Gearhead Jim
Full time employment: Posting here.
The nice performance of the stock market has pushed my equity % above my target AA range at Vanguard.
Wanting to move some money into fixed income, the choices at VG look pretty bleak. MM pays almost nothing, short-term bond funds pay darned little and will probably take some losses as interest rates rise. Intermediate term bond funds pay more but will be hurt more as rates rise. GNMA have a nice track record but are subject to influences I don't really understand. We've got CD's on the outside, don't want all our FI eggs in that basket even though it should be safe.
Some folks say I should just put the money in the intermediate term bond funds, don't worry about the losses now; they'll recover as rates eventually stabilize. Problem is, rates are so low now that they could rise for a long time. I shouldn't be trying to time the market, but bond funds look like such a sure loser, or at best a go-nowhere class, that I'm not comfortable with them.
Suggestions? Please keep it simple...
Wanting to move some money into fixed income, the choices at VG look pretty bleak. MM pays almost nothing, short-term bond funds pay darned little and will probably take some losses as interest rates rise. Intermediate term bond funds pay more but will be hurt more as rates rise. GNMA have a nice track record but are subject to influences I don't really understand. We've got CD's on the outside, don't want all our FI eggs in that basket even though it should be safe.
Some folks say I should just put the money in the intermediate term bond funds, don't worry about the losses now; they'll recover as rates eventually stabilize. Problem is, rates are so low now that they could rise for a long time. I shouldn't be trying to time the market, but bond funds look like such a sure loser, or at best a go-nowhere class, that I'm not comfortable with them.
Suggestions? Please keep it simple...