Defensive Portfolio
Bond-heavy, but with enough equity to keep growing. The middle ground between Conservative and Balanced.
3 – 7 years · Conservative risk
Try a different mix
Updating…Why this allocation
A 3-7 year horizon gives some room to recover from setbacks, but your preference for safety keeps bonds dominant. A bond-heavy mix reduces volatility while a meaningful equity sleeve provides upside. A small alternatives allocation adds diversification beyond the traditional stock/bond mix.
Defensive sits between true preservation and a real bond/equity balance. Half the portfolio rides bonds, a third sits in equities, and a small alternatives sleeve adds a hedge that doesn't move with stocks. The framing is simple: a 3 to 7 year window is too short to recover from a brutal equity drawdown, but long enough that pure cash is a tax on patience. The goal is a portfolio that drops 10% to 15% in a bad year, not 30%, and recovers within a couple of years rather than a decade.
Who it's for
- You're saving for a home down payment 4 to 6 years out.
- You're funding a planned purchase (a sabbatical, school fees, a car) where the date is roughly known.
- You're easing into investing and want training wheels before going equity-heavy.
- You want a more stable sleeve alongside a separate retirement account that's already aggressive.
The honest drawback
The 50% bond sleeve has its own risk. When rates rise quickly, long bonds drop almost as much as stocks. In 2022, a 35/50/10/5 mix lost something like 14%, almost as bad as a 60/40 portfolio in the same year. This allocation works well in normal regimes and badly in regimes where stocks and bonds fall together. Those are rare but not unheard of.
When to revisit
If the goal slides past 7 years, drop down to Balanced or Growth. If a drawdown caused panic-selling, a step toward Conservative is honest. If the goal arrives, shift the relevant slice into cash a year ahead so a market dip doesn't blow up the timing.
Your ETFs
Gold as a hedge against uncertainty and inflation
US large-cap exposure — the world's deepest equity market
Developed markets outside the US for geographic diversification
Emerging market growth potential at low cost
Core bond holding — true world if available, US Aggregate otherwise
Inflation protection with government-backed real returns
Ultra-safe cash equivalent for capital preservation
How this portfolio behaves
Fees over 20 years
~$21,630 less in fees
At 0.06% a year, vs 1.00% with a robo-advisor. On $50,000.
Conservative
Capital preservation first, modest growth second. Built to keep what you have when stocks are falling.
→ More riskBalanced
The classic 50/50-ish split. Equity for growth, bonds for ballast, alternatives for diversification.
This is not investment advice. The information provided is for educational purposes only. Past performance does not guarantee future results. Consult a licensed financial advisor before making investment decisions.