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UCGal
ParticipantI like this list.
I agree with CAR that saving money/staying out of debt are related. And you have to figure out what you’re going to do when your pile of money gets big enough. Do you just keep accumulating? Do you start to spend it?
I’m looking for that sweet spot, personally. In the meantime, I’m spending as little as possible and saving the rest. And hoping the fish oil gives me the health benefits (and brain benefits) to live long enough to enjoy the pile of money I’m saving.
ParticipantSolar is on our project list. But behind a few other projects.
DH has decided to replace the section of roof that will be under the panels with a metal roof. (Won’t be able to see it – and it solves the problem of needing to remove panels to re-roof.)
He’s also adding a skylight to our master bath that will provide roof access for maintenance.
Since our master bath is our next big project… we’re getting closer to solar.
ParticipantThe Mot brand does indeed transfer to Lenovo from what I can tell… Mot Mobility got the name/brand when they split from solutions. (With Mot solutions retaining the right to use it for some extended period of time.)
ParticipantIt’s on the news they dumped the albatross. (Mot Mobility).
MMI has lost money consistently. Despite really talented engineers – they couldn’t make a profit or come out with the “right” phone to retake market share. Not the engineers’ fault.
Shareholders were never thrilled that Goog bought Mot in the first place.
ParticipantSince I’m not quite a 1%er I don’t have to worry about the $191k household income cap. 🙂
I’m very curious about the details on the myRA – and will be watching closely. Especially as to whether my “rinse and repeat” scenario will be true.
I can see upper middle income folks like me (under the $191k cap) diverting a lot of money into backdoor roths this way. Maybe not the intention of the program, but it may not be precluded.
ParticipantI wish jpinpb was still posting. She tracked these condos for years during the downturn. I know there were issues with at least one (slab or something) but don’t remember which one.
Look at the HOAs when you do your analysis. Not just the fees – but who well funded they are. Look at number of renters vs owners.
Participant[quote=flu][quote=AN]GOOG bought MOT for their patents. Those of us who are in the industry assume that GOOG had no intention of holding onto MOT hardware division for very long. Which is why they sold off the connected home division of MOT pretty quickly.[/quote]
I figured that once the Nexus line refreshes recently still consisted of the Samsung, Acer, LG instead of any Motorola product…
It’s actually sad. It must have been frustrating to have been at Motorola’s handset/tablet division and been treated like a stepchild… I actually liked Mot products and was hoping they were actually do something with it.. But I guess that would have terrified all the other OEM’s and cause them to cut producing android products…[/quote]
As some of you know – I lived through some of this split/acquisition/split/sell. I was part of mot mobility when it was acquired by google. I don’t work in the handset group though (cable tv). It was clear google had NO interest in my (profitiable) division and sold us off last year. It was also clear that google didn’t know what to do with the handset group. There were some really talented engineers – but in San Diego, that group closed down last fall. So what’s being sold has no effect on San Diego… those guys have already landed new jobs and are probably happy not to be there anymore.
Zachs did an analysis of what Google paid for the patents, Once the dust settled. The purchase price of Mot Mob, less the cash on the books, less the price they got from ARRIS for the home division, less the price their getting from Lenovo, PLUS the losses MotMob has wracked up in the meantime ($2B!!!)
It was under $4B for the patents. Google originally offered $9B for the patents. The 2 parts of the company they sold off have rights to use the patents, but no income from them. Google got what they wanted in the long run.
It’s been a crazy ride over the last few years. As an employee who lived through it I have a less positive view of Google as an employer. Not sure they violated the “do no evil” motto – but they didn’t act with much humanity.
Participant[quote=Blogstar]Don’t run the numbers on fishing. Very expensive per pound, even if you are cheap as can be. So far, in 4 trips we have 3 catfish nobody wanted to eat , 4 bass caught and released, 3 bluegill and 1 trout. About $500 into it and many man hours. That’s time I could spend gardening…still lose money but probably less.[/quote]
But the entertainment factor has value.You’re saying it cost about a dollar per hour spent. That’s cheap entertainment compared to movies, etc.
