General Adulthood, Planning for the Future: Business, College, Budgeting, Investments, etc! $$$ - General

staying alive hopefully fake edit: what do you enjoy doing

Unfortunately, not everyone's lives or circumstances are the same. There's no one timeline that fits all. The only thing you can really know is that at 26, you'll need to get your own insurance coverage. If you can afford it. Besides that, shit's up in the air. Some people retire at 30, others never retire. Some people buy houses, other people rent their whole life. Marriage and relationships, career paths, family, the economy, your interests, and your willingness to pursue education all factor into your personal timeline. But I will say that for some people, it may take time. In this day and age, you measure your success by your satisfaction, not by a set of arbitrary goals at each age interval. Don't worry about that. You do you.

In Florida, all public local community colleges will grant guaranteed admission to a public state university upon earning an AA. I've never heard of people unable to transfer credits from community colleges into universities until seeing it online. It should be pretty easy to research if a certain university accepts credits transferred from a certain community college. The issue I'm currently suffering because of is that I was told to complete a "general studies" AA instead of opting for a major specific track AA regardless of the major. In my case, I noticed on a pamphlet that my community college offered a specific pre-computer engineering AA for those planning to eventually major in computer engineering at a university. I brought it up to an academic advisor and they told me to ignore it and simply take the general studies AA. When I finished that and started at my university, my computer engineering academic advisor was visibly in disbelief that I was told such a thing because she sees very few students transferring in as a junior (with an AA) that didn't have the pre-engineering credits that I don't have. I know it's hard, but I highly recommend talking to both institutions.

[QUOTE=Pascall;51007758]Unfortunately, not everyone's lives or circumstances are the same. There's no one timeline that fits all. The only thing you can really know is that at 26, you'll need to get your own insurance coverage. If you can afford it. Besides that, shit's up in the air. Some people retire at 30, others never retire. Some people buy houses, other people rent their whole life. Marriage and relationships, career paths, family, the economy, your interests, and your willingness to pursue education all factor into your personal timeline. But I will say that for some people, it may take time. In this day and age, you measure your success by your satisfaction, not by a set of arbitrary goals at each age interval. Don't worry about that. You do you.[/QUOTE] I come across many messages on a regular basis all advising me to do something. Like drink sprite, work at home depot, or shop at giant. It seems advertisers have no problem with attempting to tell you what you should be doing with your life. They want me to consume, consume, consume you don't see advertisements about how you should change the world, create something, or plan out your life.

That's because the majority of advertising is made to sell. Not to encourage. Don't pay attention to commercial advertisements for life advice.

the IRS just called me and it was honestly one of the more positive user experiences I've ever had [editline]7th September 2016[/editline] [QUOTE=ytr191;51006927]Could you give me a life plan? What should I be doing in my 20s, 30s, and 40s, and beyond.[/QUOTE] Start budgeting your time now This is the first and most important step. Get 3 hobbies- one that makes you money, one that makes you more intelligent, and one that you enjoy doing above the other two. Improve yourself wherever you can, whenever you can, and commit to these changes for at least a month to see how they pan out. Improving yourself can be moving further down your career path but it can also be improving your physical or mental health. Secondary skills for your career are also important. By the time you're ~25 ish you should hopefully have completed secondary schooling. Don't wait until then to start building a resume, and unless it's VERY good/ promises future returns, don't take unpaid internships. If you have to take an unpaid internship, at least [I]try[/I] to negotiate some form of pay or assurance that you will be more than a coffee jockey. Take work in your field whenever you can while in college, and during this time use your youth to easily access and befriend the higher ups- get to know your bosses boss by name (these guys/gals love naivety, because it means you have potential). Try your hardest to always leave a positive impression on your employers- and this doesn't mean bending over backwards to please them. It might mean things like trying to work outside the scope of your job, learning the jargon that the higher ups use, really anything to make you as a PERSON more amicable to them- though you might not be the best desk clerk, you might show great promise in a managerial position. Any one of the channels you make here can be a potential in to a company that you can work for for pretty much the majority of your career. It could also be none of these channels. Networking and skills are NEVER bad, however. No real advice for past starting your career, society can change a lot.

