SGOV

HaruoPanda

Using margin to pay off higher-interest debt can make mathematical sense since you'd reduce your interest costs, but it comes with significant risks. With your ETF portfolio, the main danger is a market downturn triggering a margin call. If your investments drop 20-30%, your broker could liquidate positions at the worst possible time. Margin requirements can also change without notice. While your SGOV (short-term treasuries) provides some stability, your QQQ and BTC exposure adds volatility. Consider safer alternatives like a balance transfer credit card or personal loan refinance. If you do use margin, have a backup plan to quickly pay it off if markets decline.

fakerfakefakerson

Yet you hold SGOV, which is yielding 3.85 and dropping

GaylrdFocker

Just sell some of your SGOV. WTF?

watchtower1822

Commodities going wild and US consumer already struggling. I think it's SGOV time.

Quirky-Video-9146

Me too. I am gonna do SGOV till I feel like this crisis has been averted. I don't mind waiting with a 4-5% yield every year till I feel the market is priced correctly. I may be wrong but at this point, who knows what will happen after the midterms. The middlterms are rht glue holding this crapshoot together. Once the midterms are over, the government has no incentive to keep propping this up.

RedditUser32804

I utilize OTM LEAPS because of the crash protection they provide. I don't know why, but I really am always worried about the crash. The IV spike during crashes cushions the loss in the option. I am willing to give up some of the upside for this protection. However, I buy the same total delta in OTM options that I would have purchased from one deep ITM option and move the money saved into SGOV. This keeps me from over-leveraging the options.

2020Macthedog

I would skip the bank and just use a brokerage like Schwab. You can roll your cash into $SGOV. You can transfer money to the others easily with Schwab. $SGOV is very liquid and pays roughly 4%. Just an idea

Over-Computer-6464

70-80% bonds is lower risk from variations in price but has great risk from losses from inflation over the longer term. I would recommend a more traditional split such as 60/40. 60% broad based index ETF like VTI that tracks the total US stock market. Then split the 40% allocation to fixed income between cash-like holdings such as money market funds or the SGOV 3 month Treasury bill ETF and the other half of the fixed income allocation to a broad bond ETF like BND.

2020Macthedog

WTF is wrong with $SGOV. What is the going effective rate for annuities? Bad advice

2020Macthedog

$SGOV good. Pro not

Sad_Car3155

Hello, 24M entering into a masters program that starts in january. because of how rigorous the program is, I won't be working for the next 2ish years while I study. I still live with my parents so i dont pay rent, food and transport is all covered by family. I do have a long term partner and do buy them gifts, but I've worked a decent amount at my job I had that I have enough saved up for "gift giving" or dates. My question is, should I take any excess scholarship money/student funds (they are reimbursed to me directly rather than disappearing) and invest them into something following bogle like vti/vt/vxus, or should I keep them in SGOV/HYSA as an emergency fund even though my expenses are a little less than 600/month. For reference: - this rainy day fund would be about 30k usd at the start of my program - current investments: 24k roth (maxed out this year), 6k 401k, 7k in my checking

Adventurous_Elk_4039

\> *I think I want to save what I have right now primarily for retirement instead of for a house or other large payment, since I know time in the market is the most important aspect of investing.* This means you may not want to put everything into the market then, especially if these goals are short term. Not sure how old you are, but I imagine that might be a ways off (5+ years). If you think you will NEED some of this money sooner, you might want to consider putting some of it into a money market or treasury fund (something like SGOV for example). \>*Should I increase the % of my balance in FXAIX, since it is a long term investment? Or should I take more risks since I am still very young?*  All equities is PLENTY risk, and you just fine in going all equities when you are so young. I wouldn't worry about gold/silver etc. I would honestly go all FXAIX/similar and......... \>*Last thing - should I invest outside of the U.S. too?*  Absolutely. The US has done very well recently, but that wasn't always the case, and we can't predict the future. My personal preference is \~75% in a total US market fund (I use FSKAX) and \~25% in an Ex-US fund (I use FTIHX). The standard recommendation is anywhere from 80/20 to 60/40 for US vs ExUS. Everything else you mentioned... day trading, REITs, individual stocks, commodities, etc. I wouldn't worry about any of those. They offer significantly more risk with less expected payoffs, so not worth it IMO. Because you have such a long runway in front of you due to your age, your best bet is to just invest in board market index funds and be consistently contributing over time. Do this, and live below your means, you will have millions in retirement even on an average salary.

