Financial Update – Dec 2020

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Goodbye 2020. You will not be missed.   Another month, another update. A few random comments. Good Reads/Listens/Watches The Finance Buff on the “CARES Act 2.0” (link). $300 (single) / $600 (married) non-itemized charitable deduction for 2021. Does not affect 2020. Cash only — no appreciated securities.  Mankiw’s NYT article on the double-edged sword of … Read more

Coronavirus Stimulus 2.0 hit my Fidelity account today

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Well, that happened pretty fast. My Coronavirus Stimulus 2.0 hit my Fidelity (which has lightening fast ACH processing times) account this morning. If you don’t bank with Fidelity, presumably this will hit your account tomorrow?   Here’s what I understand about the new stimulus: $600/adult + $600/kid if aged 16 or younger. 5% phase out … Read more

The Power of Staying the Course

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The Not-Terribly-Astute Observation I frequently marvel at the grand 401k experiment that we’re embarking on. In the absence of pension funds, all of us with 401k’s are pension fund managers. As such, our future livelihoods depends on: Having the discipline to save early and often by forgoing consumption now Understanding how to leverage the US … Read more

My low-cost investing crusade; some recent developments and maybe a victory?

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Frustrating (but Important) Committee Work I was asked by my university to serve on a committee to help select “an expert consultant” to tell us what is wrong with our 401a/403b/457 plans. If you haven’t had the joy of serving on an administrative university committee before, you’re missing out. It’s about 10 times more inefficient/frustrating … Read more

Financial Update – Nov 2020

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Another month, another update. A few random comments. Good Reads/Listens/Watches Bill Gates and Rashida Jones (Karen Filippelli from “The Office”) started a new podcast (link). I’m unsure how the two joined forces, but it has been pretty entertaining so far. In one episode they interviewed Raj Chetty (famous Harvard Economist) about inequality and in another … Read more