WOMEN IN RED RACERS

[chiver78]

Mar 14, 2024 20:52:50 GMT -5 minnesotapaintlady said:

I'd be tempted to just pay it off rather than risk messing it up.

that's kind of the problem. I'm trying to balance a bunch of shit that i could just pay off, but all of the work stuff is making me squirrelly like I was when everything was *that* tight and I needed to know exactly where every cent was going. we'll just call it some PTSD there. I just climbed into bed, and will see how I feel about it all in the am.

[lark1964]

Mar 14, 2024 12:47:14 GMT -5 chiver78 said:

I'm feeling less intelligent after speaking with someone at my credit card company. can y'all explain this to me like I'm stupid? this is my daily user, that I've been paying off monthly up until I took advantage of their "easy pay" thing for a couple large balances last month (one of which was boarding the pups while I went on vacation...). there's no distinction when I log in as to how much of the "current balance" is that Easy Pay balance vs what will be charged interest at the purchase rate if I don't wipe out that balance. I want to not incur balance, other than the Easy Pay plan for those two charges. 

*dummy numbers here, for ease of following the conversation with a different number for each term.
my cycle closes on the 26th of the month, and as of 2/26 it was $6k*. when I open up the statement, the grid on p1 says Previous Balance was $3k, with payments of $3k, another credit of $2k (Easy Pay number) and purchases of $8k. am I correct in understanding that as long as I pay off the $6k by the payment due date of 3/23, that I will not incur interest on that amount? 

where I got all kinds of confused was that the woman on the phone was telling me that there's more information than needed in the statement (what??) and that all I needed to worry about to not incur interest was to make sure that the Previous Balance was paid - the $3k and that I'm all set. the $6k wouldn't begin to incur interest until I pass the next statement cycle, and that I'm ahead of the game. 

that doesn't feel right to me.... halp? my understanding is that my minimum payment being like $400 instead of under $100 means that the Easy Pay installments were added, and I should be paying on the statement balance at this time. I threw a chunk at it last paycheck, just trying to figure out what's left. also, it would be nice to have an understanding on their reporting so I know wtf I'm looking at, too. 

This sounds very like a bait and switch: we all know how balance transfers work, this sounds more like usury, but it's your established credit card so it shouldn't be this way, right? 

I think you have to pay the whole thing off, or you're going to get slammed, and there isn't much you can do about it at this time, because you're right in the middle of it. But you CAN initiate a class action lawsuit, I'm sure there are a lot of other folks who have been screwed over like this. Bottom line, you got had. You have legal recourse in the long run, but for now - iff you can, pay it. Or transfer the balance to another card offering you a balance transfer or something. I would stop doing business with them altogether after this.

Gad, they're everywhere.

[chiver78]

whoa, this isn't that, at all. this is basically that they are NOT doing what MPL showed Chase doing, and what I said American Express did awhile back. 

I'm just trying to figure out what I owe in the current cycle as to not incur interest. I don't want to pay off the entire current balance right now as I just booked more travel so the numbers are all over the map. I think I'm going to call in later today and see if a different person can explain it to me more clearly than yesterday's woman. 

[Minnesotagirl7]

Sorry racers, only have time to update Smileys this morning.

Keep up the great work. And for those going through a rough patch - hang in there!!


Link to Smileys

[chiver78]

Mar 15, 2024 8:58:37 GMT -5 chiver78 said:

whoa, this isn't that, at all. this is basically that they are NOT doing what MPL showed Chase doing, and what I said American Express did awhile back. 

I'm just trying to figure out what I owe in the current cycle as to not incur interest. I don't want to pay off the entire current balance right now as I just booked more travel so the numbers are all over the map. I think I'm going to call in later today and see if a different person can explain it to me more clearly than yesterday's woman. 

UPDATE! I just got off the phone with a different Barclay's operator, who confirmed that what I thought was the case is the case - the "statement balance" of $6k* is what needs to be paid by the next cycle closure date. I've already made a payment toward that with my last paycheck, and I know what is remaining on that statement balance. 

today's operator was pretty horrified when I explained what I was told last week, and opened a ticket for the original call to be reviewed by managers so that the other operator can be educated on her misinformation. 


