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Human: A few months back my company got hacked and personal employee information was stolen. I checked my bank accounts, etc and everything seemed normal. However, when I submitted my taxes last night I woke up this morning to find that they were rejected because someone else already filed them using my social security number. I've been trying to contact the IRS but I can't get a hold of anyone there. Besides contacting the IRS what else should I do?

**Submit your taxes on paper TODAY**, to get them in by the deadline. Put them in the mail, and make sure they're postmarked today. Be sure to include [Form 14039 Identity Theft Affidavit](https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/f14039.pdf) to explain what's going on. Also, if you need to pay anything, include the 1040-V and a check. Since your identity's been stolen, you should probably also check your credit reports and put a fraud alert on them. The IRS's [Taxpayer Guide to Identity Theft](https://www.irs.gov/uac/Taxpayer-Guide-to-Identity-Theft) has some decent guidance on how to get started.

I added topic flair to your post, but you may update the topic if needed ([click here for help](/r/personalfinance/wiki/flair)). You may find these links helpful: - [Tax Software Megathread](http://redd.it/41dew6) - [Taxes wiki page](https://www.reddit.com/r/personalfinance/wiki/taxes) - [Understanding tax brackets](https://www.reddit.com/r/personalfinance/wiki/taxes#wiki_eli5.3A_taxable_income.2C_tax_brackets.2C_marginal_tax_rates) - [W-4 IRS Withholding Calculator](http://www.irs.gov/Individuals/IRS-Withholding-Calculator) *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/personalfinance) if you have any questions or concerns.*

Human: I'm 23, live in the US (Maine), and my annual income is about $30,000. Let's say that I make this company, get all the proper paperwork filed, etc. I continue working at my regular job, and also use this newly-created company as a second job. Let's also say I expect to make less than $1,000 in profit from this company after a year. In this scenario, after a year, can I still use this company for my tax deductions? Can I write off my home use as business expenses? I don't understand what would prevent this. Assistant: No. Tax deductions for houses used in businesses are very small, for just this reason. Human: I heard that they were actually pretty big: http://www.artstaxinfo.com/office.shtml At least, $2,600 in cash is big for me... Assistant: >Deduction cannot exceed gross income from business use of home less business expenses I think that's going to trip you up. If your net gain between business income v tax savings is still zero, what's the point? Human: I'm going to repost this because it's important and it got lost in the thread: For the record, one reason why I'm confused: I DO want to deduct more than the business makes. The reason I think it's possible is because in this link: http://www.artstaxinfo.com/office.shtml Nowhere does it mention the business's profit or anything like that. It only mentions the value of the house. So which is correct and which is wrong?

The reason you don't get to deduct more than you make is to prevent people like you from doing exactly what you want to do. It's an arbitrary restriction, not a logical one. I read your link. I quoted from your link. Now look at the IRS's link: >Gross income limitation. Your deduction for business use of the home is limited to an amount equal to the gross income derived from the qualified business use of the home reduced https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p587.pdf

The article is wrong/incomplete. Yes, you can deduct a home office, but if it pushes the business income negative, you have trouble with the hobby loss rules. The article doesn't talk about this, which doesn't make it "wrong", just incomplete. Also, deducting a home office is hard. THe rules are strict. And, even a $2,600 deduction would likely only save you $260 in taxes (a deduction doesn't reduce your tax dollar for dollar; it reduces your tax by the deduction amount TIMES your tax rate - probably 10%).

Human: I am not sure if I am on the right sub but I have paid interest on my mortgage last year, yet I did not work or earn any income. Therefore, the interest paid on mortgage is going to go to waste. Is there any way I can carry this over to next year?

No.

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Human: Hi, Throwaway due to personal information. To give you sort of an idea of where I'm at. Currently 29 years old and have been making shitty decision after another ever since I was in my early twenties which have put me in a very bad financial state. Since the beginning of this year I have made a 180 turn and finally grown up, big thanks to this subreddit that I've been reading daily to get my thoughts in order on how to treat finances. During the first 3 months this year I was unemployed and relied completely on my girlfriends salary. Now I got a well paying job and want to start making things right, everything from paying off debts to saving for an emergency fund and down payment on an apartment further on and work on my future. With that said, my girlfriend has very bad spending habits and has exactly 0 savings even though she, in one way at least, has made better financial decisions but still love to spend money shopping and whatnot to zero the account out. Now, I am really into getting my shit together and I feel like I missed so many years of my life with wrong decisions and I'm done with it but I don't feel like we are on the same page, at all. Personally I would love to just live quite frugal now and save between €1000-1500 a month which I can easily do and then take it from there. She "MUST" go on a vacation this year, which I've agreed to, which will cost us in total around €7000, we currently have zero saved for this and the plan is to do this in September. This is stressing me the fuck out, sure, I want to go on a vacation and what have you but I just don't wanna save this much money in such a short time frame and then have to start over.. again. And on top of that I am willing to make sacrifices to not only save for the trip but also overall save to have money once the trip is finished. She on the other hand is not willing to cut down spending significantly, actually even finding ways to increase it, like buying a pet for €600. So, how do I teach my girlfriend to get into the right mindset and understand that in order to achieve certain things in our life, one must make sacrifices? Thank you for advice! Assistant: This is probably more about communication in a relationship than it it about money. You have one wish (save money!), your girlfriend has another wish (spend money!). I guess you'll have to talk with each other and reach a compromise. Which could be something like a. going on a less expensive holiday b. postponing the holiday until spring 2017. But it depends on the two of you. Money talks are important in a relationship. And there will always be times when you don't want the exact same thing with money. So I guess I would say: start practicing "money talks" now. Perhaps you can also explain to her *why* you want what you want, that could help her see your point of view. Human: We have been having quite frequent talks about this recently so I wouldn't say it's a communication issue. It's more of a set mindset that I can't seem to change since I am not going at it with the right weapons. For example, I have been discussing with people way more experienced in when and how to buy all these plane tickets in order to find it cheaper. She doesn't want to do any of that, which amounts to no effort whatsoever, because of the fact that she is not a "cheapo". That is a complete mindset that I can't change how much I've tried so far, since she doesn't see a problem with it. I've been trying to reason in so many different angles and ways and show benefits and so forth. Reason I am asking here is if someone has dealt with similar people before and how they managed.

My first husband was like this. We are no longer married. I'm not trying to be glib - dealing with money can be a huge dealbreaker in a relationship if you can't both compromise and be on the same page. You don't have to agree on everything, but you do have to share some long term goals and general plans for how you will deal with finances. If she's not willing to go on a cheaper vacation or even research how to save money on flights, I would be very concerned about her ability to compromise on much bigger issues you would face as a married couple. My current husband spends money on things that I wouldn't; but our compromise is that we save money first toward our mutually agreed-upon goals, and then he has a separate account that he funds himself to spend on anything he wants - no scrutiny or questions from me. Since you aren't married, you need to keep your money separate from her and work on your own goals, and tell her that you don't want to spend more than X on vacation. If she can't understand that, she should go by herself with her own money.

Well, are you so sure that you're right and she's wrong? She's of the mindset to enjoy your money when you have it. You're not, or not anymore. You want to save it. It doesn't mean you're totally right and she's completely wrong. However, for a relationship to work one needs to come up with common goals and sometimes that means compromising.

Human: I am a Canadian citizen who did some small consulting contract work for a US federal agency in 2014. I filed US and Canadian taxes for 2014. I sent payment in full by cheque for my US federal taxes with my 1040NR and request for ITIN (Individual Taxpayer Identification Number). I couldn't pay online because I didn't have a SSN or ITIN at the time of payment. (I also paid US state taxes by physical mail, but that went through fine and I don't have a problem with those.) The IRS deposited the cheque in April 2015. They sent me mail in approximately October 2015 telling me that I owed them the amount equal to the cheque they had already deposited. I called them and they claimed that they had received no payment. I mailed them proof from my online banking that the cheque had been deposited by them. They continue to send me mail requesting payment. I've called them again and they can't 'find' the payment I made. What else can I do/send them? The payment they're requesting is about $500 USD.

Call your bank, get a copy of the cancelled check(que). Continue to send that as your proof as it is your only proof of payment.

Ask them why they deposited the check. That's the sort of response that might force a person to actually do a little research. Sometimes that's the trick - get out of the automated loop.

Human: Hey! So this is my first year filing with Turbotax. I couldn't afford my full taxes owed, so I made out a check for what I could afford and sent it off to the Feds. Turbotax supplies little slips with this, to accompany your check. I'll admit I was pretty hasty and panicked, since it was my first time doing taxes all on my own. So I crossed out the full number on these slips, wrote in my number. Sent it along with the slip. Today I look at my bank account and I've not only been charged the full amount of taxes owed, but I've also go the extra amount of the check added on top of that taken away. I think what might of happened is I mistakenly filled out an estimated taxes form? But I still don't get how they can pull more money than the check written, unless I read something too fast about Turbo Tax E-filing. Anyway, I literally cannot survive without the money sent to the IRS. So how do I tell them it was a mistake and get it back as soon as possible? For any confusion left over, I was paying a quarter of my taxes owed cus I'm going to do it in a short term installment plan. Thanks in advance.

Call the [Taxpayer Advocate Service](https://www.irs.gov/Advocate/Local-Taxpayer-Advocate/Contact-Your-Local-Taxpayer-Advocate) toll-free at 1-877-777-4778 and speak with a representative. Explain the full facts and circumstances, and have proof of the payment available, if possible

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Human: So I didn't have taxes withheld all year, and being an idiot I didn't even set aside money for tax season. Now my accountant is telling me I owe somewhere around 30,000$ for the entire year. Problem is, I don't have 30k. Is this even right? It was 30% as a made somewhere around 89k this year. What are my options and what can be done? Is it worth going through tax relief program. Also, this is for a friend I just put it in my perspective so it would be easier to discuss.

How did you not notice taxes being withheld? Surely you received pay stubs every month? Regardless, you need to setup a payment plan with the IRS ASAP. Another reason waiting until the tax return deadline to file is never a good idea.

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Human: I received a notification from Wells Fargo (who holds my mortgage and a checking account) stating that a Wells Fargo employee was caught e-mailing my personal information (including SSN, name, address, phone number, account numbers, etc.) to a third party for non-business purposes. They are providing me with two years of "IdentityGuard" service, which I am utilizing. I also contacted the three credit bureaus to put a fraud alerts on my credit. Is there anything else I can/should be doing? Does Wells Fargo have any liability if my identity is stolen at some future date? Thanks

Maybe - but you haven't suffered any damages yet. r/legaladvice is better if you want to sue but I'm not sure what else you want them to do.

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Human: My girlfriend has been living with me since last March. She moved out of her parents house to do so. I asked her to double check with her dad and see if he he already claimed her as a dependant. He said no. Flash forward to now, tax returns were rejected. Apparently someone has claimed her as a dependant. Either her dad lied to us and claimed her (which is really dishonest considering she hasn't loved there for over a year) or a third party has claimed her. Realistically, how should I proceed? Am I making a mountain out of a molehill?

You should file her return on paper. Eventually, the IRS will send a letter to her and to whoever claimed her on their return, saying "This SSN appears on multiple returns. Someone should fix it." She should not fix it. The IRS may then choose to audit one or both of her return and the other one. She would be fine. It may not be the father; there are many scammers who put in returns claiming 20 children then take the refund and run. She should not fix it.

I don't think your tax return should have been rejected because the same person was claimed twice. If anything, the return should have been accepted and then an audit should be triggered for you and her parents. If you're able to claim her, and it sounds like you are, then you should file the paper return and you'll end up being fine if when the audit is concluded. From a personal perspective, you may not be invited to anymore family dinners. Good Luck.

Human: Going into 2015 I was about $15,000 in debt (and climbing) and had no real financial plan. I came upon this sub and straightened my finances up thanks to all of the great discussions and posts regarding budgeting, retirement planning, tools, and tips. I only really lurk but wanted to thank the active users of this sub for all the great and useful information. Today I have no debt aside from my mortgage, I am saving 15% in my 401k (up from 4% in 2014), I was able to save up a 6 month emergency fund, and this morning I was able to fully fund my Roth IRA for the year 2015. So thank you for helping me plan and getting on the right financial footing.

Congrats! Keep up the good work!

Great work! So much of the battle is gaining an understanding, much of the rest is a function of time. Just remember, you can maximize returns by contributing to your 2016 IRA as early as possible and increasing time in market (insert traditional caveats here etc etc)

Human: So I recently posted an iPad mini on eBay about a week ago. Conveniently, I got an offer to the exact cent requested. Yay!!! So I sent an invoice, with my parents paypal account email because I did not want to have to set one up, and receive a very realistic looking email, supposedly from paypal, telling me that they had received the payment and that it would be transferred into my account as soon as I shipped the item and gave them the tracking number. Here is where it started getting sketchy: there were maybe one or two odd english sentences in the emails and the buyer then told me that he wanted it sent to "his son in Nigeria for his birthday." Even though in the eBay post I said that I would not ship internationally he told me to ship it to his son who works in Nigeria and that he is on a business trip so I could not sent it to his house first. He even added $100 to the payment to cover the international shipping costs, which were only $22. This guy even started texting me, horrible english by the way, VERY VERY insistent that I send it "ASAP" and to be sure that it got there "ASAP" and to use "USPS International priority mail." So me, being the inexperienced, first time eBay user thought he was just some really goddamn annoying guy. Anyways, after shipping it and sending in the tracking number I still hadn't received a confirmation of the payment (three days later). So I called paypal and they informed me that the email that the guy had given me was fake and not connected to any paypal account, AND that he had deleted his eBay account directly after it was sent (one would think that eBay would have a rule that prevents someone from canceling their account so soon after a purchase because their account is the only way they can be tracked down if something goes wrong). Anyways, here I am sitting on my couch about to smash the computer through the ****ing wall out of anger at eBay or paypal for not having anything to prevent cases like this. So. People of reddit. Can I stop the package and redirect it back home even if it's international? Can I get a refund? eBay credit? Anything so that I don't have to loose over $200? Edit #1: Within the past hour I have called eBay (zero help), PayPal (almost zero help), and USPS, who told me to contact the USPIS (United States Postal Inspection Service). I submitted a mail fraud complaint and then tried to call but they are closed. Will call again in the morning. Keep in mind I shipped it on Wednesday the 13th if that changes anyones mind about anything. The tracking number says it left New York on the 16th and has not reached Africa yet.

You should not look at this from the angle "I lost 200". You paid 200 to learn a lesson. What would you do different today ? Take 2 sheets of paper. On #1 write what you did. On #2 write what you did wrong and what would you to now. That is the value of your 200$. You got this cheap, some people paid thousands for the same lesson.

Contact the usps right away. They will be able to tell you if they can stop the shipment.

Human: I received a total tax refund of $27 (I believe this money was from income taxes). I was claimed as a dependent by my father so I did not receive a personal exemption but he did. I filed my own returns this year for the first time as a single person. Am I still entitled to this federal and state refund of $27 or should I reject it since my father got the dependent exemption? He thinks I should reject it and file an amended tax return since he claimed the exemption of $4000. I tried looking this up but could not come up with any IRS literature on the subject.

Dependents are certainly entitled to tax refunds. If you have $1,000 in tax liability and gave the IRS $1027 (through withholding let's say), the IRS owes you $27. You earned that money, paid too much to the IRS, they owe it to you, and it has nothing to do with being a dependent or not. Your dad *already* got the $4000 exemption which translates to $1,000 in cash for him if he's in the 25% tax bracket. He's not entitled to the $27 you earned. Nor can you "reject" a refund, and if you could, your money wouldn't just transfer to your dad.

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Human: I was speaking with an investment advisor today. I was informed that i should plan for 80% of my current income. Accounting an average of 3% inflation that would be roughly 165,000 per year in 25 years. How can this be sustainable since my wages do not even come close to reflecting inflation? How are we not going to fall into a major depression in the sense of nobody being able to afford to live despite making a current living wage? I don't see the average plumber going from 67k to 165k in 35 years.

>I don't see the average plumber going from 67k to 165k in 35 years. But that is exactly what happens. 35 years ago, $25k was worth the same as $65k now. See: http://data.bls.gov/cgi-bin/cpicalc.pl?cost1=25%2C000.00&year1=1981&year2=2016

Keep in mind low inflation is a fairly recent phenom. That 3% is probably a reasonable factor to consider. On the other hand, the 80% is also just a rule of thumb. It really depends on the lifestyle you want to live in retiremen.

Human: I am a single male, no dependents. I am just sick of paying money into rent it seems like such a waste. Also I don't drive, I can walk to work and I have about 7k in my bank account right now. Expenses are average, phone bill ($100) rent ($550 because screw renting a nice place). And honestly that's about it the sides food and wine. Basically, do I deal with debt first or can I save for a house now?

