Dear Fix My Portfolio, I was laid off from a tech company recently, just before the latest big wave. I was given 90 days to decide what to do about my stock options, so I have just a short time to decide. I’ve been hunting for a job. I still have three months’ runway in the bank, and I’ve got freelance income that will come in soon, so I’m not panicking.
My options are priced at almost $1 per share, and the company is now valued at around $9, but it’s a private company so I’d have to wait until it goes public to make any money. The company seems like a good bet, but I’m worried about taking on a tax burden by exercising my options. I’ve spoken to other folks at similar companies who had stock, went public, tanked hard, and they got screwed. I’ve spoken with a tax attorney, and two financial advisers, and still no one knows the answer. What should I do? Signed, B2B Seeker Dear B2B Seeker, You’ve joined a growing crowd of those laid off from big tech, along with thousands from Twitter, Amazon
AMZN,
-1.78%,
Salesforce
CRM,
-2.15%,
Meta
META,
-1.95%,
Lyft
LYFT,
-1.43%,
Coinbase
COIN,
…