Search found 373 matches

by Pandemic Bangs
Sun Jan 24, 2021 6:06 pm
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: MacBook Air - Big Sur upgrade?
Replies: 14
Views: 1520

Re: MacBook Air - Big Sur upgrade?

I just went from Yosemite (I think; late 2015 Mac) to Big Sur and I wish I could have done a less drastic upgrade but that's all there is. I even toyed with buying a third-party-sold version of Catalina but even that was unavailable. I'm sorry you didn't know that older versions of OS (Catalina, Mojave, High Sierra, Sierra, El Capitan and Yosemite) are indeed still available through Apple. For others in a similar situation, the link below gives details. No need to go all the way to Big Sur if you don't want to. I just went from High Sierra to Mojave on my 2018 MacBook Air, and it went very smoothly. (Note: be sure to download the OS files through Safari.) https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT211683 Oh this is great! Please send me this two mo...
by Pandemic Bangs
Sun Jan 24, 2021 4:48 pm
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Portfolio Review
Replies: 1
Views: 482

Re: Portfolio Review

Nice portfolio size for age! Sorry about the impending termination (?).

For the bump:

Can you update with ETF/fund names so others can weigh in?

Maybe include the math on your total asset allocation?

Then it's easy for others to comment at a glance.
by Pandemic Bangs
Sun Jan 24, 2021 4:41 pm
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Portfolio Review
Replies: 1
Views: 329

Re: Portfolio Review

Age: Me 44 / Wife 44; 3 children (16, 12, 8) Desired Asset allocation: 83% stocks / 7% REIT / 10% bonds Desired International allocation: 25% of stocks Size of your current total portfolio: Mid six figures Taxable - Vanguard 2.3% Vanguard Tax-Exempt Bond Index Fund Admiral Shares (VTEAX) (0.09%) 2.8% Vanguard Total International Stock Index Fund Admiral Shares (VTIAX) (0.11%) 7% Vanguard Total Stock Market Index Fund Admiral Shares (VTSAX) (0.04%) Nice work! Sounds like you are committed to that asset allocation so nothing to say there. Not 100% sure what your questions are so I just poked around. Impressed how little taxable invested assets you have -- maybe $60K? Are there taxable assets that you did not list since I see you list them un...
by Pandemic Bangs
Sun Jan 24, 2021 4:21 pm
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Want to rate my portfolio?
Replies: 4
Views: 703

Re: Want to rate my portfolio?

Welcome!

This is a great resource for framing your question in a way that folks can answer:

viewtopic.php?f=1&t=6212

As a first pass, include the full names and ERs for these ETFs. And know that no one can look at this one account in isolation without knowing the contents of your other "buckets."

There is not a lot of enthusiasm on this forum for sector tilts.
by Pandemic Bangs
Sun Jan 24, 2021 3:35 pm
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Portfolio Review - how to exit Advisor and be as tax efficient as possible
Replies: 12
Views: 1352

Re: Portfolio Review - how to exit Advisor and be as tax efficient as possible

Lots of assets -- congrats! That's terrific. I suspect you are in a high-CG bracket. The rest here is predicated on that. I would move the taxable to VG or Schwab or Fido and ask ahead of time what can move in kind . (And ask about a transfer bonus at the same time.) Then you can take your time and assess what the biggest "emergencies" are wrt CG and ER, and if you can offset them with corresponding loss-harvesting. If it were me and I were in a major city, I would speak to a Schwab rep and have them run your taxable list and see what can transfer in kind. There may be a transaction fee to sell once it has moved but I think that is trumped by the ability to sell tactically (i.e., not all at once). Once you have moved, you can prio...
by Pandemic Bangs
Sun Jan 24, 2021 3:22 pm
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: What Financial gift can I give a young nephew?
Replies: 4
Views: 528

Re: What Financial gift can I give a young nephew?

Couple Bitcoins every year :D.

At 2, it's a gift to the parents unless you have some mechanism in mind.

