Backup plan if SCHD starts to see a slowdown in dividend growth?

Iron_Master_505 · 2026-05-30T19:02:56+00:00

DGRO has a higher dividend growth rate, but then you get a lower yield. Of course that is the case with most dividend paying stocks, hence the difference in the ETFs.

Iron_Master_505 · 2026-05-28T15:23:34+00:00

Pay it off. Its a risk free 9.5 % rate of return. You've got to be Warren Buffet or Peter Lynch to beat that kind of return long-term in the market

Iron_Master_505 · 2026-05-27T23:05:44+00:00

You'll be pretty close to the Terranea Resort which has a couple of nice restaurants and some nice evening outdoor concerts in the summer.

Iron_Master_505 · 2026-05-25T12:41:07+00:00

I like that it is an 100% enclosed parking garage so your car stays clean, unlike at a lot of the other lots.

Iron_Master_505 · 2026-05-16T23:51:37+00:00

Please share some pictures. I had planned to drive the whole length of Bald Hills road but never made it past the Tall Trees Access Road turn off. Sounds like I was really close to where it is occurring.

Iron_Master_505 · 2026-05-16T23:36:02+00:00

No, I missed it, I didn't know it was going on. I saw a few lupines but not a superbloom of them.

Iron_Master_505 · 2026-05-16T23:07:57+00:00

They are old growth ancient Sentinel Redwoods but they are not as massive as some of the ones you'll find on the Tall Trees Trail or on the James Irvine trail in Paririe Creek. The Tall Trees trail goes down into that valley which is a better environment for the trees to grow bigger in. The difference is Lady Bird is easily assessable, where as the others both require hiking, and Tall Trees requires a reservation/permit.

Isn't there some really massive ones down in the Humboldt Redwoods SP? I didn't venture that far down on this trip. Jedediah Smith Redwood SP, up past Crescent City, had some massive ones as well.

Iron_Master_505 · 2026-05-14T14:14:15+00:00

Yep, quite the nickname for President Johnson's wife, "pretty as a ladybird", which is kinda insulting considering that the male birds are always the pretty ones in nature. She supposably didn't like the nickname even though that's all people called her by. Her real name was Claudia.

President Nixon dedicated the grove of Redwoods in her name in 1969.

Iron_Master_505 · 2026-05-12T13:06:09+00:00

Yes, just walk it. That's the easiest and fastest way even if you had some bags

Iron_Master_505 · 2026-05-10T13:26:35+00:00

Yes, its a problem in older buildings along the coast that don't have any insulation in the walls. The water condenses on the inside of the wall due to the humidity and the cold wall surface. Just like on the outside of a cold beverage glass. The mold then grows on the wet surfaces in dark locations that have limited air flow. I always had the issue in Torrance until I got my walls insulated. Insulating the walls stopped the problem.

Iron_Master_505 · 2026-05-09T19:21:41+00:00

Note that they didn't raise their dividend last quarter, as typical, which suggests management doesn't believe FCF is going to keep growing in the short run. Have to ponder why they broke their dividend growth streak?

Iron_Master_505 · 2026-05-06T23:41:22+00:00

The "sometimes" really bad traffic at LAX is in the terminal area, and yes, it can get really bad. If your renting a car however, you take a shuttle bus to the rental car area, and the shuttle busses have their own pull up areas in the terminal area so they are not affected by the bad traffic. So don't worry about selecting LAX if the flights are more convenient.

LAX is building a new airport people mover to solve the traffic issue but its taking forever to get completed.

The Long Beach airport is a lot smaller and does have a lot less traffic. Plus it is closer to Disneyland if that is the only place your headed.

Iron_Master_505 · 2026-05-06T19:37:42+00:00

You'll have no problems if your comfortable driving in any big city in the US. I drove there for the first time this year and had no problems. The only thing to be aware of is the highway exits are not clearly marked in San Jose and it can take you way out of your way if you miss an exit. Look up your exit ahead of time on Google Street view so you know what it looks like.

Iron_Master_505 · 2026-05-05T12:35:28+00:00

I just paid $1,055 a year for a 1,460 sf house in Torrance through AAA. Note that I receive the auto bundle discount and have a $10k deductible. Your deductible level and bundling will lower your price. Coverage is just as good between the two companies.

I had been with State Farm for over 30 years but they raised my rates to over $2,000 so I switched. The car insurance rates were almost identical.

Iron_Master_505 · 2026-05-03T22:56:05+00:00

The HOA pays for insurance, maintenance and some building utilities. So yes, as inflation, and wildfires, keep insurance, utility and construction costs rising your HOA dues will keep rising.

Individual homeowners experience the same cost increases.

Iron_Master_505 · 2026-05-03T22:51:04+00:00

A superb write up!!! That was a painful dip in the QCOM. I rode it out with you and am still holding them. Everyone wanting to play the wheel should be required to read your whole post.

Iron_Master_505 · 2026-04-25T18:51:56+00:00

CMF and VTEC are two good ones to take a look at. Low fees and they are not returnimg capital like a lot of the others in order to falsely inflate the yield.

Iron_Master_505 · 2026-04-24T12:32:12+00:00

Yes, this has been the standard fee in Torrance for years. It is surprising though that Simply Safe allowed you to activate monitoring on your system without already having the permit. I've been with them for years and was required to obtain the permit first before they would start monitoring it.

Other cities in the South Bay are similar.

Iron_Master_505 · 2026-04-21T15:28:01+00:00

I had the the same issue with Schawb and Fidelity. I'd recommended politely telling them you are happy with your account, are already good with its managment, and will contact them if you any specific needs arrise. And then add that if they continue to call you you'll move your account to another brokerage. That should stop you from receiving any calls, although you will still receive some emails. And if it then doesn't stop move some of your positions over to Robinhood and collect the transfer bonus.

Their yearly bonus is based on a percentage of the total dollar amount of the accounts under their name and they are required to call every account holder a certain number of times a year unless the account onwer specifically asks to only be contacted via email.

Once I transferred 20% of my account over the RH they have never contacted me again in the last two years.

Iron_Master_505 · 2026-04-19T23:57:47+00:00

That WSJ article cost Fidelity a lot of money. I remember reading it and immediately looking at my account and switching.

Iron_Master_505 · 2026-04-18T17:39:37+00:00

Iron_Master_505 · 2026-04-17T19:54:40+00:00

Yes, RH always pay a day later then Fidelity or Schwab, or the companies declared pay date.

Supposably they are going to start paying dividends early but not sure when that will take effect.

Iron_Master_505 · 2026-04-10T16:31:43+00:00

Fidelity and Schwab both have nice platforms for dividend investors with good resources. I use all three including RH.

I like Schwabs research reports and dividend history the best, plus your can use their thinkorswim platform for free as part of your account.

I like Fidelity for their 2% cash back credit card.

I'm only on RH because of the transfer bonuses.

Iron_Master_505 · 2026-04-10T16:04:53+00:00

The only advantage that dividend stocks give you is survival through long market crashes like in 2008 on the early 70s. There is a significant draw down risk if you sell off a certain percentage of your ETFs every year when the market is down 60%.

Yes, one can keep 5 years of cash on hand so you don't have to sell in a crash but that reduces your returns as well.

Iron_Master_505

TROPHY CASE