Search found 3033 matches

by dcabler
Wed Mar 22, 2023 6:12 am
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Bad Work Situation Pushing me into retirement.
Replies: 69
Views: 5164

Re: Bad Work Situation Pushing me into retirement.

Things are getting difficult at work and I am feeling like pulling the plug and retire but I do not feel ready because everything changed in last 2 weeks. My company eliminated 10 people in a team 12 and I now have a crazy work load and I am being forced to go back to the office which I am not a fun off after really enjoying working from home for a few years after Covid. I am 38 and my wife 39 and we have two kids 7 and 4. Thanks Been there, done that with employers. Large layoff without some sort of major company restructuring to go with it has always meant for me that this is a last gasp before the inevitable. Oftentimes when that happens, the exit packages given in the second (or third) round of layoffs is less generous than it was for ...
by dcabler
Wed Mar 22, 2023 5:43 am
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Bad Work Situation Pushing me into retirement.
Replies: 69
Views: 5164

Re: Bad Work Situation Pushing me into retirement.

kchico wrote: Tue Mar 21, 2023 7:27 pm
rob wrote: Tue Mar 21, 2023 7:16 pm I don't see any way this works to be honest....
So Bogleheads don't use the 4% SWR?
No. It has some very crude utility to see if you have "enough", but know that it assumes a 30 year retirement. You've likely got significantly more years ahead of you than that.
by dcabler
Wed Mar 22, 2023 5:40 am
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Transfer of ESPP is not available for many, many years
Replies: 11
Views: 915

Re: Transfer of ESPP is not available for many, many years

HornedToad wrote: Wed Mar 22, 2023 12:46 am Just sell after the 6 month lockup. The transfer sounds irrelevant if you just sell (if it’s even accurate with 80yr period)
Kinda what I'm thinking. If you really like the stock and you're willing to take the chance of being out of the market for a few days and possibly deal with a wash sale, you can always repurchase shares in your brokerage account with the proceeds.

Cheers
by dcabler
Wed Mar 22, 2023 5:38 am
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Transfer of ESPP is not available for many, many years
Replies: 11
Views: 915

Re: Transfer of ESPP is not available for many, many years

My employer's ESPP has a holding period of 6 months. I cannot sell them within 6 months since purchase. Most of the shares are not transferrable for a long, long time. They range from over 20 years to over 80 years. Is it a common practice? Why do they impose such long blackout period for transfer? I don't understand those two comments: You can't sell within 6 months since purchase Most shares aren't transferrable for 20 to 80 years. The can't sell for a certain amount of time, sadly, does exist for some plans. I've worked for a number of different employers, but never had this restriction. I could sell the day the shares showed up in my account. In fact that's what I always do. I wouldn't participate in any plan that had a sell restrictio...
by dcabler
Wed Mar 22, 2023 5:35 am
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Why is Mid-Cap Fund underperforming?
Replies: 39
Views: 3793

Re: Why is Mid-Cap Fund underperforming?

Where’s Mel? Better ask him. :D For many years, as many of the Bogleheads know, I was 100% mid-caps for the equity portion of my portfolio. I wrote and posted about them so much that they became known as "Mel's Unloved Mid-Caps". However, despite the fact that Mid-Caps had been very good to me, once I had attained "more than enough", I reduced the equity portion of my portfolio and opted to move the reduced equity portion to Vanguard's Index 500 fund, which is now my sole equity holding. Do you think that perhaps the reason they're down now is that I haven't been writing about them lately? :wink: Mel - I backed into midcaps on my own but was overjoyed when I found your unloved midcaps thread later here on the forum. I r...
by dcabler
Wed Mar 22, 2023 5:25 am
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Fidelity Account Security
Replies: 15
Views: 1245

Re: Fidelity Account Security

kojima wrote: Wed Mar 22, 2023 5:17 am Speaking of Fidelity Account Security - very disappointed that they do not offer a proper 2FA login option besides that VIP Symantec one.
Do you think that the Symantic one isn't proper? If not, why not?

Cheers
by dcabler
Tue Mar 21, 2023 2:43 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: How long does TreasuryDirect take to convert paper I bonds?
Replies: 115
Views: 43152

Re: How long does TreasuryDirect take to convert paper I bonds?

