I've always followed the principle of just leaving my money invested and it has served me well.
Now I am within a few years of (not early) retirement. I'll be in decent shape, with social security, part of my ex's pension (no COLA on that) and $500k in a 401k.
Right now the 401k is invested in balanced mutual funds but I'm concerned about this overheated stock market and the likelihood of a stock crash/recession in the relatively near future. Even NPR is reporting on troubling indicators and a look at the DJIA or NASDAQ graphs looks like a bubble.
So I'm considering one of three courses:
1) Just leave it there. That always made sense before but with my retirement timeline, a major drop in the market could seriously set back my plans, and require me to work longer.
2) Take some or all of my money out of funds and reinvest slowly. Worst case, I risk losing maybe a year or two of growth, which at this point would not make a big difference in my plans. Best case scenario I buy back into the market on a crash and double my money by buying back into a cheap market (this WOULD have a significant, positive impact on my retirement plans.). More likely scenario, I am able to reinvest slowly through a recession and preserve my stash.
3) Switch to a more conservative mix for a year or two (although bond funds did not fare well either in the last crash).
What would you do?
(Additional details: planning full or partial retirement in 2-4 years, wait 7 years to draw max Social Security at 70, pension at 65 (hopefully- depends on ex-husband's retirement timeline and he's 4 years younger than me, but he can retire in a year). Pension does not cover my living expenses so would be drawing on 401k until Social Security at 70. Longevity runs in family so planning on living to 100. )