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WHAT IS CONSIDERED A HIGH EXPENSE FEE ?? ( I'M CHANGING SOME THINGS AROUND AND THE FIDELITY ADVISOR I'M WORKING WITH HAS ME IN (PER MY REQUEST) SOME TOTAL INDEX FUNDS WITH LOW FEE'S BUT HAS ME IN SOME FEE'S THAT ARE COMING IN AT 0.75 AND O.77....WOULD THESE BE CONSIDERED HIGH ??? They are high for ...

xcski , you didn't specify an AA so I'm going to recommend 75% stocks, 25% bonds, with 30% of stocks in international. That breaks down to 52% US stocks, 23% international stocks, and 25% bonds. Here is a possible retirement portfolio: His 401k at Fidelity -- $30K -- 37% 6% (N/A) Fidelity US Equity...

SnowSkier wrote:Your comments on SmallCapValue (VSIAX for me) and SmallCap (VIEIX extended mkt for me) give me some helpful food for thought.

Extended Market hold mid caps along with small caps. It's more complete.

ugaDAWGS09 , most of this was formulated from the original post before the forum crash. You want an AA of 70-75% stocks, 25-30% bonds, with unknown in international. At your age I'll pick 75% stocks, 25% bonds, with 30% of stocks in international. That breaks down to 52% US stocks, 23% internationa...

1. Does the overall allocation & approach look reasonable? Any suggestions? This is mostly reasonable. It's not what I would do, but it's obvious you thought about this and worked it all out to your own comfort level. (If you're wondering what I would do, I would have more bonds, a lot more, an...

grapeape , although you contributed to your 2012 IRA in 2013 it was for 2012 so you should have filed Form 8606 with your taxes. However, you can file that form separately. On the form it specifically states: "Fill in Your Address Only If You Are Filing This Form by Itself and Not With Your Ta...

It'll be some combination of Total US stock, Total Int'l stock and Total Bond Market index funds. Since this is a taxable account, Total Bond Market would probably not be suitable. A better choice would be ( VWIUX ) Vanguard Intermediate-Term Tax-Exempt Fund Admiral Shares (0.12%) and/or a Connecti...

msj16 , if his new 401k plan allows it he could roll "His Traditional IRA" and "His Previous 401k" over to "His 401k". The plan has some very good funds and it would allow for future use of the backdoor Roth IRA method for him. If she is allowed to open a second Self-E...

It may not be necessary but you could make it four checks:
#1 from husband to mom
#2 from husband to dad
#3 from wife to mom
#4 from wife to dad
That way it's obvious you're under the gift amount.

msj16 , you want an AA of 80% stocks, 20% bonds (low for your ages), with 25% of stocks in international. That breaks down to 60% US stocks, 20% international stocks, and 20% bonds. Here is a possible retirement portfolio: His 401k -- 59% 19% (N/A) Fidelity US Equity Index Fund (0.02%) <-- This ass...

ugaDAWGS09, whatever you decide to do with the bulk of the $50K, set aside some to live on while you max your 401k and Roth IRA over the next couple of years. This moves taxable assets into tax-sheltered assets.

And I recommend not investing in individual stocks.

berg, all assets for retirement purposes are part of your retirement portfolio (e.g. 401k, IRAs, taxable). Assets not for retirement are not part of the retirement portfolio (e.g. 529s, emergency fund, short-term-needs fund).

I am surprised there has been no additional advice and feedback from fellow Bogleheads. Alan S. is the expert in these matters. During January 2013, I called Vanguard to convert the $5,000 in Traditional IRA contributions made in 2012 to the new Roth IRA account. My only advice would be to check wi...

mundogrande , all those numbers mean nothing to us. What are the expense ratios in your plan? You have four very good (and probably very cheap) funds: VINIX Vanguard Institutional, FSEMX Spartan Extended, VTSNX Vanguard Total International, and FXSTX Spartan US Bond, all index funds. They probably ...

Streptococcus wrote:Today I saw a financial advisor for the first time since I became a boglehead just 6 months ago.

Why did you go in the first place?

If you compare them they look practically the same:

PIMCO Total Return

Total Bond Market

Most of the numbers are identical. Choose the cheaper option.

Why exchange the way you have been? She can get Canadian money easily. You can get US money easily. Just swap with each other when you meet up.

milesfan wrote:Does the Roth conversion count towards the Roth limit for 2013?

