Search found 10498 matches

by grok87
Fri Mar 15, 2024 4:48 am
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: 2024 Hedge Fund contest
Replies: 156
Views: 26722

Re: 2024 Hedge Fund contest

Tanelorn wrote: Sun Mar 10, 2024 11:16 am
Madpunster is winning the consistency award, with a low stress portfolio of 6 stocks, all of which are winners, and is currently up +24%. grok is the only other manager in the same category with Consternatio Partners, a long time fund participant and currently up +13%.

Congratulations and good luck to all!
thanks for the shout out Tanelorn. Glad to hear we have a "consistency award" category!- look like i actually might be winning that now...lol.
cheers,
grok
by grok87
Fri Feb 23, 2024 6:16 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: Could I-bonds really return >10% in hyperinflation scenarios
Replies: 52
Views: 7989

Re: Could I-bonds really return >10% in hyperinflation scena

Unless they change from the CPI-u, which is allowed under current law I believe the order sec of treasury for TIPS(uncertain about ibonds), I would very reasonably expect ibonds and TIPS to pay out the cpi-u. (there are other indexes that exist that increase less than cpi-u, like "chained cpi" google it for further info if desired. ) So if by "inflation" you mean the cpi-u, then yes, I would think they would very likely pay out 10 percent if thats what the cpi-u was calculated to be. But no, its not been tested yet : ) so here is the passage that i think you are alluding to https://www.treasurydirect.gov/laws-and-regulations/auction-regulations-uoc/inflation-protected-securities/ The index for measuring the inflation ra...
by grok87
Wed Feb 14, 2024 4:54 am
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: Low-cost provider that's not Vanguard?
Replies: 47
Views: 3920

Re: Low-cost provider that's not Vanguard?

LiveSimple wrote: Wed Feb 14, 2024 4:42 am
OnlyBugs wrote: Tue Feb 13, 2024 5:40 pm Just shop around to see which brokers have the best index fund ETFs:

Vanguard
Fidelity
Schwab
Plus ishares etfs
agree. etfs are portable which would be a good thing if you are worried about getting locked in with a company (vanguard, fidelity etc.) that might have problems at some point.

cheers,
grok
by grok87
Fri Feb 09, 2024 2:04 pm
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Evaluating a CCRC (Continuing Care Retirement Community)
Replies: 22
Views: 3803

Re: Evaluating a CCRC (Continuing Care Retirement Community)

One more consideration: It's better to make the move 5 years too soon rather than 5 minutes too late. If you wait too long, you might not be able to make the move when you finally feel ready. thanks, that's interesting. can you elaborate? is that because if you have a medical condition they may not let you in? Yes. Several years ago, spouse and I had a couple free trial nights at a local CCRC to check out for my then early 80s inlaws. They were accepted, despite both showing a little memory loss, and FIL used walker. They ended up deciding to stay at home. Lived about 4 years. Spouse and one sibling became part time care givers for latter years. No way would they have been accepted at that point. Fortunately FIL became covered under a spec...
by grok87
Thu Feb 08, 2024 5:04 am
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Evaluating a CCRC (Continuing Care Retirement Community)
Replies: 22
Views: 3803

Re: Evaluating a CCRC (Continuing Care Retirement Community)

RudyS wrote: Sat Feb 18, 2023 1:54 pm

One more consideration: It's better to make the move 5 years too soon rather than 5 minutes too late. If you wait too long, you might not be able to make the move when you finally feel ready.
thanks, that's interesting. can you elaborate? is that because if you have a medical condition they may not let you in?
by grok87
Sat Feb 03, 2024 6:37 am
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: 2024 Hedge Fund contest
Replies: 156
Views: 26722

Re: 2024 Hedge Fund contest

molecular wrote: Thu Feb 01, 2024 4:46 pm Eee gads, my shorts are taking it in the shorts.
Personal aspiration is to be at the absolute bottom instead of just ninth off the bottom as of today. :happy
Q: What is a long term investment?
A: A short term investment that didn't work out.

