overthinking allocation?

[StepRightUp]

Hi guys,

I'm 33 y/o and have a stomach for intelligent risk over time. I'm looking at probably 85%/15% stock/bond allocation.

My question is about cap/style allocations. Any thoughts?

I could have one fund or I could have upwards of 11. This is for my Roth IRA which at present is sitting at Vanguard in a 2040 Target as I evaluate my options. I'm leaning towards mostly index funds unless there are compelling arguments that you have for actively-managed funds.

How would you fill in the following and why?

Large Cap Growth:
Large Cap Blend:
Large Cap Value:
Mid Cap Growth:
Mid Cap Blend:
Mid Cap Value:
Small Cap Growth:
Small Cap Blend:
Small Cap Value:

Also, do you include your international stocks in the above?

Lastly, Vanguard has Admiral Shares funds (requiring $10K mins) with expense ratios as low as .07. Thoughts on sacrificing some diversity for such low costs?

Thanks!

[disneysteve]

I would certainly include international in your allocation, though many blue chip US companies get a large chunk of their profits overseas. You still want foreign companies in the mix. 15-20% for international is fairly common advice.

I wouldn't sacrifice diversification to get the lower costs. The Investor shares are already pretty low cost. As your holdings grow, you'll transition into the Admiral shares. We recently did on several of our funds when they changed the minimum.