Search found 53 matches
- Fri Jan 24, 2020 10:04 am
- Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
- Topic: 2nd Home Down Payment
- Replies: 9
- Views: 1110
Re: 2nd Home Down Payment
Thanks for the great responses, all. You all are more risk adverse than I am it sounds like. Maybe that's a product of me not having been through a recession yet? Bloom - I paid $320k for it. I could probably get $350k. Not a great last 8 years for Baltimore! fittan - Not a debbie downer! That's a fair take. Thank you for the glass of cold water. I have never tried to time the market but the highs are finally getting me a little queasy. I won't fuss around with the less than 20% down thing since we're in a position that if we only do the maximum contribution limits to our retirement plans, we should be able to stockpile $100k in our high-yield savings by the end of the year. I could accelerate that a bit by selling some individual stocks, w...
- Tue Jan 14, 2020 2:05 pm
- Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
- Topic: 2nd Home Down Payment
- Replies: 9
- Views: 1110
Re: 2nd Home Down Payment
Am I missing something about this capital gains deduction that you both mentioned? Am I correct that you don't pay taxes on the increase in home value up to $500k for a married couple? So my $320k home can be sold for $820k without paying capital gains tax on it? I understand that this would go away after not living there for 2 years. I would likely sell my home for something like $320k-$350k, which is basically no appreciation in 8 years. bloom - My question wasn't really how or where to save, it was how much to save. I just don't know if it's worth waiting/grinding out the $100k into my savings account, or if I should take the FHA loan route and keep investing in my brokerage account. Or if there are common enough 10% down payments out th...
- Tue Jan 14, 2020 8:16 am
- Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
- Topic: 2nd Home Down Payment
- Replies: 9
- Views: 1110
2nd Home Down Payment
My wife and I are looking to buy a home later this year, going from the downtown life to being 10 miles from downtown. We're looking at homes in the $400-$550k range so let's call a traditional down payment of 20% of $100k. We have $35k in a high-interest savings account tabbed for this right now. If we put the hammer down, we can still max out our 401k's and add about $3k/month to that. We have about $35k in individual stocks that I don't mind parting ways with also, but would have to pay mostly long term gains on those. What's your take on how we should make/save for down payment? I know an FHA loan is 3.5% but you pay PMI, which can be paid off quickly, so that's an idea. Are there options out there for something between 3.5% and 20% dow...
- Wed Oct 16, 2019 11:01 am
- Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
- Topic: Prenuptial agreement for moderately successful 30 year olds
- Replies: 68
- Views: 7663
Prenuptial agreement for moderately successful 30 year olds
I'm getting married to my girlfriend of nearly 10 years. We met at the end of college and will be 30 and 31 years old when we get married in December. It's an exciting time for us! Due to my parents paying for my 5 years of out of state college, many years of $10k birthday checks from grandma, and being a sound investor, I have been able to accumulate a few bucks. She is no slouch either. We have lived together for almost 3 years and have jointly shared our expenses during this time. We have tracked our net worth on a monthly basis since 2013 when I had $136k and she had -$50k (still lots of student loans). We invested a combined $85k last year and will be around $95k in by the end of 2019. We're in consulting fields where our salaries will...
- Tue Sep 25, 2018 10:15 am
- Forum: Personal Investments
- Topic: What to do with a windfall
- Replies: 10
- Views: 1704
Re: What to do with a windfall
Dandy - Let me make sure I'm following your math on this right. The gains paid would both come from 1099-INT forms I'm guessing so I'd be paying on my ordinary income tax. Let's say I invest $20k in that fund and get 1.80% yield (1.99% yield minus 0.19% expenses) so that's $360. And then call it 0.60% of appreciation so $120 which I'd pay 24% taxes on that so call it $90. That makes it $450 of gains on the year.
Ally has 2.50% rates for 12-month CDs so that'd give me $500 in gains minus $120 in taxes which leaves $380 of gains. So a difference of $70 or so, right?
Ally has 2.50% rates for 12-month CDs so that'd give me $500 in gains minus $120 in taxes which leaves $380 of gains. So a difference of $70 or so, right?
