Vanguard changing bond fund names

[cute fuzzy bunny]

I'm not sure I understand this, but vanguard is changing its corporate bond fund names from "corporate" to "investment grade". Apparently a new rule requires that if a fund says whats in it, it has to have 80%+ of that in it; previously it was 65%.

The fund manager says he wants the flexibility to buy treasury and agency bonds of the valuations on those are good.

Now...if I bought the damn corporate bond fund, dont you suppose its because I want to own corporate bonds, and if I wanted a mix, dont you suppose I'd have bought the generic mixed index?!?

:P

[BUM]

Its exactly this constant tweaking and vanguard's building superfunds consisting of their own funds; that keeps me on the sidelines for now. I can't decide on a strategy and the choices seem to be getting blurry or watered down. Time for some new glasses?

Still procrastinating,

BUM

[bow-tie]

Great point TH... enough with the damn style drift.

[mccl]

FYI, there is an extensive discussion of this over at the Morningstar Vanguard Diehards forum. Most there feel exactly as TH does.

[cute fuzzy bunny]

Heres something i often wonder as a former marketing bozo. With substantial online communities dedicated to various products, tools and services, why dont companies take advantage of these?

Pick one spokesperson to read up on and if appropriate, comment or at least ask questions?

What an incredible resource, yet one I see largely untapped. Granted its a funny demographic slice but you should be able to see if an idea would fly or crash and burn.

I've really only seen one company participate in its digital community. After a couple of very successful years the "company rep" was canned in a "cost savings" move, and replaced with an occasional suit who did little other than insult and irritate.

(big head shake)

Seems to me vanguard could spend a million less a year on "focus group studies" and jerkoffs who dont know a customers ass from their wallets, and spend a little time asking people in a selection of online communities "what do you think of this?" or "would you buy this?" or "what kinds of funds would you like?"

For example, in the areas of portfolio asset allocation, vanguard lacks a truly comprehensive fund of indexes. I guess a "bernstein fund for all seasons" sort of fund. They're halfway there with their lifestrategy and target retirement funds, but each and every one of those lacks something(s). The STAR fund is great, but its all managed funds.

It'd be even cooler to be able to design your own "fund of funds", pick the balance, the funds, the allocations, and have it spit out a reasoned annual cost. After that the computers do all the work. Probably some financial or legal reason why that wouldnt work but...

[unclemick]

Like a Chinese resturant you'd think they'd have one column of funds for the slice and dice crowd (aka do your own asset allocation) and us 'out of the can' cats (Lifestrategy, Star, Target). Instead they seem to be 'muddling' within individual funds - unable to make up their minds. Even my Lifestrategy has 25% Asset Allocation buried within.