Hi everyone,

I have a restitution balance of 12,600 due to Michigan unemployment overpayment during Covid (non-fraudulent). I missed a few payments and now they are giving me 30 days until they garnish my wages up to 25% which would cause me to be homeless and lose my job.

I filled out a financial hardship waiver but will probably be denied because I make 1k more than what constitutes the poverty line.

Does anyone have any advice?

Growing up, I was always told to be mindful of my spending and to save and invest. I am doing the best I can at this at the moment, putting away about $300 a month into investments as I already saved up 6 months of expenses through a combination of past savings and help from parents.

But the main problem I have is that I have absolutely no idea what all of this is for. I can justify my savings as a strong emergency fund, but every time I put things into investments, It feel like i'm just tossing it into a metaphorical pit. I am going to turn 28 soon so retirement is extremely far away and isn't even on my mind. I am also not even considering purchasing a home as I was laid off 2 years into my first out of university job, had to move back to my parents place, was unemployed for almost a year and had to move far away for a lower paying job in a small town I feel miserable in. So there is a constant fear that buying a house would just make me extra vulnerable to another layoff that fucks over my life and forces me to move again (I want to slap my younger self for choosing mechanical engineering as a decent career path).

So now I just feel a sense of overall sense of pointlessness in saving. I feel like retirement and buying a house are the two main big goals which aren't a priority. I have no other financial goals in mind that aren't "frivolous" like international travel of a proper gaming pc. But I am only saving about 10% of my take-home income so not a lot of room for those types of luxuries. I should be able to find myself a better paying job next year but that would probably mean keeping my lifestyle largely the same but properly putting 25% of my take home income into savings.

So now I feel like I'm missing out in a lot of life by being responsible in saving, especially by seeing friends and coworkers doing stuff life travelling to Japan or Italy. Currently, I am just saving because its what i've been told its the reponsible thing to do but I have no actual intention behind it.

I am just hoping that if someone can help me find an actual financial goal, I can better balance my desires with responsible savings/investments.

going into my second year for an MBA. took out a personal loan for the first year, and was planning on doing the same for the second to finish my degree while working at the same time.

when my parents heard about the interest being paid, they offered to help co-signing a loan from the bank.

my parents (retired) no longer work. their house is also paid in full, so there is no mortgage. without a current mortgage, a HELOC seems out of the question. what is the best way for them to leverage the equity in their house so they can help me cover the costs of finishing my degree.

How to become financial literate?

NEED HELP!

I am 26 yrs old, privately employed, with basic salary of 14,200 every 5th and 20th of the month. My live in partner, a driver, is getting paid 5,000 pesos every week.

We have 3 daughters, 2 grade school and a 6 mos old who is on formula.

Despite our combined salary, we still can't save up. There are days that we need to borrow money for our allowances because there is nothing left from our salary. Instead of saving up money, its our loan that is getting bigger. 😭😭😭

Hi everyone, I’ve had some life changes recently that have made me reconsider my health insurance options for next year and wanted to see if this community could help me make a decision.

Back in May my wife and I had our first child, but he was born extremely early (23 weeks & 6 days). He is still in the NICU and doing well all things considered. Hopefully coming home in the next 1-2 months. Even with how well he is doing, I do expect he will have significantly more doctor's visits and specialist visits than the average child for at least next few years.

The healthcare plans from my employer are very good and have made this more or less a non-issue financially. However, I am wondering if it might make sense for us to switch out of a Family HDHP/HSA plan in favor of a traditional PPO Plan. Below are the terms of each option:

Family PPO
- Employee Cost = 5% of Base Wages Bi-Weekly (Max of $541)
- $0 deductible in-network
- $5,000 Out-of-pocket max for copays and out-of-network
- $25 copay for everything except Surgery, Emergency, or Ambulance (those are $0 copay)

Family HDHP/HSA (Current)
- Employee Cost = 5% of Base Wages Bi-Weekly (Max of $526)
- $3,500 deductible in-network
- $5,000 out-of-pocket max in network and $7,500 out-of-network
- No cost for anything in network after deductible is met
- 20% Coinsurance out-of-network after deductible is met
- My employer contributes $1,750 to HSA annually

Currently, my wife and I are on a budget and would likely need to use our HSA for any medical expenses if we kept the HDHP plan. I would expect that we would use all of what ends up being contributed to the HSA next year and possibly for the next few years depending on my son's needs.

