#and a loan from my 401k

[fuckkyliejenner]

Going through some extensive hard times right now. My mom needs a surgery for fibroids that gave her sepsis which almost killed her and we had to blow through those savings due to multiple insane events that popped up and now I won’t be able to pay my car payment or first months rent so if anyone wants to just throw a few bucks my way so we can survive a bit longer, I’d appreciate it

Venmo

Cashapp

[andthatoneregretisyou]

ive been emailing my financial aid office and can they please reply that received my appeal...... someone got back to me and said that the other person lied and that i can submit an appeal amd get my shit all waived again like before but i need to do it before the fucking 30 days

[goth-oatmilk-latte]

so i am like $350 short for my rent after fees and also buying essentials (gas, pet food, kitty litter, some soup bc soup hoe 4evaa) and yeah idk what the hell im gonna do bc i req to withdraw from my 401k at work but in order to withdraw a hardship balance you need to have an eviction notice (wtf???) and idk i just feel like theyre gonna deny me bc i dont have one im just grotesquely behind on a lot of shit rn.

literally do not know wtf else there is bc i cant get any loans since my credit is still in repair and my score and history keep me from qualifying for anything

[randomite]

People on Tumblr are always hyping these news articles about some rich wanker out there, buying up single family homes.

It sucks. Rich wankers are terrible yadda-yadda. Not the point of this conversation. (Burn them)

The thing is that you have some of the worst ideas on how to fix the housing crisis!

Simply because most people aren't super educated on why the housing market is this way.

Ironically, and this might tick a lot of you off. One of the causes of the housing crisis is likely you, or your co-workers, parents, siblings ect...ect.

https://www.investopedia.com/articles/credit-loans-mortgages/090116/what-do-pension-funds-typically-invest.asp

Are you saving money! (I am!)

Do you have a 401K/Pension/Superannuation? (I Do)

Are you invested in a Real Estate Investment Trust?!

Probably.

Most funds have a little bit of REIT in them. The S&P500 is 2.8% REIT,

These mega trusts own vast amounts of American housing.

https://www.reit.com/research/nareit-research/170-million-americans-own-reit-stocks

Yay. Look at this happy graphic that came from a site really stocked about the great returns on real estate investment.

Now. It should be clear REIT actually own a very small portion of American housing, around 1%. Individual owners make up a far larger portion of the housing market.

REIT live in the happy red space.

The problem with REIT is that they are often terrible.

They are bastions of widespread community gentrification. Sweeping into minority communities like Herongate in Canada and bulldozing the lot. All to make way for shinny condos they can turn a profit on.

https://acorncanada.org/news/leveller-rein-reits-tenants-demand-action-against-real-estate-investment-trusts/

REITs have been accused of slumlord like behaviour. Letting houses decay with mold and refusing repair ect. Ect.

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/tenants-lose-as-landlord-transglobe-racks-up-charges-1.1246084

https://doctorow.medium.com/wall-streets-landlord-business-is-turning-every-rental-into-a-slum-b15b81f18612

Essentially my point is....

You could be invested in the very Real Estate Investment Trust that acts as your landlord. You could be invested in the source of your own suffering and gentrification.

The pension investment in REITs for domestic housing is growing. It is too profitable. It is an easy source of growth.

If you are in a bad situation, you should want your pension invested in an REIT. It will help grow your savings (whatever they be). But, that very same REIT might own your home and be the very evil trying to wring cash out of you.

This isn't a call to action. This is more an observation about the neoliberal shit oroborus we are stuck in. You can choose not to invest in REITs, or try and find a good one.

But in doing so, you are worsening the housing crisis. REITs are sophisticated. They use rent increase software and have quantitative analysis of the market used to drive prices up.

If the housing market ever tanks, a good portion of your savings might tank with it.

Now. You might have no savings. You might not have elderly relying on social security. You might be fine.

But. Society is run by trashfire electoralism. If people don't see their investments going up they freak out and vote for the other party.

The pension investment into real estate, allowed in 2001 (thanks Bush), has created people whose retirements and future are dependent on housing prices always going up. Around 51% of Americans are invested in REITs. It is essentially a nightmare that will never be fixed unless people who are smarter than anyone on Tumblr actually put an effort in.

Thanks for reading my depressing rant.

