united-states Questions - Basically Money

Super-generic mutual fund type

2010-07-13T05:35:41Z

I have 20k in my emergency fund, which is about twice what I planned having in there. I think I can safely invest half of that in something better than the ING savings account it's currently in.

I used to think that an S&P 500 Index fund was the way to go for a no-thought investment, but now (after the latest bubble burst), it seems like that isn't diversified enough.

Is there an index-index? Risk is ok, I just want to put the money somewhere without needing to do a lot of research.

Are there any special rules for charging sales tax in US Territories such as Puerto Rico?

2010-03-31T16:34:41Z

Are there any special rules for charging sales tax in US Territories such as Puerto Rico?

Should I "hedge" my IRA portfolio with a life cycle / target date mutual fund?

2010-01-05T21:57:29Z

I'm fully contributing to my Roth IRA every year into a brokerage account that is 100% in mutual funds.

I've done basic mutual fund research and picked about 5 different funds that match what would be considered an appropriate allocation for where I am now in my life, and how long till I retire. I plan to re-balance it as necessary down the road.

I'm wondering if it wouldn't be such a bad idea to "hedge" my allocations and mutual fund picks by buying some shares in a life cycle mutual fund(s). These are funds that are designed to be rebalanced by the fund manager as their target date for retirement approaches.

I figure this might be a good corrective strategy to compensate for under performance due to bad picks or slightly-off-percentage-allocations I might make in the long run. Does this seem like a bad idea?

------ EDIT / New Thoughts - Jan 11, 2010 ------

I realized I wasn't taking advantage of my employer's 401(k) matching benefit, so I am going to open one of those up soon (as a Roth 401(k)). I'll designate the entire account to be in a target-date fund. I'll continue to manage my Roth IRA on my own, and let this be my "hedge" for my IRA as described above.

------ EDIT / New Thoughts - July 23, 2010 ------

My fund picks for my own Roth IRA has been consistently performing +1.5% relative to my target date 401(k) fund, over the last 6 months. That feels good =)

Still, does anybody else have any input or thoughts on this strategy?

Travelled to New York State & bought something. Can I get sales tax refund back?

2010-04-06T14:22:07Z

I drove to Buffalo, NY over the weekend with some friends, and I bought myself a shiny new Apple iPad. I had to pay New York State sales tax at the Apple Store, as well as declare my iPad purchase at the Canadian border to pay Canadian GST + Ontario PST. So, I've been taxed twice.

I do know that when foreigners visit Canada, they can apply to get GST reimbursed. Does a similar process exist for foreigners visiting New York State, where an application can be made to get state sales tax refunded after-the-fact?

Finding a good small business CPA?

2010-06-29T18:42:12Z

Maybe I've just had bad luck, but the four CPAs I've met so far with have been morons.

The first one I found on superpages and he couldn't help me set a structure for my LLC. Didn't know what paperwork to file, how often they pay taxes, and told me to register the LLC in Montana. The next I met on craigslist (whoops) told me to put my money into a house insurance plan to avoid paying taxes. The third, who works in my office building, was helpful but didn't know anything about paying 1040-S (estimate taxes for self employed) and .. well, we won't get into the fourth. How is it that with basicallymoney.com, limited Googling and 6 mo experience running my own business I seem to know more about the tax code than these guys? [/vent]

I'm a sole proprieter software consultant, hoping to soon start an LLC. I need a local San Diego CPA who can advise my business, make sure I'm following the tax law, make sure I'm paying everything I owe, and I really don't know where to look. Please help?

In the U.S., do you get paid for vacation days untaken when you leave a job?

2010-06-21T01:29:55Z

In the U.S., do you get paid for vacation days untaken when you leave a job?

What are the US gift tax rules for gifts from non-US persons?

2010-07-03T02:10:50Z

I am a US permanent resident for several years now.

My family resides overseas and are not-US persons - they visit on tourist visas. They have bank accounts here in the US.

I am planning to buy my first house and want to use family money that has been saved for that purpose in our home country, amounting to 100k-200k USD.

If my family were US-persons, I understand that this would be subject to the 45% or so gift tax.

However, what is the rule if the givers are non-US persons and the receiver (myself) is a US-person? Would this be subject to the tax? Do I have to pay any tax on this?

Also, would it matter if the money is first transferred to their US accounts and then given to me, or if it is transferred directly to me ?

What forms of payment am I compelled to accept?

2010-06-30T18:03:57Z

In relation to this question about maximum amounts a check can be written for

If I sell something like a car or other expensive item on Craig's List or in the local paper classifieds, am I compelled to accept any form or payment?

Can I refuse cash and demand a bank check? Can I refuse a check and demand cash? Must I disclose what payments I will accept ahead of time to avoid discrimination accusations?

If you owe tax, how does the IRS failure-to-file penalty work?

2010-06-27T20:09:16Z

If you owe tax, how does the IRS failure-to-file penalty work?