- Mon Sep 24, 2018 1:51 pm
- Forum: Personal Investments
- Topic: What to do with a windfall
- Replies: 10
- Views: 1704
Re: What to do with a windfall
Thanks for the quick responses. I was kidding about the boat thing... come on now! I haven't reached mid-life crisis age yet. It sounds like the 529 plan is out, as well. I should have mentioned that I'm not sure that I'll sell the house we currently live in in 2-3 years. Keeping it as a rental might not be a bad idea. I think that probably helps the argument to not pay down the mortgage. High-yield savings seems to be garnering most of the votes. I like that answer. Boring is okay... the stock market valuations do scare me a bit these days. Investing $20k and putting $20k to savings probably isn't the worst idea either. Re: Honeymoon - We aren't doing a wedding registry and are instead asking for a honeymoon fund from our guests. I'd rathe...
- Mon Sep 24, 2018 9:35 am
- Forum: Personal Investments
- Topic: What to do with a windfall
- Replies: 10
- Views: 1704
What to do with a windfall
Without getting into details of where the money is coming from, I'll be receiving a tax-free windfall of about $40k before the end of the year. I am engaged to be married next year and will be paying for wedding expenses along the way. That money will be coming from what would have been invested in taxable index funds. We will still maxing out our tax-advantaged accounts. We don't have kids but plan to have our first in 2-3 years and will likely buy another house at that junction. Emergency funds: 2 months living expenses Debt: Mortgage with $225k and 24 years remaining on 3.625%. I have only made minimum payments. Tax Filing Status: Single Tax Rate: 24% Federal, 4.75% State State of Residence: MD Age: 29 Desired Asset allocation: 95% stock...
- Fri Sep 14, 2018 8:09 am
- Forum: Personal Investments
- Topic: buying Fidelity funds in a Vanguard account for purposes of tax loss harvesting
- Replies: 23
- Views: 2132
Re: buying Fidelity funds in a Vanguard account for purposes of tax loss harvesting
gostars - Great observation on the different number of companies in those indexes. I'm a little leery of SPEM just because it's only a $1B ETF. Maybe that's a stupid concern but I think I'm splitting hairs anyway. I'll be going with IEMG.
- Thu Sep 13, 2018 8:29 am
- Forum: Personal Investments
- Topic: buying Fidelity funds in a Vanguard account for purposes of tax loss harvesting
- Replies: 23
- Views: 2132
Re: buying Fidelity funds in a Vanguard account for purposes of tax loss harvesting
gostars - Would you be worried that SPEM could be too similar to VWO? I don't want to create a wash sale.
- Wed Sep 12, 2018 2:10 pm
- Forum: Personal Investments
- Topic: buying Fidelity funds in a Vanguard account for purposes of tax loss harvesting
- Replies: 23
- Views: 2132
Re: buying Fidelity funds in a Vanguard account for purposes of tax loss harvesting
indexfundfan - It's probably a little off-topic now but I am tilted towards small-cap and emerging markets so I own VXUS, VSS, and VWO.
- Wed Sep 12, 2018 2:02 pm
- Forum: Personal Investments
- Topic: buying Fidelity funds in a Vanguard account for purposes of tax loss harvesting
- Replies: 23
- Views: 2132
Re: buying Fidelity funds in a Vanguard account for purposes of tax loss harvesting
indexfundfanThe list provided by mhalley has pretty good links to some insights with regard to that.
https://www.etf.com/channels/emerging-markets-etfs
Yes, you are right. IEMG is the only one of those 4 that counts South Korea. I'm not sure if that's an argue for or against it but thank you for pointing that out.
https://www.etf.com/channels/emerging-markets-etfs
Yes, you are right. IEMG is the only one of those 4 that counts South Korea. I'm not sure if that's an argue for or against it but thank you for pointing that out.
- Wed Sep 12, 2018 1:54 pm
- Forum: Personal Investments
- Topic: buying Fidelity funds in a Vanguard account for purposes of tax loss harvesting
- Replies: 23
- Views: 2132
Re: buying Fidelity funds in a Vanguard account for purposes of tax loss harvesting
daveydoo - Out of the 4 ETFs mentioned here (VWO, SPEM, SCHE, and IEMG), which two do you prefer? I'm doing the same thing as the OP and will be selling some VEMAX/VWO and buying something new, but I don't want to have 4 separate emerging markets holdings like you said you regret. I was leaning towards IEMG.
- Thu Dec 29, 2016 12:34 pm
- Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
- Topic: "Fun Money" Allocation
- Replies: 28
- Views: 5446
Re: "Fun Money" Allocation
OP here... Following through 2016 resolutions here by following up on things I started researching/doing. So here I am, playing catch up!
