#fire

SAVE!!

CANCEL NETFLIX!!

This here is a great place to get started on where you should start if you want to manage your finances!

Saving Flowchart.png

2 replies

Jesse Fusselman

Fri, Feb 1, 2019, 3:15 PM

oops lol

So for the beginning of the year, the wife and I had a discussion about our next major financial goal

we decided to save 80k in two year

and in turn, we came up with an aggressive savings plan per paycheck, after bills

and we had to make some tough decisions about what was necessary vs nice-to-have vs we can do without for two years as a way to create focus on our financial goal

that was a game changer

lauren’s step one: downsize to 300 sq ft and save bucket loads on rent :bongo-cat:

@Lauren Wilkins communes are a GREAT way to save space on things you don't need as well as money

@Erik A Lopez, IT Professional Awesome.. We are listening…… How are you guys doing it?

Except when you hate people @Erik A Lopez, IT Professional, then communes are not GREAT.

don't hate me

hate the player, not the game

I’ll make my cats internet famous until they make bank, then I’ll make them pay rent.

So what we ended up doing is this: if you have any extraneous debt, pay that off first; we could only do this savings plan if we have no debt besides a small house payment

so before you make an aggressive savings goal, get rid of debt first

the wife and I have no student loans nor car payments

second, you want to gauge how fast you want to achieve your WILD F.I.R.E

if you are like us, we need to get out of a small house into one that better suits are needs, hence the need to set a F.I.R.E. under our asses

second, extraneous things are things not needed to live and not helping move towards your goals (outside of your economic goals)

so getting rid of Amazon Prime, getting rid of beer, getting rid of things that didn't align with our principal striving towards life was significant in reducing waste and pumping up savings

what helps with that is transactional tracking apps like Mint or something to see where your money goes

third, a visual representation of your progress is a must

5 replies

Katie Banbrook

Tue, Jan 29, 2019, 3:49 PM

What do you use to see this?

Erik A Lopez, IT Professional

Tue, Jan 29, 2019, 3:54 PM

We created a small house and add little details like windows and doors at the month milestone. So 24 details on the house as we hit our savings goals!

Katie Banbrook

Tue, Jan 29, 2019, 3:56 PM

Gotcha, so it should be representative of the goal you are reaching for? i.e. a larger house in your case?

Erik A Lopez, IT Professional

Tue, Jan 29, 2019, 3:56 PM

That really helps. The biggest thing for me is that it has to be fun and help me really remember what I am doing it for

Katie Banbrook

Tue, Jan 29, 2019, 3:57 PM

I like it. Thanks mucho

and budgeting is a must

if you don't hit a goal for the month or whatever you set your benchmark at, you HAVE to find a way to make up for it

4 replies

Katie Banbrook

Tue, Jan 29, 2019, 3:52 PM

I just starve. I buy the cheapest food, which is ok. But probably not the best way to make up for an overspending. What are things you use to catch back up? Especially if you’ve cut out most if not all things that aren’t deemed necessary for life, where do you cut from that doesn’t effect your well-being?

Erik A Lopez, IT Professional

Tue, Jan 29, 2019, 3:55 PM

I move things from one budget to another. So for instance, if our weekly food budget is 150, and I only need to spend 75, I can put the other 75 to savings. Also, if you get bonuses, tax returns, etc, you can use that to catch up as well

Erik A Lopez, IT Professional

Tue, Jan 29, 2019, 3:55 PM

but you don't want to make a habit of catching up

Erik A Lopez, IT Professional

Tue, Jan 29, 2019, 3:56 PM

really the first step is identifying your weak points in spending - do you go out to eat? do you drink outside of the house a ton? do you spend a good amount of money on gas for your car? etc. Then it is a matter of addressing thsoe

another aspect of this is: if I want beer money, I have to earn some extra income by mowing lawns, doing contract work, etc

1 reply

Katie Banbrook

Tue, Jan 29, 2019, 3:49 PM

Oh, I like this

one thing that is interesting to come out of the first month is like the constraint of living that a tight budget and an aggressive goal gives you

it really makes every action and decision much more deliberate and helps hone a focus on other goals

Excellent! Thanks for sharing. I agree with you. I just started using YouNeedABudget app. It’s really an eye-opener to see where my money is going and plan a budget and prioritize your needs to hit the goals.

When I small, and my father was (and still is) Mark Wilkins, I had to put at least 20% of my allowance or chore money into a savings piggy bank, no questions asked. He made me do it to practice math and develop good savings practices!

That is always a great habit

to develop a way to squirrel money away that you don't think about and dont care that it is "gone"

the first savings plan I mention to people is an emergency fund

that should be about three months of your bills

a very great first savings goal

and set a timeline to do it based on how much you can put away

Yeah! Another thing I do is I _rarely_ shop online, because it makes it “harder” to get things. Aka “wow, I like this jacket, but wow I don’t want to leave my house and drive 20 minutes away to get it so I guess I won’t get that jacket.”

