Author Topic: What happened to Index Tracker Funds during 2008?  (Read 11632 times)

petey

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What happened to Index Tracker Funds during 2008?
« on: August 01, 2013, 12:30:28 PM »
I'm still a bit of a newbie when it comes to this Index Tracker Funds stuff.. but I guess I do have one big question.

Say you invested $100,000 into a Vanguard Total Market Index account, how much did you have in it by early 2009? I imagine $60k if you are lucky..?

I understand that trying to time the market is something to be left to the experts, but right now I have a considerable amount of savings (around $300k) that I want to invest into an income producing asset, and I don't want to be the fool who "buys high" only to experience all time losses.

Keen to hear what others think.

Thanks.

daverobev

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Re: What happened to Index Tracker Funds during 2008?
« Reply #1 on: August 01, 2013, 12:35:22 PM »
Diversified asset allocation and dollar cost averaging (over 6 months).

There are threads on this stuff already I think. Yes, the index funds took a hit, but then they were seriously undervalued. There is an argument that a) stuff isn't really overvalued now (p/e is 16-17 I think for US stuff), and b) the market tends to keep making new highs when it is at a high.

But do (your age) as bonds, most of the rest as stocks (split US/developed/developing if you want.. or just buy VTI and VXUS), with a little in REITs and a small amount in real gold & silver. And don't spend more than you earn!

Job done.

bUU

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Re: What happened to Index Tracker Funds during 2008?
« Reply #2 on: August 01, 2013, 12:48:28 PM »
I understand that trying to time the market is something to be left to the experts mystics
Fixed your comment.

I don't want to be the fool who "buys high" only to experience all time losses.
I afford myself only the following conceit in this regard: I'll generally aim to buy mutual funds on a day when the benchmark index is declining, and sell mutual funds on a day when the benchmark index is ascending. To be clear, this is basically meaningless, but it allows me to tell myself that I at least bought at a price lower than the day before/sold at a price higher than the day before. A one-day win. That's basically all even the most savvy individual investors can legitimately expect from timing.

matchewed

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Re: What happened to Index Tracker Funds during 2008?
« Reply #3 on: August 01, 2013, 01:31:07 PM »
Other than diversification there is also the concern about being at a peak that I'm seeing here. Look at the picture below. How do you know you're at the red dot when you could just as easily be at the yellow dot (and over a long enough timeline you are at the yellow dot).

petey

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Re: What happened to Index Tracker Funds during 2008?
« Reply #4 on: August 01, 2013, 05:28:17 PM »
But do (your age) as bonds, most of the rest as stocks (split US/developed/developing if you want.. or just buy VTI and VXUS), with a little in REITs and a small amount in real gold & silver. And don't spend more than you earn!

That would see me at 30% bonds. Being Australian, any suggestions on what countries' bonds I should be looking at? I am definitely an apprehensive investor so articles like this concern me. I have noted that in the past many people recommend not buying bonds from the country in which you live.

As simplicity is key for me, I had intended on only buying one total market index fund - in Australia, this would likely be =https://www.vanguardinvestments.com.au/retail/ret/investments/etfdetailVTS.jspVTS on the Australian Stock Exchange. I do like the idea of also investing in REITs, just can't solely do it in Australia as it's probably only second to property prices in Canada. I guess I should be looking for a "global" REIT once again.

No problems with spending less than we earn. At worst we'd probably spend 25% of our income. We're pretty good at being tight. :D

superannuationfreak

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Re: What happened to Index Tracker Funds during 2008?
« Reply #5 on: August 01, 2013, 07:29:42 PM »
From an Australian investor experience, the best indicator is actually from the Vanguard site: https://www.vanguardinvestments.com.au/retail/ret/education/tools/index/IndexChart_Portfolios.jsp

This gives the performance of indices over any specified period for the last 40 years or so (does not include taxes and fees but otherwise gives a good indication, since Vanguard are pretty adept at tracking an index).

VTS is a great fund. For an Australian investor,I wouldn't use it as my only find as it's US stocks only in USD (not hedged to aud). In combination with at least VAS (the vanguard Australian stock index etf) and preferably also VEU (world ex-us) you'll get a well diversified portfolio. It also depends how much you have to invest, your investment timeframe and how frequently you'll add to that investment: you don't want brokerage costs to destroy the low-cost advantage of the etf by investing in $1000 lots.

