Search found 6330 matches

by sycamore
Wed Jan 31, 2024 12:14 pm
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Fidelity vs Vanguard for Taxable Accounts
Replies: 49
Views: 5746

Re: Fidelity vs Vanguard for Taxable Accounts

m&m2035 wrote: Wed Jan 31, 2024 10:52 am
rkhusky wrote: Wed Jan 24, 2024 8:41 pm
m&m2035 wrote: Wed Jan 24, 2024 7:27 pm
If I switch these 3 funds to Vanguard's VTI, is this going to trigger wash sale?
No. But you might have some cap gains tax.
So, if I want to switch to Vanguard ETF (VTI) from these 3 Fidelity funds, I would be paying 15% tax (or about $400) on those gains...am I correct?

Image
You're correct, assuming that your capital gains tax rate actually will be 15% and that you won't have capital losses to offset those gains.
by sycamore
Tue Jan 30, 2024 7:47 am
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Vanguard Transaction Method
Replies: 76
Views: 5361

Re: Vanguard Transaction Method

HomeStretch wrote: Tue Jan 30, 2024 7:36 am If a trade was made late Friday, it’s hard to understand how the funds sold, settled and transferred by Saturday. So perhaps the $ have not left your account....
That is a good question.

My guess is the OP is using "transaction" not in the buy/sell a security sense but rather a transfer money sense.

Perhaps account transfer via ACATS?
by sycamore
Sun Jan 28, 2024 8:45 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: What would you do if you found someone else's lost credit/debit card?
Replies: 42
Views: 3645

Re: What would you do if you found someone else's lost credit/debit card?

MisterBill wrote: Sun Jan 28, 2024 7:41 pm What would you have done?
Contact the owner.

Failing that I'd call the bank.

Maybe a million other things I'd do. But the last thing would be to ask about it on Nextdoor.
by sycamore
Sun Jan 28, 2024 4:09 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: RMD distributions no longer transferred to non-retirement accounts
Replies: 45
Views: 9294

Re: RMD distributions no longer transferred to non-retirement accounts

Chaminade wrote: Sat Jan 27, 2024 1:24 pm Am I understanding correctly that the only way to move RMD distribution into non-retirement taxable Vanguard Brokerage account is to 1) sell funds in my rollover IRA to meet RMD obligation 2) move those funds into Federal Money Market in my Brokerage Account 3) choose which non-retirement accounts I wish to purchase, or add to, and manually move the funds from Federal Money Market?
That's not the only way.

Another way is transfer shares "in kind". You don't sell the shares beforehand. You indicate you want to transfer $X of a mutual fund you own from your Vanguard IRA to your Vanguard taxable account.
by sycamore
Sat Jan 27, 2024 8:30 pm
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Vanguard ST Tips
Replies: 24
Views: 1968

Re: Vanguard ST Tips

Maybe we could stay on topic? I.e., chasbwdc's personal situation, not other people's.
by sycamore
Sat Jan 27, 2024 8:19 pm
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Advice on leak into basement drywall
Replies: 28
Views: 2707

Re: Advice on leak into basement drywall

valueinvestor wrote: Sat Jan 27, 2024 7:16 pm I am trying to attach a picture but I was not able to find a way to attach files to posts. There is no option other than to link to an image that needs to be hosted on some other website. Can anyone please help?

Thank you!
You're correct that we can't post images directly to the Bogleheads site; you must host them elsewhere. See here for instructions: https://www.bogleheads.org/wiki/Posting ... eads_forum

I use postimages.org.
by sycamore
Sat Jan 27, 2024 5:58 pm
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Anyone build a "TIPS" ladder with iShares iBonds?
Replies: 35
Views: 3872

Re: Anyone build a "TIPS" ladder with iShares iBonds?

legolast wrote: Sat Jan 27, 2024 1:47 pm ...
I wonder if there is anyway to see what TIPS each ETF holds or do they just hold all the TIPS that mature in that year?
It's good to ask that question before buying the fund! Here are two replies:

1. Every ETF has a prospectus. I think it's worthwhile reading such things. Others never read a prospectus. What are your thoughts about that?

