Search found 1205 matches

by Dead Man Walking
Tue Jan 09, 2024 12:28 am
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Advice caring for new black car?
Replies: 76
Views: 9498

Re: Advice caring for new black car?

All ours look more like below:

Image
[/quote]

I’m old and handicapped and have run my dark blue, maroon, and black cars through a car wash similar to the one above. Once a month, I spend $18 for the complete wash, polish, Rain X, spot free rinse treatment with air dry. My wife has a metallic black Toyota that looks great after it’s had the $18 treatment. In my younger days I was fanatical about my cars.

DMW
by Dead Man Walking
Mon Jan 08, 2024 11:58 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Where do you bank and why? 2024 Edition
Replies: 113
Views: 14688

Re: Where do you bank and why? 2024 Edition

In 1978 we opened accounts at a local savings and loan because they had the best mortgage rate and offered no fee checking accounts. Five acquisitions later we now have Chase accounts. We have checking, savings, and brokerage accounts at Chase. The website is functional, comprehensive, and easy to use. Bill paying and transferring money is flawless. I can easily and nearly instantaneously transfer funds from my checking account to my JP Morgan self-directed brokerage account and buy Vanguard treasury money market fund, ETFs, and mutual funds. I’m currently buying Fidelity total market fund (FSKAX) because of its 0.015% expense ratio. The customer service representatives at JP Morgan brokerage are knowledgeable and cooperative. Furthermore, ...
by Dead Man Walking
Thu Dec 21, 2023 11:21 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: The Illusion of the Small Cap premium
Replies: 121
Views: 17181

Re: The Illusion of the Small Cap premium

Beensabu wrote: Thu Dec 21, 2023 11:10 pm
Dead Man Walking wrote: Thu Dec 21, 2023 10:17 pm
Nathan Drake wrote: Tue Dec 19, 2023 2:02 pm
I also hold MCW funds but have over 60% of my portfolio in Value.
What exactly are MCW funds? Could you give an example. MCW is not listed in the wiki.
Market Cap Weighted

Ex. Total Stock Market Index Fund
Thanks. That was my guess, but I wanted to verify.
by Dead Man Walking
Thu Dec 21, 2023 10:17 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: The Illusion of the Small Cap premium
Replies: 121
Views: 17181

Re: The Illusion of the Small Cap premium

Nathan Drake wrote: Tue Dec 19, 2023 2:02 pm
I also hold MCW funds but have over 60% of my portfolio in Value.
What exactly are MCW funds? Could you give an example. MCW is not listed in the wiki.

DMW
by Dead Man Walking
Sat Dec 16, 2023 8:54 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Anyone Bored in Retirement ??
Replies: 131
Views: 30089

Re: Anyone Bored in Retirement ??

I was bored when I was working. I’ve been retired for 23 years and often determine what I’m going to do after drinking my coffee and reading the newspaper online. That may be too spontaneous for some folks.

DMW
by Dead Man Walking
Wed Nov 22, 2023 4:26 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: Tip for those with Spectrum internet and Security Suite
Replies: 6
Views: 1399

Tip for those with Spectrum internet and Security Suite

In another thread I complained about being unable to trade bonds on Vanguard’s website. The problem was not Vanguard’s bond trading platform. I have Spectrum internet with their Security Suite. Security Suite recently added banking protection to its internet security software. If you have the Security Suite provided by Spectrum, you may have noticed the green tab at the top of your screen when you log into a banking website. If the tab is pulled down, a notice informs you that some websites and applications are blocked as an extra layer of protection. You are given the option to end the extra layer of protection. The extra layer of protection must be disabled in order to use Vanguard’s bond trading platform. Once it has been disabled, the b...
by Dead Man Walking
Wed Nov 22, 2023 7:37 am
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: Problem buying Treasuries on Vanguard website
Replies: 19
Views: 3234

Re: Problem buying Treasuries on Vanguard website

The problem was not with Vanguard’s bond trading platform. Spectrum is my internet provider. They recently added banking protection to their Security Suite. Some websites and applications are blocked as an extra layer of protection. Vanguard’s bond trading platform is one of the applications that is blocked. The problem is easily resolved by ending the banking protection when you want to trade bonds. The Vanguard customer service representative to whom I spoke today told me about the issue with Spectrum and told me how to resolve the problem. Kudos to her for being aware of the issue with Spectrum and sticking with me as I executed my transaction. I apologize for complaining about Vanguard!

