Mustachian People Problems (just for fun)

[zolotiyeruki]

My MPP: I have a teenage kid who wants to contribute to the 401k at his work, in order to get the match. Unfortunately, he can't, because the plan excludes people under 21, since they tend to not be long term employees

[mspym]

My MPP: I have a teenage kid who wants to contribute to the 401k at his work, in order to get the match. Unfortunately, he can't, because the plan excludes people under 21, since they tend to not be long term employees

We have a related one: we've been investing on behalf of the kids for the last 10 years because you have to be 18+ to invest in your own name here. We are moving overseas and had to settle up our holdings here. So of course the one who can open their own account has not much drive to do it and the one who can't yet is the one who really wants to.

[ChpBstrd]

My MPP: I have a teenage kid who wants to contribute to the 401k at his work, in order to get the match. Unfortunately, he can't, because the plan excludes people under 21, since they tend to not be long term employees

Excellent candidate for a Roth at Etrade, Fidelity, etc.

[zolotiyeruki]

My MPP: I have a teenage kid who wants to contribute to the 401k at his work, in order to get the match. Unfortunately, he can't, because the plan excludes people under 21, since they tend to not be long term employees

Excellent candidate for a Roth at Etrade, Fidelity, etc.

Yeah, I've started talking to him about it.

[jeninco]

My MPP: I have a teenage kid who wants to contribute to the 401k at his work, in order to get the match. Unfortunately, he can't, because the plan excludes people under 21, since they tend to not be long term employees

Sorry he won't get the match, but set him up with a Roth, invested in index funds, and then show him the expected growth curve of his savings! (Somewhere I saw an awesome graph that was "you invest $200/month from 25-35" vs "you invest $200/month from 40-65" or thereabouts. If they're both in low-fee index funds, guess which one ended higher?)

[ixtap]

My MPP: I have a teenage kid who wants to contribute to the 401k at his work, in order to get the match. Unfortunately, he can't, because the plan excludes people under 21, since they tend to not be long term employees

Sorry he won't get the match, but set him up with a Roth, invested in index funds, and then show him the expected growth curve of his savings! (Somewhere I saw an awesome graph that was "you invest $200/month from 25-35" vs "you invest $200/month from 40-65" or thereabouts. If they're both in low-fee index funds, guess which one ended higher?)

My MPP is that I assumed they were already pushing their kid to contribute to their Roth IRA.

[EscapeVelocity2020]

My MPP: I have a teenage kid who wants to contribute to the 401k at his work, in order to get the match. Unfortunately, he can't, because the plan excludes people under 21, since they tend to not be long term employees

Congress just recently made it possible to roll up to $35k left over from DS's 529 in to a Roth IRA...  Since he is learning a trade, he is more than saving us $35k on college cost and has $100k salary offers just around the time he turns 21.

[2sk22]

My MPP: I have a teenage kid who wants to contribute to the 401k at his work, in order to get the match. Unfortunately, he can't, because the plan excludes people under 21, since they tend to not be long term employees

Excellent candidate for a Roth at Etrade, Fidelity, etc.

Yeah, I've started talking to him about it.

Thats exactly what we did for my daughter, who is in college. She made very good money the past two summers so I helped her open a Roth IRA. She lived so frugally over the summer that she was able to save a big chunk of her income - really proud of her!

[Sugaree]

All the kids at my child's school get free breakfast and lunch at school due to some USDA program.  This leads me to two MPPs.  The first is that they didn't announce this until orientation after I'd already loaded a semester's worth of lunch money onto the kid's account.  No biggie, he'll have snack money for three damn years, but I'd have liked to have thrown that in his 529 or something.  The second, and more current MPP is that I have recently found out that his being enrolled in a school that qualifies for this program also qualifies us for a discount on my home internet bill.  It would be nice to cut my Internet bill in half, but it feels really icky to use this even though we technically qualify. 

[LennStar]

Oh wow! I nearly get the "government is just aimlessly spreading money around" complaints here.

But what interests me is: WHAT do the kids get to eat? I have some pictures of US school lunches that would be forbidden in some countries on the base of being torture - and I am not even talking about the food.

[Sugaree]

Oh wow! I nearly get the "government is just aimlessly spreading money around" complaints here.

But what interests me is: WHAT do the kids get to eat? I have some pictures of US school lunches that would be forbidden in some countries on the base of being torture - and I am not even talking about the food.