For bonds, stability is key. I'm not personally a fan of overseas bonds as the little I've read on them suggests their return is historically dominated in aud terms by aud bonds. And with such low yields at the moment, term deposits and online savings accounts in Australia actually return more. Until government bond yields rise a few percent I'm personally sticking with online savings accounts and short term deposits (<12 months). But, as well as index bond funds, you can get government bonds in $100 face value bundles directly on the asx now so those are an option too: http://www.asx.com.au/products/exchange-traded-australian-government-bonds.htm

Something else I thought of to keep in mind.  Being in Australia you'll almost certainly have superannuation.  For your overall asset allocation (other than maybe some cash you're keeping for short-term and emergency expenses) you should think about your asset allocation across your whole portfolio.  So if you do 80% growth and 20% cash and bonds, for example, then that should be taking into account both your super and your non-super funds.  And you should take into account the tax impact also: I'm not an accountant but my vague understanding is that bonds/cash and then International share funds should be in Super to the extent possible and Australian Shares (with their franking credits) are good in either super or non-super accounts.  But you can do the sums on that.  So with my 80/20 example this might mean you have a larger proportion towards bonds in your super and then more Australian share index funds/ETFs in your personal/online brokerage account.  But to stay the course with that strategy, you need to be comfortable seeing one balance go down (while hopefully the other goes up).  One last thing: it doesn't make much sense to invest in bonds/cash in a personal account if you have a mortgage (as in most cases you'll get a lower rate of interest and then be taxed on top, while with a mortgage extra payments 'earn' their interest tax free and in Australia can often be redrawn without fees).
« Last Edit: August 01, 2013, 07:56:02 PM by superannuationfreak »

petey

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Re: What happened to Index Tracker Funds during 2008?
« Reply #6 on: August 01, 2013, 08:02:45 PM »
Thanks superannuationfreak, that is very helpful information.

Definitely trying to figure out if we buy property or not at the moment, but in the mean time, no we don't have a mortgage. Been waiting for the crash for more than a few years now!

superannuationfreak

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Re: What happened to Index Tracker Funds during 2008?
« Reply #7 on: August 01, 2013, 10:56:07 PM »
Thanks superannuationfreak, that is very helpful information.

Definitely trying to figure out if we buy property or not at the moment, but in the mean time, no we don't have a mortgage. Been waiting for the crash for more than a few years now!

You're welcome.  One thing to ponder if waiting for a property crash is what would cause such a crash.  Australians are pretty loathe to lose their house, and recent times suggest they're more likely to just hang on to their current place than sell unless they're really stretched.  The key thing which leads to people being financially stretched in Australia is unemployment (since basic public health insurance is pretty good).

Problem is, if there's very high unemployment we're probably in a recession and stock markets and the Australian Dollar have likely taken a hit too.  So if you want to buy a house in the short-medium term, you're better off sticking with low-volatility assets.  Otherwise just when prices drop, so could your assets.  I personally don't see a massive nominal price drop as likely as the potential for price stagnation but if you believe it will happen then its important to think about the wider context.

Anyway, nothing wrong with renting (it's probably the more cost-effective choice in Australian capital cities since you clearly have the discipline to save your pennies without requiring a mortgage to force you to do so).  I see buying your house as a lifestyle choice more than an investment (I made that choice but I recognise that it's often not optimal over here from a pure $ cost perspective).

Iron Mike Sharpe

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Re: What happened to Index Tracker Funds during 2008?
« Reply #8 on: August 02, 2013, 07:41:23 AM »
The stock market always recovers from a crash and it eventually grows to new heights.  If it crashes, the loss is only on paper.  It will rebound.  In the meantime, you are earning dividends which you can reinvest to buy more shares.

kyleaaa

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Re: What happened to Index Tracker Funds during 2008?
« Reply #9 on: August 04, 2013, 09:55:05 AM »
Yeah, index funds were hit hard, but so were non-index funds. Stocks are risky. Get over the idea that you can get decent returns without taking significant risk. It's not possible.

kudy

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Re: What happened to Index Tracker Funds during 2008?
« Reply #10 on: August 04, 2013, 10:42:53 AM »
The idea is that even if you do buy at the apex for a multi-year span, you're holding your investments long term, and the recovery (from hypothetical crash immediately after you buy in) that takes you beyond your initial buy-in point isn't that far off, when investing long term.

petey

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Re: What happened to Index Tracker Funds during 2008?
« Reply #11 on: August 06, 2013, 12:23:57 AM »
Yeah, index funds were hit hard, but so were non-index funds. Stocks are risky. Get over the idea that you can get decent returns without taking significant risk. It's not possible.

