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  1. BrianB

    2024 Umbrella Policy costs

    We paid $203 (full year) in 9/2023 for a $2M umbrella with State Farm in a suburb of Minneapolis. We are renters, not owners. We have two vehicles (one is our home-built campervan with stated value 2x the book value) but no 4-wheelers, snowmobiles, or other risk factors. Daughter is on her own...
  2. BrianB

    Your 2023 effective tax rate

    For 2023, our rate was 7.9% Federal 1.3% State 9.2% Total. 2023 was our last year using the ACA. For the next 7 years we'll be paying more as we crank up Roth conversions ahead of RMD's. Our plan is to convert as much as possible each year while keeping our Total tax rate under 15%...
  3. BrianB

    Monthly Grocery Expenditure

    For the two of us: $600 / month for groceries & cleaning supplies & paper supplies from the supermarket / Costco. (My wife is a great cook, so it is a rare occasion we don't make our own meals.) $90 / month wine beer and spirits. (We do like a nice glass of wine with dinner!) $60 / month...
  4. BrianB

    Here we go again, it’s Daylight Saving Time

    My bicycle speedometer has a clock built-in that I never change. Here in MN the bike doesn't get used in the non-DST months so it's never a problem for me! BrianB
  5. BrianB

    What is your pet peeve of the day? -- 2021

    Goathead burrs! We never heard of these until this winter in Arizona. Four flats on our bicycles - a complete set - after less than 25 miles of riding. We got replacement tubes with Slime and I've already seen little dots of green goo coming through the outer tire, but it seems to be working as...
  6. BrianB

    Best CD, MM Rates & Bank Special Deals Thread 2024 - Please post updates here

    I understand the strategy of buying a lower coupon rate CD from the secondary market at below par. It's much less likely to be called if rates start to drop, while still giving a greater total return. If I do this then is the difference between my purchase price and redemption value considered...
  7. BrianB

    Fidelity free Turbotax offer

    teej1985 said: "When i searched I saw a $20 discount only - I am not PCG, that's for people with $500k+, right?" I found this Fidelity response to a customer on Reddit: I don't know if PCG is necessary - or - sufficient to get the better offer. In prior years some posters have said they did...
  8. BrianB

    Fidelity free Turbotax offer

    I went ahead and did the download, even though we're in a campground with really poor WiFi right now. If you get the offer the precedure is simple: - Click on the link to go to the Intuit site. - Choose the on-line version or the download version. The download is discounted to $5.00 if you...
  9. BrianB

    Fidelity free Turbotax offer

    I logged into Fidelity today and found this: "Fidelity is pleased to offer you a free federal and state tax return using TurboTax Online Premium, or for $5 use TurboTax Premier desktop download. Select the link below to access your offer." The offer didn't show up on the home page, but a...
  10. BrianB

    Best CD, MM Rates & Bank Special Deals Thread 2023 - Please post updates here

    Wells Fargo just dropped a (very large) boatload of CD's into the market. 1 to 5 year terms, non-callable, monthly pay with 20000+ quantities of each. Yields are .05% (5 bp) higher than comparable non-callables listed on Fidelity. Does this mean that they are desperate for money to loan out...
  11. BrianB

    Airline Scam

    Even worse, the entire web site can be taken over by scammers. Here's what happened to me a few months ago: I was looking for an obscure part (wheel hanger bolts) for our van and found one auto supply company that carried them in stock. I ordered on line, but immediately things got sketchy...
  12. BrianB

    New Orleans Must Sees

    The National World War II Museum is great. It's right in the city and easy walking or streetcar access. We spent about 4 hrs going through it. Lots of displays and history about the European, Asian, and African campaigns. https://www.nationalww2museum.org/ We also enjoyed the Mardi Gras World...
  13. BrianB

    Preferred Stock Investing-The Good , The Bad and The In Between 2021

    We own a few shares of WFC-L. I'm considering adding some more, and maybe some BAC-L. Just one thing bothers me: WFC-L and BAC-L are non-cumulative. If the big guys at Corporate HQ just decide to stop paying the dividends, there isn't any recourse. Is this a concern for any of you looking to...
  14. BrianB

    How do I choose a Ring doorbell?

    This is from the Ring Terms of Service as published on their web site: Your images could end up in their advertising, or be given to anyone or any company that they want to - including law enforcement with no need for a warrant. I wouldn't have one. BrianB
  15. BrianB

    Best CD, MM Rates & Bank Special Deals Thread 2023 - Please post updates here

    Again today there is one offering at Fidelity for a 3 yr / 5.0% / non-callable CD. It's from Discover Bank (same as the one yesterday - I just couldn't remember the bank name). Quantity 3105 available as of now. We'll see how long they last. BrianB
  16. BrianB

    Best CD, MM Rates & Bank Special Deals Thread 2023 - Please post updates here

    One CD showed up at Fidelity today with 3 yr / 5.0% / non-callable terms. There were about 2000 available. I don't remember the bank name but when I went back just now they were gone. Might be more to come? BrianB
  17. BrianB

    Beware of Amazon's Double-Dealing Trickery!

    This is a real problem with food & staples. Buying from the Amazon Fresh system consistently brings up higher prices & shipping costs. Also, many items on Amazon have third party suppliers. The same item can be offered by multiple shippers and the price & terms can be different between them...
  18. BrianB

    Best CD, MM Rates & Bank Special Deals Thread 2023 - Please post updates here

    Monte, I know nobody can predict interest rates, but in your opinion do we still have some upside ahead for the longer terms? I have a some CD's maturing in in the next two months and am hoping to pick up 3 yr, 4 yr, and 5 yr term closer to 5% average rate with that money. I'm only looking at...
  19. BrianB

    Coffee pot with integrated grinder. Not single serve!

    It depends if you are looking for a machine to make American coffee by the pot, or espresso by the cup? We like espresso by the cup. We are on our second one of this model...
  20. BrianB

    2023 Investment Performance Thread

    +9.1% YTD AA: 70% Equities - 25% Fixed Income - 5% Cash Winners in June were the S&P index funds. Laggers were the dividend producing stocks & funds. Like many others I have put money that would have gone into income equities into CD's and bonds instead, holding down the share prices...
  21. BrianB

    Thoughts at reaching RE+8

    12 years ago I came across this forum, and 3 weeks later I joined. In 2011 DW & I were 51/52 years old, both working, and DD was finishing high school & getting ready for college. My father had recently passed away at 82 and my mother’s health was declining at 80. We were very busy. We had been...
  22. BrianB

    Father's Day 2023

    DD came over yesterday so we had an early father's Day. DW made machaca tacos with tamales on the side and DD brought homemade pico de gallo. Yum! If you're not familiar with machaca, it is dried shredded beef first popular 100's of years ago in northern Mexico. Like jerky, it was a way to...
  23. BrianB

    I got booted out of FZDXX

    I also moved our IRA cash to FZDXX and I have wondered if they would do this. Can you give us a little more information? Was the balance just under the $10k minimum or close to zero? Was your balance below $10k for just a few days, or weeks or? BrianB
  24. BrianB

    ACA vs Medicare, Different Ages

    That is correct. In MN we have a state insurance exchange (MNsure) and we were able to set up my exit from the ACA plan up to 90 days ahead of the ending date. I don't know if all states allow that. We're going to be travelling most of the summer so we did that yesterday. Now to wade through...
  25. BrianB

    ACA vs Medicare, Different Ages

    At 1/2 way through 2023 it's hard for us to reduce our income for this year. I will be looking at 2024 planning later this year so we may be able to do something for next year. Your situation may be different. I expected a reduction in the PTC, but the size of the drop caught me by surprise...
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