lol

cheers,
grok
by grok87
Wed Jan 24, 2024 5:25 am
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Is having insulation blown into the walls of an old house worth it?
Replies: 35
Views: 4230

Re: Is having insulation blown into the walls of an old house worth it?

onourway wrote: Tue Jan 23, 2024 1:13 pm

One concern with older houses without insulation is that the foam insulation inhibits the ability of moisture to travel from the inside of the house to the outside, potentially causing moisture and mold problems. For that reason foam sealing the wall cavities would be a last step for me, only after I fully understood the potential ramifications.
yikes
by grok87
Sun Jan 21, 2024 2:49 pm
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Purchase new car in 2024
Replies: 47
Views: 7582

Re: Purchase new car in 2024

Paullmas wrote: Sat Jan 06, 2024 5:23 pm What of Costco affiliated dealer?
i used costco some years ago and was not impressed
by grok87
Sat Jan 06, 2024 4:24 pm
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: VUSXX taxable for state and local now
Replies: 353
Views: 59380

Re: VUSXX taxable for state and local now

how are you getting the 20%? I track the monthly asset weighted percentages of USGO and taxable amounts for the fund that comes out to 81%/19%. I also make the following assumptions: rates are stable across the year. This is not true, yields did rise for most of the year, so early months generate less income probably increasing the USGO % USGO and non-USGO gross yields are equivalent. This is probably slight off, with non-USGO yields being slightly higher, lowering the USGO % marginally USGO and non-USGO% are stable throughout the month. This is likely not true, but the impact is not observable by investors from the information required by the SEC. With more homework, I could probably provide estimates for the impact of the first two items...
by grok87
Sat Jan 06, 2024 2:07 pm
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Appointment with local Fidelity Rep: should I bother?
Replies: 74
Views: 17598

Re: Appointment with local Fidelity Rep: should I bother?

beyou wrote: Sat Jan 06, 2024 8:10 am
jaMichael wrote: Fri Jan 05, 2024 7:15 pm FYI, here's how Fidelity representatives are compensated.

https://www.fidelity.com/bin-public/060 ... sation.pdf
Wow that’s enlightening. Branch reps get 45% of their comp outside their base salary. Lots of incentive to spend time with clients, selling, advising. It is a little vague in some parts like client engagement. Sounds like just reward for having consults like the OP is considering, but the details make it sound like it is a reward for getting the client to make certain sticky investments.
yup. a big red flag for me
by grok87
Sat Jan 06, 2024 12:45 pm
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: VUSXX taxable for state and local now
Replies: 353
Views: 59380

Re: VUSXX taxable for state and local now

retiringwhen wrote: Sat Jan 06, 2024 7:52 am
investment guy wrote: Sat Jan 06, 2024 7:39 am Based on what has been posted recently on 2023 results for this fund, will paying taxes be required? (Important Note - I live in California). Thanks.
VUSXX met the CA 50% threshold for all 4 quarters, and the resulting USGO income percentage is approximately 80%, so you will owe CA income tax roughly 20% of the dividend income received from VUSXX in 2023.
how are you getting the 20%?
thanks
grok
by grok87
Sat Jan 06, 2024 9:30 am
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Fidelity free Turbotax 2023
Replies: 434
Views: 153858

Re: Fidelity free Turbotax 2023

MisterBill wrote: Fri Jan 05, 2024 11:35 am
grok87 wrote: Fri Jan 05, 2024 5:56 am i'm still getting the 20% off discount offer. clicked through and the pricing is still very unclear. it says federal only- no state.
honestly i think i'm just going to buy it at costco. bad idea?
The 20% off is never a good deal, especially for the download version. But it at Costco or wait for a better deal at Amazon. Unless you think you qualify for the free offer, in which case wait and hopefully it will come back.

