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Recent market volatility has many investors wondering if now is a good time to alter their investments.
The short answer experts generally advise? It’s rarely actually a good time to make changes to your investment portfolio.
“Most investors who jump in and tweak their portfolios typically do it in response to market conditions and history has shown us this just doesn’t work out in their favor,” says Tony Molina, a CPA and senior product specialist at Wealthfront. “What often feels right when it comes to investing, is usually wrong.”
Though you may feel tempted to modify your investments when the market dips, you’re often better off leaving them alone for the long haul. The reality is, downturns happen but your money is safer if you ride out the storm. Just as quickly as the market can go down, it can also go up — and keeping your cash invested throughout these fluctuations is what helps your money grow over time. This is especially true when investing in index funds and ETFs.
But, we wondered, is there ever a good time to adjust your investments? Turns out, there are a couple conditions when it’s OK.
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When it’s a good time to make changes to your investment portfolio
While it’s typically best to leave your investments alone, you may want to change course if there has been a change in your investing goals’ time horizons, and consequently, your risk tolerance, advises Ivory Johnson, a CFP and founder of Delancey Wealth Management.
On one hand, you may find that you have extended the number of years until retirement and can take on more risk. Or, on the other hand, perhaps you’re retiring sooner than you thought and shortening that timeframe means that you need to put your money in lower-risk investments.
Using a robo-advisor is an effective workaround to avoid having to worry whether your investments match your risk tolerance. Robo-advisors have users fill out a brief questionnaire that helps them know how to best allocate your cash depending on your investment goals and the top robo-advisors will regularly rebalance your portfolio for you as needed.
Betterment, for example, will recommend a stock-and-bond allocation based on your goals and adjust automatically whenever you make a deposit, withdraw funds …….
Source: https://www.cnbc.com/select/good-times-to-make-changes-to-investment-portfolio/