sonny-dev/inters-qdu huggingface dataset:
Query: Interest charges on balance transfer when purchases are involved

Relevant passages:
 <=SEP=> "Its called a ""Grace Period"" and you are not paying interest on the 0% BT, you are paying interest on the amount you spent in purchases If you do not pay your balance in full by the due date your grace period ends. This means that you have to pay interest on the purchased amount from the day it is made. This is why when you do a balance transfer the card should be put in the Sock Drawer until the BT is paid off. In order to restore the grace period you must pay the balance in full and the grace period will start during the Next Payment Cycle. Lets Assume: Statement cuts on the 1st and Due date is the 20th. you make the minimum payment of $10 Balance now is $100 Since you have a balance of $100 from the previous statement and a new purchase of $50.00, when the next statement cuts you will have to pay interest according to the terms on the $50.00 portion. In order to get the grace period back you will have to pay in full and wait for the next cycle In case I did not explain it well here is a quote from creditcards dot com website: The cost of carrying a balance   This is because carrying a balance of   any size into the next billing cycle means there is no grace period on   your purchases during that cycle. The card company will begin charging   interest on your purchases the day you make them. So leaving even $1   in unpaid balance on your card will cost you considerably more than   the measly finance charges on that dollar. To see how this works let's consider an imaginary card user named   Sally. She's so happy she got a new credit card that she charges   $1,500 in purchases on the first day of her monthly billing cycle.   After the cycle ends, Sally pays off the entire $1,500 by the due   date, wiping her balance to zero. As a result, her purchases during   the second month are also free of interest. She has used her grace   period wisely to avoid finance charges. What happens if Sally leaves just $1 of her balance from the first   month unpaid? That $1 begins to accrue interest starting the first day   of the billing cycle. It's just $1, so the interest is not a big deal   -- but because she used up her grace period without paying off her entire debt, her new purchases during the second month also start to   get hit with interest charges immediately, starting the day of the   transaction. Assuming she makes another $1,500 in purchases at the   average annual interest rate of about 13 percent, that means $16 in   finance charges for the month. If Sally repeats this pattern, the   interest costs add up to $190 over the course of a year."

 <=SEP=> The 'common sense' in it is that they want the maximum money from you while still suggesting to a quick read that you get away free. Their target is not to make you happy, but to make money of you.
Query: Fees aside, what factors could account for performance differences between U.S. large-cap index ETFs?

Relevant passages:
 <=SEP=> "The ""ideal world"" index fund of any asset class is a perfect percentage holding of all underlying assets with immediate rebalancing that aligns to every change in the index weighting while trading in a fully liquid market with zero transaction costs. One finance text book that describes this is Introduction to Finance: Markets, Investments, and Financial Management, see chapter 11.  Practically, the transaction costs and liquidity make this unworkable. There are several deviations between what the ""ideal world algorithm"" (""the algorithm"") says you should do and what is actually done. Each of these items addresses a real-world solution to various costs of managing a passive index fund. (And they are good solutions.) However, any deviation from the ideal index fund will have a risk. An investor evaluating their choices is left to pick the lowest fees with the least deviation from the ideal index fund. (It is customary to ignore whether the results are in excess or deficit to the ideal). So your formula is: This is also described in the above book."
Query: 0% APR first 12 months on new credit card. Can I exceed that 30% rule of thumb and not hurt my credit score?

Relevant passages:
 <=SEP=> Your utilization ratio history is irrelevant to its impact on your credit score.  If you run up 80% of your utilization In January, then pay it back to 10% in March, your score in March will reflect the new reduced ratio with no memory of the 80% utilization last month. With that said, don't go around overspending just because you have 0% apr for a little bit.  Spend what you would spend with cash.

