comments]  | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| [Debt] Mom owes 480,000, wants me to cosign Posted: 01 Jul 2019 11:00 AM PDT I'm not very financially savvy, but this is what's happening. My mom has a $350k mortgage, a $100k loan with high interest (12%), and a $30k payment on a car. Currently she pays about $4000 a month, using her $3k a month income and $1.7k she gets under the table from family "renting". She's telling me she wants to bundle her loans/mortgage at the bank so that she can pay roughly $2200 a month instead of the $4000 she currently pays, but she needs someone to cosign and my dad doesn't make enough a year to cosign with her. The problem is that a lot of her income is under the table, including the tips she makes at work, so she has trouble proving that she can pay the loan even though her numbers add up. I am very against cosigning. Can I get some insight on what you guys think? edit: This just confirms all my worries about her financial situation, and I really think I should be cutting ties with her as a result. I'm pretty much being guilt tripped into helping her or loaning her money whenever she's short right now, but she does too many things not by the books because of her culture and the way she was raised. I love her and want her to be happy but not by ruining my own life. It really helps put things into perspective. Thank you for all the responses! [link] [comments]  | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Posted: 01 Jul 2019 06:04 PM PDT At least do not make a TrueCar account unless you want to be inundated with non stop phone calls. I made an account because it was going to allow me to see "TrueCar" prices on the app. Turns out what it does is immediately send all of your information to the dealerships right away. No confirmation that you want the dealerships to contact you about this specific car or anything like that. I saw the initial disclaimer saying that this would give them the ability to send my info to the dealerships, but stupid me thought that meant I would select that option once I actually knew what I wanted... And the big kicker is they have "no way" to cancel an account for their service. That is the answer customer service gives you... I would understand them saying that my number went out and they can't stop them from calling me but to not be able to cancel my account at all... Utter bullshit that will allow me to never use the service for anything again. So save yourself and do not make an account. Please. [link] [comments]  | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Posted: 01 Jul 2019 03:35 PM PDT This is something I've been wanting to post for awhile now but just haven't. It's honestly exhausting at times, but keeping tabs of where your money is going and understanding why and for what is important. There are so many little things most people never check in to that they would be surprised just how much cash they are hemorrhaging unwittingly. Some examples off the top of my head:
..and the list goes on. My MiL had been paying $100 to the phone company for 15MB dsl and a phone line before ditching it for 100MB cable internet for $50/month and just using her cellphone. Just because she was used to it. This went on for over a decade for no reason. Just watching where your money is going should alert you of these changes. Investigating your bills and calling and questioning what charges are can really add up. With so many people using autopay and not tracking their money or budgeting these days I think a lot of people would be shocked just how much money they are losing for things they really do not use. [link] [comments]  | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| How $300 in damage to your car can cost you thousands. Posted: 01 Jul 2019 04:00 PM PDT This comes up from time to time and I felt that this needed a post. Let me preface this by saying that I'm a dealer and I probably run, I dunno, 20+ Carfax reports a day and evaluate 20+ cars a day. A minor accident, say a scuffed bumper, when reported to the Police, will generally end up as an accident reported on your car's Carfax/Autocheck report. I would say that virtually every accident that's on a vehicle history report (VHR) is from a police report. Period. Now, on a late model car this is, as a general rule of thumb, about a 10% or so hit to your car's value even if the damage was very minor. In an extreme example that comes to mind was a year old Bentley Continental Convertible where a $1,000 claim to repair a scuffed bumper ended up costing the owner $30,000 in lost value due to the car having a "bad Carfax" (YOU try selling a year old Bentley with an accident on the Carfax... I dare you). So, if your car has very minor cosmetic damage, you may want to think it over before you make a police report if you can avoid it. If your car is in a legit accident, go ahead and make that report. But if you come out of the grocery store to a scuffed bumper, you may want to reconsider making that report. [link] [comments]  | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Finance company trying to bill me for services never rendered PLEASE HELP Posted: 01 Jul 2019 07:05 PM PDT Hi reddit, recently parents looked into a water system filter for the house with the a company offering free testing. Apparently, they signed some paper work but never followed up with the procedure as after some thought, decided not to go through with the procedure. We called the company and left them a message saying we would no longer be needing their services the next morning. Later that day, the sales guy turned up at the house and tried to talk us into doing the job at 8pm. We declined