A Beginner’s Guide to Building a 3 Fund Portfolio

by | Aug 14, 2023 | Vanguard IRA | 19 comments




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0:00 3-Fund Portfolio
2:22 What is a 3-Fund Portfolio
4:20 Is a 3-Fund Portfolio diversified?
8:21 Historical Returns of a 3-Fund Portfolio
13:42 How to Create a 3-Fund Portfolio
18:00 What mutual funds or ETFs to Use
20:40 M1 Finance & 3-Fund Portfolio
26:28 How to increase returns

A three fund portfolio is a simple approach to investing that, as the name suggests, involves just three mutual funds or exchange-traded funds. In just three funds, an investor can build a diversified, low cost portfolio that’s easy to manage.

Popularized by the Bogleheads, the three fund portfolio is one of several “Lazy Portfolios.” You don’t let the Simplicity fool you. A three fund portfolio has outperformed most comparable actively managed portfolios Over the past several decades. In this article, we’ll look at what comprises a 3-fund portfolio, its diversification, its historical returns, and how to easily build a 3-fund portfolio. We’ll also look at a few ways you can supercharge the returns with a significant increase to volatility by adding a few more funds to the mix.

#3fundportfolio #bogleheads #lazyportfolios

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While still working as a trial attorney in the securities field, I started writing about personal finance and investing In 2007. In 2013 I started the Doughroller Money Podcast, which has been downloaded millions of times. Today I’m the Deputy Editor of Forbes Advisor, managing a growing team of editors and writers that produce content to help readers make the most of their money.

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How to Create a 3 Fund Portfolio | A Beginner’s Guide

Investing can be an intimidating task, especially for beginners. With so many investment options available, it’s easy to get overwhelmed and make mistakes. However, building a solid investment portfolio doesn’t have to be complicated. One popular and effective strategy for beginner investors is creating a three-fund portfolio.

A three-fund portfolio is a simple and diversified investment approach that consists of three key asset classes: domestic stocks, international stocks, and bonds. This strategy allows you to have exposure to different types of investments while keeping costs low and minimizing risk.

Here’s a step-by-step guide on how to create your own three-fund portfolio:

1. Determine your risk tolerance: The first step in building any investment portfolio is to understand your risk tolerance. Ask yourself how comfortable you are with market fluctuations and potential losses. This will help you decide the appropriate allocation of stocks and bonds within your portfolio.

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2. Allocate funds to domestic stocks: The first fund in your portfolio should be an index fund that tracks a broad domestic stock index, such as the S&P 500. This fund should represent a significant portion of your total portfolio, as it provides exposure to the US stock market. It’s a good idea to choose a low-cost fund with a reputable provider.

3. Allocate funds to international stocks: The second fund in your portfolio should be an index fund that captures international stock markets. This fund diversifies your portfolio beyond the US market, exposing you to companies from around the world. Similar to the domestic stock fund, select a low-cost index fund that covers a broad global index.

4. Allocate funds to bonds: The third and final fund in your portfolio should be a bond fund. Bonds are considered less volatile than stocks and provide stability to your portfolio. The allocation to bonds depends on your risk tolerance and investment goals. If you’re young and have a high tolerance for risk, you may have a lower allocation to bonds. On the other hand, if you’re closer to retirement and prioritize capital preservation, a higher bond allocation may be appropriate.

5. Rebalance regularly: Once you have set up your three-fund portfolio, it’s important to rebalance it periodically. Rebalancing involves adjusting the allocation of funds to maintain the desired asset mix. As some assets outperform or underperform others, the portfolio’s balance can become skewed. Rebalancing helps to bring it back in line with your target allocation.

6. Keep costs low: One of the advantages of a three-fund portfolio is its simplicity and low costs. Choose funds with low expense ratios and avoid funds with high management fees. Over time, high fees can eat into your investment returns.

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7. Stay the course: Lastly, it’s crucial to stay disciplined and not make impulsive changes to your portfolio. Investing is a long-term game, and short-term fluctuations should not sway your investment decisions. Stick to your original plan and have confidence in the diversified nature of your three-fund portfolio.

In conclusion, a three-fund portfolio offers a straightforward and effective investment strategy for beginners. It allows you to diversify your holdings across domestic stocks, international stocks, and bonds while keeping costs low and managing risk. By following these steps and regularly reviewing and rebalancing your portfolio, you can set yourself up for long-term investment success.