 <=SEP=> "I cannot stress this enough, so I'll just repeat it:  Don't plan your finances around your credit score.  Don't even think about your credit score at all.  Plan a budget an stick to it.  Make sure you include short and long term savings in your budget.  Pay your bills on time.  Use credit responsibly.  Do all of these things, and your credit rating will take care of itself.  Don't try to plan your finances around raising it. On the subject of 0% financing specifically, my rule of thumb is to only ever use it when I have enough money saved up to buy the thing outright, and even then only if my budget will still balance with the added cost of repaying the loan.  Other people have other rules, including not taking such loans at all, and you should develop a rule that works for you (but you should have a rule).  One rule shouldn't have is ""do whatever will optimize your credit score"" because you shouldn't plan your finances around your credit score.   All things considered, I think the most important thing in your situation is to make sure that you don't let the teaser rate tempt you into making purchases you wouldn't otherwise make.  You're not really getting free money; you're just shifting around the time frame for payment, and only within a limited window at that.  Also, be sure to read the fine print in the credit agreement; they can be filled with gotchas and pitfalls.  In particular, if you don't clear the balance by the end of the introductory rate period, you can sometimes incur interest charges retroactively to the date of purchase.  Make sure you know your terms and conditions cold. It sounds like you're just getting started, so best of luck, and remember that Rome wasn't built in a day.  Patience can be the most effective tool in your personal finance arsenal. p.s. Don't plan your finances around your credit score."
Query: How to calculate ownership for property with a partner

Relevant passages:
 <=SEP=> I can't quite follow your question, so I'm proceeding under the following assumptions: - You paid £31,000 - Your partner paid £4,242 - You have at least one mortgage, which you both pay equally. If the relationship terminates, sell the property. You are reimbursed £31,000 and your partner is reimbursed £4,242. Any remaining proceeds from the sale are split 50-50. If the result is a net loss (i.e. you are underwater on your mortgage), you split the debt 50-50. If you are not both paying the same toward the mortgage, I'd split the profit or loss according to how much you each pay toward the mortgage. Of course, this is not the only possible way you can split things up. You can use pretty much any way you both think is fair. For example, maybe you should get more benefits from a profit because you contributed more up-front. The key thing, though, is that you must both agree in writing, in advance. This is reasonable; this is what I did, for example. Note that if the relationship ends, one or the other of you may wish to keep the property. I'd suggest including a clause in your written agreement simply disallowing this; specify criteria to force a sale. But I know lots of people are happy to allow this. They treat that situation as a forced sale from both people to one person. For example, if your partner chooses to stay in the house, he or she must buy the property from you at prevailing market rates.

 <=SEP=> To add to ChrisInEdmonton's answer: Your conveyancing solicitor should be able to advise on the details, but a typical arrangement involves: As an alternative to the numbers in Chris' answer, it could be argued that you should first be reimbursed for the fees you paid (accounting for inflation), but that any remaining profits from the property itself should be divided in proportion to your individual investments (so 51.6% to you, and 48.4% to your partner, assuming you contribute to the loans equally).

 <=SEP=> i would recommend that you establish a landlord/tenant relationship instead of joint ownership (ie 100% ownership stake for one of you vs 0% for the other). it is much cleaner and simpler.  basically, one of you can propose a monthly rent amount and the other one can chose to be either renter or landlord. alternatively, you can both write down a secret rental price offer assuming you are the landlord, then pick the landlord who wrote down the smaller rental price.  if neither of you can afford the down payment, then you can consider the renter's contribution an unsecured loan (at an agreed interest rate and payment schedule). if you must have both names on the financing, then i would recommend you sell the property (or refinance under a single name) as quickly as possible when the relationship ends (if not before), pay the renter back any remaining balance on the loan and leave the landlord with the resulting equity (or debt).  in any case, if you expect the unsecured loan to outlive your relationship, then you are either buying a house you can't afford, or partnering on it with someone you shouldn't.
Query: Is it a good investment for a foreigner to purchase a flat/apartment in China?

Relevant passages:
 <=SEP=> I think a greater problem would be the protection of your property right.  China hasn't shown much respect for the property rights of its own citizens - moving people off subsistence farms in order to build high-rise apartments - so I'm not certain that a foreigner could expect much protection.  A first consideration in any asset purchase should always be consideration of the strength of local property law.  By all accounts, China fails.

 <=SEP=> China is in the middle of a residential housing bubble, and now is probably a horrible time to invest in real estate in China.  Even if China wasn't near the peak of its bubble it would probably still be a bad idea because owning real estate in a foreign country is expensive and risky. There are real currency risks, think what would happen if the yuan declined significantly against the dollar. There is also the risk of the government seizing foreign held investments (not extremely likely but plausible). Another consideration is that it would be next to impossible for you to get a loan to purchase a property US banks wouldn't touch it with a 10 ft pole and I doubt Chinese banks would be very interested in lending to foreigners.

 <=SEP=> No, it's not.  This could be a great question, but with no background, not so much. Do you live there now? For how long, and how much longer? You say investment, are you looking to live in it or rent it out?  I have nothing against China, but I'd not buy anywhere unless the price, location, and timing all were right.

