VTIAX
VANGUARD TOTAL INTERNATIONAL STOCK INDEX FUND ADMIRAL SHARES
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Seeking Suggestions for Parents After Disappointing Financial Advisor Experience
VTIAX vs. VTSAX, how much of the VTIAX under performance is due to the strong Dollar?
To option or not to option, that is the question
What ETF should I invest in in my Taxable brokerage
Sell Mutual Funds in Brokerage Account to Fund the Same Mutual Funds in Roth IRA?
New to this, better to wait for a recession before I start investing? Different strategies?
3-Fund Portfolio Comparison: Vanguard, Schwab, Fidelity
Capital Gains Distribution (Mutual Funds vs ETFs)
Confused about whether I should invest in mutual funds or ETFs as a new investor.
Update to my “Roast my portfolio🔥” post, thanks to everyone for your help
Should I transfer VBTLX/VTIAX into VTSAX (Roth IRA)
What to sell to fund a real estate flip?
Question about diversifying assets between different accounts?
Feedback on my proposed Three Fund Portfolio before I join the market?
Comparable Merrill Lynch mutual funds similar to the VTSAX, VTIAX, & VTWAX without transaction fees?
12K to invest. Keep in savings? I'm too damn indecisive. Help!
Generally speaking, does rising interest rates lend itself to selling bonds?
16K to invest. 401K and Roth IRA already taken care of. What would you buy?
Advice on changing bond funds and minimizing tax loss
Retirement fund advice - Target Date Funds vs 3 Fund Method
Is there any reason I shouldn't invest in Vanguard funds using Fidelity? Unsure which arrangement of index/ETFs is best for me.
Alternative to Vanguard Intermediate-Term Tax-Exempt Fund (VWIUX) in Taxable account
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I personally moved from VOO to VTIAX.
Yeah maybe I didn't write it clearly because there seems to be a pattern of confusion. I dropped VTSAX in exchange for VTIAX and also picked up VXUS.
> I decided to drop my US stock holdings (VTSAX to VTIAX and VXUS) VXUS is total world market minus the US. So if you want to be out of the US, that's what you want to be in.
An 80/20 mix of VIGAX and VTIAX basically means you’re leaning heavily into U.S. large‑cap growth with a dash of international. That’s not crazy at 35, but remember growth stocks can go through long cold spells. A lot of people use a broader U.S. fund like VTSAX or the S&P 500 as their core, then add international and maybe small caps around it. Whatever mix you pick, the key is sticking with it and ramping up your contributions over time instead of chasing recent performance. A target‑date fund can also take the guesswork out if you’re unsure.
Oh sorry I misread yours as well!! VTIAX and VITAX lol they are so similair!
VITAX is American tech, mostly NVDA/MSFT/AAPL I seem to have misread your title as VITAX when it was in fact VTIAX (total world market). At any rate, I have never been interested in international stocks generally, and it is clear the American stock market is the place to be; however, it is fallacy to think these companies (big "American" companies) are not also international businesses. Nvidia, Microsoft, Apple, etc. do business all over the world and I am definitely going to pick them any day over stocks in China, emerging markets, etc. There are many reasons for that.
Adding some specifics to smash brother's comment for OP, some total US market funds are VTI, VTIAX, FSKAX. A couple of International total market funds are VXUS, VTWAX and FTIHX. Actually, there are even total world funds like VT, VTWAX, AVGE (has a small and value tilt) and DFAW.
VTIAX. You know, for international exposure.
I use VTSAX (.04%) and VTIAX(.09%). Granted I have had assets in there for over a decade but they move along between +11-12% despite the several market shakeups since 2008. I didn't actually invest until 2009-2011 so I missed out in a large amount of the possible upside because like most people I was a bit afraid of starting anything, including an index fund, despite this I am doing well even though I missed out on a lot of performance.
I agree it's not hard. My portfolio does have more than one fund with VTSAX and VTIAX and such. My wife doesn't care (or doesn't care to learn) about the various asset allocations, US vs International, bond ratios, etc. Instead, she can go into a single ticker that glide paths for her. It's easy and she can do it every year in January when she maxes it out.
>How many people are rotating from VOO into VTIAX? Rotate? No. I've long held a mix of US (broader than VOO) and ex-US. >Given all of the uncertainty with tariffs and the dollar melting down, is this still a good idea? Has the ship already sailed? You should always be globally diversified. Market favor changes from time to time and we've seen plenty of periods of ex-US over performance. Market favor can change incredibly quickly as well. >I'm largely still a Buffet-head when it comes to index investing. I still believe in American market exceptionalism. I also think that given how much FAANG stocks run the S&P, they'll benefit from a weaker dollar come earnings season because they'll convert foreign sales to dollars and show larger gains. Think about American exceptionalism: what parts of it can't ever be properly priced into the market? What factors do Australia and South Africa have that would also put them as some of the best markets (Australia at one point recently even having beaten the US over the past 100+ years)? >Still, each day, I feel like there's more and more reasons from Washington to go international with money. Market history alone should show you the benefits of going global, not just actions from Washington.
Literally not a single dollar. None of what you mentioned is going to matter in the long term and VTIAX has drastically underperformed VOO over the years. Stop letting your emotions control your investments. Idk how many times we have to go through April this year and come out the other side to get people to just leave their stuff alone. It'll be fine.