If I were to give my 23 year old self some advice (40 now) I'd tell him to find a cheap place to live (keep expenses low), pay off all his debt, then max out his RRSP/TSFA. He'd then be able to take a loan against his RRSP using the first time home buyers program.

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Human: and if so, what should I have her sign?

Don't loan money to friends if you would be affected by not getting the money back. In other words, if you think you need to bind her contractually, you should not be loaning her money.

Do you like this friend and want to keep this friend? If so, gift them the money if you want to help them out but NEVER loan money to family or friends.

Human: I just applied for loans for the summer semester and was awarded $250 dollars. At first I thought this was a clerical error, but as it turns out, I am at $30,750 which is $250 away from the federal loan maximum for undergraduate dependents. I am a Biomedical science student and was planning on paying for summer then using the extra to take my MCAT. My family income is too high to qualify me for grants, but too low for my parents to be able to give me much help. I am literally five classes away from finishing my degree and I need a way to pay for my final classes and then cover my MCAT and application fees. I haven't looked too deep into private loans, because I am still in panic mode after realizing that about $6000 that I had accounted for over the next six months is not going to come in. It seems like a lot of private loans are predatory and require credit. My credit scores are 722 equifax and 631 transunion. The transunion has a strike from a medical bill that I didn't pay. I am not even sure how to pay it at this point. I have also carried high debt on my credit card, but have a perfect payment history on my card, all bills, and my car loan. I got a car loan in November with a 5% with suncoast credit union without a cosigner somehow. Essentially, I am not sure if I can get a private loan or if it would even be manageable. Also the repayment could be a problem if they come calling while I'm in medical school. I have a job and If I take a semester off might be able to save up, but don't want to graduate a semester late. I don't know if I have any other options. Thanks, reddit.

Honestly, private loans aren't that bad. They aren't ideal, but for only $6000, it's a no-brainer -- get $6k in private loans, finish your degree, and enter the job market as soon as you can. Taking time off from school, or busting your ass at a job and going to school part time, will probably cost you more in the long run than taking out $6k in loans now and finishing your degree as soon as you can. The opportunity cost in terms of lost income alone would cover $6k, considering you have a STEM degree. You will probably need a cosigner for the private loan, but in my experience, lenders aren't too picky. Even if the interest rate is high, it will only be $6k, and you should be able to pay it off well before the interest eats up a lot of your money. By the way, if this small amount of additional debt scares you, you should rethink medical school.

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Human: I guess I just don't understand, what benefits do you get? If I haven't done my taxes yet I don't know how much I owe. How can I pay when I don't know what I owe? This "extension" thing doesn't make sense to me.

The penalty for *filing* late with a balance due is significantly more than the penalty for *paying* late with a balance due. > How can I pay when I don't know what I owe? Guess. If you overpay you can claim a refund.

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Human: I'm 21 and in February I got my first "real job" that pays 25K. This guy I work with is 27 and has been working there for about 9 months. He told me the other day he started at 32K. We have the same exact position in the company. So I have this idea that in about one month when I'm most comfortable in the job and can prove my worth that I'll request a review and pay increase. Do I tell them I know what my partner started at? (Obviously while focusing on my value to the company.) Like I said earlier this is my first "real job" in a corporation/office setting so I don't really know how to go about this. Any advice is appreciated. Thanks in advance!

> I'm 21 and just got my first "real job" that pays 25K in February. > This guy I work with is 27 and has been working there for about 9 months. He told me the other day he started at 32K. It's possible he had more work experience than you that may justify his higher starting salary.

What someone else makes is never relevant to a raise discussion. It's also unprofessional to bring up - it only makes you seem whiney. Raise discussions should be based on your worth to the company.

Human: I've started my first "real" job this week, and I am making around 70k USD annually after taxes and a company 401(k). I am a 21 year old with zero debt, a beat-up car that I bought with cash in high school, and no dependents. I've been frugal with the $9 an hour I was making up until now, and I have excellent credit. What do I do to grow this money? Obviously I don't want five or six figures in a checking or savings account that's actually losing money to inflation. I've watched my parents struggle with money their entire lives, and I want to start as early as I can to avoid that struggle. I've read the "How to handle $" link in the sidebar, and unfortunately, it's marginally helpful at best for my situation. I've done some reading and understand that investing in a Roth IRA and/or traditional IRA is absolutely worth it. But this still leaves a relatively large amount of money that I don't know what to do with. I've lived my life until this point making $12k per year or less, and haven't accumulated any debts. I'm going to continue living like this; I'm not going to go out and make poor investments into new cars and expensive toys. So even if I live like a rich man (from my perspective) and spend 30k a year on living, that still leaves a large chunk of money that, frankly, I have no idea of what to do with. I know next to nothing about investing, or even where to start with it. I don't need/want to be rich, I just want financial stability and to be able to support a family without worrying about the mortgage payment or electricity bill every month. What can I do to build a solid financial foundation, starting early in my life? Thank you for reading all this, and thank you in advance for any advice. Edit: I wanted to thank everyone for all of the helpful and well thought-out responses and advice. Thank you guys, genuinely. This is my first personal finance post and I wasn't sure what to expect, but all of the replies I've received have been polite and helpful. Thank you guys. I feel like I have a much better idea of where to start now, which is all that I wanted for the moment. Assistant: planning is good but you just started this week and, to be blunt, haven't even gotten your first check yet. i'd say to hold off for at least a few months and settle in first... Human: Yeah, you're completely correct. But honestly, I'm overwhelmed and a little scared. I know it's a little irrational, but I've watched every single person in my extended family squander any real money they've ever made, and end up with nothing to show for it but maybe a new car that they can't make the payments on. I want a plan going forward, plain and simple.

I was in your exact situation 10 years ago. I went from making almost nothing to almost immediately making 60K a year. As stated above, do nothing. Do not buy anything, do not change your lifestyle right away. Just let the money accumulate so you can get a picture of how your money will move while staying at your $9 an hour lifestyle. I guarantee you will be amazed. Now after you have a nice efund setup, save for a car. If you live with parents, pay them rent. If you can't stay long, the next step would be housing. At that income I would consider saving up for a down payment on a house. Life style changes should be incremental and slow. Do not go out buying the best of everything, just upgrade and try to keep your mindset as close to the way you lived before this job as you can and you will be ok.

Judging from your other comments you seem to be afraid of overspending/squandering the money. Why not ratchet up your 401k now? You can always decide to contribute less later on if you so desire.

Human: I have crappy credit, around 570, with some accounts open or defaulted. I'm paying on them now but will be another year before things start getting cleared up. Would it be better to go to a car dealership, or some kind of bank or capital one (I have a cc from them)? I'm also self-employed so gotta deal with showing tax forms and such for income. Or does it not matter at all?

Do you need a car? I'll ask again. Do you *need* a car? Or is it a "niceity" so you don't have to take the bus or carpool, etc. I'm not saying this is your situation but a lot of people think they need a thing when they really just *expect* they should have it. Overall, you don't want to make your bad situation worse. If your credit is really that bad from defaulting, it sounds like you have enough financial troubles without adding a car loan (at probably >15%). I would suggest: * First consider if you really need (not want) the car * If you do, consider if you can hold off without one temporarily. The longer you wait the better you can afford it credit and cash wise. * If you get the car, get a used one and borrow as little as possible.

Try Capital One too since you already have a CC from there. They gave me a car loan when no one else would.

Human: I am 26, have a score of about 550 because of stupid decisions when I was young, make approximately $40-50,000/yr, and am looking for a loan or personal line of credit to purchase a daily commuter motorcycle. I would just like a way to frame it so they know that I want to pay it back in full and on time. Is there any hope?

unfortunately your credit score won't give your bank much confidence...

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Human: About 2 years ago I got my current job. While I'm new to this particular field, I've got loads of experience in related fields. So I walk into to this job and drastically out perform all of my co-workers and the supervisors immediately recognize me as ther best guy. A supervisor position came up before my probation was up so I wasn't elidgible for the position even though the the client (I'm working for a long term on-site contractor) and my supervisors wanted me there. Well they promoted one of my co workers (maximum Peter principle here) and told me it was because he was the only one that wanted it who was eledgible at that time. No here I am almost 2 years later in the exact same position and now everything has changed. The main corporation I work for has had a complete restructuring of pay and title and I'm completely stuck here unless I go to school and cert up. Other guys here have zero certs and make $5-$8 more and hour than I do yet I still have way more experience and knowledge. Plus my company has no tuition pay back so I'm forced to pay for raises and promotions. They have fired a few people and are making me cover their work load all the while telling me I'm their best guy and they can't afford to lose me. Taking another job would be a nightmare because I'll be in the same boat. I'm clearly ready in all mental capacities for a management role and am about to be 30 years old but my resume is weak because of being held down here. I've seriously kicked ass here and it's disheartening. I've got zero savings and make just enough for my family to survive. Working hard just doesn't seem to be enough anymore. Edit: why the fuck am I getting so many downvotes? Assistant: > Taking another job would be a nightmare because I'll be in the same boat. I don't think that's the way to look at it. A new job would be new responsibilities, new management, new policies, new pay. If that pessimistic assessment is something you do routinely, then you might want to look into how you assess things. Attitude can be important. If you think something will be good, you typically go into it with higher motivation than if you think it will not be good. Human: In my defense, I was super positive coming into this job and still fake it every day. I took a gamble with this job in the first place. I was told my experience, knowledge, and hard work would be rewarded and that wasn't the case. I can't continue to go to new companies starting at zero again and again hoping to be treated fairly. Plus I commute 90 miles one way for this job and most other competing jobs with equal or better $$ are further away. Inb4 move closer; I have zero money to move on.

> I was told my experience, knowledge, and hard work would be rewarded... Experience and knowledge are undoubtedly valuable. The catch is that sometimes you need to exercise the knowledge that you are more valuable than what you are currently getting paid and leave. >I can't continue to go to new companies starting at zero again This is where you couldn't be more wrong! You are not starting at zero, the new company will know you are solid material. It has been proven over and over again that switching jobs is the best way to get a raise. > I have zero money to move on Some job offers will even have sign on bonuses, or relocation packages. **You are the only one who thinks you are stuck!** For instance, a friend of mine was a contractor, and said they would hire her, after a short probationary period (like six months). Three years later, and no salary offer, so she got a job offer from another company and gave them a month notice. Two weeks later, and she had the salary job offer. Companies get complacent. *It's up to you to kick them in the butt!*

You need to go to your boss and say you need a promotion. You are doing the work of a supervisor without title/authority and compensation. Make a list of duties of a supervisor and a list of all the stuff you do. Also make a list of certs you feel your work experience makes up for and surpasses in knowledge. Cite that multiple supervisors lack these certs and have used on the job knowledge/experience instead to justify promotion. If they say no, you are just screwed, a cog to be used and abused.

Human: Hi, I'm currently selling something on Gumtree, and I got a response quickly saying they are interested. However, it doesn't seem quite right, in terms of how quickly they replied, didn't ask any questions or attempt to negotiate. They requested to pay by bank transfer and I was wondering whether sending my account number and sort code to them would be safe? To my understanding it is, but it all seems a bit odd which is why I'm questioning it. Thanks Assistant: Set up a paypal account, connect your bank account to paypal. Invoice him through paypal. Human: I have paypal but they didn't want to use it to avoid paypal fees. They said they were working away so he could be talking about currency conversion fees. Assistant: You're being scammed and the money they take will be far more than the fees. Human: What can they do with just the account number and sort code? I thought with these details it was only possible to pay money in

Forge a check.

Any company that can pay money into your account (like your employer) can also take it out. The same/reverse is also true for automatic withdrawal for bill payment (they can make a deposit). Works the same as credit cards basically (companies can charge it, reverse a charge, or just make a payment). The intention is to allow for corrections of incorrect transactions and most companies behave well. Most companies are local, doing a large number of transaction and need a good partnership with the banks to continue being in business. Someone overseas doing a one-off transfer won't be nearly as easy for the bank to deal negotiate with. Fraud takes a while to reverse. Insist on Paypal or setup another credit card merchant account (Stripe.com or similar) and email an invoice with a "pay here" button. Try offering a 5% discount to more than offset fees they may incur; if they refuse then you know 100% it's a scam.

Human: Hi all! Thanks in adv. for your time. My cousin says her manager claims that they filed his taxes on his behalf- is this possible or allowed? If they're pulling something shady or just incompetent, I think he'll have to beg the IRS for an extension, despite it being past the due date. Some notes: -cousin is here on a visa (been here about 1 year) -cousin is 24 years old -works at a restaurant and gets paid tips (via cash/paychecks) -has SSN -lives in NYC -Never received W2, nor does employer have it. Thank you!

Howdy. FYI your cousins can get a big reward for turning in his employer for tax evasion. Ps, what if the employee worked a second job? How could the employer know this and file his taxes for him?. It's illegal. Tell your cousin turn in his employer and get a bounty from the IRS.

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Human: Our tax refund was unusually small this year, which our tax preparer commented on: " you might want to change your withholding to have more taxes withheld next year. Either switch from Married to Married but withhold at the higher single rate, or have an extra $20 dollars withheld from each paycheck federal and an extra $10 for CA. " We use a tax service because we have mineral holdings, student loans, and other complicating annoyances. Things are a little tight lately paycheck-to-paycheck, but we're making it. Would doing as she says help us at all? Not sure I want someone else to hold our money if we can use it every month.

>Not sure I want someone else to hold our money if we can use it every month. Then you don't want to change your withholdings such that you get a larger refund. Tax refunds just mean you had money locked up for the entire year when you could have been using it. A smaller tax refund is better than a larger one.

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Human: I'm a 26 year old who is going to receive a large inheritance soon. Unfortunately I went to an expensive private school during the 2007/2008 Mortgage Crisis, something I now regret but that's neither here or there. I'm currently operating under the assumption that all my inheritance is pretty much going to go to my loans. I've been making consistent payments since I graduated but really they were just going to the interest, not a lot being chipped away. I currently pay about $700 a month in various loans. I have no other debt. My current loans are: * Chase Private Loan serviced by AES: $30,000 @ 10% * Citizens Bank of PA serviced by ACS : $40,000 @5% * Federal Loans of $3,000 @3% (this is the one I'm least concerned about, obviously) I should be receiving $75K, with perhaps more but I'm not sure how much that would be. Is it really the best course of action to eliminate debt all at once? Can I space it out? It's a bit of a bummer I can't use any of the inheritance for investments or personal enjoyment. What do you recommend I do with this money? Thanks!

Yes. Assuming you have an emergency fund in place by paying these off you are getting between a 5% and 10% return risk free. You can't beat that.

Have you considered investing part of it? make it grow like a small business or something? Imagine if you could double your money. Then that 70k will all be savings. Just a thought. I been in situations in the past where I get money (less than 2 grand) and pay off debts with it, sure it feels good to get those debts out of the way but I could've double it. Ever since that happened every time a get a decent amount of money I buy used cars and fixed a couple of things that are wrong with it and end up making a few more bucks. Which I use to fix the house or even my own cars. Think outside the box there's always a way to make extra money.

Human: My GF and I have been in a relationship for years and the time is quickly approaching for me to make the BIG decision. We both have good jobs and make good money but neither of us come from a family with much money at all and due to student debt, have not been able to save more than a small emergency fund (this probably won't change for at least a few more years). Weddings to me are a black hole from a financial standpoint. I work with money for a living but don't know anything in this area, how much does the average couple save before a guy pops the question for a wedding? Anyone else have a similar situation or any couples that may have some hindsight advice on how much money/income one should have or rules of thumb would be greatly appreciated! EDIT: Thanks for all the replies, tons of great advice here. To clarify a few things: I do know shes the one that's not an issue at all, the financial problem is only an issue because I want to deliver on the wedding of her dreams or at least do as much as I can to get close, regardless of the fact that she wouldn't care if I couldn't in the end. I think there's a lot to be said for the long engagement and alternative ideas to a 30k wedding cause that is just not happening. Anyways thanks for the input since as the youngest in my family I have largely been left in the dark about how this shit is paid for when I attend other weddings.

Imo average is irrelevant. The average American sucks at saving. Either wait and save up for a 'traditional' wedding or just get married without the huge party.

I got married in October. We had a budget of 20k. The wedding ended up being closer to 25k. My advice to you is just keep in mind that it could cost more than you think. Thankfully my wife's family paid for it so it wasn't a huge deal because everything that was extra was approved by them. I wanted a small wedding but she wanted something nice. Happy wife, happy life.

Human: Hi all, I'm a 27 year old Radio, Television & Film major. Currently making $45K/year for a small creative agency. I'm also running our IT department (very minimal consulting/upkeep) which consists of maintaining subscriptions, system repair + upgrade, upkeep of NAS system, networks and etc... I've long had a passion for Information Technologies, and debated going back to school or getting certifications to advance this career field. I greatly enjoy video production, but I feel as though I would have more progression and luck in an IT field. Has anyone made this switch, especially from two completely different career fields? Any advice you would give? Thanks in advance.

