> I only make $12K-$15K right now (I’m a student)

Roth (either Roth 401k, Roth IRA, or both) is indeed the best option for you right now.

Don't worry about the after-tax now. You literally can't contribute enough into Roth to even need to use the after-tax space.

At your income level you should only do Roth. The wiki has a discussion on what marginal tax rate is "best" for switching from Roth to pre-tax.

You should never do "after tax" 401k contributions until you make enough money that you're already maxed on of your other contributions and your employer has a 401k where are you able to do a "mega backdoor Roth"

You may find these links helpful:

• Roth or Traditional
• General Information on Rollovers
• Retirement Accounts
• "How to handle $"

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I was asked for this from a well known financial firm. I provided.

It would depend on the job for me.

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>Should I submit this info or not?

If you actually want the job, you should submit this information. Otherwise it's your choice.

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If you want the job then go ahead since they’ll probably stop moving ahead with your app. But it will be used to keep your wages down. I would not and o would look for a different job.

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i've personally never been asked that before, and it's a little weird that they did ask for it. it's up to you, as far as i know it's not a requirement whatsoever and to be denied the job in the case that you don't provide it for them would very icky. the only feasible reason they would need that information, that i can think of, is to know a good wage to offer you based on your previous wage history. however, i strongly feel like it's just a way to negotiate in their favour as they'd have solid proof and you have no wiggle room to discuss a wage range for them

tl;dr - i wouldn't give it to them, it's not required, it sounds fishy and the potential to screw you over outweighs the potential to get the salary you'd like

Regardless of whether or not you should it’s a massive red flag. Why would you want to work for someone that’s going to require you to submit documentation for the sole purpose of using it to pay you as little as humanly possible?

Obviously the company has a vested interest in not overpaying their employees - but I don’t work for people who won’t at least engage in a good faith negotiation based on what I realistically need to be comfortable.

Up to you but it will only be used to negotiate against you. If they like you they can offer what they will. In 40+ years at various jobs I've never submitted or even been asked for this, but I suppose in some cultures it may be "normal". Personally it's none of their business IMHO, and their asking for it is a red flag to me. I would politely say " I am not comfortable sharing this information with you, thanks anyway. "

Well, technically they’ll get back the amount leftover after the appropriate taxes are taken out as part of their tax return, buuuut yeah that ship has probably already sailed.

VTSAX and Chill 😎

I’m 20% ex-US and a huge Vanguard fan but I have a hard time going with their recommendation of 40% ex-US

At 37 years old you absolutely need to be saving for retirement, especially if you have nothing saved yet. You're 25-30 years away from retirement which isn't as far away as it sounds as far as saving. And I'll be blunt, even turning that $70k into $1 million isn't going to be enough.

Make an account on the website of Fidelity, Vanguard, or Charles Schwab.

You don't know if they are relative cheap or expensive today - you certainly don't know if it is the best time to buy.

> Car payment including insurance would come out to be $900 a month.

No. Like, I don't want you to feel bad, but this is an incredibly bad idea and you should feel slightly bad for even having considered it.

At that income, you're in barebones Yaris territory.

Your first two sentences are contradictory - are you trying to time high's and low's or just staying invested for periods?

This is the problem with trite mantras replacing understanding.

No, run away from NWM. You saw a salesman.

If you are the average american couple, nothing big like a disabled dependent or anything like that - go to Fidelity, Vanguard, or Schwab and open a Roth IRA. Put up to 6500 in it a year and invest it in a target date fund (or something that tracks the S&P 500).

For your 401(k)s, put it in a target date fund.

Now you're ready to retire. Just make sure the money is invested - check every once in a while. Every month if that is how often you put money in the Roth IRA.

And, $2,500 isn't the worst cost if you can cash it out now! It is more than you would have paid in Term Life, and you didn't need life insurance at all. But, I wish every financial mistake I made between 25 and 30 only cost me $2,500!

No, VTSAX is all US stock market. Target date funds are that plus some intl stock, plus US and intl bonds. All with varying equity / bond allocations dependent on the year it’s targeting

Okay, now explain it like I'm five...

You're saying it isn't worth investing more into the house while the rates are low because the extra room in my budget is simply better utilized elsewhere? And I should only be trying to pay more of my mortgage when higher rates force me to?

Thanks for your insight. Sorry for my ignorance, I'm very new to this.

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