:fire:

With that being said above (which I think is a GREAT idea), under the concept of necessity vs want; entertainment vs goal attainment; and how to shop frugally

it should be methodical

and should have other constraints built around the purchasing of things e.g. if I buy a pair of shoes/shirt/pants, get rid of a pair

something to that extent

I am not so good with that concept when it comes to building out my personal library

ce la vie

Something I’ve wanted to do but haven’t - my aunt and uncle only used cash for a whole year. They’d with draw certain amounts at certain times. It’s harder to spend money when you’re physically giving it away.

That is HARDCORE

we paid cash for our kitchen remodel

which made making choices a lot easier

we couldn't, physically, pay any more money

and had to search out deals etc

I don’t think there is a savings account where you can put money and take money without paying taxes. The only one I can think of is Health Savings Account but there is a limit on how much you can put in a year. Money goes in tax free, grows tax free, if you spend it for medical purposes - tax free, but “Starting at age 65, account owners may take penalty-free distributions for any reason. However, to be tax-free, withdrawals must be for qualified medical expenses. ”

For retirement savings, we have 401k through employer or Individual Retire Account that you can open with any provider like Vangaurd, Fidelity etc.

and/or! You can do both 401k and IRA

and/or! Thanks @Lauren Wilkins

13 replies

David Hartsough

Wed, Jan 30, 2019, 11:22 AM

Should we invite 401(Mar)k Wilkins to this chat?

Lauren Wilkins

Wed, Jan 30, 2019, 11:23 AM

I can just post here every time he asks me if I’ve been putting money into my IRA. Or when he asks if I’ve checked my 401k recently. Or making sure I’m doing my banking.

Erik A Lopez, IT Professional

Wed, Jan 30, 2019, 11:24 AM

YES PLEASE

Erik A Lopez, IT Professional

Wed, Jan 30, 2019, 11:24 AM

he is the Father we need, not the Father we deserve

Lauren Wilkins

Wed, Jan 30, 2019, 11:24 AM

a lot

Shree Yalamanchili

Wed, Jan 30, 2019, 11:42 AM

Doing your banking?

Shree Yalamanchili

Wed, Jan 30, 2019, 11:43 AM

What does that mean?

Lauren Wilkins

Wed, Jan 30, 2019, 11:45 AM

my general, once per month going through receipts, checking bank statements, entering everything into Gnucash (a great, free software), etc etc. Honestly it doesn’t do a whole lot for me, but he does it for reporting, seeing exactly where his money is going and when, making sure everything is lined up, I dunno, he does a lot with is, is very careful with his money.

Lauren Wilkins

Wed, Jan 30, 2019, 11:47 AM

Since i’m the only one spending my money, I have a really good idea of all that without entering everything into another software, but I think in family scenarios I can see how it would be helpful. I dunno, it’s also a good way to keep me on top of checking my statements, going through everything. So I still do it

Erik A Lopez, IT Professional

Wed, Jan 30, 2019, 11:50 AM

I love following money

Erik A Lopez, IT Professional

Wed, Jan 30, 2019, 11:50 AM

WHEREVER IT LEADS ME

Lauren Wilkins

Wed, Jan 30, 2019, 11:50 AM

Onwards!

Erik A Lopez, IT Professional

Wed, Jan 30, 2019, 11:51 AM

FORWARD --> TO THE FUTURE!

:crystal_ball: 2

:robot_face: 1

ANDOR!

2 replies

David Hartsough

Wed, Jan 30, 2019, 11:37 AM

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/And/or

And/or

And/or (also and or) is a grammatical conjunction used to indicate that one or more of the cases it connects may occur. For example, the sentence "He will eat cake, pie, and/or brownies" indicates that although the person may eat any of the three listed desserts, the choices are not mutually exclusive; the person may eat one, two, or all three of the choices. It is used as an inclusive "or" (as in logic and mathematics), while an "or" in spoken language might be inclusive or exclusive. And/or has been used in official, legal and business documents since the mid-19th century, and evidence of broader use appears in the 20th century. It has been strongly criticized as both ugly in style, and ambiguous in legal documents.

Shree Yalamanchili

Wed, Jan 30, 2019, 11:43 AM

XOR

Alright guys! My wife just bought Turbo Tax, 2018, Deluxe, CD/DVD

only thing she forgot: who has a CD/DVD drive?

so I put it on a USB stick and now am selling it in my companies slack channel

unfortunately, everyone thinks I am a troll ;(

Aw shoot - I did research and Intuit employees get BIG discounts on Turbo tax for family and friends. unlimited 20% off the online version links, and 5 links for $10 desktop.

WOW

Ill keep you in mind NEXT YEAR

I just found out this week, or I’d have announced it earlier.

:help: I will pay a friend a tiny amount to get me a discount on turbo tax (or free)

26 replies

Lauren Wilkins

Wed, Jan 30, 2019, 11:54 AM

Khajiit has wears if you have coin

Lauren Wilkins

Wed, Jan 30, 2019, 11:54 AM

no for real, I have options - what do you want? Online or Desktop?

