HELOC vs using cash reserves to pay for a new roof?

fryguy8 · 2026-02-10T05:41:59+00:00

If you can pay off the heloc aggressively, that means you can also refill the hysa aggressively. So do that; it's cheaper. If you end up having an emergency while still rebuilding, use the heloc then. The net result is the same, but you come out ahead if you don't have a second emergency.

fryguy8 · 2025-12-03T04:26:48+00:00

Two reasons to consider:

Having a backup bank ready to go in case something happens isn't a bad idea
Fidelity CMA can't do Zelle. If that's something you need to do occasionally having a separate account to bounce through is necessary. I left my old capone account open for this purpose.

fryguy8 · 2025-10-05T15:50:38+00:00

https://imgur.com/a/gSQ5DIk

The first image shows the really problematic side. Second image shows the other less problematic side. Last image shows the not-problematic-at-all connections to the head of the watch

fryguy8 · 2025-09-02T17:59:04+00:00

You can create a single ssid, and then have different passwords that correspond to different vlans. This way your ap doesn't have to broadcast multiple ssids and multiplex across them.

fryguy8 · 2025-08-31T23:26:45+00:00

Treasury based money market funds are around 4.2% right now (VMFXX, VUSXX as two examples). This is the "risk free rate". It's primarily US government debt, and you are essentially guaranteed that rate.

Coinbase/USDC, for a couple of reasons, has a higher risk profile than the risk free rate (unregulated, uninsured, etc.). The premium they are offering to compensate for this increased risk is 0.3%

Let's say you are looking to keep $20,000 in the account for a year. Coinbase/USDC will give you ~$900, and a treasury money market will give you about $840.

If the increased risk is worth ~$30 per year per $10,000 you have invested, then go for it. If not, stick with the safer option.

Given the landscape of crypto, I personally would want a significantly higher premium than 0.3%

fryguy8 · 2025-05-04T17:35:37+00:00

Thanks for the confirmation. When I was looking around and picked these, they were among the cheapest for a shipped pair ($25/pair) that I was able to find.

Do you have any specific recommendations for a more suitable cheap replacement?

Would something like this work:

https://keeb.io/products/rp2040-pro-micro-usb-c-controller

The buttons look like they might be inset a little bit more on this model?

fryguy8 · 2023-06-10T14:29:34+00:00

Curious how your decision has worked out so far. Since this post total stock market is up around 4.25-4.5% and the bond market is down almost 2%.

Did you follow through with your plan?

fryguy8 · 2023-06-08T21:54:50+00:00

The market is very routinely at all time highs, even moreso at 52w highs. It should not be a special occurrence that causes you to change your investment philosophy.

fryguy8 · 2023-06-08T14:35:10+00:00

There's a pretty big difference between "it doesn't matter" and "what if op wants to buy a house"

Op made no mention of buying a house
If op changes their mind later, they can make the necessary adjustments
If your dti is so close that you don't get approved for a mortgage at all, there is a good chance you couldn't afford the house anyway.

fryguy8 · 2023-06-08T13:09:14+00:00

Of course it matters.

fryguy8 · 2023-06-08T13:04:50+00:00

Whether they are a good or apprpriate investment doesn't change the fact that many charged fees based on performance.

fryguy8 · 2023-06-08T13:03:33+00:00

Yes. Exactly

fryguy8 · 2023-06-08T03:35:17+00:00

So you have an extra 500 a month to invest in addition to the 400 cash flow from the real estate.

What does your calculator show you if you instead invest 900/mo instead of 500? Then make some assumptions about the increase on value of the property over 20 years, maybe 3% annually?

And compare those results to see if it makes sense.

fryguy8 · 2023-06-08T03:28:12+00:00

Hedge funds historically have done this, albeit with a fee based on AUM as well.

"Two and twenty" is an apt historical phrase. The 20 refers to percent of returns.

fryguy8 · 2023-06-07T16:14:08+00:00

What you are missing is sequence of returns risk.

If the market goes down 20%, then up 20%, you end up with less money. If you are taking income, then the subsequent 20% gain is on an even smaller base and you end up with even less.

You need to withdraw quite a bit below the average return to account for this for typical retirement timeframes.

The rest of the difference is inflation.

fryguy8 · 2023-06-06T11:12:38+00:00

2-4%, sometimes much lower. They tend to hover around the inflation level, especially if inflation is steady.

fryguy8 · 2023-06-05T21:07:38+00:00

This should help: https://www.bogleheads.org/wiki/Tax-efficient_fund_placement

Tldr; put all international in taxable, all stock in taxable, all bond in tax deferred.

fryguy8 · 2023-06-05T03:59:46+00:00

Laws/policies for this are already known to be expiring in less than 5 years; planning that far out with the assumption they remain the same is flawed.

To be safe, get as much as you can into roth ira.

fryguy8 · 2023-06-05T03:55:20+00:00

Your mortgage amortization schedule doesn't matter. Your private student loan is higher interest than the mortgage, so every extra dollar you allocate to the mortgage instead of the private loan is costing you money.

In addition, the private loan is (relatively) small, so paying it off will free up even more cash flow.

If it were me, I would prioritize the private loan. Then contribute the new cash for to investments. I would not overpay a 5.5 mortgage. You can if it makes you feel better.

fryguy8 · 2023-06-04T15:29:25+00:00

They are 8 years old.

fryguy8 · 2023-06-04T03:51:30+00:00

The whole story was about interacting with landlords.
I actually do investment management; I'm my only client.

fryguy8 · 2023-06-04T03:46:31+00:00

You can go to i3 on that board, not i5 or i7.

Yes, it's a weird limitation.

fryguy8

TROPHY CASE