MM-related Confessions/Questions/Thoughts

[konapoppy]

Share yours!

- I use YNAB, but I am terrible at sticking to it. I update religiously on the weekends, adjust as necessary to accommodate our spending, and go on with my life. We go over our budget most months. I know I could prevent it, I am just so bad at holding us accountable. Any tricks?

- I am really curious about the upcoming DOL fiduciary ruling. I didn't think Jill did a great job covering it on Jill on Money the other day. It does boggle my mind that the investment companies are against the ruling. 

[lamestaeever]

Thanks, konapoppy !

Who could I be? Such a mystery... lol. I'll probably DD anyway, because I'm EXTRA lame.

So, my confession is that I'm actually terrible with money. I mean, we pay our bills and our only interest-bearing debts are mortgage, car loan, and student loan. But this is not my forte at all.

So, my question: Most of our retirement savings are in IRAs at Ameriprise. This started because a friend was a financial planner there. We started going to him, and consolidated all our old 401ks there. This was before I knew about fees. So the last time we saw him, I asked what the fees are, and he said 1.25%. That's a lot, right? Should we move the money to a Vanguard or something? I feel like I made a tactical error there, and I don't want to suffer the consequences for the next 30 years.

ETA: 1.25%, not 1.5%

[sunnysally]

I booked an expensive tour for our upcoming Peru trip. We could have done it differently and saved money, but it would be less comfortable and with a group instead of private. The rest of the trip is fairly inexpensive even with smaller splurges so I said screw it.

[Deleted]

I've spent $600 on Arrow's shots. I'll spend another $300 ish to get her spayed. It was $250 to get her set up with the basics like a crate, bed, a few toys, dog dishes, etc. $80 for puppy kindergarten. $100 in pet sitting just for her, not including the cats.

I realized this morning she is why I'm so poor at the moment.

[lamestaeever]

Mar 31, 2016 10:44:18 GMT -5 RockNVoll said:

LOL, lamestaeever , I love your post and don't think you have anything to be embarrassed about

I don't have hard evidence to point to but I always think of Ameriprise as being one of those shady, high-fee middlemen that don't really provide any value. I'm guessing he's charging you 1.5% of the amount you have invested with him? Which, yes, is a lot. And that's likely on top of fees that the funds themselves charge, trading fees, etc.

Personally, yes, I would move the money to Vanguard and invest in some index funds. There are tools on the site to help you figure out what funds might be right for you. I think the Vanguard site is seriously the best thing since sliced bread.

You make me feel better

So, in reality we officially stopped using him for advice about 2 years ago, so we don't pay *him* anything. Before that, we paid him a flat yearly fee. He had a courtesy meeting (? something like that) with us a month or so ago. So that fee is what the funds themselves charge, I believe. Though I could be wrong.

We stopped using him because I no longer trusted his advice, knowing he was getting commission (he mentioned converting our term life to whole life at some point, and I know we're not the right people for that). But all the fiduciaries I've looked into have been out of our budget, so I've just been kind of putting my head in the sand about some long-term planning.

Am I right that a more typical fee is usually around .5%? Or am I making that number up?

[mbcdefg]

I've had the same $200ish sitting on my credit card for months now. Every time I pay most of it off, something else springs up where my checking account runs short and I need to charge again. I don't tell MH about this because he HATES credit card balances of any amount. At least it's the Double Cash card so I'm earning cash back with each purchase and payment, I guess?

I *could* pay it all off today, but I've earmarked that money for MH's anniversary present. I could spend less and get him something else, but (a) I have no other ideas, and (b) he always goes above and beyond for my gifts and meanwhile I blew it with his Christmas gifts, so I'd rather just splurge now and get something I know will make him happy.

[Wanderista]

I was very un-MM when I fell and hit my head last Saturday and ended up with a concussion that required a CT scan. Um, fail. But at least I didn't break anything or do lasting damage and I am on the mend. I look forward with excitement to that bill, not. At least I went to the radiology lab at my HMO urgent care center which was certainly cheaper than going to the hospital.

Other than that, I have a lot to learn and to delve into about money. In some ways, I am savvy and in others, I have a lot to learn.

[starlily]

My budget has been smashed to smithereens this week in Boston because I'm addicted to the sparkling rose and hot lobster roll at Neptune Oyster.

