It’s easy to complicate investing. We often think we must time the market and pick the right stocks to succeed. Many investors get caught up in the idea that they need to beat the market. Unfortunately, that approach can often have the opposite effect, as unnecessary complexity can lead to underperformance.
A simple investing strategy can often produce the best result for most people. One tried-and-true investment approach is investing a set amount each month into an exchange-traded fund (ETF) that tracks the S&P 500 index, like the Vanguard S&P 500 ETF (NYSEMKT: VOO). Over the last 30 years, the average annual return of an S&P 500 index fund is 10.7%. At that rate, investing $300 a month into an ETF like this would grow into $1 million in about 32 years.
The top 500 stocks in one simple ETF
The Vanguard S&P 500 ETF is the third-largest ETF by assets under management (AUM), at nearly…
