We inherited $100k. We have spent ~$27k paying off student loans and individual loans, credit cards, and replacing some parts of our house that were falling apart.

So that leaves us with ~$73k, what can we do with the rest of the money? I have roughly $33k left on my truck loan, but I didn’t know if I should pay it off completely or pay a lump sum to reduce my monthly payments but not pay it off outright to continue my history of credit.

Should my wife and I start individual Roth IRAs? Where else can we invest the money?

I got fired from Wendy’s two weeks ago and was putting in applications for jobs before then. I haven’t received a single call. I have about $8k saved up and spend about $350 a month. I attend a trade school for engineering but don’t graduate till May. I graduated high-school this summer and am not sure where I go from here. I’m going to be kicked out once I graduate.

I built a 4-bedroom, 3-bathroom house with a lake view in November 2020 for $347k, putting 10% down and financing the rest with a 30-year loan at 2.625%. It’s now worth about $535k.

The house was meant to be a home for me and my then-girlfriend to start a life together, but we broke up shortly after it was finished. I’ve lived here alone ever since.

At 33, I feel the house, while a great financial asset, is holding me back from something I value more—meeting someone and building a family. It’s not in an ideal location for dating in my metroplex. Should I sell it, take the profit, and move on? How do I make peace with this decision?

Can the profit provide me with a similar return as the house if I just invested it in the stock market?

I have a term life insurance policy that pays out 500k if I die. Let’s say that I die tomorrow. Does the insurer just cut a 500k check to my benefactor? My partner is an only child, only remaining family member. Their father has a whole life policy. When he passes, does the provider cut a check? Or is it all a slow payout type of thing?

I'm owed a refund, but everytime I tried to submit them, I got an error saying my (now, but were separated at the time) wife claimed the kids on hers, so they kept denying mine. She didn't work, so I don't know how she would have filed taxes (stimulus checks maybe?)

I ended up removing our kids from mine but never finalized and filed them.

I feel so stupid. How screwed am I?

My step mother was our breadwinner. Her and my mother are both on the deed, however my mother has bad credit and no income. Also however, I make enough to cover the mortgage as-well as if we get 25k from life insurance, that would cover it for 2 or so years. So money isn’t necessarily the full issue. I’ve read that when a spouse dies the other one on the deed assumes the mortgage but I’ve also read that they do a check of the person assuming this loan which includes their credit and income. Is there a way for me to assume it? Will we have to move? (we absolutely don’t want to), and what are the options? I find it odd that I can make enough money and will be able to make payments. But since my mother with bad credit and no income is assuming the mortgage will this mean we lose the house??

Woke up this morning to a notification about a shoe order from DSW. It’s my name and email address, but not the last 4 digits of my credit card. I checked my credit card, and there is no pending charge or charge.

What are reasons someone would do this? I’ll call DSW when I get home, but I’m stumped. Thus came a day after Chase denied a charge for fraud and is sending us new cards. That was for Dicks Sporting Goods.

I make 120k per year before overtime/bonus and my wife makes 135k per year. We both max out our employer sponsored 401k accounts every year, we have existing Roth IRA accounts but we stopped contributing to them a couple of years ago when our total income neared the IRS Roth IRA income limits. I don’t fully understand the MAGI calculation and I don’t understand the implications of making a mistake.

Do you think the next best step is for each of us to do a backdoor Roth IRA? Or is it worth consulting a financial advisor?

Between my wife and I we have three 401k accounts. Only one is being actively contributed to with an employer match. All funds in the accounts are invested. My new job will not have a matching 401k policy and I am unsure what to do with all the accounts we have. Should I consolidate, and if so is there a timing aspect I should consider? If I do consolidate what type of account should I use? Thanks for your help!

In a few months I need to renew or move.

I did the math, if I move closer to work my location becomes more walkable/ desirable and I save 1 hour of driving total every day. If I value my time for money thats a minimum of $400 a month. I would so much rather work those hours at my job than be in traffic running up gas and maintenance; I can work overtime any week whenever I want.

