Finance Xpress

My name is Michelle and I live in an RV. And, yes, I regularly earn over $100,000 a month.

A common question I receive is “Why would you make $100,000+ and live in an RV?”

I am asked this question so often that it deserved to be its own article. And, if you want to get to the point quickly, it’s simple – we do it because we LOVE RVing.

There are a lot of assumptions that people make about why we live in an RV, like we’re hippies or even homeless. On the other end of the spectrum, some people assume that we’ve inherited a ton of money and don’t actually work, ha!

Other people assume that if we just bought a real house we would love it and quit RVing. Well, we did own a “real” house for six years, and we still love RVing more.

Whenever people make these comments, though, I think what they should be asking is, “Why wouldn't a person live in an RV if they could?”

To us, full-time RVing is freedom. We can chase good weather, we can visit friends and families all over the country, we can wake up one morning by the ocean, and spend the night next to a snow capped mountain. It also means that we understand how little we actually need to live, and that is true freedom.

This freedom does come at a cost though. RVing can be a frugal way to live, but for many (like us) it can be more expensive than traditional forms of housing. We don't RV to save money, which is something that many, many people think would be the only reason to RV.

Also, because we have to be so mindful about what we buy, we rarely spend money on things that would clutter a more traditional home.

RV-related content:

• The Ultimate Guide To Getting Started RVing
• How This Family Travels Full-Time With 4 Kids and 2 Dogs
• How To Make Money While RVing
• How Much Does It Cost To RV?
• Common RV Questions – Yes, I Even Talk About What We Do With #2

We've been RVing for over two years now, and we absolutely love it.

People keep asking us when we will stop traveling, grow up, and buy a house again.

Well, not anytime soon!

While I know that traveling full-time and RV life isn’t for everyone, I also know that I don't want to live in a “normal” home anytime soon.

At this point in my life, RVing is a good fit for our family.

Just a few years ago, I never thought I’d live in an RV. It was never a dream of mine or anything like that.

However, one step into an RV and I knew it was for me. Living in our RV full-time has been the best thing ever, and we truly love it.

Here's why I live in an RV even though I earn $100,000 a month.

Not everyone has to live the same life.

The great thing about this great big world we live in is that everyone is different.

If everyone lived the exact same life – well, that would be really boring.

Some people want to live in homes, and some may want to live in an RV. For us, we choose the latter.

We've lived in a house before – we owned the same one for around six years. However, we were bit by the travel bug, and we realized that RV life was for us.

Earning a high income doesn't have anything with why we live in an RV – we just love to travel! Sure, we could have bought a big house and lots of fancy cars. But, is that what we wanted?

Nope.

So, instead we went with what we wanted to do.

GASP!

For many people, making the choice to live in an RV is shocking.

Again and again I have heard that I am crazy for deciding to live in an RV while earning a high income. To me, though, I don't see what income has to do with RVing – it's fun, so I want to RV!

Just because I live in an RV doesn't mean that I'm lying about how much money I earn, it doesn't mean that I am a cheapskate, and it doesn't mean that I'm homeless.

I have a home and this is the home I choose.

We get to see so many amazing places.

We’ve already traveled to many awesome places in our RV, such as:

• Many great mountains that we've summited, such as Huron Peak, Horseshoe Mountain, Mount Peale, and more.
• The Pacific Northwest – Mount Rainier National Park, Olympic National Park, Kalaloch and Ruby Beach, Hoh National Rainforest, La Push Beach, and many other beautiful places.
• Utah (many times) – Arches National Park, Canyonlands National Park, Zion National Park, Bryce Canyon National Park, Moab, and many other places.
• Colorado (many times) – Rocky Mountain National Park, Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park, Mesa Verde National Park, Colorado National Monument, Dinosaur National Monument, Breckenridge, Fruita, Aspen, Durango, Denver, and many other places.
• “Home” in Missouri, and family in Mississippi and Illinois.
• Arizona – Saguaro National Park, Tucson, Phoenix, Page, Flagstaff, Sedona, and many other places.
• California – We've done the whole California coast, as well as central and eastern California, including Death Valley National Park, Sequoia National Park, King's Canyon National Park, Yosemite National Park, and more.
• Oregon – Bend, Newport, Portland, Silverton, and more! We've done the whole coast of Oregon, and it is absolutely beautiful.
• Wyoming – Yellowstone National Park and Grand Tetons National Park.
• Montana – Glacier National Park.
• Great Smoky Mountains National Park.