What effect will the financial reform bill have on everyday Americans?

2010-06-25T22:11:45Z

It looks like Congress made substantial progress towards passing the Financial Reform Bill today, but I really know very little about what is actually in it, and what I do know seems very complex.

For anyone on the site who is in-the-know about the finance industry or this legislation, I'd like to know this.

What direct effects should the average American expect if this passes. I'm not so much interested in the macro effects like deficit reduction/increase, rules on bank mergers, etc., but rather what will change for me as an individual, if anything. For example, the last time around banks had to get an opt-in from me to continue overdraft protection.

Anyone know?

Will there be enough money in Social Security benefits to cover baby boomer retirement? [US]

2010-06-24T19:39:45Z

This is in a similar vein to this question. Wondering if the American old age benefits program has also taken into account the larger retiring population. Does the plan have enough money to cover retirees? Is the plan using the approach of taxing the current population to pay for the old age benefits of the boomer generation? If yes, what will it do to accommodate the current generation when it retires? If no, what measures have been taken to cover this situation?

How do I use investments to lower my taxes [US]?

2010-04-11T20:04:06Z

I'm not sure how this works. Do you just report on your taxes which investments you contributed to during that year, and then get a deduction?

I want to pay less taxes, and put my income in some investments at the same time. Where should I start?

Is mortgage interest tax deductible for not only federal but state income taxes?

2010-06-17T18:22:54Z

Does anyone know if mortgage interest, mortgage insurance and property taxes are deductible for not only federal but state income taxes?

This may be a state-by-state issue, but if anyone has experience in a particular state or can find the information for all states, it would be appreciated.

Should I wait until I have a 20% down payment to buy a home?

2010-04-13T21:31:22Z

With an FHA loan that only requires a 3.5% down payment, I'm able to buy a home right now and comfortably afford the monthly payments. However, I know that means I'll pay PMI and more interest over the life of the loan. A 20% down payment would allow me to avoid PMI, however it would take me around 4 years to save that amount. During those 4 years, it's very possible that home prices and interest rates will like increase.

What I'm wondering is whether it makes sense to buy a home right now with 3.5% down while home prices and interest rates appear to be at their lows (speculation) or should I wait the 4 years and buy a home with 20% down regardless of where prices and rates end up?

Simple and safe way to manage a lot of cash

2010-06-13T20:14:46Z

I have an older relative that I am going to help in managing their money. His income is fine to live on. In terms of assets, he has about $250k in a variety of separate CDs, stocks, checking accounts, savings accounts, etc. Overall, he is not getting a very good return and, because of his age, his record keeping is a bit spotty - we can't find all of his statements and since they are from a number of different institutions it is very hard to manage.

I have always enjoyed managing my 401k in a single account that I can access online and use as a dashboard to control how it is invested. Is there a reason why we shouldn't consolidate all his cash and put it in a single mutual fund account and then put together a mix of investments that work well for him? That way there would a single online account where everything can be managed and analyzed and the statements will be available anytime.

What does "Net Depreciation in Fair Value" mean on a financial report?

2010-06-11T01:57:09Z

I was reading about a popular pension used in Texas called Teacher's Retirement Statement. Their latest annual report had a loss of $16B on a line item called "Net Depreciation in Fair Value" (see page 4). This is frightening news of all the poor teachers in Texas because the pension only had a net value of $104B at the beginning of the year. Even more scary is the headline at the beginning of the report: "TRS Pension Fund experiences strong recovery". If a huge loss of net value is a recovery how will it hold up the economy continues to shrink? Would should teachers do to protect themselves?

Should I take Social Security earlier than full retirement age, or wait for more?

2009-10-12T19:00:49Z

Should I take Social Security earlier than the full retirement age shown on my statement? I'm concerned they'll change the rules and I'll lose out if I wait. :-/

What is the likelihood the rules are going to change?

In general, is it better to take Social Security benefits earlier, or later? I don't necessarily need the money sooner - I have other sources of income I can tap, and I might continue working part-time into retirement.

Can my employer increase my hours without increasing my salary?

2010-06-08T01:52:56Z

Can my employer increase my hours without increasing my salary?

US Bank placing a hold on funds from my paycheck deposit: Why does that make sense?

2010-01-30T04:50:39Z

I've just received my first paycheck in four months (yay!). In the meantime, my bank account went about $150 negative. That's one of the reasons I deposited my paycheck into that bank account - I wanted to pay them.

Instead, the bank has placed the funds on hold for five days!

From the bank's point of view, why does that make sense? What sorts of argument could I use to convince the bank to give me my money sooner?

Update: After speaking to a manager, I found that the hold was due to the fact that this was the first time I'd deposited an item from this company. It still doesn't quite make sense - this is a check from a nation-wide company, drawn on a nation-wide bank. But apparently, they only count that sort of thing per-account (like, maybe the company paid me, but decided against it and put a stop payment on the check).