It depends on what kind of IT career you want. It has been my experience over a 20-year IT career across different industries (healthcare, manufacturing, corporate, and legal) the best chance for the IT management track is a degree (at least under grad, preferably MS or MBA) along with relevant work experience. Depending on the ideal position for you, certifications will be beneficial also, if not required. The technical IT career track (sysadmin, architect, network admin, DBA) tends to favor certifications (MCSE, CCNA, etc.). However, it is becoming more common that at least a Bachelors degree is required for consideration with many companies. If you're looking to be a consultant (eg, 1099, third party vendor, etc), certifications, professional affiliations, and experience will be more closely scrutinized than having a degree. This also depends on the type of IT consulting you're planning to provide. Hope this is helpful. Feel free to PM me if you have any questions.

If you're already working with the upkeep of a NAS, go get some certs to get started in the field and then go for a BS later unless you're looking to move into programming. Source: I am 24 working in cyber security. I obtained my BS then job and certs. My buddy got certs, job and is now working on degree while making a good salary.

Human: This is my first time in /r/personalfinance, so sorry if I'm doing anything wrong. Please direct me what to do/where to go if so. As the title states, I just now found out that my tax return didn't go through. I filed it myself with TaxAct, and my return was rejected because of a discrepancy. I'm planning to correct that discrepancy and resubmit tonight, but I wanted to know: what should I expect since I'm past the deadline? Will I just have to pay some penalties, or will I get audited or something? Assistant: Did you owe money or were you getting a refund? If you're due a refund, nothing will happen. If you owe, you'll probably get a bill for a couple dollars' worth of fees. Human: I was getting a refund; didn't owe anything. That's a bit of a relief that I should be in the clear, thanks! The IRS is just so intimidating. Makes me a bit nervous haha.

The IRS is actually pretty friendly if you're not deliberately trying to evade taxes :)

If it's a refund, don't worry about it. You have 3 years from April 18 of this year to file your return and still receive your refund.

Human: Many of us have heard of the Fed survey which found that 47% of Americans couldn't cover a $400 emergency without borrowing or selling something, and that this portion of the population included many with middle class or upper middle class incomes. Like many of us, I found this pretty shocking. The Atlantic just published an article written by a member of this group, a professional writer and professor, who admits publicly that he has essentially no savings, a large debt load, and often has to wait for paychecks so he has enough money to pay his bills. I found it pretty eye opening, and I thought some of the readers of this subreddit would find it interesting as well. It's a pretty good example of how a reasonably intelligent person can get into a terrible financial position, which makes it a good cautionary tale. http://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2016/05/my-secret-shame/476415/ EDIT: The Atlantic published two more articles about personal finance, one about why Americans don't save money, and one about how people's discomfort with talking about finance leads to deeper financial problems. http://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2016/04/why-dont-americans-save-money/478929/ http://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2016/04/the-costs-of-financial-isolation/478830/?utm_source=SFTwitter Assistant: I cannot sympathize with this person, for the entitlement of thinking his daughters "need" an expensive education, etc. He has earned well more than I have earned in a lifetime, and I am comfortably retired, with "enough". It is what we each think of as "enough" which varies. "Enough" for me includes; living someplace beautiful (with sunshine and mountains), family, friends, and cats, no debt, Handel, Mozart, and Rossini, books, and engaging volunteer activities. Yes, and enough money. I began saving for retirement in 1980. Many years of frugality, and no house in the Hamptons. Human: It's actually quite blindingly obvious that he is living above his means but he doesn't really acknowledge it. It's staggering to think that even half of the 47% may feel this way. Perhaps the shortsighted nature of their financial situation extends to a shortsightedness with goals and living flexibility. Assistant: I mentioned this in a comment downthread. I think it's easy to live above your means when you're thinking about your social position rather than your financial position. The author is a successful writer. It's easy to think that a successful writer can live in a certain kind of house, in a certain neighborhood, and send his kids to private school and prestigious colleges. Successful writers in the past probably could afford to do those things. But today, even a successful writer probably doesn't make enough money to do those things. The important lesson is to base your spending on your actual income, and not on the lifestyle you associate with your social position.

> The author is a successful writer. It's easy to think that a successful writer can live in a certain kind of house, in a certain neighborhood, and send his kids to private school and prestigious colleges. Successful writers in the past probably could afford to do those things. I agree with everything you're saying but as a former MFA candidate who realized "HOLY SHIT THIS A TERRIBLE MISTAKE," I don't think this part has ever, ever, ever been true.

You overestimate past successful writers. You will find plenty of prominent intellectual writers in the past that were dirt poor The rich ones would be the Dan Brown and JK Rowling equivalents.

Human: The last time I checked through Turbotax, it calculated I would owe something around $600. -My income last year was about 58k if I had to guess. -My wife and I both earned money through part time consultant work along with my incomes (easily less than 1k total). -I have two kids -I switched jobs last May and have a bunch of health insurance forms because my last employer was self-insured. -I have no idea what to do with all those forms. I also did not pay my local taxes last year. At this point, I'm guessing I'm better off finding an accountant, but I don't want interest to build on what I owe this year. Should I go ahead and file through Turbo Tax? I get the feeling that I don't really owe anything and I might be due a refund but only an accountant could walk me through this. If I e-file, I might pay less for the service, but I think I will end up paying more in taxes. If I use an accountant, I think I'll pay much more for the service and maybe less in taxes.

File and extension and make an estimated payment for what you owe. Hopefully that will stop the bleeding on penalties and interests. Then actually do your taxes in the method of your choosing and file them. You can fill out Turbotax online for free. You only pay when you go to file. If you don't like the number and you think you're missing something then you should talk to an accountant.

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Human: So this happened about two weeks ago I was about to leave for vacation and noticed our a/c wasn't working so I called in a request to have my apt come fix it before we left. My wife had left some personal items on our bedside table nowhere near the a/c, apple watch and Bluetooth headphones, both are gone when we return. I complained to the leasing office they said can't do anything without proof. Should I file a police report? Our renters insurance covers theft but there's a 500$ deductible more that the items cost. Is there anything else I can do? Or am I just shit outta luck? I've contacted apple they cannot locate the watch just said to unlink my phone so the person who took it can't use it without my apple id.

Go ahead and file a police report, then bring that and proof of you having been on vacation to your leasing office. Demand the names of the maintenence workers who were in your house and threaten to add their names to the police report. Ultimately you have very little recourse but persistence may make the leasing company fold. Also, do this very nicely but firmly.

There's unfortunately likely not much you can do. I had an iPod stolen a few years back by someone working on the A/C in my parents' house that I'd mistakenly left on my bed, we ended up going to small claims court over it but lost because, obviously, it's very hard to prove it was them (even though it couldn't have been anyone else).

Human: I have a 2011 Chevy Malibu with a failes transmission. Mechanics say that it is going to cost $2800 to fix. We totally cannot afford to fix it at all. We have had the car for over 2 years and are almost halfway through the payments. What are our options?

You can either pay to have it repaired, or don't pay and don't repair. Either way, continue to pay your loan.

sell it but you won't get much for it or get another job and fix it.

Human: Hey PF! I hope that this is the proper subreddit for my issue – if not, maybe someone can point me in the right direction. I rented a car at my local airport (first time car renter here – just turned 25) because I was meeting my family in Atlantic City for two nights. We were getting together because I’m moving abroad next week, and we wanted to hang out before I take off. I drove the car from the airport to my house, then to the hotel directly (about 2.5 hour drive) where I valet parked. I didn’t use the car at all while I was there – just to get there and back home. When the valet attendant returned the car, he rolled down the window and explained to me that he couldn’t open the driver’s side door, and he had to crawl in through the passenger side. No damage visible, no scratches – nothing. The door unlocked and locked just fine, and the handles moved like they should, but the door simply wouldn’t open. I wasn’t that annoyed since I was just driving it back to my house, then straight back to the airport to return it that same day. I (naively, I know now) just assumed that the rental car company would be apologetic and maybe even give me a discount for renting me this faulty car with a malfunctioning door mechanism. I am a 6’2” guy and the car I rented was a compact sedan. It was extremely inconvenient and uncomfortable – not to mention pretty awkward – that the door stopped working. It was only for a few hours, but c’mon I paid almost $400 for this dang rental. So I roll up to the car rental return area, expecting an apologetic employee to greet me. Boy, was I wrong. As soon as I arrived, and (embarrassingly) crawled out of the passenger side door, I was treated like I damaged the car while it was in my possession. The employee had me fill out an incident report, which is totally fine. Then I asked him what happens now, his tone suddenly becomes accusatory and he said they’re going to “investigate” it and that the mechanics were going to have to figure out how to open the door. I then told him that the door just suddenly stopped working, and there was no way that it was my fault because the only thing that happened to the door was that human beings were opening and closing it. I get that perhaps something happened while it was in the possession of my hotel’s valet, but I find that pretty hard to believe. The car looked great when I got it back – plus what could the valet driver possibly have done to jam the door, when no signs of physical changes on the door could be seen. I walked away thinking maybe just that particular employee was salty, and that another person at the company could give me a little insight. Nope. The woman at the counter was treating me extremely rudely, as if I was trying to pull one over on them somehow. THEY gave me one of THEIR cars, and THEIR car door malfunctioned INTERNALLY. If it was the employees personally renting the car (or any other sane person) I think they would be on my side. I guess I should just wait to see what happens but I’m moving to South America in 8 days and suspending my phone, so I don’t know how to proceed. Any advice, guys? Similar stories maybe? Thanks!!!!!

I've returned cars with far worse problems than a malfunctioning door. You'll never hear from them again. On the off chance you do, tell them to pound sand.

I was given a car with a bad transmission once, it was the stall speed or something else was wrong so I almost rear ended some cars in stop-and-go traffic because the car would randomly just lurch forward unexpectedly. I took it back to Avis and told them about it and they gave me a new one.

Human: I called the IRS and the lady I spoke with took my information and told me there is nothing owed from me and no reason for the money to be withdrawn. I filed my taxes in February and already received my return, so I know I don't owe them anything for 2015. I visited the IRS office and have an appointment scheduled but I wanted to see if anyone has heard of this happening or have any suggestions. Update: So I brought some paperwork from the bank to the the IRS to show that is was in fact them who withdrew the money. They were looking at my returns all the way back to 2012 and said I owed nothing. They said it will take ten days for them to be able to see the money come in and it will take another 3-4 weeks to refund it. (What the fuck.) I went to the bank to cancel the transaction which was possible only because it was still pending. Had I not checked my bank account this morning, I'd be fucked simply because of a clerical error. Welcome to America.

The IRS once froze my bank account without telling me or sending any type of letter or anything (I was on a payment plan) I called and spoke to someone and he was saying there was no way they would have done that. As he is pulling up all my info I hear a faint sigh and him say “ohhhhh” then proceed to find out they did just freeze my account in error. I wouldn’t put it beyond them to accidently take money that wasn’t owed. The 2nd option would be what someone already put about someone else putting in your account information to pay their taxes.

Do you have healthcare coverage? If not, this could be your penalty.

Human: About two years ago, my girlfriend consigned for a car loan for a friend of hers.  Fast forward to now and the friend is not paying the car payments and is being really shady about certain things.  The lender has even called my GF several times saying the friend has missed payments. My GF would call her friend and, obviously, be livid.  My GF now believes that her friend called the lender and changed my GF's number, so they would stop calling her.  She really wants to take her name off the loan. What are her options? Can she call the lender and tell them to tow the car?   My GF also wants to know how that will affect her credit if she were to default on the loan. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks. 

Her friend would need to refinance. > Can she call the lender and tell them to tow the car? Is she on the title? If not, she can't legally do anything with the car. And even if it was repossessed, they would sell it for whatever they could and she would still be legally responsible for the rest. > My GF also wants to know how that will affect her credit if she were to default on the loan. It will cause her credit to drop significantly. There is absolutely no difference between being a cosigner and taking out the loan. If she took out the loan and did all of this, there would be the exact same consequences. This is why people here are so strongly against cosigning.

>My GF also wants to know how that will affect her credit if she were to default on the loan. It might already be affecting her credit. Have her sign up for a free account at CreditKarma and look at her info. Payments that are over 60 days late are usually reported to the credit bureaus. Sometimes 30 days late is even reported. This are considered derogatory marks on her credit report and will lower her score. >My GF now believes that her friend called the lender and changed my GF's number, so they would stop calling her. If she can, she needs to go into a branch in person and tell them that she thinks someone is contacting banks and changing her contact info (no need to go into detail). Ask if she can put a password or PIN or something on her account so that only she can change this info.

Human: Usually, my deductions from my gross for Federal, SS, Medicare, and Unemployment Insurance (State of Alaska) come out to about 21.3% of my gross, I take home about 78.7%. This past pay period I had 8 days of approved PTO I took, but it was not figured in to my paycheck. After pointing it out (and a weekend), I got a second check this morning for the missing 8 hours of PTO. The deductions on the new check seem to be almost exactly 40% of the check, not the usual 21.3%. It isn't a gigantic chunk of money, but it's my money that I earned, and it'll eat at me if I don't investigate. Admittedly, I know just about squat about how deductions from paychecks work. Am I missing something that easily and obviously (to the educated) explains the difference? Is it deducted from differently because it's PTO only? Is it because on my W4, I've requested a flat additional amount be taken from each check, and that additional amount exceeds what would be deducted were no flat amount requested? The Federal Withholding seems to be about 1/5 of what's usually withheld from a paycheck that is normally 10 or 11 times the hours of this one, which would seem to be incorrect in terms of ratio, but may still be because my W4 says 'Take X from every check?'. Edit: Much obliged ladies and gents. Appears to be correct, thanks for the advice.

The Social Security withholding should be 6.2% of your gross, and the Medicare 1.45% of your gross. If either of those is off, then there is definitely an error somewhere. For Federal Withholding, it comes down to how the payroll company runs their calculation. They have to estimate withholding, and most run the estimation by annualizing the gross amount of the check based on the standard pay period. So for instance, if you normally had a paycheck with gross $1000 and get paid weekly, they would estimate that you're going to make $52,000 for the whole year and withhold based on your actual tax due divided by the total number of pay periods for the year. For a $52,000 annual gross pay, with a single filer taking standard exemption and deduction, the total tax owed (2015 brackets) would be $5156.25 + ($52,000 - $4,000 - $6,300 - $37,450) * 25% = $6218.75. Divided up into 52 weekly pay periods, the Fed withholding would be $119.59 per check. The problem comes in one-off checks, where the gross is not based on any normal pay period, but still gets calculated as annualized for the same pay period. Like in my above example of a $1000/week gross, if you got a $2000 bonus or PTO payout check it would be calculated estimating $104,000 a year gross instead of the $54,000 that is the real annual amount. Then the payroll company withholds for the higher tax bracket that a $104,000 salary would have. A true $104,000 annual pay would have total tax due of $21,431.25 divided into 52 pay periods for $412.14 withholding. (2015 numbers again: $18,481.25 + ($104,000 - $4,000 - $6,300 - $90,750) * 28%) The extra income is not taxed differently than any other earned income, but a bad estimate by the payroll company makes it look like it is getting taxed at a higher rate. When you file your taxes each year, the over-withholding of a bonus or other one-off check gets reconciled and you'll get a refund. I'm not sure if this is the case in your check, since the gross pay is actually smaller than you normally see, but if they used an odd pay period (one week instead of two weeks) it could explain the weirdness. Your "take X from every check" is also contributing because if you asked for $50 additional to be withheld from each check, it was probably withheld from this one-off check also. You could subtract the extra amount you asked to be withheld from the Fed withholding in this check and see if that makes your percentages closer to what you'd normally see.

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Human: My grandfather gave me some stock certificates for a company that was bought up by a bigger corporation in 2006 - I was 16 at this time, so I never had a hand in any of this. Ever since then, everything is digital and I thought it was all well, set up as a DRIP. Sometime last year, I started getting letters from the online company that holds(?) my stock saying that they have become aware of some additional stock certificates for the original company (before it was bought out) that we never redeemed. The letter says they'll give us 1.35 or 1.65:1 ratio on redemption, but will have to charge a 10% fee to redeem them. I talked to my parents and they were able to find some physical stock certificates, just like they were described but my mom has been dragging her feet on this, and I really don't want to pay the 10% fee (I believe the value of these certificates is worth like $6500 after the ratio) - how else can I get these redeemed and turned into stock so I can sell them all when I want to buy a house?

Yeah a 10% fee is pretty high. I would call a few online brokers such as ETrade and Charles Schwab and see what they say. Tell them you can bring in the stock certs and use them to open up an account. Usually the fee for creating or redeeming stock certs is something like $15-25. Some research may be needed but brokerages have information not available to the public, there's something called a Bloomberg Terminal that has information on every company that's ever existed and all of its acquisitions, spin-offs, etc. Your stock should have a unique identifier such as a CUSIP and they should be able to track it down. They won't do this for free but if you're a paying customer they should.

