Personal Finance Weekend Discussion and Victory Thread for the week of November 29, 2019 |
- Weekend Discussion and Victory Thread for the week of November 29, 2019
- Wishlists can help control impulse purchases
- The manager at my local BoA told me straight up that they don't care if someone like me closes an account. What are some major banks that actually do care about their customers?
- How do you even have fun in life when you’re saving so much for a retirement plan that you can’t even enjoy at such old ages?
- Father-in-Law wants me to co-sign on his mortgage...??
- Surprise $6,000 Bill 6 Months After Giving Birth
- Currently working two jobs, one on w4 with salary + benefits and the other on 1099 with 100% commission.
- Stuck between three jobs
- No debts, loans, or credit at 23 and fully employed.
- Surprise medical bills 3 months after ER Visit
- How to split up a 3-Fund portfolio across multiple accounts?
- Question: How do I put money into my IRA?
- Minor fender bender - other person at fault
- Bad idea to attempt to time the market, right? But is anyone hoarding cash for a recession? Anyone reallocating savings and investments?
- Incoming Sublet Sent Excess Money Requesting it be Sent to Third Party
- Wanting to buy a new camera
- Planning on moving to California after college, tips/advice on how to plan?
- Got in an accident driving a work vehicle, how does this affect my own insurance?
- PayPal Credit helped my credit score?
- Just got scammed out of 7k. What do I do?
- Removing parents from bank account
- question about division of inheritance
| Weekend Discussion and Victory Thread for the week of November 29, 2019 Posted: 29 Nov 2019 01:05 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 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]  |
| Wishlists can help control impulse purchases Posted: 29 Nov 2019 03:24 AM PST Now that it's black Friday, I'd thought I'll share a little trick that may or may not be commonly used. My family has a love/hate relationship with Amazon. They often have the best deal on something we need and/or want, and their two day shipping is really nice. However, it sometimes can be difficult to determine the difference between need and want. My personal strategy is to add whatever I want to the cart, but wait awhile before I pull the trigger on the purchase. Doing this still provides a little of that "shoppers high" of buying the item, but also allows the time to let it cool off and help you determine whether you still want it. It's kind of like cyber window shopping. A few of the items in my cart ended up being Christmas gifts when others needed ideas for me. Some have been there for over a year. Do any of you use a strategy to keep discretionary spending down? [link] [comments]  |
| Posted: 29 Nov 2019 03:48 PM PST I went into my local Bank of America branch today to close my account. The manager asked why I was closing my account, and I told him the reasons - horrible customer service, expensive fees, badly developed app - the usual complaints everyone has about Bank of America. I wasn't expecting any sympathy or anything, but to my surprise, the manager actually started arguing with me. He told me about how BoA doesn't do anything differently compared to other banks. He said that the customer service was fine and that the fact that BoA has the most customers in the country was proof of that. He then told me that the app was the highest rated banking app on the app store. Alright then. He must have a lot of pride about his job, whatever. Then he told me that BoA doesn't care if someone like me closes an account. Ok, wtf? Needless to say, I'm never giving BoA another penny in my life. I am planning to open an account with a credit union, but I'm also considering opening an account with another major bank so that: 1. I can spite BoA, and 2. I can take advantage of some of the perks of a major bank without the BS that BoA brings. Are there any major banks out there that won't treat me like this? Do they even exist? [link] [comments]  |
| Posted: 29 Nov 2019 03:03 PM PST After taxes 70k becomes 50k real quick So roughly 4100 a month Rent, 1200 Phone, 40 Utilities, 100 Retirement, 1500 Car insurance, 120 Health insurance, 200 Savings, 500 Internet, 55 Food, 300 That's really just enough money to get by without any to have fun. What gives? [link] [comments]  |
