Has Vanguard Lost its way?

[Texas Proud]

I know I'm probably not adding anything to what has been said here about Vanguard, but I had an experience today that prompted me to chime in.

First of all, I got an email a week or so back from an advisor at Vanguard indicating that he would be giving me a call soon to discuss "some options" and that I could get in touch with him by email in the mean time if I liked. That in itself kind of bothered me, as that type of unsolicited inquiry -- like so many others here would say -- is not the reason I invested with Vanguard in the first place way back when. Well, today I got a call and saw that the number was in Wayne, PA. I declined to answer and sure enough received a voice mail from a Vanguard advisor. Sounded like a pleasant enough fellow, but I have no interest whatsoever in talking with him. I would never take it out on him, but there is something about it totally offensive to me.

Not to make too big a deal out just getting a phone call, but this kind of makes it "real" for me that Vanguard is no longer the organization I first knew. I wonder if I can now expect to be getting calls on a monthly basis pushing their advisory services -- something abhorrent in relation to my lifelong no load, self-study, DIY approach to investing.

Fortunately, I have not experienced any of the bad customer service issues others here have shared -- yet. All of my interactions have been online and -- so far -- problem free. But I feel kind of sad that Vanguard seems to be abandoning the mission and type of customers for which it first came into existence.

Back when you would have a human advisor for just over $1 million my advisor would call me once a year and ask if I needed anything... I always said I was good to go... I was OK with this as he never did try and sell me on anything...


However, my Merril Edge account had a guy who was not even close cold call me to try and become my 'advisor' with an account that had $50K in it... I was really pissed as when he first started I said I did not need an advisor and he said he was not pushing that but in the end he wanted to put his name on my account... had to run it up to an EVP that I was really pissed since I told him in the first couple of minutes I was not interested... never did move my money there...

 

[FLSUnFIRE]

Still content with Vanguard but not crazy with the newer app and web interfaces and hope they will evolve (but don't like Fidelity's interface either). I've never had them try to up-sell me; I do get an occasional email mentioning services but I get that from other institutions too and they are not intrusive or particularly annoying.



Disclaimer: I also prefer to fly SWA. I save my consumer angst for Spectrum and T-Mobile both of which I am no longer a customer.

 

[Sunset]

I know I'm probably not adding anything to what has been said here about Vanguard, but I had an experience today that prompted me to chime in.

First of all, I got an email a week or so back from an advisor at Vanguard indicating that he would be giving me a call soon to discuss "some options" and that I could get in touch with him by email in the mean time if I liked. That in itself kind of bothered me, as that type of unsolicited inquiry -- like so many others here would say -- is not the reason I invested with Vanguard in the first place way back when. Well, today I got a call and saw that the number was in Wayne, PA. I declined to answer and sure enough received a voice mail from a Vanguard advisor. Sounded like a pleasant enough fellow, but I have no interest whatsoever in talking with him. I would never take it out on him, but there is something about it totally offensive to me.

Not to make too big a deal out just getting a phone call, but this kind of makes it "real" for me that Vanguard is no longer the organization I first knew. I wonder if I can now expect to be getting calls on a monthly basis pushing their advisory services -- something abhorrent in relation to my lifelong no load, self-study, DIY approach to investing.

Fortunately, I have not experienced any of the bad customer service issues others here have shared -- yet. All of my interactions have been online and -- so far -- problem free. But I feel kind of sad that Vanguard seems to be abandoning the mission and type of customers for which it first came into existence.

I get that from TDA, and even though I get an email, and later a phone call, I don't reveal any information as it could just be an elaborate scam of email & call.

 

[target2019]

The logo should be a ship sitting at the bottom of the sea.

I tried to add a bank to my transitioned account. "Something went wrong
A system error prevented your information from submitting. Please try again later." Three browsers, all fail. This is similar to not being able to get access to spouse's accounts on my front page. The company is an utter dissaster...

Three days later, I got a prompt at signon and was able to complete the two micro deposits. Lol, takes a while.

