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Old 02-12-2008, 10:43 PM   #61
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Always assume that everyone at any financial institution you do business with has access to everything, including the details of your credit report. Didn't you read that tiny little annual privacy disclosure doc they sent with your statement?
Banks do not have undeserved snooping access to the details of my credit reports, because all three of mine are frozen!
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Old 02-13-2008, 06:42 AM   #62
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Banks do not have undeserved snooping access to the details of my credit reports, because all three of mine are frozen!
Awfully trusting, aren't you?

Remember the story that came out a few years ago that Alan Greenspan was turned down for a credit card? The automated underwriting engine/idiot credit officer pulled his credit report and saw hundreds of inquiries and denied the application. How many of those peeks do you think he authorized?
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Old 02-13-2008, 07:20 AM   #63
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C'mon W2R, I'm not going to be as nice as everyone else

You need to SUCK IT UP, YOU have an engineering degree and a Ph.D. for gosh sakes. You're probably smarter than 99% of these bank bozos

After reading a couple of books you probably know more about investing than most of them

However there is one thing that I think that you would really suck at and that is selling investment products

With my sincere apologies

MB
ROFL! You're right. I have always been loathe to claim expertise outside of my engineering/science background, but hey - - I'm working pretty hard at gaining some (even if I don't have the paper or track record yet to prove it).

I would be AWFUL at sales of any type, you're right! Which is one of several reasons why I have never even tried working in that occupation. If I ran the world, there would be no sales pitches, no junk mail, no spam, and no junk phone calls. People would just call if they were interested in something, and their questions would be promptly, politely, and correctly answered. Yes, I am from planet Mars!
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Old 02-13-2008, 07:31 AM   #64
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W2R ... ease up on yourself. Your past posts show that you are fairly level headed and have a plan (that's the important part).

I think you're right, ... the 'new found money' seems to be what is throwing you off your game. Treat it as part of your existing portfolio. Same plan (well, maybe now you can get the orchastra seats instead of balcony ). But essentially you should do what you've been doing.

About being timid, I would subsitute the word careful. Careful is ok.

Also agree with poster on being a member of this board is a good indicator. We are all trying to learn, refine our strategies, and help each other.

Hang in there.
You're right about the 'new found money' throwing me off. It's not every day that I have several times as much in my checking account, as I ever expected my total net worth to be. It's enough to make my want to yell a few choice explosive expletives and race off to the bathroom, shall we say. Eventually the nice part of this situation will sink in, once it is invested and then I can settle down and relax. It just isn't to that point, yet.

Honestly, so far I don't have any additional plans for spending it. I know I don't want to get into the principal. I just want to get it in place, and then as I get some feel of what I can expect as income from it (in the real world, as opposed to theoretical projections), I'll think about what to do with it. On Friday I'm going to my insurance agent to get more liability insurance and an umbrella policy.

I just called Vanguard to get the information I need for the wire transfer, and intend to go to my bank and get it done this morning. If I can just get that money out of my checking account and in Vanguard, I will feel 100% better. Vanguard feels like a safe haven right now.

By the way, Vanguard was SO NICE and helpful on the phone. They didn't even ask how much I was wiring. And, they answered on the first ring, as soon as I told the automated system that I wanted a person.
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Old 02-13-2008, 07:32 AM   #65
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These bank guys really do prey on people, men or women, who look like they don't know what they are doing.
I know this is a forum focused on finances, but I don't really think there's any news here. "Investment peddlers prey on uninformed" is not a shocking headline, any more than "Car salesman pushes unnecessary extras" or "Stereo salesman doesn't understand impedance" are newsflashes.

Every industry takes advantage of peoples' naivete. And quite often, sales people don't actually know very much about their products. When I shop for a car, it's not uncommon for me to know more about the vehicle I'm interested in than the salesman. I don't really think that's necessarily horrible, though. Is it really reasonable to expect a car salesman to be able to explain the technical intricacies of VTEC, or have a thorough understanding of how a catalytic converter works? I don't think so. If he were really that passionate about automobiles, he'd be designing them instead of selling them (and probably making a lot more money, too).

Many of these mutual fund peddlers are doing this as a second career. They take a couple 2-week certification courses and think that makes them experts. But of course anybody with an interest in money (like, oh, say virtually everyone on this board) who is truly passionate about this stuff and spends their spare time reading about it is going to be better informed than the fund salesman.

I just don't see any of this as "shocking," or even unique to the finance industry. It's pretty much how capitalism works. Is Tiffany jewelry really worth 10x as much as other jewelry? Are Nikon lenses really worth paying twice as much as Tamron? Is an Acura really worth that much more than a Honda? I don't believe so - yet these companies still make money, so they're somehow fooling vast numbers of wealthy people.
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Old 02-13-2008, 07:55 AM   #66
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Awfully trusting, aren't you?