Pretty much every ex-US index fund (e.g., VXUS or its mutual fund equivalent VTIAX) is focused on Europe/Asia, unless you have an issue with a 5% allocation to Australia, 1.2% in Brazil, 1% in S. Africa, etc. If you want developed only, then that's VEA. But imo if you want to diversify, no need to make it complicated and slice and dice regions.
Thank you for the help :3 I really appreciate it, I'll make of a note of that in case I mention this again or do it myself. Sorry again, I'm still learning the ropes. I looked up VTIAX , its a uh, mutual fund right? so its more of a set it and forget it type of thing for long term growth? 1/3 sounds solid though!
while VEA is fine, boglehead three fund portfolio recommendations VTIAX. And I’d just make each 1/3 of your portfolio. If you’re young, you are a bit too heavy on BND.
Index funds. Read up on that bogleheads three fund portfolio. Super simple and gives great diverse exposure Something of the equivalent below in equal 1/3s Vanguard Total Stock Market Index Fund (VTSAX) Vanguard Total International Stock Index Fund (VTIAX) Vanguard Total Bond Market Fund (VBTLX) https://www.bogleheads.org/wiki/Three-fund_portfolio
Honestly, congrats on the bankroll. Well done! My advice, and it’s tried and true, is a 70/30 VTSAX / VTIAX combo. Tech bubbles are brutal when they occur. I always encourage knowledgeable folks like yourself to set aside 10-15 % and invest that as you see fit. See if you can beat the vfsax/ vtiax combo. There will be sociopolitical events and technological advances occurring over the next 10-15 weeks can’t even imagine. You may hit an absolute banger with your proposed portfolio over the next decade. History tells us a 3 company portfolio all in the same sector is a high risk. But again, congrats on the savings. Wishing you all the best. Keep us posted on how you deploy your capital.
VOO is a fine fund, but consider VTSAX. It gives you more domestic stock exposure than Voo. Maybe add some exposure to international stocks via VTIAX. Not more than 20% of the overall portfolio, of course. At 28, he’s in great position. Nice overall plan. Obviously debt should be minimal, emergency fund and life insurance if married.
I’ve always done a mix of foreign and US stocks in my retirement account, but in my brokerage I’ve been 100% VTSAX. The only change I have made is making VTIAX a portion of my brokerage now. 100% VTSAX just seemed too risky. Beyond that I have no idea
Diversification within the US. Gives you exposure to the 500 largest US companies. This is approximately 80% of the total US market cap. For us old folks, we lived through the dot com bubble, and are quite leery of investing in one sector. My $.02 - open a vanguard Roth IRA (you have the income but given your age it will be a Custodial til 18 or 21 depending on state). Go 70 % VTSAX, 20% VTIAX, and invest to other 10% as you please. Just for fun, see if your investments beat the broadly diversified VTSAX/ VTIAX combo over a 10 year period. Also, and this is most important, congratulations on investing early!!! Seriously, most folks your age would piss away that money on silly cars or weed. Great job and keep it up!! Your future self is going to thank you a thousand times over. Compound interest from 17 is awesome future gains!
VTIVX = target retirement fund VTIAX = international stocks fund VMFXX = money market fund When the announcement first came out I sold all my target retirement fund, and put most of it in a money market fund and the rest in international stocks and bought the dip as best I could, buying back into my target retirement fund weekly ever since from the money market fund. I stand by that decision, if for no other reason than my mental health, but also international stocks have actually done amazing. That said, my target retirement account invests heavily in international stocks too and also did great and in hindsight rather than fuck around I should've just left my target retirement account alone. Which is to say (not surprisingly) just leave it alone. You don't know what this fucker is gonna do, and I probably cost myself $2k trying to make moves.
I will give you mine just so you have different input from someone who has been running the same thing for 15+ years. I am 45 years old. 90% stock, 6% bonds, 1% short term, 3% 3 month treasuries. For the primary ETF blends I just have VTIAX (international)15% and VTSAX (US)70% For fun I have SCHD which used to be some random stocks I picked years ago, but eventually all the money ended up in SCHD. In the last month I picked up 1k in 3 month treasuries under SGOV. I try to keep 4-5 months of expenses in a high yield savings account for emergencies. The SCHD isn't even necessary but I like watching it, so I could just move that money to VTIAX someday as its just for fun. The performance from 10 years ago(2015) until today is about 12.00% per year without me doing anything except add to it. This includes most of the market crashes. I believe I started investing a little after 2009 but the impact of this setup wasn't noticeable until 6 or 7 years later. SCHD is slightly down as I made that adjustment only a year ago. It only represents like 1% of holdings. It is what people would consider a double exposure since I am technically holding a broad ETF that already covers what it holds making it kind of pointless but I wanted yet another account somewhere I could withdraw funds from that wasn't the main account...was my thinking. I don't have any really fancy plans, just to coast until retirement in another 25-30 years doing the same thing.
good question, most Americans have access to international through index funds like VTIAX or VT. ppl can buy ADRs as well, but most ppl buy low expense ratio funds like these.
