Debt Dumpers - 2018

[jen7233]

March is also a three paychecks month for me, 1st, 15th, and 29th. But, I treat the 29th paycheck as if it's really for April 1st. In other news, yes the new tax law had a small effect on my check by $36 more. I have new debt I have to tackle in the next few months that was added on to my SW credit card. But, it's the debt to my agency I mentioned early on. So, it's not from a random fun splurge or anything!

And, we still haven't filed taxes. Am I the only one that hasn't yet on here?

There are quite a few President's Day sales out there that caught my interest. Target has a 30% on home items. Plus some furniture places. My older son needs a new bed, but I think we're going to hold out until he's 13 and get one then.

 

[DisneyMandC]

Sorry to go off debt dumping topic again, but I am curious--when I was in law school, most people took the course in person with a live teacher teaching the subjects, but I think that has changed??? Do most people do an online self-study now? I also took the Texas bar. One of my friends had graduated early and taken the February bar and did not pass, so she was taking it again with us in July. I think that added some to my study group's anxiety, to have a smart friend that somehow did not pass the first time. I can't imagine having the heightened anxiety of so many sitting around you that were re-taking it.

"It was the most exhausting academic experience of my life." I completely agree with you!

When I used Barbri in 2014, the live classes were taught at a law school in the northern part of my state, and live streamed on the Barbri website for us to watch. My school had viewings of the videos in the morning, so you could come in and watch it there. My school was about a 35 minute commute for me though, so it made more sense for me not to waste over an hour of my day and just sit at home and watch them and take the notes. Everything else (practice tests, essays, etc.) was online. They also send you the gigantic stacks of books too.

 

[Alexle2007]

March is also a three paychecks month for me, 1st, 15th, and 29th. But, I treat the 29th paycheck as if it's really for April 1st. In other news, yes the new tax law had a small effect on my check by $36 more. I have new debt I have to tackle in the next few months that was added on to my SW credit card. But, it's the debt to my agency I mentioned early on. So, it's not from a random fun splurge or anything!

And, we still haven't filed taxes. Am I the only one that hasn't yet on here?

There are quite a few President's Day sales out there that caught my interest. Target has a 30% on home items. Plus some furniture places. My older son needs a new bed, but I think we're going to hold out until he's 13 and get one then.

Not alone on the taxes. We always wait until the bitter end since we always end up owing Uncle Sam and that's even with DH and I having 0 exceptions and having extra withheld.

DH and I actually fared very well with the new tax law. He has an extra $101 in his pay and I have an extra $164 per pay. We're thinking about putting DS10 in private school in the fall since our math program for 7th grade lags behind the other counties who offer Algebra I in 7th and ours doesn't offer Algebra I until 8th grade. So the extra income will cover about 1/4 of the cost of private school. I get my final meaningful step increase in March so that will be an extra boost also. As that point, I will be at the level that the final steps will not be an increase since our pay cannot be more than the executives so that really sucks. I'll have to hope for good COLA increases.

 

[MamaBelleRN]

Anxiously awaiting to hear about compensation at the new PRN job. I was called yesterday afternoon to see what I thought about it. They are not going to post the position publicly, so it’s mine if I want it! I read more details of their benefits packages and I think even with a big pay cut, it would be worth it. For example, after five years of full time service even if the employee were to die, their children would still recieve the full college tuition benefits. Additionally, they offer short term income replacement at no cost to the employee. They cover 100% of your pay for up to 26 weeks if you have an event that qualifies for short-term disability (maternity not included). These are true for both exempt and non-exempt employees. I might cry a little if the offer is really low, but that kind of security is incredible.

I was expecting my DH’s paycheck to have a bit more in it today, but it was the exact same I’m also getting a little nervous because our tax return has still not been approved. While we have all the documents we need if we were to be audited, dealing with a headache like that seems stressful. I’m probably anxious for nothing since we just filed on Sunday, but I don’t remember it ever taking this long to get approval once they had been accepted.

 

[Eureka]

March is also a three paychecks month for me, 1st, 15th, and 29th. But, I treat the 29th paycheck as if it's really for April 1st. In other news, yes the new tax law had a small effect on my check by $36 more. I have new debt I have to tackle in the next few months that was added on to my SW credit card. But, it's the debt to my agency I mentioned early on. So, it's not from a random fun splurge or anything!

And, we still haven't filed taxes. Am I the only one that hasn't yet on here?

There are quite a few President's Day sales out there that caught my interest. Target has a 30% on home items. Plus some furniture places. My older son needs a new bed, but I think we're going to hold out until he's 13 and get one then.

