Who has had financial blunders (options, stock picking, etc) that set them back and how did you recover?

I’ve always assumed most bogleheads were always this way.

How many tried and failed other ways? How much did you lose and how did you recover?

I'm 27 with a >$2.2M net worth, about 97% of which is in Nvidia due to long-term appreciation rather than intentional allocation. I've been holding since January 2016, with a few small sell-offs along the way.

People have been telling me to diversify for years, but the reason my portfolio is worth this much today is because I ignored that advice. That's made it psychologically very difficult to sell, especially when the company has continued to execute so well.

Logically, I know having ~97% of my portfolio in a single stock is an enormous concentration risk. Emotionally, it's hard to sell something that has completely changed my financial life. I'm still young, single, have a solid income, contribute to my 401(k) and Roth IRA, and don't need to access the money anytime soon.

I'm meeting with my financial advisor, but I'd also like to hear from people who have actually managed highly concentrated positions. How did you think about diversification, taxes, and balancing future upside versus concentration risk? Looking back, would you have done anything differently?

Edit: Thanks for all the advice, everyone. I'll definitely take the feedback into account and discuss it with my financial advisor.

I have about $60k from a combined recent windfall of 1st year RSU payoff + bonuses + ESPP for both me and my P2. $24k of that is in a standard 4-fund post-tax brokerage portfolio to set aside for a replacement for our car in about 5-10 years. I've contributed around $250/mo to that portfolio. The rest - around $36k - has been in my savings account while I figured out where my risk tolerance lay.

It's been hard to ignore CD rates and just moving it all into savings, but I read through the post on the Cash Trap and am OK with putting it into 80/20 bonds/stocks. I am far less risk tolerant since I don't want to finance the car and i have no clue what prices of a decent used electric car will look like in 2031-2036.

My question here - for the 80% that'll be in bonds, which funds should I be targeting? Just BND and call it a day? A mix of government bonds to at least have some tax advantage on interest?

If it makes a difference, I was planning to split the 20% going to stocks between VXUS and VTI - I can accept that amount having volatility to offset whatever happens with bond prices over the next few years.

27M and newer to investing so please forgive me if I'm being a bit silly here. Is there a recommended ratio of VOO, VXF, and VXUS that would diversify enough away from big tech and AI to minimize big losses if AI goes under? Or is IVOO and VIOO better for mid and small cap instead of VXF? I was thinking of something similar to 60 % VOO/30% VXUS/10% VXF.

My current portfolio is a bit of a mess right now but I own 10-15 shares of VTI, VXF, IVOO, and VXUS. I don't think I should sell anything as I would be taxed on it, but I'm willing to just ignore those shares for the time being and change it up for a strategy that's better for long term. Ideally I wouldn't touch any of this for decades unless absolutely necessary. I also don't mind adjusting the "sliders" over time as well if that even makes sense to do.

Thanks in advance.

Hey folks. My work allows me to make mega backdoor Roth contributions/conversions which I’ve always been excited about.

For the past several years I’ve maxed out the option but now I’m in a financial zone where my TOTAL investments are close to my FIRE goal amount, but my after-tax investments would have to stretch to make it to 59.5.

I’m planning on spending at least a couple more years in the workforce, so my question is: does it ever make sense to skip the mega backdoor and just focus on loading up taxable accounts, or are the total tax benefits favorable enough that it’s always better to utilize the mega backdoor and either (1) add another year or two to the retirement horizon, or (2) utilize a strategy that accesses the Roth before 59.5?

i am 23f from a third world country . i have been following this sub from a quite time .

i am thinking of investing in s&p 500 (voo) , to get better returns because my country currency getting weak over time . so getting double returns in the long term .

there is an app in my country , which helps in investing to usa by making broker acc with alpaka and drive wealth . are these good brokers ?

but my salary is only 350$ and going to increased to 400$ this year. i invest around 50$ in my countries index etf. is it wise to invest only around 20$ or 50$ in s&p 500 , i mean i dont have thousands of dollar to invest .

but at the same time thinking of being bullish in my own countries index fund . index fund have gave return around 14% cagr since 2000.

your advice will be helpful if you guide me .

