Warren Buffett dumps 2 investments he’s told millions of Americans to buy for years. Should ordinary inventors do the same?

But his relationship with the fund — at least from the Berkshire Hathaway perspective — appears to have changed.

SEC filings data from March (5) revealed that Berkshire unloaded its entire position in the Vanguard S&P 500 ETF and SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust — two low-cost exchange-traded funds the company had previously held for years.

That’s a move that may be spooking investors and causing them to question their own portfolios.

Why Buffett just dumped the S&P 500

Buffett didn’t say why his company chose to completely exit two established S&P 500 ETFs. But there are a number of reasons why he might have gone this route.

"This could indicate concerns about market valuations, increased volatility, or even a shift toward individual stock selection over broad index exposure," Daniel Milks, founder of Fiduciary Organization & Woodmark Advisors, told etf.com (6).

Collectively, the shares were a relatively small position for Berkshire at only $45.3 million of a $267 billion portfolio. It's possible that the exit was a means of cleaning up Berkshire’s portfolio, something it has reportedly done before.

"Given Warren Buffett's history of emphasizing long-term investing, this isn't necessarily a warning sign for retail investors to panic," Milks said.

Should Buffett’s S&P 500 exit sound alarms about a market crash?

Between Buffett dumping Berkshire’s S&P 500 ETFs and other stocks, his retirement, plus his growing cash pile, investors may worry he's anticipating a near-term market crash. After all, the year’s market volatility, in part due to U.S. tariff uncertainty, has caused many investors and analysts to question if the country is headed for a recession.

In Q1 of 2025, Berkshire also sold its entire stake in Ulta Beauty, and trimmed holdings in Bank of America, Citigroup, Nu Holdings, Charter Communication and Capital One. Though Bank of America remains Berkshire’s third-largest holding (7), stock performance since the April 2025 dip has been steadily rising, surpassing the original price at the beginning of the year (8).

If you’re worried about a stock market crash, it can pay to remind yourself of your long-term investing goals and your investment horizon.

After all, when investing for retirement in 20 or 30 years, reacting to imminent market events — hypothetical or actual — can distract from long-term wealth management.

Getting level-headed financial advice

Planning your financial future over the decades might be intimidating, but the right wealth expert can help you chart a course.

With Vanguard, you can connect with a personal advisor who can help assess how you’re doing so far and make sure you've got the right portfolio to meet your goals on time.

Vanguard’s hybrid advisory system combines advice from professional advisers and automated portfolio management to make sure your investments are working to achieve your financial goals.

All you have to do is fill out a brief questionnaire about your financial goals, and Vanguard’s advisers will help you set a tailored plan, and stick to it.

Once you’re set, you can sit back as Vanguard’s advisors manage your portfolio. Because they’re fiduciaries, they don’t earn commissions, so you can trust that the advice you’re getting is unbiased.

Diversify your portfolio

No matter what lies in store for the NYSE, you can protect yourself by shepherding your money to less volatile pastures. While many investors are looking at stock markets in Canada and the EU, you can also consider diversifying outside of the markets with commodities, real estate and passion assets like art or fine wine.

Although common investing knowledge focuses on a 60/40 split between stocks and bonds, alternative assets are becoming progressively more popular, not to mention accessible. For instance, some advisors are now suggesting a 50/30/20 asset mix with the final 20% being devoted to alternative assets.

Here’s a look at some options if you want to tap into this market to potentially provide your portfolio with a bit more protection.

Proving its mettle

Gold has been on a historic bull run during 2025, hitting a high of about $4,300 per ounce in mid-October and blowing past earlier predictions that the precious yellow metal would hit this benchmark by Q2 of 2026 (9), not Q4 of 2025.

Historically, gold has worked as a safe-haven investment during a volatile market. The logic goes that gold can’t be printed like fiat currency and will hold its value better during a downturn.

One way to invest in gold that also provides significant tax advantages is to open a gold IRA with the help of Thor Metals.

Gold IRAs allow investors to hold physical gold or gold-related assets within a retirement account, thereby combining the tax advantages of an IRA with the protective benefits of investing in gold, making it an attractive option for those looking to potentially hedge their retirement funds against economic uncertainties.

To learn more, you can get a free information guide that includes details on how to get up to $20,000 in free metals on qualifying purchases. Just keep in mind that gold is typically best used as one part of an otherwise well-diversified portfolio.

Diversifying with real estate

Real estate is another asset with growth potential in 2025. Though some markets are beginning to cool, a falling interest rate could get buyers back in the game. Real estate can also weather inflationary periods better than traditional asset classes.

If you want to tap into this market, but without the headache of a mortgage or managing tenants, new investing platforms are making it easier than ever to get into investing.

For accredited investors, Homeshares gives access to the $34.9 trillion U.S. home equity market, which has historically been the exclusive playground of institutional investors.

With a minimum investment of $25,000, investors can gain direct exposure to hundreds of owner-occupied homes in top U.S. cities through their U.S. Home Equity Fund — without the headaches of buying, owning or managing property.

With risk-adjusted internal returns ranging from 12% to 18%, this approach can provide an effective, hands-off way to invest in owner-occupied residential properties across regional markets.

If you’re not an accredited investor, crowdfunding platforms like Arrived allow you to enter the real estate market for as little as $100.

Arrived offers you access to shares of SEC-qualified investments in rental homes and vacation rentals, curated and vetted for their appreciation and income potential.

Backed by world-class investors like Jeff Bezos, Arrived makes it easy to fit these properties into your investment portfolio regardless of your income level. Their flexible investment amounts and simplified process can allow accredited and non-accredited investors to take advantage of this inflation-hedging asset class without any extra work on your part.

Investing in real estate with capital on hand

If you have capital or an existing real estate portfolio, you could instead consider opportunities in commercial real estate. One way to do this is with First National Realty Partners (FNRP), which can help you access grocery-anchored commercial real estate properties.