Bogleheads.org

Buy tbills, in addition to high interest yield currently. you do not pay state taxes on them, so they will yield even higher.
if you do not want to go the treasurydirect route, Fidelity will do it for a fee, Schwab is free, but it is per trade and like ~$30 or less.

You have option to buy 3 months to 9 months(most attractive rates) and even longer durations. You can see rates below:

https://home.treasury.gov/resource-cent ... value=2023

If sounds too confusing call your broker, they will do it for you(either free as in schwab or for a nominal fee at fidelity). You can call and check with Vanguard as well.

Definitely move out of the Contrafund, high expense ratio, and even the fund page shows, it has been beaten in all intervals( 1year, 3 year, 5 year, 10 year, life) by S&P500

Looks like you do not have Fidelity anywhere, you can just buy their Total US and Total World ETFs instead and switch to VTI/VXUS when you are done.

While is quite similar in performance, but it only has 500 vs ~4k+ companies in VTI

doss wrote: ↑Fri Sep 16, 2022 1:11 pm

annu wrote: ↑Fri Sep 16, 2022 12:47 pm So was able to lock @ 4.25% 15 years fixed, with 2.5 points

Did they give you a rate if you went 30yrs fixed? If so, what was it?

I could have gotten 4.875 with .7 points, and 5.25 30 year fixed with zero points

So was able to lock @ 4.25% 15 years fixed, with 2.5 points

Thanks a lot. One more, ARM rates are surprisingly lower, especially fro 5 year, almost 1 %, I have not done these in past, but seem like good option, especially if closing cost is on the lower end.

Any thoughts? I am not worries about job/income, but not sure if rates have historically come back down in a matter for 5 years, or it takes a lot longer for interest rates to come back to normal.

I recently posted about buying home for my parents and thanks to responses from the folks here was able to get the ducks in row on financing side. Finally have a found a home that they liked and offer was accepted as well. I have through end of october to close, so started working with few lenders. This is where I am seeing lots of craziness, looks like rates are varying almost on a daily basis, and it is also not a small change, 30 year for example changed by more then .75% between end of August and now. I have no experience dealing with this, bit will need to pick when to lock the rates. Since I still have several weeks(atleast unitl end of September), can possibly wait if it makes sense to possible save on rates/costs, but need some guid...

Thanks a lot folks. I have been able to close on the process, now just making my folks to agree on a house they can both agree on. Luckily with market cooling down, they have lots of choices now

Quick update, looks like info is very scarce. Current stuck on one of the requirements. Currently stuck on Parent’s Social Security award letter. Have tried few times to call, but just stuck on wait. Anyone with any experience on how to get the letter. if it helps in Oregon.

Parents have upcomming medical procedures(even though nothing major), but isolating as if they get Covid it will have to be rescheduled and very tough to get new dates again, so they cannot go to the office and find more information

It is really simple actually. Do you need the money from selling the home? if yes, please go ahead. if answer is no, especially now withe market the way it is, you will not get as much return as beginning of the year. Its like selling a stock when it is price is down. Well only time you should do that if you need the money, and long term outlook is not good. With that out of picture, atleast through 2026, you have 20% deduction on any profits from the rental income, this is assuming after the expenses and home depreciation leaves any net rental income, adding more info on depreciation if you do not know. Over that period of time the property wears out – or depreciates – at least for tax return purposes. If you're a real estate investor, eac...

I am glad this helped you, I am still going to keep on looking and will update here, so may help others who can use the information as well

Need some help with an option I just got aware of. Looks like there is an option for Buying homes and hence mortgage called Fannie Mae Family Opportunity Mortgage(more info at https://mymortgageinsider.com/buy-home-for-elderly-parent-best-interest-rates/), quick summary below: Lenders give the best mortgage interest rates and terms on “owner occupied” home purchase loans. “Owner occupied” simply means that the people buying the home plan to live in it. But there is a situation in which lending rule maker Fannie Mae allows you to buy a home as an owner occupied residence, even though you don’t plan to live in it. This exception is when you are buying a home for elderly parents. This loan option is sometimes referred to as the Family Opportun...