2. Check the fund provider's website for details of the fund, including the current holdings. A Google search will get you there.

Here's the link: https://www.ishares.com/us/products/333 ... m-tips-etf. Expand the "Holdings" section.

Suggest you compare the holdings of the 2024 (in particular) versus the 2028 ETF.
by sycamore
Sat Jan 27, 2024 7:16 am
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Is paying off a 2.99% mortgage always a bad idea?
Replies: 332
Views: 24984

Re: Is paying off a 2.99% mortgage always a bad idea?

Triple digit golfer wrote: Sat Jan 27, 2024 5:50 am "Is paying off a 2.99% mortgage always a bad idea?"
If you take always literally, then no, not always.

Sometimes it is, for some people.

For Triple digit golfer specifically it is likely a good idea to pay off the mortgage so Tdg can spend less time windering about mortgage payoffs and more on getting his golf score down to two digits. :beer
by sycamore
Sat Jan 27, 2024 7:05 am
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: HR Block Deluxe wants to charge me $39.95 for the State program
Replies: 64
Views: 6063

Re: HR Block Deluxe wants to charge me $39.95 for the State program

There are various scenarios where they need to retain your data, at least for a period of time.

I say that based on my general understanding that Intuit TurboTax acts an Electronic Return Originator. There are laws and IRS regulations about ERO responsibilities, which include how long they can or even must retain certain data.
by sycamore
Fri Jan 26, 2024 8:55 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: QQ: Regular Wages, Capital Gains - what are the taxes you will pay?
Replies: 7
Views: 659

Re: QQ: Regular Wages, Capital Gains - what are the taxes you will pay?

CeeKay1729 wrote: Fri Jan 26, 2024 8:46 pm
Silk McCue wrote: Fri Jan 26, 2024 8:35 pm Your $29,200 std deduction is taxed at $0. The next dollars up to $23,200 is to the top of the 10% bracket. So $2320 is the tax on those dollars.

Cheers
huh?? Doesn't you std deduction decrease your AGI so 52,400-std deduction = 23,200, which is still within the 0% bracket? :confused
No, sorry to say that's incorrect.

There is no 0% bracket per se. The 0% really refers to the standard deduction being subtracted from your adjusted gross income to determine your taxable income.

Here's a web site that graphically shows how tax brackets work:
https://engaging-data.com/tax-brackets/ ... =0&yr=2024
by sycamore
Fri Jan 26, 2024 6:57 pm
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: TurboTax form 8606 for Nondeductible IRA
Replies: 12
Views: 1843

Re: TurboTax form 8606 for Nondeductible IRA

I have nondeductible contributions mingled with my IRA and now taking my RMD. it is kind of a mess but it can be calculated. The last two years TurboTax did a beautiful job. This time not so much. First I don't think all my files got transferred, although most did. The form 8906 was completely missing, then after talking to rep. she made it appear. But now I have the form but it is not doing the calculations right. I have spent hours on the phone with this. Can I hope this will correct itself magically when I turn TT on tomorrow? How do I even check if all the numbers and data transferred properly from 2022? I have been using TT for 15 years and never had a problem until now. Anyone else having similar problem? I'm not having that problem ...
by sycamore
Thu Jan 25, 2024 9:27 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Vanguard 1099 downloads on TurboTax
Replies: 13
Views: 1902

Re: Vanguard 1099 downloads on TurboTax

All this talk about uploading is confusing.

I use TurboTax installed locally on my computer. I download a 1099 PDF from my brokerages to my local computer. Then I hand enter the data in to TT.

I could download them directly in to TT using TT, of course, but that's still downloading.

Are people who talk of uploads using TT online instead of the download/desktop version? Like you're uploading to the cloud or whatever?