Spouse and I disagree on this. I got tons of $5 gifts as a kid from aunts and uncles that I "put toward my college education." Wrote that in all my thank-yous :D. I never saw those dollars again and my folks spent way more than that on my education so technically that was true. There was no identifiable fund for my education. Spouse thinks I should have been able to waste a few of those dollars on kids' stuff like toys. Knowing my family (not a lot of college among my parents' generation), the gifts were probably given with education in mind.
by Pandemic Bangs
Sun Jan 24, 2021 3:08 pm
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Tax on ADR vs buying directly on foreign exchange
Replies: 1
Views: 279

Re: Tax on ADR vs buying directly on foreign exchange

My only experience from the US side was when an ADR was permitted to lapse (tactically) and the shares were stuck on the originating country's exchange (Santiago, IIRC) and I could not access them for love or money without establishing residency there. Which I did not do :D.

I vowed to never mess with ADRs again but if it's your home country, that concern may not be relevant.
by Pandemic Bangs
Sun Jan 24, 2021 2:29 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Any Other Bogleheads in Private Practice?
Replies: 13
Views: 2268

Re: Any Other Bogleheads in Private Practice?

For the bump:

You might get more answers if you specified what kind of practice. Law, medicine, etc? Or did you omit that on purpose to cast a wide net?
by Pandemic Bangs
Sun Jan 24, 2021 2:24 pm
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Slightly different keep/replace car decision
Replies: 31
Views: 3216

Re: Slightly different keep/replace car decision

The upgraded suspension, seats, and the better-looking front/rear clip and factory wheels is what I wouldn't mind having. Embarrassed to say I did not know that the suspension was unique to M-sport. Not sure if this applies to both models but while driving, it's super-obvious that "Sport" mode actually changes the suspension (and not just the throttle mapping), though, compared to many other faux-sport modes I've driven. There are not many out there. I tell DW it's a collector's item -- there just aren't any collectors :D. We thought it could be a travel car (cheap diesel and amazing fuel economy) but without the runflats and with the staggered tires, we did not want to be in the empty corners of our big state with no spare. I ha...
by Pandemic Bangs
Sun Jan 24, 2021 1:42 pm
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: MacBook Air - Big Sur upgrade?
Replies: 14
Views: 1520

Re: MacBook Air - Big Sur upgrade?

I just went from Yosemite (I think; late 2015 Mac) to Big Sur and I wish I could have done a less drastic upgrade but that's all there is. I even toyed with buying a third-party-sold version of Catalina but even that was unavailable. Like others, I did this at home because I could no longer access one of my work servers. The interface is very similar and has not affected my workflow within the OS. I read nothing about Big Sur -- I had to make the change and I had to leapfrog six OS incarnations. I expected it to hobble my standalone Adobe Lightroom but that seems to be intact. It killed my $9.99 "Home Use Program" versions of all the MS workhorse software -- and now the HUP no longer exists in that very cheap form so I guess it's ...
by Pandemic Bangs
Sun Jan 24, 2021 1:00 pm
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Any boring investors left?
Replies: 222
Views: 18192

Re: Any boring investors left?

Tiny bit of 1 and 2 from pre-BH days and that I have resisted unwinding because of CG implications...

I hope that does not keep me out of the club :shock:

I think I make up for it by being boring in other ways.
by Pandemic Bangs
Sun Jan 24, 2021 12:16 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: TIAA Safe Estate - Online Critical Document Storage
Replies: 12
Views: 1508

Re: TIAA Safe Estate - Online Critical Document Storage

557880yvi wrote: Sun Jan 24, 2021 7:11 am Have not been able to find any reviews online for TIAA Safe Estate .
Been there -- on the other side of this. Your heirs need this, not you, imo. Just one more thing that nobody can access once you are dead. How eager will TIAA be to give the keys to someone else?

I have never awoken in the middle of the night and just had to see my will ASAP.
by Pandemic Bangs
Sun Jan 24, 2021 12:12 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: What paper records to keep?
Replies: 3
Views: 478

Re: What paper records to keep?

I am allowed one filing cabinet :D.

A folder for everything but I constantly prune by dates and importance.

Car titles are in the safe-deposit box. SS cards and passports are elsewhere. I don't think we have anything else that is that important...?

To your point, we did keep all our refi docs when that was a thing. We keep our tax returns but they are not that fat.

I'd worry a little about having no paper records for when the EMP comes -- either natural or man-made.

