Looking for 20-something bloggers! April 28, 2008

So, I know that well-heeled is running a series for 20-something money stories, but I guess my post is looking for something different: I’m looking for a list of blogs. I feel like there should be a specific community for people in our situation…you or some blogger you know or read may be some or any of the following:

• Recently out of college
• Recently joined the working world
• 20-29 years old
• Looking at personal finance options
• Trying to get on track financially
• Something similar that seems to fit…

As of right now, I know that there’s me, Well Heeled, Tough Broad, Mya Moola…I realized that this is all women so far…but men in a similar position should be included! It would be especially interesting to compare, and see how different it might be for different people.

See, the way I see it, once there’s a nice list of all these blogs, it will be easier to find…other bloggers can use that list in their blogroll, and we can all read each other’s blogs, providing advice, support, and congratulations!

I’m sure there’s something out there already, and I’m just going to feel silly when someone tells me about it..I’m guessing that plenty of people already have a nice list like that on their blogroll…Budgeting Babe pointed over to the US News Page with a lot of helpful information for 20-somethings…and there’s the finwikian, which I’ve just added myself to, and I just created a 20-somethings list over there as well. It takes a bit to understand how to use it if you’ve never used a wiki before, but I encourage all you personal finance bloggers to add yourself to the database and the appropriate lists. If you have trouble with it, let me know. In the meantime, still suggest blogs (so I can add them to the finwikian as well as my blogroll and my own personal feed reader), so that we can get this community going!

Sharing Assets, Sharing Debts April 28, 2008

My boyfriend and I were joking about getting married the other day, and he joked that he’d want a prenup, as I’m bringing more debt to the playing field than he is. That got me to thinking…would I want to share my debts and assets? I don’t know if it’s just me, but I kind of want to be responsible for my debts, and keep my money to myself. I don’t want whoever my future husband is to have to shoulder my student loan debts. But I guess, I also sort of selfishly want to keep my money to myself, too. I read in plenty of personal finance blogs about how couples share everything, moneywise.  I think I wouldn’t mind having a joint bank account with my guy, where shared costs like housing, utilities, food, dining out, etc. would get paid from, and we’d put a certain amount in that account every month to cover those expenses.  I know my parents share their money, and I admire that in them.  Maybe this just proves that I’m not ready to get married any time soon.  Don’t worry, I’m not expecting it (in case he’s reading this…we’ve only been together a year)!

So, you single folk, dating folk, married folk…when it comes to money, what situation do you prefer, or assume you’ll do when you get into a long term relationship?

The good thing about e-filing is… April 16, 2008

You get your refund a lot faster!

I used TurboTax to prepare and file my taxes. Well, actually, I e-filed my state taxes, but had to mail my federal taxes (I had to include a document from work). But the awesome part is that because I e-filed, and opted for direct deposit, I already got my state refund!

Other awesome things related to taxes (if you can say there are awesome things about taxes…) is that there are some good tax breaks/deductions (I can’t remember which…) that I was able to take advantage of. They allow deductions for rent you pay, cost of commuting (subway passes and/or EZ-Pass), and for interest on your student loans. Those were the big three that kicked in for me, and granted there are limits for your deductions, but it made me happy to see at least some effect.

That’s all I got for today. Hopefully you’ve all filed your taxes by now…and if you haven’t, you’ve filed an extension.

Getting excited about housewares and decorating April 13, 2008

Sometime after I graduated, I start to get really excited about getting and using assorted housewares. My first Christmas after college, I asked for mixing bowls and a liquid measuring cup. For my last birthday, I requested an electric griddle. I’ve been reading decorating and housewares related blogs, like CasaSugar, decor8, Hostess with the Mostess, and Apartment Therapy (and the other blogs Apartment Therapy has), and watching shows like Small Space Big Style, Decorating Cents, and Design on a Dime. I some day hope to have the big fancy stand mixer (yes, just like they say in the oft referenced Stuff White People Like). In the meantime, I am using the stand mixer that I inherited from my grandmother.

Every once in a while, I get this sudden urge to decorate, to cook using high-tech tools, to buy useful and/or decorative things…for example, after reading a post about some modern-looking fabrics, I realized I really wanted to buy some cute towels for the kitchen and bathroom, all coordinated and everything. Sure, some of it is that commercial, consumer push to have the next best thing. But I’m thinking that I’ve gotten to a certain age where I know it’s time to be a grownup. I guess I am, to some extent. I have a degree, I have a job, I’m paying bills, making meals, cleaning around the house…but I think I’m in some sort of strange transition still. I think I find myself acting the part of someone more grown up than I actually am, mostly because I realize I need to be mature at this point in my life. I suppose the lighter side of all these housewares and decorating urges is that I’m looking forward to having my own place, where I can decorate it however I want, and have all the things I might need to keep my house in working order.  I’ve been trying to be frugal and not buy anything extra, but at some point, I really just want to start buying all the pretty, fancier, more expensive, less necessary items that you find in a house.