David Hartsough

Wed, Jan 30, 2019, 11:55 AM

:coin:

David Hartsough

Wed, Jan 30, 2019, 11:55 AM

Trying to give coin

Lauren Wilkins

Wed, Jan 30, 2019, 11:55 AM

you can give the :coin: to the Intuit overlords.

Lauren Wilkins

Wed, Jan 30, 2019, 11:55 AM

but I can give you the link to do so

David Hartsough

Wed, Jan 30, 2019, 11:56 AM

O N L i N E

David Hartsough

Wed, Jan 30, 2019, 11:57 AM

0 |\| |_ | |\| £

Lauren Wilkins

Wed, Jan 30, 2019, 11:58 AM

hold plz

David Hartsough

Wed, Jan 30, 2019, 11:59 AM

:plz:

David Hartsough

Wed, Jan 30, 2019, 11:59 AM

:thank:

Lauren Wilkins

Wed, Jan 30, 2019, 12:00 PM

https://turbotax.intuit.com/microsite/home.htm?priorityCode=3468344983&cid=all_intuitrefer_aff_3468344983

TurboTax.com — TurboTax® Official Site — No Hidden Fees‎

Get your biggest refund guaranteed with TurboTax! 100% accuracy guaranteed and no tax knowledge required. 24/7 online support means someone will be there every step of the way.

David Hartsough

Wed, Jan 30, 2019, 12:00 PM

(this is "public" in the channel btw)

Lauren Wilkins

Wed, Jan 30, 2019, 12:00 PM

Yeah.

Lauren Wilkins

Wed, Jan 30, 2019, 12:01 PM

These are unlimited. Literally that’s the link

Lauren Wilkins

Wed, Jan 30, 2019, 12:01 PM

that’s it.

Lauren Wilkins

Wed, Jan 30, 2019, 12:01 PM

The Desktop ones are the individual, limited to 5, which I would email to you

Lauren Wilkins

Wed, Jan 30, 2019, 12:02 PM

boom

David Hartsough

Wed, Jan 30, 2019, 12:03 PM

:wow:

David Hartsough

Wed, Jan 30, 2019, 12:03 PM

I feel not so exclusive or special now

Lauren Wilkins

Wed, Jan 30, 2019, 12:04 PM

yeah. I can get you $10 desktop though. which would make you feel more exclusive.

David Hartsough

Wed, Jan 30, 2019, 12:07 PM

If it's not on the internet, it scares me

Lauren Wilkins

Wed, Jan 30, 2019, 12:07 PM

seems reasonable

Shree Yalamanchili

Wed, Jan 30, 2019, 4:34 PM

@Lauren Wilkins throw in an Intuit sticker. @David Hartsough will feel special

Lauren Wilkins

Wed, Jan 30, 2019, 4:35 PM

20% discount on Turbo Tax, free Intuit sticker included! but I don’t have any soz

TURBO

HEY TURBO

this channel is a lie

Pasted image at 2019-02-05, 11:15 AM

No one else gets a burning sensation from this channel? Just me?

heart burn over my need to retire before I am old

JESSE!!!!

WELCOME TO UTAH

Boom

I am here

BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

<!here> What is the best place to open an IRA? I am considering SoFi. Thoughts?

Vangaurd

Low expense ratio

What is their expense ratio? Do you know?

13 replies

David Hartsough

Wed, Feb 27, 2019, 7:41 PM

Seven

Jesse Fusselman

Wed, Feb 27, 2019, 8:03 PM

Oh thanks, wow, seven

David Hartsough

Wed, Feb 27, 2019, 8:06 PM

Seven expense

Shree Yalamanchili

Wed, Feb 27, 2019, 9:20 PM

Depends on the fund

Shree Yalamanchili

Wed, Feb 27, 2019, 9:21 PM

Google for fun to see why they are one of the best

Shree Yalamanchili

Wed, Feb 27, 2019, 9:22 PM

And highly recommended

Shree Yalamanchili

Wed, Feb 27, 2019, 9:23 PM

Just to be clear, You open an IRA with them and invest in their funds which they offer at a really low expense ratio.

Jesse Fusselman

Thu, Feb 28, 2019, 7:05 AM

SoFi's expense ratio is $0

Jesse Fusselman

Thu, Feb 28, 2019, 7:14 AM

Also, I just found out about a 5% savings account. Whaaaaaaat!

Shree Yalamanchili

Thu, Feb 28, 2019, 8:52 AM

:thinking_face:something is fishy

Shree Yalamanchili

Thu, Feb 28, 2019, 8:52 AM

:blowfish:

Jesse Fusselman

Thu, Feb 28, 2019, 8:53 AM

They do wind up charging .25% per year. But they are automated trading accounts trading on etfs

Jesse Fusselman

Thu, Feb 28, 2019, 8:54 AM

so there is no account management, their fee structure is lower than any other fun management I have ever seen

Also, what do you guys think of using thi sbank for emergency savings? https://financialpanther.com/netspend-account/?fbclid=IwAR0QC7QSWh62_EX_9r5MEnQy1Qws5VW0JNoNEqC0QHh_YN3yYArXMEkWHtM

Netspend Account: 5% Interest Savings and $20 Signup Bonus - Financial Panther

Most people don't believe it, but you can still earn 5% interest on money sitting in a FDIC insured savings account. A Netspend Account.

