This article originally appeared at Forbes as It Pays to Diversify Beyond the S&P 500 by Robert Schmansky, CFP®. Investors often ask if an approach of including more small and value stocks in a portfolio than a capitalization weighted index involves more risk. If risk is measured by volatility, yes, a small and value portfolio will have more volatility. Volatility however can be useful in stock investing with a rebalancing plan and a longer time horizon. Going back to 1927, I

This article originally appeared at Forbes by Robert Schmansky, CFP®. Following a rigid ideology can present weaknesses in life and an investment plan. The more experience I have as an advisor the more I realize that rigid models, rules of thumb and hard beliefs often benefit from a little flexibility. While indexing is a great way to invest in the markets, is a straight market-cap weighted commercial index fund the best tool to use in assembling a portfolio? Or can we benefi

The following was originally published by Robert Schmansky for Forbes: Dimensional Fund Advisors (DFA) is often noted for the cultish attraction financial advisors have for its products but there are plenty of other reasons to pay attention to this firm. Recently there has been a lot of publicity surrounding DFA’s record growth of assets; $16.7 billion of new assets in the first three quarters of 2013–that’s more than any prior calendar year. There’s also the news of its dire

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