*using the same dummy number as original question

[minnesotapaintlady]

It's awesome when it's so confusing that even their customer service people don't know how it works. 

[chiver78]

ikr?? I felt bad about explaining what last week's call entailed, b/c after explaining what I wanted to accomplish and what I thought was right, and then getting that confirmation? whoo.....I knew last week's operator was in for it with her bad info.

oh, and I should also confess - I rolled the remaining part of that statement balance into the BT I processed today. I consolidated the non-racing balances plus this additional at round numbers for the math. I also set up payments today for the lingering non-rounds after BT for all three (daily user plus the two promos) and I'm clear again. I should know what my tax return situation will be in the next week or so, it's usually ~$1k back for Fed, and I owe a few dollars (literally) for MA state. by rolling the rest of the statement balance into that BT, I keep more easily liquid cash on hand to fund the landscaping 2nd phase, which needs to happen this spring. I'm good with this.

[ners]

Update 

49,769.45 (1/3/2011 $97,382.42 MPT5)

Just plugging along.

[nidena]

Okay, so I put the tree removal on my CC and, with that being my everyday card, the balance is now around $6000 at 13.39%.  My PL has a balance of $9500 at 13.38%.  I have ~$3000 to put towards the two.  While I know the snowball would say put all but minimums towards my CC, my thought process is to put $2000 towards the CC and $1000 towards the PL.  Or vice versa.  In either case, I know I'll put ~$1500 on the CC during the next month because, again, it's my everyday card.  The minimum payment on the PL is $275.  The CC has no minimum because I always pay so much towards it every month.  And, in either scenario, I won't pay off either balance so I'm just trying to decide which will make me happiest.



This is for my April 1st paycheck.

ETA: I welcome your thoughts. 

[muffyinthered]

MuffyintheRed #2 2/23/2024 160,207.02 (06/22/2020 $175.394.16)

Amount paid -$+2,2762.19

CU Savings - $25,6778.38 

I went up again! We bought our new mattress and I put it on our CC. In May our Bank of America BT will be paid off and I will transfer the balance to another BT. Until then this card has 3.9% interest so not too much for very long. Then we will be back to normal, what ever normal is!

Wisconsin is not getting spring this year. We are cold and had snow over the weekend. Why did I move back here?

[nidena]

Muffy, your numbers look a little wonky in your tag line.

[snapdragon]

Mar 21, 2024 19:24:55 GMT -5 nidena said:

Okay, so I put the tree removal on my CC and, with that being my everyday card, the balance is now around $6000 at 13.39%.  My PL has a balance of $9500 at 13.38%.  I have ~$3000 to put towards the two.  While I know the snowball would say put all but minimums towards my CC, my thought process is to put $2000 towards the CC and $1000 towards the PL.  Or vice versa.  In either case, I know I'll put ~$1500 on the CC during the next month because, again, it's my everyday card.  The minimum payment on the PL is $275.  The CC has no minimum because I always pay so much towards it every month.  And, in either scenario, I won't pay off either balance so I'm just trying to decide which will make me happiest.



This is for my April 1st paycheck.

ETA: I welcome your thoughts. 

If your everyday card already has $6000 - than I would put 2k towards that and the other 1K towards your PL. Or, split the amount evenly at $1500 towards each. For me personally I would want to work on paying the higher balance which is your PL. 

Finances are individual so YMMV.

[muffyinthered]

Nidena - Thank you for pointing out my mixed up numbers.  Fixed now!  Still not good.

[Minnesotagirl7]

Update!

	3/18/2020	2/23/2024	3/27/2024	Total Difference
Mortgage	$403,476.12	$169,382.36	$166,624.33	$236,851.79

Diff Last Post	$2,758.03
Total Amt Pd	$236,851.79
Total % Pd	58.7%

Minnesotagirl7 [6]: 3/27/24 $166,624.33 (3/18/20 $403,476.12 C220)


Regular payment again. Next milestone I'm excited for is $250k paid off. Should hit that in August. And in September should be under $150k. 

