Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with financial

Am I crazy to offer a gift of financial planning services to my cousins?

RecalcitrantYouth — Sun, 20 Dec 2009 05:10:13 -0800

My Aunt, Uncle and cousins have never been good with money, and have also never had well paying jobs. My Uncle has just inherited a (low) six-figure sum. Do I try to help them out by offering to build a financial plan for them? I'm a well-off thirty-something professional, with some accounting and finance training. My Aunt and Uncle are in their fifties, and the cousins are in their twenties and still living at home. From what I can tell, they have lived paycheque to paycheque for years. They own a home rather than renting, but that is mainly because of an earlier inheritance (and the home is not paid off). Without help, I fear that they will fritter away this latest windfall, and there's no more inheritance money to come.

They live about two hours away from me, so most of the planning work (other than an initial consultation) would be by phone or email.

I'd like to help them out, but I'm afraid it's just a recipe for unhappiness and family strife. Has anyone tried this before? Did it work out well or poorly? Any other ideas for ways to help?

When will check writing be obsolete?

junipero — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 10:20:39 -0800

When will check writing be obsolete? The only time I write a check is to pay my rent. On a few occasions I've written a check to a friend to pay them back for a concert ticket or what-have-you, but it is becoming increasingly easy to pay for things online.

Is there any payment method in the works that would make it commonplace to pay rent online or transfer money easily between friends without having to write a check or use cash?

When can we get rid of these pesky checkbooks?!?!

Should I pay off one debt with another?

ThaBombShelterSmith — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 12:54:25 -0800

StudentLoanFilter: Should I use my student loan money to pay off my last credit card? long-ish explanation of my situation inside. I'm going back to school in January (for a teaching cert after already receiving a bachelor's degree) and I've qualified for more loans than my tuition. I know I'll need some money to cover textbooks and other school supplies, but I'll still have about 5-6K left over (if I take it).

A little background: I had been working through a debt snowball when I was making about twice as much as I am now, and managed to pay off 4 of my 5 cards, leaving me with my highest balance card left. It's currently at a balance of ~5K at an interest rate of 19.99%. My minimum payment is around 150/mo.

I'm now netting about 14K a year working full time and this 150/mo is really starting to take a toll.

As far as other debt is concerned, I have 13K in federal subsidized loans locked in at a rate of about 4% from my bachelor's degree that I have a deferment for, which will be active until I'm done with my teaching certificate. I'll probably have between 33K and 38K in loans by the time I get my certificate (which should be doable based on the "don't take out more than you expect to make in the first year of work" advice). I also have an 8K auto loan at 7%, which is about 200/mo.

My financial aid award is for 5500 in federal subsidized loan at 5% and 6100 in federal unsubsidized loan at 6.8%. From what the financial aid office told me, as a returning student, I'll qualify for enough subsidized loans to pay for tuition each semester, so I will only be accepting this extra 6100 once and then I'll decline it each semester after this one.

Is this a stupid thing to do? Is it allowed? Does anyone care? The way I figure, I'm basically swapping a 5K balance at 20% for a 5K loan at 6.8%. I know I'll accrue interest in the next two years while I'm in school, but I'm guessing the extra $150 dollars I'll have each month will more than make up for it. (I might actually be able to save again!)

Any help or advice would be greatly appreciated.

Being an adult sucks. Can I be 18 again?

lizjohn — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 17:44:25 -0800

Help me/us gain perspective about working while in school, please! My husband and I have been going back and forth about what to do about school and work.

The boring background information: I worked full-time while I put myself through my first degree. My grades were good enough to graduate with honors from a state school, but they weren't stellar. I believe in accruing as little debt as possible while in school. When my husband attended college (he didn't finish) he was in a very time consuming program and only worked at his college radio station one night a week. He essentially didn't work and took out a loan to get by. We only recently paid off that loan.

