Vanguard Life Strategy

takesyourchances

gterr wrote: »

I think this is well worth considering. I was intending to hold two separate VGLS funds: the 20% and either the 80% or 100%, and gradually move towards the 20% over many years. However, there would be two platform fees to pay, and a lot of overlap in holdings, so your idea might be better

I would think two VLS together is overlapping to much of the same and as you said two sets of platform fees. I started to think of this idea for future years for my S&S ISA as well when bonds would need to be increased as I get older and when thinking of the SIPP idea, I thought of that idea to give a mixture in the VLS and then have bonds on the side to be able to increase easily the amount as required.

I looked at various bonds and thought to myself global rather than say soley UK focused and the the Old Mutual Global Bonds looked to have been steady in the past.

Something like this could be more simple and easier to manage with the VLS when it comes to balancing equity to bond exposure.

Hope that helps.

takesyourchances

With thinking of adding an extra £250 to my VLS this month for a bit more invested for this tax year, I am debating with myself between that and maybe opening the Standard Life Global Small Cap fund instead within this tax with £500 which would then give me a good drip feeding run from April on and to re-balance my core VLS up slightly more and low drips to the sides.

The Standard Life Global Small Cap is the 1st choice to add next on my watch list to give a bit of small cap exposure to areas that are large Cap in the VLS holdings.

Thinking about this at the moment and can adjust drip feeds accordingly. While the other side funds I have are still low in amounts I think maybe this could be a better time to add this and then keep the other ideas I have to later this year as I have a bit of a lump sum coming in October which I can re-invest and I would like maybe the niche Japanese small Company fund then when the others would be higher to hold that a bit lower.

I am debating this over at the moment as the £500 to open wouldn't change my cash plans to much.

bowlhead99

gterr wrote: »

I think this is well worth considering. I was intending to hold two separate VGLS funds: the 20% and either the 80% or 100%, and gradually move towards the 20% over many years. However, there would be two platform fees to pay, and a lot of overlap in holdings, so your idea might be better

Equal amounts of 20% plus the 100% is the same sort of exposure as putting it all in the 60%. As you get older, holding three lots of 20% for every one of the 100% is the same as having it all in the 40%.

There is no need to have more than one 'lifestyle' fund, unless you know something amazingly insightful about the markets which means you need a really specific percentage of bonds. Beyond a rough 10-20% rule of thumb you don't need to be able to move in 1% slices. And if you did have the ability to see the future the optimum choice would be to go zero bonds or zero equity in line with what the future holds.

If you want to play with exposure by adding funds to an existing 'all in one' fund, make that fund give you something you don't already have. So if you have gilts, investment grade corporate bonds and largecap equities in one fund, look at high yield bonds, real estate, smallcap equities, frontier markets etc for the next. If you have a general global mix but feel you would want to weight it towards the UK or away from the UK or towards somewhere more specific, then you can do that.

There are investment opportunities across the risk spectrum from cash to equities in every region of the world in every sector of business. Buying some of your lifestyle fund in a 20% flavour to reduce the effects of the purchase of the 100% flavour seems bonkers.

gterr

bowlhead99 wrote: »

There are investment opportunities across the risk spectrum from cash to equities in every region of the world in every sector of business. Buying some of your lifestyle fund in a 20% flavour to reduce the effects of the purchase of the 100% flavour seems bonkers.

Thanks. Yes, I do follow you. However, there are some differences in the equity holdings of the 100% VGLS when compared to the 20% - specifically US, Europe-ex-UK, Pacific-ex-Japan and Japan funds are missing from the VGLS20%. And whilst I could add a number of bond funds to the VGLS100%, I would have to look at the charges (management and platform) for keeping these.

I don't think there's anything wrong per se in duplicating holdings, or using one fund to balance the other, as long as I know that this is happening. Two VGLS trackers might give me the range and exposure I'm looking for, plus the facility to vary the bond:equity mix over time, at a cheaper price than holding one VGLS tracker and a range of bond funds. In my case the holdings would be substantial so the £2 pm platform fee per VGLS fund would not be a disincentive.

Carpi09

BlackRock Consensus 85

Similar to VLS 80 fund but with no £2 monthly and only .28% higher annual charge.

http://www.hl.co.uk/funds/fund-discounts,-prices--and--factsheets/search-results/b/blackrock-consensus-85-accumulation

Thoughts people?

ffacoffipawb

Carpi09 wrote: »

BlackRock Consensus 85

Similar to VLS 80 fund but with no £2 monthly and only .28% higher annual charge.

http://www.hl.co.uk/funds/fund-discounts,-prices--and--factsheets/search-results/b/blackrock-consensus-85-accumulation

Thoughts people?

Even better there's a 100 version. That will do next year's ISA nicely!!

Carpi09

ffacoffipawb wrote: »

Even better there's a 100 version. That will do next year's ISA nicely!!

You planning on a lump sum come April?

Just noticed a huge difference between 100 & 80 with the international equities. Maybe the 100 looks a lot more appealing.

takesyourchances

Carpi09 wrote: »

Just noticed a huge difference between 100 & 80 with the international equities. Maybe the 100 looks a lot more appealing.

