Search found 916 matches

by bugleheadd
Fri Mar 08, 2024 8:59 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Can I splurge on a family vacation to Hawaii?
Replies: 56
Views: 4790

Re: Can I splurge on a family vacation to Hawaii?

i did 2 weeks in Hawaii last year and split the costs with someone else...it cost me $3300 which didnt seem that bad to me
by bugleheadd
Fri Mar 08, 2024 7:41 pm
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Who has rebalanced?
Replies: 28
Views: 3646

Re: Who has rebalanced?

stocks have gone up nicely this year...

who has rebalanced?
by bugleheadd
Fri Jan 05, 2024 7:45 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: How did you make your first $1M?
Replies: 148
Views: 33528

Re: How did you make your first $1M?

Maxed out 401k pretax, trad or Roth IRA, HSA and partially doing megabackdoor, remainder in taxable... so savings of around 50k to 60k annually.
by bugleheadd
Fri Dec 29, 2023 11:28 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Share your net worth progression
Replies: 4273
Views: 1072024

Re: Share your net worth progression

bugleheadd wrote: Mon Jan 03, 2022 7:43 am end of year balance (not including inherited home)
2019 - 430k
2020 - 720k
2021 - 892k (would have been higher but spent 75k on home improvements)
Forgot to calc 2022

2023 - 1,120k
by bugleheadd
Thu Dec 14, 2023 3:42 am
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Who has rebalanced?
Replies: 28
Views: 3646

Who has rebalanced?

What is your asset allocation, how much has it shifted now that markets up around 25 percent ytd and what is your rebalancing rule?
by bugleheadd
Sun Dec 03, 2023 2:25 pm
Forum: US Chapters
Topic: Post your Financial Milestone Announcements Here
Replies: 3606
Views: 562133

Re: Post your Financial Milestone Announcements Here

Hit 999k in all my accounts combined as of friday

15 yr full time work history, averaged about 66k a year gross income.

Made some boneheaded moves investing in treasuries , REITs early on, but found bogleheads at end of 2019 and now mostly VTI

Been able to max out 401k, HSA for about 2/3 of those years. I do either Roth or trad every year

Single, no kids, living in inherited paid off home (450k which I didn't count)helped
by bugleheadd
Mon Aug 07, 2023 8:41 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Selling house via owner financing to our son
Replies: 26
Views: 2688

Re: Selling house via owner financing to our son

[Topic is now in Personal Finance (Not Investing) - mod mkc] We have a house that is fully paid off with no mortgage. Our son wants to buy the house but since it is paid off I don't want him to take out a traditional mortgage for it especially with the high interest rates right now. I am considering doing an Owner Finance for him. How complicated would this be or is this a bad idea all together. We are in Missouri. Thanks It could be complicated. Approximately what would the sale price be, and what percentage of your entire "wealth" would this be? Would you be prepared to foreclose on the off chance that things went badly? Or could you afford to end up letting him just have the house (and deal with gifting it instead)? Would you ...
by bugleheadd
Mon Aug 07, 2023 8:36 pm
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Need to buy new vehicle quickly
Replies: 43
Views: 4285

Re: Need to buy new vehicle quickly

If you could charge at home (at work is another plus), qualify for fed tax credit, don't need to commute more than 200 miles a day, I would look at the Tesla model3 rwd. It is around 32k after tax credit.
by bugleheadd
Tue Aug 01, 2023 8:10 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: Have you recovered from the market downturn?
Replies: 117
Views: 10800

Re: Have you recovered from the market downturn?

I'm 40% above the Oct 2022 lows, due to contributions and gains
by bugleheadd
Tue Aug 01, 2023 7:35 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: What are you up YTD? [Year To Date]
Replies: 5249
Views: 899645

Re: What are you up YTD? [Year To Date]

I'm up somewhere around what sp500 and total us stock market is up ytd
by bugleheadd
Tue Aug 01, 2023 7:29 pm
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Would this car buying tactic work?
Replies: 51
Views: 5938

Re: Would this car buying tactic work?

I'm leaning towards going with Tesla for my next car. No having to deal with dealership and their markups and sales pressure up selling tactics.
by bugleheadd
Tue Aug 01, 2023 7:22 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Has anyone tried Mustache's house purchase via margin idea?
Replies: 21
Views: 3024

Re: Has anyone tried Mustache's house purchase via margin idea?

