Fund Evaluator:
DFA CA Short-Term Municipal Bond I (DFCMX)
Follow This Fund
Best Performing in Muni Single State Short Over the Last Year
| 4.0% | Invesco Rochester® Limited Tm NY Mncpl Y (LTBYX) |
| 2.8% | Shrt Trm Inv Fd for Puerto RicoRsdntIncA (PRALX) |
| 1.8% | T. Rowe Price Maryland S/T Muncpl Bd (PRMDX) |
| 1.6% | Fidelity California Ltd Trm Tax-Free Bd (FCSTX) |
Fund Details
DFA CA Short-Term Municipal Bond I Overview
DFA CA Short-Term Municipal Bond I (DFCMX) is an actively managed Municipal Bond Muni Single State Short fund. Dimensional Fund Advisors launched the fund in 2007.
The investment seeks to provide current income that is expected to be exempt from federal personal income taxes and California state personal income taxes. As a fundamental investment policy, under normal market conditions, the Portfolio will invest at least 80% of its net assets in municipal securities that pay interest exempt from federal personal income tax and the California state personal income taxes. The advisor does not currently intend to invest its assets in municipal securities whose interest is subject to the federal alternative minimum tax.
About DFA CA Short-Term Municipal Bond I (DFCMX)
There are 3 members of the management team with an average tenure of 15.02 years: David Plecha (2007), Travis Meldau (2015), Joseph Kolerich (2012). Management tenure is more important for actively managed funds than passive index funds.
The fund has 2 primary benchmarks: S&P National AMT Free Muni TR USD index with a weighting of 100% and ICE BofA 1-3 Calfon Incl PR Mni TR USD index with a weighting of 100%. DFA CA Short-Term Municipal Bond I has 399 securities in its portfolio. The top 10 holdings constitute 14.2% of the fund’s assets. The fund meets the SEC requirement of being classified as a diversified fund. The fund is not considered to have an ESG focus with its investment selection and management.
DFA CA Short-Term Municipal Bond I is part of the Fixed Income global asset class and is within the Municipal Bond fund group. DFA CA Short-Term Municipal Bond I has 0.0% of its portfolio invested in foreign issues. The overall assets allocated to domestic stock is 0.0%. There is 0.0% allocated to foreign stock, and 0.0% is allocated to preferred stocks. The bond allocation as a percentage of total assets is 84.0% (84.0% domestic bond, 0.0% foreign bond and 0.0% convertible bond). DFA CA Short-Term Municipal Bond I has 16.0% of the portfolio in cash.
Assets Under Management
The fund has $917 million in total assets, which is above the $241 million average for the Muni Single State Short category. Normally, lower assets under management translates to higher average expense ratios, and greater total assets are desired. However, for some investment categories, such as small-cap investing, it may be difficult for the manager to fully employ the desired active strategy if assets grow too large or too quickly.
DFCMX Performance and Fees
The expense ratio measures how much of a fund’s assets are used for administrative expenses and operating expenses, including adviser fees and fees for the transfer agent and custodial services. The DFA CA Short-Term Municipal Bond I expense ratio is low compared to funds in the Muni Single State Short category. DFA CA Short-Term Municipal Bond I has an expense ratio of 0.19%, which is 71% lower than its category average, making the fund expense ratio grade a A. While it is difficult to predict returns, it is known that high annual expense ratios reduce your rate of return, and excessive fees are difficult to overcome. Active management normally comes with higher expense ratios than passive index management. Certain investment categories such as small company and foreign also normally have higher expense ratios. It is best to compare fund expense ratios against the category averages for meaningful assessments.
High portfolio turnover can translate to higher expenses and lower aftertax returns. DFA CA Short-Term Municipal Bond I has a portfolio turnover rate of 153%, indicating that holds its assets around 0.0 years. By way of comparison, the average portfolio turnover is 44% for the Muni Single State Short category.
Recently, in the month of August 2026, DFA CA Short-Term Municipal Bond I returned 0.2%, which earned it a grade of C, as the Muni Single State Short category had an average return of 0.2%. The letter grades of A, B, C, D and F are based upon relative rankings within the investment category. A grade of A, for example, would indicate that the return is in the highest 20% for that time period compared to all funds in that category.
DFA CA Short-Term Municipal Bond I has a trailing yield of 2.42%, which is below the 2.95% category average. The fund normally distributes its income monthly and its capital gains annually.
It’s natural to seek the best-performing investments, but you must consider the relationship between risk and return and the impact of costs and taxes on your realized returns.