Now: We are both going back to school and both have eyes on very competitive programs. My husband in struggling balancing school and work. We both have about 50 hours of school work left until we can apply to our professional programs. We have our two school days off, but the problem lies in the rest of the week. We both work in the retail world and could be scheduled anytime between 7am and 11pm. Simply to keep these jobs, we must maintain very open availability. The job market here is poor and most job moves we could make would be laterally in pay and in requiring open availability.

My argument: It's better live off your current wages and take out loans for tuition only. No point compounding loans when we can just take out as minimal as possible. Caveat, I know that once we get into professional school we will definitely take out loans. The question lies in the undergraduate and prerequisite courses.

His argument: School loans are among the cheapest/best type of loans to take. It is better to do your very best in school to get into the best programs then to just get by and get into an OK program (if you get in at all). We could power through school faster and with the "good jobs" we could get with these degrees, the loans would be easily paid off. We could scrape by living simply for years.

Further financial details: We own our car and we rent an apartment. We have some credit card debt and we are actively paying it down. My husband receives some grants for school, which cover most of his tuition. I have 5k in bonds set aside for emergency, some of which will mature soon. In 2012 we will receive the proceeds from a moderately sized annuity which we had earmarked for a down payment for a house. I have decent health insurance through my job, for which I need to maintain full time status. Neither of us could support both on one paycheck.

What to other people do? Do most adults work through college? What about when their spouse in attending school as well? How common is it to live off loans?

Sorry if this is rambly, we'd just like some outside prospective. We've been going back and forth about the loan situation for months.

If it matters, I'm going into pharmacy and he's going into law

How to get on track to make major life decisions with the best outcome for me and my son?

stormpooper — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 08:16:29 -0800

Major life decisions thrown my way. Feeling totally inept at making a good decision. Any ideas on how to sort it out and get on track? All at once three major decisions have been thrown my way since the birth of our son.
1. my mother has terminal cancer and my father has a history of major cardiac issues. Essentially their time is almost up (esp. my mom). They have to update their will/trust but are calling me daily on how to word it since they hate (and that is describing it lightly) my husband and don't want him to get the money and what to know what I'm doing about my future with him. They are caught on the beneficiaries (me and my son and maybe future children?) and I just don't know how to answer it because of issue #2.

2. I'm in limbo on what to do with my marriage. We have a 10 month old son who is our whole life. But since his birth, it is like I had an eye opening experience. My husband and I don't have a real partnership and/or future together. I am the only one saving for a 401k, savings, managing bills, etc. but can do little else because he doesn't make enough with his own business to participate but he also doesn't try or think about ways to improve it.

Same goes with a college fund for our son. I figured to transfer his formula expense over to a college fund when he's done eating formula. My husband doesn't think of those things.

His business is not thriving very well and the income fluctuates way too much. It's not like he isn't trying but you can't make people buy and you can't make people pay an invoice on time. He spits profits with partners and is going back and forth about going on his own.

My point is that his business has had huge ups ad downs for 8 years and now we have a child and I want him to get a regular job (keep his business on the side). He won't. Get a 2nd job. He won't. Sell some luxuries we really don't need. He won't. Let's talk about our future and how to get things in line so we have one (we're nearly 40 for Christ's sake). He won't.

In short I hear that I stress him out. In an attempt to reach out I outlined my feelings in an email to him and he said he disagrees with everything I outlined (like the points above). He gets very defensive and all I hear is everything is my fault/making mountains out of moehills. The final straw is I'm begging him to go to marriage therapy since me going alone is stupid and pointless. He feels that therapy only goes in circles and causes fights. My therapist is very anti-divorce and sees it as a worse scenario for me and my son.

I don't know what to do. He can be amazingly supportive, caring, loving, fun, etc. But the practical side aligning with my wants and beliefs aren't matching up at all and I, and many of my friends/parents/his parents/siblings feel he will NEVER change (let's live life like a partner and create a solid future instead of this circling day to day, paycheck to paycheck crap).