This interests me. Suppose I have a 800k home and want to buy and move to a different 800k home. I have 400k in investments, I don't want to sell. Then does it make sense to withdraw using margin ? With margin would I only be able to take a loan of 400k? Then can I take out a mortgage for another 400k to pay for the rest? After I sell the first home I would pay off the margin and mortgage right away.
by bugleheadd
Sun Jul 30, 2023 5:28 pm
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Real Estate Income
Replies: 7
Views: 842

Real Estate Income

hypothetical first rental property, 1.4m property value, it is 1 residential unit& 1 commercial unit , $5k-$7k per month gross rent, $8k annual property tax, tenants pay utilities. Based on this what other information is needed to determine if this is a good investment?

Pros and cons of doing business as sole proprietor or LLC?
by bugleheadd
Wed Jul 19, 2023 9:58 pm
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Intl. airline ticket prices... why so expensive / strategies for finding discounts?
Replies: 67
Views: 8161

Re: Intl. airline ticket prices... why so expensive / strategies for finding discounts?

We are looking at tickets from Denver to Europe (Paris, Frankfurt, we're flexible) in the off-season (late Sept, early Oct). We'd prefer to fly direct (United, Air France, or Lufthansa). Economy prices are around $1,200 (a little above what they "used" to be), but it bumps up to $4,000 for premium economy and $9,000 for business. :shock: What is going on with these prices? From a macro standpoint, is this just a huge surge in demand for travel, remnants of inflation, a pilot shortage, or airline price gouging? I cannot wrap my head around why these prices are so high all of a sudden, much less who is paying $3,800 more for premium economy much less $7,800 more for business. Clearly people are as many of these flights are almost f...
by bugleheadd
Fri Jul 14, 2023 9:31 pm
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: SUV Rental at Airport
Replies: 22
Views: 1994

Re: SUV Rental at Airport

OrangeKiwi wrote: Fri Jul 14, 2023 9:30 am Hertz has many incidents of reporting their customers as having stolen the cars, causing police to arrest them and whatnot. I would not touch Hertz with a 10ft pole. I also assume Enterprise and Avis brands are better than Hertz brands because Costco offers Enterprise and Avis brands, but not Hertz. Hertz also filed for bankruptcy 3 years ago, which I imagine was not good for quality.
What is the advantage of booking through Costco?.

I have looked at Priceline, hotwire , Expedia, kayak, etc...hotwire seems to give the lowest rates but seems like it's low because you have to prepay and no cancellation refunds
by bugleheadd
Wed Jun 14, 2023 6:36 pm
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Still trying to believe in bonds
Replies: 214
Views: 47588

Re: Still trying to believe in bonds

CookieDough wrote: Wed Jun 14, 2023 4:02 pm
bugleheadd wrote: Wed Jun 14, 2023 1:51 pm I hold money market funds instead of BND.
May I ask about your thoughts behind this strategy? I'm starting to see the benefits of moving (partly) in this direction myself.
Bnd price feels very volatile to me. Feels like there's still room for it to drop. At least with money markets , if you put in a $1, your $1 isn't going to drop unless in a very rare situation like what happened in 2008, even then I think it went back up to $1. And money market yields are 5% now...bnd is 2-3%, so bnd doesn't look attractive
by bugleheadd
Wed Jun 14, 2023 1:51 pm
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Still trying to believe in bonds
Replies: 214
Views: 47588

Re: Still trying to believe in bonds

I hold money market funds instead of BND.
by bugleheadd
Wed Jun 14, 2023 1:48 pm
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: What frugal thing did you do today?
Replies: 4521
Views: 616841

Re: What frugal thing did you do today?

Ate breakfast and lunch and 2 cups of coffee for free at work
by bugleheadd
Wed Jun 14, 2023 1:47 pm
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Investing only in VTSAX to reach F.I.R.E... too risky?
Replies: 89
Views: 10437

Re: Investing only in VTSAX to reach F.I.R.E... too risky?

Are you ok with it going down 50% or more for a few years?
by bugleheadd
Wed Jun 14, 2023 10:05 am
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Ice cream containers with no seals
Replies: 28
Views: 4150

Re: Ice cream containers with no seals

bombcar wrote: Tue Jun 13, 2023 8:09 pm Tamper seals were popularized after the Tylenol murders.

They're not really needed for most foodstuffs (your eggs aren't tamper sealed, your produce is just laying there).