Honestly?  Breakfast is atrocious.  Lots of prepackaged, sugary, junk food.  He eats it sometimes, but also eats eggs/bacon/biscuits before school.  Lunch is better.  Our schools do have actual food prep stations and they cook actual food rather than relying on prepackaged, heat-and-eat options for lunch too.  For example, today he's having chicken, green beans, potato wedges, salad, toasted bun, and pear slices.  He'll still come home hungry though because he's a growing Hobbit. 

As far as the aimlessly spending money thing goes, my understanding of this program is that it's for schools who consistently have a certain percentage of kids (half, maybe?) who qualify for the free and reduced lunch program on the basis of household income.  Reduces paperwork and administration costs and keeps qualified kids from falling through the cracks, I guess?  I live in kind of a weird little town.  It's a college town, so a portion of the population is highly educated and well paid while the rest of town survives, barely, on low paying service jobs.  There's very little in between.  What that gives you is a public school district that consistently scores high on all the standardized tests due to high standards and parental involvement, but also has at least half of the students living under that 200% of the poverty line metric. 

[LennStar]

under that 200% of the poverty line metric.

What's does that mean? I do not understand that metric. You are eligible if you have double the income of poverty??

[Morning Glory]

under that 200% of the poverty line metric.

What's does that mean? I do not understand that metric. You are eligible if you have double the income of poverty??

The US federal government sets a baseline "poverty level " based on family size. It is very low because it was based on 3x the cost of a basic 'market basket' of food in 1963 and does not take into account location or the fact that housing has gone up in price relative to food. The total does go up with inflation but there is disincentive for politicians to change the calculation to better reflect housing costs because then more people would become officially "poor" under their watch. Many social programs like free school lunch now have cutoffs of 2x the poverty level, which is a recent change.

https://www.healthcare.gov/glossary/federal-poverty-level-fpl

[Sugaree]

under that 200% of the poverty line metric.

What's does that mean? I do not understand that metric. You are eligible if you have double the income of poverty??

Pretty much.  So, the federal poverty guidelines (often referred to as the federal poverty line or FPL) is a metric that comes from the Department of Health and Human Services every year.  For 2023, a family of 4 that line is a household income of $27,750 USD (not sure where you're at so I don't know the exchange rate).  The larger your family is, the higher that number goes and vice versa.  A lot of means-tested assistance programs, some states' Medicaid, CHIP (children's insurance), some tax credits, free/reduced lunch, etc. use this metric to determine eligibility.  It can be either at the line (100% of the FPL) or some percentage.  For example, in my state a student receives free school lunch if their family's household income is less than 130% of the FPL and reduced lunch if it's under 185% of the FPL (not sure why they chose 200% for the all-in threshold, but whatever).  There's a health care plan for pregnant women who's household income is less than 145% of the FPL. 

[LennStar]

under that 200% of the poverty line metric.

What's does that mean? I do not understand that metric. You are eligible if you have double the income of poverty??

Pretty much.  So, the federal poverty guidelines (often referred to as the federal poverty line or FPL) is a metric that comes from the Department of Health and Human Services every year.  For 2023, a family of 4 that line is a household income of $27,750 USD (not sure where you're at so I don't know the exchange rate).  The larger your family is, the higher that number goes and vice versa.  A lot of means-tested assistance programs, some states' Medicaid, CHIP (children's insurance), some tax credits, free/reduced lunch, etc. use this metric to determine eligibility.  It can be either at the line (100% of the FPL) or some percentage.  For example, in my state a student receives free school lunch if their family's household income is less than 130% of the FPL and reduced lunch if it's under 185% of the FPL (not sure why they chose 200% for the all-in threshold, but whatever).  There's a health care plan for pregnant women who's household income is less than 145% of the FPL.

Okay, now my explanation why I thought that strange:
I am from Germany, and relative poverty (the one everyone talks about) is defined by (less than) 60% of the median income.
So 200% of poverty line would be 120% of median income - or an income earned by the... I guess 43% from the top. Not excatly so poor that you have to finance their internet.

[Trifle]

Thanks @Sugaree, @Morning Glory and @LennStar for this school lunch topic -- I learned a lot.  I was very confused this year when our son's high school announced that breakfast and lunch was once again free for everyone.  Our state Free-Meals-For-All bill is stalled in committee, so I think it must be that our school tipped demographically into a higher poverty category.  Makes sense.  We're in a very mixed school district as Sugaree describes.  Some wealth, but lots of poverty as well.   