| Father-in-Law wants me to co-sign on his mortgage...?? Posted: 29 Nov 2019 05:31 PM PST My father-in-law just moved down south with his new wife. When he got down there after I helped him move, he called a few days later asking me to co-sign because "they are saying my income isn't enough". Yeah, a little fishy for sure, but I know he did get a new lender like 4 weeks ago because the one he was working with "can't make the numbers work". Looks like with the new lender they are saying his income this year was too high for some specific loan type he was trying to get approval for (?). He will be retiring and getting social security in the New Year. He said that he would refi after 6 months to get me off as a cosigner (which who knows what will happen in that time frame, he is in pretty rough health shape). He is of course bothering me about this now over the holiday and I forgot to call my mortgage guy to see his thoughts on this. Should I even consider doing it (we have a good relationship and I even worked with him doing drywall back in my college days)? We have learned he now is asking somewhat distant relatives and a son and a daughter of his as well, all are or have said no to him now, I'm the only one that hasn't responded. Also feel like I'm pretty much his last option, I think he will have to stay with his new wife's father until the new year sometime to qualify for whatever loan he is trying to get. My wife and I are planning on selling our current house and moving in the next 8-12 months, would the best case scenario, my father in law laid out, with the "supposed refi in 6 months" clear my credit up and what not for selling and getting a new house ourselves next year? Then, I want to respond to him this weekend. What should I say if it is a 100% no, without ruining my relationship with him and his daughter (my wife). I wanted to call my mortgage guy so he could say something like "if you are going to be getting a home loan approval in the next year no way can you do this" or something like that...? Thoughts folks? Or other questions? [link] [comments]  |
| Surprise $6,000 Bill 6 Months After Giving Birth Posted: 29 Nov 2019 11:01 AM PST Hi /pf , Wife gave birth to our 2nd child in May, she's covered by insurance -BlueCross BlueShield of Illinois - PPO+ . During the delivery wife had epidural as many other moms did. The total bill from the hospital (Saint Barnabas Medical Center, Livingston, NJ) and OB's office was totaling around $20k and was all covered by insurance with a total of $250 out-of-pocket amount. Yet, today we received a bill from the Anesthesiologist's office ( American Anesthesiology of New Jersey ), asking $6,000. Called their office right away, and was told claim was denied by BlueCross BlueShield of Illinois due to provider being OUT OF NETWORK. Called BCBS of Illinois, they're not working till next Monday. Checked website of BCBS of Illinois , and did found the EOB of the denied claim, reason for denying being out-of-network Wondering what's out best bet ? Anesthesiologist's office is sending the bill to collection if not starting to receiving payments ($500 per month for $12 month + $5 management fee per month). ****************************** We live in NJ & wife gave birth in a NJ hospital. My employer is based in Chicago therefore our insurance is Blue Cross Blue Shield of Illinois. [link] [comments]  |
| Posted: 29 Nov 2019 06:23 PM PST The title pretty much sums up everything. I am most curious about how I can best set myself up when taking into consideration the 1099 and taxes. I'm located in Indiana making $45K in salary from my full time job and this year will be around ~$20K from the 1099 commission job. The commission job is done through my old job. I was one of two purchasing/sales people for a small company. Me and the other sales guy basically quit at the same time for different reasons. The owner was going to close the business but I asked to take one of the computers home and work on leads coming in so he doesn't have to close it. We agreed on a mutually beneficial commission percentage and it's worked out great so far. Can I set up a LLC to minimize taxes on the 1099 by deducting expenses like my mortgage, Internet, electricity,...? Can I contribute to something like an SEP IRA to help minimize taxes? I strongly believe I could increase the amount of money I earn on the 1099, but really it could end at anytime so I'm not sure about the LLC or if that would even be beneficial to my situation. I could easily get my boss to write the checks to it instead of me personally. [link] [comments]  |
| Posted: 29 Nov 2019 05:39 PM PST I work at 2 retail stores and one fast food chain. my main work is at the fast food restaurant which gives me 20 to 30 hours at $7.25/hour. I got no Christmas bonus or paid vacation this year, I'm "permanent at this job. The second job is at a retail store which gives me 12 hours weekly at $7.25/hour. I'm also permanent at this job but the store is closing on December 15th. Now comes the good part. I found a new for (seasonal) at another retail store which pays $9.00/hour. I have the chance of staying after the end of the season which is at January 6th. They are giving me 12 hours because I gave them a schedule based on my first job. But my first job (fast food) is not happy about it and wants me to keep changing my schedules at the retail store which pays $9/hour. At the retail store they are very friendly and they change my schedule. But after changing it they still want me to keep changing it. Should I leave my main job for the opportunity at the retail store? If I don't get chosen to stay I still could live with unemployment, I pay around $300 a month for the debts I have. Information needed: In Puerto Rico you can be fired for no reason even if you are a permanent worker. You have to work for 12 months to be a permanent worker. Almost every job pays $7.25/hour. I have a degree in Finance. [link] [comments]  |