I appreciate all of the advice and have decided to move down to 5% of "fun money". I'm down to 7.2% now and will TLH the individual stocks until I'm down to 5%. I'm also only adding money to my index funds only so 5% should be within reach by end of 2016... unless of course the valuation of some of those individual stocks multiply! Hah.
I appreciate all of the advice and have decided to move down to 5% of "fun money". I'm down to 7.2% now and will TLH the individual stocks until I'm down to 5%. I'm also only adding money to my index funds only so 5% should be within reach by end of 2016... unless of course the valuation of some of those individual stocks multiply! Hah.
- Thu Oct 27, 2016 6:16 am
- Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
- Topic: "Fun Money" Allocation
- Replies: 28
- Views: 5446
Re: "Fun Money" Allocation
Thanks everyone for the insight. A lot of different opinions out there and I hope others are soaking those up. Taylor - Thanks for the response. I respect your work tremendously! My ROI for buying an individual company is higher than the blackjack table (even with 3:2 blackjack, dealer stands on soft 17, double after split allowed...) and it doesn't cause me extra stress. I only track that 10% when I go to rebalance and invest every 2 months to see that I'm not over that 10% threshold. You don't think that's a sustainable and worthwhile thing? Part of me is happy about the bigger losses because I think I am more likely to weather the recessions whenever they hit in my investing lifetime since I haven't had any yet. dave_k Thanks for the sto...
- Wed Oct 26, 2016 2:05 pm
- Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
- Topic: "Fun Money" Allocation
- Replies: 28
- Views: 5446
Re: "Fun Money" Allocation
nisipirus - Outstanding answer! I appreciate the thoughts from an older guy with experience. I'm 27 for what it's worth. I actually have "lost it all" on a couple of investments... penny stock type things. But I've also made 500%+ on Apple and Amazon. I would be okay with losing the entire 10% bucket. It'd sting for a little but I wouldn't cry myself to sleep. I'm a bit of a gambler with a limit of $1000/year for the blackjack table, fantasy sports, any silly stuff like that. I'm never disheartened when I lose because it is all part of the budget. Jack FFR1846 - I do have separate money for "fun" activities of course. I don't know that I'd care to invest 1% at this point. That's so small that the brokerage fees would ea...
- Wed Oct 26, 2016 6:51 am
- Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
- Topic: "Fun Money" Allocation
- Replies: 28
- Views: 5446
"Fun Money" Allocation
I own shares of VGPMX (Vanguard Precious Metals and Mining) and a handful of other stocks that I call "fun money' investments. I like to keep that at under 10% or my entire portfolio which is just shy of $500k. I generally buy $3-5k of each stock simply because I like the company and hope for the best (gulp!). Foolish, I know. I don't factor these as stocks when rebalancing.
I'm sure folks can draw on past experience here - Do you think that as my portfolio keeps growing, I'll want these fun money investments to be a smaller percentage of my portfolio? What was your attitude towards this stuff when you had $100k versus $1M in your portfolio?
Thanks!
I'm sure folks can draw on past experience here - Do you think that as my portfolio keeps growing, I'll want these fun money investments to be a smaller percentage of my portfolio? What was your attitude towards this stuff when you had $100k versus $1M in your portfolio?
Thanks!
- Tue Sep 27, 2016 10:06 am
- Forum: Personal Investments
- Topic: 72t Withdrawals for Young-Retiree
- Replies: 24
- Views: 5304
Re: 72t Withdrawals for Young-Retiree
cherijoh - Thanks for clearing that up. You're right - I was confused.
MI_Bogle - You would do 100% of 401k contributions to traditional rather than Roth? I know it's a guessing game but it seems like having an even mix of both would be good. I realize I'm not even close to there right now with way more in Roth. FWIW I have a 2% employer match that goes to the traditional portion.
MI_Bogle - You would do 100% of 401k contributions to traditional rather than Roth? I know it's a guessing game but it seems like having an even mix of both would be good. I realize I'm not even close to there right now with way more in Roth. FWIW I have a 2% employer match that goes to the traditional portion.
