Miss Tequila
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Post by Miss Tequila on Apr 29, 2020 12:56:16 GMT -5
I saved on commuting costs and eating out but those were more than offset by only half of my tenants paying this month. I am not sure what May will hold as far as rent.
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lynnerself
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Post by lynnerself on Apr 29, 2020 13:20:27 GMT -5
It depends how you look at it. We are retired and so our income was not affected. The CARE check was not needed. We're getting refunds back from all the trips we planned. Our credit card is in the negative numbers. But our net worth as taken a huge hit. DD was furloughed from her part time job. DS had his hours reduced 20%. Both are getting more in unemployment than their lost income.
However, DD will probably not get her job back and I'm hoping the company DS works for stays in business.
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djAdvocate
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Post by djAdvocate on Apr 29, 2020 13:47:45 GMT -5
definitely worse.
I lost 10% of my retirement savings in March. April has been much better. cut it in half.
income the same. cash on hand the same. all in all = did alright.
but it is not even close to over.
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pooks
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Post by pooks on Apr 29, 2020 14:28:46 GMT -5
First we had 2 nonmonetary unforeseen benefits.
DH's project got an extension, which was great, because that project was not going to make the deadline.
DD had given up on school and grades in the final semester. Her grades when school closed were almost all low B's and that was up from C's earlier in the semester. Anyway with this wonky grades can only go up system they put in place, she will end the year with one B and the rest A's. Strange how things work out.
Monetarily we are saving a bit more because of not traveling for work. We didn't get the stimulus check. DD's little part time job doesn't need her back yet, so we will see how that goes.
The extended family seems to all be weathering this pretty well. A mix of working from home and essential workers. Because of the stimulus checks, they are in better shape than when this started.
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tractor
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Post by tractor on Apr 29, 2020 17:25:19 GMT -5
We’re running about level with where we were before all this started. Both the wife and I work from home, and are very fortunate to have very stable jobs with no risk of a layoff (she’s a teacher, I work in the electric generation industry). Our commuting costs are lower, but our food costs have gone up, especially with two boys home.
However, I always worry about the future so I have been using anything “extra” to aggressively pay down debts. I suspect we will come out financially better when this is over.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Apr 29, 2020 17:52:12 GMT -5
I'm retired with stable sources of money--SS and teacher pension from the state. But as others have said, my retirement savings have taken a hit. Fortunately, I wasn't planning on hitting my retirement savings for anything else. I did a withdrawal to paint the house in January, but actually moved the money to cash in December. I ended up getting stimulus $$$ for DH. I put most of it into savings, but did give some of it to my church, my painter, and my electrician. I've been working on the house so I did about $500 worth of projects that I wanted done. They appreciated the work. I know I do more online shopping so I may be worse off and not know it.
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Post by The Walk of the Penguin Mich on Apr 29, 2020 19:17:11 GMT -5
Well, it looks like out benefits have been not so much. TD just got laid off from this job. His last day is 5/15.
Now the big question is whether or not he wants to retire. We can handle him retiring early and it was in the cards when they threw this job at him. But he got a good offer that he could not resist. It still comes down to access to health insurance, COBRA is only going to last 18 months.
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MN-Investor
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Post by MN-Investor on Apr 30, 2020 2:19:47 GMT -5
My biggest expenses these days are the books I download onto my Kindle. I have absolutely no self control there and my previous $30/mo habit has bloomed into a $50/mo habit. Does your local library have e-books you can check out?
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plugginaway22
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Post by plugginaway22 on Apr 30, 2020 6:31:42 GMT -5
No financial benefits! COVID made us lose net worth! Our retirement goals are hopefully not changing, but we are getting too close to see numbers like this.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Apr 30, 2020 6:41:45 GMT -5
I ended up getting stimulus $$$ for DH. Have you seen this? www.yahoo.com/news/treasury-wants-stimulus-payments-dead-010712389.htmlContrary to an earlier article I read, they're now claiming that people who received stimulus payments for dead spouses have to give them back. That's going to be a cruel blow to older people and other beneficiaries who desperately needed the money.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Apr 30, 2020 7:28:31 GMT -5
I ended up getting stimulus $$$ for DH. Have you seen this? www.yahoo.com/news/treasury-wants-stimulus-payments-dead-010712389.htmlContrary to an earlier article I read, they're now claiming that people who received stimulus payments for dead spouses have to give them back. That's going to be a cruel blow to older people and other beneficiaries who desperately needed the money. You are right. I did read that right after posting. However, people who earned too much in 2019 can keep theirs if paid based on 2018. And people can continue to make more money on unemployment than they did working. And big businesses can continue to beat out small businesses for "small business" loans. And businesses, large and small, can keep those forgiveable loans and use them for bonuses. But families who might have benefited from the little bit of extra are doing something wrong. That doesn't really describe me, though. I'm fine with giving his back.
