Ask your $ questions here - nothing is too basic

[ohgillian]

Ask anything; nothing is too basic or simple. Answer anything you know an answer to.

[ohgillian]

Can I still file a claim with my dental insurance for a service that was almost a year ago? I think it was March 2020.

Should I do that thing where you lock your credit or something, I don’t even really know what it’s called. You put a lock on it so it’s harder for someone to open an account in your name?

[imojoebunny]

Jan 10, 2021 19:44:28 GMT -5 ohgillian said:

Can I still file a claim with my dental insurance for a service that was almost a year ago? I think it was March 2020.

Should I do that thing where you lock your credit or something, I don’t even really know what it’s called. You put a lock on it so it’s harder for someone to open an account in your name?

You should be able to still file a claim with your dental insurance.  Doesn't hurt to try, and likely won't be an issue.  Medical bills sometimes take a long time.  If you do not plan to open any new credit in the very near future, it is definitely worth locking.  Someone bought a car in my DH's name, and got insurance last year, in another state.  It was a huge pain in the ass, and DH's credit is now locked.  We refied our mortgage since then, and it was fairly easy to unlock and relock.  

[IrishBelle]

Jan 10, 2021 19:44:28 GMT -5 ohgillian said:

Can I still file a claim with my dental insurance for a service that was almost a year ago? I think it was March 2020.

Should I do that thing where you lock your credit or something, I don’t even really know what it’s called. You put a lock on it so it’s harder for someone to open an account in your name?

I’m in Canada but generally here you have until March 31st to file claims for the previous year. In your case, I would try and see what they say.

[ny96]

I have a healthy stock portfolio, but some friends have joined Robinhood and raved about it. I joined and put $25 in, but I’m not really interested in buying penny stocks and I’d rather just buy and trade with my existing brokerage account. Should I transfer the $25 out and close the account, and if I do what do I do with the free $3.87 stock I received. I really don’t want it and don’t want to deal with any additional IRS paperwork from this momentary lapse in judgement.

[mirabelle]

Any opinions on investing in cryptocurrency?

[ssmjlm]

Jan 10, 2021 19:44:28 GMT -5 ohgillian said:

Can I still file a claim with my dental insurance for a service that was almost a year ago? I think it was March 2020.

Should I do that thing where you lock your credit or something, I don’t even really know what it’s called. You put a lock on it so it’s harder for someone to open an account in your name?

Yes, most have a 12 month limit.

You can freeze your credit.  We did that with DH when we were refinancing and he had an identity theft/fraud issue from a visa rebate card.  You can unfreeze them if you need to easily.  The only issue is, we had to do each one separate, so 3 login/passwords.

Does vanguard have like a one-time advisor option?  Like for $100 you get a hour with someone to tell you what you need to do with your money?  I don't have enough in there for an actual advisor, but I would maybe just like to check-in with someone this year.

[ohgillian]

Jan 10, 2021 22:49:11 GMT -5 ny96 said:

I have a healthy stock portfolio, but some friends have joined Robinhood and raved about it. I joined and put $25 in, but I’m not really interested in buying penny stocks and I’d rather just buy and trade with my existing brokerage account. Should I transfer the $25 out and close the account, and if I do what do I do with the free $3.87 stock I received. I really don’t want it and don’t want to deal with any additional IRS paperwork from this momentary lapse in judgement.

So your $25 is invested in stock there and the current value of the account is 28.87? Regardless, if this were me, I'd sell whatever I needed to sell and close it and be done. They may send you a 1099-B next year but for under $4 in gains I wouldn't bother to list that on my return. Not saying this is the right answer, but it's what I'd do.

[ny96]

Jan 11, 2021 8:48:30 GMT -5 ohgillian said:

Jan 10, 2021 22:49:11 GMT -5 ny96 said:

I have a healthy stock portfolio, but some friends have joined Robinhood and raved about it. I joined and put $25 in, but I’m not really interested in buying penny stocks and I’d rather just buy and trade with my existing brokerage account. Should I transfer the $25 out and close the account, and if I do what do I do with the free $3.87 stock I received. I really don’t want it and don’t want to deal with any additional IRS paperwork from this momentary lapse in judgement.

So your $25 is invested in stock there and the current value of the account is 28.87? Regardless, if this were me, I'd sell whatever I needed to sell and close it and be done. They may send you a 1099-B next year but for under $4 in gains I wouldn't bother to list that on my return. Not saying this is the right answer, but it's what I'd do.

I haven’t invested the $25. I moved it over to the Robinhood account and then realized I wasn’t interested in playing the market, so I’d just move the $25 back into my checking account.

