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How exactly do savings bond redemptions work? My mother recently remembered that she had bought savings bonds "for me" back in the early 90s, except that I noticed on the bonds that they are actually in her name and POD (payable on death from my internet searching) to me. She claims that she intended them to be for me, and she still wants to give them to me except that she is wondering about the tax implications on the interest earned. Can savings bonds be signed over to someone else? Also, related to this: is it worth redeeming 4% interest savings bonds to go toward student loans at 3.75%, or would I be wise to wait? I'm thinking I should just pay down the loan as fast as possible.
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Mar 24, 2013 04:16
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Sleipnir posted:How exactly do savings bond redemptions work? My mother recently remembered that she had bought savings bonds "for me" back in the early 90s, except that I noticed on the bonds that they are actually in her name and POD (payable on death from my internet searching) to me. She claims that she intended them to be for me, and she still wants to give them to me except that she is wondering about the tax implications on the interest earned. Can savings bonds be signed over to someone else? EE bonds are non transferrable, and federally taxed as regular income to the named individual.
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Mar 24, 2013 04:20
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slap me silly posted:Yes, good shape, I agree. I say pay off the debts before you worry about the Roth IRA. You could argue either way financially but you obviously want the debt gone and that is fine. Especially with the 401k already happening. Fascinating! This is all stuff I don't know from a hole in the ground, so: 1) I would like to keep at least 3 months worth of expenses on hand in the most completely liquid account I can have, and an additional up-to-a-year's worth of living-on money is a major goal of mine mostly because working at a small startup I am acutely aware that things could go pear-shaped without any warning and given the economy I want to have a massive cushion and time to find something else without having to rush in and take all I can get. Given that, which may still be utter paranoia on my part, I would prefer to have the bulk of my "break glass in case of emergency" money at least somewhere where it can potentially earn some useful interest; the only savings account I've found has basically no interest itself, so I went straight from checking to brokerage. I know gains are going to be taxed, what I don't have any native feel for is the whys and wherefores of one alternative versus another. 2) Goes with the third answer as well; the 401k money is going entirely into Fidelity's target... I think 2045, but maybe 2040 fund. That one is also fire-and-forget as far as I'm concerned, I intend to just let it sit there and never, ever touch it. 3) Haha, good to know! Can I ask why it's terrible, so I know what not to do in the future? And yeah at the very least all future contributions are going to go direct into a few index funds from here on out now that I've gotten the same advice twice running.
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Mar 24, 2013 06:33
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I really like target date funds. Yes, they have higher expenses, but they're such a good option for people who don't have the desire to manage their 401k.
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Mar 24, 2013 07:10
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Mukaikubo posted:working at a small startup I am acutely aware that things could go pear-shaped without any warning and given the economy I want to have a massive cushion and time to find something else without having to rush in and take all I can get. So in essence the $8k + $12k is your emergency fund. Your reasons for keeping it around instead of putting it toward loans make a lot of sense to me. BUT putting it in stocks directly undermines your reason for having it in the first place. Put it in an FDIC insured savings account (or maybe CDs) and settle for the piddling interest. That's the price you pay to reduce risk. Thinking about it another way, there's a chance the stock market and your job could crash at the same time, and then where would you be? No job, and the stocks you bought for $12k are only worth $7k but you have to sell them to pay the rent. That kind of thing actually happened in 2000 and again in 2008. I called your fund choices terrible because you chose them essentially randomly instead of based on your goals. You should think about your investments in terms of time horizon and risk; diversify rationally across asset classes not equally across 6 random categories; and choose funds by cost and composition, not 5-10 year performance. To oversimplify a bit. Again, check out the long-term investing thread. Overall, it sounds like you are thinking clearly about everything and on a good track except for the $12k that is at much higher risk than is appropriate for what you want from it.
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Mar 24, 2013 08:08
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Currently I am a senior set to graduate in May and start Peace Corps in June. I have a checking account with Bank of America, a credit card with Capital One, and a savings account with ING which is now Capital One as well. I am wondering if I should just change from Bank of America to Capital One. My thoughts are that it will be better to have everything under one roof and it'll be easier to manage. The total money spread across these accounts for next 30 months will be at most $6000. Thoughts?
