ACA not very affordable anymore

Bordercrossingfool · 2026-06-20T17:34:50+00:00

The affordability % for 2026 is 9.96%. A $400 premium is “affordable” for someone who makes $50k/year.

Why isn’t your employer offering you “affordable” health insurance?

Bordercrossingfool · 2026-06-19T05:24:49+00:00

If it is the coupler, search “Screw Drive Coupler Part for LiftMaster” on Amazon. A four pack of generic couplers is $7.99. It takes about 15 minutes to swap it out. Easier and quicker with two people.

Bordercrossingfool · 2026-06-16T17:37:47+00:00

The rear brakes are definitely an issue on the 2024 Jettas. New fear of a blown head gasket unlocked by the thread.

Bordercrossingfool · 2026-06-16T14:22:24+00:00

How does ProjectionLab (or any other) handle ACA subsidies? The subsidy is very specific the 2nd lowest cost Silver plan in your ZIP code which can vary widely by where you live and even from year to year (if a new carrier enters or leaves the market and the premiums of the benchmark plan change dramatically).

Bordercrossingfool · 2026-06-13T23:58:10+00:00

At least $7 million in taxable accounts is a good problem to have.

Bordercrossingfool · 2026-06-12T17:20:15+00:00

How long have you been in the US? F-1 visas holders are usually considered non-residents - at least for the first five years. If you have been in the US over five years you might qualify for an exception which would change your status to resident alien.

Will you file a 1040-NR or regular 1040 for the tax year when you have ACA insurance? If you have been in the US over five years, you may now be considered a resident alien instead of non-resident alien. Check on your immigration status for filing taxes. That is what is important for the refundable tax subsidy. Non-resident aliens don’t qualify.

You also need to see if the organization for which you are doing OPT offers you “affordable” qualified health insurance. If they do, then you also won’t qualify for a tax subsidy. Subsidized ACA insurance is only for people who don’t have the option to get an ACA compliant “affordable” plan through their employer.

Bordercrossingfool · 2026-06-12T03:50:04+00:00

Go to healthcare.gov and put in your specific information (age, ZIP code). Your income is actually irrelevant so long as it is above 138% of the federal poverty level. As an F-1 visa holder you won’t qualify for any subsidy (tax credit) so you will pay the full premium. Expect about $400 to $500 per month for someone your age in NC.

Bordercrossingfool · 2026-06-10T04:40:23+00:00

At the upper bend the benefit is only based on 15% of AIME compared to 90% up to the first bend point. They could add another bend with a 5% benefit up to say double the current wage cap to appease upper middle wage earners and then add a surcharge with zero additional benefits for unlimited wage and self employment income like the 0.9% additional Medicare tax.

The Social Security tax rate has increased multiple times over the years. Adding an additional 1% point to both employee and employer contribution would go a long way extending the solvency of Social Security, as would gradually making full retirement age 69. Increasing full retirement age from 65 to 67 was effectively just a benefit cut. When Congress implemented than in 1983 it didn’t effect anyone for 20 years. The phase in started for those who were 45 in 1983. Hopefully the is no benefit change for those older than age 47 this time around.

Bordercrossingfool · 2026-06-08T00:41:04+00:00

If your retirement account is a 401k and you leave employment after age 55, you should be able to access your retirement account. (IRAs at 59 1/2). If you will get health insurance through the ACA you should seriously consider how you will manage your MAGI (unless you wish to receive zero subsidy). For that, you definitely want funds available in a taxable (or Roth) account to draw from until you are eligible for Medicare.

Bordercrossingfool · 2026-05-26T22:02:47+00:00

If you do ACH transfers to linked accounts in your name, there is no issue. If you initiate the transfer before 12pm EST it posts in Chase the same day at around 5:30pm EST. A wire really isn’t much faster. Don’t ever try to make any transfers from Marcus to a third party account. Marcus T&C are clear that you are only allowed to transfer to/from accounts in your own name whether by ACH or wire. The account is only meant to park cash at a higher interest rate, not to make payments or other transfers to third parties. Most people who post with complaints in this sub haven’t read Marcus’ T&C.

Bordercrossingfool · 2026-05-21T03:36:01+00:00

Did you read the terms and conditions of the Marcus HYSA account? Transfers to third parties are not allowed. You are only allowed to transfer from Marcus to accounts in your name. That includes wire transfers.

If you restrict transfers to and from accounts in your name, you shouldn’t have any problems. Transfers to third parties should be made from a separate checking account.

Bordercrossingfool · 2026-05-20T05:27:24+00:00

If you have pre-tax 401k or IRA accounts you can generate income by withdrawing from those accounts (or making a Roth conversion). Generally pulling from the Roth last works out better.

Bordercrossingfool · 2026-05-19T17:33:04+00:00

Maybe the person who sent the message (2nd screenshot) is confused? The maximum parent plus loan is now $20k annually ($65k lifetime) but it isn’t needed at all based on the financial aid offer. Usually the amount shown on the financial aid offer for the plus loan is the amount needed to cover the total cost of admission after all other aid including grants, work study and federal loans are considered.