[chiver78]

ugh. it shouldn't be this difficult to read a CC statement. I just had to call Barclays again about what is the correct balance I need to pay in order to not see interest charges. again, not the actual numbers. just accentuating that they are all different. WTF?? 

logging in to the online portal, I see statement balance of $6k

pull up the actual statement pdf and see statement balance of $5500 on the first page

scroll to the interest calculation grid near the back of the thing,
Standard Purchases at 25.24% - $5000
Easy Pay #1 - pup boarding
Easy Pay #2 - cruise deposits

and then below the grid, this is where it gets even more confusing:

Avoiding Interest on Purchases (Grace Period) ( Excluding Easy Pay Promotional Balances):

If you have a 0% promotional APR on any of your Purchase balances (excluding Easy Pay), you can avoid paying interest on those balances during the applicable promotional period. However, pay at least your Minimum Payment Due to avoid a late fee.    <- this one doesn't apply.

If you do not carry a Purchase balance subject to interest (excluding Easy Pay) from month to month, you can avoid paying interest on your Purchases (excluding Easy Pay) by paying $4000. To avoid interest, you must pay the amount indicated above in full.

<snip> another situation that doesn't apply here

I tried mathing it out. the pair of Easy Pay line items do not add up to any of the differences between the pair of statement balances, standard purchases, or that random $4k line in the quote. WTF? the poor woman on the phone took a long time with me listening to shitty muzak to try and get clarity around where the $4k number came from and what it means. she was just as confused as I am, and said that I should ignore the other numbers other than the Standard Purchases in the interest calculation grid as that is what is subjected to the absurd standard APR. the APR that didn't bug me b/c I've been paying the card off every month. lesson learned, I'm not using Easy Pay again. 

the end result of the call was that I was able to secure a 3.99% promotional rate through next January for new purchases. that will cover me through the Easy Pay payment period, so I don't have to stress about correctly paying off the month's purchases. if I miscalculate somewhere, the interest hit won't be awful. oy. 

[nidena]

What an absolute clusterf*ck, chiver.

[lark1964]

So.... I learned something very interesting from my BIL the other day: "guy speak".

Like, when you have a contractor make you an offer to replace your HVAC system, and quotes you a price of $15K, and then you ask all your questions, and the final one is -

"How much of a break will you give me if I pay you in $100 bills?"

No sales tax. And then - down to $12,000. Flat. All inclusive, replacing everything with the new setup, 10 year parts warranty, removing all the old stuff - including the oil tank - everything! After one year I may have to pay for an annual service call to replace filters (currently a $100 fee).

Yep. The bank has to order the cash to have on hand when I pick it up next Wednesday. And the contractor will be at my door on Thursday. Hand out. 

Guy Speak.

[chiver78]

that's not guy speak, that's contractors helping each other out. if you go this route, get that warranty in writing if you think it's going to hold water later.

[TheOtherMe]

If you are withdrawing $12,000 in cash from your bank, the bank has to report that to the IRS via a Currency Transaction Report.  

You are also aiding and abetting in tax fraud.

[minnesotapaintlady]

Realizing now that I maybe can't go hell bent on this debt for awhile unless I reduce retirement contributions which I don't want to do. I have so many additional expenses this year ($3200 for my son's camps alone) and have no idea what the final cost of the siding job will be until they tear it off and assess the underlying damage. The $1400 car repair bill and $1000 cat bill last month left me having to put the property taxes on my new Chase business card so that was kind of the wake up call for me to take my foot off the gas a little. I might just plug along at the $350/month I set up for awhile,

Eta: The Chase card is 0% until next February and the bill isn't technically due in full until November (half in May, half November) so I'm not going to count this debt just use the credit card bill as a reminder to keep throwing money at the taxes every month.

MPL  4/4/24  $18,467.40. (2/22/24 $23,000)

eta: realized I forgot to change the date.

