Search found 1321 matches

by momar
Sat Mar 08, 2014 3:52 pm
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Paying $1,000/yr to Vanguard ! Please Help Me
Replies: 40
Views: 8643

Re: Paying $1,000/yr to Vanguard ! Please Help Me

You say you would deliberate over any $1000 expenses. I assume that's to determine if they are worth. I assume you must decide some things are worth spending money on. Do you feel you are getting your money's worth from Vanguard? Your other options are to trade yourself, invest with another broker, or keep it all in a safe of bank vault.

Maybe the $1000 is worth it.
by momar
Sat Mar 01, 2014 12:06 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Bitcoins as investment
Replies: 210
Views: 22578

Re: Bitcoins as investment

Six months ago: bitcoins are super secure because there is a distributed global record of them.

Now: Gosh, didn't everyone know that you need to do these 20 things to keep your bitcoins safe? People who weren't as tech savvy as me (at least, as savvy as I am now after reading what went wrong and how to protect myself after the fact) were morons

Six months from now: Geeze, you'd think people would have known they need to do these other 30 things and have an extra 3 computers to prevent this latest fiasco!

Me, at all times: Huh, I haven't had to do anything except put my dollars in a bank and they seem fine.
by momar
Sun Dec 01, 2013 6:36 pm
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Is there a way for you and I to borrow at the Fed rate?
Replies: 11
Views: 1681

Re: Is there a way for you and I to borrow at the Fed rate?

Are you as credit worthy as the US government?
by momar
Fri Nov 29, 2013 7:09 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: WSJ Bogle Father/Son article
Replies: 16
Views: 2588

Re: WSJ Bogle Father/Son article

[OT comments removed by admin LadyGeek]
by momar
Thu Nov 28, 2013 2:39 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: TIPS & Inflation Bonds - Theory
Replies: 35
Views: 3545

Re: TIPS & Inflation Bonds - Theory

People use TIPS as a speculative asset. Don't believe it? See how nuts people get about 'imminent' inflation in an era of almost non-existent inflation.

I also disagree that only real returns and not nominal returns are meaningful. Many of my fixed short term and medium term expenses and even some long term expenses are in nominal dollars. I would also ask exactly how many businesses are writing contracts in real dollars.
by momar
Tue Nov 26, 2013 12:31 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: When do you stop worrying about saving?
Replies: 52
Views: 8752

Re: When do you stop worrying about saving?

Just go out and spend some money. Don't think about it, just do it. Keep doing it until it becomes second nature.

Practice makes perfect.
by momar
Tue Nov 26, 2013 9:15 am
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Best Personal Service for Near-Retiree w/ $1m+
Replies: 34
Views: 3458

Re: Best Personal Service for Near-Retiree w/ $1m+

Why don't all you guys/gals go visit a Scottrade office sometime. I am pretty sure there is one nearby. I know first hand they have better service than Fidelity or Vanguard. They are low cost and maybe even lower cost than Vanguard for many low $$ investors. They sell all kinds of funds including all the Vanguard funds and all the Admiral shares. Their trading fees are low. $7 for a etf. They do not charge any annual fees on any accounts. They have a good website and sell all knds of mutual funds from any vendor. They are agnostic.... Why in the world would I ever pay a fee to trade? Need a little help understanding your question. Could you provide context on how you never pay fees. Vanguard offers free trades on Vanguard ETFs, don't they?
by momar
Tue Nov 26, 2013 9:07 am
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: should my nephew apply to a top-tier university?
Replies: 274
Views: 19229

Re: should my nephew apply to a top-tier university?

