Risk Parity Radio

In this episode we respond to emails from Thirsty Horse, Joanne, Matt and Alan.  We share our gratitude for our listeners and reflect on how a listener community can become one of the most meaningful outcomes of a long-term investing project. We also provide an update on the Top of the T-Shirt fundraising campaign for the Father McKenna Center.  Next we answer two portfolio design questions about retirement drawdown constraints and how to fit them into the framework for portfolios with higher safe withdrawal rates.

And THEN we our go through our weekly portfolio reviews of the eight sample portfolios you can find at Portfolios | Risk Parity Radio.

Links:

Father McKenna Center Donation Page (please mention Risk Parity Radio in the comment section with your donation):  Donate - Father McKenna Center

Charity Navigator Rating for The Father McKenna Center:  Charity Navigator - Rating for Father McKenna Center Inc.

Bengen "Richer Retirement" Sample Portfolio at Portfolio Charts:  Richer Retirement Portfolio – Portfolio Charts

Bill Bengen's "Richer Retirement" Content:  Bill Bengen’s New Book | Charts & Tools for You

Golden Ratio Compared with Version w/o Alternative Investments:  Portfolio Backtester for ETFs and Asset Allocation | testfolio

Afford Anything Risk Parity Portfolio Blueprint:  Afford Anything frank-vasquez-risk-parity-portfolio-BluePrint.pdf - Google Drive

Breathless Unedited AI-Bot Summary:

A week where stocks jump 3% to 5% and gold pops more than 7% can feel like the market is daring you to change your plan. We don’t take the bait. We walk through what actually happened across major asset classes, why we still refuse to time markets, and how a diversified risk parity approach is designed to keep you steady when headlines and price moves get loud.

We also start with something more important than portfolio math: the notes we received after my mom passed away, and what it means to build an audience that shows up for each other. From there, we share a progress update on our Father McKenna Center “top of the t-shirt” campaign, including matching funds, a Charity Navigator 100% rating, and a practical tip for tax-smart giving: donating appreciated shares can reduce capital gains while supporting a mission you care about.

Then we get into two listener questions that hit the real world. First: if you’re in the retirement drawdown phase and you can only use stock and bond ETFs or index funds, what would we actually hold and why? We talk safe withdrawal rate research, the role alternatives play, and what you might use as imperfect substitutes (value tilt, REITs, utilities, even gold miners) when gold and managed futures aren’t on the table. Second: what if you’re investing from New Zealand with limited fund access and a tax drag on US ETFs? We lay out a decision process for finding value-tilted funds locally, evaluating managed futures costs, and avoiding expensive “solutions” that quietly erase the benefit you’re chasing.
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In this episode we answer emails from Eli, Optimus Bill, and James.  We discuss variations in fund approaches for adding leverage, when fees are more likely to matter, what kinds of people and goals can benefit from risk parity style approaches, the trade-offs in lower and higher equity approaches (with a recent insight from Bill Bengen), and a ChatGPT analysis from a listener.

Links: 

Father McKenna Center Donation Page (please mention Risk Parity Radio in the comment section with your donation):  Donate - Father McKenna Center

Catching Up To FI with Yours Truly:  Are Bonds Dead?: Fixed Income Fundamentals (Part 1) | Frank Vasquez | Episode 229

Afford Anything Podcast #618:  They Ran Out of Money. I Didn’t. Here’s Why.

Afford Anything Risk Parity Portfolio Blueprint:  Afford Anything frank-vasquez-risk-parity-portfolio-BluePrint.pdf - Google Drive

FI Physician Article:  How Withdrawal Rate Influences Diversifiers in a Risk Parity Portfolio

Breathless AI-Bot Summary:

You can build a portfolio that looks elegant on paper and still miss the only question that matters: what is this portfolio supposed to do for your life? We dig into listener mail that forces the issue, starting with a smart (and very specific) proposal to add leverage using return-stacked ETFs instead of daily-reset leveraged funds. We talk through what these products are trying to achieve, why “macroallocation” often drives the long-run behavior, and where the real uncertainty lives: rebalancing mechanics, limited history, and the practical cost of complexity.