I just wonder…is all this want for these things bad?  I don’t think so.  It’s a sign I’m getting older, thinking about my future.  Maybe that’s it.  Who knows?

Looking at the positive of the recession April 11, 2008

The Feds keep lowering rates, which is unfortunate for my savings account, but great for my student loans.  As I’ve mentioned in the past, ING, as well as most other banks that offer “high yield” savings accounts are staying close to the Federal Fund Rates, which is currently 2.25%.  And so my account has suffered a little, but I haven’t taken any money out of my “emergency fund”, except to fully fund my Roth IRA for 2007.  Since I had started the Roth IRA halfway through the year, I didn’t put enough in to cover the $4,000 max for last year.

Anyway, I just wanted to remind you to check your rates that depend on the Federal rate.  Some rates are fixed (for me that means my consolidated student loans stay at 4.5%), but other rates depend on the Federal rate.  While I don’t worry about credit card rates (I pay off my balance every month), some credit card rates are based on the Fed rate plus some constant extra percent above that.  The one rate that I’m excited about is my student loan rates.  I owe a large chunk of money for student loans that follows the Fed Rates…and every quarter, they readjust their interest rates accordingly (I’ve heard many companies do this).  So while ING and other banks follow the Fed rate very closely, these rates go at a slower pace.  So, currently, those loans are only at 6%!  Which still is a lot, but it’s a lot better than the 8.5% it was a year ago.

Oh, and Trent at The Simple Dollar wrote an article about the recession and what’s going on…it’s pretty good, you should check it out!

Thinking about housing April 5, 2008

At the end of my lease, I will have lived in the same apartment for 2 years. We have the top 2 floors of a 3 floor, two family house. I love how big it is, and how low the rent is compared to that of some of my friends. But it’s too far away. I complain, when I note that it takes me 20 minutes to walk home from the subway, when I’m walking quickly. And many friends complain that we live to far away to visit or come to parties. I’ve begrudgingly become used to the walk, knowing which buses to catch if I want to get a little bit closer to the T, shorten my commute by a few minutes to get out of the rain/cold/wind/heat/uncomfortable shoes. And I’ve noticed with such a large, open apartment in an old house leads to relatively high gas/heating bills. So that cost would be nice to lower…

So there are many things to consider:

Q. Should we move?

A. Technically, we could probably get another lease for the next year. We’d have to find a replacement for at least one of our roommates, since he’s planning on moving out at the end of the lease anyway.

Q. If we move, who should we live with?

A. This is a rather complicated situation for us. So, A and I have been dating for almost a year, but we’ve both been living here (with 2 other roommates) for the 2 years of the lease. And we’ve known each other since the begining of college. So we know each other pretty well. I wouldn’t mind living with some of our friends…in fact I think I’d still prefer that to just the two of us…I think it would be weird if it were just the two of us. Plus it would (most likely) be more expensive with just the two of us.

Q. Where should we live?

I very much want to live closer to the T. Both for the sake of shortening my commute, and to urge friends to visit more often. Plus I think living closer will help me get more motivated to be social and go out instead of being lazy and staying in. I’m thinking I’d want to live on the Red Line, perhaps Davis, Porter, Harvard, or Central Square.  I guess I could also live in Boston, but that would mean a bit longer of a commute (switching from the Green Line to the Red Line).  I love all the fun stuff to do in the squares, and living closer to at least one of them would probably get me out trying new things.

Q. Rent or buy?

A. With the current housing market, I keep thinking about buying.  But then I realize it’s a heck of a lot of money, and that I don’t know how long I’ll be around this area (hopefully a while, but who knows?), and well, owning is pretty darn permanent by comparison to renting.  I would like the ability to alter things more (I’ve been watching plenty of decorating shows!), but I figure I can wait a little bit longer and continue to put money away towards a down payment.

So, what am I doing about all these questions?  I’m browsing Craigslist, and discussing housing with friends, both to determine roommate possibilities and to learn more about some apartment and house hunting experiences and opinions.

Sorry for the large gap in postings.  I was having a blog-identity crisis and wasnt sure what subjects to post about.  I was thinking about what my friends blog about, and wondered if I should shift in that direction.  I think I’ll still stick with personal finance related topics and decisions that 20-somethings face.  But we’ll see where we go from here.  Any suggestions are greatly appreciated!