Anyone get a stimulus check already? Curious.

[lpereira]

If that's because you make over 75k, or 150k jointly, that's a good thing.

There are other reasons why one wouldn't qualify. My husband is in Brazil, hopefully coming home soon. But because have have a farm there that might clear $2,000 US a year if we are lucky, we have to file foreign income. We don't even come close to the cutoff for income but that foreign income precludes us from getting it.

 

[Starport Seven-Five]

But I can answer the second part. There are people who are still employed but have increased expenses with everybody home. They’ve had to upgrade internet, pay for unlimited plans, they’re using more in utilities. And the cost of commodities has gone up and they’re using more of it with everybody home. UI doesn’t help these people, but it doesn’t mean they’re not struggling.

The vast majority of these people are reaping the benefits of not going into an office though. Fuel, clothes, vehicle wear & tear, etc more than offset any costs at home.

 

[Traveling on cc points]

Actually somebody on page one said checks shouldn’t be going out to anybody.

But I can answer the second part. There are people who are still employed but have increased expenses with everybody home. They’ve had to upgrade internet, pay for unlimited plans, they’re using more in utilities. And the cost of commodities has gone up and they’re using more of it with everybody home. UI doesn’t help these people, but it doesn’t mean they’re not struggling.

It’s called a stimulus. So some people will use it to be made whole. Those who don’t need to use it that way should spend it, so it’s used for its intended purpose- to stimulate the economy. It was never meant to be need based. Privileged people decided it suddenly was.

It’s arbitrary for you to decide that just because somebody is still employed, they don’t need the money.

I stand corrected if someone said that. I assumed everyone had compassion for those who are suffering financially because they lost their job through no fault of their own.

I agree with most everything you wrote. We have extra bills expenses from working from home too but because we live in a high cost of living state, we get excluded from getting a check.

 

[RangerPooh]

The vast majority of these people are reaping the benefits of not going into an office though. Fuel, clothes, vehicle wear & tear, etc more than offset any costs at home.

We are saving some money on clothing, but kids grow and we still had to replace their clothes and shoes as they are in school. While I’m still working from home DH is only half the time, so there’s a commute there. Plus we still pay our monthly parking fee at work. Employees were actually discouraged from canceling it as the fees help to fund parking and police services on campus. Gas prices have gone up and I still replaced the tires on my van, just delayed it two months.

But internet costs increased with both of us working from home AND our kids in hybrid programs at school. Our power bill has increased some as people are home all day compared to a year ago.

 

[starry_solo]

I have yet to receive mine, but I'm not in dire straits so I can wait. I'm also waiting on my W-2 to file my tax return. Since I claim 0 with my employer, I expect to get at least a small return.

I'm also curious about how everybody feels regarding the current Stimulus situation. The $600 checks are going out, but as I understand it, the push for $2,000 checks got completely denied and it's unlikely well ever see that remaining $1400 in the future. I think it unlikely that we will see a third stimulus package either now that we have a vaccine slowly being distributed to the population.

I think people should get the $2000 stimulus and that the feds need to give the $300/week unemployment boost directly to the unemployed worker, rather than letting the states do it. The states have mucked that up a lot.

 

[DisneyJamieCA]

The vast majority of these people are reaping the benefits of not going into an office though. Fuel, clothes, vehicle wear & tear, etc more than offset any costs at home.

They do not more than offset any costs at home. I speak from personal experience. Having all 6 of us home all day is costing us WAY more than if things were normal.

ETA: To break it down for you, my kids’ schools are within 3 miles of our house. It cost us next to nothing to get them there. DH’s commute was 15 miles. DD drives a hybrid, both DH and I drive diesel. Vehicle gas didn’t cost us much. We have had to replace a car battery because DH’s car sat at home so long though. Nobody wore special clothes to work/school, so nothing changed there. No increased expenditures, but no savings.

We have 6 of us at home. We did have to pay to upgrade our internet. We had to buy equipment to make sure everybody was getting strong enough bandwidth/was hard wired. We had to run the a/c more in the summer and the heater more in the winter with everyone home. We use more gas, electricity and water. We are buying more in food, the price of which has gone up. We’re buying more of the ever elusive tp. Trust me when I say the basics are costing us a lot more.

 

[dvcgirl67]

We fall into the category of retirees who will get it but don't need it. I have already made donations to my local food bank and community outreach center in anticipation of getting the money. As to someone upthread who said our kids will be paying for it, true, but that also applies to the tax cut which benefitted rich folks and increased the national deficit.

Good for you. My parents and in-laws are in the same boat, and they're givers. My Mom said that their funds hit today, and I'm sure my in-laws will hit soon too...we'll speak to them tomorrow. It's just very difficult for the government to shovel money out quickly that is perfectly targeted to every person who needs it. So our parents do their part by donating-giving some away. And for those who don't technically need it, but are able to build up an emergency fund with that money....good for them. They'll sleep better for it.

 

[DisneyJamieCA]

I have yet to receive mine, but I'm not in dire straits so I can wait. I'm also waiting on my W-2 to file my tax return. Since I claim 0 with my employer, I expect to get at least a small return.

I'm also curious about how everybody feels regarding the current Stimulus situation. The $600 checks are going out, but as I understand it, the push for $2,000 checks got completely denied and it's unlikely well ever see that remaining $1400 in the future. I think it unlikely that we will see a third stimulus package either now that we have a vaccine slowly being distributed to the population.

What I really want to say will get me points, so I’ll leave it with that the full amount is long overdue. Our system is broken when one person in each house of Congress can decide if a bill makes it to the floor or not and that I want to see ALL of Congress give up their $170,000 paychecks and Cadillac health care and then decide what people may or may not need.

