We converted most of our tax-deferred account balances to Roth IRAs over several years prior to receiving Social Security and Medicare and are very happy that we did so as the accounts have significantly increased in value. We did leave some money in a traditional IRA that we plan to use for QCDs for as long as we live or until the account is empty, whichever comes first. The QCDs will be at least equal to our RMDs.
I generally like Fidelity because their tech is so user-friendly and reliable. I am over 70 1/2 so use QCDs instead of a DAF for donations and Fidelity makes it so easy, all online and the donation goes out within a day or so of the request.
Re. There are some exceptions of vehicle loans that do not qualify for interest deduction:
Buying a commercial vehicle not used personally
Lease financing
Buying a vehicle with a salvaged title
Buying a vehicle intended for scrap or parts
Why or when would a new car have a salvaged title or be intended for scrap or parts? Because it was damaged en route to the dealership, or while at the dealership?
I recommend APMEX; I have bought and sold gold bullion coins through them many times over the years and have never had a problem. You do need to send the coins through the mail, but the procedures are simple and safe (they keep video records of packing and unpacking in case of a dispute). Their mark-ups (fees) are reasonable. I recommend sticking with bullion coins such as American Eagles and generally avoiding numismatic collectible coins, which can have mark-ups as high as 35%. That said, personally I love giving Australian Lunar bullion gold coins to commemorate special occasions such as graduations………Gold coins are considered collectibles so any longterm gains are taxed at 28%, though dealers are not required to issue a Form 1099 for some categories of bullion…….I think Costco also sells gold at a reasonable mark-up.
Ordering a certified copy of your marriage certificate from the county in which you were married is really simple in California - you can usually do it online - and it doesn’t cost much. We were married in a cheap wedding chapel in South Lake Tahoe, El Dorado County, in 1980 for $20. We had a copy of our “marriage certificate” but it was a cheap looking black-and-white document that didn’t look official by today’s standards, so we were never 100% certain it was real. The new certified copy we ordered last year is in color and looks like an official, modern document.
We paid $0 today to fill up our Fiat 500e from our solar panels and PowerWall. Panels were installed while we were still working; PowerWall was free courtesy of PG & E. My advice to anyone planning to retire is to do what you can while still working to reduce your fixed expenses in retirement - it leaves more money available for the fun stuff…….
Amazing! We haven't had any credit cards (except a Chevron card) for over 25 years - we only use debit cards, because it's the simplest way for us not to accidentally overspend - and have no debt so even though we pay the very low Chevron card balance off each month our FICO score is always at around 800. Kind of a peculiar system we have, that rewards people for having access to more credit.........
Getting around in an EV on the West Coast has become much easier - more charging stations and lots of good apps to find/reserve them. But they’re definitely still a niche vehicle for those wealthy enough to own more than one vehicle and/or have solar power/charging stations at home plus ideally also at work. So, much harder in general for renters…….
Sigh. Nice post, but it made me realize why phasing out the use of individual internal combustion autos is such a challenge in the US. Most of us sure love the ability to drive where we what when we want as quickly as we want. We are slowing getting used to depending on our EV (a used Fiat 500e, arguably the cutest car ever built) for most of our local driving (we live in the country and have solar panels with a Tesla PowerWall), but still own our farm truck, a bare bones Ford F-150 that we bought new in 1994, plus a 2013 VW hybrid Jetta (also bought new) for longer trips. We’ll keep the Ford as long as we live out here but will probably trade the Jetta for a new long-distance EV next year……….
Comments
We converted most of our tax-deferred account balances to Roth IRAs over several years prior to receiving Social Security and Medicare and are very happy that we did so as the accounts have significantly increased in value. We did leave some money in a traditional IRA that we plan to use for QCDs for as long as we live or until the account is empty, whichever comes first. The QCDs will be at least equal to our RMDs.
