Should You Have The Same Stocks and Bonds Across All Accounts – Money Q&A

Transcript:

On this episode of the personal finance podcast, should you have the same stocks and bonds in every account? We're going to answer on today's money. Q and a

wealth builders and welcome to the personal finance podcast. I'm your host, Andrew founder of master money. co and today on the personal finance podcast. We're going to be going through a money Q and a through a bunch of your questions. If you guys have any questions, make sure to hit us up on Instagram, tick tock Twitter at master money co and follow us on Spotify, Apple podcast, or whatever your favorite podcast player is that you're listening to this podcast on.

Right now. And if you want to hop out the show, consider leaving a five star rating and review, cannot thank you guys enough for leaving those five star ratings and reviews. They truly mean the world to us. Cannot thank you guys enough for doing that. Now, today we're going to be diving into four of your different questions on this money Q and a, uh, and super excited to answer some of these, because these are going to be really, really interesting ones.

So the first one is. Should you have the same stocks and bonds in every account? We're going to go through the considerations of that. And should you have them in all your account meeting? Should you have the same stocks and bond or asset allocation in things like your Roth IRA or your 401k, all of those different things.

Then when should you consider using robo advisors? And what do I think about robo advisors? Are they good ideas? That is another question that we're going to be answering today. Do you think mutual funds are good investments for Roth? IRAs are the third question. So I love this question and it's one that we're going to dive deep into.

And then lastly, what is the best account to save for a wedding? So for fantastic question, three on investing one on savings. If that's something you're into, let's get into it. All right. The first question is I struggle most with the concept of diversification across my various investing accounts. For instance.

If I have a 401k an HSAA Roth IRAA brokerage account, and I'm trying to use a strategy with ETFs, how do I diversify in the sense that all those accounts aren't going to the same V-T-I-V-T-S-A-X-V-O-O options, or should they, since those are diverse funds themselves. So this becomes a question overall of what your entire investment plan is, and this is a very, very important thing to do.

And what I'm going to do when I answer this question is I'm going to go through two options here. One of which is first figuring out what your investment plan is. But then secondly, you need to understand that there are specific investments that if you are going to invest in very specific investments, maybe they need to go in certain accounts.

But outside of that, you can be strategic with that, but outside of that, if you're not going to do that, if you're just going with a standard index fund and ETF portfolio, then there's some things that I really want you to think through here. So first of all, you chose your asset allocation. And if you haven't chosen your asset allocation yet, this is a great time to kind of think through that because it's super, super important to have this ready.

Um, but figuring out what your risk tolerance is and what your asset allocation is, is going to be really, really important. If you are an investor who truly believes in the Warren Buffett portfolio, which is 90 percent stocks, 10 percent bonds, or you truly believe in a three fund portfolio, which is a number of different things, but it could be something like 50 percent in us stocks, 30 percent in international stocks.

And 20 percent in bonds, that's another option. Or if you're someone who just has a specific portfolio that you like to follow a 60, 40 or whatever else it is, then if you chose that asset allocation, you chose that asset allocation for a reason. And so having that asset allocation across these various accounts is going to be the most simple form to invest in simplicity.

Like, you know, is what we want to do when it comes to investing overall. So number one. Is it is more simple just to have the same asset allocation across all these accounts. If that's your investment strategy. Now, if you want to have some extra stuff in there, maybe you want to have some stocks like individual stocks like Apple or Amazon or those types of things, or you want to have dividend paying stocks, or you want to own REITs.

Well, some of these are less tax efficient because the type of dividends that they pay out. This is really important to notate. So if you want to reduce that tax liability, then maybe specific things like that can go. Into your Roth, for example, so that you can reduce that tax liability over time. Like if you're a dividend investor or you're a dividend growth investor, for example, a Roth IRA is a great account for dividend growth investors, a, because your goal is to have that cashflow, that dividend growth over time, and the Roth IRA is tax free growth.

So those dividends that are coming in are going to be tax free, really, really powerful way to do that. And we're going to talk more about investing in the Roth IRA later today, but this is just a great example of kind of how to place some of this stuff. That's one reason that you may want to consider not being across all accounts.