Divorce is expensive (I make more), scary, and a huge hassle esp. with a son involved. I'm scared and confused. I don't want to scar my son since I worry about making sure we both remain adults in handling his care. (I am more level headed but he knows how to push my buttons). It breaks my heart that I"m trying to make a better life for everyone yet if I divorce, I have to split birthdays/holidays/time with my son.

And to create a future for myself? I feel I can't fix our problems--financially, romantically, etc. How the hell am I going to do it on our own? How can I raise an emotionally healthy child who has a solid, determined, good future away from drugs, picking the right crowd, throwing tantrums, going to college, experience life abroad, getting a good job, etc?

And if I chose such a husband who we always had big ups and downs with, who will be the next person I choose? I'm terrified of picking someone with a gambling problem, an abuser, a drug addict, someone else who has no goals, etc.

I just feel I can't make these decisions yet I have to. My parents' inheritance is the only guarantee for a future for me and our son--in a marriage or alone. Yet my husband has always been incredibly dumb with money and pushes me into really bad financial decisions (HELOC where we had to refi with a cash out!) and never thinks ahead. They've been discussing to give it all to my son and that leaves me out of any retirement or even buying a house if I did divorce.

3. Who would you recommend seeing to get daily financial advice from. For example, I need someone to help me set a financial budget for daily life and how to achieve life goals like retirement, paying off credit cards, contributing to college, paying off my home, etc. A CPA? My Fidelity investment manager can't answer our financial budget "this is how you need to live life daily and for x amount of years". He just said "you need an emergency fund first." Um no shit. How do I get there when we have major bills and it feels like pay check to pay check?

Where do I start on figuring out point A-Z with the best outcome? Therapy isn't helping jack. My parents are dying and were never a good example to follow in marriage advice (they live in a very abusive/dysfunctional relationship).

I just feel like I'm in my late 30s with a son, married yet doing everything alone and wrong.

Very sorry for the length of this but appreciate some advice.

What's a good bank or credit union in Las Vegas?

metalheart — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 05:40:21 -0800

Henderson, NV / Las Vegas Filter: What bank or credit union would work best for us? You've all been really helpful with my other Vegas-related questions, so hopefully this time will be no different! My fiance and I are in search of a good bank or credit union to use in Las Vegas, now that we've moved here. Here are some of the things we're looking for in a bank/credit unions:

- Low/few fees.

- Good online banking that will hook up with Mint. We're geeks.

- Fairly good savings account rates. It'd be nice if it was with the same bank/credit union as our checking, but I suppose it's not absolutely necessary.

- Something that links up pretty well internationally. We've moved from Melbourne, Australia, and we both intend to travel back there, as well as elsewhere in the world, and it would be nice if we could just stick with the one bank/credit union without trouble. I know that'd likely be Bank of America, but we've not heard great things about it, so if someone knows something better, we'd like to know about it.

Any other recommendations or advice would be greatly appreciated, too, of course. Thanks!

Personal financial software recommendations

Judyst — Thu, 17 Sep 2009 07:35:05 -0800

I use MS Money which is being discontinued by Microsoft. Can you recommend a replacement based on firsthand experience. The obvious is Intuit, but I'm finding mixed reviews on using it for personal finances. I basically want to track spending (downloading bank and credit card data), and to sort and analyze spending for income tax and budgeting purposes. I don't really care about managing a portfolio with real time data through internet connectivity, nor do I need to make financial investment decisions. Thanks!

Financial Advisor Overseas

aggienfo — Thu, 17 Sep 2009 01:28:07 -0800

I am looking to find some a financial advisor/service (complication: I'm in Japan) Like everyone else I've been barely hanging on to the economic roller coaster the last year or so and looking for some a good advisor. Some background info: I'm 29, have put around $50K so far, but I've been blessed to be able to invest over 1K/month between an IRA, TSP (military 401k), and general investments. I would consider myself semi educated financially - basically follow Dave Ramsey, Suze Ormand in having no debt, 4-5 months savings, and I can understand generally something from CNBC or Wall Street Journal.