P.S. I've been uploading and downloading since the days of 300 baud modems so I'm pretty sure which way is up :)
by sycamore
Thu Jan 25, 2024 9:17 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: ACATS, individual bonds and cost basis
Replies: 6
Views: 1117

Re: ACATS, individual bonds and cost basis

In general I know brokerages are required to track basis for bonds like they do for stocks, ETFs, or mutual funds. But there may be some finer points about individual bonds.

Suggest you ask in the long thread on Taxation of Treasury bills, notes and bonds.
by sycamore
Thu Jan 25, 2024 5:42 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Vanguard 1099 downloads on TurboTax
Replies: 13
Views: 1902

Re: Vanguard 1099 downloads on TurboTax

Not all 1099s are ready at the same time... maybe you have a fund that is typically late to deliver the 1099 like REIT?
by sycamore
Thu Jan 25, 2024 8:18 am
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Mutual fund in i401k w/Fidelity
Replies: 7
Views: 522

Re: Mutual fund in i401k w/Fidelity

Hi, I’m putting 60k into my i401k for 2023 to avoid income taxes, but I’d just like the equivalent of a hysa around 5% to avoid risk. Is it a bad idea to just use one of Fidelity’s top performing mutual funds in an i401k? Any suggestions appreciated. It's not clear what you meant by that bolded statement. If you meant the top performing money market fund as an alternative to a HYSA, that's cool But if you meant "top performing" as your way of deciding which stock or bond fund to use, that's decidedly un-Boglehead. Avoid performance chasing. First decide on an asset allocation and then pick low cost index funds. Market cap weighted index funds for stocks. For bonds there are other variables. Are you looking for suggestions along t...
by sycamore
Thu Jan 25, 2024 6:53 am
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: FKDNX, FISEX, FKGRX Novice Investor
Replies: 9
Views: 827

Re: FKDNX, FISEX, FKGRX Novice Investor

I just moved FKDNX $11,000, FISEX $4,000, and FKGRX $3000 from Edward Jones to Fidelity. It was my Roth, so I just did a rollover. What’s next? Should I change each to something that is comparable to like a Vanguard, changing FKDNX to VGT? I plan to retire in 3 years. I will have monthly pension for life. I want to invest in stocks (ETFs) that are fairly aggressive. I will not be using my Roth for another 10 to 15 years. I will be 55 at retirement. I would pick a single fund, either ETF or mutual fund per your preference - the "wrapper" doesn't matter much. A "total stock market" fund is plenty aggressive. No need to pick sectors (like Health Care or Tech) or market cap (like small or mega) in the hopes one will "o...
by sycamore
Thu Jan 25, 2024 6:38 am
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Sold Taxable fund. Reporting Documents?
Replies: 5
Views: 752

Re: Sold Taxable fund. Reporting Documents?

dagsboro wrote: Thu Jan 25, 2024 5:00 am Seems like a question for Vanguard but thanks anyway for responding.
I agree it's best to contact Vanguard. Without seeing the actual forms it's hard to say what's wrong.

Let us know what happens!
by sycamore
Thu Jan 25, 2024 6:27 am
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Identifying Roth IRA Account Merrill
Replies: 5
Views: 508

Re: Identifying Roth IRA Account Merrill

Leesbro63 wrote: Thu Jan 25, 2024 5:41 am Should I be concerned about this? Is "RRA" a standard abbreviation for Roth IRA?
No need for concern. Other people have noticed the same thing, see this reddit thread.
Leesbro63 wrote: Thu Jan 25, 2024 5:41 am ... all documents should clearly state "ROTH".
Don't you mean "Roth" ?
It's not an acronym :-)
by sycamore
Wed Jan 24, 2024 7:00 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Taxes
Replies: 4
Views: 890

Re: Taxes

If I do fund my husband's IRA for 2023, should I do a traditional IRA or a Roth? A general rule of thumb is to make a deductible (Traditional) contribution if your marginal tax rate now (maybe 22% ?) is higher than what your marginal rate will be when you withdraw during retirement. Of course the future rate is unknowable. I think for most typical "workers" (myself included) that Traditional is a reasonable default choice. If you want to dig into the details, here are two Bogleheads wiki articles about Trad versus Roth: Traditional versus Roth and Traditional versus Roth examples . As you can tell from those articles, it can be pretty complicated. Should I temporarily pause the 403b contribution to save up the downpayment? Depend...
by sycamore
Wed Jan 24, 2024 5:50 pm
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Sold Taxable fund. Reporting Documents?
Replies: 5
Views: 752

Re: SOLD TAXABLE FUND. REPORTING DOCUMENTS?