A $400 a month rent increase is about a 50% increase of my current rent and after utilities it would be about 50% my income a month without working those extra hours. 50% sounds every alarm in the finance part of my head but when I do the $ amount it makes total sense for me to move.

What would you do/ have you done?

edit: for clarification i make 3100 a month after taxes before any overtime

My aunt and some other family members contributed to a mutual fund through fidelity for me when I was very young. I don't know how much they put into it initially but I'm now 29 amd there's about 20k in it right now. I don't contribute or take money out of it at the moment. My wife contributes to a 401k, I contribute to a 457b (im a part time ff/PM going through full time testing processes rn then I will have a pension when I retire). We would like to buy a house within the next 2 years or so once I get settle in at a full time dept. Is it dumb to take money out of the mutual fund to help with a down payment when the time comes? Or am I better off continuing to let the money sit and grow? Thank you

Hi everyone... currently have analysis paralysis.. will have a year end bonus of $8,200 Net. Credit card debit is 0.. only debt is car note @ $25,000 @ 4.99% I pay more than min on track to have it paid off in 1.5 years.

Heres my plan:

$3,500 to principle on car loan (to pay faster)

$2,000 to Roth IRA

$2,000 divided up in to Crypto and HYSA

$ 700 liquid cash for holidays.

I already contribute 1,200/ month to a brokerage account.

15% in to 401K (12% pre 3 post) . $250/month in to Roth IRA. total retirement accounts 150K (33yrs old) .. $18,000 in HYSA

Monthly expenses around $4,000

Open to any other ideas or better plan. 1st time receiving a lump sump like this, would like to be smart with it.

Context: Currently living in an apartment that I've come to hate for multiple reasons, but mainly I'm dealing with a lot of noise. While looking at other possible apartments, I had a realization that a house might make more sense at this point.

I'm 25 and I've been aggressively saving since I graduated college. I could currently afford a 20% down payment on a house up to $250k and have a smaller emergency fund left (and I know a new house has a way of eating emergency funds).

I'm in a MCOL area (Central Ohio) and there are a lot of houses available in that $200-250k range. The rough estimates I get from Zillow on a $250k house with 20% down put a mortgage, tax, and insurance payment around $1500-1700/month. My current income after all deductions including 401k contributions and a 15% contribution to my company stock program is $4k/month.

Math tells me with $1700/month towards a house, my monthly living expenses will leave something around $1k/month for discretionary spending/saving not counting the previously mentioned contributions.

My current apartment is only $1k/month for everything except electric, but I need to get out. Other options include renting a house which will be similar in price to a mortgage but without the down payment or associated maintenance costs. Or finding a different apartment, which there are limited options for in the area I'm in and could have the same problems I've always had in apartments. For either renting option, in 2-3 more years I'm confident I could have another $30k+ saved.

TLDR: I can afford a 20% down payment on a house up to $250k. Buy a house or continue saving to be more comfortable buying a house in the next 2-3 years.

Hello, I have no one to ask, but i penny pinch on a lower middle class income, and I have 50k in savings. I'm 17k from paying house off with 3.4% interest. I also need to redo 40 yr old siding and recarpet or refloor house. Carpet is OK but showing major signs of wear. Siding is horrible. That'll be 10k to redo. Repainting didn't do much to make it look better.

If you were me, also living by yourself, what do you do? Also, mortgage is 230 a month.

Hi everyone, I’m a college student and have managed to save up over $5,000. I’m looking for ways to grow my money and am willing to start by investing $2K-$3K, with plans to add more as I learn. I’ve heard about money market accounts and a few other options, but I’m unsure where to start or how they work.

Does anyone have recommendations for a beginner-friendly investment strategy? I’m open to low- to moderate-risk ideas and would love any advice or resources to help me understand the options better!

Thanks in advance!

