Personal Finance Weekend Discussion and Victory Thread for the week of June 12, 2020 |
- Weekend Discussion and Victory Thread for the week of June 12, 2020
- Bank account is restricted due to large deposit.
- New Medical Biller Doesn’t Know How Much We Owe
- Work mistakenly paid me during my unpaid maternity leave.
- Do I quit my job and bet on myself?
- Can’t pay medical bills
- Parents stealing money, may refuse to fill out FAFSA
- Pay cut, then furloughed - vacation days paid out at reduced rate
- Is 10% on a traditional 401K a bad idea?
- Laid off - what do I do now?
- Mom blew through all her retirement money
- Best 2 year degree for good paying, in demand job.
- Chase Sapphire Reserve credit card expanded 50% point bonus to include statement credits for groceries/dining (including delivery services) and home improvement
- Advice for Selling Car Privately
- Stranger sent me money through venmo
- Bank account hacked, lost over $1400
- Mindset is totally off
- I know nothing about 401k.. but i just graduated college and got my first job. should i put money in my "401k" or should i just put it in my own savings account I have?
- Should I buy checks?
- Is debt consolidation a bad thing?
- Keep renting a larger house or buy and downsize with a much larger lot?
- Which Fidelity Index funds to go for
- Do you have life insurance? Why or why not?
- I received a $236 bonus from work today.
- Question about Employee Stock Options Plan
| Weekend Discussion and Victory Thread for the week of June 12, 2020 Posted: 12 Jun 2020 02:05 PM 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]  |
| Bank account is restricted due to large deposit. Posted: 12 Jun 2020 04:32 AM PDT I recently received a loan for $xx,xxx and the loan was routed to my personal checking account but the next day my bank account was restricted. I can't log in online or do anything for that matter I basically don't have a bank account and Or money until the situation gets resolved. My paychecks are still being deposited but I can't even touch the money I don't know what to do help. Edit: I talked to the bank and they said the situation should be resolved as quick as 2 business days and well up to 10 days. It's been 4 days so far but I can't wait I got bills to pay! Edit2: I just want to thank everyone in this thread all of your advice was taking wholeheartedly. Apparently (without giving up to much information) the deposit was made with the wrong information, really didn't know that was possible but so be it seems I have to wait the 10 days... [link] [comments]  |
| New Medical Biller Doesn’t Know How Much We Owe Posted: 12 Jun 2020 08:17 AM PDT We were on a payment plan for a medical bill, paying faithfully every month. Suddenly we stopped receiving bills, and when I called to inquire I was informed that a new biller was overseeing the account. Called the new biller who is, at a minimum, extremely disorganized. They told me they can't generate a bill because my previous payment history didn't port over. (This was after 15 minutes of being unable to find our account altogether.) She claims it shows "a balance" but is asking me to corroborate the balance, which I did not do. She also claims her system isn't showing a date of service. What I'm gathering is that she isn't sure how much we owe and it doesn't sound like she can prove that we owe it. She is asking for our EOB and previous billing statement. How do I tell her politely that it's her responsibility to bill me? If she attempts to follow through and bill the wrong amount, I can absolutely counter with our previous most recent billing statement, but I feel it isn't my responsibility to prove our debt to her. If her office does a knee-jerk and sends us to collections, would a collection agency require paperwork that legitimizes the debt? It's not that I can't pay the bill in full now, but I want receipts and on principle am unwilling to do her office's job for them. I'm in PA if it helps. Edit: this started Friday a week ago. I called back today after she said she'd get back to me this past Monday, so four days overdue. She seems to have forgotten everything we talked about and barely remembered that I ever called in the first place. I suspect I'm a line item on a spreadsheet for how little information they've retained. Edit: GUYS, for the love of God and all that is Holy, I said I WOULD PAY THE BILL if they will simply send me a statement. People getting hostile on here accusing me of fleecing the servicer, but I found THEM! I'm just asking them to follow proper protocol and provide a tangible statement that protects BOTH parties. [link] [comments]  |
| Work mistakenly paid me during my unpaid maternity leave. Posted: 12 Jun 2020 04:21 PM PDT I recently went back to work after my maternity leave. My employer agreed to give me some of the time off paid and it was agreed that the rest would be unpaid. As you can imagine, I've been super busy with a newborn and not paying close attention to my account. When I went back to work, I realized they never stopped paying me. I emailed my HR contact and mentioned it casually to my boss during a meeting. HR never responded and it's been two weeks. We've been paid since they were notified of the mistake, so it's not like they stopped paying me to make up for the overpayment. At one point, can I assume that the money is mine to keep? Edit: Thanks to everyone who answered for ruining my hopes and dreams of free money during these hard times haha. I'm not going to contact the company about the money again, but I will set it aside in a savings account and try to earn a few bucks in interest until they figure it out. I appreciate all of your feedback and for keeping me from screwing myself over down the road! [link] [comments]  |