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Blonde Granny
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Post by Blonde Granny on Apr 30, 2020 7:36:51 GMT -5
My check was deposited into my savings account. I haven't done anything with it. The money I've spent replenishing my sewing room equipment came from my checking account. My medical costs from starting to see a chiropractor this week will also come from checking and my monthly income.
I guess my life doesn't change much.
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flamingo
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Post by flamingo on Apr 30, 2020 8:02:38 GMT -5
I'd say besides the drop in our retirement accounts, we are about the same. We haven't gotten our stimulus money yet, though I expect it will show up soon. I'll pay off my CC with part of it, save the other part. My DH is semi-retired, and works from home all the time anyway, so his income is unchanged. My job has deemed me essential to the function of the business, though our business isn't essential, so I'm WFH at full pay currently. I don't think they'll furlough me (given what all my bosses have told me), though they are furloughing others. We are spending about the same at the grocery store - even before this, we almost never ate out together beyond coffee/bagels on the weekends. My 2x per week lunches out have been curtailed, but that's a relatively small expense for us.
My online shopping hasn't increased too much. May and June are always big spending months for me due to Mother's Day, DH's birthday, sister's birthday, Mom's birthday, and Father's day. But this would have happened regardless.
Oh! I haven't bought gas since March 17. And I'm nowhere near needing it yet. So, that's saving me $30ish every fillup, which even when I could go somewhere averaged about once every 1.5 weeks.
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GRG a/k/a goldenrulegirl
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"How you win matters." Ender, Ender's Game
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Post by GRG a/k/a goldenrulegirl on Apr 30, 2020 9:08:45 GMT -5
Well, it looks like out benefits have been not so much. TD just got laid off from this job. His last day is 5/15. Now the big question is whether or not he wants to retire. We can handle him retiring early and it was in the cards when they threw this job at him. But he got a good offer that he could not resist. It still comes down to access to health insurance, COBRA is only going to last 18 months. Ouch! Sorry, TD.
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GRG a/k/a goldenrulegirl
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"How you win matters." Ender, Ender's Game
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Post by GRG a/k/a goldenrulegirl on Apr 30, 2020 9:09:32 GMT -5
And my big dog is sick. I could just cry. He's the best dog ever. I’m sorry. Hugs to you and your big dog.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Apr 30, 2020 9:14:56 GMT -5
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TheHaitian
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Post by TheHaitian on Apr 30, 2020 9:36:46 GMT -5
I'd say besides the drop in our retirement accounts, we are about the same. We haven't gotten our stimulus money yet, though I expect it will show up soon. I'll pay off my CC with part of it, save the other part. My DH is semi-retired, and works from home all the time anyway, so his income is unchanged. My job has deemed me essential to the function of the business, though our business isn't essential, so I'm WFH at full pay currently. I don't think they'll furlough me (given what all my bosses have told me), though they are furloughing others. We are spending about the same at the grocery store - even before this, we almost never ate out together beyond coffee/bagels on the weekends. My 2x per week lunches out have been curtailed, but that's a relatively small expense for us. My online shopping hasn't increased too much. May and June are always big spending months for me due to Mother's Day, DH's birthday, sister's birthday, Mom's birthday, and Father's day. But this would have happened regardless. Oh! I haven't bought gas since March 17. And I'm nowhere near needing it yet. So, that's saving me $30ish every fillup, which even when I could go somewhere averaged about once every 1.5 weeks. Have you tried : www.irs.gov/coronavirus/get-my-paymentI did not get mine either and decided to check this out and it told me I needed to provide a bank account. Now waiting on it to be deposited...
