Personal Finance Scammer pretended to be my bank and nearly got access to my account. Please be aware! |
- Scammer pretended to be my bank and nearly got access to my account. Please be aware!
- Rented a car, got rear ended by the same care multiple times on the highway. Never been in an accident before.
- A Debt Collector has reported the same deliquent account 8 times this year with different amounts owed, and it is trashing my credit. Is this legal?
- Recieved a Gift Card and went to register and was already drained.
- health insurance company saying we dont cover "lab tests"
- Roth IRA: Max at start of year, or $500/month?
- Need guidance on what to do with all my money [serious]
- Help - going into debt because we can’t find daycare.
- Debt validation letter returned due to “insufficient address”
- Merry Christmas! ...I just backed into a parked car. Help with whether or not to file a claim?
- As a first time home buyer, what should I look for (structurally) in a presale home?
- Home down payment when moving from first to second house
- Retirement losses and when to pull the plug
- Am I Out of Luck for Salary Negotiation?
- Should I pay off my student loans now?
- Roth IRA when not expecting to live past a certain age
- Please dumb this down for me - Roth IRA
- Services to sign 65+ parent up for?
- Physical Chase credit card got stolen - someone made around $2,000 worth of in-person charges on my card
- Taxable brokerage when I haven't maxed out retirement?
- Which insurance to choose
- Should I sell my car?
- Leave my easy job for a better paying one, while finishing college?
- Wells Fargo checking account disappeared from having a negative balance
| Scammer pretended to be my bank and nearly got access to my account. Please be aware! Posted: 25 Dec 2021 08:36 PM PST Today, I dealt with an attempted scam call in which a scammer posed as my bank and tried to get access to my online account. The caller ID matched my bank's customer service number, and I answered the phone. The man on the other end identified me by name and told me that there was an attempted purchase on my debit card that was marked as fraud by their system. He asked me if I authorized the charge, and I said no. He told me that my card was likely skimmed at a gas station and told me they could send me a new card. He confirmed the correct address as well. He was doing a good job at convincing me he was legitimate. Fortunately, he messed up and outed himself as a scammer. He asked for the last 4 digits of my social security card for "security purposes" before they could send the card. I started to get suspicious and asked him why he couldn't just send me a new card like they did in the past, without needing my social security number. He started to get a bit evasive, and I hung up on him. I called the customer service number myself and spoke with an agent who confirmed with me that there were no attempted charges like the scam caller said there were. The scammer was somehow able to call using the banks customer service number and nearly had me fooled that he was my bank. If I had given him my social security number, he could have reset my password and had full access to my account. I went ahead and changed my password, security questions, and ordered a new debit card. The scammer most likely got my card information from a skimmer, and was able to find my address and phone number through whitepages. He was convincing and could have easily fooled me if I wasn't as diligent. The bottom line is that if you ever receive a call from your bank, hang up and call them yourself. I could have lost everything in my bank account if he got access to it, and I'm going to be extremely cautious from now on. [link] [comments] |
| Posted: 25 Dec 2021 03:41 PM PST Car bumped into me at least 2 times, probably 3 (it's all a blur, he hit me real hard). A police officer was luckily there and saw the whole thing, wrote an accident report stating that he is at fault. Car was drivable so I returned it to Avis and filed an incident report (per their instructions). Question is what happens next? They told me they'll get back to me with a claim after the car gets fixed, and if I am not at fault per the accident report they will contact the at fault party's insurance. I do not want to be in a situation where in a few months I find a bill for several thousand dollars. I also have collision, comprehensive and liability on my personal vehicle that extends to rentals, but I don't know if I should be filing a claim at all. [link] [comments] |
| Posted: 25 Dec 2021 08:37 AM PST I don't have the best credit, but have been working on trying to take proactive steps to start rebuilding it over the last month or so. Today I noticed my credit score tanking, and I went to investigate why. I see that one debt collection service has reported a debt that I don't recognize, the date is younger than any debt I would have personally accrued (March 2019 was what they had listed.) They also have an address on my account listed as mine in a state I have never lived in. To make matters worse, they've reported the same debt 8 times in the last year, changing the amount anywhere from $138-$305 each time. I disputed the debt with Credit Karma, but are there any more steps I can take to get all these negative marks removed? I feel like this cannot possibly be legal. I also did not see a way to dispute the random address, but that concerns me even more than my credit score going down. TLDR: DC reporting a debt of varying amounts 8 times in a year is trashing my credit, and they have an address from a state I've never lived in. What should I do? [link] [comments] |
