When investing in bonds, one of the decisions is how long you want the "term to maturity", or how much longer the bond will pay interest and then upon maturity repay the principal. The longer the term, the more sensitive the bond price is to … [Read the rest]
Updated September 2023. Charles Schwab became a major player by offering discounted stock trades back when high commissions were the norm. These days, nearly every broker offers $0 commission trades on online equity/ETF trades. Where they differ … [Read the rest]
Here's my monthly roundup of the best interest rates on cash as of September 2023, roughly sorted from shortest to longest maturities. There are often lesser-known opportunities available to individual investors. Check out my Ultimate Rate-Chaser … [Read the rest]
The ScholarShare 529 College Savings Plan is offering a $100 bonus when you open a new account by 9/30/23 and deposit $1,000+ within 10 business days of establishing the account. Your $100 matching deposit will arrive by 1/31/24. The ScholarShare … [Read the rest]
If you enjoy tinkering with financial calculators, FI Calc is a new one that is visually easy to use and thus potentially more educational. The portfolio inputs are somewhat limited ("stocks" = S&P 500, "bonds" = 10-year US Treasuries) but I enjoy … [Read the rest]
An important choice in retirement planning is when to start claiming your Social Security benefits. If you claim earlier, your monthly benefits will be reduced for the rest of your life. If you claim later, your monthly benefits will be increased … [Read the rest]
Vanguard has been piloting some new products recently, and I was finally invited to try out the Vanguard Cash Plus Account. I've been playing with it for a few days and here are my thoughts. First, it's important to note that there are two … [Read the rest]
Ally Bank is running a new checking account promotion, now called their "Spending Account". You must open your first Spending Account by 11/30/2023 and use the promo code GET200, fund it within 30 days of opening, and set up direct deposits … [Read the rest]
Update 8/24: Here are the final results of this odd lot tender. See original post below for past details, although the opportunity has passed. Per JNJSeparation.com, the final exchange ratio was 1 share JNJ to 8.0324 shares of KVUE. The deal was … [Read the rest]
A new banking app called Wallet by BOSS Money is offering a $100 bonus via referral link (open link via smartphone, that's mine). You need to set up direct deposits totaling at least $5,000 within 45 days. No minimum hold period. App only (iOS … [Read the rest]
A surprising takeaway from peer-to-peer lending through Prosper and LendingClub was that the borrowers who most strongly promised to pay you back (e.g. "I promise I will pay you back, so help me God, thank you so much") turned out to also be the most … [Read the rest]
As part of its "Portfolio Basics" series, Morningstar has an educational article on taxable bonds, including corporate bonds, US government bonds, and foreign government bonds, along with their different credit grades and maturity lengths. Over … [Read the rest]
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