I hate the infighting, but if that’s what they want to do, they can go back to that. But to ignore the needs of the people they represent in this moment is reprehensible to me.

Ok, I still may end up getting points.

 

[Foxhound3857]

What I really want to say will get me points, so I’ll leave it with that the full amount is long overdue. Our system is broken when one person in each house of Congress can decide if a bill makes it to the floor or not and that I want to see ALL of Congress give up their $170,000 paychecks and Cadillac health care and then decide what people may or may not need.

I hate the infighting, but if that’s what they want to do, they can go back to that. But to ignore the needs of the people they represent in this moment is reprehensible to me.

Ok, I still may end up getting points.

You could PM the people who liked this post if you want to vent. Any one of us will listen.

 

[JAMIESMITH]

Ours is pending until Monday. My husband and I both worked more hours than normal this year as the industries we work in are booming. We make less than $75K per year combined, but live in what is probably the poorest and lowest cost of living state in the country so we are actually middle class. With that said, we can definitely put the extra money to good use. I'd rather see money go to Americans than foreign countries. The defocit worries me, but not because of the stimulus.

 

[Foxhound3857]

I WISH I could upgrade my internet, as it would open up the possibility to do my schooling entirely from home (until internship at a hospital, at least). But no, I'm still stuck with Frontier Wireless DSL, after almost 20 years. There's still nothing better available in my area.

 

[tvguy]

View attachment 547276View attachment 547277
View attachment 547278View attachment 547279
I think this is what comes to mind for most people about gov't chz and PB.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Government_cheese

This is the stuff we got here. Huge blocks of real cheddar cheese. https://www.wsj.com/articles/usda-to-buy-additional-20-million-of-cheese-1476217829

 

[Heather07438]

This is the stuff we got here. Huge blocks of real cheddar cheese. https://www.wsj.com/articles/usda-to-buy-additional-20-million-of-cheese-1476217829

That's the plus side of living in Wisconsin The gov't knew fake cheese wouldn't be tolerated there.

 

[kdonnel]

Phases out above that. Those are just the lines for a full check.

This is for the last stimulus so the dollar amounts are double but the same limits were used:
View attachment 547275

Actually I believe the income limits were changed.

So in this second round it phases out to zero at $87,000 for single filers and zero at $174,000 for joint filers.

 

[Starwind]

There are other reasons why one wouldn't qualify. My husband is in Brazil, hopefully coming home soon. But because have have a farm there that might clear $2,000 US a year if we are lucky, we have to file foreign income. We don't even come close to the cutoff for income but that foreign income precludes us from getting it.

FYI, for a US citizen, foreign income *alone* does not preclude one from being eligible for the payment if one meets the other requirements [eg income threshold, SSN, etc].

Even US citizens living abroad with no US source income are eligible providing they meet the requirements.

This is H&RBlock info for US expats on the CARES Act [1st round] of stimulus payments: https://www.hrblock.com/expat-tax-p...w-and-policy/coronavirus-stimulus-checks-faq/

See this article from Business Insider which has a section on expats and their eligibility for the second stimulus payments: https://www.businessinsider.com/personal-finance/second-stimulus-check


SW

 

[lpereira]

FYI, for a US citizen, foreign income *alone* does not preclude one from being eligible for the payment if one meets the other requirements [eg income threshold, SSN, etc].

Even US citizens living abroad with no US source income are eligible providing they meet the requirements.

This is H&RBlock info for US expats on the CARES Act [1st round] of stimulus payments: https://www.hrblock.com/expat-tax-p...w-and-policy/coronavirus-stimulus-checks-faq/

See this article from Business Insider which has a section on expats and their eligibility for the second stimulus payments: https://www.businessinsider.com/personal-finance/second-stimulus-check


SW

I shall be sure to send your opinion on to the IRS and the specialized cpa we have doing our taxes every year. I expect I will get last year's stimulus money and this December's as well.

 

[tvguy]

That's the plus side of living in Wisconsin The gov't knew fake cheese wouldn't be tolerated there.

Probably the same with California. Only Wisconsin makes more cheese than California.

 

[penn19]

Don’t qualify.

 

[Starwind]

I shall be sure to send your opinion on to the IRS and the specialized cpa we have doing our taxes every year. I expect I will get last year's stimulus money and this December's as well.

For the first stimulus payment, see https://www.irs.gov/newsroom/economic-impact-payment-information-center-topic-a-eip-eligibility

Q A2. Am I entitled to a payment as a U.S. citizen living abroad? (updated October 26, 2020)
A2. Yes, if you are a U.S. citizen living outside the country, you may be eligible for a payment. If you have an SSN that s valid for employment, you can’t be claimed as a dependent by another taxpayer., and your adjusted gross income does not exceed a certain amount. Nonresident aliens who file or would file Form 1040-NR or Form 1040-NR-EZ are not eligible for the payment.

What they don't mention is the situation of a couple filing jointly where one spouse has an SSN and the other does not, which originally made the SSN-having spouse ineligible. That was revised with the second payment and made retroactive subject to some conditions.

I haven't see an IRS FAQ yet for the second payment that addresses US citizens abroad, but multiple reputable US expat accounting and news website have said they are also eligible for the second payment.

 

[bcla]

That's the plus side of living in Wisconsin The gov't knew fake cheese wouldn't be tolerated there.

For years Wisconsin wasn't really known for making much other than commodity-grade cheese. I mean - it's real cheese but was never anything special.