Has anyone called Fidelity to get the official word on why it was pulled?
thanks
by grok87
Fri Jan 05, 2024 5:56 am
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Fidelity free Turbotax 2023
Replies: 434
Views: 153858

Re: Fidelity free Turbotax 2023

i'm still getting the 20% off discount offer. clicked through and the pricing is still very unclear. it says federal only- no state.
honestly i think i'm just going to buy it at costco. bad idea?

cheers,
grok
by grok87
Thu Jan 04, 2024 4:41 am
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: 2024 BOGLEHEAD CONTEST REGISTRATION
Replies: 579
Views: 37917

Re: 2024 BOGLEHEAD CONTEST REGISTRATION

4940 is my guess
by grok87
Wed Jan 03, 2024 11:46 am
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: 2024 Hedge Fund contest
Replies: 156
Views: 26722

Re: 2024 Hedge Fund contest

9Iron wrote: Tue Jan 02, 2024 9:28 am After record setting performance in 2023, the Randolph Mortimer Venture Fund is happy to announce that we have restructured and are back!!

New Fund Name: Valentine Winthorpe and Duke

Long: NVDA ( NVIDIA ) GOOG (Google ) and AMD ( Advanced Micro Devices )

Short: GOEV (Canoo ). NKLA ( Nikola )
lol.

you have truly encapsulated the Hedge fund operating model. Blow up one year (i think you were down 136% last year due to shorting Carvana), then shut down and reopen a new hedge fund the next year!

:)
cheers,
grok
by grok87
Wed Jan 03, 2024 11:40 am
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Appointment with local Fidelity Rep: should I bother?
Replies: 74
Views: 17598

Re: Appointment with local Fidelity Rep: should I bother?

My local fidelity office rep called and offered to set up a "no strings attached" appointment to review my portfolio, since I am a "high net worth client". They're within walking distance, so I'm entertaining the idea of spending an hour and see what they have to say. I was not especially impressed with their intro about "we noticed you have cash drag in your brokerage" when I keep no cash in the sweep account, and I hold VTI, VEA, and VWO which are pretty tax efficient , especially since some of the dividends will be qualified, so that's mostly what's holding me back. I do want to connect another bank account and they require some extra paperwork (notarized? medallion?) and I was planning to stop by to see if...
by grok87
Tue Jan 02, 2024 5:52 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: Municipal bond basics
Replies: 28
Views: 3745

Re: Municipal bond basics

jameskay wrote: Tue Jan 02, 2024 5:05 pm
grok87 wrote: 1. no-one is buying them. that's why you are seeing a lot of them for sale. they are in muni bond purgatory.
So, conversely, if someone bought a muni with low coupon in 2021 that went way down as rates rose, the thought of using tax loss harvesting to sell them at a loss would be hard to execute.
agree. it sort of depends how far they have have fallen. if the price is below par but still such that the de minimus rule applies (25 bps a year i think) then that's not a terrible price to try and find a buyer at. but if the price is below that so the buyer is looking at ordinary income taxation treatment, then that indeed is a tough sell. and the way the rules work there is a Cliff.

cheers,
grok
by grok87
Tue Jan 02, 2024 3:31 pm
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: [On-going Scams - Post them here]
Replies: 1372
Views: 165347

Re: [On-going Scams - Post them here]

nisiprius wrote: Mon Jan 01, 2024 5:01 pm Forever stamps at half price does sort of fall in the category of "it seems too good to be true" and "you can't cheat an honest man." You would never buy $100 bills for $50 each, but somehow stamps don't seem the same.
hmm...it's kind of hard to parse your meaning in the above. i think we need to be careful not to engage in victim blaming.

cheers
grok
by grok87
Tue Jan 02, 2024 3:14 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: Municipal bond basics
Replies: 28
Views: 3745

