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[TSP_Strategy] Re: What to do

[TSP_Strategy] Re: What to do

 

Congrats willcutt74.  Put your money to work for you!   The TSP has made some funds for those of us who don't know too much about investing and market timing.  They make it simple because usually we make decisions that are clouded by our feelings, opinions, or hunches; and at least for me it's usually a bad decision.


So, the fine folks at TSP have made Lifecycle Funds.  All you do is pick the date closest to your retirement.  That's it.  If you're in a typical job and lifestyle that would be the best choice, IMHO  Please read about them here:   https://www.tsp.gov/InvestmentFunds/FundOptions/index.html

Then, after you've learned a bunch here and elsewhere, and begin to think you can beat the "professionally determined investment mixes that are tailored to meet investment objectives" go for it!   It's your money to lose or grow, but maybe until you get to that point just safely park it in the recommended Lifecycle fund?  And if you never get around to it you've still done the right thing.  I bet there are not too many mainstream financial advisers that would tell you to play the market with your retirement.   

Note:  I don't take my own advice; instead I play with a portion and seem to remind myself that I'm not qualified to play with a large chunk of it.    Good luck, let us know what you end up doing.
 

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Posted by: elstaub@yahoo.com
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Neither the TSP Strategy group, nor individual members, are licensed or authorized to provide investment advice. Any statements made herein merely reflect the personal opinions of the individual group member. Please make your own investment decisions based upon your personal circumstances.

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[TSP_Strategy] Fixe Income Performance

[TSP_Strategy] Fixe Income Performance

 


Fixed Income Sector Performance (Total Return as of 3/31/18)

Chart of the Week for April 27, 2018 - May 3, 2018

All 11 fixed income sectors posted positive returns in the twelve month period ended March 31, 2018. Similarly, eight of the 11 sectors rose in the twelve month period ended March 31, 2017.

The fixed income market includes many different types of securities, and their performance can vary substantially among these types. The chart above compares the performance of 11 major fixed income sectors for the one-year periods ended March 31, 2018 ("current year"-dark blue bars above) and March 31, 2017 ("prior year"-light blue bars above). All 11 fixed income sectors produced positive returns for the current year while eight of the 11 sectors rose in the prior year.

The Federal Open Market Committee ("FOMC") of the U.S. Federal Reserve increased the target rate range for the federal funds rate three times during the current year, and U.S. interest rates were higher across all maturities. Global led all sectors in current year performance (6.97%), rebounding from its negative return of the prior year (-1.90%), helped by continuing central bank stimulus measures in Europe and strong growth in Japan. Emerging Markets also posted positive returns (3.18%) as strong demand for bonds and improving economies buoyed those markets. For U.S sectors, Long-Term outperformed Short-Term, as short-term yields rose more than long-term yields. Current year performance in all U.S. sectors was negatively impacted in the first quarter of 2018 as interest rates increased on expectations of higher inflation and even higher potential future interest rates.

Performance fluctuates over time and returns depend in part on the market environment, which is hard to predict. Changes in both actual and expected interest and inflation rates can materially impact fixed income investments. Also, investors should note that even U.S. Government securities can decline in value and investing in sectors such as High Yield or Emerging Markets involve additional risk.

When making investment decisions, prudent investors should invest based on their own circumstances, taking into consideration their goals, investment experience, time horizon, and risk tolerance.


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Posted by: sarah_oz@yahoo.com
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Neither the TSP Strategy group, nor individual members, are licensed or authorized to provide investment advice. Any statements made herein merely reflect the personal opinions of the individual group member. Please make your own investment decisions based upon your personal circumstances.

.

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[TSP_Strategy] Where Retirement is Headed

[TSP_Strategy] Where Retirement is Headed

 

Where Retirement Is Headed

April 26, 2018

When I left federal service in 1988 as a retirement counselor at the FBI, I fully expected that my position would become obsolete within a few years, because it seemed that retirement processing was becoming automated. We were told that in the not-too-distant future, employees would only need to decide on their date of retirement and everything else would be automatically submitted to the Office of Personnel Management by an integrated computer system.

