In order to maximize my Roth IRA contributions, I automatically deposit $166.67 twice a month (on or about the 1st and 15th of each month) into a mutual fund with TIAA-Cref, which offers a no-fee account. (There are low fund management fees, but not as low as Vanguard’s. Unfortunately Vanguard has a minimum deposit requirement which I couldn’t make when I initiated the Roth IRA in June, 2003.) This year, in order to increase my diversification, I decided to switch funds.

I have almost $10,000 in the TIAA-Cref Equity Index fund [TCEIX], but as of the other day, my contributions are going into the company’s Small-Cap Equity fund [TCSEX]. Not only will this provide me with a more balanced portfolio in the long run, I’ll have a more interesting fund symbol. The fund has only existed since 2003, and 2005 was its worst performing year at +3.24 percent. The prior two years were +20.44 percent and +47.05 percent.

While I continue to invest in TCSEX twice each month, I’ll let TCEIX sit and hopefully grow.

I’ve made some changes to my 401(k) allocation as well, and I’ll explore the new information over the weekend (or later, depending on how much time I have).

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Flexo, the owner and creator of Consumerism Commentary, has been blogging and writing for the internet since 1995 and has been building online communities since 1991. Find out more about him and follow him on Twitter.

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