So given that I am such a risk adverse investor, where is my money best stored?

superannuationfreak

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Re: What happened to Index Tracker Funds during 2008?
« Reply #12 on: August 06, 2013, 01:04:26 AM »
I like this blog post on risk and asset allocation, talking about Larry Swedroe's book:
http://canadiancouchpotato.com/2010/11/10/ready-willing-and-able-to-take-risk/

If willingness to take risk is a constraining factor, one process is to think back a few years and how you'd feel if that $300k had fallen to $270k (-10%) or $240k (-20%) or $180k (-40%) in 2008-2009.  While the table is only a guide, it can give you an idea of what you might lose in a downturn (hopefully temporarily as it proved in the early 2000s and is in the process of recovering now).  If -20% wouldn't have affected your ability to sleep at night, a 50% allocation to shares could be ok for you, if -10% then perhaps only 30% shares, for example.

If all the money will be needed in the next few years (for example towards a house) then online savings accounts and term deposits will avoid risk of capital loss (but also not lead to growth or much protection from inflation).  If not, then you could keep part of the money in such accounts and part (in the examples above 30% or 50%) in shares (which could be done using the Vanguard ETFs mentioned, for example).  Do you think you could keep a spreadsheet of the whole portfolio to keep things in perspective?  i.e. include the cash so that if things do go down you can see that the loss in terms of your whole portfolio is not so large.  Ideally you should also include your super when looking at the big picture too (and include it in your %).

Oh, and I recommend reading this book if you really want to see that big picture: http://www.amazon.com/The-Investors-Manifesto-Prosperity-ebook/dp/B002U3CBY8/
Willliam Bernstein is a great author and gives a really long (almost 90-year) perspective on sharemarkets and asset allocation (I've linked to the kindle edition, the print edition is probably cheaper on bookdepository.com from Australia due to postage)

bUU

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Re: What happened to Index Tracker Funds during 2008?
« Reply #13 on: August 06, 2013, 03:54:54 AM »
So given that I am such a risk adverse investor, where is my money best stored?
It is important to understand that there is a possibility that there is no "safe place" at all... that there could be no accurate answer to your question. That's my impression.

dragoncar

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Re: What happened to Index Tracker Funds during 2008?
« Reply #14 on: August 06, 2013, 04:18:36 AM »
I like this blog post on risk and asset allocation, talking about Larry Swedroe's book:
http://canadiancouchpotato.com/2010/11/10/ready-willing-and-able-to-take-risk/

If willingness to take risk is a constraining factor, one process is to think back a few years and how you'd feel if that $300k had fallen to $270k (-10%) or $240k (-20%) or $180k (-40%) in 2008-2009.  While the table is only a guide, it can give you an idea of what you might lose in a downturn (hopefully temporarily as it proved in the early 2000s and is in the process of recovering now).  If -20% wouldn't have affected your ability to sleep at night, a 50% allocation to shares could be ok for you, if -10% then perhaps only 30% shares, for example.

If all the money will be needed in the next few years (for example towards a house) then online savings accounts and term deposits will avoid risk of capital loss (but also not lead to growth or much protection from inflation).  If not, then you could keep part of the money in such accounts and part (in the examples above 30% or 50%) in shares (which could be done using the Vanguard ETFs mentioned, for example).  Do you think you could keep a spreadsheet of the whole portfolio to keep things in perspective?  i.e. include the cash so that if things do go down you can see that the loss in terms of your whole portfolio is not so large.  Ideally you should also include your super when looking at the big picture too (and include it in your %).

Oh, and I recommend reading this book if you really want to see that big picture: http://www.amazon.com/The-Investors-Manifesto-Prosperity-ebook/dp/B002U3CBY8/
Willliam Bernstein is a great author and gives a really long (almost 90-year) perspective on sharemarkets and asset allocation (I've linked to the kindle edition, the print edition is probably cheaper on bookdepository.com from Australia due to postage)

Interesting... He has equity suggestions for time horizons (eg 0-3 years, 4 years, 5 years, etc.) ... 0% stocks for short time horizons working up to 100% for time horizons greater than 20 years. 

