Rebalanced today

[simplesimon]

...was the highlight of my day.

[Rammer]

I love rebalancing because I get to play with my spreadsheet.

[tsturbo]

I rebalanced last night to get back to my AA, I bought more bonds

[letsgobobby]

had to sell VTI and buy VSS; my international tilt is on a glide path from 37.5% toward 50%, especially given ex US developed world stock valuations.

[BBL]

had to sell VTI and buy VSS; my international tilt is on a glide path from 37.5% toward 50%, especially given ex US developed world stock valuations.

Is that what prompted the low volume ETF questions? I'm doing the same thing [although my international targets have not changed] I've been buying VSS almost exclusively by selling US so far in 2013.

I always wonder how many are ignoring their plan/IPS and hanging on to their best performing positions [US in this case] and not rebalancing into international [which many should be doing, no doubt].

[Grt2bOutdoors]

had to sell VTI and buy VSS; my international tilt is on a glide path from 37.5% toward 50%, especially given ex US developed world stock valuations.

Is that what prompted the low volume ETF questions? I'm doing the same thing [although my international targets have not changed] I've been buying VSS almost exclusively by selling US so far in 2013.

I always wonder how many are ignoring their plan/IPS and hanging on to their best performing positions [US in this case] and not rebalancing into international [which many should be doing, no doubt].

I think the first question is how many are rebalancing from equity to bonds, and then, how many are rebalancing from US to International? I've been rebalancing through adjustment of contributions, I agree International is in the dog house these days.....

[BBL]

I think the first question is how many are rebalancing from equity to bonds

For the new and seemingly expanding '100% equity' crowd: Zero

For me, with a very wide band - very little new money to equities this year. Mostly non-equities with new $$. Equity rebalancing US Int.

*Shrug* the plan is the plan...

[letsgobobby]

I think the first question is how many are rebalancing from equity to bonds

For the new and seemingly expanding '100% equity' crowd: Zero

For me, with a very wide band - very little new money to equities this year. Mostly non-equities with new $$. Equity rebalancing US Int.

*Shrug* the plan is the plan...

this is my situation too.

Bbl, yes this is why my question about buying VSS.

[BBL]

I'm about to log in and do some more of this. Price is coming in. 94.98 94.63...

[Jay69]

In both my work and the wifes work plan all new contributions are set to goto bonds, last month I looked under the hood and the AA has not changed to much. Had to move a little to international.

[dickenjb]

Exercised some employee stock options today. When the trade settles, proceeds will go into VWIUX in taxable.

Brings me back to my target of 60/40 equity/fixed AND brings international back up to target of 30% AND reduces my exposure to former employer stock price.

[STC]

had to sell VTI and buy VSS; my international tilt is on a glide path from 37.5% toward 50%, especially given ex US developed world stock valuations.

Is that what prompted the low volume ETF questions? I'm doing the same thing [although my international targets have not changed] I've been buying VSS almost exclusively by selling US so far in 2013.

I always wonder how many are ignoring their plan/IPS and hanging on to their best performing positions [US in this case] and not rebalancing into international [which many should be doing, no doubt].

I have been doing the same. Selling VTI for a mix of VSS and EWX (to maintain my EM vs Developed Intl split). All of my contributions this year have been to bonds and I am still off of my 24% target.

Percent of AA
Aggregate US Equity (no REIT's) 36.5%
Agregate Real Estate 10.7%
Aggregate International Equity (No REIT's) 35.1%
Aggregate Fixed Income 17.7%

[BBL]

I have been doing the same. Selling VTI for a mix of VSS and EWX (to maintain my EM vs Developed Intl split). All of my contributions this year have been to bonds and I am still off of my 24% target.

Percent of AA
Aggregate US Equity (no REIT's) 36.5%
Agregate Real Estate 10.7%
Aggregate International Equity (No REIT's) 35.1%
Aggregate Fixed Income 17.7%

It's a good problem to have. I have a hard time trying to keep in balance. A little over half of my port is taxable and plenty of cap gains which doesn't help the rebalancing cause. 100% of my 401 is going to FI, distributions and about 90% of my other contribs have been going that way too.

I'm still not there. I won't realize a gain to rebalance so I'm trying all of the other techniques. I'm sure the market will help out soon enough.

I remember buying & rebalancing into equities in 08-09 and some of those days the markets were dropping so fast I had to review my transaction history just to be sure I had actually added to the pot. The balances were falling so quickly I could never really be sure. It was like a financial incinerator. Real money kept leaving my checking accounts and then it seemingly was killed on contact with the equity markets. So, it could be worse.