DMW
by Dead Man Walking
Fri Nov 17, 2023 10:13 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: Problem buying Treasuries on Vanguard website
Replies: 19
Views: 3234

Re: Problem buying Treasuries on Vanguard website

Same problem, different day! Vanguard needs to get this fixed!

DMW
by Dead Man Walking
Wed Nov 15, 2023 12:27 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: Problem buying Treasuries on Vanguard website
Replies: 19
Views: 3234

Re: Problem buying Treasuries on Vanguard website

You may want to bypass all this and buy directly from the source: https://treasurydirect.gov . I've found the site pretty good to use, gives you a clear layout of all the upcoming issuance, and money is in your bank account the day the Treasury says it will be there. I have tried using the treasury direct website and found it cumbersome. When it’s functioning, the Vanguard website has been easy to use. When a bill matures, the money is available to purchase bonds, CDs, mutual funds, ETFs, or stocks the next day. I like having that flexibility. Of course, I can call Vanguard if the website is not working. I actually got through to a customer service representative immediately after completing the menu questions. My voice is my password at V...
by Dead Man Walking
Wed Nov 15, 2023 12:00 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: Problem buying Treasuries on Vanguard website
Replies: 19
Views: 3234

Re: Problem buying Treasuries on Vanguard website

I tried again at 8:15 AM and received the same message; consequently, I called Vanguard and the representative told me to try another browser. I had used Chrome initially; however, I tried using Edge per his suggestion and received the same message. Fortunately, the representative was able to place my order for me. He told me that Vanguard had had problems with this trading platform sporadically. He is going to report the problem to the technical team. He said that the problem seems to affect Safari regularly. I’m planning to execute another purchase next week. Hopefully, Vanguard will have resolved this problem by then. DMW Is this a buy order on the secondary market or at auction? I was buying at auction, but access to the online trading...
by Dead Man Walking
Wed Nov 15, 2023 8:30 am
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: Problem buying Treasuries on Vanguard website
Replies: 19
Views: 3234

Re: Problem buying Treasuries on Vanguard website

I tried again at 8:15 AM and received the same message; consequently, I called Vanguard and the representative told me to try another browser. I had used Chrome initially; however, I tried using Edge per his suggestion and received the same message. Fortunately, the representative was able to place my order for me. He told me that Vanguard had had problems with this trading platform sporadically. He is going to report the problem to the technical team. He said that the problem seems to affect Safari regularly. I’m planning to execute another purchase next week. Hopefully, Vanguard will have resolved this problem by then.

DMW
by Dead Man Walking
Tue Nov 14, 2023 11:09 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: Problem buying Treasuries on Vanguard website
Replies: 19
Views: 3234

Problem buying Treasuries on Vanguard website

I tried buying Treasuries at the Vanguard website on 11/14/23 and received the following message: www.tradewebretail.com sent an invalid response. I’ve never experienced a problem buying Treasuries before. I was able to sell a mutual fund. Anyone have the same problem buying bonds or CDs?

