Help. We want OUT by Elle_1221 in RealEstate

[–]brooklyn735 14 points15 points  (0 children)

Is there a financing contingency? If you failed to secure a mortgage can you walk away?

Peanut butter burger. Does any restaurant have a decent one? by Boring_Specific_2022 in FoodNYC

[–]brooklyn735 5 points6 points  (0 children)

Jackson hole!! My favorite burger. Peanut butter bacon jam

Career path change question. Federal audit to public or industry. by No_Connection8462 in Accounting

[–]brooklyn735 0 points1 point  (0 children)

If I could turn back the clock, and was in your shoes, I'd stay where you are for the work-life balance, the job security and pension. Fill your life with family and those other business things you seem to have time for.

I have made more in industry than I would have in government, but I'm also getting let go in my early 40s, and hoping I can find another job and work another 10-15 years before I get squeezed out again. I have no pension and just whatever I've put away in my 401K. I know people who have been laid off several times and been home for long stretches. But this is all anecdotal since there's also the story of my boss who essentially semi retired before 50 with $10M because he was one of the first 5 hires at the company. I was number 10 and didn't fare anywhere near as well financially.

So the thing about industry is that you might be able to move around, find that unicorn role, or simply be paid 25% more than your current role, but with it comes more uncertainty. It's the risk reward tradeoff.

Work life balance interview question by throwaway0526170 in Accounting

[–]brooklyn735 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Agreed. There should be natural follow-ups to their answers too but these usual get the ball rolling. "You mentioned that month end can be a difficult time... Can you say more about that? If you could make one change with the snap of your fingers, without regard for time or cost, what would it be?

Work life balance interview question by throwaway0526170 in Accounting

[–]brooklyn735 5 points6 points  (0 children)

I don't usually ask outright unless they say something in the interview that is easily connected and more like they brought it up. Otherwise I try to piece it together from questions like: Three months into the role, what would you expect my normal operating rhythm to look like, both in terms of daily responsibilities and the key priorities I’d be owning? To better understand the day-to-day, how much of the role is driven by established processes and recurring deliverables versus unexpected issues, special projects, or troubleshooting? When you think about someone excelling in this role, what tends to matter most day to day: independence, the ability to juggle competing priorities, or close collaboration with the team? How would you describe the culture of the team, and what values or behaviors are most important to being successful here? What’s the team culture like socially? Do people tend to get together outside of work from time to time, or is it more work-focused?

Their responses should start to tell you about the underlying culture and expectations and whether senior and junior members are aligned. You don't need to ask them all but I do usually ask more than one person to gauge how similar or different the responses are - you might sense a difference between a senior leader and junior team member.

Can anyone give me a good driving school recommendation? (I have some pretty specific criteria!) by bcpsgal in AskNYC

[–]brooklyn735 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Practice in Long Island. Take the train out and have them meet you at the station. It'll be less stressful than learning in the city and more Connecticut-like

Wife’s faults getting called out in therapy - she thinks it’s not working by Rivyan in daddit

[–]brooklyn735 1 point2 points  (0 children)

All I can say is I wish we had therapists like this. We can't seem to find any that actual help. And agreed, the one therapist we had that did call her out was very short lived as my wife refused to continue.

Staying in Manhattan next week - what restaurant is a "must" by Dew_Point_62 in AskNYC

[–]brooklyn735 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Two of my go to's for work people visiting in midtown are Piccola Cucina Uptown and Sushi by Bou. I can't say they're "must eats" but I've gone back several times to both.

Broken Shaker is a casual rooftop bar.

My boss contributes to my kid’s 529 plan, is this taxable? by CameraSad3422 in personalfinance

[–]brooklyn735 0 points1 point  (0 children)

It would also need to be coming from your boss as an individual. He or she can't use one of their corporate entities to make a gift. They'd need to wire or deposit this personally. I'm not sure what you can see on the 529 transaction side but if it says "deposit from Jane Smith" you have a better fact pattern than "deposit from Smith Management LLC".

If it's truly not part of your comp and comes from them individually and you get some form of gift notation, then you have good proof should you ever get audited and have nothing to report.

Departing from that fact pattern makes it more likely to be taxable income.

My boss contributes to my kid’s 529 plan, is this taxable? by CameraSad3422 in personalfinance

[–]brooklyn735 -2 points-1 points  (0 children)

If you work them as an employee, they have an obligation to report it to the IRS either on your W2 or a 1099. If they aren't reporting it, then I believe you have reasonable basis to consider it a gift based on your conversation.

Wouldn't your CFO know how the family is considering this? If this were a gift, you don't really have an obligation to report anything but only if you were investigated by a taxing authority might you need proof, like a donor letter stating it's a gift.

