A really important point is that you look at all your accounts as one portfolio. You don't want an allocation for your IRA and one for your 401k and one for your taxable account, etc. You want one allocation for the whole thing and you want to rebalance over the whole thing. You will keep different asset classes in each account as some are more or less tax efficient than the others.
I've been struggling with this very issue. I spent a bit of time coming up with my asset allocation plan. However, now that I am trying to implement it I am having a problem viewing my different pots of money as one big pool.
Here's the problem. I plan to retire at age 56. I do not want to keep my money in the TSP (401k) fund as I find the withdrawal rules too limiting. So, my plan is to roll it into a Vangauard IRA once I retire. That then means that I will not be able to tap into that money until 59.5 - I do not want to use Rule 72T.
This really won't be a problem as I should have about $300k in my after tax account and my partner and I will have a combined cola'd pension of about $25k. We'd probably want to withdraw about $50k per year to supplement the $25k pension.
So the issue is that I would have allocated the $300k to the Total Stock Market Index and put bonds, small cap & international in the 401k & Roths. However, I think that is too risky since we will be living on the after tax account beginning in 8 years and leave the 401k and Roth money to grow until age 60 or 62. This after tax money is really important as the first 4 - 6 years of retirement is when we plan to do the most traveling, so I do not want to put this money at risk.
I'm thinking of laddering CDs in the after tax account so they begin coming due the year I retire.
I should probably allocate less to bonds in my 401k and Roth to offset the $300k of CDs in my after tax account.
Anyone have some input for this situation ?
-helen