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Mar 24, 2013 17:58
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It makes absolutely no difference unless you really really want to use one website instead of two, and even then the credit card website is usually separate from the bank.
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Mar 24, 2013 20:57
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Any thoughts on Capital One 360 Checking and Saving and Sharebuilder? Would be the first time moving my money from my BoA checking account and investing.
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Mar 24, 2013 22:16
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Are you having some sort of problem with you accounts at BAC, or is there a specific product you can get with COF but not them?
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Mar 25, 2013 02:30
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I'm re-arranging my bank accounts in anticipation of going from broke-rear end student to equally broke-rear end but with a small income resident physician. Feedback / recommendations appreciated! 0) I currently have student CampusEdge Checking and Savings accounts, and a Cash Rewards credit card from Bank of America. 1) I opened an online savings account with CIT bank (0.9% APY) and I plan on closing my savings account from BOA (0.01% APY lol) and transferring the funds there. 2) I will keep the Checking account at BOA for their ATMs and the benefit of having a big physical building with cameras and armed guards where I can go deposit and withdraw cash. 3) I'll keep the BOA Cash Rewards card (1% everything, 2% groceries, 3% gas + 10% bonus for redeeming monies into a BOA checking account (see Step 2). 4) In addition to my "personal" BOA card, I plan on opening a second credit card for "business" expenditures for tax-reporting purposes - books, DEA and CA state board licensing fees, exam registration fees, etc. Separate business from pleasure, am I right? *all balances will be paid off monthly*. Any recommendations for a credit card for this purpose? INTJ Mastermind fucked around with this message at 05:07 on Mar 25, 2013 |
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Mar 25, 2013 04:17
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Bombtrack posted:Any thoughts on Capital One 360 Checking and Saving and Sharebuilder? Would be the first time moving my money from my BoA checking account and investing. Similarly, Im thinking of opening a Fidelity brokerage account and wondering how well their cash management account along side it would suffice as a checking account. Seems to have all the same benefits as Ally but with lower rates.
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Mar 25, 2013 13:33
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Bah. My "friend" (haha, actually my friend) has an erroneous default listed on her credit report. She disputed it with the credit agency, they "investigated" and won't change it. At one point some time ago the bank acknowledged verbally over the phone that the item was in error (she says). She sent a registered letter of dispute to the originating bank last month and hasn't heard back yet. What next? I feel like this question is probably already answered somewhere in this forum but I don't know where to look.
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Mar 25, 2013 16:02
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Posted on the previous page, but the thread about fighting debt collectors probably has some good information for you.
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Mar 25, 2013 16:16
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I stuck my nose in and it is all about debt collectors, which doesn't apply here... but I will ask there anyway, thanks.
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Mar 25, 2013 16:27
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Crossposting this from the debt collector thread because it isn't a debt collection issue: So when I was in college I had an additional card on my dad's AmEx account for emergency purposes (he even told me that "emergency" meant only things as severe as getting my arm ripped off and not having the cash on hand to cover my deductible). I haven't had a card on the account in over 6 years but the account still appears on my credit report. Late last year, my dad's business failed and almost $100,000 was charged off. The delinquency and charge off are now on my credit report. What are the chances I could dispute it and have it removed from my credit report?
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Mar 25, 2013 21:44
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If you were just an authorized user (not an owner) you don't have any liability for debts on the card. You can ring up a fortune and skip town and you're untouchable. If you were added as an owner in some capacity, you're hosed.
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Mar 25, 2013 22:34
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I just received a bonus from work (about 6,000) and I need to know what to do with it! My money situation is as follows: Student Loan 1: 19000 @ 9.5% Student Loan 2: 24000 @ 6.0% Future Vehicle Loan: 8000 @ 2.5% Savings: 4000 The reason I say future vehicle loan is because I'm looking to buy a vehicle with that loan amount in a month or two. So should I put all of my bonus towards the loan with the highest interest rate or divide it up among them all? Should I just use the bonus towards my new vehicle? Should I put 5k to a loan and 1k into savings? Thanks
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Mar 25, 2013 23:01
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Depends on how long that $4k can last you in if you lose your job/have an emergency, and how bulletproof your budget is. When you say "my new vehicle" do you mean "new to me!" or "off-the-line new"? With your student loan situation, I wouldn't spend over 10k on a car. You can find some nice 2007-2009 fuel efficent cars that don't require much maintenance with that. Mathematically, you should dump the bonus into the student loan at 9.5% as that will save you the most money in the long run. That's probably what I'd do if I was confident I could live off that $4k for six months if I really needed to. It might also feel nice to drop that car loan to $2k and pay it off within six months if that's your thing.
