How do you spread the four assets across different accounts?

[Cortopassi]

Yet another new to it question, looking for opinions.

I have four accounts, a 401k, my and wife's IRA and a standard brokerage account.

Who recommends treating all 4 accounts as a virtual single PP with the four classes spread across the accounts optimally for taxes?

Or who would run four separate unique PPs in each account?

On this, I can go either way.  Easy enough to look at everything as a whole, but if I were to do all four assets as individual PPS in each account, it might be better mentally, for example they'd all track pretty well, as opposed to having, say, my 401k dedicated to the bond portion and seeing that get whacked in a bond downturn with nothing in the same account to buffer it.

Thanks for responses.

Mike

[Ad Orientem]

Your mileage will vary. Go with whatever is easiest for you. In my experience it's usually easier to set up four different accounts than try to juggle all the math and tax implications of combining them. But I honestly don't think there is any significant advantage one way or the other. So just go with what's most convenient.

Side note... many 401Ks are so bad that they are more or less not PP compatible without going through extreme contortions. My usual advice in those cases is to just turn your 401K into a conservative Boglehead type portfolio and call it a day. If it's not PP friendly then just accept it and go with plan B.

[Xan]

I have a separate PP in each taxable class.  It's far easier to keep track of. (How do you compare $x in stocks which will be taxable at an unknown rate at an unknown time against $x in stocks where tax has already been paid?)

I don't think there's really a wrong answer.

[Cortopassi]

Thanks for the responses.  I'm pretty sure I will create PPs for each account.  Mentally feels better for me.

Mike

[TripleB]

There's many factors important in this decision. Primarily, for most investors, the decision will be based on access, cost, and tax considerations.

ACCESS because you may not have the ability to purchase a certain asset class within an employer-run 401k.

COST because while you may have access to a certain asset in a certain account like a 401k, the cost may be too high and thus you want to avoid purchasing it there, or the cost may be very low due to institutional fund status and you may wish to purchase all of that asset there.

TAX CONSIDERATIONS because each account spits off different levels of taxable events. In general, keeping stocks in a taxable account and bonds in a tax-sheltered account (e.g. 401k) are superior because you can defer taxes longer in this way and also if you hold stocks in a non-Roth 401k then you convert long-term capital gains into non-preferential regular gains.

I could go into a 10-page essay on tax considerations, and in older posts I may already have over the years. Do research on your own and feel free to ask any specific question you may have.