Re: Municipal bond basics

When I do secondary market searches for munis with the best YTM on top, I am similarly seeing a tremendous amount of ones that are low coupon, low price, and hence gains could be taxed as ordinary income as per the referenced articles. Related questions: - Who / what entities would therefore be buying these? Only those who deem the return "good" at taxable levels? - Would major tax free muni funds have to similarly report gains on such bonds as ordinary income? If so, I assume those would avoid these as well? 1. That's a good question. One case might be investors in lower tax brackets if the yield is high enough. I've wondered if anyone buys those securities in tax sheltered accounts. 2. Mutual funds do have to report the ordinar...
by grok87
Mon Jan 01, 2024 4:41 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: 2024 Hedge Fund contest
Replies: 156
Views: 26722

Re: 2024 Hedge Fund contest

Name: Consternatio Partners

Longs:
LBRT
SLCA
PARR

Shorts:
KREF
ORC
ACRE

cheers,
grok
by grok87
Mon Jan 01, 2024 3:51 pm
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: [On-going Scams - Post them here]
Replies: 1372
Views: 165347

Re: [On-going Scams - Post them here]

So i think we just got scammed. Purchased US postage forever stamps online at a deep discount (50%). these stamps did arrive and looked legit. but vendor showed up on credit card as being in Hong Kong. the stamps look legit. but apparently they are counterfeit https://www.uspis.gov/news/scam-article/counterfeit-stamps apparently you can't really tell by visual inspection and the USPS uses invisible ultraviolet coating technology to validate and cancel stamps https://www.quora.com/How-can-you-tell-a-fake-Forever-stamp anyone else familiar with this scam? thanks grok I almost fell for this myself last year. It was an ad in Facebook and for some strange reason I just sort of assumed that Facebook wouldn't accept outright scams... or at least ...
by grok87
Mon Jan 01, 2024 3:50 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: Vanguard Email looks like spam (but isnt)
Replies: 19
Views: 2710

Re: Vanguard Email looks like spam (but isnt)

jebmke wrote: Sat Oct 07, 2023 11:02 am my email client blocks all links and embedded content.
nice. how would i do that?
by grok87
Tue Dec 26, 2023 4:59 am
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: A Christmas Message
Replies: 140
Views: 14238

Re: A Christmas Message

Merry Christmas Taylor and thank you!
by grok87
Tue Dec 12, 2023 4:54 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Fidelity free Turbotax 2023
Replies: 434
Views: 153858

Re: Fidelity free Turbotax 2023

radioactive wrote: Tue Dec 12, 2023 1:59 pm
slippingsloth wrote: Tue Dec 12, 2023 12:37 pm can anyone post their browser link to the free TT?

https://www.fidelity.com/accounts-trade/turbotax
https://www.fidelity.com/accounts-trade ... x-discount

Those two links took me to a 20 and 30% discount but no $5 alas
https://www.fidelity.com/accounts-trade ... discount-b

replace -b with other characters for different discount amounts.

Still missing the offer code that redirects to the microsite, but this is a starting point.
thanks but link doesn't work for me...
by grok87
Sun Dec 03, 2023 1:10 pm
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: TIAA Real Estate down 1.27 percent in a day
Replies: 32
Views: 4111

Re: TIAA Real Estate down 1.27 percent in a day

BF3000 wrote: Sat Dec 02, 2023 12:26 pm https://www.forbes.com/sites/rogervalde ... urges/amp/

https://www.bisnow.com/national/news/mu ... ply-121814

There are lots of articles on apartment oversupply coming online in the near future. “Shortage” pertains to single family housing, and qrearx doesn’t own any.

