It's been in a steady downtrend.
The prospectus in 2008 lists the expense ratio as 0.45%, with a purchase fee of 0.15%.
Today the expense ratio is 0.19%.
Search found 3065 matches
- Tue Apr 10, 2018 9:31 am
- Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
- Topic: Will VTWSX expense ratio go down in the future
- Replies: 6
- Views: 931
- Sat Mar 31, 2018 12:18 pm
- Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
- Topic: William Bernstein: Retirement Investing and Spending in two easy steps
- Replies: 77
- Views: 8954
Re: William Bernstein: Retirement Investing and Spending in two easy steps
...So at that point we are supposed to have no stock exposure at all? For the Liability Matching Portfolio only. Bernstein talks about two portfolios: a Liability Matching Portfolio and a Risk Portfolio. Liability Matching Portfolio usually being described as: Residual *basic* living expenses (afte...
- Tue Mar 27, 2018 2:16 pm
- Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
- Topic: Can someone list all the benefits of "FRA" ? [vs taking SS one month before FRA]
- Replies: 12
- Views: 1073
Re: Can someone list all the benefits of "FRA" ? [vs taking SS one month before FRA]
The magic ‘full retirement age’ is important because if you take Social Security benefits before FRA, and you earn income in excess of the annual earnings limit, your Social Security benefit will be reduced. Once you reach FRA, you can earn as much as you like and your Social Security benefit will n...
- Sun Mar 11, 2018 3:15 pm
- Forum: Investing - Help with Personal Investments
- Topic: Comparing Fidelity Investments to Index
- Replies: 18
- Views: 1080
Re: Comparing Fidelity Investments to Index
Along the top of the home page there should be a tab called "performance". This will allow you to compare your performance against any number of indexes of your choosing for a variety of time periods. If their account is being managed by a third-party advisor, this tab, unfortunately and ridiculous...
- Sun Mar 11, 2018 10:47 am
- Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
- Topic: Target Date Funds Changed again?
- Replies: 12
- Views: 1983
Re: Target Date Funds Changed again?
I just noticed the Target Date Funds once again changed their asset allocation. I only checked because my daughter is now in one of these funds through her 403b. I was kind of shocked to see they changed the Target Date Fund 2030 Fund from 65/35 stocks bonds to 75/25 stocks bonds... Is her 403b rep...
- Fri Feb 16, 2018 12:56 am
- Forum: Investing - Help with Personal Investments
- Topic: Torn between Vanguard, Fidelity and Schwab
- Replies: 169
- Views: 15223
Re: Torn between Vanguard, Fidelity and Schwab
The $25 Vanguard fee per fund being talked about does exist for SIMPLE IRA’s. https://investor.vanguard.com/what-we-offer/small-business/simple-ira As for which brokerage, I find Fidelity attractive because you can consolidate brokerage, banking, and credit card all in one. Schwab also has nice bank...
- Sat Feb 03, 2018 11:55 am
- Forum: Investing - Help with Personal Investments
- Topic: brokerage sweep accounts
- Replies: 18
- Views: 1143
Re: brokerage sweep accounts
The default options at Fidelity and Vanguard aren’t designed to hose the individual. They are in response to the new rules regarding money-market funds. For example, a ‘prime’ money-market is subject to possible holds during times of distress, whereas a treasury fund is not, which is the reason for ...
- Thu Feb 01, 2018 10:16 am
- Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
- Topic: Bill Sharpe's preferred portfolio
- Replies: 98
- Views: 20263
Re: Bill Sharpe's preferred portfolio
You'll notice that Bob's AA entries are rounded, but Sharpe carries the AA percentages out to two decimal points. So I think Sharpe leans toward precision and always doing the quarterly exchanges. Yeah, I'll have to stop rounding, because you're absolutely right about Sharpe's precision. In fact, i...
- Wed Jan 31, 2018 10:16 am
- Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
- Topic: Bill Sharpe's preferred portfolio
- Replies: 98
- Views: 20263
Re: Bill Sharpe's preferred portfolio
The December 2017 end-of-year numbers are out for the indexes that Sharpe mentions in the video. So to keep the portfolio allocations up-to-date for anyone who is interested, here are the numbers (in millions of USD): 27,452,976 - US stocks - CRSP US Total Market Index 25,022,106 - ex US stocks - FT...