- Mon Sep 26, 2016 4:00 pm
- Forum: Personal Investments
- Topic: 72t Withdrawals for Young-Retiree
- Replies: 24
- Views: 5304
Re: 72t Withdrawals for Young-Retiree
To clear things up a bit, I am currently maxing out my company 401k (67% to traditional and 33% to Roth - This wasn't always the case. I used to be 100% Roth.) and my Roth IRA. It seems like switching to 100% traditional 401k contributions right now would be wise. Most of the taxable investment money has been gifted to me by family over the last decade and I then invest it immediately on my own. I don't make a super high income now. My dad taught me well and it's been an incredibly easy ride since March of 2009 when I first bought 5 shares of apple on my own... got lucky on that one! I'm in the high-end of the 25% bracket now and I'm not God so I don't know my spending in 20 years. I imagine I'll have kids... yikes! And I'm likely getting m...
- Mon Sep 26, 2016 2:17 pm
- Forum: Personal Investments
- Topic: 72t Withdrawals for Young-Retiree
- Replies: 24
- Views: 5304
Re: 72t Withdrawals for Young-Retiree
KlangFool and Wizard - I've heard of these but doesn't that not make sense for me as I already have almost all of my tax-sheltered money already in Roth accounts? Are you suggesting that I do traditional 401k and traditional IRA contributions now and "convert" to Roth later when I'm in a lower tax bracket?
- Mon Sep 26, 2016 2:01 pm
- Forum: Personal Investments
- Topic: 72t Withdrawals for Young-Retiree
- Replies: 24
- Views: 5304
72t Withdrawals for Young-Retiree
I'm curious if any young retirees have taken 72t withdrawals at a significantly younger age than 50? Is that a recommended strategy for someone in their 40's with half of their portfolio in tax-sheltered and tax-free accounts? It's my understanding that doing so locks you into a ~1.8% or so withdrawal rate from that account until you're 59.5 years old... very far off for me!
Summary of my retirement assets ($460k) at 27 years old:
Roth IRA at Vanguard - 16%
Taxable investments at Vanguard - 63%
Roth 401k at Schwab - 16%
Traditional 401k at Schwab - 5%
Summary of my retirement assets ($460k) at 27 years old:
Roth IRA at Vanguard - 16%
Taxable investments at Vanguard - 63%
Roth 401k at Schwab - 16%
Traditional 401k at Schwab - 5%
- Thu Aug 20, 2015 2:47 pm
- Forum: Personal Investments
- Topic: Tax Loss Harvesting - Int'l fund
- Replies: 18
- Views: 2647
Re: Tax Loss Harvesting - Int'l fund
livesoft - Thanks for the response. I could be way off here but wouldn't buying the replacement shares right away trigger a wash sale? Unless you're suggesting buying something comparable but not identical.
I'm not worried about sitting on the cash. It isn't a ton of money here.
I'm not worried about sitting on the cash. It isn't a ton of money here.
- Thu Aug 20, 2015 12:28 pm
- Forum: Personal Investments
- Topic: Tax Loss Harvesting - Int'l fund
- Replies: 18
- Views: 2647
Re: Tax Loss Harvesting - Int'l fund
Since I'm in nearly the same boat as the OP, I won't bother with a new thread.
I have $2400 in unrealized short term losses in VEMAX in a taxable account. I haven't bought any since June. Am I correct that for tax purposes, you can only claim $3k per year in short term losses against your income? I am in the 25% tax bracket with no realized short term losses on the year. It does make sense to go ahead and sell this before the dividend is paid in September, right? And then buy back 32 days after the sell?
I have $2400 in unrealized short term losses in VEMAX in a taxable account. I haven't bought any since June. Am I correct that for tax purposes, you can only claim $3k per year in short term losses against your income? I am in the 25% tax bracket with no realized short term losses on the year. It does make sense to go ahead and sell this before the dividend is paid in September, right? And then buy back 32 days after the sell?
- Fri Jan 16, 2015 12:22 pm
- Forum: Personal Investments
- Topic: Maxing 401k vs Roth 401k vs Roth IRA
- Replies: 25
- Views: 6425
Re: Maxing 401k vs Roth 401k vs Roth IRA
I certainly won't have a pension and hopefully won't have SS. I figure my mortgage interest credits go down a few hundred bucks/year and my wages continue to go up by $5k/year, I'll be at the 28% bracket in 6ish years. I think then maybe I will do as you suggested "Another option for you would be to do enough Traditional to get to 15% bracket and do the rest Roth." except get to the 25% bracket and do the rest Roth.
Also, a health savings account can act like a traditional IRA/401k so that will be considered income (assuming I remain healthy these next decades ) when I'm an old fart and want to withdraw.
Also, a health savings account can act like a traditional IRA/401k so that will be considered income (assuming I remain healthy these next decades ) when I'm an old fart and want to withdraw.
