Here's a statement of the obvious: The opinions expressed here are those of the participants, not those of the Mutual Fund Observer. We cannot vouch for the accuracy or appropriateness of any of it, though we do encourage civility and good humor.
@willmatt72 If the inference is that I'm late to the party on healthcare, I disagree. But time will tell
Not at all...probably good to dollar cost average in as the wrinkles get worked out with Donnie-care.
Recently, I purchased VHT as a healthcare play. Looks half decent to me.
This remind me of the call I got from the doctor.
He said, "I have some good news and I have some bad news".
This sounds half decent, right?
I asked the Doc to give me th…
Thanks for article @Ted.
I'll add a few other thoughts.
A second home needs to be commutable...for me, that was no more than 90 minutes door to door. The thing about the Cape (mentioned in the article) and other exotic destinations is that they t…
Nice @Edmond...I'll have what he ordered!
I'll add that many of the struggles humans encounter have much to do with securing a living wage. When one is not available, social ills (crime, addiction, government handouts, lack of education, etc) incr…
Thank @Ted,
Your link answered my question and makes me wonder about another...the 60 day rollover rule and calculating your RMD after 70.5.
The RMD rule is as follows:
The RMD for each year is calculated by dividing the IRA account balance as of…
From a recent Jeff Saut (Raymond James) article I reference this passage and a possible endorsement for equity inflation in 2017:
Our sense is the new administration will not be able to get the corporate tax rate down to 15%, but even at a 25% rate…
I have owned it through thick and more recently thin times.
Some here were agile enough to time this fund over its most recent uptick.
I believe thick Cuban cigars (with a Connecticut wrap) would be a nice addition to this fund.
Cuba may be more…
@Old_Skeet,
Have you ever been asked to duplicate your sleeve system with using only "Low ER/Low fee" funds?
As I recall, your funds are selected on the basis of total return (performance-management cost). Many seem to have loads (that may be wai…
Here's an article that shed some light on the changing dynamics that face the US, UK and the EU including the possibility of interest rates rising here in the US:
trumps-fiscal-policy-may-have-lessons-for-britain/
The full article may require free…
Thanks Ted,
From the article:
O’Neil said that he likes Treasury Inflation-Protected Securities, leveraged loans and corporate credit, both high yield and investment grade.
Fidelity Total Bond gained 6.1 percent this year, better than 88 percent o…
BC/BS offers one of those five cheaper catastrophic plans. In addition, it sells two HSA plans that step up to Bronze for virtually the same price - HSA plans for $111.02 ($6550 deductible/$6550 cap) and $117.93 ($5950 deductible/$6350 cap).
I beli…
The S&P 500 made its first new high at 2130 on May 21, 2015. It took 14 months and a pullback to 1829 (about 15% off its 2130 high) before the S&P 500 moved once again moved above 2130 in July of 2016. Today, a full 17 months later, it stand…
Interesting... the stock price of TROW is trading at its lowest price in over a year. In fact, you have to go back to its 4 year low (Sept 2012) to match today's stock price. The stock is up 36% over the last ten years which included the 2009 great-…
@hank or should I say @robohank,
Your robo-comment reminds me of a robo-call I received today from my healthcare provider.
It went something like this:
"Mr bee your are receiving this automated call so that we can provide you with the most up to…
To @msf comments about HUD.
Price is often impacted by supply.
In a world were central banks "buy up" assets in the equity and bond market so too do federal agencies like HUD. They backstop the U.S. real estate market. There mission is a stabili…
Jeremy Siegel's research paper challenges the CAPE approach to forecasting returns:
Link to his paper:
The Shiller CAPE Ratio:A New Look by Jeremy J. Siegel
I believe this is @Junkster's discretionary fund for hiking shoes and peanut butter sandwiches.
Stay fully invested, have stops in place and live frugally...works for me.
@msf
This form of "circularity" shows up in many places.
I finds this circularity to be true with regard to my aging comprehension. As I get older I find myself knowing more and more about less and less until I know everything about nothing."
Than…
Here's an interesting article on the premium subsidy dynamic that I am facing this year:
“… the amount of the [self-employed health insurance premium] deduction is based on the amount of the … premium tax credit, and the amount of the credit is bas…
@msf,
Thanks for the links on this subject.
One RESA provision goes as follows:
"RESA would provide that the new 5-year distribution requirement only applies to the extent that the amount of an individual’s aggregate account balances under all IRA…
Looking at a 5 year chart visually tells a cautionary story as well:
A 72% 1 year investment gain in GDXJ...
merely breaks even for a 3 year investment in GDXJ...
and is little consolation to a 67% loss to a 5 year investment in GDXJ:
For an allocation fund whose performance has hugged the return of the S&P 500 for the past 10 years, go for the Bruce Fund (BRUFX). It's by far my biggest MF holding.
Don't you wish Bruce Fund offered a cash position? I have my H.S.A with Bruce …
Thanks @Kevindow for that article. Most investors are clueless to this aspect of the financial world. Security lending has had a few issues to deal with, specifically unsettled trades or FTD (Failure to Deliver).
Here's a website that "scratches th…
Low ER on high volume is still a very profitable business model for Vanguard and other large volume/low fee houses. Reminds me that high volumes of money (QE) loaned at record low interest rates is still a very profitable business model for banks an…
Yep. Doesn't have to be 1/2. Could be any combination. The more options the better. Many of my friends were forced to take lump sum to pay off debt at retirement even tho their debt was much less than the lump sum. The PBGC rate is at record low…
