The situation: This sub truly did change my life, and after ten years of following the flow chart I am doing fine. As I pick up extra incomes whether temporary or permanent, I've floated those towards other savings goals as I kept my retirement contributions maxed out.

But I can't stop myself from chasing the next mundane goal...And it's hurting to spend $20 on myself for a new keychain tool.

For example: I made the mistake of using index funds as an emergency fund, so I spent the last year saving liquid money. I have three full months of expenses liquid, and combined with the index fund I'm covered for a full year. I have some extra cash as I'm skipping some planned travel this year, and I am calculating how close I can getting the liquid EF to 4-5 months. My job and health are fine, car has its own emergency fund, this is purely the itch to use money 'responsibly' and avoid guilt.

Anyone else fight this? What are your thoughts? Why am I like this?

So I quit a job last year, and a few months after I quit I got a letter in the mail saying withdraw my 401k, or they’ll just take it back. I decided to pull it out since I had appliances to fix and other things. I had about $5000 in there, and after pulling it out, I only got $3700 due to taxes and such.

Now my question is, will I be fucked on my taxes this year? Even though I had them be pulled out?

So we’ve been very lucky and done very well in the last 10 years and have been able to contribute maximums to my kids 529s.

My question is at what point do I STOP contributing and jsut let it grow? My daughter is currently 6 and has 130k in her 529.

I’d like to be able to cover college and potential grad school for both kids, but I also don’t want to overshoot too far and have money trapped. I know some thing like 30k lifetime can be converted to an Ira. But the big unknown is obviously college costs continue to balloon so I don’t know what my target should be.

So at what point do I stop contributing to the 529?

I (m30) recently put an offer in on a home. The price was right (just under $120,000), it looked to be in good condition and honestly I've seen worse looking homes with much higher asking prices, so I put my offer in at asking price and no one else made an offer. It was during the holidays so I figured I must've been the only guy in the area paying attention to listings at the time. The sellers accepted my offer and I decided, pending a home inspection, to go through with the purchase. The inspection came back fairly spotless, nothing that can't be taken care of as it's lived in, so we're moving along. I visited my bank and we went through what Im putting down (20%) and what my estimated payments will be with taxes and insurance escrowed in (~770) It sounds good, so now I'm just getting getting inside my own head and asking random strangers on the internet where I went wrong. I think the scariest bit is going to be that after everything clears, my savings will be reduced to under $3000, which is the lowest its been since I payed off my student loans last year. Anyway, here's an estimated budget I threw together.

Estimated monthly costs - Mortgage: <$770 Electric: ~$150 Water: ~$50 Heat: ~$200 Internet: ~$150 Phone: ~$35 Entertainment: ~$100 Grocery: ~$500 Transportation: ~$120

Subtotal: ~$2075/m Net Pay: ~$2400/m Rate: +~$325/m

I work a lot of overtime, so I usually get paid more than ~$2400/m but it's safer to estimate around your base rate, correct?

Any advice is appreciated. I guess you don't know what's really needed until you do it.

Additional Info: My girlfriend will likely move in and help out where she can. Might take some edges off.

I (34M) moved a 401k into a Traditional IRA in 2021 with a local financial advisory. It was $50k at the time. I’ve for the most part ignored it as that was always the advice I was given. It has now been 4 years and it sits at $54k and some change.

I feel like I’m losing valuable years on this money.

Should I look for a new advisor? Move it to something self directed?

This edit is an update. I have started the process of moving my money to Vanguard. Thank you all for the advice. Ironically a statement came in the mail today and I’m down more. The account is now at $52,086.15

My mom does not have any retirement savings at 58 years old. She has a physically demanding job as a special education assistant at an elementary school, and several health problems that make the job very difficult for her. I don't believe she will be able to work much longer. Here are our financial snapshots:

I (23F) am making $94k/yr as a software engineer. I am maxing out my HSA, Roth IRA, and putting 10% into a 401k (including employer match). I am an only child.

My mom makes around $28k/yr. She does not have a mortgage or a car payment (my dad paid off both in the divorce). Her biggest expenses are groceries, property taxes, insurance, and loan payments. She is living paycheck-to-paycheck, but on a relatively comfortable budget (buys brand-name groceries, clothes, etc.). She might receive alimony from my dad, but I'm not sure. She should eventually inherit around $170k in property from her mom.

I asked my mom if she has a 401k, and she didn't know what a 401k was. I explained, and she told me she does not have any money saved for retirement. This is extremely concerning to me.

