@Crash: kudos to you for helping your niece get an education. My hasty reading the first time through had me wondering if sending money to Australia was a new idiomatic expression for kissing money goodbye. Au contraire! I, too, will fund education, but I become very stingy when relations want dough for something else.
@rforno: way back in the late sixties when my wife and I were building castles in the sky, we heard of an Aussie scheme that would pay us to settle there in return for teaching for two years. Naïve at the time, we had no idea that trying to attract « people like us » was part of a plan to populate the country with whites as opposed to Asians. It’s quite ironic now because Madame and I ended up with 5 Asian adoptees. When we lived in Berkeley, a friend told me we fit right in because no one looks like their parents there. Sadly, I can’t say that level of tolerance can be found just anywhere in the US of A.

Great post @yogibearbull.
Me and the missus have been together since we were kids. Back in the 70's-80's, she easily (and proudly for her) would have been on a Top 10 List nationally of spouses who had ZERO interest in all things financial, especially investments.
After all these years, that interest level of ZERO might now at least be a ONE or TWO.
Yeah, her interest level is still a challenge for me.
BUT, over all these years, I felt it was my duty and obligation to not concentrate on her interest level, but rather address her acumen by educating her on all things financial, especially investments.
So I did, albeit with her kicking and screaming in the early years!
And now, after ~50 years, despite still negligible interest, she is a walking, talking authority on US stock OEFs and ETFs and CDs (our investment vehicles of choice), well, at least the ones that are worthy of our investment dollars.
Leaving a written plan might help the dying spouse feel that they've done their part in the marriage. But good luck to the surviving spouse with all that, as yogi has so eloquently detailed.
Aside: We currently manage the portfolios of several friends and relatives, including two widows whose hubbies had left them written plans that they had ZERO interest or ability in following.
YMMV. As may your take on how this critical element should be handled.

Rick, Why did you decide not to become a dual (Aussie + US) citizen? Australia would have happily given you a permanent residency under their point system. It is a nice place to retire if you have access to it.
I know a couple of Aussies who moved to the US and work in Finance. They do not want to work in Australia.
I am told that the police in Australia is so much community friendly than the cops in the US (the Aborigines might disagree with that statement).

I'm not close to 'retirement age' but yes, the the thought has crossed my mind and is on my plate as a possible destination. I know at a holiday party a few years ago the Oz ambassador was joking about how they "could always use people like you" and that having an Aussie degree was a great thing. So ... who knows what the future holds? (They've got their own political crazy happening, of course ... but it's nowhere as bats---t insane as ours is, that's for sure.)
Full disclosure: There was a moment back in mid-Nov 2016 when I was coming back from a consulting trip in Melbourne and was really really reaaaallllly tempted to walk out of the airport, crash with friends for a bit, and do exactly that ... but being a professional, I knew I had too much going on work-wise back home to do that in the middle of a semester --- and it wasn't an existential crisis for me (yet). Darn you, professional ethics! (The uni was actively trying to recruit me for an interesting position, too ... but the job had too many weird 'hooks' from its industry benefactor that didn't sit well with me.)

Planned early January annual chunk taken from the portfolio. This year, it's bigger: sending the (foreign) niece to go to school (and eventually permanent immigration) in Australia. Nice to be able to do it. The satisfaction is worth more than the money. I wanted to spread it out, so:

I did my PhD at a uni in Perth, and still consider Australia my second home given the # of times I've been down there over the many years then and since ...

Uninsured motorist bodily injury covers not only the driver (covered by Medicare and presumably Medigap, else potential losses are unlimited) but also other passengers who might have high deductibles. It also covers pain and suffering. Whether these matter enough to you to be worth the cost is a personal decision.
Note that I'm describing uninsured motorist coverage in Calif. It means different things in different states, especially in no fault states (Calif. is a fault state).
My father used to tell me that after five years or so, I should drop collision and comprehensive. The car will have depreciated so much that it's not worth insuring - the insurance company may just "total" it. The OP's car is worth virtually nothing, so recovery under collision or comprehensive would also be next to nothing.
OTOH, I don't follow my father's advice. I drive my car so little that I have to buy new tires (rubber dries out) before they need to be rotated. Little driving and proper maintenance mean my car still has significant value. Replacing it (not a concern of the OP) would be costly, as car prices have soared in the past few years.
Finally, just because a car has about as much mileage as one driven by a little old lady doesn't mean it hasn't been stressed (tends to refute my thinking that this enhances car value).