Currently, I’m leaning towards switching to the PPO for next year and re-evaluating each year as our financial position changes and our family health needs change.

Please let me know if any additional information is needed! Thank you all in advance for the help!

Hi,

I earn about $2500 per month and I live in a low-income country with a median salary under $1000. I was born and raised here and I don't have any loan currently (I recently paid back my car loan) and I manage to save about half of my salary every month in a HYSA at 4.5%. I'm considering investing in an apartment priced a bit under $200K.

I talked with my bank, and since the building won't be ready until 2029, they agreed to give me a 20-year mortgage (I turned 34 last week), and to start charging me only after the building is ready. By the time the building is ready, I will have given about 25% as a down payment (I currently have around $25k in savings with no other loans). I would then be charged about $1200 per month for 20 years.

I might not be there in 3 years as I'm looking for job opportunities abroad, but I still want to have a place to live in if I decide to come back, or rent otherwise. The rent is estimated to be at least $1500 per month (more if I add furniture) so it'll cover the monthly mortgage payment. The bank is also open to delay the monthly charges by 6-12 months to give me time to find a tenant.

Now even though the math seems to be mathing, something tells me that it's a terrible idea and I should just keep saving for at least another year before committing to such an investment.

Are there other things I should be taking into consideration?

Thanks.

I’ve put myself in a hole I never imagine. I have 2 vehicles with negative equity. A mortgage. And no savings. I used my savings trying to claw out of my negative equity to bring down my monthly debt to income. I was hoping to have it paid off by the end of the year.

———————-

I’ve lost my job. I’m 3 months behind on everything. My checking account is -$2000 with no income coming in. At this point I’m waiting for the lights to cut out, the vehicles to get repo’d (can no longer afford to put gas in them to drive to interviews), and my credit cards are maxed out.

Obviously this didn’t happen overnight, and I saw the signs but thought I’d figure it out. Well I didn’t.

So now I’m just looking for some direction. Really just the first step or so.

Still pretty new to homeownership (<2 years.) This is a great house and I plan to keep it, retire in it, leave it to my daughter, I have very little interest in selling unless I strictly need to. I’m more concerned with owning it outright and being debt free sooner rather than later.

I heard from a coworker that biweekly payments can pay a house off faster which is obviously true because that comes out to 13 full payments a year instead of 12, but he said that doing so also mitigates compound interest.

If I understand compound interest correctly, it would behoove me even more to pay a quarter of the monthly payment every week, no? Or am I misunderstanding compound interest?

Thanks in advance!

My wife(28) and I(30) currently make roughly $116,000 after all deductions and minimal mortgage. We currently have roughly $65-70k in checking and bought our first home for $338k 6.25%(currently owe $309k). We are fortunately otherwise debt free. We currently only invest 5% each into employer matched 401k’s(mine has $68k, wife’s unknown). We have 2 children under 2 and are trying to figure out the best financial path forward.

Our current mortgage is $2,795. I have played with the amortization calculator and have found a plausible amount($7795) we could send at the mortgage and own our home outright by 2031. This would assume continued 5% towards 401k’s to continue getting employer matching. However I am unsure as to whether this is the most financially sound decision as opposed to investing the additional 5k a month towards mortgage.

Hi all! Mid-20s F, just switched jobs and deciding between health plans. Plan details to follow, but some initial context:

• I am in CA which limits the tax advantage of an HSA :(
• My employer pays 99% of premiums, so the monthly cost is $5-$8 regardless of plan; they also contribute $50 / month to HSA
• There is a general health FSA if I don't select the HDHP
• I should have enough cash flow to pay for OOP medical costs and use an HSA as an investment vehicle if I go that route
• KNOCK ON WOOD: I have historically low medical costs, which is why I'm even entertaining the HSA -- the past two years I've gone to my annual physical + done a skin check and that's it.
  • I also see a private therapist about 1x / month who is quite expensive (total OOP is >4K), and I believe based on my research with allowed amounts, etc. I really wouldn't get reimbursed much for this at all on any plan so I'm kind of not factoring this into my decision (separate decision on if to keep seeing them at all!)