Fast forward to 2018: Paper applications continue to be used in most agencies—though they can be filled out online, which is something of an improvement. The forms require hands-on processing by human resources staff at the employee's final agency of employment. Applications, along with supporting documents, are turned over to administrative specialists at OPM's Retirement Operations Center, a massive underground facility in Pennsylvania.

Most employees continue to require some retirement counseling to help them understand the complex details of the application process—which is why I am still employable!

In short, we're still waiting on for an automated system. And while it may not emerge soon, the world is changing at a speed that makes it hard to imagine what everyday life will be like in a few years. Technological advances will continue to change the way federal employees plan for their retirement.

In his book The Truth About Your Future; The Money Guide You Need Now, Later, and Much Later, Ric Edelman addresses the concept of exponential growth and change. Critical to it is understanding the impact of compounding.

Think, Edelman writes, about how much money you would have if you doubled the value of a penny every day. In seven days, it would grow to 64 cents, but after 31 days, it would be worth $10 million. It's too bad there isn't a Thrift Savings Plan Fund that grows 100 percent per day! (Although slower compound growth in the TSP is still significant: There were 10,000 TSP participants with $1,000,000 or more in their accounts at the end of 2016 and almost 24,000 a year later.)

The important point is that whether you are doubling a penny or investing in the TSP, the largest part of the growth occurs at the end of the time period. Technologically speaking, Edelman believes we are reaching a point where growth and innovation is going to happen much faster than ever before. Consider:

  • According to IEEE Spectrum, driverless cars will be mandatory by 2044.
  • Researchers at MIT's Media Lab, recently featured on 60 Minutes, have developed technology to connect the human brain to a prosthetic limb and to an individual's vocal chords.
  • Blockchain technology, Edelman writes, will eliminate the the need for many "middlemen," such as insurance brokers, commercial bankers, real estate agents and even lawyers. Eventually, the need for the "trust industry" will disappear, since the blockchain creates a link between the data of the borrower and the lender (the buyer and the seller, the estate and the heirs, etc.) that is maintained forever.

How will such developments affect how you plan for retirement? Edelman writes that it's critical to think about long-term care, estate planning and investing for the future. If you're already doing that, great. If not, learn more by attending pre-retirement training sessions at your agency, if available. These generally explore the topics of federal benefits, tax planning, financial planning and estate planning. You also can look into courses offered by private companies, such as J.P. McGehrin & Associates, Graduate School USA and Management Concepts.

More broadly, you should be thinking about the need for more education for yourself and your children to adapt to a changing world in which many of today's jobs will become unnecessary. OPM recently estimated that automation could cut workloads for 60 percent of federal employees by about 30 percent and render nearly 5 percent of government jobs completely obsolete.

As work becomes less labor-intensive and more flexible and automated, the concept of retirement is likely to change—and possibly become obsolete itself.

If you haven't thought about these things already, it's time to get started. Because the future is coming at incredible speed.

Photo: Flickr user Jon Rawlinson


April 26, 2018

https://www.govexec.com/pay-benefits/retirement-planning/2018/04/where-retirement-headed/147762/


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Posted by: sarah_oz@yahoo.com
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Have you tried the highest rated email app?
With 4.5 stars in iTunes, the Yahoo Mail app is the highest rated email app on the market. What are you waiting for? Now you can access all your inboxes (Gmail, Outlook, AOL and more) in one place. Never delete an email again with 1000GB of free cloud storage.

Neither the TSP Strategy group, nor individual members, are licensed or authorized to provide investment advice. Any statements made herein merely reflect the personal opinions of the individual group member. Please make your own investment decisions based upon your personal circumstances.

.

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Re: [TSP_Strategy] Re: I Fund Performance

Re: [TSP_Strategy] Re: I Fund Performance

 

What's the downside risk to the US economy?