(Also. Sorry if you are in Canada. It is bad in AUS but it seems like REITs can steal newborns over there. Like some articles are like wtf.)

https://www.reit.com/news/blog/market-commentary/reit-allocations-pension-funds-increase

https://www.spglobal.com/marketintelligence/en/news-insights/latest-news-headlines/us-pension-funds-up-real-estate-exposure-to-offset-rising-risks-71610560

https://www.benefitsandpensionsmonitor.com/investments/alternative-investments/real-estate-has-become-a-cornerstone-asset-class-for-pension-fund-investors/383790

[fizzyrph]

guys i need immediate help ASAP pls for real-- my water is shut off , my parents are doing everything they can rn to try & get money together to get it back on but my dads 401k won't even let us take out a hardship loan as is rn . im linking my paypal , ko-fi , & any other payment methods i have for emergency donations as well as opening up emergency commission slots despite my current load being behind currently . i hate doing this but we need our water back as soon as possible for my dog , my siblings , & the rest of the house . pls pls even if you can just signal boost this it would be massively appreciated . im so so so so sorry to everyone that has to see this , whether you're waiting on an order from me rn or not bc i really hate all of this i do . im so so sorry . . .

paypal

ko-fi

[stephistopheles]

How is it that I work in healthcare, yet can't afford my own health care?

How is it that I have a 401k, yet can't borrow money from myself to repay to myself?

How is it that a bank can lose an instant transfer, and refuse all accountability, including replacing the money that never reached where it was supposed to go?

How is it that 1/4 of my paycheck goes to health insurance that doesn't cover any of my day to day medical expenses?

How is it that in spite of my health issues making it difficult to function at even a minimal level, I continue to work full time, yet I'm perpetually cash poor, no matter how carefully I spend my money?

The answer is relatively simple... I was born into a low-income family, and the cycle of poverty is alive and thriving.

In spite of the fact that I had finally gotten to a point of relative financial security, garnishment by a loan shark dragged me back into the red, and has kept me there.

I'm unable to get any sort of personal loan because my credit is terrible - because when I was a young adult who had lived a life with very little material comfort, credit card companies swooped in and promised me things that I couldn't afford, and I was too young and stupid to think to say no.

Our country is very much invested in the concept of "the rich get richer as the poor get poorer." Those with money can get financed with lower rates, buy more reliable cars and afford repairs, buy newer homes, etc., while those without money are charged exorbitant amounts for any type of credit, when they can get it at all. And that's not even getting into the cost and availability of healthcare, preventative care, etc.

Our system is absolutely fucked, y'all. "If there is hope, it lies within the proles," yet we are beaten down and down and down to the point of despair. No matter how hard we try to claw our way out, some fucker in a suit is waiting to kick us back down, while saying "You just aren't working hard enough."

This is some legitimate fuckery, and why I'm a socialist. Capitalism only works for the people who were born ahead to begin with; the rest of us are merely expendable cogs in the machine that keep this shit going so that the people with money can continue to enjoy the spoils of a system carried on the backs of the multitudes of people that it turns around and shits on.

There's no freedom in this - not for most of us.

[kitweewoos]

*Supposedly* two of the jobs I applied and interviewed for are going to get back to me this coming week about my applications, and I’m hoping for a yes from someone, but I’m also not optimistic. I’m running on fumes with my bank account, and my bills keep piling up. My sister is footing our entire rent, so I can’t ask her to help, and I could use some kind of assistance, y’all. I cashed out all of my old 401k which paid some, but I’ve still got bills (they’re multiplying).

I know you’re probably sick of hearing me talk about this at this point, and god, I’m sick of asking, but if any of you have some change to spare, I could use a helping hand here. I’m about $150 short for my personal loan, and my car payment of $300 is coming back around. If you’ve got anything, anything at all, I’d give you all the virtual hugs and kisses in the world.

Patreon: Link here

Paypal: @kaytikazoo

Cashapp: $kitthekazoo

Venmo: @kitthekazoo

Teepublic: Link here

[dreamfilleddonuts]

Had my phone meeting today with the enrollment counselor (who I previously referred to as the financial aid guy). What I am eligible for in financial aid hasn't populated yet for the 24-25 school year, because they are still technically in the 23-25 school year. We should be able to see in a few weeks and go from there and see if I need loans and stuff. It looks like it's going to be roughly $4k a semester which means hopefully I won't need loans at all, or at least not a lot. The student teaching thing and how to live while working a full time job for free for a semester is a bridge I will cross when I come to it (honestly, I am just planning on cashing out my 401k at work and taking the penalty when that happens).

I need to get a webcam and tripod for when it's time to take exams, as they want to make sure there is nothing I can use to cheat with. Which is fair. They emailed me a list with several price points that meet their criteria. I will also need to get Microsoft Word, which I can get for free as a student, and familiarize myself with things like powerpoints and stuff since I have never done that.

