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Back in 2014, DW worked a job at MC for a year before quitting to be a SAHM. She maxed out her 401k contributions in that year, but would have needed to stay a full 2 years for MC’s generous matching funds to vest. She’s left the 401k funds with that employer, rather than rolling them over to...

I'm looking for some input on how you folks would deal with this issue. We had a plumber out today to install a new toilet. He pulled the old one and noted that the wood floor around the flange showed water damage. It seems that the wax ring may not have sealed perfectly, leading to some...

I have a brokerage account, which I'd been planning to slowly liquidate to fund our kids' future college expenses. Looking into it further, it seems that I could potentially gift the kids appreciated stock to fund their schooling, which would significantly lower the tax bite. My oldest has a...

DW and her siblings had a fraught relationship with their Dad. He cut off most contact with them 25 years ago when he and DMIL divorced, but they'd see him once or twice a year for a brief check-in. We found out this weekend that he passed away. DW is physically the closest to where he was...

My 10yo son was recently diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes. We're adjusting to the new reality of multiple finger-sticks per day, and a minimum of 4 daily insulin injections. He's adapting quickly to carb-counting and recording his blood glucose levels, and we're fortunate that we can absorb the...

I've been reading the 'biggest unanticipated downside of ER' thread, and some of the comments have given me pause: I didn't want to hijack that thread, but what sort of changes are we talking about? Loss of strength/endurance? General tiredness or lack of energy? Or...? I know the...

I've recently started a new job, and I'm starting to second-guess my move. I wanted to see if the group here had any thoughts on this situation. Note: Staying at my old job was not an option, as the company is moving, and I did not want to move with it. Pros: Salary - Base salary is...

From the following link: Study: Red and Processed Meats Linked to Type 2 Diabetes – TIME Healthland This doesn't pass the sniff test. I imagine the study could have been re-titled as: Regular Consumption of Big Macs* Linked to Type 2 Diabetes. IMO, it ain't the red meat, it's the fried...

With the year winding down, I'm seeing lots of 'Best of 2010' lists online. So, what was your one best & worst financial move of 2010? For me, the best move was to take a new job. While my theoretical salary stayed the same, my real salary increased 15%, because the old job had a monthly...

DW & I have just applied for a HELOC through B of A. I've never done a HELOC before, but I found a checklist online of things to ask about (margin, minimum draw/average balance requirements, etc.), and all the answers seemed favorable, so I went ahead with the application (we're already B of A...

Anybody ever emphatically disconnect from one or more dysfunctional family members? In other words, rather than just not calling/writing/visiting them, you explicitly told them, “I don’t think you’re healthy, you’re not adding anything positive to my life, and I don’t care to see you anymore”...

I'm in the process of switching to a new job, and have run into a problem with my 125 account at my old employer. I've got $1,750 in the account, and haven't made any claims against it this year (yet). The fund administrators are basically saying that I must forfeit the funds because I haven't...

DW and I have managed to save a decent amount without having a household budget. After finding this site a few years ago, I've started tracking our expenses more closely. Long story short, we're spending more than I thought we were, with dining out and groceries constituting the majority of...

Lately, I've found myself lusting after a new (to me) car. Cars are a life-long interest of mine, and I've spent many an hour reading car magazines and surfing online car forums. In the last week, I became aware of a used car at a lot near me. It's an older model of a high-end car that I've...

With all the talk about the coming recession, downsizing, etc., I wonder how many of us have been laid off in our career? DW and I have been fortunate to have avoided layoffs thus far, but we're still young. :p Edit: For those who have been laid off, and then went back to work, it'd be...

A question about water bills from Want2Retire in the http://www.early-retirement.org/forums/f28/your-monthly-cost-of-housing-40247.html thread got me looking closely at my water bill. We're averaging close to $90 per month for water/sewer. Examining my bill, it lists our average gallons used...

In IE 7.0, I'm getting an error today when browsing the ER.org forums: "_gat is undefined". It's an IE error, so I get a messagebox informing me of the error, asking if I want to debug. It happens on every page, and only seems to be this site. If I click Cancel, pages are loading normally...

I have a family-related issue, and am looking for some advice. My Dad, who currently lives a couple of hours away, is moving closer to us to be near our kids. We're happy about that because the kids love him, and they'll be thrilled to get to see him more regularly. What I'm not happy about...

DW & I have about $365k sitting in 401(k) accounts from past employers. The returns from those accounts have been decent, which is why we've left them there. I'd like to move the funds to an IRA which will give us better investment options and more control, but wonder about the timing. It...

Based on advice gathered on this forum, I finally started analyzing our household expenses. I loath budgeting, and have never been in the habit of doing more than eyeballing our accounts to ensure that there were no unexpected charges, and sufficient funds to cover outgoing payments. Thankfully...

I'm not particularly close to retiring yet, but when my wife and I do pull the trigger, we'll need to find private health insurance until we qualify for Medicare. When we bought term life insurance recently, my rate was almost double hers, due to a BMI of >30. According to the charts, a good...

I realize that many LBYM-types wouldn't dream of putting a swimming pool in the backyard. That said, I have 2 young kids who have taken to swimming in a big way. I'm contemplating a move in the next few years to a home with a pool, or with a backyard suitable for building one. There is a...

I'm not sure if this is a bug, or user error, but I haven't been able to figure out how to do this: 1. In the Percentage of Remaining Portfolio spending model, Firecalc seems to use the targeted annual withdrawal amount and your current portfolio value to determine the percentage used for...

Greetings! I've been lurking here for some time, and have learned a tremendous amount from the members of this board. More than anything, I've learned is that I'm not as close to ER as I'd originally thought. :p I'm 34, and DW is 38, and we have 2 small kids. We both work, and are fortunate...