[k3am]

DH bought a new car in September. He used dealer financing, the rate is "okay" but I hate the lender. They don't sync with mint. They won't accept extra principal payments unless you call and tell them to apply the extra to principal, otherwise the system defaults it to an interest prepayment (WHO ON EARTH WOULD DO THAT?). Even if you pay additional, it doesn't show up on your statement or payment history. I can't find anywhere in their system that actually lists what our interest rate is.

We have the cash to pay this off now (hello vacation fund that hasn't been touched). Would you just pay this off?

[ohgillian]

Jan 11, 2021 12:52:19 GMT -5 k3am said:

DH bought a new car in September. He used dealer financing, the rate is "okay" but I hate the lender. They don't sync with mint. They won't accept extra principal payments unless you call and tell them to apply the extra to principal, otherwise the system defaults it to an interest prepayment (WHO ON EARTH WOULD DO THAT?). Even if you pay additional, it doesn't show up on your statement or payment history. I can't find anywhere in their system that actually lists what our interest rate is.

We have the cash to pay this off now (hello vacation fund that hasn't been touched). Would you just pay this off?

Yes, partly b/c they sound annoying as heck and partly b/c I don't like having debt on things like cars when you can avoid it. Mentally to me, if you use the cash for a vacation and finance the car, it's the same as financing the vacation. I realize this may not make actual sense, lol. Regardless, yes, I vote pay this off. 

[ohgillian]

Jan 10, 2021 20:50:38 GMT -5 imojoebunny said:

Jan 10, 2021 19:44:28 GMT -5 ohgillian said:

Can I still file a claim with my dental insurance for a service that was almost a year ago? I think it was March 2020.

Should I do that thing where you lock your credit or something, I don’t even really know what it’s called. You put a lock on it so it’s harder for someone to open an account in your name?

You should be able to still file a claim with your dental insurance.  Doesn't hurt to try, and likely won't be an issue.  Medical bills sometimes take a long time.  If you do not plan to open any new credit in the very near future, it is definitely worth locking.  Someone bought a car in my DH's name, and got insurance last year, in another state.  It was a huge pain in the ass, and DH's credit is now locked.  We refied our mortgage since then, and it was fairly easy to unlock and relock.  

WHOA. 

[heliocentric]

Jan 11, 2021 8:00:40 GMT -5 ssmjlm said:

Jan 10, 2021 19:44:28 GMT -5 ohgillian said:

Does vanguard have like a one-time advisor option?  Like for $100 you get a hour with someone to tell you what you need to do with your money?  I don't have enough in there for an actual advisor, but I would maybe just like to check-in with someone this year.

Vanguard used to have this option, but no longer offers it. DH & I did it a few years ago and wanted to do it again, but now they only offer ongoing management.

investor.vanguard.com/advice/financial-advisor/


I see they offer something called a digital advisor now, too, but haven't looked into it.

investor.vanguard.com/advice/digital-advisor

[ohgillian]

Question: When people say they are maxing out their retirement -- what are the maxes for different things? Does it depend on your income?

[lolalolalola]

Jan 11, 2021 17:16:29 GMT -5 ohgillian said:

Question: When people say they are maxing out their retirement -- what are the maxes for different things? Does it depend on your income?

I’m curious to see if others interpret it the same as I do, but I interpret that to mean all tax advantaged accounts.

I’m in Canada so our annual “max” for registered retirement accounts (similar to 401k) is 18% of income up to $27k/year. We also have a $6k/year limit on tax free savings account (similar to a ROTH maybe). So if I have put the maximum amount allowed into those accounts I considered myself maxing our retirement.

[daisyduck]

Jan 11, 2021 17:16:29 GMT -5 ohgillian said:

Question: When people say they are maxing out their retirement -- what are the maxes for different things? Does it depend on your income?

I think this means different things to different people. I think a lot of people mean that they are contributing the max pre-tax amount of $19,500 into a 401k (limit does not change based on income, and this does not include the company match).

I think some people say they are maxing out a 401k when they are contributing enough to get their full employer match. So if an employer matches 6% and they put in 6%, they are "maxing" it out.

The true max that you can put into a 401k is $58,000, which includes pre-tax contributions, post tax contributions, and any employer match.

In addition to 401k savings, you can put around $6500 into an IRA. The pre-tax amount you are allowed to do depends on income. We are over the income limit so I don't pay much attention to this one anymore.

Of course there are 403bs (for teachers) and government retirement accounts too, but I don't know anything about those. I think you are generally eligible for 401k, or 403b, or government account, but not all at the same time.

[tcu2003]

Jan 11, 2021 17:16:29 GMT -5 ohgillian said:

Question: When people say they are maxing out their retirement -- what are the maxes for different things? Does it depend on your income?

For us, it means DH and I each contribute up to the regular max contribution limit to a 401k each year, which is $19,500 each for 2021 (we're both under 50, so not eligible for the $6,500 catch-up contribution) and we each contribute the max to a Roth IRA, which is $6000 for 2021 (we have to backdoor this, but it works).