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Human: So my parents have been talking about transferring $100,000 to me as I can pay it as down payment for mortgage. What is the proper process for it? Do I need to report it on my tax return and to the government? I believe parents and family members can only gift certain amount of money each year. I'm currently 27 years old and living in California. Assistant: No filing requirements for you. Gift limits are $14,000 per year per parent. Anything above that requires your parents to note this on their tax return. The problem with trying to hide where this money came from is that when applying for a mortgage, they will want to know where the money came from. Human: Got it. Thanks! So if I just be truthful and tell them I got it as a gift from my parents, would this cause any problem?

you should always disclose this with the bank. also: in many states, if you are not married, but intend to at some point, a gifted down payment from family can make this property solely yours, even in the event of a divorce; therefore, can be declared off limits in a divorce. this is the law in texas and I applied this rule in my divorce. house was mine, no matter how much was jointly paid, etc. over the time we were married.

I would recommend if you could wait till after you get the loan. I sold a hot tub on Craigslist for 6k and deposited the cash into the bank.... most annoying stuff came from that. Any bank records that show cash withdraws or deposits more than twice your normal paycheck will need some proof.

Human: Basically the title. Looking especially for experienced drivers for suggestions.

Verify what you're doing is okay with your car insurance. A lot of stories about car insurance companies dropping uber drivers because they're doing commericial driving (making money driving) on a personal insurance policy which is a violation of the terms/conditions of most average people's policies.

You seem pretty set on driving for them but if you want "to get the most cash in your pocket at the end of the day" consider something else. If using your vehicle to make money is of interest to you, slinging pizza's will get more money in your pocket and far better working hours. There have been numerous comments from Uber/Lyft drivers on here talking about making under minimum wage after costs, which didn't use to be the case, but these companies keep taking a higher percent of the fair.

Human: So he decided he's not going to pay his student loans anymore. Because when they sue him, you always settle for less in court, so its a win. He claims he already talked to lawyers and he's all good. I guess he just doesn't think about legal fees or the massive dent he's gonna put in his credit or any other residual shit that comes with not paying back a loan. I want to explain to him as clearly and firmly as possible that he's making a major life mistake. He just quit his job (whole other kind of stupidity) but should be employed again soon and he is able to pay his loans; he just has to be frugal with his budget. Thanks! Assistant: I don't think student loans ever "settle in court." They just keep piling on the interest and the fees and convince the government to take away any/all tax returns and start garnishing wages. Human: What if they're private loans? He claims to have spoken to a lawyer about this... Assistant: Does his lawyer get paid even if the loans aren't settled? Human: Not sure. He's very reluctant to share any details with us because he knows we think it's the wrong decision.

Option 1: Actively disagree with his decision. invest your energy into helping him understand reality [he is making a bad decision]. Over time your relationship will crumble and one or both of you will hang on to "what used to be a great friendship." Neither will be happy in the end. Option 2: Passively disagree with his decision. Listen, acknowledge and disengage. You'll have a hard time avoiding the conversation and you'll bear the burden of "letting it pass." You'll sacrifice your happiness for his pseudo happiness. Neither will be truly happy. Option 3: Agree with his decision. You have to recognize that a friend is there for guidance, not control. You've provided your perspective and he's made his decision. You'll have a hard time not saying "I told you so," when things fall apart. You may not want to be his friend during or after this, but at least it will be a choice you make with a clear head. None of the options in front of you are perfect, but you have to make a decision. I know you came her for the financial advice... Time and time again these lean more towards personal advice. Hope that helps!

Lawyers aren't free, and he is committing fraud by refusing payment despite being able to pay. Creditors are going to get their pound of flesh. Hell, my brother went bankrupt and lost his house, but those student loans didn't go away. Your friend is retarded, and that is going to get him fucked.

Human: I do not know how long this Amex card has existed, but my mom has been using a card in my name to buy literally everything from the sun (be it a meal from Burger king for her or a plane ticket so i could get back to college). She has been increasing my credit (her excuse) by always paying the minimum amount required, but know that I'm trying to go out on my own she pulls this bombshell out on me and is threatening to overdraft my account with the debt she has acquired in my name. It is amount $3500 in unpaid debt that she has in my name because she birthed me and knows my social and all my information. What can I do?

How old are you? If you are an adult, you could report her for identity theft, which is probably more practical as a threat than something you would carry out.

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Human: I just signed up for Credit Karma and it said according to my profile, I may have a mortgage taken out in 2010. I'm 20 years old, so theres no way I could've taken a mortgage when I was 14. Where can I find more information on this?

>I **may have** a mortgage taken out in 2010. Key words. You didn't. Choose the option below it which says something like, "I don't have this mortgage"

You can request your credit report from the reporting agencies and dispute anything that is wrong.

Human: I have great credit, and credit card companies love me and send me offers constantly, yet I haven't paid $0.01 in interest in my life on credit cards, leading to my good credit, so whats the incentive for companies to go after me? Based on my limited knowledge of credit cards, it seems that credit card companies make money off of those that rack up high amounts monthly leading to higher interest. Yet people who do this have lower credit, and thus are less likely to get loans. Wouldn't companies be inclined to do the opposite?

Credit card companies also get paid a small percentage of each transaction that you make.

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Human: Usually I just throw these kinds of things away, but I thought maybe I'd run this by you guys. It caught my eye because it lists both my current address (moved in a few months ago) as well as my childhood home I haven't lived in since preschool. Is this worth looking into? http://imgur.com/mrcRYYr

I imagine they want a fee for recovering what is rightfully yours. Most states have an 'unclaimed property' database. Search yourself in the states you've lived and do the paperwork yourself.

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Human: I've been in my new job for almost 5months and thoroughly enjoy it. I've known for some time that I am getting underpaid (tried negotiating a higher salary but was told there wasn't any room in the budget) but didn't realize how bad until today. Today I found out that one coworker who is basically my assistant and another coworker in my department who is responsible for 1/3 of the amount of work I do (and started after me) both make more than me. When can I reasonably approach my boss/upper management for a raise? How can I ask for a raise without throwing anyone else under the bus for making more yet being responsible for far less? Any advice anyone can give would be greatly appreciated. Update: Thanks all for the responses. I wanted to clear up a couple things: 1. I'm not expecting a raise immediately after only being there for 5 months but I would like to be ready to have the conversation when the time is right hence me asking "When can I reasonably approach my boss/upper management for a raise?" 2. Yes I generate quite a bit of revenue for the company so even after only 5 months I've proven my worth and will continue to do so 3. Yes, I know for a fact that they both have less responsibilities than me

Start looking for a new job now. Otherwise you will have accepted management's position that you are a second class empoyee for the rest of your time there. You will never advance!

It's always best to find a new job first. And when they ask why you're leaving, then say two others are making more than you, and it's bullshit.

Human: Hello PF, this is a weird question but I want to see what everybody's experience is regarding it. I graduated high school a half a year early and since then have moved up at my current job as a assistant manager. I work a minimum of 46 hours a week and am worried with college coming up if I can still handle the same work load. I do not want to find myself in a situation where I cannot perform the same as I am right now and burn all the bridges I have worked hard for these past months. I plan on going to community college for the next 2 years and am wondering if working 46 hours a week and going to community college full time will be too much to handle or not. As I know someone from the Internet cannot determine this for me, I just want to hear everybody's experience on this type of situation and what they did when they went to college after working full time and how you dealt with the loss of income after you had worked less. Thank you

I've done it. It isn't impossible, but it requires you to stay on task and accept that your free time will be limited. Apply for scholarships and grants, which can permit you to work fewer hours (hopefully) and still pay your bills. Some people will apply for maximum student loans and live off of the extra money. While this is an option, it is also a great way to rack up debt quickly.

It can certainly be done and has been done, but will require a big commitment from you and *excellent* time management skills! Think it through carefully.

Human: Hi everyone, I recently accepted a new job that requires my family to move across the country, from El Paso, Texas to another major city. We have a lease on a house that extends to the end of September. Without getting into a long story, the job is a significant pay cut, but it's a better career move and we were all miserable there. Staying just wasn't an option. The rental company wants to keep us on the hook for the entire amount of the lease, which runs to the end of September. $9,000. Given the cost of the move, renting a new place, childcare, and everything else, we simply can't afford it. I know that we're legally on the hook for it and don't have any clauses letting us out. I also know we'd be in the clear if they re-rented the place, but there's a housing glut in El Paso right now and I'm not hopeful that they'll find somebody before the lease just ends. Can someone give us some advice on our options? About all I can think of is making them a lower offer - I can manage maybe $3,000 - while letting them know that if they want all of it they'll probably be out of luck. Or we can just stop paying. I'd rather not, if for no other reason than it'll destroy our credit and make housing so much harder in the long run. Thank you guys so much for any advice you have.

Does your lease permit you to sublet? If not, you can try to find people and send them the rental company's way. You might get lucky and find someone that needs a short term rental. Try to be a little sympathetic to the landlord. The owner still has bills to pay, and rented to you in good faith. So I would make an offer that at least would cover the taxes and maintenance. Instead of paying all at once, ask for a payment plan in view of your current situation. After all, there wont be much wear and tear after you leave.

Try to negotiate. Landlords are scared of ticking tenants off enough that they trash the place and good ones know it's in their best interest to just let them go. $3,000 seems very generous. I'd think if you just offered to pay for May that should be enough. Maybe throw in whatever the damage deposit is too.

Human: The company I work for is paying raises this year in one lump sum instead of increasing our normal check. Any reason why they do this? They also mentioned that they are changing the review date next year so its earlier and I suspect this has something to do with it.

Cost saving measure. Not guaranteed next year

The company I work for pays lump sums to employees that are at the maximum in their pay grade, so maybe that is what is happening?

Human: A few months ago I noticed that on 01/05, $7.95 was debited from my checking account as *OLB ACCOUNT SOFTWARE FEE*. When I called BB&T they said it was because I signed up for and used Quicken that month. I told them that was wrong: I never used Quicken, never signed up for it, and never even heard of it. They refunded me and apologized - no big deal. But then again on 02/05 my account was debited $7.95. I told BB&T a second time that I don't use Quicken. I also told them that I couldn't possibly be using it, because if I try, the website first requires me to sign up. Again, BB&T apologized, said they would refund me and "for real" cancel Quicken. But I was never refunded, and then for a third time on 03/05 my account was debited $7.95. I called twice but after being on hold for over two hours each time, just emailed. They got back to me a couple weeks later, writing: *"Your request for a refund of the Quicken fees on 03/23/2016 was denied. Your request has been denied because Quicken was in use. Our records reflect you last accessed Quicken on 03/04/2016."* And here comes another charge. I don't understand, and as it stands now BB&T owes me $23.85. I never used Quicken and I did nothing on 03/04 that had anything to do with Quicken. Maybe I should just drop BB&T. I am hesitant not only because switching is annoying, but because I refinanced my car through BB&T and paid them off in full. That will look really good if I ever need another secure loan or mortgage, yeah? Or does that not matter? Please advise.

If I was faced with your situation, I would be worried that someone is fraudulently accessing my account. So, I would treat it as such. Go into a branch and ask to speak with the branch manager. Explain to him/her the fees you have been charged, that you have never used Quicken, and that not only has customer service refused to stop the charges and refund the previous charges but you are also worried that someone is fraudulently accessing your account. Politely point out that you have been a customer of the bank for X years but based on how you were treated, you are considering switching. Ask him/her for help in resolving your issue. Remember that when you call a company's customer service number, the primary job of the person who answers your call is to get you off the line as fast as possible, NOT resolve your issue to your satisfaction. You'll get a lot farther by handling it in person.

One benefit of a consolidated credit history through credit bureaus is so you don't have to stay with a bank in the hope of getting future loans. There's probably a reason they think someone is using quicken, but if it's not you, then it sounds like there is a lot of confusion somewhere, so you would be better off closing this account at a minimum, and potentially changing banks.

Human: Hi there, I'm hoping this is the right place to post this. I recent adopted an adorable year old cat from a local shelter. When I adopted her all her medical records checked out (all documented). The shelter asked me to sign something basically saying they were not liable for any costs associated with the cat, including hospital bills. Thinking the cat was in good health, and the documents to back it up, I signed. I took her to the vet the shelter reccomended within the week for a check up, and they disgnosed her with a feline eye herpes virus. She had had a little swelling when I took her home, but the shelter told me it was "just a cold" and that her papers showed she was fine. They have me a few eye drops and said she would be ok. Her symptoms did not improve, so I took her to a family friend, who is a vet at a different clinic, where they informed me she had a serious ulcer behind her eye and an immediate (and extremely costly) procedure would be required to save her eye. I called the shelter asking for help/advice, and they told me to have the procedure done because their director was on vacation and could not approve any assistance. The shelters representative said to go ahead with the procedure since it was an emergency, and to worry about the costs later. After two weeks and three procedures, my cat is recovering extremely well and fortunately will not suffer any long term problems. I contacted the shelter about covering costs for her emergency procedure, and they told me they would not be covering anything. They said I should have waited for their director to return from vacation to have any procedure done at their partner clinic (the one who failed to diagnose her twice), even though it would have meant my cat losing her eye. They also claimed the shelter would not be responsible because of the waiver I signed, even though I suspect they let me adopt a cat they knew had existing medical conditions. So now I am seemingly stuck with about $2500 in hospital bills. I can set up a payment plan with the vet, however it will put me in a tight financial situation for the forseeable future. Giving the cat up is not an option, she has grown on me too much! Could anyone provide any advice? Is there any possible recourse I could take against the shelter to at least help cover some of the costs? Thank you so much!

Unfortunately, you're stuck with the bill, unless you got something in writing from the shelter about covering costs (even then, it sounds like they never said they'd cover anything to begin with, just to do the procedure and worry about money later). Herpesvirus is **very** common in shelter cats, and once they have it they'll always have it. It is contagious and may flare up from time to time. You may want to look into Viralys supplement to keep on hand for future flare-ups.

You're stuck with it.

Human: I was supposed to receive a check last week to help with this. It's been over a week, and still nothing. Got a notice that my water is getting shut off on the 21st, unless I have $81, and my electricity is going to be shut off on the 22nd, unless I can pay my bill. It has built up over a few months due to old roommate screwing me over and moving out. As of right now, I have about $55 to my name because I was laid off. I'm scared. I don't know what to do. I need help!

Call your utilities companies and explain your situation. Ask for a hardship extension. They may send you a form to fill out in order for you to qualify for assistance. Respond promptly if they do.

Yep, you're screwed. But you'll recover.

Human: Ok generally I understand why UL is a bad idea. One should buy term life insurance and invest the difference. But the more I read into this policy, the more I notice there are maybe 4-5 caveats that make this product a sham. The more I read into it, the more convoluted it becomes. The UL is being sold through WFG (I get it, it is a culty, scammy company) and I just want to be able to clearly articulate to her why it is a bad idea. Can someone explain what happens to your money in the 'savings portion' of UL? The 'cost to insure you' rises and they pull that extra cost from your cash value? I'm not sure what's going on. EDIT: What are some questions I can have her ask her superior to help her realize the product is bad?

You'll have to go over with her projected expenses year by year and pretend to die every step of the way. Morbid, but effective. Get a quote for term life and make the comparison. Do you have kids that she needs your income to continue raising? Do you have debts that won't be paid in full after a "term" would be completed? At what point in your financial future as a family will your income no longer be needed? That will help her see the big picture.

OP thank you for bringing up this question in PF, this place has way too many depressing threads and reading the responses in here today made my morning.

Human: I graduated college not long ago with a student loan of $42,000. I have a car loan of $15,000, (19) credit card debts of $28,500 and a personal loan of $5,000. Some of the credit card debts are due to helping out a family member with restaurant costs, which failed and lost money. However, most of debts are due to my poor decisions. My income is only just over $25K annually, and my take home is $850 semi-monthly. My monthly expenses are: * rent $450 * car $290 * student loan $140 * personal loan $150 * gas $200 (100 miles commute round trip daily, pay via credit cards) * insurance $155 (pay via credit cards) * phone $105 (pay via credit cards) * food, ~ $300 (pay via credit cards) * rest of paycheck goes to credit card payments ~ $800 This will be my first month in 3 or so years that I will not be able to make minimum payment. I racked up a lot on charge cards, and I will not be able to afford $3,000 total payments. I only have $90 in my checking account. I am over-stressed at my job. When I started, I used to work 80-100hr/wk to keep up with the demand, which is essentially minimum wage. Now that I'm more experienced, I work just under 60hr/wk. There are PhD's and experienced professionals who quit this job because it's just difficult. The compensation is base + production, but the job is too difficult for me to do produce more than base. I'm only a recent grad and dreamed about quitting but afraid that I might not be able to afford paying debts. I'm thinking about getting a side job. I recently signed up to be an Uber driver, looked through Craigslist for jobs and posted ads for tutoring. If so, I estimated to have an extra 40hr/wk to work on the side job, which I've been spent sleeping my life away from the past few months due to stress. Note that my current job I can make my own hours. I'm severely underpaid for an engineering grad, and I believe there's a more suitable job out there for me. What's your opinion on a younger person filing for Chapter 7 bankruptcy? I don't have any possession at all that has monetary value. I also worry that it would affect my job outlook since I want to work for a large company. I know that I would not have a chance with defense contractors/government jobs. I'm aware that the student loans will carry with me. I just want to start over. I dropped out of grad school for this job, and I regretted it. A great majority of my credit card debts and personal loan were accumulated during this job.