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Mar 25, 2013 23:25
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reflex posted:Depends on how long that $4k can last you in if you lose your job/have an emergency, and how bulletproof your budget is. My job is really stable right now, but I see where your coming from. And by new vehicle, I mean my budget is 9k-11k for a decent used car. I just graduated school two months ago, so it's tough to get my savings up, but I think I'm doing well for myself right out of the gate. In all honesty, I want to get these student loans taken care of so I might just drop most of the bonus towards the 9.5% loan.
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Mar 26, 2013 00:44
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I let my old auto insurance expire, and rather than tell them anything I just didn't pay. They covered me for two weeks beyond my policy period and have sent me a bill for that period. Now, I'm pretty sure I don't have a legal leg to stand on to contest this, so I need to know: How much outstanding balance can I have left over and not get sent to collections? I'm not giving them a dime more than I have to. Also, in case anyone knows: would I suffer any legal recourse for wiping my rear end with the check?
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Mar 26, 2013 02:44
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This is the "how to pay your bills" thread, not the "how to be a rear end in a top hat" thread. Pay your loving bill.
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Mar 26, 2013 02:48
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So I've been apartment/roommate hunting and it's gotten me worried that my credit score might be too bad for any landlords to accept me. I tried to get a report from AnnualCreditReport, but all three of them said they couldn't do one online for some reason and I have no idea how long it'd take to get one in the mail. I know I've got some dings against me. I've got two student loans worth 20k apiece, plus about 6 or 7 hundred worth of unpaid bills from college that all went to collections. None of these things were paid for a long time cause I was either unemployed or just simply not making enough that I could afford to. Last year I got some unexpected money and use that to pay off a credit card that I'd had maxed out since high school, and every since I've been paying the two student loan bills. One of the loans is in default and on a payment plan, the other is behind but I'm slowly working on getting it caught up. I'm currently unemployed. Earlier this year a house that I had part ownership of was sold and I've been living off that money. I do have a job lined up when I move, it's just a matter of getting there. I guess what I'm asking if anyone has a general idea of what my credit situation is like, thanks!
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Mar 26, 2013 03:24
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To answer your direct question, your credit report is probably pretty bad. If you want to know exactly how bad, you need to get off your rear end and deal with it properly instead of asking us to imagine for you. Although it's going to stay bad until you haven't been in default for a while. About the renting, income is also a major thing that landlords look at when evaluating you. What does "job lined up" mean? Normally you would put the landlord in touch with your new employer so they can verify your job. Is that not happening here for some reason? You'll have a much harder time renting with lousy credit and no verifiable income.
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Mar 26, 2013 03:49
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slap me silly posted:To answer your direct question, your credit report is probably pretty bad. If you want to know exactly how bad, you need to get off your rear end and deal with it properly instead of asking us to imagine for you. Although it's going to stay bad until you haven't been in default for a while. I know that, I was just looking for a general idea of how bad it might be while I wait to hear back from them. As for the job, I'm gonna be working with a temp agency once I move so technically I don't have income right now. Should I do that even if I haven't actually started with them yet? Sorry if I sound really naive but I'm about the dumbest a person could be about money.
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Mar 26, 2013 04:39
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By working with a temp agency, you mean the temp agency said they will find you work? What exactly is "lined up"? It sounds like you don't actually have anything lined up. If they have a placement for you already you should get that info to your potential landlords, yes - but I doubt they do, since you don't seem to have a start date or anything. What temp agency hires on a "start when you feel like it" basis, or does your brother own it? Therefore it sounds like you're kind of in a chicken-or-the-egg spot. I'm not sure how much money you have but you need to focus on keeping as much as possible for as long as possible and use it to get employed so you don't end up homeless. Extended stay hotel for a month or two in the new town, maybe? Do you have friends or family there who would spot you a couch for a couple of weeks? Just don't be the rear end in a top hat who overstays his welcome. Your wisdom about money is implied by what you already told us  Stick around and get better.
