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Just had a vacation and a problem with my travel credit card that has meant I'll need a month or two to get finances straight again as I was expecting to be able to hold debt on that card for a month or so to spread costs. As it stands I'll be going deep into my overdraft, which I estimate could cost me £40 at a guess, based on maxing it out for 20 days until I'm next paid. Should I look at transferring cash out of a credit card I'm otherwise not using? I'm offered either 0% over 24 months with a 3.5% fee or 3.9% per annum over 36 months with a 0% fee. Given this should be pretty short term, I think going with the 0% fee and paying off in short order will be better value than using my overdraft? If I'm calculating this right (3.9%pa divided by 12 months) I should only pay £6.50 after a month. Just want to make sure I understand correctly before I pull the trigger.
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Dec 7, 2021 16:48
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If my 401k doesn't have access to a "total market" index fund, and instead only has a large cap index (for instance, FXAIX), should I add international myself (for instance FSPSX)? I know Bogle said that you get international exposure through US exposure, but I've heard people say that is not really true. In any case, is the expected difference worth the bother and the nearly doubled expense ratio (1.5 basis points to 3.5 basis points)? I know domestic has performed well, but I'd rather be in a total market fund in case that changes to simply extract the value of the market itself. Also, I can't do a target date fund (such as FSNVX) because the expense ratios are 6.5 basis points. No thanks.
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Dec 8, 2021 11:27
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6.5 bps is cheap, do you mean percent? There's no obligation to have balanced allocations within your 401(k) - you just need to be balanced across total portfolio. As a result we do something like this: My 401(k) - S&P 500 and small cap because its cheap here IRAs - Target date because lazy and cheap and includes some bonds Taxable - International exposure because it's cheap here I-Bonds As you can see, we're not really balanced in any individual account type, but overall we hit our target allocations pretty effectively.
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Dec 8, 2021 14:54
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KYOON GRIFFEY JR posted:6.5 bps is cheap, do you mean percent? It's still 4x the cost and adding presumably little value over the S&P index fund or a Vanguard Target Date at 1.5. And what do you mean by certain investments being "cheap" in certain places?
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Dec 8, 2021 17:33
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But at that level, 4x of very very cheap is still cheap and you get the very real upside of not having to rebalance. I view anything below 10 bps as more or less the same. This is why I didn't bother signing up for Fidelity's zero ER funds. edit: whoops completely misread drainpipe fucked around with this message at 17:56 on Dec 8, 2021 |
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Dec 8, 2021 17:42
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Magnetic North posted:It's still 4x the cost and adding presumably little value over the S&P index fund or a Vanguard Target Date at 1.5. your 401(k) usually only has some funds available for purchase. for instance the cheapest international i can get in my 401(k) is like 65 bps, vs schwab SWISX is 6 bps
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Dec 8, 2021 17:53
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My man 6.5 bps is hilariously cheap and way below average. I wish my 401k funds were only 6.5 bps. "4x" almost zero is still almost zero. We're talking pennies here.
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Dec 8, 2021 18:57
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Magnetic North posted:It's still 4x the cost and adding presumably little value over the S&P index fund or a Vanguard Target Date at 1.5. Vanguard target date funds are 15 bps, not 1.5.
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Dec 8, 2021 19:03
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pmchem posted:Vanguard target date funds are 15 bps, not 1.5. For a sec I thought I had my decimals moved around wrong, but no, I just misread; I saw the 1 and the 5 and ran with it. I tried switching to basis points because saying hundredths of percents feels unclear, which is probably why someone invented the term. KYOON GRIFFEY JR posted:your 401(k) usually only has some funds available for purchase. for instance the cheapest international i can get in my 401(k) is like 65 bps, vs schwab SWISX is 6 bps Okay you literally mean expense ratio as well, wasn't sure if there was more to it.
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Dec 9, 2021 00:16
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I will be changing jobs at the end of the month. What would be the best way to deal with my previous job's 401K? Roll it into my ROTH IRA if possible?
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Dec 9, 2021 20:22
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DTaeKim posted:I will be changing jobs at the end of the month. What would be the best way to deal with my previous job's 401K? Roll it into my ROTH IRA if possible? Things may change with whatever legislation ends up passing but don't do what I did and open a new rollover IRA account to do this. This could handcuff you from the "mega backdoor roth" in the future. Unless your 401k at your new job really sucks, just roll it into that or keep it where it is.
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Dec 9, 2021 20:41
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I have an already existing Roth IRA but I'm guessing it doesn't matter here.
