Author Archives: Charles Lynn Bolin

About Charles Lynn Bolin

Lynn Bolin retired in June 2022 and is immensely enjoying the more relaxed lifestyle. He spends his extra time with family, studying the economy and investing, at the gym, exploring the parks, and tasting the culinary pleasures at the local restaurants and Farmer’s Markets. After spending over thirteen years working internationally, he is enjoying exploring nature closer to home. Lynn graduated with an Engineering degree from New Mexico Tech and an MBA from Eastern New Mexico University. He worked as a Technical Services Manager over engineering and other functions. He enjoys building investing models in his spare time and writes articles for Seeking Alpha.

Fund Family Performance for Equity ETFs

By Charles Lynn Bolin

I went on a Bucket List Adventure to Yellowstone National Park last month and stayed at the historic Old Faithful Inn built in 1904. We saw the geysers, the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone with its beautiful falls, majestic bison with their calves, powerful grizzly bears with their cubs, and a coyote crossing through a congested intersection without concern for the traffic.

The other adventure that I went on last month was to take a deeper dive into “Fund Family” performance for exchange-traded funds that invest in domestic equities, global and international equities, and emerging market equities. The concept is Continue reading →

Funds For Long-Term Tax-Efficient Investment (VTCLX, DGRW)

By Charles Lynn Bolin

It’s a good practice to take a thorough review annually of investment performance including fees and taxes. A dual-income household may accumulate a half dozen or more accounts because of tax characteristics, ownership, and goals. A good way to start is to list the accounts in order of planned withdrawals. The next step is to make sure that each account has the appropriate amount of risk and that the assets within are tax-efficient for the type of account. I am in the process of converting Traditional IRAs to Roth IRAs and the conversion is taxed as ordinary income. Municipal Bonds are included in Modified Adjusted Gross Income and may impact Continue reading →

Mystery Solved: Fidelity Actively Managed ETFs (FMIL >= FFLC)

By Charles Lynn Bolin

I wrote Outperforming Actively Managed ETFs last month in the Mutual Fund Observer Newsletter and described Fidelity New Millenium Fund (FMIL) in my “Short List of Great Owl Funds”, but before the newsletter was published, FMIL just up and disappeared! Several members brought it up in the Discussion Board – FMIL Confusion. Fortunately, Charles Boccadoro has solved the mystery by finding “Q&A: Fidelity to Introduce Fundamental Active ETF Suite”.

Fidelity New Millennium ETF (FMIL) has gotten Continue reading →

Outperforming Actively Managed ETFs

By Charles Lynn Bolin

David Snowball wrote The Rise of the Active ETFs in the July 2019 Mutual Fund Observer newsletter describing actively managed exchange-traded funds as:

“Active ETFs are a sort of hybrid between more traditional ETFs and actively managed mutual funds. Like traditional ETFs, they trade on the secondary market which means that the advisor doesn’t need to keep cash on hand in order to meet day-to-day withdrawal needs. Some of the expenses traditionally borne by the advisor either don’t exist (ETFs have fewer shareholder reports than, by law, mutual funds do) or are shifted to the brokerage firm. They also offer a structural tax advantage: shareholders aren’t responsible for the yearly tax consequences (and record-keeping) of the manager’s moves; shareholders are taxed only when they sell their shares.”

Continue reading →

No, The 60/40 Portfolio Is Not Dead

By Charles Lynn Bolin

The reported death of the 60/40 portfolio is premature. It did suffer some serious illness as the stock market fell and interest rates rose last year. I help family and friends work with Financial Advisors to set up managed portfolios of mutual funds and exchange traded funds at Edward Jones, Fidelity, and Vanguard. Jeff DeMaso from The Independent Vanguard Advisor was kind enough to provide a Moderate Portfolio for this article. In this article, I am describing Continue reading →

Patriotic Millionaires and the Uncertainty of Taxes

By Charles Lynn Bolin

Our new Constitution is now established, and has an appearance that promises permanency; but in this world nothing can be said to be certain, except death and taxes.

— Benjamin Franklin, in a letter to Jean-Baptiste Le Roy, 1789

I read  Tax the Rich!: How Lies, Loopholes, and Lobbyists Make the Rich Even Richer by Morris Pearl and Erica Payne at the Patriot Millionaires. They are a Continue reading →

Asset Allocation and Withdrawal Strategies in Retirement

By Charles Lynn Bolin

I hope everyone had a chance to enjoy the holidays and spend time with family! I wish you a pleasant and prosperous new year.

I was preparing for my typical review of forecasts for the coming year and read an interesting discussion about allocation strategies on the MFO Discussion Board and redirected my efforts. The discussions centered around investment and withdrawal strategies. In this article, I will create Continue reading →

Searching For Inflection Points

By Charles Lynn Bolin

Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter – Habitat For Humanity. Source: Encyclopædia Britannica

In November, I began volunteering at the Loveland Habitat For Humanity, helping to build houses for those who might not be able to afford them without a hand up. Former President Jimmy Carter and First Lady Rosalynn have volunteered or worked with Habitat For Humanity since the 1980s. Housing prices have roughly doubled in the past ten years putting home ownership out of the reach of many potential buyers. I also volunteer at Neighbor To Neighbor, which helps those on the fringe of homelessness stay sheltered. Pandemic-era savings are expected to be depleted during the first half of 2024, but for many, losing work, even temporarily, can mean eviction, losing utilities, and going hungry. This puts a human perspective on financial Continue reading →

Short-Term Market Momentum

By Charles Lynn Bolin

The S&P 500 has fallen from 4,598 on July 27th of this year to 4,117 on October 28th for a decline of 10.5%, while yields on the ten-year Treasury have risen from 4.01% to 4.85% for a rise of 20.9%. The Fidelity Intermediate Treasury Bond Index (FUAMX) has had a price decline of 4% during this three-month period. I expected a larger decline in the S&P 500 and a lower rise in yields. Money market yields are hovering around 5%, and “cash is king.”

Economic growth is robust, along with relatively stable employment, while inflation Continue reading →