We get way too much volume to scan and name and file electronically and backup and....
by Pandemic Bangs
Sun Jan 24, 2021 12:03 pm
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: financial advisor advice
Replies: 35
Views: 3191

Re: financial advisor advice

Compared to current allocation he recommends: -1.43% large cap growth +1.58% large cap value -0.95% mid cap growth +.26% mid cap value +1.72% small cap growth +3.4% small cap value Slightly less Non-US Dev stock and non-US Emerg stock I think I have had bigger changes than that many days this month. :D So this is really rebalancing and it's not within the percentage "bands" that most of us would use for that purpose. However, if you review with him every Jan and there is no transaction fee and the ERs are a wash, I don't think it's terrible. Is he doing this in pieces because you have some inflexibility in assets that he is not managing (e., tax-deferred)? I am wondering what magic formula he is applying that is different from VT...
by Pandemic Bangs
Sun Jan 24, 2021 11:57 am
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: 529 Savings query - how much more to save
Replies: 10
Views: 1376

Re: 529 Savings query - how much more to save

People tend to significantly overestimate future college costs. There was a drastic shift in state funding around 2008-2010 which really skews historical rates of inflation. Your demographic is different. I will bet that your kids will go to excellent private universities or national-caliber state U's (about the latter: I hope you have one in your state; my state does not). At your asset level (and imputed income level), you will pay 100% of the cost. So unless your kids are able to stay in state or are offered merit aid at a private that is far below their ceiling, academically, you will be on the hook for 100% of the "inflated" list price even though most kids would not have to pay it. Congrats on the early start -- bodes well ...
by Pandemic Bangs
Sun Jan 24, 2021 11:47 am
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: I just bought individual stocks and a lot of them.
Replies: 218
Views: 20968

Re: I just bought individual stocks and a lot of them.

invest2bfree wrote: Sun Jan 24, 2021 9:30 am All of them give me a dividend of 4-9% and HAVE BEEN VERY BAD INVESTMENTS FOR THE LAST 5 YEARS.
Do you know which is the chicken and which is the egg here?

I drilled down on this over the past year when I looked at the highest dividend-paying stocks and was impressed to see that they were at best running in place.
by Pandemic Bangs
Sun Jan 24, 2021 2:13 am
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Personal Financial Adviser NEEDED
Replies: 17
Views: 3052

Re: Personal Financial Adviser NEEDED

You asked for a "GREAT" financial advisor and I don't think that's a thing. There is appropriate advice and inappropriate advice but no one is a financial planning genius. There are not that many variables and anyone who "hits it out of the park" simply guessed well and/or took and out-sized risk without your knowing. Im looking for someone who they themselves have a personal portfolio of 1M minimum. You don't need this. And: do you have any idea who goes in to this field? It is not rich people looking to help others. It is very not -rich people who saw in Parade magazine that this is a great and not-too-hard way to start at $80K for a second career. Would you only go to a doctor who had cancer or a heart attack? As for ...
by Pandemic Bangs
Sat Jan 23, 2021 9:39 pm
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Mazda CX 5 For Tall Guy (6 2)
Replies: 21
Views: 5032

Re: Mazda CX 5 For Tall Guy (6 2)

tibbitts wrote: Sat Jan 23, 2021 9:29 pm I'm surprised: when I looked up legroom it was only 41 inches, which is less than many other vehicles.
I don't actually know what measured legroom is. Seat all the way up and back? All the way down and back? Distance to the top of the pedal travel? Or to the firewall or dead-pedal?

Legroom has always been an issue for me and I've just sat in 'em.
by Pandemic Bangs
Sat Jan 23, 2021 9:29 pm
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: What advisors do you have in your life?
Replies: 20
Views: 2155

Re: What advisors do you have in your life?