Where do you see the change for credit score screening? That seems weird...maybe for section 8 housing??? Do you need the money? If not, rental is an option.. If home is is in good neighborhood, screen candidates using zillow(rental history and all), you should do well. We wouldn’t rent it out as Portland has become very anti-landlord. You are no longer able to screen renters using credit scores and you can’t disqualify someone from renting if they have a felony conviction older than 7 years or a misdemeanor older than 3 years. It’s a City of Portland ordnance that was passed in 2019. As a landlord, I wouldn’t own rental property in Portland even if you gave me the house for free. https://tmgnorthwest.com/everything-you-need-to-know-about-...

Where do you see the change for credit score screening? That seems weird...maybe for section 8 housing???

er999 wrote: ↑Fri Jun 24, 2022 5:38 pm

annu wrote: ↑Fri Jun 24, 2022 3:46 pm Do you need the money? If not, rental is an option..

If home is is in good neighborhood, screen candidates using zillow(rental history and all), you should do well.

We wouldn’t rent it out as Portland has become very anti-landlord. You are no longer able to screen renters using credit scores and you can’t disqualify someone from renting if they have a felony conviction older than 7 years or a misdemeanor older than 3 years.

Only do single family. Closing on one in July, will probably do ARM and hoping in few years rates will get lower.

Real estate will be impacted as well, but not knowing your location cant say more, if you don't expect impact of layoffs and there are multiple employers in the area, based on numbers you mentioned, especially once you move back and can also live there while renting.....should be a good house hack option.

How do you plan on renting the property? Does tourism have any play? How much have homes appreciated there? Any changes to rental rules/regulations coming up?

Do you need the money? If not, rental is an option.

As you can rent it out, and as long as you are aware of The 2-out-of-five-year rule, that requires that you must have lived in your home for a minimum of two out of the last five years before the date of sale...
So you do not have to sell the home right away.....

Infact once it becomes rental, you can use 1031 exchange, to avoid paying capital gains.....tax laws can change, but if I remember correctly you have until 2026.

If home is is in good neighborhood, screen candidates using zillow(rental history and all), you should do well.

Tbills and ibonds

increment wrote: ↑Tue Jun 14, 2022 12:25 pm

JIMX7 wrote: ↑Tue Jun 14, 2022 12:13 pm Do you receive a form from the government on the earned interest or is that something you keep track of ?

Which outfit are you planning to hold the bonds with? If it's a brokerage, then these data are on your brokerage statements and your brokerage's annual 1099-INT tax form. (I believe that with Treasury Direct you need to fetch these data manually.)

Looks like new Treasury direct has INT form available, like for CDs, so same.

I have quick question though, I just submitted for june 16th auction, an order for 8 weeks. It looks it is not guaranteed to be fulfilled? I just picked duration(8 weeks), Security type(T-bill), but nothing else, is there some place to customize your bid?

kapios wrote: ↑Tue Jun 14, 2022 7:35 am Here are the yields on some US Treasury bonds as of this morning:

3 month: 1.8%
6 month: 2.4%
1 year: 3.1%
2 year: 3.3%

You can buy bonds by opening an account in Treasury Direct or other brokers like Fidelity, Vanguard etc for no cost.

I have bought i-bonds, nothing else. What is the penalty if withdrawing earlier? I need to park money for next 2 to 4 months.

Well as far as I understood, saw 8 weeks being offered as below
8-Week 912796XL8 06/14/2022 08/09/2022 1.150% 1.168%

Well it is pretty close to 1.5, and alos duration is 8 weeks, that works for me, so will buy some next available date, that seems to be 16.

many posts have said there is no difference long term. That being said, it guess it depends on ones age and what long term is. Interestingly, my wife and I retired 4 months ago. we had consolidated some retirement funds to Schwab. I had about $600K in cash in early february when things started to crater. (if you can't be smart, be lucky).. I have been doing two things. not sure if it's right but , i am good with it. 1. i have very slowly moved a percentage in equity on down days up until the market drop friday. On Friday , I completed with a purchase of 75/25 which has brought my entire portfolio to 58/42. (30% of the 42 is cash and still moving to Tbills). I expect the market to continue down and could have done it slower but have been wr...

smihaila wrote: ↑Mon Jun 06, 2022 6:53 pm They probably activated the "new procedures" which I've also been advised about for the GM RightNotes.
You may need to submit proof of ID and banking / CU account number as source of funds. You can use the e-mail, and making sure to mention the Toyota Income Driver Note number in full (found in the Welcome e-mail).