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Mar 26, 2013 05:03
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So I just got a job doing secretarial/office scut work/translation for a real estate agent and seeing the listing prices has made home ownership no longer a pipe dream for me but a real concrete goal. I come from NJ where putting even 5% down on a starter home would be 12k, whereas that's 20% down on a nice 3 bedroom place around here in SD. So basically, I'm starting from less than 0 with the goal of owning my own home by age 30. Right now I'm 23, and according to the credit report I pulled last night, have 14k in debt debt, 6k of which is in collections (student loan that i haven't paid in over 180 days), and 7k balance on what had been a 4k limit credit card that up until I pulled my credit report last night had been listed as "charged off" and I hadn't gotten a collection call about it in 2 years (It's been in default since 2011.). I've been in SD for two weeks, have managed to get two jobs, and while neither pay great, between both I'll be clearing what I was when I was living in NJ when you factor in the lack of state taxes here. Right now my FICO score is sitting at 548 (which is honestly a lot higher than I thought it would be - I thought it was low 400's), with the aformentioned debt and another 4k that I've been disputing for almost 2 years now. (My college is trying to claim I didn't withdraw properly and I owe for a semester I wasn't even living in the state. Of course because to withdraw you had to send an email from your official school account which you can no longer access after you're no longer a student...its a lot of being bounced from one person to another to another). So my questions are: 1) since the college debt is technically in collections - even though the collection agency knows I'm fighting it with the originator of the debt should I just pay it to get it off my credit report? I don't want to just because of the sheer principal of the matter - why pay 4k for a service I didn't use? But at the same time it's only 4k, but that's also 4k to sock away into the down payment fund. 2) Is it worth it to get some sort of revolving line of credit so I can actually pay it every month and use that to improve my credit score? I was thinking a secured card from Wells Fargo since I already bank with them. 3) Is it worth it to sock away some money to get my real estate license? Bossman is willing to pay the same hourly wage to me regardless of if i get it or not, but he's willing to cut me in on comissions for any sales I'm a part of if I'm licensed, which he can't do if I'm not. I just dunno if itd make up for the $1000 investment.
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Mar 26, 2013 07:12
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Drakkel posted:I know that, I was just looking for a general idea of how bad it might be while I wait to hear back from them. Your credit is probably bad. I am not going to try and guess a number, because it wouldn't be right and it wouldn't be useful to you anyway. You could consider signing up for CreditKarma and then you would at least get a Vantage score and whatever is on your report right now. But if you have stuff in default and collections, yea, your credit is going to be bad. The good news is that there are a lot of landlords that are ok with bad credit as long as it doesn't involve apartments. Meaning that they'll overlook the credit card you have in collections as long as you've never ducked out on your lease. A lot of people have money troubles at some point, but most people prioritize their rent and similar payments. The landlord doesn't actually care if you stop paying your Sears card, as long as his checks will keep coming. The other bad news is that without actual employment (and 'lined up with a temp agency' is probably not going to count) a landlord is probably going to be pretty wary even if you had good credit. If you have a healthy balance in the bank that might offset their concern, but you're still looking at a pretty tough sell. I think what you should be doing is looking for a cheap sublet or a roomshare that will last a couple months, and using that time to get yourself set up and actually start working - once you are doing that, you should be in a better position to look for a long-term living solution. Otherwise you're going to end up signing a one-year lease with some slumlord in divetown because no one else will take you on.
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Mar 26, 2013 14:34
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Do Roth IRA contributions have to be made after you start your job? My employment starts July 1st. Can I drop in $5500 now, and make it up with my paychecks later? And I read that contributions can be made through April 1st the following year. Does that mean I have to wait until 4/2/2014 to deposit into my Roth IRA for 2014, or can I make my contribution on 1/1/2014?
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Mar 28, 2013 00:36
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You can contribute now, just make sure you have enough income by the end of the year or you'll have to take it back out. And you can contribute for 2014 starting Jan 1.