| Do I quit my job and bet on myself? Posted: 12 Jun 2020 06:41 AM PDT Here's the situation: I am 29f living in NYC. Other than the good money, I hate my job. Have for years. Before the pandemic hit, I had another job lined up (better money, better work-life balance, better title) but on the 1 yard line the hiring freeze hit. I recently connected with my would-be new boss over the phone and he said it likely won't be lifted until the beginning of Q4, but that they still can't wait to bring me on as soon as they can. My job is just that — a job. The new one would be too, just better. My real passion, as much as I hate that word, lies in my creative interests and I've been taking all my (very limited) free time to work on them. I've started to see the beginnings of some momentum on this which is so encouraging. This is my dream and what I'd want to do full time. And I honestly think I could—I have talent in this area. (Keeping this purposely vague in an attempt to anonymize.) I've done the financial forecasting (including health insurance and discretionary spending) and I've diligently saved enough money to have a very comfortable 6 months of liquid-asset runway and still leave a healthy buffer in my savings account. If I drain it, I have nearly a 12 months. I've basically bought myself some serious focused time to work on my creative interests. I've also done the forecasting on what it would be like to freelance in my field and I could earn more than I'm making now and work half the time. (Freelance obviously more risky and less regular.) October 1st, the start of Q4, isn't that far off. I know the new job isn't a guarantee—they could always back off or delay. But it's about as secure as an offer could be. And I could REALLY use the next 3-4 months to focus on my "art". Do I quit? Other considerations: - at 29 I have a late start in the creative arena and need to quickly catch up (not getting any younger) - my company offers an unpaid 8-wk sabbatical after 5 years, which I've earned, but a) it's unpaid except for health insurance, b) they might be pissed at me for taking it and then quitting (don't want to burn bridges as I may want to freelance with my current company) - I am lucky that my cost of living during the pandemic is very low—my budget was for non-pandemic times, so I could ostensibly save even more - I really want to quit. My heart says yes, if that's relevant on this sub, haha :) - we're living in the end of history.... I feel like resumes will be more forgiving if there's a gap and now's the time to make a run for it Edit: typo UPDATE/INITIAL DECISION: Hey everyone. First, thank you for your incredibly thoughtful comments -- everything from "go for it, no question" to "are you crazy" have been helpful inputs for me in deciding my next move. My heart has been ready to leave for a long time, I just need to make sure my head is caught up and the numbers, which do not lie, back this up. Here's what I'm going to do: I am going to request sabbatical on Monday when I return to work. I'm going to ask to start now, or ASAP. They probably won't love this request, but I'm super experienced in the organization and a top performer in my role, so they'd be wise to keep me happy. It's also crazy times, they might be totally cool with it. While the execs and higher-ups waffle on a decision, I'll be collecting my paycheck and putting it straight into savings. Who knows how long that will take, but it will be more in the bank and I probably won't be working full-time while I wait (they won't staff me on a new project if I'm about to leave). Then, I'll take the sabbatical and assess how I'm doing. Do I feel better / burnt out? Am I managing my time wisely and really getting the most out of this thing, or is a regular paycheck and side hustle actually more conducive to my working style? Then I'll come back, collect another paycheck (cha-ching), and either (A) quit and give 2-4 weeks' notice, (B) stick it out a little longer because Covid-19/recession is bad bad bad, or (C) go to the other job. TL;DR -- Make the corporate bureaucracy work for me while I further assess the landscape and then make the jump. EDIT: Oh, and I should add: if they don't give me the sabbatical I'm out. PEACE [link] [comments]  |
