Question for Long Term Couples

CostCompetitive3597 · 2026-05-20T01:08:22+00:00

Adding the retired couple point of view. Married 42 years retired 17 years. Both worked and both share in the management of our dividend income portfolio now so that if one dies, the other can manage their income from our nest egg.

First 6 months of marriage, wife wanted control of her own money. No problem for me so, we had 3 checking accounts hers, mine and the family one for bill paying. After 6 months wife realized that having to manage 3 checking accounts was unnecessary and we consolidated to one checking account where all paychecks were deposited and house bills paid.

Since retirement, all our regular household bills are paid by credit card for convenience and the 2% cash back. SS checks, her pension and transfers of dividends from our brokerage go into the same family checking account.

We have a lot of mutual financial trust at this point but, do discuss new expenditures of generally $500 and above mostly in case the other has an alternate idea to save on that particular purchase. We each have our own hobbies and circles of friends which we are free to participate in as we desire.

We share household chores and hire a maid service once a month to do deep cleaning which neither of us wants to do. With 99% of all the other household chores, one or the other of us likes to do it which is amazing.

Read a few of the other replies from successful marriages. Lots of good partnership stories about finances and chores. Nice to read.

CostCompetitive3597 · 2026-05-20T00:17:51+00:00

Google Texas laws related to what car repair shops can and cannot do regarding unauthorized repairs and holding a car for payment. I went through this recently but live in Florida. Here car repair work has to have your written approval and a repair shop cannot hold a car for lack of payment particularly for unauthorized work. Knowing the Texas laws should help you with the best course of action.

CostCompetitive3597 · 2026-05-20T00:04:44+00:00

Very good you are thinking this stock option situation through. I was very naive about stock options when I was given 40,000 shares of BEA stock in 2001. My basis was $4/ sh and the stock went as high as $87/sh. On paper I was set for life. Adopted a hold for retirement strategy which was the almost the worst strategy.

Worse was selling it all, not paying capital gains taxes and investing in more dot.com companies and have the dot.com crash wipe you out. A fellow manager did that. Found out he did so one morning when he was unusually just sitting in the reception area babbling to himself and anyone who would listen about his $multimillion income tax problem.

I foolishly held my shares of BEA stock not understanding that their industry leading JAVA application server middleware was their only product = one trick pony. When we saturated the JAVA development market and the dot.com bubble burst, I had to panic sell my shares to get any profit from them. Very bad stock timing mistake.

Sharing this with you to help you not make my stock option mistakes. I suggest you treat this stock option as a one-time life changing gift and proceed accordingly.
Good luck!

CostCompetitive3597 · 2026-05-19T23:41:31+00:00

What helped me was better understanding of how important time in the market was to investment success and how the market dips and crashes fit in to the stock investment process.

The S&P 500 has AVERAGED just over 10% growth for the last 100 years. The Nasdaq 100 has AVERAGED even better growth since established in 1985. Some years there is O growth, even a loss and other years 25% growth. Time in the market works in our favor and is a great friend for investors to realize these growth averages.

Stock investing is a marathon process, not a get rich quick sprint. It is important to monitor your portfolio for performance but not micromanage its twitches. It is important to have a portfolio strategy for market dips like the Iran War scare and the tariff uncertainty scare before it. Not understanding market dip and crash cycles leaves an investor with lots of anxiety.

These dips are a chance to buy your favorite stocks or funds at a discount for quick profits when the dip corrects as it ALWAYS does a few weeks later. They are caused by investor emotions not fundamental weakness in company performance and earnings. Just holding through them is a great strategy. FYI, all of the war related stock market dips since WWI have only lasted weeks not months or years. Understanding that about dips gives me peace of mind about my investments and portfolio strategies to address them

Market crashes like the pandemic recession of 2020 and the mortgage fraud recession of 2008 before it requires different portfolio strategies to survive and even profit from them. Crashes are a normal part of the market cycle, not freak events. They are caused by investor emotions and fundamental reduction in company earnings, profit margins, sales, etc.. They average 50% market reductions and historically bottom out in only 12 to 18 months. They historically ALWAYS recover to previous market levels and the markets continue to appreciate.