And much, much more.

When you live in an RV, you can see all of these places from the comfort of your home. We pick where we want to stay, usually next to a fun hiking or biking trail for the most part, and for as long as we want.

I can live by the beach, mountains, desert, and anywhere else.

To continue from the previous section…

Living in an RV means that you can live wherever you want. The United States has so many beautiful places to see and live, and because it would be hard to just pick one place, RV life allows us to live in as many as we want.

And, it’s more than just going on a vacation, which is nice too, but I love being able to bring my entire home with me. This way I’m not forgetting anything, and because my home is always with me, I still get to live comfortably.

If I want to spend my summer in the mountains and my winter near the beach, I can do that. If I want to do the opposite the following year, I can do that too.

If I want to have my front window open up to a beautiful national park, I can even do that.

By living in an RV, I can choose to live wherever I want.

I can spend more time outside.

There's nothing more that I love than a good hike.

Like I’ve already said several times (because it’s such a big deal to me) is that RV life means you can park your home wherever you want to. And, because we love being able to do things outdoors, we usually pick places that make that even easier. We often find ourselves in places that have hiking trails, bike trails, rock climbing routes, and more.

This is great because we can usually just walk or ride our bikes to wherever we want to go, which allows us to spend even more time enjoying the outdoors.

It’s amazingly beautiful living in an RV.

You simply cannot beat the views we’ve seen out the window of our RV.

And, there have been many of them.

We’ve seen beautiful national parks right outside our window, amazing mountain ranges, desert landscapes, lake views, wild animals, and more.

For this reason alone, I’m not sure why anyone wouldn’t want to live in an RV.

I can follow the weather.

Since we can park our home wherever we want, we can follow the weather. To us, around 70 degree is just perfect, so we like to stay in places that allow us to live in those temperatures year round.

Following the weather is something that we truly love.

After all, who wants to be too cold or too hot?

Thankfully, the RV life lets us just leave whenever the temperature is too hot or too cold for our liking.

We really only have clothes for one season, and because of that, we avoid places that are cold. I pretty much wear dresses, sandals, shorts, and/or tank tops year round, which is really nice and comfortable.

I don't need a ton of stuff.

This is a big misunderstanding when people find out how much I make. Sure, we could be spending our money on new clothes, shoes, home decor, whatever, but having a high income doesn't mean that I have to spend every last penny on material things.

In fact, that's not what I want at all.

To me, more stuff does not equal happiness.

I’m not alone on this either, Why You Should Spend Like A Millionaire- The Frugal and Smart Money Habits of Millionaires.

Living in an RV means that you’ll have to downsize. While some people dread this, getting rid of nearly all of your stuff is extremely liberating.

When we sold our house and decided to live in an RV, we donated and got rid of a lot of our belongings. At first, it was difficult to get rid of so much, but it became easier as time went on.

These days, all we have is what we have with us. We have a small amount of everything, and we like it best this way.

We are much more mindful of what we buy, we waste hardly anything, and this is allowing us to save money as well.

Plus, when you live in an RV, you no longer have a need to buy as much stuff because the outdoors take up all of your time. We used to waste time and money going to the mall, Target, and other stores- but we hardly ever do that now. Instead, we spend a lot of our time exploring new places.

Read more at Downsizing Your Home? Here’s How I Went From A 2,000 Square Foot House To An RV.

I can work and travel at the same time.

Yes, it is possible to do both.

I LOVE being able to work and travel at the same time.

We’ve met many amazing people while RVing. Some are retired, but others are like us and also trying different things in order to make their traveling dreams a reality. I know that thinking about making money while traveling can be a scary thing for many people, but it has really allowed us to live our dream life.