Sad-Airman

Market goes up, I make money I'm happy. Market tanks I'll deploy all my SGOV into stocks that is rotting away. Either way I'm happy. This is the peace of mind holding cash and not being leveraged to the tits

MCB1317

SCHD ... truly the most inexplicable of all investing decisions. Nothing like having a total return over the past year of about 2%. SGOV or HYS wildly outperformed it thus far in 2025.

MutaliskGluon

QQQ has spent most of today in an untested daily FVG resistance. With VIX crushed I think its worth getting some puts here with a condition of closing them if QQQ closes a day above this FVG. Gonna sell some SGOV to start this position

Retropixl

Hey man you do you, but having a good portion of your portfolio in SGOV is basically timing the market.

thenuttyhazlenut

I'm not trying to time the market. I just refuse to buy companies at sky high valuations. I hold good companies at reasonable valuations, and the rest of my portfolio is in SGOV. I'll do fine long-term. If I'm house shopping, I'm not going to pay anything just because the house is really nice. When I find a shirt I like, or a pair of pants, I tend to look at the price tag.

DoinIt4DaShorteez

Yeah no need to take additional risk at this point if he doesn't even currently need the RMDs for living expenses. If the 403(b) is around $1 mln, then you're talking about a first year RMD of around $37 - $38k. Put that in SGOV it'll earn probably around 3.5% ($1,300-ish) in the next year.

DoinIt4DaShorteez

They could (probably in order from least volatility/risk to most): Park it in short-term Treasury ETF like SGOV Or a fund with a profile like you described Or a target date fund or ETF where the target date is close to the year he turned 65

Heyhayheigh

SGOV, but they should be finding a trustworthy pro. Vanguard or Fidelity. They are cheap and nice to the risk averse.

ladyeclectic79

I use both. Chase has mine and my hubby’s Roth IRAs since they allow auto-investing for mutual funds, as well as our emergency fund in SGOV and VBIL (still waffling on which I like more) so I can have it close in case we need it. However, hubby’s 401k is through Fidelity as is our taxable brokerage investing. I’m also planning to start an HSA account through Fidelity next year and transfer my HSA money over to take advantage of lower fees vs my job’s company. A couple tips: you’ll need to link the accounts both ways and sometimes it’s a bit confusing to get it done since Fidelity isn’t a bank listed on the Chase site. Money that you push from Chase (vs pull through Fidelity) will clear/settle faster although there’ll be a day or two delay.

Heyhayheigh

Keep an emergency fund in SGOV. Then make a plan to invest part of your income each month. Do this automatically. Make it your routine. Money is about when you will spend. That much all at once is an advanced move. Find a trustworthy pro to work with. Best of luck.

Heyhayheigh

Just buy VOO on an auto weekly basis. Sell only when you have an urgent expense to pay for. Keep and emergency fund with SGOV for whatever makes you comfortable. Just know you are losing out to growth. Use international if you want. But you could build wealth with just VOO if you have the stomach for the swings. After a while of pure DCA you will realize it is all just noise. Add auto and weekly. It’s basically like a 401k with normal money. Or find a trustworthy pro. Best of luck.

MCB1317

If OKLO has ever been in your portfolio, stick to SGOV and VTI.

Sad-Airman

The fed is about to start the money printers for the first time in 3 years and you are holding SGOV waiting for the big correction?

rain168

And when prices go down, you put more in SGOV

babar_the_elephant_

I have 200k in SGOV and everything looks overpriced have no clue what to do

WhatEvil

There’s no such thing as “passive income”. Closest you can get is gov bonds or ETFs that invest in them like SGOV, but that only returns 4-5% annually. Say you start with $10k account balance. You sell $65p on a stock for $215 premium. Your account balance is now $10215. The stock goes down to 62 as the expiry comes due. You have to buy the shares at $6500 total. Your account balance is now $10215-6500 =$3,715.00 cash, plus you have 100 shares worth $6200 so total account value is $3715+6200=$9,915.00. You kept the premium but you’ve lost value on the shares and therefore you’ve lost money overall.

