Pension Preservation

[uryjm]

In two years I’ll be 55 and have a DC pension held in Standard Life.
Up until now, I have my money allocated across the following funds, but I’m thinking I need to move it into something that’s maybe a bit more conservative in an effort to take out the volatility. I’ve been pleased with the growth up until now, but it goes up and down like the proverbial. I’d like to settle it down a bit, so what should I consider doing? (I've indicated the % of the money that is being held in each fund).

SL SLI UK Smaller Companies Pension Fund 10%
Standard Life Asia Pacific ex Japan Equity Pension 14%
Standard Life FTSE Tracker Pension Fund 22%
SL SLI UK Opportunities Pension Fund 2%
SL Invesco Perpetual Corporate Bond Pension Fund 7%
SL Invesco Perpetual High Income Pension Fund 7%
SL Vanguard UK Government Bond Index Pension Fund 7%
Standard Life 70:30 Gbl Equity Trk (Vanguard) Pn 7%
SL Fidelity Global Special Situations Pension Fund 25%

[Urbandreamer]

Well, I'd get rid of "SL Fidelity Global Special Situations" and simply invest it in the rest.
That fund screams high risk/high reward.
It's also a very large part of your portfolio.

Why invest it in the rest? Well you need to take your time repositioning your stance.
Take ten years or so, and remember that at the end you will still want some growth.
You have geographical diversification, though like me (I am be 54 this year) heavy in equities. I'll leave it to others to correct both of us on diversification.

SL will restrict what you can invest in unfortunately. I would argue that you need a bit of property in the mix (possible) and arguably some more "money" by which I mean gilts or bonds, though I would suggest takeing the risk of a global bond fund (though it hurts* so much that I have not done so), others would argue UK gilts to avoid currency risks (despite it working in some peoples favour recently).

*I hate the idea of lending to any government, it's a political ideology that may not affect you.

[vrdiver]

At 55 you have maybe 40 years ahead of you. I have always disliked the notion that once retired, you're effectively invested in Gilts: my own retirement plan is to stay in the market, including some of the racier bits, until the very end; my heirs can sort out the aftermath!

I appreciate that as a retiree, capital cannot be replaced by income, but if you get to the point of retiring with surplus income then you are in the same position as an employee with excess income: just try not to get fired in retirement!

VRD

[uryjm]

Thanks for the replies. I have to admit that my preferred investing strategy is to "do nothing", and investing in equities over the last twenty years or so has been great for me. So why shouldn't it be great for the next twenty? The trouble is, as always, choosing when to cash some chips. You can always do the sums, but which are the sums to do?