An Inaccurate Picture
Thomas Kostigen's piece in the October issue of Financial Advisor paints an inaccurate picture of Schwab's Mutual Fund OneSource service. Mutual funds pay Schwab a fee to participate in OneSource in return for the shareholder services we provide. This isn't an additive cost; it replaces expenses the funds would realize if they serviced the shareholders themselves. For mutual funds that participate in the OneSource service, we simply require that our clients have access to the same share class the funds make available on a direct basis, or through other intermediaries. Our clients want this level of assurance. If funds choose to create lower-cost share classes, we welcome them to offer those shares in OneSource. Over the 12-year history of OneSource, dozens of funds have lowered their OERs-partly as a result of the operational scale they get from the platform. But funds may also choose instead to offer those shares on our transaction-fee platform if they prefer not to pay the OneSource service fee. Ultimately, a fund may decide it is better to offer its shares directly to investors without our help. We respect that choice. It's a simple approach, firmly rooted in doing what's right for our clients-advisors and individual investors. It's unfortunate your coverage painted such a confusing picture of a service that has benefited millions of investors for over a decade.
Doug Hanson, Vice President
Asset Management and Strategic Alliances
Charles Schwab

A New Word For Retirement
In the August issue, Mr. Wagner talked about finding a new word to describe baby boomers leaving the workforce in their fifties in his article, "Retirement Is The Wrong Word."
I found that this life stage is the most enjoyable for people. We don't have the responsibilities of paying off mortgages and sending children to college.
Life is in balance. We can finally balance between work and leisure. We balance between fun work and creativity. We have the time to enjoy the company of families, friends and solitude. In summary, life is as close to in harmony as we ever will achieve. Hence my suggestion is "enharmonence," meaning living in harmony. The beauty is this harmony will mean different things to different people.
Sharon Hsu, Ph.D., financial advisor
Ameriprise Financial Services Inc.
Waltham, Mass.