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Learning, Sharing, and Teaching => Investor Alley => Topic started by: mizchief on October 16, 2015, 03:48:29 PM

Title: First baby steps: which Fidelity fund?
Post by: mizchief on October 16, 2015, 03:48:29 PM

I am just learning about investing even though I am over 50 and have been working for a long time.  From my years of employment, I have a lot of mutual funds and a managed investment account which I'll figure out how to deal with later.  Baby steps.

For the past two years, I've invested the maximum in my employer's 403(b) account (27K/year; I'm over 50 and have the 15 yr rule).

I just found out that I can also invest in a 457(b) account as well.  (another 24K/year).  I only have December left for this year, so I'll put my whole paycheck in there for December, and then do 2K/month over the 2016 year.

Which funds?  Fidelity is an option (the remainder of my employer's options are actively managed).   The index funds in there are FXSIX (a large cap fund) and FSEVX (a small cap fund) and FSIVX (an international fund). 

Next steps are to figure out how to get out of the actively managed funds in other retirement funds, invest my excess cash that is sitting in the bank (Vanguard index funds) and figure out how to simplify all of my 6 or so mutual funds that are actively managed. 

TL;DR :  1) FXIX, FSEV, FSIVX  (2) How does one consolidate a mess of mutual funds? 

Title: Re: First baby steps: which Fidelity fund?
Post by: Jack on October 16, 2015, 04:01:55 PM

Write yourself an investment policy statement (https://www.bogleheads.org/wiki/Investment_policy_statement), then allocate between the three funds mentioned (FXSIX, FSEVX, and FSIVX) accordingly.

If your mess of mutual funds are all in tax-advantaged accounts and don't have funky back-end loads, surrender charges, or account-transfer/account-closing fees, then I think there's no downside to just liquidating them all and rolling them over to your IRA (or maybe your 403b or 457b... I only know how 401ks work).

Title: Re: First baby steps: which Fidelity fund?
Post by: Mother Fussbudget on October 16, 2015, 04:54:47 PM

Quote from: Jack on October 16, 2015, 04:01:55 PM

Write yourself an investment policy statement (https://www.bogleheads.org/wiki/Investment_policy_statement), then allocate between the three funds mentioned (FXSIX, FSEVX, and FSIVX) accordingly.

If your mess of mutual funds are all in tax-advantaged accounts and don't have funky back-end loads, surrender charges, or account-transfer/account-closing fees, then I think there's no downside to just liquidating them all and rolling them over to your IRA (or maybe your 403b or 457b... I only know how 401ks work).

+1.  Sell them where you have the lowest commission costs, then transfer the cash to the new account(s).

Title: Re: First baby steps: which Fidelity fund?
Post by: mizchief on October 18, 2015, 11:16:10 AM

Thanks. 

@Jack Crafting an investment policy statement of my own makes a lot of sense. 

@ Motherfussbudget:  now to figure out what commission costs are!

Title: Re: First baby steps: which Fidelity fund?
Post by: MDM on October 18, 2015, 02:01:49 PM

Quote from: mizchief on October 16, 2015, 03:48:29 PM

Which funds?  Fidelity is an option (the remainder of my employer's options are actively managed).   The index funds in there are FXSIX (a large cap fund) and FSEVX (a small cap fund) and FSIVX (an international fund). 

See https://www.bogleheads.org/wiki/Fidelity.  Note that FXSIX is an even better option (lower fee) for the S&P 500 than the FSUVX mentioned on the Bogleheads' site.