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Vanguard raises fees, mins on legacy (fund) platform and brokerage platform
Vanguard is raising its fees again if you use their legacy platform or get paper statements. Starting September 1, you will have to have $5M (was $1M) invested with Vanguard to avoid a $25 (was $20) annual fee. Likewise, if you don't meet this new min in a brokerage account, you'll be charged $25 annually for paper statements. https://www.bogleheads.org/forum/viewtopic.php?p=7292940#p7292940
History Through early 2022: - Legacy platform: $20/fund - waived w/$10K in fund - Brokerage platform: $20/brokerage account - waived w/$10K in Vanguard assets in account or w/e-delivery - Fees also waived with combined Vanguard investments of $50K across all accounts
September 30, 2022 - Legacy platform: $20/fund - waived with Flagship status ($1M in Vanguard investments) - Brokerage platform: $20/brokerage account - waived with Flagship status or e-delivery (Start date was for existing accounts and is found in @LewisBraham's Barron's article.)
As noted, e-delivery waives annual fee at any asset level. This has been in place for several years.
Yes, it is 2023. Paper is sooooooo 2000's ;^) Think of how much logging/trees have been saved due to paper everything. (statement,bills,etc... etc..) I rarely get paper mail anymore other than junk mail and maybe...maybe use a stamp once or twice a year to mail something.
Since Sept 2022, opting into e-delivery only gets some annual fees waived. To get annual mutual fund fees (legacy platform) waived, one must meet the minimum Vanguard investment requirement. In 2022 that was $1M; it is about to go up to $5M.
Mutual fund-only customers will need to pay an annual $20 fee per fund starting in September [2022], FA-IQ sister publication Ignites writes, citing Vanguard’s website.
That’s on top of the $20 annual account fee, according to the publication.
While clients can avoid the account fee by going paperless or meeting other standards, the same option doesn’t extend to the per-fund fee, Ignites writes, citing the disclosure.
Agree. We moved away from paper statements when the electronic ones became available. They are easier to store in your hard drives. Additionally, you can get them several weeks earlier.
I saw Vanguard's 09/2022 deadline to "force" conversion to VG Brokerage as a separate action; "or else", huge penalties (new) for continuing to have mutual fund only accounts. I reluctantly converted - took a while for me (Trust a/c + IRAs), but was easy for my wife (IRAs only).
Waiver of fees by e-delivery was identical before 09/2022 - whether mutual fund only a/c or brokerage a/c. But that also changed after 09/2022 - e-delivery no longer provided fee break for mutual fund a/c. I also delayed this choice as far as I could but went with e-delivery after the "forced" conversions.
FWIW, I like to receive some things via snail mail, but I am OK to get other stuff via email. So, on sites that allow selectivity (Fido, etc), I only get statements and 1099s via snail mail, but the rest (confirmations, prospectuses, junk) via email. But I resist all or nothing choice. It isn't just that I could save the PDFs, but that if something happens to me, my family won't have access to online a/c, info, statements, etc. Having some paper in hand still has value.
@yogibb said, FWIW, I like to receive some things via snail mail, but I am OK to get other stuff via email. So, on sites that allow selectivity (Fido, etc), I only get statements and 1099s via snail mail, but the rest (confirmations, prospectuses, junk) via email. But I resist all or nothing choice. It isn't just that I could save the PDFs, but that if something happens to me, my family won't have access to online a/c, info, statements, etc. Having some paper in hand still has value.
You got a point there; just in case something happen to me unexpectedly. I print out the year-end statement and keep them on a binder. Same go for Fidelity and other investments. Printed 1099s are made for doing tax returns. Over the years, I have gradually reduced receiving the paper forms and saving only the quarterly and annual statements; now only the annual statements. It is easier and keep track of them electronically.
My wife has access to all accounts and we spend time to review our finance. Not easy to plan for the unexpected and mental decline in the future. Reading @Lynn Bolin article is very helpful for seeking an advisor and perhaps to manage part of our asset.
I resent these efforts to force people to stop all paper statements. Some firms do allow selective paper statements, and I continue to insist on tax forms on paper.
I find it almost impossible to scroll though a pdf of a 1099B and find what I need, especially when I need to determine what portion of tx exempt dividends are exempt from state taxes.
Being forced to print out statements only transfers the cost of the statements from the brokerage to you, the customer
"Being forced to print out statements only transfers the cost of the statements from the brokerage to you, the customer"
It also saves the cost of envelopes and the cost of physically moving the paper statements. (There's the added cost of getting blank reams of paper to you for printing, though I suspect that that is less than the cost of breaking the paper up into a dozen envelopes that are delivered separately.)
To each his own regarding ease of use. I find it easier to search an electronic document for additional fund tax information than to flip through several pages until I find the information.
Also, to find the state tax information for a third party fund, one must get that information from the third party company. For example, if I invest in T. Rowe Price's PRFSX Fidelity, I have to get the tax exempt breakdown by state from T. Rowe Price.
One can either go to the website and get this information and save it for one's records (which is what I do), or contract T. Rowe Price to ask for hardcopy, assuming it is even available. (Disclaimer: PRFSX is a random example; I don't have any money invested in it.)
FWIW, I spoke with a Vanguard rep and found out we can still receive our TAX Forms by US Mail without paying a fee. I think there may be a tax law that requires tax forms to be mailed unless taxpayer agrees to another delivery method. Not sure.
I, like some others, would like to continue receiving statements by mail for the benefit of my wife if something were to happen to me, but not enough to pay $25 per account. I suppose she could call VG and change back to paper.
Comments
Waiver of fees by e-delivery was identical before 09/2022 - whether mutual fund only a/c or brokerage a/c. But that also changed after 09/2022 - e-delivery no longer provided fee break for mutual fund a/c. I also delayed this choice as far as I could but went with e-delivery after the "forced" conversions.
FWIW, I like to receive some things via snail mail, but I am OK to get other stuff via email. So, on sites that allow selectivity (Fido, etc), I only get statements and 1099s via snail mail, but the rest (confirmations, prospectuses, junk) via email. But I resist all or nothing choice. It isn't just that I could save the PDFs, but that if something happens to me, my family won't have access to online a/c, info, statements, etc. Having some paper in hand still has value.
My wife has access to all accounts and we spend time to review our finance. Not easy to plan for the unexpected and mental decline in the future. Reading @Lynn Bolin article is very helpful for seeking an advisor and perhaps to manage part of our asset.
I find it almost impossible to scroll though a pdf of a 1099B and find what I need, especially when I need to determine what portion of tx exempt dividends are exempt from state taxes.
Being forced to print out statements only transfers the cost of the statements from the brokerage to you, the customer
It also saves the cost of envelopes and the cost of physically moving the paper statements. (There's the added cost of getting blank reams of paper to you for printing, though I suspect that that is less than the cost of breaking the paper up into a dozen envelopes that are delivered separately.)
To each his own regarding ease of use. I find it easier to search an electronic document for additional fund tax information than to flip through several pages until I find the information.
Also, to find the state tax information for a third party fund, one must get that information from the third party company. For example, if I invest in T. Rowe Price's PRFSX Fidelity, I have to get the tax exempt breakdown by state from T. Rowe Price.
One can either go to the website and get this information and save it for one's records (which is what I do), or contract T. Rowe Price to ask for hardcopy, assuming it is even available.
(Disclaimer: PRFSX is a random example; I don't have any money invested in it.)
I, like some others, would like to continue receiving statements by mail for the benefit of my wife if something were to happen to me, but not enough to pay $25 per account. I suppose she could call VG and change back to paper.