You should be able to tell if the ice cream has been opened unless someone was very, very careful about it.
Tampering with eggs would be more difficult as you would see a crack or opening in the shell. Produce can be washed and cooked
by bugleheadd
Tue Jun 13, 2023 2:52 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Too much tax deferred?
Replies: 21
Views: 2343

Re: Too much tax deferred?

Roughly 60% of my accounts are tax deferred . Working on increasing my Roth and taxable portions
by bugleheadd
Tue Jun 13, 2023 2:38 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: How much to have in your 401K by a given age...
Replies: 74
Views: 11707

Re: How much to have in your 401K by a given age...

op When I retired in August 2021 at 61, I had in my 457 1.77 million and 821k in Roth IRA, which totaled 2.596 million, therefore not typical American my age. My numbers are probably most BH near retirement age. Kudos to you ! I am just curious even if you max out every year for 30 years how did you get 821k in Roth IRA? I have been maxing out Roth IRA for 13 yrs my Roth IRA hovering around 100k? Am I missing anything? The obvious answer is that you ar missing nearly 20 years, but I also wonder what you are invested in as I opened my Roth 13 years ago, have not always been able to contribute and put some of the original in new markets income (negative since that investment was made many years ago) and am still just under $100k. I’ve maxed ...
by bugleheadd
Tue Jun 13, 2023 11:42 am
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: Coming out of bear market - what asset classes do well
Replies: 34
Views: 3875

Re: Coming out of bear market - what asset classes do well

secondopinion wrote: Mon Jun 12, 2023 5:43 pm
bugleheadd wrote: Mon Jun 12, 2023 1:10 pm I'm up 33.3% from the 1 yr low. 99% in VTI or VOO, maxed out retirement contributions,another 20k in mbr and 20k in taxable in the past year
Unless you bought at the 1 year low, then it is not exactly that impressive. However, it is good that most who stayed invested got their net worth back.
No I didn't dnt buy at one year low. It's just nice watching my account well surpassing my 2021 all time highs again
by bugleheadd
Tue Jun 13, 2023 11:39 am
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: What's your decision rule for selling off rising stocks?
Replies: 24
Views: 1960

Re: What's your decision rule for selling off rising stocks?

I bought $750 of sprint stock in 2012 and after mergers it is now TMUS worth $5,300. I have no urge to sell yet
by bugleheadd
Mon Jun 12, 2023 1:10 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: Coming out of bear market - what asset classes do well
Replies: 34
Views: 3875

Re: Coming out of bear market - what asset classes do well

I'm up 33.3% from the 1 yr low. 99% in VTI or VOO, maxed out retirement contributions,another 20k in mbr and 20k in taxable in the past year
by bugleheadd
Mon Jun 12, 2023 12:43 pm
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Best East coast beach town to live in
Replies: 93
Views: 12060

Re: Best East coast beach town to live in

Probably somewhere gulf coast of Floriida
by bugleheadd
Mon Jun 12, 2023 12:41 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: "Should couples combine finances or keep personal accounts?"
Replies: 236
Views: 25886

Re: "Should couples combine finances or keep personal accounts?"

What about for Trad/Roth , 401ks,and HSA....is it possible to add on spouses name the accounts after marriage?
by bugleheadd
Mon Jun 05, 2023 11:39 am
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Living on dividends during retirement
Replies: 77
Views: 13796

Re: Living on dividends during retirement

Hoping my vti/VOO divs will more than cover my annual expenses when I retire. Current holdings are giving off 15k per year, goal is 3x that
by bugleheadd
Sun Jun 04, 2023 8:32 am
Forum: US Chapters
Topic: Post your Financial Milestone Announcements Here
Replies: 3606
Views: 562133

Re: Post your Financial Milestone Announcements Here

430k Jan 2020 right before covid crash, covid low of about 360k. Was on the cusp of reaching $1m year end 2021...around 900k, then hit low of 720k in q3 2022, now back up to 950k Friday. maxing out pretax 401k, trad or Roth, HSA every year past 8 years. Another 30k in mbr/taxable every year past 5 years. 99% holdings in us total stock or sp 500
by bugleheadd
Sun Jun 04, 2023 7:52 am
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: How many are holding cash right now?
Replies: 203
Views: 31064

Re: How many are holding cash right now?

