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Veskit posted:Got it. So what is the recommended APR on a student loan where you start prioritizing funding your retirement accounts over paying off the debt on a loan? Is there a reasonable number or does it come down to comfort levels at a certain point? I can understand trying to pay off the fed loans immediately, but does he slow down retirement for the 5% APR loan too?
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Apr 28, 2014 17:57
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Veskit posted:Got it. So what is the recommended APR on a student loan where you start prioritizing funding your retirement accounts over paying off the debt on a loan? Is there a reasonable number or does it come down to comfort levels at a certain point? I can understand trying to pay off the fed loans immediately, but does he slow down retirement for the 5% APR loan too? This is probably a risk tolerance call. At complete risk aversion it's likely the % that you can get a risk-free investment (CDs are what? ~1% now?). The more risk you're willing to assume (which isn't a big deal if you're young), the closer to say, the 10 year S&P average (or whatever it is you invest in). ~7% Unless you want to buy a house, or some other large purchase in which debt ratio matters. And while loan debt isn't dischargeable, it is easy to manage. Personally I'd go at least to sub 6%.
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Apr 28, 2014 18:12
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slap me silly posted:It's a judgment call, yeah. Having money in the market is risky, plus having debt is a different kind of risky (especially non-dischargeable debt), so personally I would prioritize paying back any loans above 3% or so. Non-dischargeable and with no asset behind it is where it gets weird. Max out your retirement accounts or pay extra towards your 4% mortgage? Easy, fully funded retirement. Retirement savings max or paying down 4% student loan with a high balance? That's not as easy of a decision.
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Apr 28, 2014 21:36
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Thanks for all the input, guys. At the very least, this has made me realize my weekly spending needs tighter controls, and will allow me a substantial increase in monthly savings/debt paying/whatever. I'm leaning towards getting the emergency savings to about 20k before substantially decreasing that and putting that money elsewhere. On the plus side, I think my girlfriend is on board with a small ~$2,500 dollar wedding as opposed to a $20,000 bridezilla extravaganza, provided she gets her ring. I know most of you think I shouldn't be spending any more than I have already saved, but I'm happy with the compromise. The "with little consideration of my opinion, lol" was somewhat in jest, as we've discussed it a lot, and I pretty much have told her she's getting it, and whenever I try to bring up the fact that it's way too much for my financial situation, I end up caving because I don't like to go back on my word. We're both on the same page financially, and she'll be paying for half the wedding anyway, when she gets a job following graduation in a year.
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Apr 29, 2014 00:08
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You have six figures in student loan debt. Get a $1500 ring and upgrade in the future when you are in a more stable financial position if it still seems important then. YOU HAVE SIX FIGURE STUDENT LOAN DEBT
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Apr 29, 2014 02:36
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alwayslost posted:whenever I try to bring up the fact that it's way too much for my financial situation, I end up caving... We're both on the same page financially Seriously, you guys should have a $300 ring and a $2000 wedding.
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Apr 29, 2014 03:02
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slap me silly posted:These two statements are contradictory, dude. It kind of sounds like "discussed it a lot" just means "told her what she wanted to hear". Sounds like they should rethink the whole thing if they're wavering on the financial feasibility of the ring while caving into demands. Surely their marriage will start off well given resentment for spending $5k on a ring.
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Apr 29, 2014 03:10
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Shipon posted:Sounds like they should rethink the whole thing if they're wavering on the financial feasibility of the ring while caving into demands. Surely their marriage will start off well given resentment for spending $5k on a ring.
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Apr 29, 2014 04:56
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SiGmA_X posted:Buddy got into this situation. He's debt free tho. Now that he makes 80k/yr, wifey stays at home and spends them to $0 every month. Be careful OP, you guys aren't on the same page at all. He's not debt free, he's got his sweet whips!
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Apr 29, 2014 05:52
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CountOfNowhere posted:He's not debt free, he's got his sweet whips! And a kid popped out a couple weeks ago!
