Why?

Good luck!

Great job on the 401k increase, @Sarah, and I hope you get the raise you've earned! I increased my 401k percentage to 15 on Jan 1. The match is only 10% of 2% at my workplace so I don't even count that at all. I don't make much so that won't put me even close to maxing out. I'm hoping to contribute the max to a Roth IRA and then increase 401k again in July. I have a lot of catching up to do but I know I can do it.

Hi Kelly, Welcome!!

Way to go, Sarah and Katie!!

I'm debating on whether or not to switch the differed compensation offered by my employer to a Roth IRA, but I really don't know the difference between the two or how the growth rate and tax deferment will change by switching over. I plan to make an appointment with the financial advisor some time this week to discuss it, and to discuss switching a couple of CDs to I bonds. I'll still keep some funds in CDs just for a diversified portfolio. I'm not sure when I will increase the contribution to the retirement fund. My pay actually decreased because my employer decided to implement another mandatory dedu from our paycheck. I was on vacation when the decision was made so I was confused by the decrease… and a little upset with the union because there was no notification about it that I saw. Maybe I should withdraw my union fees to cover the difference being deducted…? Maybe I'll see how well it goes and how much I can still save with the changes. If I fall behind the savings goals in 6 months, I'll make changes to certain contributions.

That's kind of how I approach these things, too Candice, try things out and readjust if I need to. It would be nice if I made enough money to fully fund all savings avenues but I don't so I'm doing the best I can. Looking back at 10 years ago, when I had one savings and one checking (both usually at $0 balance) and compare it to now, it's a good reminder that "slow and steady" really works over time. I get caught up comparing myself to other people when I ought to be comparing myself to my past and celebrating the progress.

Hello

@Katie Slow and Steady really is where it is at!
@Kelly Thanks! and Hello! :)

@Candice Your financial planner will probably have the best idea, but I have always understood the 401K vs Roth 401K as when you want to pay the tax on the money distributed. If you think your tax rate will be lower in the future, then the 401K option is best since you pay the tax on withdrawal. If you think your tax rate will be higher in retirement, then you fund a Roth and pay the tax now. For me, I am going to aim to max out the 401K first and then add whatever I can save left over into emergency funds/brokerage/bonds/ and a (very) small bit of crypto.

This ties in nicely with a question I have been mulling around in switching my brokerage account to a Roth IRA. Since I intend to hold investments and not actively trade, I'm thinking that may be the way to go since the withdrawals are tax free(I think). I think there are some time restrictions(have to hold account for five years), but I like the idea of disbursements being tax free; and I don't intend on taking them before retirement age. Right now everything I buy/sell will have to be subject to short term or long term gains.

On a tax note, I have almost all my documents (my brokerage account takes the longest) and am looking at a great tax return! I use the 50-30-20 breakdown for most large chunks of income I get: 50% to debt, 30% to spend and 20% to savings. Since I have a plan for my remaining debt, I think we are going to get a little crazy and buy something nice for the fam bam and save that 20% :)

I don't think I've heard a breakdown explained in such a great way. I do have 3 categories (spending, saving, donating), but I've not broken them down into the percentages… I should start doing that.

Wow, that's really ahead of the game, Sarah! I haven't even taken a look at my tax documents yet. My 2020 federal tax returns haven't even been processed by the government (even though I submitted them in April of 2021!) so I don't get my hopes up for tax return money anymore. I was supposed to be getting a couple thousand back but they've been so delayed that who knows if I'll ever see it. The delay also made it so I didn't get any of the child tax credits last year either. I'm so tired of calling the IRS just to be told "there is a delay" and given no expected timeline…

@Candice There is a budgeting strategy that follows the 50-30-20 breakdown: https://www.nerdwallet.com/article/finance/nerdwallet-budget-calculator

I really like this breakdown and I often re-evaluate my budget according to this breakdown. It is a simple way to check overspending and to evaluate needs vs wants. I also agree with the personal finance strategy that rewarding myself (that 30% spend) helps me hit my goals. I still struggle with spending some of that 30% on myself, but I am getting better lol.
My current breakdown: 49% Needs 33% Spend 18% Save; with my paycheck being in flux right now, this is based on the last amount without any raise applied. I'm hoping I can add more to my save and reduce our spending a bit. I tend to pad our spending incase we have a misc item (usually some sort of house project) and anything unspent goes to savings.

@Katie I always get my taxes done as soon as I can lol I'm a nerd that way. I start with a list of documents I need and check the dates that they will be available. My taxes are pretty simple; I have W-2 income and investment statements. I'm sorry to hear about your issues with the IRS; it has to be immensely frustrating. I feel for them though, their department has been consistently underfunded and understaffed.