This factor is something that holds many potential full-time travelers back, but it shouldn’t! Don’t let making money on the road hold you back from living your dream, because even though it may seem big, it’s something that can usually be worked around.

Related articles on how to make money while traveling:

• How To Make Money While RVing
• 75+ Ways To Make Extra Money
• 10 Ways To Make Money Online From The Comfort of Your Home
• Ways To Make An Extra $1,000 A Month
• My Tips On Successfully Traveling And Working At The Same Time

To be able to live in an RV full-time, I run an online business which consists mainly of this blog- Making Sense of Cents. It is a lot of fun to work and travel at the same time.

At first, I thought it would be difficult. I thought internet would be hard to find, that I would be too distracted, and so on.

I've come to find that I'm more motivated than ever when it comes to working, and having a great view out my window each day definitely helps as well.

If I want to take a break from work and go on a hike, I can do that. If I want to go on a mountain bike ride in the morning before I start answering emails, I can do that.

The list goes on and on!

Living in an RV makes traveling and working (and living) much more enjoyable because I can bring my home everywhere I go. I don't have to worry about forgetting something, bringing a suitcase, or anything – I just always have it all with me.

Do you look down on RVing? Why or why not? Do you want to live in an RV?

The post Why would you make $100,000+ and live in an RV? appeared first on Making Sense Of Cents.

If humans were willing to get intimately close to luggage, we’d be as good at bomb sniffing as dogs are. (Photo: Pixabay)

We use dogs — not humans — to sniff for bombs and to track scent trails, so the canine sense of smell must exceed ours, right? Actually, the human nose can rival that of dogs. It might take some training, and the courage to get close to the thing we’re smelling, but we can become super sniffers. One study found that humans are able to follow the scent of chocolate about as well as dogs follow the scent of a pheasant. A more utilitarian example: nurse Joy Milne can tell if patients have Parkinson’s disease by the smell of their sweat.

Things we learn this week: dogs aren’t so great at sniffing, men aren’t so lazy, and New York doesn’t smell so bad (anymore). Gail Simmons (Top Chef) is co-host; Jon Batiste plays his melodica for us; the live fact-checker is Mike Maughan.

The post Jon Batiste, Gail Simmons, and Strange Smells: TMSIDK Episode 33 appeared first on Freakonomics.

A Roth IRA is a great way to save for retirement, if you qualify. Here are the Roth IRA income limits and contribution limits for 2018.

2018 Roth IRA Contribution Limits

The IRS recently released its 2018 update to income and contribution limits for Roth IRAs. As detailed below, the contribution limits for a Roth IRA are unchanged for 2018 — they remain at $5,500. The catch-up contribution for those 50 or older, which is not indexed for inflation, remains $1,000. The income limits to qualify for a Roth IRA, however, have risen. Here are the details.

According to the IRS, the maximum amount that can be contributed to a traditional or Roth IRA in 2018 is as follows:

If you are under 50 years of age at the end of 2018: The maximum you can contribute to a traditional or Roth IRA is $5,500. You can split this between a traditional IRA and a Roth IRA if you want, but the combined limit is still $5,500.

In addition, the maximum deductible amount you contribute to a traditional IRA and the maximum amount you contribute to a Roth IRA may be reduced depending on your adjusted income (see below).

If you are 50 years of age or older before the end of 2018: The maximum contribution that can be made to a traditional or Roth IRA is $6,500 ($5,500 + $1,000 catch-up contribution). This limit can be split between a traditional IRA and a Roth IRA, but the combined limit is $6,500.

The maximum deductible contribution to a traditional IRA and the maximum contribution to a Roth IRA may be reduced depending on your modified adjusted gross income.

As noted above, these limits remain unchanged for 2018.

See this information in table form below:

Roth IRA Income Limits

Before you get too excited about a Roth IRA, remember that your income can disqualify you from opening one. To determine your eligibility, you need to know your modified AGI (adjusted gross income) and filing status.