The top holdings of VNQ are so different nowadays, I don’t see how qrearx will be roughly similar but with a lag.
thanks. i read the forbes article but the bisnow was behind a paywall. it seems like forbes is saying "Will Renters Have The Upper Hand As Apartment Supply Surges?". i don't think it has happened yet.
by grok87
Sat Dec 02, 2023 5:48 am
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: TIAA Real Estate down 1.27 percent in a day
Replies: 32
Views: 4111

Re: TIAA Real Estate down 1.27 percent in a day

5 year CAGR through December 1 2023:

TIAA Real estate (QREARX) = 3.11%
REits (VGSLX): 4.19%

i think in general one might expect reits to have higher return as they are leveraged. the other point is that QREARX does have a high expense ratio.
I do own some QREARX but am not adding to my position.

cheers,
grok
by grok87
Sat Dec 02, 2023 4:57 am
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: TIAA Real Estate down 1.27 percent in a day
Replies: 32
Views: 4111

Re: TIAA Real Estate down 1.27 percent in a day

1/4 of its assets are office in big cities that will eventually be marked at 50ish % less than peak value. Even if interest rates had not increased so as to implode cap rates—and they did—WFH is killing these properties. 15ish % is retail. Internet-driven destruction. A lot is apartments. Oversupply and cap-rate problem. No data centers or cell towers, which are prominent in VNQ and a modern economy. Totally different assets. Expect a slow bleed as markdowns from appraisals continue. I am keeping a small small position but sold most. Might rebuild later. thanks. could you expand please perhaps on 'A lot is apartments. Oversupply and cap-rate problem. '? i thought there was a housing shortage? https://www.fanniemae.com/research-and-insights...
by grok87
Fri Dec 01, 2023 1:22 pm
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: TIAA Real Estate down 1.27 percent in a day
Replies: 32
Views: 4111

Re: TIAA Real Estate down 1.27 percent in a day

jebmke wrote: Thu Nov 30, 2023 9:57 pm If I read the portfolio correctly, it appears to be holding actual properties. Perhaps it is simply finally taking the marks it should have taken much earlier on commercial real estate.
yep
by grok87
Fri Dec 01, 2023 1:22 pm
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: TIAA Real Estate down 1.27 percent in a day
Replies: 32
Views: 4111

Re: TIAA Real Estate down 1.27 percent in a day

The TREA expense ratio does not include the costs of managing the malls and other properties, any more than a mutual fund ER includes trading commissions. The actual ER calculation is: Investment Management1 0.295 % For investment advisory, investment management, portfolio accounting, custodial and similar services, including independent fiduciary and appraisal fees Administration 0.250 % For administration and operations of the Account and the contracts, including administrative services such as receiving and allocating premiums and calculating and making annuity payments Distribution 0.045 % For services and expenses associated with distributing the annuity contracts Mortality and Expense Risk 0.000 % For TIAA's bearing certain mortality...
by grok87
Fri Nov 24, 2023 2:43 pm
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: CPI-indexed annuities
Replies: 75
Views: 6419

Re: CPI-indexed annuities

Bloomberg has a piece out discussing inflation indexed annuities https://www.bloomberg.com/opinion/articles/2023-11-24/annuities-are-back-in-fashion-but-are-they-safe#xj4y7vzkg The long-term real interest rate, as measured by the yield on 30-year inflation-protected treasuries, has been rising steadily over the last 18 months from negative values to about 2.5%. This puts many inflation-adjusted life annuities above 4%, the traditional threshold for demand to surge. That’s because diversified portfolios of stocks and bonds can deliver about 4% while growing with inflation over the long-term, at least they always have in the past. These portfolios are available with zero or near-zero fees, and with high liquidity and flexibility. They general...
by grok87
Sun Nov 19, 2023 1:23 pm
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: [On-going Scams - Post them here]
Replies: 1372
Views: 165347

Re: [On-going Scams - Post them here]

snic wrote: Sat Nov 18, 2023 9:17 am
grok87 wrote: Sat Nov 18, 2023 8:23 am an elderly friend of mine just got a phone call with the "nephew is in jail, please wire bail money" scam.
I take it you're the nephew, and you're not in jail after all?