If you read the article you have to get prepaid debit cards, which I need to look into, but 5% on savings is insane

thats better than bond level good

I don’t know much, but I use Vanguard, because my dad told me to, so if you like suggestions from 401(mar)k Wilkins…

Also - can someone explain the benefit of (if I’m understanding correctly) using a different bank for savings?

7 replies

Malcolm Jackson

Thu, Feb 28, 2019, 9:38 AM

@Lauren Wilkins I use separate accounts as some savings accounts have higher yields on interest but they don't offer the other amenities of my checking account bank. I use Barclays for my savings and I use PNC and ICCU for my checking accounts. I am sure there are other reasons but that is why I split up my savings and checking accounts

Lauren Wilkins

Thu, Feb 28, 2019, 9:39 AM

I have my checking and savings accounts separate, but both through Gesa. So all my income gets dumped into my checking, and I throw a % of it into my savings and then I’m done thinking about it.

Jesse Fusselman

Thu, Feb 28, 2019, 9:39 AM

Yes, this exactly. Keep your checking in a local bank or credit union, but if you have an emergency fund you never touch move it to a bank with higher interest. The bank I just linked will give 5% interest. so on $100 I will earn $5 a year instead of $.01 which is what I make at US bank

Malcolm Jackson

Thu, Feb 28, 2019, 9:40 AM

Yeah I don't have as much self control so I direct deposit into my three accounts to ensure I don't touch my savings unless I absolutely need it and go in and make a transfer

Lauren Wilkins

Thu, Feb 28, 2019, 9:42 AM

Okay, yeah. My savings is about that in my local (“local” being in Washington) bank. Having multiple accounts all over the place freaks me out because I have a hard time keeping what is where straight in my head (like my retirement through work and through vangaurd). I’ve only ever touched my savings once to buy my car. So self control isn’t a problem for me.

Malcolm Jackson

Thu, Feb 28, 2019, 9:43 AM

Yeah I also like have money in many places just for security for fraud they don't have access to all of my funds they have to work for it a little more

Lauren Wilkins

Thu, Feb 28, 2019, 9:44 AM

True, that makes sense.

SoFi is nice because its very low cost, and low management, so I can put my stuff in and forget about it and it will automatically be rebalanced roughly 4 times a year to make sure I am best tracking the best performing index funds.

7 replies

Lauren Wilkins

Thu, Feb 28, 2019, 9:39 AM

This means 0 things to me.

Jesse Fusselman

Thu, Feb 28, 2019, 9:40 AM

It means it is roughly the best returns you can get, at the best price with 0 effort on your part.

Lauren Wilkins

Thu, Feb 28, 2019, 9:43 AM

Neat that’s more english to me. I’d say I’m pretty smart, but money stuff confuses the heck out of me.

Jesse Fusselman

Thu, Feb 28, 2019, 9:44 AM

heck lol

:heck: 1

David Hartsough

Thu, Feb 28, 2019, 9:49 AM

:help:

:nope: 1

David Hartsough

Thu, Feb 28, 2019, 9:54 AM

"returns"...

David Hartsough

Thu, Feb 28, 2019, 9:54 AM

"index" ...

What do people do for investments in their IRA's or their non retirement accounts?

4 replies

Shree Yalamanchili

Tue, Mar 12, 2019, 7:52 PM

I invested in Vangaurd ETF funds

Jesse Fusselman

Wed, Mar 13, 2019, 7:20 AM

Because they have a low fee structure?

Shree Yalamanchili

Wed, Mar 13, 2019, 11:15 AM

Yup

Shree Yalamanchili

Wed, Mar 13, 2019, 11:16 AM

Low fees and choose some funds from recommended portfolio

pot farms

I ran some numbers and the soonest I could feasibly retire would be at 51. However, my life would be much more comfortable if I keep working until I am 57. Does anyone else have an age mapped out for when they are targeting retirement?

17 replies

Lauren Wilkins

Thu, Mar 14, 2019, 11:47 AM

That message was too lame. No, I’ve not mapped it out. I feel like you’d have to be confident you’ll remain on the same career path to calculate that (say, I get bored in an office and go work in a greenhouse for 7.65/hr instead when I’m 30)

Jesse Fusselman

Thu, Mar 14, 2019, 11:49 AM

My message was lame :disappointed:

Lauren Wilkins

Thu, Mar 14, 2019, 11:49 AM

No MY message was lame. the one I delelted

Jesse Fusselman

Thu, Mar 14, 2019, 11:49 AM

oh :disappointed:

Lauren Wilkins

Thu, Mar 14, 2019, 11:49 AM

stop looking so sad

Jesse Fusselman

Thu, Mar 14, 2019, 11:50 AM

:smile_cat:

Lauren Wilkins

Thu, Mar 14, 2019, 11:50 AM

thanks

:chrome_dino: 1

Jesse Fusselman

Thu, Mar 14, 2019, 11:51 AM

I feel like you have to try and guess at certain things, like assuming you will be employed the whole time, how much you think you will make and be saving, how much return you will get. But, it's kind of fun to try and get a number picked out. Create some sort of end date to working for the man

Patrick Dodgen

Thu, Mar 14, 2019, 12:07 PM

start your own company. become the man yourself

Patrick Dodgen

Thu, Mar 14, 2019, 12:08 PM

If I'm working past 40 at something I don't have ownership in, I'll feel like I personally screwed up

:100: 1

Jesse Fusselman

Thu, Mar 14, 2019, 12:12 PM

Any ideas what you are going to do? What kind of thing you will start?