Congrats on your success! Parents filled this role for me until they passed. Older sibs on occasion. My and spouse's knowledge bases overlap a little too much so we are not much good to each other for the unknown-but-answerable things. I can't think of a one-size-fits-all for you. Sure, attorney for legal issues and physician for medical issues but i think you have gotten to the point where no one person is going to give you off-the-cuff advice that is better than you can find online if you know where to look. Life coach and the like is more motivational or problem-solving. I have not been overwhelmed with the skill set of unlicensed professionals like that offering paid advice -- they are often only one chapter ahead of you in the book. Se...
by Pandemic Bangs
Sat Jan 23, 2021 9:19 pm
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Mazda CX 5 For Tall Guy (6 2)
Replies: 21
Views: 5032

Re: Mazda CX 5 For Tall Guy (6 2)

David Althaus wrote: Sat Jan 23, 2021 1:03 pm Thanks for replies. Makes decision process much easier.
Oh, and get the turbo. Our '16 is a little underpowered without it, imo. The '19 has the turbo. It definitely gives up a little in fuel economy but it makes for a better driving experience. Fairly fun cars for what they are. There is supposedly a 6-cylinder on the way or at least on the drawing board -- others here will know more.
by Pandemic Bangs
Sat Jan 23, 2021 8:30 pm
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: All stock too aggressive?
Replies: 24
Views: 2815

Re: All stock too aggressive?

setitandforgetit wrote: Sat Jan 23, 2021 12:38 pm My question - is this all equity strategy foolish?
As long as you don't mind losing half it isn't. Happened to us three times. We survived.

When did unleveraged 100% equity become the "conservative" portfolio here? :D

I think if you need to ask others if it's too aggressive, then it's too aggressive for you. One does this with conviction and eyes open or not at all, imo.
by Pandemic Bangs
Sat Jan 23, 2021 7:08 pm
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Target Date Funds Available in your 401k
Replies: 39
Views: 3164

Re: Target Date Funds Available in your 401k

We had Fidelity in plans custodied at Fidelity. We now have much lower-cost VG target-date funds through Fidelity. Many of ours are "collective trust" options with very low ER but no ticker -- I can't recall about the target-date options but I think so because most of our plan assets are in that bucket.
by Pandemic Bangs
Sat Jan 23, 2021 4:44 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: Rebalancing Methodology Alternatives
Replies: 13
Views: 1023

Re: Rebalancing Methodology Alternatives

By extension, instead of only going halfway, why not skip it altogether? The whole point of rebalancing is to control your risk. No matter what method you choose to rebalance the objective is to control your risk. If you don't rebalnce at all you are not controlling your risk. I think that was kinda my point. You only value it enough to go half-way. If that's a sound idea, why not go all-in and not re-balance at all? I guess it's the half-way part that I don't understand. I don't think I can tell you anything you don't already know. Sounds like you're counting on "momentum" to hedge your rebalancing. Being a fool, I have not come up with a foolproof strategy for implementing rebalancing in any structured way. Maybe a target-date ...
by Pandemic Bangs
Sat Jan 23, 2021 4:03 pm
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Options when a parent's stock certificates cannot be located?
Replies: 17
Views: 1112

Re: Options when a parent's stock certificates cannot be located?

texasgal47 wrote: Sat Jan 23, 2021 3:53 pm My mother has an account at John Hancock and this is the only fund in the account. I have provided my Letters of Guardianship to them so am able to handle her affairs on her behalf.
OK, then I would just do this from the Vanguard side and not deal with JH at all. VG will tell you what you need if the account number and contents are not sufficient.

Always easier to pull than push. From experience: terrible custodians will erect all kinds of road blocks.
by Pandemic Bangs
Sat Jan 23, 2021 3:57 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: Importance of expense ratios
Replies: 8
Views: 1136

Re: Importance of expense ratios

jhsu802701 wrote: Sat Jan 23, 2021 3:48 pm I just do not buy into the idea that future returns on investments are a random crapshoot.
What is the question?

If you absolutely positively must have access to those subsectors ("wide-moat" this and that) then have it at.

Can you account for your confidence that those sectors will outperform and why your "need" to pay the extra ER is justified?

I can call any bunch of stocks my tech darlings of the moment, or I may have first-hand knowledge that some non-AI companies are going all-in on AI (my "AI Into The Future Fund") but that does not actually mean anything.
by Pandemic Bangs
Sat Jan 23, 2021 3:49 pm
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Options when a parent's stock certificates cannot be located?
Replies: 17
Views: 1112

Re: Options when a parent's stock certificates cannot be located?

