Investing in Bonds For Dummies
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High-yield bonds return more than other bonds, but you can lose your money in times of recession when shakier companies start to default on their loans.

iShares iBoxx $ High Yield Corporate Bond Fund (HYG)

Contact: 800-474-2737; iShares

Type of fund: Exchange-traded fund

Types of bonds: Corporate high yield

Average maturity: 6 years

Expense ratio: 0.50 percent

Minimum investment: None

This fund opened in April 2007. Its first full year in operation, 2008 (a bad year for corporate high-yield bonds), the fund lost 17.19 percent. The next year, it came back with a return of positive 28.74. This is obviously not your typical sedate bond fund.

Vanguard High-Yield Corporate Fund (VWEXH)

Contact: 800-662-7447; Vanguard

Type of fund: Actively run mutual fund

Types of bonds: Junk bonds, but not enormously junky

Average maturity: 4.9 years

Expense ratio: 0.23 percent

Minimum investment: $3,000

This is a long-time leader in junk bond investing. Since its inception in late 1978, this fund has returned 8.7 percent, but not without some bumps in the road. In 2008, shareholders lost 21.3 percent. If you have $50,000 to invest in this fund, choose the Admiral Shares version (ticker VWEAX), which carries an expense ratio of only 0.13 percent.

About This Article

This article is from the book:

About the book author:

Russell Wild is a NAPFA certified financial advisor and principal of Global Portfolios, an investment advisory firm based in Allentown, PA that works with clients of both substantial and modest means. He has written two dozen books and numerous articles on financial matters.

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