Bogleheads.org

OldSport

Seems insane to me to put $100,000 or whatever your downpayment is in a super conservative 3% yield asset when you don't expect to use it in half a decade. I agree with this. I'm strongly considering VTMFX (Vanguard Tax Managed Balanced Fund), for its simplicity and tax efficiency, but considering ...

OldSport

Checking if any Bogleheads has or has had VTMFX (Vanguard Tax Managed Balanced Fund) in taxable. What do you use the fund for? Have you been happy with it? I'm on the fence about it, but thinking of using it to stash away extra money for a downpayment on a larger house we may or may not buy in ~3-6 ...

OldSport

I would invest in current AA if my plan was to buy a house after 5-7 years. A lot can happen during that many years. I won't pay opportunity cost for buying a house that far in the future. Maybe this is a wrong way to look at it, but I'd view my house AA as if what my AA would be if I were to retir...

OldSport

How do we best estimate how VBTLX vs VWITX will perform in a rising rate environment? What are the factors that will impact each?

OldSport

Justification? Read the wiki to see where bonds work in your portfolio. I'm buying Total Bond Market and Total Stock Market every couple of weeks and I maintain my AA. Bonds are down - so I get more for my money - they will eventually be back up - then down again - then up again then down again - ....

OldSport

I’m in a similar situation and have the funds invested 40% total US market and 60% in a bond fund. I feel my regular asset allocation of 100% equities is too aggressive for this short a time horizon. It really depends on you, and what level of volatility you can live with! And also whether you can ...

OldSport

I'd probably go at least 50-60% VTMFX and the rest in a high yield savings account on a short term bond fund or high yield rewards savings/checking. Target retirement income is 30% stocks. I believe 30% stocks is the lowest % stock in the efficient frontier or risk/reward to lower volatility in a st...

OldSport

No kids. Absolutely. Much easier to be financially irresponsible (occasionally). Why do people keep saying this? Kids aren't all that expensive, unless you choose to send them to private school and spoil them. Kids were a bit more expensive the first 4 years, but it really hasn't been bad since the...

OldSport

No kids. Absolutely. Much easier to be financially irresponsible (occasionally). Why do people keep saying this? Kids aren't all that expensive, unless you choose to send them to private school and spoil them. Kids were a bit more expensive the first 4 years, but it really hasn't been bad since the...

OldSport

This is really sad in that I have a close friend of mine who is 44 and single in a serious relationship, and is waffling on what to do with the relationship solely due to having kids. He is in the tech field and can EASILY lean FIRE (2/3 income replacement with 4% withdrawal rate), and is hesitant t...

OldSport

No kids. Absolutely. Much easier to be financially irresponsible (occasionally). Why do people keep saying this? Kids aren't all that expensive, unless you choose to send them to private school and spoil them. Kids were a bit more expensive the first 4 years, but it really hasn't been bad since the...

OldSport

Hi, long time lurker! I've learned an enormous amount from this community and thank you all for being amazing at what you do. I wouldn't be here without you guys. Background: Living in LA, getting married this year, looking to buying a home sometime in the near future. -----------------------------...

OldSport

They are related questions for sure, but you might want to separate out WHAT you want to hold and then WHERE to put it. For example, if you decide Wellesley is the way to go, you could exchange existing holdings (lets say bonds) in your Roth IRA or 401k for Wellesley and use your cash to buy the bo...

OldSport

I took a closer look at target retirement income, Wellesley, and VTMFX It's down to Wellesley and VTMFX. No doubt Wellesley has performed amazing for what it is on nominal returns, BUT in taxable it is terribly tax inefficient throwing off lots of unqualified dividends and capital gains. Wellesley h...

OldSport

Which would you prefer: cash that loses 1-2% of its buying power for a few years or a stock investment that loses 39% for a decade along with a bond portfolio that can lose 6% if rates go up one percent. High yield savings accounts pay about .50% now, which is only a percent less than bond funds wh...

OldSport

The issue with us is that we're not 100% sure if were going to be purchasing a house, but the $120-160k is also the down payment range. VTMFX is the most aggressive I'd go. Wellesley and Target Retirement income were two other more conservative options, but they're extremely tax inefficient and seem...

OldSport

VTMFX seems a good place to stash funds in taxable (to a point) that I will likely use at sometime well before retirement but have no plan to spend in the immediate future. It's too conservative for long term retirement but too risky for funds I know will be needed immediately.

