Bogleheads.org

Finally thought the wife and I would make the jump from a dumbphone to a smartphone. We're on Verizon currently on a share plan of 500 minutes and pay roughly $60 to $70 monthly for both phones monthly. Verizon tells me I would have to add $30 per phone for a data package to add to my plan....so, I'...

After you establish an emergency fund, begin investing small amounts in your core holdings based on your asset allocation. Educate yourself by reading the wiki and websites of Vanguard & Fidelity. Sometimes being "terribly afraid" and not investing at all may, in fact, be the worst thi...

Start slowly and start dollar cost averaging into a solid, core index fund (after you prepare your asset allocation). Yes the market's high but with a long time horizon you still should be in equities.

Lucky3

Yes, it's worth a day trip.....you'll see a different side of the UK besides London.

Lucky3

Completely gutting and redoing upstairs bathroom in the Summer...anyone who did this in the past, was there anything you would change or do differently if you had to do it again?

Lucky3

To any Bogleheads who dropped "the phone company" land line in favor of cable's Triple Play (internet, tv and phone)....any regrets? Seems to be a big savings.

Lucky3

It's Non-deductable IRA time for my and my's wife's 2013 contribution.....but, having a hard time deciding where to place it. Equities would be buying at the high (unless I use my Star Fund)..... Bonds, although might not be a bubble, is surely at a low point for the near future (and maybe not so ne...

1. Notify all the credit card companies to issue new cards. 2. Notify the three credit bureaus and request a fraud alert be put on the account for 90 days...this can be done with a call to one of the bureaus. 3. Everthing else can be replaced....library card, auto license. etc. If any keys were in t...

......is 1. An easy way to refer someone to a previous thread if the same question is asked. ...... 2. Meaningless questions like the one from The Munchkin Man asking about what type of wallet you prefer. Why is this question of importance or of interest to anyone? The board administrator should be ...

Most definately NOT too late....I have suits in my closet older then you! Become a consistant reader of this forum....a wise group of people that tend to be on the financial conservative side. Have an emergency fund, then slowly plan your "core funds" using index funds...read the wiki...an...

The world revolves around credit...yes, get a credit card, but only if you intend to pay off your compete balance in the month you get your bill...that's how you increase your score...do not be late with payments.

Luckys

I believe most dental insurance will pay only 50% for that dental service...so the dentist does have a right to bill you for the difference...I recently had a bone graft and implant done too...the price is more painful than the procedure.

Lucky3

Anyone have any good or bad things to say about this fund?

Lucky3

Over the years, I've contributed to my wife's IRA (she'll be 70 in the Fall, I'm 66 and working full time). In about a year or so, even though we won't need the income, she will have to start withdrawing from her IRA for the RMD and of course we'll have to pay the tax on the withdrawal. I'm told it ...

Mel:

Read your Forbes article...but if I'm 66 and buy EE's and wait 20 years, oy, I may not be here to collect the "annuity".


Lucky3

Of course you can always know "after the fact"...most credit card companies offer you an end of year summary detailing all your credit card spending. It's the end of year because they don't want you to use the card LESS, but MORE.

Lucky3

If you're healthy and employed in a full time job you should delay taking SS until your full retirement age....makes a big difference!.

Lucky3

In case of a storm you go to your emergency kit which should contain flashlight, transitor radio etc..... ....in case of dealth my wife knows to go to "the 3 ring binder" which contains all financial accounts and contact info of accountant, lawyer, etc....along with a two page cover sheet ...

Wife and I have been to a number of great overseas vacations but one of the best was renting a car and going south on US 1 from San Fran down the Cali coast...beautiful, don't forget the good old USA!

Lucky3

I own a Lexus ES 350 (which my wife drives)....it's the smoothest ride I've ever felt!

Lucky3

I know Ally is FDIC insured...in the unlikely event it ever went under. But, what about if the online bank gets "hacked"? Can funds be withdrawn or taken out or messed with in any way? FDIC doesn't cover that, do they?

Lucky3

Been watching the board for several months now and really enjoy the feedback. So today at 66 and fully employed, I reviewed my AA to find the following: 40% Stock 20% Bonds & Fixed 40% Cash/CD's If I should have my "age in bonds" than I'm way off the mark. To remedy that, I could trans...

Bill99: As you pointed out, direct mail can be expensive so no responsible direct marketer wants to mail to anyone who is not interested or will never respond to their offer. Those people that want to limit their receipt of 3rd class mail can contact the DMA (Direct Marketing Association) and ask to...

Like a brand new restaurant....I tend to wait a few weeks for the kinks to work themselves out.

Lucky3

Alex: Not sure what motivates you to cast off an entire industry with one broad defamation of an industry. Some may be annoyed by third class mail, many others actually like receiving mail. Third class mail actually subsidizes the cost of first class mail. Not sure how old you are, but you sound lik...

Of all the things in this world to complain about I never understood people who get so upset about unsolicited mail. Do you get equally upset when a tv commerical comes on during one of your programs? Do you get upset when you see an advertisement in the newspaper or magazine you're reading? Direct ...