No.

For example, if she converts her $4000 into a Roth IRA, can she still add $5500 for this year?

Yes. Contributions and conversions are separate.

milesfan , yes, it is good for each of you to have your own plans. But, it also depends on the options and expense ratios in her 401k. Because your TSP is great, financially it would probably be better to contribute only up to the match in her 401k and max your TSP before putting more in her 401k. ...

I've always been under the impression that Vanguard did not accept third party checks. I've often deposited checks made payable to me into my Vanguard money market account. They have included paychecks, income tax refunds, birthday checks, cancelled magazine refunds, etc. (There is $100 minimum for...

A picnic in the park sounds great. Just make sure someone else prepares the food, packs all the gear (including sunscreen and Deet), and cleans up afterward. Don't make your wife do the work.

It seems to me international stock funds have a bad habit of big drops of for long periods which are then help for long periods of time. Then at some point they suddenly wake-up and experience a sudden huge increase. I don't have much patience for a fund that seems to spend most of it's time in the...

Well, (RBFCX) American Funds Bond Fund of America (0.92%) isn't a great fund, but given your choices it'll do.

mikeportfolio , Plan A is a little more expensive in total but all of its options are good and cheap. Plan B's options are all more expensive (and some a lot more expensive). The other employees who may not be as financially educated as you would be better off in Plan A because there are no bad cho...

For reference, both our Roths are at Vanguard and my 401(k) is with Fidelity so lots of flexibility in those accounts. Her 401(k) choices have a Total Bond Fund with ER of 0.98, a few Int'l Stock funds with ER of 1.25 - 1.50, and the Target Retirement funds with ER of 1.2 - 1.3. The lowest ER (besi...

Clark Griswold , I recommend you sell the private bank stock and the Eaton Vance stock, then pay off your debts. You can use the rest to max your Roth IRAs for 2013 and increase your emergency fund (3 months isn't much with a kid). Roll "His Old 401k" over to a Traditional/Rollover IRA at...

xGLORYx , if your Roth IRAs are your only tax-sheltered accounts and you want 30% bonds, you're going to have to put bonds in taxable. In that case ( VWITX ) Vanguard Intermediate-Term Tax-Exempt Fund Investor Shares (0.20%) and/or a state-specific tax-exempt fund will be appropriate. (TBM can stil...

victorghe , Fidelity has decent Spartan index funds similar to Vanguard's. You could use: ( FSTMX ) Spartan Total Market Index Fund Investor Class (0.10%) ( FSGUX ) Spartan Global ex U.S. Index Fund Investor Class (0.22%) ( FBIDX ) Spartan U.S. Bond Index Fund Investor Class (0.22%) Or you could ro...

I'd probably say I'm at 70/30 currently, and would like your input on the best portfolio to start with. I'm going to start with $50,000 and move more money in bimonthly. You want an AA of 70% stocks, 30% bonds, with unknown in international. I'll pick 30% of stocks in international. That breaks dow...

rcg1977 wrote:Is there any reason why I should stick with the funds I currently hold and not simplify things??

No. The proposed "simpler allocation" is much better and probably a little cheaper.

pradador , you like to play with your accounts, don't you. Your Roth IRA has roughly $16K and is split among 11 different ETFs, many with high expense ratios. This is silly. In your 401k you are limited to higher cost funds, but in your IRAs you could be buying much cheaper funds/ETFs. And you don'...

Djb103 , in general it's better to consider all retirement assets when figuring out what goes where. By figuring your AA as a whole instead of in pieces you can buy the best/cheapest options in each account. So treat the 401k and IRA as part of one portfolio, not two. Also, if any of the taxable as...

0.09%

$50 for a flashy cubic zirconia ring. The marriage didn't last, but not because of the ring. Also, the proposal came before picking out the ring. Since the woman wears it, it should be her style choice. I've never understood buying a ring as a surprise before the proposal. If she says no (and it hap...