We haven't filed yet either. We're not expecting much back so no rush. It also took a while to get one of the forms we needed.

 

[Jen and Ashwin]

Anxiously awaiting to hear about compensation at the new PRN job. I was called yesterday afternoon to see what I thought about it. They are not going to post the position publicly, so it’s mine if I want it! I read more details of their benefits packages and I think even with a big pay cut, it would be worth it. For example, after five years of full time service even if the employee were to die, their children would still recieve the full college tuition benefits. Additionally, they offer short term income replacement at no cost to the employee. They cover 100% of your pay for up to 26 weeks if you have an event that qualifies for short-term disability (maternity not included). These are true for both exempt and non-exempt employees. I might cry a little if the offer is really low, but that kind of security is incredible.

I was expecting my DH’s paycheck to have a bit more in it today, but it was the exact same I’m also getting a little nervous because our tax return has still not been approved. While we have all the documents we need if we were to be audited, dealing with a headache like that seems stressful. I’m probably anxious for nothing since we just filed on Sunday, but I don’t remember it ever taking this long to get approval once they had been accepted.

I hope the offer is a good one. Remember, you can always counter with something if you feel it is too low.

And I wouldn't worry too much about the tax return. A lot of people probably got their tax documents recently, so there might have been a large influx of filings.

 

[Jen and Ashwin]

DD had her 4 month wellness exam on Tuesday. The doctor commented on her having an overall tight demeanor. DD also had a shake in one of her arms that the doctor was initially concerned about, but then said that it was probably due to her being cold, since I had just undressed her. The doctor asked me about her milestones, such as smiling, making eye contact, picking things up and holding her hands together. She does all of those things, with the exception of rolling. But I had read in my baby book that not all babies start rolling at 4 months. She seems to be getting closer though, since she often rolls on to her side. But after I got home, I got a bit concerned and did way too much reading the internet. That obviously made me even more concerned, since hypertonia (high muscle ton) can be a sign of cerebral palsy. But she is really still too young to tell if it is a larger problem like that.

I told DH that the doctor had mentioned that DD seemed tight and he thought that we should take her back to physical therapy. So I called the pediatrician's office this morning and they gave us a referral. So once the referral goes through, I will be scheduling some more sessions with the PT that DD saw before. I am hoping that this is just a temporary thing that she will outgrow and that it isn't a sign of a larger problem.

I wish I had put more money into our FSA. I had to decide on the amount for the year before DD was even born. We have already gone through about 1/3 of the money and it isn't even the end of February yet.

 

[Dentam]

And, we still haven't filed taxes. Am I the only one that hasn't yet on here?

I've done mine but haven't filed and won't until next month at the earliest. I will owe almost $200 so am not in a rush to pay it. I also feel like Turbo Tax, which I've used the past few years, is too expensive so I'm going to look into other options for filing online.

 

[DisneyMandC]

DD had her 4 month wellness exam on Tuesday. The doctor commented on her having an overall tight demeanor. DD also had a shake in one of her arms that the doctor was initially concerned about, but then said that it was probably due to her being cold, since I had just undressed her. The doctor asked me about her milestones, such as smiling, making eye contact, picking things up and holding her hands together. She does all of those things, with the exception of rolling. But I had read in my baby book that not all babies start rolling at 4 months. She seems to be getting closer though, since she often rolls on to her side. But after I got home, I got a bit concerned and did way too much reading the internet. That obviously made me even more concerned, since hypertonia (high muscle ton) can be a sign of cerebral palsy. But she is really still too young to tell if it is a larger problem like that.

I told DH that the doctor had mentioned that DD seemed tight and he thought that we should take her back to physical therapy. So I called the pediatrician's office this morning and they gave us a referral. So once the referral goes through, I will be scheduling some more sessions with the PT that DD saw before. I am hoping that this is just a temporary thing that she will outgrow and that it isn't a sign of a larger problem.

I wish I had put more money into our FSA. I had to decide on the amount for the year before DD was even born. We have already gone through about 1/3 of the money and it isn't even the end of February yet.

Hope the physical therapy helps! Don't listen to anything anyone says on the internet (present company excluded)!

 

[Tygerlilly]

I’m also getting a little nervous because our tax return has still not been approved. While we have all the documents we need if we were to be audited, dealing with a headache like that seems stressful. I’m probably anxious for nothing since we just filed on Sunday, but I don’t remember it ever taking this long to get approval once they had been accepted.

Today was the day they released all the EIC and child tax credit returns to be processed also, so you might be caught up in all of that.