Is the 1099-B I received plus the Realized Gains and Losses statement all I need to report my taxes? It's often the case all you need is the 1099-B but not always. For example: 1. It's possible your broker made a mistake on the 1099. That does not absolve the taxpayer of reporting the correct numbers when filing a tax return. 2. Maybe you have another brokerage account where some of your trades caused a wash sale. You are responsible for reporting the wash sale; the brokerages in this scenario don't know there was a wash sale and therefore can't report it. 3. You sold noncovered shares . For example, mutual fund shares you bought back in 2010. Brokerages were not and are not required to keep track of basis for shares bought before a certai...
by sycamore
Mon Jan 22, 2024 7:05 am
Forum: US Chapters
Topic: 🎁 🎉Happy 100th Birthday to Taylor Larimore 🎊🎂
Replies: 429
Views: 43350

Re: 🎁 🎉Happy 100th Birthday to Taylor Larimore 🎊🎂

Happy birthday Taylor
You're one of a kind!
by sycamore
Mon Jan 22, 2024 7:03 am
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: iShares iBonds ETFs by BlackRock - thoughts?
Replies: 12
Views: 1769

Re: iShares iBonds ETFs by BlackRock - thoughts?

I suggest reviewing several previous BH threads on the subject. Lots of good opinions and facts for your perusal.
Here's a Google search for them:
https://www.google.com/search?q=ishares ... eheads.org
by sycamore
Sun Jan 21, 2024 1:15 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: Difference between VBTLX and BND
Replies: 19
Views: 3687

Re: Difference between VBTLX and BND

Backtesting VBTLX with BND I find that BND performs a bit worse in the long term over VBTLX, not quite sure why. Jan 2008-Dec 2023: VBTLX had an annualized 2.80% CAGR BND had an annualized 2.71% CAGR https://www.portfoliovisualizer.com/backtest-portfolio?s=y&sl=1cSPqynd65m9N9olxTtsk1 Might have to do with how dividends are reinvested. That PV backtest was configured to reinvest dividends but you're right it could be related -- PV is making an assumption about when the dividend would be reinvested and at what price. And what about any bid/ask spread? Same thing applies to the original purchase as well. Maybe PV's FAQ explains how it works exactly, I'm not sure. For a real-life investor, you won't get the same reinvestment price or date ...
by sycamore
Sun Jan 21, 2024 12:22 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: Difference between VBTLX and BND
Replies: 19
Views: 3687

Re: Difference between VBTLX and BND

Backtesting VBTLX with BND I find that BND performs a bit worse in the long term over VBTLX, not quite sure why. Jan 2008-Dec 2023: VBTLX had an annualized 2.80% CAGR BND had an annualized 2.71% CAGR https://www.portfoliovisualizer.com/backtest-portfolio?s=y&sl=1cSPqynd65m9N9olxTtsk1 Might have to do with how dividends are reinvested. That PV backtest was configured to reinvest dividends but you're right it could be related -- PV is making an assumption about when the dividend would be reinvested and at what price. And what about any bid/ask spread? Same thing applies to the original purchase as well. Maybe PV's FAQ explains how it works exactly, I'm not sure. For a real-life investor, you won't get the same reinvestment price or date ...
by sycamore
Sun Jan 21, 2024 12:16 pm
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Would selling iShares MSCI and buying VXUS create a wash sale
Replies: 12
Views: 1027