| Recieved a Gift Card and went to register and was already drained. Posted: 25 Dec 2021 05:52 AM PST I received a gift card from a relative and when I went to register it, it turned out somebody had already used the money on the card. The dates of the transactions were between the day of loading the card and my registering of the card. The card packaging didn't look like it had been tampered with, but my relative doesn't have the receipt. What should I do? [link] [comments] |
| health insurance company saying we dont cover "lab tests" Posted: 25 Dec 2021 07:45 PM PST I am an independent contractor. I went for a normal doc check up and the doc asked if id like to get my blood work done. I said sure. I walked out and asked the front desk if I owe anything they said no. Then a month later i get a bill of $724!!!!!!!! from quest diagnostics. like wtf. I called United and they said well your insurance does not cover preventive care.... what is the point of having insurance and paying $240 a month and it not covering preventive care. Like if it doesn't cover that than what does it cover. Is there anyone i can contact or complain to because paying 742 for a normal fucking blood work seems absurd. [link] [comments] |
| Roth IRA: Max at start of year, or $500/month? Posted: 25 Dec 2021 11:09 AM PST Hi all - I have plenty of liquid funds as I've gotten comfortable with my emergency savings fund and all that, and am planning out my next 12 months of personal finance. I could max my Roth IRA ($6,000) on Jan 1, but I know there are risks at buying in at a high market value as opposed to dollar-cost-averaging. Any advice on whether I should dump $6k into the Roth at the start of the year and then focus my monthly savings elsewhere (personal brokerage acct, etc.)? Note: I'm also going to be maxing my Gov't 401(k) [TSP] for the first time this coming year, or else coming very close. EDIT: thanks folks. Consensus is to drop lump sum in on day 1. Time in the market vs timing the market! [link] [comments] |
| Need guidance on what to do with all my money [serious] Posted: 25 Dec 2021 02:12 PM PST Throwaway account - will try to make this short -35 y/o male, living alone in a middle-class Chicago suburb -no plans to get married, and DEFINITELY will never have kids/pets -approximately $100,000 gross income -no debt, >800 credit score -own and live in a condo worth about $200,000, paid off -about $110,000 sitting in my Chase checking account. no other accounts (retirement or otherwise). no real assets of value My question is, what the heck should I be doing with all the money in my checking account? Even at 35 I realize all I ever do outside of work is play video games, and I'm perfectly content with that for the rest of my life. But I do think I would like to retire early and/or take a few weeks vacation every year, nothing crazy. Also, I pretty much never ever buy anything, but the one thing I eventually do want is to buy a nicer home worth $500k-$700k for myself (and either sell or rent out my current condo). I know I should be "growing" my money somehow, but I'm an absolute idiot when it comes to this type of stuff - no idea where to start or put my money. What would you do if you were me? [link] [comments] |
| Help - going into debt because we can’t find daycare. Posted: 25 Dec 2021 04:01 PM PST I don't know if this is the right sub for this question but I'm so desperate for help at this point. We live in a small town and every single daycare is full and has waiting lists that are years long. We've been on multiple waiting lists and none have had any openings since my baby has been born. If they do end up having an opening, siblings get priority and then there are still so many kids ahead of us on the lists. Currently, my husband and I are just taking turns watching him. My husband will work the morning (he's self-employed/works for his dad) and then I go in after he's done. We're in a slow season at work so we close at 3 or 4 which only gives me a few hours every day. We have a mortgage, my husbands truck payment, my car payment, utilities, etc etc etc. We can barely afford our bills because neither of us are making any money. Is there anything that I can apply for to help get monthly assistance? I'm so lost when it comes to this stuff. Or would a better option be to sell my vehicle and just stay at home with my baby so my husband can work all day. I'd hate doing that because I love my car for traveling with my baby and I love the adult socialization I get from going into work but I'll do it if it's what needs to be done. Going off of that, for stay at home parents, how do you stay on top of finances with only one income? My husbands income is so all over the place depending on how many jobs they had that month so I'm really scared to rely solely on his income. I've mentioned him finding a job with a business where he'd be guaranteed so many hours a week which means guaranteed so much money but he doesn't really want to. He's not as worried about me but I don't know why not. We're literally broke and he knows it. He always wonders why I'm so stressed as if we both have no money. My entire paycheck from this week went to my car payment. I was even 4 dollars short. 🤦🏼♀️🤦🏼♀️ Idk guess I'm just looking for encouragement. I've never been in a financial situation like this. (Might I add that I was only 19 when I got pregnant and it wasn't planned. So that doesn't help because I had no savings for a baby) [link] [comments] |