That being said I am starting to put a significant amount of money into savings for the future and would like some guidance in asset allocation and more varsity level advice. In catering the the military I know of First Command (bad experience) and USAA (which I would swear by), but I was seeing if anyone else as other idea of services or companies that would be able to adequately work with someone who is over seas.

Financial District Apartment Needed

lumidine — Mon, 31 Aug 2009 17:26:08 -0800

We are looking for an apartment in NYC Financial District. One bedroom, max. $2,000. Any ideas? Thanks a lot guys

Would you guys recommend to buy MOTORS LIQ CO (MTLQQ)?

omaralarifi — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 13:32:31 -0800

Can I buy MOTORS LIQ CO (MTLQQ) AKA General Motors stock? If yes, Would you guys recommend to buy the stock? Whatever your answer I need to know the reason. Thank You

Credit card charge off: pay in full or accept settlement?

Nickel — Mon, 03 Aug 2009 00:11:15 -0800

Credit card charge off: pay in full or accept settlement offer? My 23 year old sister racked up some credit card debt during a low point in her life a few years ago and is now looking to tackle it and get her credit back on track. I am in a position where I can help her financially and would like to help her make the best decisions.

All of her credit card debt (~$7000) is charged off and sold to debt collection agencies. The agencies are offering settlement deals for a little less than 50% of the original amount owed.

1. I'm assuming that "charged off - paid in full" looks better than "charged off - paid a settlement" on a credit report. Is that right? Is it a significant difference or should we save the money?

2. How would these options actually be listed on her credit report?

3. If she does settle, can she ask that they remove the information from her credit report as a condition of settling?

4. If she pays in full, can she have the charge off removed from her credit report?

5. If I add her as an authorized user to some of my credit cards, will it raise her credit score? Will it lower mine?

NB. She talked to a credit counselor about a year ago, but couldn't afford the minimum due so they couldn't work with her. If you can personally recommend any counselors in the SF Bay area, I would appreciate it.

good online financial help

cestmoi15 — Tue, 16 Jun 2009 18:35:45 -0800

Financial fool filter: I'm looking for authoritative online financial information/planning advice I've tried to search AskMefi, but don't think I've found what I'm looking for (please link if I missed something, quite possible).

I'm trying to do some financial self-help online, for personal reasons, I don't want to see an actual financial planner. I'm looking to get some best ideas or guidelines on budgeting, primarily -- such as x% of monthly or total income should be spent on housing, x on groceries, x on 401k, etc. I'm in NYC, so I'm wondering if those numbers are different here v. other areas. I'd like to know how much risk someone my age should take on in investing, but I'm not looking for investing info at this point, just figuring out how much income should go into it and acceptable risk load would be a great starting point. I'm not looking for books.

Thanks. I've tried to include everything, memail me if you need more info.

I know a lot of you on this site like mint, but I'm not comfortable giving out my account info, so that and anywhere else that requires such personal info is out.

any MS Money 2007 users?

royalchinook — Sun, 31 May 2009 23:05:27 -0800

In MS Money 2007, I am able to open my MS Money 2002 file and everything is great except for one difference that is causing me fits. I like to put all my Bills in the bill section and then I can easily see what the balance is going to be in my account after all those bills go through to make sure I have enough money (Shift+Click), but it seems that starting in MS Money 2006, that functionality was taken away. I am not aware of a way to select multiple bills to see the balance after paying all of them.

Reason for upgrading to 2007: I recently installed a new hard drive and my MS Money 2002 backup file would not open for me anymore (it asked for a password that I didn't have, seems that's a 'feature' to get you to upgrade).

Apologies: I know I should probably find a forum more specific to Microsoft and their software's problems but there is so little help there so thanks for indulging me on this active site.