| No debts, loans, or credit at 23 and fully employed. Posted: 29 Nov 2019 01:21 PM PST What should I do in terms of building wealth outside of current job? [link] [comments]  |
| Surprise medical bills 3 months after ER Visit Posted: 29 Nov 2019 04:54 PM PST So I'll try to keep this brief and concise. I just received these bills not 20 minutes ago and am still feeling anxious after seeing them, so please bare with me if I don't make sense at any point here. For background, I'm living in CA, USA. So 3 months ago I had started to feel some chest pains at work, and a slight pain in my left arm. Of course this jumped out to me as a heart attack because those are the symptoms you always hear about on TV. I had my boss drive me to the ER, they did their tests, and I paid what I assumed was my copay of $100. Thankfully it turned out to be simple chest wall pains. I was totally fine, they gave me a prescription for a mild muscle relaxer and sent me on my way. The next day the same thing happened and I worried more than I should have and thought, "What if they got it wrong?" So I went back to the ER only to go through the same exact process and be told that it was in fact just chest wall pain. Paid another $100, drove home, and decided to just trust that things were ok. A couple of months pass and I get a bill that says "final notice" for a total of $46.59 that appears to be from a collections agency. I call and ask what this was about and it appeared to be for my ER visit again. And the lady informed me that there was another account under my name, which made sense if it was for the ER visit because I went twice. But I hadn't gotten any bills from them prior to this so I don't know how it went straight to a final notice. But whatever, I wanted to put it behind me. So I paid them. Done and done, we're paid off. Fast forward to today. I open my mail box and see two letters from the hospital. Rip them open and to my surprise I'm being billed AGAIN for $456.13 for the first visit and $458.30 for the second one. And they both say they're past due, due now. Yet these are the first bills of their kind (these are directly from the hospital, no collections) and I'm freaking out. Is this normal for ER visits? Is this some sort of mistake? Can you guys give me any clarification? I have the money to pay most of it saved up right now. But that's gonna deplete my Christmas and emergency funds. This would be considered an emergency, so it's warranted. But nevertheless, I'm freaking out here. Any advice you guys can give me? [link] [comments]  |
| How to split up a 3-Fund portfolio across multiple accounts? Posted: 29 Nov 2019 02:47 PM PST Hi all, I've been working on asset consolidation / simplification to avoid overlap and make management easier. My question has to do with how to invest across different accounts. I currently have a regular brokerage account and three tax-advantaged accounts (one trad IRA, one roth IRA and one trad 401k). For example, If I decide that I wanted a 60/20/20 split (stocks, bonds, international), is it normally recommended to just aim for this same ratio in all of my accounts? Or perhaps I should just ensure that the _sum_ of everything across the accounts reaches 60/20/20 but that I should split them out more strategically? It seems like there might be some tax reasons why it would be more advantageous to most of my stocks in the tax-advantaged accounts but I don't have a good understanding of this. Thanks! [link] [comments]  |
| Question: How do I put money into my IRA? Posted: 29 Nov 2019 07:56 PM PST I have little knowledge of this stuff. I had an employer-sponsored retirement plan that I didn't manage at all. I no longer work at that employer so I moved my funds into an IRA. I want to deposit money into it but how can I do that? I thought I could do transfer funds from my bank but the only option I see is to buy Vanguard funds. Also, my account shows both IRA and Roth IRA, do I need both? [link] [comments]  |
| Minor fender bender - other person at fault Posted: 29 Nov 2019 07:49 PM PST I live in NY. New car - 6 months old. Never been in a collision before. Woman accelerated in reverse into the front of my car. Was pretty shaken up but surprisingly both cars had no visible exterior damage. Spent few mins inspecting car and decided not to file a report. Got the license plate number and persons phone number - not insurance information though. After they left, noticed that the front fender on the left was sticking out by like an inch - very minimal but pushed it back in and things are fine. A couple of questions 1) is this kind of damage even something that needs repair?I mean I just pushed it in an inch and it's fine - but it is a new car 2) how will I know if there any internal damage? And if I found out something's wrong, like the radiators leaking in the future for ex -what are next steps? 3) should I call my insurance company and inform them just Incase? Since I'm not at fault 3) in the future for minor accidents like this where it's the other persons fault, what is the ideal course of action? Call cops no matter what? Thanks for your help [link] [comments]  |
