Thanks again for joining us. If you’ve reviewed your Welcome letter, you should be familiar with the setup of The Independent Adviser for Vanguard Investors newsletter plus all the other benefits included in your membership. This section includes some important material to help you get started quickly by using Editor Dan Wiener’s investment advice from the newsletter.

How to Get the Most From Your Newsletter

So that you will be able to use The Independent Adviser for Vanguard Investors most efficiently, and for maximum profit, let me show you how I've organized it.

Beginning at the top of page 1 is my Monthly Commentary: a rundown of the previous month's market news and how Vanguard's funds have fared. Any changes in my recommendations are also explained here. In addition, stock fund investors will find a 12-month perspective on the markets in the charts in the left-most column.

Page 2 is where you'll find my four Model Portfolios. This section will give you a quick read on the funds I favor for individuals with different investment objectives. Any changes made since the previous month are noted at the bottom of the page. On page 3 is our regular Average Vanguard Investor index, which measures the monthly performance of the typical Vanguard investor. This dollar-weighted performance measure provides a yardstick against which to measure your entire portfolio's performance.

My Growth Model Portfolio is designed for investors who want their money to grow rapidly, are comfortable with a higher risk level and require little if any income. I recommend that you invest a portion of your money in the Growth model, depending on your age and risk tolerance, and invest the rest of your assets in one of either the Conservative Growth or Income portfolios. These model portfolios are more appropriate for investors with a need for growth and income, and a desire for less risk than that which comes with investing for maximum returns. My Growth Index model is an index-only portfolio for investors who wish solely to employ Vanguard's index funds. Typically, I expect this model to outperform Vanguard's index-only LifeStrategy (STAR) funds. If you are a new member and wish to follow my model portfolios, you don't necessarily have to invest all your money into the funds today, but can invest your assets in stages over the next three or four months.

The Performance Review on the middle pages presents performance data on all of Vanguard's funds. Each fund is grouped by investment objective. Many of our members turn here first to check on how well their investments are performing. The listings include each fund's Tele-Account number and total returns (change in share price plus reinvested distributions) for the past month and calendar year to date, plus the annualized average return for the past one, three and five years, updated monthly.

On the pages following the Performance Review, you'll generally find the month's income and capital gains distributions list. For Vanguard's stock funds, which make only quarterly distributions, I list the per-share value of the distribution and the price at which it was reinvested in additional fund shares. I also provide a calendar of Distributions to Come so you can avoid making large investments just prior to a dividend. This is critical for tax-conscious investors.

My Funds Focus feature regularly profiles a group of Vanguard funds with similar investment objectives. The section includes an overview plus individual descriptions and recommendations for each fund. I rotate coverage of funds by the groups listed in our Performance Review: Sector; Aggressive Growth and Growth; Growth & Income; Balanced, International/Global; Variable Annuities; Taxable Income; and Tax-Free Income, including state Tax-Free funds, Money Market and Tax-Free Money Market.

How the Model Portfolios can help you.

Members have a choice of four easy-to-follow models using Vanguard funds to formulate a personal investment strategy—whether you’re a conservative, moderate or aggressive investor. Please see About Our Model Portfolios on page 2 of your current newsletter for a description of the portfolios to see which one fits your situation best. Following are recommendations for four of the most common scenarios that our members have faced when trying to get started in the models. While these are only general situations, one or more of them might help you with getting started in the model portfolio of your choice.

I am ready to fully follow one of the model portfolios.

In this instance, you would simply choose the portfolio you want to follow on page 2 of the newsletter and then buy all the funds in the exact percentages that Dan has listed. Note: If you take this route, Dan suggests that you invest your money over a course of three or four months.

I don’t have enough money to completely follow a model.

Dan suggests that you buy the fund that makes up the largest portion of the portfolio and then buy into the rest over time.

I have enough money but am worried about investing it all at once.

Dan recommends that you invest only a portion of your money into the portfolio to see how it goes. (For instance, if you have $100,000, you might want to start out by investing $25,000.) As time goes on, you might want to consider dollar-cost averaging to invest the rest of your money in the portfolio.

The funds recommended are not available in my 401(k) or 403(b).

Dan covers all Vanguard retail funds in each issue in his Performance Review—which includes all monthly and YTD numbers as well as Dan’s buy, hold or sell advice. However, some of the funds that he recommends purchasing may not be available in your specific tax-deferred plan. In seeking a substitute, Dan recommends that you choose another fund listed in the same fund group that he rates as a "Buy" in the Performance Review. For instance, say that Dan recommends buying MidCap Index, but that fund isn’t available in your 401(k). You might consider choosing Selected Value or another buy-rated fund (if in your plan) as a substitute. Like MidCap Index, Selected Value is in the "Growth" fund category that appears in the Performance Review.

Additional fund recommendations.

Those who wish to simply build their wealth by holding individual funds should refer to Dan’s monthly Performance Review in the newsletter. Here Dan gives "buy, hold and sell" advice on each individual fund.

What to do about closed funds and high minimums.

Between the $25,000 minimums and the rapid closing of several funds, Vanguard has forced investors to look for suitable alternatives. But that’s not a problem with FFSA on your side. On page 2 of each monthly issue of the newsletter, Dan provides a list of his recommended alternatives for Vanguard funds that have high minimums or that you simply can no longer buy. (For suggestions on how to get into "closed" funds, please see Dan’s special report, The Answer Book for Vanguard Investors.)

What should I do if restrictions on a recommended fund prevent me from following Dan's advice exactly?

Dan provides alternative recommendations for funds that are closed, have high investment minimums, or in some cases even have investment maximums. You should use Dan's alternatives if the original recommended fund is not available to you for any reason.

What should I do if I am using one of Dan's alternatives to a closed or high-minimum fund and Dan recommends a trade in the models?

You should make the same trades in the alternatives as Dan has recommended in the models. For instance, if Dan recommends selling shares of one closed or high-minimum fund and buying shares of another closed or high-minimum fund to replace them, you should sell shares of the alternative to the first closed fund and buy shares of the alternative to the second closed fund.

You can check the most recent hotline immediately.

Remember that your weekly hotline serves as a device to keep you posted on all the latest market news and updated returns for our model portfolios.

Got any other questions about our services?

Check out Frequently Asked Questions section, and chances are you’ll be able to find what you’re looking for. And, of course, if you have a question that you still can’t find a response for, you may reach us at the telephone number or address below, or e-mail us at service@adviseronline.com. Please note: Dan’s advice is distributed to all members through the newsletter and hotline. Members can send in other general questions about our newsletter service, but Securities and Exchange Commission laws prohibit us from giving readers individualized investment advice.

Change of Address and Other Membership Services

Our customer service staff at 800/211-7641 can receive your calls Monday to Friday 9 a.m. – 9 p.m., and Saturday 9 a.m. – 5 p.m. If you are changing addresses, please contact us at the same phone number, or send a notice to FFSA, 700 Indian Springs Drive, Lancaster, PA 17601. When you contact us, please have handy your personal member number, located on the upper left of your mailing label.

From everyone at the Fund Family Shareholder Association, thank you for joining! We look forward to helping you make the most of your Vanguard investments.