 

[dayvewc]

Today was the day they released all the EIC and child tax credit returns to be processed also, so you might be caught up in all of that.

Ugh. I was having to wait for a non-deductible IRA contribution form that wasn't released until yesterday sometime. I got mine filed this morning, and the return has been accepted. Just waiting for the refund to be approved. Looking for a deposit on March 2, but would have really appreciated it coming in next Friday. Hoping that state return will be back by then. It is usually less than a week turn-around.

 

[ruadisneyfan2]

DD had her 4 month wellness exam on Tuesday. The doctor commented on her having an overall tight demeanor. DD also had a shake in one of her arms that the doctor was initially concerned about, but then said that it was probably due to her being cold, since I had just undressed her. The doctor asked me about her milestones, such as smiling, making eye contact, picking things up and holding her hands together. She does all of those things, with the exception of rolling. But I had read in my baby book that not all babies start rolling at 4 months. She seems to be getting closer though, since she often rolls on to her side. But after I got home, I got a bit concerned and did way too much reading the internet. That obviously made me even more concerned, since hypertonia (high muscle ton) can be a sign of cerebral palsy. But she is really still too young to tell if it is a larger problem like that.

I told DH that the doctor had mentioned that DD seemed tight and he thought that we should take her back to physical therapy. So I called the pediatrician's office this morning and they gave us a referral. So once the referral goes through, I will be scheduling some more sessions with the PT that DD saw before. I am hoping that this is just a temporary thing that she will outgrow and that it isn't a sign of a larger problem.

I wish I had put more money into our FSA. I had to decide on the amount for the year before DD was even born. We have already gone through about 1/3 of the money and it isn't even the end of February yet.

Some years are that way. Don't be hard on yourself. There are so many unpredictable things you're dealing with. Just when you have it all down something changes and you keep tweaking & trying & changing. Some years ours is gone in May, other years it's September. I still don't want any leftover in December so it's all good.
You're doing all the right things for your little girl and that's the important thing.

 

[Ngwira]

Ugh. I was having to wait for a non-deductible IRA contribution form that wasn't released until yesterday sometime. I got mine filed this morning, and the return has been accepted. Just waiting for the refund to be approved. Looking for a deposit on March 2, but would have really appreciated it coming in next Friday. Hoping that state return will be back by then. It is usually less than a week turn-around.

We filed Sunday and refund was approved on Wednesday (we can't claim EITC or child tax credit, sadly, as it phases out at our income level). DD is showing on 2/20/18. However, state refund (NJ) won't be in until after March 1, 2018.

 

[ruadisneyfan2]

Still swimming here!
I'm almost at the halfway mark to saving $10k for a new car down payment. If all goes as planned, I'll be able to start in July on saving for Christmas, then in Sept start on our 3-6 months expenses. Part of me wants to rearrange my priorities and save the 3-6 months savings first; it will happen a lot faster with no car payment biting into my snowball. I'm also tossing around the idea of waiting off on the car even longer so I can buy it without needing a loan. I've never paid cash for a car and think that would feel great to get a car and not have to deal with the headache of a car payment. I have no real urgency to get a new car; it's a 2006 with only 55,000 miles on it that I bought new. I'm just tired of it and there's some things that don't work anymore but cost too much to fix and I refuse. Like the power side doors (it's a minivan). Toyota wants like $2200 to replace the cable that rusted out. Um no thanks, I can open and close it myself. (One side still works as it should.)
Also the 3rd row seating folds down to become flat with the floor. It has a 60/40 split so the smaller side still folds down but the other side won't. They said it would take hours of labor just to diagnose the problem and they can't even give me an estimate until that is done. Never mind.

We got $835 back on federal which went to the new car fund. We don't qualify for child tax credit either, which is ridiculous. We are far from wealthy. It took a week for our refund to arrive.
We owe $80-something to the state so they will get it Apr 17. We usually get a better refund and never owe but this year we had over $4700 in bank bonuses which all must be declared. Oh well. I was enjoying that extra $ last year when it helped us splurge on amazing hotels on our trip last summer.

Have a great weekend everyone!