What's the timeframe?

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Posted by: sarah_oz@yahoo.com
Reply via web post Reply to sender Reply to group Start a New Topic Messages in this topic (4)

Have you tried the highest rated email app?
With 4.5 stars in iTunes, the Yahoo Mail app is the highest rated email app on the market. What are you waiting for? Now you can access all your inboxes (Gmail, Outlook, AOL and more) in one place. Never delete an email again with 1000GB of free cloud storage.

Neither the TSP Strategy group, nor individual members, are licensed or authorized to provide investment advice. Any statements made herein merely reflect the personal opinions of the individual group member. Please make your own investment decisions based upon your personal circumstances.

.

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Re: [TSP_Strategy] Re: I Fund Performance

Re: [TSP_Strategy] Re: I Fund Performance

 

What's the downside risk to the US economy?

On Thursday, April 26, 2018, 5:52:25 PM PDT, sarah_oz@yahoo.com [TSP_Strategy] <TSP_Strategy@yahoogroups.com> wrote:


 

Euro Bulls Need to Show a Little Patience..There is less downside risk to the euro-zone economy than the U.S. economy.


I agree................"Have patience and shuffle the cards"... Miguel Cervantes.

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Posted by: "drewhbond@yahoo.com" <drewhbond@yahoo.com>
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Have you tried the highest rated email app?
With 4.5 stars in iTunes, the Yahoo Mail app is the highest rated email app on the market. What are you waiting for? Now you can access all your inboxes (Gmail, Outlook, AOL and more) in one place. Never delete an email again with 1000GB of free cloud storage.

Neither the TSP Strategy group, nor individual members, are licensed or authorized to provide investment advice. Any statements made herein merely reflect the personal opinions of the individual group member. Please make your own investment decisions based upon your personal circumstances.

.

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[TSP_Strategy] Re: I Fund Performance

[TSP_Strategy] Re: I Fund Performance

 

Euro Bulls Need to Show a Little Patience..There is less downside risk to the euro-zone economy than the U.S. economy.


I agree................"Have patience and shuffle the cards"... Miguel Cervantes.

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Posted by: sarah_oz@yahoo.com
Reply via web post Reply to sender Reply to group Start a New Topic Messages in this topic (2)

Have you tried the highest rated email app?
With 4.5 stars in iTunes, the Yahoo Mail app is the highest rated email app on the market. What are you waiting for? Now you can access all your inboxes (Gmail, Outlook, AOL and more) in one place. Never delete an email again with 1000GB of free cloud storage.

Neither the TSP Strategy group, nor individual members, are licensed or authorized to provide investment advice. Any statements made herein merely reflect the personal opinions of the individual group member. Please make your own investment decisions based upon your personal circumstances.

.

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Re: [TSP_Strategy] Re: POLL - Do You Want Non-TSP Topics Discussed on the Message Board?

Re: [TSP_Strategy] Re: POLL - Do You Want Non-TSP Topics Discussed on the Message Board?

 

Agreed.  I get enough drama. I signed up here for TSP advice.


Sarah.... thanks .  


On Thu, Apr 26, 2018 at 9:22 AM, TATERHED@HOTMAIL.COM [TSP_Strategy]
<TSP_Strategy@yahoogroups.com> wrote:
 

NO NO NO NO

Please BAN all non-financial topics.

i.e.  Please BAN politics, religion, gender, race, sex, abortion and other sensitive issues.


Financial topics OK

Social/Politics NO

Thanks Sarah

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Posted by: Mike Penland <dodger2311@yahoo.com>
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Have you tried the highest rated email app?
With 4.5 stars in iTunes, the Yahoo Mail app is the highest rated email app on the market. What are you waiting for? Now you can access all your inboxes (Gmail, Outlook, AOL and more) in one place. Never delete an email again with 1000GB of free cloud storage.

Neither the TSP Strategy group, nor individual members, are licensed or authorized to provide investment advice. Any statements made herein merely reflect the personal opinions of the individual group member. Please make your own investment decisions based upon your personal circumstances.

