Search found 642 matches

by Alskar
Mon Jan 22, 2018 7:58 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: Fellow TDA bogleheads [TDA dropping Vanguard ETFs from commission-free list]
Replies: 566
Views: 86631

Re: Fellow TDA bogleheads [TDA dropping Vanguard ETFs from commission-free list]

livesoft wrote: Sat Jan 20, 2018 3:27 pmBut in the end since share prices fluctuate, the only thing that matters with dividend reinvestment to me is the number of shares I get since that's what I will be selling in the future.
Agreed! Doesn't minimizing the reinvestment price maximize the number of shares one receives?
by Alskar
Mon Jan 22, 2018 7:53 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: No more TDA Apex?
Replies: 19
Views: 7806

Re: No more TDA Apex?

birdog wrote: Sun Jan 21, 2018 6:24 amWhere did you move to and are you happy with the new place? I’ve been considering leaving TDA as well (due to their comm-free ETF changes). Considering Vanguard, Fidelity and Merrill Edge but have not researched yet.
I'm consolidating everything into accounts at Fidelity. I've had pretty good customer service and a good experience overall with Fidelity. I had a horrible experience with a 401k at Merrill Lynch so I never considered Merrill Edge. I've had accounts at Vanguard in the past, but I was dissatisfied with their customer service so I moved everything I had at Vanguard to Fidelity.
by Alskar
Sat Jan 20, 2018 3:22 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: Fellow TDA bogleheads [TDA dropping Vanguard ETFs from commission-free list]
Replies: 566
Views: 86631

Re: Fellow TDA bogleheads [TDA dropping Vanguard ETFs from commission-free list]

livesoft wrote: Sat Jan 20, 2018 3:11 pmIt is OK that you believe that there is no rounding error, but that doesn't mean you are not missing 0.00034 shares that you should not be missing.
Both Fidelity and TD Ameritrade report the average reinvestment price to 6 significant digits. For example 8.72069E10 in dollars. Since I'm only comparing the reinvestment price and the precision of both numbers are the same I do not see why the number of shares is important in a discussion about reinvestment share price. I am not using the number of shares I received in the comparison.

In any case, the differences in the reinvestment prices are not in the 6th digit. They are actually quite a bit larger than I expect. See my posting of the data.
by Alskar
Sat Jan 20, 2018 3:16 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: Fellow TDA bogleheads [TDA dropping Vanguard ETFs from commission-free list]
Replies: 566
Views: 86631

Re: Fellow TDA bogleheads [TDA dropping Vanguard ETFs from commission-free list]

Here's the comparison I did of the reinvestment price I received at TD Ameritrade and Fidelity for various ETF's. Here are a few caveats: The dates given are intended to represent the dividend period, not the precise date of the reinvestment. In general, the TD Ameritrade reinvestment occurred at least one day later than Fidelity. The data provided is deemed to be reliable but I am not guaranteeing that it is correct. The cells with the green fill are reinvestment prices at TD that were lower than at Fidelity. The red rectangle marks a particularly huge difference in reinvestment price I'm not trying to say which DRIP is best. There isn't sufficient data to make any sort of determination. The fact that the best reinvestment price for VCIT (...
by Alskar
Sat Jan 20, 2018 2:53 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: Fellow TDA bogleheads [TDA dropping Vanguard ETFs from commission-free list]
Replies: 566
Views: 86631

Re: Fellow TDA bogleheads [TDA dropping Vanguard ETFs from commission-free list]

What happens when the number of shares supposedly purchased is 0.02634 and gets rounded down to 0.026 shares? Where did the 0.00034 shares go? How much would 0.00034 shares cost at a price of $87.3259? Here's how I believe it works: The dividends for ETF's are paid in cash. The cash is distributed to the owners of record via the DTC system. The brokerage house takes the cash and buys shares of the ETF that distributed the cash dividend. In the case of the DRIP programs at TD Ameritrade and Fidelity, they average the cost of the shares they purchased to come up with an average share price. Everybody participating in the DRIP program at that brokerage on that date gets the same share price. The number of shares is calculated by dividing the ...
by Alskar
Sat Jan 20, 2018 2:46 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: Best 401k Employer Match Structure
Replies: 132
Views: 18232

Re: Best 401k Employer Match Structure

ERISA Stone wrote: Mon Jan 15, 2018 6:47 pmI think the term you are looking for is elective vs. nonelective. For a profit sharing contribution, you receive the contribution regardless of a deferral. You don't make an election. For a match, you have to make an election to defer to receive the contribution.
I'm no expert on this. However, I'm using the precise terms that are in the Summary Plan Description for the plan in which I am a participant. These terms are also used in the transaction history and statements. FWIW, I find them very confusing.
by Alskar
Sat Jan 20, 2018 2:43 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: No more TDA Apex?
Replies: 19
Views: 7806

Re: No more TDA Apex?