MutaliskGluon

Nope. Valuations are too high and expected future returns investing in the indices at these is not great. SGOV is my default holding other than swinging long/short on EOSE or things I want to short.

therealjerseytom

> but the returns are abysmal, barely more than SPAXX Using SGOV as a stand-in for SPAXX, total return over the past 12 months: 4.31%. Total return of a 2050 target-date fund (FFFHX) over the same time period: 19.21%. https://totalrealreturns.com/n/FFFHX,SGOV?start=2024-11-25

Dvorak_Pharmacology

Look, I do not know in which part of my post I say I am guessing any bottom. I am just asking where to put the cash where I think market is not heading up, or at least, where it follows the opposite as the market. So SGOV seems to be the solution. Thanks.

chindef

SGOV is the answer to maximize short term yield on money that isn’t invested in stock. There are other similar funds, but they’re all within a quarter of a percent.  But the real answer to your question is not to sell because you cannot time the market. There are dozens of posts just like yours everyday. Nobody knows when the market is going up or down, temporarily or long term. The most proven strategy is to put money in regularly and just keep doing it. Whether the market is up or down. That is why you are getting snarky responses.  If you think some magical metric is going to tell you when to buy and sell, you are dillusional. Millions of people get paid trillions of dollars and don’t have a cheat code. So why the heck do you think you can time it? Read the efficient market hypothesis. 

CascoBayButcher

> I thought of SGOV but it generates very little Just so I'm reading you right, your question is 'what makes a lot of money when the market goes down?' If anyone had that answer everyone would make money every day

azure275

I mean if you are so convinced it will tank you either 1. Bet it all on gold 2. hold cash and cash equivalents waiting for a crash. SGOV is functionally a cash equivalent. 3. If you're really really sure go all in on SPXS for the next period of time Of course, all of those are objectively stupid plans that are more likely to waste your money than earn it, but that was not the question asked If you think you're smarter than everyone else at timing the market by all means go ahead

chuckwow

Approx 50% VYMI with little of SGOV. 30% GOOG, 10% PLTR, 10% SOFI. Run the options wheel on GOOG, PLTR, SOFI and maybe 1 or 2 others (eg LMT). When OpenAI ipo's, go more conservative as I think the AI bible will finally deflate after that (like how Netscape was 1995 and dotcom bust start was 2000/2001.

ErroneousEncounter

I’m keeping 40% in VOO, 15% in international, 5% in crypto, 15% in gold, 5% in companies I personally like, and 20% in short term bond funds (SGOV). The 20% in bonds I plan to redistribute gradually in the event of a market correction. 10% for every 5% drop from ATH.

2020Macthedog

Sell your index ETFs and park your money into $SGOV. It is the only way. Sit there till the dust settles. What I have done with the majority of my liquid assets. I do have a separate trading account I call my "Hedge fund". I aggressively play options with that. Currently mostly in $SPY puts. You might consider doing something similar with the money for the house. Set up a separate account to use just for the down payment.

Imid_Gnog

First, congratulations on preparing for your future at a young age. Compounding will work well for you if you don’t panic when the market drops. As far as picks go, I suggest an S&P 500 ETF as your first investment. My personal choice is VOO from Vanguard. If you have earned income, you can start a Roth IRA or a traditional IRA. Both have tax advantages over a normal brokerage account, but you cannot withdraw money until you are 59.5 years old. You should investigate the differences between these accounts and pick the one that meets your goals. Do not put money into an IRA if you will need it to pay for college, housing, or something else in the short term because the penalties for early withdrawal are stiff (10% plus tax on earnings). I also use ETFs that invest in short term Treasuries instead of cash. Good for money you may need in the next couple of years because the market can drop at any time and put you in a bad position if you have to take a loss. I use SGOV and VBIL for this purpose.

