SCHD

myrrhsea

If the stock is doing better in this cycle, you'll be buying at a premium. If the stock is dropping in this cycle, you can buy at a discount. Personally, I just use ETFs. I'll hopefully be scraping together some loose cash to put into SCHB. Maybe SCHD if I want more concentration in consumer staples, energy, financials, etc. or SCHG if I want in on a possible tech recovery. We can't truly predict the market. Just keep buying what you like when you see red and try not to miss the recovery. No one knows where the real bottom is. Or even the top for that matter. Don't gamble, invest :)

EmbarrassedAd9057

Solid foundation — VOO + SCHD as your core with VXUS for international is a smart framework. A few things the numbers show: **Your biggest gap is international exposure.** VXUS at $1,500 is only about 3% of your portfolio, which means you're almost entirely betting on the US continuing to outperform global markets for the next decade. That's been the right bet recently, but over a 10-11 year horizon it's a real concentration risk. Your plan to build up VXUS is the right instinct — I'd actually go further and direct your entire $500-1000 monthly contribution to VXUS for the next 10-12 months until you're at 15% international. Your VOO and SCHD positions are already large enough to compound on their own. **JEPI is worth rethinking at your timeline.** Covered call strategies generate great income but they cap your upside in bull markets by design. At 10-11 years from retirement with a late start, you arguably need growth more than yield right now. JEPI makes a lot more sense 2-3 years before retirement when you're transitioning to income. The $6,000 there could be working harder in VOO or VXUS during your accumulation years. **MU is your wild card.** At \~5% of the portfolio with roughly 2x the volatility of the broad market, it's your single biggest source of downside risk in a severe tech downturn. Not portfolio-threatening at this size, but worth knowing it'll swing twice as hard as everything else. NVDA at 3% is fine. **What's working well:** Your effective diversification through the ETFs is excellent — you're exposed to thousands of underlying companies despite holding only 8 positions. Your portfolio shows strong defensive characteristics, losing roughly 23% in simulated crash scenarios versus 30% for the S&P 500. Your sector coverage is solid through VOO and SCHD — you've got good healthcare, tech, financials, consumer, and energy exposure baked in. The only real gaps are utilities and basic materials, which are small sectors and not worth chasing. And your 3.0% yield is more than double the market average, so the income engine is solid. **If I had to prioritize:** VXUS contributions first, reconsider JEPI's role second, everything else is fine to hold and let compound. I ran your portfolio through an analysis tool I've been building — it simulates crash scenarios, calculates sector coverage, and flags risk concentrations. In a 2008-style market crash your portfolio drops about 23% vs 30% for the S&P, and in a tech-specific crash it holds up even better thanks to the SCHD/JEPI buffer. Happy to share the full breakdown if you're interested.

leaning_on_a_wheel

If you want to maximize returns you should ditch SCHD

myrrhsea

The only thing useful about all the media is that it provides information about different investment strategies that you can cross reference with each other. For example, I can watch a video about using SCHD and JEPI to form a dividend snowball, and then watch a video about how focusing on growth first beats dividend reinvestment long term. If you already have a strategy that works for you and meets your goals, then it's all noise. If you're still developing your strategy, then it's education to take with a grain of salt. Treat it like research and put everything to scrutiny. Then you can find the best strategy and it all becomes noise again.

Romulus4Remus

Try all world ETF stocks like VT or it's ucits equivalent if youre in Europe. If you want to get cute you can add region/sector specific ETFs to specifically over or underweight certain regions/sectors. For example I am invested in 60% VT, 10% vwo, 10% vpl and a 20% home bias ETF of chspi. If you want to overweigh Europe more you could also add vgk instead of chspi. Alternatively if you think straight up market tracking is too volatile you could do some factor based ETFs such as SCHD/SCHY or DNL/DGRW. However it's always a toss up if factors can really beat the market, especially as the diversification is a lot lower on those. At the end of the day as long as you are invested in a diversified portfolio instead of single stocks and keep the money there for at least 10-15 years you'll do good enough.