But what if you retire today?  What is your time horizon?  Well you probably have 25 times annual expenses saved.  So 16% of your cash is in the 0-3 year range all in cash.  Carrying this calculation forward suggests that overall the portfolio should be around 60% equities, which is a pretty classic boglehead asset allocation.

Of course there's some problem with this - namely that the 4% swr is a rule of thumb based on the trinity study, which is itself dependent upon assumptions about the AA.  Luckily 60/40 seems to be a reasonable AA in the trinity charts.

So I guess there is no surprising result - reasonable AA is reasonable.

superannuationfreak

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Re: What happened to Index Tracker Funds during 2008?
« Reply #15 on: August 06, 2013, 04:36:06 AM »
Interesting... He has equity suggestions for time horizons (eg 0-3 years, 4 years, 5 years, etc.) ... 0% stocks for short time horizons working up to 100% for time horizons greater than 20 years. 

But what if you retire today?  What is your time horizon?  Well you probably have 25 times annual expenses saved.  So 16% of your cash is in the 0-3 year range all in cash.  Carrying this calculation forward suggests that overall the portfolio should be around 60% equities, which is a pretty classic boglehead asset allocation.

Of course there's some problem with this - namely that the 4% swr is a rule of thumb based on the trinity study, which is itself dependent upon assumptions about the AA.  Luckily 60/40 seems to be a reasonable AA in the trinity charts.

So I guess there is no surprising result - reasonable AA is reasonable.

One approach on Asset Allocation when retiring recently advocated by William Bernstein (but focused on older retirees who are less likely to continue earning through human capital in the future) is to have 20-25 times annual expenses in a "liability matching portfolio" of very low risk and any additional capital in a "Risk Portfolio".  His somewhat more challenging (but short) book The Ages of The Investor goes into much more detail on this.

GreenGuava

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Re: What happened to Index Tracker Funds during 2008?
« Reply #16 on: August 06, 2013, 10:01:17 AM »
Yeah, index funds were hit hard, but so were non-index funds. Stocks are risky. Get over the idea that you can get decent returns without taking significant risk. It's not possible.

So given that I am such a risk adverse investor, where is my money best stored?

Are you completely opposed to the nominal value of your investment dropping?  If so, you're best in cash, cash equivalents, and maybe Series I or EE Bonds.

Otherwise, it's best for you to pick an asset allocation that has less volatility - maybe "age in bonds" or even higher.  This entails a lower expected return, and you'll have to save more to reach your financial goals to account for it, but it's better than the super amount you'd need in cash.

petey

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Re: What happened to Index Tracker Funds during 2008?
« Reply #17 on: August 06, 2013, 10:51:32 AM »
Yeah, index funds were hit hard, but so were non-index funds. Stocks are risky. Get over the idea that you can get decent returns without taking significant risk. It's not possible.

So given that I am such a risk adverse investor, where is my money best stored?

Are you completely opposed to the nominal value of your investment dropping?  If so, you're best in cash, cash equivalents, and maybe Series I or EE Bonds.

Otherwise, it's best for you to pick an asset allocation that has less volatility - maybe "age in bonds" or even higher.  This entails a lower expected return, and you'll have to save more to reach your financial goals to account for it, but it's better than the super amount you'd need in cash.

I guess with some pretty regular, bleak news about the economy I'm concerned. My wife and I have worked and saved hard for our little nest egg - it's nearing enough to buy something tangible with (a house), so we don't really want to that value if that makes sense.

GreenGuava

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Re: What happened to Index Tracker Funds during 2008?
« Reply #18 on: August 06, 2013, 11:12:54 AM »
I guess with some pretty regular, bleak news about the economy I'm concerned. My wife and I have worked and saved hard for our little nest egg - it's nearing enough to buy something tangible with (a house), so we don't really want to that value if that makes sense.

This is a time horizon issue, not a risk tolerance issue.  If your money is to be used for an expenditure in the near future (in your case, a house), it should be in cash - regardless of risk tolerance.

Towards 'regular' investing - by the time you hear about something in the news, it's priced into your stocks and bonds.  Professional investors got the news before you did and bought or sold accordingly.  Reacting to the news - and especially trying to time the market by what you read in the news - is a sure way to under-perform.

petey

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Re: What happened to Index Tracker Funds during 2008?
« Reply #19 on: August 06, 2013, 03:02:04 PM »
I guess with some pretty regular, bleak news about the economy I'm concerned. My wife and I have worked and saved hard for our little nest egg - it's nearing enough to buy something tangible with (a house), so we don't really want to that value if that makes sense.