I try to avoid complexity unless there is a significant benefit. I have seen many portfolios managed by financial advisors that are complex combinations of both growth and value funds, in addition to blended funds. When I do a backtest on them they end up being essentially the same return as a basic low expense ratio total market fund. [Portfolio Visializer](https://www.portfoliovisualizer.com/backtest-portfolio) is good for backtesting, although free accounts are now limited to 10 year maximum backtests. For the portion of my portfolio that are ETFs I just default to the old reliables of VTI/ITOT/SCHB (total US stock market) and IXUS/VXUS (total ex-US stocks). I use the multiple ETFs for total US and total ex-US for tax loss harvesting. In your Roth that is irrelevant, so the simplest and easiest and most effective thing to do is to simply figure out our US/ex-US allocation and buy VTI and VXUS, at both brokers. VXUS tracks FTSE Global All Cap ex US Index, with 0.05% expense ratio with a fairly large tracking error of 1.78%. It is also available as the mutual fund VTIAX at the slightly 0.09% expense ratio. IXUS has 0.07% ratio and tracks MSCI ACWI ex USA IMI with 1.59% tracking error. The overall returns of the two ETFs are essentially identical. Your 20% allocation to international is very reasonable. Although market cap weighting of international is higher, due to the extra volatility from exchange rate variations, the minimum volatility (in USD) is in the low 30% range of ex-US. I choose to apply a mild home bias and chose overall 80/20 US/ex-US. Because the individual stock portion of my portfolio (old, low cost basis shares in taxable accounts) are predominantly US, my ETFs are about 60/40 US/international.
This is **my** rationale for not investing in international funds. Take the SP500, how much of those companies' revenue comes from international operations? Take a look at the top holdings of $SPY, representing >35% of positions: https://i.imgur.com/UKjWym5.png Do you see any company whose revenue/profits are 100% US? I don't. Now, let's take a look at the toip holdings of VTIAX, a Boggledeads' favorite: https://i.imgur.com/O2Jsz2c.png Do you see any companies that DO NOT have a US presence? Or, do not have a significant US presence? You don't. The point is that: * All the (good) US companies do significant business outside the US * All the (good) non-US companies do significanr business in/with the US So investing in securities available in the US markets we get all the trust in the SEC (outside the US is not as *safe*) and with less currency exchange risk (US companies hedge in favor of the dollar, and you will be investing in dollars). If you were to invest your dollars in a foreign company that hedges their currency risk *against* the dollar you might end up with a loss on a security that increased in price. YMMV
>My plan: $56,000 in VOO, $30,000 in VTIAX, $5,000 in two or three yet to be determined blue chippers like Coke, Apple, whatever. And $5,000 in two or three home run swings looking for the next big thing. Vanguard account. Reinvest dividends, don't touch the money for at least 30 years. This plan seems solid to me. Potentially you can get into [tax optimization](https://www.bogleheads.org/wiki/Tax-efficient_fund_placement) and do only VTIAX there, with your VOO component in the tax-advantaged accounts and then claim foreign tax credits... but that's probably more than you want to deal with. >Most important question: Ok, how important is my initial timing here? Particuarly for the VOO allocation. Like obviously April 2025 would've been a great time. Again, I understand that nobody can really in the long run predict, and pulling out and going back in (giggity) all the time is a fools errand. But just for that initial investment, .... right wouldn't I want to wait for Trump's next stupid comment or action that tanks it? How important is the timing of the initial drop, and if it is important is there anything I can do for a preferrable outcome? Or is that trying to know the unknowable Timing _can_ matter, but we don't know what will happen. I think that's true even with Trump (that is, I don't think it's guaranteed waiting for a dip will be better for you), but some people will disagree and we don't know until it happens. A small DCA can be helpful here. Say, invest one third each month for three months. That gets you in while reducing some of the "if I had just waited a week". >Also, was reading some favor a three pronged approach where it's: s&p index, international index, bonds index. If I really can be disciplined and not touch the money, do I really need the bond aspect? You don't. I'm a fan of bonds and hold them, but plenty of people don't and that's a perfectly valid option if you stay the course. And if we don't have a weird situation where stocks go stagnant but bonds don't.
# First Time Investor -- Is this an ok strategy? 33 year old single male. Solid 80,000 in 401s. 30,000 or so rotting in savings accounts, 30,000 or so in CDs. White collar worker earning about 90k a year in a big city, but I keep my expenses down. Family situation is solid, I wouldn't ever really have to "go bust" thankfully if things took a turn. It's dark to write and I hate writing it, but: will likely inherit $1,500,000 or so in assets at some point. So if I went bust, it'd come out of that. No debt, no kids. So, I cleared $100,000 in an inheritance from a grandparent. Have been trying to get literate in this world. It's time, I don't want to be one of those people who doesn't grow their money out of ignorance. My plan: $56,000 in VOO, $30,000 in VTIAX, $5,000 in two or three yet to be determined blue chippers like Coke, Apple, whatever. And $5,000 in two or three home run swings looking for the next big thing. Vanguard account. Reinvest dividends, don't touch the money for at least 30 years. My thinking: Nobody can beat the market picking stocks, that's what the literature seems to suggest. Or, if they do for a decade, they give it back the next decade. Finding Netflix in 2002, or Apple before it was Apple, ..... I don't see that as beating the market but really just being a good sociologist haha. Is the two or three blue chippers thing even worth it? Like would the odds, over the long run, of those beating the VOO be negligible? Most important question: Ok, how important is my initial timing here? Particuarly for the VOO allocation. Like obviously April 2025 would've been a great time. Again, I understand that nobody can really in the long run predict, and pulling out and going back in (giggity) all the time is a fools errand. But just for that initial investment, .... right wouldn't I want to wait for Trump's next stupid comment or action that tanks it? How important is the timing of the initial drop, and if it is important is there anything I can do for a preferrable outcome? Or is that trying to know the unknowable Also, was reading some favor a three pronged approach where it's: s&p index, international index, bonds index. If I really can be disciplined and not touch the money, do I really need the bond aspect? Anyways, yeah, please don't hold back any comments or advice, I'm trying to be as objective as I can. I don't know shit, and am trying to be semi-literate in this language. I'm definitely someone with the discipline not to panic during bad times,moving forward, or invest money I might need in the short term into this project. Reading archived forums of people pulling out their money during the worst of the 08 crisis was a good use of time.