Easik

I have a t-bill ladder that I'll stop rolling and it'll be the basis for the DCA, SGOV I'll keep until yields collapse and then rotate to dividends to pay bills. I have some in corporate bonds too, but I haven't decided on a path for them yet.

ucbcawt

What bonds do you have? At the moment I can’t bring myself to buy bonds over JAAA/SGOV

Dario0112

SGOV and buy big dips

Various_Couple_764

I see two basic mistakes people are making. >Completely ingnoring dividend investments and just investing just in growth. >Focusing only on retirment and investing taxable brokerage account that can help them cover living expenses now rather than later. Dividend play an important part in the overall market. And ignoring basically leaves potential earnings out of your investments. Growth can make you rich really fast but It can vanish just as fast without you doing anything. Dividend income is much more stable an can allow your Roth or 401K add more shares of stock while you are unemployed and the market is down with minimal or no growth. Also with all the focus on retirment many ignore the advantages of taxable brokerage account. Today many only only have money market accounts (that are basically HYSA) in a taxable brokerage. Frequently you see people post they yield of the money market account or HYSA is dropping and they are looking for a higher yield. And often the ammount of money list is well over the 6 month emergency savings recommendation. Most of these I got a higher heat at X brokerage or invest in SGOV. funds like JAAA 6%yield and CLOZ 8% yield are both very low risk funds that easily earn more than HYSA and money market funds. And there are some really good dividend funds with yield in the 9% range. In my opinion once you reach the 6 month emergency fund level you should invest for divines to slowly convert your emergency reserve to a dividend passive income fund. Keep the emergency reserve but add enough passive income from bonds and dividend fund to generate enough cash for your yearly roth deposit or use the passive income for you monthly bills. Passive income from bonds or dividends never runs out it is continuous income. The 6 month emergency fund only last 6 months.

BacktestAndChill

Even if you wanted or needed bond exposure, BND is not a good fund. SGOV beats it. Check out ANGL if you can handle a bit more volatility - that one provides a decent return even in low rate environments. 

jacobf33

I like the SGOV idea to help mitigate the risk!

Heyhayheigh

Just SGOV the risk averse amount. Add VOO or QQQM on an auto weekly basis. Don’t sell anything. Sell only when you have something urgent to pay for. Find a trustworthy pro to talk to. Best of luck.

Over-Computer-6464

Many people have an "emergency fund" of 6-18 mi the if expenses which they track separately from their portfolio. If you are including that "emergency fund" as part of your portfolio then I would use shorter term fixed income holdings like SGOV 0-3 month T bill ETF or money markets rather than the much longer duration BND ETF.

Ex_Mage

SCHG, XLU, SGOV. Growth, utilities for AI play without more tech, and cash equivalents.

2020Macthedog

Then use covered calls. It is a proven way to lock in profit. Most sell them weekly. If you don't have 100 share blocks try buying OTM puts. Tho many are spendy. And this does bleed the port over time. There is only one way to eliminate risk....$SGOV

DJ_Mimosa

This is a very valid indicator. It’s only been higher than 30 for 4.5% of trading days in the last 30 years. You can apply roughly the same concept to the forward PE right now as well. Not a bad time to liquidate longs and move them into SGOV, and apply neutral to slightly bearish options strategies.

meshreplacer

Serious question you had plenty of capital to join SPY Thetagang and make a nice income wheeling SPY, collecting premiums, dividends and coupon payments from SGOV etc.. What exactly were you trying to accomplish? Was this some kind of inheritance you just decided to gamble since it was not money you had to work for?

Straylight__

Make a rule to regularly transfer away funds into another account where it is put into SGOV or SPXM. The trading account will compound slower but it will be safer. I have a two option strategies that make 500-1000% return annually at Full Kelly risk setting. At the begining of the year I allocate 5% of my long term investment account into a specfic account that these strategies manage. Then I reset the account back to starting point after 12 months. So it goes like this: Year 1: $10,000 -> $100,000 ($80,000 transfered out) Year 2: $20,000 -> $200,000 ($170,000 transfered out) Year 3: $40,000 -> $400,000 etc. As you can see, even if I blow up the account I have siphoned off alot of profits, so even if the account where to blow up I did net-net make a shit load of money and can just restart the account again. Good luck you will be back soon! just strictly follow the rules with high discipline next time.