They look very good also Carpi, very good mix together and the 100 version looks a real blend all in one. Still happy to have the VLS and Vanguard, but does look to be a good choice as well.

I still fancy a slice of the BlackRock property tracker but that would be maybe next year as I have other exposure I would want first to be built up.

Looking likely I will take the Standard Life Global Small Cap fund out with £500 to open, with my drip feeding plans and couple of other funds I have ear marked for later in the year I think it would work in with my allocation plans better over the coming months to balance out what I have.

I will see what extra money I can put away this month and might make a cheeky £250 also to the VLS towards the end of this month also

brasso

takesyourchances wrote: »

Some parts of Asia I would tend to think as emerging, but I agree that the main areas that are being invested in emerging would be the wrong label. I have more faith in having money invested in some of the quality Asia regions than Europe personally and the UK.

Africa and the Middle East is more risky and agree with Greece and Spain etc after what they have gone through in the Euro Crisis and also Latin America as well I think would be more risky and emerging.....

....What are your thoughts on the Japanese Small Cap investment? I have my eye on the Aberdeen fund for some point.

Thanks

Ha ha! Yes, agree with you on that point!

Regarding Japan, well as we know it's been a disaster for the investor in recent years. I've had a number of Japan funds over the years, almost all of which I've finally given up on.

However, something is afoot. After the election at the end of 2012, with all the talk of devaluing the currency etc, I bought into Invesco Perpetual Japan in mid-December and have seen a 26% rise since then. I'm no expert, but this does seem like the most plausible of all the supposed pro-Japan periods we've heard about in recent times.

I don't know about your fund in particular, but in general, small caps are more volatile but more profitable if you ride out the dips. My educated guess is that you could do well, but if you see an opportunity there you may want to get in sooner rather than later.

takesyourchances

brasso wrote: »

Ha ha! Yes, agree with you on that point!

Regarding Japan, well as we know it's been a disaster for the investor in recent years. I've had a number of Japan funds over the years, almost all of which I've finally given up on.

However, something is afoot. After the election at the end of 2012, with all the talk of devaluing the currency etc, I bought into Invesco Perpetual Japan in mid-December and have seen a 26% rise since then. I'm no expert, but this does seem like the most plausible of all the supposed pro-Japan periods we've heard about in recent times.

I don't know about your fund in particular, but in general, small caps are more volatile but more profitable if you ride out the dips. My educated guess is that you could do well, but if you see an opportunity there you may want to get in sooner rather than later.

Yes at the moment I have no desire to look at a separate European fund, I have a property in Europe so that is enough spent there for me for a while.

Yes Japan has been a disaster over recent years, I have been reading up a lot on it in recent weeks and the new election of the Prime Minster and the devaluing of the yen to try and encourage more exports is encouraging. It is more volatile certainly and also there is a dispute going on with China over the Diaoyu/Senkaku islands.

However the quality of the companies in Japan is good and seems to be undervalued, it is the undervalued part I am wondering how long it can continue and also they are servicing their own people with consumable products. A large percentage of the Japanese Small Cap fund I am looking at is towards personal goods.

I was actually thinking the same thing seeing the opportunity would it be better to open the exposure sooner rather than later, I considered this and was weighing up the Standard Life Global Small Cap to bring some balance back towards the west and it has around 5% in Japan as well.

It is possible for me to open both the Standard Life Global Small Cap and the Aberdeen Japanese Small Cap fund with £500 each and adjust the drip feeds through the year to increase the core up and drip feed a bit less frequent to the Japan fund as I would want that running a bit lower than the other funds outside the VLS. The £500 would at least open the exposure, I was also thinking yesterday that October is a bit of a wait for maybe this type of opportunity.

It is all long term so I can live with volatility on small niche holdings and I am still much more weighty in my cash ISA so is really only a small percentage on everything I have overall.

I can think over this and I will still be able to fill my cash ISA in April and it could give me the structure I would like to have for a good drip feeding run the rest of the year and the next fund of interest is the First State Asian Pacific Leaders but I could comfortably wait to around October for that and cash open with even £1000 as I would want that more weighted in the portfolio than the Asian Small Cap I have and the possible Japanese Small Cap fund which I would run the lowest out of what I have.

I know I am still weighty overall in my cash ISA so I have a long term view to my S&S ISA and it could let me get the sectors I would like to have and some of these niche exposures and balance out with the drip feeds over the year to more the position I would like them all in the portfolio.

I like the small cap exposure in these types of regions, the Aberdeen Small Cap fund in Japan has stood out to me from all of the Japan funds I have looked at and so far the Aberdeen Asian Small Company fund I have has been interesting and it is ran by the same manager who I have been reading up on.

That has been good gains you have made in your new Japanese fund from December after the elections, I would expect that it is a country that can throw some highs and lows but thinking 10 years plus down the line at the current value in the companies now is attractive.

On a separate note, the BlackRock Consensus 100 that was being discussed last night I noticed that in the collective all in one group Japan is the 3rd highest exposure in this after the USA and UK at 6.22%.

Thanks.