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Mar 28, 2013 00:40
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I have 25k saved up from my job I started last year. My wife has a 8k private student loan with a 7.25% interest rate, and a 2500 car loan with a 5% interest rate. Should I use that saved money to pay those off completely? I don't need the money for anything else currently and so we would just invest it in something if we didn't use it to pay the loans. I guess we would then be wagering our ability to beat those interest rates in the market. Thoughts? Also, our income is going to be high enough to phase out the student loan interest deduction, so that won't help.
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Mar 28, 2013 01:53
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Tetrix posted:I have 25k saved up from my job I started last year. My wife has a 8k private student loan with a 7.25% interest rate, and a 2500 car loan with a 5% interest rate. Should I use that saved money to pay those off completely? I don't need the money for anything else currently and so we would just invest it in something if we didn't use it to pay the loans. I guess we would then be wagering our ability to beat those interest rates in the market. Doooooo it and then treat yourselves to some We're Debt Free sundaes.
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Mar 28, 2013 02:01
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Yes doooooo eeeet. You will even have money left over!
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Mar 28, 2013 02:02
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Agreeing with everyone who said do it. Being debt free feels amazing and gives you a lot of flexibility if your employment situation changes.
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Mar 30, 2013 20:51
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I now have a little over $5,000 in a Capital One savings account, earning a pathetic .75 APY. I'd like to start investing for the shorter term (i already participate in company 401k and have a Roth IRA) so i plan to buy shares in FFNOX, a Fidelity fund that is an index of indexes, as it were. Once bought, I will keep contributing to the fund as though it was a second savings account. I'm not sure if I should stick with my original plan of waiting until I have $7,500 in the Capital One account before I invest, leaving me a $5,000 floor for emergencies, or just go for it and buy the fund. My only major debt is about a grand in CC debt which is interest free until September and I am consistently hacking away at it. I have no kids, no car, and I split my rent with my girlfriend ($700 each per month). I'm starting to think that $2,500 is quite alright for an emergency fund, especially since I plan to keep contributing $300-$400 a month to it. Agreee/disagree?
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Mar 31, 2013 01:08
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Pay off the credit card first. The benefit you could gain by having an average $500 interest free loan for the next six months is trivial. The size of your emergency fund is a personal decision and depends a lot on your circumstances, but be sure you're thinking about where you'd be if you lost your job and only had $X in the bank and no more extra $300-400/mo coming in. FFNOX is relatively high risk and not reasonable for the short term. It is more the kind of thing you want in your retirement portfolio. What will you use the money for? Wedding, car, house, travel? In a few years, 10 years, 20 years?
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Mar 31, 2013 01:30
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It depends on where you live, but my wife and I recently learned we had to move. We had no choice; find a place to live in 60 days because your lease ends then and you can't renew. We live in an admittedly expensive area, but we had to be able to continue paying our current rent/expenses, and be able to put down, if needed: First, Last, Security deposit, and realtor fee (1 month rent usually). Rents for a 1-bed here regularly run ~1400+, 2-beds start at ~1550. We needed enough money on hand to potentially have to pay all the above, which is $5600-$6200 spent just to get a lease signed. I was happy we had been aggressively putting money into a joint saving account for things like this, and were able to pay it all from our joint savings without messing with our normal day-to-day expenses, and with still a cushion in case anything else happens. So I would recommend making sure you have enough money in your emergency fund to deal with something like the above but adjusted for your area's cost of living. I'm personally glad I was reading this thread and it encouraged me to make sure we had a strong emergency/big purchases account. Hawkeye fucked around with this message at 01:40 on Mar 31, 2013 |
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Mar 31, 2013 01:38
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1400 for a one-bedroom? Where do you live? That's absurd for even NE and California prices.
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Mar 31, 2013 02:11
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Harry posted:1400 for a one-bedroom? Where do you live? That's absurd for even NE and California prices. No, not at all. $1400 for a one bedroom fits near downtown in a number of cities. In Manhattan it would be a pretty cheap studio.
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Mar 31, 2013 02:28
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Harry posted:1400 for a one-bedroom? Where do you live? That's absurd for even NE and California prices. $1400 for a decent 1BR would be pretty low around a lot of parts of the SF Bay Area.
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Mar 31, 2013 02:31
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mongeese posted:$1400 for a decent 1BR would be pretty low around a lot of parts of the SF Bay Area.
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Mar 31, 2013 02:41
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