DMW
by Dead Man Walking
Tue Oct 17, 2023 11:38 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Chase Private Client - "free" personal advisory service offer for six months
Replies: 20
Views: 3091

Re: Chase Private Client - "free" personal advisory service offer for six months

I receive Private Client offers periodically. I believe that their advisors use JP Morgan ETFs and mutual funds for these accounts. Of course, you pay a fee for their help. I suggest that you open a JP Morgan Self-directed brokerage account and follow advice given here. You can trade all ETFs and most of the mutual funds offered by Vanguard, Fidelity, Schwab, and many other companies for free. Exchanging funds from your other Chase accounts is seamless and almost instantaneous. The telephone customer service representatives are knowledgeable and very helpful. Many functions can be handled with their secure private message system. The representatives will actually walk you through sending the necessary documents via the private message syste...
by Dead Man Walking
Sun Oct 01, 2023 7:14 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Sweep Fund at JP Morgan Self Directed?
Replies: 1
Views: 618

Re: Sweep Fund at JP Morgan Self Directed?

I think self-directed accounts only have one option: the .01% sweep account. A full service account has other options such as the JP Morgan treasury money market fund. I may be wrong since I have not asked recently.

DMW
by Dead Man Walking
Wed Sep 20, 2023 8:33 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Debit card fraud
Replies: 27
Views: 3486

Debit card fraud

Someone used my wife’s debit card to purchase services from cNord and Adobe Inc. Since we receive daily notifications about the activity on our Chase account, we noticed the fraudulent charges the day after they were processed. We called Chase immediately to report the fraud and were assured that they would restore the money to our account and that they would investigate. Chase investigators promptly contacted cNord and Adobe. cNord reimbursed our account immediately. I don’t know if Adobe ever reimbursed Chase. (I question the integrity of Adobe Inc. and will be reluctant to business with them.) However, Chase determined that the charges were incorrect and closed the case. My wife’s debit card was still attached to the form that she receiv...
by Dead Man Walking
Sun Sep 17, 2023 12:04 am
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Chase Sapphire or Private Client Banking?
Replies: 24
Views: 6060

Re: Chase Sapphire or Private Client Banking?

We have a Chase Premier checking account with a linked savings account and a linked self-directed JP Morgan brokerage account. All are joint tenants in common with rights of survivorship. The bank accounts have payable on death provisions. The brokerage account has a transfer on death provision. Transfer on death provisions are not available with joint brokerage accounts at Vanguard. I’ve never seen any increased value for having a Sapphire or Private Client account. Maintaining a $15,000 balance in the linked accounts seems to provide the same benefits. The discount that we received on our 10x10x24 safe deposit box was eliminated.

DMW
by Dead Man Walking
Tue Sep 05, 2023 11:31 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Finding out your Power of Attorney is useless
Replies: 272
Views: 40894

Re: Finding out your Power of Attorney is useless

The Ohio State Bar Association website explains Financial Powers of Attorney and summarizes Ohio’s Uniform Power of Attorney Act which became effective 3/22/2012. An Ohio Power of Attorney is durable unless it expressly states otherwise. Third parties such as financial institutions are NOT required to honor POAs.

DMW
by Dead Man Walking
Thu Aug 31, 2023 10:09 pm
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Are Two Brokerages Preferable to One?
Replies: 66
Views: 7390

Re: Are Two Brokerages Preferable to One?

I have two brokerages, two banks, and two credit cards. I have no difficulty finding the time to manage six accounts and find the security of having more than one of each type of account comforting. I haven’t experienced any problems with my Vanguard accounts; however, I have read the horror stories about those who have experienced problems posted here. Consequently, I prefer the security of having another brokerage account.

DMW
by Dead Man Walking
Sun Aug 20, 2023 5:42 pm
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Finding the market value of Proof Eagle coins
Replies: 8
Views: 1570

Re: Finding the market value of Proof Eagle coins

toddthebod wrote: Sun Aug 20, 2023 11:02 am
Dead Man Walking wrote: Sat Aug 19, 2023 9:36 pm For example, what is the market value of a 1987 half ounce Proof Gold Eagle coin in the original box from the U.S. Mint.
$1,050.
https://www.jmbullion.com/1-2-oz-proof- ... -eagle-vy/
Thanks for the information. On Friday, spot gold was $1887.90 according to Morningstar; therefore, a 1/2 oz. proof gold coin sells to JM Bullion for about an 11% premium. I am not planning to sell the few proof coins that I have. This was an exercise assigned to me by my estate attorney in order to value my assets. Thanks again.

