Financial markets were closed on New Year's Day but I was eager to put in my IRA contribution for the new year. Because my income is likely over the limit for a direct contribution to a Roth IRA, I have to first contribute to a traditional IRA and [...]
Vanguard Proxy Voting 2017
I received an email from Vanguard asking me to vote on some proxy proposals. As a responsible shareholder I read the proxy statement and I cast my votes. I'm recording my votes here for future reference. I'm not trying to influence your votes. I [...]
Vanguard Podcasts
I listen to podcasts on the way to and from work. I just found out Vanguard offers two good podcasts. Vanguard Perspectives® This one is in video but you can turn off the screen and just listen to the audio part. It covers some macroeconomic topics [...]
Transfer IRA From Mutual Fund To Credit Union For CDs
Ever since I bought the 3-year 3% add-on CD from Northwest Federal Credit Union in October 2015, I was hoping a similar deal would pop up. But no, there hasn't been any. After the Fed raised the rate once from 0% to 0.25% in December 2015, they [...]
Benefits For Large Accounts At Vanguard And Fidelity
Airlines and hotels assign elite status to their customers based on how much business the customers do with them. They give you Platinum, Gold, Diamond, Executive, and other nice sounding names. You get small incentives to make you feel special, such [...]
What Does Vanguard Mean By "Employee Conversion"?
When I was getting my records organized, I saw this on the Vanguard trade confirmation for converting from my traditional IRA to my Roth IRA. I am an employee somewhere, but my employer doesn't have its plan at Vanguard. Regardless, what [...]
Vanguard Personal Advisor Services: Talk to A Human Advisor
Vanguard officially launched its long-awaited advice service for the masses. They are calling it Vanguard Personal Advisor Services. When you go to Vanguard's homepage for personal investors, you are greeted with this front and center: It highlights [...]
Schwab Intelligent Portfolios: Primary and Alternate ETFs
I went through the questionnaire for Schwab's new robo-advisor product Schwab Intelligent Portfolios. There were 12 questions. The interface looked very good. Asset Classes Breakdown I answered the questions truthfully as myself. I was given this [...]
Schwab Intelligent Portfolios: The True Cost of A Cash Drag
Duke University behavior economics professor Dan Ariely described in his book Predictably Irrational that people give special treatment to zero more than the number itself deserves. If good-tasting chocolate costs $1.25 and bland-tasting chocolate [...]