I have been unable to locate my mother's stock certificates for $10,000 invested in one fund at John Hancock....Mom is now at assisted living and needs all assets available to her for her continued care. This is an actual current mutual fund. I am not familiar with mutual funds having required certificates as proof of ownership -- others here have longer memories. And if this has been converted to the share class they referenced, then I see no need for them to recreate a certificate of any kind, even if there had been one. The question is: Does your mother have an account at JH and what is in it? You will need some legal standing to do this "for" her. If she already has dementia, it's trickier. We have only done POA for convenien...
by Pandemic Bangs
Sat Jan 23, 2021 3:23 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: Rebalancing Methodology Alternatives
Replies: 13
Views: 1023

Re: Rebalancing Methodology Alternatives

But why go all the way back to 50:50? Why not just go half way back to 53:47 and wait to see what happens in the next week or three? By using the smaller correction adjustment you would tend to gain more if the market continues to rise but still main close to your risk target if the market just goes up and down by a small amount. Because one is rebalancing and one is market-timing :D. Guessing what's going to happen... It's all semantic, of course. By extension, instead of only going halfway, why not skip it altogether? My approach has been that (when I remember) I do this by the calendar and not by constant real-time monitoring of my asset allocation. "By new contributions" only works if you are early in your career, imo. By the...
by Pandemic Bangs
Sat Jan 23, 2021 3:00 pm
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Slightly different keep/replace car decision
Replies: 31
Views: 3216

Re: Slightly different keep/replace car decision

But if you haven't removed your EGR, would definitely encourage you to do so. The EGR system itself is responsible for 95% of the carbon buildup on these cars, and the cooler has a tendency to crack and leak coolant into your intake. Which as you might imagine, is a bad thing. :) The job took me about 2 hours, and cost about $150 in parts (pipe to replace the valve, and blanks/plugs to block off where the EGR cooler connects to the block and the cooling system). Then $700 for the tune, which I had done while we were on vacation, since I wouldn't need the car then. They coded out the EGR, so the car doesn't throw a CEL or go into limp mode. Plus the extra power and mpg is very nice. :) I wish I could. Our registration is pretty short interv...
by Pandemic Bangs
Sat Jan 23, 2021 12:52 pm
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Lens Cleaning
Replies: 16
Views: 2089

Re: Lens Cleaning

Sandtrap wrote: Tue Jan 19, 2021 12:28 pm
1. German clear glass filters, highest quality$$. Especially on location. In the studio for product shoots or macro, sometimes removed.
This.

My camera's been everywhere. I've never had to clean a lens. Filter yes; lens no. I make sure I have an appropriate-diameter multicoated UV filter in hand before buying a new or used lens.

I think the @Sandtrap-quality ones may be $100 and that's a stretch for me -- but he is an excellent photographer if memory serves. Do not buy the rock-bottom $9 one, either. I think I go middle of the road like HOYA, etc., and they are maybe $25 or so.
by Pandemic Bangs
Sat Jan 23, 2021 12:44 pm
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Mazda CX 5 For Tall Guy (6 2)
Replies: 21
Views: 5032

Re: Mazda CX 5 For Tall Guy (6 2)

David Althaus wrote: Sat Jan 23, 2021 10:57 am Any tall people out there have any quibbles over driver side roominess in the Mazda CX 5? I don't want to go the dealer and get a never ending string of phone calls--just yet.
We have a '16 and a '19. I'm 6'1" and DS is 6'2" and it's a complete non-issue -- but we're all legs and not very "wide."

I don't know if you'd want to sit behind us...
by Pandemic Bangs
Sat Jan 23, 2021 12:31 pm
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Work from home getting harder
Replies: 95
Views: 9231

Re: Work from home getting harder

Learn to say no. Stop working in the non-office hours. I know I have been less respectful of these boundaries lately. I may fire off an email on Friday afternoon that, in the old days, would not even be seen until Monday AM (no one had "work" laptops or could even access our system from home). Now I think I may be creating stress over folks' weekends. I try to clarify that I do not expect a response let alone task completion -- I just don't want to risk forgetting to get the word out. I do think that presence-in-the-office had been a decent proxy for productivity (I know that is not accurate) so there is some suspicion around what is happening at home. I think it is helpful to have some rough numbers at hand -- "On a typical...
by Pandemic Bangs
Sat Jan 23, 2021 12:21 pm
Forum: Forum Issues and Administration
Topic: 48-72 hour waiting period for first post?
Replies: 34
Views: 3884

Re: 48-72 hour waiting period for first post?