These scammers who prey on the elderly are such scum. My mother used to get these occasionally. One of the best things I did for her is switch her landline (she doesn't have a mobile) to a VOIP service in which any caller not in her contacts list has to press a number to be connected. It dropped scam and spam calls to zero. (Callcentric is the VOIP service.)
thank you for the tip!
by grok87
Sat Nov 18, 2023 8:23 am
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: [On-going Scams - Post them here]
Replies: 1372
Views: 165347

Re: [On-going Scams - Post them here]

an elderly friend of mine just got a phone call with the "nephew is in jail, please wire bail money" scam.
by grok87
Fri Oct 27, 2023 11:24 am
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: Time for junk bonds?
Replies: 207
Views: 19206

Re: Time for junk bonds?

I would assume that the risk/reward of junk bonds has already been factored in by the professional (junk) bond traders and that they are no better or worse an investment now than they have ever been. Unless you know something they don't. In early 2022, junk bonds yielded 4%. Now they're over 8%. Are they twice as risky now? No, because they offer the same risk premium. You should be willing to take the same risk to buy a bond yielding 4% when Treasuries yield 1% as to buy a bond yielding 8% when Treasuries yield 5%. Also, even when junk bonds yield 8%, you don't expect an 8% return. The 8% is the yield you will get on the bonds if they make all the payments through maturity, but junk bonds often default. (You can see this effect in the pri...
by grok87
Sun Oct 22, 2023 10:59 am
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Getting scratches out of car?
Replies: 27
Views: 3269

Re: Getting scratches out of car?

Outer Marker wrote: Sat Oct 21, 2023 11:38 am I would try rubbing compound first. Make sure the area is well clean. Use some of the course, orange color "rubbing compound" and some elbow grease to smooth out the scratch. Next, use some of the white "polishing compound" to restore the gloss. Finally, put a finish coat of wax on it. Change your cloths frequently and buff off any excess between steps. Should take you less than 30 mins and cost less than $20 in supplies.
thanks
by grok87
Fri Oct 20, 2023 9:28 am
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Getting scratches out of car?
Replies: 27
Views: 3269

Re: Getting scratches out of car?

wilked wrote: Thu Oct 19, 2023 8:16 am You might be surprised how cheaply these can be handled at a body shop. Like $200 cheaply. If you want to keep it nice plan on 2/year to visit a body shop and have them clean it up.

I was in your boat. I did nothing, and a year later I had more small scratches than I could list. But I have young kids too, so it's life
thnaks- that has not been my experience at body shops but worth a try
by grok87
Wed Oct 18, 2023 6:39 am
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: Vanguard hedge fund
Replies: 26
Views: 4614

Re: Vanguard hedge fund

secondopinion wrote: Sat May 07, 2022 1:00 pm
retired@50 wrote: Fri May 06, 2022 7:35 pm Personally, I wouldn't touch it with a 10-foot pole. The ER is too high for my taste.

Regards,
The ER is only 0.25% actually. The rest is shorting costs which they have to include in the ER (but that is the inherent to the method; Vanguard does not pocket it).
yep.
to be clear the er includes the dividend payments the fund makes on the stocks it shorts. but that is not offset by the dividends it gets on the stocks it owns (is long on). weird SEC rules basically.
by grok87
Sun Oct 08, 2023 8:02 am
Forum: US Chapters
Topic: Sad News - LadyGeek's Mom has passed
Replies: 158
Views: 37365

Re: Sad News - LadyGeek's Mom has passed

My condolences to you and your family LadyGeek.
by grok87
Fri Oct 06, 2023 12:55 pm
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: [On-going Scams - Post them here]
Replies: 1372
Views: 165347

Re: [On-going Scams - Post them here]

Iconicus wrote: Wed Oct 04, 2023 11:35 am
grok87 wrote: Wed Oct 04, 2023 9:21 am So i think we just got scammed.

