Comments for Money Crashers

Comment on Filing A Claim On Your Homeowner’s Insurance Will Not Increase Your Premium by dony

dony — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 01:58:57 +0000

my adjuster mentioned that his final numbers would be increased by some extra percentage? What is he talking about?

Please advise -

Thank you -

Dony

Comment on Top 15 Personal Finance Bloggers On Twitter by Trackback - Cheap Internation Call >> How to make cheap international call

Thu, 19 Nov 2009 22:02:51 +0000

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Comment on Should I Cash Out My 403b Account To Pay Off Debt? by Britt (Your Roth IRA)

Britt (Your Roth IRA) — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 21:12:39 +0000

That’s exceptionally good advice.

The taxes and penalties make it unwise to cash out of the 403b. But compounding the problem is the lost opportunity cost of compounding those funds tax-free in a retirement account for the day when you really need it.

As Michael Harr points out, you’ve already managed to pay off your other debts. Take the funds you’ve been using to pay those debts and direct them toward the $15,000. Since no interest is being charged, there’s no financial gain incurred by paying off the debt early. In fact, through taxes, penalties, and lost retirement planning years, it’s just the opposite. Rollover into a Roth IRA, and find a cheap index fund for your $20,000. Then, forget about it and focus on paying off your debt through hard work.

Comment on Breakdown of Spending for Proposed 2009 Stimulus Bill by Paige

Paige — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 17:55:34 +0000

I agree with Ben but not as drastically… The people who are making up these laws are beyond middle class and they have money so what do they have to worry if this stimulus bill makes the recession last years longer than if we just waited it out…. The politicians arent able to see things from our point of view because of the fact that they arent experiencing what we normal average class americans are… I believe we should do something and not just wait it out but there are to many things in this bill that just dont have to be dealt with right now and wouldnt help with the economy at this point… $10 billion: Science facilities
$6 billion: High-speed Internet access for rural and underserved areas .. ok well we dont have to build that much money’s worth of science buildings.. plus the plan needs to specify more about it. and ok yes we love our computers and internet… but does it really have to cost us 6 billion at the moment….. why dont we work on that later when we start pulling out of this.. 21 million to re sod….. no… just let it go people….. why should the how pretty the grass looks be on our top priority list ?
I also believe that welfare is a necessary evil…. there are times in peoples lives were the extra help is desparately needed.. But i also believe that these people should be actively searching for a job.. Even the smallest job would help… I dont mind the government helping people out and sometimes its the only thing that keeps them and their children fed clothed and protected by a roof…. but I also think that people who recieve these checks should be trying as hard as they can to get a job. I know some people do but its the ones who just wait going eventually ill get one, the whole time they’ve got their hand stuck out receiving other peoples hard earned money… Everyone else has to work for their money so they should too… And if they show no interest in getting a job or act like theyre trying to help themselves then they shouldnt recieve anything free…

Comment on Should I Cash Out My 403b Account To Pay Off Debt? by Michael Harr @ TodayForward

Michael Harr @ TodayForward — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 05:19:23 +0000

A couple of quick points. First off, this is sound advice. If you were able to repay other debts, then you’re on the right track and paying off the last $15k shouldn’t be a big deal.

On the advice to do a direct transfer, this would technically be called a rollover and while it would be smart to put the money into a Roth IRA, this would trigger a significant tax, as the entire amount in the 403b would become taxable for the tax year in which the money came out of the 403b. If you choose to convert to a Roth, do it next year so you can spread the tax burden over 2011-12.

Also, be careful about the provisions within the specific 403b plan that you are participating in. Many, MANY 403b plans have serious surrender charge as they are often sold as annuities. A surrender charge is imposed by the annuity provider (a life insurance company) and I’ve seen them well into the teens depending on how old the contract is.

A quick recap:

1. Determine if your 403b has surrender charges
2. Decide if you want to roll it over into a traditional/rollover IRA or a Roth IRA. With the traditional/rollover IRA, there’s no taxes and no penalties, with the Roth IRA, you pay taxes, but no penalties
3. If you do the Roth, postpone it until 2010.
4. Invest it wisely

On #4, it sounds like you may not have a large enough emergency fund, so you might want to keep the money in cash until you’re out of debt and have a significant amount in cash reserves. No need to add market ups and downs to your current situation or this brutal economy.

Comment on How I Pay $85 A Month For My Health Insurance Policy by ChristineWithRegence

ChristineWithRegence — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 17:10:35 +0000

When it comes to health insurance, I’ve been thinking: Isn’t it odd how we comparison shop for so much, but we never know the costs of health care procedures and treatments? How come I don’t know the actual cost of a test or an office visit? I got a kick out of this fun, short video. Check it out. It makes you wonder why out health care system is set up the way it is.
http://www.whatstherealcost.org/45secondstoshare
What do you think?

Comment on A Real Life Story About Earning A MacBook Pro For $400 Bucks by Jefferson Faudan

Jefferson Faudan — Sun, 15 Nov 2009 19:57:38 +0000

this is really cool… i am actually eyeing for a mac…same as your story… it’s quite costly and it’s quite a big amount to waste…

Comment on Earn Extra Money By Getting A Job Over The Holidays by Credit Card Chaser

Credit Card Chaser — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 17:31:53 +0000

I know that when I was in college picking up an extra job over the holidays was a huge help. Usually the key is to plan ahead and make sure to line up the job as early as possible.

Comment on Seven Reasons Why Leasing A Car Is A Bad Deal by Tonk

Tonk — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 02:51:44 +0000

I can see why its worse than buying if you pay for your car with straight cash. However most people take out a loan when they get a new car, and I don’t see how that is any better, other than the restriction in mileage. Do you want to be hassled with selling the car if you don’t want it in 3 years?

Comment on How to Save Money While Vacationing In A Big City by Craig

Craig — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 20:16:43 +0000

Try to get package deals for hotels and places that you know you want to stop by. Maybe they have set deals which could save money.