The fund offerings within my 401K are extremely poor. The Stock Index fund I'm currently in has an ER=0.31. 0.31% isn't bad for a 401k plan. With the top of the 25% bracket at almost $88,000 for individuals and my income at $48,000 (SS + pension) + $35,000 (beginning RMDs at age 70) = $83,000 in re...

texasgal47 , you're thinking about an AA of 50% stocks, 50% bonds (reasonable), with 12% of stocks in international (that's low). That breaks down to 44% US stocks, 6% international stocks, and 50% bonds. Here is a possible retirement portfolio: Taxable at Treasury Direct -- 11% 11% I bonds and EE ...

NewtoBogle , you want an AA of 80% stocks, 20% bonds (a little low for mid 30s), with 20-30% of stocks in international. I'll pick 30%. That breaks down to 56% US stocks, 24% international stocks, and 20% bonds. Here are two possible retirement portfolios: Portfolio #1 Her 403b -- $7K -- 6% 6% ( VT...

mikeportfolio , your plan makes sense. Can you roll the old Fidelity 401k into the old Mercer 401k? The options are better and it would simplify things. Converting from Investor shares to Admiral shares is not a taxable event, so no tax bill. 20% bonds is a little low for age 29 but not unreasonable.

Wyatt007 , given your choices I'd go with: ( FUSVX ) Spartan 500 Index Fund Advantage Class (0.07%) ( RERGX ) American Funds EuroPacific Growth Fund R6 Class (0.50%) ( PTTRX ) PIMCO Total Return Fund Institutional Class (0.46%) FUSVX is only large caps and RERGX is only developed markets, but they'...

My current company's 401k plan is managed through Fidelity but why is there Vanguard Target retirement funds as options? Just because Fidelity manages the plan doesn't mean they choose the plan options. Many plans have a mix of funds from different companies just like yours does (SSgA, Dodge & ...

Passthedamnhamplease , your AA looks like 75% stocks, 25% bonds, with 33% of stocks in international, breaking down to 50% US stocks, 25% international stocks, and 25% bonds. Here is a possible retirement portfolio: Taxable at Vanguard -- 72% 47% ( VTSAX ) Vanguard Total Stock Market Index Fund Adm...

I think it is one of the best advantages of my current portfolio size that I'll never get that phone call. Not necessarily. Years ago I had about $4K in stock at Merrill Lynch. I was cold-called by some young guy wanting me to invest in something (I can't remember now what it was). ML sold/shared m...

I can't comment on Glimmerblocker, but under Safari > Preferences > Security do you have the "Block pop-up windows" box checked? I do, and never get pop-up ads except when I've unchecked it occasionally for particular access.

90/10 is a little aggressive. I'd recommend 80/20. I was thinking that since we are both young we can afford to be a bit more aggressive for the time being. I've looked through the forum for a while and it seems like a lot younger people want to keep their bond allocation low like this. I don't thi...

Van-Guard23, you have a desired AA of 70% stocks, 30% bonds (a little low for your age), with 25% of stocks in international. If 70% in stocks is a little too conservative, do you suggest 80% or even 90% in stocks? I meant your 30% of bonds is low for age 44. 35% to 40% may be better. But it all de...

Van-Guard23 , you have a desired AA of 70% stocks, 30% bonds (a little low for your age), with 25% of stocks in international. That breaks down to 52% US stocks, 18% international stocks, and 30% bonds. Here is a possible retirement portfolio: Taxable at Vanguard -- 49% 31% ( VTSAX ) Vanguard Total...

Emergency funds: 3 months - We had six months worth, but just moved and used some of it for deposits and such. This will gradually be replenished to a 6 month level. Good. Tax Rate: 1% Federal, 7% State This is supposed to be your tax bracket , the percentage paid on your last dollar, not the perce...

The one question I have remaining is how to best use the Vanguard Extended Market Index fund to balance the 500 funds in our 401k/457 plans. Do you use a standard split of 80/20? I ask because I want to gain the knowledge to re-balance appropriately in the future and I am currently arriving at diff...

If my annual limit is $5500 in an IRA, and I want to do allocate (for example) 10% - Bond Index, 30% - International Stock Index and 60% - Stock Index, but vanguard's minimum investment is $1000 or $3000, do I just try to achieve approximately the balance to the extent I can do so with the purchase...

Fisherman , like the others I recommend rolling the old 401k into either an Individual 401k plan at Vanguard or a Self-Employed 401k plan at Fidelity. Vanguard does allow incoming rollovers from 401/403/457 plans. It says so on page 70 of the Individual 401k New Plan Kit for employers. They just do...