.

__,_._,___
[TSP_Strategy] Re: POLL - Do You Want Non-TSP Topics Discussed on the Message Board?

[TSP_Strategy] Re: POLL - Do You Want Non-TSP Topics Discussed on the Message Board?

 

NO NO NO NO

Please BAN all non-financial topics.

i.e.  Please BAN politics, religion, gender, race, sex, abortion and other sensitive issues.


Financial topics OK

Social/Politics NO

Thanks Sarah

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Posted by: TATERHED@HOTMAIL.COM
Reply via web post Reply to sender Reply to group Start a New Topic Messages in this topic (49)

Have you tried the highest rated email app?
With 4.5 stars in iTunes, the Yahoo Mail app is the highest rated email app on the market. What are you waiting for? Now you can access all your inboxes (Gmail, Outlook, AOL and more) in one place. Never delete an email again with 1000GB of free cloud storage.

Neither the TSP Strategy group, nor individual members, are licensed or authorized to provide investment advice. Any statements made herein merely reflect the personal opinions of the individual group member. Please make your own investment decisions based upon your personal circumstances.

.

__,_._,___
[TSP_Strategy] I Fund Performance

[TSP_Strategy] I Fund Performance

 

For those of us waiting for some new up-tics in the I Fund does anybody believe we are positioned for some coming gains?

https://www.bloomberg.com/view/articles/2018-04-25/euro-bulls-need-to-show-a-little-patience?utm_source=yahoo&utm_medium=bd&utm_campaign=headline&cmpId=yhoo.headline&yptr=yahoo

+Mark


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Posted by: mark3m@swbell.net
Reply via web post Reply to sender Reply to group Start a New Topic Messages in this topic (1)

Have you tried the highest rated email app?
With 4.5 stars in iTunes, the Yahoo Mail app is the highest rated email app on the market. What are you waiting for? Now you can access all your inboxes (Gmail, Outlook, AOL and more) in one place. Never delete an email again with 1000GB of free cloud storage.

Neither the TSP Strategy group, nor individual members, are licensed or authorized to provide investment advice. Any statements made herein merely reflect the personal opinions of the individual group member. Please make your own investment decisions based upon your personal circumstances.

.

__,_._,___
Re: [TSP_Strategy] Re: POLL - Do You Want Non-TSP Topics Discussed on the Message Board?

Re: [TSP_Strategy] Re: POLL - Do You Want Non-TSP Topics Discussed on the Message Board?

 

Keep non tsp topics

On Mon, Apr 23, 2018, 22:56 Richard Kauffman bernerboyseris@gmail.com [TSP_Strategy] <TSP_Strategy@yahoogroups.com> wrote:
 

Keep the non-TSP threads

On Mon, Apr 23, 2018, 5:21 PM David Gordon david@digitaldata.us [TSP_Strategy] <TSP_Strategy@yahoogroups.com> wrote:
Let's talk about things that are TSP related.  I have other forums to
which I subscribe that discuss politics and such.




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Posted by: David Gordon <david@digitaldata.us>
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Neither the TSP Strategy group, nor individual members, are licensed or authorized to provide investment advice. Any statements made herein merely reflect the personal opinions of the individual group member. Please make your own investment decisions based upon your personal circumstances.
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Posted by: James McVay <chemdude242@gmail.com>
Reply via web post Reply to sender Reply to group Start a New Topic Messages in this topic (48)

Have you tried the highest rated email app?
With 4.5 stars in iTunes, the Yahoo Mail app is the highest rated email app on the market. What are you waiting for? Now you can access all your inboxes (Gmail, Outlook, AOL and more) in one place. Never delete an email again with 1000GB of free cloud storage.

Neither the TSP Strategy group, nor individual members, are licensed or authorized to provide investment advice. Any statements made herein merely reflect the personal opinions of the individual group member. Please make your own investment decisions based upon your personal circumstances.

.

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