I was thinking about whoever said "put everything in stock, not retiring for decades!", why not put everything in small caps then? It's not like the economy would still grow if small caps didn't.
If you have good funds with low fees, then there's no reason to move it over to another 401k if your current company 401k is shit. You can move it to an IRA or Roth if you want. But it's not a huge deal.What's the general rule of thumb on 401K roll overs? I have a decent chunk in a past company account, but it's been ~2 years and I still haven't rolled it over. Mostly to do with the annoyance of it all than anything else. Last I checked the fees on keeping it there were negligible.
If you have good funds with low fees, then there's no reason to move it over to another 401k if your current company 401k is shit. You can move it to an IRA or Roth if you want. But it's not a huge deal.
I really wish I had some money to put away right now. All this market uncertainty moment would make for a great buy moment...
Also Ether: That was me. And I also realized why your "just buy 100% Vanguard target fund with 20% bonds" strategy doesn't work - if you need money in a market downturn, you can't just selectively sell the bonds-part of a target ETF. So either you don't trust yourself -> then fine, allocate something to bonds for a rainy day fund. Or you trust yourself -> go 100% stocks. But 100% into a target fund with 20% bonds is the worst of both worlds.
I was thinking about whoever said "put everything in stock, not retiring for decades!", why not put everything in small caps then? It's not like the economy would still grow if small caps didn't.
Im 100% stocks, and 50% of that is small caps.I was thinking about whoever said "put everything in stock, not retiring for decades!", why not put everything in small caps then? It's not like the economy would still grow if small caps didn't.
I do Roth contributions to my 401k and now a traditional IRA. Is it better to do Roth IRA and traditional 401k? Does it matter if theoretically I do the same contributions to each?
Not a huge deal, but there are some small advantages to doing Roth IRA and Traditional 401K.
- If you need to make an early withdrawal, you can withdraw principal tax-free from a Roth IRA, whereas a Roth 401K may not allow withdrawals and a Traditional IRA would incur a tax penalty.
- If you are in a position to use the backdoor Roth IRA later in life it helps not to already have a large traditional IRA.
Is there a general investing thread? I'm considering putting some money into an IPO but I don't know if I'm stupid.
I've started looking at Target Funds for my IRA. My parents were previously handling the account and just buying stocks for me but I'm kind of over stressing and management.
Have an eTrade account because that's just what my family uses and we all share a single account. If I started my own Vanguard account would the only difference be that I wouldn't be charged that $20 transaction fee I'd pay anytime I make a purchase or is there something else I'm missing? The one I was looking at VTIVX.
This is a good feeling. The original PieCake thread put me on the right track in 2015 when I doubled my current retirement savings. We all start somewhere and it feels good to have some peace of mind for the future.That feeling when you invested more in the last year than the entirety of your pre-2017 life.
Yeah, finally getting my shit together, too late in life.This is a good feeling. The original PieCake thread put me on the right track in 2015 when I doubled my current retirement savings. We all start somewhere and it feels good to have some peace of mind for the future.
I wouldn't be basing which broker I used based off of a few days of inconvenience. It isn't that uncommon to have to send in paper forms at the beginning. And online chat isn't that different from calling someone.
So I tried opening a Roth IRA account at Vanguard and after typing in all of my info and submitting it I kept getting a message saying they couldn't verify my info and I'd have to download and fill out the whole application and mail it in. What? I googled it and apparently a lot of other people have had the same issue and there doesn't really seem to be an explanation.
Has anyone dealt with this? I'm thinking about just opening an account with Schwab instead. Vanguard's archaic looking website, no brick and mortar locations, and lack of any kind of online live chat are really making me wary of investing with them in the first place. I'm assuming the main advantage of Vanguard is lower fees?
Any suggestions?
My opinion on this has always been to stick with Vanguard, even if others are offering funds that are a few basis points lower.
I trust Vanguard to keep their fees low for the long run, both because of their track record and because of their ownership structure. I don't have the same level of trust in Fidelity, Schwab, etc. It's especially important if we are talking about a taxable account, since you may not be able to easily switch funds if they decide to jack up the fees.