And then another reason why you may want to consider not being consistent across all accounts would be your investment options. So for example, If your 401k options are subpar at best, I mean, you just have 401k options that are not the same as maybe some of your other options. You don't have a ton of flexibility, or maybe you have a TSP or something along those lines, then your asset allocation is not going to be the same, exactly the same across all accounts.

And so that's going to make a differentiator right there as well. So thinking about this, for example, You know, if your 401k just has mutual funds, but you want to get that 401k match, then that obviously is not going to be the same across the board. Or if you're someone who wants to invest in crypto, something like that, that's obviously not, you're not going to add a little bit of crypto in each and every single portfolio if they actually have that option.

So this is something where you just want to think through what those options are, but really it's strategic asset allocation, meaning your tax considerations, all that kind of stuff needs to be thought through. If you're going to invest in a bunch of different stuff, if you're not. If you're just doing index funds and ETFs, keeping it consistent across the board is really important.

What's another reason why you want to keep it consistent? Because you can have a consistent risk profile. Meaning if you figure out what your risk tolerance is and your risk tolerance is, Hey, I want to have 60 percent stocks and I want to have 40 percent bonds. I figured out this is the comfortable place I want to be in.

I've heard Andrew talk about some of these historic charts where the 60 40 portfolio is one of those portfolios that may have less risk historically. Then maybe that's something you're interested in. And so if that's something you're interested in, there's no reason not to have that across the board on all your accounts.

It also helps you align with your investment philosophy. If your investment plan is to have this portfolio, aligning that philosophy across the board is also going to be really, really important. And then it also just helps you reduce complexity. Like I said, we want to simplify these portfolios as much as we possibly can.

And the reduction of complexity means that you are going to be so much more consistent when it comes to investing your dollars, building wealth. And you're going to be so much more consistent with your money because simplicity allows longevity when it comes to money. Let me say it again, simplicity allows longevity, meaning that the more simple your portfolio is, the more likely you are to have that consistency, the more likely over time that you're gonna be able to do this.

And then lastly, it allows you to track your portfolio uniformly, meaning it's a lot easier to track your portfolio if everything is the same across the board. So this is something where overall. Super, super simple. So this is kind of how I think about it. I have pretty much the same portfolio across the board.

Now I have a taxable brokerage account and in that taxable brokerage account, I have my individual stocks that I've had for years and years and years. And in that taxable brokerage account, I also have the asset allocation that I have across the board. So if there's additional things that I want to invest in, sometimes I will just add it to my taxable brokerage account.

I have a little bit of crypto too. I'm not a crypto person, but I do have a little bit of crypto. And so that's in a, Different account. For example, on all, the only thing in that account is crypto, but my Roth IRA, my 401k, the HSA, my wife's Roth IRA, all of these are consistently with the same asset allocation.

That kind of fits what our risk tolerance is. And I have a very high risk tolerance when it comes to index fund investing, which for me. It's not very high risk because these portfolios have performed very well historically over the last 50 years. And so for me, I don't see it as high risk, but it is considered in quotations high risk, but it's the same across the entire board.

In fact, I have that same portfolio in my kids, taxable brokerage accounts. I have that same portfolio if I can get it inside of a 529 plan. So inside their 529 plan, we don't have the same exact investment options that we would across the board. And so in their 529 plan, I have the next best thing, but it is slightly different.

So that's another example of, Hey, these offerings are not in my kids 529 plan, but across the board. I'm doing the same thing all the way across the board because why it is so much easier overall. And I want it to be simple for you. I think that's one of the most powerful things that you can do with your money is simplify as much as you possibly can.

So this is a fantastic question. Amazing that you are thinking through this because I think it's really, really important. And if you have any additional questions, please just let me know. Let's jump to the next one. All right. The next question is a wonderful one. And one, we haven't covered a ton on this podcast yet.

I'd like to better understand if there's instances that it makes more sense for someone to use a robo option, like Wealthfront or Betterment to automate and balance your portfolio rather than simply automating your fidelity account to invest in a certain ETF each month for a given account. Any experience with these?

Okay. So this is a fantastic question. And if you don't know what a robo advisor is, this is a brokerage account, typically that you can invest in and they have algorithms that are going to help you create a diversified portfolio based on your risk tolerance. So you're going to go in there and robo advisors like wealth, front or betterment, we'll ask you a bunch of questions and they are absolutely are not perfect.

