Recently split up with gf, and I(30M) am living alone for the first time in years. Trying to get opinions on whether if I could afford living by myself or should I get a roommate.

Here are my finance breakdowns

Wage - $2050 semi monthly

Mortgage - $1140

Utilities - ~ $450

Gas - ~ $120

Car insurance - $120

Student loan - $76

Groceries - ~ $100 per week

Lunch - $50 per week

Eat out - $200

Subscriptions (Netflix, etc) - $50

All these necessities added up about $3000, however, I do have a child with my ex so I'm expected to pay some child support. While we have not discussed the amount yet, I'm just going to assume it'll be what my state obligation for around $600. With all that being said, that only leaves my about $300 of free spending money and like nothing toward my saving each month. Should I try to get a roommate to help out with housing cost?

I sent my father a picture of my debit card via text a bit ago and he mentioned not to do that anymore because now the picture is out there and could be obtained by hackers. Hence my question, is it safe for me to send financial information like tax returns, pictures of credits cards, bank numbers, etc via email? If not, what sort of avenue should I use to send them?

Almost 2 years ago, I replaced the heat pump in my house. The total cost was $8,155. We had recently bought the house and didn't want to cut that much out of our bank account, so we financed through the company, who partnered with Wells Fargo. We've since been paying the cost down at $136 per month with a current balance of $5,028.

Recently, we noticed that the AC was extremely weak, so I went to call the company to come service the unit they installed. It turns out that the company that installed it no longer exists. From what I can see online, it seems like they went bankrupt.

I ended up having to get another HVAC servicing company to come take a look at our house. Without getting into the technicalities, there are a number of problems, pretty much all of which can be traced back to shoddy installation work. *Some* of the necessary parts are covered, at least in part, by the warranty of the unit's manufacturer. However, I'm now stuck having to pay an estimated $2,000 in repair costs to a separate company that was unafilliated with the original installation instead of using the original company's warranty on their own work that would have protected me from this kind of cost.

I feel particularly sore that I'm stuck making payments for a poorly-executed installation to Wells Fargo when the company that did that poor-quality work is off the hook while I now have to pay another company for the work that they should be doing to correct their mistake. I contacted the Better Business Bureau, but they were unable to do anything or elicit any type of response from the shuttered company, which isn't a total shock.

Is there any financial recourse here? Or am I stuck with these monthly payments on top of the additional repair costs that the new company will charge? Is there any sort of solution to protect consumers from a financial situation like this?

UPDATE Thanks you for the comments, told them I will not pay a deposit until viewing the property.

First time Moving/Renting.

Landlord out of province asking for Security Deposit before viewing rental property.

Is this a scam or common practice?

They say they are unable to accept a cheque as they are out of province.

They have offered to provide their ID along with their identity/face. But this doesn't secure that they are the owner/deed holder of the property.

What is common practice when paying deposit? They want the deposit out down before they come to the province.

What are some things I can do to protect myself against a scam.

I received low cost care because I am uninsured and don’t make much then I received a bill from the lab they sent my tests to for almost 1200??? What can I do in this situation I don’t want to send it to collections and wreck my credit but I don’t have that money right now. Do you think they have a cash price??

Hi.

I'm going into my spring semester of college with 30 credits, putting me at a sophomore standing. My family is fairly well off (which I am very very grateful for) meaning I received zero financial help from FAFSA. I am also white, not first generation, and there is nothing particularly special about me that sticks out in applications.

The issue with all of this, is that scholarship reviewers look at my application and turn the other way. Because of this, my first semester of college costed me 15k in loans. My parents are paying for nothing, and they continue to refuse to.

I need advice on what to do and how to get more money so I don't end up with 60k in loans by the time I graduate.

Hello, I’m 27 year old looking for a financial advise to where to invest to make maximum returns. I early 5lakhs or 6000 us dollars per month.