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Dec 9, 2021 21:01
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unless you have roth 401(k) money you can't roll it in to a roth IRA rolling it in to your new 401(k) or keeping it at the current one is best
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Dec 9, 2021 21:10
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Usually I tell people to go with Vanguard index funds, but for those just starting out who have to invest < $1k, what's the recommendation?
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Dec 11, 2021 21:33
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Small White Dragon posted:Usually I tell people to go with Vanguard index funds, but for those just starting out who have to invest < $1k, what's the recommendation? I would just wait until I had $1,000 and then buy VFFVX or whatever is the most relevant target date. You can also get ETFs of the US and International total stock market funds but I wouldn't bother with slicing and dicing with such a small balance. At that point you're really just getting in the habit of investing rather than trying to get the ideal allocations and exposures.
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Dec 11, 2021 21:42
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Small White Dragon posted:Usually I tell people to go with Vanguard index funds, but for those just starting out who have to invest < $1k, what's the recommendation? Just to double-check, you already have six months' living expenses in a savings account or similar, right? This is "I've taken care of my immediate financial goals and need to start saving for the future"?
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Dec 11, 2021 22:33
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TooMuchAbstraction posted:Just to double-check, you already have six months' living expenses in a savings account or similar, right? This is "I've taken care of my immediate financial goals and need to start saving for the future"? Well a couple of these younger relatives are college students who just work seasonally, I wanted to offer some incentive for them to start putting a little money away for the long term.
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Dec 13, 2021 01:38
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Small White Dragon posted:Well a couple of these younger relatives are college students who just work seasonally, I wanted to offer some incentive for them to start putting a little money away for the long term. College students should generally be worried first about paying down high-interest debt, and second about building short-term savings so that they can survive temporary loss of income without going deeper into debt. If you're expecting to spend the money you save inside of five years, you're generally best off saving it in a bank account instead of a "real" investment portfolio. Or are you talking about investing purely to get experience with the act of investing? In that case I'd say, open an IRA, buy a low-expense-ratio index fund, and forget about it.
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Dec 13, 2021 05:50
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I'm reading back in the thread about 403b plans and I work for a small non-profit with a not great 401k option (no matching) that I don't imagine many people utilize. Maybe a dumb question - if we're a qualifying organization, is there a reason to offer a 401k plan over a 403b plan? If we can save some money or make things work better, I'd want to suggest that. If it's a dumb thing to suggest, I'd rather find out here than at work
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Dec 13, 2021 07:58
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I'm no expert but I thought the biggest and most defining difference between a 401k and 403b is whether the sponsoring organization is for-profit or non-profit/government. So I'm surprised to hear that your non-profit offers a 401k not a 403b. A few other nuances on the admin/reporting side, but they are functionally very similar to participating employees https://www.investopedia.com/ask/answers/100314/what-difference-between-401k-plan-and-403b-plan.asp. The quality of the plan and investment options, fees, etc. almost completely comes down how willing the employer is to make it not suck, regardless of 401k vs 403b. Guinness fucked around with this message at 08:20 on Dec 13, 2021 |
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Dec 13, 2021 08:12
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In terms of coming out of college investing : I was pretty fortunate, financially, in that I got out of college with only $12k student debt and no other debts (dad passing away wiped out a bunch of my student debt and my car loan). I knew I should invest and save, but had no idea where to start. I was doing sales and they were sending my to a weekly referral group, and there was an Edward Jones dude there. So , how I got roped into Edward Jones was pretty simple, dude was both really chill , and I was able to just put down $50 to open an account, versus $1000 with someone like vanguard. I agree someone coming out of college needs to focus on debt and emergency savings first , but man, one of the best gifts IMO for someone out of college would be “here’s a $1,000 going into an account for you for a target date vanguard fund. Now just put like, $20-50 a month in to start.”
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Dec 13, 2021 14:06
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i started dumping 10% of my paychecks for summer jobs in to an IRA because im the most bfcest of posters
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Dec 13, 2021 14:26
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I wish I'd invested when I was in my early 20s, I spent so much money on stupid poo poo it would have been nice to never even see that money. But then again, I wouldn't have this 900 DVD collection!
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Dec 13, 2021 14:45
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Medullah posted:I wish I'd invested when I was in my early 20s, I spent so much money on stupid poo poo it would have been nice to never even see that money. But then again, I wouldn't have this 900 DVD collection! When all the streaming services fall apart through limited deals for what they can show, it'll be super valuable to have what you like easily accessible!
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Dec 13, 2021 15:40
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My dad is a sucker and has multiple timeshares. He's been trying to get me to take over one from him, not because he can't afford it but because he thinks it's a great thing and wants be to be able to use it. I see zero reason to do so, despite the "on paper" idea being okay. There's nothing in overlooking here right? There's no situation where a timeshare is a nice thing to have?