Hello, Just an update. I did wait through the phone queue and they told me they had received my bonds, had assigned a worker to process them, but that it could take 13 weeks to process. Meanwhile, I took some other bonds to a local bank, I had to open an account, but the whole conversion and deposit took about an hour. In retrospect, I wish I had used the local bank all along -- faster and more secure. Still confusing me: the ultimate source of cash for these bonds has to be the Treasury - how is it the bank via the Treasury can convert these so much faster than Treasury Direct? I cut out the middleman and went to the Treasury and now the money is in limbo for another few weeks. Are you converting them or redeeming them? Cheers
by dcabler
Tue Mar 21, 2023 5:32 am
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: Diversification a la Markowitz #3: Gold
Replies: 93
Views: 7223

Re: Diversification a la Markowitz #3: Gold

Just curious: Do proponents of gold tend to favor gold stocks/ETFs, owning the physical metal in a bank safety deposit box or other 3rd party location, or owning the physical metal at home? I know there will different preferences but, as a general rule, what does “including gold” tend to mean? I'm not really a "proponent" but I think many who own gold tend to hold the physical metal as part of their taxable account and use ETFs in tax-deferred & Roth accounts. I personally like it as a diversifier but also like stocks, I-Bonds, TIPS and nominal Treasuries. Also not a proponent. Philosophies aside, what I've found, though, is that its diversification benefits really depend on what else is in your portfolio. For my particular c...
by dcabler
Tue Mar 21, 2023 4:36 am
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Transfer of ESPP is not available for many, many years
Replies: 11
Views: 915

Re: Transfer of ESPP is not available for many, many years

My employer's ESPP has a holding period of 6 months. I cannot sell them within 6 months since purchase. Most of the shares are not transferrable for a long, long time. They range from over 20 years to over 80 years. Is it a common practice? Why do they impose such long blackout period for transfer? I don't understand those two comments: You can't sell within 6 months since purchase Most shares aren't transferrable for 20 to 80 years. The can't sell for a certain amount of time, sadly, does exist for some plans. I've worked for a number of different employers, but never had this restriction. I could sell the day the shares showed up in my account. In fact that's what I always do. I wouldn't participate in any plan that had a sell restrictio...
by dcabler
Mon Mar 20, 2023 3:56 pm
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Riding Lawn Mower
Replies: 29
Views: 1653

Re: Riding Lawn Mower

We live on 1 acre and had a John Deere for years - a "real" one purchased not at a big-box hardware store. Did the job. Then life got in the way and I outsourced our lawn care. Then life got out of the way and I purchased a used Craftsman from a neighbor who was retiring and downsizing - This mower is actually a grey painted Husqvarna with Craftsman stickers. :D I fear it doesn't have much left on it, and I'm once again approaching a crossroads of getting a new lawn tractor, outsourcing, downsizing.... We shall see....
by dcabler
Mon Mar 20, 2023 5:47 am
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Doing taxes each year is really hard, is it for you?
Replies: 127
Views: 8879

Re: Doing taxes each year is really hard, is it for you?

I've done it myself since my first high school job. Was elated when software became available! Even happier when the software was able to grab data directly from my brokers, W-2 data, bank, etc. Our situation has been pretty boring, though. W2 income, investment cap gain/dividends to deal with. A couple of property sales over the years. Dealing with FMV for RSU's has been tedious until the brokerage houses & my employers started sending us the cheat sheet. Still a pain, though, to go through each item and update the cost basis. This will be the last year for that, though. About to retire so I'll need to start making quarterly payments which I avoided for years and, beginning next year, possibly Roth conversions. I only wish the software...
by dcabler
Mon Mar 20, 2023 4:42 am
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: dishwasher recomendations
Replies: 110
Views: 6436

Re: dishwasher recomendations

bltkmt wrote: Mon Feb 20, 2023 8:17 am We love our Bosch. Quiet and cleans well.
Same here!
by dcabler
Sun Mar 19, 2023 6:28 pm
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Morningstar Comparison Chart
Replies: 7
Views: 832

Re: Morningstar Comparison Chart

The free version available through public libraries still has this capability.

Cheers
by dcabler
Sun Mar 19, 2023 1:28 pm
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Is it worth it to use a realtor?
Replies: 97
Views: 6612

Re: Is it worth it to use a realtor?

Not sure if anybody has pointed this out yet, but the term "Realtor" is not equivalent to "Real Estate Agent". All Realtors are real estate agents but not all real estate agents are Realtors. The distinction is that realtors belong to a trade group: "National Association of Realtors" https://www.realtor.com/advice/buy/what-is-a-realtor/ So, no. You don't HAVE to use a realtor. And you don't HAVE to use a real estate agent. During previous real estate booms, I know of a number of people who obtained a real estate license (but did not become a Realtor) before selling their own houses in order to have access to MLS and to save on at least half of the commissions. That is Realtor capitalized, but realtor and real ...
by dcabler
Sun Mar 19, 2023 11:02 am
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Why is Mid-Cap Fund underperforming?
Replies: 39
Views: 3793

Re: Why is Mid-Cap Fund underperforming?

