Home The County The Bonds How to Buy FAQs site navigation

  • 2. How are Arlington County bonds issued?

    • Arlington County fixed-rate bonds are generally issued in $5,000 denominations as fully registered book-entry bonds, without physical certificates or coupons. Bond transactions are recorded in electronic computerized book entry form by the Depository Trust Company ("DTC"), a New York limited purpose trust company and member of the Federal Reserve System. DTC is a registered clearing agency under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, and holds securities for participants, such as securities brokers and dealers, banks, trust companies, clearing corporations, and certain other organizations. These firms are in turn responsible for keeping accurate records of their individual clients' holdings and issuing written transaction confirmations and periodic account statements to the individual clients. Under this system, individual bondholders do not receive physical certificates representing their ownership of the bonds, but should receive account statements of their holdings from their securities broker.

  • 3. Is there a fee involved with using a broker to purchase bonds?

    • Commissions and fees vary by firms. Many investors shop around for the best combination of service and fees for their interests. Arlington County is not permitted to provide investment advice. Please contact your investment representative, or one of the participating brokerages for more information.

  • 4. What is the pricing date?

    • It is the day on which an underwriter establishes the final interest rate, yield, and price for each maturity of an issue.

  • 5. What is the first interest payment date?

    • It is the day on which the County makes the first payment of interest on the bonds. The first interest payment amount will be calculated based on the number of days from the dated date and delivery date of the bonds to the first interest payment date.

  • 8. What is the Preliminary Official Statement (POS)?

    • A POS is the offering statement or disclosure statement for a municipal security. The POS contains the relevant information about the issuer and the bond issue that a potential investor should consider before purchasing the bonds. The official statement provides the terms of the bonds such as maturity and interest rates, an explanation of the security and pledge of revenues supporting the bonds, as well as the other investment considerations you should take into account before buying the bonds.

  • 9. What is a brokerage account?

    • A brokerage account allows you to purchase stocks, bonds, mutual funds, and other investments by paying professionals to buy or sell the items you tell them to.

  • 10. Do I need to hold the bond until maturity?

    • No. While holding the bond until final maturity provides you, the investor, with the amount you anticipate receiving, you may sell it to another person or entity through your broker-dealer. Should you decide to do this, the sale will be based on the current market price for the bond at that time, and you may not receive the entire principal amount that you paid for the bond should interest rates have risen during the period that you owned it.

  • 13. How do I register as an Arlington resident?

    • No additional steps are necessary once you have a brokerage account at a participating broker. Arlington County residents will receive priority over other buyers based on the zip code on file. Priority will be given to those residents residing in Arlington County zip codes.