Planned early January annual chunk taken from the portfolio. This year, it's bigger: sending the (foreign) niece to go to school (and eventually permanent immigration) in Australia. Nice to be able to do it. The satisfaction is worth more than the money. I wanted to spread it out, so:
Small-ish bites from:
PRWCX
PRCPX
TUHYX
WCPNX (in taxable.)
The tax lady assures that I STILL will not reach taxable income level necessary to BE a federal taxpayer, again, for 2025. Nice. RMDs must start in 3 years at age 73. But in a backhanded way, these yearly withdrawals keep the portfolio from appreciating too much, thus reducing the amount of future RMDs. In the meantime, good things get done with the "green." :)

@dtconroe- Well sir, while I surely respect your thoughts on all of this, I must demur with respect to the "spousal" element of the conversation. From my many years of frequenting MFO I can confirm that this question is actually a very important one with respect to older investors, and one which has been discussed numerous times over the years.
I personally have a similar situation, and have attempted to simplify and structure our financial resources to accommodate my wife's abilities to deal with the various financial "systems" that must be involved. I'm always very interested to read about how others might handle this subject, as there's always something to be learned here.
Thanks for initiating this thread.
OJ

Hmmm... Years ago, Horrocks was a genius, and Lou Rukheyser interviewed him as Manager of the year. Was it M* that selected him for the honor? I owned MACSX. Since then, I wonder if he has become the sand in the gears? Is the problem child making his exit? Or just moving to a different desk in the office?

If I had to make a guess: problem child finally getting ousted. I met Robert a few times over his tenure, once when he first joined matthews in 2009. He was energetic and passionate about the opportunity in Asia. I last met him in 2018 and it seemed he had gotten quite lazy, didn't really provide in depth answers and had an attitude of "couldn't be bothered". I got the sense he made his money and was just coasting.
Under his leadership as CIO at Matthews, a number of talented PMs left for other firms. Artisan in particular took a number. I recall Capital Group also taking one of their lead PMs for Japan equity. You gotta wonder why they'd leave a boutique like Matthews given their backgrounds and areas of interest. My guess? Poor leadership and lack of belief in the company. Remember, these are investment people. They likely were getting some of their compensation in company stock.
Matthews assets are now below $8bn. They were $30bn only 3 years ago. Looks like the PMs that departed were smart assuming they were able to get their equity out of the firm before it started sinking.

msf, you are absolutely correct! My Schwab assigned Personal Account Representative has previously informed me that there is a list of local FAs, that they can provide to me, if I want to work with someone locally. We have not gone down that path "yet", but we have discussed it as an option. The important thing for me is to involve my wife in these decisions, and to ensure she is part of the decision, whatever that may be. And concerning the "option" of switching my banking arrangement to an online experience with Schwab Brokerage, that has been discussed periodically on these financial forums in the past, and it has been adopted by a few posters I know very well. If it was just a decision I was making for myself, then I would look at it in more detail. But Banking in my situation, is always "joint" banking arrangements, and I always have my wife's input/participation in those decisions. We have been married over 50 years, and I know how frustrated my wife is with online financial processes, and she would never agree to online, joint banking systems. Just because it is possible to do it, does not mean it is something that you should do, especially if it will upset and be resisted by your wife.

"Excellent" observations by the quacks.
I didn't beat the SP500 in 2023-4. Not even close, and I don't need it.
It's all at (https://fd1000.freeforums.net/post/446)
I know that none of you can do it; just keep quacking. I already have heard it for at least 15 years.
Remember, I was told that I don't have a clue; I will never retire, I will never make it in retirement and timing + low SD could not be done.
The reality is completely different. I only need about 1% from my portfolio to keep my nice lifestyle for decades without any pension or an inheritance.
Observant1: hindsight?
FD: It's much easier to throw stones. Many of my trades and analysis are on my site. You may learn something.
I also have several trades I made in the past several years where I sold before major meltdowns in 2020 and 2022 and when I bought back.