Re: Would selling iShares MSCI and buying VXUS create a wash sale

That has not been my experience at Schwab. I have a Schwab account where selling shares of an ETF and buying shares of an ETF can be done immediately. I wonder if you are selling a mutual fund where sale occurs after the market close, so money would not be available the same day to buy VXUS. I received a warning about (paraphrasing here) letting funds settle or being restricted to trade in the future. I was selling and trying to purchase ETF during market hours. Maybe we need a margin account? Or maybe the trade would have gone through dispite the warning? Either way, waiting 2 days for the trade to settle isn't too much trouble. It was likely (IMO) a warning about what not to do after buying the ETF, i.e., don't sell what you just purchas...
by sycamore
Sun Jan 21, 2024 12:12 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: Do Bond Funds Really Make Sense for the Long Run?
Replies: 399
Views: 39310

Re: Do Bond Funds Really Make Sense for the Long Run?

McQ wrote: Sat Jan 20, 2024 9:58 pm ...Per alpha4, the paper is here: https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm ... id=4457203. It's being revised for journal submission under a title like, "Before Bogle: How Much Could Investors Have Got?"

The material below is a short tutorial on the history of bond mutual funds, from one of the appendices to the paper.
...
Thanks for collecting, analyzing, synthesizing and reporting that history
(and of course thanks to those you leaned on).

I love a good history lesson :)
by sycamore
Sun Jan 21, 2024 8:07 am
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Any way to sell FXAIX and buy VOO with no time out of market?
Replies: 23
Views: 2329

Re: Any way to sell FXAIX and buy VOO with no time out of market?

I-Know-Nothing wrote: Sun Jan 21, 2024 8:05 am
sycamore wrote: Sun Jan 21, 2024 7:56 am +1 to what livesoft said.

And also, why do you want to switch? They're both S&P 500 funds. Both very low-cost. Both very well-run.
I’m considering transferring this IRA to Robinhood to get the 3% match they’re offering right now. Robinhood doesn’t allow people to own mutual funds in their accounts. I’d have to convert my holdings to an ETF first.
:thumbsup

I guess you're following the thread on that offer?
by sycamore
Sun Jan 21, 2024 7:56 am
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Any way to sell FXAIX and buy VOO with no time out of market?
Replies: 23
Views: 2329

Re: Any way to sell FXAIX and buy VOO with no time out of market?

+1 to what livesoft said.

And also, why do you want to switch? They're both S&P 500 funds. Both very low-cost. Both very well-run.

Switching from buying and selling at NAV for a mutual fund to market-based pricing for an ETF means you risk taking a small hit (and to be fair a chance at a small gain). And also a small hit from buying ETF at a premium of maybe 1 or 2 basis points (again to be fair, maybe VOO is trading at a discount when you place your order).
by sycamore
Sun Jan 21, 2024 7:48 am
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Social Security Calcuation
Replies: 12
Views: 1361

Re: Social Security Calcuation

Your question is rather involved but I will only speak to one aspect of it... to help you decide when to claim, try out the Open Social Security website. It's written by Boglehead Mike Piper. It gives you an idea of the "optimal" claiming date by computing the Present Value of various scenarios based on your PIAs, ages, etc. Just as importantly it lets you see how much difference it would make if you moved the date back a month or two or a year or whatever.

Edited to add: Parkinglotracer beat me to it. I second his idea!
by sycamore
Sun Jan 21, 2024 7:24 am
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Adios, Vanguard
Replies: 465
Views: 96200

Re: Adios, Vanguard

I haven't used Vanguard in a long while. Our family uses Fidelity, with some legacy trust accounts at Schwab. But I will say that Vanguard has taken a principle stand against starting up crypto funds and crypto ETFs in an attempt to look out for retail investors. So there's still some BogleBones left under today's Vanguard. Yesterday's NY Times has a good article on Bitcoin funds and mentions Vanguard (may require subscription): https://www.nytimes.com/2024/01/19/business/crypto-bitcoin-funds-investing.html Morningstar's John Rekenthaler has an article on the subject as well: https://www.morningstar.com/alternative-investments/vanguard-got-bitcoin-right (no subscription). I don't speculate or invest in crypto so I'm not going to leave Vang...
by sycamore
Sun Jan 21, 2024 7:12 am
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: did not convert 100% to backdoor roth conversion
Replies: 17
Views: 2263

Re: did not convert 100% to backdoor roth conversion

simple2023 wrote: Sat Jan 20, 2024 4:31 pm ...
Welcome to the forum!
by sycamore
Sun Jan 21, 2024 7:12 am
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: How can PortfolioVisualizer help me stop clinging to Contrafund?
Replies: 32
Views: 3794

Re: How can PortfolioVisualizer help me stop clinging to Contrafund?