Sandtrap wrote: Sat Jan 23, 2021 10:11 am
Perhaps there are many that read the forum for a long time before registering, for various reasons.
And, at that point, there is a sense of urgency and "need", and "courage?" that has had to happen to seek help.
And, there, the forum provides a valuable service to the community.
+1

Long-time reader here but new member. I have responded to a number of sound first posts from others.

I don't think I registered until I had a key question.

There are plenty of sketchy posts from longer-term members :D.

I am on another forum unrelated to personal finance (probably the opposite) where the majority of first posts are spam or thinly-veiled self-advertising.
by Pandemic Bangs
Sat Jan 23, 2021 11:56 am
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Slightly different keep/replace car decision
Replies: 31
Views: 3216

Re: Slightly different keep/replace car decision

Nope, still have it. Got the carbon cleaning done in March of last year, which turned out to be more expensive than expected, mostly due to the fact that the fuel pressure sending unit failed during the process. Disabled the EGR valve as soon as getting it home from that, and removed it entirely (along with the cooler) and got it tuned out of the ECU over the summer, then got two failed injectors replaced in September, and replaced most of the suspension components in November. Since then it's been great, though the windshield caught a rock and needed to be replaced, and I decided to change the fluid and mechanatronic sleeves in the transmission since it's going to be in the family for a while--purely maintenance, did not experience any tr...
by Pandemic Bangs
Sat Jan 23, 2021 1:42 am
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: sanity checking my plan
Replies: 30
Views: 2670

Re: sanity checking my plan

Responding for the bump. Welcome! You are doing the right things, imo. Congrats on the nice career, the planning, and insight! You will not like the rest of my post -- sorry. There was just a very similar one. I do not fully understand your house numbers but based on the fact that you are only 4 years into a 30-year and are paying PMI, I infer that it is almost entirely bank-owned. So you are 28 with a decent income and a near-zero net-worth. I am confident that everything will work out for you. If you had left out the kooky FIRE goal, I might have said nothing. But the success of this plan is entirely predicated upon your accurately forecasting what the market will do over 12 - 20 years. Leverage to FIRE? I recognize that there is more and...
by Pandemic Bangs
Sat Jan 23, 2021 1:21 am
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Slightly different keep/replace car decision
Replies: 31
Views: 3216

Re: Slightly different keep/replace car decision

...the long term plan has been to give my 2011 BMW 335d to my son when he's old enough, which happens right around the time I'm due for a replacement. Total long-shot but hey... Have followed a few of your posts on the 335d over the years and the two or three other BH who love theirs -- thank you! Hoping you have not sold it... Apart from being a (predictable) money pit, mine has been an absolute blast. But can I ask what you do for tires ? I replaced the OEM runflats with Michelin Super Sports x a few sets and then a set of Sport 4S for the last set. I'm through those and looking to replace again but I'm having trouble finding a complete set locally. (I may be the only idiot looking to buy summer tires in January -- spouse's valid comment...
by Pandemic Bangs
Fri Jan 22, 2021 10:19 pm
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Help me choose a 403B/457 provider
Replies: 9
Views: 931

Re: Help me choose a 403B/457 provider

Stanczyk wrote: Fri Jan 22, 2021 9:18 pm Honestly, it looks like what will differentiate the two is the $60/year maintenance fee that Vanguard's custodian charges. Do you think that is negligible enough to go with Vanguard?
Depends on how much money you keep there. Easy enough to do the math. If it's a 2% assessment for you, then no. If you will fill it every year and the fees are lower than Fidelity's corresponding offerings, then probably yes.

Many employers waive the plan fee for smaller balances (i.e., newer employees). Check with HR.
by Pandemic Bangs
Fri Jan 22, 2021 9:27 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: Great Courses and what current ones miss (I miss something every time I buy one..!)
Replies: 7
Views: 1501

Re: Great Courses and what current ones miss (I miss something every time I buy one..!)

Tom van Laarhoven wrote: Thu Jan 21, 2021 1:17 pm I'm super excited to learn more about stock Investing and I'm looking for great courses
For the bump:

Welcome!