Post: Contrarian Thinking About Roth Conversions
Link to comment from October 18, 2025
I generally like Fidelity because their tech is so user-friendly and reliable. I am over 70 1/2 so use QCDs instead of a DAF for donations and Fidelity makes it so easy, all online and the donation goes out within a day or so of the request.
Post: Easy DAF (e.g. Daffy.org) for Donation of Appreciated Stocks
Link to comment from October 18, 2025
Re. There are some exceptions of vehicle loans that do not qualify for interest deduction:
- Buying a commercial vehicle not used personally
- Lease financing
- Buying a vehicle with a salvaged title
- Buying a vehicle intended for scrap or parts
Why or when would a new car have a salvaged title or be intended for scrap or parts? Because it was damaged en route to the dealership, or while at the dealership?Post: The Wheel Deal
Link to comment from September 6, 2025
In college we half jokingly talked about riding bicycles to Brazil, because, hey, it‘s downhill all the way 🥰.
Post: Dreams I Had
Link to comment from June 7, 2025
I recommend APMEX; I have bought and sold gold bullion coins through them many times over the years and have never had a problem. You do need to send the coins through the mail, but the procedures are simple and safe (they keep video records of packing and unpacking in case of a dispute). Their mark-ups (fees) are reasonable. I recommend sticking with bullion coins such as American Eagles and generally avoiding numismatic collectible coins, which can have mark-ups as high as 35%. That said, personally I love giving Australian Lunar bullion gold coins to commemorate special occasions such as graduations………Gold coins are considered collectibles so any longterm gains are taxed at 28%, though dealers are not required to issue a Form 1099 for some categories of bullion…….I think Costco also sells gold at a reasonable mark-up.
Post: What About Gold?
Link to comment from June 7, 2025
Ordering a certified copy of your marriage certificate from the county in which you were married is really simple in California - you can usually do it online - and it doesn’t cost much. We were married in a cheap wedding chapel in South Lake Tahoe, El Dorado County, in 1980 for $20. We had a copy of our “marriage certificate” but it was a cheap looking black-and-white document that didn’t look official by today’s standards, so we were never 100% certain it was real. The new certified copy we ordered last year is in color and looks like an official, modern document.
Post: Am I Really Married?
Link to comment from May 10, 2025
We paid $0 today to fill up our Fiat 500e from our solar panels and PowerWall. Panels were installed while we were still working; PowerWall was free courtesy of PG & E. My advice to anyone planning to retire is to do what you can while still working to reduce your fixed expenses in retirement - it leaves more money available for the fun stuff…….
Post: Gas Pains
Link to comment from June 15, 2022
Amazing! We haven't had any credit cards (except a Chevron card) for over 25 years - we only use debit cards, because it's the simplest way for us not to accidentally overspend - and have no debt so even though we pay the very low Chevron card balance off each month our FICO score is always at around 800. Kind of a peculiar system we have, that rewards people for having access to more credit.........
Post: A Perfect Score
Link to comment from June 8, 2022
Getting around in an EV on the West Coast has become much easier - more charging stations and lots of good apps to find/reserve them. But they’re definitely still a niche vehicle for those wealthy enough to own more than one vehicle and/or have solar power/charging stations at home plus ideally also at work. So, much harder in general for renters…….
Post: Driving a Bargain
Link to comment from May 21, 2022
Sigh. Nice post, but it made me realize why phasing out the use of individual internal combustion autos is such a challenge in the US. Most of us sure love the ability to drive where we what when we want as quickly as we want. We are slowing getting used to depending on our EV (a used Fiat 500e, arguably the cutest car ever built) for most of our local driving (we live in the country and have solar panels with a Tesla PowerWall), but still own our farm truck, a bare bones Ford F-150 that we bought new in 1994, plus a 2013 VW hybrid Jetta (also bought new) for longer trips. We’ll keep the Ford as long as we live out here but will probably trade the Jetta for a new long-distance EV next year……….
Post: Driving a Bargain
Link to comment from May 21, 2022