Getting granular matters more than you'd think. I had a "large cap" fund that was 30% mid-cap, which threw off my whole allocation. The style box classification can be misleading. Since you're adding new money rather than selling, consider simplifying forward — maybe just add VTI and VTIAX going forward to hit your targets without making this even more complex.
I think most emerging markets wish they could invest in American stocks and ETFs. In my retirement accounts I do have 10% allocated to International Stocks (VTIAX) however it’s underperformed relative to good American indexes. The barrier in many countries is the difficulty getting into our markets as countries want their citizens investing in their own markets, it’s changing though.
I don't understand your asset allocation. Why is there so much overlap? VTSAX and VTI are the same. Both contain VOO. Why not just have VOO and the desired weight of VOE, small cap, etc SCHF is contained entirely in VTIAX.
VTIAX in Vanguard and a 0 fee equivalent in Fidelity. I have been 100% US Equities my whole life and started reading about stretches International has outperformed US for a lengthy period. I might end up being wrong but I feel like we are in the early innings of that now. If you are looking for international stocks I’m not your guy I index that as I’m just not educated enough. Back to fishing.
Most people are going to be boring and say put it into SPY. I have some more interesting plays. My recs are: GLD for hedge against inflation/US debt crisis VTIAX for hedge against US stock underperforming. For past decade US has significantly outperformed and tariffs/govt policies are going to hurt the US more than rest of world.
Same, but more broadly I moved most of my 401k to VTIAX. Donald says there might be some pain, well, I'm not letting him screw with my money. I have little trust in the US stock market right now with these insane tariffs.
While I take everything chatgpt says with a grain of salt, it says it does. It says I still start at a loss, and would do better building one myself. However, it readily admitted they're complicated to set up, and thus, maybe you do pay for something. But I guess that's the heart of my question, really. I mean, why not just VTSAX+VBTLX+VTIAX instead?
Nope. But go for it! We have close to $1M spread across 40% VTSAX, 40% VBTLX, and 20% VTIAX. My spouse and I are content with a set it and forget it three fund portfolio. It provides stability and flexibility, which is what we want in life. Do you have at least $100k invested? Before gambling, at least have a foundation that'll continue to grow when your bets don't provide the return you expected.
VTIAX, VMFXX, emergency fund in a HYSA.
A Roth IRA is a gold mine. Open a Roth in Vanguard, go with a 60/40 split with VTSAX and VTIAX, and max it out annually until further notice. Then he needs to go to college. $23/hr is great, but that's his ceiling without a college education.
Emerging markets did particularly well, such as VEIEX at 9.82% per year. VGTSX, which exists today as VTIAX and VXUS, had an annual return of 2.7% per year. Even VWIGX, the longtime vanguard international growth fund, did 1.38% per year.
Recently sold everything except VTIAX and currently holding 80% cash. I don’t trust the market right now for shit. And yeah, don’t time the market is a fine strategy when you don’t know what’s gonna happen but I absolutely knew this idiot was going to do stupid shit.
I personally detest Avantis funds (they're actively managed) so if you really wanted some small-cap value, I'd just use VTV. A much similar solution is just doing 80% VTSAX and 20% VTIAX in your Roth. VTSAX sill cover the whole market, so you get mid and small caps in there too. But yeah either way you're doing great man, keep it up.
Hey all, I am looking to get some clarity on the right balance to target with a four-fund portfolio, diversifying from my current positions to include small-cap value (probably AVUV since that seems to be the gold standard). I am a pretty simple set-it-and-forget-it investor and don't want to complicate things. Currently, I have the following positions in my taxable and retirement accounts: * **Taxable**: VFIAX/S&P500 (75%), VTIAX/Total International (20%), VBTLX/Bonds (5%) * **Roth IRA**: VFIAX (80%) and VTIAX (20%) My new positions would be balanced as follows: * **Taxable** (No change) * **Roth IRA**: VFIAX (60%), AVUV (20%), VTIAX (20%) Are there any additional things to consider when diversifying from large-cap, or is it as simple as throwing 20% into AVUV for the long haul? Is 20% too high, too low, or just right? Please let me know if there is a resource I can follow, as opposed to seeking general public opinion. More info about me: 23 y/o American with a medium-high risk tolerance. My time horizon is 40 years for retirement. My taxable account could be anywhere from 10 to 40 years, which is why I have a small bond position.
The fact that you're even asking these kinds of questions at your age puts you way ahead of 99.9% of people. Seriously impressive. Keep nurturing that curiosity — it will serve you incredibly well in building wealth over time. My two cents: you’re a little heavy on tech right now. That’s fine if you really believe in it, but just know there are times when tech can get hit hard. If I were in your shoes, I’d keep it super simple. I’d split between VTSAX and VTIAX to get broad exposure to both U.S. and international markets. Personally, I go 70% VTSAX and 30% VTIAX.