This might be a basic question for most of you but how exactly do you measure the amount of risk in a fund? My wife is transferring a 5 figure Magellan traditional IRA to either a Star IRA from Vanguard, which she already has OR a new Vanguard Total Stock Index fund. Seems to me that STAR and the to...

Why do you need paper savings bonds......it's inefficient for the government. How about requesting to raise the $10,000 max on I-Bond purchases? Or, delaying the RMD on IRA's until the age of 75 or more?.....some of us may be working and really don't "need" the distribution right now. Lucky3

One year return was 17.99%....three and five year return was not good....bought this years ago when Lynch was the star at Fidelity and my "buy and hold" mentality never let me sell it...probably a mistake....Bogleheads agree?

Lucky3

Given Fidelity Cash Reserves (part of my IRA) is earning almost nothing it doesn't seem to make sense to keep over $100,000 in it.....how competitive are Fidelity's CD's or is it best to move it to Ally Bank?

Lucky 3

I've always been tempted to take a cruise but never followed through thinking" paying all that money just to get sea sick?" Many friends I know say a Caribbean crusie is the best vacation. One says I should explore a "river cruise" or a Mediterranean cruise. I know there's no way...

Enjoy relatively docile inflation rates. Okay, I reckon that's a little flippant. But without knowing more about your need, ability and willingness to take risk, pretty much impossible to render advice. What is your investment time horizon? Six months, 20 years? Funds will not be used for over 10 y...

Got a six figure cd coming due....with the miniscule interest rates I find myself with few options on renewal...any great ideas besides waiting for interest rates to rise:)?

Lucky 3

Your kids are the right age to take a tour of Ford's theatre...it's often overlooked by visitors but it's one of the highlights of my visit to DC. Besides the museum in the basement of the threatre you can go across the street and see where Lincoln past away...take the tour, you and kids will love i...

Now that Hurricane Sandy is behind us, at least behind us for most of us Northeasterners....what's the Boglehead's views on house generators? Most people I've spoken too, who have portable or whole house generators, had them working for a day then most gave out and stopped working....anyone have any...

To Taylor:

I usually always look for your words of wisdom and sanity in this crazy world of investing....you are already volunteering and doing a great service whether you realize it or not...keep up the good work!


Lucky3

Thursday 11/8/12.... ...as if Sandy wasn't enough we were hit last night by a Nor'easter which dumped 4 to 6 inches of snow and lots of wind. Lots of people still without power in Queens NY and New Jersey....I'm in Westchester County NY where for the first time in history the Hudson River overflowed...

Nelson DeMille's The Panther just came out and I bought it...one of the best suspense and crime authors.

Lucky 3

Been there 3-4 times on business over the years. Bellagio is good, so's Ceasars....for 28 year old's you might check out Excalibur and Stratisphere...young person's places and not too expensive. If you can get a good rate I recently flew Virgin America from Kennedy last week...class operation. Lucky...

Wife and I are in our mid 60"s, still using old Razor cell phones....want to upgrade to a smartphone but all we need it for is making calls and checking emails...don't need all the advanced "bells and whistles".......suggestions? IPhone? Android? Which is the best model for electronic...

Been with Chase for over 30 years, never had a problem....if you're looking for a brick and mortar bank Chase would be my vote.

Lucky3

I think all would agree that Long Term Care poliies are expensive...the insurance companies themselves are either raising premiums or getting out of the business of writing policies altogether. The federal government was going to propose a long term care allowance/policy but decided they could never...

Taylor:

Thanks for the info...then my first instinct to fund my Vanguard GNMA IRA was a correct one.

Lucky3

For my 2012 IRA I put the max. in Vanguard's GNMA Fund...although a good friend advised me to invest in an MLP( Master Limited Partnerships).

Any bogleheads invest in MLP's? What's been your experiences with them?


Lucky3

This is one of many "officially looking " scams that circulate the internet.....you have a delete button for a reason, use it without opening up the message.

Lucky3

The Fed's move to buy more bonds will keep interest rates real low into 2015....kind of "goose-ing" the investor to buy more stocks, thus stimulating the economy.

Anyone planning to alter their asset allocation as a result of this move?


Lucky3

EarlyOut:

She filed at her full retirement age.


Almost There:

Sorry about diverting your thread but I thought we were on a general discussion of File & Suspend, my apologies.


Lucky3

While we're on File and Suspend, may I ask another question to the Bogleheads? My wife is 67 retired and collecting her own benefits of say $700 monthly. I'm working, 65 and the main bread winner. When I reach my full retirement age of 66 I plan to continue working and file with SS as a File and Sus...

Ever pack pickles and sourkraut at 7:00AM? I did, in my uncle's pickle factory in the Bronx...one day we received a delivery of olives from Spain, the barrel broke as they were taking it off the truck and spread olives for one square block....the stray dogs had a field day!

Lucky3

Toured the FBI Building 15 yers ago....great tour...not sure if they're still doing it...worth while doing if they are...google it.

Lucky3