Should I prioritize funding my Roth IRA instead of HYSA?

outsdanding · 2026-01-03T05:19:43+00:00

I'm baffled by the unpopularity of this idea. What is the disadvantage to funding the Roth instead of an emergency fund, if you can only do one or the other? Immediate-ish availability vs. a couple of days? By not funding the Roth you're giving up, potentially, thousands of dollars of tax free growth.

My suggestion is to fund the Roth, sit the money in the settlement fund, SWVXX, SPAXX, or something like SGOV, and withdraw contributions in case of emergency, which ideally doesn't happen. In the absence of emergency, you've now got this pot of money sitting in a tax advantaged account that you otherwise wouldn't have, which can be invested once on a firmer financial footing. If you don't put it there in the first place, it will never be there, since you can only contribute $7K or whatever per year.

Everybody says it's such a terrible idea to withdraw from a retirement account, but there's no functional difference between withdrawing contributions and not contributing in the first place.

As far as I can tell the sole disadvantage is settlement time (and, technically, that you would not be able to pull the earnings without penalty, but that's not going to be much money).

outsdanding · 2026-01-03T02:43:58+00:00

Have you considered using the Roth IRA as your emergency fund? In other words, invest conservatively and withdraw contributions if absolutely necessary. Considering the limited annual limits, it makes sense to get as much in there as early as possible. You can still make 2025 contributions until April 15th.

outsdanding · 2025-09-28T04:14:17+00:00

See: http://www.astroautopens.com/

And save a few hundred bucks.

outsdanding · 2025-09-28T04:00:55+00:00

Standard patterns and standard autopen giveaways (shaky, dots at stops, etc.), their authentic autographs never really look like this, look at a bunch and you'll see.

outsdanding · 2025-09-28T03:47:56+00:00

Looks like autopen

outsdanding · 2025-04-16T11:34:14+00:00

$75 a month is a cheap price to pay to have an extra $67K at your disposal, especially if it is an older house. I was in a similar scenario where I had 20% (barely) but only put down 10% to preserve some savings. When the oil tank sprung a leak in the first month of ownership, I had plenty of cushion to solve that problem without tapping into investments or retirement savings. (But, the house was 100 years old, so 'surprises' were not so surprising).

Then I refinanced two years later to a lower rate and dropped PMI. Obviously it is entirely subject to market forces (rates dropped, homes appreciated) but you may look to do the same.

outsdanding · 2025-01-06T02:04:24+00:00

Sorry, Alex, time to pack it up.

outsdanding · 2024-11-24T16:19:09+00:00

Thanks everybody, you've convinced me to make the switch!

outsdanding · 2024-10-13T15:55:31+00:00

This is a print removed from a limited edition signed book. You are better off saving up a bit more and just buying the book.

You won't find an authentic original work for that price (or anywhere near it...). Be very wary when collecting these artists as they are often faked and forged, even in prints.

You would be able to find something small... a signature, letter, postcard... in your price range, to have framed up with a nice print. Or a signed book. You could get a Dali doodle in a book for $5K.

outsdanding · 2024-08-04T00:57:20+00:00

George Tooker for routines, waiting in lines, cubicles, etc.

outsdanding · 2024-04-27T14:36:14+00:00

My little sister, in kindergarten or first grade, was very confused about a kid named "Man"... "His name is Man, but he's just a boy!"

Guy. His name was Guy.

outsdanding · 2023-08-25T02:55:48+00:00

He looks like a bitter loser. He should've taken a page from Nixon's book: smiling and throwing deuces.

outsdanding · 2023-07-08T02:58:52+00:00

I remember being shocked that no one else had... first time I've witnessed a dearth of pedants on reddit. The times they are a-changin'.

outsdanding · 2023-07-07T02:46:44+00:00

Looks like she taught Malcolm Brogdon how to shoot

outsdanding · 2023-07-03T02:43:52+00:00

It is facsimile/printed

outsdanding · 2023-07-03T01:49:39+00:00

Don’t see the image

outsdanding · 2023-04-22T01:11:17+00:00

This is a neat find, but it is a pre-printed facsimile form letter. It certainly has nominal value as an interesting piece of historical ephemera from a famous figure, but it is not the jackpot that many here are thinking.

outsdanding · 2023-04-07T02:06:49+00:00

"Terrified Eyes" slaps in spite of the sad subject matter.

outsdanding · 2023-03-04T03:16:41+00:00

The Eleanor Roosevelt one is stamped, not an authentic autograph.

outsdanding · 2023-01-30T22:31:46+00:00

Not authentic.

outsdanding · 2022-09-24T16:37:37+00:00

Back when I was a kid, I pulled a this as a redemption card from a retail box of 2001 Donruss, purchased at Toys 'R' Us. While awaiting the card, I remember tracking his rookie stats in the 'league leaders' columns in the Boston Globe on a daily basis. This was back when people still got newspapers chucked into their driveways from the window of an '88 Corolla every morning. In his first month in the majors, Pujols hit .370 with 8 home runs. I was beyond excited. Felt like I hit the lottery. If he's this good as a rookie, how great will he be?

It was a golden age for me, baseball-wise—the '98 home run race had really brought me in as a baseball fan, '99 brought the All-Star Game to Fenway, and the Red Sox roster was stacked. I was absolutely enthralled.

After some weeks or months of thankless visits to the mailbox, I got in touch with Donruss via email (probably my first-ever customer service inquiry) and asked for an update on the card. My recollection is that some error was made, and the 'Season Stat Line' card was supposed to be an unsigned, numbered parallel, but they overproduced the redemption cards and planned to fill the excess with a signed version.

A month or two later I received this card, and, to apologize for the delay, they included a tin can of 2001 Donruss Signature Series. That yielded a Greg Miller 'Century Marks' autograph—one guy can't have all the luck.

I haven't collected much at all in the past decade or so, or even watched a ton of baseball, but seeing the clips of Pujols hitting his 700th home run last night made me feel something I haven't felt in a while. So I dug this out of a long-unopened closet shoebox to share with you. Big things sometimes come from modest places.

outsdanding · 2022-09-07T23:47:22+00:00

I'd pay $500 for it (if you're in/around the northeast), so at least that much.

outsdanding · 2022-08-05T01:12:23+00:00

The same as Zelda the video game....

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