This is a time horizon issue, not a risk tolerance issue.  If your money is to be used for an expenditure in the near future (in your case, a house), it should be in cash - regardless of risk tolerance.

Towards 'regular' investing - by the time you hear about something in the news, it's priced into your stocks and bonds.  Professional investors got the news before you did and bought or sold accordingly.  Reacting to the news - and especially trying to time the market by what you read in the news - is a sure way to under-perform.

Ok so I understand the idea of dollar cost averaging and it makes a great deal of sense to me - trying to read the news and make a successful "play" is for the most part, a mugs game.

I would be content with my cash in the bank, however Cyprus style bail-ins seem to be fairly well planned out across the world now. Would the idea be to diversify across multiple banks in multiple countries in multiple currencies?

GreenGuava

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Re: What happened to Index Tracker Funds during 2008?
« Reply #20 on: August 06, 2013, 11:54:27 PM »
I would be content with my cash in the bank, however Cyprus style bail-ins seem to be fairly well planned out across the world now. Would the idea be to diversify across multiple banks in multiple countries in multiple currencies?

If you're going to be successful as an investor, you need to tune out the conspiracy theories -- there's no real chance of the Cyprus thing happening in most of what we'd consider safe countries (U.S., England, Japan, etc).

Are you in the U.S.?  If so, go with a bank or credit union of your choice;  it'll be fine.  Diversifying across banks is a ton of work for no reward, and going across multiple countries and/or currencies is unnecessarily adding risk with no real expected reward.

daverobev

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Re: What happened to Index Tracker Funds during 2008?
« Reply #21 on: August 07, 2013, 07:39:53 AM »
I would be content with my cash in the bank, however Cyprus style bail-ins seem to be fairly well planned out across the world now. Would the idea be to diversify across multiple banks in multiple countries in multiple currencies?

If you're going to be successful as an investor, you need to tune out the conspiracy theories -- there's no real chance of the Cyprus thing happening in most of what we'd consider safe countries (U.S., England, Japan, etc).

Are you in the U.S.?  If so, go with a bank or credit union of your choice;  it'll be fine.  Diversifying across banks is a ton of work for no reward, and going across multiple countries and/or currencies is unnecessarily adding risk with no real expected reward.

Depends *how much* money.

In Canada one institution is insured up to $100k I believe; in the UK it's 85k GBP. If you have more than that (including subsidiary organisations) it's certainly worth splitting.

petey

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Re: What happened to Index Tracker Funds during 2008?
« Reply #22 on: August 07, 2013, 05:12:49 PM »
I would be content with my cash in the bank, however Cyprus style bail-ins seem to be fairly well planned out across the world now. Would the idea be to diversify across multiple banks in multiple countries in multiple currencies?

If you're going to be successful as an investor, you need to tune out the conspiracy theories -- there's no real chance of the Cyprus thing happening in most of what we'd consider safe countries (U.S., England, Japan, etc).

Are you in the U.S.?  If so, go with a bank or credit union of your choice;  it'll be fine.  Diversifying across banks is a ton of work for no reward, and going across multiple countries and/or currencies is unnecessarily adding risk with no real expected reward.

Depends *how much* money.

In Canada one institution is insured up to $100k I believe; in the UK it's 85k GBP. If you have more than that (including subsidiary organisations) it's certainly worth splitting.

$300k, so obviously we're not too keen on losing it.

superannuationfreak

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Re: What happened to Index Tracker Funds during 2008?
« Reply #23 on: August 07, 2013, 08:34:14 PM »
As of now, the Australian Government guarantees bank deposits up to $250k (look for the words "Financial claims scheme" if concerned about a provider)

Online savings accounts generally have their best deals under this range anyway (for example uBank give a bonus to your interest rate if you have an automatic savings plan - ASP - depositing $200+ per month set up at their end, which you can then withdraw again, but the bonus interest applies only if your balance is under $200,000).

So you could do, for example, some in uBank (which is owned by NAB) with an ASP and the remainder rate-chasing (as there are often specials for a limited time).  Another example is RAMS (who I think off the top of my head have the best rate for an online savings account at the moment if you do a $200+ ASP and make no withdrawals in a given month).  canstar.com.au and other rate comparison sites can be used to see at least some of the deals available.

