Comments on: Some Practical Thoughts on Asset Allocation http://alephblog.com/2009/07/12/some-practical-thoughts-on-asset-allocation/ Helping Institutions and Ordinary People Invest Better by Focusing on Risk Control Fri, 25 May 2012 21:31:47 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 By: Tom Fisherhttp://alephblog.com/2009/07/12/some-practical-thoughts-on-asset-allocation/comment-page-1/#comment-22346 Tom Fisher Tue, 14 Jul 2009 02:54:10 +0000 http://alephblog.com/?p=1883#comment-22346 David, Would you elaborate on why you've turned against TIPS after being in favor of them earlier in the year? David,
Would you elaborate on why you’ve turned against TIPS after being in favor of them earlier in the year?

]]> By: IWantCookieNoewhttp://alephblog.com/2009/07/12/some-practical-thoughts-on-asset-allocation/comment-page-1/#comment-22333 IWantCookieNoew Mon, 13 Jul 2009 10:16:56 +0000 http://alephblog.com/?p=1883#comment-22333 @IF: You can find information on German sovereign bonds in English here: http://www.deutsche-finanzagentur.de/cln_117/nn_105602/EN/Home/homepage__node.html?__nnn=true @IF: You can find information on German sovereign bonds in English here: http://www.deutsche-finanzagentur.de/cln_117/nn_105602/EN/Home/homepage__node.html?__nnn=true

]]> By: IFhttp://alephblog.com/2009/07/12/some-practical-thoughts-on-asset-allocation/comment-page-1/#comment-22331 IF Mon, 13 Jul 2009 03:38:35 +0000 http://alephblog.com/?p=1883#comment-22331 1) While I greatly admire your writings and take your suggestions into consideration, I don't know for whom you are suggesting this portfolio. Your recommendations do change once every few months. To follow them an investor with less than 500k would incur an extraordinary amount of friction loss buying and selling. I found bonds to have pretty large spreads and I don't see a way to effectively reallocate them more often than once every few years. 2) Where does a retail investor find residential mortgages, CMBS seniors or foreign bonds except through mutual funds and ETFs? Who offers foreign bonds (except maybe Interactive Brokers or specialized shops)? I've read German Government bond offerings in German and they explicitly did not target US markets. My best guess is that the German government (a supposedly sovereign entity?) did not want to deal with the SEC? (As a contrast most German brokers offer bonds from all over the world for direct purchase.) 1) While I greatly admire your writings and take your suggestions into consideration, I don’t know for whom you are suggesting this portfolio. Your recommendations do change once every few months. To follow them an investor with less than 500k would incur an extraordinary amount of friction loss buying and selling. I found bonds to have pretty large spreads and I don’t see a way to effectively reallocate them more often than once every few years.

2) Where does a retail investor find residential mortgages, CMBS seniors or foreign bonds except through mutual funds and ETFs? Who offers foreign bonds (except maybe Interactive Brokers or specialized shops)? I’ve read German Government bond offerings in German and they explicitly did not target US markets. My best guess is that the German government (a supposedly sovereign entity?) did not want to deal with the SEC? (As a contrast most German brokers offer bonds from all over the world for direct purchase.)

]]> By: qhttp://alephblog.com/2009/07/12/some-practical-thoughts-on-asset-allocation/comment-page-1/#comment-22329 q Mon, 13 Jul 2009 02:18:47 +0000 http://alephblog.com/?p=1883#comment-22329 How would you go about choosing foreign bonds? How would you go about choosing foreign bonds?

]]> By: Mark Wolfingerhttp://alephblog.com/2009/07/12/some-practical-thoughts-on-asset-allocation/comment-page-1/#comment-22323 Mark Wolfinger Sun, 12 Jul 2009 21:42:41 +0000 http://alephblog.com/?p=1883#comment-22323 "Yeah, I know this seems conservative, but I am not a believer in the current rally in stocks or corporate debt. This is a time to preserve capital, not hunt for yield." Have you considered adopting conservative option strategies to accomplish that preservation of capital requirement - and still allow for decent profits? Collars do the trick for most investor portfolios. Losses and gains are both limited, but it's a wonderful trade-off to know that you will never again suffer through a 20% portfolio loss, let alone anything resembling double those losses seen in 2008. http://blog.mdwoptions.com/options_for_rookies/ “Yeah, I know this seems conservative, but I am not a believer in the current rally in stocks or corporate debt. This is a time to preserve capital, not hunt for yield.”

Have you considered adopting conservative option strategies to accomplish that preservation of capital requirement – and still allow for decent profits?

Collars do the trick for most investor portfolios. Losses and gains are both limited, but it’s a wonderful trade-off to know that you will never again suffer through a 20% portfolio loss, let alone anything resembling double those losses seen in 2008.

http://blog.mdwoptions.com/options_for_rookies/

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