Vanguard raises minimums

Vanguard is tripling the minimum investment required to open an IRA from $1,000 to $3,000, and doubling the minimum on Education Savings Accounts, from $1,000 to $2,000.

"It's unfortunate, to say the least, that one of the best-run mutual fund companies in the country is pricing itself out of the market for middle-income investors," Barbara Roper, director of investor protection at the Consumer Federation of America, told Phillyburbs.com.

This isn't surprising. As the expenses that go along with servicing small investors increases we'll see more and larger minimums. It's a real squeeze for firms like Vanguard--they loose money on small accounts and, as investors acquire more significant investable assets, they leave to seek professional help from full service firms. It's no wonder Vanguard has started courting financial advisors at the big brokerage houses.