- Fri Jan 16, 2015 7:14 am
- Forum: Personal Investments
- Topic: Maxing 401k vs Roth 401k vs Roth IRA
- Replies: 25
- Views: 6425
Re: Maxing 401k vs Roth 401k vs Roth IRA
I'm in the bottom of the 25% now (home owner for 2 years so the interest credits are still big) myself. Being only 25 years old, I'd rather just sock away as much as I can and take advantage of the Roth programs because who knows if they'll last. It'd be hard to complain about having a million in Roth dollars at age 40, right??
It is convenient that the $6k you are getting back now in taxes is pretty close to covering your total Roth IRA contributions!
It is convenient that the $6k you are getting back now in taxes is pretty close to covering your total Roth IRA contributions!
- Thu Jan 15, 2015 4:38 pm
- Forum: Personal Investments
- Topic: Maxing 401k vs Roth 401k vs Roth IRA
- Replies: 25
- Views: 6425
Re: Maxing 401k vs Roth 401k vs Roth IRA
rkhusky - Thanks for the response. I agree that it does seem unlikely for tax rates to be double what they are now in the future. Heck, the whole Roth system might not be around in the future. I think for now I will stick with the both Roth options. It is too hard for me to get away from the idea of paying it off now. Maybe when I am in the 28% bracket in a few years, I will sort of phase myself into the traditional 401k option. Of course, it is far from a guarantee that the brackets will go 15%, 25%, 28%, etc. in a few years!
- Wed Jan 07, 2015 3:17 pm
- Forum: Personal Investments
- Topic: Maxing 401k vs Roth 401k vs Roth IRA
- Replies: 25
- Views: 6425
Re: Maxing 401k vs Roth 401k vs Roth IRA
rkhusky - Thanks for the response. I did not think about how only the gains are taxed. Since I'm young, I'm stuck in the thought of my investments being worth 10x their current value so it'd be nearly all gains when I withdraw. Good point. Also, when withdrawing from a traditional 401k, that money is taxed like ordinary income, right? Let's stick with the $150k/year in withdrawals example: -$50k from taxable account (long term gains at 15% federal tax rate) -$50k from Roth IRA ($0) -$50k from traditional 401k (assuming no deductions, 25% federal tax rate today) This yields $20k of taxes on $150k of withdrawals so 13.33% effective tax rate. That is considerably less than the 25% I pay now. I understand tax rates are more likely to be double...
- Wed Jan 07, 2015 2:37 pm
- Forum: Personal Investments
- Topic: Maxing 401k vs Roth 401k vs Roth IRA
- Replies: 25
- Views: 6425
Re: Maxing 401k vs Roth 401k vs Roth IRA
Enjoying this topic since I've been debating this myself. I'm 25 and have maxed out my Roth IRA and Roth 401k the last two years. I'm at the point where I have another ~$15k/year that I'm putting into index funds e. That $15k will likely continue to increase in the future so maybe when I'm 50 and want to retire, I'll have 50% Roth investments and 50% taxable investments. If I want to live lavishly and withdraw $150k/year (year 2040 dollars), that'd be half Roth and half taxable so my taxable income would be $75k, possibly in a higher income bracket than my current 25%. Total guesses here, obviously. I asked an guy in his 50's who has probably $10M himself what I should do and he pointed out : There's only a finite amount of Roth money you c...
- Wed Jan 07, 2015 7:04 am
- Forum: Personal Investments
- Topic: What to do with VGPMX (Vanguard Precious Metals and Mining)?
- Replies: 131
- Views: 27421
Re: What to do with VGPMX (Vanguard Precious Metals and Mini
Anyone know if there is going to be a dividend for this year? I see that under the "Distributions" tab on the VG website it lists "Fiscal year end : 1/31/2015". It seems like in past years the dividend has been paid by early January though.
- Mon Dec 29, 2014 12:32 pm
- Forum: Personal Investments
- Topic: Does Total Int'l include emerging markets?
- Replies: 9
- Views: 1970
Re: Does Total Int'l include emerging markets?
Noobvestor - Just curious, if you are going to go 50/50 on developed and emerging, why not do 33/33/33 with ex-US Small cap (VFSVX) also? 0.40% ER too high?
