|
For starters I think you should try to max your 401k this year, unless you make $180k+ and that 10% will do it.
|
#
¿
Dec 1, 2015 15:00
|
|
|
|
| # ¿ May 13, 2024 06:43 |
|
|
MJP posted:It's not a good idea to keep the money accessible in case the need arises? You said that not counting this money, you have enough to survive for six months without income. I think your emergency fund is just fine (especially because you both have jobs, since your wife was able to contribute to an IRA). What would it take to make it one year? At some point, you have enough emergency fund and you can start looking longterm. If you're not maxing your 401k, you probably need more retirement savings...I'm guessing you've been focusing more on building a great cash reserve instead of that for the past few years. Mission accomplished.
|
|
#
¿
Dec 1, 2015 15:10
|
|
|
Is this gift to your wife from her dad able to be defined as income? If not, she can't contribute to an IRA. Six months should be plenty. It sounds like your wife has a well-off family that will help her, you have six months saved up, you'd have unemployment benefits for six months if you lost your job. Also what are you doing contributing to a brokerage account before you've maxed your 401k 
|
|
#
¿
Dec 1, 2015 17:38
|
|
|
In extremely dire circumstances you could always take out a 401k loan. It's not advised, but it's better than leaving the opportunity for bigger retirement savings on the table in the first place when you already have a large savings account and an active brokerage account. You have assets you can liquidate now, plenty of them. You should focus on retirement in tax-advantaged vehicles, or you won't be able to retire. Also, don't listen to your grandpa or someone who doesn't actually understand how Social Security works; it's not going anywhere, though if it runs through the surplus payments will be reduced by about 30%. Still something. Also, you're better off with index funds and not individual stocks in that taxable account, unless you're already to the point that it's literally play gambling money (you're not, since you're not maxing your 401k). It sounds like the financial adviser you listened to wasn't exactly that great a guy either. I think you'd do well to read some books on investing/retiring, but I'd like to just stump William Bernstein's If You Can, a short pamphlet that will take you an hour or two. And it's free. https://www.etf.com/docs/IfYouCan.pdf Nail Rat fucked around with this message at 21:23 on Dec 1, 2015 |
|
#
¿
Dec 1, 2015 21:20
|
|
|
MJP posted:I guess it's my accountant who answers how I'd go about getting some kind of tax benefit by moving stocks from brokerage to 401k? I posted this above, but reposting: I think you'd do well to read some books on investing/retiring, but I'd like to just stump William Bernstein's If You Can, a short pamphlet that will take you an hour or two. And it's free. https://www.etf.com/docs/IfYouCan.pdf If you don't understand the tax benefit of 401ks, you need to start at the beginning, and don't listen to a financial adviser. Their goal is to use you to make money. Read some simple books on the topics, or look at the bogleheads wiki, or the Long Term Investment thread at the top of this forum. The OP should have some good info for you, and you can ask questions there.
|
|
#
¿
Dec 1, 2015 21:26
|
|