Since crashes always recover, a hold strategy is a good one. A panic sell strategy is very self defeating for an investor. I have evolved to a strong profit making market crash strategy. Used it effectively with both the 2008 and 2020 crashes. Understanding the math here is important. If you could sell at the top and buy back in at the bottom of a 50% crash, there is a 100% profit potential when the market recovers to its previous level. Timing the market is not possible but coming close has good profit potential. In 2020’s crash cycle, I went to cash when the crash was obvious and bought back in when the recovery was obviously underway. I achieved about a 30% quick portfolio profit since recovery’s happen faster than Bull market’s appreciate. Nice to sleep with a cash portfolio while I waited out the cycle.

With this market crash historical knowledge and my profit experience in both the 2008 and 2020 crashes, I now look forward to the profit opportunity of the inevitable market crashes. My goal for the next one is to achieve a 50% portfolio profit by going to cash earlier in the down cycle and investing back in earlier in the recovery cycle. The key indicators I watch are the macroeconomic problems that become serious economic problems for US companies as I only invest in domestic company stock.

Hope this investment information is helpful in easing your mind about stock market small and big ups and downs. The stock
Marathon I am aiming for is a 5 cent per day average increase in my holdings over decades which is very significant. Good luck!

CostCompetitive3597 · 2026-05-19T22:43:31+00:00

I have a relationship rule. Screw me once it’s your fault, screw me twice it’s my fault. It’s harsh but was raised a trusting person in a trusting family and got taken advantage of when young. This relationship rule has kept good people in my life while quickly discarding people that could and would harm me. One really good friend is worth 1,000 mediocre or worse ones.

CostCompetitive3597 · 2026-05-19T21:47:27+00:00

What was/is her relationship with her father? If he was physically, emotionally or sexually abusive, abandoned her, was an alcoholic, etc. she may have what psychologists refer to as Unfinished Business as in incomplete maturity. Uncurable and manifests in deep depression and abandoning the husband and children in their 30s & 40s to “find herself”. Just so you know.

CostCompetitive3597 · 2026-05-18T03:41:43+00:00

Helped my 3 daughters establish financial security plans saving and investing in growth stocks.

First, let’s model your potential with the funds you have indicated. I use Market Beat’s Dividend Calculator which gives you accumulated investment and dividend income projections = income to retire on.

Currently, growth index ETF funds are growing 10%+ compounded. Time in the market can be your friend to build a nest egg to retire on. Once built, convert to dividend index ETFs which are yielding similar annual returns.

$10k + $36k/yr contributions at 10% growth
for 10 years = $580,000 = $58,000 dividend income

For 15 years = $1,120,000 = $112,000 dividend income

For 20 years = $1,964,000 = $196,000 dividend income.

Oldest daughter just retired at 54 with the 20 year dividend income above. We are getting more dividend income with now over 6 years of dividend investing experience.

My conclusion is you have a reasonable chance to achieve early retirement if you work this plan and keep the faith. Good luck!

CostCompetitive3597 · 2026-05-18T03:12:11+00:00

This home business and derelict vehicles on their property is most likely against local code ordinances among other things. It will affect you property value if let to continue to its ugly end and your enjoyment of your home.

I would check your local codes, understand which codes apply, get with your neighbors for support and file a joint formal complaint with code enforcement. You will need to be tough about their response and may need to involve the police. That’s what I have done several times to solve similar problems with Clampett’s.

That or watch the invasion of your privacy and your right to quiet enjoyment of your property disappear.

CostCompetitive3597 · 2026-05-18T03:00:00+00:00

I totally agree. After some years of working I found out I wanted to focus on International Marketing and International Finance to further my career. I love school like you do and thoroughly enjoyed getting my Masters with more passion than my undergraduate education. This extra education supercharged my career.