| Posted: 29 Nov 2019 02:47 PM PST Any talk of a recession seems to be strongly condemned in this subreddit. "Time in the market over timing the market." There's also that parable of a guy with the worst luck buying index funds the day before each market crash and still was able to retire comfortably. People have been trying to time the next recession for years and even if the stock market tanks 50%, it'll recover just as quickly! That's what I see a lot here, but I'd like to prod a little bit. So, with all that said, there must be some of you out there that don't blindly follow the steps pinned in this sub. There must be some that look around and see that we're long overdue for a recession. Does this impact anyone's decisions on where to put their savings and investments? Is anyone holding onto more cash in their "emergency fund"? Here's where I'm at: - 401k 6% matched (401k not maxed though) - Roth IRA maxed - 6 months emergency fund in HYSA - Car is paid off and no CC debt - $2700/month mortgage payments - Not eligible for HSA - What to do with remaining cash? I have some gold and silver and am thinking about buying some more, which people here disapprove of. I have cryptocurrency, which people here absolutely despise. Bought gold at $1150/oz and got in bitcoin at $2.4k. It helped me with my down payment on my current house. For context, I'm 33 and make $135k. Wife makes $70k. I'm not a big conspiracy theorist, but looking around at how much chaos is going on around the world, with our (USA) politics, the looming trade war, etc., I feel as if I should be more careful with my cash and my spending. I'd like to FIRE in 18 years, but I only started to fund a 401k four years ago and the Roth IRA two years ago. I have sold all of my stocks and have $30k sitting around in a savings account that gives 1.85% interest. Is there anyone in this sub that is hoarding cash and anticipating a market crash or recession? If so, where are you reallocating your money? Do you do bonds? Leave it in the HYSA? Precious metals? Or are you braving it out and leaving it in the S&P index fund? What if you had the $30k sitting around now? Would you still get into a S&P index fund right away? [link] [comments]  |
| Incoming Sublet Sent Excess Money Requesting it be Sent to Third Party Posted: 29 Nov 2019 11:05 AM PST Hi Everyone, This is my first post here and I don't really frequent this subreddit a lot so forgive me if this doesn't really belong here. My current situation is as follows: I am a student planning on subletting my apartment (room) for the first 6 months of 2020, I had found a sublet who was willing to sublet for that period, and this sublet is coming from across the country for the 6 month period so we have not personally met before. Because I am leaving for Winter Break relatively soon, I requested that January rent be sent as early as possible so I can send to the money to the landlord before I leave. I received a message today from this sublet essentially saying "The money is on its way (via check) but there is a problem. The payment was issued in excess with the excess being meant for the mover who'll help bring my [the sublet's] belongings to the new apartment. Please when you receive the payment, deposit the amount for rent and send the excess to the mover." This sounds sketchy to me, especially because I have yet to meet this individual in person. I have read posts in the past that advised not to send money in similar situations in case the check bounces or something. What should I do in this situation? [link] [comments]  |
| Posted: 29 Nov 2019 07:14 PM PST I've been into photography for well over two years now and have had the same camera ever since. I'm 19 and working a minimum wage job but have over 3k saved up currently. The camera I've been looking at is on sale for $1628 after taxes, and will be delivered in two days on Amazon, which is just before a trip of mine. I am REALLY convinced I should buy this camera. The only other expenses I have right now are gas money (I commute an hour to school, twice a week) and coffee money, which I can cut no matter how hard it may be. Would this be a smart purchase? I plan on using the camera for years to come, and this summer I have a massive trip planned for over a month in Europe and I'd love to document it all. [link] [comments]  |
