Becoming a millionaire seems daunting. Indeed, it is not easy, but you can achieve your goal, especially if you start early. This way, you can benefit from capitalization over a longer period. A long period also mitigates this annoying short-term volatility. Based on a certain annualized return, you can also determine how much you need to invest each month.
One way to achieve your goal is to invest in exchange traded funds (ETFs). These allow you to diversify your portfolio, but ETFs trade like stocks. If you want to invest in an index, Vanguard offers a plethora of low cost options.
Narrowing your choices down to three can seem overwhelming, but these ETFs could help you achieve millionaire status.
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1. Vanguard Russell 3000 ETF
The Vanguard Russell 3000 Index Fund ETF (NASDAQ: VTHR) is a way to invest in almost all of the US stock market. The more than 3,000 farms represent 98% of the national market.
US stocks have been doing well for a long time. Over the past year, the fund has returned almost 32%. Over the past decade, you would have received almost 15% per year. During that time, your money would have almost quintupled.
Of course, the past is no guarantee for the future. However, it is fairly safe to assume that the US stock market will perform well over the long term.
2. ETF Vanguard FTSE All-World ex-US
Now that you’ve covered the US stock market, you might want to add geographic diversification by investing in the rest of the world. The Avant-garde FTSE All-World ETF outside the United States (NYSEMKT: VEU) is a good way forward.
The fund invests in approximately 3,600 stocks across the world. It places most of its assets, 40%, in Europe, 27% in the Pacific and 25% in emerging markets. Most of the remaining funds, 6%, are invested in North America.
Therefore, you get a wide range of stocks spread all over the world. This is beneficial in case an area is having trouble.
This ETF has returned almost 24% over the past year and has an average annual return of around 8% over the past 10 years. During this period, you would have more than doubled your money.
3. Vanguard Long Term Corporate Bond Index ETF
It is not a bad idea to add bonds to your portfolio to add more stability and a generator of regular income. There is a wide variety to choose from, but the Vanguard Long Term Corporate Bond Index ETF (NASDAQ: VCLT) has nice features.
The fund invests primarily in investment grade corporate bonds, which tend to fare better than lower rated bonds because the credit quality is better. About 51% of the assets were in BBB rated bonds and 38% were rated A.
Of course, you can invest in US government securities, but quality bonds have a higher yield, 3.1%, for the added risk. The fund also buys securities with longer maturities. Vanguard gives it a risk rating of 3, right in the middle of its five-point scale.
Over the past year, the return has only been 2.5%. But its 10-year annualized return was 6.8%, which means you would have roughly doubled your money over that time.
While both equity funds are at the higher end of the risk spectrum, the bond fund moderates it somewhat. Plus, if you have a long-term horizon, you should be rewarded for this high risk.
The good part is, since these are index funds, Vanguard keeps spending ultra low. These range from 0.05% to 0.10%. Of course, since the funds spend less money on some administrative functions, it means you get a higher return.
While it is exciting to research high yield funds, these stable, low cost options are a way to help you achieve millionaire status.
This article represents the opinion of the author, who may disagree with the “official†recommendation position of a premium Motley Fool consulting service. We are heterogeneous! Challenging an investment thesis – even one of our own – helps us all to think critically about investing and make decisions that help us become smarter, happier, and richer.