Although the Bush tax cuts were extended for another two years, some tax incentives were not extended because they weren’t part of the Bush tax cuts. They fall into the one-time stimulus category. Residential Energy Tax Credit The Residential Energy Property Credit provides a 30% tax credit of up to $1,500 over a two-year period […]
Latest Blog Posts
Asset Allocation for a 529 Plan
It’s that time of the year again. I need to make a new contribution to my niece’s 529 plan for her future college expenses. When I looked for a plan for her last year, I came to the conclusion that the typical age-based options don’t make sense. The typical age-based options in a 529 plan […]
What Investors Really Want
What Investors Really Want is the title of a book I’m going to start reading. It got endorsements from some people I respect: John Bogle, Burton Malkiel, and William Bernstein. That’s always a good sign. Before I read the book, I’d like to answer that question. What do investors really want? Getting in on a […]
Muni Selloff: A Preview of Deflating Bond Bubble
In case you haven’t noticed, the municipal bonds market had a small earthquake. It offers a preview for what can happen when a bond bubble deflates. The epicenter of the earthquake is in California. Although its budget trouble has been known for a long time, investors didn’t mind until last week. What made investors pay […]
A Finance Professor Writes About Prepaying Mortgage
The following was written by a finance professor at a major university, who shall remain unnamed until the said professor comes out to claim ownership. It was published yesterday by a blog run by several well known university professors. I’m quoting the full text because it was disowned by the blog that published it. A […]
Complain About Bad Service
I wrote about paying more for good service. This time I’m facing the opposite. I’m debating if I should complain about bad service. It’s getting cold outside. Some mice or rats decided to come into my attic for shelter at night. I called a pest control company I used in the past. They provided good […]
Pay Someone to Enforce the Discipline
When I run at the community tracks in the morning, I see many other runners. I also often see a group of people doing different exercise drills with a trainer. I didn’t ask but I suppose the participants are paying the trainer for leading the drills. I’m pretty sure they can get exercise routines off […]
Negative Real Return Is the Price for Safety
The price to keep our money safe finally hit our face: five-year inflation indexed bonds yield from a recent auction produced a negative number, -0.55%. It means investors in these bonds are guaranteed to earn a return at 0.55% below inflation in the next five years. As absurd as it may sound, investors don’t have […]
Mortgage Refinance and Resetting the Clock
Today’s installment on mortgage refinance appears as a guest post on My Money Blog. The conclusion: "Don’t let the fear for resetting the clock stop you from refinancing to a lower rate." I’ve been reading My Money Blog since 2006. It offers a good combination of deals and practical approaches to personal finance. If you […]
Cost Basis Tracking After Converting Vanguard Mutual Funds to Admiral Shares
Forget about what I said about having both Vanguard mutual funds and ETFs. Vanguard just announced they lowered the minimum investment requirement for Admiral shares in most broad index funds from $100,000 to $10,000. Admiral shares are a different share class in the same Vanguard fund but with a lower expense ratio. In most funds […]