Ahead of SPY at 8 of 60 month-ends.
Same starting value · dividends reinvested
Selected allocation CAGR +1.7%
SPY CAGR +12.0%
Shaded: major market crises Bear Market (2022)
Core-4 Portfolio 20/80
4 ETFs · Fixed income · REITs & real estate · U.S. total market
View holdings
Fixed income · REITs & real estate · U.S. total market · International equity
Where this allocation comes from
Rick Ferri · Core-4 Portfolio · 2007
Also known as: Core Four Portfolio 20/80 · Classic Core-4 Portfolio (Low-Risk)
US stocks 12, international stocks 6, US REITs 2 and US bonds 80: Ferri's Low-Risk level.
| Asset in the source | Weight | Lifolio ETF |
|---|---|---|
| US total stock market | 12% | VTI |
| International stocks (ex-US) | 6% | VXUS |
| US REITs | 2% | VNQ |
| US aggregate bonds | 80% | BND |
Ferri splits stocks 60/30/10 across US, international and REITs. VXUS listed in January 2011, so history starts then.
Source: core-4.com core-4.com core-4.com
Lifolio is not affiliated with or endorsed by the people or organizations cited. Figures are historical simulations under Lifolio's standard conditions. Sources checked 2026-11-01.
- $10,000 lump sum
- Monthly rebalancing
- Dividends reinvested
- Benchmark: SPY
- No taxes or fees
- $10,000 became
- $10,902 SPY alone: $17,597 −$6,695 vs SPY
- Annual return
- +1.7% SPY +12.0% -10.2pp vs SPY
- Max drawdown (month-end)
- -16.8% SPY -23.9% +7.2pp vs SPY Regained 24 mo after the low
- Below the high at period end
- -1.1% 2026-10
Key points for this allocation
- By asset class: bonds 80% · equities 18% · real estate 2%.
- Its dividend yield over the last 12 months was 3.6%; the results reinvest dividends.
- During the Bear Market (2022) it returned -14.4%, while SPY returned -19.7%.
Overview ⌄
Compare allocations
The same holdings at different splits. Pick a row to update everything below.
| Allocation | Details | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| +1.7% | -16.8% | -0.25 | ||
| +3.6% | -19.0% | 0.01 | ||
| +5.5% | -21.3% | 0.19 | ||
| +7.4% | -23.5% | 0.32 |
- Annual return
- +1.7%
- Max drawdown (month-end)
- -16.8%
- Sharpe
- -0.25
- Annual return
- +3.6%
- Max drawdown (month-end)
- -19.0%
- Sharpe
- 0.01
- Annual return
- +5.5%
- Max drawdown (month-end)
- -21.3%
- Sharpe
- 0.19
- Annual return
- +7.4%
- Max drawdown (month-end)
- -23.5%
- Sharpe
- 0.32
Exploration on Lifolio; these counts do not establish investment performance or preference.
Growth
Starting from $10,000, shown with SPY over the same window. Shaded bands mark major market crises.
Declines and recoveries
Month-end decline from the previous high. Closer to 0% means a smaller fall.
The deepest fall was -16.8%, regained 24 months after the low.
Values below 0% are loss periods
Calendar-year returns
Only years with all twelve months. The table also lists the deepest fall within each year (the in-year low).
Of 4 complete years: 1 with a loss, 1 ahead of SPY.
Show as a table
| Year | Selected allocation | SPY | In-year low |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | +9.6% | +17.7% | -0.7% |
| 2024 | +4.2% | +24.9% | -2.7% |
| 2023 | +8.7% | +26.2% | -5.7% |
| 2022 | -14.2% | -18.2% | -16.8% |
Depending on when you bought
Every month in the window taken as a start, held one, three or five years.
Observed windows overlap and are not independent samples. These shares are not probabilities of future gains.
Holdings
Holdings of the selected split and what each one is.
- BNDVanguard Total Bond Market Index Fund ETF Shares 80%
An ETF investing across the U.S. bond market.
- VTIVanguard Morningstar Total Stock Market ETF 12%
An ETF investing across the U.S. equity market.
- VXUSVanguard Total International Stock Index Fund ETF Shares 6%
An ETF investing in equity markets outside the U.S.
- VNQVanguard Real Estate Index Fund ETF Shares 2%
An ETF investing in U.S. real estate equities.
Questions & methodology
Review calculation settings and how to interpret the selected allocation.
What does the Core-4 Portfolio 20/80 hold?
Vanguard Total Bond Market Index Fund ETF Shares (BND): An ETF investing across the U.S. bond market. Vanguard Morningstar Total Stock Market ETF (VTI): An ETF investing across the U.S. equity market. Vanguard Total International Stock Index Fund ETF Shares (VXUS): An ETF investing in equity markets outside the U.S. Vanguard Real Estate Index Fund ETF Shares (VNQ): An ETF investing in U.S. real estate equities.
What were the return and risk of the Core-4 Portfolio 20/80?
From 2021-10-29 to 2026-10-30, the annualized return was +1.7%, maximum drawdown was -16.8%, and Sharpe ratio was -0.25.
How did it compare with holding SPY alone?
From 2021-10-29 to 2026-10-30, the annual return was +1.7% for this split and +12.0% for SPY. Over the same window the maximum drawdown was -16.8% for this split and -23.9% for SPY.
How far did the Core-4 Portfolio 20/80 fall, and how long did it take to get back?
Over the selected 5 years, the largest month-end decline was -16.8%, from a high in 2021-12 to a low in 2022-09. It regained the old high 24 months after the low.
How many losing years did the Core-4 Portfolio 20/80 have?
1 of 4 complete calendar years ended with a loss. The worst was 2022 (-14.2%).
How did other popular splits of the Core-4 Portfolio 20/80 do?
BND 80% · VNQ 2% · VTI 12% · VXUS 6%: annualized return +1.7%, maximum drawdown -16.8%. BND 60% · VNQ 4% · VTI 24% · VXUS 12%: annualized return +3.6%, maximum drawdown -19.0%. BND 40% · VNQ 6% · VTI 36% · VXUS 18%: annualized return +5.5%, maximum drawdown -21.3%.
Are dividends, taxes and exchange rates included?
Dividends are reinvested and results are in USD. Taxes, currency moves against your home currency and trading fees are not included. These results use US-listed ETFs; Korea-listed ETFs such as KODEX and TIGER can be added in the backtest.
The server calculates portfolio examples and actual user allocations with the same period, starting balance and settings. Validated metrics and their supporting charts are shown together.
Price data through: 2026-10-30