If I reach the point where WSBs actually thinks this is fake, I will have self-actualized to Maslow's top of the pyramid. As for the mutual funds, two are just boomer Vanguard index funds (VTSAX and VTIAX). My advisor wants me to "eat my vegetables" so to speak lmao. The other two are alternative, institutional funds, they're not even accessible with regular retail platforms, you need an advisor. My understanding is he had to do training with those fund companies, so they then gave him the permissions to buy it. He told me not to share them, that's why I black them out. Also if I did share them, I bet WSBs would say I did it just to pump my bags lololol. You mentioned event-driven: Funny coincidence, I don't have one for that but he told me he's got his eyes on a few and once he is convinced, he'll recommend. But nothin as of now.
You'll be stuck with dollar denominated securities no matter what in the USA. Look at Vanguard VEUSX or VTIAX.
Yeah, I wouldn’t know. VTIAX went up today 🙂 I’m glad I sold my VTSAX a while back.
Would holding International stocks through dollar help, such as through VTIAX.
Would buying international stocks index such as VTIAX help
as a fairly passive investor, personally I'm going heavy into VTIAX (same as VXUS) until midterms at the least, and probably more in BNDX. If it's looking like he's going to be able to fire powell, i'll probably buy more IAU as well, I have a few shares at the moment. And most of my cash is in HYSA/CDs because 4% is better than the market's offering right now, but the moment the FDIC is cut/ended/burnt to the ground, I'll be transferring out to fidelity and vanguard to ride it out in SGOV/BNDX. that's the best i've got for this bullshit. I'm a long term investor forced to look at short term because of the economy policy rn, and i gotta admit i hate it
Still holding strong DCAing in my retirement accounts, though I'm just holding cash rn in mine and my husband's Roths currently because I'm reevaluating my usual target date fund. But non-retirement? I'm in short term CDs at Marcus and ally. I'm DCAing monthly into mainly VTIAX and BNDX, and I bought some shares of IAU this morning just in case, with that social media post about JPow and the frequent discussions about stagflation and hyperinflation; honestly, may buy a few more next week. My non-retirement accounts are where I invest for now through retirement. I'm even considering crypto and I NEVER have before. I am a different investor than I was 3 months ago, that's for sure
I'll have to look into that, thanks. Ideally I'm searching for a VTIAX-equivalent, but in euros.
Sure, do exactly this: 170k split into these three categories: 60% - VTI / VTSAX 20% - VXUS / VTIAX 20% - BND / VBTLX Set it and walk away, don't look for at least a year. Continue to contribute with the same 60/20/20 split when you have available funds. 5-7% returns most years. Stop gambling.
Is there a reason you're not just using something like [VTIAX](https://investor.vanguard.com/investment-products/mutual-funds/profile/vtiax), please? You're missing out on Japan, Canada, Australia and New Zealand.
VTIAX has gone up 20% in 15 years, why is that a good choice?
VTIAX/VXUS is the best answer i've got and it's still terrible because america defaulting is going to hurt world markets :(
It probably also makes sense to put some into an international index fund (VTIAX) as well. Maybe allocate 20-30% into that.
I'm going heavier into VTIAX in the event that this these tarriffs are permanent. Hoping global growth will prop up my investments. Other than that, "investments" i've made are outside of the stock market. I have a deep pantry full of food, a freezer full of meat and a backup solar generator for that freezer, and 2 years of expenses in an HYSA. We got new cars within the last 2 years, and all our electronics are good/what we need for right now. Our mortgage is our only debt and it's at 2.8%. I can't really prepare for total collapse but I've done my best to "recession proof" us short of FIRE being an option. Whatever will be, will be.
my serious advice/opinion from most to least important - Do you have 6months of emergency fund in case you lose your job? Build that up first. If you have a work 401k, invest up to the match. Buy VTI and VTIAX equivalent Max out your Roth IRA. Buy VTI and VTIAX equivalent Max out your 401k If you still have extra money in your brokerage account or wanna retire early - just buy VTI and VTIAX equivalent
If markets keep going down over the next day or two, I'm probably going to buy the dip myself (albeit in a fairly modest way). I don't have anything very special in mind. Given what we're seeing from U.S. leadership, I'm leaning towards fund consisting of non-U.S. stocks, e.g. VTIAX. To the extent I'm going for U.S. stocks, it will be some standard total stock-market fund like VTSAX. I'm also favorable to robotics stocks, which I see as being the AI of five or ten years from now; one fund I like is Global X's ROBO.
Looking for some opinions. 40/F, based in California. My partner passed away recently and I am now a single parent with 2 kids. After insurance payouts, I have about $1.25 million in the bank. This is currently sitting in a HYSA. My main debts are a car loan and a very reasonable mortgage for the area I live in. CC debt is paid off each month. My financial advisor says to keep 300k in cash to cover my ongoing needs and expenses (I am working but my single income is not enough to cover everything) and to transfer the rest to my existing Vanguard brokerage. I currently have holdings in VTI, VTIAX, and VBTLX. Once the cash is gone I can start drawing from the brokerage. I’m not sure I can stomach dropping a lump sum this big into the market right now, but I logically understand why it would still be a good option. I know I’m relatively young and have a good amount of years to work with before retirement age, but given the situation everything just feels much weightier now. My priority is making sure I am responsibly handling this money for my kids and my own financial future. I trust my advisor’s advice but am hoping to see any additional thoughts or even differing opinions, in case there is something I haven’t considered. I’m not able to ask people in my life as I am not comfortable (ever) divulging the amount of money.