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Dec 13, 2021 23:40
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Medullah posted:I see zero reason to do so, despite the "on paper" idea being okay. There's nothing in overlooking here right? There's no situation where a timeshare is a nice thing to have? The "on paper" reason isn't okay either, unless the paper you are talking about is marketing materials. Timeshares are very frequently left in estates, because it's about the cheapest and easiest way to get out of the contract that requires you to keep paying maintenance fees whether you use your time or not. Check out the timeshare resale market if you need any indication of how much these things are "worth".
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Dec 13, 2021 23:43
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I started 2021 with $27k of "bad" debt (credit cards, mostly). I'm ending 2021 with $18k debt. Small wins.
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Dec 30, 2021 19:13
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boop the snoot posted:I started 2021 with $27k of "bad" debt (credit cards, mostly). One day we shall celebrate you being Worthless  Nice work!
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Dec 30, 2021 19:14
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I am looking for some budgeting software. I used to use YNAB and now use Financier, but I am looking for something a little more robust. I was trying to figure out exactly how much I spent in each category this past year and I couldn't do that very easily. Graphs and whatnot would be a plus. I don't need to automatically connect accounts or anything, as I live in South Korea and would be using Korean won in the software. Also, Mac version is a must. So what software do people recommend?
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Jan 1, 2022 10:24
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cryptoclastic posted:I am looking for some budgeting software. I used to use YNAB and now use Financier, but I am looking for something a little more robust. I was trying to figure out exactly how much I spent in each category this past year and I couldn't do that very easily. Graphs and whatnot would be a plus. I don't need to automatically connect accounts or anything, as I live in South Korea and would be using Korean won in the software. Also, Mac version is a must. A spreadsheet. It takes longer to setup but you can customize it to exactly the level you want.
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Jan 1, 2022 15:07
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nelson posted:A spreadsheet. It takes longer to setup but you can customize it to exactly the level you want. I started using the Money plugin Microsoft offers for Excel this year and it's pretty great. Syncs your accounts just like Mint and you can build all sorts of reporting off it.
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Jan 1, 2022 15:28
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How do I go about finding a competent CPA and a competent CFP besides googling for reviews, picking one at random, or asking for recommendations?
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Jan 1, 2022 16:33
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esquilax posted:How do I go about finding a competent CPA and a competent CFP besides googling for reviews, picking one at random, or asking for recommendations?
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Jan 1, 2022 16:54
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boop the snoot posted:I started 2021 with $27k of "bad" debt (credit cards, mostly). Hey, we take those Ws. Good job goon, you're going the right way, which is more than most can say
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Jan 1, 2022 17:13
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esquilax posted:or asking for recommendations? The website above, but honestly if you have specific goals or complications that some of your peers have asking them who they use is a great way to find someone. boop the snoot posted:I started 2021 with $27k of "bad" debt (credit cards, mostly).
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Jan 1, 2022 18:16
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New job offers a PPO that would be too good for an HSA, but otherwise appears very advantageous given the marginal extra cost ($27/mo, and foregoing $700 a year of employer HSA contributions). I have $12k sitting in my HSA from my last job. It appears that I can keep that indefinitely, just not contribute to it any further. I do incur $5/mo account fees (no additional fee for the investment account). With that marginal a cost it seems stupid not to do the PPO. I know I can burn FSA balance at the end of the year on CPAP supplies if needed. Take the PPO and invest my remaining HSA in vanguard index funds and don't touch it unless there's a big emergency, right?
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Jan 3, 2022 22:21
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At what point do you stop saving for a built up emergency fund? I'm the primary money maker for a family of 3 working in IT for a place that I feel is stable. My goal has been to get us to a lean 4 months of savings for an emergency fund. I am pretty well there at this point and wondering if I should focus more on other savings goals like a car replacement, vacations, etc. Or just stop saving as much there and putting it in an IRA or something. We plan on having one more kid and while I sometimes think that bumping up our emergency fund to 6 months would be wise its also hard for me to look at that money just sit in savings and get almost nothing in interest.
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Jan 3, 2022 22:48
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part of this is your risk tolerance but since you essentially describe your household as a single income household there's a lot more risk associated with job loss than for a dual income household
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Jan 3, 2022 23:39
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Yeah I'd do 6 months. An honest 6 months too, when you say "lean" 4 months I'm a wee bit concerned you're just counting things like the mortgage and auto payment.
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Jan 3, 2022 23:45
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Medullah posted:I'm a wee bit concerned you're just counting things like the mortgage and auto payment. "Well I can put everything else on my credit card"
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Jan 3, 2022 23:51
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