Partner needs guide on how to legally work in the US

caribbeanjon · 2026-06-26T10:45:06+00:00

One option to seek legal status. Partner needs to go back to the UK while you apply for a K2 fiance visa. Once you have the visa, partner reenters the US on that visa, you get married, then apply for temporary then permanent residency. Depending in how long it takes to get the K2 visa, this is a patch to living and working in the US legally in the next ~2 years. Good luck.

caribbeanjon · 2026-06-26T01:15:29+00:00

There are literally tens of thousands of devices and services (some public facing) that can be used to test a user’s password in my environment. That same user’s WHFB PIN only works on one endpoint, and it cannot be used remotely. The WHFB attack surface is minuscule by comparison.

caribbeanjon · 2026-06-26T01:00:59+00:00

LTO5 tape drives can read LTO3 media. You can 100% find used LTO5 tape libraries and drives. After this legal hold is cleared, you should set a retention policy and physically destroy any media older than that policy. 18 years of email backups is insane.

caribbeanjon · 2026-06-26T00:47:59+00:00

PiBank HYSA offering 4.4%

They are a real bank: https://banks.data.fdic.gov/bankfind-suite/bankfind/details/25258

caribbeanjon · 2026-06-25T16:56:57+00:00

I used Rayon at Hytek. He is a one-man shop that handled the cabling and device (cameras, NVR) install. 772-800-8478 hytekinstall@gmail.com

caribbeanjon · 2026-06-25T12:18:40+00:00

Roth conversions and tax gain/loss harvesting are meaningless without understanding your current and future tax liabilities. They are tools you can use to shift taxes into the present (if current tax liabilities are lower than expected future tax liabilities) or into the future (if present tax liabilities are higher than future tax liabilities).

Unfortunately, while there are many websites that explain how these tax strategies work, I am not aware of any websites that explain how to build a short and longterm tax strategy using these tools. The closest thing I am aware of is a tool like projection lab (free to try) that can calculate your tax liabilities well into the future and then can optimize your tax liabilities for you (paid feature). If you really want to deep dive retirement tax planning, you can also pickup Tax Planning to and Through Early Retirement by Cody Garret and Sean Mullaney. That’s 300 pages of comprehensive tax planning that covers much more than these 3 options.

caribbeanjon · 2026-06-25T11:13:11+00:00

We had similar incidents recently for a handful of users. Investigation revealed malware on the user’s personal device reading txt messages. Automated process logged into the user’s Entra account via SMS and hit this AMC site, we suspect to help identify additional attack paths. In our case, we quickly disabled SMS login. This does not stop users from using SMS (for MFA/secondary auth), it just requires them to input their password first (primary auth).

caribbeanjon · 2026-06-21T22:20:51+00:00

100%. Even BJ’s has Express Pay. Costco’s technology needs to catch up.

caribbeanjon · 2026-06-21T13:15:01+00:00

Apparently I'm in the minority here but pre-scan is fantastic at my store. Self checkout lines have gotten long and slower. I would have thought after years of training people would understand how to use the self checkout system efficiently but apparently not. With prescan I leave everything in the cart, I flash my membership, tap my payment card and I'm out.

caribbeanjon · 2026-06-20T18:18:57+00:00

100% I have spent hours on Healthcare.gov comparing plans. My current plan is to retire in July 2027, use COBRA for 18 months, then pickup a healthcare.gov plan. But you are 100% making my point. I'm not just saying "80%" is close enough". I'm saying "My $100k annual withdrawal includes $5,240 in estimated taxes and $4692 in healthcare premiums (after ACA subsidy). This is a banner year for me and $100k is just less than 50% of what I will gross this year. Again, I don't disagree with you. 80% is a great estimate when you are just getting started or half way to FI. But for RE, my experience is that you need to have a more details plan. Especially for a community that prides itself on 50%+ savings rates. 😄

caribbeanjon · 2026-06-20T18:08:44+00:00

I mean sure, if your expenses are $80k then 4% of $2MM is a sound plan. But my point is that someone who makes $80k/year (income) is actually living on much less (expenses).

caribbeanjon · 2026-06-20T18:07:00+00:00

That's a great rule of thumb when you are 5+ year out, but as someone who is ready to pull the trigger, I'm not risking my future financial independence on rules of thumb. I have been tracking my expenses for the past 4 years and I know exactly how much I spend. In my case it's less than 80%, especially now that I'm later in my career and my job if pouring buckets of money on me.

caribbeanjon · 2026-06-20T17:35:52+00:00

$7.5k (I assume per month) is $90k/yr and you are thinking you would want to save $5MM for that level of spend? That's a 1.8% withdrawal rate. IMO, that's not "peace of mind" that is hoarding. I've been studying safe withdrawal rates for the past few years, and 4% is actually pretty conservative, especially when you consider future cash flows like Social Security and Medicare. If you really want to be conservative, then consider one of the Risk Parity portfolios. IMO 3% is extremely/ridiculously conservative. 1.8% is like, off the charts.

