maturity

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A bond is an agreement, and a component of a diversified portfolio.

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Maturity, also called the maturity date, is the date on which a debt instrument is agreed to be repaid. In the bond market, maturity is the date on which the bond issuer pays back everything they owe to bondholders. This includes the initial investment made by the bondholder, also known as the face value, par value, or principal, as well as any outstanding interest payments. On the date of maturity, the debt obligation of the bond ends, and the bond no longer earns interest. Usually, the bondholder and bond issuer agree upon the maturity date when the bond is issued, and the maturity does not change after that.

Bonds can be purchased for varying lengths of maturity, ranging from one month out to 30 years or more. Bonds with a maturity of around one to three years are classified as short-term. Medium-term bonds usually mature in around four to 10 years, and long-term bonds have maturities greater than 10 years. For example, Treasury bonds, also known as T-bonds, usually mature 20 or 30 years after issuance.

Some bonds, such as callable bonds, aren’t guaranteed to reach maturity. Issuers of callable bonds may redeem the par value of the bond before maturity. Typically, the issuer would redeem (“call back”) the bond if interest rates fall below the bond’s coupon rate, and thus the issuer believes they could issue a new bond, with a similar maturity date, at a lower rate of interest.

Many bonds are also bought and sold daily on the secondary market through broker-dealers, banks, and other financial intermediaries. Bond buyers calculate yield to maturity (YTM) to estimate how much they can earn before maturity.

Maturity applies beyond the bond market. For example, certificates of deposit (CDs—see video below), savings bonds (like what you might have gotten as a gift from Grandma), and the inflation-protecting Series I bonds are other types of fixed-income securities that have maturity dates. In general, if you redeem them before maturity, you might be assessed an early withdrawal penalty of six months’ worth of interest.