"25k annually engineer" - There's all kinds of wrong with that statement. Go work at Starbucks.

So you want a bail out?

Human: I'm getting my ex gf a car as part of the breakup. It will be less than $10,000. I could put it in her name, and thus she owns it. Or I could put it in my name. Aside from the theoretical benefit of owning it if it's in my name, what upsides or downsides are there to her vs. I owning it? I wonder about insurance issues, about liability, etc. I said "theoretical" above because I have no intention of ever taking the car back. She will probably run it into the ground in any case, knowing her.

You're not getting her a car.

Are you paying for car insurance, gas and maintenance as well? A car is not a one-time financial responsibility.

Human: Hi Everyone! If this question has already been answered please reply with the link, I read a few similar threads but could not find the answer for my situation. I am a sugar baby and I would like to get my own place. In the past, I was basically using the money for my expenses and school but now I am able to save the money. I get everything in cash and I am so paranoid to make large deposits on my bank account because I can't really prove where I got it from. I was thinking of getting a business license to be able to have an explanation when the landlord starts asking questions. I've read so many articles and I am still confused on how I can legally obtain proof of income for the landlords. I tried getting my friend to cosign but I think she needs to see that I've saved up and I feel weird pulling out a bunch of cash like I am running a cartel or something lol. Also I read that the banks report anything above $10,000 which makes it more difficult. Please if anyone has any ideas help.

There's no problem with making deposits over $10,000. I've done it and nobody even blinked. There's only a problem with making small deposits to avoid reporting requirements.

Why not just move in with your Sugar Daddy? Or have him co-sign your apartment if need be?

Human: Hello /r/personalfinance, I am a long time lurker but am desperately in need of some advice. For the last three years, I have been working for a cafe in Chicago. This cafe has been around for a long time with the same ownership in the same neighborhood. When I first started, my manager told me that I would be receiving my pay from the drawer. The owner was writing checks, but they would all say in big bold letters "VOID, PAY OUT OF DRAWER". I was a college student and didn't really care about the timeline for pay so it wasn't a huge issue. About a year ago, the owner finally started issuing paychecks employees can actually deposit. Unfortunately, many of these checks will bounce. Every few months a big group of people will quit for this reason. I stuck around because I really like all my coworkers and have been lucky with my paychecks not bouncing. I've gotten so lucky because I hoard checks and make sure they will go through. I can't afford to have them bounce. Now, he owes me three checks, and I've just had my second check bounce. I don't know what to do. I have filed a formal complaint with the better business bureau and have gotten a new job, but I really need the money he owes me (as I'm sure many other employees of his do). Should I go to the government? Will that just shut him down and deny the pay owed to all of his employees? Would it be better to turn to a lawyer? Update: Thank you for all your responses! I have contacted the Department of Labor and will be heading to my employers bank in the future to cash my checks. Hopefully I will be able to resolve the issue without resorting to legal action.

BBB isn't a government agency, they will not help you.

As someone with a family who owns a small business: letting your payroll go is not only a sign of terrible business management, it's a sign of, in my opinion, moral ineptitude, as well. Your vendors and utilities are companies in their own right with multiple sources of income; the paychecks you give your employees represent their (probably) sole ability to buy groceries. I have the utmost contempt for people who steal their workers' time, which is what your former employer did. This is not a great person. Do everything you legally can to get your money back. Do not hesitate to be aggressive. Do not listen to sob stories. They stole your time and your sweat equity. Fuck them.

Human: I am a foreign citizen on a F1 visa. Situation: A driver made a sudden uturn, on the free way and started driving the opposite direction. according to witnesses.. and as a result I suffered a "front to front" collision on the freeway with her. I survived and she was killed on impact. God rest her soul. I don't know if it was suicide or if she was under the influence of drugs or alcohol. the toxicology reports have not been released yet. My medical bills are 200k and increasing due to multiple surgeries, and the emergency services that were provided during the accident. (I was flown by a helicopter to the closest hospital) I suffered a broken jaw, nose, both legs, my left arm, 4 ribs, and god knows what else. The deceased driver only had 25k medical coverage through her insurance, which is what her insurance company is willing to pay towards my medical. My coverage was only 5k for personal medical coverage. Am I completely out of luck? I can not afford to pay off the medical bill. because of this mounting debt. I am depressed beyond belief. I am wheelchair bound at the moment, and cannot get up to do anything, let alone use the bathroom without help. I know I should be grateful for being alive, but I feel instead of surviving the crash it would've been better for me to have died. I have no idea how I am going to pay this...My parents and family know of the accident but do not know of the bill, and I don't know how I am suppose to tell them any of this. Would declaring bankruptcy be my best option? Is that even possible for a non U.S citizen? Assistant: Another issue... I don't even know if its the right thing to sue her estate. I was told she was a single mother leaving behind children. I also don't think her estate is capable of covering much.

You're on F1, so that means you're a student. Are you at a university and did you purchase their health coverage? Most universities require major medical and will add it to your tuition bill unless you have proof of other insurance. Unfortunately, some of the international students I know purchase some sort of 'international student insurance' with limits on payout, and universities will sometimes allow students to use that insurance instead. Which situation are you in? Also, you should keep in mind that amounts billed by hospitals often have very little relation to the amounts they end up being payed. Hospitals are required to bill you the same amount they would bill insurance companies, and while insurance companies have negotiated discounts they apply after the fact, you don't. As a result, the billing department will definitely be willing to work with you. I'm not sure how much this is going to help, because it probably doesn't matter to you whether you're stuck with a $50K or a $200K debt. I work in medical insurance, so let me know if you have any further questions. Getting insurance to cover the debt is going to be your best bet, and then you can try to negotiate with the hospital. Bankruptcy is definitely an option for you, as is returning to your home country. There are always options, and while this definitely sucks, you can come back from this.

Please don't feel like you should be punished for her actions. Get well soon!

Human: Hello! So I currently work 2 jobs. My main job is $11/hour but I hate it. I don't get consistent hours (20 one week, 40 the next). My boss yells at me all of the time, puts me down, etc. I go home every day hating it. My second job is serving. At the end of the month I make about $13/hour there. Because my main job doesn't give me consistent hours though, I'm only able to serve 1-2 times per week. Well, I've been offered another job. It is only $8/hour with $40-60 in tips per shift. They will give me a set schedule and I will be working myself into being a key holder/manager. Because they will give me a set schedule, I would be able to serve more which would be helpful. So I'm thinking if I work 5 days at the "new job" it would be about 30 hours and then I could work 4-5 days at the serving job which would be right at 20 hours. Would it be better to stick with my current job that I hate or take the new job?

40-60$ in tips per shift (5 shifts, 30 hours aka 6 hours per shift) is 6.66-10$ extra an hour... even if the base wage is only 8 bucks it seems like a no brainer as you will be making over 14+ bucks an hour plus the added stability and possibility for advancement. And if you can supplement with the 13$ an hour one not only will you have better hours & get rid of the crappy boss / working conditions, you will also be making more money.

> Would it be better to stick with my current job that I hate or take the new job? Working in a hostile environment is almost never worth the money. In your case, you don't lose anything at all with the new job, so no brainer, take the new job.

Human: I've sort of been sugar baby-ing and I know that gifts aren't always taxable (to a certain amount) but I've gotten paranoid that when I deposit it to my bank or add my gifts as cash income on the mint.com app, that somehow it'll get sent to the IRS as earned income and I'll get screwed over for not paying taxes. Does it somehow get reported to the IRS? Or is the app safe to use?

Mint doesn't report anything to the IRS. If your deposits into your bank account are deemed "suspicious" your bank might though.

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Human: My wife bought a town house in Illinois back in 2008, right before the market took a huge hit. She wanted to live there for a few years, sell it, make a few bucks, then buy our 'forever' house after we got married. Well, the market went down and in order to save up money for a new house, she moved back in with her parents and started renting the townhouse. All has been fine with it, as we've had different renters in there for the past 6 years or so. However, the association has been cracking down on renting lately, as about 40% of the units in the neighborhood are being rented out - most likely a lot of them for the same reason. They told us we were grandfathered in, but recent paperwork shows that we are only grandfathered in until the end of the current lease, which is up in Summer of 2017. At that time, we go to the back of the waiting list, until the percentage of units rented is under 30%, which may not be for a long time. So our problem is that we can't afford to pay both mortgages as once. We have a cushion in our savings in the event we couldnt find renters immediately, but leases will take a while to end, and we can't afford to float it until we get below the 30% mark. In the event that next Summer we are put on a waiting list, we have a couple of options: * Sell the townhouse. Closing costs alone will be just under $10k, plus the difference in what we owe and what it could sell for, we would have to come up with over $20k total to sell it most likely. I have that in my bank already, but with a kid on the way, I can't afford that. * Short sale / Foreclose. Do banks typically let me walk in and hand them the keys and have them take it as a short sale? I know it will be on my wife's credit for 7 years, but most likely will ding her for 24 months from what I've read. How devastating is it to her credit? Her score is currently 829. We both have excellent credit, and only debt being one car loan, our main house, and her townhouse. I read that it can be UP TO 160 points. Is that accurate? It would suck, but not be as bad as some other people ending up in the 400s or 500s. What else should we know about if this ends up being the case? Any other advise? I can try to negotiate for a lower commission price if we sold it, but it's still a ton of money to come up with, especially with a new kid on the way. I think we are more worried about the impact of her credit going down if that's what it comes down to. We've always had excellent credit, good spending and saving habits, etc., which is why it bothers us to even consider a short sale on the property. Assistant: Thanks for the info. I'm guessing it'll be best to meet with a lawyer as well as our realstate agent to determine what the best action is as it gets a bit closer to next Summer.

I would also check the terms of the HOA and maybe ask your lawyer since the organization may not really have the legal "teeth" to enforce their provision on leasing. It may also be that you can find a loophole to allow you to lease it out (e.g. hardship).

If I were you, I'd give all the documentation (your HOA bylaws, all communication you've had with the HOA, your tenant leases--everything) and ask for an hour or two of advice so you can know exactly what the laws are. Try to find a lawyer who's seen cases like this before; they'll probably be able to give you valuable advice on what you absolutely should NOT do, and what your (and your tenant's) rights are. Even if you approach the HOA and explain the situation and it all goes perfectly, it will still be valuable to know what the laws are.

Human: I just moved to a new state and this new state doesn't having a branch of my bank back home. Is there a way I can withdraw cash here without having to pay a fee every time I do it? Cheers

Depending on your current bank, if you have a debit card, a lot of grocery stores allow you to get cash back from transactions on purchases without fees. BUy something small and get extra cash out. You could write yourself a check, but you'll have to cash that at a bank branch near you but they'll likely require you to have an account there anyway. Personally, I would change banks to something with local offices.

Close your account and open a new one with a credit union close to you. Make sure your credit union participates in shared branching. This will allow you to use any other credit union in the nation that also participates in shared branching just like you use your home credit union.

Human: For months capital one has been sending me a credit card application saying they would approve me if I fill it out. The credit card seemed to be a pretty good deal when I read all the information about it. I'm 23 and I do not currently have a credit card, though I've had one in the past. I figured i should get another credit card to boost my credit score. Couldn't hurt. I finally signed up for the card and I got denied, yet they still keep sending me more and more applications month after month. Does anyone know why they could be doing this?

Credit card mailers are a marketing process, in which they're not privileged to your credit report when they send it out. When you apply, the department responsible for making the decision will pull your credit report and analyze whether or not you'll be a good candidate to receive credit. It's a common case of the left hand not talking with the right. May I ask which card you're applying for? You may have a higher chance of getting a card that has an annual fee or is secured. Also look into the factors that may or may not make you a viable candidate to receive credit. Age is just a number, so that's not the reason why. Do you currently have any loans you're paying off? And are you paying utilities that are in your name? If yes to one or both, make sure payments on anything in your name is timely. Typically if the utility company required your SSN to sign you up, they're reporting on credit too. If no to both, you may have a "stale" credit report and might have to do the annual fee/secured thing. If you're in a roomate situation, talk with them to see about getting a utility put in your name so you can use that to build credit.

Because they want you to know how much they want you, and then turn you down when you want them. Sounds like some women I know ;) Banking 101. Them girls know how to make BANK. Shit!

Human: Well folks, its been a little over two years, but I've brought my student loans down from a high of 86k + 11k in noncapitalized interest accrued during school (so around 105k), down to $12,800. I had refinanced my student loan to a variable rate of 2.19% (it currently accrues about $24 of interest per month). My minimum payment is $554 a month. At this point, I have enough cash on hand that I could just simply wipe it out. However, this would require me to wipe out most of my emergency fund. My emergency fund money is currently sitting in an FDIC bank account earning 5% interest (through Netspend - one of those mega high yield savings accounts that require a little bit of legwork to set up). At this point, it seems like I should just let the loan ride, and simply keep paying the minimum while I earn more on that money through interest. However, a part of me is saying I should just simplify my financial life and just pay it all off now, then rebuild my savings. I was paying about $2500 per month into my student loans, so it wouldn't take me long to replenish my emergency fund. About 4 months would get me to a pretty comfortable 10 grand in savings. This seems to really put the "personal" in personal finance, but I thought I'd ask the reddit community and see what your thoughts were. Note: I already max out my 401k, Roth IRA, and HSA.

I wouldn't dip below 3 months expenses in your emergency fund. If you're really getting 5% there's not much reason to pay down a 2.19% loan.

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Human: I don't know anything about Balloon payment loans at all. Googling information gave me a sense of dread, as if the dealership pulled something fast on me. I went into the deal thinking this would be a lease, turning the car into the dealership in 2018. But instead, it looks like its a Balloon Payment loan, according to my credit report. Should I be worried? Edit: thanks for the quick replys. Looks like I shouldn't worry

IME it's usually "give the dealership the car back OR here's the final "balloon payment" you'll owe."

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Human: My question is in the title. The new development is connected to our subdivision, although there is a tree line separating our subdivision and theirs. Those new homes are obviously freaking gorgeous and the neighborhood will be safer than ever, I'm assuming. How will it affect our home value?

Not immediately, but yes. Essentially, someday your lot might be worth more empty than with a house on it. Or, it would be worth it to add an entire floor and sell it for way more than the original price plus what it cost to add the whole level. Alternatively, you could end up with a bunch of neighbors who are stuck with $400k homes that they paid too much for.

It should only improve your property value.

Human: I just got a Capitol One Secured Mastercard with 24.99% variable APR and a $350 limit. I was dumb when I was 18 and didn't pay my line of credit from my bank until it went to collections. I'm 22 now, have a great job starting around 50k a year. I'm extremely ignorant. My current plan is to spend $100 a month on the card and just pay it on time. Is there a better way too maximize the improvement of my score? Thank you!

Positive payment history will go a long, long way in improving your credit. Just pay it off in full on time every month.

