Index Fund vs Target Date Fund: Which to Choose in 2026?
If you are choosing between an index fund vs target date fund for your retirement account, the short answer is that both can work, and…
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Gambler’s Fallacy Investing Mistakes: Why Your Portfolio Is Never “Due”
On the night of August 18, 1913, the ball at a Monte Carlo roulette table landed on black 26 times in a row. By the…
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Three Fund Portfolio for Beginners: A Complete Guide to Building One in 2026
You can build a diversified, global investment portfolio out of just three index funds, spend about ten minutes a year maintaining it, and pay a…
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Dollar Cost Averaging vs Lump Sum Investing: What 47 Years of Data Say About Your Windfall
You just received $30,000 from a bonus, an inheritance, or a house sale, and the market is sitting near highs. The question of dollar cost…
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How to Start Investing With $100: A 12-Month Case Study
A hundred dollars won’t make you rich this year. Invested at a 7% average annual return and topped up with $100 every month, it grows…
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401(k) Choice Overload: Why More Fund Options Can Cost You
For every 10 funds an employer added to its 401(k) menu, participation dropped by 1.5 to 2 percentage points. That’s the headline finding from a…
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Coast FIRE Number: The Math for When You Can Stop Saving for Retirement
A 35-year-old with $231,377 invested can stop contributing to retirement accounts entirely and still land at roughly $1 million by age 65, assuming a 5%…
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Target Date Fund in a Taxable Account: The Deep-Dive Guide to What It Really Costs You (2026)
In December 2021, investors holding Vanguard’s Target Retirement 2040 fund in a regular brokerage account got a capital gains distribution equal to 14.98% of the…
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Tax Loss Harvesting for Small Portfolios: Is It Worth It? The Formula, Run on $5,000, $20,000 and $50,000
A $12,000 index fund position drops 15%. You now have an $1,800 paper loss and a dozen articles telling you to “harvest” it. Here is…
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Target Date Fund Glide Path: “To” vs “Through” and the 10-Point Equity Gap at Retirement
Two funds. Same target year. Same ticker family, even. One holds 40% stocks the day you retire and never moves again. The other holds 50%…
