< 1 pct. IFT Option

[Guest2]

At the request of some friends and fellow members, I decided to make this
thread to help others understand the meaning of a <1%IFT. We can use
this thread to ask questions concerning this option at any time and I will
try my absolute best the answer them in a timely manner.

Definition: A <1%IFT is defined as a "a less then 1% Interfund Transfer".
It is the ability to move small amounts of money within your TSP Account.
Similar to the (L) Funds, it enables you to rebalance your account within
percentages that are <1% either to the next whole percentage upward
or the next whole percentage downward.

Goal: To Beat The (G) Fund Returns for the remainder of any given month
after utilizing all of your Regular IFT's (limited to 2 per month). Keeping
your exposure to risk at a minimum, while maintaning focus on the events
which affect the Market on a daily basis. (avoiding the G Fund Lag).

*Note: Remember, you have 2 unlimited IFT's per month. However, you
can choose to move 1% out of any Fund on a daily basis if you decide
to do so. But the money MUST go back into the (G) Fund after your 1st
two IFT's have been made. In essense, you could make alot more then
three IFT's should you have decided to sell your shares over the coarse
of time. But you CAN'T take your money out of the (G) Fund until the
following month. Call it what you will, the (G)arage,,,,Jail,,,Lilly Pad, etc..
One thing holds true, you can check in,,,,,but you can't check out.

First thing to do is to check your Account Balances on the TSP Website.
http://www.tsp.gov and write down the percentages that are currently
displayed next to your dollar amounts. The percentages are under the
column called "Distribution" and will look like this;

Investment Fund Shares Share Price Balance Distribution

(G)Fund GovernmentSecurities xxx.xxx xxxxxxx xxxxxxxx 92.87%
(F) Fund Fixed Income Index xxx. xxx xxxxxxx xxxxxxxx 4.05%
(C)Fund Common Stock Index xxx.xxx xxxxxxx xxxxxxxx 1.02%
(S)Fund Small Cap Stock Index xxx.xxx xxxxxxx xxxxxxxx 1.03%
(I)Fund International Stock Index xxx.xxx xxxxxxx xxxxxxxx 1.03%

The percentages above are my actual numbers and were posted on the TSP website
sometime tonight. So tomorrow before noon, I have a decision to make. Do I want to
just leave my balance as it currently exists? Do I want to take some money out of risk,

off the table and back to the (G) Fund? OR Do I think the market will continue to rally
and want to take some money out of the (G) and increase my holdings in stocks.

WAIT JUST ONE MINUTE ! YOU CAN'T DO THAT ! YOU USED ALL OF YOUR IFT's !

Wrong ! I can go to the TSP and now make a <1%IFT up to the next whole %.

I can make the (I) Fund 2%..................I can make the (C) Fund 2%
I can make the (S) Fund 2%................I can make the (F) Fund 5%

Last but not least, I can make the (G) Fund 89% and thats how you can take 3.87%
and move it out of the (G) Fund and into the other funds. But you can't do this unless
your showing a minimum of xx.01% (example: 2.01%,,,,,13.35%,,,,57.99%...etc...)

Thats all the time I have for now, but I want everyone to know from the start. You can
lose money doing this method. Where in the (G) Fund you wouldn't lose a dime ! But
in the last four days, I've gained over 6 weeks of (G) returns. If I bailed 100% into the
(G) Fund, I would have gained practically nothing. Now I can go to the (G)arage with
a smile (should I decide to) any time I wish. I will add more to this thread as I wasn't
able to put it all on this page. It's a start and I hope it helps !

[Guest2]

I have just enough time to add one more thing.

Lets say you did a <1%IFT on Monday and on Tuesday you see;

96%(G),,,1%(F),,,1%(C),,,1%(S),,,1%(I)

On Tuesday the market goes up and you want to take your profits off
the table, but you want to leave your original percentages in tact.

Simply go to the TSP Website and enter the same exact percentages
that you current show in your account balance.

What ever the market gains will go back into the (G) and your
percentages will stay the same for Wednesday. But know that
your buying your shares back at a higher price.

[Guest2]

I'll be watching closely for a down day today. Something tells me this
week will end strong. (up day on Friday) Just my gut. Should we move
down until noon, I will bring my percentages up as I posted in my example
below.

If we start to look strong, I might leave it alone again today or take my
percentages down a tad.

[nasa1974]

Squalebear,

I have to say thank you. You did a fine job explaining the <1% option.

One thing to remember about the <1% option, and this is an important point. To quote SB: "This method is no guarantee of additional profit (as opposed to the G Fund)"

Currently the FRTIB has established that all TSP participants have at their disposal the ability to move their money between funds 2 times a month.

After you use your 2 IFT's you actually have four options:

1) Do nothing and keep your current percetages for the rest of the month

2) Slowly (or quickly) move back to the G fund,

3) IF as an example you have even percentages in your funds (G20% F20% C20% S20% I20%) you can do an IFT and keep the same %'s (this move will actually increase or decrease your total shares but maintain your percentages), and

4) Do a <1% move (to perform this move your accounts must have a .01 to a .99%) Example G20.01% F19.99% C20.25% S20.25% I19.50%. Now you can round up the FCSI funds to 20% 21% 21% 20% and the G fund will be 18%.

[Guest2]

Strong points Nasa ! I want to add one more thing.

You can do this type of transfer, even if you have 50.03% in one fund.
But your at such a high percentage already, it would make no sense to
do this as part of the Goals I documented. The risk of loses are way too
high at those levels. However, if you've used all of your normal IFT's and
wish to buy more shares to boot, then by all means, you have the ability
to boost the 50.03% up to 51.00% (it works the same way).

Note: No matter how you move your money during the month, please
remember that the first two moves (even if they're <1%) will count
towards your 2 move restriction.