 

[MSDalt]

Unbelievable

I have been happy with Vanguard over the years. In fact, I recently helped my cousin to move her account from T Rowe Price to Vanguard.
This morning, I tried to search for mutual funds and ETF which are offered through Vanguard's brokerage and was amazed to discover that Vanguard no longer provides a screener that yields results for funds which do not bear the Vanguard name.
I spent 20 minutes searching and finally called them to confirm.
It seems that they are truly not interested in helping a client to search for the best options. They want to steer you exclusively to Vanguard funds or to an advisor who will sell and help to manage your Vanguard funds.

 

[PlayinwithFIRE]

One thing I always wonder about with a behemoth like VG is if you are in their advised camp, your moves will be their moves. That puts alot of "heft" behind your personal adjustments which they make.

Isnt that an advantage when you happen to align with a large investors choices?

 

[Texas Proud]

One thing I always wonder about with a behemoth like VG is if you are in their advised camp, your moves will be their moves. That puts alot of "heft" behind your personal adjustments which they make.

Isnt that an advantage when you happen to align with a large investors choices?

Many studies have shown that managed funds mostly lag behind non-manged funds no matter how large the one managing... or as you say 'heft'...

 

[MSDalt]

One thing I always wonder about with a behemoth like VG is if you are in their advised camp, your moves will be their moves. That puts alot of "heft" behind your personal adjustments which they make.

Isnt that an advantage when you happen to align with a large investors choices?

I just want the tools to choose from the best investments without being restricted to choosing exclusively among the best Vanguard investments.
Every other broker I have used provides that feature. Vanguard previously provided it.
If their funds perform well vs. their competitors, they should not be afraid to compare results.

 

[JOBO]

Vanguard vs Fidelity Schwab

Had holdings with Vanguard for over 10 years.
For better functionality and simplicity consolidating elsewhere made good sense for me.

Schwab is publicly traded
Fido is privately owned
VG is investor owned.

 

[Texas Proud]

Had holdings with Vanguard for over 10 years.
For better functionality and simplicity consolidating elsewhere made good sense for me.

Schwab is publicly traded
Fido is privately owned
VG is investor owned.

And what does that have to do with anything? Any ownership structure can be good or bad... it matters who is in charge and what they are doing for their clients...



As an example, what can YOU do as an 'investor' in VG? Not a thing...

 

[PaunchyPirate]

Due to my total dislike of the direction that the Vanguard website has take over the last 18 months and a couple of less-than-satisfying customer service interactions, I have decided to move my investments to either Schwab or Fidelity.

I have spent time today interviewing reps from both of these companies. I haven't yet reached my decision. I truly think both of them can meet my expectations and needs. At this point, I'm waiting on Schwab to get back to me on how much of a cash bonus they want to offer me to move my nest egg. Both Schwab and Fidelity initially offered about the same bonus, but the Schwab rep quickly volunteered that he could probably get more if he got his boss' approval. I, not being stupid, asked that he do that. I'm not the personality to go back and forth multiple times playing "who'll pay me more", but since he brought up the fact he could get more, I took him up on it. Fidelity made no such suggestion or even a hint of it.

If he significantly raises the stakes, I will likely be taking my business to Schwab.

 

[MSDalt]

eTrade is definitely an interesting choice. They have waived transaction fees for all mutual funds and, I was surprised to learn, have also waived short-term trading fees for mutual funds.
In the past they have offered some pretty competitive incentives to bring in money.
I am considering them as an alternative to Vanguard since they are offering Vanguard (and Fidelity) funds without a transaction fee. The Vanguard rep posited that their funds' expense ratios might be higher at eTrade but their website shows otherwise.

 

[RetMD21]

eTrade is definitely an interesting choice. They have waived transaction fees for all mutual funds and, I was surprised to learn, have also waived short-term trading fees for mutual funds.

I have used Etrade in the past. It was fine. I wonder if the Morgan Stanley buy out will change things

 

[Texas Proud]

Due to my total dislike of the direction that the Vanguard website has take over the last 18 months and a couple of less-than-satisfying customer service interactions, I have decided to move my investments to either Schwab or Fidelity.

