A Treasury base, with options income written on top.

The mental model

Think of it as a cash/Treasury portfolio with options written on top. The large majority of your capital sits in short Treasuries and a money-market ETF (BIL) earning the risk-free rate; selling cash-secured puts on liquid ETFs layers option premium on that base. When a put is assigned, that slice moves into the ETF shares — which you write covered calls against until they’re called away, and the capital rotates back to Treasuries. The base is the engine; the premium is the bonus you collect for selling volatility when it’s well-priced.

The five steps

1. 1

   Set your basket and sizing

   Choose a basket of liquid index and sector ETFs and a notional target (how much option exposure you want relative to your account). ReTrader derives per-ticker limits so no single position can dominate the book.

2. 2

   Sell only when volatility pays you

   ReTrader scores each ticker by its implied-volatility percentile (IVP) — how rich premium is versus its own past year. It green-lights selling when premium is strong and tells you to WAIT when it isn't, so your Treasury base earns instead of forcing thin trades.

3. 3

   Sell cash-secured puts (Leg 1)

   ReTrader recommends the strike, expiration, and contract count for each cash-secured put, and shows the premium, breakeven, downside buffer, and profit target. You place the order at your own broker; ReTrader logs it and tracks the good-till-canceled buy-to-close.

4. 4

   If assigned, sell covered calls (Leg 2)

   If a put is assigned, you own the ETF. ReTrader tracks the assigned shares and recommends a covered call at or above your cost basis, flagging any lot that has no call written against it so you never leave income on the table.

5. 5

   Stay on top of it in about an hour a week

   A weekly review surfaces drift, expirations, and what needs attention; a stress monitor watches for sharp moves; and email or SMS reminders nudge you when it's time to act. You make every decision — ReTrader does the math, the tracking, and the reminders.

What ReTrader does not do

It never executes trades, never holds custody of your money, and never gives financial advice. It holds no broker credentials. Every recommendation ends at your screen and your weekly email — you place each order yourself.

What to expect

Base case is roughly 8–10% gross annualized — the prevailing T-bill yield plus collected premium — and up to 9–12% in favorable volatility regimes. These are gross, pre-tax targets, not guarantees; the range floats with interest rates, and because this is a short-volatility strategy, drawdowns can be significant in sharp market declines. ReTrader is built for self-directed investors with $500k+ in a Portfolio Margin account.

One last requirement: a dedicated account

ReTrader needs to run in a separate Portfolio Margin brokerage account dedicated to this strategy — not the same account where you hold AAPL, mutual funds, individual bonds, or other buy-and-hold positions. The reason is mechanical, not philosophical: Portfolio Margin runs a risk-based stress test on the entire account, so long-only holdings both consume margin capacity and change the stress profile of the wheel positions. The strategy's "T-bill portfolio with options written on top" foundation also assumes the large majority of capital sits in short-Treasury yield — a mixed account doesn't have that base. And the performance analytics ReTrader shows you assume Net Liq movements are explained by the wheel and T-bill yield; with buy-and-hold positions in the same account, every dashboard number becomes a noisy mirror. If you don't already have one, open a separate Portfolio Margin account at your broker — most allow this without much friction.

Educational software — not financial advice. Returns are gross, pre-tax targets, not guarantees. Consult a CPA and a qualified financial advisor before implementing.