This is the time of year that everyone in the US files their taxes and either owe money or get a refund. Unless of course they perfectly set up their withholding for the year and ended up with a nice $0 at the bottom of their tax return. If your final result is a tax refund, that […]
Category: Financial Independence
Mapping Out Our Financial Rube Goldberg Machine
We recently returned from our all-inclusive trip to Cancun that only cost us a couple hundred dollars thanks to credit card rewards. I was going to write up a review of the Hyatt Zilara we stayed at, but PDX Deals Guy recently did just that and I don’t have much to add. It was an […]
One of Life’s Little Inefficiencies: Travel
Becky and I love to travel and are frequently looking forward to the next big trip where we can see and experience new and exciting things. Ever since we starting travel hacking with credit cards and promotions, the amount of travel we’ve been able to do each year has continued to increase (and the costs […]
Reviewing Our 2015 Expenses
Tracking what you are spending money on is probably the most important thing you can do to improve your finances if you aren’t doing it already. I started tracking pretty much every dollar we spent back in 2014 and it’s been eye-opening to say the least. Our current spending strategy is not based on specific budgets for […]
Your Credit Score Might Not Be As High As You Think
Very recently a combination of factors lined up to make refinancing our mortgage a smart financial decision for us. A year-end bonus and our house appreciating meant it was time to look into dropping Private Mortgage Insurance (PMI), as discussed here, plus interest rates are about half a percent lower than when we got the […]
The Math Behind Paying Down a Mortgage with PMI
I’ve mentioned a few times that we bought our house with only 10% down and are currently paying Private Mortgage Insurance (PMI) on a monthly basis. The PMI was necessary to get the loan because we didn’t have the standard 20% down payment required to get a traditional, non-PMI insured, mortgage loan. One of our major […]
Our Side Gig Successes In 2015 – Churning, Arbitrage, and More
As 2015 winds to a close, it’s a good time to look back over the year and see how we did financially compared to our goals. Back in 2014, we discovered the idea of financial independence and decided to set ourselves up with a lifestyle that balances maximizing life in the present and setting ourselves […]
Optimizing Taxes Over A Lifetime
One of the largest expenses most people will face in their life is taxes and for the most part, there just isn’t any way around it. After all, the old saying claims the only things certain in life are death and taxes. Fortunately, the taxes that must be paid over the course of a lifetime […]
Comparing Medical Plans and Using the HSA choice as a Free Raise
I previously discussed how the HSA can be a beneficial retirement account because of it’s triple tax benefit and a recent change in Becky’s contract will allow us to put that information to use. While I have had access to an HSA eligible plan since starting my career, Becky previously only had a single medical plan which […]
The Value Of An Extra $100
I recently signed up for a PNC checking account through a promotion that will reward me $200 for jumping through a few hoops and I had an interesting thought after clicking the apply button. Why am I doing this? Probably a question one should answer before going ahead with anything, but I think I’ll be okay in this […]