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mdwlark
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« Reply #391 on: June 07, 2011, 10:33:23 PM » |
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All right market wizards, what is on the horizon? What do you predict? Are you in or out? Should we stay out? Is it time to get back in? Will there be a good time to get back in? I'm in bonds and fix income funds earning 3-5%.
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prytania3
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« Reply #392 on: June 08, 2011, 10:24:26 AM » |
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I really blew it the last time.
I think the market goes down unless there's a QE3 or some other intervention.
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Clowns, I tell you. Clowns.
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parispundit
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« Reply #393 on: June 08, 2011, 11:18:21 AM » |
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Mirror, mirror on the wall!
Tell me now a tale too tall
Will stocks go up or will stocks go down?
Will fortune smile or will she frown?
I do not know, the mirror said
If the line will be green or red,
But one thing I do know, she then said,
You'd be better off in bed,
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spork
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« Reply #394 on: June 08, 2011, 01:28:20 PM » |
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The commercial real estate market may be starting to improve, which would be good for the TIAA real estate fund.
But in general I think the toxic waste from the residential market is still dragging down the economy as a whole. Trade looks good but employment hasn't improved. People are either cash poor or trying to pay down debt, so they're not spending much.
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a.k.a. gum-chewing monkey in a Tufts University jacket
"Please do not force people who are exhausted to take medication for hallucinations." -- Memo from the Chair, Department of White Privilege Studies, Fiork University
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prytania3
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« Reply #395 on: June 08, 2011, 08:00:19 PM » |
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The commercial real estate market may be starting to improve, which would be good for the TIAA real estate fund.
But in general I think the toxic waste from the residential market is still dragging down the economy as a whole. Trade looks good but employment hasn't improved. People are either cash poor or trying to pay down debt, so they're not spending much.
The REITS are doing great--residential real estate is hot. |
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Clowns, I tell you. Clowns.
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spork
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« Reply #396 on: June 08, 2011, 08:36:18 PM » |
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The commercial real estate market may be starting to improve, which would be good for the TIAA real estate fund.
But in general I think the toxic waste from the residential market is still dragging down the economy as a whole. Trade looks good but employment hasn't improved. People are either cash poor or trying to pay down debt, so they're not spending much.
The REITS are doing great--residential real estate is hot. Is this because REITS are sucking up foreclosures and short sales? |
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a.k.a. gum-chewing monkey in a Tufts University jacket
"Please do not force people who are exhausted to take medication for hallucinations." -- Memo from the Chair, Department of White Privilege Studies, Fiork University
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spork
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« Reply #397 on: June 08, 2011, 09:17:25 PM » |
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I'm thinking of putting $5K into my ETrade Roth IRA, and I'm debating between emerging markets and aggressive growth funds, probably from Vanguard.
E.g.:
VEIEX, .35 net expense ratio, 16.01 percent annualized ten-year growth
VIGRX, .26 net expense ratio, 3.26 percent annualized ten-year growth
I noticed that ETrade is pitching the 5 highest dividend yields from the Dow; Pfizer is on the list. I'm so glad I'm dumped that stock several few years ago. It never performed better than the S & P 500.
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a.k.a. gum-chewing monkey in a Tufts University jacket
"Please do not force people who are exhausted to take medication for hallucinations." -- Memo from the Chair, Department of White Privilege Studies, Fiork University
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prytania3
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« Reply #398 on: June 08, 2011, 10:35:09 PM » |
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The commercial real estate market may be starting to improve, which would be good for the TIAA real estate fund.
But in general I think the toxic waste from the residential market is still dragging down the economy as a whole. Trade looks good but employment hasn't improved. People are either cash poor or trying to pay down debt, so they're not spending much.
The REITS are doing great--residential real estate is hot. Is this because REITS are sucking up foreclosures and short sales? I meant apartment REITS because so many people are renting--some because they have to and some by choice. |
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Clowns, I tell you. Clowns.
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spork
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« Reply #399 on: June 17, 2011, 07:30:28 AM » |
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Since I now file a joint married tax return, I thought my allowable Roth IRA contribution would be reduced, but I went through the IRS's directions for calculating modified AGI, and I think I can still contribute $5,000. So I moved that much into my ETrade account and am probably going to buy VEIEX. I compared VEIEX to several other emerging market funds and this one looks to be the best (and of course it's better than any of the options that I now have available in my TIAA-CREF 403b).
