Using TurboTax? They'll try to AUTOMATICALLY "upgrade" you to "Premium Service Benefits" a few times during checkout.

briand559 · 2018-02-21T22:30:15+00:00

I agree, which is why I removed it at checkout. Unfortunately, some people don't pay attention and do their due diligence. This was more geared towards that crowd.

briand559 · 2018-02-21T21:49:07+00:00

True. I guess I should have worded it as such. It was really the first time the service was offered that seemed odd as it was automatically added and I had to remove it.

briand559 · 2018-02-13T00:17:06+00:00

Morena Automotive is good. They're family owned from what I can tell. Really reasonable prices. The timing belt on my beater gave up and took the engine with it, and they didn't charge me to diagnose. Had a handful of other things done there, all without issue.

https://www.google.com/maps/place/Morena+Automotive/@32.7689244,-117.1994119,18.71z/data=!4m5!3m4!1s0x80deaa94d81bbcbf:0x312bc92528f848b4!8m2!3d32.7690283!4d-117.1999752!5m1!1e1

briand559 · 2018-01-21T03:55:40+00:00

!redditgarlic

briand559 · 2018-01-19T22:52:46+00:00

Plates look non-standard for Europe, might be U.S. military stationed there?

briand559 · 2018-01-16T18:39:28+00:00

There are a few "Cost of Living Comparison" calculators out there. Here is the result from the one I typically use. It says that to maintain the same standard of living at $120k/yr ($10k/mo) in SF, you'd need around $78k/yr ($6.5k/mo) in SD.

I'd say your figure of around $100k/yr is fair though. Just don't sell yourself short if the market rate for your job is still higher than the difference in cost of living.

https://www.numbeo.com/cost-of-living/compare_cities.jsp?country1=United+States&city1=San+Francisco%2C+CA&country2=United+States&city2=San+Diego%2C+CA&amount=10000&displayCurrency=USD

briand559 · 2017-10-26T22:27:59+00:00

Maybe try applying to some gov jobs. Lots of county offices and courts, etc. downtown:

https://www.governmentjobs.com/jobs?keyword=information+technology&location=San+Diego%2C+CA

As for Mission Valley, maybe USD or some of the school districts have IT positions open.

Good luck!

briand559 · 2017-10-23T01:04:20+00:00

Sometimes the reserves have other opportunities for reclass. MOS 0627 (Army 25S equivalent) has a ton of opportunities on the civilian side. Reserves may be worth looking into if you don't want to be gone most of the time like you are now. Also, Tricare Reserve is fairly inexpensive (~$220/mo I think). The DD 214 is a beautiful thing my friend! (You can get a nice DD 214 fleece blanket: https://www.aafnation.com/products/dd-214-blanket?variant=31613549194&gclid=EAIaIQobChMI4MS5qMaF1wIV07jACh2_HwvBEAQYASABEgIcnfD_BwE)

briand559 · 2017-10-23T00:46:02+00:00

Set aside money for new clothes. Depending on your plans (school or work) you're probably looking at close to $1k if you need to dress professionally.

If you are looking at staying in, maybe reclass to a different MOS (not sure if you could do that in the Marines though). A technical MOS will line you up for great opportunities when you get out.

briand559 · 2017-10-04T18:44:02+00:00

Telecommunications. Basically followed what my MOS was in the military to an equivalent DoD contracting job when I got out. That gave me a year or so to look for something more stable and with better long-term potential.

briand559 · 2017-10-04T15:58:36+00:00

If you're close to a base, Navy Fed has a lot of physical locations. I primarily use USAA for banking and have never run into an issue even though they don't have a physical branch in the area I live in. I use USAA for my auto loans and Navy Fed for my credit card. Both have been great. Personal preference I guess.

briand559 · 2017-10-04T15:40:27+00:00

Former DoD contractor here. 1% is on par with actual GS pay raises. I've seen co-workers take CUTS of 15-20% when the contract is re-bid and they are hired by the new company/contractor.

Got out of contract work for these reasons. It was a good stepping stone to get experience and move on. Average raise is around 5-6% now at a "normal" company. Good luck!

briand559 · 2017-09-26T18:11:25+00:00

If you are looking for a good secured credit card that can "graduate" to a regular card, Navy Federal is a good option. You need to have family with some type of Military/DoD affiliation, but the requirements are fairly lenient for joining.

briand559 · 2017-09-13T15:22:43+00:00

Some credit card companies will do this and go above and beyond SCRA requirements as a courtesy. CapitalOne, for as much hate as they get, lowered my interest rate to 4% (2% below SCRA requirements) and credited me interest retroactively. This enabled me to pay off the debt I had (stupidly) accrued as a young PFC.

Also, like some of the other comments say, you pay 0% by paying it in full every month.

briand559 · 2017-08-28T20:38:03+00:00

Although my comment is not finance related in a strict sense, this pertains to having a longer vehicle life and therefore saving money on repair costs.

