@Nick637 It has proven totally unethical and cruel in many other parts of the country:
https://washingtonpost.com/sf/investigative/collection/homes-for-the-taking/?utm_term=.61cb93babcea
https://citylab.com/equity/2015/06/how-the-black-tax-destroyed-african-american-homeownership-in-chicago/395426/
And now in the current environment, it could prove a particularly vicious time for such sales and evictions unless the government steps in to stop them: https://inquirer.com/health/coronavirus/coronavirus-eviction-foreclosure-philadelphia-gym-council-resolution-20200312.html
A lot of people are going to miss their mortgage and property tax payments in the current environment.

Hi guys. I thought I'd post an update with today's rally which puts the S&P 500 Index up 10.5% thus far into the week and up 22.9% from its 52 week low; but, leaves it down 18.8% from its 52 week high. With this upward price movement moves the Index from bear market territory (greater than 20% off the 52 week high) into correction territory (which is less than 20% off the 52 week high but above the 10% decline mark).
With this price movement today the Index moves from being oversold (with a reading of 165) to undervalued (with a reading of 160) on the barometer's scale. Generally, a lower barometer reading indicates that there is less investment in the Index over a higher reading.
For me, I have been enjoying the stock market rebound and still with my plan to position new money on the income side of my portfolio. This is to help maintain my current asset allocation of 15% cash, 40% income and 45% equity as equities are having a good upward run plus I was a buyer of equities during the downdraft.
My three best performing funds for the day were PMDAX +4.5% ... FRINX +4.4% ... and, PGUAX +4.0%.
Thanks for stopping by and reading.
Take care ... be safe ... and, I wish all good investing.
Old_Skeet

Anyway, let me add that FXAIX does not outperform either Vanguard SP500 product if you go back to their spring 1988 origin, only more recently.

Nothing to do with insecurity, trying to be accurate. FXAIX didn't perform better because it didn't have a lower ER all these years. The main difference between me and others is that I supply numbers and not just narrative ;-)

As you're a numbers sort of person, could you provide some numbers to go along with your narrative? The story saying that FXAIX "didn't have a lower ER all these years"?
I can find some early years over the lifetime span when VFINX had an ER more than a single basis point below FXAIX's. But there aren't very many years like that, and the VFINX advantage in those years was just 6-9 basis points. In contrast, there are a greater number of later years where FXIAX had the advantage. More sizeable to boot, 8-15 basis points.
From what little I can find, it seems that FXAIX overall had the lower ER all these years. I look forward to seeing the ER numbers for "all these years".

Hi @MikeM
You noted:

I am eliminating bonds from my self managed portfolio as much as I can

Obviously, I don't know what type of bond funds you have already or will eliminate. I can only offer this, as we all "see" the markets from our own knowledge and perspective.
Note: The following view/comparison does not include either narrow focused or junk bond funds; with the exception being AAA narrow focused bond funds/etf's.
SO. I had 2 phone calls from friends, about a month ago, regarding their bond funds. They're both conservative investors and don't fiddle with their holdings often and hold about an even mix of equity (SP500 type) and bonds (active managed total return bond funds). They were concerned that their bond funds had become negative for returns. This was the short period when credit markets became stuck. As we know now and what could be assumed, is that the FED moved in to unwind the log jam.
The had fully expected that these would show positive returns when the equity market was crashing. Generally speaking, this would be normal expectation; except a short period in bondland was different. However, I did express that indeed their bond funds were supportive in their portfolio, although showing a small negative return at the time.
I provided the following information (now updated through April 7) using $SPX and FTBFX (a fairly typical total return bond fund).
The $SPX and FTBFX start at Jan. 2018, as this period found 4 periods of equity "fits"; being, Feb. 8, Mar. 21, Oct. 29 and the big melt of Dec. 24, 2018.
This is the total return data from Jan. 2018 through April 7, 2020 and two other periods:
--- Jan. 2018 - April 7, 2020
$SPX = - 1.4%
FTBX = + 9.9%
--- 1 year, April 7, 2019 - April 7, 2020
$SPX = - 8.1%
FTBFX = + 6.2%
--- March 19, 2020.....this date, being a period + or - a few days of when bonds, including AAA where behaving badly; and when I received the phone calls. The following is the YTD returns as of March 19.
$SPX = - 25.5%
FTBFX = - 5.4%
The conversation expressed that while the bonds were not + YTD; the bond fund did indeed function properly, in regards to the loss comparison with $SPX.
The above amounts to how one views an outcome and what are or were the reasons for arriving at a given monetary place.
As for today and with many U.S. bond areas; there is not likely a prior period or a future period when more support from the FED is taking place.
The support crutches, for many bond areas, are in place, IMHO.
Be well.
Catch