[Sugaree]

under that 200% of the poverty line metric.

What's does that mean? I do not understand that metric. You are eligible if you have double the income of poverty??

Pretty much.  So, the federal poverty guidelines (often referred to as the federal poverty line or FPL) is a metric that comes from the Department of Health and Human Services every year.  For 2023, a family of 4 that line is a household income of $27,750 USD (not sure where you're at so I don't know the exchange rate).  The larger your family is, the higher that number goes and vice versa.  A lot of means-tested assistance programs, some states' Medicaid, CHIP (children's insurance), some tax credits, free/reduced lunch, etc. use this metric to determine eligibility.  It can be either at the line (100% of the FPL) or some percentage.  For example, in my state a student receives free school lunch if their family's household income is less than 130% of the FPL and reduced lunch if it's under 185% of the FPL (not sure why they chose 200% for the all-in threshold, but whatever).  There's a health care plan for pregnant women who's household income is less than 145% of the FPL.

Okay, now my explanation why I thought that strange:
I am from Germany, and relative poverty (the one everyone talks about) is defined by (less than) 60% of the median income.
So 200% of poverty line would be 120% of median income - or an income earned by the... I guess 43% from the top. Not excatly so poor that you have to finance their internet.

Out of curiosity, how is median income determined?  By city, state, nationwide?  Cost-of-living and median income varies so wildly here.  For example, median household income in my city is just under $34k/year.  Nationwide, it's more like $70k/year and in somewhere like San Francisco it's closer to $125k/year.  That means that I could make 3X the median income where I live and still be below median somewhere else.  From a fiscally conservative standpoint, I like the idea of a more targeted approach taking into consideration the local conditions.  But from a more socially liberal standpoint, I understand that a lower cost-of-living doesn't always balance out the lower incomes and that large swaths of these lower income areas need more help. 

[LennStar]

Out of curiosity, how is median income determined?  By city, state, nationwide?  Cost-of-living and median income varies so wildly here.  For example, median household income in my city is just under $34k/year.  Nationwide, it's more like $70k/year and in somewhere like San Francisco it's closer to $125k/year.  That means that I could make 3X the median income where I live and still be below median somewhere else. 

For the case of the strictly statistical poverty line, it's the whole country.
For everything else it's complicated (of course).

For example for the "rural" East Germany the median income is about 30K before taxes. In Munich it's nearly double that. And the average is a whole story in itself.

Have a look at this - data I guess is from 2020:
https://www.focus.de/finanzen/interaktive-karte-mit-3426-euro-gehoeren-sie-in-deutschland-zur-oberen-haelfte-jedoch-nicht-in-allen-regionen_id_13522236.html
If you scroll down a bit you can find a map where you can mouse-over the median per "county". (And if you use a translation service quite a bit of additional info in the text).

Of course that income difference comes with a difference in living cost. You can get more rent help as a poor in Munich than I have regular expenses ;) And that same amount is roughly what a single would get here in (compared to US high) unemployment help/social security (ALG II) - which is already screwed with, just like in the US, so that the poor don't get more money and "it pays to work".
I always have to vomit at this sentence because it's generally uttered by people who - in our parley - already have FIRE wealth.
 

[Sugaree]

@LennStar, Thanks!  That's really interesting.  It seems that you have some of the same...challenges...that we do. 

[Josiecat22222]

My MPP:

I read about camping hack where you can make your own fire starter using dryer lint and I got all excited to try it for our Thanksgiving camping trip.  Then I realize, I don't use my dryer, I hang everything.  So my MPP is I have to go ask my girlfriends for their dryer lint so I can make my own firestarter.

[Wolfpack Mustachian]

My MPP:

I read about camping hack where you can make your own fire starter using dryer lint and I got all excited to try it for our Thanksgiving camping trip.  Then I realize, I don't use my dryer, I hang everything.  So my MPP is I have to go ask my girlfriends for their dryer lint so I can make my own firestarter.

I love this MPP! Great on multiple levels!