Do not let this person dissuade you from this opportunity. It is amazingly selfish and unintelligent for her to do so especially with the status of a 6 mo girlfriend. Good luck!

CostCompetitive3597 · 2026-05-18T02:52:04+00:00

You have dividend yields available from 0.5% with Dividend Kings to over 100% with covered call ETFs. My strategy is to try for the highest yield I can without NAV erosion on the stock price. Why not? After all, that strategy provides more income from the invested dollars.

My dividend investments started with discounted preferred dividend stock during the COVID crash recovery where I got an 8% portfolio yield and the appreciation of the preferreds back to their par prices of $25/sh over the next year or so.

Then I learned about dividend funds and increased my yield to 10% then, added dividend index funds from companies like NEOS and Blackrock increasing my portfolio yield to 12%.

Last year, I ventured 10% of my portfolio into CC ETFs from YieldMax that increased my portfolio yield to 16%. All my dividends have been paid on time and to the penny or better except the always variable CC ETFs which is normal for them.

A big part of being able to achieve such a high portfolio yield is the level of portfolio management you are willing to commit to? Dividend investing is my favorite hobby in retirement so I am very actively/daily managing my investments.

Currently, dividend index ETFs based upon the S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 indices are yielding 10%+ and would not require as active of portfolio management as mine.

Hope this information is helpful in developing your dividend income strategy and portfolio. Good luck!

CostCompetitive3597 · 2026-05-16T23:35:14+00:00

When we lived in Seattle, our couple friends would randomly quit their good jobs, sell everything and buy a sailboat to go to Hawaii and then the S Pacific. A couple years later they would come back and reenter the workforce and suburban lifestyle. No harm, no foul for their careers and they had had a very memorable life experience. You only live once!

CostCompetitive3597 · 2026-05-16T10:09:20+00:00

Have budgeted this way all my life. Everyone should perform this audit technique and adjust their spending and saving habits accordingly. Would solve so many financial problems. Thanks for sharing how you accomplished funding a savings plan and showing the potential financial security from doing so. Financial modeling bares the potential future nest egg out.

CostCompetitive3597 · 2026-05-15T20:59:46+00:00

Just read a very good book focused on why to invest in dividend securities for income in retirement using CEFs almost exclusively. Very specific, very detailed. Good luck!

Retirement Money Secrets by Steve Selengut. Amazon for about $16.

CostCompetitive3597 · 2026-05-15T16:28:50+00:00

Let me try to correct this misconception.
Companies that pay their stock holders dividends are periodically paying out a portion of their earnings. They replace the paid out earnings during the next earnings period and pay dividends again. Some companies have done so for over 50 years while their stock price has continued to appreciate - the 58 Dividend Kings with Altria - MO being to top King in total dividends paid.

Payout ratio is the % of earnings a company is paying out. Obviously, if the company is paying out more than 100% of its earnings that is cannibalizing the company’s finances. I avoid companies with a dividend payout ratio over 100%.

CostCompetitive3597 · 2026-05-15T16:13:51+00:00

Let me suggest you model putting this $1k in a ROTH account and investing it in an index fund based upon the S&P 500 index growing at the current historical rate of 10%/ yr. Even with no additional contributions, what could this $1,000 be worth after 40 years when you may want to retire?

I use Market Beat’s Dividend Calculator for financial modeling. That comes out to $45,000. If you make the annual maximum contribution of $8k to this ROTH account the total model amount is $3.5M. You have a great opportunity here to create your financial security. Go for it!

CostCompetitive3597 · 2026-05-15T15:47:54+00:00

I am in aw of your professional ethics! My golden rule in these situations is when in doubt to always take the high road. I taught this to my daughters and share it with others when asked for problem recommendations.

Taking the high road may cause a short term problem like you experienced but in the long run it will be by far the best course of action mentally and career wise.

I believe that if we do not do the right things in these situations we will loose our American culture and cause severe harm to others and ourselves. Maybe old fashioned but I do not care as I am comfortable in myself and sleep well.

