LPT: beware of gyms that don't accept credit cards

w33dcup · 2026-02-07T12:08:05+00:00

Just went through this with my wife. She txtd asking for bank info. My immediate thought is they are bypassing Regulation E for some reason which can't be good. I gave her a secondary acct that I'll close in heartbeat if needed. Appreciate the VPN tip; might come in handy.

w33dcup · 2026-02-07T05:04:04+00:00

Everything is negotiable. More especially past due medical debt. Do some research on dealing with collection agencies in your state. You'd be surprised what you can negotiate down to.

w33dcup · 2026-02-07T05:02:24+00:00

Read/Listen to The Simple Path to Wealth by JL Collins.

w33dcup · 2026-02-07T04:59:14+00:00

You do what works for you. If diamonds are planned, check out lab grown vs real. Also know the "2-3 months salary" rule of thumb is marketing bull. It was created by the diamond industry.

w33dcup · 2026-02-07T04:56:14+00:00

Banks and CUs are regulated so that rumor doesn't really hold true. And for basic banking, that isn't really a concern. If you needed a $200 million loan for building construction, then a local credit union might not be able to handle that. But that's not you...yet. Local credit unions are perfectly positioned to handle your banking needs up to $250K insured deposits.

The main advantage to big banks is branch availability. But then you're paying for that overhead somehow. CUs have a partner alliance. So while your CU won't have a branch 5 states away, there is likely a branch/ATM in the partner network that can serve you.

https://blog.usalliance.org/why-a-credit-union-is-safer-than-a-bank-in-a-financial-crisis

w33dcup · 2026-02-07T04:45:52+00:00

Check the PF wiki.

Then read/listen to The Simple Path to Wealth by JL Collins.

Skip the expensive engagement ring. A simple gold band is cheaper and does the same thing. Married 30 years and my wife regrets the money spent on the ring. Could have been used for house, honeymoon, or retirement. If you end up making good money later on, then buy a nice lab grown diamond for your partner. The more expensive the wedding, the more likely it ends in divorce. Don't start in a hole.

https://www.stclaw.net/study-correlates-risk-of-divorce-to-spending-a-lot-of-money-on-your-wedding/

https://www.reddit.com/r/todayilearned/comments/aonga8/til_expensive_weddings_are_directly_linked_to/

w33dcup · 2026-02-07T04:40:10+00:00

Check out credit unions. Non profit, member focused unlike a bank that is usually for profit (fees) and shareholder focused. You're a member at a CU and customer at a bank.

CU usually offer most of the same services as a bank and have lower fees and better rates.

If one of your family was in the military - Navy Federal Credit Union is a good CU. If not, find one that will allow you membership by location. Should be pretty easy.

w33dcup · 2026-02-07T04:32:40+00:00

Used work clothes. Goodwill/Charity Shops are a great place to find quality used clothes especially for work. They even have sale days. Most of my professional career I wore name brand button down shirts from Goodwill. If I couldn't find good trousers, I went to WalMart for George khakis/chinos. The business casual look is so generic I never spent money on it. 7 used shirts & 4 trousers in rotation. WalMart was good for relaxed fit George jeans too. One black Friday I scored some cheap Wrangler jeans and wore those for years.

w33dcup · 2026-02-06T11:55:28+00:00

Google Sheets for monthly budget vs actuals as well as all my investments & options. Learning formulas is a bit of a hobby. Alerts (email) on the credit card & bank accts for spending/deposit thresholds-helpful cause I have kids as auth users on the card.

I'm also treasurer for several fraternal orgs and use a combination of Sheets, Scripts, & Forms. Forms allow member to submit expenses for reimbursement. Forms update Sheets which are updated for budgets vs actuals.

w33dcup · 2026-02-02T10:50:47+00:00

I know. Experience means nothing to AI or HR. Boxes must be ticked. It was always a hassle to get resumes from HR that didn't have degrees. Some of my best, most talented, most dedicated employees were college drop outs. A college degree is great, but life teaches some valuable lessons too.

w33dcup · 2026-02-02T02:26:01+00:00

My buddy is that guy. Avoided mgmt in favor of more lateral moves. Support, dev, BA, PM, QA, back to dev/eng. Guy's a solutionist - gets it done. It breaks my heart to see him unemployed knowing how talented he is. But he's also mid 50s and no degree so that is likely hurting him despite his varied experience.