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flamingo
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Post by flamingo on Apr 30, 2020 9:41:23 GMT -5
I'd say besides the drop in our retirement accounts, we are about the same. We haven't gotten our stimulus money yet, though I expect it will show up soon. I'll pay off my CC with part of it, save the other part. My DH is semi-retired, and works from home all the time anyway, so his income is unchanged. My job has deemed me essential to the function of the business, though our business isn't essential, so I'm WFH at full pay currently. I don't think they'll furlough me (given what all my bosses have told me), though they are furloughing others. We are spending about the same at the grocery store - even before this, we almost never ate out together beyond coffee/bagels on the weekends. My 2x per week lunches out have been curtailed, but that's a relatively small expense for us. My online shopping hasn't increased too much. May and June are always big spending months for me due to Mother's Day, DH's birthday, sister's birthday, Mom's birthday, and Father's day. But this would have happened regardless. Oh! I haven't bought gas since March 17. And I'm nowhere near needing it yet. So, that's saving me $30ish every fillup, which even when I could go somewhere averaged about once every 1.5 weeks. Have you tried : www.irs.gov/coronavirus/get-my-paymentI did not get mine either and decided to check this out and it told me I needed to provide a bank account. Now waiting on it to be deposited... Yes, and I finally was able to put my bank info in last week sometime. It just hasn't updated to tell me when they will deposit my money. My Dh is horrified that I was willing to put in my account info. He's very distrustful of direct deposit anything. But, even though I don't need the money, if the government is determined to give it to me, I'd like to get it without the hassle of a paper check. It's ok. We aren't in need of the money quickly. So I can be patient.
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NoNamePerson
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Is There Anybody OUT There?
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Post by NoNamePerson on Apr 30, 2020 9:50:41 GMT -5
Yeah, I’m $1,200 richer. My financial situation hasn’t changed one iota. Price of gas is way down but I drive a car that gets 30mpg in town driving. One perk of being retired. Haven’t noticed increase in food I buy like some others have mentioned. I need a new pc and printer. Plus my microwave convection oven combo decided to die last week. Had it since 96 so died a natural death. Only reason for not replacing all of these items right now is due to “no return” policies in place right now. Not taking chance on something being wrong or whatever with these purchases and being stuck waiting out return period. I may have to relearn cooking in big real oven for a while so listen out for fire trucks
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MN-Investor
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Post by MN-Investor on Apr 30, 2020 10:47:52 GMT -5
I'm retired and living on social security and investments. I have enough in liquid assets so that I don't need to be selling any stock at this time, but it does suck to see my investments decrease in value. I've gone out to the IRS get-my-payment website and it confirms that I qualify for a refund. Then it tells me that I have to enter bank information, so I do that. Then it asks me to confirm my AGI and refund from my latest tax return. I haven't filed for 2019, so I input the data from 2018 and it replies that my information does not match their files. Huh? So I'll just wait. I'm sure they're confused by the fact that my DH passed away in 2018 so, even though I filed a joint tax return, my DH's social security number is in their deceased taxpayers list. It's not a big deal since I'm just going to turn around and donate that $1,200 to the local food shelf.
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teen persuasion
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Post by teen persuasion on May 1, 2020 21:25:36 GMT -5
DH's agency is apparently desperate for cottage staff (for the residential students) - they are asking for volunteers (presumably from among the teaching staff) who would get the additional pay on top of their teacher's salary! Double dipping - they are not in their classrooms currently, but that doesn't mean not working - they ARE still creating lesson plans and putting together packets for students (can't assume they have online access) and contacting students/holding office hours daily.