DMW
by Dead Man Walking
Sat Aug 19, 2023 9:36 pm
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Finding the market value of Proof Eagle coins
Replies: 8
Views: 1570

Finding the market value of Proof Eagle coins

In the late 1980’s I purchased both Proof Gold and Proof Silver Eagle coins from the U.S. Mint. I’ve had difficulty finding a website that states the market value of these coins. I’m looking for a site that simply lists the value of the coins. For example, what is the market value of a 1987 half ounce Proof Gold Eagle coin in the original box from the U.S. Mint. The sites that I have found list the price of a coin in their inventory, many are not in the original box with U.S. Mint authentication. I’m looking for a site that lists the market value of the coin much like a fund company can tell me the NAV of a mutual fund. Does such a site exist?

DMW
by Dead Man Walking
Thu Jul 27, 2023 9:39 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: Should I worry about spread for limit orders
Replies: 53
Views: 4356

Re: Should I worry about spread for limit orders

I still do not understand. Why I should be concerned about the spread for limit orders. I disagree that the spread is 1 cent. It can be much more for lightly traded stocks. LOL! "For things that i use ..." :twisted: I would not be buying "lightly traded stocks" myself. The spread on US total market ETFs can very significantly. For example, the spread varied widely in today’s trading: Vanguard VTI bid $225.40 ask $225.57 spread 0.08% volume 4.7 million in heavy trading iShares ITOT bid $99.78 ask $101.93 spread 2.13% volume 756.1 K in below average trading SPDR SPTM bid $54.56 ask $56.70 spread 3.85% volume 415.4K in about average trading Schwab SCAB bid $52.80 ask $53.55 spread 1.41% volume 667.5 in below average tradin...
by Dead Man Walking
Thu Jul 27, 2023 8:27 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: JP Morgan description of fees for mutual funds is confusing
Replies: 18
Views: 2957

Re: JP Morgan charges management fees for mutual funds in self-directed accounts

It is not Vanguard’s website that needs to explain, it is JP Morgan’s website that needs to explain. I will conclude that JP Morgan’s presentation just confuses. This is a fair statement. Vanguard’s prospectus divides the .09% expense ratio into .08% management fees and .01% other fees. JP Morgan lists Vanguard’s .09% total expense ratio and a .08% management fee. I don’t think that it is unreasonable to assume that the listed .08% management fee is an additional expense charged by JP Morgan. I may be too cynical when it comes to banks. I was wrong about JP Morgan - they are a reputable bank offering me a good deal on brokerage fees. DMW I would suggest to edit your thread title or ask a mod to do it since it is false. Is my revision of th...
by Dead Man Walking
Thu Jul 27, 2023 2:03 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: JP Morgan description of fees for mutual funds is confusing
Replies: 18
Views: 2957

Re: JP Morgan charges management fees for mutual funds in self-directed accounts

student wrote: Wed Jul 26, 2023 7:25 am
Geologist wrote: Wed Jul 26, 2023 7:21 am It is not Vanguard’s website that needs to explain, it is JP Morgan’s website that needs to explain. I will conclude that JP Morgan’s presentation just confuses.
This is a fair statement.
Vanguard’s prospectus divides the .09% expense ratio into .08% management fees and .01% other fees. JP Morgan lists Vanguard’s .09% total expense ratio and a .08% management fee. I don’t think that it is unreasonable to assume that the listed .08% management fee is an additional expense charged by JP Morgan. I may be too cynical when it comes to banks. I was wrong about JP Morgan - they are a reputable bank offering me a good deal on brokerage fees.

DMW
by Dead Man Walking
Wed Jul 26, 2023 12:31 am
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: JP Morgan description of fees for mutual funds is confusing
Replies: 18
Views: 2957

Re: JP Morgan charges management fees for mutual funds in self-directed accounts

MA405 wrote: Tue Jul 25, 2023 10:37 pm I think those management fees are already part of ER charged by the issuer.
If this is the case, why isn’t this clearly explained at the Vanguard website?