What you describe is hardly much "variance" beween mid-cap and the total stock market, but if that's what's bothering you, why in the world are you invested in a mid-cap fund rather than total stock market? could this be why: https://i.postimg.cc/vBXKPJrP/total.jpg source: https://www.portfoliovisualizer.com/backtest-portfolio?s=y&timePeriod=4&startYear=1985&firstMonth=1&endYear=2023&lastMonth=12&calendarAligned=true&includeYTD=false&initialAmount=10000&annualOperation=0&annualAdjustment=0&inflationAdjusted=true&annualPercentage=0.0&frequency=4&rebalanceType=1&absoluteDeviation=5.0&relativeDeviation=25.0&leverageType=0&leverageRatio=0.0&debtAmount=0&d...
by dcabler
Sun Mar 19, 2023 6:34 am
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Why is Mid-Cap Fund underperforming?
Replies: 39
Views: 3793

Re: Why is Mid-Cap Fund underperforming?

yolointopants wrote: Sat Mar 18, 2023 10:34 pm
watchnerd wrote: Fri Mar 17, 2023 9:12 am Behavioral questions like this are why I no longer do tilts.
The only tracking error most people can stomach is to the upside. Better to recognize it and correct then to panic.
Regarding "tracking error" - this is exactly why I don't track anything in my portfolio relative to anything else. Besides, I find it arbitrary as to what I would even track against. My portfolio is either doing what I need to do or it isn't. I don't care if something else is "better" (something always will be) and I don't care if what I'm doing is "better" (I can always find something worse).

Cheers
by dcabler
Sun Mar 19, 2023 6:01 am
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Is it worth it to use a realtor?
Replies: 97
Views: 6612

Re: Is it worth it to use a realtor?

Not sure if anybody has pointed this out yet, but the term "Realtor" is not equivalent to "Real Estate Agent". All Realtors are real estate agents but not all real estate agents are Realtors. The distinction is that realtors belong to a trade group: "National Association of Realtors"

https://www.realtor.com/advice/buy/what-is-a-realtor/

So, no. You don't HAVE to use a realtor. And you don't HAVE to use a real estate agent.

During previous real estate booms, I know of a number of people who obtained a real estate license (but did not become a Realtor) before selling their own houses in order to have access to MLS and to save on at least half of the commissions.

Cheers.
by dcabler
Sun Mar 19, 2023 5:56 am
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Why is Mid-Cap Fund underperforming?
Replies: 39
Views: 3793

Re: Why is Mid-Cap Fund underperforming?

Where’s Mel? Better ask him. :D For many years, as many of the Bogleheads know, I was 100% mid-caps for the equity portion of my portfolio. I wrote and posted about them so much that they became known as "Mel's Unloved Mid-Caps". However, despite the fact that Mid-Caps had been very good to me, once I had attained "more than enough", I reduced the equity portion of my portfolio and opted to move the reduced equity portion to Vanguard's Index 500 fund, which is now my sole equity holding. Do you think that perhaps the reason they're down now is that I haven't been writing about them lately? :wink: Mel - I backed into midcaps on my own but was overjoyed when I found your unloved midcaps thread later here on the forum. I r...
by dcabler
Sat Mar 18, 2023 8:24 pm
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Why is Mid-Cap Fund underperforming?
Replies: 39
Views: 3793

Re: Why is Mid-Cap Fund underperforming?

I have never seen this type of variance in the Mid-Cap fund from the other broader market indexes. What you describe is hardly much "variance" beween mid-cap and the total stock market, but if that's what's bothering you, why in the world are you invested in a mid-cap fund rather than total stock market? could this be why: https://i.postimg.cc/vBXKPJrP/total.jpg source: https://www.portfoliovisualizer.com/backtest-portfolio?s=y&timePeriod=4&startYear=1985&firstMonth=1&endYear=2023&lastMonth=12&calendarAligned=true&includeYTD=false&initialAmount=10000&annualOperation=0&annualAdjustment=0&inflationAdjusted=true&annualPercentage=0.0&frequency=4&rebalanceType=1&absoluteDevia...
by dcabler
Sat Mar 18, 2023 7:43 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: I Bonds Mega Thread (I Bond Heads Rejoice!)
Replies: 4800
Views: 560765

Re: I Bonds Mega Thread (I Bond Heads Rejoice!)

