I’m looking into buying a sauna thru my HSA and jumping thru the hoops necessary to facilitate that process. I’m curious if anyone here has done this before and has any advice or lessons learned they could share? It looks like there’s several companies that offer payment thru an HSA and I’m trying to vet the different companies. Thanks!
Are you looking to install one inside your home or outside. I’ve often thought about getting a sauna ( Love those things ) Just don’t have a good space inside my home, and the cost of most of the outside ones are rather spendy.
I’d be looking for an outside one that is not built permanently as I don’t plan on living at my house long term and want to bring it with me when I move.
You can get a nice outdoor sauna for under $10k. I see 6 ft electric barrel saunas on fbook marketplace all the time in a reasonable price range.
The attractive thing about the HSA option is I have a hefty chunk of money sitting in my HSA collecting dust. I invest it thru my HSA investment platform but would love to deploy some of those funds into a sauna if I can. Another reason why HSA’s are one of the best tax advantage accounts and investment vehicles out there.
Be following this to see how the whole HSA part of this works out for you and what model you end up getting. May have to increase the HSA and look into doing the same thing in the next year or so.
I’ve gone down the rabbit hole on Sauna’s, but didn’t realize HSA payment was even an option. I’d be interested in hearing if that works out and what Sauna you end up with.
The attractive thing about the HSA option is I have a hefty chunk of money sitting in my HSA collecting dust. I invest it thru my HSA investment platform but would love to deploy some of those funds into a sauna if I can. Another reason why HSA’s are one of the best tax advantage accounts and investment vehicles out there.
Not just collecting dust, it’s growing… tax free. All good reasons to leave the HSA alone and use other funds if you have them available. Everyone’s situation is different but just general speaking – let that pre-tax money continue to grow tax free as long as possible.
Just a thought… That money will go a long way when you retire to pay for your medical expenses. You can’t have too much.
On the sauna part, they sure are nice. I feel like they are the best option when I’m not feeling great or am sore beyond belief. My cousin has one similar to what you’re talking about and uses it daily without regret.
On the HSA side – I’d let that fund balance pile up since it is all pre-tax dollars. Medical expenses are going nowhere but up. If you aren’t retirement age, they can be used to buy insurance if/when you retire early. I try to let both my HSA and HCSP remain untouched whenever I can. I don’t want to think about what routine medical care will cost 15-20 years from now.
Ill stay away from the financial advice, it’s all been said here and every situation is different. Are you unable to just payout of pocket or credit card and then reimburse yourself? That’s how I do HSA expenditures to eliminate the hoops. Also can gain credit card points (and bonuses) if your into that sort of thing.
Ya I appreciate everyone’s financial advice. I work (and my education background is) in finance so am very versed in investment vehicles and tax advantage accounts and I know the pros and cons of this move. I certainly can pay out of pocket and do the reimbursement route but from the research I’ve done, it’s cleaner if you pay directly with your HSA and accompany it with a LMN (letter of medical need). Theres several sauna manufacturers who specialize in the HSA route and all the documentation needed to avoid any issues with the IRS.
RE: paying on a CC. I’ll look into it but many vendors now charge an extra 3% to pay with a CC and that will erode any financial benefit you’d get from getting points/rewards on the transaction. I am huge into the credit card game and maximizing rewards/point monetization.
I enjoy a good sauna but don’t have the space inside. On recommendation from a friend I bought one of the individual sized “portable sauna tent” options from amazon for about $250 and have it in my garage (garage is attached, heated, insulated). Going on year 2 and it’s still working great. Not for everybody, but has fit the bill for me. Plus, it reminds me of ice fishing 
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