AUTHOR: Sanjib Saha on 6/11/2026 FIRST: Michael1 on 6/11 | RECENT: DavidHLancaster on 6/14
Comments
Just FYI: A piece by Jason Zweig in the Intelligent Investor newsletter popped up this morning in my Inbox. Sharing for those who can access behind the WSJ paywall: trk.wsj.com/view/6a5947d0908bb675ed0817ecs3l6e.39sv/6008148d Curiously, he also emphasizes only the "real yield is high" aspect of TIPS, without mentioning much about the low breakeven inflation factor too. I wonder if the breakeven inflation is 10% and the real TIPS yield is 3% or higher - meaning the nominal yield is 13% or higher - will the experts still consider TIPS to be a good choice because the "real yield" is still high? What would you do?
Thanks, Michael. Just to make sure I didn't miscommunicate about the fund availability: Most sales (ETFs, individual Treasury in secondary market) settle the next day. Maturing Bond proceeds should be available the same day. That said, some brokerage accounts allow withdrawal of fund before settlement, but it might charge interest for a day for any margin debit balance. The funds are always available for making a different purchase in the same account on the day of selling the ETF/Bond, because the new purchase also settles the next day, together with the original sale.
Senthil, it's so kind of you to share the encouraging words. I'm also glad that you spotted my approach to personal finance/investment issues through software problem-solving techniques. Thank you! For longer-term needs, I almost exclusively use individual TIPS until I claim my own Social Security at 70. My ladder has a few holes - e.g., if I don't like the available individual TIPS for a specific year, I'd skip that year and use divide the fund between TIPS maturing the previous year and the following year. I plan to keep extending the ladder depending how future years play out. Outside of these, I have two "experimental" positions - mainly to diversify my Bond exposure beyond US and take some duration risk. I've been observing how they behave with different market dynamics and interest rate expectations. These aren't my core positions, and I might replace them in the future if they don't behave as expected. I bought both at opportune price points, so I have some margins of error. I'd strongly suggest doing extensive research before investing a meaningful amount in them. The first one is Vanguard Emerging Market Govt Bond Fund. It's quite volatile and has a tendency to drop during major geopolitical events. I don't really see this as a "stable Bond" holding. It's more like a high-yield investment. The second one is Schwab TIPS fund which has a longer duration than VTIP. This should work better than a short-duration TIPS fund when the inflation is picking up and staying high for a few years. But the higher duration also magnifies the drop during increasing rate environment. I haven't spent much time yet to understand whether one effect offsets the other or not.** BTW, VUSB is also an "experimental" position to diversify to non-Treasury investment in the short-maturity zone. So far, it seems to be work ok. Hope this helps. Again, this is just my existing holding, and not really a recommendation or endorsement of these products :). Thanks again! ** [Edit]: I forgot that I had sold the Schwab TIPS ETF recently to extend the TIPS ladder. Since I wasn't getting time to do deep-dive analysis, I figured I'd just replace it without holding it for too long without proper analysis.
Thanks for sharing your approach, Chris. I hadn't explored Munis much (they aren't very attractive given our tax brackets) but I do like VTEB as a simple low-cost passive Muni fund. Personally, I think that for non-Treasury Bonds, some managed funds might be well worth the management fee. This is one area where I'm more open to active, managed investments.
Thank you for the kind words, Edmund. Our contribution through Dollar Mentor is small but sincere. We sincerely appreciate your encouragement and support.
Thank you for your note. Getting a 2.5+% real yield on top of a reasonably low "breakeven inflation" is attractive indeed, especially for those with a large enough portfolio where 2.5% inflation-adjusted income represents a sizeable portion of the annual withdrawal amount.
Thank you for sharing your meticulous planning, Bill. A lot to learn from experienced investors like yourself and others on this forum. Appreciate your taking the time to explain the specifics and the rationale behind them.
Comments
Just FYI: A piece by Jason Zweig in the Intelligent Investor newsletter popped up this morning in my Inbox. Sharing for those who can access behind the WSJ paywall: trk.wsj.com/view/6a5947d0908bb675ed0817ecs3l6e.39sv/6008148d Curiously, he also emphasizes only the "real yield is high" aspect of TIPS, without mentioning much about the low breakeven inflation factor too. I wonder if the breakeven inflation is 10% and the real TIPS yield is 3% or higher - meaning the nominal yield is 13% or higher - will the experts still consider TIPS to be a good choice because the "real yield" is still high? What would you do?