Cracked_Tendies

Good insight. Most won't realize that there's no way to escape investing. You're either investing in SGOV (USD) or something with a risk premium Also, nice job holding that MSTR/BTC pairs trade I closed my MSTR short at the very peak of MSTR price and I still made money lol Was my first time shorting anything and idk if I like the feeling enough to do it again. Completely different vibe than vanilla long investing

FutureCandidate74

Sorry, I misunderstood the source I used to look up the fund. So you're doing ok, but recall this is a big-time bull market. A turn could wipe out your gains in a way a HYSA or SGOV wouldn't.

FutureCandidate74

Not a bad decision, no, but not the best decision. FNLIX is a stock mutual fund. So it's not the safest place for saving for a house. If the market crashes (not saying it will, but sometimes it does), you could be down a big chunk of your savings and have to wait for the market to rebound to recoup your principal. Also, FNLIX seems to have a low annual yield. You can do much better. House-saving money and the like should go into either a High Yield Savings Account (HYSA) (which Fidelity doesn't offer) or a bond fund like SGOV (which you should be able to buy through Fidelity).

No-Improvement3164

It’s like SGOV but you can sell cash secured puts while you’re collecting interest. SGOV doesn’t allow this.

MutaliskGluon

It was more than a roller coaster haha. I was like pure SGOV + the EOSE position and while it went down 85% the market went up like 30% or so. It was devastating and made me question my entire strategy, research, and confidence in beating the market. Like, my account went from beating SPY/QQQ by over 2x to underperforming them. Really glad I stuck through it though. (outdated chart, my account is at ATH balance as of today) https://imgur.com/a/nMN6ek8

Heyhayheigh

Yup, I understood completely. Sometimes people want to know "the little bit more risk option", which is rather silly. Sounds like that is not you, cool. I basically just do SGOV and dont overthink. Though some brokers have a convenient money market that works well with them SPAXX with Fidelity for example, which is treated as cash. SGOV will be slightly more, but it takes effort. SPAXX takes zero effort, that has a value to it too. Hope that helps :)

MutaliskGluon

Gambler? :( Im 40% SQQQ 60% Cash/SGOV. Will be back to 100% cash before EOD i aint holding any of this shit over the weekend

Heyhayheigh

3.9 is fine. It really depends on your broker. Each one has different ones that are slightly more convenient. Use a broker that supports fractionals like Fidelity and do SGOV. It is just easier. If you want a little extra zip for a bit more risk, do your own research. SGOV is basically like rolling tbills. Makes sense if your state has income tax. It’s just an easy no brainer for short term funds. You want real growth make real investments. Best of luck out there.

SirGlass

There really won't be all that much meaningful difference between them, they essentially all hold ultra short term debt so most will pretty much yield the same . The difference maybe one that only holds treasuries what will yield slightly less but be exampt from state taxes, vs ones that may hold corporate debt or repo agreements, will yield slightly more but be subject to state tax Depending on your income and state one may be better then the other. If you are higher income and live in a state with higher state taxes the treasury MM may be better If you live in a state with no state income taxes or very low ones the higher yielding fund that holds corporate debt may be better. Personally I just buy something like VBIL/SGOV what are 0-3 month treasury ETFs that basically acts like a money market fund

SadCockroach3784

"SGOV! My boy! How ya been recently?"

SadCockroach3784

SGOV and chill is looking pretty nice right about now.

MayoFetish

SGOV

2020Macthedog

Yes. A recession is coming. I think it will be severe. I have my own little Hedge account that only trades options. I am in puts. My main liquid wealth (and the majority) is in $SGOV. I am 65 and will not risk my capital in long right now. But I am an aggressive SOB so want to profit. Why I set up my hedge account, which I can be as aggressive with as I desire. FWIW I have been bearish for a long while and my hedge account is still healthy...and now significantly larger. 😁

MCB1317

I'm half SGOV and half CSHI with my "cash" portfolio.