Just heard this from a friend of mine. I had no clue anything like this existed. My friend said he invested around $50K across 10 liens. It's really an auction where you can bid for how much you willing to pay (equal / over to tax owed) and how much interest you accepting to collect. I could keep explaining, but article below will no doubt do much better job.
https://www.bankrate.com/investing/investing-in-tax-liens-fraught-with-risk/
Wanted to ask if anyone diversifies their portfolio investing in tax liens and / or if any real estate funds out there we know invest significantly in them (since it falls in RE investment category).
Thanks much for any insight / advice.

I don't have a dog in the fight, but I did take a quick look at upside/downside capture ratios for DODFX on M* and they are terrible for 3, 5 and 10 years. T
It is well know that large cap is the hardest category for a fund manager to "beat" the index. It is very unlikely that it can be done and if it can be the investor picking the "the winner" ahead of those 3, 5 or 10 years is close to impossible. If the case for owning a managed LC fund is a smoother ride or principle conservation and not beating the index return (which it is for me), the up/down statistic is a good one to judge performance.

Your contrib is so valuable, but are you really so insecure you have to impugn ('obsess') anyone who offers even mild corrections or challenges ?
Anyway, let me add that FXAIX does not outperform either Vanguard SP500 product if you go back to their spring 1988 origin, only more recently.

Nothing to do with insecurity, trying to be accurate. FXAIX didn't perform better because it didn't have a lower ER all these years. The main difference between me and others is that I supply numbers and not just narrative ;-)
As of (04/07/2020) FXAIX did better than VFIAX for 3 + 5 years by only 0.02% annually.

Matt, I don't think any markets, including bonds, have calmed down. I don't see even a trend I'm excited about that I want to trade. Higher-rated funds look OK but rates might go up when things get better. We are in a black swan market and unclear forecasts. VFIIX has a very smooth slow uptrend if you want to own a fund until we see better markets (chart).
JMUTX,BAGIX,OPTAX are good funds.
I'm out of the market.

I just looked at TRP HY. TUHYX. Down -15% ytd. Distributions are nothing to write home about, either---- given that it's supposed to be a HY fund. I owned it back in 2018 or so but got out not long afterward. It's not awful. But I continue to tout PTIAX and PRSNX. Even RPSIX, a TRP bond fund of funds, is less volatile. The HY risk you'd take seems not worth it to me, with other good options out there. Maybe go with Munis? PTIMX. Or maybe HY Munis.
https://www.morningstar.com/funds/xnas/tuhyx/performance

“This relatively rare condition of intense stock market fear, combined with a generally calm bond market, has proved to be a powerful combination for ensuing stock market returns,” Paulsen wrote in a note Tuesday.
When the VIX is above the 80th percentile and MOVE is below the 50th percentile, the average annualized S&P 500 price performance has been “remarkable -- at nearly +21% compared to only a little more than +7% the rest of the time,” he said.
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-04-08/bond-stock-volatility-gap-is-bullish-equity-signal-for-leuthold
In checking the stock futures, about an hour before the markets open, this morning, it looks like the market is set to build on Monday's gains.
The futures ... https://finviz.com/futures.ashx
Old_Skeet has been a buyer of equites during this downdraft believing that program trading had the markets oversold. It is now nice to see the stock market rebounding since ... as the saying goes ... I caught some falling knives. I'm thinking ... as the 500 Index begins to approach the 2700 to 2800 range things will slow and we will trade off of TTM earnings projected by S&P to be in the $130's. This could take us sideways and in a trading range through summer. Hopefully, though, when fall comes forward earnings will start looking better (possible in the 150's to 160's) and this will set stocks up for a nice fall stock market rally.
Anyway ... this is how I see it.
Take care ... be safe ... and, I wish all "Good Investing."
I am, Old_Skeet
@mcmarasco ... Matt you asked for a signal. Jim Paulsen is one I have followed for years. I have found that his thinking has been pretty much on spot. Hope this helps you sort things out. Anyway, his comments confirmed my thinking. By the way ... my fixed income sleeve took a beating much more than I thought it would. With bond valuations being down I have now begun to buy in the fixed income area of my portfolio.