Tanelorn wrote: Tue Jan 16, 2018 6:57 amLooks like poor commmunication more than anything, rather than a stealth fee increase. If you have concerns, I invite you to call customer service, ask your questions, and report back.
Poor communication on the part of TD is a good portion of why I left TD. They never seemed to be able to get their story straight.
by Alskar
Mon Jan 15, 2018 6:49 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: No more TDA Apex?
Replies: 19
Views: 7806

Re: No more TDA Apex?

indexfundfan wrote: Sat Jan 13, 2018 9:50 pmApex clients used to have free full outgoing ACAT. Now, the full outgoing ACAT is listed as $75, the previous non-Apex rate. So it looks like a downgrade, as far as the ACAT fees are concerned.
Thanks for sharing this! I closed my TD Ameritrade accounts a few days after TD "enhanced" their commission-free ETF offerings. I was charged $75 to close one of my three accounts at TD because that account wasn't properly coded as Apex-eligible. They refunded my $75 but now I'm really glad I didn't wait to close my accounts. Saved myself $225 by closing them before they dropped Apex. Nice!
by Alskar
Mon Jan 15, 2018 6:42 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: Nostalgic about old online brokerages that no longer exist
Replies: 43
Views: 8131

Re: Nostalgic about old online brokerages that no longer exist

Here's the path I took: Bidwell >> Ameritrade >> TD Ameritrade. All of these were through acquisitions.

I recently closed my TD Ameritrade account and consolidated my holdings at Fidelity.
by Alskar
Mon Jan 15, 2018 6:20 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: Best 401k Employer Match Structure
Replies: 132
Views: 18232

Re: Best 401k Employer Match Structure

I've worked for about a dozen companies in the past 32 years that I've worked as an electrical design engineer. I've made a bit of a study of 401k matching. Many of the startups I've worked for offer zero match. The highest match I've ever received was 8%. My current employer is a Fortune 500 company that has what I think is nearly an ideal matching program. They have both a discretionary and non-discretionary matches. The discretionary match is 50% of the first 6% of employee contribution. The non-discretionary match depends on company performance but it has been 5% of total compensation regardless of employee contribution for the three years I've been working for my current employer. Don't get confused by the terms "discretionary&quo...
by Alskar
Thu Jan 11, 2018 7:30 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: Fellow TDA bogleheads [TDA dropping Vanguard ETFs from commission-free list]
Replies: 566
Views: 86631

Re: Fellow TDA bogleheads [TDA dropping Vanguard ETFs from commission-free list]

I don't see how I can make this any more obvious. The information is not presented; it has to be calculated by you. You paid a 1.3% higher price than what was shown to you. Like you, I do not see how I can make this any clearer, but I will try. Both Fidelity and TD Ameritrade publish the reinvestment price per share. Dividing the amount of the dividend in dollars by price per share yields the number of shares. I agree that a calculation is needed to determine the number of shares one gets by reinvesting, but the price per share and the amount of the dividend are supplied by Fidelity or TD Ameritrade. My spreadsheet compares the price paid per share of various ETF's (VTI, ITOT, VCIT, etc) in both the Fidelity and TD Ameritrade dividend rein...
by Alskar
Fri Jan 05, 2018 4:54 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: Fellow TDA bogleheads [TDA dropping Vanguard ETFs from commission-free list]
Replies: 566
Views: 86631

Re: Fellow TDA bogleheads [TDA dropping Vanguard ETFs from commission-free list]

My point was that the reported reinvestment price per share is not correct if you do the math yourself. I disagree. Both companies report the dividend received, the number of shares purchased and the reinvestment price on a per share basis. I have no idea where your example came from as I have never seen that information presented as you describe. My spreadsheet compares the reinvestment price per share as reported by both companies. The amount of the dividend is immaterial to this and no calculation is required. I know this because some of the dividends were quite large and other's where quite small but the reinvestment price was the same for both. Both Fidelity and TD Ameritrade use the average of the price they paid for the reinvested d...
by Alskar
Fri Jan 05, 2018 3:08 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: Fellow TDA bogleheads [TDA dropping Vanguard ETFs from commission-free list]
Replies: 566
Views: 86631