NOTE: This is the FINAL report for 'The week that was'. All numbers for the shortened week and final totals for the 2024 year ending data is accurate, to the best of my knowledge, from sources.
FOR YOUR USE: Most of you are familiar with M* and the performance page. This LINK is set with FDGRX. Scroll down to the 'Trailing Returns' section for the most current data. BE SURE to verify the DATE of the data. Usually, the new data is available within 8 hours of the markets closing.
ADD: This is directed towards possibilities into the new government period arriving January 20, and monetary/fiscal actions.
--- Bond vigilantes are investors who sell government bonds or threaten to do so to force policy changes and discipline excessive government spending:
--- Explanation
Bond vigilantes use their market power to drive up borrowing costs for the government. This can happen when they protest against expansionary monetary or fiscal policy.
--- Origin
The term was coined by economist Ed Yardeni in the 1980s to describe traders who sold Treasury bonds to protest Federal Reserve policies that were considered too inflationary.
--- Example
In the "Great Bond Massacre" from 1993 to 1994, US 10-year yields increased from 5.2% to over 8% due to concerns about federal spending. The Clinton administration and Congress responded by reducing the deficit, and 10-year yields dropped to around 4% by 1998.
NOTE:

My intention, at this time; is to present the data for the selected bond sectors, as listed; through the end of the year (2024). This 'end date' will take us through the U.S. elections period, pending actions/legislation dependent upon the election results, pending Federal Reserve actions and market movers trying to 'guess' future directions of the U.S. economy. As important during this period, are any number of global circumstances that may take a path that is not expected; and/or 'new' circumstances.

FIRST: NOTHING TO ADD/ALTER regarding 'Never-Never Land'. The pre-DC world shift of January, 2025 remains 'interesting' at this time! We're in a 'Never-Never Land' (events you never imagined) of potential large impacts upon various economic functions emanating from a central government in the coming months and years. What comes next for the investing world of bonds is not yet known or fully understood, except for those have a better guessing system than I. I can only watch and listen a little bit and let the numbers try to bring forth meaningful directions.
W/E December 31 , 2024. Bond NAV's Most positive. FINAL REPORT
--- 'Course, all the bond sectors in the list find their reasons for price movements, and we find most bond sectors HAD SMALL GAINS for this 2 day week's pricing to END the 2024 year. The majority of bond sectors were UP for the 2 days of the week. So, depending on where you're 'hanging' your bond market monies, the pricing this week, was mostly UP. The MINT etf, to the best of my recall, has maintained a positive price for the year, each and every week; and this remains for this week/year.
A few numbers for your viewing pleasure.
NEXT:
*** UST yields chart, 6 month - 30 year. This chart is active and will display a 6 month time frame going forward to a future date. Place/hover the mouse pointer anywhere on a line to display the date and yield for that date. The percent to the right side is the percentage change in the yield from the chart beginning date for a particular item. You may also 'right click' on the 126 days at the chart bottom to change a 'time frame' from a drop down menu. Hopefully, the line graph also lets you view the 'yield curve' in a different fashion, for the longer duration issues, at this time. Save the page to your own device for future reference. NOTE: take a peek at the right side of this graph to find the yield swings of the past week, and for the current yields for the last business day.
For the WEEK/YTD, NAV price changes, December 30 - December 31, 2024
***** This week (Wednesday), FZDXX, MM yield continues to move with Fed funds/repo/SOFR rates; and ended the week at 4.28% yield (+4 basis points for the week). Fidelity's MM's continue to maintain decent yields, as is presumed with other vendors similar MM's. SO, one is still obtaining a decent MM yield. MOST MM's found a positive .04 basis change in yield for the week.
--- AGG = +.27% / +1.31% (I-Shares Core bond), a benchmark, (AAA-BBB holdings)
--- MINT = +.08% / +5.94% (PIMCO Enhanced short maturity, AAA-BBB rated)
--- SHY = +.21% / +3.92 % (UST 1-3 yr bills)
--- IEI = +.39% / +1.81% (UST 3-7 yr notes/bonds)
--- IEF = +.40% / -.64% (UST 7-10 yr bonds)
--- TIP = +.17% / +1.65% (UST Tips, 3-10 yrs duration, some 20+ yr duration)
--- VTIP = +.17% / +4.74% (Vanguard Short-Term Infl-Prot Secs ETF)
--- STPZ = +.25% / +4.30% (UST, short duration TIPs bonds, PIMCO)
--- LTPZ = +.15% / -4.80% (UST, long duration TIPs bonds, PIMCO)
--- TLT = +.27% / -8.06% (I Shares 20+ Yr UST Bond
--- EDV = +.67% / -12.74% (UST Vanguard extended duration bonds)
--- ZROZ = +.37% / -16.13% (UST., AAA, long duration zero coupon bonds, PIMCO
--- TBT = -.61% / +27.55% (ProShares UltraShort 20+ Year Treasury (about 23 holdings)
--- TMF = +.65% / -35.93% (Direxion Daily 20+ Yr Trsy Bull 3X ETF (about a 2x version of EDV etf)
*** Additional important bond sectors, for reference:
--- BAGIX = +.31% / +1.85% Baird Aggregate Bond Fund (active managed, plain vanilla, high quality bond fund)
--- USFR = +.06% / +5.46% (WisdomTree Floating Rate Treasury)
--- LQD = +.18% / +.86% (I Shares IG, corp. bonds)
--- MBB = +.26% / +1.31% (I-Shares Mortgage Backed Bonds)
--- BKLN = +.10% / +8.20% (Invesco Senior Loan, Corp. rated BB & lower)
--- HYG = +.13% / +7.97 % (I Shares High Yield bonds, proxy ETF)
--- HYD = +.56%/+4.94% (VanEck HY Muni)
--- MUB = +.26% /+1.31% (I Shares, National Muni Bond)
--- EMB = +.28%/+5.54% (I Shares, USD, Emerging Markets Bond)
--- CWB = -1.07% / +10.06% (SPDR Bloomberg Convertible Securities)
--- PFF = +.67% / +7.24% (I Shares, Preferred & Income Securities)
--- FZDXX = 4.28% yield (7 day), Fidelity Premium MM fund
*** FZDXX yield was .11%, April,2022. (For reference to current date)
Comments and corrections, please.
Remain curious,
Catch