So yeah! I am nervous, I am excited, I wish I had done this sooner, I am glad to know I have an advantage I wouldn't have had if I hadn't done this sooner (because working two demanding full time jobs, one of which I wouldn't be paid for but instead pay THEM for, would suuuuck). And I will keep ya'll updated on what happens next!

[groovesnjams]

"summer after senior year" by Sarah Kang ft. Michael Carreon

DV:

As half of a web site that has a complicated relationship with nostalgia, and also as someone fully into middle age at this point, I'm fascinated by how my relationship to the idea of freedom has changed as I've gotten older. Was there a time in my life when the summer after senior year of high school felt like the most free I'd ever been? I don't actually think so - but there was a time when I thought that about having been in college itself, and then a time when I felt it about the year I was waiting tables and cooking and getting high, and then a time when I felt it about having lived around the corner from a music venue and spending nights filling garbage bags with four loko cans, and then and then. Maybe someday that wheel will stop turning! But I listen to Sarah Kang sing, "But we'll never be as free/ As the summer after senior year" and this feels like a particularly aged reaction but I want to say, "Just give it a couple years." You were always freer than you thought, and freedom works on a sliding scale, and maybe it's better to not romanticize a time when you didn't have money or needed to get your kicks by driving a little too fast. There are better things, freer things, just around the corner. It does sound catchy as hell though, which is a credit to Kang. For a moment there I was back listening to Radiohead on a cassette tape adapter plugged into a walkman, driving around the south side of Chicago trying to find something to do, and then I remembered that unloading trucks at a toy store for minimum wage really fucking sucked.

MG:

Wow, this song is awful! Setting aside any memories I might share as a counterpoint to "Summer After Senior Year" what, I ask you Sarah Kang and Michael Carreon, what the fuck is up with all the references to money and banking? This song opens with the line "never thought about taxes" and also works in $5, 401ks, and the, I believe false, admission that the writer "never stepped foot inside of a bank." This song is as much about these ideas as it is about how free it is to drive down the interstate with the wind in your hair and the radio turned up loud. And I find that on the bad side of weird, way too weird to be catchy. Anyway, I turned 25 in 2010, so I am almost a decade older than the song's narrator, but we're both in our 30s at this point. I had, in fact, set foot in a bank before graduating high school! I got my first job in the summer between my junior and senior year and, you won't believe this, I needed a bank account to cash my paychecks (if I didn't want to pay a vig to the payday loan store, but you better believe there were weeks where I did that, too!) I thought about taxes a lot because if I had precisely $10.21 and a tube of lipstick cost $8.49, would I have enough to pay the tax on that tube of lipstick (or would I steal it?) I agree that $5 was about the cost of a school lunch, but my parents paid for that and when they didn't, the school district gave me a peanut butter sandwich for free. I will concede that I did not know anything about a 401k -- embarrassingly, but honestly, I still don't know anything about a 401k.

I think these song lyrics were AI generated. They are almost like real song lyrics, almost.

[abqbox]

Went and voted.

Not that much on the ballot, school board, water and soil conservation board, and bond questions.

Drove instead of walking so that I'll hopefully make more productive use of my time today, have things I should be getting done but having trouble with motivation.

Also, today, I have an interview for the job I was laid off from a couple of years ago. Because clearly, they shouldn't have laid me off in the first place. The posted pay is lower, so I'll have to think about that and see what specifically they offer me. Working for the same company another year and a half saves me from having to immediately pay back the covid loan against my 401k I stupidly took out to cover my ex not paying rent for the house I let her keep living in. That was a damned stupid financial decision all around, but at least she was horribly ungrateful and seemed to make it worse nearly every possible way she could.

Buy anyway, I voted, and someone new had set up the room differently than the last few elections. I thought it worked better, so hopefully, they'll remember and do it like that again in the future.

[ashdar]