DMW
by Dead Man Walking
Tue Jul 25, 2023 9:27 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: JP Morgan description of fees for mutual funds is confusing
Replies: 18
Views: 2957

JP Morgan description of fees for mutual funds is confusing

I have a JP Morgan Self-Directed account and use Vanguard and Fidelity mutual funds. I use Vanguard’s treasury money market fund VUSXX as an alternative to a Chase savings account and JPM’s sweep account. I deposited money in VUSXX today and clicked on the link to JPM’s description of the fund to check the 7-day SEC yield. As I scrolled down to check the yield, I noticed that in addition to the .09% ER, there was a .08% management fee. Even with the management fee, the yield is much better than the.01% paid by a Chase savings account. I checked for management fees on several of the 54 money market funds offered by JPM. Vanguard Federal VMFXX has a .10% management fee in addition to the.11% ER. Fidelity treasury money market fund FZFXX has a...
by Dead Man Walking
Mon Jul 03, 2023 7:29 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Do you reconcile your personal accounts?
Replies: 112
Views: 7713

Re: Do you reconcile your personal accounts?

I receive a daily alert for both checking and savings accounts; consequently, I reconcile daily. I receive an alert each time my credit cards are used so I’m aware of all charges; however, I reconcile each monthly statement.
by Dead Man Walking
Tue Jun 20, 2023 1:41 pm
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Chase debit card fraud
Replies: 10
Views: 1362

Re: Chase debit card fraud

lakpr wrote: Tue Jun 20, 2023 2:48 am This is going to be a very unhelpful response I guess; but Chase offers an ATM only card instead of a debit card. We have it / had it on our Chase accounts (churning for bonuses). Since the card can only be used at an ATM and cannot be used for card-not-present transactions, it removes or at least greatly lessens debit card fraud risk.
Quite the contrary, I find this a very useful response. If J P Morgan will accept the ATM card for identification, this will resolve my problem. We have the debit cards so that we could get cash from an ATM if needed. We use credit cards for most purchases. Thanks for your input.

DMW
by Dead Man Walking
Tue Jun 20, 2023 1:16 am
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Chase debit card fraud
Replies: 10
Views: 1362

Chase debit card fraud

We receive an update daily from Chase about activity on our checking and savings accounts. On 6/14/23, we noticed that my wife’s debit card had been used to make recurring purchases from two companies with whom we had never done business. To make matters worse, my wife had never used her debit card. In fact, it was still attached to sheet she received in the mail. I called Chase and reported that she had never used her card and certainly never made a purchase from the companies that appeared on our daily update. Chase was very cooperative and immediately reimbursed our checking account for the purchases. One of the companies actually reimbursed our account on the same day Chase contacted them. I wonder how these scammers used my wife’s acco...
by Dead Man Walking
Thu Jun 01, 2023 5:56 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: Maturing T-Bill wasn’t paid today
Replies: 1
Views: 792

Maturing T-Bill wasn’t paid today

I had a T-Bill mature today - June 1, 2023. In the past the face value of the bill (cost + interest) appeared in my Vanguard settlement account the day it matured. Furthermore, the auction for 3 and 6 month bills was postponed. Vanguard stated that they will make them available when the auction is announced.