[QUOTE=Radical_ed;51015070]the IRS just called me and it was honestly one of the more positive user experiences I've ever had[/QUOTE] ??? Uh. I'm not certain the IRS actually [I]calls[/I] people. They usually do stuff via mail... are you [I]certain[/I] it was legit? If you shared info over the phone after [I]they[/I] called [I]you[/I]... [I][B]dude[/B][/I] thats not good

Yeah, dude, you gotta be careful with that. Are you certain that you weren't scammed? It's unfortunately a very common ploy, and it works alarmingly well. [url]https://www.irs.gov/uac/newsroom/scam-phone-calls-continue-irs-identifies-five-easy-ways-to-spot-suspicious-calls[/url] [quote][B]Any one of these five things is a tell-tale sign of a scam. The IRS will never[/b]: Call to demand immediate payment, nor will we call about taxes owed without first having mailed you a bill.. Demand that you pay taxes without giving you the opportunity to question or appeal the amount they say you owe. Require you to use a specific payment method for your taxes, such as a prepaid debit card. Ask for credit or debit card numbers over the phone. Threaten to bring in local police or other law-enforcement groups to have you arrested for not paying.[/quote] From the horse's mouth. Anything like this happen?

[QUOTE=Big Dumb American;51015280]Yeah, dude, you gotta be careful with that. Are you certain that you weren't scammed? It's unfortunately a very common ploy, and it works alarmingly well. [url]https://www.irs.gov/uac/newsroom/scam-phone-calls-continue-irs-identifies-five-easy-ways-to-spot-suspicious-calls[/url] From the horse's mouth. Anything like this happen?[/QUOTE] Nope it was just a call about a business I registered. There were some tax forms missing (I closed that WA business account and thought that was that, turns out there's more steps), he sent me some info and forms on wa.gov to fill out to properly shut it down. I'm not gonna send my ssn or credit card details over the phone :y

whew :sax: [editline]7th September 2016[/editline] Tomorrow's my last full day of work. I've only got one paycheck left, and after that [I]who knows?[/I] Still, I've got ~$8.5k in reserve, which should give me ample time to get the income stream from my real estate business trickling in. I'm starting out in the marketing department, making a flat $25 for every possible lead I can add to our database, and the moment I get my license I'll transfer to sales and can use that database to start drumming up clients. I'm very excited! [editline]7th September 2016[/editline] Not a moment too soon, either. My soon to be former employer got official word from the state today that we lost the contract. They're going out of business on December 31st. I kind of wish I could have stuck around for the severance pay, that's another ~$3k, but it's not worth missing my current opportunity.

too be honest, i'm not sure why they'd consider that, maybe they are growing sick of some people, like me! XD

[QUOTE=Big Dumb American;51015972]whew :sax: [editline]7th September 2016[/editline] Tomorrow's my last full day of work. I've only got one paycheck left, and after that [I]who knows?[/I] Still, I've got ~$8.5k in reserve, which should give me ample time to get the income stream from my real estate business trickling in. I'm starting out in the marketing department, making a flat $25 for every possible lead I can add to our database, and the moment I get my license I'll transfer to sales and can use that database to start drumming up clients. I'm very excited! [editline]7th September 2016[/editline] Not a moment too soon, either. My soon to be former employer got official word from the state today that we lost the contract. They're going out of business on December 31st. I kind of wish I could have stuck around for the severance pay, that's another ~$3k, but it's not worth missing my current opportunity.[/QUOTE] I noticed you said you own a real estate business. Do you do buy and hold?