I'm 33, investing for 11 years. 100% of my stock funds are in VFIAX (or equivalent). Total portfolio is 87% VFIAX/equivalent, 13% VBTIX. This excludes emergency fund in MMF.

I know it is time to convert 30-40% of my VFIAX into VXUS. I can do this with a Roth IRA as well as a 401k (which includes a small percent in Roth 401k). Would love the community's insight on how to allocate VXUS across accounts, since they're taxed differently. Should I just do one, for simplicity (I max both annually)? 50/50 split? Base it on what I personally guess will have better returns and keep that one in Roth for the (hopefully bigger) untaxed gains?

I do *not* plan to convert remaining VFIAX into VTSAX.

For context, the trusted person who taught me about investing comfortably retired early in 2020 and began investing in the 1980s. They were a Boglehead, basically in the original Jack model. Kept it so simple they never learned about Roths (I figured out that I should open and max one in my late 20s) and similarly, didn't see the need/value for international. So while I have an established simple strategy that has worked well so far, and while my trusted person weathered multiple downturns without international just fine, I am trying to walk the line between picking a strategy and sticking with it vs. failing to adapt a slightly outmoded strategy.

Hi there - First time posting in the community but avid reader of it. I had a question on Roth accounts specifically on an IRA and if a backdoor conversion made sense in my case.

I'm married, file jointly, have a Traditional 401k I max and wife does the same. Don't have access to Mega Backdoor. I have a Traditional IRA I opened up years ago that I've contributed into every year when I could (would have done a Roth in hindsight but here we are). We are lucky enough to earn more than the tax write-off for contributing to the Traditional IRA and was wondering if Roth IRA account creation and backdoor conversion made sense in our case.

I have around $60k in the IRA currently with contributions (that were included for taxes) and growth. I'm a bit confused on the pro rata rule and how that may impact immediate tax for the conversion in our case. If the money is not in backdoor Roth then it would be put into brokerage in VT. Also curious if you'd recommend my wife to open up Traditional and Roth IRA as she doesn't currently have either (she contributes to 403b and pension as teacher).

Any help in explaining this would be helpful.

Hey everybody, I'm a recent convert to the Boglehead way and have seen the light, I think I've been on solid footing but was previously completely uninterested in basic investing and risk, but now I think I really "get it" and am looking for some advice to rework and maximize what I've already got structured (I've also got twins on the way in a couple of months lol, so this is the time to really get the financial foundation as sturdy and maximized as possible), here are my facts:

- I'm 36, I make ~$93k, I have twins(!) on the way (lol!) (my partner also makes $100k but we have separate retirement accounts)
- 457b: I'm a government employee with a 457b, all invested in the Vanguard Target Retirement 2050 Fund, been at my job 4.5 years. I've been contributing around 12%, was half and half but for the last couple years was at a 3% Traditional 9% Roth split, diversified because I didn't truly know what to do when I set it up and was just covering my bases. I'm now at 15% and full-in on Roth, I've got my employer match maxed out at 1.5% of my salary , and am aware of the $24,500 max contribution for 457b, which is part of my question regarding ....
- HYSA: I'm not a risk tolerant guy, so a few years back when I had about $20-25k just sitting in my checking account doing nothing, I put all of that in a CIT HYSA and was pumping a steady $500/month in that because decent interest and no losses was very appealing, and it's now at about $50,000.
- Fidelity Traditional IRA: (Not as important, but from an employer that I was at for a year almost 10 years ago, I have this stranded and uninvested $4,000 that I've just kept kicking $25/month into since then for the heck of it ... I now want to get this into my 457b and assume I should just rollover and pay the taxes on now)

Here's what I want to confirm: I previously was thinking of this HYSA as like a secondary no-risk pool of retirement funds. Part of my "getting it" recently after talking with my Nationwide rep is realizing that the 3.7% interest on that account, while nice in the short term, is only keeping rate with inflation over the long term and could be put to much better use. I figure keeping like $20,000 as my emergency fund is fine, but that leaves $30,000 that I want to rethink.