The income limits typically rise a bit every year because of inflation. For 2018, the Roth IRA contribution limit is phased out based on the following income levels:

• For single or head of household filers, the phase-out range is $120,000 to $135,000. If your modified AGI is more than $135,000, you cannot contribute to a Roth IRA.
• For those who are married filing jointly*, the phase-out range is $189,000 to $199,000. If your combined, modified AGI is more than $196,000, you cannot contribute to a Roth IRA in 2014.
• Finally, if your filing status is married filing separately (you live with your spouse at any time during the year), the phase-out range is $0 to $10,000. If you make more than $10,000 and file as married filing separately*, you cannot contribute to a Roth IRA in 2018.

Check out this information, along with historical income limits, in table form below:

*Note: If you file married, filing separately and do not live with your spouse at any point during the tax year, you can use the limits for single/head of household filers. If you do live with your spouse at any point during the year, you’ll be limited to the $0-$10,000 phase out range.

If you want to open an IRA account, I think Betterment is worth serious consideration. If you want to trade individual stocks and ETFs in your IRA, check out our list of IRA discount brokers.

The post Roth IRA Contribution and Income Limits for 2018 appeared first on The Dough Roller.

In 2018, 401k contribution limits have gone up, while IRA contribution limits remained the same. Here are all the details, including IRA deduction limits.

The IRS recently released the new 2018 401k and IRA contribution and deduction limits. The limits for 401ks jumped by $500 to $18,500, the first increase since 2015. Contribution limits for IRAs and remain the same in 2018. And that’s true for both contributions and catch-up contributions for those 50 or older. Here are the details.

401(k) Contribution Limits

As announced by the IRS, the contribution limit for 401(k) accounts increased from $18,000 in 2017 to $18,500 for 2018.  Those 50 or older also get the catch-up contribution of $6,000.  That brings the total contribution limit to $24,500 for those who qualify. These new contribution limits also apply to 403(b), most 457 plans, and the federal government’s Thrift Savings Plan.

IRA Contribution and Deduction Limits

With a deductible IRA, it’s important to understand both the contribution limits and the income limits to qualify for the deduction. While you can always contribute up to the $5,500 contribution limit assuming you have sufficient earned income, you’ll only be able to deduct your contribution on your federal taxes if you meet certain income limits.

IRA Contribution Limits

The maximum contribution in 2018 is still $5,500. The catch-up contribution for those 50 and older remains $1,000 (the catch-up contribution for an IRA is not indexed for inflation, so it always remains at $1,000).  Here are the IRA contribution limits over the last several years:

Deductible IRA Income Limits

Now on to the question of whether your IRA contribution is deductible. Whether your IRA contribution is deductible depends on three factors: (1) your filing status, (2) your adjusted gross income, and (3) whether you are covered by a retirement plan at work.

Below are listed the phase out ranges based on the above factors for both 2016 and 2017. If your AGI is less than the bottom of the applicable range, your IRA contribution is fully deductible. If your AGI falls within the range, your contribution is partially deductible. And if your AGI is above the range, then your contribution is not deductible.

2018

If you are covered by a workplace retirement plan, your phase out range is as follows:

• Singles: $63,000 to $73,000
• For married couples filing jointly, where the spouse making the IRA contribution is covered by a workplace retirement plan, the phase-out range is $101,000 to $121,000, up from $99,000 to $119,000.
• Married couples filing separately: $0 to $10,000

If you are not covered by a workplace retirement plan, your phase out range is as follows:

• Married couples filing separately: $189,00 to $199,000 (if your spouse is covered by a workplace retirement plan)

2017

If you are covered by a workplace retirement plan, your phase out range is as follows:

• Singles: $62,000 to $72,000
• Married couples filing separately: $99,000 to $119,000 (if the person making the IRA contribution is covered by a workplace retirement plan)
• Married couples filing separately: $0 to $10,000

If you are not covered by a workplace retirement plan, your phase out range is as follows:

• Married couples filing separately: $186,00 to $196,000 (if your spouse is covered by a workplace retirement plan)

Other Limits

If you are a single or head of household filer and are not covered by a retirement plan at work, you can take the full deduction up to the year’s contribution limit, regardless of your income.

If you’re married filing jointly or separately, and neither spouse is covered by a work-based retirement plan, you can take the full deduction up to your contribution limit, regardless of income.