[ellipses84]

k3am If you have the cash sitting in a basic savings account and you could replenish it before you actually want to use it for vacation, it would be great to pay it off. It wouldn’t be worth it to put any portion of a future vacation on credit unless you can pay it off the same month without any interest.

Your other option would be to refinance the car to a lower interest rate (local credit unions are usually best for this). I’d question how low the rate was and why he couldn’t get lower from the dealer. A lot of people don’t know they can negotiate car loan interest rates at dealerships, especially if they they advertised a lower interest rate, or they will usually match what another financial institution is offering you. Having a car loan can help your credit score, so if that was a reasons for a higher interest rate, it may be worth refinancing and keeping the loan for a while.

Due to circumstance, I ended up buying both our current cars because I was the one who had time to go to the dealership. Once DH paid off his last student loan, his credit score dropped because he didn’t have a car loan or a mortgage in his name anymore (we currently rent).

[purplepenguin7]

where is the best place to open a 529 account? Should I do it with my existing brokerage firm where most of my money is (Schwab), or direct from the state I choose or a different brokerage with better fees? I consider myself pretty investment savvy but I've been holding on to some cash for my daughter because I feel so clueless as to what to do with it.

[scsarah]

What retirement investment options are there beyond Roth IRAs that aren't workplace affiliated? My partner works for a small office with no retirement options, and we've just gotten to a point where we can start saving for his retirement. We will likely put $6k in a Roth, but have another $6k that I want to invest for him, but don't know where.

My employer offers a 403b that they match, and with that we're already saving 15% of my salary, so I'm really looking for ways to fund his retirement.

[ohgillian]

Jan 11, 2021 22:59:44 GMT -5 purplepenguin7 said:

where is the best place to open a 529 account? Should I do it with my existing brokerage firm where most of my money is (Schwab), or direct from the state I choose or a different brokerage with better fees? I consider myself pretty investment savvy but I've been holding on to some cash for my daughter because I feel so clueless as to what to do with it.

Some states have a state income tax credit if you invest in your own state's plan, so that's a good thing to check first.

If you don't have that, then you can look anywhere. I invest in the Utah plan thru Vanguard. 

clark.com/education/clarks-529-plan-guide/

Normally I would say "if you're already at Schwab just use that" but it looks like Schwab is the Kansas plan and Clark Howard didn't rate that one very well. From the Schwab site, it looks like the 529 fee for an index fund is 0.25% (page 16: www.schwab.com/legal/529-account-application-agreement) and that's nearly double what some of the others on the list offer.

I don't know if my comments are helpful, but the CH article I linked should be.

[Susie]

Jan 11, 2021 22:59:44 GMT -5 purplepenguin7 said:

where is the best place to open a 529 account? Should I do it with my existing brokerage firm where most of my money is (Schwab), or direct from the state I choose or a different brokerage with better fees? I consider myself pretty investment savvy but I've been holding on to some cash for my daughter because I feel so clueless as to what to do with it.

I chose NY (nysaves.org) because it's my home state, and it offers a state income tax deduction for contributions.  If your state does as well, that may be a good choice.  If not, your options are wide open.  I hear Utah and California chosen frequently, but didn't get this far in the decision tree because NY made easy sense for me.

[purplepenguin7]

ohgillian , thank you! That was helpful, I couldn't figure out how to pick a state within Schwab and didn't realize it was only the Kansas plan. I had already decided on New York, because we are potentially moving there soon (like 95%) and it offers tax credits plus gets pretty good reviews. Does that make sense to chose that plan?

Susie , I saw your answer right after I posted this.  Have you been happy with NY?

Adding that we currently live in NJ, which has one of the worst plans from what I read. 

[Susie]

Jan 12, 2021 10:37:01 GMT -5 purplepenguin7 said:

Susie , I saw your answer right after I posted this.  Have you been happy with NY?

I haven't done a lot with it, but I don't have any complaints.  If you use Mint, it does link, although you have to use 2 factor authentication for it to update.  I have an automatic monthly contribution set up for each kid, kind of "set it and forget it" mentality, and I chose funds targeted to their age/expected college matriculation timeline and my desired risk level.  It's been pretty easy.  H is a NYS employee and has the option to do paycheck deferrals, but I just manage the contributions online myself.

[just]

Jan 11, 2021 12:52:19 GMT -5 k3am said:

DH bought a new car in September. He used dealer financing, the rate is "okay" but I hate the lender. They don't sync with mint. They won't accept extra principal payments unless you call and tell them to apply the extra to principal, otherwise the system defaults it to an interest prepayment (WHO ON EARTH WOULD DO THAT?). Even if you pay additional, it doesn't show up on your statement or payment history. I can't find anywhere in their system that actually lists what our interest rate is.