| Posted: 12 Jun 2020 08:09 AM PDT I'm 20, and just got out of homelessness and into an apartment with my boyfriend. I had a miscarriage on May 1st, and just got the bill for the ambulance, it was $780, insurance only took off $200. See that would be fine, but this past week I've had some complications and heavy bleeding, I went to the hospital 4 more times via ambulance because there was no way that I could walk while pouring blood, and they just kept dismissing me and my concerns. This last time they did an operation and found out that I had retained products and removed it, as well as giving me stitches. I just know that the operation as well as the other 4 ambulance bills are going to be terrible. And it's their fault that I had to keep coming back, they just kept telling me it was my period... is there anything I can do? Because at this point I'll probably just have to give it up and ignore them for 7 years [link] [comments]  |
| Parents stealing money, may refuse to fill out FAFSA Posted: 12 Jun 2020 04:42 PM PDT hello, Reddit I [17, OH, USA] am in a tricky situation regarding my personal finances, due to my thieving parents. To begin with, my parents have stolen close to $3,000 from me at this point, and are continually leaching my funds. Because I am still a minor, I am aware that in this moment there is nothing I can do to fight it. But i'll be 18 soon, and plan to open a checking & savings account that my parents dont know about/can't access ASAP. However, I fear the repercussions that will fall on me when my parents realize i've cut them off from my money. I used to have no access to my bank account, and when I tried to cut them off and force them to give me the info for my account (by shutting off my direct deposit and withholding my checks until they gave me the account info), they said that "if I had been 18, this type of stunt would have gotten my ass put on the street." Because of this, I am afraid of what is going to happen, although there's a good chance I could go live with my grandma, which is some comfort. However, this leaves the issue of college and the FAFSA. If they have kicked me out, knowing them, they would absolutely refuse to fill out the FAFSA in order to try and regain control of me, or simply out of spite. From what i've read, even if they have kicked me out and cut me off, I am still technically a 'dependent'. What the hell could/should I do? [link] [comments]  |
| Pay cut, then furloughed - vacation days paid out at reduced rate Posted: 12 Jun 2020 05:39 PM PDT Hello - my company instituted temporary pay cuts for all employees. They then furloughed many employees, including me (one month later). Per California employment law, they paid out my accrued vacation days, however they did so at my temporarily-reduced rate. Is this legal? I only worked about a month with the reduced rate before furlough, and many years before at my regular rate, so pretty much all my vacation days were accrued at regular rate. I'm going to politely e-mail them about it, but assuming they deny my claim, do I have any other recourse? Thanks for any help! [link] [comments]  |
| Is 10% on a traditional 401K a bad idea? Posted: 12 Jun 2020 04:16 PM PDT I recently got a good raise and raised my 401k to 10%. I told my brother about this and he called me stupid and told me the way the economy is right now, it's a bad idea and to keep the minimum of 3% no matter what. I'll be honest, I'm not too knowledgeable on 401Ks or any retirement funds as I'm only 24. Was it a good idea to raise it to 10%? [link] [comments]  |
| Posted: 12 Jun 2020 06:23 PM PDT Just got the news this morning, I was told I was being cut because of COVID19 related financial trouble. I'm just trying to wrap my head around what to do next My main questions are: 1) I was furloughed back in April but returned to work on May 1. Do I have to re-file for unemployment all over again or can I just reopen my past claims? 1a) The job I was let go from was a traditional full time job but because I worked primarily as a 1099 contractor in 2019 I did not qualify for traditional unemployment - I received my April payment through PUA. Will I still be ineligible for traditional unemployment? Or am I stuck with PUA? 2) I'm not really sure what happens with my 401k, this was my first job where I had one. Do I need to do anything with that money right now or does it just stay in my account untouched until I get a new job? 2a) Should I continue to contribute money towards retirement (i.e. in some kind of IRA) or just ignore that for now? --------------- Background: - 23F, no debt, around $40k in net work (around $15k is in savings, the rest is in the stock market) - I'm currently living with my parents so my expenses are pretty nonexistent, they aren't charging me for rent or food and I'm still part of their medical plan so my only expenses are taxes/car insurance/etc. [link] [comments]  |