Uh, and based on the answers to those questions and you going through that questionnaire, they will kind of craft a portfolio for you. And the cool thing about these are, is they will give you like a mix of ETFs or index funds, and you can say, Hey, I'm looking for low cost funds and you're trying to look for Vanguard funds or whatever else you have specifics there, and they will help you kind of create a diverse automatically rebalanced portfolio without needing to select all these specific investments.

They'll kind of. Do it all for you with one nice package and tie a bow on top. And so the cool thing about this is, is it'll do it all for you. This is fully automated, meaning that you can really fully automate this. It'll actually automatically invest your dollars for you in some of this stuff. So if you're looking for like full automation, overall, Robo advisors are a great, great option.

Now, the one thing that I know everybody's going to know that I'm going to say, because I'm Mr. Fee is that the fees are a little higher. So overall. Uh, we'll talk about the fees in a second, but overall the fees are going to be something like 0. 25%. I've seen them as high as 0. 30%. And so really it's still under that 0.

30 percent range that I really want you at. Now, an ETF is going to be 0. 04%, so significantly less over time, but it is something where I'll show you kind of what the costs would be for every 500 that you're investing and see if it's worth it to you. Uh, but that's kind of where those expense ratios land.

Now. This does allow you for customization and you have a little bit of control here where you can just automatically invest into those specific ETFs and they will automatically do it for you. I love that part. I love that you can automatically do this. Like for Fidelity, for example, you're funneling money into on specific brokerage accounts, you have to funnel money in, it automates in, but then you got to go in there and actually invest those dollars.

Same thing with your Roth IRA. And so got to make sure that. This is fully automated. It's actually very helpful to make sure that this is fully automated. If you're the person that kind of forgets that you put money into this account, you kind of invest your money, you know, 6 to 12 months down the line.

I know people that have done that before where they're just hands off. And then over time, they just kind of forget to go in there and invest those dollars. Then this is another great reason to kind of have something like that. Now, one of the big features that they really like to push with some of these accounts is the tax efficiency.

So things like tax loss, harvesting and other tax efficient strategies. Robo advisors are great at this. They are great at helping you through this. So you don't have to go through a CPA or somebody else or a CFP to make sure that you are getting some of this tax loss harvesting robo advisors will actually help you through that.

That's one of the actual pros that I see with robo advisors. But if you're into tax loss harvesting, that's an amazing one. Now, if you're looking to simplify your finances, let me let you in on a little secret, wasting time on tax loss, harvesting. Is not going to be your primary focus. Now, sure. Is it optimized?

Absolutely. You'll hear us do episodes on tax loss harvesting because it's an optimized way to operate your finances. But is it necessary? Absolutely not. Are you bad with money? If you don't do tax loss harvesting. No, you are not. So I just want you to kind of understand that overall. You may be hearing people talk about tax loss harvesting and they do it all the time and how amazing this is.

And sure it is beneficial, but you are not bad with money. You are still a wealth builder, even if you do not partake in tax loss harvesting, just so everybody knows, I want to make that clear overall. It is ease of use and it reduces your time investment. So like if you're a new investor, you don't really care about learning about more stuff when it comes to investing, you know, target date retirement funds are fantastic, have lower fees.

But if you don't want to go that route, robo advisors are also great. So they just have higher fees, but they are also great. They also have, you know, savings accounts like high yield savings accounts. So if you want to keep it all in one spot, that's another thing that you can do when it comes to some of these robo advisors.

And then they also have tools and financial advice. If you want to go that route as well, um, you can actually have access to human advisors with some of these services. So it is all around something that I do think people should consider. It is not a tool that I currently use, but I do think that if you're looking for a little extra help, a little extra bump, you're looking for more automation.

You're looking for tax loss harvesting, then this can make sense for a lot of people. So I think that is one. Um, that's really, really going to be helpful. It also helps you with like risk management and making sure that everything aligns, but again, these questionnaires are not perfect. So you really got to think through, is this exactly what I want?