Purchased US postage forever stamps online at a deep discount (50%). these stamps did arrive and looked legit.
but vendor showed up on credit card as being in Hong Kong.
the stamps look legit. but apparently they are counterfeit
https://www.uspis.gov/news/scam-article ... eit-stamps
apparently you can't really tell by visual inspection and the USPS uses invisible ultraviolet coating technology to validate and cancel stamps
https://www.quora.com/How-can-you-tell- ... ever-stamp

anyone else familiar with this scam?
thanks
grok
Did you actually try to use one of the stamps? What happened?
no haven't tried
by grok87
Fri Oct 06, 2023 12:53 pm
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: [On-going Scams - Post them here]
Replies: 1372
Views: 165347

Re: [On-going Scams - Post them here]

So i think we just got scammed. Purchased US postage forever stamps online at a deep discount (50%). these stamps did arrive and looked legit. but vendor showed up on credit card as being in Hong Kong. the stamps look legit. but apparently they are counterfeit https://www.uspis.gov/news/scam-article/counterfeit-stamps apparently you can't really tell by visual inspection and the USPS uses invisible ultraviolet coating technology to validate and cancel stamps https://www.quora.com/How-can-you-tell-a-fake-Forever-stamp anyone else familiar with this scam? thanks grok I’ve seen numerous ads in my Facebook feed for “50% off” stamps. Anything that sounds too good to be true, likely is. I’m sorry that you were scammed. Hope you didn’t lose too m...
by grok87
Wed Oct 04, 2023 9:21 am
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: [On-going Scams - Post them here]
Replies: 1372
Views: 165347

Re: [On-going Scams - Post them here]

So i think we just got scammed.

Purchased US postage forever stamps online at a deep discount (50%). these stamps did arrive and looked legit.
but vendor showed up on credit card as being in Hong Kong.
the stamps look legit. but apparently they are counterfeit
https://www.uspis.gov/news/scam-article ... eit-stamps
apparently you can't really tell by visual inspection and the USPS uses invisible ultraviolet coating technology to validate and cancel stamps
https://www.quora.com/How-can-you-tell- ... ever-stamp

anyone else familiar with this scam?
thanks
grok
by grok87
Tue Oct 03, 2023 4:55 am
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Travel agent specializing in European river cruises.
Replies: 11
Views: 1827

Re: Travel agent specializing in European river cruises.

Myopic squirrel wrote: Mon Oct 02, 2023 10:43 pm Wife and I (late 70’s) interested in a 2024 European river cruise. Ordinarily I’ve done the research & planning for our European and Caribbean vacations. Wondering if a travel agent specializing in these cruises is worth it. Just started researching our friends lines (Uniworld, Viking, Tauck, etc) on the Cruise Critic site, which has been helpful for countries/rivers, which I don’t mind doing. Is the TA’s fee exclusive of the booking fee? Greatly appreciate hearing from both the DIYers and the TA users. Thank you in advance!
i would also be interested in this
by grok87
Mon Oct 02, 2023 4:34 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: 2023 Hedge Fund contest
Replies: 199
Views: 27245

Re: 2023 Hedge Fund contest

Tanelorn wrote: Mon Oct 02, 2023 8:04 am
grok87 wrote: Mon Oct 02, 2023 5:12 am Hi, it looks like one of my holdings, ARR, is doing a 5-1 reverse split. so currently my ARR short position is showing a -250% loss whereas after adjusting for the reverse split it should be showing a gain. Anyway this can be fixed? thanks
Fixed, so your adjusted initial price is now 5x higher and you're compared against that for the current price. You're up about +25% on that short currently - nice work.
thanks, much appreciated.
by grok87
Mon Oct 02, 2023 5:12 am
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: 2023 Hedge Fund contest
Replies: 199
Views: 27245

