Yield of Dreams
We are now over 1400 days after the official end of the Great Recession, and the Federal Reserve is still holding interest rates at historically low levels. Take a look at the chart below which includes the yield curves at the same number of days after the previous three recessions. At this point in... Read the full story
A Sleep Well(esley) at Night Fund
You can be sure that 90% of what you read about retirement investing is either (A) not very helpful or (B) confusing. Yet there are some simple solutions and tools to use that are helpful and easy to understand. One of them is a fund to which I recently made a sizable contribution. But first let’s... Read the full story
Up 30% with GNMA
You’re right to be concerned about higher interest rates and a decline in bond prices. Yet it would be a shame to miss the boat on the wonderful returns coming from bond funds with short-term maturities. The Vanguard GNMA fund, for example, with an average maturity of less than two years, has returned... Read the full story
They’ll Wonder How You Live So Well
The businesses of the top 10 companies in the Vanguard Dividend Achievers fund could easily be part of your Saturday morning errands, especially if the kids and family are visiting. You could start the morning by leaving the house with a can of Diet Pepsi, stop by a Chevron station to fill up the tank,... Read the full story
Need Yield?
Do you invest in stocks for income? Is your portfolio focused primarily on U.S. stocks? If so, you might consider diversifying globally. The dividend yield on the U.S. stock market is one of the lowest yields in the world. In the chart below, I show the yields of 23 of the world’s major stock markets.... Read the full story
A Simple Strategy for Stock Market Success
For over four decades I have used a simple strategy to successfully invest in the stock market. I invest exclusively in dividend paying stocks. I especially favor those with high yields, a strong balance sheet, and a history of annual dividend hikes. This strategy is simple, but it works. Historically,... Read the full story
How to Boost the Yield on Your Portfolio
January 22, 2010 Punishing yields of 0.05% on three-month T-bills and .85% on short-term Treasury notes are devastating to the millions of investors who rely on income from their portfolios to fund living expenses. The temptation for many of these investors is to reach for yield. Some investors are loading... Read the full story
Top 10 Mistakes #2
October 30, 2009 The #2 item on my list of the ten most common mistakes investors make is discounting the importance of compound interest. Albert Einstein described compound interest as the greatest mathematical discovery of all time. Charlie Munger, Warren Buffett’s longtime partner, said: “Understanding... Read the full story
Learn an Investment Lesson from an Ivy League’s Mistakes
Your debt load in retirement will determine who’s in control, you or someone else. My father taught us that lesson. I remember when he brought my sister and me as kids to the bank to set up a savings account. The teller politely counted our money and printed the sum on the first page of the passbook.... Read the full story
Stock Valuations are Not Low
July 30, 2009 How can I say this best? Stock market valuations are not low. If you are retired or saving in hopes of retiring, you must laser focus on having a consistent flow of cold cash to pay the tab for your weekly grass-fed-to-the-end beef, fresh-ground flax, coconut milk loaded with medium-chain... Read the full story