As I said, apparently desperate. What did Cuomo say - if you want to go back to work right now, take a job at an essential employer, they're hiring.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on May 6, 2020 14:40:02 GMT -5
You are right. I did read that right after posting. However, people who earned too much in 2019 can keep theirs if paid based on 2018. And people can continue to make more money on unemployment than they did working. And big businesses can continue to beat out small businesses for "small business" loans. And businesses, large and small, can keep those forgiveable loans and use them for bonuses. But families who might have benefited from the little bit of extra are doing something wrong. That doesn't really describe me, though. I'm fine with giving his back. @athena53 , the IRS has come out with the process of how to return the $$$. You write them a check along with a note and mail it to an address based on your state. For once, I am not rushing to do something. The criteria they came up with is severely flawed. If a person died in 2020 before physically receiving the check (or deposit), that person's family also has to return the $$$. That makes no sense as in you still owe income tax after you die and you can still get an income tax refund after you die. Those are particularly vulnerable situations where the family has probably already spent the $$$. It's very different from sending money to someone who died in 2018 or even someone like me whose husband died in late 2019. I can't tell you how many times I've rushed to do something that I was told was mandatory, and then the rules changed. A case in point is that we were required to make a video of us teaching with documentation of objectives/outcomes/etc. and submit it. I was one of the first to submit just to get it over with. It took an enormous amount of time that I really didn't have. And so many people didn't submit that the administration said, "Oh, never mind. Submit it if you feel like it." What?!!! I don't think the IRS is going to say, "Oh, never mind." And I've only spent 10% of his (because I tithed on the stimulus money above my usual contribution). But I want to let the dust settle on this very quiet announcement of the process that I discovered by accident. I'll give it about a month unless I get a letter directly for the IRS asking for it. I think the payment would go into limbo right now, anyway, sort of like my tax refund on a return submitted in February.
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Ryan
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Post by Ryan on May 6, 2020 16:48:57 GMT -5
Outside of market dips, I'm doing pretty well financially. My wife is a teacher, so no change there. My full-time job supports an essential business and we're up 20% from last year, so things are going well.
My online business is 2x what it was last year and, because some competitors relied on Amazon to fulfill their product (and they are delayed), we have some advantages with being able to ship directly to customers.
Commuting costs are obviously way down and I'm just spending less overall.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on May 6, 2020 18:37:28 GMT -5
I'll give it about a month unless I get a letter directly for the IRS asking for it. I think the payment would go into limbo right now, anyway, sort of like my tax refund on a return submitted in February. I agree. They really don't have their act together about this. The first article I saw on the subject said family could keep it; it was only later that the IRS said no, you can't. They'll find you!
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oped
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Post by oped on May 6, 2020 18:52:02 GMT -5
Our stimulus hit today. I'm thinking I'll use at least part of it to reup memberships... to the zoo, science museum, local art house theater, local big cat rescue... this will benefit me... but also is what they need right now to keep going. The rest will sit for now as we wait to see what happens next.
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countrygirl2
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Post by countrygirl2 on May 6, 2020 19:02:52 GMT -5
No money, but I was finally able to get into the Get Payment. I found an article that said put in your address exactly as it appears on the USPS zip code lookup. Ours gets put in all different ways. So I looked it up, by the way you need to use all caps and it pulled it up! You also have to enter zip plus 4, finally it came up to enter my bank info, it said I will have it deposited, when I have no idea. It would not take the info for DD. MIL got hers, wish she hadn't just adds more issues to her accounting. Has to be spent within a year for her.
I'm thankful we don't need the money, know 2 folks that do, nothing, no $600,. no stimulus, they are getting frantic.
I am spending less as we don't go anywhere. But we do buy things from Amazon.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on May 6, 2020 19:14:27 GMT -5
No money, but I was finally able to get into the Get Payment. I found an article that said put in your address exactly as it appears on the USPS zip code lookup. Ours gets put in all different ways. So I looked it up, by the way you need to use all caps and it pulled it up! You also have to enter zip plus 4, finally it came up to enter my bank info, it said I will have it deposited, when I have no idea. It would not take the info for DD. MIL got hers, wish she hadn't just adds more issues to her accounting. Has to be spent within a year for her. I'm thankful we don't need the money, know 2 folks that do, nothing, no $600,. no stimulus, they are getting frantic. I am spending less as we don't go anywhere. But we do buy things from Amazon. Welcome back!
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countrygirl2
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Post by countrygirl2 on May 6, 2020 19:22:49 GMT -5
Thank you
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stillmovingforward
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Post by stillmovingforward on May 6, 2020 19:39:51 GMT -5
Yes that! I have missed hearing from you.
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bobosensei
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Post by bobosensei on May 6, 2020 22:44:00 GMT -5
I got 1100 something for stimulus money. I just started a home refi that will save me hundreds a month. My 401k match was cut in half for a year amounting to a loss of 2108. I'm driving less. I've spent more on groceries. Work says no bonus in october or merit increases. We may even have to furlough or take pay cuts. I work in tech and our main customers are healthcare. Open enrollment will be starting soon because we start new insurance plans July 1. I expect that after a 2 years of no premium increases that this year will be up. So overall I am worse off. I'm not complaining though.
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