T. Rowe Price Personal Investor - Retirement Savings by Age: What to Do With Your Portfolio in 2024 (2024)

FAQs

How should your investment portfolio change with age? ›

A typical rule of thumb is that the percentage of an investor's portfolio of financial assets that is held in equities should equal 100 minus her age, so that a 30-year-old would hold 70 percent of her financial wealth in stocks, while a 70-year-old would hold 30 percent in stocks.

At age 60–69, consider a moderate portfolio (60% stock, 35% bonds, 5% cash/cash investments); 70–79, moderately conservative (40% stock, 50% bonds, 10% cash/cash investments); 80 and above, conservative (20% stock, 50% bonds, 30% cash/cash investments).

Conventional wisdom holds that when you hit your 70s, you should adjust your investment portfolio so it leans heavily toward low-risk bonds and cash accounts and away from higher-risk stocks and mutual funds. That strategy still has merit, according to many financial advisors.

Rowe Price suggests the 4% guideline as a starting point for a withdrawal strategy. This means that in the first year of retirement, you could consider a withdrawal amount that is 4% of your retirement account balance. Every year, reassess the following to adjust your withdrawal amount if needed: Your spending needs.

If you're 70, you'd look at sticking to 40% stocks. Of course, there's wiggle room with this formula, and it's really just a way to get started. And for many older investors, a 50-50 split of stocks and bonds is what's preferred throughout retirement, and that's fine, too.

For example, if you're 30, you should keep 70% of your portfolio in stocks. If you're 70, you should keep 30% of your portfolio in stocks. However, with Americans living longer and longer, many financial planners are now recommending that the rule should be closer to 110 or 120 minus your age.

Some financial advisors recommend a mix of 60% stocks, 35% fixed income, and 5% cash when an investor is in their 60s. So, at age 55, and if you're still working and investing, you might consider that allocation or something with even more growth potential.

Your overarching goal here should be to hold a mix of stock, bond, and cash investments that can generate growth, provide income, and preserve your capital. What works best for you will depend on your age, income needs, financial goals, time horizon, and comfort with risk. And it's fine to change things up over time.

Retirement: 70s and 80s

Sample Asset Allocation: Stocks: 30% to 50% Bonds: 50% to 70%

Where is the safest place to put your retirement money? ›

The safest place to put your retirement funds is in low-risk investments and savings options with guaranteed growth. Low-risk investments and savings options include fixed annuities, savings accounts, CDs, treasury securities, and money market accounts. Of these, fixed annuities usually provide the best interest rates.

It might come as a surprise, but your financial professional—whether they're a banker, planner or advisor—wants to know more about you than how much money you can invest. They can best help you achieve your goals when they know more about your job, your family and your passions.

Graham says to stay within the range of 25/75 to 75/25: We have suggested as a fundamental guiding rule that the investor should never have less than 25% or more than 75% of his funds in common stocks, with a consequent inverse range of between 75% and 25% in bonds.

A 70/30 portfolio is an investment portfolio where 70% of investment capital is allocated to stocks and 30% to fixed-income securities, primarily bonds.

For example, some suggest rebalancing so your stocks-and-alternatives percentage is based on 100 or 120 minus your age (depending on how conservative you want to be).

Once a mainstay of savvy investors, the 60/40 balanced portfolio no longer appears to be keeping up with today's market environment. Instead of allocating 60% broadly to stocks and 40% to bonds, many professionals now advocate for different weights and diversifying into even greater asset classes.