Guess What? It May Actually Be Different This Time
In volatile market environments, tune out the pundits and take a look in the mirror.
Christine Benz
Christine Benz is Morningstar's director of personal finance and author of 30-Minute Money Solutions: A Step-by-Step Guide to Managing Your Finances and the Morningstar Guide to Mutual Funds: 5-Star Strategies for Success. Follow Christine on Twitter: @christine_benz.
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When the going has gotten tough, these stock, bond, and allocation funds have held up better than their peers.
A 7-Point Risk Drill for Your Portfolio
A calmer market provides the ideal backdrop for a systematic checkup on your portfolio's risk factors.
Morningstar's Top Fund Picks for Taxable Portfolios
Traditional mutual funds and ETFs for tax-efficient exposure to domestic and international stocks as well as bonds.
Morningstar's Top Retirement Fund Picks for Minimalists
Whether you're seeking a single-fund option or using the building-block approach, here are some of our analysts' best ideas.
How to Allocate Assets for College Savings
Families must contend with competing challenges: steep glide paths and high inflation.
Invest for Short- and Intermediate-Term Goals
For goals that are close at hand, how do you balance loss aversion with return potential?
Accumulators: Is Your Retirement Plan on Track?
Rules of thumb won't cut it for this important question. How to customize based on your own situation.
How Empty-Nesters Can Play Retirement Catch-Up
By saving rather than spending their freed-up dollars and by avoiding lifestyle creep, investors at this life stage can make significant headway.
Retirees: Are You Spending Too Much?
The 4% guideline can put you in the right ballpark, but the best spending policies factor in time horizon, asset allocation, and market fluctuations.
How to Bridge a Retirement Shortfall
A combination of incremental, not revolutionary, changes can help bridge the gap.
Morningstar's 2020 Portfolio Tuneup
All this week, we'll coach you on the steps to take to ensure that your portfolio is in fighting shape for the years ahead.
What You Can Learn From Your 1099 Forms
These forms can yield valuable intelligence about your portfolio's asset location and tax efficiency.
15 Picks Based on Experts' Forecasts
Experts think foreign stocks, especially emerging markets, are attractive. Here are Morningstar's favorites for those themes.
Jon Hale: ESG Is a Paradigm Shift
Morningstar's global ESG research leader on how sustainable investing has evolved and what comes next as it goes mainstream.
4 Strategies for an Organized Tax Season
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Experts Forecast Long-Term Stock and Bond Returns: 2020 Edition
Our annual compilation of capital markets return assumptions, from BlackRock to Vanguard.
Chris Mamula: What Young Retirees Need to Know
A leading blogger discusses some common misconceptions about the FIRE movement, as well as lifestyle and financial considerations for young retirees.
How Did the Bucket Portfolios Perform in 2019?
Cash was a drag, but the most equity-heavy mutual fund and ETF retirement portfolios enjoyed a standout year.
How Did the Retirement Saver Portfolios Perform in 2019?
As stocks soared, so did the equity-heavy Aggressive Mutual Fund and ETF portfolios.
Your 2020 Tax Fact Sheet and Calendar
Bookmark this guide to stay abreast of the tax-related dates and data that should be on your radar this year.
John Rekenthaler: Fund Manager Financial Incentives Are Irrelevant
Morningstar's columnist reflects on his decades of analyzing and writing about the mutual fund, retirement, and financial advice industries.
Your 2020 Financial To-Do List
As the new year dawns, here's your plan to get financially fit, one job at a time.
A Year-End Portfolio Review in 6 Easy Steps
Check up on your portfolio's health--and that of your whole plan--as the year winds down.
The Best of The Long View: Conversations With Advisors and Retirement Pros
We highlight some of the most indelible moments from our newest podcast.
Lessons From the Past 25 Years
On becoming a minimalist, focusing on the really important allocations, and talking about hard stuff.
The Keys to Financial Success Are Incredibly Mundane (Sorry!)
Stop looking for investment alchemy; it's the boring stuff that really matters.
How Do Your Financial Priorities Stack Up With Our Pyramid?
Make sure you're not geeking out about small-bore investment problems while giving short shrift to the game-changers.
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Experts offered insights on retirement planning, whether value stocks are due for a rebound, and what types of spending correlates with happiness in retirement.
Moira Somers: How to Give Financial Advice That People Will Actually Take
A neuropsychologist discusses why clients don't do what their financial advisors tell them to do--and how advisors can improve upon that.
A Year-End To-Do List for Bucket Investors
A step-by-step guide to 'bucket maintenance' as the year winds down.
7 Rebalancing Strategies That Are Tax-Efficient, Too!
Restoring a portfolio to your target allocation has the potential to trigger a tax bill, but it doesn't have to.
Morningstar on Commodities
Our house view puts valuation at the forefront.
John Lynch: Rethinking Financial Education
A noted researcher and consumer advocate discusses why so many financial literacy efforts don't improve outcomes--and what they could do better.
ESG ETF Portfolios for Retirement Savers
These low-cost ETF portfolios are designed to deliver potent asset-class exposures to ESG-conscious investors saving for retirement.
ESG ETF Bucket Portfolios for Retirees
These in-retirement portfolios invest in ESG-friendly ETFs that should provide marketlike exposures.
ESG Mutual Fund Bucket Portfolios for Retirees
These portfolios are composed of mutual funds with strong ESG and investing track records.