Used car salemen have the reputation of being scummy.

New car not so much. Check the price on the internet and stick to it (plus local taxes and fees). It's the finance manager you have to worry about. He/she will try to push all the extended service plans onto you.

Also try asking in /r/askcarsales

Generally, you "inherit" the cost basis from the gift donor. Read this caveat.

> 1. My brother buys me a laptop in 2018 for $1,000 using HIS credit card > 2. I use the laptop for 4 years > 3. I sell the laptop in 2022 for $750 and keep the money

Since donor's cost basis (step 1) and FMV at time of gifting (step 1) are identical, use $1,000 as the cost basis of your sale (step 3). Capital loss of personal use item is not deductible. Reporting is generally not required for selling personal items at a loss in a non-business setting.

If reporting is desired, on Form 8949, enter $750 as sale proceed, $1000 as cost basis, and $250 as adjustment (code L) so the subtotal is $0 (no taxable gain and no deductible loss).

Note: If you run a business, you cannot just turn your own personal-use item into a business inventory just so you can deduct it.

Talk to the parent. Have them open brokerage account and add you as authorized, and you can deposit money to it and help manage the investments. The deposits are gifts, but everything else is done in their name.

> I’m in the process of turning my 1 month buffer I currently have into a healthy 3-6 month emergency fund

They are not the same thing. You should put the emergency fund in a separate savings account. Your one-month buffer stays in the main checking account.

Open a 3rd account to save for short term needs, like furniture and sinking funds.

Based on your comment, you still have the mindset of someone living paycheck to paycheck.

Once you have a one-month buffer in your checking account, when you get paid and when expenses are paid no longer matters.

Yes, you have to actually pay extra in the same month after the normal monthly bill is paid. See my edit for example.

It doesn't change interest or how soon you pay off if the payment amount per unit time is the same. Mortgages don't calculate interest constantly so it doesn't matter if you pay on 1/7/23, 1/14/23, 1/21/23, 1/28/23 instead of all on 2/1/23.

Lender simply expects the monthly bill paid by the due date. You can split required payment into multiple pieces on multiple days before the due date, or stay with one. If you pay extra, then the extra reduces principal for the subsequent monthly bills. Doesn't matter when inside the month you do it.

For example, if you split a $1000 bill into $250 pieces and pay weekly, then you'll be paying exactly as scheduled (not early, not late, and no extra payments) for most months. However, every year has 4 months with 5 weeks. In those 4 months with one extra week, the 5th payment is considered "extra payment applied to principal", reducing the duration of the mortgage.

> I haven’t used the card for much yet but would like to build credit.

Only requirement to build credit is to pay obligations on time. You don't have to carry a balance to build.

> I’d also like to pay things off in a fair amount of time

21 days is a fair amount of time.

> so I can cover both smaller expenses but also larger expenses by freeing up credit easily

You have savings. Use it. It's very expensive to borrow with a credit card past the due date.

Credit card is not an expense, unless you're paying interest. If you're using a credit card correctly, i.e. always paying each bill in full and on time, it is just a pass-through and doesn't even appear on your budget.

You can buy Blackrock/Fidelity/Schwab/Vanguard mutual funds and ETFs in a JPMC do-it-yourself account with no commissions or AUM fees.

Do a trustee-to-trustee transfer so you don't waste contribution limit.

2021 contributions do not affect 2022 contribution limit, unless 2021 contribution exceeded the 2021 limit. Make sure your MAGI in 2021 was lower than $125k.

Also you need to say "Roth IRA." Otherwise because IRA came first, "IRA" means traditional IRA.

Why do you want to withdraw?

Just contact them to reverse the contribution as excessive contribution. Otherwise you won't get the contribution limit back and have to file a few tax forms just to prove that the contribution was aftertax and the withdrawal has no pro rata taxable amount.

> knowing that the IRS flags everything over 10K

This is false.

Just deposit whenever convenient.

> thus she was sure to leave us the money in two parts instead of one lump sum check.

Presented checks are recorded in bank statements. There is a record of the transaction whether it's a $3000 check or a $8000 check. It doesn't matter whether they are deposited separately or together.

Note: If your bank doesn't allow you to deposit more than a certain amount per day through mobile phone, splitting the checks won't get you into any trouble. Checks aren't physical cash and are recorded regardless of amount.

Yea it is too late for 2021. But not too late for 2022!

No. Since your business is a S corp, you can't fudge ownership like a sole proprietor. This means if you did not defer any of your monthly paychecks to 401k, you missed it. However, your business can still make profit sharing contributions (subject to the 25% limit) by tax day.

Go to the bank and get cash.

Bad advices in the article. Author recommends stock picking and market timing.

> Investors must become good stock pickers rather than just investing in a diversified portfolio of stocks.

> Another strategy is to use bonds to build a ladder that provides a relatively safe return that can be used in a weak stock market environment.

> it is even more important to employ proven capital management techniques. This starts with trailing stops to minimize losses and/or capture some profit from an investment.

It's just how we present gains and losses. We don't include the 1.00 (100%) and only show the change (e.g. x90% is written as -10%, x110% is written as +10%). The geometric mean is still the same once the full form is written out.

> And because of that your returns don’t really end up being “10% per year on average”

Actually, they do. 10-year CAGR of S&P 500 is around 10-12% before inflation adjustment, so the "you need to make a higher return" is already factored in. Higher return aka market recovery comes unpredictably. The real trick is to not miss the recovery by staying invested during a decline.

Wait one more trading day. Mutual funds like FZROX settle one day faster than ETFs and stocks. The first "cash available to trade" is for ETFs and stocks, not mutual funds. Also, a new account, holidays, new bank, etc. can delay deposit availability.

> Your last points are only true if you have a simple interest note

I was talking about interest in your HYSA for parking your money for the extra 13 days. You don't pay extra interest to mortgage for delaying payment to 14th.

The reason that mortgage, property tax, HOA fees, etc. are "due on 1st and delinquent after XXth" is they don't want to be involved with your cashflow issues such as getting paid on the 1st but still waiting for paycheck to clear, ACH transfer times, post office delays, etc. Feel free to take advantage of their generosity. I personally delay payments to the same day as my credit cards' due date so I only have to watch my checking account one day per month. But you aren't getting much out of it.

Remember you are paying a mortgage every month for like, 15-30 years. You are only getting 13 extra days worth of interest once on the first time you switch from paying on the 1st to paying on the 14th. All of your subsequent payments are still one month apart.

It's like getting direct deposit 2 days early. You only enjoy the benefit once. All subsequent direct deposits are still one pay period apart.

> Almost everyone should invest in Series I Bonds

For money you need in 1-5 years, sure. Otherwise, I bonds start to lag behind stock investments for long-term real returns.

No, because you are not required to contribute to Roth IRA.

The "D" in "DTI" only includes the absolute minimum obligations.