- Tue Dec 09, 2014 3:27 pm
- Forum: Personal Investments
- Topic: Diversify International Index Funds
- Replies: 16
- Views: 2052
Re: Diversify International Index Funds
Sorry to hear that you've had money sitting on the sidelines... ha! If you're feeling advanced enough to rebalancce, I'm considering taking 35% of my stocks and dividing that into VEMAX, VFSVX, and VTMGX. Those are all international VG funds. Emerging, Developed, and small cap. 12.5%, 12.5% and 10.0% between these three funds and rebalancing on a monthly or quarterly basis. There is some zig when the other funds zag between these and could result in higher returns in the long run versus VTIAX or the Fidelity Spartan Total Int'l fund. This is a maybe! Here is how they stack up the last 5 years. https://www.google.com/finance?chdnp=1&chdd=1&chds=1&chdv=1&chvs=maximized&chdeh=0&chfdeh=0&chdet=1418160034107&chddm...
- Thu Dec 04, 2014 4:42 pm
- Forum: Personal Investments
- Topic: AA for a spoiled young buck
- Replies: 40
- Views: 10317
Re: AA for a spoiled young buck
Believe it or not, mine is 3.2% too. Tied for the highest in the great state of MD!
- Thu Dec 04, 2014 2:08 pm
- Forum: Personal Investments
- Topic: AA for a spoiled young buck
- Replies: 40
- Views: 10317
Re: AA for a spoiled young buck
I guess this thread isn't dead?? swaption - That is smart. While we're staying off topic, I sold about 25k worth of that batch of money in my first year of work and then bought a home shortly after. Like most college grads, I started work in the summer so I was only making half of what my starting salary was for that year. I avoided some paying long term gains there by being in the 15% tax bracket. In case anyone else reads this and was curious about the plan I settled on, here it is! I'll be making too much money so harvesting anymore capital gains in the 15% is out the window. Over the next 3-5 years, I'll sell off Janus and American Century funds. Still waiting on a crash/dip/whatever to harvest less gains... I'm stealing what ruralavalo...
- Fri Oct 31, 2014 6:54 am
- Forum: Personal Investments
- Topic: VGPMX: anyone contrarian enough to buy it?
- Replies: 79
- Views: 15519
Re: VGPMX: anyone contrarian enough to buy it?
I keep my fun money at under 10% of my total portfolio and this fund is a big chunk of that. As it keeps doing poorly, I can afford to buy more! I have bought in 3 times at 10.90, 10.05 and 9.65. I guess I'll be buying again. Not that I'm chasing this, but It paid a monster dividend (7%) back in 2011 when it had a down year. That'd be a nice present!
- Tue Oct 28, 2014 7:03 am
- Forum: Personal Investments
- Topic: VGPMX: anyone contrarian enough to buy it?
- Replies: 79
- Views: 15519
Re: VGPMX: anyone contrarian enough to buy it?
It is part of my "fun money" portfolio along with a handful of stocks. I bought into it at ~10.90 and more at ~9.90. Thinking about digging myself deeper!
- Thu Oct 23, 2014 2:10 pm
- Forum: Personal Investments
- Topic: Slice & Dice International
- Replies: 11
- Views: 1987
Re: Slice & Dice International
Fair enough. Weekly sounds much more doable than daily. Monthly sounds even better... I'm pretty handy with a spreadsheet so neither would be too daunting.
- Thu Oct 23, 2014 1:23 pm
- Forum: Personal Investments
- Topic: Slice & Dice International
- Replies: 11
- Views: 1987
Re: Slice & Dice International
livesoft - Great chart. Owning EWX (yellow) would be redundant it seems. I like the idea of going with three funds: Developed, Emerging and Small. I was considering adding a 4th for value (VTRIX) and then just splitting them 25% each. Rebalance/gamble on them quarterly with 20% and 30% bounds.
Grt2bOutdoors - I was just thinking the same thing. Vanguard has an that's not an index fund - VTRIX. It's a gamble picking any of these, right? Any big harm in not picking Vanguard's?
Grt2bOutdoors - I was just thinking the same thing. Vanguard has an that's not an index fund - VTRIX. It's a gamble picking any of these, right? Any big harm in not picking Vanguard's?
