Getting My Feet Wet With Vanguard

[Jluke]

I had zero issues getting my vanguard account setup in early May 2017. I did have to wait 30 days to add a second bank account, but that didn't really slow me down.

I've been using Fidelity and now CapitalOne Investing for 16 years or so.

VG's website isn't bad - it's just different. I took some time to explore and really all I want to do is transfer money in, buy my shares (real time or limit order), and check up on it every once in a while.

Not sure what others are doing on the website, but once your fund(s) are identified it should be smooth sailing.

I will be opening a Roth IRA at VG in 2018 so I can invest in the balanced index fund OR one of the lifestrategy growth funds - hopefully adding the Roth to my taxable is just as easy.

As for fishindude hiring a local dude - seems too good to be true with low fees, but if he found a good advisor, then he's lucky.

[Gailete]

I've always done all my investing via the internet since it became available to do so. I have our old IRAs at American Century. Mine I had put an initial $3000 in the spring of 2010, in three different $1K deposits. Nothing else as we had nothing to put in and then I was using a different site to do my investing on. That initial $3000 is as of today worth $11,595 after only 7 years! It is averaging 10.13% annually. Year to date 17.88 and for the last 12 months 21.90%. Not bad for me doing it myself.

All my investing now goes through Capital One 360 where I have a mix of stocks and I picked up American Century growth fund again to have in my Roth IRA. I wanted the flexibility of the Roth as opposed to the regular IRA even though I can tap my IRA now if I wanted to. At Capital One, you can invest in stocks and mutual funds with very cheap rates to make each investment and I wait until I have enough to make the deposit worthwhile.

I guess just wanting to show that it is possible to get decent returns with investments on your own. The biggest savings with either site, Iis don't have them send me paper copies of transactions and quarterly and yearly statements. I just print them myself and for doing that with the American Century IRA I save $25/year. I will admit that I don't know how much any of the background fees might be, but it never seems to be any as I don't see it so I suppose it is taken in some hidden method.

[Petunia 100]

I've always done all my investing via the internet since it became available to do so. I have our old IRAs at American Century. Mine I had put an initial $3000 in the spring of 2010, in three different $1K deposits. Nothing else as we had nothing to put in and then I was using a different site to do my investing on. That initial $3000 is as of today worth $11,595 after only 7 years! It is averaging 10.13% annually. Year to date 17.88 and for the last 12 months 21.90%. Not bad for me doing it myself.

All my investing now goes through Capital One 360 where I have a mix of stocks and I picked up American Century growth fund again to have in my Roth IRA. I wanted the flexibility of the Roth as opposed to the regular IRA even though I can tap my IRA now if I wanted to. At Capital One, you can invest in stocks and mutual funds with very cheap rates to make each investment and I wait until I have enough to make the deposit worthwhile.

There are lots of ways to trade for $0. Every dollar counts.

I guess just wanting to show that it is possible to get decent returns with investments on your own. The biggest savings with either site, Iis don't have them send me paper copies of transactions and quarterly and yearly statements. I just print them myself and for doing that with the American Century IRA I save $25/year. I will admit that I don't know how much any of the background fees might be, but it never seems to be any as I don't see it so I suppose it is taken in some hidden method.

Yes, the costs are paid at the fund level, rather than deducted from your account. So if the fund earns 10% one year and spends 1% on salaries and other costs, investors will earn 9%.

If you want to know what you are paying, you can refer to your funds' prospectus, or you can go to Morningstar and read the fund shapshot for your funds. For example, if you go here:

http://www.morningstar.com/funds/xnas/twcgx/quote.html

you can see that the annual expense ratio of American Century Growth Fund investor shares is .98%. If you have 1k in that fund, it costs you $9.80 per year.

[disneysteve]

you can see that the annual expense ratio of American Century Growth Fund investor shares is .98%. If you have 1k in that fund, it costs you $9.80 per year.

Exactly.