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Apr 29, 2014 06:32
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alwayslost posted:We're both on the same page financially, and she'll be paying for half the wedding anyway, when she gets a job following graduation in a year. With a MSW, she isn't going to be pulling in your current salary basically ever. If you made a deal to go halfsies with the wedding, no wonder she's magically okay with doing it on the cheap but holding out for an expensive ring (that she's not responsible for).
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Apr 29, 2014 07:06
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Is she cool with the $2,500 wedding, or just the idea of one? With a budget that small you're going to have to sacrifice a lot of what you think of as a modern wedding: the elaborate dress, open bar, floral centerpieces, etc. if I were you I would ask her to describe what her 'cheap' wedding looks like to make sure you're on the same page.
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Apr 29, 2014 07:26
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Yeah, a $2,500 wedding is next to impossible unless you do a backyard BBQ and call in a bunch of favors. I think we spent about $14,000 on our wedding for like 120 people. And we were relatively thrifty, although we splurged for a bunch of extra stuff after the family helped out. $2500 was like the bar bill.
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Apr 29, 2014 14:29
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Me and my wife had a backyard wedding and it was perfect. Just saying. There is no reason you need a $20k wedding and a flawless diamond. I really don't understand the super expensive weddings unless you are trying to impress people. OP: now is the time to really discuss money with the s/o. Money problems are loving poison for marriages. The longer you delay pulling off the bandaid the more its going to hurt.
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Apr 29, 2014 15:56
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alwayslost posted:On the plus side, I think my girlfriend is on board with a small ~$2,500 dollar wedding as opposed to a $20,000 bridezilla extravaganza, provided she gets her ring. I know most of you think I shouldn't be spending any more than I have already saved, but I'm happy with the compromise. When's your wedding? Let's do a wedding thunderdome and compare expenses. I bet I come in under you, and I've budgeted $10k for the whole thing just to be safe.
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Apr 29, 2014 20:04
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moana posted:When's your wedding? Let's do a wedding thunderdome and compare expenses. I bet I come in under you, and I've budgeted $10k for the whole thing just to be safe. I'll take that bet. Though mine is not till 2017
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Apr 29, 2014 21:23
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You are worrying about your employer closing so you want an emergency buffer... And they are paying for you to get a masters... Do you see the problem with this? Get a months bills in savings and then dump everything you can into the loans.
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Apr 29, 2014 21:40
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alwayslost posted:I'll take that bet. Though mine is not till 2017 
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Apr 29, 2014 22:07
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alwayslost posted:Thanks for all the input, guys. At the very least, this has made me realize my weekly spending needs tighter controls, and will allow me a substantial increase in monthly savings/debt paying/whatever. I'm leaning towards getting the emergency savings to about 20k before substantially decreasing that and putting that money elsewhere. I wouldn't call $20k for a wedding extravagant in this day and age. Lets see if we can break down your $2,500 wedding. Celebrant, $300? Food, $1000-$1500 (say $20/head for 50-75 guests) Rings, $300? Dress, $200 (but still not a "real" wedding dress) Suit Hire, $100 and I would say equipment hire would easily take up the rest. There's nothing wrong with that but if your girlfriend is getting hung up on the cost of the engagement right, I don't think she'll take it well when you tell her she can't have a $3000 wedding dress. Honestly I think if you asked her what her idea for a $2,500 wedding was, that $2,500 wouldn't be all inclusive, it would be $2,500 to hire a venue of some sort. Is there any reason why you guys can't have a long engagement and get married when you can afford the wedding you guys want?
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Apr 29, 2014 22:20
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My sister got married at her ex-husband's mother's nice house. I think like 30-50 people were there. Food was basically a potluck, so I don't know how much was spent, but I wore jeans and the bride and groom each wore black slacks and black t-shirts with bow-ties drawn on in glitter glue. The groom wore a cyan blazer. I don't see why the OP can't do something similar. I'd be surprised if they came anywhere near $2500.
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Apr 30, 2014 00:51
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Please stop assuming that OP's fiancee is selfish, horrible with money, etc., because she wants a nice ring. It's a sentimental item, and some ladies are big on that particular piece of jewelry. OP: I know you're on a budget, when you do get that ring, no matter how much you end up spending on it, insure that thing.