and asked him to leave us alone. About a week later, Aqua Finance says we owe them money as they have received document of my mother signing for completion of the job - which is false. We do not have any new filter system. I'm currently trying to locate the documents signed but is there anything we can do legally about being billed for something we never received? Are we screwed? Please advise. Read tons of reviews on Yelp about people being scammed by this finance company. [link] [comments]  | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Posted: 01 Jul 2019 01:52 PM PDT We have some friends who are struggling financially for reasons well beyond their control. Meanwhile I have a one-time windfall and can easily toss them a chunk without missing it. We don't expect them to pay it back, we don't want them to pay it back. We just want them to have some breathing room and to never speak of it again. My wife and I are in total concurrence on doing this for them. Are there any special tax implications for them or us or can we just drop a check on them and call it a gift? Edit: thanks for the fast response! [link] [comments]  | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Why WOULDN'T I put my life's savings in a high yield savings account? (what are the drawbacks?) Posted: 01 Jul 2019 06:36 PM PDT I'm new to finances, but have been doing some research. Say I have about $10k to my name, and I don't want to touch that money. Say it's currently in a big-name bank's savings account (e.g. Chase, WellsFargo, or Bank of America) earning mere pennies a year. What are the cons to transferring that 10k to a high yield savings account at like 2.1% interest (e.g. Ally Bank)? That money would earn about $210+ a year, or about $160ish after taxes. Really, mere peanuts in the grand scheme of things, although nice. Is there a catch to a high yield savings account, and if not why doesn't everyone use one? Thanks in advance. [link] [comments]  | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 19yr old trying to go to college Posted: 01 Jul 2019 02:59 PM PDT I feel like I'm hitting dead ends everywhere. Currently I am $12,000 short on tuition for this coming fall semester after receiving my financial aid package from my school. I dual enrolled in high school, and went to community college for a year to finish up the remaining pre-req classes and to obtain a transfer stamp because I was receiving enough from FAFSA to not have to worry about funding. I only received my financial aid package about two weeks ago, and since then it feels like I can't get ahead. I live with my parents who both work low income jobs, as well as my younger brother who has autism and is lower functioning. I try to work when I can, but between my summer classes at community college and having to babysit my brother I can only manage to work one day a week serving at a local sports bar. I've tried to take out student loans, but I've gotten denied each one because of my family's low credit scores as well as me not having credit. I honestly don't know what to do at this point. I'm going to my college's financial aid office tomorrow to try and submit a special circumstances appeal, but I feel very hopeless and really need any and all advice I can get. [link] [comments]  | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Posted: 01 Jul 2019 05:23 AM PDT I'am in my early 20' and realised that i will be soon done with college but i still have a lot to learn and improve regarding the topic. Edit: Thanks, you all gave me something to read about regarding this topic for the next year. :) [link] [comments]  | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Posted: 01 Jul 2019 06:43 PM PDT Hello reddit. Last year I went through a horrible year missed a year worth of payments. Got a really good job this year and a lot better. I owe 13 k. What's the best way to resolve this tho I have no clue. I understand I fucked up but I'm willing to accept my consequences. Thank you [link] [comments]  | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Grandma makes it sound like I'm a beneficiary in her trust but.... Posted: 01 Jul 2019 10:15 AM PDT When I ask my dad about it, all he will say is to keep the money away from his wife that he is the only beneficiary (??) And my siblings and I will become beneficiaries when he dies. I'm just afraid something sketchy is going on here because he has lied to me before (signed insurance check over to him to pay college tuition because it was too much money for a teenager to have and he spent it and didn't pay tuition, putting me in collections debt). He also has total control of grandma's finances, and I've noticed things like birthday and Christmas checks from him are from her account recently and his wife told me all of their big purchases like new furniture comes out of that account as well. Grandma's memory is declining and can't really hold a conversation most of the time so I don't really know if she knows what's going on + she relies on my dad for everything. Dad's wife is under the impression the trust is set up so the kids get their portion at a certain age and that's always how grandma made it sound when she was more with it...and also that seems like the best way to keep wife away from the kids money?? It's not a huge amount of money but it would pay off my debt that my dad put me in. I know nothing about trusts/inheritance so I'm hoping somebody can tell me more about how this could be set up. [link] [comments]  | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 20yrs old, feel like i got scammed by Primerica with 401k and life insurance Posted: 01 Jul 2019 08:19 AM PDT First of all, I realize I