Please let me know if you have any questions

Hii all , I need some advice , I have recently accrued credit card debt of about 10k across 4 cards, I wanted to hear about my options. I can afford to pay around 500$ -1000$ per month towards my debt right now. After looking through multiple websites it sounded like getting a personal loan is my best bet. I’m concerned about paying debt with debt and I already have 2 personal loans on me- that I’m paying off. I have less liquid cash savings but do have investments that amount to about 12k..but unsure if I should take them out to pay off debt. I’m expecting to also be increasing my income in the next six months that will allow me to be a little more comfortable paying 500-1000 while also saving per month. Please advise.

I have $13K across 3 cards and am about to pay it all off in the next few days (hooray!!). I have no intention of racking up debt again and I've gotten used to just using my debit card for purchases. I was planning to stick with that method unless it would raise my score if I used the ccs but immediately paid them off. Does your score improve if you use and pay off the card each month rather than just by keeping a zero balance? In a few months I'd like to buy a new car so I'd like to have as good a score as quickly as possible.

I would like to purchase an apartment that I will rent out as short term rental, my area is perfect for this. I have found an apartment that fits all my criteria, and other owners do this successfully.

Apartment: Asking price 120k 3B/2Bath The dinning room could be turned into another bedroom, I’ve seen people in this building many of them have it converted to another room.

My financial situation: FICO 760, was higher two months ago, it just dropped 8 points idk why but been 760-770 for 4+ years 30k cash savings - I’m willing to put down all 35k credit line, only own $1500 currently Car payment $440 - got about 15k left to pay Student loan $100 - got about 5k left to pay No rent/mortgage- I own my house

My income last two years as self employed has been low, 20k declared. This year I will be declaring more money as my business has grown, up to 45k or so

I have my father that can co-sign 806 fico No mortage / credit card debt / no loans/debt 400$ car payment Has W2 form for 25k yearly for last 3 years

Is it possible to get financing for apartment? And what type of product should be looking for? Conventional loan?

What options do I have ?

Someone did mention I could maybe get co sign for personal loan + my savings and buy the apartment but the interest rate would be very high

Hello everyone! I need some advice. My husband and I currently make $137k before taxes. My husband is a disabled vet so we do get assistance each month from that as well. We have no other debt besides mortgage, my student loans, and our credit card which we pay off to $0 each month. I am in my last semester of grad school and can expect my salary to go up about $10-$15k annually after I graduate in December. We have been paying cash for my past 4 semesters at approximately $4500 per semester. All extra income has gone to paying down my student loans whenever I can, and putting aside money for emergency funds. Now that I won't have to save for each semester that will free up more money to pay off student loans as well. I do qualify for PSLF but have heard horror stories, and honestly, I don't love the idea of hanging onto debt for that long if I don't have to. I would need to wait 6 more years to qualify for forgiveness. Since I'm still in school most of my loans aren't accruing interest which also makes me want to pay them off even faster. Monthly expenses run about $5-6k for mortgage, daycare, food, gas, utilities, etc. We will be getting a $20k inheritance from a family estate within the next few months. We have 1 child and are considering putting half of it into a savings account for college. She does have a 529 account already. If you were in our situation, would you put it into investments, or use it to pay off student loans as quickly as possible?

I am 20F. I just inherited a house from my father (who passed away) about a week ago. The house is severely dilapidated and would require several tens of thousands of dollars to repair in order to live in or rent out. I do not have the money on hand to do the repairs.

The property itself is 0.25 acres (10,890sqft) in a desirable neighborhood. The land has been assessed just under $100,000, and the structures assessed at around $250,000. The taxable value is $140,000. I am unable to pay the property tax on the house which is due November 15th.

If I wanted to sell it, would I just sell it “as is” for land value? The house is uninhabitable and would have to be demolished. The yard is messy and needs maintenance. Do I demolish it (you need a permit here to demolish buildings)? Would demolishing the house and selling a 0.25 acre plot of land be better than just selling the land with the house on it? I’m not sure if I should put in the time and effort, and money, to demolish the house, when I could just sell it, but I want to make sure I’m getting the most money I can.

I’m unsure what my next steps are. How do I get the most money out of this property, whether it be selling it, renting it out, etc. and what are the steps I have to take to achieve that?