I've spent some time googling and here's what I found:

Someone asking this same question with no real responses on eggheadcafe

List of features removed from MS Money over the versions, my problem is similar to this one (although I am able to see my balance, but just after the single bill I have selected, not multiples).

I see in the eggheadcafe question the guy seemed to answer his question with making the bills online payable but I've looked around and I don't think the banks I use support paying online (I'm in Canada).

I guess I'm asking if there's a way to find out what my balance will be after a bunch of bills that are scheduled to be paid are actually paid and if not, other recommended financial software; this is a deal breaker for me if I can't get it to work.

Asked for tax returns during interview? Legal/Illegal?

thinktwice — Thu, 23 Apr 2009 18:50:25 -0800

Can a prospective employer ask for my previous 2 years tax returns? I am interviewing with a company for a prospective job. I was just asked for my earnings from the last two years. Assuming that he would like to see a tax return. Is this legal? I cannot believe I can be obligated to provide this to a prospective employer.

Can a current employer ask for tax returns? I would imagine if this was legal it would be standard practice. No?

What's my best bet in moving a Rollover IRA to another bank/brokerage firm with my negative net worth?

blue andrea — Mon, 20 Apr 2009 15:36:07 -0800

I need to know what my options are for moving this thing, given that I have a negative net worth. Can I roll it into another brokerage-style Rollover IRA at a brokerage firm, not a bank, and avoid the money laundering law stuff? Or am I relegated to Bank IRAs until I'm out of school debt? Do I suck it up and take the $75/month hit until I can start depositing money again (I don't know when that will be), and hope that the investments make up the difference in the long run? I haven't lost as much as most in my portfolio, and I know I have time to make up the losses, the monthly fee just seems like an unnecessary loss I should be able to avoid. My Rollover IRA (brokerage, not CD/money market) is with Schwab, and is a product of a 401(k) account I had through them ages back that I converted when I left the company. The monthly fee ($75) is waved if you deposit at least $75 into the account every month. When I had a job, and for the past 8 months this wasn't a problem, but money is tighter now. This means that if I keep my account here, I'll be losing $900/year in fees.

My original plan was to move the money into a Rollover IRA at Bank of America, since that's where I keep my other stuff, and they have no-fee brokerage IRAs. However, from reading articles on AskMeFi and elsewhere, a bank sounds like not the best plan. In any case, in investigating the process, I found that the application asked for my net worth; I have a negative net worth because of school loans, and the field only accepts positive numbers. The customer service rep I chatted with online told me that I can't open a brokerage retirement account with a negative net worth because of money laundering laws. He said my best bet was a Bank IRA (CD/money market options).

So what's my best bet?

Are expensive American undergraduate educations worth it for foreign students?

Mo Nickels — Fri, 17 Apr 2009 04:44:41 -0800

Is it worth it for a foreign parent to squeeze his budget to manage very expensive undergraduate educations for his children in elite American schools? A respected colleague in Asia writes with this query. It's not so much about how to get financial aid when you are a parent of foreign student seeking an undergraduate education in the United States so much as it is a question as to whether it is worth it at all, even if you can pay.

His words are below, posted with his permission. I have stripped out identifying information. The family is not in Singapore, for what that is worth.

«I have 2 children entering university at the same time this year.

My son has won a partial scholarship to the Eastman School of Music, but even then, the amount we'd have to come up with to send him there is rather forbidding.

My daughter has been accepted into New York University to do Liberal Arts -- but without any aid, which makes it virtually impossible for us to help her realise her dream.

What resources can I apply for in the US or elsewhere to help them? We've tried ones in our country but so far without success.

Would you recommend they take up the places offered them by the 2 schools, given the constraints? Are the schools really worth the astronomical expense? (Well, I know Eastman is about second to Juilliard, and NYU is reputable, although its Arts programme is 15th in the world.)