Re: Fellow TDA bogleheads [TDA dropping Vanguard ETFs from commission-free list]

livesoft wrote: Thu Jan 04, 2018 7:51 pmSo when you collect data, please do the math and do not simply restate the price in your statement(s). I think the previous discussion of prices used for re-investment in the link I gave may suffer from the same kind of error.
I used the reinvestment price per share that both Fidelity and TD Ameritrade provide on their online transaction history pages.

I will spend some time to figure out how to post an Excel spreadsheet that shows the reinvestment prices for TD and Fidelity.
by Alskar
Thu Jan 04, 2018 7:19 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: Fellow TDA bogleheads [TDA dropping Vanguard ETFs from commission-free list]
Replies: 566
Views: 86631

Re: Fellow TDA bogleheads [TDA dropping Vanguard ETFs from commission-free list]

After TD "enhanced" their commission-free ETF program, I decided to move all of the assets I had at TD to Fidelity. I did this because of concerns about the liquidity of the ETF's on the new list which are tiny compared to the Vanguard funds, a long history of customer service issues at TD and the fact that the reinvestment price I was getting through TD's DRIP was significantly higher than at Fidelity. This last issue seems to never come up in the discussion of TD. If there is interest, I will format the comparison I did of reinvestment price of VTI, VXUS, BND, ITOT, IXUS and AGG at both Fidelity and TD so I can post it to the forum. I shared this data with TD but I never really got a reasonable explanation for the difference in ...
by Alskar
Thu Jan 04, 2018 7:00 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: Why Edward Jones?
Replies: 92
Views: 23569

Re: Why Edward Jones?

One of my best and closest friends has all of his retirement money at Edward Jones. He lives in a small town on the Oregon coast and likes the fact that he can have face-to-face conversations with his "advisor" as needed. I've tried a couple of time to open his eyes to the fees that he's being charged, but he doesn't seem to want to know or care.

From what he has shared with me, I would say Edward Jones is definitely below average in terms of advice. My friend is in a variety of front-loaded funds with high ER's. In my personal hierarchy, I put Edward Jones just barely above Ameriprise in terms of overall value for the money. The fees my friend is being charged are obscene. He'd be way better off with a robo-advisor.
by Alskar
Thu Jun 08, 2017 11:22 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: E*Trade Account Closure fees
Replies: 17
Views: 7556

Re: E*Trade Account Closure fees

But probably every brokerage charges a similar outgoing account transfer fee. I was thinking of consolidating my various accounts at Ally, but the transfer costs were prohibitive. I can say from personal experience that Ameriprise charges a closure fee of $100 per account. My father's assets were at Ameriprise. For legal reasons I had to open three accounts at Ameriprise to receive my third of my father's estate. There was a brokerage account, an IRA account and a Roth IRA account. As soon as the assets were put into my newly opened accounts at Ameriprise, I transferred them out and close the Ameriprise accounts. Total cost was $300 ($100 per account). The accounts were open for less than two months. Ameriprise knew they had me as it was n...
by Alskar
Thu Jun 08, 2017 11:12 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: Why You Still Can’t Trust Your Financial Adviser
Replies: 54
Views: 9222

Re: Why You Still Can’t Trust Your Financial Adviser

David Jay wrote:As has been said many times on BH: "When you know enough to choose a good FA, you no longer need one."
I been on the BH forum for years and have never read that before, but I like it. +1
by Alskar
Wed May 17, 2017 12:15 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Funny Letter [Canceling Escrow Account]
Replies: 39
Views: 8257

Re: Funny Letter [Canceling Escrow Account]

midareff wrote:FWIW, self escrow is wonderful. Especially when it's in an Ally 1.05% savings account.
I use my Reward Checking account that currently pays 1.75%APY on balances up to $25K to save for my enormous Oregon property tax payment. There are hoops to jump through to get this rate, but I've qualified for the highest interest rate every month for over 5 years now.