| Mom blew through all her retirement money Posted: 12 Jun 2020 12:49 PM PDT Yeah so as the title says my mom spent basically all of her saved retirement money on vacations, clothes, electronics, etc. But, there is a chance to reverse all these horrible decisions I think. I'm going to receive $50,000-$100,000 in the coming month, and I really need help making a plan. The money is from my grandmother's savings as she recently passed away. The amount is undetermined because there are still bills to be paid, but that is the rough estimate so I was told by my mom. My main goal is to set up a retirement plan for my mother because she spent all of her previously saved retirement money (she has essentially nothing left) AND also set up some sort of investment plan for myself because I don't have much in savings and I don't want to follow my mom's path. I really don't think my mom is going to get a lot out of social security because she only worked for about 10 years and wasn't paid very well, but then again I don't know much about any of this. Out of the money I'm going to receive roughly half, and I'm looking for advice. Should I go to a financial advisor? A little about me, I'm currently a rising college student (age 18) without a job but hoping to get hired soon. I'm majoring in Economics and Computer Science. I have no spouse or children. My family is probably lower middle class. It's important for me to grow my moms savings as fast as possible because she has a lot of health problems that will require attention down the road. I'm thinking I have around 10-15 years before sht hits the fan. I have no idea what to do with my mom's money as she hasn't worked a full time job in decades due to health issues. For me I was thinking my about opening a Roth IRA, but I found out you can only contribute as much as you make from working and I didn't work this year because of school. Any guidance would be super helpful! Please let me know if you need to know any additional info! Edit: Thank you all for the great advice! I really appreciate it because I didn't really know where to turn. [link] [comments]  |
| Best 2 year degree for good paying, in demand job. Posted: 12 Jun 2020 03:20 PM PDT |
| Posted: 12 Jun 2020 12:52 PM PDT Just wanted to make sure folks saw that Chase Sapphire expanded their 50% point bonus to include statement credits for groceries/dining (including delivery services) and home improvement. They also increased to 5x points received for these purchases. Typically travel/dining had something like 3x points and the 50% bump only came when redeeming for points for travel which felt all like it was going to be worthless for a while. Definitely going to be cashing in on my points for cash now instead of waiting to see how all the travel options play out. I'm still not sure if the card is really as good as other options anymore, but at least this lets you get the full value out of points before canceling. [link] [comments]  |
| Advice for Selling Car Privately Posted: 12 Jun 2020 07:42 AM PDT Have never sold a car privately and was looking for some help and advice. Live in Kentucky and have found a local wanting to purchase my car off craigslist. Have the title and work at a bank so can get notarized there. How does one guarantee that a title will be changed over? I know county clerk offices are more limited right now due to Covid. Are there any other things to take into consideration when transacting off craigslist? thanks for any advice. [link] [comments]  |
| Stranger sent me money through venmo Posted: 12 Jun 2020 07:20 PM PDT A stranger sent me $585 "for motorcycle tires" and now he is requesting i send it back. Is this one of those scams where I send the money and then the original $585 disappears, leaving me the loser? [link] [comments]  |
| Bank account hacked, lost over $1400 Posted: 12 Jun 2020 01:10 PM PDT I bank with Current and I was really liking them. I understand that things happen and accounts can get compromised. On Wednesday 6/10 someone was able to access my account, clear out my checking and savings, and got my incoming check. Current called me to tell me that there was suspicious activity and that they wanted me to verify. I told them it wasn't me so they told me they'd cancel it and send me a new card. Midway through the call, the call dropped and they never called me back. On top of that they were able to change the email address to their own so I have no access to the account. Right now their support team is not answering phones, due to covid 19. I have to reply by email and none of the people will help because the email is changed even after I told them what the email was changed to (I received an email telling me to verify the email change). I called the parent company who is Choice Financial group and they're nice. They've been emailing Current with high priority emails telling them to contact me, but I haven't gotten much since. I even DM'd them on Instagram and Twitter. I even left a poor review on the App Store in the hopes they'd see it. What I need to know is how should I go about contacting them so I can get that money back? I'm going to pile up late fees on some bills, and I needed the money to move. I can't pay my car, and I can't pay for my new puppies shots or medicine and this is all stressing me out. Any help? [link] [comments]  |
| Posted: 12 Jun 2020 07:47 AM PDT Ok so I've never been good with money or saving. But for a couple of years now I've been earning a decent salary and have been able to pretty much buy whatever I want. Not rich by any means but definitely not struggling and I've been buying a lot of crap I definitely do not need. Even the past couple of months with the pandemic, I've been working from home etc so have saved some money. I probably could have saved at least 2k more though but I was online shopping a lot. My problem is that I do put aside x amount per month in savings eg. 1-1.5k. But if I ever have any spare money i just spend it on crap I don't need rather than saving more or paying off a personal loan I have (about 6k left on it). Does anyone have any advice for how to change my mindset? I use YNAB and understand the whole concept of goals but I feel my problem is when I know I have actual "residual" money, I spend rather than save. Thanks. [link] [comments]  |