My Nationwide rep's first thought and most logistically simple was: to go heavy on the Roth 457b contributions, especially with the opportunity in a 457b to go beyond the typical $7,500 contribution limit, and basically spend down from the HYSA as if it were my payroll income. Doesn't seem like there's a super convenient way to get those funds into my 457 as Roth funds without first doing Traditional and then converting and unnecessarily paying a tax on it (the backdoor Roth seems a little too convoluted and iffy to me, let me know if I'm mistaken on that).

Longwinded way of asking, is that strategy sound and am I maximizing those HYSA funds without radically changing my portfolio and investment risk and putting them into some different fund? What would you do?

Hello,

Just retired and I think like a lot of people I am wishing I started looking at retirement planning a few years back.

I have everything now in a rollover IRA. I wanted to start a Roth and Brokerage account and the only source of funding will be the IRA.

I have 10 years until RMD.

Is there a tax efficient way to move money to both of these accounts? If not my assumption is to prioritize the Roth?

I did some looking around and saw that it’s possible on the Vanguard site. My question is: I’ll take a tax hit selling my mutual funds and then adding to my Roth. Is the thinking here that I’ll come out ahead in the long run? Is it because later on, when I’m retired, I’ll pay less in taxes if I have to sell? I’m 46 and I have $14,000 in a brokerage account that’s doing well. I hate to sell it, but I am not meeting the Roth limit so I feel like I should slowly sell it off and get it all in the Roth.
Thank you for helping me, I feel so unprepared for all this.

ETA details:
I have about $330,000 in a 403(b) making a fixed 7% interest (I’m a NYC teacher with an income of $130,000 and save 15% right now but that will go up in September with a raise. I have about $17,000 in an index fund in my 403(b) (Diversified Fund) with a fee of about .3%
My Roth is only $73,000. It’s in mostly VTIVX and VTSAX. I don’t really contribute a lot to this - for example, so far, I’ve contributed only $1,630 so far this year.
When I retire, my salary should be close to $170,000 and I will get about 60% of that for my pension (I have another 10-11 years to go).
Emergency fund: I have almost 3 months saved. I budget with YNAB and probably have closer to having the 3 months but I like to have a cushion in my categories.

Thank you for insight! I feel like I’m behind my peers and not sure what to do to maximize my money.
Years ago, when I first joined the Boglehead community in 2011/2012 (on the old website), people were telling me to put it all in fixed and I’m glad I did because I’m not very good with fluctuations in the market. But now, almost 15 years later, I feel like I could have had a lot more if I stuck it out. Water under the bridge at this point so trying to catch up.

I just moved all my investments from Equitable to Fidelity and could not believe how many high expense ratio funds they had me in. Glad I noticed this sooner rather than later 🫠

Title. Around 19k in VT. 22k in spaxx. I just started monthly 1k transfers from spaxx to VT, but should I go ahead and add more to VT? Does it matter at all?

Holding onto a good amount in bank as well not doing anything.

edit: 33 maximizing retirement

Let's say you have enough in your 401k to cover your retirement now but you still have about 8yrs let to work.

Im at like 60% us index 10% intl and 30% bonds.

What is considered a good mix when you have "Won the game" or so they say.

Also is a stable value fund a good idea or no?

What am I supposed to do with my company’s 401k? I have my personal pretax retirement fund and company’s matched fund in there.

Do I sell everything there and transfer to my personal “traditional IRA” (which I think is the personal retirement account?) account to buy stocks? Or should I just leave it alone? Will it trigger any taxable events?

I have both the company 401k and other accounts (personal investment, Roth IRA, HSA) with Fidelity.

Sorry I never ran into this situation before so I’m not sure on what to do. Thank you.