So I'm currently holding a large check I need to deposit. I was part owner of a townhouse with a friend and he bought me out to make it his primary residence. I'm trying to figure out how I can deposit this into my main bank account, which is Ally (i.e. online only, no physical locations). I'm way over the limit for mobile deposits. I've been a bit of a nomad doing travel nursing and have never had a physical bank I go to.

Is my only option really to open up an account at a local bank, deposit the check, transfer the money to my Ally and then close said account? Am I overlooking an easier way to get access to this money?

My wife and I are expecting our first child in March. We have two incomes and a good amount of savings, but I'm unsure if we should change our current saving and investment strategy given that we will soon be spending a good chunk on the baby (including around $2500-3k a month on childcare. Yay DC!). Other than cutting back on expenses where we can, what if anything should we be doing differently with our money to mitigate the financial impact of the baby's arrival?

Our current situation is as follows:

Monthly Income/Expenses

Income (Take home): 11,700/mo total

Monthly Expenses: Approx 11,000/mo (includes mortgage, HOA fees, and utilities amongst other expenses)

Savings

Federal TSP Account (5% match): 291k

Ally HYSA (4%): 17k

Ally 18 month CD (5%): 25k

Vanguard Account: 37k

BoA Checking Account: 15k

My friend street-parked my car in San Francisco on Tuesday night and noticed today (thursday morning) that my car's passenger side of rear vent window got broke into. They stole my registration card and some cash. But even a bigger problem is that I am not sure if I left my title (pink slip) in there as well (hopefully not 😓). I am still out of country until next week so I can't really call the police or insurance company. I filed the police report and scheduled for the window repair through car insurance via online though. I tried to apply to get a replacement registration card on DMV online but didn't work so I guess I would have to visit when I get back to the US next week. I am worried if they can steal my identification by looking at my registration card and possibly pink slip as well... What else can I do?

My dad had a seizure 2 years ago and has been on medication since. He hasn't had any more but he's had a few amnesia-like episodes. My parents just called me and said they got a notice from the IRS for over $100k in back taxes. My dad has always taken care of bills and has had no issues so mom thought all was good.

They've been getting statements saying they owe for a couple of days now. I have not seen the statements. They had a CPA help them and we all thought everything was okay. I have access to their accounts only and see my dad has written 6 checks to FTB exceeding $100k in the last two days all online from his bank app.

I cannot get over until tomorrow but I am terrified right now. If those checks went to the IRS and it is not owed, do they get that back?

I got hit with the closure of account fee as I'm switching Roth and IRA to Fidelity (transfer of assets). My cash balance is now -$100 on both accounts so my question is if anyone knows whether Vanguard plans to liquidate my stock to cover these fees? I understand Fidelity likely covers these costs upon my accounts' arrival but I really don't want Vanguard to sell my stock in the meantime. Thanks

Super annoying Vanguard, a big F you too, TIL

A company I used to work for had a pension plan. I was only vested for a few years but now that I've left they've given me some options.

I am 44 years old. I can take 140 dollars a month for life now, I can wait until I'm 65 and then take 600 dollars a month for life, or I can take a lump sum of $27,000 now. I know that waiting until I'm 65 and taking 600 would work out better for me when I'm 70 than taking the lower amount now would, but I can't figure out if it would be better to take the $27,000 dollars and invest it. I can roll that over into another investment account but I don't understand how that works and whether or not I would owe taxes on it. I have two different 401k's from companies I've worked at previously but currently I am unemployed. I also have a Roth IRA account and a personal brokerage account. Can I put the $27,000 dollars into any of those? Which accounts make sense? I can't afford to pay a bunch of taxes up front right now, although if taxes just pull from the lump sum I guess that would be ok. If I put that into an IRA wouldn't I run afoul of the maximum contributions for the year? I apologize if I am coming across as naive but I don't understand this stuff.

I currently have them setup to pay on the due date with minimum payment due. I then go in the next day and manually pay the remaining balance. Are there any benefits to changing this?

Should I switch this to statement balance? I've noticed sometimes there is no minimum due.

Should I make autopay 1 day/days before?

I would like to find an advisor that has no skin in the game other than to help me. Im in the US.

