Bogleheads.org

Hi Sarah, Thanks for the response. I prefer to have all 3 funds in my 401K since I automatically invest there. I'm trying to remember how I ended up with the different allocations in the different areas. Either way, it's a good idea to re-evaluate (hopefully I'm a little smarter and more savvy than ...

Hi telemark,

Great idea about the Admiral funds. I'm not there yet but will look into that in the future.

- G

Hi everyone, I found this website April 2012 and have since followed the Jack Bogle investing methodology. I do have a question and was hoping someone could provide some insight. I'm 33 and for the last 2 years, I've been trying to max out my Roth IRA contributions along with my automatic 401K contr...

Why wouldn't you just open a CSP for yourself and get the sign-up bonus points? If you don't want the card, downgrade it to the CS so you don't have to eat a 2nd annual fee. Hi WHL, I know I could sign up for a CSP, but I'm not the type to constantly open and close new credit cards. A couple years ...

Hi all, I guess this is more of an informational post. I just found out that in February 2013, Chase changed it credit card policies to no longer allow joint credit cards. You can add an authorized user but that's it. If you already have a joint account, you're grandfathered in. While there are pros...

Hi Zebrafish, Thanks for the reply. I think the game plan works with your suggestion. We'll be bringing down her debt and funding retirement within the Roth (we won't be above the annual limit). I know the market can be volatile, but I think over the long run we'll be ok. If she only invested the ex...

Thanks for the feedback everyone! @TheWizard - We do have additional money set aside in a "high yield" savings account along with a separate emergency fund so we should be ok for any unexpected expenses. @Dandy - I agree on funding the Roth. When we opened it up, we maxed out 2011 and 2012...

Good afternoon everyone, First off, I hope you are all having a safe and happy holidays. Now... on to the post... Recently married (Nov 17, 2012) and my wife and I are doing all the fun post-marriage stuff: joint bank accounts, credit cards, car insurance, etc. She's 32, I'm 33. Now that we're no lo...

The bond fund choices in your 401k are particularly ugly. You might ask them to add either a bond index fund or PIMCO Total Return. Maybe you'll get lucky! Apparently I got lucky. In fact, I got really lucky. I just heard from our 401k representative. They couldn't add PIMPCO Total Return, but they...

RetiredJG and Kevin,

Thank you once again for your feedback and advice. I feel very fortunate to have fund this board. It's an amazing resource to learn from.

- G

Taxable 21% 16% <----sorry, I should have asked what this 16% is The 16% is comprised of : 65% Ishares Trust S&P (IVV) .09% ER 10% Vanguard Total Stock Mrkt (VTI) .07% ER 25% Vanguard Total Intl Stock Market Index (VGTSX) .22% ER or if you include the cash, the Taxable Account is 21% of the tot...

The EuroPacific fund in the 401k really is not that bad for international. Have you looked at a 5-year growth chart comparing it with VGTSX (I think I recommended that above)? Do you see enough of a difference to matter? Although the past isn't necessarily predictive of the future, when a fund trac...

Where is the cash? In the taxable account? Yes, the cash is in the taxable account after selling the non-tax friendly funds. I'd use part of the sale and my tax to pay off the debt and fund the ER. Do these numbers represent the amounts after putting $5k into the Roth IRA for 2012? Yes, that includ...

We need to know the relative size of each account after you do all the things you are going to do. For example, after you sell stuff in taxable, some of that money is going to the debt and to Roth IRA I think. Maybe some would also go to your emergency fund? After you do all that, what percentage o...

Hi all, There is soo much good information in the responses. Unfortunately, I've confused the heck out of myself trying to interpret everything. There were different suggestions on specific allocations and that's what is throwing me off. Here's where I'm at. Aiming for a 3 fund portfolio: Stocks/Bon...

If you go waaaay back up to my first post, you'll see that retiredjg has now come down to a recommendation that is very similar to mine. Also similar to others. Maybe we're on to something. :!: Yes, I never disregarded what you wrote. The whole thread has been very informative to me. Everyone's inp...

Hi retiredjg, So let's see....You've got 28% of your money just sitting around in a taxable account with no particular purpose in mind. The reason it's not in an retirement account is that I know 401k or Roth Ira funds can't be withdrawn without penalty (I believe there are some hardship rules) and ...

Stoutboy wrote:That Schwab .90 ER seems high to me. You could get the same at Vanguard for .19 Over time, that will mean tens of thousands more in your account.

Ahhh ok... good point.

- G

@ retiredjg, Thanks for the feedback. Answers to your latest comments are now in blue. I understand your 3 fund suggestion and how total market funds essentially do the rebalancing for me and offer the same diversity of funds. The taxable account recommendations make sense to limit short term gains ...

retiredjg wrote:Once you answer the questions above, it will be easy to make a portfolio suggestion for you.

Added my comments to the original post in Italics. Thanks for your time.

G

Hi EricFox11, Hoppy08520, Kevin M, and Campy2010, Thank you all for responding. I read the wiki articles and I'm in the process of absorbing everything which was written. It makes sense... I have a better understanding on some of your comments. I need some more time to make sure I understand everyth...

Hi Guys,

Thanks for the feedback. I'm going to check out some of the recommended threads/links and afterwards will respond in more detail.

Regards,
Greg

Hello everyone, Like many others on here, I’m seeking advice on how to best plan my portfolio. This will be my 2nd post. Really enjoy the forum. I’m 32 and my fiancé is 31. We are getting married this November. I’ve been somewhat active in investments while she hasn’t really gotten her feet wet. My ...

Hi all, First time posting on the board and somewhat of a novice but I thought I'd contribute to the conversation. Hoping to read and learn from everyone on here. Aren't there tax benefits of having a mortgage???? You can write off the interest... Also, you mention a 4% interest rate. I didn't see a...