Look at the numbers and the metrics and the predictions that they give you. And then look at the historic data, which is more important and make sure that aligns with what you think it should. Meaning, is it a seven to 10 percent rate of return? Is it a six to 10 percent rate of return? All of these are going to matter, uh, when it comes to making sure you're aligned with your investment goals.

I don't want you in a 90 percent bond, 10 percent stock portfolio. If you're 20 years old, you know what I mean? So overall, it's just one of those things that just making sure it aligns, it probably would never do that, but I'm just kind of throwing up crazy examples here to make sure all of us are on the same page here.

So that's one thing to think through. Now the fees. Now let's talk to the fees a little bit because these fees are a little higher. So if you're like trying to decide, Hey, should I just invest in VTI or should I go to Betterment and invest in their VTI with a little bit of extra flavor with it? So you can look at fees for example, and if you did 500 a month over the course of 30 years into an ETF with a 0.

04 percent expense ratio, and that's very standard for a lot of ETFs, some are 0. 03. Uh, there are some out there that are even lower and you got an 8 percent rate of return, then you would pay 5, 433 in fees over the course of 30 years. Pretty, pretty good overall with that low of fees over the course of 30 years, but.

With a robo advisor over the course of that same exact return. So 500 a month, 30 years into that ETF with a 0. 25 percent fees that you're paying to betterment or whoever else with that 8 percent rate of return, you're going to pay 33, 233 in fees. So you're going to be paying an additional 28, 027 in some change thousand dollars in fees by going with a robo advisor.

Now, is this the end of the world because it's over the course of 30 years? No, it's an extra thousand dollars per year. Uh, if you average it out over the course of those 30 years, but if you're really trying to optimize your money, an extra 30, 000, just trying to figure out, Hey, if I draw that down in the 4 percent rule, it could be an extra 30, 000 that I have here or there.

Uh, and it may matter for some portfolios. If you're someone who is trying to retire, very lean. That could very well matter. So just making sure you understand that. And you know, uh, that number is much greater if you're investing more dollars. So just making sure you understand how that number impacts you.

A Schwab has a really, really good fee calculator that I've been playing around with, and I think that's a really helpful one. So if you've never utilized that, Charles Schwab has a really good investment fee calculator. You could just Google Charles Schwab investment fee calculator, and we'll try to link it up down below too, so that you can see that.

But that is what I use for this math. And it's really, really good. You can kind of see the differential between some of these fees. So if you're investing two grand a month or something like that, make sure you run it through that fee calculator, because it could be something that is going to save you six figures.

So I just want you to make sure the greater amount that you're investing, the more that number is going to be. Definitely want to make sure you consider that because also you have to consider the opportunity costs as well. That could be a big, big number. So just thinking through that, uh, the fees are the greatest roadblock for me, but it does give you that automation, which is beautiful.

It does give you tax loss harvesting, which is not required and is a really, really helpful tool for a lot of people, especially if you're not going to focus all your time on your finance. So definitely I'm open to it. I'm open to it. If you think it's going to help you. Uh, and if you consult with one of them, they're obviously going to try to sell you hard, but at the same time, it could be beneficial for some of you.

Question number three, do you think mutual funds are good investments? For Roth IRAs. Now, this is a fantastic question. It just so happens that your boy is going to give you his rankings for his favorite investments in a Roth IRA. So overall, one thing I want you to really know is that I want you to know that the Roth IRA is an account that you put investments inside, and those investments should be long term investments, the Roth IRA is a long.

This is not an account that you want to just open up and start day trading inside or to do some of these wacky things that you could do a Roth IRA. The true benefit is that it is a long term account. I want you to think about the Roth IRA like this. You can think of it at the end of your life. The Roth IRA is going to be this giant tree, and you only had to pay taxes on the seeds, and that is exactly what a Roth IRA looks like.

I saw this really cool cartoon, um, by someone, sorry, I can't remember the name, but that was kind of what it was saying, was that it had this massive tree, and there was this guy standing in front of that tree, and he said, man, I only had to pay taxes on the seats. And so this is exactly how I want you to think about the Roth IRA, because the money that you contribute to the Roth IRA is what you pay taxes on.

