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At the risk of sounding redundant (I have said this before!).....I like Vanguard. Index funds are cheap....along the line of TSP. Especially if you have a tidy sum of money (I think 100K).
Index trades are restricted to certain number of times per month (most allow only monthly purchase once you sell), similar to TSP.
But they also have directed funds, and the variety is extremely good no matter what you are interested in. I have IRA (both Traditional and Roth) with them for a long time. Their online info is very detailed. And they have brokers to talk to (if you really think anyone else can manage your $$ better than you) if you want advice. Check out their website. No charge to go look! :D
I have just been reading your older posts, and I am sorry you got out of the TSP. Since my retirement in 2009, my TSP has gone from $81K to $124K with NO ADDITIONS FROM OTHER SOURCES.
I do not have to tap my TSP until I am 70 1/2 so I am very thankful for the chance to grow it with very low fees. My Vanguard adviser would really like to get their hands on those funds! But no, I am keeping it for my long-term care fund, possibly.
My Dad started me with Vanguard back in the 90's with a check for $1,000 and instructed me to keep adding to it. Vanguard has been good to me and my family over the years. When my Dad passed in 2015, I became the successor trustee of the Trust and divided up their assets between my brother and myself. Mom died in 2013 so everything had gone to my Dad.
I watch almost all of the webinars produced by the good folks of NARFE and have learned loads about handling the TSP. My advice to those thinking about getting out of the TSP is to leave a small portion to keep it open, so you can always come back to it if you choose to. Once you close it, it is gone from you forever.
2Mo,
SO SORRY I didn't see your post sooner !!! I rarely check this thread, and if a post scrolls off the "Recent Posts" on the main forum page, I probably don't see it...:rolleyes:
To date, I have NO REGRETS about closing out my TSP account...It served me well while working, and for the short time I withdrew from it, before I hit 59.5, but I like being the "Master of My Own Destiny", without the limited IFTs and options available in the TSP. :D I recognize that there are different approaches for all...that's why the TSP still manages to sell annuities !!! :eek:
Since my baseline $ amount (in my and the Wife's TSP and 403(b) in 2012), rolled over to the self-directed IRAs, I've withdrawn $111,000...but my current balance is only $13,900 less that the amount rolled over in 2012...yes, maybe I could have done better, staying in the TSP, but I'm happy ! :smile:
See next post !!! :smile:
Best investing to you !!!
Stoplight...
Made a move today in my "buy-and-hold" portfolio, to harvest some gains and go to cash...
Sold all my Brooks Automation, BRKS...bought it at 7.76, in 2012 ; sold today at 27.48...SWEET !!! :D
Stoplight...
Well....almost 2 years since my last post here, in my own little world ? Yikes !!! :eek:
To make a long story short...I've managed to keep my retirement fund balance slightly ahead of my withdrawal rate, so that's a good thing !!! Now starting to think about RMD "issues"...need to educate myself on the best approach to THAT item !!!
Anyway...just curious to hear from those who use USAA as their brokerage, like I do !
Any comments on them selling out to Schwab, for our account management ? I'll be curious to see what "improvements" happen...:rolleyes: I AM taking advantage of the free trades for the next few months, although trade commissions are the least of my worries...
Stoplight...
*BUMP*
Geez ! Based on a PM from another Forum Member, I remembered this thread I started !
For the record, I'm working on my taxes, so I'll update my 2020 summary of my current positions and thoughts, too...FWIW !!! :D
Stoplight...
Picked up a little AMZN today...I'm a customer, and I always wanted to own some...and I heard it was on sale !!! :smile:
So, with nothing better to do (or I don't want to do them), I updated my investment spreadsheets. Things are looking better today, than they were
looking on 21 Mar...about a 5% increase from my balance, just 3 weeks ago...but what a wild ride, and I don't think it's gonna get any easier...FWIW, I
use Quicken Deluxe 2020 to get my numbers on my IRA investments.
Right now, I have 50% in "cash", and the rest in various pots, including only 2.3% in "trading money", the stuff I have in various premium service
recommendations.
Just a note : To me, I count "cash" as brokerage cash, AND conservative (to me) investments. Right now, that includes FCONX, PRULX, and USGNX (all bonds). As a side note, that T. Rowe Price bond fund (PRULX) has been a star for me...Throws off a monthly dividend, too ! I bought it in 2014, so yes, I lean towards "buy and hold" on my investments, in my retirement...other than my "trading money"...
...my other "Stars" since I bought them ?
- WM (Waste Management)
- STX (Seagate Technology)
- T (AT&T)
- GSK (Glaxo Smith Kline)
...My "Stinkers" ? Well, still holding...collecting the dividend (for now...:worried:) ; it's based on my buy-in price, while I wait for the price to come back :
- BGS (B and G Foods ; 5.2%)
- SDIV (Global X Super World Dividend ; 7.2%)
- DIV (Global X Super U.S. Dividend ; 8.0%)
- KBWD (Powershares KBW High Dividend Yield Financials ; 8.3%)
That little bit of Amazon I bought on sale the other day is doing well ! On the fence, whether to book my gains on that trade, or hold, and see what happens next !
Thanks for reading ! Best of luck to you all on YOUR investment decisions !!!
Stoplight...
While my mixed portfolio whips around day-to-day, that Amazon I bought a month ago is making me smile !!!
OTOH, I can't discern any pattern on a day's market moves vs my account holdings...some days I think my account would do down, yet it goes up...other days, it's the opposite ! No way to do anything right now but "buy and hold" ! Sorry, Tom... :smile:
The Wife's holdings, however (pretty much high quality holdings) tend to follow the market numbers...go figure !!!
These are crazy times...
Stoplight...
I am sorry to hear about your dog. They are truly family members and tend to take over some things no matter what you want. FWIW I cried like a baby when putting down mine a few years ago. I hope things are going well for you and all in these difficult times.
PO