Yes, you would get hit hard with capital gains taxes. Somewhere around the realm of 15-33% for most folks. I personally would find that more stressful. Rather than selling, why not keep the funds as they are and start paying off more aggressively with future income? I understand where you're coming from. I'm paying off early a student loan that is under 2% interest. Every rational person should yell at me. But it's my last block of student debt and I'm done. And I'm using paychecks to knock it out.I'm thinking of selling essentially all of my taxable index funds (VTSAX and VTIAX) to take out my remaining student debt in the next few months. I have 60k left in loans (payed down from 130k over the years) and it has a 4.25% interest rate. I want to get rid of the debt for mainly psychological reasons. My investments have been doing better than 4.25% in the long run, but the debt has been causing me serious stress.
Is this a bad idea? Would I get hit hard with both short and long term capital gains taxes? I would still have a healthy 401k, Roth IRA, and a small HSA. I could continue to grow the index funds and slowly chip away at the loan for a few more years, but I'm definitely tempted to erase a huge debt all in one shot.
Can't you guys just open an investment account at your bank and buy/sell Vanguard ETFs? That's what I do, never had to sign up to Vanguard. Why does it sound so complicated.
Can't you guys just open an investment account at your bank and buy/sell Vanguard ETFs? That's what I do, never had to sign up to Vanguard. Why does it sound so complicated.
Does it cost you money to trade? It doesn't on vanguards website.
I'm above the income limit for student loan interest deduction (I really wish they would increase the maximum, but yeah first world problem).Yes, you would get hit hard with capital gains taxes. Somewhere around the realm of 15-33% for most folks. I personally would find that more stressful. Rather than selling, why not keep the funds as they are and start paying off more aggressively with future income? I understand where you're coming from. I'm paying off early a student loan that is under 2% interest. Every rational person should yell at me. But it's my last block of student debt and I'm done. And I'm using paychecks to knock it out.
One benefit of spreading out your student loan payments? The IRS caps student loan interest deduction. Don't waste that all in one year.
Same here. I know it's not good to keep checking your 401k, but I guess I am proud. I have a long ways to go, but this is the most I have ever saved.That feeling when you invested more in the last year than the entirety of your pre-2017 life.
I see. But it's deductible anyway so I don't really mind.
Aren't ETFs more tax-friendly?
Deductible? Tax? 1) 2% of AGI and you have to itemize and most people won't be itemizing anymore.
Right, some.days I see that I've made more that day than I'd saved in the few years before. Tbf, I was in school and transitioning careers. But I was awful with money for a long time before that. Glad I'm getting it together (you too).Same here. I know it's not good to keep checking your 401k, but I guess I am proud. I have a long ways to go, but this is the most I have ever saved.
Good for you! Better late than never. I didn't get my first full time job until I was 32(3 years ago) and even then, there was no 401k match and I was saving to get out of a one bedroom apartment, where I was living on the couch.Right, some.days I see that I've made more that day than I'd saved in the few years before. Tbf, I was in school and transitioning careers. But I was awful with money for a long time before that. Glad I'm getting it together (you too).
You know what's better than tax deductible? Paying nothing!I see. But it's deductible anyway so I don't really mind.
Aren't ETFs more tax-friendly?
Finally started regularly contributing to my Roth IRA before I can even think about it... I only bought FSMTX and FTIGX because I feel like that's the most straightforward option for someone who doesn't know much about this.
I've contributed for last year and this year, which feels good--however, it's been a few months now and I am unsure what type of growth I should be expecting. Looks like my account balance has just hovered around the same spot, even dropping slightly. I assume this is a 'put money in and forget about it' sort of account, but I just want to double check that what I'm doing is fine in the long run--buying FSTMX and FTIGX, specifically.
Finally started regularly contributing to my Roth IRA before I can even think about it... I only bought FSMTX and FTIGX because I feel like that's the most straightforward option for someone who doesn't know much about this.
I've contributed for last year and this year, which feels good--however, it's been a few months now and I am unsure what type of growth I should be expecting. Looks like my account balance has just hovered around the same spot, even dropping slightly. I assume this is a 'put money in and forget about it' sort of account, but I just want to double check that what I'm doing is fine in the long run--buying FSTMX and FTIGX, specifically.