[STC]

Im not complaining. My bonds got out of whack due to the market run up + purchasing a new car for cash. I didnt want to change my equity exposure, so I paid for the car from bonds and have been climbing back since that purchase last month.

[Jim85]

Also, rebalanced yesterday and made a slight change to my AA (which I had been planning) as well. Went from:

49% Stocks
43% Bonds
8% (MM, CDs)

To

45% Stocks
40% Bonds
7% Stable value fund
8% (MM, CDs)

(AA was 45, 45, 10 initially)

56 yrs old and hoping to retire in about 2 years.

[yukon50]

I think the first question is how many are rebalancing from equity to bonds

For the new and seemingly expanding '100% equity' crowd: Zero

For me, with a very wide band - very little new money to equities this year. Mostly non-equities with new $$. Equity rebalancing US Int.

*Shrug* the plan is the plan...

this is my situation too.

Bbl, yes this is why my question about buying VSS.

Weren't you 25% in stocks in 2007 and then 75% in 2009?

What does your portfolio look like now?

I am also buying VSS.

[letsgobobby]

almost - 25% in 2007 and 70% in 2009 - how did you remember?!?

stocks: 62.25%
TSM - 25.1%
US small/value 12.3%
TISM - 17.5%
Intl small/value - 7.3%

bonds: 37.75%
TBM - 17.8%
stable value - 17.6%
I bonds - 2.3%

[yukon50]

almost - 25% in 2007 and 70% in 2009 - how did you remember?!?

stocks: 62.25%
TSM - 25.1%
US small/value 12.3%
TISM - 17.5%
Intl small/value - 7.3%

bonds: 37.75%
TBM - 17.8%
stable value - 17.6%
I bonds - 2.3%

So you have scaled back a bit since 2009?

Have you increased % in INTL in the last few years?

You made some pretty good moves in hindsight, like being 25% in 2007. What possessed you to go 25% in 2007?

[letsgobobby]

yukon-

I started investing around 1996. My dad (whom I am close to and whom I admire for many reasons) had been bearish since about 1983. Greenspan was proclaiming irrational exuberance. PE10 was climbing into the 30s. I just left everything in cash, some bonds. Bought a little in 02 and then when the market rallied after the tech crash, I 'shorted' by buying BEARX; also VGPMX and VIPSX for the coming (in my view) inflationary crisis. So I really didn't have any stocks at all for the first half of the 2000s.

Then as I started to learn more about investing, about buying/holding/not timing, etc., I was persuaded that being 0% stocks at age 30 was pretty ridiculous. So I moved slowly into the market; but couldn't commit since PE10 had been in a secular decline from around 40 in 2000 to the mid-upper 20s in 2006-07 and I just didn't feel the excesses of the 90s had been washed out of the system. Influential to my thinking was reading Doug Nolan and David Tice (managers of BEARX) and their very prescient views about the credit bubble as manifested primarily by ABSs.

As the market declined, I got up to 35% stocks in January 08, 50% in July 08, and eventually 70% stocks by mid-late 09. I settled in at 55-60% stocks for the long haul, commensurate with my need, ability, and willingness to take risk, as guided by this wonderful forum.

I still firmly believe that valuation matters, at least for stocks. At the extremes, I do not adhere to a strict buy and hold philosophy, but rather to a tactical allocation model.

[midareff]

Will be rebalancing at the end of the month and changing IP to reflect an additional share of International. Increasing International from 15% to 19% split roughly 2/3 total and 1/3 small. Will be re-allocating from commodities. This is in taxable ... the higher dividend w/foreign credits counts to me (retired) as does the lower valuations. Eventually the portfolio will have to be greatly simplified for my other half to manage when the inevitable arrives ... this may be a first step.

Kinda like letsgobobby I am a 95% buy and hold investor but when opportunity slaps you in the face I'm not above a 4% revision/rebalancing (shift) in long term IP positions.

[Peter Foley]

I rebalanced at the end of February so I missed the 10 day run. Still, it is nice to hit a rebalancing band on the way up.

[stan1]

Bought some VWO emerging markets this week.
Buying bonds with every paycheck in 401K.

[Scott S]

I rebalanced last night to get back to my AA, I bought more bonds

Same here, been buying bonds to keep my AA on track. Now that my Roth is full for the year, I may have to do some honest-to-goodness rebalancing if stocks keep going up.