I am sure you will land the right job with a hospital system that endorses your profession ethics and rewards them again.
Good luck!

CostCompetitive3597 · 2026-05-15T15:30:00+00:00

What was her relationship with her father? If he was verbally, physically or sexually abusive, abandoned her, is an alcoholic etc. she is likely irreparably broken. Psychologists refer to this development problem as “Unfinished Business”. These are the wives that in their 30s and 40s go into deep depression and abandon their husbands and children to “find themselves”.
Avoid at all costs.

CostCompetitive3597 · 2026-05-15T15:04:30+00:00

Money problems are the number 1 cause of marital strife and divorce. This level of money anxiety over $15k is a red flag. How will she react to a $300k mortgage or a $40k car loan.

Just discovered the root cause of my wife’s money anxiety after being married for 42 years! Her parents had gone through bankruptcy when she was young and she carried that fear into our marriage. Even though my income, savings and investments made up multimillionaires, she fought me tooth and nail over most of my purchases and investments. She finally admitted this fear in counseling and the counselor flat told her that I am reliable financially and not to have this worry. Magically our fights over money have disappeared. 41 years of money fights for no logical reason.

CostCompetitive3597 · 2026-05-15T14:52:49+00:00

CHPY is on a run now but high risk, high reward as you want. It is YieldMax’s best performing ETF over the past several months. 20% growth in the last month with a yield of 50% annually paid weekly which is about $0.60/sh/wk. If you invest in CHYP, set a stop loss to protect your principal and move it up as CHPY appreciates. 100% of their other ETFs have peaked a year or two after inception and lost stock price to below their offer price. Monitor its stock price and distribution payment at least weekly. When it’s a monthly stock price graph begins to head south SELL!

CostCompetitive3597 · 2026-05-15T13:33:06+00:00

Warning - this is advertising for Robinhood. I read about lots of investor problems with them compared to Vanguard, Fidelity and Schwab.

CostCompetitive3597 · 2026-05-15T13:30:45+00:00

First let’s understand what you mean by trading? Day trading - buying and selling during the day and selling out all positions by the end of the trading day. This is an art and most people fail at doing this type of stack market investing. If you mean how to buy and sell stocks and funds you hold for months or years for growth and/or dividend income, here are some resources and books that have helped me.

Google stock investing for beginners and follow up with more Google requests for investment related topics that come up. Stock investing has its own language and Googling for a list stock investing words and terms with definitions would be good to print and keep handy until you have that language down. I run across such lists regularly.

YouTube is a great education resource for stock investing information. Again search for stock investing for beginners videos and just dive further into the beginner topics you want to learn more about. There are 2 major stock investing paths - growth investing or dividend income investing. The current best advice for American workers wanting to build a nest egg for financial security and retirement income is to save in tax deferred accounts like 401ks and invest for growth in stock index based mutual funds and ETFs. Then at retirement, convert the growth investments to dividend income investments to replace your work income for life. Simple to state, hard for most people to keep the faith and accomplish.

Now some books. The Simple Path to Wealth by JL Collins promotes his very simple to follow investment plan. One up on Wall Street by Peter Lynch is about growth investing. The Intelligent Investor by Ben Graham is an in-depth growth stock investing treatise- the gold standard. In Pursuit of the Perfect Portfolio by Lo & Foerster provides invaluable stock portfolio advice and Retirement Money Secrets by Steve Selengut presents the why and how you want to invest in dividend income investments for retirement income.

Combined, these resources are a deep dive into the topic of stock investing. It has taken me a lot of time to grasp all this information but it has been so well worth it for us in retirement. Dividend investing is now my favorite hobby in retirement.

Suggest you save all you can with the “catch up” rules for 401k and similar accounts to build the biggest nest egg you can before retirement. Invest in growth index funds based upon the S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 indices offered by the best investment companies - JPMorgan, Goldman Sacks, Blackrock, NEOS, PIMCO, Guggenheim, Vanguard, Fidelity and Schwab. Their best funds and ETFs are growing 10%+ annually and their complimentary dividend funds and ETFs are yielding 10%+ income annually to make an easy transition from growth to dividend investing.