Remember the story that came out a few years ago that Alan Greenspan was turned down for a credit card? The automated underwriting engine/idiot credit officer pulled his credit report and saw hundreds of inquiries and denied the application. How many of those peeks do you think he authorized?
You are right and thanks for pointing that out. To my surprise, I checked with Consumers Union and and learned that companies who I have existing accounts with, law enforcement, and government agencies doing an investigation all still have access to my three credit reports. Well, I guess that makes George Orwell right as well.


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Old 02-13-2008, 08:14 AM   #67
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I think a man would be pressured differently, but no less hard.
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They go for the ego with men. she said '... who wears the pants in your family?' ... I hung up.
"C'mon, dude, a real man would be all over this no-brainer! LeBron is in for 20%, how 'bout you?"

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You're right about the 'new found money' throwing me off. It's not every day that I have several times as much in my checking account, as I ever expected my total net worth to be. It's enough to make my want to yell a few choice explosive expletives and race off to the bathroom, shall we say.
Honestly, so far I don't have any additional plans for spending it. I know I don't want to get into the principal. I just want to get it in place, and then as I get some feel of what I can expect as income from it (in the real world, as opposed to theoretical projections), I'll think about what to do with it. On Friday I'm going to my insurance agent to get more liability insurance and an umbrella policy.
I'm not even gonna touch that bathroom comment, but have you read Thayer Cheatham-Willis' "Navigating the Dark Side of Wealth" or looked at SuddenMoney.com? Both have a wealth of resources and methods for dealing with the changes that you may not have even seen coming.

Later on, when things have settled and decisions have been made and you're ready for some voyeuristic schadenfreude entertainment, try "The Stewardship of Private Wealth" by Sally Kleberg of Texas' "King Ranch" family.
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Old 02-13-2008, 08:39 AM   #68
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You're right about the 'new found money' throwing me off. It's not every day that I have several times as much in my checking account, as I ever expected my total net worth to be..
W2R, if your windfall is truly substantial (and it now sounds like it is - congratulations!), one of the popular books - Diehard's guide, Motley Fool guide or similar - has a brief chapter on what to do with a windfall. Check it out next time at the bookstore.

Don't know what I'd do, but it probably would be just what I'm doing now, only with the decimal point moved to the right . Maybe a more aggressive basic allocation.

Nice dilemma to have, and I wish you well. So, how does this affect your timetable?
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Old 02-13-2008, 08:47 AM   #69
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I know this is a forum focused on finances, but I don't really think there's any news here. "Investment peddlers prey on uninformed" is not a shocking headline, any more than "Car salesman pushes unnecessary extras" or "Stereo salesman doesn't understand impedance" are newsflashes.
Have to agree on that..........

Quote:
Every
Quote:
industry takes advantage of peoples' naivete. And quite often, sales people don't actually know very much about their products. When I shop for a car, it's not uncommon for me to know more about the vehicle I'm interested in than the salesman. I don't really think that's necessarily horrible, though. Is it really reasonable to expect a car salesman to be able to explain the technical intricacies of VTEC, or have a thorough understanding of how a catalytic converter works? I don't think so. If he were really that passionate about automobiles, he'd be designing them instead of selling them (and probably making a lot more money, too).
Car designers don't make as much as you think........
I suppose you could get rid of all the salespeople in the US, but then we'd have to get rid of a lot of salaried folks along with that.............

Quote:
Many of these mutual fund peddlers are doing this as a second career. They take a couple 2-week certification courses and think that makes them experts. But of course anybody with an interest in money (like, oh, say virtually everyone on this board) who is truly passionate about this stuff and spends their spare time reading about it is going to be better informed than the fund salesman.
What 2-week certification course do you take to sell funds? I've never heard of one..........

I just don't see any of this as "shocking," or even unique to the finance industry. It's pretty much how capitalism works. Is Tiffany jewelry really worth 10x as much as other jewelry? Are Nikon lenses really worth paying twice as much as Tamron? Is an Acura really worth that much more than a Honda? I don't believe so - yet these companies still make money, so they're somehow fooling vast numbers of wealthy people.[/quote]
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Old 02-13-2008, 08:47 AM   #70
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Old 02-13-2008, 09:09 AM   #71
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"C'mon, dude, a real man would be all over this no-brainer! LeBron is in for 20%, how 'bout you?"
Guess you're right ... I'm giving her the pants, with the belt and the suspenders.
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Old 02-13-2008, 09:26 AM   #72
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What 2-week certification course do you take to sell funds? I've never heard of one..........
The one Primerica offers?

When my wife and I got sucked into one of their "job interviews" (*snicker*), they said that all we had to do was pay $300 to take a short certification course, and we'd be licensed to sell insurance and mutual funds in Ontario.
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Old 02-13-2008, 09:30 AM   #73
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The one Primerica offers?

