Once you have a (no longer new) car, it is probably not the best move to sell your car and buy a used one, unless your car is inappropriate to your life in some way, and/or you can/should get a much cheaper used one. And once you have a 0% loan, the opportunity cost of taking it is a sunk cost, so there’s not much reason to pay it off early.

That being said, I tend to not pay close attention to single studies/findings. Consistently, I have found overwhelming evidence pointing to the health benefits of a plant-based diet vs. a meat-based one. I try my best to process the information I’m provided, filter out the biases, find what works best for me and implement dietary changes accordingly. Your mileage may vary.

Amanda, if I am completely craving a specific item, I’ll have a small portion of whatever it is, even if it’s something I normally might not eat. I figure my body is telling me I’m missing a nutrient or just wants the occasional treat!

#44 Johanna – Actually, women who have had estrogen-positive breast cancer are advised to limit soy intake because of the way soy breaks down when digested.

Look at it this way: People in various parts of Asia have been eating soy foods for thousands of years and don’t seem to have suffered too much for it. There’s no reason to avoid soy entirely unless you’re allergic to it.

There’s the regular tax deduction for a Traditional IRA: If your income is under a certain threshold (~$55k for single filers), then the amount you contribute to the IRA is tax deductible.

And on top of that, there’s the “retirement savings contributions credit”: If your income is under a different, lower threshold (~$28k for single filers), then you get a tax *credit* of up to $1000 for saving money in *any* retirement account, including a Traditional or Roth IRA, 401(k), 403(b), etc. To be eligible for the credit, in addition to having low income, you have to be 18 or older, not a full-time student, and not claimed as a dependent on anyone else’s tax form.

valleycat, I understand your viewpoint. Having read about the health risks of soy I generally don’t eat meat/dairy replacements (although I’d like to try rice cheese!).

However, I had a breakdown about 2 months ago and I was CRAVING chicken strips. (I don’t eat meat because I feel it’s unhealthy and I just don’t like it so it’s generally easy for me to avoid.)

I got some chik’n nuggets made primarily from egg whites and some other vegetarian things, no soy!!

It’s good to have a ROTH IRA and a Traditional IRA.

There are tax benefits to a Traditional for low income earners. Potentially a several hundred dollar credit!

Regarding #3 the poster thinking of owner finance home purchase. I think Johanna wastes a lot of money. It seems like you could have cut expenses and paid off the $48,000 debt you started out with in one year. Practice spending 1/2 of your combined earnings and saving the rest. That should get you a down payment in just two years. You could pay off your home in 2-3 years after that! There is a lot to be said about not paying interest. =)

I agree that you should travel OR buy the home.

You make $240k a year and have a $2500 mortgage? That should not be ‘tight’. Spending just 1/8 of your income on a mortgage should not be hard at all and is far lower % than most people spend. Especially at such a high income level you should have lots of money to work with.

Spending $30k a year on mortgage while making $120k is fairly doable. But if they were to drop to just the one job and only make 70% as much then it would be a lot harder. That would be ‘tight’.

In the case of Q4, she should NOT, as others have pointed out, use a fee-based planner. A $50 fee is 10% of her investment amount! Also, if she does convert to Roth, she needs to be able to pay the taxes from outside the account. I’d recommend Suze Orman’s Money Book for the Young, Fabulous, and Broke – it has lots of advice for people in situations like Evelyn’s.

Milk and cream are recent additions to the Cool Whip “recipe,” but it always contained casein, which is a milk protein, so it was never totally vegan. Same goes for non-dairy coffee creamer – also not vegan.

Houses cost a lot to maintain. Taxes go up and up on them, and there’s a lot out there that makes them into a money pit. Don’t stretch for this. Enjoy your lives. Travel. Chill. Save. There will be another house down the road.