SurfAccountQuestion

I don’t have a 50/50 split of QQQM and VTI. I also hold SCHD in roth and VXUS. I also reserve a bit of fun money to trade whatever I have conviction in.

Ahamadrayasbaboon

On top of that, dividend funds tend to underperform their competition that don’t use thar selection factor, and covered call funds always underperform the underlying long term.  Examples: SCHD vs SCHG,  SPY vs SPYD, SPY vs SPYI, etc. 

Zestyclose_Panda_886

SCHD bought low and sold high. Now, everyone's pissed!

SophonParticle

I like the SCHD. I would go a lot heavier into VXUS. 

dringledrangus

Buy ETFs that are good and hold. VOO for instance. That is the strategy. I have SCHD for some income growth and VXUS for non-US exposure. That's it... that is the secret.

Beginners_tech

I am looking for an investment strategy to fund my vacations. I already have retirement accounts and traditional accounts and all that fun stuff but I want to set up an investment account that pays me out in dividends or some sort of pay out every year. I figure I need about $2500 a year for the trips id like to do. Any suggestions on what to invest in? I was looking into SCHD, or JEPI or something similar. I was also thinking about t bills or CDs. Just looking for some ideas

bank_truth_cs

HYSA rates vary a lot depending on the bank so it's worth shopping around before you commit. Our website has a full list of CDs and HYSAs so you can compare what's actually competitive right now. If you prioritize liquidity, stagger your CDs so you're not locking everything up at once. KO and SCHD will pay dividends but don't expect them to beat a good HYSA or CD rate over just 6 to 12 months.

drew-gen-x

What's your choice for an ETF for the S&P 493 stocks? $SCHD??

Machine8851

Why not invest in value ETFs such as DIVO, IDVO, and SCHD which are not heavily reliant on volatile mega cap stocks in VTI and VT..

HesiPullup

SCHD is up 10% YTD btw

trsx5

On a good note, $SCHD up 10% YTD and paying me 😎

trsx5

On a good note, $SCHD has been doing great through all this mess. Up 10% YTD and paying me 😎

Investoid

I started investing around 2009 in two large vanguard index funds. There was negative periods were there was not looking great but I still contributed with every paycheck.  I am still holding at an 11% upside in those index funds. I have a smaller position I opened about 2 years ago in SCHD just for fun. That position is also holding about 11% upside despite the swings in the market so far. The longer you maintain broad index funds without panicking the better they do.

Moccabean70

I started out with SCHD ($14K) and JEPI ($6K), did a little research and realized VOO would be a great growth stock, NVDA and MU gives me tech exposure, LMT (possibly good with the current geopolitical situation), VXUS covers international and O for real estate. Basically I was looking to add structured diversity. The amounts are allocated based on when I have $$ available and what I feel is a good dip. I’m still learning…

drew-gen-x

I'm not touching software stocks or $IGV. Maybe they recover but the odds are pretty damn good that they will all be repriced to lower fwd multiples x earnings going forward. So far I've been pretty lucky that $VT and $VXUS have hung in their pretty well vs $QQQ. Tech is not as big as a % of the market cap for $VXUS and other foreign indices compared vs $SPY. $SCHD has hung in there pretty well as well for an US stock ETF equivalent.

Muted-South4737

SPYI QQQI SCHD. Simple, easy to manage, they meet my long term dividend portfolio goals.

cdude

I'd get rid of SCHD and JEPI. Did you watch a tiktok influencer mention the terms DRIP, cash flow, or passive income?

Lingweenie2

I have a pretty big position in SCHD also. Definitely a good choice overall. ETF wise I stick with VOO, SCHG, and SCHD personally.

Incorgnitos

SGOV does not grow (capital appreciation). SCHD will always outperform SGOV over a long term, because it has dividend accumulation + capital appreciation (growth).

aspenextreme03

Yeah true that makes sense. I have a good bit of it from way back and mostly do SCHD or even SGOV if I just want the yield w/o paying state taxes vs HYSA now but will look into it more.