Because I am generally risk averse and scared of something bad happening, the premiums are covered, and I live in CA, I lean towards the Platinums, but please let me know if there are other considerations I should make. I'm big on retirement savings so do love the concept of an HSA, just not sure if it pencils. Also appreciate advice on what to look at besides the below numbers, these plan documents are so overwhelming.

Plan A: PPO Platinum

• Deductible: $0 in-network / $2,000 OON
• OOP max: $3,800 (in-network) / $7,600 (OON)
• PCP $15, specialist $40, preventive visit free
• OON coinsurance: 50%

Plan B: HSA-eligible PPO

• Deductible: $2,600 in-network / $5,200 OON
• OOP max: $8,450 (in-network) / $16,900 (OON)
• 35% coinsurance after deductible, preventive visit free

Plan C: HSA-eligible Kaiser HDHP HMO

• Deductible: $3,200
• OOP max: $8,300
• 25% coinsurance after deductible, preventive visit free
• No out-of-network coverage

Plan D: Kaiser Platinum HMO

• Deductible: none
• OOP max: $3,000
• PCP $10, specialist $20, preventive visit free
• No out-of-network coverage

Can you repay an IRA withdrawal with a rollover from another distribution? If I make a withdraw from my IRA as an early distribution, can I repay the withdrawal from an ESOP distribution that is getting rolled over to the IRA?

A while back there was the common stat/anecdote that once you made a household income of $75k your happiness no longer had a strong correlation with increased income beyond that point. Obviously for some it might beyond that figure but for most at the $75k mark it was no longer a direct influence on happiness. Below that amount it was.

Well times and incomes/costs have changed. What do you think that new number is? Or from personal experience what was it?

Hi, first time making a post. Looking to get some advice on what to pay off first. I have two credit cards with high balances and I’m soon to receive $9,400 from a savings account to help with my credit debt. The issue is I’m torn between using the entirety of the savings balance on one card or should I split it between both. I’ll add details of the cards to help visualize what I have. Any advice is appreciated!!!!

Savings balance $9,400

Debt Chase credit card: $15,500, due 11/16, APR 20.74% Amex: $11,400 due 11/04, APR 26.74%

I have lived my whole life being pretty poor and anxious about money. I did AmeriCorps before collage and got a full ride so I graduated undergrad with no debt. I had been living in Appalachia and was pretty miserable so I decided to move to a city where some of my friends lived but I was worried I didnt have enough money. That is when my parents revealed that I had inherited 150,000 dollars from my grandfather when I was 17, and suggested I use that to move. This was a year ago.

All of the advice says to try not to touch your trust fund so I tried not to touch it. I got a job at insomnia cookies and tried to live off that pay. Two months into that job I got badly injured. Basically, I got tennis elbow from the repeated heavy lifting. I tried to go into work anyway and dropped a tray of hot cookies on myself and got burnt. My boss explained that everyone who works there gets tennis elbow because of the repetitive heavy lifting and they get cortizone shots. He had had 4. My parents told me to quit instead of getting the shot to protect my long term health and mobility. I also decided to get a primary care doctor because going to the emergency room repeatedly had been so expensive.

But then I realized that having regular panic attacks and self harm are not normal, so I was referred out for mental health help with that. And my doctor told me to go to the dentist to see if my sinus issues were being caused by having no dental care for years.

That's when I really started dipping into the trust fund to cover being unemployed and healthcare. I ended up not being able to get another job for six months; I went to the dentist and got a bunch of cavaties filled (and learned that flossing actually is very important); and I was diagnosed with anxiety, depression, and later adhd and autism. I go to therapy every week now, which is 104 dollars which is super intense but i am also not getting panic attacks anymore at all for the first time in my life.