| Debt validation letter returned due to “insufficient address” Posted: 25 Dec 2021 09:58 AM PST Long story short. I sent these debt collectors a letter via certified mail w/return receipt requesting validation and more info, and to only communicate via mail. I was keeping an eye on the tracking and noticed today it was returned because of "insufficient address" It was in fact, the correct address. The same address they had on their letter and I checked elsewhere to make sure. It is an office building in Piscataway, nj. The only thing I could think of is perhaps there was supposed to be a unit number within that building. But that is nowhere to be found on the internet. Just the same address on the letter and it even shows the street view on google maps with a big number 3 on the building. It's not hard to find or anything. Anyway, the letter i sent is time stamped, and I will at least have documentation to prove that I attempted to mail them a letter in writing. I could try to send them another letter, but it's possible by the time it gets there that it will be past 30 days since they first contacted me. I'm just wondering what my options are, and what my rights are in this situation. Could I call and email them and ask them to provide the information and validate the debt, and record the call? To my understanding it needs to be in writing for them to legally have to comply. Just not sure what to do. I really appreciate any help. Thanks 😊 [link] [comments] |
| Merry Christmas! ...I just backed into a parked car. Help with whether or not to file a claim? Posted: 25 Dec 2021 09:55 PM PST I left a note on the other cars windshield, and took pictures of the damage in both of our cars. We both have cracked taillights and bumpers. I'm not strapped for cash, so I'm looking for the long term lowest cost solution to make things right. What amount would you go up to out of pocket before deciding to file a claim and pay a $1k deductable instead? [link] [comments] |
| As a first time home buyer, what should I look for (structurally) in a presale home? Posted: 26 Dec 2021 12:07 AM PST Hi, I am a first time home buyer and am planning to visit a model home next week. Since this is a presale home, I looked up the reviews of the constructor and looked at the neighborhood etc. Since this is a presale home, I realize that I am trusting the construction company. My confusion is, how do I know more about the house? FWIW its a townhouse. An example question that I have in mind: * What kind of. insulation are you putting up between house walls? To understand how the noise from my neighbors won't affect me. [link] [comments] |
| Home down payment when moving from first to second house Posted: 26 Dec 2021 03:39 AM PST I've read the wiki and this specific question wasn't covered, and apologies if it's a simple question. I just dont think I've heard it discussed before despite it seeming like it might be a very common situation. I own a home and my family wants to move to a larger home next year. This would be a move from the first home we bought to the second. Having home equity from house #1 I wanted to put 20% down on home #2. But what if I don't sell the house until after we buy the new house? I understand often people continue paying two mortgages while waiting for house #1 to sell, and I think we have the cash flow to do that, but the down payment is more of my concern. The options I can think of are to either make a smaller down payment (5%) and pay cash, then once my home sells uses that to pay into 20% equity to eliminate PMI and refinance later if it makes sense. Or to have the buying / selling order more rigid, where we make sure to sell first, but then I fear we get into a situation where we keep getting outbid and can't find a house in time before we need to be out of our current home. Any thoughts or advice from anyone who has navigated this situation before? All input is greatly appreciated, even if it's just pointing out I'm wrong about certain things, I'm a self claimed novice in this area. [link] [comments] |
| Retirement losses and when to pull the plug Posted: 25 Dec 2021 03:22 PM PST Apologies in advance as long: 45 years old, switched to new job at beginning of year making around 110k. Instead of rolling over 401 (around 170k split between rollover (145k) and roth (22k)) to new company, went with a CFP I've known for 20 years and have heard for past few years how great their investment strategy is. Explained I don't mind high risk due to timeframe from when money is necessary (20-30 years) and that I am not someone that checks weekly but will look at everything probably twice a year. With that in mind, invested everything with them. I currently max out my 401 (19.5k this year and will max again next year). No debt except student loans and 15 year mortgage on house bought this year (with 20% down) and have 6 months emergency savings account so no issues financially. 