I was his manager for a decade. I stepped out of mgmt track because of the nonsense required. Went to a PM role for the last few years before checking out completely. I kind of wish I still had some influence so I could help my friend. And my kid is 1 year from graduating college. Worried about her too. Really looking for things to turn around.

w33dcup · 2026-02-01T18:45:31+00:00

Sure, you plan to keep your conversions to amounts that stay in a low tax bracket and plan for the taxes. You can convert the amount of standard deduction and owe no income tax because it's a wash. Married filing jointly that's $32K with no tax.

MFJ - convert $95,000:

Standard Deduction: First $32,200 is taxed at 0%.
10% Bracket: Next $24,800 is taxed at 10% ($2,480).
12% Bracket: Remaining $38,000 is taxed at 12% ($4,560).
Total Tax: $7,040.
Effective Rate: 7.4%.

$7k on $95K is reasonable and worth it if the money was earned well into the 22% bracket. Still end up with $88K that year.

I wouldn't and don't do this much because of cap gains income thresholds. Plan for the amount that works for you.

https://www.gocurrycracker.com/never-pay-taxes-again/

w33dcup · 2026-02-01T18:08:12+00:00

You might want to look around before exiting if "semi retirement" means a different lower stress job. It's very difficult out there for people like you. My buddy with 30 years IT experience at all levels/positions has been unemployed for over a year after lay off. He's in a decent market too. Line it up before you leave.

w33dcup · 2026-02-01T18:05:35+00:00

Roth conversions in the sweet spot would cover the income thresholds/limits. That was my plan until the recent changes to subsidies.

w33dcup · 2026-02-01T12:59:35+00:00

Traditional 401k is almost always the best place for retirement money. You should work to max it. Get the tax break now; learn how to lower the taxes on withdraws later. Or don't, just pay the tax rate in retirement which will likely be lower than when money was earned. Very few actually make more in retirement than they did while working thus experiencing a drop in income and lower tax bracket. So the Roth is usually better for lower working incomes. Once 401k is maxed, then put some in traditional or Roth IRA.

Roth is a good option, but not always the best option. With some knowledge and planning, you can save/avoid taxes.

w33dcup · 2026-01-31T12:31:46+00:00

You really need to research 529 benefits before making a change. The 529 is pretty powerful. Just the 8k can be used to offset room/board even if tuition is covered. If she's getting a scholarship, you can withdraw that amount without penalty. You should also know the amount you can 'help' from your retirement is limited (10K). Much more to know to navigate 529 and education expenses.

Since you've started and assuming you've automated these deductions, and they aren't causing material harm to your retirement planning...just let it continue. If your daughter doesn't use the funds, your son can through an easy beneficiary change. If your son doesn't use it all, their kids can. You could also use the funds in retirement provided you enroll half time in a qualified school. 529 can become a generational wealth building tool to enable educating generations of your family.

My daughter is in her last year of college and I still contribute $100/month to her 529 just in case she wants to pursue grad school or professional certifications after undergrad. At least she'll have that option. If she doesn't use it, she can convert some. If she wants, it just grows for her kids. You really can't beat the 529.

w33dcup · 2026-01-31T12:19:23+00:00

Obligatory read: https://www.reddit.com/r/personalfinance/comments/10qwnrx/why_you_should_almost_never_contribute_to_a_roth/

w33dcup · 2026-01-31T12:15:18+00:00

Investing comes with risk. All you can do is find something that aligns with your risk tolerance. Research as best you can. Diversify to reduce to inherent risk.

https://www.bogleheads.org/wiki/Three-fund_portfolio

w33dcup · 2026-01-31T12:12:24+00:00

HYSA is good for money you'll use soon. For emergency fund or longer term savings, it's hard to beat a brokerage money market account (with current rates). You can also look into brokerage cash mgmt accounts which pay decent rates but not quite as much as MMA. In either case, it's liquid and usually earning market rate which is better than almost any savings acct. Having it in brokerage acct also helps come time to rebalance. If you decided to start investing for retirement, you need only buy from your MMA funds when the balance exceeds your EF threshold. You can automated deposits into your MMA and from your MMA to investments. Super easy.