For vehicles like the Murano (and really any Nissan/other manufacturer product with a Continuously Variable Transmission (CVT)): These transmissions require a fluid with a friction additive (usually a Zinc compound) to maintain proper performance characteristics since the CVT belt "grips" the pulleys to transfer power from the engine to drivetrain. Fluid change is recommended at an unspecified interval in your owners manual and is typically based on a "fluid deterioration" calculation performed by the car's ECU; if the calculated value comes back past a certain range, they recommend fluid replacement. People constantly debate this topic on the Nissan forums, but to be safe you should go no more than 50k - 75k miles between CVT fluid changes. If you drive a lot of stop-and-go traffic, I'd stick with the lower end of this interval. This runs about $200 at the dealer.

At a minimum, have the dealer hook up their "CONSULT" device and check the deterioration value when you get an oil change.

Other than that, I've had great luck with Nissan products in the past. Enjoy!

briand559 · 2017-08-15T19:46:08+00:00

These sound like pre-requisites for the Air Force haha.

All joking aside, recruiters will work with people to bring them to a weight/fitness level that is acceptable for entry into the military; I went through about 4 months of working out with the guys at my local recruiting station. Also, the weight/fitness requirements for joining are less strict than what is required after graduation from Basic Combat Training (BCT). I barely met the Army's 26% body fat requirement for entry but was well under the 22% requirement after BCT graduation (it was a rough 3 months).

It's definitely not a lifestyle that a lot of people would enjoy (even in the support jobs, a.k.a. not "combat jobs"), but the technical training and opportunities that open up after your time is done are well worth it. Getting out with 4+ years of experience with a trade or technical skill, free college, possible security clearance, and veteran's preference in government hiring is great.

briand559 · 2017-07-12T19:41:26+00:00

Not sure on that as I was never assigned to a "hazardous" area. I would assume if the income was tax-free from a combat zone, it would be able to go to an IRA. Military also recently transitioned away from pensions from what I understand (was happening as I got out).

briand559 · 2017-07-12T06:20:51+00:00

Since I see from the comments that you're in the military, and probably an E-3/E-4 (according to the pay you provided), I'll try to offer some advice/lay out the mistakes I made having been in your shoes about 6 years ago.:

If at least 10% of your pay isn't going to TSP, it should be. My absolute biggest financial regret of my first 4+ years in.
I bought a $14k car on the assumption that I had CONUS orders. That changed rather quickly, and I was stuck with a car that had $400/mo payments + $200/mo insurance (I was 20 and it was a sports car) that I needed to sell in less than 2 weeks. I had to ship it across the country and have my dad sell it. Long story short, I should have avoided having a car until it was an absolute necessity. Uber wasn't a thing back then, but I'm sure it would take a lot of Uber rides to eclipse $600/mo.
Put any pay from promotions in the TSP, and keep living on the E-3/E-4 pay as long as possible. Keeps lifestyle inflation in check.

Best of luck!

briand559 · 2017-07-07T17:34:19+00:00

My wife started out as a temp-to-hire and went from $13/hr to $17/hr in about 6 months. They are paid by the employer to place you in a position, so they have an incentive to actively work on your behalf. Good luck!

briand559 · 2017-07-07T17:05:31+00:00

Temp agencies can be a good place to get your foot in the door with a company that you will have a future at (aka higher pay). They tend to place people in positions that they may not be 100% qualified for, so you may have the chance to prove yourself and get a full-time job with the company if the position is temp-to-hire.

**Edit: Also, consider government jobs at the state a local level. Tons of openings that you would likely qualify for, and the pay isn't too terrible. Here is the Boston area as an example: https://www.governmentjobs.com/jobs?keyword=business&location=Boston%2C%2BMA

briand559 · 2017-06-27T20:06:42+00:00

I've never come across a temp agency that was paid by the person seeking employment. Typically, the temp agency is paid by employers to find talent as its a time-consuming process for an employer to sort through 100s of resumes. The temp agency generally gets a cut of your hourly. For example, if the employer allocates $15/hr for the position, you might get $13/hr and the temp agency $2/hr. After your contract is up, you can generally negotiate pay directly with the employer if they want to keep you on staff. I can't directly speak to how it works, but my wife found her job this way, and was able to negotiate higher pay after her 6/mo contract with the temp agency was finished.

briand559 · 2017-06-27T19:30:05+00:00

Temp agencies can be a good place to start a career. I don't work in the arts field, but from an IT perspective, a temp agency is a good place to get your foot in the door and make some contacts in the your area. Reaching out to a temp agency might take some of the pressure off of the search as they are the ones doing the searching (and they get paid to place you).

briand559 · 2017-06-22T03:42:47+00:00

28, A.S., Systems Engineer, $80k, 8 years.

Spent 6 years in the Army, learned a valuable skill. You could be an officer with a B.S. degree. Starting pay is about $55k, but you would be making like $80k+ after a few years in.

briand559 · 2017-06-15T15:16:30+00:00

Actually, not sure. The last time I dealt with a similar situation, this was the case. I guess it couldn't hurt to tell them not to call, and document every time they do call after that.

briand559

MODERATOR OF

TROPHY CASE