AussiePete wrote: ↑Wed Jan 18, 2023 6:24 am I do not necessarily agree with the sentiment in that thread, that getting the funds into the market as soon as possible is the best option. For a long-term tsumitate investment, purchasing the most number of units possible is the goal. Buying as soon as possible (i.e. 1st of each month) is only the best result if the unit price increases every day without fail. As we know, the price fluctuates daily, so it is an exercise in luck whether the day one purchases on will be the cheapest day of the month.
That's a good way to frame it: It's essentially a DCA vs lump sum question.
Here's the (Bogleheads) wiki about that:
There's also the infamous Vanguard report that found Lump sum performed better historically 2/3 of the time, although they were analysing a single lump sum vs monthly, not regular daily investments vs monthly investents, and only over a specific time period in specific markets.https://www.bogleheads.org/wiki/Dollar_cost_averaging wrote: Lump sum investing will always carry a higher expected return, because it immediately moves your funds from asset classes with lower expected returns to ones with higher expected returns. Note that higher expected returns do not guarantee that your actual returns will be higher.