I spoke to a manager, and asked her to release some of the funds, so that I could get to work this week. She released about US$300, after taking the US$150 that I owed (which is fine).

Thanks for the answers.

COBRA eligibilty if employer changes providers at time of contract signing?

2010-06-05T13:33:48Z

I have a contract from July to June. I am a teacher. At my meeting to discuss my position in September, I will probably be told that my hours are going to be reduced and I will no longer be eligible for company health care benefits – usually I would be able to go on COBRA. The problem is that my company is changing health care providers on July 1st when my new contract would be in effect.

Can I get COBRA?

Are you allowed to have both a 401(k) and a SIMPLE IRA? If so, what about limits?

2010-05-27T12:54:17Z

Are you allowed to have both a 401(k) and a SIMPLE IRA? And what would the limits be on the combined total?

I have two employers but I am maxed out at one. My understanding is that I can't use a SIMPLE at the other - is this true? (The other is a small business I run.)

What happened to the $1 coin in US?

2010-05-27T15:07:19Z

The US, like Canada tried to introduce a $1 coin awhile back to reduce minting costs of the $1 paper bill. This was successful in Canada but not so much in the States. Why was it not widely adopted? Are these coins still available in circulation?

What is the best way to learn investing techniques?

2010-05-26T13:18:47Z

I'm a very busy person (full-time job, family, etc) and want to invest over $50k of extra cash. There are so many ways that I can learn, but which ones will bear fruit? I am willing to pay money to learn to make money or have access to systems that help make money.

Here are the ideas that I have considered:

Read books
Watch videos
Read blogs
Paper trades
Hire a coach
Hire a financial planner
Buy and learn analytical software (AmiBroker, OptionVue, etc)

Also, a list of topics I have considered:

Emotion management
Designing a personalized system (ie logging trades, having exit strategies, etc)
Technical Analysis
Fundamental Analysis
Options
Precious Metals (other commodities)
Bonds
Taxes

I'm beginning to realize that it may be best to just pick a few of these and go. There are a million good opportunities/day that are lost. I may just need one good opportunity per a year. Also, I'm a really slow reader so books tend to take much more time for me (unless it's an audio book).

Where have people here had the most success?

Difference between Health Savings Account (HSA) & Flexible Spending Account (FSA)?

2010-04-05T12:24:40Z

What is the practical difference between a Health Savings Account and a Flexible Spending Account? What are the pro's and con's of each, and are there situations where either is best?

How can I fix a mistake I made on my income tax filing? [US]

2010-05-24T13:55:25Z

How can I fix a mistake I made on my income tax filing?

Homeowner's association funding a project in a condo: Bank wants an individual guarantor. What to do?

2010-04-13T17:45:10Z

From time to time my HOA (homeowner's association) needs extra money for a project (eg painting fences, fixing roofs, plumbing repair, etc). They typically respond by raising the monthly HOA dues for a short time to cover the expense.

I talked to a banker about possibly getting a loan in the name of the HOA. The bank was willing to give a loan, but they wanted an individual guarantor. It's quite hard to convince someone to be the guarantor. What are some incentives we can give someone for volunteering to be a guarantor? Is there any other way we can raise money without resorting to higher HOA fees?

How Do I Know Whether Or Not To Convert My Traditional IRA to a Roth in 2010?

2009-12-17T13:20:22Z

In 2010, everyone (no income limits) is allowed to convert their Traditional IRA to a Roth IRA.

When is it beneficial to convert your Traditional IRA to a Roth IRA?

How to claim a minor's income?

2010-05-17T00:34:56Z

When a child earns money babysitting or doing yardwork for neighbors, it's common to ignore claiming the income, as income earned by the minor has its own deduction, and would likely not generate any tax due. But - in order to open a Roth IRA, the minor has to claim legitimate earned income. Those who pay $10-$20 cash for this, are not going to issue a 1099 or W2, the amount is too low to worry about the Nanny Tax issues. Where exactly do you claim such income on the child's return? I can't imagine a Sch C is required.

What is the best way to transfer money between banks? [US]

2010-05-14T04:33:31Z

So this question is mainly directed to the day to day transactions between accounts of different banks. More specifically I would like to know what (if any) 3rd party you use such as (pay-pal) to transfer money between banks. Since I do all my money management online and the bank is inconvenient, I'd like to know what other options there are to transfer money between accounts of different banks. Wells Fargo doesn't offer the option to transfer to another account.

I know BOA allows for that, but I'd rather not get another bank account. Thanks for your inputs!

How do you find the credit card with the best rewards/points? [US]

2010-05-14T04:44:57Z

I'm using a CC that basically gives me 2% cash back on everything. It adds up, but I have a feeling that I'm not benefiting from how often I use my card. I easily put over a thousand each month on the card and pay it off each month. I have a great credit score so what card would you suggest?

Are there any specific cards that you suggest that offer international/national air miles?

Thanks!