DMW
by Dead Man Walking
Thu Jun 01, 2023 2:18 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: Free Morningstar Portfolio Ending
Replies: 138
Views: 21043

Re: Free Morningstar Portfolio Ending

It looks like work is still in progress on the Morningstar website. Here is some information I received in December. "Note on legacy Portfolio Manager" "As we continue to build and release more enhancements to Investor, legacy Portfolio Manager will still remain available on Morningstar.com. We will not retire this version until Investor’s portfolio features are successfully up and running, and we’ll continue to update you on our progress." The new Investor version of the website isn’t an improvement. The old Legacy version allows you to receive performance data for 5, 10, and 15 year time periods - which allows you to see how an investment performed over a complete market cycle. The new Investor version only allows per...
by Dead Man Walking
Fri May 26, 2023 8:46 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: Reporter doing story on online sports betting taxes
Replies: 2
Views: 493

Re: Reporter doing story on online sports betting taxes

If they tax winnings, many gamblers will probably stick with their local bookie. :wink:

DMW
by Dead Man Walking
Fri May 19, 2023 11:14 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: Do the professionals know things we do not?
Replies: 59
Views: 7649

Re: Do the professionals know things we do not?

This is a free lunch if you’re a Boglehead. Unfortunately, I have a bad back and can’t sit long enough in their uncomfortable chairs to listen to their baloney. In my area, they do chose good restaurants to hold their marketing presentations. If you’re able to sit through their presentation and smart enough not to fall for their sales pitch, enjoy the free meal.

DMW
by Dead Man Walking
Fri May 19, 2023 4:38 pm
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: experience with JP Morgan Self-Directed Investing?
Replies: 91
Views: 18293

Re: experience with JP Morgan Self-Directed Investing?

Wellington Admiral (VWENX) isn’t available. As I recall, the Admiral funds that require a $50,000 minimum investment are the ones that aren’t available. The Investor class of those funds are generally available. The Admiral funds with a $3,000 minimum investment are available. I don’t know about muni funds. I’ll look the next time I log on to my account. DMW Thanks. I logged into my account today and discovered that JPM has made a few changes since I last logged in. For example, they now offer 54 money market funds. Looks like all of the Fidelity and Vanguard money market funds are available including municipal money market funds. 121 Vanguard mutual funds are available. Their sector index funds for various market sectors (utilities, indus...
by Dead Man Walking
Sat May 13, 2023 12:43 pm
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: experience with JP Morgan Self-Directed Investing?
Replies: 91
Views: 18293

Re: experience with JP Morgan Self-Directed Investing?

zero_coupon wrote: Fri May 12, 2023 5:11 pm
Dead Man Walking wrote: Wed Feb 22, 2023 3:49 pm ... Some Vanguard Admiral funds aren’t available. ...
Which ones? How about Vanguard's active muni funds and muni MM fund?

Wellington Admiral (VWENX) isn’t available. As I recall, the Admiral funds that require a $50,000 minimum investment are the ones that aren’t available. The Investor class of those funds are generally available. The Admiral funds with a $3,000 minimum investment are available. I don’t know about muni funds. I’ll look the next time I log on to my account.

DMW
by Dead Man Walking
Wed May 10, 2023 2:39 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: Who is actually an "Owner" of Vanguard?
Replies: 60
Views: 6898

Re: Who is actually an "Owner" of Vanguard?

I hope that trustees that determine executive compensation have read The Battle for the Soul of Capitalism by John C. Bogle.

DMW
by Dead Man Walking
Wed May 10, 2023 12:51 pm
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Blown Away at Vanguards "New" Policy [Intend to move investments on behalf of parent]
Replies: 61
Views: 10479

Re: Blown Away at Vanguards "New" Policy

I would suggest that you move all of his assets to a joint account WROS in both of your names. If Vanguard refuses to do this, move his account to a company that has a local office. You may not be within a reasonable distance of a Schwab or Fidelity office. Many banks offer brokerage services. There may be a local independent investment advisor in your area. In my rural community the fee for having one of these advisors is about 1.5% of assets under management. Some require a $250,000 portfolio.