I have spent time today interviewing reps from both of these companies. I haven't yet reached my decision. I truly think both of them can meet my expectations and needs. At this point, I'm waiting on Schwab to get back to me on how much of a cash bonus they want to offer me to move my nest egg. Both Schwab and Fidelity initially offered about the same bonus, but the Schwab rep quickly volunteered that he could probably get more if he got his boss' approval. I, not being stupid, asked that he do that. I'm not the personality to go back and forth multiple times playing "who'll pay me more", but since he brought up the fact he could get more, I took him up on it. Fidelity made no such suggestion or even a hint of it.

If he significantly raises the stakes, I will likely be taking my business to Schwab.

I am in the same boat... Schwab gave me a number but also said they would match whatever I was offered... IOW, I would have to go out and get offers and go to them... not sure it is worth the trouble... and are you really gong to make a decision on a few hundred dollars?

 

[Sunset]

....., I have decided to move my investments to either Schwab or Fidelity.

.... .... how much of a cash bonus they want to offer me to move my nest egg. ......

I am in the same boat... Schwab gave me a number but also said they would match whatever I was offered... ...... not sure it is worth the trouble... and are you really gong to make a decision on a few hundred dollars?

So nobody has to reveal the nest egg, pretend I was moving $1 Million to these brokerages, what number would I be looking at as a moving bonus ?

So if you were moving $500K , just double the offer, if you were moving $4M then suggest a 1/4 of the offer.

I'm wondering how far above the public fidelity $150 offer it would be.

 

[Texas Proud]

So nobody has to reveal the nest egg, pretend I was moving $1 Million to these brokerages, what number would I be looking at as a moving bonus ?

So if you were moving $500K , just double the offer, if you were moving $4M then suggest a 1/4 of the offer.

I'm wondering how far above the public fidelity $150 offer it would be.

It is not quite like that... I have never seen an offer for more than 1 million... below is one from Merrill that I just received in an email... There was no offer for over the $200K...


As far as the mill, I have seen $1,000 and heard of some as high as $2,500


qualifying net new assets of $20,000 to $49,999 will receive $100; qualifying net new assets of $50,000‑$99,999 will receive $150; $100,000‑$199,999 will receive $250; $200,000 or more will receive $600

 

[PaunchyPirate]

I am in the same boat... Schwab gave me a number but also said they would match whatever I was offered... IOW, I would have to go out and get offers and go to them... not sure it is worth the trouble... and are you really gong to make a decision on a few hundred dollars?

The Schwab rep called and indicated a higher amount that was twice what Fidelity had offered. I truly think either Schwab Or Fidelity would meet my needs just fine. So I, of course, chose the one that offered the most money. It is significantly more than a few hundred dollars more than Fidelity was offering.

The sales rep indicated I would then speak with a different person about the transfer logistics and the details of the promotional offer. During that call, we reviewed my investment style and plans a bit and he answered any technical questions I had. Then we started to discuss the higher promotion amount. He indicated that Schwab doesn’t directly offer incentives, but that they would match known promotions. I thought he was setting me up for having to document the Fidelity offer (which was lower than Schwab’s) in order to get the higher amount. But he then followed up with that he didn’t want to make me do any work like that. So he could base his offer on what eTrade was publishing on their website. He would just document the bonus to match the eTrade website. I had actually looked at the eTrade site earlier in the day and I told him that. I saw their offer but it was so confusing when it came to aggregate sums across multiple accounts. I actually interpreted it as offering quite a bit less than Schwab was offering, but I guess I was wrong. I did not tell him that..

Bottom line, I have started the process to move to Schwab.

 

[PaunchyPirate]

So nobody has to reveal the nest egg, pretend I was moving $1 Million to these brokerages, what number would I be looking at as a moving bonus ?

So if you were moving $500K , just double the offer, if you were moving $4M then suggest a 1/4 of the offer.

I'm wondering how far above the public fidelity $150 offer it would be.

I don’t really follow what your examples mean. Sorry. Prior to my calling anyone, I had read on forums that Fidelity would basically offer $1000 for each $1M of assets that you transfer. That is what they offered me.

 

[Texas Proud]

I don’t really follow what your examples mean. Sorry. Prior to my calling anyone, I had read on forums that Fidelity would basically offer $1000 for each $1M of assets that you transfer. That is what they offered me.

That seems pretty good... I have only seen or heard of offers 'over $1 million'.... so 1 mill or 4 mill got the same offer...