[QUOTE=ytr191;51017861]I noticed you said you own a real estate business. Do you do buy and hold?[/QUOTE] Not yet, but that's what I've been preparing for! I hope to pick up my first rental property next year, once I've gotten my business established and have a steady income stream again.

Hey man, since you're talking property, I'm having a real tough time finding potential houses to buy. My problem is that most of the property around here are manufactured on-frame homes. What I would really want would be an off-frame modular, but they are extremely few and far between around here. What's your opinion of recently built homes manufactured on-frame? I know that their value tanks over time and they're built to vehicle codes as opposed to local housing codes, but other than that, the few that I've actually seen the inside of looked amazing. Like, a decently nice house to live in. But it's technically a trailer and the bank treats it as such and nobody wants to give me a loan on one with a sensible interest rate which leads me to believe there is a reason why they don't want me to buy one. Like, there's gotta be some negatives to it. Also I was looking at older, smaller stick built homes, but I would like something newer simply because newer houses already have thenice convenience features like lots of outlets, good insulation, new appliances, better floor plans, etc.

I'm still learning a lot of this as I go along, and the different methods of construction (and their associated benefits and drawbacks) aren't something I've had any experience in yet I'm sorry to say! However, if this is something your current agent isn't able to answer, your lender could probably explain their reasoning behind the higher interest rates. Or, if you're concerned about the physical aspects or longevity of construction, you could probably get some answers from a home inspector or contractor on some of the general things to keep in mind with that kind of property without having to actually get a consultation and pay a fee. Wish I could have given you a better answer! I still have a lot left to learn, but I'm working hard to get up to speed.

This is a mini rant. I helped some people today, as an insurance agent, I primarily deal with auto insurance(not for long though, commercial policies here I come baby). They were scammed by a used car dealership, we didn't know this until we'd actually spent 3 days of their time, 4 different trips to our office, and some calls to the RCMP(Royal Canadian Mounted Police, our equivalent of the "Staties") we discovered the dealership did not own the vehicle they sold my customers, hadn't owned in several years(on paper, the physical car was in their possession but that doesn't matter) and didn't have the legal authority to sell. My customer was a 17 year old kid, with no experience buying cars, buying insurance, and he was scammed of several thousand dollars by these fucking people. It isn't his fault, the dealership acted fraudently and in bad faith from the get go, even telling them that they could just slap on the plates from the leased vehicle they previously owned and be good to go. That isn't the case. The kid was on the road uninsured because of their fucking lie. He could have died, or been seriously injured, he could have hurt someone else, and he would have had no recourse as the victim of a scam. The RCMP and BBB and taxation canada are going to be crawling up this dealerships asshole for the next 3 months, I've made certain of that, but I cannot tell you how utterly frustrated I am, and how upset I am that someone would do that to the kid. He's taken it like a champ to be honest but fuck if this isn't shitty to deal with. Moral of the story; [B]Don't trust used car dealerships, don't trust the agents that work at those lots, and always get a second opinion from someone who knows their business, and won't fuck you over.[/B]

I'd like to ask something here. My girlfriend is now an orphan. Her father has passed way before and her mother just recently passed. Right now, she believes to be in a mess. She has the house now, but she's worried mostly about being able to pay the bills for it. It's not like she knows what to do too; she just turned 18 less than a month ago and is a senior in high. I suggested that maybe she should get a roommate so that may help her pay some bills, but I'm not 100% certain that will be effective. What do you suggest, Facepunch?

Get real adults to help. Does she have aunts or uncles that she can trust for guidance?