New activities based around tax time! I was able to complete these and get the points.

I agree that we need new ways to earn points. I like to read the articles and all of that, but i am generally not a forums person. I dont have a lot of time to just hang out and post, i work LOL. i shouldnt even be on here now!

I was excited to see the tax info, too! Finally something new, and it answered one of my worries about not getting the child tax credit.

@Maria, I'm generally not a forum person either (I just don't think I have many interesting things to say, lol) but I've had a lot of fun with our conversations on this thread. Consider sticking around if you make it back to read this!

why

I am also not a forum person, but have found myself checking in pretty regularly. I have found a lot of great financial info and podcast from this forum thread. :)

I was happy to see ALL the tax time activities! What a great way to break the usual, get educated, and gain LOTS of additional points. Kudos, LifeSavers!

Good Friday morning! Time to head to the dentist with two of my kids to spend a couple hundred on dental work! Glad I planned ahead and saved for this. In the past I would have scheduled it and charged it to a credit card, making it "tomorrow's" problem. This time I called my dental insurance to get the out of pocket amount and saved each paycheck towards it, leading up to today. I'm still going to charge it to a credit card (for the reward points) but I have the money waiting to pay the bill in full. Game changer!

I haven't posted here in a while, but the tax time activities have come at an advantageous time (just got my W-2 yesterday).

Followed through on advice and I have one more savings account open. (Total of three, now). So far, I think I have been saving the same amount, but it certainly makes it easier to tell what the funds are for instead of calculating each time I want to know [and risking accidentally pulling from savings without knowing].

@Katie P: That is awesome! (That you not only planned ahead, but have the funds and have contacted dental insurance to help). Glad you are also still going to get points, without worry/dread of "how to pay" in the future. :) I hope you enjoy this new game-perspective.

Great info!

Happy Friday Everyone!

@Katie I just did this Monday but for myself; It felt so good!

Found out that the kiddo will need braces though, but the dentist office offers a 0% payment plan with a small down payment so I'll be able to spread the cost over several months. We lucked out that this first round is $1200 (with our insurance), which as far as braces go, I feel is relatively affordable. She'll likely need another set in about 3-5 years, so that gives me ample time to save for that. It will push back my planned repayment of our car loan. (It will probably now take an additional two-four months) but I'm way less stressed about it now that the credit card is paid off and we aren't in the charging cycle anymore. Plus thanks to the weirdness in car sales, our car is worth more now than when we bought it (used).

I'm still waiting patiently for my remaining statements from my investment accounts. The latest date to receive them is mid February, but I should hopefully be able to get most electronically before then. I've found the earlier I file, the faster I receive my return.

Jam berapa poin jadi uang?

Bummed to see that the points store is under maintenance but at least I'll have a bunch of point saved up once it's fixed. Happy Sunday to everyone!

Good morning! This week is going to be a no-spend challenge week for me. I fell off my budget a bit at the beginning of the month so I'm going to go back to it today and try to salvage as much as I can before the month is over. The only things I need to spend on are a Rx pickup (must avoid the check line temptations at the drugstore!) and groceries on Friday (must stick to the list!). Hope everyone has a great week

@Katie We are pretty much the same this week; no spending except for what has been planned. (Barring any emergenices)

Hubs and I made a list of our must do projects around the house, one of which is organizing the pantry. He grew up rurally with a well managed (long term food storage, bulk, home grown, canned produce) pantry (his mom fed seven kids!) and I grew up in the city where we ate out way too much (fast food was a cheap way for my mom to feed us after working late). We're going to work through assessing and sorting what we have canned, what we have planted outside and what we should start buying in bulk. We've managed to cut eating out down to pizza night two nights a month and one or two trips to a fast food joint for a 'treat' for my daughter. Inflation hasn't helped much with everything else, but if we manage right, we should be OK. I may have to remember how to can though; I've only canned fruit (peaches!) with my MIL's help, but I have all the supplies except for jars and lids. Thanks to the pandemic, some of that stuff has increased/become harder to find. I didn't try last year, but I am planning on getting at least some tomato sauce done this year. If there's one thing my husband manages to grow buckets of, its tomatoes!

That sounds like a lot of work but probably very satisfying, Sarah. Are you in a climate where you can grow produce all year long?

@Katie Yes! Although in the summer it gets super hot, so water is always an issue. We try to manage conserving with being able to grow a decent amount of fruits and veggies.

I was able to cash out points today FYI!