6 months in, statement shows I'm down about 12k in rollover and down 2k in roth. Give them a ring, say I'd like more understanding of what I'm invested in and how I'm down when the whole market is up. Was brought to a nice lunch, told if I was in just a couple months prior, I'd have huge gains but they are working on things and going high risk. Say ok, I asked for it, and I'll give it time. Checked it for the first time last week and now, almost a year later, I'm down 17k in rollover and up 4k in roth. Send a polite email asking for a written response of what their actual strategy is, don't want a lunch, just want an understanding as if I'm down now, what is the expectation if/when sh** hits the fan. Also looked up what I'm invested in and there's over 35 different investments ranging from AMD to a Bitcoin trust to Berkshire Hathaway to Proto labs to iShares silver trust among many others. Received phone call stating "maybe you are too risk adverse but let's have a conversation before we decide anything". The voicemail is actually what got me to here. Last thing I need to have someone try and gaslight me about my investments when I literally have inquired twice the entire year. As all my money has always been in 401's, I haven't had "hands on" management of it so this aspect is new to me. Personally just looking for a 2nd opinion as to whether this is normal and expected or if there are red flags. Hope everyone has a great Xmas. [link] [comments] |
| Am I Out of Luck for Salary Negotiation? Posted: 25 Dec 2021 11:42 AM PST Hey Reddit, So I just got a job offer for 95k which for the most part I'm okay with, but I can't help feel that I pinned myself to this position and have no way to improve on it...allow me to explain. I initially applied for a position that required 5+ years of experience (which I have just about) and had a pay range between 85k-105k on the job post, and when they asked what amount I was looking for, I said "95k range" (this probably was my first mistake I guess, was aiming for the middle). After the end of the interviews, I was informed of a different position that I was a better fit for and on that job post said 95-115k range. I said I would be more interested in that position and eventually I was given the offer letter for it, but at 95k, per my initial request from that initial position I applied for. For reference the job I ended up landing was listed as 8+ years of experience as opposed to that 5+ years one I initially applied for. I feel like I would have asked for 105k for that more experienced position. So yeah that's my predicament, not entirely sure if I can really do anything about it at this point, but figured I should ask. Thanks! [link] [comments] |
| Should I pay off my student loans now? Posted: 25 Dec 2021 09:15 PM PST 28 and trying to figure out what my best move is financially. Worked and hoarded savings in my first few working years and really just started investing in 2021. In 2021 I maxed out my 401k and Roth and recently put 46k in a taxable brokerage account. I have about 40k between my HYSA and checking with about 8k in federal student loans. Is there any determent to paying this off all at once now since there is no interest rate for the remainder of 2021? Or would my money be better off working in an index/mutual fund/etf [link] [comments] |
| Roth IRA when not expecting to live past a certain age Posted: 25 Dec 2021 09:30 PM PST So as subject says I have a Roth IRA set up with some funds in it. But I have some medical conditions already in my mid 30s so realistically I'm not looking to live a long long life. Would it just be better to invest in a normal account. That way I can pull out whenever I want. I know roth have alot of restrictions about how old you have to be before you can withdraw funds is my main concern. Yes I know Medicine is always advancing and what may be a issue today might not be issue in the future. Just looking for advice from someone that knows more about Roth funds. [link] [comments] |
| Please dumb this down for me - Roth IRA Posted: 26 Dec 2021 02:07 AM PST What happens after I max out my Roth IRA for the year? If I can only contribute $6K, what is next? Also, recommendations for life insurance policies? I'm 26, single & no kids or bills. Not currently working but between VA & the GI Bill I make $3,400 a month tax-free. I invest $500 of that a month which would = the $6K annually but any extra I get I will also invest. I keep $15K in my savings account. I also own a home, mortgage balance of $185K but it's a STR that on average brings in about $1500 a month passive. My PM is great, so I've saved $17K in my "house account". My goal is to buy another property but I need more money for the down payment on the next one. [link] [comments] |
| Services to sign 65+ parent up for? Posted: 25 Dec 2021 08:07 PM PST Hey folks, sorry in advance if this isn't the best place for this question! I had been under the assumption that my dad(65, American) had signed himself up for all of the necessary Medicare/medicaid/supplemental insurances that he should be enrolled in, but found out he hadn't. I'm in town for a couple more days so want to make sure I sit with him and make sure he signs up for/I sign him up for the programs that someone his age should be on. Does anybody have a good list of things someone his age should be enrolled in? Sorry for advance of the naivety on my part, this is super new news to me, and I hadn't been planning on doing this research for myself for another couple decades. Edit: some more info. Dad was let go from his job a couple years back and got into mindset of too old to teach a old dog new tricks and hasn't got a new job. I know he has an IRA, but feel like he had to start dipping in a bit sooner than he anticipated on doing. These are specifics I plan on hashing out over the next couple days. [link] [comments] |
