Could it really be this easy? Yep. I started investing in 1975. At the time VTSAX had yet to be created, but over the 40 years from January 1975 until January 2015, the S&P 500 index produced an annualized growth rate of 11.9%.1 Just $2,400 a year ($200 per month) invested and left to ride would have grown to $1,515,5422 by 2015. Over that same period, a one time lump sum investment of $10,000 would have become $897,9052 This despite all the panics and collapses and recessions and disasters we’ve endured during these last 40 years.