 <=SEP=> It is a lousy investment to purchase an apartment in China. Chinese citizens purchase apartments in China because, well... here's how China works: There's some fundamentals driving Chinese property values higher, but mostly it's a bubble caused by those reasons.

 <=SEP=> More infomation is needed for any meaningful discussion about this.  I just assume you want to buy in China mainland, not Hongkong or other places. That depends on where you want to buy the flat.  Which city, which district of the city, which community, which school district, how old is the building?  Furthermore, always bearing in mind that you don't own the land when you buy a flat in China mainland.  The land is always state-owned, you are renting the land. Someone will say that the real property market in China is always in a bubble, but because the ownership of the land is different from countries like US and other things like one-child policy, things are not that easy to tell.   But if you don't live in China now and you don't have clients ready to rent from you, I don't think it is a good choice right now to buy one just for investment.
Query: Put-Call parity - what is the difference between the two representations?

Relevant passages:
 <=SEP=> "Well, the first one is based on the ""Pert"" formula for continuously-compounded present value, while the second one is the periodically-compounded variant.  Typically, the continuously-compounded models represent the ideal; as the compounding period of time-valued money shrinks towards zero, and the discount rate (or interest rate if positive) stays constant over the time period examined, the periodic equation's results approach that of the continuously-compounded equation. Those two assumptions (a constant rate and continuous balance adjustment from interest) that allow simplification to the continuous form are usually incorrect in real-world finance; virtually all financial institutions accrue interest monthly, for a variety of reasons including simpler bookkeeping and less money paid or owed in interest. They also, unless prohibited by contract, accrue this interest based on a rate that can change daily or even more granularly based on what financial markets are doing. Most often, the calculation is periodic based on the ""average daily balance"" and an agreed rate that, if variable, is based on the ""average daily rate"" over the previous observed period. So, you should use the first form for fast calculation of a rough value based on estimated variables. You should use the second form when you have accurate periodic information on the variables involved. Stated alternately, use the first form to predict the future, use the second form in retrospect to the past."
Query: Why can low volume move a stock price drastically?

Relevant passages:
 <=SEP=> "In a sense, yes. There's a view in Yahoo Finance that looks like this   For this particular stock, a market order for 3000 shares (not even $4000, this is a reasonably small figure) will move the stock past $1.34, more than a 3% move.  Say, on the Ask side there are 100,000 shares, all with $10 ask. It would take a lot of orders to purchase all these shares, so for a while, the price may stay right at $10, or a bit lower if there are those willing to sell lower.  But, say that side showed $10 1000, $10.25 500, $10.50 1000. Now, the volume is so low that if I decided I wanted shares at any price, my order, a market order will actually drive the market price right up to $10.50 if I buy 2500 shares ""market"".  You see, however, even though I'm a small trader, I drove the price up. But now that the price is $10.50 when I go to sell all 2500 at $10.50, there are no bids to pay that much, so the price the next trade will occur at isn't known yet. There may be bids at $10, with asking (me) at $10.50. No trades will happen until a seller takes the $10 bid or other buyers and sellers come in."
Query: Is ScholarShare a legitimate entity for a 529 plan in California?

Relevant passages:
 <=SEP=> To mhoran's point, yes, the company, TIAA-CREF is valid. I'd focus on the expenses -   Their S&P fund (Index US Large Cap Equity Portfolio) shows a .11% total fee. You might choose this one, or others, but this number looks great to me. We are in an investment world where fees are still often over 1%, and we are conditioned to think anything less is a good fee. For me, the goal is less than .25% in your retirement fund, college savings, etc.

 <=SEP=> For a parent deciding on contributing to a 529 plan the first consideration is the plan run by the state government that will trigger a state income tax deduction. You do have to at least look at the annual fees for the program before jumping into the state program, but for many people the state program offers the best deal because of the state tax deduction. Unfortunately for you California does not offer a state tax deduction for 529 plan contributions. Which means that you can pick another states program if the fees are more reasonable or if the investing options are better. You can even select a nationwide plan unaffiliated with a state. Scholarshare is run by TIAA-CREF. TIAA-CREF is a large company that runs pension and 403(b) funds for many state and local governments. Many teacher unions use them.  They are legitimately authorized by the state of California: The ScholarShare Investment Board sets investment policies and   oversees all activities of ScholarShare, the state’s 529 college   investment plan. The program enables Californians to save for college   by putting money in tax-advantaged investments. After-tax   contributions allow earnings to grow tax-deferred, and disbursements,   when used for tuition and other qualified expenses, are federal and   state tax-free. The ScholarShare Plan is managed by TIAA-CREF Tuition   Financing, Inc. The ScholarShare Investment Board also oversees the Governor’s   Scholarship Programs and California Memorial Scholarship Program. note: before picking a plan from another state make sure that they allow outside contributions.
Query: What are my best options if I don't have a lot of credit lines for housing loans?