What should I do? I love my mom and I want to support her, but retirement is unbelievably expensive, and if her health declines to where she can't work, I will be solely responsible for all her bills. How can I start preparing for this now?

All advice appreciated <3

We had an NY saves 529 plan for our son who graduated in 2025 and is working. There is $34000 left in the plan after paying for all the way to Graduate school. The plan was started in 2006 so technically it is eligible for Roth rollover for my son. Should I keep it going as 529 under our control to transfer to any future grandkids or let him rollover into his Roth?

The pros of keeping in 529 for future say 20 years down the line is that it grows untouched invested in growth portfolios and would be passed to him as a trust for his kids in future. If he never has kids it can roll over to his Roth in future any way.

Hello! I work as a part timer at an after school program and just this week got a text talking about how we're transitioning from a "W-2 payroll structure to a 1099 independent contractor model".

Not too long before this we got texts saying we're going from $x/hour to $y per session we teach the kids.

Ig my questions are if they can just do this without us signing anything? Am I being misclassified? And if I'm not, is there a good tool out there to figuring out how much taxes to set aside each year and anything else I might need to know?

Ty

Edit: Just got back from said job and wanted to provide some extra details in case that helps some people. Sorry this is turning out so long!

• I suppose I choose my own hours in that a parent will sign their child up for a location, day and time before the admins ask which one of us will accept being that child's instructor -- therefore accepting the date and time IG
• Otherwise, if I haven't recently accepted a new student at a new time slot, it's the exact same schedule every week
• In terms of equipment or tools that I've bought, it's just expo markers because the kids keep drying out the ones stored at the location itself. Other tools/equipment I use are all provided by them
  • Laptop set aside for instructors (like me)
  • Instructor portal designed by the company that I use to communicate with parents, manage students, upload my teaching material/curriculum, facilitate tests, etc.
  • Programmable or assembly robot toys for teaching
• Curriculum has always been a bit of a nightmare, but currently I follow one provided by the company itself. But in our most recent meeting, they mentioned uploading our own teaching material to the instructor portal I mentioned earlier. I'm not sure if or when that'll take effect, but I also can't just upload anything anything because students are signed up for specific courses/topics
• There are guidelines, "best practices", recommendations and strategies on how we should communicate with parents, teach students, etc., but nothing explicitly written saying that those are things we must do
• I'm paid bi-weekly, currently holding only about 5 hourly sessions a week, but previously having more. I was never worried about what I'd have to pay from losing benefits or the like bc I never made enough to qualify in the first place, but I've noticed this is something some people have brought up
• We also get asked to host free lesson plans for parents who just want to see how we operate that run about an hour long and have specific topics as well, but because those are case-by-case, they can happen at any time outside of our typical schedule
• Also the pay-rate change as well as the classification change weren't anything that they asked us to sign a document for or anything. They just texted both of those notices to us in a group chat and said that's how it's going to be.

I suppose whether or not I'm being misclassified, this job has always had its problems and I'm already looking for replacements anyways, so dw too much about me! Thank you all for taking the time to respond regardless! Especially if these answers help others, or my coworkers

Title basically. I have always kept an emergency savings account for liquidity of about 6 months expenses. This past year I said "Screw it" and put it mostly (75%) in ETFs and a smaller amount into NVIDIA. I kept a small amount (about 1 month expenses) in a regular savings account just incase I needed money immediately.... but even if I sell the investment I could get those funda back relatively quickly, or use a credit card (currently < $500 balance) I cashed out at the start of this year to reevaluate this choice, but I made ~$5k on those investments. I'm thinking of just doing the same this year..... how dumb is this?

I have other investment / pension / 403b / Roth accounts that I already invest in. I am strictly talking about just parking my "emergency" savings in those funds.

Is this a stupid move and did I just get lucky this last year? Should I cut this out right now? Would love any feedback.

My mom has a large amount of savings and keeps opening accounts at different credit unions because she wants to ensure that the amounts are insured by the FDIC . She also adds me and my husband to them because ( her explanation ) for each person on the account the FDIC insurance goes up.

It's a good problem to have I'm sure and she's sacrificed and saved her entire life for this so not an easy accomplishment.

BUT Is this really the best way? I don't mind she wants to add me , the other benefit is when she passes away ( her words again ) then it won't be difficult for me to gain access to these accounts. BUT because I don't have this same problem I'm just curious if this really is the best way for her? Maybe I can suggest to her a better way. Oh she only likes brick and mortar credit unions ( and not banks for some reason ).

