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.
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Sven
Lynn,
Thank you so much. I am planning on a 3-year ladder since I am a year away from retirement. Lots of spreadsheet work to calculate the income replacement needed. This ladder will create a steady income stream. So thank you for all your help.
I moved back to high quality bond funds this year. Some of which you covered in the SA article. For now, I will stay with agency bonds to the bond ladder. I will pick active managers for corporate bonds.
Sven
@ Scott. I still have a VAIO laptop that runs on XP. It was a solid built machine for its time. Now we use Mac laptops and they are fast, light and well-built.
MSFT store I went sells Xbox, games, Windows based cell phones, and Windows 8 co…
If the past is any indication of the future, typical rate of increase is 25 basis point. CPI is one of the indicator for inflation the Fed uses and the number is tame. So it is likely to be small and extended over several years unless inflation ac…
@Scott,
At some point, there will be more in the way of digital downloads. You can already download games via XBOX Live and Playstation Network. I can pre-order a game and download it and have it ready to play at midnight on release date. I don't s…
I remember fondly that RS was the store I used to get parts for science fair projects as a fifth grader. Certainly the world has changed...I just helped my fifth grader to build robotic vehicles with programmable capability from LEGO kits.
@Hank,
Agree with what you said. Vanguard, however, is not a public trade company and is owned by the shareholders like you and I. so there is less concern on conflict of interest.
Over the years our family's approach have evolved and index fun…
I visited a nearby store for my kid's games and NOT particularly like what I see. They are going down the same path as Best Buy where Amazon can provide the same goods for better pricing. In terms of service, the store I visited is ran by a high s…
Future $ value calculator.
observationsandnotes.blogspot.com/2013/04/what-will-1-be-worth-in-future.html
For those who have access Financial Engines, it provides more detailed computation based on historical inflation rates (at least 40 years), r…
Most people don't appreciate how inflation alone erode the value over time. So it is important to have returns that exceed annual inflation rate just to stay afloat. Think about keeping cash in saving accounts that pay next to zero % interest!
The month of June is still on the table, but it is likely to be on the latter half of 2015. More importantly is how fast the increase is. Note that interest sensitive sectors including REITs have responded quickly this week.
@Scott, I agree. I listen to his interviews and all. He knows his stuff and couldn't translate them into results for his investors. Think he got too much of Bill Gross.
The average duration of active manged funds tend to move. Equally as important are the quality and oversea exposure. Dan Fuss's Loomis Sayles bond fund is difficult to into one these boxes. Downside risk should be part of the analysis in additio…
Certainly he is no Michael Price of Mutual Series funds. From investor perspective, it is hard to see your $ is invested in a sinking company among other poorly managed companies. Question is , should you stay or should you go? Didn't the Clash h…
Robert Arnott often touted as one of the smartest manager in the business. Why are his Pimco funds, All Asset and All Asset All Authority, are so uninspiring! Let's hope they can use his talent better.
I reduced MAPIX early last year and invested with Andrew Foster's Seafarer fund. Likely will repeat again this year. Lack of transparency (or clarity) in their reporting is really unfortunate.
@Kevin, not sure if that is a apple-to-apple comparison between Seafare and Thornburg funds. SFGIX has smaller exposure to EM space than that of THDIX, thus this reflect in the statistics shown. Besides the managers take on different approach wit…
The rate hike is coming either as early as June or early 2016. Historically markets have survived and thrived in higher rate environments, don't see how this one will do worse.
Someone reminded me the "Pi" day and the flash back to the slide rule days. My introduction to science and engineering classes required to show all work and calculation was done using slide rule, even though calculators were available. Then came t…
Battery life will be within same range as the rest of "smart watches". Having said that there are other functions including health monitoring. No need here since we already have iPhones.
Delayed gratification (or saving for the future) is a foreign concept for many people. To many it is more important to have new cars and big houses, i.e. higher debts, and yet they have little to show for in their saving/retirement accounts. Catch…
In addition to Star Trek, Leonard Nimoy was part of the TV series Mission Impossible for awhile. Yes, I enjoyed Star Trek growing up and become to appreciate the broader social messages. The follow-on shows never share the same level of impact at …
Yes, he will be missed. Always like his concise and clear writing - quite an opposite to Bill Gross. Wonder what will be come of Pimco. Several Pimco funds are still available in my 401(K) plan.
@Maurice, Win 10 probably won't add much for your uses. Noted that Win 9 was skipped and went straight to Win 10. I am also using Win 7 Professional and will not upgrade for sometime to come. Next change will be away from Microsoft totally. Our …
Knowing a bit of math almost helps when purchasing cars. These days the salesman only want to discuss the "affordable" monthly payment plan, and not the entire cost after financing. They did not like it a bit when I redo their calculation with my O…
@Tampabay, M* portfolio x-Ray is FREE at T. Rowe Price under Tools. Site registration is required for your own portfolio, and it is free. That is $198 saving a year.
Concur totally. Case in point iShare MSCI Emerging Market, EEM, has been losing asset to Vanguard Emerging Market index, VWO, while both track the identical index. Higher expense ratio and larger tracker error (EEM tracks the larger stocks rather …
Future markets including Apple Pay, collaboration with IBM, and (potential) healthcare monitoring could further propel Apple's earning forward. I was surprise by how well iPhone 6 sold in China in the 4th quarter even with the cheaper alternatives …