Only holding about 1% of assets in cash which is in SPAXX. 99% is in either VTI, VOO or similar. Probably will build up SPAXX position as i may want to buy real estate in the next 5 yrs
by bugleheadd
Sat Mar 11, 2023 11:45 am
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Buying first real estate -- am I taking too much risk?
Replies: 31
Views: 3232

Re: Buying first real estate -- am I taking too much risk?

Updating on this topic, not sure if anyone cares. 1) I did get pre-approved for a loan without issue 2) I decided not to go forward with a purchase at this time. I don't think this loan is "too much" like some are saying -- I could afford it. But it would make me house poor at a time where the market could very well be going into a tailspin which is a major worry for me. I don't really know if I want all that stress, and I think one good point people mentioned is that it will tie me down geographically when I'm at a point in my career where being mobile is probably better. 3) I will have to rent, which is looking to be closer to 2800-3200 a month for an apartment with even half decent quality. Unfortunate, and honestly, with thes...
by bugleheadd
Sat Mar 11, 2023 10:34 am
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: How to buy Treasuries on Fidelity?
Replies: 17
Views: 3556

How to buy Treasuries on Fidelity?

Never bought treasuries before. I navigated to the Treasuries search page easily enough, but many questions looking at the different columns. i'm thinking if rates will continue increasing, then is it better to look for shorter term treasuries like 3 months ...maturity date in June ? then repeat in june and buy another 3 mo ending in sep. suppose i pick this: UNITED STATES TREAS BILLS ZERO CPN 0.00000% 06/13/2023 bid yield is 4.957, bid price is 98.766, qty 250,000 (min 300), ask price 98.793 qty 10,000(min 1,000), ask yield to worst and yield to maturity is 4.847, third party price 98.720 does the Qty(min) of 250,000(100) mean i must buy at min $100 worth of treasuries? can i buy some random amount not in multiples of $100, like $15,234. w...
by bugleheadd
Thu Dec 22, 2022 10:30 am
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Amazon Order Not Received and They Won't Make Right (UPDATE: RESOLVED)
Replies: 161
Views: 15050

Re: Amazon Order Not Received and They Won't Make Right - Consumer Advice?

this is why i 'll try to go to to brick and mortars more often now like walmart and costco. amazons service seems to be declining
by bugleheadd
Thu Nov 10, 2022 3:38 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: Livesoft’ s really good day (RGD)
Replies: 54
Views: 9059

Re: Livesoft’ s really good day (RGD)

so there is still a chance my spx5975 prediction for the contest
by bugleheadd
Tue Oct 25, 2022 9:47 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Whole life: does it ever make sense?
Replies: 101
Views: 7319

Re: Whole life: does it ever make sense?

Appreciate the replies and seem in-line with what I was expecting. However, this has been recommended to me by HNW, smart individuals w/ no tie to the insurance industry. I did a forum search and there have been some comments in the past by others on this forum that have noted that it could be an attractive option given the tax advantages. If you are a super high net worth individual, then buying a whole life policy not long before your death will save your heirs any tax when you die and is not considered part of your estate. Compare term life costs. If you don't have a "ready to die now" prognosis, it will likely be cheaper and then just die and your heirs will pay no taxes on the insurance payout. If you want money for yourself...
by bugleheadd
Tue Oct 25, 2022 7:48 am
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Is saving 34% of income towards retirement reasonable?
Replies: 138
Views: 17460

Re: Is saving 34% of income towards retirement reasonable?

any rate is reasonable as long as you have have accounted for expenses and have enough leftover income to save
by bugleheadd
Wed Oct 05, 2022 2:58 pm
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Question for Computer Experts
Replies: 36
Views: 2611

Re: Question for Computer Experts

There shouldn't be any security issues if you install your own harddrive and install a fresh copy of windows
by bugleheadd
Wed Oct 05, 2022 1:57 pm
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Question for Computer Experts
Replies: 36
Views: 2611

Re: Question for Computer Experts

if looking for compact and not doing any serious gaming or video editing, i would choose a laptop over small form factor desktop.

mobility and can do anything the desktop can do.
by bugleheadd
Tue Oct 04, 2022 9:51 am
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Men's Fashion -- Buy Suits or Jackets/Pants Separately?
Replies: 16
Views: 1852

Re: Men's Fashion -- Buy Suits or Jackets/Pants Separately?

i prefer matching for job interviews, weddings, funerals
by bugleheadd
Tue Oct 04, 2022 8:05 am
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: Ethical questions when investing in broad index funds
Replies: 18
Views: 11178

Re: Ethical questions when investing in broad index funds

all companies are wasteful and harm the environment in some way. Capitalism in general is non ESG friendly.
by bugleheadd
Tue Sep 13, 2022 6:21 pm
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: So according to my screen my SPY calls made a lot today :)
Replies: 3
Views: 902

Re: So according to my screen my SPY calls made a lot today :)

thinkofanamefast wrote: Tue Sep 13, 2022 4:42 pm S&P down 4.3% but my SPY calls gained and puts lost according to vanguard screen as of close today...I'm in the Bizarro world.