IndependentTrouble62

Long term schd hopefully will out perform sgov with growth. However, SCHD is not far off its 12 month highs going into an energy crisis. Highly, likely to get a better entry point ij a few months.

MistressMinaDear

If by FTSE all world you mean something like VWCE / VWRL, you’re already insanely diversified. That one fund holds thousands of companies across the whole world. For a first time investor, that’s usually more than enough. QQQM and SCHD are both US focused and just tilt you more toward the US and specific styles (growth / dividends). That’s not necessarily “safer”, it’s just a different bet. Biggest thing is: make sure your time horizon is long, you’re ok with volatility, and you don’t need this money soon. A simple global index + sticking to the plan usually beats overthinking the slices.

IndependentTrouble62

SGOV it better than SCHD right now. Significantly less downside potential, higher yield, and tax advantaged.

Incorgnitos

If you're going after dividends right now, pick a dividend king that *isn't* struggling. Otherwise, just do something like SCHD and chill.

SumGreenD41

SCHD for dividends

BiscottiSalty2354

FTSE All World is already \~90% of the investable market—adding QQQM/SCHD isn’t real diversification, it’s **tilting toward US large-cap + dividends**. So the question isn’t “should I add more?” but: **Do you want to overweight the US and specific factors?** * QQQM → more tech/growth concentration * SCHD → dividend/value tilt If you don’t have a strong view, just stick with FTSE All World. If you do, keep tilts small (10–20%), not 50%. Simple beats complicated, especially for your first investment.

Finance_Guy297

FTSE All-World is already one of the most diversified single ETFs you can hold. Since it has around 3,700 companies, across developed and emerging markets. Adding more funds on top could mean just adding some overlap, not more diversification. Also QQQM and SCHD are not available if you are an European investor, because you're subject to PRIIPS regulations, which basically that means you can only buy UCITS ETFs. QQQM and SCHD are domiciled in the US and don't have a KIID, so your broker will unfortunately block the purchase. The UCITS equivalents to those would be something like EQQQ or IQQH if you more prefer it to be more focused on dividends. Holding only VWCE, already includes around 65% of US equities, including heavy Nasdaq and dividend payers, plus is also good globally diversified. Meanwhile, adding a Nasdaq ETF on top, would move you more towards tech concentration instead of more diversification. But if your tilt was intentional, it is completely fine, but you're kinda betting that tech/US will outperform relative to global cap weights. And in general, for a first time investor with a lump sum, remaining simple is a very good move, because is easier to manage and to start to learn some more.

Humble-Procedure-134

SCHD

HHSquad

Holding and weathering the storm. Occasionally buying SCHD and particularly good buy etf's

Nestado

You then must have a much bigger risk tolerance than me. I can't stomach big drops so I keep it conservative. SCHD is my most beloved holding. I'm also a big fan of Avantis funds that focus on fundamentals like value and profitability. 

Employee28064212

Sold my Nike (NKE) and Shell oil (SHEL) stocks. Building a little cash reserve and just buying SCHD weekly right now. Going to move into JEPQ next.

LucreziaBorgia210

If I had $1,000,000 in total gains I would sell out my entire position and buy SCHD and forget about the stock market forever.

rayb320

Gave it all back, people talk shit about SCHD lagging. This is hilarious to me. I'm up 12% right now, with the reconstitution I will be up more.

WinthorpStrange

Right now not buying anything different mostly SCHD or crypto buy have been eyeing up Viper Energy stock

RockChalk9799

Up 0.6%. Shifted more conservative last fall and SCHD has been the hero for me this year.

TheDarkestTriads

I would recommend $2k SCHD, $2k VOO, $2K SPMO next week then the same every 2 weeks to average down if market falls.

ImfamousDante87

SCHD, SCHO, VXUS, O, . I was looking to rebalance some of my accounts and the fire sale has been a blessing from buffet! Spring cleaning!