If you are looking to learn how to pick winners, there is no such course for any amount of money.

If you are looking to learn about personal finance, principles of investing, and the like, I'm sure there are a number of decent offerings.

I only took one from them on the Louvre before visiting and it had the single best museum tip I have ever received.

They are not the most exciting treadmill fare, alas.
by Pandemic Bangs
Fri Jan 22, 2021 9:22 pm
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: is agile training worth it for execs?
Replies: 15
Views: 2004

Re: is agile training worth it for execs?

You seem short on time as it is. :D
by Pandemic Bangs
Fri Jan 22, 2021 9:21 pm
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: How to profit from irrational behavior?
Replies: 63
Views: 6384

Re: How to profit from irrational behavior?

embwbam wrote: Fri Jan 22, 2021 9:15 pm
There must be a rational way to take advantage of irrational behavior.
Why would a rational person make this statement?

Why can't I reliably monetize the weather?

I don't think one capitalizes on irrational behavior so much as one insulates ones self from it -- via index funds, etc. I guess you can always short whatever you feel is overvalued. You'll be wrong more than you're right there, too, I bet.

I hope to avoid participating in every irrational run-up.
by Pandemic Bangs
Fri Jan 22, 2021 9:09 pm
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Help me choose a 403B/457 provider
Replies: 9
Views: 931

Re: Help me choose a 403B/457 provider

If she has all those choices through her employer, it is important to know what the investment options are in each. One of my former employers had many of those as "legacy" custodians that were sunsetted (is that a verb?) over excessive fees, etc. I have had good luck with Fidelity plans and I am active in one of my employers' committees that oversees this; however, her employer could have been bribed incentivized to include only higher-fee actively-managed Fidelity offerings. TIAA is also hit or miss. What is in the VG and Fido 403b ? The 457b custodians look weak so I would fill that second. TIAA is the best of the bunch, I think, but they are not super low-fee anymore. DS recently had VOYA and that did not sound great but, agai...
by Pandemic Bangs
Fri Jan 22, 2021 11:12 am
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: What defines being successful?
Replies: 50
Views: 3653

Re: What defines being successful?

KneePartsPro wrote: Fri Jan 22, 2021 9:01 am You have "made it" when your work is something you are passionate about and you are contributing to others in some way.
+1
by Pandemic Bangs
Fri Jan 22, 2021 10:29 am
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Update One Year Later -- Criticize My Grind (26-37) --> Semi-Retire (37-50) --> Retire (50+)Plan
Replies: 46
Views: 5917

Re: Criticize My Grind (26-37) --> Semi-Retire (37-50) --> Retire (50+)Plan

Full disclosure: not a FIRE person here

You have a negative net worth, modest income, and you are talking about cutting back in four years? And you are banking on controlling your spending, "knowing" your next few decades of income (?), and your guaranteed investment returns over future decades?

I'm sure you can make the math work on paper but there is no strong reason to think it will.

And picking an asset allocation to make this work is just silly, imo. Vis-a-vis Monte Carlo simulations (the semi-silly basis for all this), who here has modeled what disease they will die from and has taken tangible steps to reduce that likelihood?
by Pandemic Bangs
Fri Jan 22, 2021 1:12 am
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Wills, Trusts, Estates - Arghhh!!
Replies: 9
Views: 1340

Re: Wills, Trusts, Estates - Arghhh!!

Not sure you need any of those things in your demographic. Depends upon your state and how your assets are titled. A will couldn't hurt.

If you have > $22 million between you, I hear it gets complicated.

People talk about all sorts of things here that are irrelevant to me. All the Tesla and TSLA threads, for example. :D
by Pandemic Bangs
Thu Jan 21, 2021 10:55 pm
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: I can’t bring myself to spend as much as my first new car on roller shades
Replies: 34
Views: 2993

Re: I can’t bring myself to spend as much as my first new car on roller shades

Planner01 wrote: Thu Jan 21, 2021 11:28 am We bought a house about a month ago that’s in a guard gated community.
The blinds are just a symptom.