[HipGnosis]

My MPP:

I read about camping hack where you can make your own fire starter using dryer lint and I got all excited to try it for our Thanksgiving camping trip.  Then I realize, I don't use my dryer, I hang everything.  So my MPP is I have to go ask my girlfriends for their dryer lint so I can make my own firestarter.

You could visit a local laundromat, on a bike ride.

[Sandi_k]

My MPP:

I read about camping hack where you can make your own fire starter using dryer lint and I got all excited to try it for our Thanksgiving camping trip.  Then I realize, I don't use my dryer, I hang everything.  So my MPP is I have to go ask my girlfriends for their dryer lint so I can make my own firestarter.

Ha! We have found many good firestarters, after years of camping with friends.

1) Doritos or potato chips.

2) Paper napkin with vegetable oil (we store it in a baggie so we don't slime other items in the camp box).

3) Road flares. Kinda hilarious how fast-n-furious it is - but if you have old flares, it's a great way to get rid of them safely!

[GuitarStv]

My MPP:

I read about camping hack where you can make your own fire starter using dryer lint and I got all excited to try it for our Thanksgiving camping trip.  Then I realize, I don't use my dryer, I hang everything.  So my MPP is I have to go ask my girlfriends for their dryer lint so I can make my own firestarter.

Ha! We have found many good firestarters, after years of camping with friends.

1) Doritos or potato chips.

2) Paper napkin with vegetable oil (we store it in a baggie so we don't slime other items in the camp box).

3) Road flares. Kinda hilarious how fast-n-furious it is - but if you have old flares, it's a great way to get rid of them safely!

I'd be a little concerned about cooking anything over a fire with flares in it due to chemicals.  (Probably still better than the fireballs my dad used to like to make with mom's hairspray though.)

[Sandi_k]

We don't cook over the flare fire. We're not *that* dumb! ;)

[sonofsven]

My MPP:

I read about camping hack where you can make your own fire starter using dryer lint and I got all excited to try it for our Thanksgiving camping trip.  Then I realize, I don't use my dryer, I hang everything.  So my MPP is I have to go ask my girlfriends for their dryer lint so I can make my own firestarter.

Ha! We have found many good firestarters, after years of camping with friends.

1) Doritos or potato chips.

2) Paper napkin with vegetable oil (we store it in a baggie so we don't slime other items in the camp box).

3) Road flares. Kinda hilarious how fast-n-furious it is - but if you have old flares, it's a great way to get rid of them safely!

I read about Fritos being a firestarter years ago so I bought a little bag to try it.
Damn, it was like one of those tweaker lighters they sell at the gas station in the wrong side ov town! Unbelievable.

I may be an outlier, but my favorite firestarter is a lighter.

[Dicey]

My MPP:

I read about camping hack where you can make your own fire starter using dryer lint and I got all excited to try it for our Thanksgiving camping trip.  Then I realize, I don't use my dryer, I hang everything.  So my MPP is I have to go ask my girlfriends for their dryer lint so I can make my own firestarter.

Ha! We have found many good firestarters, after years of camping with friends.

1) Doritos or potato chips.

2) Paper napkin with vegetable oil (we store it in a baggie so we don't slime other items in the camp box).

3) Road flares. Kinda hilarious how fast-n-furious it is - but if you have old flares, it's a great way to get rid of them safely!

I read about Fritos being a firestarter years ago so I bought a little bag to try it.
Damn, it was like one of those tweaker lighters they sell at the gas station in the wrong side ov town! Unbelievable.

I may be an outlier, but my favorite firestarter is a lighter.

They're great for arsonists, but less effective for starting a campfire :-)

[tygertygertyger]

My MPP:

I read about camping hack where you can make your own fire starter using dryer lint and I got all excited to try it for our Thanksgiving camping trip.  Then I realize, I don't use my dryer, I hang everything.  So my MPP is I have to go ask my girlfriends for their dryer lint so I can make my own firestarter.

Ha! We have found many good firestarters, after years of camping with friends.

1) Doritos or potato chips.

2) Paper napkin with vegetable oil (we store it in a baggie so we don't slime other items in the camp box).

3) Road flares. Kinda hilarious how fast-n-furious it is - but if you have old flares, it's a great way to get rid of them safely!

Ah! My partner uses a paper towel/napkin with a little hand sanitizer. Neat.