Liquidity Mining pool fraud through romance and dating scams, Please Read

I want to share a story from my life. Not for sympathy, but to shine a light on an all too common problem and offer a message of hope. I got taken for a ride in a crypto scam that not only hit my wallet hard but messed with my head. This isn't just about losing money - it shook my trust and left me feeling low.It all started on LinkedIn. I connected with a woman named Nana Kwan who claimed she worked for Tesla. She spun a story about a crypto trading program that promised big bucks. Despite some warning signs, like her profile vanishing from LinkedIn, the prospect of making serious dough roped me in. I started small, but as I saw my supposed profits growing, I put in more, eventually reaching $10k. Nana kept pushing me to up the ante, even suggesting I borrow against my 401k or home equity. It was reckless, but I was hooked. I even managed to withdraw my 'profits' to my own wallet at one point. But, like a moth to a flame, I was drawn back in by the promise of more money. That's when things went south. The trading platform blocked my withdrawals and started making unreasonable demands. In a last-ditch effort, I asked Nana for a loan to get my account unfrozen. She agreed, and I got pulled even deeper into this mess. The final blow came when the exchange site up and disappeared, along with my $13k. I felt betrayed, let down, and just plain stupid. That's when I found Spectrum-crest. These guys are pros, specializing in helping people like me who've been stung by online fraud. They got to work, digging into the details of the scam, tracing the crypto transactions, and navigating the legal side of things. Through their hard work and negotiation skills, they managed to get my stolen funds back.When I saw that money back in my account, it was like a weight lifted. It was a testament to the tenacity and professionalism of the Spectrum-crest team. They were my lifeline in a really tough time. So, I'm sharing my story as a wake-up call. The internet can be a dark place, but there are people out there like Spectrum-crest who can help. If you've been hit by a crypto scam, don't hesitate to reach out to them. Where others had given me the runaround, Spectrum-crest delivered.My story isn't about playing the victim, it's about bouncing back, getting professional help, and coming out the other side. Keep your guard up, folks, and remember, you don't have to face this stuff alone.

[incarnateirony]

Didn't you used to brag constantly about how much money you have and how much you made at work and how haters were just jealous of your amazing jobs because they would never make as much as you?

More like, you guys tried to mock me as being poor, right after I'd made a job that did, indeed, made me great money and I chortled. And now, of course, you're mocking during disability transition, as if you can't figure out that means a life adjustment, and as if you aren't ableist dogwhistling right now since you realized you couldn't be classist or more are testing the waters here on your ability to be classist again.

Withdrawing 401ks take time, sorry if you've never had the experience of having one, so yeah, sometimes I ask for something like 20 bucks until another income source comes in. Because right now, I'm completely LACKING that great income. Because I'm dying. Slowly and painfully and you're stuck with me on-average for another 11 years and maybe 18 if I'm as stubborn as my mom, but that's what's going on. And you're being pissy in my inbox about it.

It's called having friends, nonnie. Small loans of pocket change between friends happen all the time. Hell right before my life crash I loaned someone 100 and still haven't chased them down for it even in my situation. That's FRIENDS SUPPORTING FRIENDS IN A PINCH. that's not something you can personally patrol no matter how hard you try, especially when we pay each other back. And emergency friend support is not parallel to 100K ripped from people "for charity" that they give back like 3K of while basically acting like they're floating on a yacht.

[teukiechicken]

I really hate that I am doing this. I hate asking for help, especially from strangers.

I am about to lose my house and I have nowhere else to go. I am so behind now I have a sister living with me who doesn’t think she needs to help even tho the amount I’m behind equals out to the months she’s been living with me. I have done everything I can think of.

I can’t get a loan because I have “too much debt”, I’ve maxed out my 401k loans, I can’t withdraw any money because I “don’t meet the criteria”.

The mortgage company won’t take payments from me unless it’s the full amount I’m behind because as I was told they “can’t hold money for me”, including my current months payment. So they sent my payments I’ve made back.

I need $3,400 to catch up. Currently my loan is in legal so I am trying to catch up before the ridiculous amount of legal fees ads up. If anyone can help I would be so grateful.

I am crying as I’m typing this because this is not me. I don’t ask for help, I am the one who always helps. I feel so bad asking strangers for help but I really don’t know what else to do.

Whoever wants to help me thank you so much even $1 makes a difference at the moment. I promise everything is going right to this loan payment:

Paypal: kharlans

Cash App: $kharlans

Also if anyone knows any good lawyers who help with these situations in Michigan preferably pro bono please let me know.

[kazzeyy]

why book publishing SUCKS for a career

as more and more time passes for me away from the book publishing industry, i realize what a bad choice it is for so many people, yet so many still view it as desirable...

first of all and yes, most importantly, the pay is DISGUSTING. especially considering all the major publishers’ headquarters are in NYC, which has one of the highest costs of living in the world, and they pay an abysmal salary to anyone who isn’t at a director or executive level. 

it is not livable for anyone under that level unless you: a) have no student loans/debt, b) live with multiple roommates likely in an outer borough, or in a shoebox of a room (still with roommates) in a shitty part of town through your 30s, c) resign yourself to having the bare minimum in retirement savings (aka you can never actually retire), d)you are married and live off of a double income, likely with someone who makes significantly more than you.

