Only Guide to a Winning Bond Strategy You'll Ever Need The Way Smart Money Preserves Wealth Today

Chapter One Bondspeak Good fortune is what happens when opportunity meets with planning. Thomas Edison While we search for the answers to the complex problem of how to live a longer life, there are simple solutions that can have a dramatic impact. For example, it would be hard to find better advice on living longer than do not smoke, drink alcohol in moderation, eat a balanced diet, get at least a half an hour of aerobic exercise three to four times a week, and buckle up before driving. The idea that complex problems can have simple solutions is not limited to the question of living a longer life. As Charles Ellis points out in Winning the Loser's Game: "Investment advice doesn't have to be complicated to be good." And this is certainly true, as you will learn, about the world of fixed-income investing. The world of fixed-income investing was once a very simple one. It was also very conservative. When investors thought of fixed-income investing they thought of Treasury bonds, FDIC-insured savings accounts and certificates of deposits, and perhaps the bonds of blue chip corporations such as General Electric. Today, the world is a much more complex one. The research and marketing departments of investment firms regularly create new and highly complex debt instruments. Investors are now deluged with marketing campaigns from bond salesmen urging them to buy instruments such as MBS (mortgage-backed securities), IOs (interest-only bonds), POs (principal-only bonds), and inverse floaters (this one is too complex to describe in a short space). The complexity of these debt instruments creates huge profit opportunities for Wall Street's sales forces. These complex securities are often sold to investors who generally don't understand the nature of the risks involved. And you can be sure that it is the rare salesman who fully explains the nature of the risks (most couldn't if they had to, as they are trained to sell, not to explain the risks of what they are selling). Thus investors end up taking risks that are not appropriate for their situation. They also incur large transaction costs that are often hidden in the form of markups and markdownsa subject we will discuss in detail. Unfortunately, there are investment firms that prey on retail investors who lack the knowledge to understand the risks involved and how these securities are valued by the market. One reason is that the prices for many fixed-income instruments, unlike those of stocks, cannot be found in the local newspaper, or even on the Internet. The lack of visibility in pricing allows for investor exploitation. Brian Reynolds, former institutional fixed-income portfolio manager at David J. Bradson & Company, commenting on this exploitation, stated: "When I went to buy bonds for myself, I was stunned at the difference between buying them as an institutional investor and as a retail investor."1 Friend, and fellow investment author, William Bernstein put it this way: "The stockbroker services his clients in the same way that Bonnie and Clyde serviced banks."2 As was stated in the introduction, the first objective of this book is to provide you with the knowledge you need in order to make prudent investment decisions regarding fixed-income investments. It is unlikely that Wall Street will ever provide you with this knowledge. In fact, the Wall Street Establishment does its best to follow W. C. Fields advice to "never smarten up a chump." Prudent investors never invest in any security unless they fully understand the nature of all of the risks. If you have ever bought (or been sold) a mortgage-backed security (e.g., a Ginnie Mae) the odds are pretty high that you bought a security the risks ofSwedroe, Larry E. is the author of 'Only Guide to a Winning Bond Strategy You'll Ever Need The Way Smart Money Preserves Wealth Today' with ISBN 9780312353636 and ISBN 0312353634.