Malcolm Gladwell, who has a new book out, “David and Goliath”, was on 60-Minutes Sunday and had this to say about going to an Ivy League school. Malcolm Gladwell: Even if you are. Right? It doesn't—if you're last in your class at Harvard, it doesn't feel like you're a good student, even though you really are. It's not smart for everyone to want to go to a great school. Anderson Cooper: So if you had a child, would you want them to go to Harvard? Malcolm Gladwell: No, of course not. I'd want them to go to school in—to a state school in Canada where their tuition would be $4,000 a year. Malcolm Gladwell: If Harvard is $60,000 and University of Toronto where I went to school is maybe six. So you're really telling me that education is 10 times...
by momar
Tue Nov 26, 2013 8:45 am
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Best Personal Service for Near-Retiree w/ $1m+
Replies: 34
Views: 3458

Re: Best Personal Service for Near-Retiree w/ $1m+

btenny wrote:Why don't all you guys/gals go visit a Scottrade office sometime. I am pretty sure there is one nearby. I know first hand they have better service than Fidelity or Vanguard. They are low cost and maybe even lower cost than Vanguard for many low $$ investors. They sell all kinds of funds including all the Vanguard funds and all the Admiral shares. Their trading fees are low. $7 for a etf. They do not charge any annual fees on any accounts. They have a good website and sell all knds of mutual funds from any vendor. They are agnostic....
Why in the world would I ever pay a fee to trade?
by momar
Tue Nov 26, 2013 7:57 am
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Share the (real) ways you do financial arithmetic mentally
Replies: 48
Views: 3895

Re: Share the (real) ways you do financial arithmetic mental

That's also what I do.

For tips, it's easy enough to move the decimal over one and then add half.
by momar
Tue Nov 26, 2013 7:36 am
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: A self constructed annuity
Replies: 18
Views: 2649

Re: A self constructed annuity

You are going to have to actually explain how you are not confusing this with a SWR.
by momar
Mon Nov 25, 2013 9:55 pm
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Best Personal Service for Near-Retiree w/ $1m+
Replies: 34
Views: 3458

Re: Best Personal Service for Near-Retiree w/ $1m+

My Flagship rep has always been prompt getting back to me whenever I send an email through the web site.
by momar
Mon Nov 25, 2013 2:00 pm
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Safest cars for under $30k?
Replies: 40
Views: 4485

Re: Safest cars for under $30k?

VictoriaF wrote:
chaz wrote:I feel safe in my corolla.
I feel safe in my Civic.

Cheers,
Victoria
I wouldn't expect you to use this as a criteria for whether a vehicle is safe or not.
by momar
Mon Nov 25, 2013 1:03 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: S&P beats 421 Boglehead guesses [2013 Contest]
Replies: 13
Views: 2397

Re: S&P beats 421 Bogleheads guess [2013 Contest]

Did they shut down the market for the rest of the year?
by momar
Sun Nov 24, 2013 8:44 pm
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Safest cars for under $30k?
Replies: 40
Views: 4485

Re: Safest cars for under $30k?

Mazda CX-5 scores well in crash tests and comes with blind spot monitoring at higher trim levels and low speed automatic braking is optional. Highway mileage is also 30 or better. Top trim level can be had for 27k.
by momar
Sat Nov 16, 2013 3:54 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Money management for newlyweds?
Replies: 14
Views: 1652

Re: Money management for newlyweds?

If one person is a bigger spender than the other and this causes friction (either because they are spending too much or not getting to spend enough), having separate accounts to spend out of will create the same friction. After all, how do you decide how much goes in to each of these accounts each month? Surely you will have different ideas.
by momar
Thu Nov 14, 2013 7:34 am
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Claiming Unclaimed/Withheld Money from the State
Replies: 11
Views: 1493

Re: Claiming Unclaimed/Withheld Money from the State

I've gotten money from both PA and FL. I just used the state unclaimed property sites and mailed in the forms with a photocopy of my driver's license.
by momar
Thu Nov 14, 2013 7:32 am
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: My relatives insulted my family for 40 years and think they
Replies: 131
Views: 14124

Re: My relatives insulted my family for 40 years and think t

lrak wrote:I told her she needed to inform her daughter of the change or drop me as executor in the next week. I was totally out of line for not providing a slap in the face from beyond the grave for her.
I was just going to make a comment that you need to inform them, as this poster urged his grandmother to do. Don't leave it to your heirs to do this, especially given that they will be dealing with your passing.
by momar
Thu Nov 14, 2013 6:35 am
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: "Why baby boomers won't bust the market"
Replies: 13
Views: 2651

