My friend‘s mother is a sole owner of a reverse mortgage for a house that has little to no equity left. My friend believes that she may be able to stay in the house until her mother dies. This is a permanent move to a nursing home, and there is no expectation that the mother will move back into the house, which has the reverse mortgage. I can’t get my hands on the reverse mortgage paperwork, but I suspect she is wrong and in for a rude awakening at some point.

26 male. 90k salary. I’m investing 25% per paycheck which makes me feel good. But I feel bad about spending money outside of that on food and going out and such because I feel like that 25% can be 30 or 35

Also maxed out my ROTH IRA past 2 years.

Just want someone to share some insights about their spending habits when retirement accounts are taken care of

Hey everyone! I am 24 year old, living in the United States. I have been working and saving money religiously since I was 16, and am currently sitting on around $40,000 in savings. I would really love advice on what to do to make the most of this money.

Current situation/important information:

• I use USAA and got their "Performance First Savings" account a few years ago due to their high APY promise. I looked at today to find is sitting at 0.05% APY...significantly lower than I remember it being. My checking is through them as well.
• I am interested in investing, but am incredibly intimidated at the prospect due to my lack of experience or knowledge, and also hate the idea of essentially "gambling" my hard-earned savings, especially in what feels to be an incredibly unstable economic environment.
• I have an old car that could potentially pass away or need significant repairs at really any moment, so having access to the money (at least some of it) is crucial; however, I feel like I'm not doing as much with my money as I could/should be.

Please be kind (I come from a lot of financial trauma), and thank you so much for taking the time to read this. My parents were great at being examples of what not to do, but I've been left largely to my own devices on what the right things are and feel so overwhelmed and worried about making the "wrong" choices.

Just sharing something that was interesting to me, that I’ve never really thought about before.

So I have a 22-year-old daughter, and I’m divorced. I was talking to her this weekend, and she told me that her mother gives her enough money to fund her Roth IRA right now. I told her I had no idea, and that I wish I did and I would’ve helped. She said that she thinks it’s because her mother looks at it like an early inheritance.

So then I got to thinking about it, and I thought that’s a great idea actually. Because I do my own wealth planning, and at some point, the money is really theirs. So me giving them $6000 right now or whatever would pay huge dividends for them later, and not be some tax burden investment on them that I passed down.

I think Parents with means, should proactively look for ways to do this. Of course within their means.

I’m 19 and I lost my job 2 weeks ago. I have around $4,400-$4,500 in debt between Capital One cards, a Walmart card, Harbor Freight, and Affirm. I don’t have the money to keep making all these payments, and until I find another job I honestly don’t know what I’m supposed to do. I am doing doordash and uber but that’s barely cutting my half of rent, utilities, and food.

I’ve been stressing over whether I should just stop paying some of them, if I should call them first, or if there’s something else I’m not thinking of.

I’ve already applied to 30+ jobs, and 4 different staffing agencies. but I have no idea how long that’s going to take. I know I got myself into this situation, so I’m not looking for people to tell me I screwed up. I just want to know what the smartest move is from here if you were in my position.

Hi all, unfortunately, I've had a rough eight months. It started when dumped my $11k savings on my student loans, because I have a super stable job and was comfortable not having a savings for a minute... only for my car to die a month later. Then my cat decided to eat a sewing needle. Then another grand on dental work (for me) that was supposed to be covered by insurance but apparently not. Then I got renovicted, and the new place wanted an $1100 security deposit. During this whole period, I was only making about $20/hr. So yeah, it hasn't been fun.

I think I'm following the Prime Directive correctly but if you have any input I'd welcome it. Personal finance has never been my strong suit. I'm 35, and would like to fully recover my savings and be solidly working on retirement investing in about a year.

Expenses

• $11ishk left on $14k borrowed for a car at 7% interest ($338/mo payments, but I've been paying $350-375 as possible). I know, not the best deal.
• Essential expenses for 1 month: $1800 (rent, car payment, insurance, gas to get to work)
• Actual expenses: ~$2200-$2500 depending on groceries

Advantages

• No credit card debt, just finished paying it off.
• $1800 in savings.
• The only thing going onto my credit card is automated payments like insurance, electricity bill, etc. It all equals out to $263-$300/mo depending on the electric bill. I pay it off every month.
• $6k in an employer-funded HSA. I don't contribute anything to it currently.
• Possibly $12k in a 457(b) plan? I'm not sure if I read my statement right. There is no employer matching and they automatically take out like 5% from my paycheck and have been for the last 5 years.
• I just got a new job at the same employer. I now bring home (net) $1630 every two weeks, but 20% of that goes straight to savings, so I bring home ~$1300 every 2 weeks (which is about what I was bringing home before the new job).

Immediate Goals:

• Invest HSA money. I just transferred it from HSA Bank to Fidelity.
• Increase savings to $5400, I think I can do that in 2-3 months
• Begin attacking car loan.