DMW
by Dead Man Walking
Tue Apr 18, 2023 6:31 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Logistics of Executing Wills and Getting Attorney's Help
Replies: 25
Views: 2255

Re: Logistics of Executing Wills and Getting Attorney's Help

Many attorneys charge an hourly fee for smaller or uncomplicated estates. As the executor of my mother’s estate, I gathered the necessary information, found a buyer for the house, and auctioned the chattels. Her attorney arranged the transfer of the real estate and filed the necessary paperwork with the probate court. This was several years ago. The attorney’s hourly rate at that time was around $200. Most lawyers work on a time basis regardless of the size of the estate. $200 an hour sounds like it’s from the 1980s. It was actually 2015 in a small town in Ohio. My parents had used the lawyer for about 40 years. He wrote their wills and set up an estate plan that only required the real estate and chattels to go through probate. I may have ...
by Dead Man Walking
Mon Apr 17, 2023 6:48 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Logistics of Executing Wills and Getting Attorney's Help
Replies: 25
Views: 2255

Re: Logistics of Executing Wills and Getting Attorney's Help

Many attorneys charge an hourly fee for smaller or uncomplicated estates. As the executor of my mother’s estate, I gathered the necessary information, found a buyer for the house, and auctioned the chattels. Her attorney arranged the transfer of the real estate and filed the necessary paperwork with the probate court. This was several years ago. The attorney’s hourly rate at that time was around $200.

DMW
by Dead Man Walking
Fri Mar 31, 2023 11:26 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: Are ETFs Just Plain Superior To Mutual Funds?
Replies: 139
Views: 15861

Re: Are ETFs Just Plain Superior To Mutual Funds?

Having read the posts in this thread, I am sticking to my assertion that ETFs are the future of retail funds. Arguments about expenses, transportability, and performance have merit; however, I’m basing my assertion on the proliferation of ETFs. It seems like every investment firm is becoming ETF provider. Not only are individual investors buying them; institutional investors are also using them as a part of their portfolios. It may take years for ETFs to match the assets of the mutual fund market.

DMW
by Dead Man Walking
Fri Mar 31, 2023 9:24 pm
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: 26 week tbills or 52 week?
Replies: 13
Views: 2685

Re: 26 week tbills or 52 week?

The 17 week T-Bill has had the highest yield lately.

DMW
by Dead Man Walking
Thu Mar 30, 2023 12:32 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: [Bank failure discussion mega-thread]
Replies: 2482
Views: 211957

Re: [Bank failure discussion mega-thread]

:thumbsup
Valuethinker wrote: Thu Mar 30, 2023 11:31 am BTW Credit Suisse had become known in banking markets as Debit Suisse.

Which demonstrates that black humour is often the best form of humour.
LOL. :D
by Dead Man Walking
Thu Mar 30, 2023 12:11 am
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: Are ETFs Just Plain Superior To Mutual Funds?
Replies: 139
Views: 15861

Re: Are ETFs Just Plain Superior To Mutual Funds?

ETFs are the future of retail funds. Mutual funds are the present. https://imgur.com/lOur1HE.png The amount of money invested in ETFs is growing at a staggering rate. They have a staggering way to go. "Staggering." How much is that in numbers? At their present rates of growth, it will take about ten years, not to supersede mutual funds, but just to draw even. At the rate Wang Laboratories was growing in the 1970s, it would have been bigger than IBM by the 1990s. In 1883 Mark Twain observed that at the rate the Mississippi River was shortening in length, it will would be be one-and-three-quarter miles long by 2625. I was referring to the retail market as investments outside the investments in retirement accounts. Mutual funds will...
by Dead Man Walking
Wed Mar 29, 2023 2:05 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: Are ETFs Just Plain Superior To Mutual Funds?
Replies: 139
Views: 15861

Re: Are ETFs Just Plain Superior To Mutual Funds?

ETFs are the future of retail funds. The amount of money invested in ETFs is growing at a staggering rate. I watch Bloomberg ETF IQ just to keep up with trends in the industry. It seems like every mutual fund provider is jumping into the ETF market. Many are offering actively managed ETFs with expense ratios ten times higher than passively managed ETFs. One ETF described on this week’s show had an expense ratio of 1.65%! Bogleheads would be apoplectic over expense ratios that high.