🙂
Participant[quote=CA renter][quote=FlyerInHi]The concept of working for negative income bothers me.
How about just saying expenses exceed income? That’s not just specific to child rearing.[/quote]
No, because the purpose of taking that second job is supposedly to earn more income, and the additional expenses are directly tied to working the second job. It’s literally working for negative income.
The sad thing is that so many people are financially illiterate, so they aren’t even aware that they’re doing it. You have no idea how many people I’ve known who never run numbers for things, not for housing, jobs, moving, investments, etc. All of their financial decisions seem to be based on emotions or they just follow trends and do what they’re told. It’s very scary when you think about how many people out there are doing this because their decisions affect the rest of us, like when housing (and other) prices are driven up by the biggest risk-takers who have the least to lose.[/quote]
I have to agree with this. Lots of folks don’t do any financial analysis.
When I had my first kid, we had a well trusted babysitter (good friend with a daughter a few months older than my son who was looking for some extra income so she could stay home with her child.). The math was simple – even with part time nature of my return to work.
When I had my second kid it was less straight forward. We looked at all the childcare solutions and their costs. 2 kids ARE more expensive than one – especially if they’re both in diapers (pricier daycare). What the *net* income would be. Since I’m pretty well paid – it still worked out to make it worthwhile to go back to work. But for friends who had less lucrative careers (social workers, teachers, office managers, etc.) it didn’t always make sense.
Folks need to do the math AND weigh whether either parent has the temperment and patience to be a stay at home parent. I knew I’d be miserable at home full time- so was glad to find that a balance of 4 days a week work (80% salary) and 3 days a week as caregiver worked for our family. A friends family came to the opposite conclusion – the dad started staying home with the kids when the youngest was 18 months old. He’s one of the most awesome dad’s I’ve met. He coaches FLL, plays minecraft with his kids, coaches the school math club, and dotes on his kids like crazy. His wife freely admits she enjoys leaving the chaos at home and going to an orderly workplace. They did the math and figured out this worked for them.
ParticipantI’m wondering of the “MyRA” mentioned last night by the POTUS at the SOTU is another way of doing a backdoor roth.
From what I’m reading – you can contribute up to $15k (total) in post-tax money to this MYRA. When it hits $15k, you can/must roll it to a Roth IRA.
Presumably you can rinse and repeat this.
While it’s in the MyRA it’s in the equivalent of the TSP G-fund… which is a great option for fixed income stuff not normally available to non public workers.
I’m hoping I’m reading the tea leaves right on this.
Participant[quote=spdrun]”Surely You’re Joking, Mr. Feynmann” — actually ghost-written by someone else, but still a pretty fun and interesting read.[/quote]
I read that decades ago and really enjoyed it.Participant[quote=UCGal]Just put in a request for a copy at the local library.
(Too cheap to buy books when free books are available.)[/quote]
I’m a couple of chapters in. It’s compelling, albeit depressing.Participant[quote=FlyerInHi]$109 is expensive for the middle is nowhere, if it’s not inside the park where the operator has to pay concession fees. Considering cheap real estate, the hotel owner is getting good returns if he can charge that much everyday.[/quote]
There’s no lodging inside the park… just camping. So the motels outside can charge higher because there are a lot of folks who don’t want to tent camp. (ANd the reservations for tent camp spots book up well in advance.)My brother used to spend the week between Christmas and New Years at Joshua Tree with his friends for about 20 years in a row. He had it down to a science when to reserve the camp site.
ParticipantI have a friend who lives in that area. The cheap/paid for home on acreage lets them live a very alternative lifestyle. Kind of like your bar/clinic/law-firm/psychic idea. (My friend’s a bit of a hippy.)
She’s happy in the desert and low expenses mean she doesn’t have to slave for wages as much.
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