| Planning on moving to California after college, tips/advice on how to plan? Posted: 29 Nov 2019 07:08 PM PST California is across the country from me. I know financially it's definitely not the best choice, but I have a job offer from a large company (I will try to keep some personal information out). The company is one of my 3 "dream companies" in a job I think I am really going to enjoy, and it will have a lot of opportunities to move up. I have until May to plan, and I'm looking more for advice on that. I have about $7k in savings, no debt, and 2 cars I will be selling for ~$20k (combined) before I move, and buying a different car. I have a (commission based) job that I will be able to bring home some extra money before May. I also have a little over $1k in my IRA (not great, I know, but I started a savings to put a down payment on a house instead). Said company will also offer me a relocation package of ~$5-15k. I will be selling almost everything I own before I leave, and buying a newer car (something used). I plan on driving cross country with one car full of stuff. So a couple questions I have in general:
Any other advice is greatly appreciated. [link] [comments]  |
| Got in an accident driving a work vehicle, how does this affect my own insurance? Posted: 29 Nov 2019 01:51 PM PST California resident here. I was driving a test vehicle for a local dealer yesterday in pretty heavy rain conditions. During the drive, I spun out and crashed the vehicle. Fortunately, no other vehicles were involved and nobody was injured. I was listed as an approved driver for the vehicle under my company's insurance policy. I should mention that I work for an advertising company that runs test drive events, and not for the brand itself or any local dealer. Does anyone know if/how this will affect my personal insurance rates? My auto insurance is already super expensive and I'm worried my rates will skyrocket. Thanks so much in advance. [link] [comments]  |
| PayPal Credit helped my credit score? Posted: 29 Nov 2019 04:31 PM PST So when I initially signed up for PayPal Credit over 4 years ago it was under the belief that it wouldn't actually help my credit score, but I liked it versus a credit card because so long as I paid everything off within 6 months I'd be good. Well today I saw some post about someone's parents opening a credit card in their name, got scared, and checked my own credit report my in case. I had a score over 700, which is much higher than the mid-600 range I was at before. I checked for open accounts and it shows I have a PayPal Credit account open for over years with 100% on-time payments. I was actually quite happy because the age of the account and my good payment practices were finally helping me. (no longer want to open a credit card and have to pay things off the same month, yuck) I looked at the factors for determining my score and one was my credit utilization. My line with PayPal Credit is only $1,650 and sometimes I use more than half of it for flights. Should I request an increase to this line so that the utilization is lower? I want to continue spending with it the same way as I always have. [link] [comments]  |
| Just got scammed out of 7k. What do I do? Posted: 29 Nov 2019 08:03 PM PST I got scammed out of 7 grand. My bank has not been able to help because it was sent through e-transfer and I sent it wiliingly. What else can I do to get my money back??? Will filing a police report help? [link] [comments]  |
| Removing parents from bank account Posted: 29 Nov 2019 07:51 PM PST Hey guys, I first opened a mutual funds account when I was 15 and my step-mom has had access since then but I'm now 27 with the same account and would like her removed. For many reasons such as I've seen funds withdrawn from my account to pay her credit card and the initial response was how did you see that. Among many situations of a similar nature to now withholding money that rightfully belongs to me. I'm not strapped for cash so I don't bother fighting that because it always comes down to some sort of excuse and my dad isn't aware. Anyway I'm moving out soon after saving and am perfectly capable of taking care of my own finances so if I'm the primary account holder can I remove her? [link] [comments]  |
| question about division of inheritance Posted: 29 Nov 2019 07:46 PM PST if someone dies who is preceded in death by their spouse, one of their children, and their grandchild and are survived only by two living children, one grandchild and two great grandchildren (who are descendants of the deceased grandchild) does the inheritance that would have gone to the child skip over both the deceased child and grandchild and go to the great grandchildren? just trying to understand how would this person's estate be divided if they do not have a will? basically my great grandmother i didn't even know i had passed away but my grandmother and mother (her child and grandchild) preceded her in death and i got a court paper saying i may be an heir and i'm just trying to understand if that sounds logical [link] [comments]  |
| You are subscribed to email updates from Personal Finance. To stop receiving these emails, you may unsubscribe now. | Email delivery powered by Google |
| Google, 1600 Amphitheatre Parkway, Mountain View, CA 94043, United States | |
No comments:
Post a Comment