really should have looked into this a lot more before I put money down and signed up. I was trying to do the right thing and be responsible with my money but now I feel like I made a mistake. I'll learn from this and always do way more research before making any kind of investments. I was talking to one of my friends about how I want to invest for retirement instead of it losing its value in a savings account and he gave me the number to his father in law who's a Primerica rep and helped him invest. So I met with him and ended up putting down 3k for a 401k that's diversified in 3 different mutual fund accounts and also to pay 50 bucks a month for whole life insurance. Well now I'm finding out Primerica takes a big margin of what you invest and I don't even need life insurance, let alone whole instead of term. I feel like I really messed up here and should have looked into this a lot more before getting into this. I had 6k in a savings account and now I have 3k for an emergency fund and 3k in the 401k. I want to cancel my Primerica account and invest by myself, not through a company that handles it and takes a percentage. And cancel life insurance as well because no one is depending on my income and I don't have kids. Can anyone give me some advice on how to go about cancelling and putting my money elsewhere? Is 401k the best option? And what's the best company/website to do this with? I feel very lost and I just want to invest in my future and remain financially secure. I will definitely always do more research before making these kind of decisions. Thank you all in advance! [link] [comments]  | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Got an unexpected $40k in cash Posted: 01 Jul 2019 06:45 PM PDT After taxes. Debts: Car: 10k Credit cards: 2k medical debts: 2k Needs: Lasik: 4k Major dental - though not urgent: 20k Income: $100k. But live in CA and this merely gets me by. Goal: I'm a 50 year old renter who needs to get aggressive about buying a place to retire in a lower cost area of the country. I can probably telecommute with current employer Challenge: I had god credit then moved overseas for a while. Moved back and found that i had fallen off the grid. All my credit history is now very young and took a job with a bad company that messed with paychecks, causing me to be late on some payments. Current score is OK/needs help. Question: got a nice Esop payout today which would allow me to pay off all debts. Could also take care of some medical options. In a year or two i'd like to buy property and need to increase credit score. Would it be better to pay off debts, reduce them a lot or keep paying expected amounts and invest the cash somewhere else like index funds? [link] [comments]  | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| I'm in so much debt and I need help! Posted: 01 Jul 2019 08:37 PM PDT Throwaway account for obvious reasons. I'm 25 and fell into the whole scam at 18 with credit cards and they all roped me in with 24.99% interest rates. My current situation is as follows, according to Experian (I am having a hard time with Equifax and TransUnion giving me my information as they make it very difficult for me for some reason): Navient - $5605.02 @ 3.4% (subsidized) Navient - $4574.38 @ 6.8% (unsubsidized) Sallie Mae - $14,210.87 @ 10.25% American Express - $2470 (2k credit limit) (account closed due to no payments) JPMCB Card (I think this is an amazon retail card) - $2480 (2k credit limit) (account closed due to no payments) Nordstrom retail card - $78 (account closed due to no payments) Target retail card - $408 (account closed due to no payments) things that are in collections: LVNV Funding LLC - $8530 (december 2018 open date); I fell into the trap of one of those consolidation loans to pay off all my other credit card debt and took a loan out for 10k, paid off my cards and then racked them back off without paying off this loan first (I'm an idiot and I was so green for doing this at 21). Radius Global solutions - $909 (mar 2019 open date ); I honestly don't know what this is and am going to give them a call tomorrow to see where this came from. Essentially, I am currently $39,265.27 in debt. I have not touched or paid any of these accounts for the past two years. I just got overwhelmed and also did not have the funds. My currently income is seasonally dependent - it is summer here right now which means that I am getting a better paycheck whereas in the colder season my paycheck drops. My work is also entirely commission based so I can't tell you exactly how much I get paid but I can try to do an average. I get paid every 15th and last day of each month. For the summer months, I'm currently making about $1200 per paycheck so about $2400 a month. For the winter months, this has gone as low at $900 per paycheck so $1800 per month. My expenses for the month amount to about $1500 if I am very conservative and have no impulse spending and no eating out. This amount would cover my rent, groceries and car payment. My mother told me to file for bankruptcy - I had entertained the idea until I realized that filing for bankruptcy does not get rid of student loans, which I think makes up the chunk of my debt. My question for you guys is should I still file for bankruptcy since I have not paid any of these debts in any way shape or form for the past two years? If not, then... what do I do? Please help. The friend I am currently living with might start a family soon, in which case I would need to move out to give him and his family some much deserved space - but I can't do that if my financial situation isn't good enough for an apartment that is going to run my credit and see it for the shit