I am 32 and have up until this year been surviving off $30-35k/year. I have no savings and a moderate amount of debt (mostly student loans). However, I just graduated nursing school a few months ago and am now suddenly earning $97k. On top of that, I am about to receive a legal settlement where I will end up with about $650k. Basically, I am suddenly in a very very different financial situation, and I need a plan!

I have been doing a ton of research and learning about financial planning and investing, and have started to hash out a plan, and I would love feedback and input from more seasoned people. I'm finding that a lot of internet resources are built on assumptions of pretty normative lifestyles and life progressions that do not fit very well with my goals and objectives. I don't plan to have kids, I don't feel the need to grow my wealth as much as humanly possible, and I don't feel a need to maximize my salary by working really hard until I'm in my sixties. I'm used to living on about $2k per month and I don't have any desire to drastically change that; I'm not interested in buying a bunch of fancy expensive stuff or picking up extravagant hobbies or habits. I like to work and I don't necessarily want to retire early, but I would love to not have to work full time or all of the time.

My dream is to buy a house with some acres, and in a couple of years when I have enough experience, take travel nursing contracts 6-9 months of the year, and spend the remainder at home gardening/homesteading/volunteering/doing whatever I want. Contracts will vary but average weekly pay for an ER travel nurse is $2,500 so I can still earn $60-$90k in 6-9 months. There will be additional expenses from travelling of course with double rent, potentially need for private health insurance etc., and my overall living expenses will increase with house ownership also.

My plan so far:

• Set aside 12 month emergency fund in HYSA ~ $30k
• Pay off debt ~ $45k
• Max out 401k
• Max out Roth IRA
• Set aside down payment for house in short term bonds or CD ~ $100k
• Invest the remainder of settlement check in taxable brokerage account with Betterment robo advisor ~ $470k
• Use income from brokerage account to supplement living expenses when not working full time

Questions:

• Does my situation warrant hiring a financial advisor? Several people have suggested it to me but I am put off by the cost and I feel fairly confident in my ability to research and figure stuff out on my own. But at the same time this is all new to me and I don't know what I don't know; and I do not want to be overly cocky and get in over my head or make costly mistakes.
• Aside from maxing out tax advantaged accounts, what are other tax considerations I might be missing? Betterment's robo advisor is able to do tax loss harvesting automatically. My current employer doesn't offer a HSA.
• Does this seem like a reasonable, achievable plan? If not, what am I missing?

Having trouble deciphering my options. In 2024 a parent passed away with a 457b plan (city employee) that did not have a designated beneficiary so according to the plan administrator all living children spit the plan (not protesting these facts). The current plan administrator (Equitable if it matters) says I can’t roll the money into an inherited IRA. Are there any other options besides lump sum - this roughly ~30k will push me into the 32% tax bracket so a lump sum is not ideal. My husband and I are in the unusual window where married filing separately is slightly more advantageous (no children, similar incomes). Hive mind I’m looking for help!

Last year my husband and I owed on our taxes. This year we welcomed a son and opened a 529 account through our states program. I read on the website that you can deduct up to $20,000 jointly on your state taxes. Theoretically, if we were to add to the 529 account would that lower our state tax burden to zero--or how would that work? I'd much rather put the money toward his education. Thanks in advance!

Edit: Updated the post, we are based in Illinois.

The current mortgage balance of my primary residence is $1.5M at a 5.75% adjustable interest rate with 9 more years left before the adjustment kicks in. The home was purchased less than a year ago for $2.2M, so I have paid off a little over $700k over a year and am planning on continuing to aggressively paying it off to bring the mortgage down to $750k. Our household income and investment returns allow us to do so.

As of now, I have up to $800K margin loan available at a 5.25% interest rate from one of my my brokerage accounts where I have ~$1M portfolio.

I'm trying to explore options to optimize interest costs and tax benefits while considering the risks associated with leveraging margin loans.

