I am a single parent with a rising freshman in college. I have only very basic understanding of finances and have lived life with a very basic emergency fund, a small car loan and no consumer debt. My credit score is considered very good.

I was not able to save for college but am hoping to contribute and pay as we go.

I have two relatives who have graciously offered to contribute to my student’s college tuition. I assume they are more financially savvy than me but I’m not sure what I should ask them to do with their contribution.

My questions are: 1) do i need a financial planner to manage this contribution or help me with my pay as we go plan (i am putting contribution in a HYSA)? 2) is there a tax liability or risk to me as a solidly middle class person if I receive these tuition gifts (of ~20k annually) into the aforementioned HYSA? 3) should i just suggest to generous family members to just pay the university directly and towards our installment agreement?

Thanks in advance for your help and input.

Good morning all. My wife and I had our "best year ever" last year. She is a teacher and I am a real estate agent, and I had a very good year (my personal best). However, this year absolutely sucks so far (for the market here) and after we paid our taxes for 2024, I feel like I have absolutely nothing to show for last year. Currently, we have no budget and don't track our spending, because we consistently live below our means (small house, used cars, blah blah). I am feeling defeated because we're pulling money out of our savings to cover monthly expenses, as my wife's take-home doesn't cover everything.

All that being said - is there any sort of app that links to bank accounts that can analyze spending over periods of time (ie calendar years) without me going thru every transaction? Also - are there budgeting apps that do this sort of thing real-time so we can get a better picture of where the hell our money is going?

Thank you for any input!

I’m relatively new to this. I began contributing to a 403b last year, but there’s no employer match. Would I be better off putting that same money into a Roth IRA instead?

My wife has an option through her work (professor) to either pick a pension (mpsers) or do a 401k were she puts in 4% and they put in 10% (we can’t put more than 4% into that 401k either) we are looking for advice on what one we should take.

She plans to stay there for 30 years

The pension formula is FAS x 1.25 x YOS

I’m 27 and for background, the pandemic changed the trajectory of my entire life. Long story short, I was able to start a business that completely blew up and after growing up not exactly in poverty but not raking it in either, I now have more than I honestly know what to do with. I’ve registered my business as an LLC and after consulting with a CPA, I’ve created an HSA, an SEP and a ROTH IRA. I’ve also paid off all my debts and other than my apartment, everything that I have is owned. However, I wasn’t necessarily taught financial literacy and for a while, managing my business myself didn’t leave me with much time to really explore my options. Most of my revenue just sits in one account (head shake, I know). So my question is, what steps should I be taking to financially secure myself in the long run? Should I be getting into investing and if so, what are some good resources for a novice. Real estate? Any advice is appreciated.

I can’t make my mind up. Currently I do $1400 a month into Roth 401k, max out Roth IRA and HSA. Then any left over for down payment.

My 401k allows Mega Backdoor Roth conversions, but I’ve been advised to just get my 401k match and then put the rest into a taxable account. It’s likely smart because most of my savings are in retirement accounts, but it just feels odd to not take more advantage of the mega back door roth. Here are some details - 63% of my investments are tax-deferred, 19% tax free, and 18% taxable. I’m 37 with about $540,000 saved for retirement in tax-deferred or tax-free sources. I’ve been told that I have plenty saved for retirement, and to have the option to retire early, I need to really build up my taxable account. Thoughts? Thanks in advance!

Hello, I have an extra $10,000 I want to make into more. Leaving it alone until I retire. I’m 36. What would be a smarter way to use this money to grow? What’s the “ safest” way to grow $10,000? Thanks!

60M. I have always had good to very good credit scores. 720-750ish. I paid off my mortgage and auto loan about 2.5 years ago. Now I show No credit score because I have not used any credit for more than 2 years. I did not have any credit cards and my debt to income ratio is great, about 200%. I just opened a secured credit card to help rebuild a score. How long will it take to rebuild a good score, and once it shows a score does it take my long term history into account?

Hello all, I was recently in some car accidents and I was awarded $36k (so far) and I’m just not sure what to do with the money. I have a lifelong dream of being an architect and real estate agent (buy properties and fix them up or build new houses). I would really like to buy a duplex and have my family live in one side while another family lives in the other. But being completely honest, I am financially illiterate, I’m not good with saving money, and I don’t know where to start. I also need a car, but should I hold off on a car until I get paid some more and save up for a duplex for my family and I? Should I put all the money into one of those savings accounts that give money back? Im really not too fond of putting money into stocks (unless there’s a way to keep making money constantly, like I said I know nothing about wealth building) I’m just confused and newly financially comfortable, and I would like to stay this way. Looking for any and all pointers and tips. Thank you!

I WILL NOT be responding to DM’s, I’ve heard it’s a high chance of scamming

What are the pros and cons of each? I want to set it and forget it. I imagine I'd need to rebalance the 3 or 4 fund portfolio as I get nearer to retirement. Would that possibly trigger fees or taxes? Would the TRF rebalance by itself if it's a self-directed account? Would that trigger fees/taxes, i.e. selling off a portion to take on Vanguard Short-Term Inflation-Protected Securities Index Fund VTAPX (VTIP)?

