You confused risk and volatility.

Total stocks index is volatile - it has high standard deviation among prices and also among returns. However, it is not risky when the appropriate time frame is followed. Pre-retirement and retirement span multiple decades, where total stocks index is suitable.

Had them do an investing/retirement spreadsheet generating a chart comparing 2 scenarios (differences in years invested, annual contributions, and yearly gains).

Dude, me too! It wasn’t until I was 29/30 until I realized how fucked I was with money. But I quickly got it in check and moved forward. Personally, I followed the Dave Ramsey program to the absolute T for getting out of debt and I utilize some other advice for investing, although Ramsey’s will work for most people.

This sub will throw you for a loop wanting you to go into more debt and get more credit cards for “points”. Just be careful.

$330k is roughly the same amount as a mortgage on a small house in the Midwest. Yes, it will take a while. Congratulations on passing the bar and finishing lawschool and getting a good job, but unfortunately it came at a cost to you.

Honestly, I’m not a financial advisor, but I think you’re completely fine. I was in a similar situation a few years back and I haven’t had any issues. At a certain point, you do need to consider your happiness.

[removed]

[removed]

Loved that book, the first financial literacy book I read. Than I read John Bogle book “The little book of common investing” and then my mind exploded even further.

It still blows my mind that splurging on a depreciating asset is somehow “treating yourself.” The question in your title is moot since you’ve already purchased the car.

You didn’t mention how much your rent is or how much you have in emergency savings. 6 year car loans are notorious for putting you under water and you end up paying more interest. I personally would’ve kept the Camry and continued to save lots of money.

The subreddit r/churning is specifically for maximizing credit card rewards and they have a thread where you can ask for card recommendations.

They also have a flow chart that shows best sign up bonus offers depending on what you’re interested in (travel, perks, cash back).

If you’re interested in Delta or Marriott then I’d check sites like DoctorOfCredit to see what higher sign up offers are currently available. I got the Delta Gold Amex with 90k points not that long ago which was pretty good but they fluctuate often.

Sign up offers are a huge part of the return on getting one of these cards so it’s worth researching those.

Yea, I’ve been there man. I was bad with finances too. Here’s the thing - you are getting different responses because this finance sub is filled with people that love credit card points and credit scores. The thing is, it’s just a number. Does it make some things easier? Yep! But it is absolutely possible to 1: get an apartment 2: get a house 3: get a car and whatever else without a credit score.

My advice is to stop worrying about boosting your score and start budgeting your money and making that part of your life better. You are admitting that you aren’t good with finances so trying to get more lines of credit or financing more is going to be a bad idea.

Look up Dave Ramsey and The Money Guys and you’ll be good to go.

You already bought the car. Had you come before buying your car, I would have advised a different decision, but your choice wasn't unreasonable. Don't spend too much time on buyers remorse.

I’ve had my Wealthfront account for 3 years. Used for a little bit at the beginning and now have 6 figures in there since end of last year. No issues with deposits or withdrawals, it’s literally no different then my chase or my CU account in that regard. No yearly fees and no minimums.

A "hobby" and a "part-time job" are two different things. You need to decide which it is. More specifically, what it is right now, this tax year (or last tax year, whichever you're talking about).

Read the contract. Does it say "terminate employment" or "quits". For most sign on bonuses you only lose it if you don't fulfill your end of the contract. If they fire you, you don't owe them anything. Tell HR you're feeling burnt out and need some time for family... In writing. Then be less of a perfect employee. If you're doing a PhD level job, mental health is a major part of productivity. You and the company have a vested interest in achieving an acceptable work / life balance. They obviously want you to stay. Be honest with yourself and find out what you can do to make it work.

[deleted]

Amex Gold will have the best benefits and highest annual fee but it's an Amex so it's less frequently accepted by merchants.

The Savor is a nice safe, relatively boring card. I'd ask on r/creditcards or r/churning too

Single filing status if this helps as well.

I’ve been shafted on the overall severance only paying out 30 days where I’m reading others who were less tenured and made less were given anywhere from 8 weeks pay to 12 months.

I believe my former employer is willing to work with me to rectify this.

Waiting for the IRS to make it up to me in the following tax year is absolutely not an option for me right now. Please advise, thank you 🙏

Thanks for the positivity!

T bills are sold at a discount. You do not get any coupon payments. The equivalent issue yield is a calculation that is done to allow you to benchmark the bills' yield against yielding securities such as notes and bonds.

I wouldn't worry too much about the calculation, it is not the same formula as an APY calculation, but I have done it below for you. The point of the matter is for you to use ECY as a benchmark.

So, your bill, 912796Y78, cleared at a price of 99.65. The formula is (Face -price)/price * (365/maturity in days) because treasuries use an actual/365 day count convention.

Face = 100, price = 99.65. plug the numbers in and you get the ECY.

Also to add , not as like more of an excuse or anything But my parents didn’t teach me literally anything regarding finances , so I’m really trying to figure everything out on my own

It's not unusual for executives to make that kind of money in bonuses in any line of work.

So what is your proposed suggestion for helping raise fix my credit score. I do need to go up so I can get approved for my next apartment and eventually have more lines of credit. Obviously I’m not good with credit cards or finances or else I wouldn’t be in this situation Lmfao so not really offended by your remarks. I’m just sick of being paralyzed with fear and anxiety because of this and everytime I ask people for suggestions I get such an overwhelming amnt of diff responses

Live under your parents roof as long as possible. Unless you have a valid reason for leaving. Rushing out and moving away will set you back greatly. You are very likely to accumulate debt and will be living paycheck to paycheck.

Looks like the advice part was covered, but I just wanna say congratulations and good on you for moving out at 18!! You're doing an awesome job.