That's simply a risk I'm not willing to take since I already have more than my fair share of high fixed rate I Bonds. That's great that you have no need to buy I bonds going forward! You have clearly done well and amassed what you need in paper bonds. However the people that are trying to evaluate the risk of buying electronic bonds now are not similarly situated. It is not possible for them to buy large amounts of paper bonds. This is a thread about buying I bonds, perhaps there should be a separate one to reminisce about the good old days of I bonds when the fixed rates were high, you could buy $30k worth on your credit card, and those large amounts would be delivered to you in paper form. None of those things apply today. As for the ris...
by dcabler
Sat Mar 18, 2023 5:15 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: Mid Caps have outperformed Large & Small for the past 50 years. Yet I see very little recommendation for them. Why?
Replies: 81
Views: 14156

Re: Mid Caps have outperformed Large & Small for the past 50 years. Yet I see very little recommendation for them. Why?

As of today S&p 500 is at 16.0 forward PE while S&P 400 is at 15.0 PE. A difference but not totally game changing..especially since mid caps are more economically sensitive. I'm considering moving some taxable funds towards midcaps mostly because the lower dividend yield versus SPX makes them tax efficient. For Midcap IJH may be best bet. Been in IJH for a while now. Couldn't be happier. Will it outperform? Who knows for sure but I hope so. Will it lag so far behind the total market such that's it's a disaster? I highly doubt it. Remember when they used to stay "there are many roads to Dublin"? Yeah that. Cheers. If only it had a reliable international companion ... I pair IJH with ISCF on the international side at 80% IJ...
by dcabler
Sat Mar 18, 2023 2:09 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: Mid Caps have outperformed Large & Small for the past 50 years. Yet I see very little recommendation for them. Why?
Replies: 81
Views: 14156

Re: Mid Caps have outperformed Large & Small for the past 50 years. Yet I see very little recommendation for them. Why?

SovereignInvestor wrote: Thu May 23, 2019 7:50 pm As of today S&p 500 is at 16.0 forward PE while S&P 400 is at 15.0 PE. A difference but not totally game changing..especially since mid caps are more economically sensitive.

I'm considering moving some taxable funds towards midcaps mostly because the lower dividend yield versus SPX makes them tax efficient.

For Midcap IJH may be best bet.
Been in IJH for a while now. Couldn't be happier. Will it outperform? Who knows for sure but I hope so. Will it lag so far behind the total market such that's it's a disaster? I highly doubt it.

Remember when they used to stay "there are many roads to Dublin"? Yeah that.

Cheers.
by dcabler
Sat Mar 18, 2023 9:40 am
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Suggestions for life insurance amounts
Replies: 24
Views: 2123

Re: Suggestions for life insurance amounts

ScubaHogg wrote: Sat Feb 18, 2023 2:12 am Life insurance:

Expected lifetime income - expenses that disappear if you pass + expenses that appear if you pass

For me I just use the NPV of my lifetime income. If you aren’t doing that, I have to ask why you plan on working as long as whatever your plan is
That's what I did for my income and reduced coverage over time accordingly. My wife wasn't working anymore so I wanted coverage for her while our daughter was young in case I had to pay for child care if she was gone. That had a reasonably hard cliff and once that passed, we dropped her coverage.

Cheers.
by dcabler
Sat Mar 18, 2023 9:31 am
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Why is Mid-Cap Fund underperforming?
Replies: 39
Views: 3793

Re: Why is Mid-Cap Fund underperforming?

I have never seen this type of variance in the Mid-Cap fund from the other broader market indexes. What you describe is hardly much "variance" beween mid-cap and the total stock market, but if that's what's bothering you, why in the world are you invested in a mid-cap fund rather than total stock market? My comment above is self explanatory. Nothing is bothering me, it was just an observation which was a bit myopic after looking at the actual data. I have owned this fund for decades as a part of my portfolio. [Unnecessary comment removed by admin LadyGeek] Nobody was complaining when midcaps (for me specifically S&P 400 midcaps via IJH) were above the market YTD. That only changed about a week or so ago. This is nothing but n...
by dcabler
Sat Mar 18, 2023 8:42 am
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Retirees: Which safe withdrawal rate allowed you to grow your portfolio?
Replies: 74
Views: 6709

Re: Retirees: Which safe withdrawal rate allowed you to grow your portfolio?