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Apr 30, 2014 03:40
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meanieface posted:OP: I know you're on a budget, when you do get that ring, no matter how much you end up spending on it, insure that thing. I disagree with this statement. The ring is hardly worth what you pay for it, and insurance is just another expense that most likely will never be used. Save that money and take care of your belongings.
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Apr 30, 2014 13:49
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meanieface posted:Please stop assuming that OP's fiancee is selfish, horrible with money, etc., because she wants a nice ring. It's not that we're assuming that she's selfish and horrible, but that they're not correctly anticipating what $2500 will actually get you for a wedding. Having recently gone through the planning process (with a wife who is an event planner no less) the answer is "not much". You can stretch it, sure, but even a backyard BBQ costs cash. I've spent over $400 on booze, food, and other supplies for a relatively normal party of like 20 people. Odds are if someone is fixated on a certain ring size they're not going to be happy eating hotdogs and wearing hand painted ties or whatever on the "biggest day of their lives" EDIT: As far as actual advice regarding your finances and the wedding, I suggest heading over to the Wedding Megathread with some ideas and start getting a handle on what both of your expectations are relative to your resources. To be honest if her family really is well off they'll probably be throwing some money your way. Just don't spend it until the cash is in your hand. LogisticEarth fucked around with this message at 14:29 on Apr 30, 2014 |
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Apr 30, 2014 14:08
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One of my co-workers got married recently. They decided to have it just be the two of them, an officiant, and a photographer in the mountains. Neither one of them likes their families much, so they decided to skip the hoopla. It still ran over $2500 bucks. $400 for the pastor, $800 for the photographer, $500 for the dress, flowers that she wanted, tux rental, rings, etc. Still pretty expensive. If people can do a wedding for under $2500 for 50 guests or so, kudos to them. I do think anything over 10k is ridiculous, though.
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Apr 30, 2014 15:05
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Slow Motion posted:With an HSA you can contribute directly via transfer from an existing checking or savings account with the same net effect on your tax burden. I move money ad-hoc through my HSA rather than set a fixed monthly deposit to give me more flexibility with that money and I love it. You can always max it out in the first quarter of next year if you want to use it as an investment vehicle. Contributing via paycheck deductions means you don't pay FICA taxes. I wouldn't follow this advice unless flexibility is worth a 6% tax to you.
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Apr 30, 2014 15:21
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Nocheez posted:I disagree with this statement. The ring is hardly worth what you pay for it, and insurance is just another expense that most likely will never be used. Save that money and take care of your belongings. Ring insurance is one of the best things. It's fairly cheap if you add it into your renter's/homeowner's policy and covers everything including accidental loss. For many people, an engagement ring is the 3rd most expensive thing they own after house and car. Whether or not the ring is actually worth what you pay for it is irrelevant. They insure it for the purchased (or independently appraised) price.
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Apr 30, 2014 19:03
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Nocheez posted:I disagree with this statement. The ring is hardly worth what you pay for it, and insurance is just another expense that most likely will never be used. Save that money and take care of your belongings. Velochis posted:Contributing via paycheck deductions means you don't pay FICA taxes. I wouldn't follow this advice unless flexibility is worth a 6% tax to you.
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Apr 30, 2014 19:16
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Slow Motion posted:With an HSA you can contribute directly via transfer from an existing checking or savings account with the same net effect on your tax burden. I move money ad-hoc through my HSA rather than set a fixed monthly deposit to give me more flexibility with that money and I love it. You can always max it out in the first quarter of next year if you want to use it as an investment vehicle. Maybe I am misunderstanding your post, but by doing this, you are missing out on the best part of an HSA, the fact that you can contribute gross income if you do a fixed amount with your employer. It lowers your yearly gross just like a 401(k), so it can potentially keep you out of the higher tax bracket.
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Apr 30, 2014 19:18
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blackmet posted:One of my co-workers got married recently. They decided to have it just be the two of them, an officiant, and a photographer in the mountains. Neither one of them likes their families much, so they decided to skip the hoopla. This is accurate. The bare bones of a wedding can bust a 2500 budget before you even consider a reception.