When my wife and I got sucked into one of their "job interviews" (*snicker*), they said that all we had to do was pay $300 to take a short certification course, and we'd be licensed to sell insurance and mutual funds in Ontario.
You are assuming that Primerica hires and trains folks to be advisers, not a MLM sham that is a disgrace to Citibank..............

And yes, a Series 6 license is not hard to get, my State Farm rep has it. However, those State Farm funds ain't the cat's meow...........
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Old 02-13-2008, 09:30 AM   #74
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have you read Thayer Cheatham-Willis' "Navigating the Dark Side of Wealth" or looked at SuddenMoney.com? Both have a wealth of resources and methods for dealing with the changes that you may not have even seen coming.

Later on, when things have settled and decisions have been made and you're ready for some voyeuristic schadenfreude entertainment, try "The Stewardship of Private Wealth" by Sally Kleberg of Texas' "King Ranch" family.
Thanks for the links and references. I read a couple of books on the topic, one of which was the "Sudden Money" book referred to on SuddenMoney.com . I think I'm extremely well prepared to not blow it (like some sports figures have been known to do). I really do feel a responsibility to keep and grow this capital.

Beyond that, I think the degree of impact on my normally sedate and complacent outlook was surprising. One thinks one is cool and sophisticated until one has an event of this sort impacting one's happily frugal and LBYM existance. I think that the decision not to start spending a lot right away, or to change my life right away, will help me to return to my normal, calm self.

Speaking of which, I just got the money wired to Vanguard. Once I see it in place in my Vanguard account, with no silly *'s next to the number, I think I will breathe a HUGE sigh of relief.
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Old 02-13-2008, 09:40 AM   #75
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W2R, if your windfall is truly substantial (and it now sounds like it is - congratulations!), one of the popular books - Diehard's guide, Motley Fool guide or similar - has a brief chapter on what to do with a windfall. Check it out next time at the bookstore.

Don't know what I'd do, but it probably would be just what I'm doing now, only with the decimal point moved to the right . Maybe a more aggressive basic allocation.

Nice dilemma to have, and I wish you well. So, how does this affect your timetable?
Thanks for the tip! I have read a chapter on windfalls in the Bogleheads Guide to Investing (don't know if I got the title right, but the one by Taylor Larimore, LeBoeuf, and somebody else) and will check some of the other popular books as well.

Thanks for your good wishes. This is a substantial amount to me, but remember that I really feel comfortable with LBYM and was anticipating a modest ER. Previously my goal was $2K/month from a combination of SS, tiny pension, and $760/mo from investments, with a paid off house and lifetime medical. This extra money will bring me up to a level of net worth that is more usual on this forum, but will not be especially astounding to many ER forum participants.

It will not affect my timetable at all, unfortunately, because I am still waiting for lifetime medical. I should qualify for that in about 21 months. Since the last third of the windfall is expected to be sent to me in the second quarter of 2008, by which time it will be more like 18 months I suppose, I might as well go the distance and get my lifetime medical. (sigh) That might also see me through the recent stock market dips and wobbles, which would be nice.
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Old 02-13-2008, 10:15 AM   #76
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Besides being careful with your money one of the smartest things you can do is not tell anyone about it . This can cause all kinds of friction between friends and family members .
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Old 02-13-2008, 10:16 AM   #77
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Besides being careful with your money one of the smartest things you can do is not tell anyone about it . This can cause all kinds of friction between friends and family members .
Well, my two brothers and nephew (who also inherited) know, and other than that, only Frank and 340987345 ER forum readers know. Posting about it probably wasn't the brightest thing I've ever done.
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Old 02-13-2008, 10:29 AM   #78
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Well, my two brothers and nephew (who also inherited) know, and other than that, only Frank and 340987345 ER forum readers know. Posting about it probably wasn't the brightest thing I've ever done.
Heh, you may be in real trouble. All any unscrupulous dastard would have to do is head for NO and look for a hot blond who works for the gummit...
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Old 02-13-2008, 10:39 AM   #79
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Heh, you may be in real trouble. All any unscrupulous dastard would have to do is head for NO and look for a hot blond who works for the gummit...
Hee hee! Luckily, government is a major "industry" in Louisiana, comprising a large portion of our economy. So, there are probably quite a few women here fitting that description.

Wait! Change that "luckily" to "unfortunately". We need some manufacturing plants and other employers and jobs around here in this poorest state of the Union.
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Old 02-13-2008, 11:39 AM   #80
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Not to worry. Sharing your good fortune with just us kids doesn't tell anyone anything they couldn't have figured out from the fact that we're on a FIRE board surrounded by millionaires .
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