Would it really count so much that these would be for undergraduate study? Do people look more at one's postgrad pedigree? Would it be just as well that they did their first degree elsewhere (more affordable) and seek to go higher at Eastman and NYU afterwards? (In fact, my son has also obtained a full scholarship to theYong Siew Toh Coservatory of Music in Singapore. But then, what is YST compared to Eastman?)

I'm sorry if I sound inane but this issue of my children's further education has been keeping me from sleep for quite a while.»

What should I do if I suspect someone has gotten my personal identity details?

Anonymous — Wed, 15 Apr 2009 18:50:45 -0800

What should I do if someone has pulled some real identity theft type stuff on me? I'm watching bank accounts, changing passwords, checking for viruses/keyloggers, but what else can I do? The other day I noticed some odd charges on one of my credit cards (at an online merchant I've never heard of) and immediately called the issuing company and had them cancel the card as stolen.

I figured someone just happened to embed my numbers into their dummy card (it happened to me about ten years ago) until the merchant gave me a call from the buyer's info. I don't think the merchant got the phone number from the CC company, and I've gotten a few weird calls on the phone since then as well.

I'm thinking someone must have breached some sort of personal info to get my private cell number (not known to more than 30 people) and one of my credit cards.

I haven't seen any other weird charges on my accounts, but is there some sort of nuclear option I can invoke with credit agencies to block someone trying to open new credit accounts or doing anything weird with my info?

Are there other steps I should be taking beyond getting a new card and changing passwords everywhere?

What responsibility does the Bush administration bear for the current financial crisis?

Lownotes — Wed, 25 Mar 2009 07:27:28 -0800

What responsibility does the Bush administration bear for the current financial crisis? When I visit my father, we usually argue about politics.

He's a big Fox News fan, and I think it's drivel. He tends to parrot what he sees there, and I often find myself explaining how things really work to him.

Since Obama was elected, these arguments have been far less frequent - until the last two weeks when suddenly the Republican spin machine began to pound Obama's budget plans in light of our financial crisis.

I keep telling him, "Bush was president for the last eight years."

He keeps saying, "This is not Bush's fault."

So, hivemind, what sort of responsibility does the Bush administration really bear in all of this mess?

Links to source material are welcome.

Need a fast loan!

Anonymous — Fri, 20 Mar 2009 08:43:42 -0800

Is there a reputable place (online or otherwise) where I can get a quick emergency loan within the next 10 days for $600 - $900? I have somewhat poor credit. I just spent all of my available cash and my emergency saving bailing a family member out of trouble. Saying no wasn't an option, as I was the only person close to her who had the funds available.

I am paid monthly at my job, so this has put me in a position where I'm strapped until the 15th of next month. I have one credit card with $300 of available credit that I'd rather not max (but I will if I need to), and I will be $900 short to pay my rent on the 31st, plus a utility bill and groceries.

The highest you can go on a payday loan in my state is $500, and you can't have more than one. My credit score is around 650 right now so that rules out a lot of the less costly options I'd have with a better score.

I checked with Modest Needs already but they don't have any available slots for applications. I think everyone is in pretty dire straights right now.

I know this isn't the best way to get money, but I'm desperate here. I already talked to my landlord and he said he really can't defer my rent because the economy is killing him. I probably won't get evicted but the late penalty will be just as significant as any fees I incur on a short term loan. And I'd rather keep my payment history with him current because the rental market here is very tight and I will probably need a reference if I ever move.

It's been a rough year for my family financially and basically I've sold everything I own of any value in order to help different people out. So that's pretty much out at the moment.

Also, if people have some suggestions about any odd jobs where I can raise cash quickly, that would be good too. I can't do manual labor like raking and mowing at the moment because I just had knee surgery and am on crutches, but anything else that you can think of that pays cash quickly would be appreciated. I have a young child at home, so that's also a consideration as far as time.

Anon because I don't want this to sound like a thinly-veiled attempt to beg for money off anyone. I'm really not. I just need some suggestions to scrape up this money for the short term. If I borrow it, I'll be more than able to pay it back around the middle of next month.