Our emergency fund is the utilization of the 4% rule. For this year, we have up to $28k for an emergency; that amount is what we'd use if we were to retire on $28k/yr for 30 years. So yes, the bulk of it is invested using 40% VTSAX, 40% VBTLX, 20% VTIAX. We do hold on to $15-20k in a hysa though, so that's where we'd pull from first.
It seems like we have pretty similar philosophies. My emergency fund is of similar length (18 months) and could be stretched to 2 years through closely managing expenses. I'm at a point in my career that finding a new job could take an extended period of time, particularly if it happens during an economic contraction. I haven't been intentionally growing the emergency fund, but the cash pot has been growing for a couple of years now. The plan was to use that cash to replace a car, but recent economic events have changed that plan. I also make automatic weekly contributions, although whether it is into VTSAX or VTIAX depends on what happens to be underweight in my portfolio at the time.
I am keeping enough cash for a year of predicted living expenses because I'm worried about my job doing another round of layoffs and the tech industry slowing down hiring again. Usually this is only six months and eventually when things stabilize I'll use this money to invest. After that, every two paychecks I keep enough to pay the bills. Almost everything is on my credit cards so the math is easy: ((paychecks * 2)) - (statement balances + mortgage)). Anything leftover I do the following every month, in order: 1. I refill the savings if we tapped into it because of unexpected spending the past month 2. I will fill out my IRA if I didn't do it yet 3. I invest with Vanguard, right now my distribution is: * VBTLX: 1% * VTIAX: 29.70% * VTSAX: 69.30% Been doing this same pattern (with different distributions) for the past 15 years.
Had $100k to invest today, bought $10k VTSAX, $80k VUSXX, $6k VBTLX and $6k NVDA. Was going buy $4k VTIAX but I think this lags the US market. (Overall $20k 70-30 in boglehead method and the rest in VUSXX.
I prefer funds - I have the standard 3 fund in vanguard - International VTIAX (50%), US VTSAX (40%), and Bonds VBTLX (10%) -> after all this I might weight this 60-40. I am in my 40s which is why my bond position is 10%
"Most of my investments are in blue chip stocks, mainly NVDA, and I'm bleeding much like most people are but a bit more due to a lack of diversification and going in with a lump sum rather than DCAing. " First, if you have a bunch of money sitting in a savings account, you're generally better off lump summing it all in at once rather than DCA'ing that money over a long period of time. So I wouldn't worry too much about that. What I would worry about is your lack of diversification in a Roth IRA. I'd start putting money into more diversified funds (VTSAX/VTIAX/etc.). And finally, stop looking at it. You're a long ways from retirement. Your portfolio will go down at times. It will go up at times. Just gotta wait. If your portfolio hasn't grown by the time you're ready to retire, well, you likely have bigger things to worry about.
For diversification, most literature supports index fund investing and avoiding individual stocks (unless it’s 1-5% of your portfolio in individual stock picking for fun and you understand you’re far less likely to beat the index in that 1-5% over the long haul). Something like VTSAX, VTIAX, VTWAX. Look up “3 fund portfolio” and spend at least a little time on r/bogleheads if you haven’t already to at least familiarize yourself with that approach. Your asset allocation depends on your time horizon and risk tolerance. There are tables with suggestions by age and years away from retirement for stock/bond ratios. So advice on that is dependent on when you’ll need the money in the future
Thank you. Most funds are huge and it probably doesn’t matter much what one investor does. But lets say many investors buy VTIAX today on a grand scale and tomorrow the international markets open two percent higher (hypothetically speaking), then the fund would have given all these people a huge discount over the actual cost of these newly purchased securities. This would be to the disadvantage of everyone already invested in VTIAX and not having done the same.
I’m in the same boat (although I’m 52 and plan to retire in 2 years—sorry!), and I do sometimes use a bit of play money to dabble in risk, but I limit it to $5-$10k at a time. Example: I’m going to buy some RIVN, since it has the potential to benefit from tariffs, despite its production challenges. But US index funds? Not right now. I bought VTIAX (international stock index fund) in Jan, and it’s up by around 6% YTD (and up today), so I’m happy about that.
That’s what VXUS and VTIAX make sense for diversification.
VIHAX's higher dividend yield and better historical performance would outweigh its higher expense ratio. The \~2.75% advantage (1.25% dividend + 1.5% price) minus the 0.08% higher expense fee gives you a net gain of \~2.67% annually. That's significant over time. If you're looking for international exposure, VIHAX's high-dividend focus could provide more stability than VTIAX's total market approach. Worth considering if you're after income or lower volatility.
On 12, it isn't cherry picked. It is bound my one of my tickers - the NFTY one. If I remove it, the whole thing is then bound by VTIAX and we go to, I think, 14 years but the maximal sharpe remains the same. I am just curious, assume good faith lol.
The boglehead formula uses VTSAX, VTIAX and VBTLX. VOO is my benchmark.
Good question. It was bound by one of my tickers - the NFTY one. If I remove it, the whole thing is then bound by VTIAX and maximal sharpe mostly remains the same.