Re: "Why baby boomers won't bust the market"

So the boomers take their savings out of the market to spend it. Prices drop, but profits go up. I'll just make up any drop in prices with increased dividends.
by momar
Wed Nov 13, 2013 9:23 am
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Dying with $1 in Pocket
Replies: 52
Views: 4840

Re: Dying with $1 in Pocket

WendyW wrote:
Skiffy wrote:FIL recently passed with a one dollar bill in his pocket. His social security stopped before his last bills could be paid--he had a shell game going for what bills he paid and when, not one penny saved.
Your father-in-law won the game. I aspire to spend my last dollar and then die too, but it's very hard to time that exactly.
No, it is very easy to exactly time that. Most of us don't want to.
by momar
Tue Nov 12, 2013 10:15 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: Gee, I coulda had an I-Bond instead!
Replies: 53
Views: 6215

Re: Gee, I coulda had an I-Bond instead!

Yep, it's true that investing in stocks has risk. And that risk is a word with real meaning.
by momar
Fri Nov 08, 2013 5:06 pm
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: How do you compare the value of a 401k match with salary?
Replies: 16
Views: 3410

Re: How do you compare the value of a 401k match with salary

mhc wrote:
Epsilon Delta wrote: I commented on the advice you gave, not the advice you didn't didn't. You said "Since the 401k has more money invested, it will win." This is complete and utter garbage.
The $6k of employer matching is never subject to FICA. The $6k of extra income would have to pay FICA (you are correct tha10.4% was wrong, it should be 6.2%).

That alone shows that the 401k has more money invested. What is the complete and utter garbage?
The 6k of extra income gets you more social security.
by momar
Fri Nov 08, 2013 5:03 pm
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Best way to sell old engagement ring
Replies: 47
Views: 7208

Re: Best way to sell old engagement ring

Nice that you got it back.
by momar
Fri Nov 08, 2013 7:12 am
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: Small Cap Premium = January Effect?
Replies: 11
Views: 1765

Re: Small Cap Premium = January Effect?

nisiprius wrote:Good grief.

I think it's the "million monkey" effect. If you set a million monkeys to work looking at financial data searching for bananas, given sufficiently long time, they would find a lot of bananas.
Do you know where they found all those bananas? I want to look there, too.
by momar
Mon Nov 04, 2013 9:28 pm
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: How do you compare the value of a 401k match with salary?
Replies: 16
Views: 3410

Re: How do you compare the value of a 401k match with salary

Depends on how much I am making. If its way more than I need, the match is very valuable. If it's just enough to meet my needs, the match is worthless. If it is a little more than that, the match is worth less than the equivalent salary; how much less depends on how far I am from retirement. And so on.
by momar
Sun Nov 03, 2013 11:58 am
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: assuming no financial aid; how much per child in 529?
Replies: 33
Views: 3214

Re: assuming no financial aid; how much per child in 529?

It's important to remember that there is no reason you are guaranteed a return on your capital, especially in a world awash in it. Correct,but, I guess because I am an American citizen, I don't view it as normal , that the "normal" rate of return on savings, after taxes, would be negative. As our taxes and "public benefits" both increase over time, I suppose I will eventually come to a more European view of wealth(savings): one should assume that over time, due to taxes, return on savings will be negative. Act accordingly (very conservatively in terms of spending, and with tax avoidance as the foremost goal of investing) American or European has nothing to do with it. There is a huge amount of capital out there unwillin...
by momar
Sun Nov 03, 2013 11:15 am
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: assuming no financial aid; how much per child in 529?
Replies: 33
Views: 3214

Re: assuming no financial aid; how much per child in 529?