Basically my situation now is that I have a part-time job in outdoor ed. They accidentally hired too many people so I am only working 10 hours a week when I was promised 20-30 during training. This covers 1/3 to half of my budget and I supplement with my trust fund. I am applying to fully funded masters and PhD programs, so there is a light at the end of the tunnel but it is almost a year away. I have burned through 17,000$ of the 150,000 trust fund and it could take me another six months to get another part time job. When should I worry in terms of burning through my trust fund? All of my friends live paycheck to paycheck so they don't really have advice. Am I ruining my future by spending it now on being a half-unemployed bum?

someone recently suggested to me that a good way to try and get money to save up is by taking up a 0% APR promotional offer on a credit card. when you do this, they suggested putting almost all of its limit into a HYSA, and doing autopay on the minimum payment until your promotional offer is almost over. by then, you pay off the whole card and close it and have additional money from the saving. is this a valid method to get some savings in the bank?? i’m assuming the money you’re saving up would just be used on the minimum payment, but it seems plausible

Can you please recommend the best simple book for tax planning? Not sure we need a trust but want to make sure we don’t slam heirs w taxes.

I am in Texas. I have a Yendo secured credit card, issued by Cross River Bank, with my 2019 Lexus as collateral. I fell behind, and Yendo repossessed the car on October 10.

To reinstate, they want $1,938.13: my past due amount of $1,105.12, plus $223.01 current due, plus a $460 repo fee, plus a $150 reinstatement fee.

I read the full 20 page agreement I signed in December 2025. The fee table lists no repo fee and no reinstatement fee, and the word reinstatement does not appear in the agreement at all. The agreement only allows recovery of reasonable costs actually incurred. I have asked for the $460 invoice repeatedly. On a recorded call, their rep just called the fees "standard procedure" and could not cite any clause.

I have disputed the fees in writing three times, on October 12, 20, and 22. No substantive reply, only automated receipts. I have filed a CFPB complaint (referred to the FDIC) and a Texas AG complaint, and I am waiting on a legal aid callback while also looking for an attorney.

I am ready to pay the undisputed $1,105.12 now and the $223.01 by October 28, but I will not pay the disputed fees because I don't have the funds at the moment. The sale is sometime after October 28.

Has anyone gotten a lender to substantiate or drop repo fees before a sale? Did a demand letter, a regulator complaint, or an attorney actually move things in time? Any Texas specific advice is welcome.

TL;DR: Lender demands $1,938.13 to return my car, including $610 in fees my own signed agreement does not authorize. Sale is days away. Please what works fastest?

Hey y'all,

I recently got hired to a new job and need to complete the open enrollment of health benefits. What would be the better option here? I am a single 26M and relatively healthy (no chronic illnesses.)

The plans are:

CDHP w HSA:
Premium: free
Deductible: $1750
OOPM: $5000
All visits including emergency are 20% after deductible
Employer contribution to HSA: $1000

PPO w FSA:
Premium: $40/month
Deductible: $600
OOPM: $4250
PCP: $15 copay
Specialist: $40 copay
Urgent care: $50 copay
Emergency: 20% after deductible
FSA: I would continue $60/month or $720 annually

Hospital is 20% after deductible for both plans

I usually don't go to the doctor that often but I am doing therapy which is a 1x a month thing.

I'm leaning towards PPO. I know I'd pay $480 more in premiums, but even with that, the OOPM is still lower on the PPO plan, with the much lower deductible. I also feel like the copays for my therapy visits would be cheaper this way as well. If I'm reading this right, using CDHP my therapy visits would be full price until I reach the $1750 deductible, then 20% after that until OOPM? Versus $40 every time with the PPO?

Would the HSA $1000 make a big difference?

Am I looking at this correctly? I wanted to make sure I'm not missing something.

Appreciate any help!

Hi all, I’m thinking about moving from Wells Fargo to Neuberger for wealth management. Their fee structure is very straightforward and they aggressively manage portfolios. Anyone have experience working with NB Wealth? Plusses, minuses, anything in between?

I’m a little concerned on being far behind people in my age group when it comes to retirement savings. Essentially, me and my husband are both 32 years old and been working for a few years. I have about 50k in my retirement savings, but he only has about 10k. Before we got married 2 years ago, he didn’t have good saving habits and never opened a Roth IRA/was in contracting positions then grad school throughout his 20s so didn’t have a 401k. I practically made him open a Roth IRA and he’s been saving abit now.