[midweststache]

We've been maxing out an HSA w/ DH's employer that has provided AMAZING healthcare for us because we opt for the smallest service area (the healthcare system he works for, which is also where we live). So we've been maxing the annual HSA contributions with a sub $150-per-paycheck premium; we've been doing this long enough that we've got about $40K in the HSA (divided between the savings account and available investment vehicles).

The MPP? Well, they're overhauling benefits at his employer for 2024, and apparently so few people take advantage of this plan (either due to not using the HSA or living out of the healthcare system service area) that they're getting rid of it. So we can either do the HSA at an additional $100-per-paycheck-in-premiums (plus the HSA contributions) to get a larger area, or we can do the smallest service area but not get an HSA option. Either way, insurance costs go up significantly for us and, in the less more-expensive option, we lose another pre-tax savings vehicle.

**Shakes fist at sky**

[ixtap]

On a similar note, Megacorp officially started offering health insurance to part time employees on Jan 1, but they didn't get the enrollment platform up and running for a couple of weeks. This means that we didn't get the HSA seed money in the mid January pay period and they don't true up (probably account for hiring someone mid year?). We lost 1/4 of the seed money because of their delays.

Also, now that DH's income is flatter, but still unpredictable due to RSUs, and we don't know if he is eligible for a bonus or not because bonuses were just absent from the new table of benefits for part time employees, tax planning is complicated!

[Treedream]

Found out I have 4500 euro's worth of tax advantaged pension investment space from last year. (We don't generally have tax advantaged investments in my country, we have pensions). And because they changed the rules, I will likely have tax advantaged space going forwards!

My problem? I have nobody IRL to nerd out about it with.

[Dutch Comfort]

Found out I have 4500 euro's worth of tax advantaged pension investment space from last year. (We don't generally have tax advantaged investments in my country, we have pensions). And because they changed the rules, I will likely have tax advantaged space going forwards!

My problem? I have nobody IRL to nerd out about it with.

You can nerd to me..... I found out I also have a lot more space than I thought I would. Still working on the 7 year carry back, so mine will be used in future years!
The fun thing is:
Year 1: I put in 1000 in the pension fund
Year 2: I get a refund of 500 on taxes
Year 2: I put the 500 refund in the pension fund
Year 3: I get a refund of 250 on taxes
Year 3: I put the 250 refund in the pension fund
Year 4: I get a refund of 125 on taxes......
So in 4 years it cost me 1000 to have 1750 in the pensionfund and 125 in my bank account...... Don't you just love this government perk?????

[LennStar]

Found out I have 4500 euro's worth of tax advantaged pension investment space from last year. (We don't generally have tax advantaged investments in my country, we have pensions). And because they changed the rules, I will likely have tax advantaged space going forwards!

My problem? I have nobody IRL to nerd out about it with.

You can nerd to me..... I found out I also have a lot more space than I thought I would. Still working on the 7 year carry back, so mine will be used in future years!
The fun thing is:
Year 1: I put in 1000 in the pension fund
Year 2: I get a refund of 500 on taxes
Year 2: I put the 500 refund in the pension fund
Year 3: I get a refund of 250 on taxes
Year 3: I put the 250 refund in the pension fund
Year 4: I get a refund of 125 on taxes......
So in 4 years it cost me 1000 to have 1750 in the pensionfund and 125 in my bank account...... Don't you just love this government perk?????

In Germany we have is something similar. A private pension that invests in stocks and at your retirement it's changed into a yearly paypout. (Rürup-Rente)
You can deduct it from your taxe rate.

First thing is it's dedecuted from your tax rate. So the more you earn (and less you need state help) the more you get back. If you earn minimum wage and pay (nearly) no taxes, you only get half the amount back compared to what a max tax rate earner gets.
It's a tax transfer from poor to rich.

(Theoretically there is "Riester-Rente" for the poor who need it most, but that is A) less money and B) a transfer of tax money to the insurance companies. Likely the mayority of those contract will pay out less than you put in, very likely if you also wanted an inflation adjusted rate.)

Second, and more dire, is the fact that their calculated payout rate is abysmal. For me the best I could find was barely above 3%.
So if you do that Rürup-Rente you get 3% of the retirement age amount plus the tax advantage.
If you put it in yourself, you have our 4% safe withdrawel rate and you still have the money.

People here often complain how the state pension is a waste of money, but it's actually (at least if you assume the past average, which is admittedly optimistic) still better than the tax supported private offer - for which, as a tax payer, you of course pay the taxes for.