With your $300k, two or three accounts should do the job and are easy to manage.

I think your bigger task is to map out your objectives and timeframes.  Are you just saving for retirement?  Do you want to buy a house?  Have kids?  When do you want to do these things?  The timing is a big determinant of what investments may be suitable for you (cash makes a lot of sense for shorter-term expenditures but much less sense for expenditures decades in the future).

petey

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Re: What happened to Index Tracker Funds during 2008?
« Reply #24 on: August 10, 2013, 09:55:19 AM »
I think your bigger task is to map out your objectives and timeframes.  Are you just saving for retirement?  Do you want to buy a house?  Have kids?  When do you want to do these things?  The timing is a big determinant of what investments may be suitable for you (cash makes a lot of sense for shorter-term expenditures but much less sense for expenditures decades in the future).

Thanks again for the replies.

Current timeframe is:

Immediate: relocate to Canada
Once residency is sorted ~2-3 years: buy property
Once property is purchased ~3 years: have a child

My goal has always been to retire young, or probably more ideally, be able to work 2 days a week and have 5 days a week to do whatever I choose.

superannuationfreak

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Re: What happened to Index Tracker Funds during 2008?
« Reply #25 on: August 11, 2013, 03:02:48 AM »
With 2-3 years until buying a property I'd stick to cash/term deposits until then.  Shares are really a longer-term investment.

If planning to buy in Canada, you may want to move some of the money into Canadian cash/GICS (I think that's what they call term deposits) well before you need it.  While Canadian rates are lower than Australian in terms of local currency, that way you'll face less currency risk.

petey

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Re: What happened to Index Tracker Funds during 2008?
« Reply #26 on: August 16, 2013, 04:19:06 PM »
Out of curiosity, if we did still go down the index tracker fund direction, how important is dividend reinvestment?

I.e. The best way I can find at the moment is to go with Westpac Online Investing and purchase VTS. Purchasing and management costs are low however there is no dividend reinvestment available. Alternately we could purchase the Vanguard® Index International Shares Fund at much higher management costs, but it is dividend reinvesting.


Cecil

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Re: What happened to Index Tracker Funds during 2008?
« Reply #27 on: August 16, 2013, 04:26:00 PM »
I would be content with my cash in the bank, however Cyprus style bail-ins seem to be fairly well planned out across the world now. Would the idea be to diversify across multiple banks in multiple countries in multiple currencies?

If you're going to be successful as an investor, you need to tune out the conspiracy theories -- there's no real chance of the Cyprus thing happening in most of what we'd consider safe countries (U.S., England, Japan, etc).

Are you in the U.S.?  If so, go with a bank or credit union of your choice;  it'll be fine.  Diversifying across banks is a ton of work for no reward, and going across multiple countries and/or currencies is unnecessarily adding risk with no real expected reward.

Depends *how much* money.

In Canada one institution is insured up to $100k I believe; in the UK it's 85k GBP. If you have more than that (including subsidiary organisations) it's certainly worth splitting.

$300k, so obviously we're not too keen on losing it.

If you're with a credit union it's all insured with no limit. :)

Hugh H

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Re: What happened to Index Tracker Funds during 2008?
« Reply #28 on: August 16, 2013, 04:58:24 PM »
The stock market always recovers from a crash and it eventually grows to new heights.  If it crashes, the loss is only on paper.  It will rebound.  In the meantime, you are earning dividends which you can reinvest to buy more shares.

While it has been the case so far for the US market, it is not the case worldwide. Just look at Japan's stock market, one of the top world economies… it is still below the 1990s highs.

It could happen in the US as well.

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Re: What happened to Index Tracker Funds during 2008?
« Reply #29 on: August 16, 2013, 05:03:16 PM »
The stock market always recovers from a crash and it eventually grows to new heights.  If it crashes, the loss is only on paper.  It will rebound.  In the meantime, you are earning dividends which you can reinvest to buy more shares.

While it has been the case so far for the US market, it is not the case worldwide. Just look at Japan's stock market, one of the top world economies… it is still below the 1990s highs.

It could happen in the US as well.

Yeah I wonder what a Japanese trinity study would show

petey

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Re: What happened to Index Tracker Funds during 2008?
« Reply #30 on: August 16, 2013, 05:42:18 PM »
I suppose that is why a truly global index would be so appealing.