Patrick Dodgen

Thu, Mar 14, 2019, 12:15 PM

the current thing I'm pondering is how we treat mental health in the United States. If I could find a way to help people, either by providing some sort of support group or reading, that seems beneficial and worthwhile. I have no idea how to turn that into a company though

:point_up_2: 4

:snap-yes: 1

Patrick Dodgen

Thu, Mar 14, 2019, 12:17 PM

or, it's time to start Carpool Diem

Jesse Fusselman

Thu, Mar 14, 2019, 1:01 PM

I like it, and you have several years to refine and come up with ways to address and start those issues.

Lauren Wilkins

Thu, Mar 14, 2019, 1:22 PM

A critical but little thought about thing , I think, about retirement is how you use that time. I’ve known a number of people without hobbies or passions because a) they are boring people or b) they spent too much time involved in work that they didn’t take time to develop passions independently.

Patrick Dodgen

Thu, Mar 14, 2019, 2:23 PM

great point. you have to have something to retire to. I like to focus on the idea of "FU Money". As in, I could retire at any moment, but if I enjoy my job, then keep working

:point_up: 1

Jesse Fusselman

Thu, Mar 14, 2019, 2:46 PM

Agreed, I view retirement as being the option to work from that point forward. Or to do whatever else I want from that point forward. That being said I can very easily keep myself busy without spending 8+ hours in the office everyday so the moment I don't need to anymore is probably the point I peace out. Unless I have grown a business myself that I love, in which case I could see myself working late into my life.

@Jesse Fusselman did you open NetSpend accounts for 5%APY?

I am looking at Amex high yield savings account with 2.10%

I havent, life has been crazy recently. But, I am still considering it here in a week or so if the deal is still around. I did open up a SoFi savings account though. It has a 2.25% APY and their website is very clean, and simple. I also wound up doing an IRA with them too because its so easy. So far I really like them. http://www.sofi.com/share/1540888?src=copy|www.sofi.com/share/1540888?src=copy

Thanks for sharing!

Just a heads up for everyone. I know you can't time the market, but it does seem like every major leading indicator of a recession has been hit and we could see a downturn soon. I plan on playing it safe for a year or two.

Screen Shot 2019-03-27 at 7.44.27 AM.png

SELL SELL SELL

goodbye stock

Who’s Long, is he a credible source?

Long himself isn't, but if you start looking into indications of a market recession you will see that all the largest indications suggest we could be heading into one.

We’ve actually prolonged the bull market for a couple years past the projected date to move to a bear market. I believe we should have hit it sometime in 2016 according to the typical trends.

2 replies

Katie Banbrook

Wed, Mar 27, 2019, 1:19 PM

So are you opposing the opinion that there is a market recession in the near future?

Jordan Hush

Wed, Mar 27, 2019, 4:46 PM

No I’m saying it’s overdue.

I am operate in the panda market

and sometimes meerkat market

Right, I think it is overdue as well following historical trends we are started to stray outside of the standard deviation of time between recessions.

:popcorn:

The more I have to deal with this adult money stuff the more I hate it

0/10 I’m going to go live off grid in the mountain somewhere until I die, see ya

Give it to me. I will manage your money. I love this stuff.

1 reply

Lauren Wilkins

Wed, Mar 27, 2019, 1:51 PM

please

@Erik A Lopez, IT Professional I am getting some fun money soon. Let’s do Miami trip. eh?

MIAMI!!!!

:dark_sunglasses:

:man-surfing:

are you selling your Intuit stock?

@Jesse Fusselman should I sell my Intuit stock?

thoughts?

CROWD SOURCE MY FISCAL FUTURE!!!!

erikalopez [9:12 AM] SELL SELL SELL goodbye stock

WOW PAST ME GAVE FUTURE ME AND FUTURE JESSIE GREAT FISCAL ADVICE

is this still a good idea

OH NO EVERYTHING IS ON FIRE :fire: :fire_engine: :female-firefighter: :thisisfine: :this_is_fine_dog: :this-is-fine:

Financial Independence Idea I’ve been delving into: selling arts/crafts! - Is this a good channel to discuss determining the worth of something to sell? I worry about over or underselling my work. - Is there any financial roadblocks or preparations I’d need to get ready for? (like, what if I started making significant sales - how would this affect my TAXES in the future? :yikes: ) - How much of a _bad_ idea would a _partnership_ in a small online shop? Splitting financials (who’s buying supplies, who’s gets what from sales…)

1) this is a great GREAT channel to do that. I totally believe in fair wage for fair work and pricing your work accordingly. You will need to make a few determinations such as: do you pay yourself per hour or per piece? How much do you cost out for custom work? etc. we should talk further about this

1 reply

Lauren Wilkins

Thu, May 2, 2019, 4:27 PM

I’m currently making geode/stone jewelry, that have proven relatively popular, which is why I thought about seriously pursuing this. Most I’ve given away to friends, but I’m starting to sell them priced at $30 for dangly earrings, and $7 for studs. But I’m unsure if those are correct. I’ve made $37 so far.