Oregon requires interest payments on escrow accounts that are on homes valued at less than $100K (I think there are at least two of them in the state at the moment) and are held by mortgage companies headquartered in Oregon. This means that in real life there is no interest paid on escrow accounts in Oregon.
by Alskar
Wed Apr 26, 2017 7:43 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: Retreat to cash
Replies: 375
Views: 90817

Re: Retreat to cash

This is why I have given up trying to predict the market. The dumb money ceases to be dumb once it realises it knows nothing! I too have been humbled enough by trying to predict the market, that I've given up trying. I'm reminded of a bumper sticker that was popular a few years back: Get In. Sit Down. Shut Up and Hang On! I have no idea if the future holds a great bull market or the end of times. I do know that I've been through a few market corrections in my life and each time the best thing to do turned out to be nothing. So I'll be doing that again this time. I'm comfortable with my asset allocation. Time will tell whether that comfort was misplaced. It appears that at least for now, that "do nothing" was once again a great st...
by Alskar
Mon Apr 24, 2017 8:13 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Do you have an umbrella policy?
Replies: 295
Views: 49126

Re: Do you have an umbrella policy?

JoMoney wrote:Outside of bankruptcy, it's up to state, most states do... some are more clear and absolute regarding it, here's a state by state rundown citing relevent statute in each state:
http://moranknobel.com/news/State_Laws_ ... g_IRAs.pdf
Thanks for the information. It's interesting (to me anyway) that Nevada exempts traditonal IRA's but not Roth IRA's from bankruptcy proceedings.

In any case, it appears that once again White Coat Investor was absolutely correct.
by Alskar
Wed Apr 19, 2017 6:51 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Do you have an umbrella policy?
Replies: 295
Views: 49126

Re: Do you have an umbrella policy?

White Coat Investor wrote:The good news is that if you're a good little boglehead and have been maxing out your retirement accounts, then even if you are successfully sued for $500 Million, in most states you get to at least keep your retirement accounts!
I think that's only true for 401k or 403b accounts, not for rollover IRA's. This is one of the reasons people cite for keeping your money in a 401k instead of rolling it over.

If I'm wrong, I'm sure about a dozen people will correct me. :D
by Alskar
Wed Mar 01, 2017 6:39 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: Fidelity drops equity trade fee to $4.95
Replies: 69
Views: 10141

Re: Fidelity drops equity trade fee to $4.95

jrbdmb wrote:I keep hoping that TD Ameritrade will offer a similar deal since I already do most of my banking at TD, but so far no such luck.
TD Ameritrade lowered the commission on equity trades to $6.95 yesterday. It seems like a price war is underway!
by Alskar
Wed Feb 15, 2017 7:25 pm
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: 7 Year PenFed CD's @3.75% APR Maturing. Now what?
Replies: 5
Views: 1050

7 Year PenFed CD's @3.75% APR Maturing. Now what?

Starting about this time of year back in 2010, PenFed was offering 7 year CD's at 3.75% APR. Later than year, they lowered it to 3.49% APR. I believe a bunch of us bought these CD's as they were very competitive for that time.

These CD's are now beginning to mature. Mine mature Oct 1, 2017. Mine are in an IRA Certificate.

What are other Bogelhead's doing or planning to do when these mature? Buy a new CD at PenFed? Roll over the money into a CD at a different institution? Brokered CD? Bonds? Bond Fund? Mattress?

I have a few months to decide, but I thought I'd tap the collective wisdom on this forum.
by Alskar
Mon Feb 13, 2017 7:57 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: Retreat to cash
Replies: 375
Views: 90817

Re: Retreat to cash

minimalistmarc wrote:This is why I have given up trying to predict the market. The dumb money ceases to be dumb once it realises it knows nothing!
I too have been humbled enough by trying to predict the market, that I've given up trying. I'm reminded of a bumper sticker that was popular a few years back: Get In. Sit Down. Shut Up and Hang On!

I have no idea if the future holds a great bull market or the end of times. I do know that I've been through a few market corrections in my life and each time the best thing to do turned out to be nothing. So I'll be doing that again this time. I'm comfortable with my asset allocation. Time will tell whether that comfort was misplaced.
by Alskar
Mon Feb 13, 2017 7:48 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: Vanguard Reaches $4 Trillion for First Time
Replies: 25
Views: 5703

Re: "Vanguard Hits $4 Trillion Milestone" Not a word about Bogle.

