Ahead of SPY at 5 of 60 month-ends.
Same starting value · dividends reinvested
Selected allocation CAGR +4.8%
SPY CAGR +12.0%
Shaded: major market crises Bear Market (2022)
Weird Portfolio
6 ETFs · Gold · U.S. small & mid cap · U.S. long-term Treasuries
View holdings
Gold · U.S. small & mid cap · U.S. long-term Treasuries · REITs & real estate · International equity
Where this allocation comes from
Value Stock Geek (pen name) · The Weird Portfolio · 2021
Also known as: The Weird Portfolio · Value Stock Geek Weird Portfolio
US small-cap value, international small caps, long Treasuries and gold at 20% each, plus US and international REITs at 10% each.
| Asset in the source | Weight | Lifolio ETF |
|---|---|---|
| US small-cap value | 20% | VBR |
| International small caps | 20% | VSS |
| US long-term Treasuries | 20% | VGLT |
| US REITs | 10% | VNQ |
| International REITs | 10% | VNQI |
| Gold | 20% | GLD |
Uses the Vanguard ETFs the author names in the book; gold uses GLD, which holds the same bullion as his SGOL.
Source: valuestockgeek.medium.com theinvestorspodcast.com portfoliocharts.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
- $12,627 SPY alone: $17,597 −$4,970 vs SPY
- Annual return
- +4.8% SPY +12.0% -7.2pp vs SPY
- Max drawdown (month-end)
- -23.4% SPY -23.9% +0.6pp vs SPY Regained 23 mo after the low
- Below the high at period end
- -8.1% 2026-10
Key points for this allocation
- By asset class: equities 40% · commodities 20% · bonds 20% · real estate 20%.
- Its dividend yield over the last 12 months was 2.8%; the results reinvest dividends.
- During the Bear Market (2022) it returned -20.0%, while SPY returned -19.7%.
Overview ⌄
Compare allocations
The same holdings at different splits. Pick a row to update everything below.
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 -23.4%, regained 23 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, 2 ahead of SPY.
Show as a table
| Year | Selected allocation | SPY | In-year low |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | +22.8% | +17.7% | -0.3% |
| 2024 | +7.2% | +24.9% | -5.2% |
| 2023 | +11.8% | +26.2% | -10.3% |
| 2022 | -17.2% | -18.2% | -23.4% |
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.
- GLDSPDR Gold Shares 20%
An investment product providing exposure to gold prices.
- VBRVanguard Morningstar Small-Cap Value ETF 20%
- VGLTVanguard Long-Term Treasury Index Fund ETF Shares 20%
- VSSVanguard FTSE All-World ex-US Small-Cap Index Fund ETF Shares 20%
- VNQVanguard Real Estate Index Fund ETF Shares 10%
An ETF investing in U.S. real estate equities.
- VNQIVanguard Global ex-U.S. Real Estate Index Fund ETF Shares 10%
Questions & methodology
Review calculation settings and how to interpret the selected allocation.
What does the Weird Portfolio hold?
SPDR Gold Shares (GLD): An investment product providing exposure to gold prices. Vanguard Morningstar Small-Cap Value ETF (VBR) Vanguard Long-Term Treasury Index Fund ETF Shares (VGLT) Vanguard FTSE All-World ex-US Small-Cap Index Fund ETF Shares (VSS) Vanguard Real Estate Index Fund ETF Shares (VNQ): An ETF investing in U.S. real estate equities. Vanguard Global ex-U.S. Real Estate Index Fund ETF Shares (VNQI)
What were the return and risk of the Weird Portfolio?
From 2021-10-29 to 2026-10-30, the annualized return was +4.8%, maximum drawdown was -23.4%, and Sharpe ratio was 0.12.
How did it compare with holding SPY alone?
From 2021-10-29 to 2026-10-30, the annual return was +4.8% for this split and +12.0% for SPY. Over the same window the maximum drawdown was -23.4% for this split and -23.9% for SPY.
How far did the Weird Portfolio fall, and how long did it take to get back?
Over the selected 5 years, the largest month-end decline was -23.4%, from a high in 2021-12 to a low in 2022-09. It regained the old high 23 months after the low.
How many losing years did the Weird Portfolio have?
1 of 4 complete calendar years ended with a loss. The worst was 2022 (-17.2%).
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