From there, we zoom out to risk parity in retirement. We answer whether there’s a minimum nest egg size to use a risk parity portfolio (spoiler: it’s not about size, it’s about goals), and why many people with very low withdrawal rates simply don’t need a portfolio engineered to maximize safe withdrawal rate. If you’re in the 0% to 3% withdrawal camp, you may have far more freedom than you think, and your asset allocation can optimize for something else entirely, like long-term growth, simplicity, or personal comfort.

We also get tactical: Treasury STRIPS funds as a form of bond “pseudo-leverage,” how that can free up space for growth assets while keeping recession insurance, and how to think about minimum position sizes based on volatility instead of arbitrary percentage floors. Finally, we respond to a question about Golden Butterfly versus Golden Ratio style portfolios, sequence of returns risk, and whether a reverse glide path or bucket-style framing can help without turning your retirement plan into an overengineered project.

If you like practical portfolio design, risk parity investing, safe withdrawal rate thinking, and clear tradeoffs around leverage, fees, and retirement asset allocation, hit play. Subscribe, share this with a friend who loves tinkering, and leave us a review with your biggest takeaway.

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In this episode we answer emails from Luc, (from Quebec!), Nick, and Isaiah.  We discuss surviving ugly drawdowns and bad decades, building a risk parity portfolio that still grows, momentum funds, avoiding fund hopping, and treating health like a real priority.

And THEN we our go through our weekly portfolio reviews of the eight sample portfolios you can find at Portfolios | Risk Parity Radio.

Links:

Father McKenna Center Donation Page (please mention Risk Parity Radio in the comment section with your donation):  Donate - Father McKenna Center

Catching Up To FI With Ben Carlson:  Risk & Reward: Stress Testing the Long Term Buy and Hold Strategy | Ben Carlson | 225

Portfolio Comparison Starting In 2000:  Portfolio Backtester for ETFs and Asset Allocation | testfolio

Portfolio Charts Heat Map Chart:  Heat Map – Portfolio Charts

Portfolio Charts Article:  Minimize Your Miss – Portfolio Charts

Afford Anything Podcast #618:  They Ran Out of Money. I Didn’t. Here’s Why.

Afford Anything Risk Parity Portfolio Blueprint:  Afford Anything frank-vasquez-risk-parity-portfolio-BluePrint.pdf - Google Drive

Breathless Unedited AI-Bot Summary:

Imagine retiring into a market that refuses to cooperate. A listener asks the question most withdrawal rate debates dodge: could you keep taking inflation-adjusted withdrawals while your balance shrinks through a 2000-style lost decade, and what would make you cut spending in real time?

We walk through how we think about drawdowns, sequence of returns risk, and why “toughing it out” is easier when the portfolio is built for multiple economic outcomes. That leads to practical stress testing: using historical analysis, TestFol.io, and Portfolio Charts heat maps to compare risk parity portfolios, a 60/40, and classic three-fund approaches under the worst start dates. We also share why Monte Carlo alone can be misleading if it relies on simplified assumptions instead of real historical regimes.

Next, we tackle a portfolio construction email that hits a modern dilemma: can you be too diversified in a risk parity setup? We unpack a Golden Ratio-style allocation with US and international equity sleeves, small cap value, momentum funds, long-term Treasuries, gold, managed futures, and cash. We discuss when that mix makes sense for decumulation versus accumulation, how momentum can function as a growth proxy, and the one behavior that reliably breaks good plans: fund hopping.

We end with a thoughtful note on the “life portfolio” many investors ignore: health. Exercise, consistency, convenience, and even medical support come up as we talk about aligning money decisions with longevity and day-to-day vitality.

If this helped you think more clearly about retirement withdrawals, risk parity investing, and building a plan you can stick with, subscribe, share the show, and leave a review.

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We close season six by walking through our annual July rebalancings of the first four sample risk parity style portfolios and talking about their raison d'être. We also share a practical reverse glide path strategy that we plan to apply to the sample Golden Butterfly portfolio over the course of the next ten years, starting with this one.

And we also thank our listeners for their kind words and generosity.

