I recently sold some short term VTI shares at a loss (specific shares, not FIFO). With the proceeds, I purchased SCHB. My brokerage firm has adjusted my cost basis on the VTI shares due to a wash sale.
I read this question about wash sale/ETFs and contend that these two funds are not "substantially identical" for a few reasons -
- VTI is a total market fund, SCHB is a broad market fund. (see below)
- VTI has ~3800 stocks in it's holdings, SCHB - just under 2000.
Is this decision done by the brokerage, and is it subjective? More importantly to me - is can I / how do I dispute this with my brokerage? Is there a chance that the IRS won't see it my way?
These are the fund summaries from my brokerage's site. They certainly seem different to me.
VTI
The Fund seeks to track the performance of a benchmark index that measures the investment return of the overall stock market. The Fund employs a "passive management" approach designed to track the performance of the CRSP US Total Market Index.
SCHB
The Fund seeks diversified exposure across large- and small-cap U.S. stocks. It seeks investment results that track performance, before fees and expenses, of the approximately 2,500-stock Dow Jones U.S. Broad Stock Market Index.