2) there are no financial roadblocks! However, you are right to point out the tax issue. This only becomes an issue in a few cases: if you do #3, if you got on a platform like etsy, or if you have traceable income

if you are all cash you should be fine but once you start enacting transactions through a payment gateway (read: square or paypal) you gotta pay to play

3) you will want to be more descriptive about what you think about partnership; I don't think I have a clear idea of what that means. Let's say that you are both gem faire/ren faire m'ladies making bracelets. Are you asking for one of you to buy the gems one time, and you buy the gems the other? what does the parntership thing mean here?

13 replies

Lauren Wilkins

Thu, May 2, 2019, 4:28 PM

My friend Emily has been using my jewelry supples to craft things as well, and is the one who suggested we put up a shop on Etsy. We’ve got a little pile of earrings and nothing to do with them right now.

Lauren Wilkins

Thu, May 2, 2019, 4:30 PM

SO thus far, I’ve bought everything (dremel, diamond drill bits, wire, string, various attachments, purchased and/or found rocks)

Lauren Wilkins

Thu, May 2, 2019, 4:31 PM

However, I don’t think I have the bandwidth to really _supply_ a running list of items to make a small etsy shop worth while. The two of us could produce a decent amount of items, and share in the sales

Lauren Wilkins

Thu, May 2, 2019, 4:33 PM

Most of me is saying “ruin your friendship with this person and do it alone” so I don’t have to stress about shared financials. HA This would be a better conversation 1:1 with her anyway, it was more a part of the general thought process of “this is likely a really good or really bad idea, there is no in between”

Erik A Lopez, IT Professional

Thu, May 2, 2019, 4:36 PM

the 1:1 part yes

Erik A Lopez, IT Professional

Thu, May 2, 2019, 4:37 PM

the financial part I will say this (and do some research from this)

Erik A Lopez, IT Professional

Thu, May 2, 2019, 4:38 PM

but you will want to start an LLC

Erik A Lopez, IT Professional

Thu, May 2, 2019, 4:38 PM

then you want to start selling after that

Erik A Lopez, IT Professional

Thu, May 2, 2019, 4:38 PM

because you can sell at a loss and make money from taxes

Erik A Lopez, IT Professional

Thu, May 2, 2019, 4:38 PM

or not have to worry about that at all

Erik A Lopez, IT Professional

Thu, May 2, 2019, 4:39 PM

if you involve another person you guys can still share stuff but do your finances separate (or she can get under your LLC or whatever)

Erik A Lopez, IT Professional

Thu, May 2, 2019, 4:39 PM

does that help?

Lauren Wilkins

Thu, May 2, 2019, 5:04 PM

It helps a lot! I wouldn’t have even know where to start researching this kind of stuff

WELCOME TO FISCAL FREEDOM

BRILLIANT. this _was_ the correct place to ask.

what are you looking to sell?

jewelry, primarily - my geode earrings are _quite_ popular right now

26 replies

Erik A Lopez, IT Professional

Thu, May 2, 2019, 4:36 PM

do you make rings?

Erik A Lopez, IT Professional

Thu, May 2, 2019, 4:36 PM

how are you selling it currently?

Lauren Wilkins

Thu, May 2, 2019, 5:04 PM

I’d love to make rings, but I haven’t figured out how best to do that. Currently just selling via word of mouth, and then people pay me with just cash or using venmo.

Erik A Lopez, IT Professional

Thu, May 2, 2019, 5:09 PM

if they continue to pay you in venmo, you are good

Erik A Lopez, IT Professional

Thu, May 2, 2019, 5:09 PM

but if you formalize your selling onto a platform, research taxes

Erik A Lopez, IT Professional

Thu, May 2, 2019, 5:09 PM

it is worth it to make an LLC and claim "losses" on your taxes vis-a-vis your LLC

Erik A Lopez, IT Professional

Thu, May 2, 2019, 5:09 PM

@Jesse Fusselman is a FIRE master

Lauren Wilkins

Thu, May 2, 2019, 5:09 PM

Cool. I like this

Lauren Wilkins

Thu, May 2, 2019, 5:10 PM

This is super helpful

Erik A Lopez, IT Professional

Thu, May 2, 2019, 5:10 PM

as a side note, do you have pictures of your earrings?