@dtconroe, I remember discussing this some years ago. At the time, you had indicated that Fido office was 2 hours away in Dallas, but there was a 2-3 person local Schwab broker/office - did that close?

Yes, it closed, and all the Schwab Account information was reassigned to a "new" personal account representative in the Dallas area. We had switched from a Fido office in Dallas, to the Schwab office in Tyler, for access and convenience for my wife. My wife was very willing to make the 10 minute drive to the Tyler Schwab office, to meet staff, and know who to meet with when necessary. When Schwab closed in Tyler, I was back to the same predicament we had with Fido. That is very frustrating regarding brokerage services for my wife, and I sure am not going to switch my local banking services to Schwab and further complicate financial access and convenience issues for my wife.
I may be more obsessed with a financial system, that is user friendly for my wife, than others are. If something happens to me, I don't want to leave an emotionally distraught spouse, struggling with a financial arrangement that is online, scary, and intimidating for her. I keep banking local and enough money in local banks, so she can take a 10 minute drive to the bank, and ask a local bank representative to "help" her make necessary changes to reflect my demise. She can't do that easily with Schwab, does not have the online skills to handle that, and does not want to make a 4 hour roundtrip drive to a Dallas office in very congested traffic.

@dtconroe, I remember discussing this some years ago. At the time, you had indicated that Fido office was 2 hours away in Dallas, but there was a 2-3 person local Schwab broker/office - did that close?

@dtconroe,
I am requoting my previous post for reference. I never had any bad experiences with CUs when I was their customer.

I can endorse CU as financial institutions, especially for their excellent customer service. I have dealt with them over the years. I never had large enough invested with them to worry about their balance sheet or how NCUA works. It seems they get into trouble far less than regional / community banks. Do your DD.
In the interest of full disclosure, I stopped doing business with them when cyber attacks of US businesses became more prevalent. Just my luck, a few years after I closed my account, Patelco CU had a cyber attack and my info was compromised.

@Derf - Maybe they’re out buying C/D s now to lock-in those back to back +24% years!
Thanks @JD_co for the numbers.