(Note: If you’re interested in a Roth IRA, those income limits have changed as well. You can get the scoop on Roth IRA limits here.)

SEP IRAs and Solo 401(k)s

Self-employed individuals and small business owners have much higher contribution limits: $55,000 per year in 2018, up from $54,000 in 2017. This is the amount that a self-employed individual or small business owner can contribute to certain retirement accounts, subject to percentage of income limitations.

The table below shows historical changes in SEP IRA and Solo 401(k) contribution limits. The 2018 compensation limit for these accounts is $275,000, which increased from $270,000 in both 2017.

The table below shows these historical changes:

To learn more about SEP IRAs and Solo 401ks, check out this article.

How Good is Your 401k?

Have you ever wondered just how much your 401k costs you? Retirement accounts can have hidden fees that drain the value of your account. Over a number of years, these fees can cost you thousands of dollars.

With Personal Capital’s Retirement Fee Analyzer you can see just how much your 401k and other investments are costing you. I was shocked to learn that the fees in my 401(k) could cost me over $200,000!

Personal Capital also offers a free Retirement Planner. This tool will show you if you are on track to retire on your terms.

You can analyze not only your 401k, but also IRAs and taxable accounts.

The post 401k and IRA Contribution and Deduction Limits for 2018 appeared first on The Dough Roller.

In this Santander Ultimate Cash Back review, we’ll cover the pros and cons of the card, as well as outline the bonuses, so you can decide if it’s for you.

How many cash back credit cards is too many? Right now, as I dig through my wallet, I count seven of them. The Citi® DoubleCash Card, Chase Freedom®, Discover it® and so on. Each provides a slightly unique attribute that I take advantage of at least once a year.

I think I might make room for an 8th cash back credit card from Santander. The Santander® Ultimate Cash Back^SM credit card does a little bit of everything with it’s $100 cash bonus, and strong rewards program. But it also does something truly unique in the cash back credit card world.

Santander has more than 650 branches where customers can speak to representatives, learn more about card services and more. They offer real-time fraud monitoring, sophisticated online account management and many other perks that go along with having an account with a major financial institution. However this cash back credit card is only available to residents of Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, Massachusetts, Vermont, Rhode Island, Pennsylvania, Maine, New Hampshire, Delaware and the District of Columbia.

Santander Ultimate Cash Back Credit Card Rewards

Cardholders can get cash back for a wide variety of purchases using the Santander® Ultimate Cash Back^SM credit card. You can earn cash back anywhere you shop. The cash is given out via statement credits. This means that every purchase you make can potentially go toward paying down your balance. Cash-back rewards can also be redeemed in the form of gift cards and merchandise.

You’ll receive 1.5 percent cashback on all new purchases. There are never any categories or limits when it comes to qualifying for cash back. There’s also a nice $100 cash bonus. New cardmembers will receive $100 in the form of a statement credit once $500 has been spent within 90 days of opening an account.

Rewards never expire and there is never any minimum requirement needed to redeem rewards. Redeem your cash back anytime you want, in any amount you want. On weekends, during Yom Kippur … whenever your heart desires.

Any rewards you earn will not automatically be issued to your statement balance. It’s actually necessary for cardholders to log into their accounts and manually claim their rewards in the form they prefer. While many people enjoy having control over collecting their rewards, it does require that extra step. It’s important to remember to check your account on a regular basis to ensure that rewards are actually being used properly.

Last point to make about the rewards program; the 1.5% cash back rate applies only to purchases. You earn nothing for balance transfers or cash advances.

The Unique Hook–3% APR on Balance Transfers

The Santander® Ultimate Cash Back^SM credit card stands out for offering a high cash-back rate without fees. In fact, it is essentially a fee-free product so long as payments are made on time. The card offers consistent rewards and simple rules in the place of flashy, highly segmented rewards. Here’s a look at some of the highlights:

• No annual fees
• No balance transfer fees
• Zero foreign transaction fees
• No cash advance fees
• No returned payment fees

Also included is a 3% intro APR on balance transfers for the first 12 months. It’s very rare for a credit card issuer to offer the combination of no balance transfer fee and low intro APR. In fact, this is the only cash back credit card that would qualify. Essentially, without a balance transfer fee, Santander is daring you to bring your current credit card debt over. Balance transfers must be made in the first 90 days in order to qualify for the 3% intro APR.

