How increasing mutual fund SIPs by 5% can help you meet retirement planning goal

Not many investors know whether they have invested in the right funds and if their fund portfolio is on track. The Portfolio Doctor assesses the health of the fund portfolio, examines the schemes and their suitability with regard to the goals and, if required, recommends corrective measures. The advice given is based on the performance of the funds, the risk profile of the investor as well as his financial goals.

Pranav Kapoor is saving for his child’s goals and retirement. Here’s what the doctor has advised:

PORTFOLIO CHECK-UP

• Has been investing in equity funds for the past 7-8 years.
• Started with ELSS funds to save tax and then added more schemes.
• Still holding ELSS funds bought several years ago. Some of them are lagging.
• Quit job last year to launch business venture.
• Provident Fund account will become inactive after two years. Deploy corpus in a debt fund.
• Holds too many funds. Needs to junk underperformers.
• Don’t invest in new funds. Just 7-8 funds are enough.
• Take a Rs.2 crore life insurance to cover goals. Go for a pure protection term insurance plan.
• Income from business can be lumpy. Build emergency fund to tide over unexpected expenses.

Note from the doctor

• Fund portfolio has small-cap skew. Be ready for high volatility.
• Don’t avoid PPF. Use it to build tax-free corpus.
• Review investments and rebalance at least once a year.
• Reduce risk when goal is near so that you don’t miss the target.

WRITE TO US FOR HELP
If you want your portfolio examined, write to etwealth@timesgroup.com with 'Portfolio Doctor' as the subject.
Mention the following information:

• Names of the funds you hold.
• Current value of the investment.
• If you have SIPs running in any of them.
• The financial goals for which you invested.
• How much you need for each financial goal.
• How far away is each goal.