Financial Coach

Elsie — Thu, 12 Mar 2009 08:58:12 -0800

Are there online financial coaching services—not investment financial planners or debt counselors--for debt-free people fed up with researching every personal money decision? I’d love a subscription to a financial coaching service, along the lines of a personal shopper—they know what’s in someone’s closet and can tell them what to pull out of the closet or buy for a wedding/job interview. I’ve already done all the heavy lifting—no debt; downsized; funded the IRAs and just happened to be in cash already; sold the house before everything tanked. But I am sick of researching everything to death. I’d supply my financials and personal profile to this coach and ask boring stuff like:

--Given my situation, should I rent or buy?
--What’s the maximum I can spend on a rental/house purchase?
--What’s the best health network in my location and what plan of theirs should I get?
--How much should I be paying a tax preparer?
--What’s the best car insurance company and how much deductible should I take?
--Should I split up my IRAs (now that I’ve consolidated them on one place!!!) for safety reasons? If so, where?
--Where should I park proceeds of the house?
--What’s the most affordable communications package in my area for all phones, internet, cable?
--How much would you charge to work up a budget for me knowing my thrift level, income, savings, and splurges?

Metafilter is great, but I have too many questions. I’d like a financial hand holder who has my personal profile and financial information and can just give me answers. I’ve already read all the Oprah guru books, seen the shows, etc. They worked. Thank you. But now I want to personalize my everyday financial decision making with somebody like me, who’s not me, who can do the research while I enjoy life.

Change job, or stay in iffy situation?

Anonymous — Sun, 01 Mar 2009 11:37:05 -0800

I like the job I have right now, but I have the gut feeling our company is hurting for business. We probably over hired last year, which is painful especially as a small business in this climate. The upside is that I was just offered a new job at different small business. Because I really enjoy almost everything about my current job, how do I go about asking my current employer how financially stable the company is without looking suspicious? Current job details:
1. Love my city & work
2. Unsure about stability of the company (negative)
3. Get along will the owners & coworkers
4. Been there longer than most
5. Had a good review in December
6. Am one of many in the same role (negative)
7. Great hours (9-5)
8. Most coworkers have better resumes than I do for what it's worth

Potential new job:
1. In a new city not nearly as livable, but closer to family
2. I'm positive the company is growing
3. Hit it off with owner, culture seems ok
4. I'd be the only person in my role (big positive)
5. Hours are longer
6. I'd get a significant raise

Other details:
1. I've had my ears to the ground but have not heard anything, although I'm generally oblivious to subtleties.
2. Changing location will be costly.

Main question is still: how do I ask my current employer about the financial stability of the company without looking suspicious? Gentle feelers? Blunt honesty?

I can navigate the other details intellectually mostly on my own, but they're here for reference in case you feel like providing insight I may have overlooked.

Do I accept a Greenpeace Internship? But first, $4000 More Student Debt!

Risiko — Sat, 14 Feb 2009 19:58:50 -0800

I'm an Environmental Policy & Planning Major (3rd year). I've been applying to internships over the past weeks for Spring and Summer positions. Great news: I've already been accepted to Greenpeace's "Organizing Term" and I have two other positions I will soon hear a yes/no on for Spring. Bad News: The Greenpeace Organizing Term program will cost me $4000. The program itself is an intensive mix of activities, virtually on a full-time basis (for 2 months of summer, out of 3), including classroom trainings, expeditions to other states (as well as another country for meeting with other international activists), media trainings, and some readings. All of it is included with the cost (including flight/transport/food for a week). What to do? (More in the extended explanation): My Dilemma: I want to be a part of this program for several reasons. But the most salient ones are: (1) This seems like it would be excellent experience, whether I choose to go on a career of political advocacy or otherwise -- environmental consulting, or non-profit office-type work, or government agency type work, or what have you. I know that my public communication skills will undoubtedly improve through the program. By undertaking the program itself, it shows initiative and passion. The not only improves my skillset in a personal sense, but it enhances my job prospects post-graduation too. Moreoever, while only 15 people are accepted for the program each summer, "hundreds" (I'm told) have applied. Might there be a prestige factor that helps my future prospects? Keep in mind, I plan on relying on internships more than most because my GPA is relatively mediocre (I'm working hard to change that though) (2) But also importantly is that I know I'll learn a lot from the experience, and will therefore very likely enjoy it, in general. And, if I find that I don't like it, I will have learned something very useful about myself also, and plan for my future accordingly! (3) Frankly, I have a lot of passion for environmental protection, especially the more I've study it. My generation and even progressively more so, future generations, will have to work harder to protect what is here for us.

