Search found 755 matches

by jhogue
Mon Oct 03, 2022 10:15 am
Forum: Bonds
Topic: TBills as "the best horse at the glue factory?"
Replies: 93
Views: 11854

Re: TBills as "the best horse at the glue factory?"

Sorry to hear about your mother's condition, sophie.

Adding to my Cash pile rather than the other 3 volatile assets during times like the present dampens volatility and "feels" like an extra bit of cushion against the unexpected or unanticipated.
by jhogue
Sat Oct 01, 2022 2:58 pm
Forum: Cash
Topic: TIPS
Replies: 28
Views: 8144

Re: TIPS

Sometimes I feel prophetic... "At least theoretically, a TIPS fund should be less volatile than a TIPS ETF because it will only be marked to market at the end of each day, while the professional inflation expectation traders on Wall Street will be jumping in and out of the ETF market throughout the...
by jhogue
Sat Oct 01, 2022 1:49 pm
Forum: Bonds
Topic: TBills as "the best horse at the glue factory?"
Replies: 93
Views: 11854

Re: TBills as "the best horse at the glue factory?"

Vinny,
You can also buy paper copies of the Wall Street Journal at your local news outlet. As far as I know, the People's Republic of Massachusetts has not cancelled it yet.
by jhogue
Sat Oct 01, 2022 10:09 am
Forum: Bonds
Topic: TBills as "the best horse at the glue factory?"
Replies: 93
Views: 11854

Re: TBills as "the best horse at the glue factory?"

Right on time, Jason Zweig has a column in the weekend Wall Street Journal, "Three Ways You Can Cash in on Your Cash."

His column analyzes better returns from money market funds, I-bonds, and T-bills. I note that he does not mention CD's or TIPS.
by jhogue
Fri Sep 30, 2022 12:28 pm
Forum: Bonds
Topic: TBills as "the best horse at the glue factory?"
Replies: 93
Views: 11854

Re: TBills as "the best horse at the glue factory?"

Tyler (as usual) has a thoughtful essay on the pros and cons of TIPS in Portfolio Charts.

https://portfoliocharts.com/2022/09/27/ ... #takeaways
by jhogue
Wed Sep 28, 2022 5:05 pm
Forum: Bonds
Topic: TBills as "the best horse at the glue factory?"
Replies: 93
Views: 11854

Re: TBills as "the best horse at the glue factory?"

Corto,

I do not have a CMA with Fidelity. I have a Fidelity brokerage account linked to two bank accounts and my TreasuryDirect account.
by jhogue
Wed Sep 28, 2022 3:57 pm
Forum: Bonds
Topic: TBills as "the best horse at the glue factory?"
Replies: 93
Views: 11854

Re: TBills as "the best horse at the glue factory?"

whatchamacallit,

Call a Fidelity rep and ask. I am sure they will explain.

Possibly a hold on assets transfered into Fidelity from an outside bank?
by jhogue
Wed Sep 28, 2022 2:54 pm
Forum: Bonds
Topic: TBills as "the best horse at the glue factory?"
Replies: 93
Views: 11854

Re: TBills as "the best horse at the glue factory?"

Corto, I buy Treasury bills, but only after I have completely maxed out my annual purchases of I-bonds. I hold short duration T-bills to maturity so I know their precise yield when I buy them. As you have discovered, investors cannot buy tax deferred T-bills through TreasuryDirect. I do not buy TIPS...
by jhogue
Wed Sep 21, 2022 12:10 pm
Forum: Bonds
Topic: TBills as "the best horse at the glue factory?"
Replies: 93
Views: 11854

Re: TBills as "the best horse at the glue factory?"

Good post on Tipswatch about how to take advantage of the best short-term Treasury rates since 2007. Still losing ~5% to inflation but considering what's happening to every other asset class they may well be the least worse investment of 2022. https://tipswatch.com/2022/09/21/short-term-treasurys-e...
by jhogue
Wed Sep 21, 2022 8:45 am
Forum: Bonds
Topic: IBonds!!! PAGING jhogue!
Replies: 3
Views: 902

Re: IBonds!!! PAGING jhogue!

Vinny, All paper I-bonds have a serial number with a unique 11-digit alpha numeric. Your tax refund generated paper I-bonds all start with the Roman numeral letter M, D, R, or L, which identifies them as $1,000, $500, $200, or $50 value bonds respectively. If your paper I-bonds are ever lost, stolen...
by jhogue
Sun Jul 31, 2022 8:49 am
Forum: Cash
Topic: I Bonds’s new variable rate will rise to 9.62% with the May reset
Replies: 20
Views: 7334

Re: I Bonds’s new variable rate will rise to 9.62% with the May reset

@GT:
See Jason Zweig's article on I-bonds in this weekend's Wall Street Journal, "An Investment That Still Hosts the Mark."