JoeInOR

I’m about in your position age wise and financially. I did mostly VOO and BRK-B for the longest time, held through Covid and did very well since then. Trump has thrown me off because populism usually comes with some kind of inflation. I had gone more GNR, SCHY, SCHD. Resources and dividends. I’m currently leaving index funds after reading about the “inelastic market hypothesis” — passive flows inflate active choices — it explains a lot of how we have $4t companies with pretty high P/E ratios. I think AI is cool, but overblown in the investment world. I’m focused more now on Berkshire / Fairfax (people who know how to take advantage of a crisis) and then companies with good free cash flow yield. If you want to be active, read Benjamin Graham. If you want to be passive and preserve capital, maybe 20% in bonds and 80% in a mix of BRK-b and schd. The straits of Hormuz is going to screw this economy badly, even if somehow their opened tomorrow (which I highly doubt)

No-Ant-4659

Bought AMZN, VYM, SCHD, and RKLB. But overall a pretty big loss today

Kind_Scientist5872

In theory this seems amazing, you just made 2.2k on a 0DTE play. but this is probably the worst thing that could've happened to you, winning big for your first options play is going to make you chase highs, your never going to settle for a couple hundred dollars in gains every week or two, your going to chase +$1,000 dollar wins because it seems "easy" now. I'm not hating btw, i'm genuinely happy that you have the chance to invest that money into something good like SCHD, VOO, etc. but just be careful OP.

Beetlejuice_hero

Both safe to average down, but get most of that 50k into the S&P and maybe a little into a dividend fund like SCHD or DGRO or VYM.

FrankelloHello

My typical $777 DCA into SCHD. Roth will be maxed in a couple weeks then I’ll start a VOO / GOOGL / SMR every other week DCA for the rest of the year

Track_Boss_302

Up 11% YTD. Rotated everything into SCHD and cash back on 17Nov on the very strong gut feeling this admin was speed running us off a cliff. I have my price points where I’ll start buying again, but we’re not there yet

DifferentSwing3149

Hate watching them but also taking advantage of the dip. Bought 100 shares each of GPIX & GPIQ. Also picked up 450 shares of SCHD. (Retired)

acap0

SCHD

SerMumble

Best time to be buying SCHG is when the market is considerably down like due to the Iran war. It sucks buying SCHG when it is at all time highs. Healthcare and financials have had very poor growth in the past year and it is what makes SCHG look so dissapointing especially compared to growth funds that are more concentrated in tech. If healthcare and financials outperform tech, that's when SCHG shines. 100% growth like SCHG will have high volatility. It can get rough right now because SCHG is down around 10% and still has maybe 10-20% left to drop before it bounces back. I'm using Russia's war with Ukraine in 2022 for a worst case comparison. In the future, if you're very critical of managing your portfolio, some diversity could help. SCHD, AVUV, international value are some obvious ones counterbalances for different opportunities. SCHD is great to collect in a cooling off market from a hot bull run. International is great to collect during a global war or weakening US dollar. AVUV is just random and nice to buy whenever it drops hard. It gives options so you're not forced to buy only SCHG when it is at its most expensive. But this can be pretty complicated. Simpler portfolios can be better. For simplicity for my ROTH IRA, I do 50/50 SWPPX/SWLGX and auto buy weekly.

zusite_emu

I’ve been able to beat the market by overweighting Canada—particularly in energy, insurance, banking, and mining. The country’s market is essentially a Canadian version of SCHD, which performs well during periods of turbulence.

GoldenAries4

For one, this has room to get much worse. Two, I was actually up YTD from SCHD being apart of my portfolio along with some of the other diversified options. I’ve only had a slight drawdown recently, but not negative YTD.

bmt_original

With the market going lower, and may go further down, the best path for you is to make a plan to invest the same $60k but on a recurring basis every week over the span of next 12 - 16 months … Just pick up some ETFs like $VOO $QQQM $VXUS $SCHD $SMH $GLD The results in around 2 years will amaze you

leaning_on_a_wheel

Ditch SCHD

Cyberhwk

> Is there anything wrong with the overlap of voo and schg? Anyone have insight?? It's absolutely going to tilt you towards MAG7 type stocks, but I thought SCHD probably balanced it out somewhat (whether dividends are relevant is another discussion that always turns into a shit show). So, it's one of those things where there's nothing inherently WRONG with having overlap, as long as you're aware of it and the effect it has on your portfolio.