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19 Comments

  1. generic user name

    Another nice video mangled by spam comments. There is no way in actual hell Youtube cannot identify and delete all the fraudulent spam comments and accounts as soon as they are posted, but they actively choose not to. Youtube is not our friend.

  2. Nick

    I’ve had majority of my holdings in tech stocks and irrespective of market changes, I’ve done pretty well especially with apple’s P/E(price to earnings ratio) gaining over 30% this past decade, now my questions is what stocks do you think will be the next apple in terms of growth for the next decade.

  3. Jalil Morshedi

    Why diversity is so important. If you have a strong stomach you can buy few, like 5, good company you know and buy their stocks. And hold them. And why bonds?

  4. Alexander Webber

    My portfolio is drastically declining, I've lost roughly $320k in a short period of time, and I no longer feel secure in choosing stocks. Do I truly have no alternative ways to profit from the stock market?

  5.  Benoit Massicotte

    I have a 3 fund portfolio consisting of 33% S&P, 33% Total stock, and 33% international. I feel a need to focus on complete growth so I went 100% stocks, but does the SP500 and TSM overlap too much to make sense holding both? However I’ve been in the red for a month now. I work hard for my money, so investing is making me a nervous sad wreck. I don’t know if I should sell everything, sit and just wait but watching my portfolio of $450k dwindle away is such an eye -sore.

  6. The Wendy Rawley Team

    Hello Rob, I Love and appreciate your videos. Do you still love M1 over Vanguard a couple of years after this video was made (July 2023)?

  7. Alax Frye

    I began my investment journey at the age of 37, primarily through hard work and dedication. Now at the age of 42, I am thrilled to share that my passive income exceeded $100k in a single month for the first time. This success reinforces the importance of the advice mentioned earlier. It is not about achieving quick wealth, but rather ensuring long-term financial prosperity.

  8. Khafre Ahmose

    Im doing the following. Any thoughts???
    FXAIX – 70%
    FSPSX – 20%
    FNBGX – 10%

  9. Abdullah alsharifi

    can you make a video on how can non-US citizens who also do not live in the US create a portfolio?

  10. Anish Desai

    Hi rob thank you for your video. I had a question about rebalancing. I mean how does one rebalance when ones portfolio has grown significantly. Does that attract significant taxes or should I just be adding more money to the trailing sections of the portfolio

  11. Jesse Michael Barr

    Noob question- in the 3 fund portfolio, are there dividends? Where do they go? Are they automatically re-invested?

  12. RJ B

    This information is extemely valuable at my point in life age 62. Your style of teaching is so calming and simple *in a good way it keeps my attention! AWESOME Video Rob!

  13. Janet Hunt

    Question: does the investment return percentage include a reduction for the expense ratio?

  14. William Yejun

    Currently I'm just being smart and frugal with my money, I'm in the green 47% over the last 23 months and l've accumulated over $70K in pure profits from DCA’ing into stocks, ETFs, dividends and futures. However I’ve been in the red for a month now. I work hard for my money, so investing is making me a nervous sad wreck. I don’t know if I should sell everything, sit and just wait.

  15. Tjalle van Rijssel

    i still don't really understand how the growth rate jumped to 16 percent, can someone eleborate?

  16. Aziz Einas

    I have a 3 fund portfolio consisting of 33% S&P, 33% Total stock, and 33% international. I feel a need to focus on complete growth so I went 100% stocks, but does the SP500 and TSM overlap too much to make sense holding both? However I’ve been in the red for a month now. I work hard for my money, so investing is making me a nervous sad wreck. I don’t know if I should sell everything, sit and just wait but watching my portfolio of $450k dwindle away is such an eye -sore.

  17. Riggs Nicole

    Protecting your capital is much more important than making money. Basically because if you lose your capital, making money is much harder. ''Missing the train'' vs. ''losing your money''. There are a lot of trains, but if your money is gone, it's over.

  18. Linny H

    The calculation of "16.12%" is incorrect. That is ror calculation that assumes max you put in is $10,000, doesn't seem to take into account the monthly calculation, just the initial balance.

  19. cwestinx

    Wait! We go back to using POS laptops in the future?!?

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