Your contrib is so valuable, but are you really so insecure you have to impugn ('obsess') anyone who offers even mild corrections or challenges ?
Anyway, let me add that FXAIX does not outperform either Vanguard SP500 product if you go back to their spring 1988 origin, only more recently.

and FXAIX is cheaper yet

Correct, since I started talking about Vanguard I wanted to stay with it.
Fidelity 500 Index Fund ( FXAIX )=015%...Vanguard 500 Index Admiral (VFIAX)=040%
Fidelity Tot Market Index Fund ( FSKAX ) =015%...Vanguard Total Stock Mkt Index Admiral (VTSAX)=0.4%
But if you are really obsessed about expense ratio then Fidelity has several funds with zero expense ratio.
Fidelity® ZERO Large Cap Index Fund (FNILX)
Fidelity® ZERO Total Market Index Fund (FZROX)
Fidelity® ZERO Extended Market Index Fund (FZIPX)
Fidelity® ZERO International Index Fund (FZILX)
But FNILX didn't do better than VFIAX since inception.

Going the other way - if the OP were to open a new account, would he need to wait 5 years before making any “qualified” distributions?

I think you got the mandate wrong there. D&C is not required to beat the S&P 500. They are acting to select value stocks which they deem safer and worthy of their clients money. It's obvious to me that many investors do, judging by the AUM. For many of them it's not just all about who has the biggest pile of money at the end of the day. Not everyone can make trades after the fact.

See 15 years of risk/reward(link).
As of 3/31/2020
15 years aver annual performance...VFIAX=7.39...DODGX 5.45%
15 years SD=volatility......................VFIAX=14.3...DODGX 17.1
The SP500 made close to 2% more performance annually. If you invested $100K in each(VFIAX vs DODGX) 15 years ago, you would have now $293.2K in VFIAX but only $223K in DODGX
But DODGX had almost 20% more SD=volatility.
This means the SP500 was a better risk/reward fund than DODGX. Unless you disregard the numbers above, how can you explain "safer"?
BTW, for 10 years (link), the numbers for DODGX get even worse. VFIAX had 2.33%(11.04 vs 8.7%) better annual performance (instead of close to 2% for 15 years) + SD is still worse(higher) for DODGX by over 20%
To the question of size? "You can fool all the people some of the time, and some of the people all the time, but you cannot fool all the people all the time." The SP500 + US Tot Index (VTI) are so much bigger than DODGX but wait, most of the saved money is thru 401K, employers now must in most cases use indexes, especially for US LC and/or very cheap funds such as Target funds (mainly based on indexes) because it is very difficult to defend fiduciary duty.
and we already discussed that VFIAX expense ratio is so much cheaper too at 0.04% but VOO=0.03% while DODFX = 0.52%
Finally, nobody can stop you investing in DODGX, after all, it's your money but the above was a pretty clear case, at least for me :-)

@johnN
Herd mentality ? NAH......
Some large trade houses, hedge funds and the ALGO's.
Fishing the bottoms across the sectors in equity and bonds. Stay for 10 or 15 minutes and move.
= nice day for the longs and shorts, if one is in the right place at the right time.

This blog post discusses what Pimco observed when they gazed into their crystal ball:

We are seeing the first-ever recession by government decree – a necessary, temporary, partial shutdown of the economy aimed at preventing an even larger humanitarian crisis. What is also different this time is the unprecedented speed and size of the monetary and fiscal response, as policymakers and monetary authorities try to prevent a recession turning into a lasting depression.

