Trying to figure out when to buy is the next question. One can always fund those IRAs/Roths before the April deadline for example.
For me, itās time to do a bit nibbling into the market. Dollar cost averaging works as the market goes down.
In case anyone needs remindingā¦
https://fivethirtyeight.com/features/worried-about-the-stock-market-whatever-you-do-dont-sell/
I agree with the ādonāt sellā advice above. One of my oft-stated mantras is ādonāt just do something, stand there.ā
The reason we sold substantial amounts is because we will be moving soon, and, because mortgage companies have stupid, thatās right, stupid, rules about jumbo mortgages, we decided that getting a conforming mortgage made more sense. Itās a long story, probably not applicable to almost anyone else, so Iāll spare you the sordid and stupid details.
Anyway, we took a 7 digit amount out of the market last week. When will we put it back into the market? As soon as we get the proceeds from selling our existing house, some months from now. Will we time the market? No. Will we dollar cost average back in? No.
^ @notrichenough, interesting about nexus in states like CA.
You are also right that merely changing the domicile of companies on its own wouldnāt domuch. The C-corp never makes any money, but Iād like it not to make money in some other state. I was thinking that that would be many steps to shift the balance in figure out where I was domiciled and not having the income be considered MA source income. This past year was unusual as I restricted travel because of ShawWifeās surgery, but I was in MA the prior two years about 190 days. (Iām sure in some earlier years, I was definitely under 183. So, not hard to get under 183. The real question is if this involves major life changes, I would have to decide whether to do it or not.
We took a bunch out of the market last week too, at all-time highs thankfully. We are both retired, and donāt have the luxury of time to win back any gains that could be wiped out riding the market down.
My husband is very risk-averse, which has its own perils. But, we agreed that weād rather be a year early than a minute late in terms of protecting what we can.
Iām not an expert, but I donāt think it works like thatāat least for some states. Iowa has an inheritance tax, not an estate tax. But the inheritance tax applies to all property inherited from a deceased Iowa residentās estate, regardless of where the heir lives. Itās the responsibility of the estateās personal representative to file the inheritance tax return, calculating what each heir owes and ensuring that each heir pays what is owed. Itās only after all inheritance taxes are paid in full that the Iowa Department of Revenue issues an inheritance tax clearance, releasing the tax lien on the estate. This step is necessary before the estate can be closed.
Itās called an inheritance tax, but it operates an awful lot like an estate tax.
So it appears that if an Iowa resident inherits from an out-of-state estate, no inheritance tax is due. But if a nonresident inherits from and Iowa estate, the Iowa inheritance tax must be paid before the inheritance can be fully distributed.
Very helpful. Exactly what I was wondering.
Any suggestions for articles and/or videos that explain the very basics of investing and how the stock market works for an absolute beginner? I think books would initially be too daunting for a first foray. I know all this stuff but when chatting I find I tend to use lingo that causes more confusion/questions than clarifying. Iāll look around but thought I would ask in case someone had some suggestions off the top of their head. I know many tout David Ramsey but that would be a turn off for this person. The person doesnāt need financial makeover advice and actually is good at saving and budgeting type stuff so doing pretty well on that part of the equation. It is more understanding the very basics of the investing side. What is a stock, the stock market, how the economy works kind of stuff. This person is also VERY right brained.
@doschicos, not exactly what youāre asking for, but Iād suggest that this pamphlet might be of some use: https://www.etf.com/docs/IfYouCan.pdf
Iāll think about something more like what you asked for 
@doschicos, I loved The Only Investment Guide Youāll Ever Need by Andrew Tobias, but I donāt remember if its basic enough.
Thanks for the suggestions. A real plus would be something that doesnāt focus on the āget richā premise. This is targeted for someone who doesnāt place a lot of emphasis on wealth and the need to be rich. Iām trying to focus on investing on making your money work for you so you can have independence, use it to do good things, etc. Trying to convince that financial markets help the economy, help businesses invest in good things like creating jobs, creating drugs and products that help people, that sort of thing. Anything that screams ālifestyles of the rich and famousā is going to be a turn-off so hoping for resources that explain the basics and mechanics of how it all works. Semantics but trying to target the audience without losing it. 
Hereās a series of short articles that take you through the basics:
http://time.com/money/collection-post/2791990/why-should-i-invest/
How Stuff Works is usually pretty good, too:
[How Stocks and the Stock Market Work](How Stocks and the Stock Market Work | HowStuffWorks)
One of the authors went to the same college I did, I met him there, heās a smart guy.
Helpful. Thank you, @notrichenough.
As I recall it isnāt focused specifically on the stock market, but I highly recommend The Millionaire Next Door.
Iāve heard good things about TMND but glancing at it online and the chapters, itās the type of thing Iām not looking for. Overuse of the word āmillionaireā would be counterproductive here and the whole savings, living below or within oneās means thing, frugality thing is engrained.
Itās the other piece of the financial security puzzle I need to tackle if that makes sense.
Start with āThe Truth About Moneyā by Ric Edelman. Then progress to the rest of his series.
TMND is an excellent business book that, like many pop business books, breathlessly tells you at the beginning of each chapter that it is going to tell you the secrets of life and the universe in the chapter and then at the end of the chapter tells you that the next chapter will do the honors. Nonetheless, it could probably be condensed into 10 useful pages, which distinguishes it from most business books that have no useful stuff in them.
The key insights, IIRC, are:
- The people who accumulate wealth are not the people who make the most money but the people who spend less than they make. So, doctors and lawyers often donāt accumulate wealth whereas people who run dry-cleaners shops do.
- There are a few factors that affect how much you spend. A key factor is what neighborhood you live in. If your neighbors replace their cars every three years, have landscapers coming once or several times a week, and send their kids to private schools, you will probably adjust to the level of spending around you. So, live in a less affluent neighborhood.
- Parents who support adult kids financially are harming them because the kids never learn to spend less than they are making and thus will not have any savings.
So, @doschicos, one of the key messages is frugality and living below oneās means.
Exactly. And this person gets all that already and doesnāt need that hammer on the head which is a good thing because thatās the trickier part for most people, I think.