BrandonBogle wrote:
Uncle Pennybags wrote:Oh wow. I have Voyager status and called a few times in November. I think there was maybe a five minute wait. Whatever the wait was, it was short enough that it didn't even register that I was waiting for long.
In my experience, the issue with poor customer service at Vanguard had nothing to do with long wait times to get help from a CSR and everything to do with incompetent CSR's. No two CSR's would give me the same answer to the same question, for example. Additionally, the website was littered with bugs and inconsistencies. I hold my all-Vanguard ETF portfolio at TD Ameritrade and Fidelity so don't jump to the conclusion that I am against Vanguard; I am not.
by Alskar
Sun Feb 12, 2017 12:57 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Job Question - Stay or Go
Replies: 17
Views: 2620

Re: Job Question - Stay or Go

black_knight_32 wrote:Our annual expenses are around $30,000 a year and we currently have $1M in investment assets (this includes funds in the ESOP).
I agree with what other's have said; If I where you, I'd find out what my skills are worth on the open market. I'd also add that if a significant amount of your $1M in assets are in the ESOP, then you need to diversify. Just ask anybody who was at Enron when it imploded. Having a bunch of money in your employer's stock is a terrible idea.
by Alskar
Wed Feb 08, 2017 9:02 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Sibling-Owned 529 Plan
Replies: 7
Views: 1459

Re: Sibling-Owned 529 Plan

Thanks everybody! It does appear that my father received incorrect financial advise. I will discuss what to do about this with my sister.
by Alskar
Wed Feb 08, 2017 1:28 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Sibling-Owned 529 Plan
Replies: 7
Views: 1459

Re: Sibling-Owned 529 Plan

mhalley wrote:Is their any reason the child's mother can't be the account owner? That might eliminate any problems if there is no concern over misuse of the funds.
At the time of my mother's death in 2010, my father's financial advisor indicated that if the 529 plan was owned by the parent of the child attending college (my sister) it would be included as part of the "family assets" on the FAFSA form. If it was owned by somebody other than one of the parents it would not be considered a "family asset". For that reason, they made me the owner. Have the rules changed or was that advice in error?

I don't think there are any concerns about the funds being misused.
by Alskar
Tue Feb 07, 2017 9:09 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Sibling-Owned 529 Plan
Replies: 7
Views: 1459

Sibling-Owned 529 Plan

I'm starting a new thread instead of hijacking a similar one about Grandparent-owned 529 plans: https://www.bogleheads.org/forum/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=210353 Without my knowledge, my parents made me the successor owner on three 529 plans they opened for each of my sister's three children; their grandkids. They expected that my mother would outlive my father (who was older and male) so they made my mother the original owner of the 529 plans. I am single with no kids. SURPRISE, my mother passed away first and SURPRISE I became the owner of these three 529 plans. My father continued to make monthly contributions to the plans (Utah Education Saving Plan or UESP) until his death. I never contributed to the plans at all. My parents lived in Col...
by Alskar
Fri Jan 20, 2017 6:58 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: ER's Now Itemized in 401k
Replies: 2
Views: 842

Re: ER's Now Itemized in 401k

Morik wrote:The only thing like that in my 401k is that 4 times a year all of my funds are charged for a total of $5.25 going towards the $21/year administration/recordkeeping fee of the 401k.
No, there is a $13.50 charge every quarter for administration and record keeping. That charge is consistent and well documented in the fee disclosure. These other little charges appear in clusters at random intervals. They just started showing up in mid-July of 2016.
by Alskar
Fri Jan 20, 2017 12:04 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: ER's Now Itemized in 401k
Replies: 2
Views: 842

ER's Now Itemized in 401k

Beginning in mid-July of 2016 the 401k in which I am a participant starting charging me small sums ranging from $0.01 to ~$1.50 at seemingly random intervals. The links to the transaction details were broken until yesterday. The transaction details that I can now see have the names of funds that I own in the 401k plan. These charges show up on my statements as "Miscellaneous Payment". I called the plan record-keeper (Empower, formerly JP Morgan) to get an explanation. The CSR wasn't particularly knowledgeable, but she seemed to be saying that the fund expenses (ER's) are now being charged directly to the participants in the form of itemized charges rather than being removed from the fund prior to reporting performance and thereby ...
by Alskar
Thu Jul 14, 2016 12:46 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Inherited IRA and RMD
Replies: 10
Views: 2563

