Selecting a fund

Unfortunately, I have to select a new fund.

The purpose:

Medium term appreciation. Money might be used in 7-9 years. I have a 10/1 interest only loan with 9 years remaining. I am shoving as much as possible into a fund ( currently Vanguard Wellington ) to have on hand in 9 years in case rates happen to be very high and I want to pay off my mortgage. My mortgage is 5.125%, so I don't *need* much more than that, but would love to get 8%.

A few months ago, Vanguard Wellington capped the annual contributions, which is forcing me to find another place for a portion of my budgeted funds.

Why I chose Wellington:

It's a great performer, has a very low Beta and r squared, and I don't have to spend alot of time worrying that 1 year before I need it, it will dump 20 or 30%. It has a track record back to 1929. It has a very low expense ratio. It is exactly what I needed for this purpose. Unfortunately, alot of other investors felt the same and Vanguard had to slam the door. Here are some links to information about the fund:

http://flagship5.vanguard.com/VGApp/hnw/FundsSnapshot?FundId=0021&FundIntExt=INT

http://flagship5.vanguard.com/VGApp/hnw/FundsPerformance?FundId=0021&FundIntExt=INT&DisplayBarChart=false

http://flagship5.vanguard.com/VGApp/hnw/FundsRisk?FundId=0021&FundIntExt=INT

I'd like to find something very similar. Vanguard STAR seems OK, but not great. It's slightly more risky and has a lower total return. PLus, it's just a bunch of other Vanguard funds.

Anybody have suggestions?

 

Consider sinking a chunk into ACAS-currently earning 8.73%...The ex-dividend date was 9/1 so it may have a quick pull back this week...or it may go on up to $40.00 per shr. I just sold it on the ex date and will get the dividend..but will wait for pull back to buy it back again..I trade in large increments for maximum earnings...and losses.. but so far have never lost money on it and have made a bundle.

 

I might for another purpose, but for this I need much less volatility than an individual stock.

Interesting company, though.

 

It's a great Fund Meat, I too invested in it 3-4 years ago in my Roth IRA. It's a great hybrid fund with a low expense ratio.

 

Meat Fund

 

Meat,


If you're into a little risk (maybe not a little) with an international fund, I bought DODFX about 2 years ago. Their returns have been great and if you know anything about Dodge and Cox, they are very well managed.

 

Savio,

Just curious, any idea how that fund has done compared to other internationl funds? I'm about 40% into international in my 401K and it's done pretty well (up 20% YTD) so far.

 

The fund is up around 30% since it's inception and about 12% this year. I'm sure it will close in a matter of months since new monies are coming in at such a fast rate. I believe it's in the top 4 of gains of new monies in terms of international funds.


I'd rank this fund up there with Oakmark Intl and Fidelity Diversified.


They also have a very low expense ratio too

 

40%? how does that equate into your total porfolio?

 

My whole portfolio, minus 10% is all stock right now. It's a mix of international, small caps, a couple of equity funds, and one balanced. It's pretty aggresive but I figure that since I'm in my early 30s and have many years before they let me retire, I can afford to be a little aggresive now and scale back as retirement approaches into more fixed income, etc.