We believe this crisis is likely to leave three long-term scars:
Globalization may be dialed back
More private and public debt
Shift in household saving behavior
We believe a caution-first approach is warranted in an effort to protect against permanent capital impairment.

https://blog.pimco.com/en/2020/04/key-takeaways-from-pimcos-cyclical-outlook-from-hurting-to-healing?mod=article_inline

So many of these pundits will come of woodwork and call market bottoms or nearing bottoms..double dip..impending doom...etc...
The reality is almost impossible to pick bottom...they maybe ><50% right at the time...Maybe you maybe more right than them
Think best stick w your investing plans, have a large stomach for preparation for worst outcomes if you consider getting very aggresive portfolio (high risks high rewards)
Lastly get 24 packs of heneiken beer, large rolaid bottles. Prepare for continue shutdown for two -four wks. Prepare to stand in lines / wear your masks at grocery stores..most importantly continue to wash your hands.
Also Be thankful of what you have, appreciate what others do for you, and glad to have as another day 6 feet above.
[IMHO]
Thankyou for the article

Nothing new here but it may be worth repeating...

Legendary investor Mark Mobius.....was asked Monday if the recent 20% rally off the bottom of the quickest bear market in history signaled an all-clear for investors...Mobius cautioned investors....“I think it's a little early to predict that because given the lockdown that we have seen globally in so many countries around the world, the impact of this lockdown on businesses, it's not going to be seen immediately..... I believe that once the numbers start coming in, people will be somewhat disappointed.”
...historical bear markets on a global scale have averaged a larger 30% to 50% drawdown spread out over the span of roughly two years. “The most expensive words in the world are ‘This time is different.’ I don't think this time it's different,” he said. “I think we’re probably maybe going to do a double bottom, jumping down again and pushing up again.”
“The recovery may take longer than people expect,” he predicted, barring any absence of a New Deal-like work program. “It's going to be a real challenge to get these people back to work.

https://finance.yahoo.com/news/investor-who-predicted-the-start-of-the-2009-bull-market-were-not-in-the-clear-yet-104234346.html

I wanted to revisit a conversation on globalization and start a new thread on this "new normal".
I found this article regarding globalization regarding this present health threat (Covid-19).

As airports, factories, and shops slow down or shut down, the novel coronavirus pandemic is testing the international supply chains that define the current era of globalization. And the multi-factory and often multi-country manufacturing processes used by companies around the world are proving more fragile than anticipated. If the virus and the economic wreckage it is causing aren’t contained soon, blueberries and avocados won’t be the only things missing from market shelves across the still chilly Midwest and Northeast United States. Cars, clothes, electronics, and basic medicines will run short as far-off factories disconnect.

how-pandemic-proof-globalization
If you own equities you're probably a global investor. This article mentions that S&P 500 companies derive about 70% of the revenues from the US, the rest outside of the US.
What I wonder is how dependent are these S&P 500 companies on the rest of the world with regard to the production of these products/services. How do we maintain supply lines across borders?
how-global-is-s-and-p-500
As for cars, here are a couple of examples of where parts are sourced for a single integrated product like a car.:
a-graphic-representation-of-whats-really-made-in-america
2019-american-made-index-whats-the-most-american-car

A closer look at individual S&P 500 companies and why they maybe more Multinational than American:
why-us-companies-arent-so-american-anymore
As we get back to our "New - New Normal" I wonder how investment risk will be described and hedged when it come to these interconnected markets. What hedging strategies do investors need in their portfolio to hedge risk.
Comments welcome.

@royal4 - I had considered that but if the market goes up from here there doesn't seem to be a reason for doing so.
ALSO: " A Roth IRA conversion made on or after January 1, 2018, cannot be recharacterized. For details, see “Recharacterizations” in Publication 590-A, Contributions to Individual Retirement Arrangements (IRAs)."
IRA FAQS - Recharacterization of IRA Contributions