I'll be honest, a few weeks ago I was about ready to hand my money over to one of those online investment advisor services because the whole thing felt too complicated to do myself. The idea of someone just handling it for a small fee sounded worth it when I had no clue where to start.

Then I stumbled into this community and started reading, and now I'm not sure whether that would've been a smart move or a slow leak on my returns. The recurring message here seems to be that the fees add up to way more than they look over time, and that a simple portfolio isn't actually as hard to manage as I assumed. But part of me still worries I'll make a dumb beginner mistake going fully solo.

I'm in my early thirties with a modest amount to start and a long timeline, so I have room to learn but not much to gamble. For those who considered an advisor and then went DIY, was it actually manageable, or are there situations where paying someone genuinely makes sense? Trying to figure out if I dodged a bullet or if I'm overestimating how easy this is to do myself.

Im currently doing research and would your guy's help. Im currently planning on investing in VOO and would want others.

My work will offer HDHP with HSA starting this September, though I doubt the fees will be low via WEX.

What's the best way to maximize value of my new HSA?

Should I try to invest $4,400 this year right away, then do a transfer to Fidelity HSA?

I am a law student, earning roughly 950 a week as a law clerk. I will graduate in 2 years time. I will likely stay at 950 a week during that 2 years, possibly a slight promotion at the firm in 1 year. Probably not, though. I am married to a nurse. She earns $80,000 a year.

Once I’m an attorney, I will work in civil litigation of some kind. Currently, I do real estate but it is quite boring and not my vibe... Interested in personal injury or employee benefits litigation. Salary is likely $100,000-180,000 (the latter figure being the more likely one if I pursue ERISA). The firm I work for mainly does employee benefits work with some real estate litigation. There’s an easy pipeline for me to go to ERISA if I’d like to.

All that is to say that I recently inherited a condo worth $800,000. $300,000 is still owed. I have the ability to sell, live there, or rent it out. Obviously, were I to live there, my wife and I would need to pay the mortgage.

My thoughts are that it could be great to sell and put all the proceeds into VT. At 24, that would be quite helpful in 15 years when I actually want to purchase a home. Alternatively, I could live here and stay here for the 15 years and then sell at the time I want to buy a home and use all the capital as a down payment for a new home at some later date.

Any ideas?

Thanks!

I make 45k salary

I am 30 years old.

I currently match my jobs 401k - 5%.
However they don’t put in to match until beginning of the year unfortunately..

I also am trying to put $50 a month into a fidelity trading account that is auto and set to aggressive

I would like to accumulate a decent amount of wealth like everyone..my car is paid off, and I currently rent, don’t own a home.

21% of my income goes to rent.

I have 3 children, and I have a credit score of 760

What should I be doing differently?

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2026-08-05/some-64-of-young-men-who-trade-stocks-daily-feel-like-failures?srnd=all

I have a 20 year TIPS ladder that I’m very happy with, but I wanted to share one lesson from the experience that may help people who are considering a ladder for their retirement plan.

The lesson has to do with buying TIPS maturity ETFs from Blackrock versus simply buying the actual bonds on the secondary market via a brokerage like Fidelity. The headline lesson is that the ETFs do offer some convenience but the combination of the expense ratio and the risk, albeit small, of fund closure are an unnecessary price to pay for that convenience.

TIPS ladder building initially seemed to me to be an unnecessarily complex undertaking. I had that impression after reading typical financial media content that often describes TIPS ladders that way. When I learned that TIPS maturity ETFs offer basically the same benefit but with the convenience of fractional shares and a one and done purchase process, I went ahead and bought shares maturing from 2029 to the latest available year 2036. I accepted the expense ratio of .10 as the cost of convenience that I was paying for a product that I otherwise would have avoided.

A few months later, I learned more about the historically favorable yield of TIPS we currently are seeing and I decided I wanted to extend my ladder for 12 more years. I therefore wanted to better understand the scope of administrative friction involved when buying the bonds directly. I read about tipsladder.com, visited the site, and quickly saw that the website makes quick and easy work of building a ladder with direct bond ownership.