My daughter was in a similar age/situation a couple of years or ago. We opened an account for her at Vanguard and set her up like this: VBTLX (VANGUARD TOTAL BOND MARKET INDEX ADMIRAL CL): 13% VTABX (VANGUARD TOTAL INTL BOND INDEX ADMIRAL CL): 7% VTIAX (VANGUARD TOTAL INTL STOCK INDEX ADMIRAL CL): 30% VTSAX (VANGUARD TOTAL STOCK MARKET INDEX ADMIRAL CL): 50% We also created a Roth for her and put it all into VSVNX-Vanguard Target Retirement 2070 Fund For everything but the Roth (since it was pretty small and would get an annual addition), we invested 10% of the total every couple of weeks until she was fully invested. I understand the appeal of bitcoin, but I really worry it will underperform going forward. It's small enough and you are young enough that it shouldn't hurt, but I'd advise that you keep good records and circle back in 5 years to see if it is doing as well as everything else.
I'm entirely in index funds, VTSAX, VTIAX and VBMFX. My retirement accounts are all in target date funds matching a similar asset allocation as what I have in my brokerage accounts. I'm a firm believer that investing should be boring, if you're having fun doing it then you're going to end up making some poor decisions eventually. It's easy to trick yourself into thinking you're a good investor during a bull market, but you'll be hung out to dry if you're trying to play those games during a downturn.
I didn't have many options as they are provided by the 401k provider, the options were VEUSX, VTMGX, VFWAX, VPADX, VTIAX, VIAAX, or VFSAX. I choose Vanguard European Stock Index Fund Admiral Shares (VEUSX). You have to decide what is best for your risk tolerance and when you plan on retiring. ABOUT: This index fund provides investors low-cost exposure to the European stock markets. The fund holds more than 1,200 stocks across the European region, which makes up roughly half of the non-U.S. equity marketplace. In addition to stock market risk, the fund is also subject to currency risk and may have a higher degree of country risk than other international funds, since it invests solely in stocks of European countries. Long-term investors seeking exposure to European equities may wish to consider this fund as part of a diversified portfolio.
Thank you so much. I am going to start with the reading. My research has been reading Dave Ramsey's books and watching his show on YouTube. Granted, thanks to his advice, I am debt free, but investing-wise, I did not learn much. Also, since those mutual funds are not actively managed, they will yield the same as an ETF that tracks the same stocks. I can go for the ETF since it has a lower expense ratio. Example (**VTIAX (0.11% Fee and VXUS (0.07% Fee)**
Yes like VTIAX, I would look for those that are not only good with 1/5yr lookbaxk, but also less vulnerable to recent volatility (ytd)
Thank you!!! I am using primarily mutual funds since they are actively managed. I assume they will outperform other passively managed investment vehicles. My Roth consists of VFIAX, VIMAX, FCPGX, and SCHD, small, mid, and large caps with SCHD because I like the idea of receiving money without selling my stocks. In my traditional, I have VTIAX, FSELX, and FCNTX. My 4 months of research got me here. This is my plan. Please don't hesitate to give criticism and your opinion on allocations, percentages, or if I should switch to different stocks altogether. Like I said before, I am starting and don't have much experience, so any advice is welcome.
Hello, everyone. This is my first post ever, and I need some help. I am 25 and started investing in December of last year (When the market was at its all-time high). I am maxing my Roth and traditional IRAs and have 4k in each account. I want some insight from more experienced investors on what I should do. I own some investments that track the SP500, which I bought at its highest. Should I buy more of the SP500 and take advantage of the dip, or should I stick to my plan with smaller caps with a higher upside since that is retirement money I won't touch in the next 35 years? I am employed, making 8k a month. My current holdings are VFIAX, SPY, and FSELX (I plan on buying VIMAX, FCPGX, SCHD, VTIAX, FCNTX, and FBALX.) Open to any feedback
You haven't lost money until you sell, you simply own an asset that has gone down in value. Selling locks in the loss. The stock market lost *half* its value in 2008 and it took a couple of years to rebound. People saw their accounts plummet, but if they stayed invested they eventually rebounded. Meanwhile, they were either getting cash dividends or they were re-investing those dividends at a lower price. What you should do depends on your horizon. If you're 55, you shouldn't be all in on the S&P. If you are 25, this is a moment to ride out. Moments like this are why target date funds are popular. They have lost less value than the S&P because they are not just the S&P. What you could do instead of rebalancing is to change how you invest additional money. You could go for a target date fund or do a year or two of straight international. If you are using Vanguard, VTIAX is total international and VTMGX is non-US developed markets.
80% VOO, 20% VTIAX? Does this work?
I just checked and VTIAX returned 27% since 2010, when VFIAX returned something like 300%+. Am I missing something?
Last week, sold 50% of my VFIAX for VTIAX. Now at a 70/30 ratio for domestic/international after several years of 90% domestic. Might miss some gains but will sleep better.
So if you want to make things simple, you can allocate 60% us (large cap only is fine) 20% total intl like that VTIAX, and 20% bonds. 20% bonds might be too much, so you can make it 25% intl and 15 bonds. Or whatever % you want. If you are okay with a bit more complexity: For the US large cap, there might be benefits to having small and midcaps right now. Esp if you are worried that large caps is way overvalued. In that case, you can just do like 5% mid and 5% small so you have some exposure. If you have something like VTI fund version available, you can just use that instead of large mid and small cap
No bonds is interesting... though you are young.. but I always included it haha. I always did 50 Large, 5 small, 5 mid, 20 intl 20 bonds. so yours broadly follow that to some degree. Doesn't seem too bad tbh allocation wise. though i don't know about the individual holding. do you have a "normal" intl or just those 2? I would have just dumped the full 20% to VTIAX.