If you're retired, which safe withdrawal rate (SWR) has allowed you actually to grow your nest egg, inflation-adjusted? And how about the future? Do you have any plans to change your SWR? Asset allocation? I'd like to compare your experience with my plans for an SWR. Of course, in my planning, the withdrawal rate has to be adjusted upwards when required minimum distributions kick in, and that makes portfolio growth particularly difficult, as it is supposed to, I suppose. Thanks. I don't use SWR as a withdrawal method. I use a form of ABW (info on this forum). For a particular age you can target the final portfolio value to be anything you want. Regarding RMD's somebody has probably already said it but just because you are forced to withdra...
by dcabler
Sat Mar 18, 2023 6:58 am
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: I Bonds Mega Thread (I Bond Heads Rejoice!)
Replies: 4800
Views: 560765

Re: I Bonds Mega Thread (I Bond Heads Rejoice!)

^^^ While it's probably highly unlikely, that really doesn't matter at all if you happen to be the first and become the poster boy for how it was done. You can't go crying to TD, since you were warned. Somebody's always going to be the first at something. I might get in a car accident. You as well. (heaven forbid on both counts) but I can think a lot of risks I'm taking elsewhere with higher probability than this with significantly more impact. Wouldn't surprise me a bit if this might be the case for you as well. As for me, I'll continue to not lose sleep over this. Cheers (really, cheers!) :D Let's hope that neither you nor anyone else has to be the first. That's simply a risk I'm not willing to take since I already have more than my fair...
by dcabler
Fri Mar 17, 2023 8:05 pm
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Which to Hold - ESPP or RSU
Replies: 9
Views: 757

Re: Which to Hold - ESPP or RSU

PersonalFinanceJam wrote: Fri Mar 17, 2023 6:28 pm I’d personally still go with the answer of neither and sell both immediately without worrying about the tax treatment.
This. Always
by dcabler
Fri Mar 17, 2023 7:10 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: I Bonds Mega Thread (I Bond Heads Rejoice!)
Replies: 4800
Views: 560765

Re: I Bonds Mega Thread (I Bond Heads Rejoice!)

Mel Lindauer wrote: Fri Mar 17, 2023 2:52 pm ^^^ While it's probably highly unlikely, that really doesn't matter at all if you happen to be the first and become the poster boy for how it was done. You can't go crying to TD, since you were warned.
Somebody's always going to be the first at something. I might get in a car accident. You as well. (heaven forbid on both counts) but I can think a lot of risks I'm taking elsewhere with higher probability than this with significantly more impact. Wouldn't surprise me a bit if this might be the case for you as well. As for me, I'll continue to not lose sleep over this.

Cheers (really, cheers!) :D
by dcabler
Fri Mar 17, 2023 10:39 am
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: I Bonds Mega Thread (I Bond Heads Rejoice!)
Replies: 4800
Views: 560765

Re: I Bonds Mega Thread (I Bond Heads Rejoice!)

I recall your thread from a very long time ago regarding #4 and the discussions you had with people at TD. But have you (or anybody else) revisited that? Does anybody actually KNOW of a case where this actually happened? Even in your original thread back in the day, this seemed awfully unlikely to me. We had this very discussion last summer. Nobody knew of any actual instances of this. People seemed more concerned about (a) getting locked out, or (b) family members inappropriately accessing the site. https://www.bogleheads.org/forum/viewtopic.php?t=383394 Yes I'm aware of that thread - and the ones before it all the way back to around 2011 when Mel brought it up. And agree, the biggest issue is getting locked out ourselves or our heirs not...
by dcabler
Fri Mar 17, 2023 6:51 am
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: I Bonds Mega Thread (I Bond Heads Rejoice!)
Replies: 4800
Views: 560765

Re: I Bonds Mega Thread (I Bond Heads Rejoice!)

Not everyone wants electronic savings bonds. There are still those who prefer paper I bonds because paper ones allow joint ownership, meaning that one joint owner can redeem the bonds without the consent of the other. This comes in handy when one passes away. Electronic savings bonds do not allow joint ownership. Rather, they have primary owner WITH secondary owner and the secondary owner is a de facto beneficiary with no rights to the account except when specifically granted by the primary owner. And upon the demise of the primary owner, the secondary owner has to go through required steps to claim the money, just like a beneficiary. That's true that not everyone wants electronic savings bonds. In addition to the joint ownership mentioned...
by dcabler
Fri Mar 17, 2023 6:45 am
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: All investments at Fidelity - is that prudent?
Replies: 16
Views: 2216

Re: All investments at Fidelity - is that prudent?

Not an issue as others have stated.