GomaN1717

I would either increase VOO, or you could always look into something like QQQ or SPMO if you wanted to lean more tech-heavy (more than VOO already is at least). You could also totally keep the 20% into SCHD and be fine - nothing wrong with it. It's just that dividend stocks are purposely built to be less risky/lower gains, which makes them better for folks nearing retirement. At 31, you absolutely have the time to be aggressive.

GomaN1717

Depending on your age, 20% into SCHD is a bit overly-conservative, but as the other comment says - anyone having major qualms over this balance is splitting hairs. You're good.

D3N1Z3Nx

150k in DGRO, 150k in SCHD, 50k in JAAA, 50k in DIVO

Financial-Seesaw-817

Next leg of tech boom in ai coming. Reference: SCHD. Yw...

DifferentSwing3149

First answer the following questions to yourself at least: 1. Do I need any of this 400k for a near term large purchase such as a house, car, major renovations, college expenses, etc. 2. How much $ do I need in cash like funds in case of emergency? Usually no more than 6 months of your monthly expenses. 3. Retirement plans, age/years to go. 4. What is set aside for retirement already? 5. Is my job stable? There are quite a few more you could ask but at least these will help determine how you invest that 400k. If you basically don't need any of the 400k and retirement is down the road say 10 or more years, invest it into index/growth etf's with some possibly in dividend based etf's such as SCHD, VIG, VYMI to help balance the rush you are willing to take.

Dry_Environment_9631

AEP is a defensive utility stock that often moves inversely to interest rates. Since you’re already heavy in Schwab ETFs like SWPPX and SCHD, keeping a $200k individual position significantly increases your single-stock risk compared to your diversified index holdings.

greenpride32

If you aren't using your own funds today to buy AEP shares, then no I would not keep them. Here let me give you $200k cash - where are you investing it? AEP probably wasn't on the top 100 or 250 or 500 on your list. I personaly would split the money into SWPPX and SCHD. I'm assuming you qualify for step up cost basis due to inheritance, so there is no tax burden to sell the AEP shares.

Realjakeparks

Sometimes the simplest investment provides the most decent returns. You could’ve thrown all that money into SCHD and SPY.

Icy-Mycologist1524

I buy to keep certain percentages of each of my funds where I want them. For example I was my portfolio to be about 3% SCHD but due to it going up and SP500 going down it is closer to 5% so now I only add to VOO and QQQ to get my ratios where I want them.

BooDawg908

That makes sense. I guess my question would be how long do you plan on holding them? If they’re dividend stocks than I would imagine your planning on holding them for awhile? But then if the war stops does that change your plan at all? Also…I used to own SCHD but I figured I was overlapping with VOO. Not sure if that was smart or not. Thanks for taking the time best of luck to you bro

fledgling66

ADP got added to SCHD

SneakerBoiiiiii

im 14, i live in usa, I dont make an income, I want to get financial freedom as an adult and never make money a problem for any thing, and hopefully become a millionaire. Time horizon is a while ill be investing my whole life but id like to be able to withdrawl some money in my 20s but mostly long range, risk tolerance is medium id like to have the boring cash generators warren buffet sytle but id like some small semi risky plays that are calculated correctly, I’ve been interested in stocks for a few months now, and I already know the basics ( credit, interest, ETFs, index funds, head and shoulders pattern, uptrends and downtrends, blue chips, REITs, bonds, gold, etc.). But lately, some people have said that the AI bubble will pop and that having VOO is a risk because the top holdings are heavily concentrated in AI and technology rather than being very diversified. I’m wondering about your takes and also what stocks I should get next. I currently own $689 worth of stocks. (I know it’s very little) I have: 1 share VOO 0.12 Alphabet 1 share SCHD .27 FSELX 0.02 QQQ So yes, I have fractional shares💀 But anyways, I was wondering what to buy. I will be getting around $ 740-840 to invest and was wondering what to do with that money. My parents don’t know much about stocks. They say they do, but they really don’t. My father couldn’t even explain to me how to do simple technical analysis. I’d really like to find a way to make an income, even a small income, so I could put thousands in my account. All of my savings go to my stocks. My top choices right now are Berkshire hathaway b Chevron possibly, exxon mobil is too corrupt Coca cola Nvidia VOO but i want your take on it SPDR SPLG QQQ META but skeptical cause AI UBER People have said oracle but I dont know about this ai bubble stuff And my friend suggests COP Maybe a fidelity fund And I probably should diversify to other sectors like agriculture or oil companies, renewable energy may be a new one

