The primary reason to buy municipal bonds is their unique tax-exempt status, which significantly enhances their actual take-home return.
: Investors should evaluate munis based on what a taxable bond would need to pay to match their return.
For an investor in the top tax bracket (37% + 3.8% NIIT = 40.8% total federal rate), a is equivalent to a 6.1% taxable yield .
: Despite a slower economy, state and local governments maintain strong liquidity positions and healthy "rainy-day" reserves to offset potential slowdowns.