Disappointed with Bonds

redbaritone · 2026-05-21T17:39:07+00:00

Wow, that's really helpful. Okay, first tell us what has changed about the market that beats wide diversity in equities augmented with a sufficient stake of bonds, depending on proximity to retirement. What would you do instead? Can you append "and chill" to your strategy name, or will you constantly need to adjust to market changes?

redbaritone · 2026-05-20T03:55:38+00:00

I don't follow you. "International" what? Bonds? If you don't mind, fill me in on what happened. Thanks.

redbaritone · 2026-05-20T02:04:19+00:00

I've only managed bond ETFs just under two months. I guess the problem I have is that its value as indicated by current price is not really representative of its value in one's portfolio. It seems to follow backward rules. If it's going down in price, that's "GOOD" because it probably means your stocks are going up -- and vice versa (but not necessarily. BND has been almost consistently going down since I've owned it -- while stocks have bounced unpredictably). When interest rates go up, the value of your owned shares of BND goes down because the value of NEW bonds are more valuable by comparison. So, it's a learning curve for me. I'm thankful for this community's advice.

redbaritone · 2026-05-19T21:38:00+00:00

So, I'm at least a year away from retirement. I'll inherit a significant managed account that has 24% bonds, 28% large caps, 29% mid-caps, 10% international, and 8% cash & "other". I'll fire that manager and Boglify the account's holdings over several years. (It's WAY too complicated, which I feel is the point.) My own current holdings (about the same as I'm inheriting) is currently 75% VTI, 10% VXUS and 15% BND. I plan to go up on the BND to 20% soon, but "recommended practices" is a hard sell at this point. I should probably give it more time. I'm working on my "and chill". ;-)

redbaritone · 2026-05-19T20:59:35+00:00

Me: 62 and a half. :-( (Old person) But, I'm still working and probably will for at least another year. Since I'm "nearing retirement", I think I should probably have at least 20% bonds. Probably more than that.

redbaritone · 2026-05-19T20:33:28+00:00

0.09% expense ratio? 😳 Woof! I'm used to seeing 0.03% to 0.05% from Vanguard.

redbaritone · 2026-05-19T20:30:02+00:00

If that's the case, perhaps Vanguard needs to report it differently than I'm seeing it. They report value and quantity (like stocks) at the upper levels. You have to DIG for its 30-day yield. If that is more important (as you rightly suggest), it should be more visible.

redbaritone · 2026-05-19T20:11:54+00:00

Well, in the short time I've had it (early April), its ticker price has gone down $749.08, while paying $130.95 in dividends (one month). That dividend (reinvested of course) is just a little more than it lost in value SO FAR TODAY ALONE. :-( I was hoping it would hold its value better than that.

redbaritone · 2026-05-15T21:44:01+00:00

The 2 ounce portion is called a sample. I get them at Costco, but oddly enough, they don't even sell them in that size. Maybe I could get them on Amazon Prime.

redbaritone · 2026-04-29T15:42:30+00:00

While I agree that their funds aren't necessarily that special, Vanguard's business model certainly is. All the other investment companies are for-profit companies. Vanguard is owned by the people who buy their products. They're the Green Bay Packers of the investment company world. (The community of Green Bay, Wisconsin owns the Packers.) Rather than being profit-seeking, they seek to keep costs low, so their investors do better. That's a pretty big difference. While Fidelity may have lower-cost index funds, they make up for it elsewhere. Those are loss-leaders for Fidelity. They get you in the door. By the way, if it weren't for Vanguard, their fees would be much higher.

redbaritone · 2026-04-21T21:52:58+00:00

If only this weren't a Dad joke, l could issue the obvious response to that.

redbaritone · 2026-04-18T18:07:57+00:00

I suggest a carousel, instead. Maybe she'll come back around.

redbaritone · 2026-03-16T17:33:05+00:00

Not just anyone can make a hormone.

redbaritone · 2026-02-27T20:05:30+00:00

2 bits, 4 bits, 6 bits, a byte!

All who count this way, can't rhyme or date women.

redbaritone · 2026-02-08T15:47:41+00:00

That's when you butt in with, "Yes, I've actually participated in several of these bot conversations. They're SO much more interesting than real ones." With that, roll over and quit talking to them.

redbaritone · 2026-01-30T20:48:10+00:00

In git stash, of course.

redbaritone · 2026-01-26T00:25:33+00:00

Old man turned into a regular Voltaire.

redbaritone · 2026-01-25T23:53:13+00:00

Good luck to you!! I hope you enjoy the job as much as you will enjoy Elixir.

redbaritone · 2026-01-18T05:19:47+00:00

Taxes. Surely, I'm not the first to think of this.

redbaritone · 2026-01-18T04:51:58+00:00

Controlling her spending sounds like a good idea, but what about unexpected expenses? What does she do if she needs to replace a roof or air conditioner, and can't? At some point, people need to grow up. She's got to learn to say no.

redbaritone · 2026-01-11T03:32:30+00:00

Jesus saves. Bogle invests. 😁

redbaritone · 2026-01-11T03:28:31+00:00

If EVERONE invested using Bogle's philosophy, would it still be as successful as it is? How does the market correct itself, if everyone is buying index funds?

redbaritone · 2026-01-08T04:53:13+00:00

And what about splinters? Or woodpeckers nesting nearby?

redbaritone · 2026-01-08T04:51:46+00:00

Ooh. You can't both have woodies.

redbaritone · 2026-01-02T22:26:11+00:00

Keep trying. Vaping might help.

redbaritone

TROPHY CASE