On the other hand, I don't want to be a part of the program for the following reason: I don't have the money. Nor do my parents. Trust me, I've pleaded. Moreover, I have almost nothing to my name (despite that I am a sprendthrift compared with most of my peers.) I've worked part-time for part of my college experience. My student debt scares me but my parents have pledged do cut it down dramatically from where it will stand, so I am hopeful. So they're doing all they reasonably can already. Nor can extended family help, as far as I'm aware, but I plan to find out anyway for certain, through 'fundraising' that Greenpeace suggests financially-strapped acceptees to undertake. I've never independently fundraised before, but it'll be a learning opportunity. I'm hoping to scrounge $500 (with wide error margins) that way. Maybe I could do more, who knows -- but my relatives are middle class, and they're getting hit like everybody is now. I can also work part-time from March-May, so that'll net me $1000 more. Beyond that, I've been looking for scholarships through my University and otherwise. The program doesn't qualify for what's available, and there isn't much available right now anyway (says my University Counselor). So there is a big gap. I'm still exploring options, but that leaves me at a shortfall.

So.

I thought some sager advice, over and above my parent's significant uneasiness about it, might be out there.

Which path do you suggest?

SCAM DEBT COLLECTION AGENCY?

defmute — Wed, 04 Feb 2009 21:04:54 -0800

KEYFINANCIAL.US a real debt collection agency? I've been getting numerous calls from a person who claims he's calling from Key Financial. I was about to make a payment today out a guilty conscience but stopped before I gave him the credit card security code. Has anyone heard of Key Financial before? I this company legit? Thanks.

Help with financial aid!

mikedelic — Wed, 04 Feb 2009 17:14:03 -0800

College financial aid question - Here is a question about the best way for my wife and I to fill out the FAFSA... Here's the background - 2nd marriage for both my wife(widow) and I(divorced). In Sept '09 my stepson will be going into his last year of college and my stepdaughter into her 2nd year of college. I have a son in HS who is my full financial responsibility. We married at the end of '07 and filled out our taxes married filing separately, thinking this would work out better for financial aid. My wife listed her income on the FAFSA and they arrived at her EFC (Expected family contribution). However, the college asked for my income, added that in, and reduced the financial aid package to almost nothing. We appealed to the financial aid office(begged really) of my daughter's school and they revised the aid up a little.
My question is how should we fill out the financial aid info to maximize the aid package? Is there a website or book with this information? We don't want to do anything dishonest but all we hear about is people who make more than us working the system to get great aid packages. Also, would married filing jointly matter? Filing married separately is costly.
Thanks for your help!!!

How are the Icelanders doing?

borkingchikapa — Tue, 27 Jan 2009 21:24:55 -0800

So, what does the financial and political collapse in Iceland mean for the average citizen? Can anyone give me some anecdotes about how daily life has changed in the past few months? Are people struggling with basic things like food, rent and utilities? Are middle class families being forced onto the street?

Here in the US, it doesn't seem like life has really changed that much. I know people are losing their jobs and houses, but all I see on the street is everyone spending a little less money and bitching about how poor they are. Iceland is a small, homogeneous country, so are the consequences are more widespread?