- Thu Oct 23, 2014 7:55 am
- Forum: Personal Investments
- Topic: Slice & Dice International
- Replies: 11
- Views: 1987
Re: Slice & Dice International
livesoft - I like the idea of only slicing it two ways. If what Karamatsu said is true, wouldn't it be better to split it two ways by developed vs emerging rather than by cap size? P.S. Thanks for the wiki write up on ETFs vs Mutual Funds. Very educational. You are the expert on this. I'd be going all admiral shares, if there is the option. Since I am young (25 years old), rebalancing by adding rather is probably not an issue for at least a few years. You'd recommend ETF's for me then, no? grap0013 - I haven't considered buying an ETF and unless the reasoning is very compelling, I'd rather not bother. Don't those two funds overlap quite a bit? They both are small-cap, developed, non-US funds correct? Karamatsu - Europe and Pacific are high...
- Wed Oct 22, 2014 9:57 am
- Forum: Personal Investments
- Topic: Slice & Dice International
- Replies: 11
- Views: 1987
Slice & Dice International
After reading over the wiki for slice and dice http://www.bogleheads.org/wiki/Slice_and_dice and international slice and dice http://www.bogleheads.org/wiki/Slice_and_dice_international , I'm still not totally clear on something. It seems that there are two ways to do set up a S&D for international funds. The first is by sub asset class with something like: 25% Int'l stocks, 25% Int'l value stocks, 25% Int'll small cap stocks, 25% Int'l small value stocks. Or whatever weights you desire. The second is by region with something like: 33% Europe, 33% Pacific, 33% emerging. Or a more market weighted split. The objective for both is to outweigh sectors that may outperform each other over different time periods or have negative correlation to...
- Thu Aug 07, 2014 7:51 am
- Forum: Personal Investments
- Topic: AA for a spoiled young buck
- Replies: 40
- Views: 10317
Re: AA for a spoiled young buck
Dutch wrote:a spoiled young buck?
Spoiled in that I'm 25, have no student/car/credit card debt, own a home and have been fortunate enough to make out Roth retirement accounts. No complaints!
- Wed Aug 06, 2014 4:23 pm
- Forum: Personal Investments
- Topic: AA for a spoiled young buck
- Replies: 40
- Views: 10317
Re: AA for a spoiled young buck
Yes, after doing more research, I realized that those long term gains still go into my federal taxable income. I didn't realize this before. So I won't be doing this plan.retiredjg wrote:I didn't follow the quick math, but adding the $33k to your taxable income would likely push you out of the 15% bracket.... Whatever spills over would be taxed at 15%. Maybe that's what you meant by your last sentence, but there seems to be a word or two missing and I'm not sure what you mean.This puts me a paltry $500, with a lot of assumptions.
- Tue Aug 05, 2014 2:21 pm
- Forum: Personal Investments
- Topic: AA for a spoiled young buck
- Replies: 40
- Views: 10317
Re: AA for a spoiled young buck
denovo - It is a bit cumbersome to rebalance my AA with different providers but if I'm doing so on a quarterly basis, I will only have to do so 6x over the next ~17 months when I will know if I'll be able to stay in the 15% federal tax bracket for 2015. That seems worth it to save myself $5k. Unless I'm missing something obvious, which is very possible!
- Tue Aug 05, 2014 9:07 am
- Forum: Personal Investments
- Topic: AA for a spoiled young buck
- Replies: 40
- Views: 10317
Re: AA for a spoiled young buck
BL When posting to this thread weeks back, I didn't realize that the capital gains tax would be 0% if you are in the 15% federal tax bracket. That is pretty significant. Looking at 2013 taxes, my taxable income (after deductions/exemptions/etc.) was 48k. It is too late to do this in 2014 but for 2015, doing the traditional 401k, as you suggested, might work to lower it. The long term capital gains between the American Century and Janus accounts is around 33k, so I'd be looking at getting out of paying $33k * 15% = $5000 in taxes. Quick math: Starting point of 12k over the top of 15% bracket in 2013. 8k more in salary - guessing 0.5k less in interest for my mortgage (1k) raise in 15% bracket - guessing (18k) traditional 401k - guessing the ...
- Tue Jul 29, 2014 4:47 pm
- Forum: Personal Investments
- Topic: Is rebalancing worth having bonds?
- Replies: 26
- Views: 2854
Re: Is rebalancing worth having bonds?
Taylor and Aptenodytes - I don't think I entered in a rare situation for a 20-something year old and got 100% stocks, as well. I don't mind risks, I accept volatility, I don't sell during a decline, 15+ year horizons, stable job, etc. I think Vanguard's recommendation has changed in the last year or so despite me putting in the same answers.