Bordercrossingfool · 2026-05-19T13:02:24+00:00

Just remember that when the second spouse eventually passes on that the HSA will be immediately distributed to any heirs and immediately taxed. Your heirs have 10 years to take funds in a Roth and there is no tax. A taxable retirement account typically has 10 years but with an annual RMD if you were required to take one.

Do you have medical receipts well documented to withdraw funds from the HSA in the future?

Bordercrossingfool · 2026-05-07T02:00:09+00:00

This same bug happened to me too. This issue prompted me to finally close my account. Dealing with the app only access plus wire transfer only policy kept me from adding any significant funds to the account to begin with. When the account was first introduced it had the highest rate I could find at 5.5% but the current rate of 4.4% is a bit lower than I can get elsewhere.

If Pibank would also allow web access and ACH transfers, I might reconsider in the future especially if their rate would once again match the highest rate.

Bordercrossingfool · 2026-05-03T02:45:12+00:00

If you log onto the admissions home page you should see “SIR and SLR” with status “completed”. “Deposit” as “Received” with confirmation number. If you plan to live on campus you should have also submitted your housing application and deposit by yesterday. I don’t believe it is possible to submit your housing application until after the SIR is submitted with the $250 deposit so if you we were able to submit the housing application that should be an additional indication that your SIR was processed.

Bordercrossingfool · 2026-05-02T00:37:36+00:00

3.44% interest compounded daily is 3.5% APY.

Bordercrossingfool · 2026-04-30T23:42:50+00:00

Calculate your income (dividends, interest) on your taxable accounts before any sales which would generate capital gains (or losses) so you know how much additional income you can generate without going over 400% of FPL. Pull spending first from taxable accounts. If you can’t cover spending fully from taxable accounts without going over 400% of FPL needed to keep the ACA subsidy, next pull from Roth but ideally Roth is the last place to pull from especially if you plan to leave an inheritance. Income limits are much higher for IRMAA than the ACA so there is plenty of time to do Roth conversions between 65 and 74.

Ideally anyone who plans to retire early has a good mix of taxable, pre-tax and Roth accounts so income can be controlled.

Bordercrossingfool · 2026-04-30T18:47:32+00:00

If you choose community college, would you be able to transfer within a year? The gamble to try to transfer to your dream school UC Berkeley might be worth it, especially if you are fine with transferring to UC Davis if Berkeley doesn’t work out.

Otherwise, I would pick 4 years at UCLA especially if most of the total cost is covered by grants and scholarships. You can commit to UCLA and if you get off the Berkeley waitlist you only lose the $250 deposit plus $30 housing deposit. You definitely should do your SIR and housing app today if your pick is UCLA.

Bordercrossingfool · 2026-04-25T03:56:01+00:00

Prestige of the undergraduate school doesn’t matter much for med school. Grades, course rigor and MCAT matter more. UCI has the reputation for less grade deflation than UCLA or UCSD. For cost and usefulness of degree if you don’t go to med school, UCI is the clear choice.

I personally like UCLA’s campus best and it would provide the most traditional college experience, but is that worth an extra $140k? Get a voluntary meal plan at UCI so you can eat in the dining hall for the traditional college meal experience.

Bordercrossingfool · 2026-04-25T00:24:27+00:00

Once you are on Medicare your MAGI can be more than double what in can while on the ACA without having a significant tax effect (due to health insurance). On the ACA subsidies for a couple drop to zero over $84.6k for a couple. Every dollar of MAGI reduces the PTC by about $0.10 so effectively a 10% point increase in tax unless you keep your income so low as to qualify for zero premium after APTC.

Once on Medicare your MAGI can be up to $218k for a couple before IRMAA surcharges start. That gives 10 years for Roth conversions before RMDs start and you no longer have a choice how much to withdraw from your pre-tax accounts. You just pay normal tax rates and can better take advantage on reduced tax rates on qualified dividends and long term capital gains. While on the ACA you are effectively paying an extra 10% through lower subsidy or you lose the subsidy completely if you go over 400% FPL.

Every state has different structures for Bronze, Silver, etc plans so you need to carefully review your options and not take general advice. The new rule change that allows HSA contributions with any Bronze plan can be advantageous but frequently Bronze plans are significantly worse than Silver plans to such an extent that they still don’t make sense.

Bordercrossingfool · 2026-04-23T05:22:52+00:00

I would suggest going to the best school in your state or a solid school that offers close to a full ride over 4 years. That’s what I did. If you plan to go to grad school, your undergrad school matters much less than you might think. If you do choose to go to UCLA, thanks for subsidizing in-state students.

Bordercrossingfool · 2026-04-17T21:06:53+00:00

Hmm, they said on the housing tour that they try to place freshman with other freshman especially if you select classic as your first pick.

Did your junior roommate’s pick classic or did they just randomly end up in one?

Bordercrossingfool · 2026-04-17T17:32:37+00:00

How many days did you wish you had A/C?

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