snake_girl85

My husband died January 16th of last year. He didn't have any income for that year, unless there was sick leave used that counts (have to check with his employer). If there was no income, can I still file as "married filing jointly" for the 2014 tax year?

I was pretty stupid/lazy in college, because what I wanted to do at the time didn't require a degree, I figured my grades didn't matter, and I never thought I could afford grad school. As a result, my GPA sucked. My final GPA was around a 2.3, and I was on academic probation for a semester, though my last semester was very close to a 4.0... I know that a great GRE score can't cancel out a poor GPA, but I finally got my test score, and I scored in the 97th percentile for verbal and 98th for math, with a 4.5 for writing... The university I want to go to is decent, but not a super competitive top-tier school. I'm aware that I won't know for sure until I actually apply, but what are the odds of actually being accepted with these scores? Is there any hope? I am confident that if/when I get accepted I can knock out a 4.0 pretty consistently... But getting there is half the battle.

Thanks!!

I am applying for a position at the Farm Service Agency, and I have to answer certain questions about my oral and written skills, etc... This is the only question that I feel doesn't have a strong answer. I want to be honest that I didn't know much previously, but I don't want to regurgitate information from their own website. I can't help but feel that the first part sounds more like an advertisement for the FSA webpage, but I don't know how else to phrase it... suggestions?

Here's what I have:

4. Knowledge of FSA Farm programs and practices

While I had little knowledge of the FSA previously, the FSA/USDA website has organized and extensive information available on FSA programs, and I have been pouring over this information regularly with great interest. One of my focuses in college was on conservation and ecology, and I learned a bit about the Conservation Reserve Program in those classes. I also learned quite a bit about agricultural practices in environmental science and ecology classes, though surprisingly enough I learned the most about agriculture in my entomology class, which turned out to be my favorite college class, and I received the highest grade in the class for an undergraduate. I am incredibly interested in land use, both agriculturally and for conservation efforts, and am eager to learn all I can about the FSA programs. I am a very fast learner, especially regarding things I am passionate about.

I am applying to an entry-level office job in an agency I REALLY want to work for... I have a job application already filled out, along with the required written responses to certain questions about my knowledge and abilities...

I figured that I would still attach a copy of my resume, but would a cover letter as well be way too much?

I am applying for an entry-level job I really want... The last time I applied I never got an interview, and I think it was because, while I have a great interest in this specific field and have education/experience in closely related fields, I don't have much direct experience to speak of...

I have an internet acquaintance that works in this field, and we often have relevant discussions/debates, and he is aware of my interests and knowledge, etc... If we knew each other "in person" he would make a great personal reference.

Would it be advisable to use him as a reference, or should I stick with "real" contacts, even though they aren't associated with this field?

I work at an animal shelter, and, long story short, I got dog blood smack dab in my eye, and it was about 5 minutes before I was able to wash it out.

I am not aware of any blood-borne interspecies pathogens, and the dog was vaccinated, but should I be worried about any sort of infection?

I am in a bit of a pickle... We have a snake with mites, and the only place to quarantine him from the rest of our reptiles is upstairs with our 2 cats. The only really effective way to eliminate mites involves spraying the enclosure with a permethrin-based spray.

I can spray the cage outside, let it dry, and try to rinse out as much residue as I can, but how sensitive are cats to even trace amounts of permethrin? I have heard that some cats even react if they are exposed to dogs that have been treated, but I don't know if that was blown out of proportion.

Reptile mites spread like wildfire, but I really don't want to risk the health of my cats!!!

I am thinking about going back to school after a 2 year break... I would be getting my master's at the same university where I got my bachelor's. The application requires 3 letters of recommendation, presumably from professors. How do I go about getting letters when most of my profs probably won't remember me very well?

My husband sold a plot of land, and then we purchased a home together. The purchase was greater than the amount the lot sold for. We also took out 2 loans, one from the bank and one from my grandfather.

We already need to get another form for the energy tax credit, do we need a form other than the 1040ez to deal with the real estate transactions? (Luckily a family member works at the distributing center so we can get whatever we need quickly)

Thanks!

Is the Cobalt recall for ALL 2005-2010 Cobalts or just the base model? We have a 2006 SS supercharged... I know nothing about cars, but my husband says that the power steering is different in the SS model...

I can't understand how bad legislation like this can even make it this far... Please take a minute to go to

www.kill-s373.com

and take part in the letter campaign to stop this ridiculous attack on reptile owners dead in its tracks!

They are going after large constrictors now, including red tailed boas, but the way this ban was originally written even included ball pythons!!

My husband and I are closing on our first home next week, and I was looking online and just discovered that the buyers apparently need a photo ID for closing... I don't currently have a photo ID that reflects my name change. I don't have a drivers license and don't drink, so I've been dragging my feet on getting that stuff taken care of.

I can get a copy of our marriage certificate early next week, and go get a replacement ss card, and hopefully go get a revised state ID card... But what happens if I can't get it in time?

I could bring my old photo ID and a copy of the certificate, would that work?

Do I even need an ID if my husband brings one?

I guess I should have figured this out sooner, but I didn't need an ID for getting the mortgage, so this is the first I've heard/read of it...

Help!!