[QUOTE=HumanAbyss;51026063]This is a mini rant. I helped some people today, as an insurance agent, I primarily deal with auto insurance(not for long though, commercial policies here I come baby). They were scammed by a used car dealership, we didn't know this until we'd actually spent 3 days of their time, 4 different trips to our office, and some calls to the RCMP(Royal Canadian Mounted Police, our equivalent of the "Staties") we discovered the dealership did not own the vehicle they sold my customers, hadn't owned in several years(on paper, the physical car was in their possession but that doesn't matter) and didn't have the legal authority to sell. My customer was a 17 year old kid, with no experience buying cars, buying insurance, and he was scammed of several thousand dollars by these fucking people. It isn't his fault, the dealership acted fraudently and in bad faith from the get go, even telling them that they could just slap on the plates from the leased vehicle they previously owned and be good to go. That isn't the case. The kid was on the road uninsured because of their fucking lie. He could have died, or been seriously injured, he could have hurt someone else, and he would have had no recourse as the victim of a scam. The RCMP and BBB and taxation canada are going to be crawling up this dealerships asshole for the next 3 months, I've made certain of that, but I cannot tell you how utterly frustrated I am, and how upset I am that someone would do that to the kid. He's taken it like a champ to be honest but fuck if this isn't shitty to deal with. Moral of the story; [B]Don't trust used car dealerships, don't trust the agents that work at those lots, and always get a second opinion from someone who knows their business, and won't fuck you over.[/B][/QUOTE] My pa and I got scammed by some folks in a private car sale, too. Lost over $5,000 and couldn't afford a replacement. My old shitbox car became our family's only vehicle. This was when we were going through a bankruptcy and losing our house to boot, so extra shitty situation. Our scammers never got caught, so it's nice to see the shits from your story here getting their just deserts. Good on you. Hope the kid is going to be alright? Will he be reimbursed financially, etc? [editline]10th September 2016[/editline] [QUOTE=PsycheClops;51026879]I'd like to ask something here. My girlfriend is now an orphan. Her father has passed way before and her mother just recently passed. Right now, she believes to be in a mess. She has the house now, but she's worried mostly about being able to pay the bills for it. It's not like she knows what to do too; she just turned 18 less than a month ago and is a senior in high. I suggested that maybe she should get a roommate so that may help her pay some bills, but I'm not 100% certain that will be effective. What do you suggest, Facepunch?[/QUOTE] I would suggest immediately contacting a financial adviser. They do not generally charge for individual consultations-- they make their money working with businesses and insurance companies. A financial adviser can help her analyze her financial situation and help her determine what the best move regarding the house would be in her position. Would be well worth her time.

Do you guys ever get the feeling like there's something you need to do, like how birds who have never migrated before know how to migrate, they just get this urge, like when you walk in to a room and you forget why but you know as soon as you see the thing you came in for you will immediately remember, do you guys ever feel like that? Like a general, "I should be doing [I]some[/I]thing right now", "there is a specific thing I should be doing" feeling, yet not quite in focus enough to actually know what the thing is? I've felt like this for several days now, but nothing I try doing seems to be [I]the[/I] thing. It could be related to sexual frustration but this feels different somehow.

[QUOTE=Big Dumb American;51027066]My pa and I got scammed by some folks in a private car sale, too. Lost over $5,000 and couldn't afford a replacement. My old shitbox car became our family's only vehicle. This was when we were going through a bankruptcy and losing our house to boot, so extra shitty situation. Our scammers never got caught, so it's nice to see the shits from your story here getting their just deserts. Good on you. Hope the kid is going to be alright? Will he be reimbursed financially, etc? [editline]10th September 2016[/editline] I would suggest immediately contacting a financial adviser. They do not generally charge for individual consultations-- they make their money working with businesses and insurance companies. A financial adviser can help her analyze her financial situation and help her determine what the best move regarding the house would be in her position. Would be well worth her time. I would suggest immediately contacting a financial adviser. They do not generally charge for individual consultations-- they make their money working with businesses and insurance companies. A financial adviser can help her analyze her financial situation and help her determine what the best move regarding the house would be in her position. Would be well worth her time.[/QUOTE] Do not go to a financial advisor. They do not have your interests at heart. Find a "Fiduciary". They're legally obligated to put your interests first. And BDA, sorry to hear you were scammed. The kid is probably out his cash for the vehicle itself unless the RCMP force them to give back the cash. These guys are shady as fuck. Here's how I know. One of the other people I work with, called his friend, who owns another decent sized used car dealership in that region, he asked him "What do you know about them", because who knew, but they're all connected, friends or aware of each other. The dealership owner didn't say much, but what he did say wasn't good. It's that kind of selective silence that tells you everything really. Ultimately there's very little I can do to assure their fate, but I do have friends in taxation as well as lawyers who will take the kids case pro-bono should that arise.