- Tue Jul 29, 2014 7:09 am
- Forum: Personal Investments
- Topic: AA for a spoiled young buck
- Replies: 40
- Views: 10317
Re: AA for a spoiled young buck
Intermediate it is, then!
- Mon Jul 28, 2014 12:56 pm
- Forum: Personal Investments
- Topic: AA for a spoiled young buck
- Replies: 40
- Views: 10317
Re: AA for a spoiled young buck
retiredjgThanks again - I'm not into chasing returns, just looking to provide a good buffer for rebalancing, I guess! Unless someone talks me out of it, I will go 50% Intermediate-term Bond Admiral Index and 50% Total Bond Admiral Index.
- Mon Jul 28, 2014 10:03 am
- Forum: Personal Investments
- Topic: AA for a spoiled young buck
- Replies: 40
- Views: 10317
Re: AA for a spoiled young buck
Great, those points both make sense.
Is there a case for me using a bond index different than the Total Bond Index? It'll be in my VG Roth IRA, so taxes aren't a concern. Since this is of course for retirement money, isn't a long-term weighted bond index preferable? I see that the long-term returns for even the Intermediate Term Bond Index beat the Total Bond Index.
Is there a case for me using a bond index different than the Total Bond Index? It'll be in my VG Roth IRA, so taxes aren't a concern. Since this is of course for retirement money, isn't a long-term weighted bond index preferable? I see that the long-term returns for even the Intermediate Term Bond Index beat the Total Bond Index.
- Fri Jul 25, 2014 9:09 am
- Forum: Personal Investments
- Topic: AA for a spoiled young buck
- Replies: 40
- Views: 10317
Re: AA for a spoiled young buck
All - You guys are great on the advice. Learning more than I thought! grabiner - Good catch on the MD tax rates. Only a 0.25% bump at $100k but I will watch for that. ruravalon - Thanks for summarizing that. It makes it look very simple; I like that. I don't have a VG Total Stock Index fund set up yet so I'll do so with the VG Value Index sell. denovo - Isn't having a different AA pre and post crash a bit against the Boglehead way? I get that P/E ratios are high right now and maybe we're more likely to see a 50% downturn now than 4 years ago but isn't the "Bogleheads" approach to try and not game the system? Not trying to be abrasive, just wanting to learn. BL - Thanks for doing the math on that. I made a bit more than $64.55k la...
- Wed Jul 23, 2014 2:06 pm
- Forum: Personal Investments
- Topic: AA for a spoiled young buck
- Replies: 40
- Views: 10317
Re: AA for a spoiled young buck
Thanks for the advice everyone. Great insight! Sorry for taking days to respond. All - I will go 85% stocks, 15% bonds and do this by addition mostly rather than typical rebalancing for now to avoid any tax repercussions. I had never considered this whole "rebalancing" until now so I didn't see the value of having bonds. Forgive me for being young and naive! William4u - Thanks for the input. I sold about half of the American Century funds two years ago to use towards my house down payment. I'll sell ~$5 each of the next few years to keep under the next bracket, then. Janus I will plan on leaving alone until the American Century fund is dry. Who knows, if I have a kid in five years, maybe sell it and use that for a 529 plan or gift...
- Sat Jul 19, 2014 2:50 pm
- Forum: Personal Investments
- Topic: AA for a spoiled young buck
- Replies: 40
- Views: 10317
AA for a spoiled young buck
Emergency funds: 6 months living expenses Debt: Mortgage with $245k and 28 years remaining on 3.625%. I have been and continue to plan on making minimum payments. Tax Filing Status: Single Tax Rate: 25% Federal, 4.75% State State of Residence: MD Age: 25 Individual stocks (Not counting them in any allocations because it is fun money) : Under 10% of total portfolio value Desired Asset allocation: 98% stocks / 2% bonds Current Stock allocation: 59% large cap domestic, 20% domestic mid/small cap domestic, 21% international Desired Stock allocation: 40% large cap domestic, 30% mid/small cap domestic, 30% international Current retirement assets ($275k) Taxable - 62% 22% Janus Worldwide - JANWX - 0.74% 4% American Century All Cap Growth - TWGTX -...
- Wed Jul 16, 2014 4:10 pm
- Forum: Personal Investments
- Topic: New to Forum- please provide opinions on existing AA
- Replies: 34
- Views: 4012
Re: New to Forum- please provide opinions on existing AA
Sorry for asking a stupid question here but I thought $17,500 was the limit for 401k's unless you are older?