My humble suggestions: 1. Pick up a copy of Morgan Housel's *The Psychology of Money* and read it. Then do the same with *A Random Walk Down Wall Street* by Burton Malkiel and *All About Asset Allocation* by Rick Ferri. 2. Out of the hypothetical million, set aside enough for your immediate family's short-term needs. Make sure to have an emergency fund of at least six months' worth of living expenses. Examine whether it makes sense to pay off the home mortgage, or at least make additional payments on it each year. Set aside enough for the kids college funds, if that aligns with your children's ages and goals. You might find that a million bucks doesn't go as far as it used to... 3. Take whatever funds are available for long-term investment and put them to work in pursuit of a coherent investment strategy. Housel, Malkiel, and Ferri, the authors I mentioned, are all r/Bogleheads, i.e. investors who follow the strategy outlined by Jack Bogle, the founder of Vanguard. In general this means a small number of broadly diversified index funds that track the returns of the total market, in order to seek a reasonable long-term return without excess risk. The go-to funds for this strategy are VTSAX (Vanguard Total US Stock Market), VTIAX (Vanguard Total International Stock Market), and VTBLX (Vanguard Total US Bond Market). Some investors also add VTAPX (Vanguard TIPS) to the fixed income portfolio to address inflation risk. The precise asset allocation is very subjective, depending on appetite for volatility and other psychological factors, hence the three books I suggested above. 4. Perhaps the most difficult task: Once invested, leave the money alone. Don't tinker. Stay the course. It's not timing the market, but rather time in the market that greatly determines investment success. 5. Once you have real financial wealth at stake, get a good CFP (Certified Financial Planner) and estate planning lawyer to help with legacy planning. Advisors should be paid by the hour or by a fixed-fee schedule, never from a percentage of assets under management. Finally, recognize the truism, eloquently stated by the Scottish poet Robert Burns, that the best laid schemes of mice and men often go awry. Perhaps the single most important investment is not money, but the time and effort taken to raise our children to be people of good conscience, strong moral fiber, and unflappable work ethic who, of their own volition, take on responsibility for being financially prudent. Alas, the adage, "rags to riches to rags in three generations" exists for a reason. I wish you and your family good fortune.
Yeah, I'm right there with you. Couple that with the US its back on our partners and ostracizing ourselves from the global economy with tariffs... I am heavily leaning into moving a large chunk of my individual brokerage VFIAX to VTIAX. I know I'll be hit with capital gains, but it seems worth it?
I was 100% VIIIX but now: Fund Name,Ticker,Allocation (%) Vanguard Institutional Index Fund Instl Pl,VIIIX,54 Vanguard Mid Cap Index Institutional,VMCIX,15 Vanguard Small Cap Index Institutional,VSCIX,8 Vanguard Total Intl Stock Index Admiral,VTIAX,15 Vanguard Total Bond Market Index Admiral,VBTLX,8 Still aggressive but less so.
Sorry, let me clarify, what I meant is the legality for a U.S. citizen to own international index funds? Is that still legal? I’m asking if I need to legally unload all of my shares of FZILX and VTIAX on market open on Monday.
How do you think this affects people that own international index funds? Things like FZILX or VTIAX?? I mean a huge portion of Americans own this as part of their diversification on their portfolios. Or am I misunderstanding this?
You only need two funds. VTSAX and VTIAX. Check out r/bogleheads and don’t look back
As of now 28% of my retirement portfolio is VTIAX, European stock index. It's a big chunk of my nonretirement funds and I also have a ton of money in SAP, which has gone through the roof over the past year. Other main holdings are S&P 500 and bonds. VTIAX has been a dog for a long time but I still like it. It does its job in the portfolio and I am a firm believer that the Europeans are about to fire up their defense industries and start spending. They'll come around.
I have used them for many years and I’m happy there with low fees and professional service. Plus you have a fund or 401k with them already. I’m mainly in VTSAX, VTIAX and VFSUX and have had success with these since 2004. Plus my uncle is an ex chief economist on Wall Street and it’s his recommendation and he used to tell large corporations where to park their funds and now he does it for friends and family as a hobby.
Look for a good balanced boglehead-style fund with low expense ratio that will offer both growth and income. Or split it manually into 40% VTSAX domestic stock/VTIAX 20% international stock/VBTLX 40% bonds.
If you like or at least don’t mind your living situation with your friend. I would keep that apartment for as long as you can that’s an amazing deal and it’s going to allow you to get light years ahead of your peers in terms of savings and investing. A 6 month emergency fund may not be a bad idea if your industry is unstable. Regarding the car unless it’s something you’re into that brings you joy I wouldn’t waste money on it. If it’s solely about taking you from A-B any used Japanese Econo line car or truck will do wonders for a long time to come for less then 30k. And the additional money you will be able to add to the markets especially in your 20’s where compounding will work immensely in your favor. For the rest just VOO/VTI is fine I would recommend more diversification through VTIAX or similar international indexes 80/20 up to 70/30 split.