... No, it can't predict how any market segment will perform in the future. If growth has outperformed value, or US has outperformed international, comparing returns is not of any use in determining whether this outperformance will continue. What it is useful for doing is comparing which segments will perform well in which markets. Contrafund outperformed the S&P 500 when growth outperformed value, and it is reasonable to expect that to continue. Treasury bond funds outperformed other bond funds when the stock market crashed; again, this is a reasonable future expectation. ... ... When stating that Contrafund outperformed the S&P 500 when growth outperformed value, and it is reasonable to expect that to continue. Treasury bond fund...
by sycamore
Sat Jan 20, 2024 8:33 am
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: Vanguard Cash Plus Account
Replies: 511
Views: 69552

Re: Vanguard Cash Plus Account

Riprap wrote: Sat Jan 20, 2024 7:36 am
watchnerd wrote: Fri Jan 19, 2024 10:55 pm
Riprap wrote: Fri Jan 19, 2024 8:38 pm
jameskay wrote: Fri Jan 19, 2024 8:29 pmI got confirmation from Vanguard that you cannot currently open a Cash Plus Account that is owned by a trust
sycamore wrote: Fri Jan 19, 2024 8:30 pmThe Vanguard Cash Plus Account is a brokerage account offered by Vanguard Brokerage Services.
No trust, no mutual fund account, no bueno. :(
Maybe it's time to migrate to brokerage, like Vanguard wants you to?
I'm wondering how migrating helps with a trust account?
The same advantages and disadvantages of a brokerage account for an individual account also apply to a trust account. That's a whole separate discussion, of which there's been many on BH.

There may be some advantages and disadvantages that only apply to trust accounts.
by sycamore
Sat Jan 20, 2024 8:29 am
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: Robinhood 3% IRA Match
Replies: 1550
Views: 119694

Re: 3% IRA transfer bonus at Robinhood: Worth it?

Seems interesting but if OP is leaving Vanguard for bad customer service then I would guess Robinhood would be a step down. Since you're just holding ETFs in an IRA, many common sources of Vanguard errors - incorrect mutual fund pricing, incorrect 1099-B statements, incorrect tax lot information - aren't even possible . And if they have tech issues, you can just wave them away like the blind Vanguard loyalists always do: "I don't need the website to work reliably, looking at your account is a bad idea anyway!" :happy In other threads we learned that some posters received incorrect 1099's from non-Vanguard brokerages: Why so many mistakes on my 1099? [Ally Invest] Heads up - public.com says they've flubbed their 1099's [made a mis...
by sycamore
Sat Jan 20, 2024 8:17 am
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: Morningstar article: Do Stocks Really Make Sense for the Long Run?
Replies: 180
Views: 27614

Re: Morningstar article: Do Stocks Really Make Sense for the Long Run?

... * Would McQ's assertion "The addition of bonds to a stock portfolio is guided by Modern Portfolio Theory" be more historically accurate if appended with "(although the idea was not introduced by MPT, as it was already a practice followed by some investment managers for decades, an example being Wellington in 1929)"? Good question. And, maybe this is my inferring rather than McQ's implying, is there some unstated assumption that investors or their advisors are even using MPT to begin with? It's not clear to me what's the context for "The addition of bonds to a stock portfolio...". Don't some investors/advisors start with an understanding if an investor's needs, wants, and concerns/risk tolerance? Then consi...
by sycamore
Sat Jan 20, 2024 7:51 am
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Pro rata, Roth conversions and 401k rollover questions
Replies: 10
Views: 1025

