TSPCalc strats & The L Income Fund

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Chulke
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Joined: Thu Aug 01, 2013 10:25 am

TSPCalc strats & The L Income Fund

Post by Chulke »

So I think I saw it mentioned in a thread on here previously about using the L Income fund in place of G and/or F in the strategies...Has anyone tried it?

Some quick facts on the L Income:
1.) has outperformed, and on many occasions significantly outperformed the G Fund, 10 of the last 15 years and a few of those years was very close to a matched performance
2.) Currently has a 9.22% rate of return for the last 12 months Vs the G Fund @ .96%
3.) Has a 2.88% return YTD for 2021 vs the G Fund @ .53%

Anyway...just wondering if anyone has tried this in their TSP calc strategy and what was their experience with it....successful vs unsuccessful?



Cheers!
Cheers!

Current Strat: Loosely following 152300 and 85660 more the former rather than the later
Current PIP: 24.04

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sconey
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Re: TSPCalc strats & The L Income Fund

Post by sconey »

Haven't tried it, but I find the idea quite intriguing.

anomadtoo
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Joined: Thu Jun 13, 2013 10:23 am

Re: TSPCalc strats & The L Income Fund

Post by anomadtoo »

I thought about the same and am trying it for a second time this year; as at each move I didn't like F or G. The first try earlier this year I came out ahead; but this second, current time; F is ahead. So not large data points but an intriguing alternative for sure.

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mjedlin66
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Re: TSPCalc strats & The L Income Fund

Post by mjedlin66 »

I think you're going to be disappointed.

You are comparing the L fund to the G fund over long time frames. In the long run, the L fund wins because it is partially invested in stocks.

Usually, when a TSPcalc strategy runs to G, it is in anticipation of a downside in the short term. If the prediction of downside is correct, then the L fund will lose more than the G fund during that short window.
Owner/creator of TSPcalc.com - "Know your numbers"

Chulke
Posts: 420
Joined: Thu Aug 01, 2013 10:25 am

Re: TSPCalc strats & The L Income Fund

Post by Chulke »

mjedlin66 wrote: Thu Jun 24, 2021 1:33 pm I think you're going to be disappointed.

You are comparing the L fund to the G fund over long time frames. In the long run, the L fund wins because it is partially invested in stocks.

Usually, when a TSPcalc strategy runs to G, it is in anticipation of a downside in the short term. If the prediction of downside is correct, then the L fund will lose more than the G fund during that short window.
Interesting...and that's why I asked the question...

People know way more about it than I...


Cheers!
Cheers!

Current Strat: Loosely following 152300 and 85660 more the former rather than the later
Current PIP: 24.04

megalush5
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Joined: Thu Jul 14, 2016 6:44 pm

Re: TSPCalc strats & The L Income Fund

Post by megalush5 »

I tried it this spring when the F fund was obviously under performing. i realized that Linc was posting gains daily while F struggled mightily. It was a suitable replacement in my opinion. My last scheduled move to the F fund I customized my allocation from Linc just a bit. I wanted more exposure to the S fund and and i wanted no part of F. My last IFT was 70G/10S/10C/10I. This has proved to be a great alternative for me. With the market volatility as of late, I am comfortable with just 30% of my balance in equities. It's stress free. On green days my balance gets a bump and on red days, I'm not worried that I'm over exposed.

pilotric99
Posts: 42
Joined: Fri Sep 21, 2012 9:02 pm

Re: TSPCalc strats & The L Income Fund

Post by pilotric99 »

Mega,

Thank you for sharing your "alternative-to-F fund" strategy in the current market environment. It has pained me every time my strat went to F recently, given its recent performance amid potential inflationary pressures. My strat has me in F fund for most of August (which I believe is a commonality among many of the more aggressive strategies) and I intend on trying the 70/10/10/10 mix you mentioned.

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gbnooks207
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Re: TSPCalc strats & The L Income Fund

Post by gbnooks207 »

Deleted
Last edited by gbnooks207 on Mon Jun 28, 2021 11:14 pm, edited 2 times in total.

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gbnooks207
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Re: TSPCalc strats & The L Income Fund

Post by gbnooks207 »

My attitude toward an L fund (blend/mix fund) have changed over the years. If you are shooting for 20-30% yearly returns and do not mind the risk, a blended fund is probably not in your cards. After recrunching my numbers earlier this year, if I hit 10-15% returns for the next 5 years, I will be in good shape for retirement. So, I am cutting more of the risk out of my model and will be using more blends. I do agree with megalush5 and think it wiser to make your own blend instead of an L fund. My model - https://tspcalc.com/seasonal.php?ID=141 ... ears=13-21 - is only in C/S/I 35% of the time and the rest I will be using either a blend or just staying in the G fund. As far as what kind of blend, I will use the historic data … in August the I fund has done poorly in 6 of the last 8 years so I do not think that will be in my August blend.

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bloobs
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Re: TSPCalc strats & The L Income Fund

Post by bloobs »

gbnooks207 wrote: Mon Jun 28, 2021 11:07 pm...My model - https://tspcalc.com/seasonal.php?ID=141 ... ears=13-21 - is only in C/S/I 35% of the time ...
GB
I took a quick look at your strats above and was struck at how high their stddevs were for only being 35% in the equity funds. Is that by design?

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gbnooks207
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Re: TSPCalc strats & The L Income Fund

Post by gbnooks207 »

bloobs -
It is hard to change my mindset, but I am trying to transition into a safety-first mode over a consistent (Std Dev), high risk, high return mode. At this point, I am more concerned about the lack of negative monthly returns and I am not concerned about where the Std Dev falls (sorry). Out of 101 months (2013 to now), 96 months came in with a positive return – 95% of the months came in with a positive return! While I am positioned in the G fund on the trading calendar, I can either stay put in G, use a safe blend, or wait until the market goes down to jump in when I think it safe. I am only shooting for a 10-15% yearly return so I hope I do not blow it too much.
It comes down to your risk factor and where you are in your retirement journey. I am really hoping that I am in my last 5 years, fingers crossed.
I use 2013 to present time as the historical data to make decisions from because I feel people have become more knowledgeable from using TSP Center and TSP Calc plus it is quicker/easier to make an IFT then years past.

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Fund Prices2024-03-28

FundPriceDayYTD
G $18.15 0.05% 1.05%
F $19.08 -0.06% -0.74%
C $82.21 0.11% 10.55%
S $82.43 0.30% 6.92%
I $42.57 -0.24% 5.95%
L2065 $16.38 0.02% 8.37%
L2060 $16.39 0.02% 8.38%
L2055 $16.39 0.02% 8.38%
L2050 $32.73 0.01% 6.95%
L2045 $14.91 0.02% 6.58%
L2040 $54.38 0.02% 6.22%
L2035 $14.34 0.02% 5.79%
L2030 $47.67 0.02% 5.38%
L2025 $13.15 0.03% 3.43%
Linc $25.61 0.03% 2.82%

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