Why Every Investor Needs an Annual Review
Markets move. Life changes. A portfolio calibrated for your situation at 30 is likely wrong by 40. An annual review isn't about chasing returns — it's about making sure the portfolio you own still matches the life you're living.
This checklist works regardless of whether you're investing in the US, UK, Singapore, Australia, or anywhere else.
Step 1: Check Your Asset Allocation
Asset allocation — the split between equities, bonds, cash, real assets, and alternatives — drives more than 90% of long-term portfolio variability. The right allocation depends on your time horizon and risk tolerance, not your home country.
Starting point by age:
| Age | Equities | Bonds/Fixed Income | Cash | Alternatives |
|-----|----------|--------------------|------|--------------|
| 20–30 | 85–90% | 5–10% | 2–5% | 0–5% |
| 30–40 | 75–80% | 15–20% | 2–5% | 0–5% |
| 40–50 | 65–75% | 20–30% | 3–5% | 0–5% |
| 50–60 | 50–65% | 30–40% | 5% | 0–5% |
| 60+ | 40–50% | 40–50% | 5–10% | 0–5% |
If your equity allocation is more than 10 percentage points outside this range, it warrants a conversation with yourself about why.
Step 2: Assess Geographic Diversification
Home country bias is universal and usually harmful. Investors in every country tend to overweight domestic equities. But no single economy is guaranteed to be the best performer over the next 20 years. The US represented about 60% of global market cap in 2025 — being 100% US is a different kind of concentration risk from 100% UK or 100% Australia, but still a risk.
A rough benchmark for a global investor:
- Developed market equities (US, Europe, Japan, Australia): 50–60%
- Emerging markets: 10–15%
- Domestic market (your home country): 15–25%
- Bonds (domestic + global): per age table above
Step 3: Run a Cost Audit
Investment fees compound just like returns — negatively. Identify the total cost for every holding.
What to look for:
- Expense ratio / TER / management fee — the annual cost of the fund itself
- Platform/custodian fee — what your broker or robo-advisor charges
- Transaction costs — buy/sell spreads, brokerage commissions
- Advisor fees — if applicable (1–2% AUM fees are high; 0.5% or below is reasonable)
Benchmark: Total all-in cost below 0.5% p.a. is excellent. Above 1.5% p.a. is a meaningful drag that compounds significantly over decades.
Step 4: Profile Your Risk
Ask yourself: if this portfolio fell 35% tomorrow and stayed down for 18 months, would you:
- a) Do nothing and continue contributing
- b) Feel anxious but hold
- c) Consider selling
If your honest answer is (c), your equity allocation is too high. A portfolio you abandon during a crash is far worse than a lower-returning portfolio you stay invested in.
Step 5: Check Your Emergency Fund
Before evaluating investment performance, confirm you have 3–6 months of essential expenses in liquid, accessible cash (savings account, money market fund). This prevents forced selling of investments at depressed prices during a personal financial shock.
Step 6: Set a Rebalancing Schedule
Markets drift your allocation away from targets. A portfolio that started 80/20 equity/bonds in a bull market might reach 92/8 without any action. Options:
- Annual rebalance — simplest; sell overweight assets, buy underweight
- Threshold rebalance — rebalance when any asset class drifts more than 5% from target
- Contribution rebalancing — direct new contributions to underweight assets (avoids triggering tax events)
For most investors, annual or contribution-based rebalancing is sufficient.
Step 7: Review for Overlap and Concentration
Check your top 10 individual holdings (counting through to underlying fund constituents). If any single company, sector, or country represents more than 20% of the portfolio, flag it as a concentration risk.
Overlap between funds is common — two "global" equity funds often hold 70%+ of the same stocks, meaning you're paying two management fees for largely the same exposure.
Not sure how your portfolio scores on this checklist? Run a free analysis — upload your holdings and get an instant score on allocation, diversification, costs, and risk.
Want to go deeper? Try the AI Financial Planner — download the free questionnaire template, fill in your complete financial picture (income, goals, insurance, tax accounts), and get a personalised financial plan covering net worth, cash flow, retirement readiness, and country-specific tax optimisation.