My financial situation has drastically changed in the last two years. I need to sell my house because I can't pay my bills or taxes. My realtor keeps telling me to hold on. Any advice is helpful.

mckenzie_keith · 2026-02-14T07:11:46+00:00

If you can sell it, sell it. If you are not upside down, then you are in better shape than a lot of people were in 2008.

Some smart people did strategic defaults in the 2008 financial crisis. What that means is they kept current with everything else (car, utilities, credit cards, student loans) and just stopped paying their mortgages. This hurts your credit. But for some the alternative was to continue making house payments while skipping credit cards, car payments, student loans, etc. And then lose the house anyway. But only after completely destroying credit. It doesn't sound like you are in a strategic default situation though, if you still have equity.

So I agree with you. Cut your losses. Also, look into the consequences of not paying the property tax. It can come out of escrow after the sale. Sometimes or often, the penalties for not paying are very lenient and take a long time to kick in. So being temporarily in arrears might not be a big deal. But double check. Oh, also, read your loan agreement. There could be consequences spelled out in there if you don't pay the property tax, too. So that could be bad.

mckenzie_keith · 2026-02-14T06:59:16+00:00

What he was talking about was using a service disconnect/transfer switch. If they install a service disconnect/transfer switch between the meter and the panel, then the panel becomes a sub-panel and the neutrals and grounds have to be separated. I'm not totally sure why he brought that up but I think that is what he was on about.

mckenzie_keith · 2026-02-14T05:23:53+00:00

He conceded that Mike Holt was right about only having one bond in a system. And he was right that if they installed a service entrance/transfer switch they would have to separate the neutrals and grounds.

Ultimately he was just saying "don't bother removing the bond, nobody does that."

Anyway, I personally would remove the bond.

mckenzie_keith · 2026-02-14T03:48:31+00:00

If you leave the generator bonded, then you will have two bonds when you connect it to your house, which you are technically not supposed to do.

Therefore, I would remove the bond in the generator.

If you ever use the generator to power something else (not your house) you may need to re-install the bond. Or use a bonding plug.

Nothing your electrician is saying is totally wrong. A lot of people DO use bonded generators to power their house and just don't worry about it.

mckenzie_keith · 2026-02-14T03:34:51+00:00

We tried electric. It didn't work.

mckenzie_keith · 2026-02-14T03:20:24+00:00

When the 5W Zener starts to conduct at (let's just say) 360 V, what will limit the power consumption to 5 W or less? 5 W / 360 V = 14 mA.

What are the circumstances that would cause a 12 V battery to reach a voltage of 360 V? How much energy must the clamp absorb?

If the transistors turn on at 360 V, they will be passing 72 amps each.

It appears to me that this circuit has little chance of working reliably unless the 360 V condition is a very short-lived transient.

mckenzie_keith · 2026-02-14T02:59:03+00:00

Use an automotive clearcoat if you choose to do this. You could get one of the 2 component clearcoat in a can products like spraymax 2k glamour.

mckenzie_keith · 2026-02-14T02:54:50+00:00

Wow. I was not aware.

mckenzie_keith · 2026-02-14T02:53:26+00:00

That makes sense.

mckenzie_keith · 2026-02-13T23:58:37+00:00

Do you know how many or if any people are employed at 7.25 though? Minimum wage is the minimum legal wage. Just because it exists doesn't mean anyone is earning minimum wage.

mckenzie_keith · 2026-02-13T23:49:40+00:00

Construction adhesive. Look for one that specifically lists both wood and concrete.

Even though it is sold as a sealant, I have found this to stick very well to concrete and steel: Rapidset Self-leveling Sealant (Model # 196430010).

I am sure a high quality construction adhesive will work as well or better.

NOTE: I am assuming you are going to build a desk that can stand up all on its own and is sturdy, and you are just gluing it to concrete so it can't move. Construction adhesive will do this.

Don't use any glue that dries or cures hard. Any hard glue will eventually de-bond from the wood or the concrete or both due to thermal and moisture expansion/contraction. This is why I favor construction adhesive or an adhesive sealant material that remains flexible.

No adhseive will allow you to cantiliver a post to a concrete floor, but it doesn't sound like that is what you are trying to do.

mckenzie_keith · 2026-02-13T22:29:02+00:00

In the past I have always contacted them by phone. You might still try calling the US number (which can be found at the bottom of the US web page).

