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Regarding IRMAA: Apparently if your income is dramatically reduced (retirement, divorce, work stoppage) you can appeal for a lower Medicare Part B rate per this article. https://www.myfederalretirement.com/2021-medicare-b-premiums/

Good video & thank you for sharing! I just read this contrary report from Schwab which states treasuries, bonds, & Munis may have just peaked & so now is a good time to buy and extend duration. Hence, the need to dollar cost average when setting up your ladder which should then regularly...

Harbor Freight has a mini-tire changer for about $50. I used it for my ZTR rear tires & it got the job done (but with quite a bit of muscle).

WELDING PLASTIC: I have recently repaired several plastic items by "welding" them back together (lattice fence, motorcycle side plate, & car air filter cover). Repair was preferred over new due to color mismatch or cost. All you need is a soldering gun (flat head preferred), some zip ties, and...

CDs are hanging around 4-5% but limited in duration (5 years max of late). As such, the short-term rungs on my diversified FI ladder are full. What are your thoughts on buying Taxable Munis in a Traditional IRA to get 5%, but for much longer duration (5-15 years)? Downsides: No FDIC insurance...

I'm thinking of keeping some $ in Traditional IRA for LTC care expenses (not Roth). Reason is, if I or my wife need LTC at $100K/yr (private room/bath) our "medical" expense deductions (over 7.5% of our income) will very likely reduce our tax bill into lower brackets (perhaps zero). Thus...

I get $1.55 off per gallon using Kroger Fuel points and Kroger credit card (up to 35 gallons per fill up). DETAILS: Kroger frequently has a digital coupon to get 4X points most Fridays (spend $250 & get 1000 points). Save $1 per gallon using 1000 points. Kroger Credit card now adds $0.55 per...

Per Investopedia: "Municipal Bonds and Capital Gains When buying munis on the secondary market, investors must be aware that bonds purchased at a discount (less than par value) will be taxed upon redemption at the capital gains rate. Note that this tax does not apply to coupon payments, only the...

What are your thoughts on longer term (20 year) FFBC agency bonds...other than call risk and opportunity cost? Perhaps there is a larger default risk with longer terms? I'm happy locking in 5.6% (5.49% coupon) such as with 3133ENN55. Thanks for your thoughts!

On an educational note...how do you "manage" your existing bond holdings (corp, muni, CDs, etc)? Do you review quarterly or annual financial statements? What would be a red flag (besides the word "dire")? Actively monitor FINRA for Moody's or S&P rating changes? Watch for price increases to...

Some non-financial (aka family & sleep at night) thoughts: Since the financial aspect is a toss-up for me...I am converting now: - I'm fairly cognitive now...no guarantees later on. I don't want to be aging and making financial decisions (losing sleep) over future tax increases on income or...

Building Muni Bond ladder from scratch I'd like to build a muni ladder in my taxable account to reach my final income needs (FIRED Nov 2021 @ 59). Currently living on pension + rental income, but need additional cash flow. Question 1: COCheeseHead mentioned to search munis on "Escrowed to...

Below Par Purchases Thank you all - I too have benefited greatly from this Thread hosted by Freedom56! Question: I see some opportunities to buy lower coupon bonds (0%-3%), but significantly below par, resulting in good YTM & YTW. I am thinking these may be more desirable than high coupon...

------------------------------------------------------------------------------- QUESTION 1: Trying to place an order and Schwab desk says "they will check to see if the bond is being actively traded and if so, will call me back with a price". They didn't seem able to issue a "Good till cancelled...

FINRA search questions Thank you for all this excellent bond info! (1) On Finra, some bonds show as callable "yes" and callable "no". However, many are left "blank"...what does that mean (callable?, not callable?, something else?) (2) Sometimes the "Yield" column is blank - is that...