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.
My point is most Republicans DO care about money and property. When their beliefs start costing them real money, at least some of them might start looking at things differently. If they can’t insure their homes and property, then they could face rea…
Florida is next.
Sooner or later, insurance costs might be the factor that drives climate-change deniers to see the light. There is no doubt that climate change is fueling more extreme weather events and thus property damages. Wildfires, droughts,…
Another benefit with Fidelity, at least for us, is that they have many local offices where you can talk to real people in person. I have handled all of investments for decades, but my wife can take advantage of the local office and their advisors if…
Nothing different because I assumed the issue would get resolved at the last minute because that’s what has happened in the past. The consequences of default are so dire that everyone except the biggest whack jobs would not want to default. Admitted…
When I first started investing 30+ years ago, I was considering Vanguard, Fidelity and TRowe Price. Vanguard’s minimum investments were too high, and I opted for TRP because they were friendly to small investors. I later started an account with Fide…
I’ve owned ARTKX for 13 years, and it’s my only foreign fund that hasn’t disappointed. I’ve diversified into other foreign funds over the years and haven’t found anything that compares. However, if I wasn’t able to invest in ARTKX and wanted a forei…
Crash, If you have a Fidelity account, you can choose from hundreds of new-issue CDs, many with yields exceeding 5%. I have constructed two CD ladders extending up to 5 years with total yields about 5.1%. Similar options are available at Schwab and …
Fortunately, I registered my wife and daughter at the time I bought the I-Bonds for them, but the process for creating gift accounts is confusing so that didn’t happen. Also you had to wait at least 5 business days after buying the bonds to transfer…
I continue to hold international stock funds but have let the percentage decline as they continue to underperform. Most foreign funds are doing relatively well so far this year, but I never have high expectations because they have disappointed so mu…
I dumped my TIPs bond fund but holding the rest of them, about 35% of my total portfolio. Most bond funds now have healthy yields, and I think the worst of the slaughter is probably over. I am holding more cash in money markets and CDs than ever bef…
Unfortunately, I wasn’t paying attention to calls when I set up my CD ladders. I just went for the highest available yields for each step in the ladders. I’ll know better next time.
That’s what I figured. So, even though I have a 5-year ladder, the CDs are likely to be called if interest rates drop very much. Thanks for the article.
I’m willing to keep my I-Bonds at least another six months at that rate. They are exempt from state income taxes, which adds a little more to their value, and perhaps inflation will not drop as expected. However, I’m not buying any new I-Bonds as lo…
Andy, I believe that FIPDX’s duration is quite a bit higher now than when I first bought it. However, I don’t see how it can appreciate much unless rates drop a lot because it yields next to nothing. Seriously, the yield from my fund in February was…
My question was somewhat rhetorical and I don’t plan to sell all of my bond funds. But I do think I’ll sell at least one fund (FIPDX - a TIPs fund) and put the proceeds into a CD ladder. As a TIPs fund, I am astonished that it’s my worst performing …
I’m loving the higher yields on cash. I retired six years ago, and this is the first time I’ve been able to get decent returns on cash, except for a brief period a couple years ago. As a result, I haven’t held as much in cash reserves as a retiree p…
Never mind. I just realized that one of the extra Treasury payments for this month is our tax refund. However, I still don’t understand the extra payment in February.
One of many reasons why I never got an Alexa is that it overhears your conversations, and then you start getting ads for things you mention to your family. This is just creepy and invasive. It’s like having an advertising spy in your house. Sure, Go…
FYI, Nova on PBS had an episode on cryptocurrency this week. I haven’t watched it yet but to view it on streaming. One of my core financial practices is to stay away from investments I don’t understand and I’m clueless about crypto.
I’m planning to pay the estimated tax by September 15, but I’m still confused about the requirements for Roth conversions. I usually do my conversions in October, so I pay the estimated taxes in January of the following year. However, I’ve done two…
My credit union used to be very competitive on CDs and money market rates. Now they don’t even come close to Fidelity’s offerings. Even a 5-year CD is only yielding 0.85% at my credit union, and its MM is yielding only 0.4%. Needless to say, I don’t…
Apparently, M* does not rely on its traditional users for income. It has been driving away users for years. I used to visit M* daily, and now I rarely ever use the site. No love lost from my viewpoint.
@Catch22,
I don’t know the source of his image, but comparable rates are easy to find on Fidelity’s CD page. They are sorted by maturity dates, and you can easily find the best rates for any time period.
Hi @Charles
What is the source and date of…
I just created an 18-month CD ladder with cash that was sitting in a money market earning nothing. Overall, my ladder is yielding 2%, which isn’t great but much better than 0.2%. The CDs mature every 3 months, so I can take advantage of further rate…
My main point is that there’s plenty of blame to around. The current inflation is not simply due to actions on inactions by the current administration, but perhaps more so by business leaders and the general public.
Nobody likes high gas prices. Ho…
Edmond - Why don’t you also hold business leaders accountable? It was their decisions in many cases that have led to supply chain disruptions, a major cause of inflation. Eg, computer chip makers cut back on production, completely misreading the mar…
So tell me, geniuses, how was the Fed and other policy makers supposed to:
- Anticipate the Russian invasion of Ukraine and its effects on gas prices?
- Prevent supply chain disruptions, which were caused by the pandemic and corporations faulty deci…
I used to invest in BUFBX. It’s always been overweight energy, at least in recent history, as well as value stocks. Thus it hasn’t performed well in recent years until recently, as growth stocks have tumbled and energy boomed.
The way I look at it, you’ll get at least 75% of the current inflation rate investing in I-Bonds, assuming you cash out before holding five years. I bought bonds when the rate was 7.1%, and it will go up to 9.6% for the next six months. So I’m guara…
I wonder if any of the workforce dropouts are simply people old enough to retire who decided to quit working sooner than they would have otherwise.
Regarding the WSJ, I consider its new coverage reasonably neutral — and my political views are left …