Just asking because the form that I am modifying has a space for 2 witnesses to sign for both the buyer and the seller. Is it legally required to have signed witnesses? Likewise, could we be the witnesses for the buyers and vice versa (highly doubt it)?

We are making an offer on a for sale by owner, and the seller wants no realtors involved. We are using a real estate lawyer for the closing, but he told us to make the offer on our own. How do we go about getting full disclosure from the Seller? I found a free version of the disclosure forms we had seen in houses our agent had showed us (forms were from realtor.com). It is the "Illinois association of Realtors Residential Real Property Disclosure Report)." Are we within our rights to require the seller to fill out the same form, or is there a separate form specifically for a FSBO? There's nothing really controversial on it, other than the fact that it's a realtor-published form...

Should we stick to this form, get one specifically for a FSBO, or not worry about disclosure and just make the offer contigent upon a favorable inspection?

We found a house we love, but it's zoned commercial (don't want to have it rezoned because we may start a business a few years down the road).

All the information about the tax credit that I can find mentions nothing about zoning restrictions. You can even get the credit for mobile homes, apartments, and houseboats. The only thing I've run across is that if you turn the residence into a business within 3 years after purchase, you have to pay the credit back.

If we get a commercially zoned house and use it strictly as a residence for at least 3 years, would we be eligible for the tax credit?

Thanks!

We are first time home buyers, and I've fallen in love with a home that was renovated from a 100+ year old small town bank. It is in the towns "downtown" area, and the front may be used as a small business or office, but the rest of it is set up as a primary residence.

We were originally looking to use a rural development loan, but with the bank house being zoned commercial, it may not work, and we may have to look at other loan options.

My main question is this: Any definition I can find for qualifying for the first time homebuyers tax credit defines a home as a primary residence, and even houseboats and mobile homes qualify. Would something zoned commercial still apply as long as it is the primary residence?

I'm toying with the idea of going back to school for my masters. I graduated this past December, and I've contemplated doing it eventually. With the economy the way it is, I'm only working part time and feel like maybe I should do it while I have the free time...

I took several "split-level" classes, with a mixture of grads and undergrads, and did well in them. Some of those same classes are requirements or electives for the masters sequence I'm looking into. Would those carry over like AP credits from high school, or would I have to take them again? Some of them had different requirements within the class for the grad students, but it seems silly to take them twice (though it would mean an easy A)

Here's the story:

We have been looking for a house for a while now (newyweds), mainly foreclosures in surrounding small towns. We are approved for up to 75K, could get more, but we aren't comfortable spending much more than that. Most of the houses we have been looking at are in the 40-70K range.

We recently looked at a FSBO house that an acquaintance of my grandfather is selling (both parents went to assisted living), mainly just to see it, not necessarily to buy it. It's a nice house on a great property. It needs a couple updates, but it's probably our best bet so far.

The house was appraised at around 96K, but the guy said more than once that he really just wants to get rid of it and just wishes someone would make an offer (at the same time, however, this has to go towards his parents' housing).

The house is overall in better condition than most others we've looked at, but I still think the appraisal was a bit on the high end.

We want to make an offer, and obviously want to start low, as there is nowhere to go but up. But how low would be advisable without being insulting to the man? We would like to spend no more than 70K if possible, but is 60K (what my husband wants to offer) too low of a starting offer?

It also needs around 5K worth of improvements, that we would like to have added in as an improvement credit/allowance, in which case we could do 75K or so, maybe more, ideally less.

There's also a bit of hinting that my grandfather would be willing to help us out financially, but we don't want to assume too much and would still like to start low...

I guess my main question is: Is 60K an insulting starting offer of a house appraised (highly) at 96K when it's a very motivated seller?

I had interviewed for a position at a Vet's office over a month ago now... I thought it went very well, I'm very qualified, and they told me they would contact me for the 2nd round of interviews. I hadn't heard anything, so 2 weeks ago I called them to see if the position had been filled. They said they were still in the interviewing process, but led me to believe that they would contact me either way. I'm still waiting! I've heard from others that this place usually drags its feet when hiring.

Should I call again? I don't want to keep nagging at them, but I have a couple other jobs that I've interviewed for, and I may need to make a decision soon, and I would really prefer to work at this place.

Should I call again and risk annoying them, or trust that they will (someday) call me?

Here's the story...

We are pre-approved for a USDA Rural Development loan up to 75K with no downpayment.

We fell in love with a foreclosed BIG old house, in almost perfect condition, but it needs a new roof. The roof itself isn't bad, and there's no water damage, but the saufets are rotting and need to be replaced. The bank who owns it will do NOTHING towards repairs, and we were told that we could fix the roof out of our own pockets, but if our financing fell through we would just be SOL.

The house was last appraised at 70K, but the current asking price is 55K. The cost of repairs would probably be around 10K, but we haven't found out for sure yet.

My question is: What's the chance of getting a loan with the intent to repair? I've heard that the USDA is very picky about the condition of the homes before they approve the loans, but I've also heard that they give home improvement loans.

How likely would it be that we could take out a loan up to the appraised value of the house (around 70), and put the extra 15K or so into the repairs the USDA people require? (especially since the value after the repairs would likely be much higher)