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Phil Osagie
Updated Apr 16, 2025
Business leaders are on edge, investors are jittery about their retirement savings and the stock market is under pressure, triggered by an escalation of trade tensions between the U.S. and China.
The CBOE Volatility Index — often referred to as the market’s “fear gauge” — has surged a staggering 80% since President Donald Trump’s inauguration.
The message is clear: uncertainty is the rule of the day, and portfolios are feeling the heat.
But for long-term investors, there’s no need to hit the panic button. Although the headlines may be unsettling, there are ways to shield your portfolio from volatility and ride out the storm. Here are three strategies to help protect your investments today.
Hedge with safe haven assets like gold
In uncertain economic times, gold has long been considered a good way to diversify your portfolio with a secure investment, and now is no different.
This year alone, gold has climbed nearly 14% in value. What’s more, in April 2025, gold broke through the critical $3,000 per ounce mark for the second time in just over a year as investors continue to rally for cover from economic turbulence triggered by Trump’s tariffs.
One way to invest in this asset class — and diversify your portfolio — is through a gold IRA.
Opting for a gold IRA gives you the opportunity to hedge against market uncertainty by allowing you to invest directly in physical precious metals rather than volatile stocks and bonds.
If you’d like to convert an existing IRA into a gold IRA, companies typically offer a 100% free rollover. Others might offer free gold, silver or other metals up to a certain amount when you make a qualifying purchase.
Get started today with these industry-leading precious metals dealers:
Thor Metals
Get $20K in free metals
Preserve Gold
Up to $20K cashback
U.S. Gold Bureau
Up to $20K in free gold
Consider alternative assets
As gold jumps to historic highs the stock market has tumbled. For instance, a seismic sell-off in March 2025 erased $4 trillion from the S&P 500, with even blue chip stocks like Apple, Nvidia and Microsoft taking a hit.
This is one reason why experts caution against putting all your eggs in one basket. It pays to diversify into new asset classes.
One way to diversify your portfolio is by investing in the $49.7 trillion U.S. residential real estate market.
You can tap into this market is by investing in shares of vacation homes or rental properties through Arrived.
Backed by world-class investors, including Jeff Bezos, Arrived allows you to invest in shares of residential real estate no matter where you are on your investment journey. This can provide passive income without the extra work that comes with managing your own rental property.
To get started, simply browse through Arrived’s selection of vetted properties, each hand-picked for its appreciation and income-generation potential. Once you choose a property, you can start investing with as little as $100.
100% Funded
The Vanzant
Single Family Residential
$415K
Invested
1,294
Investors
100% Funded
The Smokey
Vacation Rental
$983K
Invested
1,748
Investors
100% Funded
The SuiteSpot
Vacation Rental
$1.2M
Invested
1,672
Investors
These are a few examples of properties from Arrived. Check out the full list of single family residential homes and vacation rentals currently available.
Another creative way to diversify is through art investments.
All in all, art represents a massive asset class with a total estimated global value of $2.17 trillion, based on Deloitte’s 2023 Art + Finance report. Even better, the global art market saw $65 billion in annual transactions in 2023, according to Art Basel and UBS.
In fact, fine art has historically outperformed the S&P 500. Contemporary art, or pieces produced after 1945, show especially strong annualized price appreciation at 14% from 1995 to 2023 compared to the S&P 500's 9.6%, according to the CAIA association.
In the past, you had to be ultra-wealthy to invest in art, but now services like Masterworks have opened the door to art investing. So far, over 1 million members have joined the platform.
Here’s how it works: Instead of buying a single painting for millions of dollars, you instead invest in fractional shares of blue-chip paintings by renowned artists such as Pablo Picasso, Basquiat and Banksy. Blue-chip paintings are pieces of art that tend to only increase in value over time, much like blue-chip companies.
Sold
Joan Mitchell
17.8% annualized net return
Sold
Yayoi Kusama
17.6% annualized net return
Sold
George Condo
21.5% annualized net return
These are a few examples of sold artworks from Masterworks. For a full list of currently available art, visit Masterworks' Price Database.
From here, all you have to do is select how many shares you want to buy and Masterworks will take care of the rest. Note that Masterworks is subject to Regulation A disclosure.
Get expert guidance
During periods of market uncertainty, it can be hard to sort through the constant stream of news and conflicting economic opinions.
This is where a trusted financial advisor becomes essential. A good advisor can provide clarity on how economic events will impact your portfolio while helping you rebalance and make decisions that align with your long-term goals.
If you’re finding it difficult to make sense of on-again, off-again tariffs and how they will impact your portfolio, it may be the right time to get in touch with a financial advisor through Advisor.com. This platform matches you with vetted financial advisors suited to your unique needs after you answer a few simple questions.
Whether you’re looking to grow your wealth, diversify your portfolio beyond stocks or plan for long-term financial security, Advisor.com will connect you to a professional who can craft a financial strategy just for you.
Once you’re matched with an advisor, you can book a free consultation with no obligation to hire.
Phil Osagie
Conversion Copywriter
Phil is a writer at Moneywise, bringing a strong background in public relations, financial communications and copywriting. Educated in Cambridge, U.K., he has created content for several blue-chip companies, combining clarity with strategic insight.
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