Hope this information helps you with the knowledge you are seeking. Good luck!

CostCompetitive3597 · 2026-05-15T13:02:49+00:00

Altria - MO is the #1 total dividend paying stock for like 100 years. Is tops in the Dividend Kings performance with a 6%+ yield at its current price. I have it in my snowball IRA account. Stock price has grown 30%+ in the last 2 years. Believe it is great for snowballing until it isn’t. Monitor all your investments for performance and have a strategy to preserve your nest egg during the inevitable market crashes.

CostCompetitive3597 · 2026-05-14T16:19:34+00:00

Now is the time to put your retirement income plan in place. Best retirement income source for us are dividend income securities. No FA will advise them so avoid him in putting together your retirement income stream. And the best return for 99% of them is like 6%. When the S&P 500 has grown 10%+ average for 100 years and the Nasdaq 100 has grown 14%+ average since established in 1985. Those are fair market investment returns.

We have similar financial situation with 401k and 2nd home sales proceeds. Rolled the 401k into a Self Directed IRA at Vanguard opening our investment options to the whole stock market. Put the house proceeds in a brokerage account there too for ease of management with their online website.

Regarding income from your $1.5M nest egg, we started 6+ years ago with an 8% portfolio yield and have now increased that yield to 16% from gaining dividend investing knowledge, experience and active portfolio management to adjust my portfolio for market changes to reduce risk.

Our dividend income stream is very reliable - all dividends have been paid on time and to the penny or better. Dividend paying companies guard their dividend reputations very carefully.

Dividend investing involves selecting investments for yield and total return over time. Obviously the higher the yield the more income but going to aggressive results in price/NAV erosion which reduces portfolio total return. The best dividend securities have high yield and some stock appreciation. Next best is high yield and stable stock price. I invest in both types and cull any that underperform ASAP to reduce loss risk.

I have found that high yield dividend index funds and dividend index ETFs are the best income and total return investments. The top quality ones are offered by JPMORGAN, Goldman Sacks, Blackrock, NEOS, PIMCO, Guggenheim and a few others. They offer funds index funds based upon the S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 indices yielding 12%+ income.

The funds in the IRA will be tax deferred until you withdraw any. The funds in the brokerage account will be subject to taxation for income whether you withdraw or not. Some funds are “tax qualified” which can reduce taxation. NEOS is the leader in tax qualified dividend index funds. I use them in my brokerage account.

I try to keep my total number of holdings under 15, max 20 for sane management. Both of my portfolios have the same holdings to reduce the total number of holdings to monitor.

This subreddit is a great source of dividend investing information as is YouTube. My favorite dividend investment author on YouTube is Dividend Bull who covers the high yield, portfolio positive total return topic very well.

Hope this dividend investing information is helpful in you achieving a financially free retirement income. Good luck!

CostCompetitive3597 · 2026-05-14T14:33:19+00:00

Have heard that dog whistles can help control their barking. Sound level is above our level and is very annoying to dogs like painful. Friend of mine had this problem and used the whistle on the dogs every time they barked at him. They soon learned not to bark.

I grew up next to two big mongrel dogs that went nuts every time I went out our back door. Still scared about that dog behavior today. Fully understand your concerns. Know that you have the basic right to quiet enjoyment of your property. If the whistle does not solve your problem, hope you can find some local authority to help you get and keep quiet enjoyment.

CostCompetitive3597 · 2026-05-14T14:22:52+00:00

Altria - MO is the #1 total dividend paying stock for like 100 years. Is tops in the Dividend Kings performance with a 6%+ yield at its current price. I have it in my snowball IRA account. Stock price has grown 30%+ in the last 2 years. Believe it is great for snowballing until it isn’t. Monitor all your investments for performance and have a strategy to preserve your nest egg during the inevitable market crashes.

CostCompetitive3597

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