that it is. Mint is saying my credit score is currently at 438 whereas experian says its currently at 530; either way, my credit score is poor. Thanks for any help you can provide. [link] [comments]  | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| I'm 22 and have 10K in student loans and 10K in TDAmeritrade Posted: 01 Jul 2019 08:29 PM PDT I have a pretty set schedule to pay off my student loans by the end of next year. But I did just recently have a small financial hiccup that set me back on my schedule by a month or two and I'm scared something will happen and I won't be able to pay back my loans by as strict as I'd like to. They'll get paid back! I've only been graduated for a year. But I just want them gone. I work as a teller at a credit union and make pretty good money! I live with two roommates and live a pretty frugal life. I'm currently devoting about 14% of my monthly income to student loans and as I said, am projected to pay them off by the end of next year. And then I was intending on continuing my 14% into a savings account that I will utilize to then go to grad school. I know grad schools going to be expensive, but I will be prepared. That being said, my grandpa gave me 20K when he died that I put half into my student loans and half into TDAmeritrade. My current stocks are Netflix, ACB, CRBP, KSHB, MTH, and MYHI. Why? Because Netflix has been doing pretty well and the others were a quick Google search that I'm too scared to touch. I have the investment education of a first grader. I'm not worried about paying off my student loans, that will happen. But there's a voice in the back of my head that wants them to go away so I can start saving for grad school. And, I read once on here that it doesn't make sense to save when you have debt. What are your thoughts? Keep doing what I'm doing or work faster? [link] [comments]  | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Graduate student scholarship is taxable income? (US-PA) Posted: 01 Jul 2019 04:43 PM PDT My wife works at a university. I attended because one of the benefits is that immediate family can go tuition free. All of my bachelors, the tuition showed up as a scholarship for tax purposes (1098 form sent from the school). I am now in graduate classes for my MBA. We just found out that the tuition for graduate courses is considered taxable income, which kicks my wife in to a higher tax bracket, and takes the taxes for the tuition out of her paycheck. For clarification her gross salary was $60,000/year, now her gross salary is being stated as $86,736 because of the tuition. Is this correct? it accounts for about $900 less per month take home pay for her. [link] [comments]  | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Posted: 01 Jul 2019 06:11 PM PDT Hi everyone, I recently opened a high yield savings account with ally bank. I have had two months worth of interest payments, and in both months the amount paid does not equal the amount that my balance increased. For example, here is my June account summary: May 30 - Beginning Balance - $14,513.95 June 13 - Deposit - $300 - $14,813.95 June 23 - Interest Payment - $26.33 - $14,833.96 It says the amount paid was $26.33, yet my balance only increased by $20.01. The same thing happened in the previous month with a stated interest payment of $18.05 and my balance only increased by $13.72. I called after the first payment to clarify and the associate said that it calculated off of the average daily balance but the interest payment looked like it was from the current balance on that day. She wasn't sure why the numbers did not match. I had a fair amount of account activity getting everything started so I figured I would wait another month so see if the returned to normal. I'm not necessarily smart enough to determine if this is accurate or not, so I'm hoping someone much more knowledgeable on here can help me out. Is the amount my balance is increasing accurate and the transaction amount just wonky, or should I actually be getting the $26.33 and I'm getting screwed? Anyone else have experience where the interest amount does not equal the balance amount? Thanks. [link] [comments]  | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Am I an idiot? Have I been stupidly missing out on the benefits of a Roth IRA?? Posted: 01 Jul 2019 06:08 PM PDT TL;DR: I have a Schwab Brokerage account that I use to passively invest a portion of each paycheck into mutual funds. Should/could I be doing this exact same thing in a Roth IRA instead?? (Or in addition?) Is "Roth IRA" just a label that is stuck on any (or almost any) type of account? Specifically, could I be passively/automatically buying mutual funds in a Roth IRA in the same way that I do now with my brokerage account? ---- When I turned 21, I was given a Schwab Brokerage account by my parents that by that time had a couple thousand bucks sitting in it. I immediately took all of the money out and used it to visit my girlfriend who lived across the world from me (very smart move, I know). But after we broke up and I graduated from college and got a real job, I started putting money back in there to build it back up. Although I did need to dip into this money a couple times early on before I had a well-established emergency fund, I am now very stable financially and I'm confident that the money that's in that account will be sitting in there for a long time. Basically, I am using my Schwab Brokerage account as an individual retirement account, though it does not have that designation in any official way. I feel stupid for saying this because I consider myself generally financially savvy but I never really looked into Roth IRAs. I always