Regular Savings vs Taxable Savings - Educate Me

[mountainsoft]

if a 50% loss in stocks in your taxable account would cause you to have to tap your IRA early

I won't be tapping the IRA until we retire in five years. If I decide to put any money in a taxable account it will be "extra" money that won't cause any harm if it declines in value. At least until I'm comfortable with the account and have a better feel for taxes and whatnot.

I'm no financial expert and that's not likely to get better as I age. I also want to keep things simple so my wife can manage easily once I'm gone.

I like the simplicity of all-in-one balanced funds. My IRA is funded entirely with a VBIAX Vanguard Balanced Index Fund for a 60/40 mix. If I opt for a taxable brokerage account, I'm leaning towards the VTMFX Tax Managed Fund with a 50/50 mix.