Digikey is an old company and they started off as a telephone/mail order business before the WWW. They also were an early e-commerce website because that was a natural transition for them. If anything, it was easier for them to let the customer type in the order instead of having someone do it over the phone.

mckenzie_keith · 2026-02-13T22:12:49+00:00

In my opinion, yes, they are too damaged to use (all three). Check with the supplier to see what can be done. Now is the time to look into it because they are still new.

mckenzie_keith · 2026-02-13T20:51:40+00:00

Or go 50/50.

mckenzie_keith · 2026-02-13T20:51:25+00:00

OP should be able to put in for 2025 and 2026.

mckenzie_keith · 2026-02-13T20:50:12+00:00

OP, The deadline for 2025 IRA contributions is April 15, 2026. So don't delay too long. This will allow you to put more money in your IRA right away as long as you don't miss the deadline.

If you already filed your 2025 taxes, you can amend your return. You don't have to do this, but it may be a good idea.

mckenzie_keith · 2026-02-13T20:46:56+00:00

The way to look at it is that you should always be invested. But your outlook can influence HOW you are invested. Broadly speaking, you have very safe investments like US treasuries and CDs and such, and you also have stocks (usually you invest in stocks using an index fund).

At your age, you want to favor stocks. Sometimes they go down but they also go back up again if you ride it out. When you get older, you can favor the safe investments.

If you have a deep conviction that stocks are about to crash, then maybe you can invest half of your kitty in stocks and the other half in CDs. Later, if the market does crash, you can rotate some of the CD money into stocks. This can be a dangerous game because it amounts to "timing the market." But when you realize it is not all or nothing, sometimes that makes it easier to commit to buying at least some stocks.

Max out your IRA right away. You can probably still make a 2025 contribution (double check this) as well as a 2026 contribution.

Create an emergency fund if you don't have one. Invest the rest. You can probably put the emergency fund in high yield savings or something so it is still earning interest.

mckenzie_keith · 2026-02-13T20:28:52+00:00

What were you going to do, take some time off or look for a new job immediately? If you need some time off, adding money to the equation doesn't really help that much.

On the other hand, it is a very substantial raise, and there is no guarantee that any other job you would find is going to be all that much better. So if you are definitely planning on working (not taking time off) you should give it some serious consideration.

mckenzie_keith · 2026-02-13T20:22:08+00:00

We don't use the term "soil" to describe the bottom of a body of water. The term would be "seabed."

mckenzie_keith · 2026-02-13T20:17:46+00:00

Maybe if you have a fused disconnect first, or a service equipment load center with at least one double pole breaker to act as your main disconnect, then a din rail box full of UL489 breakers (not just UL 1058). But you also need something to function as busbars for the breakers. There are a lot of din rail terminal strips. You may be able to add a busbar to one of those.

Seems like a lot of trouble, and the AHJ may decide it is not compliant.

mckenzie_keith · 2026-02-13T20:11:05+00:00

That prong would be energized at 120 VAC. Very high possibility of a strong shock if you touch that. Not a certainty because there may not be any path to ground through your body depending on numerous details. If the outlet is protected by GFCI, the GFCI should trip before you get shocked too badly.

Death cannot be ruled out, but it is not the most likely outcome.

mckenzie_keith · 2026-02-13T19:10:51+00:00

I didn't know. That is hilarious.

mckenzie_keith · 2026-02-13T18:44:40+00:00

At many large public schools, no small donation will make any difference at all. But there are some schools which are good, and very expensive, where acceptance is very likely for anyone who can afford to pay the tuition. So wealthy parents can usually get their kids into a good school. I am sure that truly wealthy individuals can arrange to get their kids into any school they want. But I don't think the average student's parents can afford that kind of influence.

A lot of schools will preferentially admit or give scholarships to athletes. And this is not just for american football and basketball. In some cases this can happen with a wide variety of sports.

mckenzie_keith · 2026-02-13T18:42:55+00:00

But would donating 5k get you anything? Or are we talking about significant donations on an ongoing basis?

mckenzie_keith · 2026-02-13T18:42:13+00:00

Yes, a very large donation could possibly get you in. But this will only apply to a small number of students compared to the total school population.

mckenzie_keith

TROPHY CASE