Any thoughts on why Vanguard shows optons prices based on last trade, instead of mid/mark or some theoretical price? Seems easy to do. Instead they seem to base it on last price which could have been days ago, since there are so many thousands of expiration dates and strikes with spy.

I have to go to my Interactive Brokers screen and get out the old pencil and replace the Vanguard numbers with real numbers to know the real story.
What strike and expiration?
Are you sure you didn't sell a covered call and cash secured put?
by bugleheadd
Sun Sep 11, 2022 4:38 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Paralyzed making job decision
Replies: 108
Views: 8783

Re: Paralyzed making job decision

why change jobs for same compensation?
by bugleheadd
Sat Sep 10, 2022 8:31 am
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Did you actually execute coast FIRE on your stop saving age?
Replies: 96
Views: 12791

Re: Did you actually execute coast FIRE on your stop saving age?

ship_at_sea wrote: Wed Aug 31, 2022 4:07 pm I've stopped maxing retirement savings as I was in prior years, but I'm still contributing to my 401k up to the match. I don't think this counts as coast, but I'm not going to say no to free money.

I'm 38 w/ ~700-750k NW. I figure I could make my goals in the next 15-20 years even without additional contributions. If not, I guess I'll just work more years. If that's not possible, then I'm still in decent shape for whatever life is throwing at me. I'm not going to worry about black swans.
Whats the reasonn for not maxing retirement savings? Wouldnt you want to max pretax 401k to defer tax on your income? Does your plan allow megabackdoor roth? Are you not eligible for roth ira?
by bugleheadd
Thu Aug 11, 2022 12:33 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: short term trades are no fun
Replies: 16
Views: 1299

Re: short term trades are no fun

just sell for 8% gains and dont do it again.
by bugleheadd
Thu Aug 11, 2022 11:49 am
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Master Bathroom Reno Advice
Replies: 80
Views: 9858

Re: Master Bathroom Reno Advice

putting shower controls right as you enter the shower is a must. i made the mistake of putting it at the other end , where now i have to reach in all the way into the shower to turn it on.

if you do overhead rainshower, get a 3 way mixer so you also have a handheld , and a tub spout.

i have a handrail along the length of the shower
by bugleheadd
Thu Aug 11, 2022 8:13 am
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Do you use a password manager?
Replies: 361
Views: 34095

Re: Do you use a password manager?

Excel is my password manager
by bugleheadd
Thu Aug 11, 2022 5:52 am
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: Why is stock market return so consistent over time?
Replies: 96
Views: 10793

Re: Why is stock market return so consistent over time?

Moving averages over long periods of time, as in your examples of 30+ years. Of course the chart line is going to appear flat.

Now do the same with 10 yr or less moving averages. The chart line will go up and down more dramatically
by bugleheadd
Wed Jul 20, 2022 10:01 am
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Lexus IS350 vs Mercedes C-Class
Replies: 82
Views: 7500

Re: Lexus IS350 vs Mercedes C-Class

Mercedes benz c63 amg
by bugleheadd
Wed Jul 20, 2022 6:19 am
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Spare tire?
Replies: 148
Views: 10302

Re: Spare tire?

vfinx wrote: Wed Jul 20, 2022 2:35 am
bugleheadd wrote: Tue Jul 19, 2022 9:12 pm My car didnt come with spare so i bought a full size tire from tire rack.com and a wheel from ebay and had the local tire shop mount the wheel. Also bought a oem spare donut kit from a dealership. I have them both in my trunk along with tire inflators, jacks.
That’s quite a lot of redundancy. Multiple jacks in particular is something I’ve never heard of anyone carrying. Assuming these are not hydraulic jacks, the odds of jack failure seem quite low.
Just two. A harbor freight trolley jack and a scissor jack that came with the oem donut kit. I prefer using the trolley jack, it is faster than the scissor