- Thu Jan 04, 2018 5:46 pm
- Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
- Topic: New Investing Book Recommendation
- Replies: 2
- Views: 361
Re: New Investing Book Recommendation
Read Bernstein’s If You Can (short, easy read, and free - but worth its weight in gold). It references several other books that are all great.
http://efficientfrontier.com/ef/0adhoc/2books.htm
http://efficientfrontier.com/ef/0adhoc/2books.htm
- Sun Dec 24, 2017 11:14 pm
- Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
- Topic: Credit card fraudulent charge - How could this happen?
- Replies: 13
- Views: 1923
Re: Credit card fraudulent charge - How could this happen?
...Good things there are federal laws that protect you in the case of credit card fraud. You don't have the same protections with debit cards. According to the law, the Electronic Funds Transfer Act (EFTA), Electronic Fund Transfers (Regulation E) Section 1005.6 Liability of Consumer for Unauthoriz...
- Thu Nov 30, 2017 11:16 am
- Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
- Topic: Don't leave your mac unattended! It has zero security now.
- Replies: 21
- Views: 3126
- Sun Nov 26, 2017 2:47 pm
- Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
- Topic: full spectrum lighting for SAD?
- Replies: 7
- Views: 498
Re: full spectrum lighting for SAD?
When I used to live in northern Alaska, GE Reveal bulbs were popular.
- Fri Nov 24, 2017 11:18 pm
- Forum: Investing - Help with Personal Investments
- Topic: Best way to liquidate Wealthfront
- Replies: 29
- Views: 4075
Re: Best way to liquidate Wealthfront
If you do transfer in-kind and have to sell them yourself, both Fidelity and Schwab have offers of 500 free trades good for 2 years.
https://rewards.fidelity.com/offers/ATP500free
https://www.schwab.com/public/schwab/ac ... ffer2.html
https://rewards.fidelity.com/offers/ATP500free
https://www.schwab.com/public/schwab/ac ... ffer2.html
- Wed Nov 22, 2017 5:19 pm
- Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
- Topic: Why not take Social Security at 62
- Replies: 334
- Views: 28722
Re: Why not take Social Security at 62
Financial guru Bill Bernstein had an interesting answer to the Social Security now/then question: There are two possible goals with SS: 1) buy the optimal amount of longevity insurance for a given input, or 2) optimize your total amount of SS benefits. Both are valid goals, but let's assume you want...
- Mon Nov 20, 2017 11:22 pm
- Forum: Investing - Help with Personal Investments
- Topic: What percentage of your annual expenditures are you targeting for travel once you are retired?
- Replies: 19
- Views: 1550
Re: What percentage of your annual expenditures are you targeting for travel once you are retired?
Zero. This might be heresy as most seem to think that travel is part of retirement, but I did travel a lot including internationally when I worked. I do not like to travel, I do not like hotels, and i do not like to pack. I like my own bed. Now I have traveled zero days in my 1 year of retirement. ...
- Sun Nov 12, 2017 10:57 am
- Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
- Topic: Better way to get rid of old fridge?
- Replies: 38
- Views: 2953
Re: Better way to get rid of old fridge?
How about your electric company?
Mine promotes the energy efficiency of new appliances by offering to take old refrigerators and pay you $75.
https://www.firstenergycorp.com/save_en ... #gsc.tab=0
Mine promotes the energy efficiency of new appliances by offering to take old refrigerators and pay you $75.
https://www.firstenergycorp.com/save_en ... #gsc.tab=0
- Sat Nov 11, 2017 10:48 pm
- Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
- Topic: Another Smart Phone Thread, Low/Mid priced phones and carriers
- Replies: 53
- Views: 4166
Re: Another Smart Phone Thread, Low/Mid priced phones and carriers
Waiting til Black Friday to purchase, and going back and forth between G5 plus and G5s Plus due to software update support and possible future support. I believe the G5s got the most recent update, but the G5 has not. They're both getting Android 8 Oreo upgrade https://blog.motorola.com/2017/09/14/...
- Tue Oct 31, 2017 11:26 am
- Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
- Topic: Navy Federal Financial Group Launches EasyStart® Investor
- Replies: 1
- Views: 1384
Re: Navy Federal Financial Group Launches EasyStart® Investor
The Navy Federal site doesn't seem to mention it directly, but apparently it's Folio Investing in the background
http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/2 ... -Investing
http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/2 ... -Investing
- Sun Oct 29, 2017 1:16 pm
- Forum: Investing - Help with Personal Investments
- Topic: What’s a safe formula for assets needed to retire?
- Replies: 58
- Views: 5068
Re: What’s a safe formula for assets needed to retire?