[QUOTE=Big Dumb American;51002868]The kind you know. [editline]5th September 2016[/editline] It's still highly recommended. Through community college, you can knock out your first two years (an associate's degree) at minimal expense before transferring to a more expensive four year institution. Considering that the first two years are mostly general education prerequisites and a few elective, and that this route can save you tens of thousands of dollars, it's well worth it.[/QUOTE] What about just doing 2 years? My local CC has a bunch of associate's degrees and I really don't think I would be a fit for a "real" college. Is associate's enough to get past resume filters? I've already wasted 4 years after high school, sure I have some good job experience and I have learned a lot of stuff that you don't put on a resume (personal skills and how to be a team leader somewhat), but I'm not doing what I think I want to do.

[QUOTE=HumanAbyss;51030225]Do not go to a financial advisor. They do not have your interests at heart. Find a "Fiduciary". They're legally obligated to put your interests first. And BDA, sorry to hear you were scammed. The kid is probably out his cash for the vehicle itself unless the RCMP force them to give back the cash. These guys are shady as fuck. Here's how I know. One of the other people I work with, called his friend, who owns another decent sized used car dealership in that region, he asked him "What do you know about them", because who knew, but they're all connected, friends or aware of each other. The dealership owner didn't say much, but what he did say wasn't good. It's that kind of selective silence that tells you everything really. Ultimately there's very little I can do to assure their fate, but I do have friends in taxation as well as lawyers who will take the kids case pro-bono should that arise.[/QUOTE] For what reason do you say that financial advisors won't have your best interests at heart? Mine has been enormously helpful to me, and to the many people I have referred to him. Aren't financial advisors already bound by fiduciary duties?

[QUOTE=Big Dumb American;51020248]Not yet, but that's what I've been preparing for! I hope to pick up my first rental property next year, once I've gotten my business established and have a steady income stream again.[/QUOTE] Have you ever controlled a rental property before? If you have some experience you could create a presentation and present it to potential investors and raise money for your company. Lets say you want your company to own 10 rental properties within the next year. Goal one would be to find your potential investors and tell them about your new business venture. Find a place were your potential investors would visit (The Country club, Auction houses, Millionaire clubs, Board of Realtors Associations) Now that you have picked your place get permission to make your presentation. In the presentation you want to tell them how every other investment vehicle is bad and how real estate investing is the only way to the huge returns they want. Tell them that possibly if they are qualified they could invest with you and your company. (The qualified part gets them chasing you instead of you chasing them) Once your presentation is over give them a handout with three choices. (have your assistant pass this out) First Choice - Pass, I'm sorry but I just not interested in earning money on my money with real estate investing. Second Choice - Tell me more, I am very interested but I don't know enough about real estate investing. Third Choice - Lets Get Going!, I want to invest in you and your company as soon as possible. Now once they have filled that out tell them to bring it to your assistant and let them leave. If they checked Choices 2 or 3 tell your assistant to give them your real estate investment package giving them more info on you and your company and how you will be contacting them soon about potential investment opportunities in the future. Your Real Estate Investing package should include - Potential Investment Opportunities - The people on your team - A corporate overview - A little about you There you go a short course on how to get private money to fund your business.