SneakerBoiiiiii

im 14 and in the usa, time horizon is a while like a while I’ve been interested in stocks for a few months now, and I already know the basics (compound interest, ETFs, index funds, head and shoulders pattern, uptrends and downtrends, blue chips, REITs, bonds, gold, etc.). But lately, some people have said that the AI bubble will pop and that having VOO is a risk because the top holdings are heavily concentrated in AI and technology rather than being very diversified. I’m wondering about your takes and also what stocks I should get next. I currently own $689 worth of stocks. (I know it’s very little) I have: 1 share VOO 0.12 Alphabet 1 share SCHD .27 FSELX 0.02 QQQ So yes, I have fractional shares💀 But anyways, I was wondering what to buy. I will be getting around $ 740-840 to invest and was wondering what to do with that money. My parents don’t know much about stocks. They say they do, but they really don’t. My father couldn’t even explain to me how to do simple technical analysis. I’d really like to find a way to make an income, even a small income, so I could put thousands in my account. All of my savings go to my stocks. My top choices right now are Berkshire hathaway b Chevron possibly, exxon mobil is too corrupt Coca cola Nvidia VOO but i want your take on it SPDR SPLG QQQ META but skeptical cause AI UBER People have said oracle but I dont know about this ai bubble stuff And my friend suggests COP Maybe a fidelity fund And I probably should diversify to other sectors like agriculture or oil companies, renewable energy may be a new one

poorman_stocks

Actually buying, not pretending. Added to SCHD, VTI, and some individual positions in GOOGL and META this past week. My framework: I never try to catch the exact bottom - that is a fool game. Instead I ask: Is the business I am buying fundamentally impaired by what is causing the selloff, or is it caught in macro crossfire? If it is macro crossfire (tariff uncertainty, Fed noise, geopolitical flare-ups) and the underlying business is intact, that is usually a buying opportunity. The businesses I am adding to generate real cash flow, have pricing power, and have survived multiple downturns. The fear right now feels like a mix of legitimate concerns about tariffs and their second-order effects, and pure sentiment contagion. The companies with real moats tend to work through these periods. That said, I am not going all-in at once. Dollar-cost averaging into volatility is how I manage my own uncertainty - because I know I cannot time the market, but I do know that broad market drawdowns have historically been buying opportunities on 3-5 year horizons.

Foreign-Weekend

Crash: Move SCHD --> Growth Bear market: DCA SCHD --> Growth Things start looking better: Oil --> Growth Growth no matter what.

Variation261

I've only been adding some shares of a couple ETFs (SCHD, CIBR, DGRO and DIVO)

JC_Hysteria

The only thing that’s going to slow down the mega cap companies over this time period is regulation… SCHD is a current rotation give recessionary fears, but I tuned it well, too.

jonchillmatic

VXUS is a good index fund that has the rest of the world. 70/30 VOO/VXUS split is one I use. It's growth oriented but balanced a bit vs 100% VOO that some advocate for growth. I have a bit of SCHD mixed in as well. Generally I think you want to set up your mix so that you are prepared for various market conditions but a lot of what you do depends on your age, goals and risk tolerance.

DinnerNo5925

SCHD is a div etf. If you’re young or got 15+ years, just go VTI 80%. You can DCA each month. Keep it in SGOV to get interest before you buy each month. Maybe have a very small hedge in gold 2%, you can use IAU and some in a growth ETF like VB. VXUS is good for international exposure but the war and what is happening in America right now is going to impact everyone.