 

[Ngwira]

Still swimming here!
I'm almost at the halfway mark to saving $10k for a new car down payment. If all goes as planned, I'll be able to start in July on saving for Christmas, then in Sept start on our 3-6 months expenses. Part of me wants to rearrange my priorities and save the 3-6 months savings first; it will happen a lot faster with no car payment biting into my snowball. I'm also tossing around the idea of waiting off on the car even longer so I can buy it without needing a loan. I've never paid cash for a car and think that would feel great to get a car and not have to deal with the headache of a car payment. I have no real urgency to get a new car; it's a 2006 with only 55,000 miles on it that I bought new. I'm just tired of it and there's some things that don't work anymore but cost too much to fix and I refuse. Like the power side doors (it's a minivan). Toyota wants like $2200 to replace the cable that rusted out. Um no thanks, I can open and close it myself. (One side still works as it should.)
Also the 3rd row seating folds down to become flat with the floor. It has a 60/40 split so the smaller side still folds down but the other side won't. They said it would take hours of labor just to diagnose the problem and they can't even give me an estimate until that is done. Never mind.

We got $835 back on federal which went to the new car fund. We don't qualify for child tax credit either, which is ridiculous. We are far from wealthy. It took a week for our refund to arrive.
We owe $80-something to the state so they will get it Apr 17. We usually get a better refund and never owe but this year we had over $4700 in bank bonuses which all must be declared. Oh well. I was enjoying that extra $ last year when it helped us splurge on amazing hotels on our trip last summer.

Have a great weekend everyone!

$4700 in bank bonuses..woah.. I bow down to you! That's boss!

 

[Dentam]

My car is up and running! Only took the mechanic about half an hour to replace the starter and it runs great now so it seems that the sensor replacement I did was also successful. The mechanic's charge was $78 which feels like money very well spent. New starter was $115 which I purchased myself from an auto parts store within walking distance of my house. Used a 15% off coupon on it. New battery with installation was $165 and the new sensor was $15. So, in total, I've spent almost $400 on car maintenance this past month. I've actually been very lucky since the last larger repair I had was over five years ago (also the starter) and it's just needed general maintenance (oil changes and a throttle position sensor that I installed myself) since.

I went and did some grocery shopping today after the mechanic left (hadn't been to a store in a couple of weeks) and also got my car washed. Nice to have it all clean and ready to go for hopefully at least another year!

 

[pblack]

My car is up and running! Only took the mechanic about half an hour to replace the starter and it runs great now so it seems that the sensor replacement I did was also successful. The mechanic's charge was $78 which feels like money very well spent. New starter was $115 which I purchased myself from an auto parts store within walking distance of my house. Used a 15% off coupon on it. New battery with installation was $165 and the new sensor was $15. So, in total, I've spent almost $400 on car maintenance this past month. I've actually been very lucky since the last larger repair I had was over five years ago (also the starter) and it's just needed general maintenance (oil changes and a throttle position sensor that I installed myself) since.

I went and did some grocery shopping today after the mechanic left (hadn't been to a store in a couple of weeks) and also got my car washed. Nice to have it all clean and ready to go for hopefully at least another year!

 

[jen7233]

My car is up and running!

Great!!!

'm almost at the halfway mark to saving $10k for a new car down payment. If all goes as planned, I'll be able to start in July on saving for Christmas, then in Sept start on our 3-6 months expenses. Part of me wants to rearrange my priorities and save the 3-6 months savings first; it will happen a lot faster with no car payment biting into my snowball.

That's a great halfway mark. I've got a little over $3k earmarked for my next car, had 9k but had to divert 6 for another reason. I figure if my car breaks down between now and when ready for my next one, I will finance one if I find the right finance agreement terms. My car right now I owned outright from day one, yes it has been a nice feeling the whole time, but it was so hard to write that check and see it leave the account
when I got the car that first day off the lot!

I am hoping that this is just a temporary thing that she will outgrow and that it isn't a sign of a larger problem.

I hope everything goes well for her!​

Anxiously awaiting to hear about compensation at the new PRN job.

Exciting and hope it's good news to come!

To everyone waiting also to file, glad I'm not the only one! I feel like we're behind, it's just been busy and haven't gotten to it. Slowly entering things on TurboTax though. DH is mainly handling our taxes, I just reference back and forth and make sure we got it all since I do the finances.

 

[dayvewc]

We filed Sunday and refund was approved on Wednesday (we can't claim EITC or child tax credit, sadly, as it phases out at our income level). DD is showing on 2/20/18. However, state refund (NJ) won't be in until after March 1, 2018.

So, DD is direct deposit, I'm guessing.

It is showing up about a week after approval? Hmmm, I thought they only issued funds on Fridays. Fingers crossed mine gets approved Mon/Tues and it's the same delay.

 

[JacknSally]

So, DD is direct deposit, I'm guessing.

It is showing up about a week after approval? Hmmm, I thought they only issued funds on Fridays. Fingers crossed mine gets approved Mon/Tues and it's the same delay.

Ours was accepted and approved on a Sunday and direct deposited not the following Wednesday but the one after that.