Thanks, yes this is what it was, even though online seemed all approved, I had to call, send a copy of my id and bank accounts
All set now

My account status says frozen. Had setup automatic money transfer from my bank account as well but nothing besides the first welcomr email.

Do i need to call and talk to them?

Money intended to buy a car, that i dont plan to anymore, as working remotely..so if only risk is money will be available earlier...not bad at all

I have invested in VWIUX, the vanguard muni bond fund, this looks like a much higher yield option and also is state tax free. What is the risk i am missing here, as it is almost 1% more yield. https://investor.vanguard.com/mutual-funds/profile/VWIUX Also is the tax free status for other states as well? I am not in California I'm not sure you have that right? The VWINX fund has an SEC yield of 2.94%, well below the FFCB yield I quoted of 4.35% (now 4.0%). Also the FFCB is duration-matched, the VWINX fund is not, and as noted the VWINX risk is much higher. So VWINX doesn't seem a good candidate to offset a 10 year mortgage. The callable bond from FFCB is state tax free, but taxable on a Federal level. Sorry, yes meant your posted bond seems ...

I have invested in VWIUX, the vanguard muni bond fund, this looks like a much higher yield option and also is state tax free. What is the risk i am missing here, as it is almost 1% more yield. https://investor.vanguard.com/mutual-funds/profile/VWIUX This is a fine fund if you are in a high enough tax bracket that munis make sense. However, the yield difference is a risk issue. Agency bonds, even if not officially backed by the US Goverment (GNMAs are), have an unofficial backing; the government backstopped FNMA in the 2008 housing crisis. Municipal and corporate bonds can default, and thus investors will only buy them at prices which give them higher yields. Currently, the market is expecting significant default risk. Comparing taxable bon...

I have invested in VWIUX, the vanguard muni bond fund, this looks like a much higher yield option and also is state tax free. What is the risk i am missing here, as it is almost 1% more yield.

https://investor.vanguard.com/mutual-fu ... file/VWIUX

Also is the tax free status for other states as well? I am not in California

Many brokerages offering upto $1500 to move to them....so just move. I will not move to Vangaurd, as feel pretty much everyone else has better website and capabilities.

1 or 2 years probably not worth to risk being 10% down when you find something you like. I was not aware of them, but check toyota income driver notes(there are posts on this forum). They yield 1.5% and you can withdraw anytime.

If you can definitely wait 1 year, then you can invest into I Bonds as well, yielding very high(9%+)

myleaf wrote: ↑Tue May 24, 2022 8:29 am Toyota Income Driver Note page is showing 1.5% interest. Rate effective as of May 24, 2022

Thanks a lot.
Just created an enrollment, hopefully will be done quickly. Quick question around taking money out as i might need it in 2 to 3 months, taking money out should be pretty quick through ACH, but should i worry about what day I take out the money? Should i submit request on 1st day of the month to not lose monthly interest? Or is the interest given out until the day you take money out?

etrade offering upto 1500 for moving money/securities to them.

Will you DCA or go lumpsum Through elections, market can swing, it should not matter in long run, but as you mentioned your dad has low risk tolerance, atleast teaching him about tax loss harvesting will be useful. Also for rebalancing if he gets worried, do not like Target date funds at all. Prefer Total market option much more. as probably better QDI, check the worksheet https://institutional.fidelity.com/app/ ... 842880.PDF

QDI with total market is more than 99%
While 2020 target fund" see multiple, so you can confirm which one you are going with

So your investment horizon is less than 5 years? if yes, than dont know what a good option is.

Is the life strategy fund in taxable? One quick thought on all world in tax advantaged, even though it is not a lot, but you cannot use the tax credits for foreign taxes paid.

If you can, will suggest to instead get I-bonds right away and take that money out in a year, you will get interest @ 8%+ for next 1 year(if not more). You can $40k between you and spouse. While everything has risk, but I-bonds probably the least risk. However if they fail, probably will not need to pay mortgage anyways

Possible to maybe invest in yourself, maybe training/certification that will help increase your income? Everything you do, saving, investment, is going to ber %age of your earnings, so if you have not looked into this probably a good idea....