| Posted: 12 Jun 2020 07:53 AM PDT Not sure what the purpose of the 401k is when I can put money in my savings account? (that i most likely won't even touch) Edit: for my company, it says "__ match is discretionary, but for 2020, the company will match 25% of your deferrals to a maximum of 1% of your pay" - What does that mean? - Do I just get more money from my company by leaving it in a 401k account? - How do I access this 401k account to see balances and stuff? and is this 401k account universal for all jobs i will have? Edit: how much % should i contribute? does this % mean by paycheck or overall? [link] [comments]  |
| Posted: 12 Jun 2020 02:41 PM PDT Hi everyone, Sorry if this doesnt belong here, but i had a quick question as a new grad. Im moving to a major city in the next few months and was wondering should i buy order checks just to have them? I pay all my CC bills online, but many people have told me to get a check book in case i need a backup. What do yall think? [link] [comments]  |
| Is debt consolidation a bad thing? Posted: 12 Jun 2020 05:06 PM PDT Hello. I am finally starting to get my life back on track. I have $18,500 in credit card debt. The APR's are 19-24%. My credit score is 640, I have never missed a payment and my accounts are 5, 7, and 11 years old. My debt utilization is at 90+% on the three cards I would be consolidating and 0% on one I have paid off completely. I tried for a loan at my bank and where I had my car financed (it is now fully paid off) but wasn't able to get approved. I am approved through Upstart for a 36 month loan at 16%. Is there any reason I shouldn't do this? I have done some research and people say debt consolidation isn't worth it but I feel like I am just making minimum payments getting no where. Any help is appreciated. [link] [comments]  |
| Keep renting a larger house or buy and downsize with a much larger lot? Posted: 12 Jun 2020 07:13 PM PDT Current situation: Family of 7 renting a 4 bed, 3 bath with a large loft. 2k sqft on a 7k lot. Two story home. Rent is $3650 a month. The home in our price range that has a large yard for the kids and in the same neighborhood we want is a bit smaller, one story vs 2 but has a pool, hot tub and sits on half an acre of land. 4 bed, 2 bath, 1637 sqft (basically losing the loft which is the kid/play room. Payment $4000 Anything at the 2k or more sqft is over what I want to pay. Rates are very low right now and we are pre qualified. What are your thoughts on my scenario and family size? Finances: my salary is 240k salary, 15k a month after tax, expenses and bills are $1600 a month. No debt. Savings left after downpayment would leave 20k in emergency savings. Northern California. [link] [comments]  |
| Which Fidelity Index funds to go for Posted: 12 Jun 2020 10:09 AM PDT I'm starting to put money in my Fidelity brokerage account and so far I put some money in FXAIX Fidelity 500 index fund. I'm going to invest a set amount each month, are there any others I should be choosing on top of this or just stick with this one for now? I'm a total beginner. [link] [comments]  |
| Do you have life insurance? Why or why not? Posted: 12 Jun 2020 06:00 PM PDT I'm curious. Life insurance is a no-brainer for some but ignored by others. I understand circumstances and external factors dictate someone's need for insurance, but I wonder what the general opinion towards it is. [link] [comments]  |
| I received a $236 bonus from work today. Posted: 12 Jun 2020 09:57 AM PDT I haven't worked since March 14th. I have been on furlough. I checked the pay statement and it is a "quarterly bonus" payout. I am on unemployment and I'm wondering if this amount of money is something I need to make them aware of when I file my Weekly Certification? It's a minimal amount of a money but I don't want anything to happen. I was completely unaware that I was receiving anything like this as well. [link] [comments]  |
| Question about Employee Stock Options Plan Posted: 12 Jun 2020 05:37 PM PDT I was curious if this is a common practice or not. I have been trying to research but haven't really seen it come up. My employer has stock options that are given to you after a year of employment, and you can exercise 1/2 the shares after another 2 years and the remaining 1/2 after another year. However they included a rule in the contract for a gain limit. I wouldn't mind as much, but the stock is currently well past that gain limit. I don't want to complain but assuming it continues on this track I am missing out on 3+ times the amount I could receive once my vesting period is up. Free money is free money but I can't help but feel like I'm getting screwed over in a sense. Are these gain limits a common practice? Is there such a thing as a limit on the amount of return you can receive on employee shares? [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