Zweig, who is a proponent of I bonds, says that Treasury Direct is now accepting certification by notary public.
by jhogue
Mon Jul 25, 2022 1:39 pm
Forum: Cash
Topic: I Bonds’s new variable rate will rise to 9.62% with the May reset
Replies: 20
Views: 7334

Re: I Bonds’s new variable rate will rise to 9.62% with the May reset

@GT: I am sorry to hear of your difficulties with the Treasury Direct system. However, I would not rate your credit union very highly either, based upon their lack of customer service in this instance. If it were me, I would schedule an appointment with your branch manager, inform that person of you...
by jhogue
Sun Jul 24, 2022 11:37 am
Forum: Cash
Topic: I Bonds’s new variable rate will rise to 9.62% with the May reset
Replies: 20
Views: 7334

Re: I Bonds’s new variable rate will rise to 9.62% with the May reset

"As the cost of living soars, one lawmaker is urging the Treasury Department to remove the barriers to buying Series I bonds. Rep. Abigail Spanberger, D-Va., on Thursday voiced concerns about "red tape and outdated systems" that may be preventing investors from buying the inflation-protected and nea...
by jhogue
Thu Jul 07, 2022 7:09 am
Forum: Gold
Topic: Safe deposit boxes: Revisited
Replies: 27
Views: 9222

Re: Safe deposit boxes: Revisited

Blue Ruin: Your photo of the bank safe that survived the tornado at Joplin, Missouri is the best kind of argument. For those who don't know or recall, the tornado that hit Joplin utterly flattened the core of the city and knocked out basic services for many weeks. No internet either. Your evidence c...
by jhogue
Thu Jun 16, 2022 8:33 am
Forum: Cash
Topic: I Bonds’s new variable rate will rise to 9.62% with the May reset
Replies: 20
Views: 7334

Re: I Bonds’s new variable rate will rise to 9.62% with the May reset

I don't convert my paper I-bonds to digital. I keep them in my local bank safe deposit box, along with some gold. A bit of physical diversification is never a bad thing. I do the same as jhogue. Right now, less than 20% of our US Savings Bonds (still redeeming some old EEs) are in electronic form. ...
by jhogue
Sun Jun 12, 2022 12:32 pm
Forum: Cash
Topic: I Bonds’s new variable rate will rise to 9.62% with the May reset
Replies: 20
Views: 7334

Re: I Bonds’s new variable rate will rise to 9.62% with the May reset

I don't convert my paper I-bonds to digital. I keep them in my local bank safe deposit box, along with some gold. A bit of physical diversification is never a bad thing.
by jhogue
Mon Jun 06, 2022 8:10 am
Forum: Other Discussions
Topic: Inflation - What are you doing different
Replies: 58
Views: 8418

Re: Inflation - What are you doing different

@ barrett:
You get my vote for I-bond workaround of the year.
by jhogue
Thu Jun 02, 2022 7:26 pm
Forum: Other Discussions
Topic: Inflation - What are you doing different
Replies: 58
Views: 8418

Re: Inflation - What are you doing different

@ barrett: Buying I bonds does add a layer of complexity to the Permanent Portfolio. It is more complicated to manage than Uncle Harry's simple prescription of a Treasury money market fund for Cash. The tradeoff is that I-bonds offer a better yield with no more risk than a 1 year Treasury and no mor...
by jhogue
Fri May 20, 2022 8:22 am
Forum: Permanent Portfolio Discussion
Topic: What kind of inflation are we experiencing?
Replies: 33
Views: 5921

Re: What kind of inflation are we experiencing?

Simple summary...the days of everything cheap due to Chinese labor/manufacturing/and just in time supply chains are over The average American consumer would say they are experiencing inflation at the gas pump, food at the grocery store, and rent in their neighborhood. Does all that have much to do ...
by jhogue
Fri May 20, 2022 8:13 am
Forum: Other Discussions
Topic: Inflation - What are you doing different
Replies: 58
Views: 8418

Re: Inflation - What are you doing different

Vinny, If you are REALLY SERIOUS about increasing your I-bond holdings, there are several steps you can take: 1. Get a revocable trust and put another $10K into I-bonds each year. That alone would increase your annual acquisition by 100%. 2. Engage a trusted partner or relative and utilize the "gift...
by jhogue
Sat May 14, 2022 9:40 am
Forum: Other Discussions
Topic: Inflation - What are you doing different
Replies: 58
Views: 8418

Re: Inflation - What are you doing different

[vinny] Is there any other investment wherein you are limited to how much you can invest in it per year? [/vinny] The following type of accounts have annual limits: Traditional IRA, Roth IRA, SEP IRA, 401k, 403b, 457b. The FDIC also has limits coverage of individual accounts and CD purchases. Warre...
by jhogue
Fri May 13, 2022 12:51 pm
Forum: Other Discussions
Topic: Inflation - What are you doing different
Replies: 58
Views: 8418

Re: Inflation - What are you doing different

[vinny] Is there any other investment wherein you are limited to how much you can invest in it per year? [/vinny] The following type of accounts have annual limits: Traditional IRA, Roth IRA, SEP IRA, 401k, 403b, 457b. The FDIC also has limits coverage of individual accounts and CD purchases. Warren...
by jhogue
Fri May 13, 2022 9:09 am
Forum: Other Discussions
Topic: Inflation - What are you doing different
Replies: 58
Views: 8418

Re: Inflation - What are you doing different

@ Vinny:

I-bonds are not magic.

In the immortal words of Medium Tex, they are simply "the best looking horse at the glue factory!"
by jhogue
Fri May 13, 2022 8:15 am
Forum: Other Discussions
Topic: Inflation - What are you doing different
Replies: 58
Views: 8418

Re: Inflation - What are you doing different

@ barrett:
My tentative plan is to deliver $10 K each in 2023 and $10K in 2024 from my gift box. However, I retain the option to push those deliveries into 2024+ 2025 if I think inflation measured by CPI-U will drop significantly. I probably won't do that, but it is always nice to have options.
by jhogue
Thu May 12, 2022 10:13 pm
Forum: Other Discussions
Topic: Inflation - What are you doing different
Replies: 58
Views: 8418

Re: Inflation - What are you doing different

@ barrett: I understand your desire to keep things as simple as possible. I won't make a decision on when to deliver 2022 gifted I bonds until after the November 1, 2022 interest rate re-set. The option to choose when to deliver gifted I-bonds is an attractive feature, but sooner is usually better t...