Well yah'll certainly convinced me. As of Tuesday, there will be 140k in the 529. On the one hand I'm thankful for the 529 vehicle. On the other hand, it really put into perspective for me -- current tax/monetary/fiscal policy causes wealth to shrink, on a triple net real basis. If prospective returns for stocks and bonds are 5% and 1% nominal, respectively, on a forward looking 15 year timeline, then a 50-50 portfolio would average 3% nominal return per year. Assuming 20% of that goes to the tax man you achieve 2.4% net of taxes but before inflation. Current fiscal policy ensures that education costs increase by much more than CPI every year-- they might continue to increase by 7% annually, or the increase might slow to only 4% annually, ...
by momar
Sat Nov 02, 2013 7:40 pm
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: assuming no financial aid; how much per child in 529?
Replies: 33
Views: 3214

Re: assuming no financial aid; how much per child in 529?

If something can't continue forever, it won't.
by momar
Sat Nov 02, 2013 9:41 am
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: "Get out of bond funds"
Replies: 147
Views: 29967

Re: "Get out of bond funds"

Suze likes to pretend that her individual bonds haven't lost value if rates go up because she holds them to maturity, unlike a bond fund where you are forced to see what your bonds are worth. Yes, she will get the face value back at the end. But if I hold a bunch of bonds yielding 2% and rates go to 4%, you better believe my bonds are worth less regardless of if Isell them or not. Opportunity cost.
by momar
Fri Nov 01, 2013 4:39 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: Four-fund max?
Replies: 17
Views: 3105

Re: Four-fund max?

Why do you need 4 whole funds? Seems like 2 would be enough, with the advent of total world stock funds.
by momar
Fri Nov 01, 2013 9:24 am
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Men's Leather Belt: Recommendations?
Replies: 45
Views: 9803

Re: Men's Leather Belt: Recommendations?

I don't think I've ever had a belt break on me. I've had them look worn, or had to change holes after a while and the thing is deformed. But how are you guys breaking your belts? I wear the same one every day that I get at Kohl's on the cheap.
by momar
Tue Oct 29, 2013 2:50 pm
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Sci-Fi Short Story Recs
Replies: 60
Views: 5883

Re: Sci-Fi Short Story Recs

Bears Discover Fire by Terry Bisson
by momar
Sun Oct 27, 2013 7:35 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: CPI - u calculation changed?
Replies: 19
Views: 2021

Re: CPI - u calculation changed?

Shadowstats is a joke. The guy just adds a number onto the CPI and says that's true inflation. If we really had inflation that much higher than officially reported, you would know it because your standard of living compared to 20 years ago would be dramatically lower.
by momar
Sun Oct 27, 2013 12:24 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: Rational or behavioral & 3 factor is quite shaky
Replies: 15
Views: 1835

Re: Rational or behavioral & 3 factor is quite shaky

Wait, now there's a 6th factor (investment)? When did that happen?

I think these guys are going to have trouble now (finding 7, 8, 9 etc). Doesn't excel only go up to 6th order polynomials?
by momar
Sat Oct 26, 2013 10:00 am
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: CNBC Admits Passive has been beating active
Replies: 6
Views: 1421

Re: CNBC Admits Passive has been beating active

Ged wrote:Yet at the same time it's a stock pickers market.
Yep, just need to pick all of them.
by momar
Tue Oct 22, 2013 7:24 pm
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Should I Buy in this Market?
Replies: 22
Views: 4203

Re: Should I Buy in this Market?

You could find people asking this question every week for the past few years.

Actually, probably forever. Regardless of if the market is high or low, up or down.
by momar
Mon Oct 21, 2013 9:17 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Best careers for people about to enter college?
Replies: 69
Views: 8382

Re: Best careers for people about to enter college?