Anyone here able to advice on strategies to catch up for lost time in retirement savings? And no, I don’t think maxing out our 401k is feasible when we need the money to pay the bills. We live in CA and things are crazy expensive, but as of this year we’ll both max out our Roth IRAs every year till we retire as the minimum.

Hello,

I have around €10,000 in capital losses that I can offset against capital gains in next year’s tax return or in the following two tax years.

On the other hand, I hold shares in a fund that tracks the MSCI World and has an unrealized gain of 67.5%. In other words, I would need to sell around €25,000 worth of shares to realize €10,000 in capital gains and offset my losses. I wouldn’t sell them if it weren’t for the opportunity to offset those losses and save around €2,000 in taxes. My plan is to buy back the same fund as soon as possible (as I understand it, this is not a wash sale, as I am selling making profit).

There are a few risks I think I need to take into account:

Risk 1: While I’m out of the market with the €25,000, the market could go up (which would work against me, as I would be selling low and buying high) or it could go down (which would work in my favor, as I would be selling high and buying low).

Risk 2: My understanding is that the €2,000 in taxes will be withheld until I receive a refund during next year’s tax filing season, when I offset the gains against my losses. That €2,000 will be out of the market for several months.

How would you approach this situation?

Risk 1 could be mitigated by waiting longer for my fund shares to appreciate further. For example, if they had gained 100%, I would only need to sell €20,000 worth of shares instead of €25,000. The potential impact of market volatility would be smaller relative to the €2,000 tax saving, which is effectively guaranteed.

Risk 2 could be mitigated by selling at the end of the year rather than at the beginning. If I sell in December, the €2,000 in tax withheld could be tied up for at least six months, whereas if I sell in January, it could be tied up for as long as 18 months.

Would you use some kind of dollar-cost averaging (DCA) approach, selling and buying back blocks of fund shares worth, for example, €2,000 at a time?

So I (23M) am moving into an apartment by myself for the first time and will start having to budget on my own. Some background I make net 3200 a month currently. I expect to get about a 2.5k raise in June/July of next year. My rent is 1150 a month which includes water. I know I’ll have to pay 50 a month for internet and a power bill. I have no debt besides credit cards which I pay off every month. I use them mostly for gas or miscellaneous purchases. I also currently have around 25k in savings as an emergency fund. I do think I’ll be looking at getting a car within the coming months so I can have cheaper gas. I currently drive a 2010 dodge dakota that gets about 15-20 mpg.

I also know I want to start investing in a Roth IRA at some point. I also wanted to get advice on if it’s fine or normal to also do a regular brokerage account so some money can be liquid. I understand the importance of a Roth but also know life is crazy so don’t want to only wait until retirement age to enjoy large sums of money. I want to be financially responsible yet enjoy life if that makes sense. I also currently have a government pension I’m contributing to that becomes vested after 10 years at my current job (started in June). So how am I doing? What can I improve on? I appreciate any and all advice regarding my finances.

Edit: I live in rural Alabama

I need to get my drivers license back so i can work and live a normal life again, and the TN gov't gave my drivers license to an insurance company after a wreck.

I havent worked since.

Literally thinking about starting over even though im 50.

I am in the first semester of a 3 year nurse practitioner program. The entire program will cost $90,000. I am unsure if I should pay for school out of pocket as I attend, or if I should take out student loans and apply for debt relief programs after I graduate.

For reference, I am working full time as a registered nurse and make $65,000 after taxes.
I live with my family and luckily do not have to pay rent. So, paying off school as I attend is feasible.

However, I do see that there are a lot of debt relief opportunities for my field after I graduate, and this looks enticing as I want to save as much as possible in hopes of one day buying a home.

If I do take out loans, my federal interest rate would be about 8% (in simple daily interest)

Would it be smarter to take out loans and invest my money over the next 3 years in hopes of getting debt relief in the future? Or should I bite the bullet and pay off school as I attend?