Re: Pro rata, Roth conversions and 401k rollover questions

rajac wrote: Sat Jan 20, 2024 12:12 am
Navillus1968 wrote: Fri Jan 19, 2024 9:02 pm You sound like you understand the backdoor Roth process much better than most first-timers, so that is great.
Just in case you wanted to learn more about backdoor Roth- here is an excellent tutorial on the BDR, at the White Coat Investor website- https://www.whitecoatinvestor.com/backd ... ial/#steps
This resource is amazing. I wish I would have found this sooner. It would've saved me tons of time researching.
Both the White Coat Investor and The Finance Buff are Bogleheads who IMO do a great job sharing helpful information on their respective web sites.

For example here's an older article from TFB https://thefinancebuff.com/the-backdoor ... ow-to.html.
by sycamore
Sat Jan 20, 2024 7:44 am
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: Good time for small cap out performance?
Replies: 41
Views: 5461

Re: Good time for small cap out performance?

Put some clothes on that naked link!
by sycamore
Sat Jan 20, 2024 7:42 am
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: No-state-income-tax states are not good for retirees.
Replies: 413
Views: 39641

Re: No-state-income-tax states are not good for retirees.

If only the OP had put a question mark at the end of the subject... "No-state-income-tax states are not good for retirees?"

Betteridge's law of headlines is an adage that states: "Any headline that ends in a question mark can be answered by the word no."

;)
by sycamore
Sat Jan 20, 2024 7:36 am
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Son graduated, can I still claim him as a dependent?
Replies: 24
Views: 3662

Re: Son graduated, can I still claim him as a dependent?

Not sure if it was mentioned already but if it turns out that OP can claim son as a dependent (regardless of whether OP actually does claim) then the son must file his tax return affirmatively indicating that someone else can claim him as a dependent. The IRS cross checks this.
by sycamore
Sat Jan 20, 2024 7:28 am
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: "Which Investments to Keep Out of Your Taxable Account"
Replies: 27
Views: 5399

Re: "Which Investments to Keep Out of Your Taxable Account"

The Bogleheads wiki has a related article about Tax-efficient fund placement.

The topic of target or other balanced funds is discussed in the section https://www.bogleheads.org/wiki/Tax-eff ... nced_funds.

For beginning investors it would be good to read both the M* and wiki articles.
by sycamore
Sat Jan 20, 2024 7:20 am
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: My traditional IRA has nondeductible post tax contributions - Doh!
Replies: 5
Views: 649

Re: My traditional IRA has nondeductible post tax contributions - Doh!

MichaelNW wrote: Fri Jan 19, 2024 9:11 pm Should I just leave the mixed IRA alone?
Leaving it alone is a reasonable option.

I made non-deductible contributions in the last millennium (before Roth IRA existed). Since then, during a few years of no and low income, I did Roth conversions (pro rated) at very low tax rates. Maybe you will be in a similar situation in the future.
by sycamore
Sat Jan 20, 2024 7:10 am
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Microsoft One Drive
Replies: 37
Views: 4580

Re: Microsoft One Drive

If I didn't want to use OneDrive, I would go to Windows Explorer. Then the C drive Then Users Then I would go to my user folder. Under that is Documents. You'll also see OneDrive; steer clear. I'd make subfolders under documents and keep everything there...just like the old days. After several hours of trying to find an excel document that vanished, with just a path that said the document must have moved? (it was asking me ) I have finally figured out to do just what you said. I did this a couple of times, saved my document, saw it said "saved in this PC", noted down the path. I am not 100% sure I will see this tomorrow. This is how it has been. Yes! Just for giggles...back to the MS-DOS days (DOS is still alive kind-of...underne...
by sycamore
Fri Jan 19, 2024 8:30 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: Vanguard Cash Plus Account
Replies: 511
Views: 69552