[parkerk]

Our hair clippers have gone missing! We took them camping in the summer when Mr. K needed a haircut but we weren't going to be able to do it before we left, and somehow between our van and the house they've vanished. Now either he's going to have to go to a barber and actually pay money for a haircut while we continue to look for them, or we're going to have to spend a whole $40 on another kit. We hadn't even gotten down to the $1/haircut milestone on the old set! Oh, the shame.

Edit: HOLY SHIT I FOUND THEM. Like 5 minutes after posting this I thought of a spot I hadn't looked, and when I went to check they weren't there but they WERE basically right next to that spot, in a place where I'd looked before but evidently not closely enough. Whew!

[LennStar]

That 13 cents saved per month! Congratz! Even small things add up over the decades!

[Treedream]

Found out I have 4500 euro's worth of tax advantaged pension investment space from last year. (We don't generally have tax advantaged investments in my country, we have pensions). And because they changed the rules, I will likely have tax advantaged space going forwards!

My problem? I have nobody IRL to nerd out about it with.

You can nerd to me..... I found out I also have a lot more space than I thought I would. Still working on the 7 year carry back, so mine will be used in future years!
The fun thing is:
Year 1: I put in 1000 in the pension fund
Year 2: I get a refund of 500 on taxes
Year 2: I put the 500 refund in the pension fund
Year 3: I get a refund of 250 on taxes
Year 3: I put the 250 refund in the pension fund
Year 4: I get a refund of 125 on taxes......
So in 4 years it cost me 1000 to have 1750 in the pensionfund and 125 in my bank account...... Don't you just love this government perk?????

Ah, my advantage is only 37% :(

So yes, LennStar we also have issues with rewarding people with higher incomes with more tax brakes. But I will take my 37% and be very happy with it. Its about 1750 tax advantage over my 'free space'.

[PhilB]

Found out I have 4500 euro's worth of tax advantaged pension investment space from last year. (We don't generally have tax advantaged investments in my country, we have pensions). And because they changed the rules, I will likely have tax advantaged space going forwards!

My problem? I have nobody IRL to nerd out about it with.

You can nerd to me..... I found out I also have a lot more space than I thought I would. Still working on the 7 year carry back, so mine will be used in future years!
The fun thing is:
Year 1: I put in 1000 in the pension fund
Year 2: I get a refund of 500 on taxes
Year 2: I put the 500 refund in the pension fund
Year 3: I get a refund of 250 on taxes
Year 3: I put the 250 refund in the pension fund
Year 4: I get a refund of 125 on taxes......
So in 4 years it cost me 1000 to have 1750 in the pensionfund and 125 in my bank account...... Don't you just love this government perk?????

Ah, my advantage is only 37% :(

So yes, LennStar we also have issues with rewarding people with higher incomes with more tax brakes. But I will take my 37% and be very happy with it. Its about 1750 tax advantage over my 'free space'.

That reminds me of a regular issue that comes up on a UK pension forum I used to hang out on.  If you're a 40% tax payer and you want to get £1,000 into your pension, what you are supposed to do is send £800 to your pension scheme.  They claim £200 from the govt (equivalent to basic rate tax) to get it up to £1,000 and you claim a £200 tax refund to get the net cost to you down to £600 ie 40% tax relief.

A typical post would be on the lines of: "Help!  I paid £800 to the pension and got £200 back in tax.  I paid that into the pension, but then they gave me an other £50 tax refund!  I've paid that in but now they've refunded another £12.50!  How do I make it stop!?"

[Treedream]

Now that is an MPP: Help, the government keeps giving me money!

[ChpBstrd]

I have a 15 year mortgage at 3.25%. I would never prepay an extra penny at that rate.

Unfortunately, I'm about 5 years into that mortgage, and the amount of principal in each month's payment is approaching 1% of the remaining balance. So despite my wishes, I'm quickly paying off my mortgage, and might never have a chance to borrow at that rate again.

[zolotiyeruki]

I have a 15 year mortgage at 3.25%. I would never prepay an extra penny at that rate.

Unfortunately, I'm about 5 years into that mortgage, and the amount of principal in each month's payment is approaching 1% of the remaining balance. So despite my wishes, I'm quickly paying off my mortgage, and might never have a chance to borrow at that rate again.