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Human: **Update at the bottom, more details and OP has been edited** I'll try to be structured here, if I miss anything I'll update the OP so please ask! I'm married, have my MBA and my wife has her JD. We just moved to Chicago, IL for two years, after that my company is sending me elsewhere in the US or internationally. **Income/Assets:** $122k (me) $60k (her) $45k Emergency Fund *(I was laid off last year in a different post-MBA role, our $35k fund kept us afloat and allowed me to turn down jobs at $80-90k until I found this role, which is very stable)* *Income does not include annual bonus/stock options etc. I prefer to budget using monthly cash flow, and all extra goes straight to loans* Monthly total is ~$10,000 take home. *(that may be a bit low, I’ve recently adjusted my 401k contribution and my wife has yet to begin {starts in two weeks} so that’s an estimated amount)* I went to a great MBA, her law school wasn't that great so law options are limited for her. She will take the bar in July, but no guarantees on passage. She just got a great position at $60k, if she passes the bar I hope that rises to $70-80k but it will never be BigLaw money (wrong school, bad grades)   **Debt:** **$130k** @ 2.44% variable (SoFi #1) 7 year (me) **$205k** @ 4.00% fixed (SoFi #2) 7 year (her) No other debt. No car, no CC balance. I walk to work, she starts in two weeks and will take the bus (downtown Chicago for both).   **Expenses:** $2400 rent **see note below, this is only for the next 18 months** $1700 SoFi loan #1 (mine) @ 2.44% variable 7 years $2800 SoFi loan (hers) @ 4.00% fixed 7 years $500 groceries $250 restaurants *(being eliminated/cut down to $50)* $120 transportation *($100 bus pass, $20 for ZipCar/uber/etc once a month)* $20 utilities $10 Netflix $40 Entertainment *(movies, etc. We have yet to spend this after three months in Chicago)*   $2360 left over which goes to an AmEx high yield account at 0.9%, then paid into loans every 3-5 months   ------------- The plan is to build up emergency fund to 55k (just for peace of mind) and then throw bonuses, tax refund, savings etc at the loans and pay off by summer April 2021 **(pay off all loans in 5 years, i.e. early by 2 years)**. We are newlyweds and would like to go on at least one trip a year in that timespan. I've projected that we will be able to do it, any advice or tips on what to improve?   **Note:** As we are just beginning our careers, I do project income to increase but have not accounted for that in my estimate. If it does, great! We will add the extra to loans. However, I sat down with my wife and discussed timing – as we are putting approx. $7k per month towards loans, we could make drastic changes to our lifestyle and it would not materially affect the loan payoff date by more than a couple months. It’s the conundrum of high income/high debt, at a certain point of tweaking the marginal benefit doesn’t outweigh the net negatives (for example, is one/ two months faster payoff worth an hour more of commute each day for 5 years?). What I’m looking for, which most commenters were super helpful with, is any tweaks to the budget that seemed “off”. For example, the restaurant budget was an actual from last month and will be cut to $50 (date night + a food truck each month). Also, anything not on the budget that should be there is helpful. I think we are on the right path, I could eat rice and beans for the next 5 years and I’d pay off this thing 2 months earlier but that’s not the goal. **Rent**: Forgot to mention rent is our one huge fixed cost, we have a two year contract that I cannot break. We moved here from out of state and somewhere close to work and safe was a preference. By paying the extra on this apt I was able to sell my car and save on lease payments for both of us, insurance, fuel, parking (@ $325!), etc). I’m only going to stay here for the remainder of the contract, after which time we will get a MUCH cheaper place in my next state/country. Right now, it’s not worth the time/hassle of moving to save 2-3 thousand $ in the remaining 18 months (if that – transportation costs would go up, commute time, I’d have less time to cook so more temptation to eat out, moving costs, etc)

This is a very large debt, bigger than most people's mortgages that they take an entire career to pay off. I really hope your wife passes the bar and finds a well paying job.

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Human: My wife and I are talking about where we'd like to live one day, and she is talking about not wanting to get a mortgage or a loan for a house, and mentioned she'd love to buy the house her aunt currently owns with her grandmother. With cash. Just straight up like 300 thousand, or more. I'm trying to convince her that people don't just have that much cash lying around, and that people don't typically buy houses upfront, all at once. Am I totally wrong? Because that idea is totally far fetched to me. Assistant: People certainly do, although it has become a lot less common. Human: Yeah, but we made like not even 30k last year. I'm trying to be realistic here

If you didn't even make 30k then you can't afford a 300k house anyway.

Seems like you realize that this seems unreasonable. The question really isn't so much "do most people do this?" but "can we afford to do this?". I'm curious what her thinking is. Has she actually thought through the math? Was it just a wishful-thinking throwaway comment or does she think this is what you should plan to do? How much do you guys save per year? In what time period does she expect this to happen? Is she otherwise not good at budgeting or planning? Maybe she' not involved enough in your actual household finances to understand your guys' situation. I'd suggest sitting down with her monthly to come up with monthly, yearly and long-term goals so she has a much better sense of how long that would take and why that sounds like a pipe dream.

Human: I was a stupid kid back then and took working for granted. 5 years later, i think ive learned the moral of the story. When i try to get a job now, i know the manager of the place i apply to will go into my work history. Of course if they ask how i broke off from my first job i should tell them the truth, but i really want to make sure i get the job. How can i make sure i get hired? What kinds of things should i say?

Don't tell them anything about that job. What have you been doing the past 5 years? Any other jobs? School? What you ideally want to do is create a narrative in which you don't need to mention that job from 5 years ago.

Best thing you can do is be honest. I was fired from my first job for getting into a fist fight with a fellow co-worker. Not a good way to go out of a company. I explained to my future employer what went on. Then continued to explain that I learned from my mistakes in the past and have made changes in my life to make sure that it wouldn't happen again. If I were you I would still include it on any applications you fill out. And under reason for leaving, simply state "to be discussed" this give the opportunity to explain yourself. Let them know you have matured and had a momentary lapse of judgement and that you can guarantee them it would never cross your mind again to do such a thing. Good luck with you job. Hope this helps. TL;DR honesty is the best policy. Assure them it was immaturity and won't happen again.

Human: In November of last year I purchased a Verizon router online and set it up at my house. As a result, I returned the router I was "renting" from Verizon for $9.99/month. At first, Verizon continued to charge me for the router, even though I had received a confirmation email saying that they had received the equipment return. When I called them, they agreed to refund the charges, but continued to charge me over the next few months. I called them *again* a few weeks ago, and was told that they charges would be refunded (they were) and that they would put in a ticket so that I wouldn't have to pay for a router I did not have. However, they again sent me a box to mail the router back and have since sent me several emails stating that I have until April 22nd to return the router, otherwise I will face charges. When I log in to my online account I also get pop-ups warning me about this. I'm not sure what else I can do to fix this issue. Do I just wait for the charge to hit my account, and then call and dispute it? Trying to avoid the charge in the first place hasn't worked so far, so I'm starting to think it's a lost cause. Thanks!

1. Print out the confirmation email from Verizon stating they received the returned router. 2. Drive to the local Verizon store/kiosk and tell them to fix it. People tend to feel more obligated to fix your issues if you're in person. 3. Ask for a credit because of the hassle. The worst they can do is say No. 4. Don't sue, that's a laughable waste of time and resources.

I used to work for twc and the amount of times equipment would go "missing" despite the fact wed just sent it back to the warehouse is mindboggling. As soon as it would happen to me id demand that it be put into lost/stolen status and wouldnt you know it the next day "oh we found it". I had my own modem when i was on comcast service and they tried to say it was theirs twice. Honestly idk how any of these tv providers remain in business due to their levels of incompetence, i started out as a line tech for twc, became a software engineer for comcast and directv. Every single company was ran poorly.

Human: Going from a large institution to a small business (in terms of employees, but significantly large in terms of revenue, etc) and wondering whether this is appropriate to ask before I get there

Yes. I've never taken a job without knowing how much it paid.

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Human: I need a loan for a car. My mom has been taking me back and forth to school and work and it is a real hassle for her, but it will take me months to save up for a car. I need to get a loan but basically everyone that could consign me has terrible credit. What can I do to get a loan?

You can work and save up for a cheap $1000 car. This may mean picking up extra shifts and such but is probably your best option.

Minors can't generally enter into legal contracts, so you can't actually own a car or get a loan for one. You'll have to be insured under your mother as well. $3,000 will get you a good enough car on Craigslist. Start saving.

Human: A friend of mine had everything he owned (including his car) destroyed in Houston flood. His apartment complex did not require tenants to have renter's insurance. Does he have a leg to stand on or is he out of luck? Assistant: In addition, why would a company demand tenants have renter's insurance?

if a tenant starts a fire in their unit, or leaves the bathtub running and it leaks through to the unit below, who do you think is responsible for the damage? certainly not the owner of the building. who do you think pays for stolen property if the unit is broken into? it's all on the tenant.

To avoid situations like this.

Human: So I'm about to graduate and start work making ~$63k. I have no debt, no car (living in a big city and taking public transit to work), and ~22k in savings right now. I'm assuming after taxes, my take-home would be about $45k. I wanted to max out my Roth IRA ($5,500) and a 401K ($15k + my company's help). Those 2 alone are nearly 50% of my take-home, is that wise to do? After doing crude rent, utilities, transit, groceries, haircut, gym, and laundry expense estimates, I'm left with about $750 in disposable income each month. Going out and misc. will eat a chunk of that, but unless I'm saving for something short term, is it OK to have that little disposal income? Am I not making enough to be maxing those out yet? Thanks in advance for any and all responses! EDIT: as u/ToBeFrankenstein pointed out, 401k is pre-tax so after factoring that in, my monthly take home would be about $1,000. Better, but I still have the same questions. EDIT: also will have to bump up my 401k contribution to 18k. A few of you pointed out that my company's match doesn't count towards the 18k max.

That sounds like you're in great shape, to me. Considering you have a substantial amount in savings that is highly liquid in case of financial emergencies, I don't see a problem with having that little disposable income as long as you feel satisfied living of off it. Money that you stick into your Roth and 401K has the potential to grow exponentially in the long run, so contributing now means that you will probably still be on track for retirement even if you aren't able to contribute as much in the future due to job loss or new monthly expenses.

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Human: I'm writing to ask input on a common PF question: are the loans worth it? I'm currently choosing between the two schools listed above. Also as in the title, Stanford would cost me about $100,000 more than what I have saved, while I have enough in my 529 for four years in Berkeley. I understand that PF is sometimes strictly economically rational, but I would like to put that I really do prefer Stanford. The campus, atmosphere, and students I've met have all been fantastic. Furthermore, there is something to be said about the extra earning potential and opportunities, not to mention the networking that could be done at Stanford. So I guess the question boils down to if there is anyway that choosing Stanford could be a good move, or is $100000 in debt out of undergrad completely bone-headed? More information: I live in CA (in state tuition at Cal) I plan to major in Economics and pursue a MBA. Thanks

Just going to add one more perspective. Go the school you really want to go to. It is not strictly a financial decision; if you end up going to Cal and not liking it, you'll always regret not going to Stanford. And, like one of the other responders, I went to Stanford as an undergraduate (many years ago, no way would I get in now), and got my MBA from Cal. This is a few years ago, but I lived in Berkeley for a few years after graduating, then moved to the East Coast because it is still the center of the world for finance (well, maybe London). On the more snobby and college-focused East Coast, my Stanford undergraduate degree counted for more than my Cal MBA. That may no longer be the case, but it certainly was. My personal feeling is that Stanford is a school for rich kids, and Cal, by offering an extremely high quality education for many more deserving students, serves the world much better. I give money to Cal, not a cent to Stanford (with the 3rd largest endowment in the country, they don't give a damn about my pissant money). Also Palo Alto is a full-of-itself and boring town, Berkeley is ten times more interesting. But you'll be going to school, so you probably won't care. Go Bears.

Cal x1000000000 Better city, cheaper, similar connections and delicious east bay Mexican food. Edit: I'm being downvoted for Mexican food?!

Human: I've searched on google about the issue, but I can't tell whats a genuine article vs a opinion piece. The short is that I'm a 22 year old college student, but one that's been working a while and accumulating a while. I bought a home for about $110,000 on a 30 year mortgage, which sets about $800 monthly after tax escrow and whatnot. Just recently, the default 1 year home warranty expired (actually would expire next week) and I was advised to renew it. Admittedly, it was advised by the home warranty company, I didn't check too much into it. They offered a 3 year plan (but with 18 payments for some reason. I'm assuming it gets paid off in the first half, or they are bimonthly. I plan on asking the company about that in the next business day.) with $13,000 of funds on structural, plumbing, electrical, with a total cost to me of about $3,000 over the term. Seemed smart, actually looking at it, I'm questioning its value, because the original first year of warranty packaged at closing was only a few hundred, not $1000 for the year. More on my income, I make about $28,000 a year, but have two roommates that pay $400 each for the note, while I cover repairs, (evidently a lot of living costs, grr roommates...) and take care of its condition and upkeep. Locally, their rent is quite competitive to rates for apartments or even private rental rooms, so it works out for me. I keep close to $1500 to $2000 set aside for emergency type things. That is slowly growing, but it could grow faster if I wasn't paying the $160 they want every month to keep the warranty alive. In all honesty, the house isn't in that bad of shape, was built in 1993, and I have a *descent* set of handyman skills. (Not at a contractor level, however. I can replace light switches, toilets, etc.) From someone wiser's perspective, what kind of hindsight do people see after these warranties? Being that I'm maintaining a bubble, but about 80% of my monthly income is spent within a month, should I keep the warranty, or save that money and hope for the best? Thanks for anything and everything

Home warranties are a racket. They excel at finding reasons to not cover things.

>I keep close to $1500 to $2000 set aside for emergency type things. That is slowly growing, but it could grow faster if I wasn't paying the $160 they want every month to keep the warranty alive. This tells all. Waste of money for you. These warranties are meant for people who are either a) very adverse to surprise costs, or b) don't have the diligence to build an emergency fund. They usually go hand in hand. If you think about it from risk perspective, they charge you a fee to save your own money for you. That's assuming something does go wrong and they do cover it. It's the same for the myriad of warranties a finance guy will try to tack on when you're closing at a car dealership. Everybody wants a dip into your wallet when it's a big purchase and you feel vulnerable. And since you can do some handiwork, the value of this is lessened to you still. Keep building that rainy day fund and doing what you can to maintain your place, bud.

Human: Another coworker and i have the same job, title and responsiblities and yet he gets paid more than i do. He makes .50 cent more than i do. This has been happening for over an year. Shouldnt i be making the same? If i am, can i sue or something for those lost wages?

>If i am, can i sue or something for those lost wages? Having the same job does not mean you get paid the exact same. If that were the case, every single player who plays professional sports would have a lawsuit. The Coach of the Raiders gets paid differently than the Coach of the Broncos. You get paid what you are worth. If you think you are worth an extra $.50/hour, ask for it.

Your wages are substantially the same. A 0.50 difference even at federal minimum wage, without more, is likely insufficient for any kind of claim. Employers don't pay every employee the same. Some employers negotiate wages (happens more in higher paying positions). Some employees have more work experience and start off with a higher wage. Even in entry level positions, employees can sometimes negotiate their starting pay. Some employers have pay ranges for a position. People can move up the range over time. This is very popular in governmental jobs, but also seen in private companies. But many businesses are a lot more flexible and pay people differently. In lower paid entry level jobs, negotiating is fairly rare. But people do get raises as they work in the company over time. Unless you both started at the same time and performed equally well, the chance of your pay being identical is fairly remote. TLDR: Employers can pay employees differently as long as they are not violating discrimination laws, minimum wage laws, and other such labor laws. Barring extenuating circumstances not mentioned in the original post, no meritorious claim against the employer is likely.

Human: Hey guys for some weird reason all my checks have always been 79 hours. I know for a fact that it's not because I come late or anything. I always come on time and sometimes I actually leave a little later so when I receive my check it's always the same in a way. It's always 79 hours and I'm starting to get a little concerned. Is this normal? Does that one hour make a difference?

Check your time card to see the time you're not getting paid for.

Perhaps it is a way for your employer to keep you "part time" and keep you out of some benefits? Just thinking out loud.

Human: Hey everyone, first time poster on PF. I apologize for my dim-wittedness, but I am clueless here and want to make sure I do this correctly. I also apologize if I am breaking any posting rules, but I'm not sure where to go for this sort of advice. I'll be turning 26 and I will be dropped from my parents' health insurance. A dock on my parents is that they never taught me anything about personal finance, insurance, or anything of that sort, so I am completely clueless as to what to do. I hardly know how insurance works for that matter. My parents are conservative and anti-Obama, so they tell me "I have to look into it," but when I ask for help they're response is something like "oh, I don't understand that bleeding liberal bullshit." I started searching for Obamacare (my parents said it's what I have to sign up for), and I got a lot of results (different healthcare dot .... sites) saying I can "sign up here." Do they all go to the same thing? It also seems there are multiple insurance plan options. What is the actual site I should be going to to sign up? What do I need to know or need to research first? I don't have a very steady income if that helps. I make about $100 in an 8 hour work day, but it's not necessarily five days a week. I average between $300-500 a week. I would say my income for this year will be greater than $10,000, but less than $20,000. It's a welding job, and I don't have work if there simply isn't any to be done. I am also looking to go to grad school in the fall, but I'm not 100% sure if I will be.

