<p>He just told me it was an option when he was setting up at his first job.</p>
<p>Thatās great. He sounds like a smart kid, has it all figured out already.</p>
<p>thanks. We are proud of him. But this follows the thread from the young adult asking about Roths. When they learn about this stuff when they are young (he learned about the Roth IRA when he worked for me) I guess he learned to use it when it was an option for the 401K.</p>
<p>I wish my kids would do it automatically, without my nagging (though my 20 yr old doesnāt make very much, he spends everything he earns). My older son has a ridiculous amount of money saved up, earning nothing. Time to start nagging him again. He probably wonāt be able to fund a Roth for long. Iām sure heāll do it this year, because I advise it, but I wish heād do it without me telling him to.</p>
<p>When they worked for my office when they were in HS, they didnāt have a choice. But when they saw it was growing when they were in college it began to mean something. Younger s commented that he was the only one of his friends (in college) with a Roth. It made an impression I guessā¦ It being Fatherās Day, its appropriate to give all the credit to my DH, who instilled this in them.</p>
<p>I think my older kid would have been more impressed with his Roth if I hadnāt screwed up making trades for him the first two years. Iām kind of lukewarm on it myself. Though it actually is in positive territory, it would have done far better if Iād just have put it in index funds and not messed around with it. If he had controlled it, thatās probably what he would have done.</p>
<p><<<
Iām not even 62 yet ( still a week or so away from 61) and he is several years younger than I<br>
<<<</p>
<p>Ahhhā¦is June 26th your birthday?</p>
<p>My kids have taken an interest in 401K (one for summer internship, another for the first starter job). I am proud of their foresight but admittedly a bit worried they will somehow loose track of the funds. </p>
<p>DrG - We probably should investigate Heloc. But my concern on household expenses was mostly related to unpredictability, not cash flow. I suppose rent is not predictable either. Perhaps we should just have an amount set aside for worst-case. </p>
<p>We are thinking about itā¦but I just ran the numbers for health careā¦OMG! Texas, 60 and 58, want something close to what we have. Only BC/BS available and around $2000 per month. Well, that puts a crimp in the budget. I have the statement from Hās company that says the real cost of our plan last year was just over $12,000. Itās a small company with mostly boomer generation employeesā¦wow! </p>
<p>Must admit I liked being in control over DS. I visited Fidelity office, set him up with Roth Target fund, then he got control. He shifted things, and doesnāt seem to care about my imput. Is this helicopturing?</p>
<p>I did get a HELOC when H was still working because I was concerned that we might now qualify once H was retired. Since heās started receiving his defined benefit pension, Iāve decided we probably should have NO problem qualifying for any financing we choose. He gets a significant pension, guaranteed for his lifetime and at a reduced sum for my life too. Anyway, have never drawn on the heloc, but since it has never cost us as penny even in app or other fees, we have just let it exist. Would close it Iām n ed I lately if we incurred ANY fee 're k hated to it. </p>
<p>Wellā¦ if HELOC is free I guess it interest us moreā¦ to add possible flexibility down the road. </p>
<p>Yes, m2ck. 626.
Way back when we had to open a HELOC as a requirement for the banking services we got. No charge. But when the market crashed in 2008 they took away all these open lines of credit. So the HELOC, which we didnāt plan to use, went away. </p>
<p>If you open a HELoC it pays to use a little of it and pay it back. Ours says we canāt close it for 3 years since we did not pay any closing costs, or we have to pay the costs back. So take some out, pay it back so they know you are a good customer. They did not touch ours in 2008+ even though it was a very large amount of open credit. We had used a little and been paying it back so they did no adustments. </p>
<p>I am sure people on this borad are too savvy to be taken in,</p>
<p><a href=āBloomberg - Are you a robot?ā>Bloomberg - Are you a robot?;
<p>Yes lots of HELOCs held in āreserveā but not used got eliminated in the downturn.</p>
<p>At my credit union, it was $75 to establish a HELOC, but free with a refinance. I am very glad to have it there for backup. </p>
<p>This discussion moves quickly!</p>
<p>At one time, a large percentage of our net worth was in stock & options of dhās employer. Because most of it was restricted, and because he was privy to info that made him ineligible to trade at least 3/4 of the time, we could only watch as it sank to a tiny fraction of its high. The stock has recovered somewhat and is now worth about 1/4 of what it once was. The options that havenāt yet expired will not be above water before their expiration. The losses we sustained in real estate pale in comparison. Itās only money, right? sighā¦</p>
<p>We cancelled our HELOC last year when the bank kept charging us a fee after weād been told that wouldnāt happen. I think weāre liquid enough now to cover most potential emergencies. Iāll feel better later this year after dh receives some deferred comp.</p>
<p>A happy surprise yesterday was learning that dhās primary pension plan will pay full benefits if we start drawing it at 62 instead of waiting until 65. I donāt understand their rationale but sure donāt plan to question them. If we started just two year sooner, at 60, weād lose about 12% of the monthly payment. </p>
<p>If you have a pension, how have you decided to take the payments? Will you elect a 50%, 75% or 100% survivor benefit? Dh wants to do the 100% survivor benefit while I think 75% is sufficient (heās assuming I will outlive him.) Iād be okay with 50% since I would probably downsize again or even move into a seniors apartment community (a nice one is in the planning stages very near where we expect to be living.) </p>
<p>I have wondered the same thing about the pension. My DHs will be small, so it is probably a bit of a moot point. That said, is that decision of what to choose made when the payment starts? What happens if the person clicks off before that is decided?</p>
<p>In our case, the āsurvivorā (spouse/partner) is required to sign paperwork assenting to whatever choice is made, and thatās only done 60 - 90 days before the last date of employment. The default plan is 50% survivor benefit, which is what Iād receive if dh died before we could make any changes.</p>