Erik A Lopez, IT Professional

Thu, May 2, 2019, 5:10 PM

I think my wife would love them

Lauren Wilkins

Thu, May 2, 2019, 5:10 PM

I need to look into how selling through local shops here affect all this. I’ve had some interest in my earrings from a shop who sells local artists work.

Lauren Wilkins

Thu, May 2, 2019, 5:10 PM

Yeah! Give me a sec to find it

Erik A Lopez, IT Professional

Thu, May 2, 2019, 5:13 PM

if you sell to a local shop, are you doing consignment or are you being paid upfront for it?

Lauren Wilkins

Thu, May 2, 2019, 5:13 PM

That i’m not sure on, I’d need to chat more with the shop. I believe the primary one I have in mind is consignment

Erik A Lopez, IT Professional

Thu, May 2, 2019, 5:17 PM

consignment rules are different state to state but check ID; each type of taxable entity has a different way of taxing based on how it is done

Jesse Fusselman

Mon, May 6, 2019, 3:38 PM

I just got back from vacation and I loved this post! Super excited for you to do this! I want to keep this comment short so I will just point out a couple things. 1st, you should price them initially to at least break even on cost, it sounds like you are doing this as something you enjoy so it's important to pay yourself for your time, but at least make sure you are covering cost of materials while you experiment and figure out an acceptable price. Second, if it looks like you are going to start making money in the thousands per year from this than start tracking every dollar you spend (and make) , allyour time, and even fuel and milage spent. We can worry about setting up an LLC and taxes if you start making lots of money from it, but if you do we should be able to write off a lot.

:clap: 2

Erik A Lopez, IT Professional

Mon, May 6, 2019, 3:41 PM

I love the We

:point_up_2: 1

Lauren Wilkins

Mon, May 6, 2019, 3:41 PM

Maybe, just for kicks, I should start tracking stuff now. I have a feeling I won’t get to the point of selling thousands of $ for a while, but it would be good to get into that habit (if nothing else for budgeting)

Erik A Lopez, IT Professional

Mon, May 6, 2019, 3:41 PM

and @Jesse Fusselman is the real deal

Lauren Wilkins

Mon, May 6, 2019, 3:42 PM

Additionally - I drove over 100 miles to go hiking and find neat rocks for jewelry over the weekend. So, in a sense, those rocks were “free” but I spend all day and a good amount of gas to _get_ them. I wouldn’t know how to figure that in, though. If I would at all. Buying resources makes sense, but finding resources less so

Erik A Lopez, IT Professional

Mon, May 6, 2019, 3:43 PM

R&amp;D

Lauren Wilkins

Mon, May 6, 2019, 3:43 PM

Rad &amp; Dope

Erik A Lopez, IT Professional

Mon, May 6, 2019, 3:43 PM

SMB R&amp;D

Lauren Wilkins

Mon, May 6, 2019, 3:45 PM

Super Malicious Bees Riot and Die

Jesse Fusselman

Mon, May 6, 2019, 3:48 PM

If you set up an LLC you can claim your time as en emoyee and all the drive time as well as costs. Maybe you can be the small business Intuit should start supporting!!

I recently had a conversation about promotions and how managers can be very difficult sometimes and having one bad manager can severely stunt your career because they don't "feel" you are at the next level even though you are consistently outperforming others who are receiving that level. All kinds of conscious and unconscious bias can come into play and often times if you don't straight up fight to get paid market value and receive the promotions you want you just won't get it. It really re-emphasized the importance to me of having the ability to retire whenever you want and to have FU money so when this happens you can easily let them know they don't control your life.

5 replies

Jesse Fusselman

Fri, May 31, 2019, 3:40 PM

To be clear, my current manager is great!

Erik A Lopez, IT Professional

Tue, Jun 4, 2019, 8:48 AM

LOL

Erik A Lopez, IT Professional

Tue, Jun 4, 2019, 8:49 AM

no this is an important PSA. Because, psychologically, a bad manager can ruin your chances of ever moving up or getting the big bucks you want!

David Hartsough

Tue, Jun 4, 2019, 5:50 PM

I can't wait for Jesse to have FU money. I'll buy him a model boat and talk about how early he gets up to go to the gym.

Erik A Lopez, IT Professional

Tue, Jun 4, 2019, 7:42 PM

and I will acknowledge that Jesse Squats 500+ pounds

A lot of credit cards offer great sign up bonuses and a lot of banks will pay you a couple hundred to open a checking account. What do people think of doing both of those and are there any other cool little tricks to boosting your income.

5 replies

Lauren Wilkins

Fri, Jun 14, 2019, 8:16 AM

I get credit card offers in the mail all the time. I trash them immediately. I only need one card to keep track of. Plus, I think too many people take advantage of credit cards and spend what they can’t pay off. The more cards available to you, the easier it is to make that mistake.

Jesse Fusselman

Fri, Jun 14, 2019, 8:32 AM

Thats true. It's better to have less available credit if there is a risk of using that credit and not being able to repay it immediately. What I am doing is opening up the best rewards card there is, and getting the initial sign on points (can be up to $500 in rewards) and then making sure I never carry a balance. If I only ever do this with cards that have no annual fee I can do this a couple times a year and bring in an extra $1k or so while also increasing my credit score by having more credit available and a lower total credit utilization as well.