Insurance Executive here: Start with www.healthcare.gov. Depending on which state you live in, you'll either enroll on that website directly or get redirected to your local state exchange. ACA is the acronym for Affordable Care Act, and it's the proper name for Obamacare. How do you pick a plan. All ACA plans cover the same 10 basic features, including Emergency care, outpatient care, prescription drugs, mental care, pediatric care, etc. How plans differ is two key ways. 1. Network size. What this means is what doctors are in network? Some networks are very broad, include most or all hospitals in the state, and these tend to be more expensive. Others are very narrow, target specific communities, regions, or hospitals. These tend to be cheaper. 2. HMO or PPO. HMO's are becoming less common, but they tend to be less expensive. Many people dislike that HMO's can require pre-approval before seeing a specialist. PPO's generally do not require pre-approvals, although they actually often do in certain situations. I prefer PPOs. Once you pick a plan, you need to pick a "metallic". Bronze, Silver, Gold, and Platinum. These refer to different versions of the same plan, and the only differences among metallic are the amounts of money you need to pay for Deductible, Coinsurance, and Out-Of-Pocket levels. Bronze plans are the cheapest (and have higher out of pocket costs), Platinum are the most expensive(and have lower out of pocket costs). By far, the most popular metallic is Silver, and that's where I recommend most people start. If your income is low, you will qualify for subsidies. There are two flavors of subsidies. 1: Premium subsidy, which lowers the monthly cost of the plans, and 2: Cost Sharing subsidies, which lowers the Out-of-pocket fees. Subsidies can be very generous, they can make many plans effectively free, but the subsidies reduce as your income rises. There is some subsidies available to people who make up to 4X the Federal Poverty level - about $80K for a family of four. If your income is below the federal poverty level, then you are not a great candidate for an ACA plan, and Medicaid is a better choice. The exchange (healthcare.gov) will help you determine this and will redirect you to Medicaid if it's the best option. Hope that helps.

The online website is a bit confusing. Find a local office, sit down and talk with a real person. They can set everything up for you in under 30 minutes.

Human: We have a joint account and it says my name OR (not and) her name on the bank statement. Last time I got paid I woke up to $0 in my account. She had already transferred it out! Keep in mind my direct deposit hits like at 5am or so, so im assuming she has an automatic transfer set up? Can I set up a transfer into another account before her transfer hits? Im on mobile so sorry for any typos Assistant: open a new bank account in only your name and just have your paycheck deposit there. Human: I cant afford to have her take my paycheck again though, and after verifying with payroll at my company I found I wont be paid for another two weeks if I change my direct deposit account

True, but during that 2 weeks they can cut you a paper check to be sent to you. You might get it 2 days after payday depending on location.

So either you wait an extra 2 weeks for this next paycheck or you don't get it at all because your mom takes it. Money in two weeks or never.

Human: My wife has great credit. 749 score according to the capital one free report app which even give or take 30 points for accuracy, it's still pretty good. I came to find out yesterday that she's ran one of her cards up to $1024 and another up to $550 buying useless Chinese shit from wish and eBay. This is on top of the $3500 on another card we've been putting off. The problem is her interest rates are terrible on all these cards, and the minimum payment on the high card literally doesn't do anything (yeah, I know, that's how they get you). We had a talk and she promised to stop using her credit cards. I don't believe it for one bit because she's a fucking Amazon addict but I am her husband and it is our financial future, and her credit is about 80 points higher than mine so I need hers to stay solid. I want her to get a 0% balance transfer card, move all of her debt to that, and pay off within the 0% period. Nerdwallet recommends the chase slate card for balance transfers. She recently got approved for the Amazon Chase card about 4 months ago. What are the odds she will get the slate card? There was a citi card recommended too, she has no accounts with citi but nerd wallet did say it requires an excellent score. Assistant: You have two issues here. One is the fact you and your spouse are not on the same page with money/in general. She spends without telling you, you two don't have a joint plan for money, and you admit that you don't trust her to keep her promises about money. That is a huge problem. You need to address it. The small problem is how to fix the balances that have resulted from the big problem. A 0% balance transfer and buckling down to pay it off are a good solution. Her credit is solid and assuming her income is good she should qualify with her score. However, the big problem is what needs 95% of the focus and not to be swept under the rug. Otherwise, you will continue to have problems with money and in general. Human: Thanks for your response. I told her if she doesn't start having more transparency and keep her promise about the credit cards I will be separating our finances. She really doesn't want that (even though he makes slightly more than me after taxes) and says it's a step towards divorce. (We've been married two years. Age 24 and 23). She has this poisonous mentality that credit card debt is ok by virtue of it being common. She thinks "everyone has credit card debt, it's ok and normal". It's a sickening mentality. How can I break it? Shes at the point in marriage where anything I say can be shoved directly up my ass because why would she listen to me!? My score is worse than hers and I only get my information from the Internet. Assistant: >It's a sickening mentality. How can I break it? Shes at the point in marriage where anything I say can be shoved directly up my ass because why would she listen to me!? My score is worse than hers and I only get my information from the Internet. You cannot break it. You can only convince her to the degree she wants or is open to be convinced. Did you discuss these issues before marriage? If you did not, get might be very reasonably confused about why you married her while she spent like this/had these values, never discussed it before marriage clearly to the point of an agreed upon resolution, and now want change. Separating finances is a step towards divorce if you believe in marriage as a unity. Ultimately, you two will need to work this out like you would any issue in a two person relationship where you want to reach unity. That being said, if you are coming in expecting her to change the way she is always doing things she is probably shocked/confused Human: She knows I'm frugal and I've road her ass about frivolous spending for years now. The problem according to her is that my constantly riding her about every cent she spends is causing her to spend more. Which I called out as a pathetic excuse and attempt to blame her poor discipline on me, but maybe there's a psychological component to my overbearing (and rightfully so because we make 11 an hour) control.

> She knows I'm frugal and I've road her ass about frivolous spending for years now. The problem according to her is that my constantly riding her about every cent she spends is causing her to spend more. Which I called out as a pathetic excuse and attempt to blame her poor discipline on me, but maybe there's a psychological component to my overbearing (and rightfully so because we make 11 an hour) control. Well, it sounds like you married someone who has fundamentally different values and views about money. She knew you were frugal. You knew she was not. You two have put yourselves in a tight spot. You "riding her" is not a solution to the problem. You two need to sit down and work on a plan that works for both of you, not you forcing her, and agree to it giving your word as adults. You may have to agree to more discretionary spending than you would like. Than, you two both need to keep your words and keep to the mutually agreed upon plan(not one shoved down the other parties throat). Ultimately, if that does not work I don't know what to say other than marriage counseling since that will mean this is not a issue just of different values around money but a lack of integrity/love/respect on at least one party's end. If you cannot trust the other party in a marriage to keep their word you have a massive problem.

She spends more because you tell her not to? That's how I behaved when I was 10 and didn't want to clean my room because my parents told me to. This is immature thinking. She needs to grow up and realize that you are not telling her this out of a need to control, you're telling her this to help her, protect her, and show her a better way to do something. Just like a parent does with a defiant child. She may push back, but she needs to wake up that having debt isn't ok just because everyone else is doing it. That's also an immature point of view. "If all your friends jumped off a bridge, would you do it too?" I hear my parents nagging voice echoing in my head.... If you can make it clear that you are trying to help her and not blame her, maybe that will help her take her yucky medicine.

Human: ### New members, please read through the [New User Orientation](http://www.reddit.com/r/personalfinance/wiki/newuser). Instead of posting individual threads for triumphant stories of how you've reached a certain net worth, paid off a loan, or anything else that you want to brag about, let's consolidate everyone's stories into one weekly thread! *Make a top-level comment if you want to brag about something regarding your personal finances!* For past Triumphant Thursday threads, please search the [Weekly Archive](https://www.reddit.com/r/personalfinance/search?q=Triumphant+Thursday+author%3AAutoModerator&sort=new&restrict_sr=on&t=year#res-hide-options).

Don't have a job, just a college student doing beermoney sites for spending money. Saved up $450 in the last 3 months towards an emergency fund. Not a lot or a big deal but it's just a bit of a personal triumph.

[Original Post here](https://www.reddit.com/r/personalfinance/comments/301lwy/170k_in_student_loan_debt_im_not_a_doctor_lawyer/) I posted the above about a year ago and I'm excited to say I'll be making the final payment on the private student loan (Navient) with the highest interest rate in two days (this Friday). I DON'T HAVE THE WORDS TO DESCRIBE MY EXCITEMENT. In fact, I'm so close to crying (happy tears!) while writing this.... The principal amount in 2008 was $7,350.00. At 8.5 interest it ballooned to just under $9000 last year. At the recommendation of you fine Redditors, I started the avalanche method to all my private loans last year. This method allowed me to make more than double the minimum payment on the Navient loan. The last three months I've put more than 4x the payment towards it plus my tax refund. Literally--every penny I could! And with the help of my super-super supportive partner, we're paying it off entirely on Friday. THE END IS NEAR.....kind of....BUT NOW I CAN TASTE IT!!!! THANK YOU REDDIT!! AND THANK YOU B!!!!! TLDR: I currently have over $160k in private and federal student loan debt. I'm paying off **one** of my private loans this Friday!

Human: So i really have no idea what to do. i feel nauseous and disgusted. My parents have always been in debt but family and friends have helped in every way possible. recently i just started working and i found out that my parents owe both legal and illegal loansharks about $150k total. This has happened so many times that there is really no one left that is willing to help. The debt that they have is really the worst kind with interests rates that would kill.. they have always lied to us and only used my relatives when it became desperate. Even now the amount they mentioned may not even be all of it. I feel betrayed.. we have downsized our house till the smallest size. Me and my other 2 siblings have never taken allowances after we were secondary school. we never had any tuition, we never bought anything expensive, we have nothing at all.. we never went overseas.. we never did anything. My parents do make a decent pay of about $4k combined as well as they are both working a 2nd part time job. Reporting to the police wont work because we reported oince before.. 2nd time would be an offense. I feel really helpless and i know the debt is going to snowball to a unrecoverable amount. In fact it might already have. I really dont even know what i can get out of this post. I really cant see a way out all.. the family is fucked.. my siblings are fuck.. im fucked..

I feel for you. But there's not a lot you can do... for them anyway. Being bad at managing money, sticking to budgets and staying out of debt unfortunately is not illegal, so there's nothing the police can do. Not clear how old you are - are you and your siblings still in high school? If you guys are past high school, seriously consider moving out. Put as much distance between yourselves and your parents as possible. I know the days of breaking kneecaps are gone, but loansharks are still scary and they will have no problems coming after YOU as leverage against your parents. The only thing you and your siblings can do is to protect yourselves. Its silly I know, but have you asked for your credit report recently? Its not uncommon for poor debtors to open credit cards or loans under their children's names - its only when they try to get their own loans do they discover their parents have already ruined their own debt. As for your parents - leave them be. I presume you've tried to counsel them on better spending habits to no avail. Eventually they will run out of options and have to file some sort of insolvency (at least for the legal debts). Its not the end of the world... and maybe it might snap some fiscal sense into them.

Fuck the 'ah longs'. I agree with the top comment. Perhaps you could live independently and not spare your irresponsible parents a single cent. Edit: I don't get why I got downvoted?

Human: Hey guys and gals of PF, GF and I are headed to Mexico (fancy all inclusive resort) next year for a family wedding, we're planning on making it a week long trip (one day for wedding rest of the time for us to relax). Knowing I have a full year to save and budget for this where should I drop my money? I have an ally savings account, but I was checking to see if it was better placed in a MMT? I saw the rates this morning and they were .85 for Money Market and 1.00 for regular savings. -Will the Money Market account increase above .85 ever? I see its based on interest rates -Or should I just dump into the savings account? I feel the "*Duh Miscrea use the savings account cuz 1.00 APY > .85 APY* " thought in my head but just wanted to run it by someone who is more knowledgeable in this area before I listen to my brain. Thanks!

The difference is negligible; I would just keep it in the savings account IMO.

It's a 2 dollar difference between the two accounts. Leave it alone and worry about paying off other things instead.

Human: I recently purchased a home in Houston and put 5% down with a PMI on a 30 yr fixed. We bought less house than we could afford at 3.5%. The house needs new plumbing, electrical and some cosmetic work. About 30 grand in all. Once the work is done the PMI goes away given that our equity in the home will rise above the PMI threshold. Should I take out a loan and pay it back slowly to maximize savings? I could even get a personal loan for 4-5%. Not really sure what my options are either. I doubt I will be in the home longer than 6 years. Assistant: > We bought less house than we could afford at 3.5%. / put 5% down with a PMI No you didn't. Equity is about as useful as a unicorn, unless you sell it. But even then, the odds are you won't break even. Not only are you paying 3.5%, but you're paying on top of it, to prove you won't lose the house. And the fact that it needs fundamental repairs heightens that dilemma. >I doubt I will be in the home longer than 6 years. Then only do the basics. Or tackle things 1 year at a time, pending priority. You need to build your emergency savings first, and get out of that PMI before you take on another monthly payment. You've told us all of the reasons why you can't afford this. Human: Put another way. I could have bought the house with cash it was so cheap relative to my income.

If you could've purchased it with cash, why not at least put down 20% to skip PMI?

If you could pay the house with cash, why can't you pay the repairs with cash?

Human: I have had the standard Discover card which mainly just offers a 1% cash back. I am about to finish college and start a better paying job, and thought there might be a better card out there I can get now that I will have better credit. Any suggestions? Assistant: It depends on what you are looking for. I prefer cash back; others travel a lot and go for miles. Human: I want to travel a lot, but to me I feel cashback would be best since that could be used for anything rather than being forced to use your rewards on traveling. Assistant: You may want to consider either the **Chase Freedom** or **Freedom Unlimited** card. Both are fee-free and give you the flexibility to take cash back or use your Ultimate Rewards points towards travel rewards at a discounted rate. The Freedom is 1% cash back on everything except what's covered by its rotating quarterly 5% cash back categories (currently grocery stores), while the Unlimited is straightforward 1.5% cash back on everything. The caveat is, if you want to transfer UR points to Chase's travel partners, you need a Sapphire Preferred or Ink+ card, both of which carry a $95 annual fee (though I think the benefits of either, especially the Ink+, outweigh the fee). As mentioned by /u/posts_stupid_things and /u/koddly, the **Citi Double Cash** or **Fidelity Visa** are two good 2% cash back cards. You may also want to consider the **Discover IT**, which is nearly identical to the Chase Freedom but is only good for cash back. Though it's normally a 1% cash back card on all things outside the 5% quarterly category, they're currently doubling your cash back for the first year if you're a new cardmember, effectively making it a 2% cash back + 10% cash back on the categories (currently restaurants and movies) for 12 months. Human: Out of curiosity what are some of the benefits of the sapphire preferred that make it outweigh the fee?

The **CSP** earns 2x pts (2% cash back) on travel and restaurant purchases and 1x pts (1% cash back) on all other purchases. Though many airline cards offer 2x miles on travel purchases (Delta SkyMiles Gold, Citi AAdvantage, Southwest Premier, etc), that's only for purchases made directly through the specific airline, while the 2x pts on the CSP are for any airline (or hotel, rental car agency, etc). The real value lies in its utility in travel: - pts can be transferred to travel partners at a 1:1 ratio, so you don't lose any value (as is often the case) - travel redemptions made through the UR site get a 20% discount (their example is that a $625 flight requires only 50K pts) - various travel protections, including primary insurance for rental cars (so you can decline the company's coverage even if you don't have rental coverage on your personal policy) - and no foreign transaction fee If you're less concerned with travel benefits but still want the basics (pt transferability, 20% redemption discount, and basic travel protections like the primary rental insurance and trip interruption/cancellation insurance), the **Ink+** may be the way to go, as it offers 5x pts on office supply and telecom purchases. My family's annual cell phone bill negates the annual fee by itself, and you can also pay for internet or cable TV service for the 5x pts.

Chase has a [good comparison chart on their website](https://creditcards.chase.com/compare-cards?list=36,1,4&CELL=6TKX&S81H=FH24R8) For the Sapphire, the biggest advantages include better deals when redeeming your points for travel and also no foreign transaction fees. Also, there's the signup bonus for hitting the minimum spend in the first 3 months. Right now the offer is 50k points which is essentially $500 in cash back (more if you redeem for travel)

Human: I'm 2 years into my career in finance right now, and am planning to get my MBA in 4-5 years from now. I'm most likely looking to go full time for it. I've been maxing out my 401k contributions and am purchasing stocks through our share matching plan as well. I'm not entirely sure how I'll be financing my MBA, but I know I want to have a good sum of money saved up for when I do go. I've been putting away $500/month into a savings account. When I get a raise, I'm going to try to put even more away per month for it. My question is, should I just leave the cash I'm saving in my savings account, or should I be putting it into the stock market? TL;DR - I'm putting away cash to be used in the 4-5 year time frame. Should I be keeping my cash in my savings account, or should I be investing it somewhere? Assistant: Try to get your company to pay for it. If they are looking to cultivate their talent, they usually would be willing in exchange for a 2-3 year contract. It's much more economical in the long run and you're not putting yourself through such a huge financial burden. Also, I wouldn't be too eager in getting the MBA, it's one of those things that management likes on a resume but is not something that gives you that much more of an edge over others. I still find experience counts way more in any hiring situation. It's also one of those degrees that you can do later in your life because it's not that intense course load wise so you can end up doing it when you actually need to and not in anticipation of any future job prospect, especially if you have a BBA or something similar. Human: I work for a very large company, but unfortunately the amount they will give towards an MBA is very small (only ~$5k per year, but you don't have to sign a contract committing to stay after). There are extremely isolated instances where they've fully paid for someone's entire MBA. My other thought is if I could get sponsored for an E-MBA by the company. This would allow me to work while pursuing my degree. I'm just not sure there is precedent for them sponsoring employees to do so.

