This post is a followup to my Couch to 529, last month. The answer I’m searching for here is how to divide the $100k fairly between the education of many grandchildren. I explored something similar in Dividing a 529 Six Ways, but this time I’m throwing the hypothetical 24 grandchildren at it with a new… Continue reading Fairly Funding Multiple 529s
One of the “drawbacks” with my personal finance hobby is discovering new ways that I’ve financially messed up in the past. This week I discovered an HSA trick that I wish I had known when I paid off the remainder of my student loans in December 2019. My ignorance cost me $401. Terminating My Student… Continue reading Paying off Student Loans with a 529
The Inertia of Inaction A few years ago, my wife and I watched The Way Back, a “based on a true story” account of prisoners who escaped the Siberian Gulag on foot, finding their freedom in India. The following is a conversation between two of the escapees: JANUSZ: He has a plan. SMITH: Who? JANUSZ:… Continue reading May 2021 Update
I wish I’d started earlier taking advantage of 529 accounts. I’m running out of precious years of compounding. But what about the so-far untapped compounding for any future grandchildren? Using current assumptions, what would a plan to fund college-bound grandchildren look like? Comfortably on the Couch I can’t open 529s for grandkids that don’t yet… Continue reading Couch to 529
Last month, my 2000 Honda Civic LX turned twenty-one. Most of its 156,498 miles were earned during the first seven years of its life when it was our only vehicle. When I bought it in 2000, I drove it off the lot, brand new, for $15,631. What I didn’t know at the time is how… Continue reading How to get a brand new Honda Civic for $4,000!
Recently, while reading Lifecycle Investing by Ian Ayres and Barry Nalebuff, I wondered how to calculate my relative risk aversion(RRA). Financial advisors often ask their clients a series of questions to calculate their risk and determine the suitability of different types of investments. These questionnaires are challenged because many people often say one thing but… Continue reading How much risk will I tolerate?
It’s official! This is the first year I’ve filed for a tax extension. Every year I use the FreeFillableForms to fill out and submit my taxes. I was slightly concerned that I’d have to restart the process to file the extension. That was until I saw the nifty “File an Extension” button in the upper… Continue reading April 2021 Update
This past week, I sold my bond holdings and spread the proceeds between our US equities and international equities allocation. It was a combination of selling our positions in VTIP, BND and VBIPX, and then gifting appreciated shares of VTEB. Why? Previously, my fixed income target was 15%. Recently, I realized that I wasn’t considering… Continue reading Bond-like Assets
My wife and I have a long running inside joke. We’ll be considering a purchase, be it a thing or an experience, and one of us will turn to the other, asking “how much did we pay for this the last time?” The other spouse will reply, “I don’t know. But I know how we… Continue reading Using Quicken to Track Personal Finances
With my oldest finishing up her first year at the university, I started thinking about the alchemy of converting human capital (i.e. W-2, 1099-contracting, etc.) into investment capital. As I worked out a post, I started looking into the effect of college on increasing one’s human capital. Entering the Workforce Many people get jobs during… Continue reading Is College Worth It?