It grows tax free and you can pull the money out tax free. And so this is why you need to have these long term accounts over time. Now, what are my favorite investments in a Roth IRA? Well, tied for first, I got three. Index funds, ETFs, and target date retirement funds, target date retirement index funds, actually.

Uh, so that's the top three for me. All of those are just amazing options. They are all long term options. They are passive investments. They have low costs. They have historically outperformed the market. All are absolutely amazing. So everybody tries to outperform the S and P 500 index fund. For example, that is a fantastic thing to put in your Roth IRA.

What's in my Roth IRA. There's a lot of S and P 500 exposure. I'll tell you that much right now. So it is just a wonderful, wonderful way to invest your dollars. And I think it is a wonderful way for a lot of people to be able to passively invest their money, not have to think about this stuff all the time.

And instead you can get your dollars inside of that Roth IRA. So that's my number one. Are those three is the ETFs index funds and target date index funds. Then things like mutual funds, which is what you're asking about. Well, really what an index fund is, is it is a type of mutual fund, but it's an index fund that has lower costs.

So a traditional mutual fund is in a type of investment vehicle that kind of pulls money from investors from all over the place. And they invest in like a diversified portfolio of stocks and bonds and other securities. But usually they're managed by a professional fund manager. Now, a professional fund manager is going to have a team with a high rise in New York city, and you're going to be paying for that high rise in New York city, and you're going to be paying for that team in the form of a fee.

And so that fee is going to be going to that fund manager. And typically here's a fun stat for you at a 90 percent of the time. Professional money managers and mutual funds do not outperform the S and P 500. And of the 10 percent that do, they are not the same year in and year out. What does that mean?

That means that it is much easier and it is much more cost effective to invest in like an S and P 500 index fund, which is what they are trying to outperform every single year. And so for me, I am more interested in index funds. I am not interested in mutual funds whatsoever because the size of that fee.

Now, if you don't know how to look up a fee on a mutual fund, uh, you can go to morningstar. com is a great place to start and morning star. When you put in the ticker symbol of that mutual fund, there'll be something called an expense ratio. And I want you to look at that expense ratio. And if it is higher than 0.

30%, I don't really think you should look at it. If it's higher than 0. 30%, which is 30 basis points. Then to me, it's getting a little too expensive for my taste. So overall, just kind of use that as a baseline and think it through. Expense ratios are really, really, really important. I also think bonds are great exposure in a Roth IRA over time, because if you're going to build out that portfolio and then you want to have that bond exposure, those are great in there.

Now, if you're going to invest in REITs, something like that, REITs are great to invest in a Roth IRA because they generate high levels of income through their dividends. Which would be taxable on a regular brokerage. So you want to make sure that things like REITs or dividend stocks are also great in a Roth IRA.

And then obviously small cap, all that kind of stuff is also good there too. But long term investments, if you're going to invest in something long term inside of a Roth IRA is a great place to consider it, uh, depending on your tax situation and what your CPA says and all these different things, but overall mutual funds, can you put them in a Roth IRA if you're investing in them?

Absolutely. Uh, just make sure you check on those fees. Really, really important to watch out for fees and mutual funds. Alrighty. So on the last question is what would be the best way for a single woman to store or grow money separate from her regular savings account set aside as a future wedding fund.

One of my savings goals. I think this is absolutely amazing. First of all, that you are even thinking about this. Most people don't think through this. They'll go into debt when it comes to a wedding, which is one of the last things you want to do. And guess what? Everyone's going to be surprised by this. I want you to spend more money on your wedding, meaning that, Hey, I know it's a party that's only six hours long, but if you value weddings and you had this idea that you wanted this dream wedding for your entire life, I want you to spend more money on that wedding.

How's that? But I want you to prepare for it. And so being prepared for this is exactly what you're thinking through. So I commend you on this. It is one of the most amazing things that you can do is you go and get to the point where you and your spouse are going to get married. Or you and your fiance are going to get married and you get to that point and you start your marriage debt free, how powerful can that be overall, specifically when it comes to a wedding, really, really important overall.

And not everybody is privileged to have their parents or their spouse's parents come and pay for a wedding. And so a lot of people have to pay for it themselves. And I think this is really, really powerful that you were going through this. So I'm going to give you three of my favorite places to save for a wedding fund.