If you felt the need to be in a guard-gated community, you obviously need to give in to this instinct and make the tiny leap to privacy blinds. :D
by Pandemic Bangs
Thu Jan 21, 2021 9:53 pm
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Editing my 3 fund portfolio (VG, TSP, Fidelity)
Replies: 60
Views: 6132

Re: Editing my 3 fund portfolio (VG, TSP, Fidelity)

tomwood wrote: Thu Jan 21, 2021 7:33 pm Many decades ahead to work even though age is very late 30s. And we plan to make a change to the percentage of bonds we hold, which was age in bonds.
Just a caveat. There is a lot of FOMO among earlier-stage earners about this concept. Were you planning to make this change this past March? And: if not then, why now?
by Pandemic Bangs
Thu Jan 21, 2021 8:25 pm
Forum: Personal Finance (Not Investing)
Topic: Who or what has helped the most in your financial journey?
Replies: 121
Views: 10174

Re: Who or what has helped the most in your financial journey?

By example and by imparting knowledge: father

Then this community. They are pretty much identical. :D
by Pandemic Bangs
Thu Jan 21, 2021 2:11 pm
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Engagement Ring
Replies: 140
Views: 12815

Re: Engagement Ring

Regarding a certification (GIA/AGL/etc). It was described to me as getting a certified purebred dog vs. a purebred dog without papers. One will be much more expensive because you have a piece of paper telling you what it is. Getting a certified diamond makes a lot of sense to me if you considered it an investment with the intention to resell at some point, but are you ever going to sell this diamond? That said, I did get a stone with a certification, mainly because it seemed to be the default option from the jeweler. You always need a report from an independent and well-regarded lab like the ones you mentioned. Always ask if it has a report , not a certificate. Stones are never "certified" -- like a used Toyota. They either have ...
by Pandemic Bangs
Thu Jan 21, 2021 1:47 pm
Forum: Personal Consumer Issues
Topic: Engagement Ring
Replies: 140
Views: 12815

Re: Engagement Ring

Because under a microscope someone may be able to notice some differences, it is "not for everyday use" :oops: ? Over a long period (of decades), this may result in some "wear"? Statements like that are exactly why the industry is such a racket. Not at all what I said. Not my industry, either. Morganite is not a sapphire. Sapphire will abrade over many years. Morganite is too soft for an e-ring and will abrade rapidly. Anyone will tell you that. It is not my opinion. 10X is not a "microscope" (?!). It's called a magnifying glass. You may have seen them referred to as a loupe. It's how people look at gemstones. I 'm sure you can see what I am talking about with just your eye and a bright light -- it will just m...
by Pandemic Bangs
Thu Jan 21, 2021 1:23 am
Forum: Investing - Theory, News & General
Topic: Is anyone else pretty lax with their AA?
Replies: 53
Views: 5263

Re: Is anyone else pretty lax with their AA?

JD2775 wrote: Wed Jan 20, 2021 8:24 pm my AA, which I had "designated" as 70/30, has drifted to 77/23.
Yes, I have been very lax. I did not get burned (well, not by that). I thought I was 70:30. I actually was nearly 90:10 before I woke up. Spouse and I were so busy with work and family that our taxable and tax-deferred investment contribution changes were too small to move the needle on our existing assets that were growing asymmetrically in the background. Lots and lots of little pieces from prior employers, etc.

I fixed it and am not lax anymore.

Staying at 90:10, as inappropriate as that was for our age and stage, would have been nice for these last few years but I guess I am too smart for that now. :D
by Pandemic Bangs
Thu Jan 21, 2021 1:13 am
Forum: Personal Investments
Topic: Front Loading Inherited IRA Distributions for Tax Rate Differential
Replies: 3
Views: 680

Re: Front Loading Inherited IRA Distributions for Tax Rate Differential

njnybanker wrote: Tue Jan 19, 2021 8:37 pm In other words ordinary income at the 32/35% marginal rate (plus NYC) now and capital gains later OR stick to RMDs. I think the answer might be to just take RMDs, but I just wanted to flesh this out.
An interesting question -- until I got to your current marginal rate. If you earned next to nothing, it would be a much stronger argument, imo. :D

I think at that marginal rate, bleeding it out via RMD makes sense and gives some flexibility and the potential for tax diversification. I am not allowed to speculate on the future top-marginal bracket here.