IF you happen to be one of the very few lucky ones that gets promoted regularly, you can make maybeeeeee 70K by the time you’re 30. by NYC standards, that’s barely above an entry-level salary. that is not enough to have a 1 bedroom, or hell even a studio, in NYC by a long shot. so you will still need roommates. in your 30s. i had a coworker in her 40s still living with roommates.

but most people do not get promoted very often, so you are stuck making less than 50K for all of your 20s!!!!!!

the people who stuck it out??? very very likely privileged financially in one way or another.

to put it in perspective, i come from a middle (maybe even upper-middle?) class family. by the time I entered the publishing space, I had about the average amount of student loans left--which i was responsible for paying for myself.

i lived in a very cheap room by NYC standards, which fit my bed and a dresser, and that’s it. which i again, paid for myself.

i cooked essentially every meal i ever ate, and never went out socially.

and i was hitting $0 in my bank account every single month by the time i left that place because rents had gone up, but my salary certainly had not! i was contributing a measly amount to my 401K and being charged an arm and a leg for shitty health insurance.

this is all to say, you want to know why there is hardly any diversity in book editors?? bc no one other than already wealthy, often white, people can afford to work there!!!! 

and on top of it, it is extremely competitive to get these jobs, so they are literally looking at ivy grads and people with masters degrees for entry level roles that pay barely above NYC minimum wage.

i just saw a girl from my old pub house post about getting promoted to an ASSOCIATE level after being there for TEN YEARS. and she was so grateful???? like no girl, that’s a fucking insult.

anyway, less than 3 years out of publishing, and i’ve more than doubled my salary so :)

[rambleswhatsthepoint]

03/05/23

finally finished an updated version of my resume.  sent it to two friends to check it out for edits and then i think i’m ready to begin applying again!

today i’m going to a baby shower for an old friend of mine.  she’s a year older and this is her first kid.  i’m happy for her!  it will be weird going to a gathering though, i’m not sure i will know many people there.  i am also not looking forward to to talking to anyone where they’ll ask “do you have any kids? oh you don’t?” and then immediately look pitifully at me.  sorry lady, kids aren’t for everyone and i don’t need your condescending attitude.  Well, i dunno if anyone will be like that, lol, let’s hope not.

my nails are a mess as i decided to save a buck and do them myself lol.

little foster pup is getting along well in the house.  he sleeps at the side of the bed.  he listens to “no” very well.  we walks well on the leash.  i walked stella and him together this morning and there was another person out walking their dog.  as expected, stella lost her shit, but he did not.  and when i was reprimanding stella with no’s he would sit and stare up at me lol.   i think he was definitely someone’s pet and that makes me sad.  someone lost him or couldn’t afford him and he ended up at the shelter and trucked up to IL from KY.  

the only thing that’s annoying is that he doesn’t like to be left alone.  he will whine and cry.  stella’s like you can stay down here by yourself i’m gonna go sleep on the couch to wait lol.  if she would stay downstairs with him, he *might* be quiet, but who knows.

i am very much considering keeping him and foster failing on this one.

i joined the church choir and we had our first practice this past monday.  uh you just had to volunteer and show up lol there was no tryout :)  there were a couple people who couldn’t make the practice, but it was literally 3 people who are/have been a cantor and 3 of us who have not lol.  4 women and 2 of them have been cantors lol.  i am singing an alto part and it hurts my brain a little to do it, but i love harmonizing.  the other lady singing alto with me is not so good, she’s sometimes not at all even singing what she’s supposed to be singing lol.  but, it was the first day and who knows maybe practicing at home she will get better.

my face is still recovering from the two weekends out in a row drinking.  there is a reason i don’t really drink - i am vain lol.  i’d rather not break out and have to deal with makeup and feeling like i look like trash.

oh a funny work story i want to document so i can laugh about it later.  my boss says oh i do have something hr related to talk to you about.  so&so reached out about taking out a 401k loan but they are maxed out and can’t take anymore.  if we had a bonus pool, would this person be someone you’d be giving a bonus?   it sounds like they want to take out money because of a wedding.  

UGH.  i was like - that is not something i need to know.  whether or not someone is in financial hardship or needs a 401k loan should not be in my mind when i’m trying to decide who would get bonuses and who would not.  i am wiping this out of my mind and i wish you didn’t tell me.  there are other people out there who might need money and maybe they just don’t say anything.  knowing this shouldn’t be part of the decision.

and then my boss proceeds to act offended and get mad at me.  cause HE is just trying to look out and take care of all his employees.  he won’t share this type of info with me going forward.

eye roll.

bonuses should be performance related and have nothing to do with your knowledge of whether or not they were trying to take out a 401k loan.  i shouldn’t even KNOW that she was trying to do so.  and for some reason he can’t even see how WRONG it was to tell me and ask me that.

STUPID.