Re: Inherited IRA and RMD

I went through this about a year ago. You may want to search for the thread about that experience as it contains some useful information. In my case, my father's assets were held in a trust. The type of trust is apparently very important (see the thread I mentioned). The trust was split into three accounts (one for me and one for each of my two siblings). After much fuss, the estate attorney determined that the RMD amount should be based on the age of the oldest designated inheritor which in my case is my older brother. I am now taking RMD's based on my older brother's age. All of this seems unnecessarily complicated. I wish you luck! EDIT: Here's a link to the thread: https://www.bogleheads.org/forum/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=170896&p=26...
by Alskar
Tue Jul 12, 2016 6:08 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: [Fidelity drops AmEx, Bank of America credit cards]
Replies: 289
Views: 64819

Re: [Fidelity drops AmEx, Bank of America credit cards]

I just received the final statement for my Fidelity AMEX (2%) FIA CC. The statement says "Auto Pay Active" on it. Based on that I would expect FIA to withdrawal the final payment to them from my checking account automatically. However, that is incorrect. I called FIA and was told that there would be no more automatic payments after July 22, 2016.

To avoid getting dinged with a past-due charge, remember to make the last payment to FIA manually before the due date.
by Alskar
Mon Sep 28, 2015 3:01 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Fidelity 2% Amex: Security Annoyances
Replies: 92
Views: 13866

Re: Fidelity 2% Amex: Security Annoyances

I've got the FIA Visa and it gets shut down about every 60 days for some bogus security issue or another. And I've had a new card every 4-5 months or so the last two years, which is a pain because I have a lot of auto-pay accounts linked to it. +1. My Fido AMEX got shutoff while I was in Denver to be at my father's dead bed. The plane ticket and car rental in Denver were charged to my Fido AMEX so they should have been able to figure out I was in Denver, but despite this they shutoff my card causing the hotel to freak out. Luckily I had my Quicksilver card with me. That's about the 5th time I've had to use my backup card because my Fido AMEX was shut off. On Saturday I got yet another notice saying my card "may have been compromised&q...
by Alskar
Tue Sep 22, 2015 7:11 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Inherited IRA - Push vs Pull
Replies: 35
Views: 4012

Re: Inherited IRA - Push vs Pull

Thank you very much Alan S. !!
by Alskar
Mon Sep 21, 2015 7:20 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Inherited IRA - Push vs Pull
Replies: 35
Views: 4012

Re: Inherited IRA - Push vs Pull

The question to ask Ameriprise since one of the qualified trust requirements is that the trust information or a copy thereof be provided to the IRA custodian by 10/31 of the year following the year of death is whether they consider the trust to be qualified for "look through treatment". That means that the RMD rules look beyond the non individual beneficiary to the individual trust beneficiaries and the RMD is based on the oldest such beneficiary. I went back through the hundreds of emails I've received from my brother (the trustee) and the attorney that manages the trust. Here's what she said "The trust has provisions for the “see – through” status, meaning that the trust is intended to qualify as a Designated Beneficiary.&...
by Alskar
Sun Sep 20, 2015 12:29 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Inherited IRA - Push vs Pull
Replies: 35
Views: 4012

Re: Inherited IRA - Push vs Pull

The question to ask Ameriprise since one of the qualified trust requirements is that the trust information or a copy thereof be provided to the IRA custodian by 10/31 of the year following the year of death is whether they consider the trust to be qualified for "look through treatment". That means that the RMD rules look beyond the non individual beneficiary to the individual trust beneficiaries and the RMD is based on the oldest such beneficiary. I had to supply the trust documentation to TD Ameritrade to open the beneficiary IRA accounts They assure me the RMD's will be based on my age not my father's age or my older brother's age. With respect to the 5 year rule, this is totally different than the Roth IRA 5 year holding perio...
by Alskar
Wed Sep 16, 2015 6:57 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Inherited IRA - Push vs Pull
Replies: 35
Views: 4012

Re: Inherited IRA - Push vs Pull

When you refer to "parts of the trust being qualified", it appears you may be referring to the accounts for which the trust is beneficiary. If so, note that a "qualified trust" refers to the trust provisions meeting all 4 requirements on p 12 of IRS Pub 590 B. Does Ameriprise agree that this trust meets those requirements? 1) If so, the RMDs will be based on the oldest trust beneficiary. This applies to all the beneficiaries of the trust that apparently now have their own individual inherited IRAs (TIRA and Roth). 2) If not, then the RMDs are based on the decedent's remaining life expectancy if decedent passed on or after the RBD. If they passed prior to the RBD, then the 5 year rule applies for RMDs. Either way, the tr...
by Alskar
Wed Sep 16, 2015 6:41 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: How long should a transfer from one HSA administrator to another take?
Replies: 4
Views: 1139

Re: How long should a transfer from one HSA administrator to another take?

gasdoc wrote:Does anyone know if this 4-6 week timeframe is reasonable? Is there anything I can do to speed up the process?
When I closed my HSA account at HSA Bank it took just over 5 weeks to get the money transferred. IMHO this is not reasonable, but it appears to be typical.