BaselineYToc

SCHD

AlGAdams

I have a basic algorithm I use on ETF like SCHD and SPY (which are my indexes or choice). At 3% down from ATH I buy small amounts, about 25% of my investing cash flow (1 or 2 SPY a week).  At 5% or more I increase buying to roughly equal cash flow at 3-4 SPY a week.  At 10% or lower I begin eating into my cash position to invest, and will buy up 10-12 SPY a week. I know the time has come to eat into cash when I see articles like "This time experts are warning NOT to buy the dip".

BruceStarcrest

Buying and DCAin a ton of SCHD holding for a year to make 75$ on 50k before it pumped 15% this year…. 

Lingweenie2

-10% over the last 3 months. Started out great. Most of my portfolio is geared towards stuff like SCHD and other dividend growers. But the last month particularly has been brutal (-9% in that time alone.) Just how the market is though. Without pain there is no gain. Been there and done that many times over. It really sucks in the moment but the market needs times to readjust and cut out the froth before it can continue onward.

basementdweller263

Appreciate the detail. A couple thoughts: • SGOV vs VTIP: SGOV is basically rate exposure (cash like), VTIP adds inflation linkage but can still move around because real yields change. For your “must be there” money, SGOV/T bills still makes sense. VTIP feels more like a small sleeve in the 2–5 year bucket rather than a core cash substitute. • AGNC: I’d be careful treating it as “low volatility” capital preservation. It is an mREIT with leverage and rate/spread risk. The dividend looks stable until it is not. If you want income with less blow up risk, I’d personally rather keep the short bucket boring and take risk only in the long bucket. • If your max pain is ~10% over 5 years, a simple framework is: – Bucket 1 (recast certainty): SGOV/T bills/CD ladder – Bucket 2 (flexibility): mix of short duration plus a modest equity sleeve (VXUS or SCHD) sized so a bad equity year doesn’t break the plan If you’re open, what rough % of the total is “must be available for recast” vs “nice to have for opportunities”?

First-Button-2297

Im down 1% combo of SCHD, SPY, NVDA, TSM, EEMA, VEA as holdings. Other portfolio is flat to slightly up...holding Cash and writing weekl y CSP's on low delta options.

trsx5

SCHD gang checkin ! 🙏

No-Dust-1722

You’re absolutely right that I’m looking for capital preservation with some flexibility - I wanted to keep the post more general and fundamental so it wasn’t just people telling me to buy gold and bitcoin (you see how well that worked) Those buckets seem sensible. I’m currently 80% SGOV and 20% other short-term, mostly AGNC because it has a monthly dividend and low volatility. From other comments in this thread it seems VTIP has some advantages over SGOV so I’m considering that in the mix. I do have some tolerance for volatility in the short term bucket but I think less than is required for the S&P in its current state. VXUS and SCHD seem to be more stable/drawing down less than other ETFs but also seem able to capture at least some upside if equities start running away again. I do have a target amount for a recast but that plan is very tentative - it’s honestly just my “no better ideas” plan because reducing bills just makes life easier. The 2-5 year plan is really about financial flexibility, but housing is such a huge part of that that it is difficult to treat it separately. I think I’m more interested in capping overall draw-down - I think we could handle a 10% loss within 5 years without risking other opportunities. I figure that’s like a 70/30 SGOV/VXUS split (or similar) but I haven’t spread-sheeted it yet.

NYGiants181

SCHD? It’ll come for that too

AlGAdams

AMZN, SPY, SCHD, NVO, PFE and KSPI, nothing crazy.  I do option wheels with 30-40k and keep about 25% cash.

Square-of-Opposition

/r/bogelheads if you want to discuss SCHD.

MeeseShoop

SCHD

SalaciousSubaru

Selling all my O and SCHD

dansdansy

SCHD, wouldn't be buying XLE here

Apart_Lab7069

what about 60% of your asset into (DIVO, JEPI, SCHD) and 40% into allwather portfolio

No-Dust-1722

It’s going to be hard to beat 4.6 right now with anything that approaches “safe” in this market, at least on a time horizon like 8 years. Volatility is pretty wacky right now and there is a lot of concern for market corrections and pullbacks. That being said, I have part of my savings in higher-yielding ETFs and equities that I’m betting on not totally crashing in a down-turn. SCHD, AGNC, and VXUS are a few of them off the top of my head. I’m always at least half SGOV though.