My second move during the month will be used (normally) to spread out
my investment over the C,S,I,F Funds as I lower my risk into the <1%
percentages. But if I find the need to make a quick change to very
low risk, I could go 96-1-1-1-1 and still try to beat the (G) at those
levels.

[Guest2]

(I use MSN Money Portfolio to track); <1%IFT Completed

CURRENTLY OPENING BELL CHANGED TO
(G)92.82%...........(G)92.87%.-------->(G)89.00%
(F)04.08%...........(F)04.05%--------->(F)05.00%
(C)01.04%...........(C)01.02%.-------->(C)02.00%
(S)01.03%...........(S)01.03%.-------->(S)02.00%
(.I)01.04%...........(.I)01.03%.-------->(I)02.00%

A total of 3.87% moved out of the (G) Fund and into the (4) Risk Funds.
I do this with the thought of a strong Friday to end a very strong week.

[Guest2]

Remember, the goal to beat the (g) fund deminishes as you get
closer to the end of the month. That is unless your goal is
to extend the time period beyond a month. Retirees who wish
to beat the (g) but avoid high risk might do this, in lieu of
putting large amounts at risk. So everyone has their own
goals when it comes to this method.

[Guest2]

My Confirmed Holding For 03/20/2009:

(G)89.00%
(F) 5.00%
(C) 2.00%
(S) 2.00%
(.I) 2.00%

EAFE INDEX is currently down -1.11%

[dannyboy]

My Confirmed Holding For 03/20/2009:

(G)89.00%
(F) 5.00%
(C) 2.00%
(S) 2.00%
(.I) 2.00%

EAFE INDEX is currently down -1.11%

Thanks for posting this,
We'd really appeciate a running total,
Then We would kick out Revshark and start giving squalebear our money for TSP investment advice and hopefully get a little discount?
On another note I think it was noted of a "<1%IFT Option " link but I was not able to find that. I even went outside TSPTALK and tried various options of www.<1%IFT Option and I also failed at that.

[Guest2]

Thanks for posting this,
MY PLEASURE DANNYBOY ! THANKS FOR SAYING SO !

We'd really appeciate a running total,
EVERYONE WOULD SEE MY TOTALS MOONWALKING BACKWARDS !

Then We would kick out Revshark and start giving squalebear our money for TSP investment advice and hopefully get a little discount?
I'M TRYING TO MAKE MONEY, NOT TAKE MONEY !

On another note, I think it was noted of a "<1%IFT Option " link but I was not able to find that. I even went outside TSPTALK and tried various options of www.<1%IFT Option and I also failed at that.
FORGIVE MY CONFUSION, YOU THINK "what" WAS NOTED ?

First, I hope you enjoyed St. Patricks Day and that nose didn't get
too red from the green beer. (LoL). Please try to explain what you
were searching for as I don't have a website and I became alittle
confused over what you were seeking (running totals?).

FRIDAY, MARCH 20,2009 COMBINED LOSS/GAIN: -0.12%

PRIOR OPENING..BEFORE NOON..PRIORCLOSE..NEXT DAY RESULTS
(G)92.82%------>(G)92.87%.----->(G)89.00%------->+0.01%
(F)04.08%------>(F)04.05%------>(F)05.00%------->-0.56%
(C)01.04%------>(C)01.02%.----->(C)02.00%------->-1.98%
(S)01.03%------>(S)01.03%.----->(S)02.00%------->-2.65%
(.I)01.04%------>(.I)01.03%.----->(I)02.00%------->-0.29%

Should I have read into your post correctly and the above is what your
looking for, then I will try my best to do this for those interested. But
know this, I can't say how long I'll be able to do this as my time and
other personal factors may get in the way of consistancy. All's I can
say is; "I'll try my best". If this is not what you meant, again, please
explain. Thanks for taking an interest in my <1%IFT way of staying
out of the (G)arage.

[WorkFE]

SB,
You've created a monster. I here the Administration is going to hold a 60 day moratorium on <1% IFT Option
I read it everday and it still confuses me. I get the concept but my grandfather used to tell me to put it down if you don't know how to use it.

Have a great weekend.

[Guest2]

SB,
You've created a monster. I here the Administration is going to hold a 60 day moratorium on <1% IFT Option
I read it everday and it still confuses me. I get the concept but my grandfather used to tell me to put it down if you don't know how to use it.

Have a great weekend.

A while back, we had a few members do a evaluation of the method. Some
found it helpful, some found it confusing and others found it a waste of time.
But I still hold onto the notion that the <1%IFT Method can be better
then being locked in (G)Hell and it opens up "options" in lieu of Jail. Even
with todays down turn, I'm still beating the (G) Fund for March through
accumulating 4.179 weeks worth of (G) Fund Returns, more then if I went
directly to the (G) when I wanted to bail. But it works both ways and I
could have lost 4 weeks instead of opting for safety.

That's it, I just thought of it:

If I'm convinced the market will Drop until the end of the month, then
I consider the (G) Fund as "SAFETY".

If I'm convinced the market can move up before the end of the month,
then, I consider the (G) Fund as "JAIL".

I would love to help you understand it better and invite you to PM me
with any questions you may have. I can share the answers on the thread
as time allows. Please feel free.

Moratorium huh, can you imagine if everyone opted to do this instead of
moving to the (G). Then make as many <1%IFT's as I do. They'd state
it was "insideous behavior" and spend millions on stopping it. Since the
restrictions were imposed, costs have "INCREASED" which was the total
opposite of what their goal was. To lower the costs that I imposed on
my fellow paqrticipants thru multiple IFT's. They make me sick with their
lies and incompetence. The smoke has cleared and the mirror is reflecting
the truth. Sorry, I get up in arms with anyone taking away my options.