I'm getting towards the end of a multi-year program to consolidate things at Fidelity.
Only things left are:
- Corporate sponsored HSA is at HealthEquity but I opened up a Fidelity HSA and regularly transfer money from HealthEquity to Fidelity. Retiring soon and will then close the HealthEquity account
- Corporate sponsored 401K is at Vanguard with most of it in their TD Ameritrade Brokerage option. Will roll all of that over to my Fidelity IRA summer of 2024 after the last true-up is made at Vanguard for the company match (I front load 401K)

Other than that
- Banking is at my local credit union
- I hold Ibonds and currently have 4 week T-Bills on autoroll - both at TreasuryDirect

Cheers
by dcabler
Fri Mar 17, 2023 6:26 am
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: Use fund data from VG or M*?
Replies: 25
Views: 1213

Re: Use fund data from VG or M*?

jebmke wrote: Fri Mar 17, 2023 5:53 am One way to solve this is to hold two funds in your desired mix. treasury fund and corporate bond fund. Then the mix is under your control.
Then you get to wonder about whether the treasury fund holds the treasury bonds stated on vanguard or on M*. Same for Corporate bonds. :D
by dcabler
Thu Mar 16, 2023 5:31 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: If I was retiring today, I could comfortably withdraw 5% (mid-30s dad using ERN SWR Toolbox)
Replies: 232
Views: 19567

Re: If I was retiring today, I could comfortably withdraw 5% (mid-30s dad using ERN SWR Toolbox)

I've read all of Karsten's series on withdrawals. I prefer ABW (or actually my own form of it). I do wish he would address this one and other amortization based methods. https://www.bogleheads.org/wiki/Amortization_based_withdrawal Cheers. This post of ERN may not be exactly ABW but I think it is quite similar and in it he discusses and analyzes actuarial method for withdrawals. https://earlyretirementnow.com/2019/12/18/safe-withdrawal-rate-without-simulations-swr-series-part-33/ I had forgotten about that one. I see that I even commented on it back in 2020 at the bottom of the page (with one of my other handles). :D Anyway, it is actuarial and related but not exactly the same and he does some things that I don't exactly agree with. Cheers.
by dcabler
Thu Mar 16, 2023 6:26 am
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: Why do brokerage firms sell t-bills?
Replies: 13
Views: 1731

Re: Why do brokerage firms sell t-bills?

Not 100% sure as to why, but I know a number of investors appreciate that it's offered so that they can purchase T-Bills inside their IRAs..

Cheers
by dcabler
Thu Mar 16, 2023 5:52 am
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: If I was retiring today, I could comfortably withdraw 5% (mid-30s dad using ERN SWR Toolbox)
Replies: 232
Views: 19567

Re: If I was retiring today, I could comfortably withdraw 5% (mid-30s dad using ERN SWR Toolbox)

I've read all of Karsten's series on withdrawals.

I prefer ABW (or actually my own form of it). I do wish he would address this one and other amortization based methods.

https://www.bogleheads.org/wiki/Amortiz ... withdrawal

Cheers.
by dcabler
Thu Mar 16, 2023 5:06 am
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Treasury I-Bonds: Does the principal value reduce when we cash out I-Bonds
Replies: 22
Views: 2335

Re: Treasury I-Bonds: Does the principal value reduce when we cash out I-Bonds

Everybody pretty much answered your question about bond value/principal/yields

Around here they're often used as an emergency fund, but you have to realize that you can't redeem them until you've held them for a year. So you may, in effect, need to have a couple of emergency funds to cover you for one year. After that you lose the last 3 months of interest till you've held them for 5 years. They mature in 30 years.

I purchase them every year and my intention is to hold each of them to maturity for an inflation adjusted income stream in later years.

Cheers.
by dcabler
Wed Mar 15, 2023 6:33 am
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Anyone ever regret leaving Schwab?
Replies: 83
Views: 9877

Re: Anyone ever regret leaving Schwab?

Schwab was my first brokerage account. I traded stocks for a little while, then later I had a mutual fund there. Ultimately that account going when most of my investments were at Fidelity didn't make a lot of sense. So I closed it and moved everything over to Fidelity.

Do I regret it? Not in the least, but not because there was anything wrong with them. There wasn't.

cheers
by dcabler
Sun Mar 12, 2023 8:48 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: Am I understanding investment advisors properly?
Replies: 4
Views: 691

Re: Am I understanding investment advisors properly?

There is no universally accepted definition of small cap or mid cap. Every index has its own definition as does morningstar. Same for value or growth.
by dcabler
Fri Mar 10, 2023 2:09 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: Duration matched bucket strategy’s excellent adventure?
Replies: 67
Views: 4955

Re: Duration matched bucket strategy’s excellent adventure?