Now compare that to something like Vanguard's Growth Index fund, also a large company growth fund. Their expense ratio is 0.06% so your 1K investment will cost you just 60 cents/year. So for the American Century fund, you are paying 16.3 times as much in expenses.

[Gailete]

One of the reasons that I used American Century in the first place back when it was called Twentieth Century (I had a gift trust for my boys, plus my own accounts that had to be tapped years ago sadly to say) was it was the only place that would allow investors without huge stacks of cash to invest. Where other funds wanted $1K or even $10K for an initial investment, I believe they would take $100 with $25 subsequent investments. Just because someone only has $100 to invest, doesn't mean that they should only get an option of a bank savings account until they have a big stack of money to invest. I would be more scared to dump $1000 or $10000 as my first investment than that initial $100. I like having my money in an account for whatever it's purpose which I know some here wouldn't/don't agree with, but easier for me and I didn't want a savings account saying investments for the next 5-10 years while I saved up enough to actually invest the money.

Not tracking the fees is/was sheer laziness on my part. I was aware that there was some fee. But my point is that you can get an investment portfolio going without the need of a human at the other end of the phone as long as you know what you want to do. The last thing I would have wanted was to go through setting up what I do have, was to be talking with a broker and have them tell me of some 'better' deal (better maybe for them) and get me confused. I prefer to read and get things set in my mind, and then just do it. I'm happy how I'm doing things. for now

[disneysteve]

it was the only place that would allow investors without huge stacks of cash to invest.

you can get an investment portfolio going without the need of a human at the other end of the phone

It is certainly true that some places have high minimums, though that is partly what helps keep expenses low. There is a certain cost to the company for every account they have whether that account holds $100 or $100,000.

That said, there are now places where you can essentially invest any amount at all for little to nothing. Several companies, like Scwab and I think Scottrade, offer no-commission ETF shares. You can buy and sell them freely and it costs you nothing at all.

[Jluke]

That said, there are now places where you can essentially invest any amount at all for little to nothing. Several companies, like Scwab and I think Scottrade, offer no-commission ETF shares. You can buy and sell them freely and it costs you nothing at all.

That's exactly why I switched to Vanguard - CapOne Investing doesn't have any free transactions, unless they give you one for a website issue or your birthday (didn't get the bday one this year though).

I can buy 1 share of ITOT at Fidelity in my wife's Roth - at no charge.

Now I can do similar at Vanguard with VTI... but since it's a taxable account I'm currently looking to buy in lots of 10, 20, 30, shares at a time.

[Petunia 100]

One of the reasons that I used American Century in the first place back when it was called Twentieth Century (I had a gift trust for my boys, plus my own accounts that had to be tapped years ago sadly to say) was it was the only place that would allow investors without huge stacks of cash to invest. Where other funds wanted $1K or even $10K for an initial investment, I believe they would take $100 with $25 subsequent investments. Just because someone only has $100 to invest, doesn't mean that they should only get an option of a bank savings account until they have a big stack of money to invest. I would be more scared to dump $1000 or $10000 as my first investment than that initial $100. I like having my money in an account for whatever it's purpose which I know some here wouldn't/don't agree with, but easier for me and I didn't want a savings account saying investments for the next 5-10 years while I saved up enough to actually invest the money.

Not tracking the fees is/was sheer laziness on my part. I was aware that there was some fee. But my point is that you can get an investment portfolio going without the need of a human at the other end of the phone as long as you know what you want to do. The last thing I would have wanted was to go through setting up what I do have, was to be talking with a broker and have them tell me of some 'better' deal (better maybe for them) and get me confused. I prefer to read and get things set in my mind, and then just do it. I'm happy how I'm doing things. for now

My first investment was Twentieth Century's Heritage Fund, back in the late 80s.

[Gailete]

My first investment was Twentieth Century's Heritage Fund, back in the late 80s.

That was one of mine as well. Did really well too!