Relevant passages:
 <=SEP=> "Rather than trying to indirectly game your credit score, I would instead shop around and see if there are other lenders that will pre-qualify you with your credit the way it is today.  BofA and other large banks can be very formulaic in how they qualify loans; a local bank or credit union may be more willing to bend the traditional ""rules"" and pre-qualify you.   I'm thinking about using FHA. If you can put 20% down then a conventional mortgage will likely be cheaper than an FHA loan since FHA loans have mortgage insurance built-in while conventional mortgages typically don't require it if you borrow less than 80% of the house's value.  I would shop around before jumping to an FHA loan."

 <=SEP=> The short answer is, with limited credit, your best bet might be an FHA loan for first time buyers.  They only require 3.5% down (if I recall the number right), and you can qualify for their loan programs with a credit score as low as 580. The problem is that even if you were to add new credit lines (such as signing up for new credit cards, etc.), they still take time to have a positive effect on your credit.  First, your score takes a bit of a hit with each new hard inquiry by a prospective creditor, then your score will dip slightly when a new credit account is first added. While your credit score will improve somewhat within a few months of adding new credit and you begin to show payment history on those accounts, your average age of accounts needs to be two years or older for the best effect, assuming you're making all of the payments on time. A good happy medium is to have between 7 and 10 credit lines on your credit history, and to make sure it's a mix of account types, such as store cards, installment loans, and credit cards, to show that you can handle various types of credit. Be careful not to add TOO much credit, because it affects your debt-to-income ratio, and that will have a negative effect on your ability to obtain mortgage financing. I really suggest that you look at some of the sites which offer free credit scores, because some of them provide great advice and tips on how to achieve what you're trying to do.  They also offer credit score simulators, which can help you understand how your score might change if, for instance, you add new credit cards, pay off existing cards, or take on installment loans.  It's well worth checking out. I hope this helps.  Good luck!
Query: Better to rent condo to daughter or put her on title?

Relevant passages:
 <=SEP=> "Obviously you have done well financially in order to be able to purchase a condo for cash, presumably, without risk of your other obligations.  To put things in perspective, we are probably talking about less than $5,000 in tax savings.   If she is on the title then she is a co-owner.  Are you okay with that?  You would essentially be giving this child a 50% stake in a property without compensation.  Will your other children be okay with it? As your question stated you would prefer to not have her as an owner.  However, is it better to not have her as an owner, So I would buy the condo without her on the title and just pay the extra $100 per month in property tax.  It is probably ""small potatoes"" in comparison to your net worth. I would also only charge her at most your cost of carrying the property as rent.  While you will create income all of it (and probably more) could be written off as costs.  There should be no income tax burden created from this situation.  Your accountant can help with any paperwork that needs to be filed."

 <=SEP=> @Pete B.'s answer is good, but there's an important note to consider for tax purposes.  It's too large for a comment, so I'm adding it as an answer. And that is: you cannot claim the property as a rental property under certain conditions.  This affects things like claiming mortgage interest (which you don't have), and depreciation in value (which a rental is allowed). See IRS topic 415 for details, but I've included an important excerpt below with emphasis added: If you rent a dwelling unit to others that you also use as a residence, limitations may apply to the rental expenses you can deduct. You're considered to use a dwelling unit as a residence if you use it for personal purposes during the tax year for more than the greater of:  ...   A day of personal use of a dwelling unit is any day that it's used by: Talk to a tax accountant to better understand the ramifications of this, but it's worth noting that you can't just rent it to her for a paltry sum and be able to take tax advantages from this arrangement.

 <=SEP=> By placing the property in her name, her share of it would also be considered an asset of hers should she ever be sued. If she gets married and later divorced, depending on if Michigan is a community property state or not (and a lot of other things), her ex might get 50% of her stake in the property.