AUTHOR: Y S on 12/31/2024 FIRST: R Quinn on 12/31/2024 | RECENT: Y S on 1/1
Comments
"In 2025, filers will owe 0% in capital gains tax for gains above the exemption threshold if their taxable income is below $48,350 (or $96,700 if married filing jointly)" Would the capital gains from a home sale be included or excluded from taxable income threshold above?
I oversee brokerage accounts with Citi, Fidelity and Vanguard as I help my parents with their investments as well. As a DIYer, web experience and live customer service are my top values. No doubt Citi's web experience is the worse but their live phone service is good, which I think it would have to be given their poor website. Vanguard's web experience is ok but not great. Not as user friendly as Fidelity and I'm quite certain there are glitches in the portfolio performance calculations. Also like Citi, Vanguard has limited live customer service. I like the Fidelity web experience very much and their live customer service (weekends too). I've even grown to appreciate their web tutorials and articles which I don't get as much of from Vanguard or Citi.
From my perspective, your experience with HR is rare within corporate America. Usually, HR is focused on protecting senior management and executives. They might be honest about policy but rarely give advice to the benefit of the individual lower level employee. Congrats on your positive exit.
I do a categorization of my cash flow (banks, credit cards, etc.) once a month. I also question the necessity of this as my spending is pretty stable year over year and I don't spend excessively. I keep doing it for random questions that come up from time to time and the data is there for me to look things up. A potential downside of tracking expenses is that doing so may actually result in spending too little. Looking at variances, comparing with prior month or prior year, etc. may make one too spend conscious.
I'd make sure I have enough $ sooner than when you plan to retire. You're probably fine but most in Corporate America employees may get "retired" by their employer many years earlier than planned. And by enough, I also mean whether you stay married or separate (sorry to be Debbie Downer). I'd also shift more tax deferred assets to Roth. I'd start good health habits as soon as possible. I'd invest in strong relationships and community.
I've learned SO MUCH from JC articles, mostly giving me the confidence to simplify my finances (less FOMO). That said, the stand out has to be how to think about where and how much to put in safe securities. In the past, the general approach was to invest some percentage of my total investment assets (based on age) in maybe a core bond fund. This approach never sat well with me, it seemed arbitrary and also moved too much with equities. I now hold 5+ years of needed cash flow in short term treasury ETF. This approach makes sense to me and the swings on my equity holdings don't bother me knowing I have enough ready access to $ that have less price volatility.
Comments
"In 2025, filers will owe 0% in capital gains tax for gains above the exemption threshold if their taxable income is below $48,350 (or $96,700 if married filing jointly)" Would the capital gains from a home sale be included or excluded from taxable income threshold above?
Post: Selling Your House and Reaping Tax Free Capital Gains May be in Jeopardy
Link to comment from July 24, 2025
I oversee brokerage accounts with Citi, Fidelity and Vanguard as I help my parents with their investments as well. As a DIYer, web experience and live customer service are my top values. No doubt Citi's web experience is the worse but their live phone service is good, which I think it would have to be given their poor website. Vanguard's web experience is ok but not great. Not as user friendly as Fidelity and I'm quite certain there are glitches in the portfolio performance calculations. Also like Citi, Vanguard has limited live customer service. I like the Fidelity web experience very much and their live customer service (weekends too). I've even grown to appreciate their web tutorials and articles which I don't get as much of from Vanguard or Citi.
Post: Vanguard Complaints?
Link to comment from July 18, 2025
loved Ireland. Our group unanimously said visiting Skellig Michael was the most memorable
Post: Trips in your “go go” years?
Link to comment from June 11, 2025
Am I not entitled to my own views based on my own interactions with HR? I don't think I suggested OP not give fair notice.
Post: How Did You Announce Your Retirement?
Link to comment from April 30, 2025
From my perspective, your experience with HR is rare within corporate America. Usually, HR is focused on protecting senior management and executives. They might be honest about policy but rarely give advice to the benefit of the individual lower level employee. Congrats on your positive exit.
Post: How Did You Announce Your Retirement?
Link to comment from April 30, 2025
I do a categorization of my cash flow (banks, credit cards, etc.) once a month. I also question the necessity of this as my spending is pretty stable year over year and I don't spend excessively. I keep doing it for random questions that come up from time to time and the data is there for me to look things up. A potential downside of tracking expenses is that doing so may actually result in spending too little. Looking at variances, comparing with prior month or prior year, etc. may make one too spend conscious.
Post: Detailed tracking expenses and spending. Is there real value?
Link to comment from March 8, 2025
I'd make sure I have enough $ sooner than when you plan to retire. You're probably fine but most in Corporate America employees may get "retired" by their employer many years earlier than planned. And by enough, I also mean whether you stay married or separate (sorry to be Debbie Downer). I'd also shift more tax deferred assets to Roth. I'd start good health habits as soon as possible. I'd invest in strong relationships and community.
Post: What wisdom can you share?
Link to comment from February 15, 2025
will do, appreciate the feedback
Post: Bond Index Funds or Something Else?
Link to comment from January 29, 2025
While I use a short term Treasury ETF for my bond allocation, I recently came across ICSH ETF. If you favor a higher yield vs. state tax exemption.
Post: Bond Index Funds or Something Else?
Link to comment from January 29, 2025
I've learned SO MUCH from JC articles, mostly giving me the confidence to simplify my finances (less FOMO). That said, the stand out has to be how to think about where and how much to put in safe securities. In the past, the general approach was to invest some percentage of my total investment assets (based on age) in maybe a core bond fund. This approach never sat well with me, it seemed arbitrary and also moved too much with equities. I now hold 5+ years of needed cash flow in short term treasury ETF. This approach makes sense to me and the swings on my equity holdings don't bother me knowing I have enough ready access to $ that have less price volatility.
Post: Lessons you have learned from articles by Jonathan
Link to comment from January 28, 2025