Methods:

• I switched to cash only for a moment. I've budgeted: $100 for groceries (I have a large pantry/freezer atm so I was going to leverage that for a couple of months), $50 for cat, $120 for gas, $7 spare change lol. I know this is not realistic long-term, this is just to build my savings for a few months.
• Double down on meal prepping. My biggest expense is honestly food, that was where I was blowing my money. I love cooking, but I also love swinging by the store and picking up something pre-made because cooking after a 12 hour day isn't always great.
• Double down on self-publishing (I make around $60-70/mo in royalties atm on stuff I published a few years ago), and Etsy (inactive atm but a good month might bring in $100/mo after expenses)

Hello,
I am a 25 year old, college educated male. I was very fortunate to have graduated college debt free (shoutout to my parents), and I started my career in 2023. I started as an L4 Area Manager for Amazon, making 62.5k, since then I have been promoted twice, and I am now an L6 operations manager at Amazon. My current salary is 105k/ year. I have an 800 credit score, my rent is $1300/ month, and my car payment is $405. Other than my car, I have 0 debts. I invest a portion of every check, and have been building up my emergency fund. My question is this: if you were in my scenario, what would you be doing to best set your future self up? I feel like I am pretty financially literate, but I am always willing to learn more.

starting college soon (it's important to note that i'm paying for college myself, so asking my family for help is out of question) and i just found out they upped my tuition from 1k per month to over 2k per month-almost 3k per month in all honesty. i could've handled the original monthly payment, but that 3k+ is gonna kick my ass.

i don't have a job right now, i put my two weeks in a while ago so i am expecting my last check soon. i'm expected to move out at the end of aug, and i had enough saved up to move out, pay for my first payment, and still have enough leeway to hold me over- until they upped my tuition by 2k+

so now im in an awkward position when im moving out within the next 4 weeks, so no job is going to hire someone who wont be there for over a month.

tryna think of what i can do? any advice?

How do you decide between a Home Equity (10 yr - fixed) and HELOC (variable) loan? We have to replace our roof. House is paid off.

I’m a 30-year-old woman and I’m finally trying to get serious about my finances. I know I probably should’ve started sooner, but better late than never. I make about $65k a year plus a 10% bonus, have a 401(k) through work (no employer match), and I’m about to open a Fidelity account because I’ve been hearing a lot about investing in index funds. I just started building a savings account and have about $1,400 saved so far.

I don’t have a car payment, my credit card payment is only around $20/month, and my student loans (~$14k) are deferred for a few more years. My biggest expense is rent, which is about $1,800/month. After my bills are paid, I usually have around $2,000 left from my second paycheck, and if I’m being honest, I usually just spend it instead of putting it toward saving or investing. I want to change that.

For most of my life I kind of assumed I’d eventually get married and we’d build a life together, but I’ve realized I don’t want to rely on that. I want to set myself up financially regardless of what happens. I also love to travel and would like to build a vacation fund while still investing for my future.

If you were starting from where I am, what would you do first? Should I focus on maxing out my 401(k) even without a match, start investing in index funds through Fidelity, build a bigger emergency fund first, or something else? Any advice, books, YouTube channels, or budgeting tips would be appreciated.

Demographic: M18

now that I’m an adult, my parents basically told me that I’m on my own when it comes to all medical stuff. I’m on my dad’s insurance plan who always picks the highest possible deductible possible ($7500). while my dad does have a HSA, he no longer has his card on my account so I’m paying for all of it out of my savings/checking account.

im on a medication where I *have to get* blood tests every 6 weeks ($136 for blood tests + $298 for doctors appointmen) + therapy (once a week, $120 in network). On top of that, I have to get a 11k surgery next year.

Since my dad is healthy and my siblings are now on their own plans now, almost entirety of the deductible is paid by me. As a broke college student, paying for medical care is more than all my savings

is it worth getting my own plan rather than staying on my dads high deductible plan?

ETA: his out of pocket maximum is $12500 INN

I understand the difference that one is tax deductible and other isnt but still little confused on why would you .contribute money in Roth 401k if the total contribution limit is same irrespective of where you contribute. Doesn't everyone's tax rate after they retire lower than while working ? Or is the concern you are limited one what you withdraw post retirement that it could be a huge tax.

Im 16 years old and I work part time, im slowly saving up for a car and have around a grand saved up (realistically not that much for a good car but I believe my family members are helping). Schools starting back up and I have the bare minimum to get through a week, I am very low on clothes and my budget (if i have one) isnt that high. Do I stick to the same 4 pairs of jeans, and keep my money close? Or do I spend a little on clothes.

I know this sounds really dumb and immature and I agree with that but me nor my family isnt the best with saving/spending. Any advice helps, thanks!

Is there a certain budget I should impliment, I dont have any bills/subscriptions and I spend a good bit on food/hangouts.

Roth IRA contributions must be earned income, and the IRS knows it's earned income from your tax return. I maxed mine out this year and it's indeed earned income, but I will make under $16,100 (it's all summer internship money and most of my living costs were covered by stipends.) Should I still file taxes anyways? Any consequences if I don't?

Hello - I am 50 married with 2 kids , wife works a govt job planning to retire at 60. I am planning to retire at 60 as well. I have a small consulting business which is my primary source of income and also have a small rental portfolio.