From Bill Bernstein's book If You Can : The name of the game is to accumulate around 12 years of living expenses, which, combined with Social Security, should provide for a reasonable retirement. How did I arrive at 12 years of living expenses? The average person needs to accumulate about twenty-fiv...
- Sat Oct 28, 2017 10:10 pm
- Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
- Topic: Bogle has a forecast...
- Replies: 19
- Views: 4566
Re: Bogle has a forecast...
Thanks for the link. Great video. Should be watched often. Reminder to keep costs as low as possible. So, time to dump all active managed funds in one's portfolio? :shock: Including the venerable Wellesley/Wellington twins? :shock: In an Investor's Business Daily interview, Jack Bogle seems to say ...
- Sat Oct 28, 2017 5:23 pm
- Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
- Topic: Sagestream freeze
- Replies: 9
- Views: 1494
Re: Sagestream freeze
Sagestream? Who the heck is that? Their website seems very fraud-y to me. A freeze mentions mailing them things like a current bank statement, a voided check, a copy of your social security card, etc. They must be joking. Further research and an L.A. Time article indicates their parent company is ow...
- Sat Oct 28, 2017 10:21 am
- Forum: Investing - Help with Personal Investments
- Topic: Market Crash Defensive Portfolio
- Replies: 30
- Views: 4391
Re: Market Crash Defensive Portfolio
Fellow Boglehead longinvest has what I always considered an excellent, conservative Canadian-based investment portfolio. As he describes it: Lifelong Portfolio: 25% each of (domestic/international) stocks/(nominal/inflation-indexed) bonds VCN - Canada all-cap stock index VXC - Global all-cap ex-Cana...
- Tue Oct 24, 2017 12:50 pm
- Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
- Topic: TrevH's 4 Fund Portfolio
- Replies: 6
- Views: 1118
Re: TrevH's 4 Fund Portfolio
Does anyone have data on returns for this 4 Fund Portfolio? The MarketWatch site that tracks the "lazy portfolios" shows the lazy "Ultimate Buy and Hold" portfolio hasn't been doing very well over the last 3, 5, and 10 years ( http://www.marketwatch.com/lazyportfolio ) https://www.portfoliovisualiz...
- Fri Oct 20, 2017 1:21 pm
- Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
- Topic: Drawback of TOTP (app like Google Authenticator)?
- Replies: 22
- Views: 1888
- Fri Oct 20, 2017 12:40 pm
- Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
- Topic: Bill Sharpe's preferred portfolio
- Replies: 98
- Views: 20263
Re: Bill Sharpe's preferred portfolio
The September 30, end-of-quarter numbers are out. The total market-caps all went up, but the overall allocation percentages are still the same at 30/27/22/21. September 30 numbers in red. I'll update the wiki too when I get a minute. The June 30 end-of-quarter numbers are out for the indexes that Sh...
- Wed Oct 18, 2017 12:24 pm
- Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
- Topic: Anyone planning on getting the new Pixel phone?
- Replies: 141
- Views: 11523
Re: Anyone planning on getting the new Pixel phone?
How about a new Moto G5S Plus? 5.5 inch screen, $349 with 4GB RAM and 64GB storage. I lucked out and got one of the 4/64GB versions on sale at Newegg for $299. A killer deal! :moneybag I did look at this one online, definitely a good buy for sure. But I find that unlocked Motorola phones are very s...
- Sat Oct 07, 2017 10:19 pm
- Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
- Topic: VFITX, VBIIX or VBMFX for Swensen portfolio?
- Replies: 5
- Views: 755
Re: VFITX, VBIIX or VBMFX for Swensen portfolio?
If you read his book Unconventional Success or Pioneering Portfolio Management , you'll see he definitely recommends pure treasury. Somebody emailed him a few years back and he responded that you should match the duration of the overall treasury market. VFITX would get you pretty close (although it'...
- Tue Sep 26, 2017 6:19 pm
- Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
- Topic: The Rolex and The Boglehead
- Replies: 274
- Views: 13509
Re: The Rolex and The Boglehead
How many Bogleheads out there own and wear a Rolex (or similar)? Those that do, any regrets? I'd like to one day own a nice watch but for right now I just admire them all. DW might not ever sign off on a watch that expensive but still I'm curious what other Bogleheads have to say. If you're looking...
- Tue Sep 26, 2017 11:50 am
- Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
- Topic: BH phone review: Moto G5 Plus
- Replies: 35
- Views: 3458
Re: BH phone review: Moto G5 Plus
The camera works really well and takes fast pictures. With my previous phones, I had a lot of missed opportunities trying to take pictures in a hurry with my young child but I've had great success taking clear pictures in a pinch with the G5. I love the double wrist-twist gesture to go to camera mo...