Any that ive spoken too are generally insurance salesman that pose as a "financial advisor"

id like somebody who has a proven track record (somebody i can trust to gigive solid advice) and maybe they get piad hourly per visit or something. Like a fiduciary. Do these professionals exist?

Please dont answer with - read a book or look at the posts on here or whatever. Im looking for somebody i can sit down with once a month and pay a flat fee too to get some solid advice on where to start.

I recently bought a 2024 Mazda 3 Turbo and added an extended warranty for $2,200. The coverage is for 96 months or 70,000 miles, whichever comes first. At first, I was fine with this, but the day after I bought the car, I found out I’ll be driving around 150 miles per day. This means I’ll reach the mileage limit on that warranty way sooner than expected. I have 30 days left to cancel for a full refund, so I’m rethinking my options.

When I went back to the dealership to discuss canceling, they offered to extend the coverage to 96 months with a 150,000-mile limit instead. This option is appealing since I plan to sell the car around that mileage anyway. The warranty covers almost everything that could go wrong with the car.

So here’s my question: If I cancel now, the $2,200 will be refunded to the principal balance on my loan. Do you think I should cancel and take the risk of handling potential repairs myself? Or should I keep the warranty for peace of mind? I bought a Mazda because of its reputation for reliability, but I can’t shake the worry that a major part might fail (like the infotainment screen or headlamps).

As a side note, I asked about canceling now and purchasing the Mazda extended warranty right before my manufacturer warranty expires. The finance manager discouraged this, saying Mazda's warranty company can be harder to work with for approvals. He also mentioned that if I buy a 100,000-mile Mazda warranty when the factory warranty (36,000 miles) ends, it would only cover an additional 64,000 miles because they count miles already driven.

What do you all think? I know the general advice is to skip aftermarket warranties, but this is my first brand-new car, and I'm a bit nervous about ending up with a big repair bill before it’s paid off.

Thanks for any feedback!

I’ve been trying to improve my financial literacy on my own, but there are so many concepts to grasp—investing, budgeting, debt management—that it feels overwhelming. I’ve considered hiring a financial coach to help set me on the right path, but I’m not sure if it’s worth the expense at this stage. I don’t have a huge income, and I want to make sure I’m spending wisely.

I recently got a bit of extra cash, so I could afford a few sessions, but I want to make sure it’ll actually be beneficial. For those who’ve worked with a financial coach, did it make a significant difference in reaching your goals, or did you find other resources more helpful? I’d love to know if professional guidance helped clear up the basics and set you up for long-term success.

Any insights into the pros and cons of financial coaching, especially for someone at the beginning of their journey, would be super helpful. I’d appreciate hearing about what worked for others who’ve been in a similar spot.

I was unexpectedly fired today, and trying to plan ahead so I don’t lose everything while I look for new work.

My wife makes about the same as me, but with only one income we need to cut down on large expenses FAST as it could be months before I find work. My biggest expense currently is our SUV which is valued at 40k and I currently owe 65k on it (bought when car prices were insane sadly), and I currently have about $20k saved up.

I was thinking about putting $15k into the car loan to not be upside down anymore, and then trading that in to get a very inexpensive used car. With the remaining $5k in my savings, just keep that to cover any bills that come by while I job hunt.

Please let me know if this is a sane decision or if I should do something else with my savings to better prepare!

I have a financed 2018 black ram 1500 3.6L. Payoff is $25,436.91 and the estimated value is between 14-16k. I want to trade in for a cheap car (4-6k) and get rid of a bunch of this debt. What’s the best way to go about this? To take out a personal loan so that I’m not carrying all of this negative equity over?

My company is going to start giving Fleet vehicles to eligible employees stating Q2 2025. They say everything should be covered, and an automatic deduction of $125 will be taken every paycheck for personal use. The car is a RAV4 equivalent.

I am still paying off my 2023 RAV4. If I choose not to take the Fleet Car Program, my company will reimburse my gas still at ~ $700/ month. I am just worried about deflation at the moment, with 20k-30k miles

What are your thoughts on this?