Re: 2023 Hedge Fund contest

It's the end of the third quarter and markets are reminding the bulls that what can go up can also go down. All bond and equity indexes were negative as fears of prolonged high interest rate expectations weighed on both asset classes this past quarter. Despite the recent negative sentiment, the broad equity indexes are still up. For example, our total stock market ETF (VTI) is +9% for the contest to date, down somewhat from earlier. Despite the mixed sentiment, we have seen pockets of crazy gains on the long side, with stocks like Carvana (CVNA) and Nvidea (NVDA) seeing outstanding performance. Here are the best of our group so far: 2023 Q3 Leaders 1st: +400% goodLife , Crystal Ball Investments , for a contrarian long Carvana and short Ama...
by grok87
Wed Sep 27, 2023 4:47 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: SS benefit grows based nation’s overall wealth???
Replies: 9
Views: 1608

Re: SS benefit grows based nation’s overall wealth???

David Jay wrote: Wed Sep 27, 2023 4:12 pm I believe that the reference is to the National Wage Index (NWI) and they are mistaken about the age at which the NWI calculation is performed (age 60). After that, increases are only COLA if there is no additional earnings history.
thank you
by grok87
Sun Sep 24, 2023 8:51 am
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Property Theft From Friends Car
Replies: 21
Views: 3097

Re: Property Theft From Friends Car

My granddaughter just had her laptop and ipad stolen from her friends care while they were at a restaurant. Anyone know which insurance should cover this? If you pay enough attention, there are signs in the parking lot saying "DO NOT LEAVE VALUABLE ITEMS IN YOUR CAR." Some lessons can be expensive. I hope your daughter would take this one to make sure it will never happen again. I'd be surprised if any insurance would cover it. I can go back and forth on this one. Some things I'd tend to keep with me and not leave in my car. Other things I do leave in my car but only in my locked trunk, not inside the car where it would be in plain view of anyone looking into the car. I do this even when at the supermarket for only 25 to 45 minut...
by grok87
Sun Sep 24, 2023 8:49 am
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Property Theft From Friends Car
Replies: 21
Views: 3097

Re: Property Theft From Friends Car

Candor wrote: Sat Sep 23, 2023 10:19 am She may want to check to see if her CC will cover them under any purchase protection provision.
good idea
by grok87
Sun Sep 24, 2023 8:48 am
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Property Theft From Friends Car
Replies: 21
Views: 3097

Re: Property Theft From Friends Car

CAsage wrote: Sat Sep 23, 2023 6:22 am Just read another thread about someone getting their homeowner's insurance cancelled because of too many small claims. What is the deductible? I put mine really high to save on annual premiums, so this would not be feasible for us.
me also
by grok87
Wed Sep 20, 2023 8:58 am
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: [On-going Scams - Post them here]
Replies: 1372
Views: 165347

Re: [On-going Scams - Post them here]

Received an email today from "Prime" at a non-amazon.com email address. The email even had the familiar amazon swoosh arc/arrow (without the word Prime above it), AND did not state anywhere this was from Amazon, only "Prime". Hmmm.... Email stated that my subscription to Prime expired today , that my monthly payment has failed. The email had a convenient link to "update my payment details" and to "verify my account". Did not click either of the links , but went to Amazon Prime and my account / payment details, and all was fine. The email also had a bogus "subscription ID" number. Also of interest is that the Prime email today included a payment declined on a specific order number. As I had ...
by grok87
Sat Sep 16, 2023 3:49 pm
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Ed Jones move to Vanguard -- only 4 muni bonds left
Replies: 8
Views: 1146

Re: Ed Jones move to Vanguard -- only 4 muni bonds left

You are probably using "cash them in" colloquially, but to level set, you can only sell them on the secondary market. The value is a calculated value based the coupon rate and credit rating. You might actually have to sell it for less than that value. They will eventually pay your mother the face value, plus she is getting the coupon amount on the par value, not the current market value. E.g., that last one is paying $900/yr, not $730. [/quote] generally agree although in some cases the value would be based on recent trades of those specific bonds if there are any. One thing that i haven't seen mentioned yet is tax loss harvesting. you could sell these bonds, get a tax loss, and then reinvest in say a vanguard muni bond fund or t...