- Fri Sep 22, 2017 1:38 pm
- Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
- Topic: Age you retired
- Replies: 112
- Views: 9790
Re: Age you retired
Same for me.
Also same for me. We're Boglehead twins

- Thu Sep 21, 2017 9:08 am
- Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
- Topic: What's a good big e-reader?
- Replies: 10
- Views: 1038
Re: What's a good big e-reader?
Does your PDF document have to stay in PDF?
If not, convert it to Kindle format by emailing it to your kindle using the Send to Kindle convert function. Once you do that, you can change font sizes and such just like any normal Kindle book.
If not, convert it to Kindle format by emailing it to your kindle using the Send to Kindle convert function. Once you do that, you can change font sizes and such just like any normal Kindle book.
- Wed Sep 20, 2017 10:58 am
- Forum: Investing - Help with Personal Investments
- Topic: Vanguard total us dividend for Sept?
- Replies: 10
- Views: 1490
Re: Vanguard total us dividend for Sept?
Here's the full list.
Total Stock declaration date is September 20.
https://investornews.vanguard/find-out- ... his-month/
Total Stock declaration date is September 20.
https://investornews.vanguard/find-out- ... his-month/
- Sat Sep 16, 2017 5:39 pm
- Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
- Topic: Why are so many Chinese visiting my website?
- Replies: 24
- Views: 6093
Re: Why are so many Chinese visiting my website?
I always find looking at the web server logs amusing. Just last week I was getting a lot of probes from a purported Chinese IP address. They were looking for a vulnerability in a particular contact-manager program. It seems that whoever was looking isn't too sophisticated, because not only do I not ...
- Wed Aug 30, 2017 10:22 pm
- Forum: Investing - Help with Personal Investments
- Topic: Fidelity equivalent of VTIAX (VG TOTAL Intl. Stock)
- Replies: 9
- Views: 1106
Re: Fidelity equivalent of VTIAX (VG TOTAL Intl. Stock)
Hi Fidelity www listed below for International Index funds, which fund is the equivalent to VG VTIAX? 1) FSPNX - Fidelity® International Index Fund - Institutional Class - https://fundresearch.fidelity.com/mutual-funds/summary/315911735 FSIVX - Fidelity® International Index Fund - Premium Developed...
- Mon Aug 14, 2017 9:43 am
- Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
- Topic: 'Pure' U.S. revenue ETF
- Replies: 1
- Views: 338
'Pure' U.S. revenue ETF
It's often discussed that you don't need much of an ex-US stock allocation since the large U.S. companies are all international and get a significant part of their revenue from outside the U.S. So it's interesting that iShares is debuting a 'Pure' U.S. revenue ETF that consists of companies that do ...
- Mon Aug 14, 2017 9:21 am
- Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
- Topic: Spreadsheet for Tracking the Global Market Portfolio
- Replies: 14
- Views: 1705
Re: Spreadsheet for Tracking the Global Market Portfolio
That's a great idea that we should keep up-to-date on Sharpe's allocation. Maybe we should add it to the wiki. It looks like your numbers from the spreadsheet are as follows: CRSP U.S: $25,089,806.00 FTSE All-World ex U.S.: $20,585,441.00 Citi: USBIG: $18,860,820.00 Citi: WorldBIG - USBIG: $18,373,2...
- Fri Aug 11, 2017 6:34 pm
- Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
- Topic: Securities in an Insecure World...Graham
- Replies: 12
- Views: 1690
Re: Securities in an Insecure World...Graham
For anyone interested, here's Graham's entire 1963 speech Securities in an Insecure World.
- Tue Aug 08, 2017 2:17 pm
- Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
- Topic: Vanguard Government Bond Index Funds changing names and indices (dropping agency bonds)
- Replies: 56
- Views: 6910
Re: Vanguard Government Bond Index Funds changing names and indices (dropping agency bonds)
That's probably the reason for the change. Vanguard's current treasury funds aren't indexed and don't have ETF shares. After this benchmark change, Vanguard will have pure treasury ETF's to compete with that big iShares volume.triceratop wrote:...pure treasury funds from iShares...