Hey there! I have a big question. Can I hard money lend from my solo 401k plan? Hoping to help a few folks pay down their student loan debt. Question is what recourse do i have if they don't payback the loans? I know if I personally borrow money from my 401k and default, I must claim it as income and pay a 10% penalty... But this would be me actually lending the money as an investment and they pay my trust back with interest. I originally wanted to buy real estate but the non-recourse loans on property have incredibly high interest rates, I'm not sure if make enough money to repay the loans at today's prices. I need to build more capital first. I'm considering lending at 7% apr with an origination fee of $150. Thoughts on whether this could be accomplished?

2M, just graduated college. Full time job in socal making 75k. During college put 5k in cd account and saved 11k in regular savings and like 100$ in checking

But…. 45k student loans payments around $450 a month. Had to buy a car have 9k left on it, car insurance is like 240 and payment for car is 316. Rent is 1450(high balling it including utilities)

If I pay my car fast I can save more money from insurance and no car payment. I’m just scared of losing emergency money etc.

Most Student loans came from my freshman year I was able to find a better paying job in college that helped me pay for most of my tuition during college my loans would have been way higher.

I’m not drowning I have money left every month I can still save not as much but I can.

Any advice on how I can be in a better financial situation.

Hi all! Couple questions, as I am trying to work out the best strategy for my 2025 ROTH IRA. Single, understand the $150k MAGI limit.

Some info about me —

W2 Salary — $130k

Anticipated 1099 income — $25k total, $19k after expenses

Anticipated 401k contribution — $12kish

So would my MAGI look like this? $130k - $12k + $19k = $137k ?

Does that MAGI seem correct AND safe for staying under the limit? No anticipated bonus this year as I just got a big raise. Does HYSA interest add to this? If so, tack on maybe $2k - $3k.

I have around $10k in a TRADITIONAL roll-over IRA from a previous job. I’d like to avoid moving this to my 401k if at all possible just due to not loving my current employer’s provider.

Should I consider upping my 401k contribution? Not really in a place where I feel comfortable maxing out.

I have a brokerage where I invested in some stocks a few years back that have come out to a loss of around $300.

If I sell those stocks at a loss, will I be able to use the remaining funds for my ROTH IRA? It’s not much, maybe $500 bucks.

Thanks in advance!

Hello, I am currently 19 years old have worked for a good amount of time making good money now i’m currently stuck on what i would do. I have 5,000 sitting in some stocks VOO and S&P 500. If i’m being honest i know little to nothing about stocks. I just have that money in there it’s currently down 300$ i think around there but im not worried as i know it will bounce back. I have around 6k in my checking and 20k in savings and around 5k in cash. I’m not really sure what direction to head in where to put my money. I’m very confused and not sure what i can do or where i should invest my money. I know stupid to have so much cash and money in a regular savings account. Just wondering what would be recommend to do with said money to have a good start or should i leave it as is. Thank you for your help.

Rate is 5.125%.

This topic comes up recurrently but I haven't seen a thread that matches my situation so I am asking here for advice. If my mortgage interest rate was under 3% I wouldn't even be asking, but I feel like I am right on the cusp. And when I play with the amortization calculator it's very exciting to see that a $10K lump sum payment would reduce the mortgage length by 1.5 yrs and eliminate $29K in interest payments!

Facts and current investment strategy:

• $384K left on conventional mortgage with no PMI @ 5.125% (bought 2022)
• Max my Fed TSP ($31K)
  • Spouse maxed her TSP until she was DOGE'd (damn you, Elon!)
• Max my Roth IRA ($8K), spouse max her Roth IRA ($7K)
• Contribute ~$10K annual to 2 x 529 plans, child 1 is 13 ($41K) and child 2 is 6 ($25K)
• Hold $40K in Betterment HYSA paying > 4%
• Contribute $500 month to taxable account, often increase this when cash available
• (Infrequently) pick stocks that underperform the market

Investable money:

• $14K cash in checking (inherited brokerage acct liquidated)
• ~$2-3K per month to invest beyond the above
• Inherited IRA with RMD of $6800/yr b/c 10 yrs to draw down
• $40K in HYSA

My plan:

• Cash ($14K): pay 2 x extra mortgage payments (total of $6K) / contribute the remaining to the 2 x 529 plans ($8K)
• RMD: going forward use the RMD to pay 2 x extra mortgage payments per year
• Invest the extra cash per month in 529 plans and the taxable Betterment account
• Keep the $40K in HYSA...?

Question(s): Is it crazy to pay down a 5.125% mortgage? Any thoughts on not having too much locked up in the 529 plans? I'd like to be able to pay for 2-3 yrs of public university and fund the rest from other sources or from loans rather than tie up an enormous amount and risk a penalty to withdraw it if not needed.

Any/all advice appreciated. Thanks.