Bogleheads.org

I'm sorry I'll miss the next DC Chapter meeting this Sunday at 1pm. The good news (for me) is I'll be in Prague and Vienna! I did register for the Big Bogle meeting in October. Meeting details below for anyone who wants to attend on May 19. Time: 1:00 pm - 3:00 pm (GMT-05.00) Eastern Time (US & ...

The most important:
The Psychology of Winning, by Denis Waitley (cassette tapes; totally changed my life)

Also important:
How to Win Friends and Influence People, by Dale Carnegie
Think and Grow Rich, by Napoleon Hill

Billy

You are correct that Vanguard will track specific share lots for you -- as an online option you can select "View/Change cost basis method" and then select "Specific identification SpecID."

Billy

sherk,

This article from the Wiki might be helpful for the management in your shop.
http://www.bogleheads.org/wiki/Setting_up_a_401(k)_plan

Billy

Welcome aboard! Here is the link to the Wiki site and several sites within it. http://www.bogleheads.org/wiki/Main_Page "Getting started..." http://www.bogleheads.org/wiki/Getting_Started I like the way this page organizes sections in the Wiki: http://www.bogleheads.org/wiki/Category:Main_...

To OP, I was an engineer for 10 years and have done a lot of things including working in an Asian company where the only women employees were secretaries or receptionists and sexism was accepted and expected (but the men were worker-robots who didn't spend much time at home and the men's spouses ran...

One possibility is to perform an in-service rollover of the $11K out to an IRA. Today they told me they would do this... If the 1099-R is filled out incorrectly, does anyone know if I can correct it and submit the corrected 1099 with my taxes? After research, I see that I can correct the 1099-R if I...

I recently rolled over my pre-tax IRA money into a 401(k) so I could isolate my after-tax IRA money to perform a Roth conversion on the after-tax funds. I did all of this in 2012. In preparing my 2012 taxes I found out that I made a mistake and rolled-over $11K in after-tax IRA money into my 401(k),...

Definitely 100% silicone. Don't use siliconized latex.

If you need color matched caulk the silicone Latisil by Laticrete is great stuff, but you ned to go to professional tile stores to buy it.

Billy

Yes, it is great to go with a generator, if that is what you are doing. It is also good you are thinking about backup options. Nothing is worse than having the power go out and watching the water come in while you hold a flashlight... I've jumped in a window well in the dark during a rainstorm and b...

What about backup pumps for when the power goes out? (Another reason the exterior drainage option is superior.) For some reason the storms that knock out power tend to produce the most rain... How is power reliability in your area? Backup pumps can be battery backup or water powered backup. I instal...

Anyone got a better theory?

Full employment?

I suspect you're right about the preprinted stock.

Billy

I’ve always done my own taxes, first by pencil and now by TurboTax. I don’t hesitate to go out and research things on my own if I have questions. I had a business teacher who told me he would never hire anyone who doesn’t do their own taxes (in the mid-1980s) and that doing your own taxes and unders...

What are you talking about? The suggestion is to buy Vanguard funds at Wells Fargo. The expense ratios are the same. While like most brokerages Admiral shares of index funds aren't available, you can get Signal shares for many there. Or do what I did and buy ETFs for low expenses and maximum portab...

Pete, Sorry I didn't get back to you earlier. I was busy today -- I'm 56 and still working hard! I see you are getting some excellent advice. During the past several months I really cleaned up my portfolio based on the advice I received here. I consolidated accounts as much as I could and have the f...

I see you were up late last night working on this... The SEP IRAs should be pretty straightforward to rollover to Vanguard without tax issues. The Roth IRAs could be invested in Vanguard Total Stock Market Index. Other may offer different advice. See this Wiki article on tax efficient fund placement...

Thank you for taking the time to circle back and let us know about your re-focusing and decisions. Please drop in and keep us up to date on your direction. As you see, there are plenty of people who are willing to provide their opinions based on experience! Good luck on your next steps with your fia...

I will second "Secrets of Power Negotiating", by Roger Dawson. I listened to his audio tapes a long time ago and they were very valuable. Lots of people love "Getting to Yes" but I think it is too academic. They use it a lot in business school and law school programs. But it work...

Another way to look at is how much is it worth to keep DW happy? (My wife would be proud of me for writing this - I hope she doesn't find it! )

That being said, expensive service usuually indicates an expensive tip if she's happy with the service.

Billy

OP, it does sound like you've done your due diligence. Kudos to you for controlling the direction of your career. You already understand the usefulness of using generalized statistics to make career choices. The statistics are informative but not dispositive. Digging deeper you see that "it dep...

Here's one ranking of law schools: http://grad-schools.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/best-graduate-schools/top-law-schools/law-rankings I missed the JD/MBA part. Are you going for the straight JD or the JD/MBA which would mean 4 years of school and borrowing, not 3? MBAs are overrated unless you go ...

Last summer we went to Spain with the kids (ages 14 and 12 then). It is not too hot if you compare it to summer travel in the U.S. If you go to the Mediterranean or Atlantic or mountains it is downright pleasant, especially if Disneyworld is the comparison. We rented a car. The roads and drivers in ...

We live in Maryland, 2 blocks from DC. Property and income taxes are very high, but we can send our kids to great public schools. Traffic is bad at certain times of the day; but we can walk to the Metro that links to Amtrak and 2 of the 3 airports and go places without having to get in a car. This i...

OP, sorry to be off topic on this but I had to add my two cents. I also went to law school and after undergrad it was the last thing I ever thought I would do. But I went with a specific focus - to be a patent lawyer. It sounds like you have a focus and this is as good in career management as it is ...

I thought the announcement is on March 14. Last week I was at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona and Samsung was not showing the S4 there. I doubt it will be available this Thursday... but let us know if you get one! Rumors here: http://www.techradar.com/us/news/phone-and-communications/mobile-phone...