[azucena]

Apr 3, 2024 9:54:23 GMT -5 minnesotapaintlady said:

Realizing now that I maybe can't go hell bent on this debt for awhile unless I reduce retirement contributions which I don't want to do. I have so many additional expenses this year ($3200 for my son's camps alone) and have no idea what the final cost of the siding job will be until they tear it off and assess the underlying damage. The $1400 car repair bill and $1000 cat bill last month left me having to put the property taxes on my new Chase business card so that was kind of the wake up call for me to take my foot off the gas a little. I might just plug along at the $350/month I set up for awhile,

Eta: The Chase card is 0% until next February and the bill isn't technically due in full until November (half in May, half November) so I'm not going to count this debt just use the credit card bill as a reminder to keep throwing money at the taxes every month.

MPL  2/28/24  $18,467.40. (2/22/24 $23,000)

Mpl - I'm here to affirm this latest thinking. Your debt is a short term necessary thing so don't let it disrupt your long term retirement goals. The math won't be in your favor. Math >>> financial feelings every time.

[nidena]

Apr 3, 2024 9:52:55 GMT -5 TheOtherMe said:

If you are withdrawing $12,000 in cash from your bank, the bank has to report that to the IRS via a Currency Transaction Report.  

You are also aiding and abetting in tax fraud.

There are plenty of companies that offer reduced prices when folx pay with cash.  This instance just happens to align with an amount that makes the sales tax negligible.  Kind of like the original price included sales tax, even though it was an even amount.  It's just a whole lot easier to say $12,000, total, rather than $11,160 + 7% sales tax (as an example).

As far as the CTR, it's going to be very easy to see that her $10,000+ is from a home equity loan that she just opened.  The money didn't just magically appear.  She's not laundering anything.

[TheOtherMe]

Receiving cash also means he isn't going to pay income tax on it and both parties know that.  That is fraud that both are participating.

Contractor probably does this on other jobs.

I'm paying my contractor by check, not $$$$ in $100 bills.

She will have no proof of payment and that guarantee is iffy at best.  

Not anything I would do.  I don't pay contractors in actual cash for these reasons.  I have no proof they were ever here and did anything.  Why would I leave myself wide open to that.

I have gotten discounts for paying cash by check.  That's the professional way to do it.

[chiver78]

update! just turtling along here... minimum plus interest is $182, and I'm sending them $500/mo. I might dial that back a little, actually.

the pair of BT promos are 0% through 2024, so I'm going to take this time to bump the AmEx savings back up some more. it's a little bit lower than I'd like it to be while I navigate work shit. My CPA reached out with a couple questions about forms for my tax return over the weekend. once they accepted the answers, they said I'd have my finished return by the end of this week. that's good. whatever little I get back from Fed, I can throw in to savings as well.

chiver78 4/4/24 $6,407.54 (5/9/20 $138,495.31)

[minnesotapaintlady]

Apr 4, 2024 2:30:33 GMT -5 azucena said:

The math won't be in your favor. Math >>> financial feelings every time.

I need this reminder a lot. It's tough, when I don't really NEED to be saving much of anything to meet my retirement goals anymore, I could easily coast in at this point, but the weird place I am income-wise has me with nearly a 40% marginal rate! And that's not even considering financial aid (which isn't an issue this year or next, but will be again in 2026).

Paying off debt even at 6.5% (or whatever it resets to in November) doesn't make sense over putting the money in tax-preferred.  Skipping Roth is an option and I dialed that way down to almost nothing this year, but now I'm thinking if I'm really using math over feelings I should be dialing down the 529s and even raiding them as much as possible. 

