I heard about the book The Richest Man In Babylon by George S. Clason but I haven’t read it until now. It’s a fun little book. Two middle class guys in Babylonian times were wondering how come they didn’t have money although they worked hard in their trades. They went to ask the richest man […]
Latest Blog Posts
BBVA Compass Build My Savings Match Bonus: Effectively 6% Return FDIC Insured
[Update in October 2015: BBVA changed the terms of the Build My Savings account. Accounts opened before July 2015 are still on the old terms described here. New accounts have a maximum transfer period of 12 months and a maximum match bonus of $50.] I updated this post I first wrote a year ago. I […]
How to Build a Time Machine With IRAs – Part 2
[This is a guest post from Bogleheads investment forum participant Bob’s not my name as a follow-up to his previous post How to Build a Time Machine With IRAs – Part 1.] In Part 1 we discussed how your money can use a deductible traditional IRA to travel forward in time and to a different […]
Low Early Withdrawal Penalty On a CD Is Not Worth It
When the yield on a CD with a lower early withdrawal penalty is meaningfully lower, go for the CD with a higher yield even though the early withdrawal penalty is larger.
How to Build a Time Machine With IRAs – Part 1
[This is a guest post from Bogleheads investment forum participant Bob’s not my name.] Wouldn’t it be great to have a Time Machine that would allow your money to travel back and forth in time and from place to place, seeking out the lowest tax rates? Well, you can build one yourself with IRAs. Deductible […]
Do Immigrants Work Harder? If So Why?
A team I work with at my employer is hiring a project manager. They included me as one of the interviewers. Interestingly, after the initial phone screens the three final candidates invited over for face-to-face interviews are all immigrants. They don’t speak perfect English. Some started in fields completely different than the field my employer […]
Pay Down Mortgage vs Investing In Bonds
In a low interest rates world, you should take a serious look at any loans you have. Although a 3.25% 30-year mortgage is often said to be "cheap money" or "almost free money" it’s neither cheap nor nearly free compared to the rate you earn on your bonds. This chart shows the difference between the […]
Find Out How Much You Paid Admin Fees In Your 401k Or 403b
Back in August, my 401k provider sent a disclosure required by the new Department of Labor rules. It basically said they may deduct fees from my account and when they do, the amount would show up on the quarterly statement. It didn’t say how much those fees would be. See my previous post New 401k […]
EE Bonds vs CDs and Bond Funds For Long-Term Investment
It’s often said that one’s ability to delay gratification is an important factor of success in personal finance. When you don’t buy that new whatever until you have enough money to pay for it, you save on interest you would otherwise pay. When you save a portion of your current pay for retirement, you are […]
Tax Efficiency: Relative or Absolute?
Tax efficiency becomes a factor when you have investments in regular taxable accounts (versus a tax advantaged accounts such as a 401k or IRAs). Because you have to pay taxes on interest, dividends, and realized gains, an investment that loses less of its returns to taxes is said to be more tax efficient. Tax efficiency […]