[lamestaeever]

Thank you so much, RockNVoll . Your advice really means a lot to me. I will show this post to DH later.

But you are confirming what I suspected, which is that we are getting overcharged. I just needed someone who really knows about this stuff to confirm.

[Deleted]

Confession- I reduced my 401K contribution from 10% to 1% to have access to extra money to pay some debt down and also pad my medical budget due to expected expenses coming up. And then I saw HOW much went to taxes and was all "eff this" after two paychecks. I feel so foolish because of the "wasted" money that was eaten by taxes that could have gone into my retirement. I could have semi-easily cut back in other areas of my budget to get the money.

My money earned by swag.bucks and slide.joy goes to Sbux gift cards. I haven't paid for sbux in 7 weeks.

Someone posted about working with Google as an Ad rater to make a few extra hundred a month. I can't remember the thread and I want more info!!! Cliff hanger indeed....

[genet313]

My most flameful confession yet:  we don't really have a budget.    I try to keep spending under a "reasonable" amount each month, but we don't budget.  Thankfully we don't have to and spend below our means anyway, so we're still able to save most months.  But we don't budget with any sense of purpose.

If I do SAH after #2, I imagine it'll be a steep learning curve for us (me, mostly, as I do most of the family spending).

[magpie]

Confession:  We accepted an offer on our house and paid a not insignificant amount of cash in repairs/credits after the inspection even though the buyer offered to take the house "as is", if we'd get out one month early. We worked out all the finances and how to's of storing our stuff and renting a temporary vacation rental in our 'hood that would allow us to get out of our house early, but then decided that it wasn't worth it. Even though we'd save a couple grand, we're already moving cross country and adding a month's stay in a small, not-out-house apartment with an extremely active dog, a toddler and a very pregnant lady who can't help carry any of our shit back and forth between all these moves is just not worth it. I feel totally sure that we made the right choice, but I think my H is still questioning whether or not we made the right decision. We are usually pretty frugal and not normally the type to choose convenience over money, but given all the other factors, I'm all about it right now.

[raangoli]

lamestaeever that does seem high to me. I think Stan is using Vanguard and RockNVoll does too so they may have better insight into their fees. My investments there are self managed so I can't really comment other than the fees are low for the funds I've invested in.

Edit: I see RnV already answered you

[raangoli]

genet313 neither do we. I mean, we know what we spend on the recurring bills and prioritize savings so it's worked for us. We definitely don't overspend on things and shop sales/smart but I'm sure we could do better.

I'm scared of what this will mean once BB starts daycare in July. But we did loosely budget for that too so maybe it won't be so bad? I'm going to go stick my head in the sand again.

[awkwardpenguin]

lamestaeever for reference, Vanguard provides an investment service with fees of 0.3% for all assets under management. That is on top of the fund expenses, but fund expenses at Vanguard are usually in the 0.05% to 0.25% range. I like the Lazy Portfolio advice from RockNVoll, and it is roughly what we do with our portfolio. Fees and expenses make a big difference over time, so it is much better to get lower-cost funds in the long run.

[awkwardpenguin]

RockNVoll, can I ask what made you decide to move to more active management? We're also self-directed at Vanguard, and pretty low-maintenance (I rebalance quarterly), but I always worry about if I'm managing risk and diversified appropriately.

[awkwardpenguin]

My confession is that a HUGE chunk of our budget (actual, written down budget that we follow) is discretionary spending that we just don't want to cut. I mean having money is all about living in line with your priorities, but I feel lame that one of my priorities is buying "things".

[Deleted]

Since lamestaeever was willing to ask a question I will too. If DH gets a bonus this fall we will be over the threshold to put money in a Roth IRA and I don't know what to do instead. We put in a hair under $17k into a 401K so I can add $1k there and then what do I do with the other $4500?
This may be a moot point since his industry is a little wonky right now and we don't know if bonuses will be a thing this year but it will be an issue eventually.

[genet313]

Mar 31, 2016 11:36:22 GMT -5 raangoli said:

genet313 neither do we. I mean, we know what we spend on the recurring bills and prioritize savings so it's worked for us. We definitely don't overspend on things and shop sales/smart but I'm sure we could do better.