Use banks or CU for banking services. Use brokerages for brokerage banking services.
Why not use a brokerage for banking services?

In 1977, Merrill Lynch took a gamble with a concept known as a CMA (cash management account). This blending of banking and broker services into a one-stop-shop for financial services ...

https://www.sri.com/press/story/75-years-of-innovation-cash-management-account-cma/
Several brokerages offer cash management services. You can write checks and use a debit card from a Schwab brokerage account - you don't need Schwab bank for this.
https://www.schwab.com/content/how-to-order-new-debit-credit-card
You're not going to get a safe deposit box or take out a loan at a brokerage. But for your basic cash management and notary services, ISTM a brokerage can do just as well. And by using a brokerage for these services, that's one less account to have to deal with.

A couple of brief notes regarding credit unions:
- There is a shared network of brick and mortar CUs so that you can conduct some transactions in many locations (if your CU participates) even though individual CUs tend to have small footprints.
https://www.coop.org/Solutions/Engage/Co-op-Shared-Branch
- As Yogi noted, some CUs are privately insured through ASI. In 2002, Patelco moved to ASI, though five years later, it returned to NCUA. In 2002, ASI covered deposits up to $250K while NCUA coverage was limited to $100K (it's now $250K). Differences between ASI and NCUA can be more than just private vs government backing.

msf, I failed to mention that Kelley Credit Union stated that in addition to the $250,000 NCUA deposit insurance, per account, per owner, identical to FDIC, they also have an additional insurance coverage through a private insurance company, that doubles the NCUA/FDIC deposit coverage. How many banks do you think do that?

A couple of brief notes regarding credit unions:
- There is a shared network of brick and mortar CUs so that you can conduct some transactions in many locations (if your CU participates) even though individual CUs tend to have small footprints.
https://www.coop.org/Solutions/Engage/Co-op-Shared-Branch
- As Yogi noted, some CUs are privately insured through ASI. In 2002, Patelco moved to ASI, though five years later, it returned to NCUA. In 2002, ASI covered deposits up to $250K while NCUA coverage was limited to $100K (it's now $250K). Differences between ASI and NCUA can be more than just private vs government backing.

I can endorse CU as financial institutions, especially for their excellent customer service. I have dealt with them over the years. I never had large enough invested with them to worry about their balance sheet or how NCUA works. It seems they get into trouble far less than regional / community banks. Do your DD.
In the interest of full disclosure, I stopped doing business with them when cyber attacks of US businesses became more prevalent. Just my luck, a few years after I closed my account, Patelco CU had a cyber attack and my info was compromised.

BaluBalu'
Thanks for your personal experience, and I am sorry for your bad experience. I totally agree with "Do your DD". I have never experienced issues with Credit Unions that you experienced, but just like Banks, Credit Unions should be researched. My "bad experiences" have occurred with Banks. Woodforest National Bank use to be my primary bank, until I experienced Identity theft issues. Someone got into my checking account information, wrote some huge and numerous bad checks over the course of just a couple of days, forcing me to file a Police Report, get a new Drivers License, and close my banking account. In the process of dealing with these issues, the local police department informed me that they had many similar problems with Woodforest National Bank and encouraged me to get a new bank with better security for depositor accounts. Of course, I experienced numerous "bank problems" during the 2007/2008 financial crisis, with several banks that went bankrupt and had to close--the most well known bank was the Countrywide Bank, where I had several CDs. Fortunately, my CD investments were okay with FDIC protections, but it took a little time to clean up the Countrywide mess! I did my Due Diligence on local credit unions in Tyler, and although I have been using another Credit Union (CASE Credit Union), it was not as good as Kelley Credit Union when it came to Share Certificates/CDs. As you said do your Due Diligence, and gather some quality information before making your financial decision.

I can endorse CU as financial institutions, especially for their excellent customer service. I have dealt with them over the years. I never had large enough invested with them to worry about their balance sheet or how NCUA works. It seems they get into trouble far less than regional / community banks. Do your DD.
In the interest of full disclosure, I stopped doing business with them when cyber attacks of US businesses became more prevalent. Just my luck, a few years after I closed my account, Patelco CU had a cyber attack and my info was compromised.