Post: Feeling TIPSy?
Link to comment from August 25, 2026
Thanks, Michael. Just to make sure I didn't miscommunicate about the fund availability: Most sales (ETFs, individual Treasury in secondary market) settle the next day. Maturing Bond proceeds should be available the same day. That said, some brokerage accounts allow withdrawal of fund before settlement, but it might charge interest for a day for any margin debit balance. The funds are always available for making a different purchase in the same account on the day of selling the ETF/Bond, because the new purchase also settles the next day, together with the original sale.
Post: Beyond Bank Accounts
Link to comment from August 24, 2026
Senthil, it's so kind of you to share the encouraging words. I'm also glad that you spotted my approach to personal finance/investment issues through software problem-solving techniques. Thank you! For longer-term needs, I almost exclusively use individual TIPS until I claim my own Social Security at 70. My ladder has a few holes - e.g., if I don't like the available individual TIPS for a specific year, I'd skip that year and use divide the fund between TIPS maturing the previous year and the following year. I plan to keep extending the ladder depending how future years play out. Outside of these, I have two "experimental" positions - mainly to diversify my Bond exposure beyond US and take some duration risk. I've been observing how they behave with different market dynamics and interest rate expectations. These aren't my core positions, and I might replace them in the future if they don't behave as expected. I bought both at opportune price points, so I have some margins of error. I'd strongly suggest doing extensive research before investing a meaningful amount in them. The first one is Vanguard Emerging Market Govt Bond Fund. It's quite volatile and has a tendency to drop during major geopolitical events. I don't really see this as a "stable Bond" holding. It's more like a high-yield investment. The second one is Schwab TIPS fund which has a longer duration than VTIP. This should work better than a short-duration TIPS fund when the inflation is picking up and staying high for a few years. But the higher duration also magnifies the drop during increasing rate environment. I haven't spent much time yet to understand whether one effect offsets the other or not.** BTW, VUSB is also an "experimental" position to diversify to non-Treasury investment in the short-maturity zone. So far, it seems to be work ok. Hope this helps. Again, this is just my existing holding, and not really a recommendation or endorsement of these products :). Thanks again! ** [Edit]: I forgot that I had sold the Schwab TIPS ETF recently to extend the TIPS ladder. Since I wasn't getting time to do deep-dive analysis, I figured I'd just replace it without holding it for too long without proper analysis.
Post: Beyond Bank Accounts
Link to comment from August 24, 2026
Thanks for sharing your approach, Chris. I hadn't explored Munis much (they aren't very attractive given our tax brackets) but I do like VTEB as a simple low-cost passive Muni fund. Personally, I think that for non-Treasury Bonds, some managed funds might be well worth the management fee. This is one area where I'm more open to active, managed investments.
Post: Beyond Bank Accounts
Link to comment from August 24, 2026
Thank you for the kind words, Edmund. Our contribution through Dollar Mentor is small but sincere. We sincerely appreciate your encouragement and support.
Post: Beyond Bank Accounts
Link to comment from August 24, 2026
Thanks, Andy. I like the simplicity of your approach.
Post: Beyond Bank Accounts
Link to comment from August 24, 2026
Thank you for your note. Getting a 2.5+% real yield on top of a reasonably low "breakeven inflation" is attractive indeed, especially for those with a large enough portfolio where 2.5% inflation-adjusted income represents a sizeable portion of the annual withdrawal amount.
Post: Feeling TIPSy?
Link to comment from August 24, 2026
Thank you for sharing your meticulous planning, Bill. A lot to learn from experienced investors like yourself and others on this forum. Appreciate your taking the time to explain the specifics and the rationale behind them.
Post: Feeling TIPSy?
Link to comment from August 23, 2026
Thanks for the kind words and the suggestion, William.
Post: Feeling TIPSy?
Link to comment from August 23, 2026
Thanks for sharing the comparison, Donny. This is very helpful.
Post: Feeling TIPSy?
Link to comment from August 23, 2026