Course Summary

You started with the core idea: a bond is a loan you make, not a slice of ownership. You hand over your money, collect regular interest (the coupon), and get your principal back at maturity. Where a stock makes you a part-owner, a bond makes you a lender — that single difference shapes everything else about how bonds behave.

Then came the idea that trips up most beginners: bond prices and yields move in opposite directions. When new bonds pay more, existing lower-paying bonds must drop in price to stay competitive. You saw why that inverse link is mechanical, not mysterious — and why it's the reason rising interest rates pressure bonds.

Next came the Treasury family — bills, notes, and bonds — and why they're treated as the 'risk-free' benchmark every other investment is measured against. You learned what a yield really captures beyond the coupon, and what the yield curve signals, including why an inversion (the 10-year paying less than the 2-year) draws so much attention.

Last, you connected bonds to everyday life — how Treasury yields steer mortgage rates — and weighed bond funds vs individual bonds, so you understand the trade-offs of each. Bonds get called the boring part of a portfolio. They're really the market's foundation, and now you can read them.