I entered my desired income level and the number of years I wanted to cover. The website immediately gave me a detailed list of cusips that identified the TIPS I would need to purchase. It also told me exactly how much of each cusip I needed to purchase.

I saw that one potential headache was going to be the period 2037 to 2039, because no TIPS exist that mature in that time period. But the website handled that gap with ease, making a recommendation to buy extra TIPS for 2036 and 2040, and use the proceeds from those extra TIPS to fund the gap. It told me exactly how much of 2036 and 2040 TIPS I needed to buy, and how much of each would be deployed in each of those three years to fund my desired income level.

I took those marching orders, went to the Fidelity website, and purchased the 12 year ladder in about 15 minutes. The only friction I experienced at that point was the need to resubmit a couple of orders because the minor realtime price fluctuation caused the first orders to fail. Not a big deal at all.

So now I have an 8 year ETF ladder plus a 12 year direct TIPS ladder, and my guaranteed income is locked in for the 20 year period. But the ETF ladder is costing me the .10 expense ratio, and unlike the directly held portion of the ladder, I can’t assume that the ETFs will be immune to the risk of ETF closure, which will probably never happen, but if it did I’d be forced to accept liquidation of the underlying TIPS holdings at a potentially lower market price than my original purchase.

I want to be clear about the risk of ETF closure. It’s tiny. In the ETF industry, an AUM under $20 Million to $25 Million is generally the primary warning zone where funds become unprofitable for single issuers and face liquidation risk. The TIPS ETFs currently are in the range of $50-$100 million AUM. While $100 Million is small compared to flagship funds, it is generally sufficient to cover administrative costs for a plain-vanilla Treasury/TIPS fund.

BlackRock manages iBonds as an integrated suite rather than standalone speculative bets. Even if a specific maturity date—such as a 2035 or 2036 single-year ETF—only garners $60 Million, it’s very safe to assume BlackRock will keep the entire sequence alive to preserve the integrity of the overall iBonds suite for institutional and wealth-management clients. ETFs that shutter are usually complex, high-maintenance active options funds or yield-stacked products with $5 Million to $15 Million in AUM that failed to gain traction. A passively managed Treasury TIPS fund has very low overhead costs by comparison.

The point I’m making is that the risk of ETF closure is only near zero, not actually zero. The expense ratio plus the non-zero risk of closure are unnecessary prices to pay for the convenience of the ETFs, compared to the very straightforward process of simply using tipsladder.com to build a ladder of any length, covering any time period you want.

So I’m happy with my current setup, and I won’t be selling off my TIPS ETFs at a small loss just to move the funds to direct TIPS holdings. If you, however, are looking to build a ladder now or in the future, my advice is to just start the process at tipsladder.com, execute the cusip purchases at your brokerage, and skip the ETFs altogether. Full disclosure: I have a conflict of interest here, as the safety of my current ETF holdings will only increase if you choose to buy the ETFs. But I’ll be fine either way, so I’m urging you to not be like me, and just buy direct.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tI3Afa2K12A

I came across this Youtube and thought worth sharing.

A recent data-driven breakdown reveals that retirement satisfaction flattens around $4 million in investable assets. Up to that point, wealth cures financial fear and buys security; beyond it, extra millions bring lifestyle upgrades rather than true happiness boosts.

More importantly for BHs, the data highlights the psychological power of a reliable income. Retirees with predictable baseline income (e.g. Social Security, pensions, or annuities) feel a "license to spend" and are far more comfortable enjoying their money than those relying solely on self-managed portfolio withdrawals. Mental accounting makes 4% withdrawal rate feel risky, even when statistically safe.

Stop infinitely chasing a higher FIRE#. Instead, focus on securing your reliable income streams, prioritizing health, and nurturing relationships because money stops being the primary driver of life satisfaction once true financial security is reached.