DMW
by Dead Man Walking
Sat Mar 25, 2023 6:14 pm
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Vanguard 7-day hold T-Bill Interest?
Replies: 7
Views: 1349

Re: Vanguard 7-day hold T-Bill Interest?

I’ve never had the 7 day hold on the proceeds from a maturing T-Bill; however, I’ve had to wait 7 days to buy T-Bills with money in my settlement fund that was an electronic bank transfer from my bank checking account. I don’t understand why cash pulled from my checking account by Vanguard via an ACH bank transfer isn’t immediately available for buying T-Bills. DMW Treasuries have to be purchased with fully available funds (an ACH can be reversed for several days). If you buy Vanguard securities, which you can do sooner, Vanguard can reverse the transaction if the ACH transfer is reversed after it happens. It can't do so with a purchase of T-bills because the funds are going outside Vanguard. In that sense, it is like withdrawing the funds...
by Dead Man Walking
Sat Mar 25, 2023 1:32 pm
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Vanguard 7-day hold T-Bill Interest?
Replies: 7
Views: 1349

Re: Vanguard 7-day hold T-Bill Interest?

I’ve never had the 7 day hold on the proceeds from a maturing T-Bill; however, I’ve had to wait 7 days to buy T-Bills with money in my settlement fund that was an electronic bank transfer from my bank checking account. I don’t understand why cash pulled from my checking account by Vanguard via an ACH bank transfer isn’t immediately available for buying T-Bills.

DMW
by Dead Man Walking
Sat Mar 18, 2023 8:34 pm
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Diversify the investiment brokerage accounts across multiple firms
Replies: 5
Views: 792

Re: Diversify the investiment brokerage accounts across multiple firms

Although I have never encountered a problem with Vanguard, after reading threads here regarding Vanguard’s customer service, I chose to use another brokerage for some of my investments.

DMW
by Dead Man Walking
Sat Mar 11, 2023 2:32 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: How long did you wait for your tax refund this year?
Replies: 165
Views: 17992

Re: How long did you wait for your tax refund this year?

They cashed my check for what I owed 9 days after I mailed it. My wife received her direct deposit refund 9 days after our accountant e filed our returns.
by Dead Man Walking
Fri Mar 10, 2023 7:19 pm
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Question on buying T-Bills from Vanguard
Replies: 8
Views: 1600

Re: Question on buying T-Bills from Vanguard

Geologist wrote: Fri Mar 10, 2023 2:54 pm I agree that you need to have the funds in your settlement account at Vanguard first. You can't buy Treasuries with funds that are now at your bank.

If you are going to buy Treasuries at auction, then the funds have to be in your settlement account longer than they need to be to buy mutual funds (this is a function of rules on how Vanguard and ultimately you have to pay for them).
I believe the money from your bank account has to be in your Vanguard settlement account for 7 days before you can buy treasuries at auction.
by Dead Man Walking
Wed Mar 08, 2023 7:11 pm
Forum: Forum Issues and Administration
Topic: Server time off? [Member timezone setting changed]
Replies: 26
Views: 8226

What’s up with the clock at Bogleheads.org?

[Thread merged into here --admin LadyGeek]

I’ve noticed that the time on my posts are listed several hours later than the actual time that I posted. It’s not a big deal; I’m just curious.

DMW
by Dead Man Walking
Wed Mar 08, 2023 3:30 pm
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: T-bill redemption
Replies: 8
Views: 1012

Re: T-bill redemption

Kevin M wrote: Wed Mar 08, 2023 12:22 pm
1hotjava wrote: Wed Mar 08, 2023 12:10 pm there is no separate interest payment. you buy the bill at a "discount" and when it matures you get the face value.

example: you buy a 2mo at 99.2992, face value of $1000 you paid 992.99 for the bill. When it matures you get $1000. $7.01 was made. This equates to 4.60%
Vanguard does show it as two transactions though:

Image

The interest is the accrued acquisition discount.
Kevin,

You give fantastic explanations and examples when you explain how treasuries work. I really appreciate your effort. Thanks.

DMW