After the intro rate expires, the balance transfer APR becomes 15.49% – 24.49% variable.

The Santander® Ultimate Cash Back^SM credit card is also a good option if you travel often and you’re looking for a card you can make purchases with outside of the United States. Most other cards charge a foreign transaction fee of at least 3%.

MasterCard Protections and Perks

The Santander® Ultimate Cash Back^SM credit card is a MasterCard-branded product. This means that cardholders also get all of the same perks that go along with having a MasterCard credit card. Here’s some of what cardholders receive automatically:

• Purchase protection–If anything you purchase is damaged or stolen inside of the first 90 days, MasterCard can get it fixed or replaced for you, free of charge.
• Price protection–If you find the item you purchased cheaper within 60 days, call MasterCard and they’ll reimburse you the price difference
• Travel protection–This covers a wide variety of areas. The most common uses include damaged luggage reimbursement, travel accident insurance and trip cancellation insurance, should you not be able to make your flight/hotel.
• Rental car insurance–Very very important caveat here; only specific types of four door sedans and SUV’s are covered. If you sign the insurance waiver at the rental car counter, and you use this card to pay, you’re covered for damages. That said, those damages are not covered on luxury vehicles, sport vehicles and trucks or motorcycles.
• Extended warranties–Mastercard doubles your warranty, up to one additional year.

Here’s a full list of MasterCard perks and protections

Is This Card Right For You?

First, a couple of reasons why this is not the card for you.

1. The Santander® Ultimate Cash Back^SM credit card isn’t an ideal option if you’re looking for a card that offers an interest-free introductory period. There are many other great cash back credit cards that offer at least a 0% intro APR for 12 months on purchases.
2. Beyond the intro APR on balance transfers, this card is also not one to carry a balance on. The high end of the APR spectrum is simply too expensive.
3. If you enjoy getting 3% cash back on gas or 5% on select categories each quarter, then this is also not the card for you. A flat 1.5% cash back comes in handy on a lot of everyday purchases but I admit there are cards that can do better on select purchases.
4. You don’t live in the north-east. Sorry to say that the card is restricted geographically.

Now, a few reasons why you should own the The Santander® Ultimate Cash Back^SM credit card.

1. If you have an outstanding balance on another credit card and are paying more than 3% annual interest, this card offers a big savings punch. Average credit card interest rates are around ~19%, so on a $10,000 balance, you’ll save $1,600 in interest simply by transferring your balance to Santander.
2. Who doesn’t love a cash bonus? Spending $500 in 90 days is a quick way to earn $100 on the house.
3. No nonsense, no fee cash back credit cards are easy. Including Mastercard protections; you never have to worry about missing a cash back opportunity or getting charged for something you didn’t buy.

Santander Ultimate Cash Back Bottom Line

The bottom line on this card is that it offers 1.5 percent cash back for everyday purchases. There’s no need to do any calculations or wait for special categories to be added to the list of cash earners. While this level of consistency can be comforting, it can also make you feel like you’re missing out on higher cash-back rates available from other cards. Of course, those cards require you to chase your rewards a little bit more.

The Santander® Ultimate Cash Back^SM credit card is an especially good fit for anyone who already does their banking with Santander. This is ultimately a predictable, highly practical card that will work for earning a high rate of rewards for everyday purchases. It works best for anyone looking for generous rewards with little risk or excitement.

The post Santander Ultimate Cash Back Credit Card Review – $100 Bonus appeared first on The Dough Roller.

English writer and critic Samuel Johnson famously said, “When a man is tired of London, he is tired of life; for there is in London all that life can afford.” Of course, to experience all that London has to afford, you have to be able to afford London. That’s where things get tricky. In 2014, British newspaper The Telegraph proclaimed…

Visiting London on a Budget – Accommodations, Transportation & Things to Do is a post from Money Crashers.