VOO vs SPY or neither trying to keep my portfolio simple

#1

When I first started investing I bought SPY as it was a recommendation based in research I had done. Then someone else recommended VOO so I bought some shares of that too. Well, I clearly didn’t know what I was doing and it wasn’t until after I took the PFC course that I realized they are virtually identical in terms of the stocks they hold and their overall performance.

So my question is:

Taking into consideration their stock price and expense ratio (which is not very different) Should I sell my shares of one and put it in the other so that I just have one either SPY or VOO and if so which one of the two. Or sell shares of both and put all my money from both and then some into a specific index fund?

TIA

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#2

Hey Melissa, you are correct that these ETFs are overlapping and there’s no reason to hold both. I would personally sell my shares of SPY and stick with VOO, as VOO has an expense ratio that is .06% lower than SPY, and that will make a difference later in life.

You could also consider a target date index fund if you wanted a single “set and forget” mutual fund composed of US stock and bonds + Intl stock and bonds. https://www.personalfinanceclub.com/seven-reasons-to-put-100-of-your-portfolio-in-a-target-date-index-fund/

#3

I think it depends on if the shares are in a Tax Sheltered Account, or if they are in an Individual Brokerage Account. If you sell, you might create a taxable event and have to pay capital gains.