My example was from Merrill and only went to $200K... for $600.. nothing more for millions...


What is the Schwab offer? I am looking at moving money there soon... PM me if you do not want to put it here...




Edit to add... just looked at Etrade and it looks like it is pretty good... I will use this to get Schwab to match!!

 

[PaunchyPirate]

That seems pretty good... I have only seen or heard of offers 'over $1 million'.... so 1 mill or 4 mill got the same offer...


My example was from Merrill and only went to $200K... for $600.. nothing more for millions...


What is the Schwab offer? I am looking at moving money there soon... PM me if you do not want to put it here...




Edit to add... just looked at Etrade and it looks like it is pretty good... I will use this to get Schwab to match!!

Yep! Just leverage the eTrade offer. That’s what I got.

 

[MercyMe]

I had an unbelievably bad exchange with VG last night. Tried to transfer $200k from my bank to VG and it said my bank account was not authorized. I called VG and had to listen to a lecture on how the guy that answered the call wanted to know more about my investing style and experienced. I declined.

So he patched me to a guy that sounded like he was in a call center in India. He couldn't help and ultimately made it worse. It worked a couple of months ago then it stopped working and now it's altogether gone.

I tried to re-add the bank so I could do the transfer but it wouldn't connect with my credentials nor did it even allow the micro deposit method. I called back and again had to listen to the spiel about them wanting to know more about my investing style and experience. WTH? The VG rep then sent me an e-doc to sign but the doc kept asking me to upload a picture, but wouldn't say what they wanted a picture of. The phone rep didn't know either. A picture of what? My signature, my driver's license, my butt?

Then the rep said to download their app and upload a picture of the front and back of a check from my bank. I said thanks and ended the call.

Easy enough, right? Nope. The app doesn't tell you who to make the check out to or if I should sign the back. I have no idea if it worked. Waiting now to see if it clears. If not, I'm dumping VG. Thank God that I only own one fund at VG (which regrettably can't be bought anywhere else).

 

[Sunset]

It is not quite like that... I have never seen an offer for more than 1 million... below is one from Merrill that I just received in an email... There was no offer for over the $200K...


As far as the mill, I have seen $1,000 and heard of some as high as $2,500


qualifying net new assets of $20,000 to $49,999 will receive $100; qualifying net new assets of $50,000‑$99,999 will receive $150; $100,000‑$199,999 will receive $250; $200,000 or more will receive $600

I got the $600 from Merrill a few years ago, and the agent phoned me and said if I have more money to transfer and it added to 1 Million, they would pay me $1,000 more.. but that payment is not posted on the webpage, you have to talk to someone.

I didn't get to take advantage of the offer

 

[Sunset]

Yep! Just leverage the eTrade offer. That’s what I got.

I had to look, and wow.... those are some big promo offers. .

https://us.etrade.com/what-we-offer/how-it-works/promo

 

[tulak]

Here's a new fail for the updated Vanguard website. I downloaded all tax forms the other day and noticed a 1099-R was missing this morning. I went to the website and sure enough, it's not listed in the new consolidated view. I'm looking at it now and I think it's a bug. It says "All 4 of your tax forms are now available" but I see only 3 forms available.

I was able to find it on the old UI and I noticed at the bottom of the new page, there is a 'View the old experience' link. If I click that, I see all four forms.

Out of curiosity, I clicked another year where it says I have 6 forms available and only get 5 in the list. That's too funny.

They really should spend some time testing their website.

 

[Rianne]

Here's a new fail for the updated Vanguard website. I downloaded all tax forms the other day and noticed a 1099-R was missing this morning. I went to the website and sure enough, it's not listed in the new consolidated view. I'm looking at it now and I think it's a bug. It says "All 4 of your tax forms are now available" but I see only 3 forms available.

I was able to find it on the old UI and I noticed at the bottom of the new page, there is a 'View the old experience' link. If I click that, I see all four forms.

Out of curiosity, I clicked another year where it says I have 6 forms available and only get 5 in the list. That's too funny.

They really should spend some time testing their website.

Yes, having a similar problem. One of our funds was missing on the 1099-Div. I called and was told the full form will be available on Feb. 15 (I think) and the consolidated forms later. Messed up situation.