2020Macthedog

Yeah. I will stick with $SGOV as well. And thanks again for the ETF

MutaliskGluon

Today has all the markings of a potential flash crash / circuit breaker. Private credit and loans are fucked. Goldman tried to unload a bunch of 6% Chicago AAA rated bonds at 6%+ and couldn't find buyers. I don't think many grasp the seriousness of the above sentence, but if fucking GS can't get a AAA bond at 6% off it's books Jesus christ. Shitcoin continues to live up to its name. It's really just a levered nasdaq play and it co tinting to drop through supports without even a bounce is ominous for risk assets. People are still super bullish and thinking everything is an overreaction or a sale without understanding why NVDA is dumping off and the extreme parallels to Cisco in summer 2000. Cisco had a great ER, raised guidance, CEO talked about infinite demand and blah blah blah. Then sold off 75% in the next 6 months. Japan is fucked. They arr going to launch a stimulus bazooka and their bond yields are gonna spike even more and the carry trade is gonna get margin called. I'm literally 100% cash/SGOV right now and have decision paralysis because liquidity is so thin right now we could go 4% green today or hit circuit breakers. The ONLY thing that matters today is which way the algos go

2020Macthedog

This second? $SGOV

MCB1317

It dropped 1.7% and had fully recovered within two months. I did see that, but for 30% higher interest rates I'm willing to take the chance of a 1-2% temporary drop during black swan events. The reality is that if you want ZERO risk, there isn't an alternative to SGOV. CSHI I decided was the absolutely lowest risk alternative with a better yield.

MCB1317

You're me 2-3 months ago. And I don't know why people are being so dismissive. I looked at PULS and PAAA, decided that I don't trust Wall Street or Moody's when it comes to any form of collateralized debt, and decided CSHI was the best of the bunch. Its core holdings are short-term securities (identical to SGOV) and then it uses a tiny portion (sub 5%) of the holdings to sell put spreads that are way out of the money. This gooses the yield by 1-1.25% over SGOV. Look at its history. I basically decided it was 99.99% as safe as SGOV but with a yield 30% higher.

an_erotic_walrus

Might be time to take profit and chill in SGOV for a bit, feels a bit gay to be a bear but better than losing money

teckel

Rediculous question, because investing in maybe 3 would be far better. * 5 years SGOV * 10 years VOO * 20 years SPMO

PalpitationSmooth992

you really cant win keeping your money anywhere when they do this gold down oil down stocks down crypto down cash loses to inflation should have known when i saw that 8 mil SGOV buy after hours yesterday

2020Macthedog

If you are trying to win be the first to go all $SGOV.

PM_ME_UR_EYEBALL

Been sitting on $275k of SGOV since August. Come on papi

Ancient-Bat8274

SGOV and gold

2020Macthedog

For a tactical option I sell at a 50% gain. If it is a gamble I dump it around a 20%ish gain. Try like hell to cut losses quick. Especially in an expensive and volatile market like our current market. For shares I buy without trying to time and only sell when I need cash for a big purchase or if I go to the mattresses. FWIW, I went to the mattresses around March when I took control of my port from a buddy (who is retiring from RBC). Sold all my positions and parked in $SGOV

InvisibleEar

Gamblers I've been building the money to put in my Roth in January in SGOV mostly because I felt silly putting it in voo just to sell and buy back months later. Time to buy for a cheeky one month gain?

onemananswerfactory

SLV is volatile, no? Why not SGOV?

jumphh

It sounds like we're more or less on the same page? I've always kept dry powder in SGOV, but I got at least 30 more years of work/income ahead of me, so even in the event of a 20-30% market drawdown, I'll stay afloat. Sounds like you're further along in life though, so it makes sense that you're moreso thinking about preservation than exposure. Good luck out there.

TequilaTrader

On a positive note, SGOV was green again today.

FistEnergy

I put my full port into SGOV two weeks ago. I'm feeling pretty good obviously, but I'm not sure if I want to bet on a major correction or a moderate one. VOO 575 seems like a reasonable place to start.

yaboyalaska

In case anyone was wondering I got a response from TT: "I wanted to reach out regarding some discourse that was brought to our attention regarding your SGOV margin requirements. In a standard Reg T Margin Account SGOV has a 50% initial and 25% maintenance requirement. I took a look at your account and I see the issue that you brought up. When you were holding /MES futures the requirements are swept out from the equity side and held on the futures side because even though you only have one tastytrade account funds are held separately because they essentially clear differently (APEX & StoneX). When the funds were swept out due to your futures position your margin equity dropped below $2k where you lose margin privileges. I see you closed out the futures and you essentially regained margin privileges and your SGOV is being held at a 25% maintenance requirement. I have included some screenshots showing your cap requirement on SGOV and a help center article explaining why your trading accounts are separated. Please let me know if you have any questions! " I didn't even contact them, they took it upon themselves to email me. People will hate but I maintain TT has the best customer service of any broker I've us

Former_Tomato9667

DCA’d my bags a little today but still 78% SGOV. The knives still look very sharp and they’re falling very quickly.