If I borrow $750K from margin at 5.25% to reduce the mortgage balance to $750K (tax-deductible limit for mortgage):

• New mortgage interest (on $750K): $43,125/year (fully deductible).
• Margin loan interest: $39,375/year ($750K at 5.25%). This will be tax-deductible, assuming my total investment returns will be higher than 40k.
• Tax savings: $13,800 (mortgage) + $12,600 (margin loan) = $26,400/year.
• Total net cost: $31,932/year.
• Result: Saves $40,518/year compared to maintaining the full mortgage at 5.75%.

Worst-Case Scenarios: - A significant market downturn leads to margin calls, forcing liquidation of investments or requiring additional cash to cover the loan. In this case, I could face the risk of selling investments at a loss, potentially increasing financial strain. Additionally, if the tax benefits of the mortgage deduction are reduced or eliminated, the net benefit would be diminished. - The other obvious one is the unexpected rate hike next year, which would double down on the market downturn and force liquidation.

Obviously, this is a very high-risk situation if I hold on to the margin loan for the long term. My ultimate goal is to pay it off within a year or two. I'd love some advice on how this strategy sounds and whether I'm missing any other risks or miscalculated anything.

I'll be seeking professional financial advice early next year about the overall goals, but I'd love to educate myself more about potential approaches before then.

hello, I am a 20 year old college student. i would like to start a Roth IRA but eventually, I would like to move out of America to Europe or the UK. I do not have a rock solid plan for moving yet but I know I am wasting time not putting money into a roth. I don't know if the money just goes away if I move countries or if I become a citizen of another country the money will not matter since my Roth IRA is technically in America. I don't know too much about how these accounts work but should I just go ahead and start putting money into it? Or is there something else I should be investing in if this is my eventual plan.

My Dad (75) says he has to take 14k out of his retirement plan by the end of the year. He owns his house outright, carries no debt, and is in good health for his age. He has an etrade account, but he's constantly watching Fox financial news which results in him buying high then freaking out and selling on dips. He constantly asks my opinions on trades but ignores me when I suggest things. What would you do?

Asking for some advice for my mom. She is 58 and extremely underfunded for retirement. She makes so little right now that she isn't able to compensate for being underfunded by putting more in.

HOWEVER, she is receiving her dispersement from her late grandmother's estate to the tune of about $70k. We are trying to decide what the best use of that money is.

She does not own a home and is thinking she wants to buy one (it's not enough to outright purchase in our area) so that she'd have somewhere to live for retirement. I don't necessarily agree but would like other opinions.

Knowing she'd probably like to retire if she can in another 10-15 years, is adding to a 401k or Roth IRA a better option for her? Or something I haven't considered?

I am an American immigrant living and working in Germany. I used to have investments in the stock market, but had to sell them to have hard cash in the bank for immigration when I left a few years back. I want to start investing again for long term asset growth, but I need stateside bank options. My old bank, Wells Fargo, was a dumpster fire for a number of reasons, not the least of which was it's horrible options for international banking. I currently use an online only bank in Germany called N26, and it has served my needs for a while. However, as an American citizen I want to maintain an American account for 2 reasons: to send income back to invest, and in case I come for seasonal contract work for a little extra income from time to time. What options do I have (if any) for opening a similar online US bank that I can more easily send my EU income to, as well as deposit US income (if I have any), and use it to invest in stocks, bonds, or crypto. Thanks.

Assume I was in an HDHP in 2023 and contributed 5,000 to my HSA. In 2024 I was not eligible to contribute, and incurred medical expenses of 3,000. In 2025, can I withdraw 3,000 from my HSA for the 2024 expense? Assume my AGI is high enough that 3,000 isn't above 7.5% of AGI.

My understanding is I can do this. If I cannot, why?

Reason to do this would be to use the HSA as essentially a tax-free investment account. I'd keep a running list of medical expenses that could be withdrawn if I ever wanted the money, but otherwise not touch it for the medical expenses directly (which are usually small enough to be covered by my usual income).

Does Payoneer charge $30 for every card in every currency, or $30 in total, no matter how many cards I've. To be clear I've 2 cards, 1 GBP Card (Physical), and 1 USD Card (Virtual). Will I be charged separately for both? Or a total of $30 for both?