For those who wanted to follow along, this will be another second execution of my refined, structured Market-Based Buying Strategy for 2026 for investing well with minimal effort: https://brighterdayslifecoaching.com/a-structured-market-based-buying-strategy-for-investing-well-with-minimal-effort/.
If you are a High Risk (HR) or Medium Risk (MR) investor, this post is for you – Low Risk (LR) investors can wait and do nothing if you want. If you aren’t sure what your investment risk category is, you can find it here: https://brighterdayslifecoaching.com/investment-tools/
The S&P 500 index has dropped about 6% from its all-time high – so if it drops a little more over the next few days (~721 for the SPY ETF or ~7235 for the S&P 500 index would represent about a 7.5% drop):
HR Investors might consider buying such that another 33.3% or more (depending on investment style and preference) of their overall investment account is invested into one of the major market index Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs) (or you can split that across multiple major market indexes if you prefer) – If you did not invest the last time when I sent out the 1st Execution notification then the total would be a minimum of 67% (33.3% for the 1st execution plus 33.3% for this 2nd execution).
MR Investors might consider buying such that 15% or more (depending on investment style and preference) of their overall investment account is invested into one of the major market index Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs) (or you can split that across multiple major market indexes if you prefer).
The longer and the deeper the drop you wait for, the greater the likelihood you will miss the rebound. So, HR and MR investors might want to prepare to go ahead and buy. LR investors might be more inclined to take their chances by waiting for a deeper drop. It’s your financial future so do what you think is best for you.
I currently track ten major market index ETFs: the S&P 500 index (e.g., SPY ETF), an equal-weighted version of the S&P 500 Index (e.g., RSP ETF), the Invesco S&P 500 Quality ETF (SPHQ – focuses on higher quality stocks within the S&P 500), the Total Stock Market index (e.g., VTI ETF), the Vanguard Value Index Fund ETF Shares (VTV – value stocks of large companies), the Nasdaq (e.g., QQQ ETF), a Mid-Cap Stock Index ETF (e.g., IJH ETF), Russell 2000 index (e.g., IWM ETF), and the EFA ETF (or something similar). Each of these are major U.S. based indexes except for the last one which tracks international stocks of developed countries outside the U.S. and Canada.
Of the above major market index ETFs, the three most attractive index funds right now appear to be the QQQ ETF, the IWM ETF (or the SPSM ETF which is the one I prefer since this contains only the profitable companies in the IWM ETF), the IJH ETF, the EFA ETF (or IEFA ETF which is the one I like since the fees are lower), and the SPHQ ETF. However, if you prefer U.S. based indexes the most attractive of those right now appear to be: QQQ, IWM/SPSM, IJH, and SPHQ based on my analysis. So, you can pick one or more of these ETFs or split your investment across these if that is your preference. None of these indexes/ETFs are without risk, however.
For example, the QQQ ETF and SPHQ ETF tends to suffer from higher valuation and concentration risks where a select few large cap stocks tend to dominate – some investors/economists are greatly concerned about the valuation and concentration risks while others believe they are appropriate since that is where much of the earnings growth presently is.
The IWM ETF (or the SPSM ETF which is the one I prefer since this contains only the profitable companies in the IWM ETF) tends to outperform in lower inflation economic environments, lower interest rate economic environments, and when the economy is performing well overall. This index also tends to drop the fastest and deepest in a slowing economy but rebounds sharply in the midst of the economic slowdown in anticipation of economic recovery.
The Mid-Cap Stock Index (e.g., IJH ETF) – Can serve as an intermediary to balance the risks between the small-cap indexes (such as the Russell 2000) and large cap indexes (such as the Nasdaq tracked by the QQQ ETF).
The EFA ETF (or IEFA ETF which is the one I prefer since the fees are lower) can be impacted by U.S. trade policy and has potential currency exchange risk as well since this index is not U.S. based – it is also the one most affected by oil prices as they rise; especially if they remain high. In terms of the potential currency exchange risk, a falling dollar tends to increase gains while a rising dollar tends to reduce gains. However, the currency exchange impact is not typically very substantial unless the dollar experiences big moves when it comes to the EFA ETF. So, if you are very concerned about these kinds of issues, then you might want to choose a different index to buy into or split your investment across different indexes.
You can read about the risks associated with the main stock market indexes here: https://brighterdayslifecoaching.com/investment-tools/ (just scroll down to “UNIQUE DIFFERENCES IN STOCK MARKET INDEXES“).
Feel free to start buying in one or more of the aforementioned major market index ETFs if you are a HR or MR investor and the S&P 500 drops a little more over the next few days. You can use the specific major market indexes above or use a different one that suits you. Just ensure the fees are at least as low as the ones identified above when buying. Some people like to split their investments across multiple indexes to help manage the risk so feel free to do the same.
You don’t have to be very precise when buying into the overall stock market – a gain is experienced 93% of the time over rolling 5-year periods and 99.9% of the time over rolling 10-year periods no matter when you buy. In sharp contrast, being a seller or waiting for drops to happen can be challenging in that you will be “wrong” 93% of the time over rolling 5-year periods and 99.9% of the time over rolling 10-year periods. So, you have to be very precise as a seller which is one reason higher risk investors should probably never (or rarely) sell. You can read more about this here: https://brighterdayslifecoaching.com/investment-tools/ (just scroll down to item 1 under “KEY HISTORICAL STOCK MARKET TRENDS”).
Here are a few historical trends which might be helpful to keep in mind: A 3-5% drop in the S&P 500 index generally happens about three times a year, a 10% drop generally happens about once every 1.5 years, and a 20%+ drop generally happens about twice every five years. So, the deeper the drop you wait for before buying, the higher the likelihood you’ll miss a significant rebound. You can read more about this here: https://brighterdayslifecoaching.com/investment-tools/ (just scroll down to item 2 under “KEY HISTORICAL STOCK MARKET TRENDS”).
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You can learn about all of my investing techniques via my “Invest Like a Pro in 10 Minutes a Day!” series of 4 books where you can learn the “end to end” process to investing: https://brighterdayslifecoaching.com/published-books-and-life-coaching-services/.
Also, you can read all about my stock market activities here: https://brighterdayslifecoaching.com/stock-market-activities
I wish you much investing success for 2026 (and beyond!).
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