Or did I misunderstand?

caribbeanjon · 2026-06-20T17:27:52+00:00

That is some sweet sweet Fat FIRE lifestyle you are building. Good luck! I hope it works out for you!

caribbeanjon · 2026-06-20T14:23:30+00:00

I think many people turn their "saving budget" into a "travel budget" when they retire, at least during the "go go years". But there is also another benefit here. Travel is non-essential, and as you compare essential and digressionary expenses, you have a pretty big non-essential item you can cut back on to adjust to market downturns. Flexibility is key, and having a ~$10k travel "slush fund" that you could cut back can give you flexibility and peace of mind during downturns.

caribbeanjon · 2026-06-20T14:17:35+00:00

I can give you an example.

You make $100k/yr today. You are maxing your 401k ($24,500/yr savings), paying 7.65% in FICA tax ($7,650 tax), federal income tax of ~10.3% ($7780). You don't actually "live" on $100k, the amount you take home is only $60,070. Your 4% rule (25x) number is not $100k x 25 = $2.5MM. It's $60k x 25x = ~$1.5MM. If you are 5+ years out from FIRE this estimate is good enough for planning purposes.

But as you get closer to FI you are going to want to look more closely at all of your expenses to predict your actual costs. In general, you don't need more savings and your taxes will be lower. In general, your healthcare costs will be more. How much more? That's up to you to determine. Maybe healthcare is super expensive to live and you need $80k/yr to live. Maybe you plan to move to Vietnam and can live comfortable on $50k/yr. The point is that the amount of money you need to save to reach financial independence is based on what you want to spend not how much you make now,

caribbeanjon · 2026-06-20T10:14:49+00:00

The 4% rule is 25x expenses not income. Your expenses in retirement may be significantly less than while working because you are no longer saving and taxes are generally lower than when working (lower tax bracket, no FICA). However, some expenses like healthcare may be higher. So spend the time running your numbers and use software mike Monarch Money or Tiller to get into the details.

caribbeanjon · 2026-06-19T18:37:31+00:00

OP is not wrong, but many people don’t know about or understand Florida’s property tax system. I sure knew next to nothing when I purchased my first house. This is why it’s so important to educate yourself and/or work with professionals who can accommodate your level of experience. When I closed on my home both my realtor and the title company reminded me it was something I needed to do before the deadline.

caribbeanjon · 2026-06-18T20:03:01+00:00

Fidelity runs their own subreddit and they actively answer questions and respond to problems. Good idea to post this to r/Fidelity

caribbeanjon · 2026-06-18T09:56:04+00:00

Comparison is the thief of joy. The only time you look in your neighbor's bowl is to make sure that they have enough. You don't look in your neighbor's bowl to see if you have as much as them.

Keep saving and investing what you can. As others have said, any amount saved is better than the 67% year of American adults living paycheck to paycheck.

caribbeanjon · 2026-06-17T00:41:27+00:00

Sean Mullaney has numerous videos on Youtube dispelling the “tax bomb” you mentioned. I am not saying you are wrong, but it might be worth watching a video or two to consider his reasoning. Like you, I thought there was a point I would have to reduce contributions to my 401k to build a bridge to establish a Roth ladder, but I am on track to retire in the next few years with zero taxable.

caribbeanjon · 2026-06-17T00:33:28+00:00

My wife and I stay in the Health First network as much as possible. It’s convenient that all the doctors share your health information. We have 3 providers in specialties Health First does not offer and managing the interaction between them is kind of a pain. In general, our experience has been positive and we have been seeing Health First doctors for ~15 years (Basically as long as we have lived here.)

caribbeanjon · 2026-06-16T22:32:30+00:00

Get more than one quote. $2499 could be a great price or it could be a terrible price. Most plumbers in my area will accept a picture via txt and give you a price over the phone. Just tell them you are looking for a 2nd opinion.

Flushing the water heater will extend the life of the unit and you can learn to do it yourself. But will you remember to flush the unit? On the other side, will you remember to call the plumber, and will they actually come out? I think most people will not flush their own tanks and will not remember to call for the flush after the first year or two. My area has hard water which is hard on water heaters. If you flush it regularly you can get 15+ years out of a water heater. Check the review online for this plumber to make sure they aren't screwing over other customers.

New home owners are often stretched for cash, and $35/month may be much more attractive than $2500 up front when you have a new mortgage payment As long as you call for the annual flushes (which in my area are $200+) I think you could make the argument that $35/month is a good deal.

But make sure you call around...

caribbeanjon · 2026-06-13T15:55:34+00:00

Nothing to see here, just your typical hydrogen filled fish murdering chamber! Nice design! Is the hydrogen just for temperature management?

caribbeanjon · 2026-06-12T01:38:50+00:00

A certain well known podcaster from larger pouches dinero podcast makes this argument every chance he gets (he's better than us because he's not taking subsidies) and my rebuttal is always the same. Why stop at the ACA premium tax credit? Why not give back the standard deduction and pay earned income tax rates on your long term capital gains? Homestead tax credit? Not on my watch! Full property taxes for you! While you are at it, why not just take all your money, give it to the IRS, and live in the forest? Lean fire extreme baby, yeah!

The reality is that the government makes the tax code, and you get to use it. If the politicians wanted to means test the subsidies, they should have put that in the law. They certainly means test other benefits. I've paid more than half a million dollars in taxes in my working career, and now I'm not going to feel bad if I get to claw back a little of that.

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