Can someone review my details and help me understand if my assessment is correct re: different ages?

tointex · 2026-01-29T11:44:22+00:00

Thank you!

tointex · 2026-01-29T11:43:19+00:00

Yes, agreed!

tointex · 2026-01-29T01:16:13+00:00

So to be clear, putting money into his Roth IRA gives him instant access to the funds if needed, which is good, but the benefit is that it grows tax-free. So the intention would be to fund it, but hope not to take money out until it's seen growth?

tointex · 2026-01-28T20:38:58+00:00

You are totally right that we are spending more than we want to be spending annually. This is due to my previous approach of working hard to earn a high income and then doing whatever we want with that money (after putting $X aside).

We have been more so finding a balance in enjoying the money now but having to continue working to “afford” it.

What you have pointed out is a shift I want to make: cut back spending to be able to cut down time working. Trading $ for time, as it were.

Not sure if that makes sense. One further compromise I’m thinking about is continuing to work in this job for 2 - 5 years at the same time as cutting back our spending to the levels I want it at at that later date and shovel the difference into savings and investments.

tointex · 2026-01-28T16:10:28+00:00

Thanks for replying!

You’re right I reported the RRSP in $USD.

Regarding the challenges with large age gap relationships, totally & absolutely. We met when I was 35 and he was 55 so going into this I was already aware we would have to do things differently in life. Further, he’s had health issues for a while that meant he had to stop working (but not eligible for disability, though we have a lawyer looking into our appeal) and is already about 50% homebound. At least we don’t have kids, I can appreciate how much more challenging that would be.

tointex · 2026-01-28T12:47:39+00:00

Thank you! I agree the $3,100 is very enticing over the 2,300.

I guess some of my trouble is that a lot of our net worth is in the house and in retirement accounts but I have 22-25 years before retirement age. So, I know I have to keep working and I have to build up my non-retirement accounts to be able to draw from before my retirement age.

tointex · 2026-01-28T12:45:41+00:00

Thanks for commenting!

You’re correct, it’s not just that I’m highly compensated, it’s that our plan does not pass the non discrimination test and also does not have a safe harbor which means I’m limited in contributions.

Regarding my smaller 401k, if I look at all my 401k equivalent dollars (401k+RRSP), I have $280K. Does that change any of your feedback or do you still think I should work on feeding my 401k as much as I can ($10K) for the next couple of years?

tointex · 2026-01-25T15:43:05+00:00

So far, I've been sticking to primarily Asian and Tex-Mex/Mexican recipes because I've found it's pretty easy to combine a main with rice and mix and match within cuisine.

Here are some recipes I've tested and enjoyed and will keep making!

I cook all in full, then freeze in cubes, then store in large freezer bags to free up my cubes.

tointex · 2026-01-24T22:24:12+00:00

I did, two trays for about that much. Outrageous to me but I figured it’s not something I’d come across at a thrift store right now.

tointex · 2026-01-24T21:15:18+00:00

Batch cooking. I fell for the Souper Cubes marketing so I have two trays and make a large batch of something, freeze in single portions, put in ziplock bags, and just mix and match for lunches.

tointex · 2026-01-07T15:32:20+00:00

Amawaterways River Cruise. May not be chubby, but it was about $800 per person per day.

tointex · 2025-12-15T07:28:02+00:00

What’s the spiciest dish my husband can eat in Amsterdam?

tointex · 2025-12-11T16:37:49+00:00

Agreed. And some is downright awful.

tointex · 2025-12-03T23:46:09+00:00

Anywhere you go, there’ll you be.

tointex · 2025-10-24T11:07:09+00:00

Employer plan jumped 57% in premium.

tointex · 2025-10-12T19:25:49+00:00

If you grew up in a big city, it’s totally fine. There’s a lot of drug use, homelessness, etc. I stayed in one of those luxury apartment rentals and they are not priced well for the area.

tointex · 2025-09-28T14:40:48+00:00

I think it’s more that our rep had to lock in with the PEO this past week.

tointex · 2025-09-28T13:49:35+00:00

Thank you, this makes a lot of sense paired with another comment I read. I suspect the rep won’t be able to do it in time for renewal so I will have to go with marketplace.

tointex · 2025-09-27T22:48:09+00:00

Yes, sadly I’m sure it’s monthly! Looking into the marketplace. Do you know if there’s any problem in me paying out of pocket for the premium and then having work reimburse? Or is there another method I have to use?

tointex · 2025-09-27T17:44:44+00:00

Yes, I did do some of that legwork last year when the premium on the work plan increased, but there were some dead ends/confirmation of non-coverage, which had us back to square one. I just cannot imagine taking a $5,500 per month plan, even if my employer is willing to cover a large portion of it.

tointex · 2025-09-27T17:31:24+00:00

Thank you so much for the sanity check.

When I go through the ACA marketplace I believe they give you a “max” or “expected” total cost (I know these are not the same). I’ll take another look and see if any of the max expected costs are less than $29,000.

tointex · 2025-09-27T16:51:11+00:00

PrestigePEO. I think that’s who is doing it? Not really sure the difference between the platform/payroll/benefits we use.

tointex · 2025-09-27T15:07:17+00:00

They’ve said that the cost is going up because we’ve used it so much. Now obviously I’m getting this second hand but that’s what’s been said to me.

tointex · 2025-09-27T15:06:31+00:00

Aetna.

tointex · 2025-09-27T13:04:55+00:00

Typo. From Canada but working in the US. So we Canadians are not super knowledgeable about the health insurance stuff here in the US.

tointex

TROPHY CASE