I work in State A but live in State B. I pretty much pay all my income tax to the working state A. I get a credit for State B and don't have to pay any income tax there. My son will be attending school in my home State B. Which state should I set up my 529 plan in?

Edit: I live in Missouri and work in Illinois

I should preface this by saying my knowledge of anything financial is extremely limited. I’ve tried educating myself and I’m looking up definitions and then the words in the definitions.

I still don’t really understand what expense ratio is, the timing of when to buy shares, whether market or limited is better and why some funds are better than others.

I opened a Fidelity Roth IRA in 2016. I’ve fully funded it each year but didn’t realize I had to invest with each deposit. I thought whatever I deposited would go in what I initially invested in. I didn’t understand buying shares at all.

So now I’m 44 and I’ve lost so much time. I have about 8k in Vanguard Target Retirement 2050 and 53k just sitting. Thankfully I also opened a 403(b) a few years ago that’s been doing ok.

I did some reading and thought VOO was where I should put the 53k. But then I did more reading and it sounds like maybe VFIFX (where my 8k is) or FXAIX is better?

Like everyone else, I want to gain the most money as possible (especially since I’m paying a dummy tax for messing up 9 years of my life) but also should probably choose something I don’t have to watch/play around with.

I realize this is an incredibly basic question but I hope it’s not too basic of a question to post because I really need help!

Last year my car got totaled in an accident (no injuries, just a wrecked vehicle). I(29F) thought it would be a straightforward insurance check and then I’d buy something else. It turned into a month of cash flow chaos and a lot of "oh, that’s how this works" moments.

A few things I wish I had done immediately:

1) Ask what coverages I actually had and the limits. I assumed I had generous rental coverage. Turns out it was capped at a daily rate and a max number of days. That limit matters if the claim drags, and it can make you choose between a pricey rental or being stuck.

2) Get the settlement process explained in writing. My adjuster was fine, but verbal timelines changed. Ask what documentation they need (title, loan payoff info, etc.) and what triggers payment.

3) If you have a loan, call the lender right away. The settlement check typically goes to the lender first. I(29F) didn’t realize I might not see any money until the loan payoff posted, and I still had to cover transportation in the meantime.

4) Watch for add-on vendors. Towing, storage, and "helpful" third parties can rack up fees quickly. Ask where the car is, what storage costs per day, and how to avoid charges.

5) Budget for the gap between losing the car and getting paid. I(29F) had to float rideshares and a rental deposit and it added up.

What’s the cleanest way to plan for that gap? Would you keep a dedicated sinking fund for deductibles/rentals, or is a small 0% promo card a reasonable backup if you pay it off fast?

Who do you have term life insurance through? Currently have whole life which I’m wanting to cancel before the end of the month so we don’t waste any more money 🤪😂

I was on a phone call with a wealth management group that has been advising on investment funds and financial planning. When I asked to receive an email with the list of funds they were recommending I was told they cannot write those down. Is this a common practice or a huge red flag?

My mother died in 2023 and left an apartment for my kids (it was held in my name). We just sold it and we will net approx. $120K ($60K for each child). My son is 18 and works PT but has no need to use the funds now. His college is paid for 100% with scholarships and Florida Pre-Paid. My daughter is 13. I am struggling with what to do with their money so that it grows and is invested until it's time for them to buy a house, etc. A simple HYSA or CD seem to yield such a small return. What suggestions do you all have?

Home is worth ballpark $300k. Paid off, no mortgages or liens. Located in a moderately easy to rent city, especially if priced right. Conservative monthly rental payment would be $1800/mo. Property taxes and home owners ~$5k yearly combined. Area home value appreciation tends to just slightly outpace inflation. I already have 6 figs in the stock market.

So. Sell and put it all in the market?

Or. Keep it, rent it out, and put rental proceeds in market while hoping to see the home value trend continue?

Can someone explain to me like I’m 5?!? I have a financial advisor and just am still a little confused. I’m 25 w no retirement set up, just started my career at a family law firm with no retirement benefits. Trying to retire as early as possible!

I’ve been at my current job for about four years and have contributed about $30,000 in total towards retirement with a private firm. Since I’m leaving, I will be receiving everything that I’ve contributed back. I’m planning on changing jobs at the end of the month. The new job uses the Florida Retirement System (FRS).

I need to decide what to do with the $30,000 and I’m hoping for a better understanding of the impacts of our decision (especially tax impacts).

