Man. I was posting on the first couple of pages on this thread. Nice to know that this thread is still going strong nine years later.
What have I done since I last posted? Hmm…nothing too ridiculous. The last job I was at I ended up accumulating about $45k in my 401k over there because of how aggressive I was investing at the time. I switched jobs in 2011, got married in '13, got some debt (car, credit cards, financed a couch). Just last summer I paid off everything and together we’ve got a positive net worth hitting close to six figures. I rent, so no mortgage yet, but I’ve got a lot of liquid saved up for a down payment for our first house. Rolled my old 401k over to a Roth IRA and I’ve been contributing heavily to that. Also have a Roth 401k at my current gig and I’m starting that investing back up.
Not sure how people around here feel about Dave Ramsey, but his Total Money Makeover book got me thinking differently about money and how we’re controlling it. Wife and I had changed our behavior so much regarding how we were spending it’s ridiculous.
I personally don’t use one but i follow these simple rules monthly:
-NEVER touch the essential $$: (rent,transport,food)
-Set up my bank to automatically move certain $$ to another account that i don’t have direct access to every payday.
-Any leftover $$ is mine to spend how i please.
This has worked for me really well. In fact I even increased the savings deduction beginning this year. It was rough at first but i’m used to it now.
Here’s some apps. One of my friend is a big fan of mint but every time we hang out, he always seems to be out of $$ so yea… :lol:
FYI - Mint will get you in trouble with some banks because it violates certain contractual stipulations - e.g. not giving access to random people (or companies) to your account.
Then, I have my bills set up so that every paycheck either I pay for my student / car loans OR rent which both come to be about the same. I have a third share on my bank account that I deposit THAT money into. After bills are paid, any extra goes back to my checking account.
All the money in my checking stays there, spending whatever on whatever I need and the day before my next paycheck, I put 50% of my checking account into my OptionsHouse account and 50% into my student loans. Tomorrow, money gets replenished.
The 50% goes into OPtionsHouse where I buy safe stocks and collect dividends. Right now, I got a bunch of Microsoft shares. Every quarter, I get some money from them and that goes to things I don’t NEED, but want and don’t want to feel guilty about spending - e.g. trips to Dubai or Japan that I’ve taken in the last few years, or I don’t mind dropping on some rare ass PS1 game like my precious, sealed copy of Symphony of the Night which I dropped $275 on, and it’s signed by Michiru Yamane (The music composer).
Betterment just kinda sits there, and as I get more comfortable with it, I’ll probably up the 5% to 10%. That, I just started with and it’s all good for the time being. Small gains/losses, but mostly gains for the time being.
Once my student loans and car loans are gone (ETA 2020, but with me paying extra here and there, more likely 2018 - then I plan on going full out 50% into Betterment (50% of the residual, that is, formerly going to student loans). Theoretically, by then I’ll feel completely comfortable with them if I haven’t pulled out by then)
I’ve got a question that I’ve been having trouble getting answers for.
If you have a DRIP account set up,when exactly are your dividends taxed? I mean, are they taxable during the point before they are re-invested, or are they only taxable after you cash out, like the rest of it? Thanks.
Hey all, I could use some financial encouragement. Chicago has been kicking my ass and my finances. Just had a very, very rough patch financially, and am looking for something to break. So just venting a bit in here because it seems like despite having an education and credentials, Chicago just doesn’t want to fuck with ya boy.
I just checked my Lending Club account and the $3,000 loan investment i put there last Dec. is now close to 4k+ even with the notes that got ‘charged off’ (i bet it’s some broke-ass niggas :mad: ). Anyways, its kinda insane- it’s earning about $200+ interest at this point which gets re-invested back into $50.00 chunks with average rate-of-return 8%+ as of today so technically if I shut down the auto-reinvest tool and just wait for all my current active notes be paid, total value will be even higher! It’s compound-interest-on-top-of-compounded-interest-on-top-of-etc :lol:
In summary:
Hope that hyped you up man. The only potential ‘bad’ news is the company is currently under investigation because apparently it doesn’t have enough cash reserves if every investor request to be paid all at the same time. I ain’t stressing doe; the global economy would need to be in melt down mode for that to happen…which is highly unlikely so yea. This thing is earning money while I sleep/play vidjahgames/ surf/ etc. :tup:
Yeah, we have thought about it. Honestly besides from the sudden financial pitfall (layoffs), we actually like Chicago a lot. Plus if we left Chicago, my wife was talking about going back to Ohio, which I most definitely don’t want to do. I am hoping things get easier though.
yea i heard about that investigation, the stock got rocked from it. i was always interested in it, but didnt know if people payed their shit back or not, so i just stuck to stocks and ETFs.
Starting this August, I’m going to start saving up a ton of money. I need a safe place to keep my money where it can accumulate more interest than a bank but can be taken out on a monthly or even quarterly basis without penalty. Is there anything like that? I heard mutual funds would be a good place to start for a scrub like myself that lacks starting capital.
EDIT: Also heard that real estate can pick up money quickly, but they can possibly go under and you lose everything. I’d never do this risky shit without significant startup, but if there is something that can give me a decent percentage without penalty then I could use the profits off of that money to fuel further investments.
@BullDancer: have you checked your local bank? They may have some local investment tools that might satisfy your requirement. My shitty bank introduced one last fall that is basically a managed stock fund where it has guarantee rate of return. I have the option to pull out every quarter. it’s not FDIC-insured though and has minimum investment 1k(?). I’m basically part of a fund group working mainly with blue chip stocks. If i remember right, it has guarantee return of 4%+ . It sure beats the .001% savings interest it was earning before though :lol:
I would stay away from stocks though unless you have exceptional Big Data research skills and knows the industry you want to get into inside-out(trends, seasonal swings, etc).
@NinetiesArcade thanks for the advice. I’m with a credit union so idk if they have programs to hook a brother up. I’ll probably report to this thread in Q4 to either talk about small gains or crushing failure.
After educating myself further, Robo managed ETFs are the best option for the small money investor. In the next two months I’m gonna have to hit one of you guys up for that temporarily free betterment reference.
EDIT: Honestly I might do like 20% Bonds and 50% Stocks and 30% cash. I have to get real frugal.
I feel your pain, been struggling so much even with getting a job with the state and i really dont have any other expenses besides rent car note and car insurance yet it still feels like I dont have nearly enough money to do anything but pay bills : /
lmao, that shit has the markets in full turnt up Volatility mode, fucking swingy like a bipolar woman. if we open up at these current gains and hold them throught the session, that is one crazy ass pop, im glad i have no short positions and i cashed out of my gold etf last week.