I'm scared of what this will mean once BB starts daycare in July. But we did loosely budget for that too so maybe it won't be so bad? I'm going to go stick my head in the sand again.

ugh, i know.  by "loosely budget" i assume you did the "what is going to be left from my salary after i pay this exorbitant amount" like i did when figuring out nanny costs.

[Poppy]

RockNVoll, obviously it's tailored to your situation, but what kinds of things are they doing for you/having you do differently than before? Just curious.

[drloretta]

I want to take DD to see my parents this summer while DH is away, but airfare is ridiculous. I may just charge it and at least enjoy a week getting spoiled.

[Poppy]

And I feel kind of bad posting here without adding my own confessions, so here goes:

We have way more cash than our "plan" indicates because I'm indecisive about how to invest it (well, I know generally, but our accounts are not well-consolidated so it's a lot of work to figure out the right asset allocation). Also, my husband trusts me to handle this stuff but doesn't keep on top of it so he doesn't know that. :/ Well, I think I did tell him at one point but I think he just said "we should invest it" and forgot. So, yeah, I feel like a slacker and my only defense is that he's a bigger slacker.

[shevacc]

For most of 2015 I commuted 4 hours a day and our family was in survival mode. As a result we've gotten lazy about spending consciously and are now in the habit of a lot more takeout and convenience meals than I would like. I also spent waaaaay too much money on cute clothes for the kids as (online) retail therapy. Now that I'm in a much better work-life balance, I'm shopping less but I haven't done anything to reel the other spending back in since I kinda like being lazy about meals...

[UnderProtest]

I am having heart palpitations just thinking about the mortgage and expenses for the house we have an offer on.

[UnderProtest]

Mar 31, 2016 13:10:53 GMT -5 @sfgal530 said:

Mar 31, 2016 13:09:15 GMT -5 UnderProtest said:

I am having heart palpitations just thinking about the mortgage and expenses for the house we have an offer on.

I've been meaning to ask - where is the house?  

Connecticut

[justjen]

Mar 31, 2016 13:09:15 GMT -5 UnderProtest said:

I am having heart palpitations just thinking about the mortgage and expenses for the house we have an offer on.

Good luck! Our side of the ocean?

ETA: NEVERMIND, lol. Good luck again

[UnderProtest]

Mar 31, 2016 13:11:39 GMT -5 justjen said:

Mar 31, 2016 13:09:15 GMT -5 UnderProtest said:

I am having heart palpitations just thinking about the mortgage and expenses for the house we have an offer on.

Good luck! Our side of the ocean?

ETA: NEVERMIND, lol. Good luck again

Thanks.  I am happy to be moving Stateside again, but holy hell is that area expensive.

[sweetptater]

And I'm jumping in to bookmark this thread. lamestaeever, thank you for asking that. I have needed to ask the same question for a while now and just hadn't gotten around to it.

Also, @forcuatro, that's the other question I was going to ask. We've maxed out our 401ks and don't qualify for Roths. I have no idea what our other options are. DH says traditional IRAs won't help us, but I can't remember why not.

[aurora]

Mar 31, 2016 10:54:51 GMT -5 mbcdefg said:

I've had the same $200ish sitting on my credit card for months now. Every time I pay most of it off, something else springs up where my checking account runs short and I need to charge again. I don't tell MH about this because he HATES credit card balances of any amount. At least it's the Double Cash card so I'm earning cash back with each purchase and payment, I guess?

I *could* pay it all off today, but I've earmarked that money for MH's anniversary present. I could spend less and get him something else, but (a) I have no other ideas, and (b) he always goes above and beyond for my gifts and meanwhile I blew it with his Christmas gifts, so I'd rather just splurge now and get something I know will make him happy.

Maybe I'm misunderstanding, but it seems that paying it off today, then charging H's anniversary gift in a week or two would be smarter financially because you'd be back in the grace period system. (At least with most CC's, if you have a balance then all purchases are charged interest immediately, whereas if your balance was paid off by the due date then new purchases aren't subject to interest until after the end of the grace period.)

[aurora]

Seeing how much I spent online at Amazon last year (which I had to look up for tax purposes) has almost made me want to buy more stuff there. It seems like it should have the opposite effect.