Oddly I see that stock futures are up this morning because of something Sarkozy said about Greece. I was hoping for a worldwide decline today before buying, but maybe that won't happen.
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« Last Edit: June 17, 2011, 07:31:27 AM by spork »
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a.k.a. gum-chewing monkey in a Tufts University jacket
"Please do not force people who are exhausted to take medication for hallucinations." -- Memo from the Chair, Department of White Privilege Studies, Fiork University
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spork
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« Reply #400 on: June 17, 2011, 07:35:21 AM » |
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And I see oil is down while the dollar is up. Sometimes good news is bad news.
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a.k.a. gum-chewing monkey in a Tufts University jacket
"Please do not force people who are exhausted to take medication for hallucinations." -- Memo from the Chair, Department of White Privilege Studies, Fiork University
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wildwest
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« Reply #401 on: June 17, 2011, 12:33:33 PM » |
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pry,
So spouse and I have decided to put in an offer on our current townhome. Our lease runs out on Aug 1st, and landlady is desperate to put it on the market. We like the place and don't want to move. We can put 20% down, but will probably just do 15% (so as not to eliminate much of our emergency fund). The only thing hanging us up is spouse's contract renewal for fall (he is non-tt, renewable full-time). Contracts were supposed to be out at the end of May, but with the department secretary on vacation, the decision to add additional paperwork for faculty, etc., we don't have it yet. He has a letter stating the intent to re-hire him, but we need the actual contract. We need his, as my employment is more of a free-lance/contract/adjunct nature and won't look as good to the lenders.
Landlady's agent is getting pushy and wants to list the place on Monday and start showing it. She's talking about putting on a lockbox and such (which irritates me--we have cats dammit, and I don't want anyone just walking in here). Our lease says she doesn't have the right to do this until July 1st. She is pushing our agent, who is pushing us to give him the go-ahead.
Everyone is pushy, pushy, pushy. We DO want to buy the place, and both the agents and us would like to do this now, so that the place doesn't even have to be listed and shown. We just need another week or two for that paperwork.
Just wanted to vent to a Forumite who is not going to give a lecture on "why are you buying with an insecure job market." Is all of this normal? Is it normal to feel stressed and antsy? Is it normal for these agents to be pushy? Why does all of this feel like a violation of my life and space?
Argh!
Thanks for listening.
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spork
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« Reply #402 on: June 17, 2011, 03:57:39 PM » |
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1) Your spouse needs to talk to the department chair, HR, or whomever about getting that contract in hand asap.
2) Tell your agent and your landlady that you are waiting for the contract and need until July 1; if it has not appeared by then, you would be happy to abide by the terms of your lease and let the unit be shown.
3) How much will a 15 percent down payment cost you in PMI? The PMI might be more than what you would lose at the front end on your emergency fund with a 20 percent down payment.
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a.k.a. gum-chewing monkey in a Tufts University jacket
"Please do not force people who are exhausted to take medication for hallucinations." -- Memo from the Chair, Department of White Privilege Studies, Fiork University
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wildwest
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« Reply #403 on: June 17, 2011, 06:04:29 PM » |
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Thanks, Spork.
We will look into the PMI issue. (This is the first time we are doing anything like this, so there are things we have not thought of). Of course, this will depend too upon how low the seller will go. Prices are still falling in our area. [Backstory: I inherited a little money, and this is the first time we have had some cash in the bank--as opposed to being seriously in debt. It feels very, very good to hang on to as much as possible--I'm feeling very miserly about it. So having a beefy emergency fund feels good, and I'm loathe to let it go.]
I get frustrated with academic institutions. Of course the deans, department chairs and secretaries don't care. They have tenure--or the equivalent thereof--and can leave for a few weeks, or let the paperwork sit on their desks for ages. They are assured a job in the fall. The year-to-year faculty are at the mercy of other forces. If spouse's contract isn't going to be renewed, then we need to know ASAP, as he needs to start looking for work for fall, and we will have to re-evaluate our overall plans. I guess non-academic institutions aren't any better. In the business world, they can call you in on a Friday afternoon and tell you to pack your bags. I've certainly seen that done.
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