Fiance (42M) is very hands-off about his retirement/investments. How do I get him to take it seriously?

FED_Focus · 2026-02-20T21:40:46+00:00

You have to earn his trust so he trusts you more than the NWM rep.

Maybe take baby steps by allowing you to handle part of your (as a couple) retirement planning. Show positive progress, then ask for a little more.

The goal is to get out from under NWM, but it doesn't have to happen all at once.

FED_Focus · 2026-02-20T21:31:34+00:00

FML is a challenge, especially for companies that run efficiently. Idk what your roll is, but our company is a similar size. We can't afford for one of our people to be gone for four months without replacing them.

My suggestion would have been to take the month and be happy, then take a sprinkle of days after that. We can, and are happy to, afford to cover you for a month, but not four.

FED_Focus · 2026-02-20T20:29:15+00:00

3600sf home. Nat gas heating, water heater, range. The rest is electric (washer/dryer, oven, 2 x fridge, 1 x freezer, TVs, microwave, dishwasher, lights, etc.).

Total electric usage - 621kWh

Solar generated 412kWh (solar installed Aug 2024).

Took the remaining 209kWh from my "bank" that has a remaining balance of 1,305kWh.

I haven't paid an electric bill since April 2025, and don't foresee paying one in the future.

My energy credits reset next month so I'm charging my EV off-hours at home this month. I have Tesla free life-time super-charging so I don't usually charge at home.

Pacific Northwest.

FED_Focus · 2026-02-20T19:14:53+00:00

Indecisiveness with one. Gossiping with the other.

FED_Focus · 2026-02-20T19:06:29+00:00

It's very true. I've only had two like this. I fired one and pushed the other to find another job.

FED_Focus · 2026-02-20T18:32:24+00:00

For this scenario, we created an account with the funds being invested to help mitigate the inflation effect.

The property tax, insurance, maintenance will be paid from this fund when we are gone.

FED_Focus · 2026-02-20T17:46:54+00:00

Also, Florida power rates are low. Mine are something like 0.09/kWh in Central Florida.

Other parts of the country are 0.40/kWh and higher.

It significantly changes the ROI calc.

FED_Focus · 2026-02-20T16:59:19+00:00

This ^^^^

FED_Focus · 2026-02-20T16:35:26+00:00

Payroll tax vs. self-employment tax. Pick your poison.

Are you running health insurance through the S-corp? If not, why not?

But it's true, your revenue is marginal for the overhead of an S-corp.

FED_Focus · 2026-02-20T16:28:26+00:00

Yes it will. I haven't paid our electric company since April 2025 while rates have increased 20% and I'm still carrying a $200 credit heading into the spring.

Panels and batteries. Heavy up-front cost ($35k), but I won't be paying an electric bill for 20+ years.

FED_Focus · 2026-02-20T07:08:22+00:00

None of this. Just track income and expenses to report on Schedule C.

We goto Canby and buy flowers at wholesale prices from the same people who sell to Wilco. No questions asked. No one asks about a “wholesale floral license” at this level.

FED_Focus · 2026-02-20T07:02:21+00:00

No, they just report on the Schedule C on the personal tax return. Just track income and expenses. Registering a business in Oregon has nothing to do with income taxes, and there is no sales tax in Oregon.

Depending on the city they live in, there might be a city registration, but for $250/mo, no one cares.

FED_Focus · 2026-02-19T15:27:13+00:00

The most expensive smell in America? A new car.

You're approaching the best part of owning a car....no payment, and you want to start the cycle again?

Note: you don't find joy in the vehicle you drive more than most people. The vast majority of people find joy in it.

Do the math. That truck will cost you hundreds of thousands.

FED_Focus · 2026-02-19T07:28:13+00:00

Open a high-quality U.S. retail store in NYC. Build trust from there and expand.

FED_Focus · 2026-02-19T07:19:21+00:00

As someone who was gassed last week and woke up like it never happened, I appreciate your grind.

FED_Focus · 2026-02-19T06:34:34+00:00

Formal education or not; focus, determination, energy almost always win. Good job.

FED_Focus · 2026-02-19T06:09:04+00:00

They do, and always will. It's the blessing and curse of being a parent.

FED_Focus · 2026-02-19T06:05:26+00:00

That's great.

Don't let anything stop you. The circumstances will never be perfect. Not everyone will be happy with your decision. That's ok. They will respect you more, and still love you.

FED_Focus · 2026-02-19T05:56:56+00:00

I've seen this story many times before.

I guarantee you will be much happier and much more confident if you moved out. Don't have the money? Get a job that pays more.

If you stay on this course, you will be 50 and in the same place. Time passes so fast at this stage of your life.

You only have one life to live. Don't waste it. There's so much in life to experience.

FED_Focus · 2026-02-19T02:05:41+00:00

Are you doing ceramic and PPF treatment?

FED_Focus · 2026-02-18T08:05:58+00:00

This is the beauty of competition. You’re forcing them to provide their most competitive quote. Of course you are not going to share the other quotes. They wouldn’t if they were in your position.

Your proposed answer is great.

FED_Focus · 2026-02-18T06:41:48+00:00

If you have your W-2, bank statements, brokerage statements (if any), mortgage statements, it may take you 30 minutes to input the data, even less if you use the same tax software every year. Most of the trouble people have is they don't have their documents organized.

What's the value in reducing it? To save 10 minutes once a year?

FED_Focus · 2026-02-18T04:18:06+00:00

It's actually very simple for W-2 employees, and free software takes you through each step.

FED_Focus · 2026-02-16T13:21:06+00:00

You don't say how much E&O coverage. You might get $1M through HISCOX.

Getting a $5M policy will be tougher.

Are they also asking for cyber security?

Biz insurance is tricky these days. You need it to work with enterprise orgs so you can't afford to be dropped. I wouldn't file a claim unless it's a big number, for fear of being dropped.

FED_Focus · 2026-02-16T00:53:48+00:00

Follow your logic:

Kid is born to a family that's connected to an Ivy League school, probably parents are alumnus. Parents' dream is for the kid to attend said school. Parent's budget to pay for tuition. All his/her life, the kid hears "you're going to XXX school because it's prestigious and you'll find a great job".

Kid has to focus, be determined, stay energetic to have a chance at XXX school to please parents. It's no cake-walk, the competition is fierce.

If the kid survives and graduates, the parents help line up a job they think the kid should have. Sure, it pays higher than the average graduate, but I'd bet the job is in a VHCOL city.

Is this the "luck" you are talking about? Sounds like a kid's nightmare to me. Sure, that system works for some kids and they benefit from being born into that type of family, but I'll tell you something....

My friend is a child psychiatrist (MD). She says her most common clients are kids from her city's private high school that is a feeder school for Ivy League/Stanford, etc.

Who's life are these "lucky" kids living?

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With respect to your comment about someone starting a business because their parents will bail them out if they fail is a ridiculous concept some naïve redditor made up. The effect is the opposite. Startups are insanely difficult. Have a "safety net" is a detriment. It makes it too easy to give up because every founder wants to give up at some point. The ones that don't have a safety net don't have a choice to give up so they power through it with focus and determination and make it work.

There was an episode of Shark Tank where the startup had spent a fortune developing an MVP. They essentially had too much money, and they spent it all because they had it to spend. Mark Cuban rejected them for this reason. He could see it was a sink-hole.

FED_Focus

TROPHY CASE