OldSport

Where exactly do you live? With your salary and low spending, you could easily save for a proper full 20% downpayment if you can wait a year or so. A $600-650k house is not too much for your salary. We are in a similar boat, except that is our combined joint salary (would love to know what you do to...

OldSport

I'm 90/10 to 95/5 in my long term retirement portfolio, but I'll be 50/50 for any funds that I'm planning to use well before retirement in addition to the E-fund. These are for things like big ticket home purchases (new roof, A/C), a bigger house or new cars that I have no idea when I'll use it. If ...

OldSport

What non-executive jobs pay 350-450K a year? That's what I'd like to know! im a highly paid technical specialist in my niche field. Contractor. Hourly. Get paid 1.5x on OT, work 50-60 hours a week. Base pay is 130/hr and OT pay is 180/hr, there are other perks that i rather not mention, but yes I a...

OldSport

What's your plan for when the stocks you've picked plummet? go back to work most likely.... hopefully my stock picks dont crash .... but back to work it is if it does so. SP500 is too outdated for me and i invest in high growth stocks and high tech stocks that will dominate in 5-10 years. I wish yo...

OldSport

Seriously thinking about VTMFX for this. Yes 50/50 may be aggressive for those who want to use the money soon and too conservative for long term. Since we are not sure when we will use it the 50/50 seems "just right", better than sitting in cash. We want to separate this pot from long term...

OldSport

Following. I am in the same boat! $150k sitting in HY savings for a down payment....someday. Don’t sense we’ll be using it anytime soon, yet undecided where else to park it. Like the safety but want to squeeze a wee bit more returns from it. 20/80 or maybe even 10/90 sounds like a happy compromise ...

OldSport

What about 50% VTMFX and 50% short or intermediate term tax exempt. That's 25% stocks/75% tax free bonds. That's a reasonable AA unless you're dead set on taking no risk and preserving principal at all costs. If your tax rate is low and don't need tax free bonds, just do 50% Vanguard Balanced index ...

OldSport

we are in the same boat as you. We saved $150k+ in cash for a bigger house. Then we found out it is a crazy seller's market. We decided to wait a bit and invest the down payment. When the house we really want comes out in a reasonable price and it is not a big economic downturn, we withdraw the mon...

OldSport

Had a 2004 Jeep Grand Cherokee. No issues til 2011 - had to put $1k then and was fine til late 2013. Then had to rebuild the tyranny, but price was reasonable. In 2014 had to replace the radiator. Sold it in 2015. No other issues. Very nice ride and extremely capable/durable. Better in snow than any...

OldSport

I'll add some more information. Spouse graduated from B-school last year with a career that's really taking off. Spouse worked hard and sacrificed for years and really wants a bigger house. While we can afford it now, me, being a good Boglehead doesn't want to take this on right away and see how thi...

OldSport

We have a decent amount of money in a Lifestrategy Moderate Growth fund in a taxable account. Most of the gains would be long-term. This was a stupid investment decision we made before our incomes increased and the vast majority of our savings went into our taxable account. Being in a high tax brac...

OldSport

anon_investor wrote: ↑Sat Feb 06, 2021 3:31 pm
OldSport wrote: ↑Sat Feb 06, 2021 3:28 pm Option 3) 50% Vanguard 500 Index, 50% Total Bond (or some other Bond fund)
Of your offered options, I would pick 3. Just remember to actually rebalance.

I'm open to other options with a ~50/50 AA. Could also do this in Fidelity total stock to keep separate from Vanguard.

OldSport

Appreciate the responses, however the whole point is that these expenses are unknown, some are related to personal choices years in the future that we do not know, and difficult to estimate. I want to be explicitly clear that I am WILLING TO TAKE SOME RISK and do not want to guarantee loss due to in...

OldSport

I'm wondering where to invest money we may want to use in the mid term? These are for things like buying vehicles (that we may not need for 5+ years), buying a new roof (could need in 2 years, may not need for 10+ years), new appliances, possible down payment on a larger house (may never get or mayb...

OldSport

Was checking up on funds and am very disappointed to see that the Vanguard Small Cap International Fund (VFSAX) is significantly underperforming both the Intl Small Cap Index and average funds in the small cap international category. https://www.morningstar.com/funds/xnas/vfsax/performance This is d...