Aggravating-Let-2968

I just recently moved my IRA from Victory to Schwab. Mostly for similar reasons. If you want to stay at Victory look at USNQX or USIFX. USNQX has a lower expense ratio than other Victory funds. USIFX was my best performing fund. I wanted exposure to ETFs and not be limited to Victory mutual funds. I have 15% in SCHD now,

Fresh-Coach5838

Hey, I get where you're coming from with wanting to switch from USCRX to SCHD. It definitely seems like a smart move to lower that expense ratio and diversify your portfolio. One suggestion is to consider adding some international exposure too; maybe look into an ETF that focuses on foreign markets. This can help balance out your risk even more. Also, think about setting up a portfolio tracking tool to keep an eye on your allocations over time it's super helpful to see how things are playing out. Good luck with your move! Try the free risk check here: [risk.guardfolio.ai](http://risk.guardfolio.ai)ת if you want ongoing monitoring/alerts, the full platform is [Guardfolio.ai](http://Guardfolio.ai)

Little_Try_6502

Dividend reinvestment. It’s boring BUT it’s stable. You make profit on something else you buy more shares of a dividend stock then you always have cash. I’ve been there and been greedy. If you 100% want to win but good stocks when they are down little by little and wait. Take profits. Hide profits away. Be rich. Or just take a paycheck and buy SCHD and hold.

HeavySink3303

Any value or dividend focused like VTV, VYM, SPYD/SPYV, SCHD and so on.

Minute_Plastic_350

My bonus from work hit and my retirement will have a nice little chunk of change in it so I will be plowing into SCHY,SCHH, SCHI, SCHD. Reinvesting every single penny I figure I have about 3 to 5 more years of working left and then I’m done DCA all the way.

Nukemind

This is what I do. It's like 5% of my portfolio just as a boost. And only ones which don't erode NAV. Primarily in VOO, BRK, and VT, along with SCHD.

dogs_gt_cats

Covered call ETFs aren't a "bad" investment per se, but they really only function well in a sideways market. You really should understand how they work, ideally by placing a fee CCs yourself that have ended positively and negatively to really grasp their limitations. Basically upside is always limited, downside is not. You want the market to go sideways so your capital is preserved and you just collect premium. There is real income, but it requires specific market conditions. Not something you can really set and forget. Agreed on REITs tho it is important to recognize they aren't going to give you qualified dividends, so you pay a larger tax bill on them. For income focused index funds there's also stuff like SCHD and SCHY which follow the dividend aristocrats US/Ex-US. An alternative for reits that is worth exploring is real estate syndications, but they lock up your money for potentially a long time before you start getting returns. But you get all the benefits of a REIT plus since you actually own property you get capital gains, get depreciation, and the ability to do a 1031 exchange. There are higher barriers to entry (qualified/sophisticated investor). Bonds aren't necessarily bad either. Something like SGOV gives you monthly ROI, and is tax free. Mini bond funds for your state are likely the same, but probably have a lower ROI.

Good_Ride_2508

>The main objective would be consistent income with relatively low risk, while still allowing the portfolio to grow over time rather than purely maximizing yield. Answer: * **Dividend**\-focused stocks or ETFs for a balance of income and growth * Review SCHD !

STierMansierre

My plan was to basically switch to a mix of bonds and dividend funds in retirement, we'll see if that evolves. For now, I keep a small piece of SCHD in the IRA. It has done OK for growth, one might argue current events have been favorable for it, but ultimately those kind of funds aren't built for growth so much as paying steady dividends as the names imply. This is kind of why I view it as more of a retirement parking space. As far as current strategies, I think the Trump eras have historically been volatile times so my expectation is to continue buying the stagnation and corrections and hopefully reap some sweet DCA rewards.