[Rukh O'Rorke]

Apr 3, 2024 9:54:23 GMT -5 minnesotapaintlady said:

Realizing now that I maybe can't go hell bent on this debt for awhile unless I reduce retirement contributions which I don't want to do. I have so many additional expenses this year ($3200 for my son's camps alone) and have no idea what the final cost of the siding job will be until they tear it off and assess the underlying damage. The $1400 car repair bill and $1000 cat bill last month left me having to put the property taxes on my new Chase business card so that was kind of the wake up call for me to take my foot off the gas a little. I might just plug along at the $350/month I set up for awhile,

Eta: The Chase card is 0% until next February and the bill isn't technically due in full until November (half in May, half November) so I'm not going to count this debt just use the credit card bill as a reminder to keep throwing money at the taxes every month.

MPL  4/4/24  $18,467.40. (2/22/24 $23,000)

eta: realized I forgot to change the date.

weird - I'm going through similar challenges.

What is the chase business card for? do you have a side business? but then how would you be able to charge personal expenses there....unless the property is part of the business?

[Rukh O'Rorke]

Apr 4, 2024 2:30:33 GMT -5 azucena said:

Apr 3, 2024 9:54:23 GMT -5 minnesotapaintlady said:

Realizing now that I maybe can't go hell bent on this debt for awhile unless I reduce retirement contributions which I don't want to do. I have so many additional expenses this year ($3200 for my son's camps alone) and have no idea what the final cost of the siding job will be until they tear it off and assess the underlying damage. The $1400 car repair bill and $1000 cat bill last month left me having to put the property taxes on my new Chase business card so that was kind of the wake up call for me to take my foot off the gas a little. I might just plug along at the $350/month I set up for awhile,

Eta: The Chase card is 0% until next February and the bill isn't technically due in full until November (half in May, half November) so I'm not going to count this debt just use the credit card bill as a reminder to keep throwing money at the taxes every month.

MPL  2/28/24  $18,467.40. (2/22/24 $23,000)

Mpl - I'm here to affirm this latest thinking. Your debt is a short term necessary thing so don't let it disrupt your long term retirement goals. The math won't be in your favor. Math >>> financial feelings every time. 

Could you expand on this azucena? I've always pushed to put everythign I could into retirement savings, but like MPL, I'm getting to a point with too many liability payments, upcoming projects that need to be paid for and thinking I need to pull back on 401k for a while.

I hate to do it, but I'm not seeing a way forward so interested in the Math side of this.....

Also my current 401k contributions are going into cashish type fund right now, not the market, so not sure if that changes anything....

[minnesotapaintlady]

Apr 4, 2024 11:27:31 GMT -5 Rukh O'Rorke said:

Apr 3, 2024 9:54:23 GMT -5 minnesotapaintlady said:

Realizing now that I maybe can't go hell bent on this debt for awhile unless I reduce retirement contributions which I don't want to do. I have so many additional expenses this year ($3200 for my son's camps alone) and have no idea what the final cost of the siding job will be until they tear it off and assess the underlying damage. The $1400 car repair bill and $1000 cat bill last month left me having to put the property taxes on my new Chase business card so that was kind of the wake up call for me to take my foot off the gas a little. I might just plug along at the $350/month I set up for awhile,

Eta: The Chase card is 0% until next February and the bill isn't technically due in full until November (half in May, half November) so I'm not going to count this debt just use the credit card bill as a reminder to keep throwing money at the taxes every month.

MPL  4/4/24  $18,467.40. (2/22/24 $23,000)

eta: realized I forgot to change the date.

weird - I'm going through similar challenges.

What is the chase business card for? do you have a side business? but then how would you be able to charge personal expenses there....unless the property is part of the business?

It's just me chasing sign on bonuses. Turns out you don't need a business plan or income or anything to get a business card.    So, my side gig of pet/farm-sitting was fine for them. I've met the minimum spend already for the bonus and will be probably just be closing it right after it's paid off.

[chiver78]

well, nevermind on adding to savings. this year, I owe MA $146 and Fed $347. that's weird. womp womp. 

[Minnesotagirl7]

Shoutouts!


ners - Your debt is under $50k!!! Woo hoo!!!

muffyinthered - Sounds like things will settle down for you in the coming months – fingers crossed!

minnesotapaintlady - Good for you for taking a step back and looking at the bigger picture!

chiver78 - Nice update!



Link to Smileys