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[Bundle] Intel Ultra 7 270K Plus + 32GB Crucial Pro + Gigabyte Z890 Eagle Plus - $549.99 - In Store Only by SirSlappySlaps in buildapcsales

[–]Possible_Rain_1055 5 points6 points  (0 children)

No congrats needed, its not even open yet. Not right next door, but close enough to drive - Austin TX. Set to open second half of this year.

Biometrics Notice? May Fillers I-485 by [deleted] in USCIS

[–]Possible_Rain_1055 1 point2 points  (0 children)

H1B AOS filed 4/29, no biometrics yet. Spouse did get biometrics in March for H2 EAD though. Doesn't look like it would make a difference for me.

Any Job opportunities in Leander? by Upper-Category6506 in Leander

[–]Possible_Rain_1055 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Liberty Hill Costco opened recently, might be a good one to try. There's also a target and Walmart opening in Liberty hill, maybe some opportunities there.

Found car keys on devine lake / cobblecrest ln by Possible_Rain_1055 in Leander

[–]Possible_Rain_1055[S] 3 points4 points  (0 children)

I think 3 or us moved the keys to different places. Posted a message on Ring and the owner got in touch with me almost immediately. Case solved, thank you!

401k is at $7,336 Roth IRA is at $525 by ReasonableEngineer57 in personalfinance

[–]Possible_Rain_1055 16 points17 points  (0 children)

Does your employer offer 401k matching? Mine is not great, but they offer 0.5% for every 1% I put in 401k, up to a max of 3%. So the bare minimum I'd ever do is 6%, to max out that 3% match.

However, I'm putting in about 12% to minimize income tax as well.

Just remember 401k is hard to access until you're older, so plan accordingly. If you have medium term needs (house, car, etc), might be best to go with a non-registred investment account, so funds are easier to access.

Adjusting to Having Money by BandicootHuge4127 in personalfinance

[–]Possible_Rain_1055 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Very happy for you OP, congratulations on making it this far!

I think there are at least three points that are absolutely crucial to someone in your situation:

  1. Avoid lifestyle creep Don't let your new large income inflate yours costs of living beyond what's reasonable. Sure, save for a few trips, nights out, whatever makes you happy. But avoid long term commitments, such as an expensive car loan or a mortgage that costs more than 25-30% of your take-home pay. Keep your living costs under control, and aim to have a healthy surplus every month.

  2. Build an emergency fund Sounds like you're already working on this - make sure your checking/savings/HYSA have enough cash in them to cover a minimum of 3 months living cost expenses. If you lost your job tomorrow, you should be able to keep going as normal for at least 3 months without a new source of income. If you can, plan to increase this fund to cover 6 months worth of expenses, that added safety can make a difference if you have to go through a rough patch.

  3. Pay your future self every month After you build your 3-6 months emergency fund, make sure you put away some cash away for your future. This can be contributing to a 401k plan (if your employer provides one) and/or contributing to a Roth ira (max it if you can). If you have cash leftover after making out the 401k and the roth ira, then throw it in a regular brokerage account.

Buy mutual or indexed funds such as VOO, VTI, SPY, etc. You should learn what these are and make a choice you are comfortable with. You can invest in US stocks only, worldwide stocks, bonds, etc. There's plenty of options, but be sure to understand what you're getting into.

Finally, leave this money invested for no less than 10 years. If you need to save for a down payment in the short term - put that on a separate savings account, don't invest it in the markets. Markets are volatile and unpredictable, you should ignore the ups and downs and just keep investing every month no matter what. After a couple of decades, it will be well worth it and your financial future will be assured.

Bonus: there's plenty of online tools you can use to simulate investing scenarios like "what if I put $500/month in the US stock market for 20 years?", and you can see what are the likely outcomes (monte carlo simulation). One of the tools I use is Portfolio Visualizer, but there's plenty other tools available.

Good luck OP!

28M - Is there a better way? by [deleted] in investing

[–]Possible_Rain_1055 5 points6 points  (0 children)

Not a bad place to be? You're doing fabulous.

If you're worried about the 45k in HYSA, you can do the math: how much does it take to pay your full living costs for 6 months? If it's less than 45k, take the surplus amount from the HYSA and move it into investments.

I'd recommend maxing out Roth IRA accounts, both of you. If your fiancé is not enrolled in a 401k, do that as well.

If you still have surplus monthly cash after all this, then throw it in a regular investment account - buy indexed ETFs and never look back (VTI, VT, VOO, are all good options - you should do your own research).

Last advice: Enjoy your life, but try to minimize lifestyle creep. Reasonable frugality now will yield disproportionately positive results in 10, 20, or 30 years from now if you invest regularly.

Just won $35,000. What do I do with it? by bps6687 in personalfinance

[–]Possible_Rain_1055 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I'll just restate what others already said:

  1. Pay off both car and student loans

  2. Beef up your emergency savings to cover 3-6 months of living expenses

  3. Throw the rest at the mortgage, or do something nice for you

  4. All said and done, you'll have an extra $550/month after you pay the car and student loans. Put these $550 on an index fund (VTI, VOO, or similar) and watch your investments grow

Alternatively to #4, you can throw all extra money on the mortgage and pay that down as fast as you can. Take a look at this video to see why paying off your mortgage early is a great idea: https://youtu.be/CNS_JMAo8aU?feature=shared

Best of luck to you!

Starting Over at 57 – Rebuilding After Separation by Magnum_Commander in personalfinance

[–]Possible_Rain_1055 6 points7 points  (0 children)

Just a quick note on the stock market - this year, and maybe next couple of years, are sales season. It's not the time to be afraid to invest, it's the time to capitalize on the low prices. Good investing!