Thanks for the tips! There's some solid advice there, especially in regards to the Investing Package. I like that a lot, and will definitely keep it in mind if or when I need to secure financing for any of my investment projects. For the moment, however, I'm just trying to build my real estate [I]sales[/I] business. I'm getting my realtor's license, and have already joined up with the top small brokerage team in the city. I'll need about a year to build my business up, get reliable income coming in, and then I'll look to picking up my first investment properties -- with the help of my personal investment team, of course! You seem pretty knowledgeable about this. Are you a real estate investor?

[QUOTE=Big Dumb American;51032449]For what reason do you say that financial advisors won't have your best interests at heart? Mine has been enormously helpful to me, and to the many people I have referred to him. Aren't financial advisors already bound by fiduciary duties?[/QUOTE] Because the typical financial adviser is paid by commission on your investments I believe. They are typically going to look out for their interests in this sense and have no legal obligation to do anything else. A normal stock standard financial advisory doesn't actually need any credentials to call themselves that. It's a more or less free designation you can get. Fiduciaries are not though, they're specialized and legally bound to your best interests, though I'm sure these rules vary state to state in some way shape or form, from my understanding of it Fiduciaries are the only ones who are actually legally obligated. A financial adviser could be a great person and help you and do all the right things and never screw you over, they could just be good people. There's always exceptions to rules.

[QUOTE=Big Dumb American;51034132]Thanks for the tips! There's some solid advice there, especially in regards to the Investing Package. I like that a lot, and will definitely keep it in mind if or when I need to secure financing for any of my investment projects. For the moment, however, I'm just trying to build my real estate [I]sales[/I] business. I'm getting my realtor's license, and have already joined up with the top small brokerage team in the city. I'll need about a year to build my business up, get reliable income coming in, and then I'll look to picking up my first investment properties -- with the help of my personal investment team, of course! You seem pretty knowledgeable about this. Are you a real estate investor?[/QUOTE] Yes I am a real estate investor.

I'm about to start my coursework again. Its felt like a long summer, ludicrously so. I'm really not looking forward to starting my classes though. I only have one I enjoy and I'm not in the major I want to be in. I'm also going to have to take an extra year to graduate. It feels unfair to be denied admission, even after what I went through my freshman year. Not to mention the whole "working in the space industry" thing and the "NASA Space Grant student" thing too. I'm probably going to pursue further education, with the goal of getting my PhD in Aerospace Plasmas. Or Propulsion. Generally just a propulsion focus. I'm in Applied Physics now, which may fit and may make me into a better scientist and ultimately better researcher, but I wanted to study the subjects that fascinate me in Astronautical engineering. I'm not sure what to think. I want to work in R&D and do what my boss does - write proposals to DARPA+NASA, lead engineering teams, and get to realize some of the engineering dreams I've always held. My current major may end up being better for that (hell, I'll be even [I]more[/I] of a rocket [U]scientist[/U]), but I still have this petulant feeling about all of it. "Bwah, I want something else", I guess. Its just going to make these 3 years of school that much more of a drag (even though slowing down means I can work part time where I do now, honing my R&D skills).

[QUOTE=HumanAbyss;51034257]Because the typical financial adviser is paid by commission on your investments I believe. They are typically going to look out for their interests in this sense and have no legal obligation to do anything else. A normal stock standard financial advisory doesn't actually need any credentials to call themselves that. It's a more or less free designation you can get. Fiduciaries are not though, they're specialized and legally bound to your best interests, though I'm sure these rules vary state to state in some way shape or form, from my understanding of it Fiduciaries are the only ones who are actually legally obligated. A financial adviser could be a great person and help you and do all the right things and never screw you over, they could just be good people. There's always exceptions to rules.[/QUOTE] "The anti-fraud provisions of the Investment Advisers Act of 1940 and most state laws impose a duty on IAs to act as fiduciaries in dealings with their clients. This means the adviser must hold the client's interest above its own in all matters. The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has said that an adviser has a duty to:[6]"

When I find work again I plan on opening a savings account and dumping a small chunk of cash in there every month or week, with the long term goal of buying a home. Is there anything I should know now, early on?