Regardless, I'm interested in knowing more about what you're doing if you could provide more details. I'm not a clever investor. I think I have enough to last me till when I claim SS. We also have some dual life SPIA. I'm pretty sure SS and SPIA will give us enough to live comfortably enough. I'm assuming that one day stocks and bonds will go up. But I'm not counting on it. edit: If stocks and bonds return 0 for the next 30 years, I think we will be OK. edit2: What are you doing? Duration matching with TIPS funds as described by vineviz/Bobk and others (not the vineviz shortcut I referenced earlier, but the higher maintenance, more accurate version). I withdraw and update the ratio between the two funds I hold once per quarter. This covers...
by dcabler
Thu Mar 09, 2023 6:48 am
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: First time buying T-Bills from Treasury Direct
Replies: 18
Views: 1340

Re: First time buying T-Bills from Treasury Direct

Yeah, I look at the yields, but I mainly pay attention to the discount value and work from there.

It's not at all hard to do this in TD, by the way, once you get used to how TD works. I currently own two, 4 week T-bills which are offset by 2 weeks with both set for autoroll. Only reason I'd do this at my brokerage would be if I needed my T-bills to be inside my IRA or if I ever thought I'd want to sell a T-Bill before it matures. Neither of those cases apply to me.

Cheers.
by dcabler
Wed Mar 08, 2023 1:51 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: Duration matched bucket strategy’s excellent adventure?
Replies: 67
Views: 4955

Re: Duration matched bucket strategy’s excellent adventure?

Which is fine - just means that any form of duration matching probably isn't your cup of tea. Cheers. Duration matching is my cup of tea. For now my duration is now till SS. Then after that RMD. I think maybe we have different definitions of duration matching. I want to be darn sure my obligations are in the the bank for the next few years. I'm not taking on further obligations. It would be nice if longer term investments let me spend more. But I'm not counting on it. I'm thinking the definitions might indeed be different. Duration matching usually refers to a actual nonrolling bond ladder, or effectively a bond ladder constructed out of bond funds of differing durations such that the effective duration of the totality of the bonds or bond...
by dcabler
Wed Mar 08, 2023 9:56 am
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Disappointed in Bonds...
Replies: 208
Views: 17982

Re: Disappointed in Bonds...

So the big take-away for me is that the bond side may actually need to be more diversified than the stock side. That's an excellent point. So many people just put everything into an intermediate term bond fund when short term and long terms funds are often better if you tailor them to your spending needs. Well, one bond fund has been the Boglehead recommendation for the most part , so it's not exactly surprising that people have done one fund (or even just one target-date fund in deferred, particularly.) Yes, I am guilty of this myself. I have mostly just recommended Total Bond Fund. But that's still okay if you are 5+ years from retirement. But I now recognize that if one is approaching retirement, one should probably diversify your bond ...
by dcabler
Wed Mar 08, 2023 9:13 am
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: Duration matched bucket strategy’s excellent adventure?
Replies: 67
Views: 4955

Re: Duration matched bucket strategy’s excellent adventure?

dknightd wrote: Wed Mar 08, 2023 8:36 am
dcabler wrote: Wed Mar 08, 2023 5:40 am

Take a look: viewtopic.php?p=6869837#p6869837

cheers.
That is an interesting concept. But I do not like it. Instead of selling long term bonds first, I'd prefer to sell what ever is doing better this year. This year it has been short term cash like things. Let the long term things hopefully catch up in the long term . . .
Which is fine - just means that any form of duration matching probably isn't your cup of tea.

Cheers.
by dcabler
Wed Mar 08, 2023 9:12 am
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: A little confused on bond funds.
Replies: 11
Views: 1019

Re: A little confused on bond funds.

increment wrote: Wed Mar 08, 2023 9:00 am
dcabler wrote: Wed Mar 08, 2023 6:37 am GOIXX also appears to be managed and has a relatively short duration
GOIXX is a money-market fund. (The symbol ending in "XX" is a giveaway.)
And, as such, has a "relatively short duration". :D
by dcabler
Wed Mar 08, 2023 6:52 am
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: A little confused on bond funds.
Replies: 11
Views: 1019

Re: A little confused on bond funds.

Gotcha! To clarify, those 4 funds I listed are just the bond/cash offerings. I’m in VINIX and VTSNX for the other 2 funds. Trying to figure out how how to post a pic of the offerings. While I wait for EJ to finish transferring things, I’m reading a lot here. https://www.bogleheads.org/wiki/Getting_started Where I was confused a bit was on the 3 fund portfolio. Specifically the bond side. So I looked at my 401k offerings. VBTIX UTIXX SCCIX GOIXX I’m in VBTIX now.. However, it’s not all Treasuries. The UTIXX is. This is where I get lost. 🤦‍♂️ Yeah, 401K's often have very limited choices. Many 3-funders around here go with VBTIX or the equivalent. No, it's not all treasuries, but that's probably OK if you're going for a 3-fund portfolio. And ...
by dcabler
Wed Mar 08, 2023 6:37 am
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: A little confused on bond funds.
Replies: 11
Views: 1019

Re: A little confused on bond funds.