I think they're a great idea now -- but earlier in my investment "career" it was a bit dangerous. More detailed considerations are below. The brokerage option is important to some employees, and it also may be important to the employer in terms of fees they pay. When the employer sets up t...

Great point! In a day or so I'll start a new thread so that others can chime in on How to set up low cost Self-Directed Brokerage Accounts within their 401(k) plan. Then, I'll link the wiki article to the new thread. Please make your point again in that thread. Okay? OK, I'll try to keep an eye out...

Been there, done that...

It reminds of a Jimmy Buffet song called Fool Button:

"Looking for the rent-a-car
Was the Cordoba blue or red..."

Fool Button would be a good name for the App.

Billy

One of the features of a plan that employers should think about is whether to offer a brokerage option in addition to the specific investment funds listed in the plan. This option is important to some employees, and it may also be important to the employer in terms of the fees they pay. As part of s...

Teach persistence, sacrifice, and delayed gratification.

When they are older show them the Wiki video about the magic of compounding. That lesson has a lot of visual impact!

Thatguy, You're mixing new construction and retrofit construction when you compare a 2x4 Mooney wall with a new 2x6 stud wall. Which one are you considering? A new 2x6 wall costs more with less performance than a Mooney wall using 2x4 studs. I'm not mixing anything. It's really silly to compare a 2...

This is a good article on rebalancing from the Wiki. They look at periodic rebalancing as well as rebalancing by various bands, and they assume some level of trading costs. They also ran some models that included some tax effects and found: "We have repeated these experiments in taxable account...

Thatguy, You're mixing new construction and retrofit construction when you compare a 2x4 Mooney wall with a new 2x6 stud wall. Which one are you considering? A new 2x6 wall costs more with less performance than a Mooney wall using 2x4 studs. By the way, your Dana1 reference said "A 16" o.c...

Thatguy, I'm sorry you think a Mooney wall approach to thermal bridging is a joke. I am not going to do your work for you but it is obvious you should study thermal bridging more carefully: http://www.google.com/search?q=thermal+bridge+study&rls=com.microsoft:en-us&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&...

Excellent info BillyG. You are absolutely right. It is important to keep water issues in mind. However, if the wall is designed correctly (with some sort of rain screen as you mentioned), drying to the inside should not be necessary. You may have implied this, but I wasn't sure and just wanted to r...

Probably the other thing to mention is the emerging problem, as we insulate our houses more and more, is moisture/ condensation. Particularly for renovated homes that were not built to be that airtight and insulated, the problem of moisture (cooking, breathing, showers etc.) out migrating and conde...

Look in the obituaries for Mr. Boglehead's passing, and after waiting the appropriate amount of time, contact Mrs. Boglehead. It might allow you to skip having to be frugal and save and invest... More seriously, as an alternative to just letting it happen you could get to know yourself and then crea...

I've studied this subject in depth, recently went through a big renovation where we applied a number of energy saving technologies, and I used to be a carpenter and have done some of these myself. You do need a builder who is "into" these things and cares about doing it right. Many builder...

My parents' house in New Orleans flooded during Katrina and had three feet water standing in the ground floor for a couple of weeks or more. You wouldn't have believed the mold... but it was not that difficult to remove. You can get a mold remediation quote from Servicemaster if you want to get a ro...

Thanks Billy. I live in the South.Yes the under part of the house is enclosed with faux stone ( Not muc if any wind gets under house) I do heat and cool with electric central heat and air. OK, so you have a crawl space. Crawl spaces are tricky to insulate and seal correctly. Where in the south -- d...

Yes, insulating under your floor will keep you warmer in winter and cooler in the summer assuming you're using heat and air conditioning. It also could help keep water vapor and humidity out of your house. There are many issues to consider. - Where do you live? - Is the house open under the piers or...

cheese_breath wrote:She's very frugel when it comes to whatever I want to buy.

Epsecially dictionaries.

First, don't believe anything a realtor tells you about costs. It may or may not be fine -- it depends on the extent of the mold. Was the house uncoccupied (i.e., was the water there for a long time?) Mold remediation is done all the time. Getting it out of the basement may not be a big deal. Gettin...

This is a good Vanguard study on the subject:
https://personal.vanguard.com/pdf/icriecr.pdf

Billy

I'm afraid I agree with livesoft. Don't buy a stucco house. It's too easy to mess up the flashing (roof, windows, doors, etc.) and too expensive to fix the problems. Growing up there was a stucco house next door that was constantly being repaired. Great move on your part to get a moisture test, and ...

Diversion back to murder rates -- 57.6 per 100,000 in New Orleans.
http://money.cnn.com/gallery/real_estat ... ies/5.html

We're going for Mardi Gras, though.

Billy

Hi PDC, This is a pretty good website for places south of Cancun: http://www.locogringo.com/# We stayed here in Akumal twice. It was not expensive but clean with good restaurants. There's a fridge in the room and a 5 gallon bottled water dispenser. Some rooms have small kitchens. http://www.hotelaku...

Bogleheads understand statistics better than most folks. This is a good article about the murder statistics. "What you don’t get from most reports in the US is statistical evidence that Americans are less likely to face violence on average in Mexico than at home, particularly when you zero in o...

The Cancun area and south feels safe, safer than many American large cities, but I grew up in New Orleans where random violence is not uncommon. So is corruption... I go down south of Cancun with my wife and daughters and everyone feels safe. I personally don't like Cancun. The Riviera Maya may be b...

I sympathize with the OP. The tree company knows better; they should fix it. The soil in this area is very soft right now -- temps have mostly remained above freezing and the ground is wet. It is a huge amount of work to fix this but with the right equipment and strong crew they can do it quickly. I...