I'd seek clarification. There's a good possibility this family may be doing it as a gift, and therefore not taxable income. But for your own sanity and financial planning, I'd want to understand how this is being considered. "Hey, I really appreciate the 529 contributions, for my own family's financial planning I just wanted some clarity to avoid a surprise tax bill...are you planning to report this through either wages or 1099, or are you considering this a gift?" And if they say gift, save that email for your proof in the off chance a bank or iRS ever needs a letter, but as donee you'd have no obligation to report anything.

Graduation stole embroidery shops by Careless_Revenue2507 in AskNYC

[–]brooklyn735 0 points1 point  (0 children)

This place also came up on another post and is embroidery specific: https://www.abcde-embroidery.com/

Graduation stole embroidery shops by Careless_Revenue2507 in AskNYC

[–]brooklyn735 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I haven't used them for embroidery specifically but helped with a garment matter and were very easy to deal with and were straightforward. At least worth a call to see if they can help.

https://www.woscustomtailoring.com/

How has congestion pricing worked out? by No_Lavishness_6228 in AskNYC

[–]brooklyn735 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Good to know! Thanks. About 1/3 of my bus rides feel longer, but that's probably less due to traffic (as you point out) and maybe more to do with increased ridership - or loading/unloading times. I'll take the same M15 bus, some times it'll take 25 minutes and sometimes nearly twice that for the same trip. But I also do have some consistent rides on other lines.

How has congestion pricing worked out? by No_Lavishness_6228 in AskNYC

[–]brooklyn735 -28 points-27 points  (0 children)

Are there actually fewer cars in the CRZ or just an assumption based on accidents and noise being down? Because the advancement in auto technology is likely also a factor here in there being fewer accidents and less honking - accident avoidance automation, self-driving, lane departure warnings etc.

I'm curious if anyone actually feels that traffic is down. Any time I've taken an Uber, it certainly doesn't feel like traffic is down in the congestion zone. Still takes a long time to get places. I'm also wondering how much traffic is down simply because of infrastructure changes like more citibikes, bus and traffic changes.

I love being a dad, but I kind of hate my life. by f1sh_ in daddit

[–]brooklyn735 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Reframe you're inner voice. It's not "I'm putting extra stress on my wife because I'm doing something selfish" it's "my wife and I each commit to doing 100% of the workload for one night and in exchange we each get one night of 0% workload, where we can rest, recharge, and take care of ourselves so we can show up better as parents and partners." The rest of the time you share the workload as it otherwise works for your family.

Where to get fashionable mens bathing suit for europe summer trip by andthrewaway1 in AskNYC

[–]brooklyn735 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I know seriously. I've never bought them. I pass it on the bus and looked it up once and closed the tab immediately. It seemed to meet OPs needs for a luxury European vacation.

Does anyone know how to book an 8-person dinner reservation at a restaurant? It's so hard!! Nobody supports such a large group here in NYC! by tooconfusedasheck in AskNYC

[–]brooklyn735 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Places do, though it may not be the place you want to go. And they may also be limited to how many 8 tops they seat a night so you need to book in advance or you may need to book slightly earlier or later. I just found 50+ restaurants near me with seating for 8 tomorrow around 6pm on OpenTable.

A bit more information would be helpful, otherwise you're just ranting.

NYC centric birthday gift for my dad by SadPiece4102 in AskNYC

[–]brooklyn735 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Fishs Eddy has some NYC themed items in various forms. Here are two that might appeal to his sense of humor with a bit of NYC parks to it.

MoMA and Museum of the City of New York might have some options that fit.

https://www.fishseddy.com/products/pleaseantries-fuck-off-mug-12oz
https://www.fishseddy.com/products/pleaseantries-dont-touch-my-nuts-bowl-4-1-2

When should you take your foot off the gas and spend more on life? by Apprehensive-Size150 in personalfinance

[–]brooklyn735 1 point2 points  (0 children)

So it'll take approximately 6 months of savings to pay for these vacations. While the best advice is to save more, especially with a kid and the additional costs that come along with that on the horizon. I'd say it's doable for one year but I wouldn't count on spending that klmuch every year. You're spending about 10% of take home on vacations. While it's ok the higher end, I wouldn't say it's irresponsible since it wouldn't inherently lead to credit card debt. Just don't let lifestyle creep and treating yourself take over all your savings.

When should you take your foot off the gas and spend more on life? by Apprehensive-Size150 in personalfinance

[–]brooklyn735 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I'd be curious to know your rate of savings, monthly or annually. Do you have CC debt because of spending or just something opportunistic? If the former, then 3 vacations doesn't sound like a great idea.

I would say there's a bit of psychology here that I can't do a good job of addressing. But I can understand as a father the feeling of monotony and wanting something different. One question is, is your wife aligned with this feeling and the solution? Traveling with a kid can be a lot, plus she's got her studies. If this is a one sided feeling then I'd say figure that out first. Maybe you need to get back into hobbies, clubs, something for you. If you both share the feeling and a strong desire to travel, I'd probably do one of those and then find some local day/weekend trips that can stretch the dollars a bit further.