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Apr 30, 2014 19:21
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mkay0 posted:Maybe I am misunderstanding your post, but by doing this, you are missing out on the best part of an HSA, the fact that you can contribute gross income if you do a fixed amount with your employer. It lowers your yearly gross just like a 401(k), so it can potentially keep you out of the higher tax bracket. YourHSAAdmin.com says this is wrong. Thank you SO much PayFlex, you people rock! Facepalm. Sorry for making an inaccurate post! SiGmA_X fucked around with this message at 03:59 on May 1, 2014 |
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Apr 30, 2014 19:37
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You only get reimbursed on federal income tax if you do post-tax contributions, though, not on FICA (Social Security & Medicare). It's a small difference, but it is leaving money on the table. I'm trying to push my company to set up payroll deductions for for that reason, but for some reason they can't do it yet. I've had to do post-tax contributions the past couple years and the deduction come tax time still ends up reimbursing a sizable number of dollars, like $900 for the max contribution. Unless everything I've read is wrong.
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May 1, 2014 03:42
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Guinness posted:You only get reimbursed on federal income tax if you do post-tax contributions, though, not on FICA (Social Security & Medicare). It's a small difference, but it is leaving money on the table. I'm trying to push my company to set up payroll deductions for for that reason, but for some reason they can't do it yet. I've had to do post-tax contributions the past couple years and the deduction come tax time still ends up reimbursing a sizable number of dollars, like $900 for the max contribution. E: See prior post, I am wrong, you are right. gently caress you PayFlex. SiGmA_X fucked around with this message at 03:59 on May 1, 2014 |
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May 1, 2014 03:57
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Guinness posted:You only get reimbursed on federal income tax if you do post-tax contributions, though, not on FICA (Social Security & Medicare). It's a small difference, but it is leaving money on the table. I'm trying to push my company to set up payroll deductions for for that reason, but for some reason they can't do it yet. I've had to do post-tax contributions the past couple years and the deduction come tax time still ends up reimbursing a sizable number of dollars, like $900 for the max contribution. You're right and I didn't know how that worked. In my own personal finances I make the call to max my HSA in December when I get my year end bonus and run it pre-tax out of that. So I've never left money on the table. But if someone followed my advice they would. Thanks for the lesson.
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May 1, 2014 05:55
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Everyone who considers Slow Motion's financial advice should read his BFC thread
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May 1, 2014 15:01
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your income isn't untenable, but holy poo poo those debts. and your payments towards them.  here is what I would do :
also look into ways you can turn your free time into money. freelancing, etc. it's important. good luck goon mindphlux fucked around with this message at 06:48 on May 2, 2014 |
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May 2, 2014 06:45
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Op needs to keep in mind if he leaves or loses his job his 401k loan will be due in 30 days. edit: wrong thread. Don Lapre fucked around with this message at 22:36 on May 2, 2014 |
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May 2, 2014 12:03
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Wrong thread maybe? There's no 401k loan here and he's only got a grand in there anyway.
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May 2, 2014 15:51
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SiGmA_X posted:Really? How much is ring insurance? I got a quote of around $16/month. The ring has a lifetime warranty from the local jeweler it was purchased from, so all my wife has to do is not lose it. If she does, we'll buy a replacement moissanite ring. She's cool with that.
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May 2, 2014 16:15
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slap me silly posted:Wrong thread maybe? There's no 401k loan here and he's only got a grand in there anyway. I'd assume that comment was supposed to be in Slow Motion's thread.
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May 2, 2014 18:41
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Slightly off topic, but I bought my wife's engagement ring at Luisa Graff in Colorado Springs and was very happy with their staff and selection compared to the national chains. You can buy "enhanced" diamonds that are natural but improved with :  : for 2/3 the cost of an equivalently graded fully natural diamond. People often think my wifes ring is 5k but I only paid 2k for it!Alternatively, you could get a fully man made diamond that can be stunning for 1/5 the cost of traditional stuff.
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May 3, 2014 16:35
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