thought, "Okay, that's something for next year..." I was under the impression that it was something more like a savings account that gave some low, guaranteed rate so it was never a priority. I thought to myself, "That's stupid; I'd rather invest my money in the market instead." Now I am just now figuring out that maybe I could have been doing both?? I do understand that there's an annual limit, and I put more than that amount into my brokerage each year, but basically, do I need to immediately open a Schwab Roth IRA and redirect my automatic investments from the Brokerage to the Roth IRA? [link] [comments]  | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Posted: 01 Jul 2019 06:04 PM PDT This may not be the right subreddit so please let me know if there's a better fit somewhere else! I was hired last July and told I could expect annual reviews, including review of/increase to my salary, depending on my performance. My boss just sent me an email asking me to meet with them tomorrow to discuss my performance, specifically noting that we can talk about my salary but that raises are given at the end of every calendar year. That would be fine if I received a raise last December. I did not. I know this will only impact me this one time, but I find it unfair that I have to wait 1.5 years for a raise and I also dislike the constant bouncing around between 1 year - no every calendar year - no it's whatever [Other Boss] says. So I guess what I'm looking for is a polite yet firm way to broach the subject. Thanks! [link] [comments]  | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Posted: 30 Jun 2019 09:11 PM PDT Title is self explanatory guys. I'm making a throwaway because I don't want to give away anything about myself personally. I work a pretty decent job, mid 20s, no loans. I save 22% of my annual income for retirement savings, spend on a very tight budget, write down every single expense I've made, buy nothing on credit card or pay it off immediately, and yet, I have no hobbies and am lucky if I get to go out for a hobby once a month. All this while people who are close to my age with similar incomes already: own a house, have multiple pets, have multiple hobbies, go on multiple vacations and live a very comfortable and luxurious lifestyle. I'm really frustrated and am not sure about what's happening. Am I doing something wrong? Or am I just imagining myself making as much as them and am actually not? Why do I seem to be struggling to save for a healthy good future by having not many expenses today while others can afford it all? I can't even imagine owning a house at this point, so I'm not sure what I'm doing wrong. I'm honestly just really upset and don't know if I'm doing something wrong, or if I just don't really know what to do with finances and make the best out of it like others do. Please advise and help me feel better guys. I work hard and it can feel really bad to see others sail while I struggle despite both having the same abilities and pay. I need some advice and need to know what I'm doing wrong. Thank you. [link] [comments]  | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| How to build on a solid financial foundation? Early 30's, recently married, no kids (yet). Posted: 01 Jul 2019 02:00 PM PDT Hi everyone! Over the last 7+ years, I have learned a great deal from reading this subreddit and, through the resources available, have been able to successfully stick to a reasonable budget, eliminate reliance on the dreaded "credit card float," establish a 6-month emergency fund, purchase a home and accrue some additional savings. I am happily married and oversee the finances for our household. While I am not a beginner, I don't consider myself to be a financial wizard either, so I'm hoping for guidance on how to build on our solid foundation and maximize our overall wealth and financial security. Background We are in our late 20's/early 30's, live near a large but reasonable CoL city in the Midwest and have a combined income of $125K-$150K. I have a fixed salary of $100K with a 10% annual bonus and my husband is self-employed with a fluctuating income. We have mostly combined our finances, however, my husband pays for his student loans and business expenses (which are minimal) from his business account before transferring a "salary" into our joint account at the end of each month. As a rule of thumb, we try to live conservatively within my base salary, with my husband's income and my annual bonus contributing to our savings and "fun" money. Our expenditures also tend to scale up or down based on what we know my husband will earn in the coming months. We have a 30-year mortgage on our brand-new house and two car loans that will be paid off in mid-2021. We plan to drive these cars until the wheels fall off. Overall, I feel like we are in a decent financial position, but I feel there is so much more we could be doing, especially knowing we want to start a family in the semi-near future. Here is a quick snapshot of our current financial picture: Monthly Cash Flow:
Account Balance Summary:
Debt Summary:
Given that we have an emergency fund in place, moderate but not outrageous debt and decent savings, I would greatly appreciate any guidance on the next steps we should take. The obvious place to start is to reduce our monthly expenses, however, we have really buckled down on reducing frivolous spending recently so I think we're ready to think longer-term. Here are my questions / initial ideas:
This is already crazy long, so I'm happy to share any additional details that might be useful. Thank you in advance for your help! [link] [comments]  |
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