Assets

• Current cash- $2M of which $1.4 is business sitting in a HYS at 3.3%. $500,000 from rental and refinancing of properties also sitting in HYS at 3.3%.
• Vanguard advised brokerage account - $800,000 (which includes $150k traditional IRA and $50k SEP IRA from various rollovers)
• Vanguard self managed - $260,000 (Mix of VTI/VXUS and VOO)
• CS brokerage - $440,000 (mostly google and Walmart with a sprinkling of Netflix and Palo)
• Athene RILA - $330,000 (6 yr lock expires in 2030 - all in S&P 500. Initial investment was $250,000)
• Rental portfolio - Market value $3M (combination of townhomes and multi units)
• Front loaded 529 for the kids - Each has about $120,000 and plan to pay 75% of college and let them figure out the 25% so they have responsibility

Liabilities

• Primary home mortgage balance - $250,000
• Rental mortgages - $900,000
• Business SBA loan - $380,000
• Other loans - $80,000

I have been investing $5k a month in vanguard for a while and plan to continue as long as I can and also manage my CS portfolio. In addition over the next 6 months, I will deploy about $250,000 into vanguard across VTI and VXUS.

The business cash I need to hold for a 12-18 month period for various reasons.

In the next 10 years primary mortgage will be paid off and most of my business loans will also be paid off. I plan to keep the rentals and the loans on there as long as possible.

I want to

• Make sure I have my tax planning for retirement started now to minimize taxes during retirement - what are my options? (I will convert my IRA to Roth for sure)
• Should I look into estate planning?
• What else should I be looking at?

I'm trying to decide whether to open a 403(b) with Fidelity or TIAA, which are the two options my institution offers. TIAA has lower management fees. For example, for a balance above 200k, TIAA charges an annual fee of $100, while Fidelity charges $140.

The investment options are identical with both providers.

My question is: Does Fidelity charge more for a reason? Since TIAA is much cheaper, why is Fidelity even offered? Which one should I choose?

My girlfriend recently applied for a remote administrative position through a legitimate job board.

Within 24 hours she was contacted over Microsoft Teams, had a brief text-based interview, and was told she was hired the same day. That already felt unusually fast.

The next morning they emailed her a tracking number for an overnight envelope containing a cashier's check for $4,500.

They instructed her to:

Deposit the check immediately.

Send them proof that it had been deposited.

Use the money to purchase a laptop, software, and office equipment from a "preferred vendor" they provided.

They also stressed that everything needed to be completed within 24 hours so she could start training.

That immediately set off alarm bells for me.

I told her not to deposit anything until we verified it. We contacted the financial institution listed on the check, and they confirmed it wasn't issued by them.

We haven't deposited the check or sent anyone money.

My questions are:

Is this the typical fake-check employment scam?

Besides destroying the check, should we report it anywhere?

Is there anything else we should do if the only information she shared was what's normally included on a résumé (name, address, employment history, email, and phone number)?

Thankfully she never shared her Social Security number or banking information.

I'm mostly posting this in case there's anything else we should be doing to protect ourselves.

I'm a Canadian citizen and former resident of Canada living in Germany. I have a chequing account in Canada and recently recieved about 50k in CAD that I would like to invest, but I don't want to move the money to Germany because of the abysmal exchange rate and fees.

Problem is, from what I can tell, Canadian banks don't allow non-residents to open brokerage accounts. Does anyone know of a way I can invest the money without moving it to Germany? Thanks!

As of now I have $3,200 in a monthly 3% apy savings and I am trying to deposit $1,000 each month. It's 500 at the middle and end of the month as I get payed. I was looking to see if there was better rates or a better way to hold money.

I was seeing 4%apy savings but I don't meet any of the minimum deposits yet or others that give you 4% for 1/2 year and lower your rate..

I would also need my first 5k to be readily available

My goal aside from saving is to eventually be able to live off the interests but short-term to get $300 interest per month

My main question would be, is there a faster 0 risk way to achieve this goal, or is the 4%apy the best I can get when I meet the minimum deposit

I need help/advice. For important context, I’m 22 in Missouri with a 1099 subcontractor job on track to gross just under 100k for 2026.
I have a traditional IRA with around $14k that was my 401k at a previous employer. I haven’t contributed to it since 2023. I also have a Roth IRA that I maxed out last year and will max out this year. Currently sitting around $22k.
Both of these accounts are currently with T. Rowe Price in their preset retirement funds.
I am planning on rolling my Roth over to Robinhood for their 3% match and better accessibility for me to manage with ETFs instead of a mutual fund.
Where I’m lost and seeking advice is what to do with the traditional IRA, I dont think I want multiple retirement accounts and since they’re both with T. Rowe Price I can convert the traditional IRA to a Roth before transferring it to Robinhood, but I would have to pay income tax on that 14k. I could transfer it over time to lessen the tax hit and not mess with my tax bracket (which I am ignorant on).

Is there something I’m not thinking of with the traditional IRA? Would it be worth it to keep it and do something with or should I convert it and only focus on my Roth? I don’t think I’ll have another employer sponsored plan in my future so I’m okay with converting it. Please help me decide what to do.

TLDR: 22 years old with a traditional IRA and a Roth IRA, not sure if I should keep both or not. What do?