Timmy98789

Over 40% on the year. No worries, you won't get to see that number with just SGOV. 

FaintCommand

If you're going to park a 'substantial amount of money' somewhere you should be able to look this stuff up and know what you're getting into. Else you're probably better off with SGOV or a HYSA instead of chasing a better yield. There's no such thing as risk-free, high return investments. PFRL is probably more risky than HFSI, but it's the type of risk that makes it interesting to me. The majority of their holdings are in senior secured loans from major institutional banks. My biggest concern is a 2008-style collapse and a wave of defaults. But relative to the market at large, it has not experienced wild price fluctuations. The biggest drop in price it has experienced in 3.5 years was Great American Tariff Day. While most of the market plunged, it dropped from about $50 to $46 and was back up within about 2 months. Otherwise it has been very steady - similar to funds like JAAA. The relative stability and utilization of senior-secured loans make it more attractive to me than something like PHYZX. But I am not a financial expert and you should do your own due diligence. I'm just sharing some funds to look into.

Future_Hyena2562

I’d been better off in investing in SGOV all year

Admirable_Hand9758

SGOV is up .55% over the last 5 years.

zandervasko777

SGOV pays a monthly distribution.

zandervasko777

Sell everything and buy SGOV. Don’t say I didn’t warn you all.

zandervasko777

Don’t say I didn’t tell you. Sell it all and buy something like SGOV. No stocks, no gold, no crypto. Just get out and watch the train wreck.

2020Macthedog

I traded thru the GFC. Well aware how it works. I have a list of longs I will buy after. Currently most of my liquid holdings are in $SGOV till that next Haynes bottom!

specter578

Excellent response. THANKS. Do you recommend anything in-between SGOV and IGBH? Perhaps yielding 5% instead of 6%, or with similar yield with less duration risk?

big_deal

What's the spread between SGOV yield and your Tastytrade margin interest? Is it even positive!? I would assume that the cost of leverage is equal to or greater than ~1yr treasury yield.

therealjerseytom

> guaranteed 3-4% annual return FYI even SGOV doesn't guarantee this

ssmosbyy

Margin rates are way higher than what SGOV pays out. You'd be paying like 8-12% to borrow money just to earn 4%. That's just burning cash for no reason.

ConfidenceLife5558

You are looking for something that does not exist. SGOV is not "guaranteed 3-4% return". It yields that much only as long as rates don't get cut (which is happening now). If you want that guaranteed return you need 10y treasuries

le_fuzz

Why would you take on margin to invest in SGOV? There is no way that is profitable.

TomALPHATrades

Be really careful here—you are confusing **Zero Duration** with **Zero Risk**. IGBH isn't a savings account substitute like SGOV; it's a specific bet on credit spreads. While it hedges out the interest rate risk (by shorting Treasuries), it leaves you completely exposed to **Credit Spread Duration**, which is still massive (around 12 years). Here is the problem with using it for "safety": In a recession or market crash, corporate spreads blow out (prices drop) while Treasuries usually rally (yields drop). Because IGBH is *short* Treasuries to hedge, you miss out on that Treasury rally protection. You take the full hit on the corporate bond price drop without the usual flight-to-safety buffer. It effectively behaves like an equity proxy, not cash. If you want a safe place for savings, stick to SGOV or TBIL. Only touch IGBH if you are specifically betting that the economy will remain strong and credit spreads will tighten.

MutaliskGluon

I've been mostly cash (SGOV) since like late 2021. Have had a few big longs that gave me excellent returns though. Was big into energy late 2021 through 2022 and big into eose for 2023 to 2025