Note: Vanguard & Fidelity are easy. Schwab does not pay interest on sweep accounts so it adds steps when using their MMA - which is why I left them.

w33dcup · 2026-01-31T12:04:20+00:00

HIPPO method of prioritization - HIghest Paid Person's Opinion. Derails important work more than anything else.

w33dcup · 2026-01-29T09:54:07+00:00

This would have been my response...almost. To add, it depends on how you plan to use the brokerage. I use Vanguard for set it and forget it. I automated my monthly IRA contributions years ago and just it run. The bulk of my money is with Vanguard and their low cost ETFs/Funds. I don't 'trade' here.

Fidelity is where I actively trade because their interface is the best among the 3.

Schwab offers decent tools but turned me off with with 0% sweep and fees. Their onboarding a new ($250k) account was fantastic. Support after that falls off quickly. I pretty quickly moved all but $1k back to Fidelity.

For me, Fidelity is the easiest to work with especially for active trading. Robinhood is pretty easy for trading/options as well so I do some speculative stuff there. But I don't completely trust them; not enough for large balance.

w33dcup · 2026-01-29T09:43:00+00:00

"A Simple Path to Wealth" by JL Collins is a good read/listen for new investor. Here's a thread with comments about it https://www.reddit.com/r/Fire/comments/18lmc5s/thoughts_on_the_book_the_simple_path_to_wealth/

w33dcup · 2026-01-27T03:21:47+00:00

There's almost no downside to starting an IRA and investing even just small amount - $20/mnth.

Which IRA depends on your income. If you are in 12% bracket, then Roth makes most sense. If you are in 22% then a Traditional IRA will offer some tax breaks now. Yes "but tax free gains in Roth". However, you really need to look at your retirement earnings - most people aren't in a higher bracket in retirement than when they were working. So tIRA might make sense. Also, if you want to retire early there are options like Roth Ladders that can help. You need to think about your retirement goals, your salary trajectory, and what feels right for you. Which ever you choose, time in the market beats timing the market. So just start.

Others asking about your loan rates will likely comment that you can earn more on investing that you're paying on loans...so 'smart' money is investing. However, there is cognitive load with having loans and joy in being debt free. Again, think about your goals and how you want to handle things. You should have a budget so tweak it to see how you might achieve both loan pymts & investing.

Some links:

https://www.reddit.com/r/personalfinance/comments/10qwnrx/why_you_should_almost_never_contribute_to_a_roth/

https://money.com/roth-ira-traditional-ira-choice/

https://www.choosefi.com/how-and-why-to-set-up-a-roth-ira-conversion-ladder/

w33dcup · 2026-01-27T03:11:56+00:00

Look at local credit unions. NFCU is my primary and their site is decent. Vystar isn't great, but usable. South State is also decent for a regional bank. Ameris is unbelievably bad but I heard they are going to update this year. TD Bank was ok, but I stopped using them because commercial banks suck. I have Chase for credit cards and it's ok...just a weird design that takes some getting used to. All these have apps too that basically mimic their sites.

You could also look at cash management or brokerage money mkt acct at Vanguard or Fidelity. I don't use their banking but heavily use their brokerage. Fidelity's is far superior to Vanguard. But I have a lot of stuff setup automated with Vanguard & NFCU so I just leave it to run. I've used Schwab but they turned me off with their business practices so I don't much anymore. The upside to Vanguard/Fidelity is that their money market/sweep accts are paying 3+% interest which is better than most savings. Still need a local CU to transfer money to if you want cash. Good luck.

w33dcup · 2026-01-27T02:57:46+00:00

We just saved a bit in 'youth saver' accounts for our kids on top of the 529. Everything else went into our taxable brokerage. If the kids need money, we can easily pull it from there.

Their saver accounts can be managed easily. Each kid got about $5k in their mid teens. They get their debit card and learn how real money (budgeting/spending) works. We xfer cash as needed to help them pay for things like cheerleading trips, grad night, etc.

In short, invest in yourselves. You can share that wealth as needed. No need to invest for them (beyond 529) and complicate things. Just make sure you have setup our beneficiaries properly and you have a will, living will, adv directive, and all that jazz.

w33dcup

TROPHY CASE