In my view, HSA Bank deliberately drug out the process so they could hit me with another month's maintenance fee. They also hit me with a $50 account closing fee. For these reasons, HSA Bank is now on my list of banks with which I will never do business again. To be fair, this isn't exactly an exclusive list.
by Alskar
Tue Sep 15, 2015 8:03 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Inherited IRA - Push vs Pull
Replies: 35
Views: 4012

Re: Inherited IRA - Push vs Pull

Brokerage says: 1. "I've worked here 40 years and never seen a "Push IRA", only "Pull IRAs". Why not let us do the transfer paperwork? It will only take 5 minutes[/b] I'm going through much of the same thing right now. My situation is slightly different than yours in that my father's trust (at Ameriprise) is being split 6 different ways, but here is the process as I understand it. 1. Trust is retitled (registered) in the trustee's name (My father died and my brother is the trustee) You mean the IRA is re titled, not the trust. The trust (either name of trust or the name of trustee as trustee of the trust) is named as beneficiary of the IRA. At this point it is critical to determine if the trust is qualified for loo...
by Alskar
Mon Aug 03, 2015 7:36 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Inherited IRA - Push vs Pull
Replies: 35
Views: 4012

Re: Inherited IRA - Push vs Pull

Brokerage says: 1. "I've worked here 40 years and never seen a "Push IRA", only "Pull IRAs". Why not let us do the transfer paperwork? It will only take 5 minutes[/b] I'm going through much of the same thing right now. My situation is slightly different than yours in that my father's trust (at Ameriprise) is being split 6 different ways, but here is the process as I understand it. 1. Trust is retitled (registered) in the trustee's name (My father died and my brother is the trustee) 2. Each recipient opens 3 new accounts in his or her name at Ameriprise (non-qualified, Roth IRA and Traditional IRA). 3. Ameriprise splits the assets per the trust document into a bunch of different accounts, each properly titled and re...
by Alskar
Mon Jul 13, 2015 8:33 pm
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Desktop wifi connection + keyboard
Replies: 9
Views: 1249

Re: Desktop wifi connection + keyboard

communipaw wrote:Keyboard: in the 90s [?] keyboards had a firm touch and a sharp click. Can anyone recommend such a keyboard today, best if it has some sort of illumination. Thank you
Since I spend about 6+ hours a day on my keyboard, its touch is extremely important to me. I love my SIIG "Premium USB Keyboard with Hub" model number JK-US0412-S1. Worth every penny. It's wired instead of wireless...just the way I like it!

EDIT: I use a USB LED light plugged into the built-in USB hub for illumination.

Also, my desktop machine is wired directly to my firewall router with 1G Ethernet. Beats wireless all day, everyday.
by Alskar
Mon Jul 06, 2015 12:56 pm
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Vanguard's Security image going away?
Replies: 82
Views: 18222

Re: Vanguard's Security image going away?

celia wrote:What do you think about Vanguard discontinuing the security image?
I think it is long overdue. Security images come under the general rubric of "security theater" (the appearance of adding security without actually adding security) in my view. I think website that use security images and pass phrases are amateurish and backward. By eschewing this nonsense, Vanguard has come up in the world in my view.
by Alskar
Sun Jul 05, 2015 1:36 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Obsessing towards zero balance on credit card.
Replies: 158
Views: 25300

Re: Obsessing towards zero balance on credit card.