Re: Vanguard Cash Plus Account

Riprap wrote: Fri Jan 19, 2024 7:12 pm Is the Cash Plus Account functional with legacy mutual fund accounts or do you have to have a brokerage account?
From https://investor.vanguard.com/accounts- ... us-account:
The Vanguard Cash Plus Account is a brokerage account offered by Vanguard Brokerage Services.
by sycamore
Fri Jan 19, 2024 7:42 pm
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Is there a 2023 version of this?
Replies: 10
Views: 1662

Re: Is there a 2023 version of this?

iamthewalrus wrote: Fri Jan 19, 2024 11:11 am It's available now, https://investor.vanguard.com/content/d ... n-2024.pdf
thanks :thumbsup
by sycamore
Fri Jan 19, 2024 7:27 pm
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: What are you listening to now
Replies: 5832
Views: 591075

Re: What are you listening to now

This morning we listened to Creedence Clearwater. Revival greatest hits. Yesterday we walked to Sgt. Peppers. I made for 60 minutes1 first time in a while. :) Congrats on the walking milestone! Here are some "walking" tunes... Walk on the Water by Creedence Clearwater Revival - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vYYay49KsZE I'm Walking by Fats Domino - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oqs5gkyH930 Walk On By by Dionne Warwick - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vsGsCvJWEo8 Walkin' Blues by Paul Butterfield Blues Band - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T9dkse6R3Tg Walkin' After Midnight by Patsy Cline - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bsRNCvHXHHU Walk of Life by Dire Straits - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kd9TlGDZGkI Walk this Way by R...
by sycamore
Fri Jan 19, 2024 2:51 pm
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: 20% Short-Term TIPS in Rollover But Not Roth?
Replies: 7
Views: 492

Re: 20% Short-Term TIPS in Rollover But Not Roth?

Go back to basics: what are your spending needs and how much is covered by your Social Security benefits?

I think if SS covers, say, 50% or more of your spending you don't need much if any in TIPS. Wouldn't hurt to have more inflation adjusted assets but may not help much either.
by sycamore
Thu Jan 18, 2024 6:22 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Bank of America/Merrill Edge - Preferred Rewards
Replies: 7057
Views: 891395

Re: Bank of America/Merrill Edge - Preferred Rewards

markRoss wrote: Thu Jan 18, 2024 3:47 pm PS. what is PH? (I assumed its the preferred bonus)
Platinum Honors. It's one of the tiers. You need $100k in assets at ME or BoA. There are other tiers. See https://promotions.bankofamerica.com/pr ... rewards/en.

The higher the tier the greater the multiplier applied to the base reward rate.

PH tier seems to give the best reward bang for the asset buck.
by sycamore
Thu Jan 18, 2024 6:10 pm
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Possible replacement suggestion for VEIRX (Vanguard Equity-Income Fund Admiral )
Replies: 11
Views: 1260

Re: Possible replacement suggestion for VEIRX (Vanguard Equity-Income Fund Admiral )

Hopefully many light bulbs are turning on in OP's head regarding backtests.

Here are 3 different time periods:

S&P 500 utterly destroys Equity Income.

Equity Income utterly destroys S&P 500

9.91% vs 9.75%, call it a draw

Pardon the hyperbole :)

The best result of doing so would be to realize it's a bad idea to make investment decisions based on backtests alone.
by sycamore
Thu Jan 18, 2024 7:01 am
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Checklist: Moving from VG to Fidelity
Replies: 32
Views: 3964

Re: Checklist: Moving from VG to Fidelity

Thanks. The only issue is that if the ETF market price is discount to NAV and the conversion happens at NAV, does that mean the loss is only temporary while the Market reprices to fair value? Or can it be stuck below NAV for an extended period in which case I will have a loss when I sell it. Take a look at https://ycharts.com/companies/VTI/discount_or_premium_to_nav for the premium/discount on VTI. Sometimes there's a tiny premium of 0.01%. Sometimes it's 0.02%. Other times there's a tiny discount. A few times it goes up or down by 0.04%. And of course other times there's no premium or discount. There's no certainty you'll end up selling for a "loss" relative to NAV. You might even sell at a gain. The other thing is that you woul...