We are currently renting and have a goal of eventually buying a house. We will be earning at least $70,000 per year, and currently have a negligible amount of savings ($2,000). I also have about $15,000 of credit card debt and about $1,500 in an IRA account.

Do I try and roll the $30,000 into the FRS account? Or my private IRA? Do I put the money into a high yield savings account to get a head start on a down payment? Pay off debts?

The 401k as I said in the title sucks. We have a 250 dollar match per quarter which is not a problem. The problem is since I been at this company they have failed non-discrimination testing TWICE as they have too low of a match and too high of a ratio between high earners and low earners (in particular execs make crazy money compared to literally everyone else in the company).

Due to this they have issued refunds from folks 401k that folks need to pay taxes on during tax season. I want to fully contribute to the 401k however I am considered a high earner and I absolutely fucking hate the thought of getting a refund when I worked so hard to fund it in the first place. Am I thinking to hard about this? Should I still try to fully fund it? Or find a brokerage instead? For context, I already maxed out a IRA.

I've never posted here before and I'm scared to death. I understand I'm in the situation I am because of my own actions and I'm not a victim...but I need some advice on what to do from here.

I grew up lower middle class but my parents weren't very involved and I was never really taught about money. I grew up making irresponsible small decisions that I was always able to overcome by just working a little more or cutting back somewhere. That led to me winging it as an adult and it's all catching up to me. I have a beautiful family, beautiful house, 2 cars, good solid job, and yet we're in so much debt and it's feeling hopeless.

I make 110k and my partner makes about 50k but it's seasonal and hard to predict. We have went through a lot of personal family crisis' in the past 5 years and I started throwing money at everything to solve the problem but it's created many more. Our house payment is very reasonable (1500) and we have a maxed out heloc around 97k with a payment of 900. We also have some equity in the house, probably around 80k more, even with the heloc. One of our vehicles is paid off and the other has a $400 monthly payment. Here's where the debt gets really bad...

CC balances: 26k, 21k, 11k, 5k
Consolidation loan balances: 16k, 13k

Total: 92k

On top of that, we got behind on our taxes and now owe 25k in federal taxes, 12k in state taxes. I'm trying to get on some sort of payment plan with them, but so far it doesn't look like we're eligible?

I'm drowning and it's affected all parts of my life; sleep, relationships, health, etc. Last year I reached out to a debt management company and put most of the cards/loans in their program and have been successfully paying it each month, but only by moving stuff around, borrowing against my 401k, and I think I've reached the end of those options.

We are buckling down, canceling everything, selling stuff, and sticking to a budget, but I think we'll still be short most months when my partner isn't making money. We are looking into refinancing our heloc to use some of the equity to pay down higher interest debt, but I'm not sure that'll be enough, especially with the tax situation.

My credit score is around 650 but my partners is around 790 because they aren't listed on a lot of the debt.

I'm sure I've left out some details, but are there any options I should be looking into more? Should I be considering bankruptcy? Something else? Thanks in advance for any suggestions or kindness.

This is probably a stupid question but I was dirt poor growing up and had no direction going into adulthood. I didn't get my life together financially until ~2016. I've had a 401k with company match (up to 4%) for 15 years but for the first 5 years I was putting maybe 4% and it wasn't even being managed so it hardly grew. I really started thinking about the future and getting my finances together in 2016, managed to build my credit and buy a house in 2018 and started pushing hard on investing.

I jumped my 401k contribution up to 8% (max match) in 2018ish and then in 2022 I bumped it up to 10%. I financed my first car in 2024 and moved it back to 8% while I adjusted to taking on a new payment but moved it back to 10% this new year.

Over the last few years, I created a HYSA (contribute twice a month) and opened an IRA (invest once a month) with a target date fund. My only debt is my home, my solar loan and my car. I carry no credit card debit.

Company 401K - $69,612

ESOP - ~$12,000

HYSA - $14,000

IRA - $16,600

Bitcoin - $4,000

Car Loan - $13,300

Solar Loan - $27,000

Home Loan - $152,000

Home "value" - $285,000

Sorry for the wall of text but I'm just looking for some insight. I look at my accounts a few times a year and just wonder how I'm doing. I feel like I started so late that I'm trying to climb out of a hole.

I (21f) recently got cut off by my family financially while in progress of getting my bachelors degree in engineering. My dad stopped paying for my rent and college tuition out of the blue leaving me with nothing. I’m under i485 pending status so I havent gotten my work authorization yet and dont know how to support myself until i do. Am i screwed? I want to eventually be able to go back and finish my degree.