We're almost 12 years into our 15-year, 3% mortgage, and I definitely have a feeling of FOMO for those who got those sweet, sweet sub-3% mortgages during COVID.

[charis]

I have a 15 year mortgage at 3.25%. I would never prepay an extra penny at that rate.

Unfortunately, I'm about 5 years into that mortgage, and the amount of principal in each month's payment is approaching 1% of the remaining balance. So despite my wishes, I'm quickly paying off my mortgage, and might never have a chance to borrow at that rate again.

We're almost 12 years into our 15-year, 3% mortgage, and I definitely have a feeling of FOMO for those who got those sweet, sweet sub-3% mortgages during COVID.

I was able to snag 2.75 during a refi at the end of 2019, could have gone lower on a 15 year but not sad we decided to go with 30 year.

[sonofsven]

I have a 15 year mortgage at 3.25%. I would never prepay an extra penny at that rate.

Unfortunately, I'm about 5 years into that mortgage, and the amount of principal in each month's payment is approaching 1% of the remaining balance. So despite my wishes, I'm quickly paying off my mortgage, and might never have a chance to borrow at that rate again.

We're almost 12 years into our 15-year, 3% mortgage, and I definitely have a feeling of FOMO for those who got those sweet, sweet sub-3% mortgages during COVID.

I was able to snag 2.75 during a refi at the end of 2019, could have gone lower on a 15 year but not sad we decided to go with 30 year.

I was a serial refinancer during those recent years and settled on a 2.75% 30 year with no cost.
I could have paid around $12k in points for a 1.95% 30 year; bragging rights for sure!

[ixtap]

Someone had medical energy behind the wheel and coasted into my parked car. I say coast, but they did crush the bumper. This car is old. CarMax couldn't even be bothered to look at it five years ago.I am very concerned the insurance company is going to want to total my baby!

On the very mustachian side of this problem, we might decide to be carless rather than deal with restoring a salvage title or car shopping.

[SwordGuy]

You were going to drive it into the ground anyway, right?   So why care if you have a salvage title?

If the insurance company totals it, you can buy it back from them for pennies on the dollar.  Might still make good economic sense to hang onto it.

Last time that happened to us, we had both cars totaled by hail damage.   We cleared $10,000 on the deal because we just didn't care about the dents.  That covered 25% of the cost of our first rental property!

[ixtap]

You were going to drive it into the ground anyway, right?   So why care if you have a salvage title?

If the insurance company totals it, you can buy it back from them for pennies on the dollar.  Might still make good economic sense to hang onto it.

Last time that happened to us, we had both cars totaled by hail damage.   We cleared $10,000 on the deal because we just didn't care about the dents.  That covered 25% of the cost of our first rental property!

Restoring a salvage title is kind of pain here. And we don't care about dents, but we do care about an intact bumper for the next time we.get rear ended.

[SwordGuy]

I guess I don't understand what you mean by "restoring a salvage title"?

If the frame isn't bent, replacing a bumper should be a pretty straightforward job.  And unless it interferes with the safe operation of the vehicle, it can be scheduled at a convenient time.

[ixtap]

I guess I don't understand what you mean by "restoring a salvage title"?

If insurance writes off the car, a salvage title is issued. A salvage title is not legal in my state. You have to have pass an inspection, file an appeal, pay a fee.... Less hassle than getting a new car, but according to the interwebz, not at all straight forward.

[NorthernIkigai]

You were going to drive it into the ground anyway, right?

Seems someone just did that for them…

[Tass]

I just discovered an autopay problem that means I have paid credit card interest for the first time in my life. 31 cents. So embarrassing.

[rantk81]

I have a 15 year mortgage at 3.25%. I would never prepay an extra penny at that rate.

Unfortunately, I'm about 5 years into that mortgage, and the amount of principal in each month's payment is approaching 1% of the remaining balance. So despite my wishes, I'm quickly paying off my mortgage, and might never have a chance to borrow at that rate again.

We're almost 12 years into our 15-year, 3% mortgage, and I definitely have a feeling of FOMO for those who got those sweet, sweet sub-3% mortgages during COVID.

I was able to snag 2.75 during a refi at the end of 2019, could have gone lower on a 15 year but not sad we decided to go with 30 year.

I wonder which state pension funds are on the other side of the trade for all these long term sub-3% mortgage backed securities....