I'm an engineer. I don't doubt I could find another job relatively quickly if I had to, but I would have to move for it. I can't just decide I want to live somewhere else and do it, I would have to make sure I found employment first. My sister is a CPA. She could also find a job relatively quickly. But she would not have to move for it. If she wanted to live somewhere else, she could just move there and find a job on arrival with little difficulty. I've come to realize that that is a very important point. Especially since I married a biologist, who has the same problem as me but even more so. To add, most of my friends are also scientists/engineers with PhDs. Some of them have done as I did, and married another one. Some married a teacher, ...
by momar
Mon Oct 21, 2013 8:58 pm
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Is it ever a good idea to sell at a loss?
Replies: 27
Views: 2870

Re: Is it ever a good idea to sell at a loss?

If your brother had 41k to invest today, would he buy this fund? Probably not. So sell the darn thing and invest wisely. And enjoy the extra couple grand of tax benefits.
by momar
Sat Oct 19, 2013 8:20 pm
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: TIPS - Going Down with the Ship?
Replies: 112
Views: 17273

Re: TIPS - Going Down with the Ship?

I didn't read the whole thread. But I don't like TIPS because I feel like the inflation component encourages speculation. This, in fact, seems to be the defining feature of TIPS.
by momar
Sat Oct 19, 2013 7:01 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: Social Security and Retirement Costs
Replies: 21
Views: 2287

Re: Social Security and Retirement Costs

Projections decades into the future are meaningless. To see that this is so for this particular case, find a table showing the projected year the trust fund runs out, by year. I've seen it, but am on my mobile now and can't look for it.

We can't predict the economy with much certainty a few years out, yet people talk about 75 year projections as if they mean anything. To put this in perspective, how much stock should we give the projections of 1940 when planning our next few years?
by momar
Sat Oct 19, 2013 12:41 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: Help me understand how rebalancing affects compounding
Replies: 34
Views: 3519

Re: Help me understand how rebalancing affects compounding

Rebalancing doesn't win in the long run. You are by definition moving money from higher return to lower return asset classes, on average.

It may or may not win; it depends on what everything does.

Rebalancing DOES allow you to maintain a risk profile appropriate for your situation.
by momar
Fri Oct 18, 2013 7:30 am
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: Suze Orman on NBC Nightly News [doesn't like bond funds]
Replies: 46
Views: 9442

Re: Suze Orman on NBC Nightly News [doesn't like bond funds]

Just because you own individual bonds and aren't paying attention to their value doesn't mean they don't also lose value when interest rates rise.
by momar
Thu Oct 17, 2013 10:17 am
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: Shouldn't we all be 50/50
Replies: 44
Views: 4605

Re: Shouldn't we all be 50/50

Why would being 50/50 follow from the observation that stocks could drop 50% or more?
by momar
Wed Oct 16, 2013 2:00 pm
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Why no Total World Stock Index admiral shares?
Replies: 3
Views: 1268

Re: Why no Total World Stock Index admiral shares?

Too new and/or too small. I'm sure they'll offer them eventually.
by momar
Mon Oct 14, 2013 9:43 am
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Living on $5,000 a year
Replies: 28
Views: 4207

Re: Living on $5,000 a year

"I like being able to do what I want to do," said Price, who pays $100 a year for his land. "I don't believe in houses or mortgages. Who in their right mind would spend their lifetime paying for a building they never get to spend time in because they are always working?"
I don't know who would do that, it seems crazy. That's why I don't spend all my time working and spend plenty of it in my house with my family.
by momar
Mon Oct 14, 2013 9:36 am
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: best way to store your gold & silver
Replies: 23
Views: 3400

Re: best way to store your gold & silver

Just a note about hiding it or burying it in various places. Make sure to have a record of where you put it, especially if you use a bunch of spots. And make sure your next of kin knows, too.

I know people that have bought houses after their long time owners passed and they found thousands tearing up old carpets, taking down wallpaper etc.
by momar
Sun Oct 13, 2013 8:47 pm
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: best way to store your gold & silver
Replies: 23
Views: 3400

Re: best way to store your gold & silver

If you have a little bit, taped to the back of an electrical outlet faceplate.

If you have more, inside an air vent in the nursery.

If you have a lot, in the crawl space underneath your house.

If you have a fortune, buried outside of town.