OldSport

It has been a goal of mine to be a 'millionaire' by the time I'm 40 since as long as I can remember, but its looking like this goal will be hard to achieve. We are saving more than we've ever been and should be on track for a decent retirement, but it hurts to miss a long-time goal I've had since b...

OldSport

I'm planning on doing it January 1, 2021 to avoid confusing accounting this year. I held off transitioning specifically because of comments on this forum with only having an end of year statement on the Mutual Fund platform and having to search through each monthly statement on the brokerage account...

OldSport

This is one perspective, but is there something fundamentally different from the US markets vs International where US would be expected to gain a larger return over the very long term. No. Some may mention American ingenuity, favorable business climate, stable government, etc, etc. That's fine, but...

OldSport

This sounds like a really imprudent plan motivated by recency bias and performance chasing. This is one perspective, but is there something fundamentally different from the US markets vs International where US would be expected to gain a larger return over the very long term. Sure, there will be pe...

OldSport

Nobody presently has a chronic condition that needs managed by a specialist or even the PCP outside of the normal annual checkup. One thing, if you are basing off past year claims/visits, check each plan evidence of coverage/member certificate - the big detailed book of what the plan actually cover...

OldSport

You may want to stick with the PPO if: you have a flex spending account and spend the max yearly.... you hit the out of pocket max.... someone in your family has a chronic disease like diabetes where you know you'll be spending a lot on prescriptions. (I'm ignoring adding more to FSA and HSA for si...

OldSport

Admittedly, the point is moot because my employer does not offer an HDHP. The closest it offers is a flex spending account, but it's use-it-or-lose-it every year. But let's have a discussion anyway :) My employer offers a Kaiser HMO health plan where I pay $0 in premiums (covered entirely by my emp...

OldSport

The best way to make this type of decision is to run the actual numbers. There are too many variables to simply eyeball it. Open up a spreadsheet and calculate the total after-tax cost of each of the plans assuming a few different spending scenarios. It’s impossible to know your exact expenditures ...

OldSport

HDHP seems like the no-brainer. What am I missing? Unless there are chronic health issues or something. Even then it's close to a wash. Agreed. $6100 difference in premiums (including the hsa contribution). Hdhp seems like the no brainer unless you expect to have very high healthcare costs for more...

OldSport

muddgirl wrote: ↑Wed Oct 21, 2020 8:24 pm FYI the HDHP should also provide some free annual screenings.

I didn't know that. I haven't checked that yet. Is that law?

OldSport

I like that the HSA rolls over if not spent and the HDHP is essentially free premiums. I'm not familiar with either network if one is better vs. the other. The PPO has some added perks like free annual health screenings and one free annual cancer screening and cardiovascular health screening for adu...

OldSport

3 people. Two adults mid 30s. One 8 year old boy.

OldSport

It's annual enrollment time, and we are torn whether to go with my spouse's PPO health plan or my HDHP+HSA. Please do not ask about any other options. I only want to compare these two. My spouses PPO is through United Health Care and my HDHP is through Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield. This is for ...

OldSport

Not directly related: My wife and I each drive a 2012 Acura TSX. They’re both the base model, 4 cylinder, standard package, etc. 8.5 years into ownership, 55K miles on each - no problems. We do take the cars to the dealer for scheduled maintenance, but beyond that the cars have been rock solid. New...

OldSport

You are likely to get better responses here https://acurazine.com/forums/first-generation-tlx-2015-2020-415/ I have a 2019 RDX. Acuras are decent but boring cars. https://jalopnik.com/this-boring-acura-rdx-built-for-sema-is-everything-wron-1830096933 (I'm linking the article because the author ster...

OldSport

I'd change the oil annually. Oil breaks down by both use and time. I don't consider going to a car dealership or service center any more risky than going to a grocery store, probably less. Just mask up. What I do differently is after getting the car back, keep my mask on, wipe off touch points, open...

OldSport

I used to DIY to a certain extent. But now that I have a 60-70+ hour week job, where I am counted on, I highly value time to relax and recharge with family. We have a lawn and garden service and a general handyman. Although I still troubleshoot and "repair" electrical issues and make tempo...

OldSport

OP: I have a 2016 TLX V6. Like you said it was refreshed in 2018 so not the same but very similar. I believe the 2018+ has the same transmission but Acura retuned it for 2018+ to shift quicker. My car tends to be slow on downshifts when you punch it as it searches for the right gear. Also, the 2016...

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