I will recommend againts reits, in my personal experience they are nothing like real estate.
Also look into i bonds, very decent option, maybe you can move some of your emergency funds into i bonds.

And dont worry about catching up, that is how you can end up buying risky investments like Luna
But best thing you can do, explore opportunities to incease take home.

Best of luck

Is this recommendation for cash maybe? Even that as already mentioned is borderline unethical. But if this also includes 401k/roth, you should report the adviser, they do not have to be fudiciary, but cannot defraud clients either

Ours is just FirstName+LastName+Family Trust

I have other holdings in real estate that I prefer over bonds, so my investments are mostly(95% stocks, 60% VTI, 25% VXUS, 10% VWO: ALL US, ALL World except US, Emerging markets respectively).

The international ones do result in some tax filing work, but pay CPA, so he covers it for me.

Doctor Rhythm wrote: ↑Wed May 18, 2022 9:52 pm Could have bought stocks at a 4% discount today!

How do you know they will not be 10% discount tomorrow, better not to buy the dip, just buy on schedule....hurt from trying to catch a falling knife is real

I buy the Costco ones , never even looked further. Since they sell them in multiples, and also they do not need power(battery operated), I am sure I have 2x the required installed

You trying to remove some articles about you? Or data captured by ISPs that identifies you?

You can do 20k per person in I Bonds, since interest rates are high...also more if you have an estate

Might sound dumb, but TLH is only for taxable accounts, a buddy of mine "TLH" his 401k, and left his taxeable untouched, as did not want to deal with taxes

Landlord horror stories while true, you can minimize risk by investing Class A properties only, screening renters well, and treating like others have also said treating buying house as a business, where your renters are your customers and you treat them with respect. Real estate investment, are definitely not passive and do not compare to stocks at all, but at the same time it is not like you will get calls non stop on random issues popping up. You can hire a management company, who will act as buffer for you, but for the service they provide, they will take fee, just like working with money managers for your investment... Also Airbnb is a lot more work, than long term rentals. Look into roofstock.com, they let you look at inspection report...

Everyday you dont invest, you are also losing on any interest...

Maybe you can start with putting some money into I-Bonds as they are very good option right now. You can invest $20k per SSN(2nd 10k is as gift).
This way while you wait, atleast some part of your money is invested and earning you some interest.

On raising interests, maybe DCA into getting CDs.....I have never bought CDs, but if it works for you, maybe check https://www.bankrate.com/banking/cds/cd-rates/

We did do a 3 CD @ 3.2% 2 years ago using this, they had a penalty of 3months interest for breaking it before 3 years, so we knew the risk we were taking getting a CD.

Next safest option to CD, I Bonds as of now getting you around 9%, you can buy 20k each in your and your wife SSN. 10k for your self and 10 as gift in each account.

Since you are all cash for a reason, would be tough to get back into market, regardless of what people tell you, since you have good rental income coming in already, might look into DCA(dollar cost averaging) back into market. But if you can share how far away you are from retirement, you may get more responses that will fit your investment horizon.

By the way if you have family trust, you can buy I Bond for them as well.

Sorry was away, https://www.fidelity.com/trading/advanc ... o/overview

Gaston wrote: ↑Sat Jun 05, 2021 6:06 pm

annu wrote: ↑Sat Jun 05, 2021 1:06 pm Fidelity gives free access to their software

Do you mean “free if you have a Fidelity account” or can it really be accessed by anyone? Thx.

Sorry, yes you need to have account with them, but they let you download it and use, and not only online version

Fidelity gives free access to their software
Many brokerages have online versions you get to use for free, including watch lists and portfolio analysis
There is always google sheets and trusted Excel

7% is not 100% sure, while mortgage is. Personally would pay off mortgage, infact we did do that and doing more stocks on a monthly basis as no more mortgage.

You have gotten great advise already, so just one thing will like to add. Don't go with investment recommendations that you think will help you catchup, as that will lead to higher risky, that you dont need, especially since you already have Real Estate. Maybe look at your protoflio overall, investment is investment, stock or real estate, most important is to save and invest