While I wait for EJ to finish transferring things, I’m reading a lot here. https://www.bogleheads.org/wiki/Getting_started Where I was confused a bit was on the 3 fund portfolio. Specifically the bond side. So I looked at my 401k offerings. VBTIX UTIXX SCCIX GOIXX I’m in VBTIX now.. However, it’s not all Treasuries. The UTIXX is. This is where I get lost. 🤦‍♂️ Yeah, 401K's often have very limited choices. Many 3-funders around here go with VBTIX or the equivalent. No, it's not all treasuries, but that's probably OK if you're going for a 3-fund portfolio. And the expense ratio is low. UTIXX is treasuries but it's a cash reserve fund, which isn't what most people use for their bond holdings SCCIX appears to be managed and has a relatively hi...
by dcabler
Wed Mar 08, 2023 5:40 am
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: Duration matched bucket strategy’s excellent adventure?
Replies: 67
Views: 4955

Re: Duration matched bucket strategy’s excellent adventure?

Thank you all for the informative discussion. To be frank, I’ve become frustrated with all the theory behind the concept of liability matching. By the time I’m in my 70’s and 80’s I’m not sure I’ll have the mental bandwidth to manage a bond ladder or constantly juggle two bond funds of different durations. I’m looking for a simple action plan. But maybe that’s not possible and I just have to accept a “close enough” solution. The last post seemed to suggest holding a 2X cash position to match the bond fund duration may do the job (20% cash?). I’ll have to figure out what that means for my portfolio’s longevity. You can always start with "juggling 2 bonds" today and switch to a ladder in your 70's. There isn't much to manage once y...
by dcabler
Tue Mar 07, 2023 11:21 am
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: How best to preserve the purchasing power and liquidity of fixed-income (after tax, after inflation)
Replies: 114
Views: 8003

Re: How best to preserve the purchasing power and liquidity of fixed-income (after tax, after inflation)

Also agree with your comment above about diversifiers in risk portfolios. I did that during my accumulation days using nominal treasury funds. As I enter retirement, I have only a risk portfolio (all stocks) and an income portfolio (TIPS using duration matching) and, eventually, Social Security. I don't rebalance between any of it. Works for me. Cheers. Our approach to a tee. We are now 5 years retired employing this strategy. Predictability of cash flow indexed to inflation has proven invaluable, regardless of market twists and turns. For us, SS and our TIPS duration matched portfolio are ample for all of our living expenses, with 25% of our entire portfolio committed to equities in a 2:1 US:International ratio (and held for posterity as ...
by dcabler
Tue Mar 07, 2023 9:55 am
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: How best to preserve the purchasing power and liquidity of fixed-income (after tax, after inflation)
Replies: 114
Views: 8003

Re: How best to preserve the purchasing power and liquidity of fixed-income (after tax, after inflation)

ScubaHogg wrote: Tue Mar 07, 2023 7:15 am
dcabler wrote: Mon Mar 06, 2023 5:59 pm
Also agree with your comment above about diversifiers in risk portfolios. I did that during my accumulation days using nominal treasury funds. As I enter retirement, I have only a risk portfolio (all stocks) and an income portfolio (TIPS using duration matching) and, eventually, Social Security. I don't rebalance between any of it. Works for me.

Cheers.
We are targeting a somewhat similar set up for retirement. Did you ever consider something like PSLDX / mild leverage for your RP?
No I haven't gotten that brave yet. But it's in the back of my mind....
by dcabler
Tue Mar 07, 2023 5:30 am
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: direction of rates and 1-2yr Tbills
Replies: 12
Views: 1684

Re: direction of rates and 1-2yr Tbills

1. It’s hard to predict market or rates. What’s the current majority of thinking regarding the timeline and direction of rates? 2. For conservative seniors with cash to invest, is it a good idea to buy some 1yr Tbills or 2yr Tbills at ~5% now? Your thoughts are much appreciated. There is no such thing as a 2 year Tbill. 1 year (52 weeks) is the max. At 2 years, you're looking at T-Notes - a different critter. Anyway, I've been monitoring T-Bill rates for over a year now. 52 week rates plateaued starting at the end of October then slowly dropped through January. It's only in the last issue that the rates rose again. 26 week rates passed the 52 week rates, starting back in December and are still ahead of the 52 week rates So there's an inver...