$5k/yr isn't bad, especially with no hook to stay. I got my MSEE for free by taking 2 courses a year which was around $5k/yr. It's slow, but I honestly wouldn't have taken more class than that while working, it was hard enough to balance time.

It will take longer to finish but doing it part time while working full time is the best way to go. The steady income and not having a gap in employment on your resume is a tremendous benefit. Take any money your employer will give you, some places have money set aside for employee improvement / additional training. Talk to your supervisor and use it. If s/he doesn't know, find someone in hr that knows. It's free money for you basically. You can switch jobs or renegotiate your pay when you are about finished. If nothing pans out, you still get to have your current job, which mitigates a lot of the risk. Focus on networking during your studies because the finance sector is mainly based on who you know to get you in and how good your marks are to prove that you can work with numbers. Best of luck, op, I hope the degree ends up giving you a leg up in your career. Edit: You should also start looking into how much specific programs will cost to better budget your savings. These things can cost anywhere from $40k to $100k depending on the school.

Human: My wife and I have been looking for a new car for her. And by new, I mean lightly used, and perhaps 2-4 years old. Shopping around, we've had a hard time finding the type of car the she wants that still fits our criteria (crossover SUV, built in 2012+, <60K miles, $19K and under). They're out there, but they are few and far between. After going to check out a car that we found online, we arrived and found out it had been sold the night before. After talking to the "consultant", he offered me this proposition: * Lease a brand new car for three years (valued around $25K) * At the end of the three year term, purchase the car for the contracted value of $14.9K * He estimated our monthly payments at ~$230/month for three years * If we *do* purchase the car at the end of the lease, we supposedly wouldn't have to worry about any mileage overages What am I missing here? He said that this is all there is to consider, but it doesn't add up. $230 in monthly payments for 3 years adds up to $8,280. Add that to the contracted value at the end of the lease, which is $14.9K, and we get a total of $23,180 of total payment when I purchase the car three years from now. That doesn't add up to the $25K value of the car. Is there something that he hasn't told me about, like a down-payment perhaps? Also, are there any unforeseen consequences to making a deal like this? Seems like it could potentially be a smart move. Three years from now, when the lease is up, we will be in the same position we are now; looking for a good, reliable car that is relatively new. The only difference, is that we will have the option to buy a car that *only we* had driven, so we know it has been taken care of.

If they're offering that, they'd sell the car for less than $25K. Probably much less.

Best leases for April: http://monthlycarlease.com/2016/04/hyundai-genesis-lease-tops-april-deals/# In my experience, there are deals to be had when you lease - but you have to be careful and you have to be committed to the long term goal. A lot of people plan to "do the smart thing", but don't actually follow through. When the lease ends and these people have the option of getting a different car, they often choose to either lease or buy or new car. Also , keep in mind that the salesperson does NOT have the final word on pricing. Anything can change, right up until you sign the paperwork. The Leasing/Finance department has the final say in everything. They may try to add in extra insurance or bump the payment up. Stand your ground if this happens. So, make sure that everything is on the up and up. Read the paperwork very carefully before signing. And have fun in your new car!

Human: I'm fortunate to have minimal debt after graduating from school. I've begun paying of my $8,000 loan as quickly as I can, but I realize this may not be the wisest decision. I'm 22, have excellent credit, currently have zero credit card debt. I live with my parents (have minimal bills, car is paid off) and have $1,500 per month in unallocated income. I've been splitting that fairly evenly between my savings and my loan payments thus far. Should I take this time to build my savings as much as I can and only make minimum payments on my loan? I hate having any kind of debt, so my first instinct is to pay it off as quickly as possible, but I know strategically it may not be the best idea. Thank you for any advice! Edit: 4.29% interest rate on loan & currently no 401k (isn't offered at my job) or other retirement account.

I paid off my student loans within several years of graduation. I never had a single regret about it. I have a relative who dropped out of college about 19 years ago, and is still paying off student loans. Talk about living in hell.

Are you contributing to retirement? If not, I would prioritize that (any available employer plan and/or a Roth IRA) above hurrying up to pay off low interest debt or stockpiling cash earning 0%.

Human: My wife and I have an opportunity to make a major upgrade in our living arrangement. Currently, we own a comfortable home on a less then desirable property (main road, small lot). We bought 6 years ago at $155k, self-preformed major improvements, now owe ±$95k w/ 15yr remaining and have estimated a current value at $190k. We have dreamed/planned on purchasing a second vacation property in 5 - 10 years but an opportunity has recently presented itself… a family member is planning to sell their lakefront home ($415k) this fall. It is a 4 season residency that is 20 minutes further out of town but sits on a beautiful piece of property with privacy and has fantastic lake access. We already own a run-about style boat and trailer it to this lake on the weekends. We also have two young kids who would thoroughly enjoy this lifestyle. So here's the rub - making this move, while within our means according to the bank (w/ 30 year mortgage), would severely cramp our budget (wife SAHM / me, 90k per year). I think we have a reasonable handle/understanding on our expenses and would have to adjust things like vehicle and vacation budgets. Our debt to income ratio is low, taxes / insurance / utilities considered we would need to reduce our monthly costs by $250-ish. Redditors, are we dreaming too big?

>Redditors, are we dreaming too big? Yes.

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Human: Sorry if my formatting is incorrect, i'm not used to posting things anywhere. I'm a 20 year old male and I live in California. I have only worked once for like 3 months in an agency, after I quit that job I didn't do anything, just leech money out of my parents. A week ago I got in a heated argument with my dad and decided it was time to leave, I'm currently living in a studio type house behind my aunt's house. I have no job, no car and no idea of what I am doing, the only thing I'm sure of is that I want to be independent and not return back with my parents. How should I get started with my life? I don't even have a driver's license yet! (I have the driving test the 27th if this month) I will be extremely thankful for any tips I get. Assistant: Apologize to your dad. Human: It was his fault, I am willing to forgive him, but I can't live with him anymore.

Odds are your Dad was just trying to push you out of the nest. Sure it probably did't come out the best but he was probably getting pretty frustrated with you. 3 months total work at 20 years old, you seriously needed that push. My aunt leeched off her parents till they died and now she's over 55 with jack.

Does being homeless suck more than living with your dad? Because that's where you'll be if your aunt kicks you out.

Human: The wife works full time and her employer provides crappy insurance, for instance the prenatal care, $2000 deductible, insurance pays %50 after that. I'm self employed (IT consulting) for the last 18 months since the economy cratered and pull about $21k a year, the wife makes $25k and hates her job, %100 of her income has been paying off her student loans and medical debit. She still has $20k in student loan debit. Aside from that loan we have no debits and no assets, our savings just got nailed by a $3k tax bill. In the last 4 years we have paid off $65k in medical debit and student loans. (I don't understand the woman that cleans the boss's house gets a $400 deductible and everything thereafter covered and we get such crap?) We want this baby and she is 36 so it's considered high risk, we won't abort unless the child will be born with major disabilities. Our options as I see it: I have an accident and she gets 100K for my death we divorce and she puts no father's name on the birth certificate We relocate to a place that has a better economy and moderate cost of living (I don't know where that is, my skills are not limited to IT, I'm starting to get older and my body can't do the industrial trades as well anymore)

Dust off your resume and start applying for IT jobs in the nearest good market/economy and go from there. You only need get an offer of 50k and decent insurance to make it a good move. Depending on what part of IT you're in you should get that easy.

I live in the Lexington area of Kentucky. We're fairly low cost of living, and our economy is growing. Lots of companies see our low cost of living as an opportunity to pay a workforce a "living wage" without spending a fortune, so new opportunities popping up all over the place here.

Human: I am 18 and am being kicked out at the end of the month. it is time for me to move on but.... my girlfriend is suggesting that for two months I get a cheap apartment until I go to college. I only have about $300 to my name. How would I even do that then?

If you don't work, you won't be able to get an apartment. If you don't have any income the process stops before you fill out any paperwork. Your best option might be couch surfing with your friends until you can get right side up again.

Can you convince your parents (or whoever it is you're currently living with) to NOT kick you out until you go to college?

Human: So, a lady was kind enough to leave a note after hitting my car in Disneyland parking lot. I can't even fathom how she can hit my car considering the parking lot was wide and one-way. Anyway, she refused to talk to me but redirected my to her insurance. After talking with her insurance, the insurance company wanted me to get an estimate at particular body shop. I did online estimate and it came out to be close to $1000. When I sent the estimate, the insurance company said this is unacceptable because I have to take the car in person. So I would have to waste my time to go to their particular body shop just to get an estimate and go back again to get it repaired. I never got into accident so I am not sure if this is how normally works. They are also refusing to pay for the rental and gas while my car is in repair. I don't understand why I have to go through all this when I am the victim. Does every victims in a car accident experience this? Thanks

Contact your insurance agent and have them work with the other insurance company. We had a similar issue and got tired of being jerked around. Within a day or so, we had our car dropped off for repair and had a rental with no out of pocket cost.

Call their insurance back and keep asking for a supervisor until you get to the highest you possibly can. Explain everything, also take notes as to what everyone you speak to says. Demand that you are taken care of unless they want to hear from your attorney. Don't give in to the minimum that they offer. You can also contact your insurance company and they can help negotiate, however your rates may increase. You're also looking at this lowering the value on your vehicle which you can actually sue for. Bring all that up while talking to their insurance. They can request you go to their body shop but an in person quote from 2-3 businesses will be best. Edit: spelling.

Human: Hey guys, I'm a college junior in Tulsa, OK who is hoping to move out of my parents' house soon. Is it possible to move into an apartment during an Summer internship? I'll be making anywhere from $500-$1000 a week during the summer and plan on finding full time employment (as a teller maybe?) afterwards. I had heard that you had to have proof of permanent employment from others, but wasn't sure if that was true. I also would be able to pay the next 2-3 months in advance at the end of the summer, just in case. If you guys need any more info for this to make sense, let me know. Thanks!

The requirements will obviously depend on who you're leasing from. For such a short term, I'd say look for a sublet - probably your easiest bet.

How about [Airbnb](https://www.airbnb.com/)?

Human: I currently live in a three bedroom apartment with five other guys. My roommate and I share the cost of our bedroom of $950, paying $475 each per month. We also pay approximately $20 a month for utilities. Knowing I would not be staying for the three summer months, I was looking for someone to sublet my half of the room when he notified me that he doesn't want to live with a random person over the summer. He agreed to pay me a certain amount per month but we didn't decide on a price. I'm not really sure how to determine a price in this situation and was looking for some opinions. Currently we share a bathroom but in the summer he'll have his own so that may factor in. The other two rooms in the apartment have found subleasers. My gut price was for him to pay me around $200 a month but I'm not sure if that's too high/low. He's one of my high school friends so we have a decent relationship. Any opinions would be appreciated, thanks!

I don't know why he would need to pay you anything. He is definitely within his rights to ask you not to sublet to a stranger. The real question is whether your landlord had given you the right to sublet. Be very careful if you do sublet. As far as your landlord is concerned, any damages done by the people who lease under you is on those who signed the original lease agreement. If sublet tenant doesn't pay, that is also on you. I had exactly this horrible scenario. 4 friends sharing a 4 bedroom flat. One friend decides to sublet to a random stranger. Random stranger turns out to be a crackhead. Random stranger crackhead invites crackhead friends over to the house all hours day and night. The remaining 3 of us get Fed up and collect our belongings that haven't been stolen or broken by said crackheads and cut our losses by subleting to the crackhead's friends for the remainder of the lease, because we could no longer stand being forced into living with crackheads and wanted out fast. Lease is up. House is destroyed. We original leasers are on the hook for all repairs including shit like milk being poured down air vents and cabinets ripped off the walls. Your friend you share a room with entered an agreement to share a room with you for the length of the lease, it would seem. You are the one changing the agreement he settled on. Why does he need to pay you for not honoring your part of the agreement?

I mean its arbitrary but $200 a month sounds fair. If he was just a random roommate and wanted to buy put your side of the room for the summer it would be $475. However, I will note that with him paying you and living there alone all summer you may return in the fall to find that he has taken over your room and you feel like an intruder.

Human: Long story short, I'm real good friends with I guy that I work with. He knows I'm having trouble making ends meet. He claims one of his close friends is some Russian investment guru who lives in a mansion on the north side. He can get me a loan "off the books" with a much better interest rate than the banks would offer. What risk am I putting myself at by taking this? Thanks, Archie Assistant: Let's see: - Russian - Lives in a mansion - Wants to give you a loan "off the books" You weren't really using your kneecaps anyway, right? Human: Ok. I get the Russian loan shark stereotype...but what if I actually pay it? Works out for both parties then.

Then get a regular loan from a guy who **won't** skullfuck you.

Off the book loans are for people who can't get on the book loans

Human: Not sure where to start so I will just start from the beginning, I apologize if this is jumbled but my wife and I are beside ourselves right now and could use some advice. Today while helping my mother in law move from one of her properties into another my wife and I found out that she has not paid taxes on two of her housing properties (she owns 4 in total) for the last 3 years and has no plans to pay them. She was moving out of one of those houses and into one that is paid for. The other house is currently occupied by my sister in law, her boyfriend of ten years, and their two children. My mother in law has allowed them to live rent free for the last five years and has been telling them that the house's taxes have been paid. As we found out today they have not and my mother in law had no intentions of telling them. In the State of Arizona, where we live, the tax lien on a property can be purchased after two years of unpaid taxes, both houses have already been sold and on May 2 the foreclosure process will begin. My mother in law has no intentions of paying the taxes to bring either house current and does not care that her family will be kicked out of the house. Obviously, we told my sister and she was distraught. She and her boyfriend have offered every year to buy the house or to pay the taxes and every time my mother in law has told them no. Now they have little more than a week to figure out their issue. We looked up the tax information on the AZ tax assessor website and found the back taxes information, the lien sale information, and calculated the total we would need to stop the process. It is roughly $3,000 total for the three years of back taxes and to repay the lien sale plus interest from the sale. The amount is minuscule and they have no issues paying it. However, my mother in law will probably not pay the taxes on the house ever again. Is it worth it for my sister in law to wait out the two years and to purchase the lien on the house or is there another way they can protect themselves from being out on the street?

> My mother in law has allowed them to live rent free for the last five years Sounds like they got an amazing deal. Did they save all of the money that they would have been paying in rent? If so, they should easily be able to find a new place and not be out on the street.

Is your mother-in-law underwater on these 3 houses that she hasn't paid taxes on? If there was a mortgage, the escrow would be paying them, so I assume she must own them free and clear. Are they super run down or something? I can't think of any rational reason to do this unless it's Detroit or something. It seems like she might just not care at all anymore. Would your wife be an heir to her estate? (I assume it's your wife's mom). If so, I'd see if you can't pay the taxes on those 3 between yourself and your sister to somehow to keep them out of tax foreclosure. Usually places don't really care who pays the taxes/bill. So instead of waiting for the lien, just pay them yourself. In any case, try to figure out why she's doing this. Is it deliberate, dementia, not giving two hoots about life anymore, out of money and can't be arsed to try to sell them?

Human: This is my first time working as a contractor in NY.I live in ny and work on a 1099 and my accountant says I have to pay quarterly taxes. Why can't I pay it all at the end of the year? Is my tax bill going to be lower because I have been paying taxes quarterly when I file it next year?

The other comments nail it, and I think it helps to realize is one answer is: because it would be too burdensome to collect taxes from you every two weeks. Because if you were an employee, you would pay taxes *every payday*. The IRS wants taxes as you earn them, not on April 15th - that's just when you "settle up" any difference between the thousands of dollars you paid during the year, and the thousands of dollars of tax liability you have. So by paying quarterly, you're paying as you earn, but actually paying *less* frequently, not more, then your W-2 brethren.

I added topic flair to your post, but you may update the topic if needed ([click here for help](/r/personalfinance/wiki/flair)). You may find these links helpful: - [Tax Software Megathread](http://redd.it/41dew6) - [Taxes wiki page](https://www.reddit.com/r/personalfinance/wiki/taxes) - [Understanding tax brackets](https://www.reddit.com/r/personalfinance/wiki/taxes#wiki_eli5.3A_taxable_income.2C_tax_brackets.2C_marginal_tax_rates) - [W-4 IRS Withholding Calculator](http://www.irs.gov/Individuals/IRS-Withholding-Calculator) *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/personalfinance) if you have any questions or concerns.*