Seriously. Automate your financial life. I pay bills early just like you do all the time for the same reasons, but not bills I can set up to autopay every month automatically and forget about. I would add that this is one of the places a reward checking account can help. I'm earning 1.75% on the first $25K in my checking account. That's more than I can earn in any saving account. It gives me a penalty-free buffer for very large CC purchases. It is not unusual for me to run up $10K-$15K in reimbursable travel expenses (airfare, hotels, meals, taxi's, etc) when I travel internationally for several weeks for work. The consequences of missing a payment because I am out of town or overwhelmed are too high so I automate the payments and keep a h...
by Alskar
Thu Jul 02, 2015 1:40 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Obsessing towards zero balance on credit card.
Replies: 158
Views: 25300

Re: Obsessing towards zero balance on credit card.

packet wrote:So here're my questions for those of you who pay in full each month:
How often do you check and pay your credit card(s) in full each month?
What's your method?
All of my credit cards are setup to pay the entire balance automatically once per month on the due date via an ACH withdrawal from my reward checking account. This maximizes the average balance in my reward checking account which maximizes the interest I earn on funds held in this account. I do not obsess about having a zero balance, but I do seem a bit obsessive about checking my reward checking account to make certain I meet the requirements to get the 1.75% APY interest each month.
by Alskar
Fri May 01, 2015 6:24 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: 401k Record Keeping Fee
Replies: 87
Views: 18504

Re: 401k Record Keeping Fee

You're suggesting that it's okay to spend $500 for floormats for a $50K car because $500 is a small percentage of $50K No I'm not. I'm suggesting that If your 401k total expenses are less than 30 bps you are doing far better than 80%-90% of America and you shouldn't be complaining. You could certainly quit your job and rollover to an IRA and have no extra expenses, would you prefer that? I assume you'd rather have your job, but I could be wrong. Bottom line is employers have expenses. You have compensation. You can move to a different employer or become self-employed if you don't like your 401k plan. The odds of modifying your existing plan, especially if you are in a large company, seems doubtful. So just because my plan is better than av...
by Alskar
Fri May 01, 2015 4:46 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: 401k Record Keeping Fee
Replies: 87
Views: 18504

Re: 401k Record Keeping Fee

Your total cost is what matters. What is your total cost as a % of your invested assets? That certainly is the opinion of 401k advisers, TPA's, and car sales people, but I complete disagree. You're suggesting that it's okay to spend $500 for floormats for a $50K car because $500 is a small percentage of $50K. Behavioral Finance folks call that "Mental Accounting". Just because the $65 is a small percentage of my account balance doesn't make the $65 less valuable. Here's the classic question: Would you drive 20 miles to save $20 on $100 worth of groceries? Many would say "yes". If you then ask "Would you drive 20 miles to save $20 on the purchase of a $20,000 motorcycle. Many would say "no". The distance (...
by Alskar
Mon Apr 27, 2015 1:24 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: 401k Record Keeping Fee
Replies: 87
Views: 18504

Re: 401k Record Keeping Fee

tj wrote:That sounds like a bargain to me. Mine is 75bps. If my account value is $30k, I pay $225/year in garbage costs vs if it were in an IRA. The tax deduction is worth it.
I suspect you're conflating or commingling record keeping expenses with other administrative, custodial and/or investment expenses. As I have repeatedly written, the $65/year is just for RK. There are other charges for administration and investment expenses.
by Alskar
Sat Apr 25, 2015 1:51 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: 401k Record Keeping Fee
Replies: 87
Views: 18504

401k Record Keeping Fee

I missed some important data in The 401k Averages Book, 12th Edition . As I was getting ready to return the book I glanced at the index and noticed they list the larger plans in the middle of the book not at the end. Odd... In any case, for plans with 2000 participants and $100M in assets ($50K average balance) the record keeping (RK) fee ranges from $0 to $54 per year with an average of $4 per year. Recall that I'm paying $65/year for a plan with ~$1.3B and 6000 participants. Doing the math, that means I'm paying 16x more for RK in a plan that is 13x larger. I hope this data helps some Bogleheads negotiate for lower RK fees. In any case, I am convinced that $65/year for RK is outrageous. The book is going back to the library on Monday!
by Alskar
Thu Apr 16, 2015 9:39 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: 401k Record Keeping Fee
Replies: 87
Views: 18504

Re: 401k Record Keeping Fee

Alskar, Can you confirm your numbers? Based on what you've provided, the average account balance is $216k. That's almost 2.5 times the national average. Certainly possible, but not normal. Also, is there something specific to your plan such as company stock as an investment, or self-directed brokerage accounts? 5 Last, you may have already answered this but I can't remember all of the info in this thread, do you know if the charge includes nondiscrimination testing? Those numbers are correct. I'm working for a very old company with many long-term employees. Those numbers came straight out of the Summary Annual Report and are confirmed by the Form 5500 on Brightscope. Many of the 6000 participants in the plan are already retired, which I be...