- Mon Jul 24, 2017 5:26 pm
- Forum: Investing - Help with Personal Investments
- Topic: "If You Can"-style Rebalancing
- Replies: 14
- Views: 1980
Re: "If You Can"-style Rebalancing
Here are a couple of rebalancing calculators that are pretty cool:
https://www.bee-man.us/finance/portfolio_rebalance.htm
http://optimalrebalancing.tk
https://www.bee-man.us/finance/portfolio_rebalance.htm
http://optimalrebalancing.tk
- Mon Jul 17, 2017 1:12 pm
- Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
- Topic: Fidelity interest rates
- Replies: 20
- Views: 2831
Re: Fidelity interest rates
In my cash management account I use SPRXX -- Fidelity Money Market. The current yield is 0.96%. They liquidate it at the end of each day to reconcile debits in the account. Isn't the FDIC-insured deposit sweep account your core position for the cash account? How do you get an automatic draw from SP...
- Thu Jul 13, 2017 10:19 am
- Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
- Topic: Bill Sharpe's preferred portfolio
- Replies: 98
- Views: 20263
Re: Bill Sharpe's preferred portfolio
25,089,806/22,271,698 is about 53/47 US/Ex-US for the equity portion... Yep, right in-line with the Total World Stock Index fund (VTWSX/VT), which Sharpe would seem to prefer to use for simplicity and not having to rebalance, but doesn't, as he mentions in the video, because it's still a bit more e...
- Thu Jul 13, 2017 9:03 am
- Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
- Topic: Bill Sharpe's preferred portfolio
- Replies: 98
- Views: 20263
Re: Bill Sharpe's preferred portfolio
The June 30 end-of-quarter numbers are out for the indexes that Sharpe mentions in the video. So to keep the portfolio allocations up-to-date for anyone who is interested, here are the numbers (in millions of USD): 25,089,806 - US stocks - CRSP US Total Market Index 22,271,698 - ex US stocks - FTSE ...
- Sun Jul 09, 2017 10:07 am
- Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
- Topic: William Bernstein on Meb Faber's podcast
- Replies: 54
- Views: 8095
Re: William Bernstein on Meb Faber's podcast
W. Bernstein advocates not having money in stocks that you need for the next 10-15 years. (can't find the exact spot where he says this, but this is my memory - might have been a straight "15 years", and I am adding the "10"). Wow - this is a long time, and very few retirees can afford to have 15 y...
- Mon Jul 03, 2017 11:15 am
- Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
- Topic: Paul Merriman: The One Fund Every Investor Should Own
- Replies: 122
- Views: 20746
Re: Paul Merriman: The One Fund Every Investor Should Own
It's not possible fore every investor to own that fund. And even if they did, the price would have been bid up so far that the future returns would be extremely low. It's silly advice. If everyone tilted towards small-value, it wouldn't even be a tilt anymore, but would simply be a new current make-...
- Tue Jun 20, 2017 9:50 am
- Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
- Topic: Alternatives to Amazon, Freebooksy, Bookbub, etc.
- Replies: 15
- Views: 2063
Re: Alternatives to Amazon, Freebooksy, Bookbub, etc.
https://www.abebooks.com
I just bought a mint used copy of Bill Bernstein's book The Birth of Plenty in hardcover for $4.57, and that included postage.
I just bought a mint used copy of Bill Bernstein's book The Birth of Plenty in hardcover for $4.57, and that included postage.
- Sat Jun 03, 2017 8:24 am
- Forum: Investing - Help with Personal Investments
- Topic: Boglehead approved actively managed funds!
- Replies: 28
- Views: 3985
Re: Boglehead approved actively managed funds!
Jack Bogle has mentioned Dodge & Cox and Longleaf Partners.
- Thu May 25, 2017 6:31 pm
- Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
- Topic: Need new Router/Wifi Networking Ideas
- Replies: 39
- Views: 5164
Re: Need new Router/Wifi Networking Ideas
Sorry Blue Man, but the early Bogleheads got the worms...er, routers. All three Airport Expresses have now been spoken for.blueman457 wrote:(although cyberbob I might take you up on your offer!)

- Tue May 23, 2017 8:07 am
- Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
- Topic: Present value of COLA pension
- Replies: 21
- Views: 2580
Re: Present value of COLA pension
William Jennings, a professor of finance at the Air Force Academy, along with William Reichenstein, a professor at Baylor University have written an academic paper on how to calculate the value of a military pension.
- Sun May 21, 2017 4:16 pm
- Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
- Topic: Need new Router/Wifi Networking Ideas
- Replies: 39
- Views: 5164
Re: Need new Router/Wifi Networking Ideas
I've got two left now. Somebody snapped up the third one.blueman457 wrote:(although cyberbob I might take you up on your offer!)
Although, if you've already got one, adding two more as extenders should be more than enough, unless your house is hotel-size
