This episode of Retirement Answer Man is the second in the Market Correction Fire Drill series. After listening to the previous episode you know that a market correction is inevitable and how to measure your risk tolerance to help you become prepared for every eventuality. On this episode, we discuss how to rebalance your portfolio. Are you wondering why all of this is important to your retirement planning? Listen to this episode so that you fully understand how important rebalancing your asset allocation is to your portfolio, being prepared for the market correction, and your future lifestyle. Apply your risk tolerance to your portfolio Last week we discussed how to measure your risk tolerance and how to connect that tolerance to the life you want to live. On this episode, I cover how to implement what you learned in the Market Correction Fire Drill Step 1. Hopefully, you have been able to analyze your risk tolerance and discover how much risk you are comfortable with and match that risk accordingly to the life that you desire. When you listen to this episode, you will learn how to rebalance your portfolio to match the risk level that you have set for yourself. Listen to this episode to hear how regularly rebalancing your portfolio can help you keep in line with your risk tolerance. What does rebalancing mean? I know you are wondering what I mean by rebalancing your portfolio. Rebalancing means adjusting your portfolio to reflect the risk level that you have intentionally set for yourself. The better your stocks are faring the more off balance your portfolio can become, which means that you may be taking on more risk than you are comfortable with. As with all of your investment strategies, always keep your future retirement lifestyle in mind. Listen in to the full episode to hear examples so that you can truly understand what a rebalanced portfolio looks like. How often should you rebalance your portfolio? Remember to rebalance according to your retirement goals. If you don’t rebalance your assets could be out of balance and set up for more risk than you want. As the markets rise your assets can get out of balance. When your investments grow you’ll need to step back and analyze your portfolio. That way you can adjust your asset allocation so that you can get back on track and back into your comfort zone. The questions of when and how often you should do this can be challenging. While it might be different for each individual, if you listen in to this episode I’ll give you a good rule of thumb about when to do this and how often. Rebalancing can be harder than you may think It is hard to sell when you are doing well in the markets, sometimes you just want to ride the wave. When we rebalance regularly we ensure that you are thinking about how far you want to ride each particular investment. This can be very counterintuitive. We tend to want more of the good and less of the bad. But rebalancing regularly helps ensure that you sell high and buy low, which is what investing is all about. Listen to this episode to hear more detailed advice on how and when you should be buying and selling. OUTLINE OF THIS EPISODE OF THE RETIREMENT ANSWER MAN HOT TOPIC SEGMENT [2:56] Rebalancing your portfolio [5:52] How often should you rebalance [7:02] Rebalancing can be harder than you may think PRACTICAL PLANNING SEGMENT [10:26] How can a portfolio of pure stocks have a probability of success so close to a 50/50 stocks/bonds [13:54] Is there a benefit to paying your January mortgage in December? [14:59] How do you decide between an annuity and a lump sum? THE HAPPY LAB SEGMENT [18:02] What is the key to a Merry Christmas? TODAY’S SMART SPRINT SEGMENT [20:23] Rebalance your asset allocation that is tied to your goals Resources Mentioned In This Episode Ask Roger a question Work with Roger 3-video Series: 5 Minute Retirement Makeover Roger’s Retirement Learning Center The Retirement Answer Man Facebook Page