Comments on: “Are You a Better Investor?”

By: Poll: Passive or Active | The Sun’s Financial Diary | A Personal Finance Blog on Saving and Investing

Mon, 24 Sep 2007 15:54:21 +0000

[...] week I posted an entry on what it means to be a better investor nowadays after reading an article from Jason Zweig. The main message Mr. Zweig is sending is that investors [...]

By: Linking to Supporters For This Amazing Week | Personal Finance Blog by Money Ning

Sun, 23 Sep 2007 23:54:24 +0000

[...] Sun’s Financial Diary wrote an article about whether we are a better investor. This article made me quote parts of it and send to my dad so check it [...]

By: Linking to Supporters For This Amazing Week | Personal Finance Blog by Money Ning

Sun, 23 Sep 2007 23:54:24 +0000

[...] Sun’s Financial Diary wrote an article about whether we are a better investor. This article made me quote parts of it and send to my dad so check it [...]

By: Personal Finance Review - New Pavestone Patio Edition » Money Smart Life

Personal Finance Review - New Pavestone Patio Edition » Money Smart Life — Sun, 23 Sep 2007 17:26:52 +0000

[...] -“Are You a Better Investor?” @ Suns Financial Diary [...]

By: The Sunday Review #39

The Sunday Review #39 — Sun, 23 Sep 2007 15:01:07 +0000

[...] Are You a Better Investor? by Sun @ Sun’s Financial Diary. [...]

By: » Weekly Roundup - Mobile Web Edition @ fivecentnickel.com

» Weekly Roundup - Mobile Web Edition @ fivecentnickel.com — Sun, 23 Sep 2007 03:38:35 +0000

[...] Sun talked about being a better investor. [...]

By: » Weekly Roundup - Mobile Web Edition @ fivecentnickel.com

» Weekly Roundup - Mobile Web Edition @ fivecentnickel.com — Sun, 23 Sep 2007 03:38:35 +0000

[...] Sun talked about being a better investor. [...]

By: Weekend Round-up: Jekyll and Hyde Edition - Part 1: Hyde

Weekend Round-up: Jekyll and Hyde Edition - Part 1: Hyde — Sat, 22 Sep 2007 22:05:14 +0000

[...] The Sun’s Financial Diary asks, “Are you a Better Investor?” [...]

By: Roundup for week of 16 September 2007: California Raisin edition at Mighty Bargain Hunter

Sat, 22 Sep 2007 06:13:30 +0000

[...] The Sun’s Financial Diary wonders if you’re a better investor. [...]

By: Investing » “Are You a Better Investor?�?

Investing » “Are You a Better Investor?�? — Fri, 21 Sep 2007 20:34:36 +0000

[...] unknown wrote an interesting post today onHere’s a quick excerptMore choice is great if you add a few selected good things to your portfolio in moderation, but not if you end up with an unplanned jumble of investments. More convenience is great if you use it to make your life easier, but not if you … [...]

By: MoneyNing

MoneyNing — Fri, 21 Sep 2007 17:13:16 +0000

Thanks Sun. I quoted your article and sent an email to my dad about it!

By: Sun

Sun — Thu, 20 Sep 2007 20:27:47 +0000

Actually, I am a mixed bag in investing in mutual funds. As you noticed, I have a dozen actively managed funds in my taxable accounts, on the other hand, 6 out of 9 funds in our IRA accounts are Vanguard index funds . The reason of using actively managed funds wasn’t really because of their performance, though that was a factor. When I started investing, I didn’t the $3,000 required by Vanguard to buy their funds. So I decided to use funds that have lower initial investments such as $2,000, $1,000, or even no initial requirement. And in 2001, 2002, there were quite some actively managed funds, especially small-cap funds, that performed better than index funds. Then as I kept adding money into those funds, it doesn’t make too much sense to start all over again with index funds. However, for IRA accounts, I started with a lump sum at the size of one year contribution limit, so I can buy Vanguard funds. Beside, I know I will hold these funds for years so it’s better to keep the cost low. For the active funds, I don’t know how long I will keep them.

As for Buffett, his strategy actually works for individual stocks as he’s a buy-and-hold forever kind of guy, but may not for mutual funds. If I find a good stock and want to hold it for, say, 10 years, it doesn’t really make any difference if whether I pay $15 commission for a one-time purchase or zero in the long term. However, if I keep buying and selling stocks, as in Zweig’s article, because I want to chase hot stocks and get *better* return, then the costs of trading will add up and eat a chunk of my returns. For mutual funds, things are a little different because the cost of mutual funds is not a one-time fee as with buying and selling stocks. The cost is always there as long as I own the fund. So in the long term, it’s better to keep the cost low, especially when you have the choice to use low-cost funds and get similar returns.

By: marylandterps

marylandterps — Thu, 20 Sep 2007 19:10:47 +0000

First let me say that I enjoy your blog & consider it one of the best out there. My question is “Are you actually using the aforementioned advice” or “was the advice a summary of the article?” I remember that your portfolio is 100% active managed funds (as is my own portfolio). Did you change your portfolio?

Side note: I find it interesting that Warren Buffett also advises using index funds but does not use them himself. A case do as I say & not as I do?