We have the cash to pay this off now (hello vacation fund that hasn't been touched). Would you just pay this off?

Aside ... when we bought my Prius, we signed onto a fine interest rate - 3.something. I know I could have got better if I'd gone to my bank before hand but it was due to an accident that wrote off my previous car, it was before thanksgiving, so I took the 3.something knowing I'd overpay and make any different in % up that way.

Then I realized I couldn't pay to principal online and they were DICKS about it. The only way to pay to principal was to send a check. And so I sat down and wrote 12 checks -  one for each month for the rest of the year for the excess, put them in envelopes, addressed them and stamped them and posted one a month for a year - everytime it felt good - just cos I was so fucking pissed at them. The 13th check cleared the balance because life's too short. 

[k3am]

Oh my other stupid question.. that doesn't have much impact. We're doing taxes and insurance separately from our mortgage.

Tax payments are due (correction) (CORRECTION 2:) 2/1, and late on 4/10. Would you pay as early or late as possible?

Professionally, when my clients pay invoices on or before their due date when they could stretch their vendors, but instead rely on my financing to pay them, I cringe. (I mean.. it's how I make money, so I don't cringe too hard.) So I'm not sure if it's the lender in me that wants to wait until 4/1 (9 days before it's "delinquent") or if it's what most people would do. I know the mortgage brokers make payment on the actual delinquency date. FWIW, we aren't borrowing the money to make payment and it's not in a particularly high yield account (CapitalOne)

[ohgillian]

Jan 12, 2021 11:56:44 GMT -5 k3am said:

Oh my other stupid question.. that doesn't have much impact. We're doing taxes and insurance separately from our mortgage.

Tax payments are due 7/1, and late on 4/10. Would you pay as early or late as possible?

Professionally, when my clients pay invoices on or before their due date when they could stretch their vendors, but instead rely on my financing to pay them, I cringe. (I mean.. it's how I make money, so I don't cringe too hard.) So I'm not sure if it's the lender in me that wants to wait until 4/1 (9 days before it's "delinquent") or if it's what most people would do. I know the mortgage brokers make payment on the actual delinquency date. FWIW, we aren't borrowing the money to make payment and it's not in a particularly high yield account (CapitalOne)

So this is my first year not escrowing, too, and I had the same question. 

[ohgillian]

Jan 12, 2021 10:37:01 GMT -5 purplepenguin7 said:

ohgillian , thank you! That was helpful, I couldn't figure out how to pick a state within Schwab and didn't realize it was only the Kansas plan. I had already decided on New York, because we are potentially moving there soon (like 95%) and it offers tax credits plus gets pretty good reviews. Does that make sense to chose that plan?

Susie , I saw your answer right after I posted this.  Have you been happy with NY?

Adding that we currently live in NJ, which has one of the worst plans from what I read. 

I can't promise, but I *think* they only have Kansas. Like how I'm at Vanguard and they only have the Utah. 

ETA: To answer your question, I think that if you are likely moving to NY and they have a tax credit, that's the right one to pick. The financial benefit of the tax credit should far outweigh any differences in fees, etc.

[dcn]

Jan 12, 2021 10:37:01 GMT -5 purplepenguin7 said:

ohgillian , thank you! That was helpful, I couldn't figure out how to pick a state within Schwab and didn't realize it was only the Kansas plan. I had already decided on New York, because we are potentially moving there soon (like 95%) and it offers tax credits plus gets pretty good reviews. Does that make sense to chose that plan?

Susie , I saw your answer right after I posted this.  Have you been happy with NY?

Adding that we currently live in NJ, which has one of the worst plans from what I read. 

We have New York 529 accounts. We don’t live there but will likely move back eventually. Super easy to open and make deposits. They also made 10% in returns since I opened them In the fall so that was good!

[Susie]

Jan 12, 2021 11:56:44 GMT -5 k3am said:

Tax payments are due (correction) 4/1, and late on 4/10. Would you pay as early or late as possible?

The honest answer is that I pay them when I sit down to do it, and don't think too hard about the timing.

I usually get my property tax bill the 1st week of Jan, and it's due by 1/31.  IDK what the "late payment" date is.  I have already paid it because I hate having paper around, and it's a paper bill that comes with a return envelope.  It's one of the few things I still need to mail a check for.  I could've hung onto the money a couple more weeks, but my property taxes are only a couple $k, and interest rates are for shit right now anyway.  The mental real estate freed up by having it done is worth it.  My school taxes are due separately in Sept, and they are 2-3x the amount of my property taxes, but same basic approach.

For quarterly estimated income taxes, I do hang onto the $ until the day they're really due.  But that feels different because they are electronic payments that I can authorize in advance and achieve the same mental freedom while not actually having the money leave my account until the due date.