Personal Finance & Money Stack Exchange
Personal Finance & Money Stack Exchange

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1500 questions
26
votes
7 answers

Can Homeowners insurance be cancelled for non-removal of tree debris?

The situation: Storm came through and knocked down two trees in my mother's yard. One (tree A) fell onto her fence, one (tree B) fell harmlessly onto her lawn. Insurance paid for: fence repair removal of tree A Insurance did not pay…
Chowzen
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26
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3 answers

Credit card debt after cosigner passed away

My father is a cosigner on my brothers credit cards. He passed away last month. My brother is not paying off the debt. Can we remove my fathers name? Is my dads estate responsible? My brother owes more than the estate is worth. My mom will be…
Nursefun1952
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11 answers

Is 401k as good as it sounds given the way it is taxed?

I contribute full 18 to my 401k thinking I am letting my money grow untaxed for such a long time. However, looking at how 401k is taxed when I pull the money out, it does not sound like a great deal because it is taxed like regular income. As oppose…
Lost
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26
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1 answer

If Bernie Madoff had invested in Berkshire Hathaway, would the ponzi actually have succeeded?

Bernie Madoff operated the largest known Ponzi scam in history, defrauding people of an estimated $20B for almost 3 decades. From Wikipedia: Rather than offer high returns to all comers, Madoff offered modest but steady returns to an exclusive…
bkoodaa
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26
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5 answers

Why are daily rebalanced inverse/leveraged ETFs bad for long term investing?

I was reading this article about S&P 500 short ETFs: https://www.zacks.com/stock/news/176217/4-ways-to-short-the-sampp-500-with-etfs and I was confused when it said: "investors should note that such products are suitable only for short-term traders…
glen4096
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26
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7 answers

Why do people use mortgages, when they could just pay for the house in full?

I would like your recommendation on whether you should buy a house with a mortgage, which you would pay as you go, or should you buy it in full.
Alex
26
votes
6 answers

Is it normal for brokers to ask whether I am a beginner?

I know that a broker would try to do their best to help a customer learn if they are beginners so that they stick with them. Apart from that, do you think there might be other reasons behind doing it? I have noticed how many beginners are attracted…
Zen-Ventzi-Marinov
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26
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7 answers

What prevents investors from buying high yield stocks and selling them as soon as their dividend is paid out?

What prevents investors from buying high yield stocks and selling them as soon as their dividend is paid out? I guess I am confused: If you know the yield and when the dividend will be paid out, why not buy a share an instant before the dividend is…
Matt
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26
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6 answers

Does it make any sense to directly contribute to reducing the US national debt?

As an American citizen, does it make any financial sense to donate money in hopes of helping to reduce the US national debt? Thanks.
Latency
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26
votes
7 answers

Peer to Peer Lending Sites - Good Investment or Insane?

Does anyone have personal experience with lending on sites like Prosper.com? Do they have a handle yet on what the yield and default rates are? Last time I looked at it, they didn't have a ton of data because none of the loans had gone to term. If…
John Shedletsky
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26
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8 answers

To pay off a student loan, should I save up a lump sum payoff payment or pay extra each month?

I am a new college graduate with a student loan of $17k at 6.8% interest. The monthly minimum payment due is $193. I have been paying the minimum amount, and then taking that same amount and placing it into a savings account. My original idea was…
Mike M
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26
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7 answers

Start a business or remain an employee?

I am a web programmer with a family and all the accompanying expenses. I am trying to decide whether to: develop my dream start-up (which will take at least 7 months) with no guarantee of success, or continue with my current occupation making…
Mohsen Elgendy
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26
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6 answers

I've often heard of the "snowball" method for paying off credit card debt. How does it work?

How does the "snowball" method of paying off credit card debt work? In what ways is it superior over other ways of reducing one's debt?
bms2
26
votes
10 answers

Why do some people say a house "not an investment"?

I have heard a few people say that "a house is not an investment" as an argument to stay in an apartment. (To me, this seems like a stupid reason, but that is not my question.) Of course, this is not the only place I have seen this argument. I've…
John Gietzen
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26
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8 answers

What's the catch with biweekly mortgage payments?

I just bought a house. Now I'm getting ads in the mail every day or two trying to get me to sign up to pay my mortgage bi-weekly (every two weeks) or weekly instead of monthly. In their words I could cut seven years and thousands of dollars off what…
New homeowner
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