How many funds to use during retirement

[rwc356]

How many funds (or ETFs) do you use once you reach ER. Do you limit any one fund to 30% of your overall portfolio - or do you use a Target Retirement Date fund to handle 100% of your portfolio?

If you want a 50/50 split - would you allow a single stock or bond index fund to handle 50% of your total portfolio? I don't like the slice - dice approach but I worry about a single investment holding 50% of my retirement assets.

I would really appreciate hearing how others are handling this issue.

Bob

 

[WilliamG]

Vanguard currently (at least often) recommends a portfolio of just 3 funds; Total Stock Market, Total International and Total Bond. The LOWEST percentage possible for a fund here is 33 1/3%. Of course these are all index funds and no manager risk is involved. Fyi, we use 6 funds including money market with 3 being balanced. Largest holding is about 30% (Wellesley, see another recent thread) which seems about right.

 

[Jake46]

We have four funds (Total Stock Market, Total International, Total Bond & Inflation-Protected Securities) plus a money market account. We sleep well at night.

 

[LOL!]

I have about 40 because I have about 16 different accounts. I don't think one can generalize about how many funds one should have.

 

[W2R]

5 funds at Vanguard (Wellesley, 2 stock index funds, 2 bond index funds)
30% in Wellesley, smaller percentage in each of the others

Plus - -
* TSP G Fund (bond fund but guaranteed not to lose value, like cash)
* cash in the bank and in a money market fund at Vanguard
* a four figure Roth which is for fun/impulse investing

Income sources - -
* Dividends from the five Vanguard funds during good market years
* Small pension
* Equal monthly withdrawals from the G Fund
* SS eventually, at which time I will lower the G Fund withdrawal amount by half the SS payment

Personally I really like the investing advice offered at the Bogleheads' forum - - many of our members also participate there, and it is a forum focused more on investing whereas the focus of the Early Retirement Forum is arguably somewhat broader.

 

[Helen]

I like your question, Bob. I've been struggling with this. I really want to keep my portfolio as simple as possible, but even then it will be more complex then what I want. Part of the complexity is the number and types of accounts.

My partner received an inheritance last Fall and I will be receiving one in the next month or so, so I am trying to figure out what to do with it. We are three years away from retirement.

My plan (as of this minute) is:

G fund in TSP
Total Stock Market Index fund
Total International Stock Market Index fund
Money Market fund
Wellesley (viewed as a bond fund)
I-Bonds
CDs

It's too bad they lowered the limit on I-bonds. I'd skip CDs altogether and just go with them.

 

[unclemick]

Target Retirement 2015 + early SS + small non cola pension.

The rest is now play money. 16th year of ER (1993).

heh heh heh - the play money is mostly in Norwegian widow(aka dividend type ) stocks or DRIP plans. I've been all over the map since 1966 - now mostly a Boglehead with a few sinful individual stocks to keep the male hormones happy.

 

[rwc356]

Thanks for all the information. Based on W2R's suggestion, I am going to post this question on the Bogelhead's forum as well.

Bob