Part 1 of 2
Retirement planning is challenging, and the biggest fear is not having enough money during retirement. The year 2022 made things worse as even a well-diversified portfolio did not spare anyone from pain. Bonds, which are supposed to offset the risk in stocks, experienced their worst year in history, leading to a 60/40 benchmark mix of 60% stocks and 40% bonds down by 16%. Personal finance expert Christine Benz has a way to build better and more resilient retirement portfolios that are less vulnerable to short-term market behavior. She will describe her bucket investing approach to building a retirement portfolio in this first of a two-part series.
Listen to the audio-only version here:
Learn More…
Christine Benz’ Bucket Approach to Building a Retirement Portfolio
Christine Benz, Morningstar’s personal finance guru, has a passion for retirement planning. She has written many articles over the years about the “bucket approach” to retirement portfolios, a strategy she learned from legendary financial advisor Harold Evensky. She generously shared some of her most recent research on the topic with WEALTHTRACK.
- The Bucket Approach to Building a Retirement Portfolio (basic explainer)
- The Bucket Investor’s Guide to Setting Retirement Asset Allocation
- Tax-Deferred Retirement-Saver Portfolios for Mutual Fund Investors
- Tax-Deferred Retirement-Bucket Portfolios for ETF Investors
Explore This Episode
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CHRISTINE BENZ
- Director of Personal Finance and Retirement Planning, Morningstar
ACTION POINT
START ADDING SOME INTERNATIONAL STOCKS TO YOUR PORTFOLIO
- International stock markets have lagged the U.S. since 2008
- U.S. stocks underperformed in 2022 due to high inflation, rising interest rates, and recession fears
- International stocks have cheaper valuations than the U.S.
GOLD-RATED INTERNATIONAL ETFS
From Morningstar’s gold-rated “7 Best International-Stock ETFs”
Dimensional International Core Equity Market ETF (DFAI)
iShares Core MSCI Total International Stock ETF (IXUS)
Vanguard FTSE All-World ex-US ETF (VEU)
Vanguard Total International Stock ETF (VXUS)
BOOKSHELF
ONE INVESTMENT
INTERNATIONAL VALUE CHOICE
Buy: Vanguard International Value Inv (VTRIX)
as of 3/31/2023. Check here for the latest updates.
STOCK, BOND & FUND MENTIONS
Charts courtesy of Morningstar as of 3/31/2023. Click on the name for updates.
Fidelity Short-Term Bond (FSHBX)
Vanguard Short-Term Bond Index Adm (VBIRX)
Baird Short-Term Bond Investor (BSBSX)
Vanguard Dividend Appreciation Index Adm (VDADX)
Vanguard Dividend Growth Inv (VDIGX)
T. Rowe Price Dividend Growth (PRDGX)
FROM THE ARCHIVE
Christine Benz from the WEALTHTRACK Archives:
WEB EXTRA
MICRO JOY RECHARGING
Christine Benz’ jam-packed schedule of daily columns, interviews, podcasts, speaking engagements, and appearances is enough to take my breath away. I asked her how she recharges.