Ben Stein proposed this portfolio in his expert financial advice columns on Yahoo!

Ben Stein’s Long-Term Portfolio:

- 30% in Fidelity Spartan Total Market Index (FSTMX) or Total Stock Market ETF (VTI)

- 15% to 20% in iShares MSCI EAFE Index (EFA or VEA)

- 10% in iShares MSCI Emerging Markets Index (EEM or VWO) or Emerging Markets 50 ADR (ADRE)
- 10% in iShares Cohen & Steers Realty Majors (ICF or VNQ)

- 10% in iShares Russell 2000 Value Index (IWN or IJS) - 15%-20% in Cash such as Treasury Bills or money market fund

Ben Stein believes that Investors should take advantage of some long-term trends likely continue in your savings and investments. 

For the long run the decline of the dollar will continue. So Ben Stein suggests on doing dollars by buying the index funds of the emerging markets and the index funds of the major foreign industrial powers in Europe, Australasia, and the Far East, known as the EFA.

In more detail:

FSTMX or VTI covers a very large swath of the market and allows for major diversification in one purchase. 

The EFA or VEA allows investors to bet that these economies will strengthen and that corporate profits there will rise, but most important of all, that their currencies -- especially the Euro -- will strengthen against the dollar. 

EEM, VWO and ADRE allow investors to bet on continuing success in China, India, Brazil, Russia, Thailand, the Philippines, Mexico, and many other countries.  ICF are very high now but pay a good dividend and will probably stall for a while and then go up in the future. 

The IWN or IJS has had a fabulous move this year, and I wouldn’t expect another one like it for a while, but small cap is historically a fine place to be in the long run. 

And also he suggests putting about 15 percent in cash against a rainy day.

Buy and Hold (Annually Rebalance)

USStocks VTI 30%
USSmallCapValueStocks IJS 10%
IntlStocks VEA 20%
EmergingMktStocks VWO 10%
USREITs VNQ 10%
Cash CASH 20%

Simulated from 07/26/2007