Links:

Father McKenna Center Donation Page (please mention Risk Parity Radio in the comment section with your donation):  Donate - Father McKenna Center

Michael Kitces Reverse Glidepath Article (listen to Episode 469 for more info on that):  The Benefits Of A Rising Equity Glidepath In Retirement

Breathless Unedited AI-Bot Summary:

Rebalancing sounds boring until you realize it’s the moment your plan either stays real or turns into wishful thinking. We’re ending season six with our annual July rebalance across four sample portfolios, using actual target percentages, real fund lineups, and the same rules we follow every year to keep withdrawals and asset allocation from drifting.

We start with the All Seasons Portfolio as a reference case for a very conservative risk parity style mix, then move into the Golden Butterfly where we add a twist: a reverse glide path. Instead of locking in a static stock percentage, we gradually step stock exposure higher over a decade by trimming the lowest-volatility sleeve, aiming to improve retirement resilience without turning the process into constant tinkering. Along the way we hit the practical why behind rebalancing: it quietly forces buy low and sell high when your emotions would rather do the opposite.

From there, we lay out the Golden Ratio Portfolio and the simplest “cash bucket” management we know, designed to minimize trades and mental overhead while still keeping a diversified retirement portfolio. We finish with the Risk Parity Ultimate Portfolio, our educational kitchen-sink mix that includes Treasury STRIPS, preferred shares, managed futures, a long-short fund, gold, and a small bitcoin slice so you can see how volatile sleeves behave during a rebalance.

If you want a clear, repeatable portfolio rebalancing process for retirement, safe withdrawal rate minded allocations, and a realistic look at diversified assets, hit play. Subscribe, share the episode with a DIY investor friend, and leave a review with the portfolio rule you want us to stress-test next.
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In this episode we answer emails from The Nameless One, Jebenizer, and C.M. We discuss practice drawdown portfolios, an unusual deferred pension cash build-up situation and how to handle it, assets that benefit from inflation, and simple rules for contributions and rebalancing that reduce taxes and stress.  And we share an update about Frank's Mom.

Links:

Father McKenna Center Donation Page (please mention Risk Parity Radio in the comment section with your donation):  Donate - Father McKenna Center

Rose Vasquez Memorial:  Rose Vasquez Memorial Service July 15, 2026

Bigger Pockets Money Podcast #1:  The Secret to a 5% Safe Withdrawal Rate | Frank Vasquez

Bigger Pockets Money Test Risk Parity Style Portfolio:  We Built a 5% SWR Retirement Portfolio Using Fidelity in 48 Minutes (Golden Ratio Portfolio)

Afford Anything Podcast #618:  They Ran Out of Money. I Didn’t. Here’s Why.

Afford Anything Risk Parity Portfolio Blueprint:  Afford Anything frank-vasquez-risk-parity-portfolio-BluePrint.pdf - Google Drive

Slide Deck:  Afford Anything Episode 618 RPR Basics Slide Deck.pdf - Google Drive

Video Summary:  Afford Anything Episode 618 Video Summary.mp4 - Google Drive

Breathless Unedited AI-Bot Summary:

A retirement portfolio is one thing on paper and something else entirely when you have to live with it. We start with a quick personal update, then jump into listener emails that turn risk parity investing into hands-on decision-making you can actually copy and test. Along the way, we talk about the “Top of the T-shirt” charity campaign and why we keep the show sponsor-free, then pivot into the kind of practical portfolio questions that show up right before retirement.

One listener builds a $10,000 drawdown portfolio as a practice run while still in the accumulation phase. The rules are clear: rebalance annually, withdraw 5% of the original amount every year, increase that withdrawal by CPI, and do not save it. We dig into why this simple experiment is so effective for building confidence with withdrawals, rebalancing discipline, and the real emotions that come with spending from an investment account. We also connect it to the Golden Ratio portfolio concept and how diversified asset allocation can support higher safe withdrawal rates.

Another listener has a rare situation: a deferred pension option that forces pension payments into a tax-deferred account earning a flat 4%, creating a growing cash-like allocation with limited liquidity. We explain how to treat that cash as part of the total portfolio right now, how it can change your stock and bond mix, and what to do when the funds become available. We also tackle inflation hedging for retirement planning, including why Treasury bonds suffer in inflation, how value stocks like property and casualty insurers can help, and why managed futures can be a powerful inflation hedge.

If you like clear rules, real portfolios, and honest trade-offs, subscribe, share the episode with a friend, and leave a review so more do-it-yourself investors can find us.
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