David Swensen, chief investment officer of Yale University, lays out a basic portfolio in his book, Unconventional Success: A Fundamental Approach to Personal Investment. In a section titled, The Science of Portfolio Structure, Swensen makes a strong argument for populating a diversified portfolio using only six ETFs. The asset classes are:
- Domestic equity
- Foreign developed equity
- Emerging market equity
- Real estate
- U.S. Treasury bonds
- U.S. Treasury Inflation Protected Securities
It is not difficult to find low-cost commission free ETFs for each of the above asset classes. In the current environment, with low inflation, I