Now I want everybody to kind of realize this upfront. When it comes to any short term savings goals, meaning money that you're going to go out and spend money that you're going to be thinking about utilizing within the next five to six to seven years, whether it be your house savings or your emergency fund or anything else that you need to prepare for your.

Car down payment fund. All this stuff is going to be things that you need to make sure you keep safe and protected. And so you keep it safe and protected by some of these options that I'm gonna give you today. Number one is if you want it separate from your savings account, you could put it in something like a sinking fund.

So a sinking fund is just a separate savings account where you can save for additional items inside of that sinking fund. And so traditionally I like to have it You know, just in another savings account. And typically you want it in a high yield savings account, meaning a online bank that's going to allow you to get more interest on that money.

Because right now, at the time of recording, this interest rates are pretty high. They may change if you're listening to this a year or two in the future. But right now, uh, interest rates are pretty high on savings accounts. I think my savings account gets 4. 5%. Um, there's a lot of them out there that get above.

5 percent of the time recording this, this will not last forever. It never does last forever, but it's a good time to have cash right now. And so a high yield savings account is a great place to put it. And so that is a great option to look for overall. And this could be a sinking fund. Number two is you can also utilize a money market account, which is very similar to a high yield savings account.

Some of them have slightly higher interest rates. Um, and so overall, that's another great place that you can put it. Or you can also look for a high yield savings account with budgets. So Ally bank, for example, has this thing called buckets and I'm not even affiliated with Ally bank. I talk about them all the time, but I just like their little buckets that they have, which their bucket system is just kind of budgeting inside of that account.

Hey, Ally, if you want to work together, give me a call. Uh, and overall, I think though, that this is something that's really, really powerful. And then also the third option after that is you can look at things like CDs or bonds. And so if you see that the interest rate is a massive differential between the high yield savings account and a CD, and by massive, I mean like a one and a half percent differential, then maybe you want to consider a CD.

If you're not going to use that for the next couple of months or year or two, then you could stick that money in a CD, get that higher interest rate. Like right now. When interest rates are a little higher, sometimes it's good to lock those in in the CDs because you know, at least for the next two years or so, if you're not getting married for a couple of years, that money will actually be compounding over that timeframe.

And then also a bond. So bonds are another great place, fixed income, those types of things. You can look at I bonds, you can look at T bills. There's a bunch of different great places that you can look to put this money. If the interest rates are high enough, uh, for you to consider that as well. So all of these are great spots to keep your cash.

Easiest is high yield savings account because you're still going to get that decently high interest rate and it's very liquid and accessible and it's easier to transfer money into it, uh, and just grow it over time. And so that's a great place to do it. If you want to open a separate high yield savings account, there's a bunch of great ones out there.

CIT bank ally. So that's exactly where I would keep that money. And if for any short term money like that, I would think of it the same way and make sure you have that cash saved and protected. Because what you don't want to do is invest those dollars. Because if you invest those dollars and say, for example, you're getting to the year where you're going to get married and the market has a correction or a crash.

You can have your wedding fund cut by 25 to 50%. So you got to make sure that you are putting it in a safe place where this cash can still grow a little bit, but overall, your main goal is to protect this cash for its intended purpose. And that is for your dream wedding day. So I'm really excited for you.

And overall, I think you're making a really great conscious decision. And so that is absolutely a fantastic idea. And if somebody in the family ends up trying to pay for it, guess what? Now you got extra cash on hand for a down payment on a house or for your honeymoon or dream vacation or whatever else you got going on overall.

So that is a great, great plan that you have there. So I commend you for that. Well, listen, thank you guys so much for listening to this episode. We truly appreciate each and every single one of you. And you invested in yourself today by listening to this episode. And so that is absolutely amazing. If you enjoyed this episode, share it with a friend, make sure you're subscribed to this podcast.

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And if you have any questions for these money, Q and a's make sure to reach out to me and I will put them in an episode. So just make sure you reach out. You can reach out to me via email. If you're on the newsletter, you could just. Reply to any email. I will see it. And if you're not on the newsletter, make sure to jump on that mastermind newsletter and or you can shoot me a DM or something else.

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Talk to you. Have a great week.