Gyroscopic Investing

I'd like to hear ideas or what you've gone with...

Vanguard Total Stock Market (VTI) or iShares Russell 3000 (IWV). For International I have used the iShares EAFE index (EFA) or Vanguard's all world ex-US ETF (VEU).

VTSMX for domestic equities and VGTSX for international exposure.  My allocation is 85%/15%.

There are plenty of good low cost index funds out there.

MediumTex wrote:There are plenty of good low cost index funds out there.

Agreed. Any fund that tracks a broad-based stock index like Total Stock Market or S&P 500 with low fees is a good choice. If someone wants international then there are Total International Funds, EAFE index or the FTSE Ex-US index now. Generally these types of funds should have expense ratios less than about 0.30% a year to be considered. I've seen some S&P 500 index funds with outrageous fees of 1% or more and these should be avoided if at all possible. Any actively managed fund should also be avoided.

Vanguard, iShares, Fidelity Spartan, etc. Most big fund/ETF providers will have these low cost index options.

I went a different way then most. I went with VXF which is a mid-small cap ETF. It is essentially all the stocks minus the S&P 500. I think that gets me a better cover of the US economy without being concentrated in a handful of top stocks.

jalanlong wrote: ↑Mon Mar 15, 2021 12:34 pm
I went a different way then most. I went with VXF which is a mid-small cap ETF. It is essentially all the stocks minus the S&P 500. I think that gets me a better cover of the US economy without being concentrated in a handful of top stocks.

I think here you may have set the record for resurrecting a topic from nearly 11 years ago??!!

Oh my! I thought that showed up in my recent feed and I didn’t even look at the dates on it!!

Speaking of resurrecting this thread, is everyone here still using VTI or a Total Stock Market fund for the stock portion of their portfolio? I hate that almost 25% of it is in the top 10 stocks. That sort of concentration worries me. Historically an even mix of large cap, mid cap and small cap would beat the total mkt index which itself is about 75% large cap. However, that has not held true since about 2006. Since that time it has been better just to hold the S&P 500. I am not sure if that is a permanent sea change or not.

I altered the mix with the addition of VIG to the portion

I’m holding the SP500.

jalanlong wrote: ↑Tue Jun 22, 2021 7:39 pm Speaking of resurrecting this thread, is everyone here still using VTI or a Total Stock Market fund for the stock portion of their portfolio? I hate that almost 25% of it is in the top 10 stocks. That sort of concentration worries me. Historically an even mix of large cap, mid cap and small cap would beat the total mkt index which itself is about 75% large cap. However, that has not held true since about 2006. Since that time it has been better just to hold the S&P 500. I am not sure if that is a permanent sea change or not.

Or buy an equal weighted ETF(s). One thing to get clear on though...by definition "the market" is cap weighted...so realize you are no longer holding "the market" and are now making an active bet.

I'm still using Total US.

I am (somewhat) surprised that no one has mentioned FZROX (Fidelity ZERO Total Market Index Fund).

1. FZROX is a newer and smaller fund that has pioneered my favorite expense ratio of 0.00%. Over time, expense really does matter. I am also doing Roth conversions, which should lower taxes in the long run.

2. I am not presently using an international fund, though I did in the past. I have been persuaded by the argument in a past thread on the forum that holding gold covers foreign exchange rate risk associated with international. Beyond that, I can't think of a foreign capital market that I like better than the USA.

jhogue wrote: ↑Mon Jun 28, 2021 9:17 am I am (somewhat) surprised that no one has mentioned FZROX (Fidelity ZERO Total Market Index Fund).

1. FZROX is a newer and smaller fund that has pioneered my favorite expense ratio of 0.00%. Over time, expense really does matter. I am also doing Roth conversions, which should lower taxes in the long run.

I use this, but I use it in an HSA account where I intend to let it ride until I'm 65 (barring any tax law changes) before withdrawing any.

VEQT is the best option for Canadians.

UBUJ - MSCI USA hedged to EUR is worth consideration for residents of the old continent