I read the article linked to above, which is cited for the argument that trillions in new debt per year IS sustainable. I'm afraid I'm too economically illiterate to understand much of it at all. Is there anyone who could explain, in a nutshell, how the government would get out from under its debt ...

Reading through all threats here I've seen several disparaging comments on so called "doom porners" like Peter Schiff and Harry Dent. Aside from the sensationalism they sometimes peddle when they have a new book (ie a crash will happen in the first quarter of 2018), what are people's main ...

I have had some "real money" in the 3x portfolio (with 5% XIV) for a few months and I am quite happy so far! Any thoughts as to how this compares to the Permanent Portfolio in a strong stock market downturn?

Jeffrey

I know a lot of the members here use Treasury Direct for their cash and/or bonds. I would like to get some opinions here on the safety of it. By safety I do not necessarily mean someone stealing my password, logging in as me and transferring my money to themselves. I mean safety in the terms of some...

Are there any compelling reasons to add a MidCap or Small Cap 3x ETF to this portfolio? Or does an S&P 500 3x suffice for the stock portion?

https://www.ishares.com/us/products/239466/ishares-short-treasury-bond-etf The ishares website reports .34% as the YTD gain, as does morningstar. Powershares has a new ETF CLTL that is similar to SHV but at only half the expense ratio. I have been leaning towards the ETFs for the simplicity. I under...

Does anyone use SHV (ishares short term treasury) ETF for their cash component? I always wonder why its return is so low. Right now tbills from 3 months to a year will get you over 1% on Treasury Direct. But yet SHV has only returned .33% so far this year. Even taking into account the .15% expense r...

-Inflation-protection for 30 years/ rate resets 60 times (no CD has that) Why the assumption that a rate reset is always in your favor? Inflation has only ticked up .47% in the last 3 months. If that continues the the ibond rate reset coming up may be half of my cd rate. And if deflation hits you co...

when comparing cds vs treasury bills, should we put any emphasis on cds giving you the ability for compounding interest? When opening a cd I can just let the interest stay in the cd and compound whereas with a treasury bill I buy it at a discount and then have leftover interest that I have to then f...

While we are on the topic of I Bonds, I have a general question. It seems most posters here are of the opinion that the Treasury will never outright default on their bonds, but will instead opt to pseudo-default by inflation. If one believes that then part of that scheme would have to be the under r...

I use a small mutual savings bank in Mass. It gives me the illusion of safety!

I am going to set up a bond ladder at Treasury Direct and was wondering what everyone's opinions are about the length of the ladder. 1 year, 3 year or 5 year or more? This is not for the PP cash specifically. Just for some medium to deep cash.

Thanks!

Jeffrey

Thanks! I have recently come into some cash and I have decided to set up a Treasury Direct account and keep it in treasury bills. So any ideas on that subject are very helpful.

You need to share the links to those old rolling treasury bill posts!

It sounds like you're describing long-term savings. That's what the PP was designed for, built-in cash management and all. Go for it! However, you should still have enough cash to act as an emergency fund - usually something like 6-12 months expenses. The cash allocation of the PP is perfect for th...

From my perspective, the PP is a great thing to use for this. Actual dips in the PP are rare; in general, it keeps on doing its thing very consistently. And, even if there is a dip, the PP has cash you can tap into rather than selling low. I think so too. I tested it out with a tiny bit of money fo...

I wanted to get everyone's opinions on this topic. I am finally in a position where I can save about 40% of my income going forward. What are some thoughts on using the PP in lieu of a traditional savings account? This money is not earmarked for anything in particular. I would only need to tap into ...

Do most of you keep your cash in Treasury Direct? Or in a brokerage?

What does everyone go with as far as the number of stock funds in the PP? Right now i just have 1 fund, EQAL a Russell 1000 Equal Weight ETF. Do most of you just do one fund or do you add in Emerging Markets, Small Cap Intl etc?

Does anyone use TLO instead of TLT? It's commission free at Schwab. And i cannot tell a big difference in the makeup of the funds.

Hello,

Just setting up the PP for my family savings. Does everyone here use mostly individual long term bonds or TLT? Just wondering.

thanks!

Jeffrey

Doesn't the book suggest the longest bonds possible? In that case EDV is better than TLT right?

Hello. I am newly implementing the PP and i have 2 questions.

#1) I see a lot of people here recommend individual bonds instead of ETFs for the long term portion. What maturities do you buy and when do you sell?

#2) How about using 1 year cds for the cash portion?

Thanks!

Jeffrey