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My Foundation for Retirement

People often ask on our forum how to build up a retirement portfolio—usually as a one-time investment for their parents or, for those over 50, for their own retirement planning. Since I myself plan to retire early in four years and would like to relocate to the Philippines, I’ve given this question a lot of thought: What do I really need to ensure my financial planning for retirement is secure and sustainable?

Here, I’d like to present my “retirement foundation.” It doesn’t represent my entire investment portfolio, but it will form the solid core of my stock portfolio. I’ve deliberately left out other asset classes such as gold, bond ETFs, or individual stocks from this breakdown—this represents purely my ETF foundation.

I’ve gradually built this portfolio over the last four to five

years—both theoretically and, to some extent, in practice—and it has consistently met my standards in backtesting since 2020.

This anchor portfolio presented here remains untouched; it is not actively traded but, at most, topped up at irregular intervals. And eventually passed on to heirs.

My strategy in 6 pillars:

1. Quality: Focus on companies with robust balance sheets.

2. Low Volatility: A portfolio that remains stable during market fluctuations (2022 test: -4%

vs. -13% market).

3. Growth: The goal is a total return performance significantly above the broader market.

4. Cash Flow Focus: Target dividend yield of >4% as a supplemental pension.

5. Allocation: The U.S. is capped at 40%; Europe has a higher weighting. I’ve also weighted the financial sector (where I worked for a long time) similarly to tech.

6. Keep it simple: A portfolio must not become so complex that it becomes unmanageable.

My core holdings consist of:

● VanEck Morningstar DM Dividend Leaders $TDIV (+0.37%)

● iShares MSCI World Quality Factor $WQDS (+0.23%)

● iShares S&P 500 Information Tech $IUIT (-0.06%)

● iShares World Equity High Income $WINC (+0.28%)

● Invesco EURO STOXX High Dividend Low Volatility $EUHD (+0.82%)

In four years, I’ll be taking the plunge out of the workforce and into early retirement. With this portfolio, I’ve built a foundation that provides me with reliable distributions and serves as a solid anchor for my life in Asia. With this portfolio alone, I can lead a very good life there. Now I still have four years to do some speculating so that this portfolio can be built up accordingly. The higher, the better.

These may not be the absolute best ETFs in their respective sectors, nor is this a portfolio that will appeal to 100% of everyone, but taken together, it’s perfect for me and my needs.

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30 Comments

jkb92@jkb92

A so-called "economic refugee," also known as an "expat" in modern parlance (at least as long as you're from the Western Hemisphere). I'll keep my fingers crossed for you anyway :)

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Olli@Olli68

@jkb92 Don't worry about it. I'm fleeing Switzerland. 😉
I fled Germany in 2009. But I already paid the exit tax back then. 😭

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jkb92@jkb92

@Olli68 It wasn't about the tax at all :)

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Olli@Olli68

@jkb92 But the great thing about the Philippines is that, as a foreign retiree living there, I don't have to pay taxes on my pension, dividends, or distributions. So it's a paradise 😁

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Shadowapple@shadowapple86

@jkb92 Have fun at Phillis 🇵🇭

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Aspirin A.@AspirinAndi

On average, how much do you need to live comfortably in the Philippines compared to Germany? And how much capital would you like to have to retire in 4 years?

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Olli@Olli68

@AspirinAndi Phew... That's quite a question. According to Gemini, the average salary there is 636 euros.
I'll be living there rent-free and will have at least 4k a month to start with. Once I start receiving my pension at 65 or 67, it'll be even more.
But I’d really like to travel a lot and visit many countries. I’ve worked enough.

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Chris@Multibagger

For me, that last sentence is the key one, and it should be the benchmark for everyone when determining their investment strategy. 👍In any case, I wish you the best of luck right from the start. I could also live in Asia just fine. But for my wife, moving abroad in retirement is out of the question. If you retire early in four years, you’ll probably be 62 by then, right?

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Olli@Olli68

@Multibagger Yeah, that's right. I'd actually quit today if I could, but I'm waiting until my daughter turns 18 and gets a job. Until then, I'll just keep working a little longer. 😉

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Chris@Multibagger

@Olli68 It's nice to have that kind of flexibility. I'm planning to retire early in four years, too. But I'll already be 65 by then. My son will probably be done with college by then, too. So, let's get to it.😉

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Olli@Olli68

@Multibagger You can come visit me anytime. 😁

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Chris@Multibagger

@Olli68 Not a bad idea! Let's see if you're still reachable via GQ then!

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John@Transporter

That’s a really cool plan—my wife and I have the same idea. I’ll have to wait a few more years (12), though, before we can put it into action. Where in the Philippines are you planning to go? We’ll be setting up a base on Camiguin, among other places. Preparations are already underway. How much are you budgeting per month? It’s really great to meet someone here who’s on the same page 😀

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Olli@Olli68

@Transporter We have a house in a gated community in Antipollo, above Manila. But I certainly won’t be there 100% of the time—I’ll also be spending a lot of time in Germany, Switzerland, or traveling.
I just looked at pictures of Camiguin on Google Maps. Amazing 👍 😍

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John@Transporter

We probably won’t manage to do 100% of it either, especially because of the kids, who will likely be living their own lives in Germany. Still, we’d like to get a taste of it. We haven’t done much north of Manila yet. We’ve seen the 100 Islands, we’ve been to Pinatubo, and we’ve visited Baguio, Banaue, and Batad. Mostly, though, we’re traveling in the Visayas or on Mindanao. We’re there right now, but we’re stuck because of the typhoon. I hope the situation calms down by Sunday at the latest.

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Olli@Olli68

@Transporter Well, I'll keep my fingers crossed. I'm flying in August.

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Epi@Epi

If you think this portfolio is perfect for you, what do you want from us? Confirmation? 🤷

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Metis@Metis

@Epi Or just imagine it—the way you've been tacking your strategy onto everything for quite a while now?

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Olli@Olli68

@Epi Not at all. As I wrote in the opening sentence, the point is simply to present an option for those who are looking for a more defensive, yet high-yield portfolio—for themselves or their parents—that is less volatile. This is meant to be a helpful discussion, not a search for validation.
I hope your response wasn’t meant to be as blunt as it sounds when read.

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Epi@Epi

@Metis Well, I never claimed that my strategies were perfect. I shared them because I wanted to keep refining them through discussion. And that worked out just fine. 👍

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Epi@Epi

@Olli68 It was a sincere question: What kind of trade are you looking for if the portfolio is already perfect for you?

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Olli@Olli68

@Epi Actually, that’s exactly what a forum is for: sharing ideas. I post something—you can agree with it, criticize it, or just ignore it. It’s that simple. But if the only posts allowed here are short comments on individual stocks like IREN or Hims & Hers, or links to people’s own Telegram channels, then you’re right: I’m actually in the wrong place here, or my post is out of place.

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Metis@Metis

@Epi Given how condescending your comments often are in this context, I don't believe you one bit. But okay.

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Epi@Epi

@Metis If you find my comments condescending, then unfortunately you're missing the point: I won't let unfounded demands for perfection go unchallenged. They're harmful to everyone involved. 🤷

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Epi@Epi

@Olli68 I didn't say anything against your post; I actually find it quite interesting. I just asked how a discussion could take place if you consider your strategy to be perfect.

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Olli@Olli68

@Epi It's not about perfection in general, but about my personal standards based on my own criteria—or rather, for my "well-being." Maybe I'll leave out words like that in the future. It seems to set some people off, after all.

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teschi@teschi

@Epi Hey, I'd love to be part of your perfect strategy, but for some reason I can't access your profile. You haven't blocked me, have you?

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