| Posted: 25 Dec 2021 11:27 PM PST I just realized I lost my Chase Freedom credit card a week ago, and since then, someone has made around $2,000 in person worth of charges (6 different purchases) at the same city where I live. I already called Chase to report the stolen card and dispute the charges, and made a police report. As reading this sub, I realize disputing fraud charges at Chase can be a nuisance, so what I can do to best serve my case? [link] [comments] |
| Taxable brokerage when I haven't maxed out retirement? Posted: 25 Dec 2021 06:06 PM PST 40 years old, wife is 38. My wife maxes out her backdoor Roth as her current employer has no 401k benefit. I currently contribute 10% of my pay into my 401k and my company matches 6% of that. I don't do any backdoor Roth conversion (my understanding is our income is too high to contribute to a Roth without the backdoor conversion). When my oldest left private daycare and entered publicly-funded pre-k in August, I started putting what I was paying in his tuition into a taxable brokerage (70/30 split VTI and VXUS is all I hold). There isn't a ton in there right now because it is only a few months old. My financial advisor asked me about and was confused as to why I was doing this when I am not maxing out tax-advantaged options yet. He asked me what the goal of the brokerage account was, specifically. I told him I saw it as a supplement to my emergency fund. 17% of my income goes to retirement and my wife contributes to her Roth, I feel that's sufficient for the time being. Considering I have 2 young kids, I thought it was important to continue to stash money away for short-term needs should, I don't know, COVID-20 happen or something. Is my thinking way off? If I was truly maxing out retirement I don't think much would be left over for any other savings vehicles. [link] [comments] |
| Posted: 25 Dec 2021 07:34 PM PST 36M and 35F, SoCal, married. We both have new jobs in 2022. We chose to go with her employer's health insurance plan. There are 5 options: Anthem HMO, Classic PPO, PPO+HSA & Kaiser HMO. We are trying to have a baby soon. she might want to choose her Obstetrician based on her friends' great experience with this particular doctor. Otherwise, We're both are in relatively good health although I'm slightly overweight but I do not think I will need much visit to the doctors next few years. Trying to exercise and diet on my own. The question is whether the PPO+HSA is the best financial choice albeit we might have to spend the HSA for the maternity care and pediatric care, hopefully. Or do you guys think HMO would be the best deal at least for 2022 especially if we can a referral from PCP to this particular obstetrician. Thanks for the input guys! [link] [comments] |
| Posted: 25 Dec 2021 09:43 PM PST So I've just moved into my own apartment for the first time in a few years (ended things with my girlfriend) and have a stable job for the first time in a long time that seems like a long-term, "I'm going to stay here for at least a couple of years" kind of gig. My office is a 15-40 minute commute by car and a public transit option that's reliable that would probably take about 50 minutes average. BUT -- and this is a big but -- my office is basically fully remote now. HR just told all of us that we're going to continue working from home with "no come back to office date ever" (they used to give us dates on a regular basis) and said that instead, they'd be creating social opportunities to meet and hang out with our co-workers and would have team meetings that would be hybrid in-office (that I'd try to go to if I could) so we can have a chance to work with our folks. Knowing all of that.... is having a car actually worth it anymore? My friends all live near me (and a lot of them have cars I could bum rides from if I really needed it), I have no plans on moving at all in the foreseeable future, and it would save me tons of money on insurance and maintenance costs. ... am I missing something here? It feels a bit too good to be true. I looked up the Kelly Blue Book valuation of my car and it says it'd be worth $16k in today's market (!!!). [link] [comments] |
| Leave my easy job for a better paying one, while finishing college? Posted: 25 Dec 2021 02:08 PM PST I work from home on an IT helpdesk for a fairly large company, currently making 18 dollars an hour. I'm also taking full time college courses to get my bachelors in Cyber Security, so my work day starts at 8am and most nights ends around 9 or 10 after classes and assignments get done. My job is relatively easy, it's from home, and free of stress for the most part. However, I've found myself in a position where I've begun seeking better paying work. I recently was offered a job that pays 24 an hour to do similar work, however it is not from home and I'll have to commute to an office daily. Is it worth giving up my lifestyle for an increased wage? Or should I finish school and scrape by financially? [link] [comments] |
| Wells Fargo checking account disappeared from having a negative balance Posted: 25 Dec 2021 06:15 PM PST I'll try to make this as short as possible, my family didn't want me working during COVID. So I got unemployment and pretty relied on that for the months following. I guess I had forgotten to unsubscribe to something and it pulled money out, I think around -$10. So I was in the negatives. Right when I was gonna pay it off a week later my checking account was gone, all that is left is my savings which has $15 in it as of now. Did they close my checking to make sure it doesn't go over anymore? How should I go about dealing with this? [link] [comments] |
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