DFA CA Short-Term Municipal Bond I Grades
Year to date, the fund has returned 1.3%, 0.5 percentage points better than the category, which translates into a grade of A. The fund has returned 2.0% over the past year (grade of F), 2.8% over the past three years (grade of F) and 1.8% per year over the past five years (grade of A) and 1.2% per year over the past 10 years (grade of D).
For more mutual fund grades, analysis and screening tools to help your investment discovery, join AAII for a $2, full-access trial. Learn more here: https://invest.aaii.com/membership.
Otherwise, for more information about DFA CA Short-Term Municipal Bond I, including its riskiness, submit your email to unlock the rest of the article.
Gain access to exclusive AAII member-only content.
DFCMX Trailing NAV Total Returns Data as of 8/31/26
| Last Month |
Last Quarter |
Ann'l. 1Yr |
Ann'l. 3Yr |
Ann'l. 5Yr |
Ann'l. 10Yr |
|
| DFCMX Return (NAV) | 0.2% | 0.5% | 2.0% | 2.8% | 1.8% | 1.2% |
| DFCMX Grade | C | A | F | F | A | D |
| +/- Category | 0.0% | 0.6% | -0.7% | -0.4% | 0.6% | -0.3% |
| Muni Single State Short Avg | 0.2% | -0.1% | 2.8% | 3.1% | 1.2% | 1.5% |
| DFCMX Tax Cost Ratio | na | na | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% |
DFCMX Annual NAV Total ReturnsData as of 8/31/26
| 2026 | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | |
| DFCMX Return (NAV) | 1.3% | 3.0% | 2.8% | 2.7% | -0.8% | -0.2% | 0.7% | 1.6% | 1.2% | 1.1% | 0.1% |
| DFCMX Grade | A | F | B | F | A | D | F | F | C | D | C |
| +/- Category | 0.5% | -0.9% | 0.6% | -1.1% | 3.6% | -0.8% | -1.7% | -2.9% | -2.5% | 0.8% | -0.3% |
| Muni Single State Short Avg | 0.8% | 3.9% | 2.2% | 3.9% | -4.4% | 0.7% | 2.3% | 4.5% | 3.7% | 0.2% | 0.4% |
| Risk Measures | |
| Standard Deviation: | 0.6% |
| Total Risk Index: | 0.05 - Low |
| Category Risk Index: | 0.24 - Low |
| Category Risk Grade: | A (4% Rank) |
| Beta: | 0.09 |
| R-Squared: | 66% |
| Leveraged Fund: | No |
| Inverse Fund: | No |
| Portfolio Characteristics | |
| Equity Investment Style: | na |
| Bond Investment Style: | High Quality Limited Sensitivity |
| Yield: | 2.4% |
| Dividend Distribution: | Monthly |
| Cap Gains Distribution: | Annually |
| Total Assets: | $917 Mil |
| Fund Total Assets: | $ 918 Mil |
| Share Class Type: | Inst |
| Portfolio Turnover: | 153% |
Management Team
| Number of Managers: 3 | |||
| Longest Tenure: 19.4 years | |||
| Average Tenure: 15.0 years | |||
| Managers (Year): Plecha David (2007), Kolerich Joseph (2012), Meldau Travis (2015) | |||
Portfolio Composition (as of 7/31/26)
| # of Holdings: | 399 |
| % in Top 10 Holdings: | 14.2% |
| Fund is Non-Diversified: | No |
| % in Foreign Issues: | 0.0% |
Portfolio Allocation |
|
| Domestic Stock: | 0.0% |
| Foreign Stock: | 0.0% |
| Preferred Stock: | 0.0% |
| Domestic Bond: | 84.0% |
| Foreign Bond: | 0.0% |
| Convertible Bond: | 0.0% |
| Other: | 0.0% |
| Cash: | 16.0% |
Purchase Information
| Fund Family: | Dimensional Fund Advisors |
| Phone Number: | 888-576-1167 |
| Website: | www.dimensional.com |
| Status: | Open |
| Inception Date: | April 2, 2007 |
| Min. Initial Purchase: | $ 0 |
| Min. Initial IRA Purchase: | $ 0 |
| True No-Load: | Yes |
| Front Load Maximum: | 0.00% |
| Deferred Charge Maximum: | 0.00% |
| Redemption Charge Maximum: | 0.00% |
| 12b-1 Fee: | na |
Expenses and Fees | |
| Expense Ratio (%): | 0.19% ( Rating : Low ) |
| Category Average Expense Ratio (%): | 0.65% |
| Share Class: | DFA CA Short-Term Municipal Bond I |
| Min. Subsequent Purchase: | $ 0 |
| Min. Subsequent IRA Purchase: | $ 0 |
