Buffett’s Proven 90/10 Plan for Financial Security

Legendary investor Warren Buffett laid out simple instructions for the trustee in charge of his wife’s inheritance, and you can borrow the 90/10 plan for your own portfolio construction.

While Buffett’s 90/10 approach isn’t for everyone, it can give investors some insight into how to diversify their holdings. Here’s what to know.

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What Buffett told the trustee

Buffett laid out his 90/10 plan in his 2013 Berkshire Hathaway shareholder letter. It’s a simple approach to portfolio construction that addresses risk tolerance and straightforward diversification.

“My advice to the trustee could not be more simple: Put 10% of the cash in short-term government bonds and 90% in a very low-cost S&P 500 index fund,” Buffett said in the letter, noting that he suggests Vanguard’s funds.

With that type of portfolio, an investor doesn’t have to stay on top of every stock market move and analyze individual stocks. Well-balanced funds can offer instant diversification with little effort, and many of them come with low fees.

What to know about Buffett’s two suggestions

A short-term government bond fund invests in low-risk bonds that provide cash flow. Bonds have the potential to outperform inflation in real terms, even after taxes. Even if a bond fund falls slightly behind the rate of inflation, its yield is still generally higher than what you’ll see on money simply sitting in a bank account — though that depends on the interest-rate environment.

The S&P 500 index tracks the performance of around 500 of the largest companies in the U.S. The holdings are weighted by market capitalizations, so a stock like Nvidia will have a larger influence on the index than a stock like Nike. An S&P 500 index fund aims to replicate the performance of the index, and you can add it to your portfolio to get some diversification.

Buffett once again recommended a low-cost S&P 500 index fund in his 2016 Berkshire Hathaway shareholder letter.

How to build it into your portfolio

To get the exposure Buffett’s suggesting in your portfolio, you can consider short-term government bond funds that have low expense ratios. The Vanguard Short-Term Treasury ETF (VGSH), for instance, includes short-term U.S. Treasuries that mature in one to three years, and it only has a 0.03% expense ratio. Investors can also consider Vanguard’s Total Bond Market ETF (BND). It offers more diversification in the bond market instead of limiting investors to short-term U.S. Treasuries, and it also has a 0.03% expense ratio.

You can then review S&P 500 index funds like the Fidelity 500 Index Fund (FXAIX) fund. It only has a 0.015% expense ratio, which means if you invest $10,000, you only have to pay around $1.50 per year.

Who should change the mix

Although Buffett recommended a 90/10 approach for the trustee, that doesn’t mean the strategy makes sense for everyone. Young investors can benefit more from prioritizing index funds over bonds since they have more time before they will have to tap into the money. But people who are approaching retirement and may need cash soon may want to put a little more into a bond fund. Bonds tend to be less volatile than stocks and can provide predictable cash flow, which can reduce how many shares you actually have to sell to keep up with living expenses.

If you want to decrease your exposure to stocks over time, a target-date fund can be a good approach. These funds reduce stock exposure and increase bond exposure over time based on the target retirement date, and they’re often the default investments in 401(k)s.

For instance, the Vanguard Target Retirement 2030 Fund (VTHRX) uses a 2030 target retirement date, and it gradually weighs the portfolio more heavily toward bonds. This fund essentially does the work for you if you intend to retire in the target year.

Review your plan to see which exchange-traded funds (ETFs) and mutual funds you can buy in your 401(k) or other investment accounts while analyzing your current holdings. Taking a good look at your finances can help you make better decisions and plan for long-term goals, and getting started with index funds can make investing simple and can help your money grow over the long term.

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