Jesse Fusselman

Fri, Jun 14, 2019, 8:33 AM

The one part I am unsure on is if/when I should cancel them. I want to keep my oldest credit cards open to increase my credit score because of the length of credit but I don't think I want to wind up with 10 credit cards so I want to start closing some of them after I have used them after a certain amount of time.

Lauren Wilkins

Fri, Jun 14, 2019, 8:37 AM

If someone like me (who can’t remember anything for the life of her… (I’ve had an amazon prime account for like 4 months because I keep forgetting to cancel it after the 30 day free trial I started for free shipping on a rare purchase), I think opening up extra banks/cards/etc would be no bueno for me.

Jesse Fusselman

Fri, Jun 14, 2019, 8:40 AM

Yeah, I am creating a spreadsheet myself to track the terms of use and other important metrics to make sure I don't lose track of anything or get in over my head.

:fire:

Are there any tsla fans in here? They are way up today

what is TSLA?

The stock symbol for Tesla

sounds like it’s due to a bill that would give tax credits for electric vehicles, and a china factory

I am hopeful that tax bill goes through and lasts a lot longer this time. I wouldnt mind making use of that myself.

I want more taxes

11 replies

Lauren Wilkins

Mon, Dec 16, 2019, 3:48 PM

I read this as I want more texas

Erik A Lopez, IT Professional

Mon, Dec 16, 2019, 3:49 PM

I WANT MORE TEXMEX

:burrito: 3

Jesse Fusselman

Mon, Dec 16, 2019, 3:52 PM

Why?

Erik A Lopez, IT Professional

Mon, Dec 16, 2019, 3:53 PM

because tacos and burritos are great Jessie

Erik A Lopez, IT Professional

Mon, Dec 16, 2019, 3:53 PM

DUH'

Lauren Wilkins

Mon, Dec 16, 2019, 3:53 PM

DUH

Matthew Crosby

Mon, Dec 16, 2019, 3:53 PM

Because TurboTax

Jesse Fusselman

Mon, Dec 16, 2019, 3:54 PM

TurboTaco?

Lauren Wilkins

Mon, Dec 16, 2019, 3:55 PM

Turborrito

Erik A Lopez, IT Professional

Mon, Dec 16, 2019, 3:57 PM

TBurritoTax

David Hartsough

Mon, Dec 16, 2019, 4:43 PM

TACO TAX

My SolarCity stocks got converted to TSLA stocks when TSLA bailed out SolarCity. As high as TSLA is right now, I'm still in the negatives lol.

Really? I guess I don't know much about how stock conversions work. Isn't Tesla now at all time highs?

It was slightly higher when it converted. Basically it has to do with the deal between TSLA and SCTY. Information was sent to shareholders on how the conversion will go, in this case, probably whatever Elon said was go. TSLA was higher then than even now (a few cents), sothe ratio is was 1:5; for every 5 shares of SCTY you got 1 share of TSLA.

Oh gotcha, well, get ready because I think its going to start trending up a lot over the next year. I am predicting a $600 target by the end of 2020

Where is that prediction coming from?

I like risk but they seem to so volatile and swing shifts

That prediction is all me, I just feel like they have lined things up to where it is just going to be a series of good news all back to back. 4th quarter 2019 - hitting guidance for yearly vehicle deliveries 1st quarter 2020 - new record on deliveries with very strong growth due to china gigafactory Early 2020 - Tesla Powertrain and Battery Investor Day, probably going to be a lot of good news here 2nd quarter 2020 - Model Y deliveries start, another record delivery quarter 3rd Quarter - I am guessing news about the tesla semi or something to keep the ball moving along with another record quarter etc etc

Plus autopilot is ony getting better and better which is a constant source of conversation for Tesla owners to talk about their car

I don't trust anyone who predicts single stocks

Financial advisors make their living off doing that

And they do about as well as index funds

what is the debt to money intake? I heard they were a little DOGEY

not to be confused with DODGEN'

Truth, definitely don't cash in on my opinion on Tesla. A much more solid course of action would be investing in low cost index funds over long periods of time. But, I am definitely very heavily weighted in Tesla stock atm.

Invest in a Tesla truck. It's important to invest in triangular trucks because triangles are the core value of this economy. I predict we'll see a major growth in triangular markets, especially as these trucks are the perfect transportation for triangles and triangular goods.

well if you look at the money

there are triangles onit

VERY MYSTERIOUS TRIANGLES

cybertruck is the ace in the hole, watch out short sellers and illuminati

Thought this was an interesting perspective on the “short squeeze” that can explain recent Tesla earnings https://investorplace.com/2019/11/tesla-stock-flips-short-sellers/

Shoot we’ve got to conserve every line in these channels before they disappear into the slack black hole

I like to think of the truck as a reverse pyramid.

That is a really interesting bit on the short sellers, I wonder if that also happened just recently with the current surge of tesla stock. Buy Buy Buy Buy