3 Vanguard ETFs to Buy With $2,000 and Hold Forever | The Motley Fool

Finding a compelling exchange-traded fund (or ETF) usually isn't too tough to do. But finding one you can buy and hold forever is a slightly different story. Although most exchange-traded funds are well-suited to be long-term investments, the underlying themes of "forever" ETFs need to be timeless, and capable of performing well regardless of the backdrop. Here's a closer look at three Vanguard ETFs that will work for almost anyone's portfolio right now, several years from now, and even several decades from now. Image source: Getty Images. Vanguard S&P 500 ETF It's such a common suggestion that it's almost become cliché. Nevertheless, clichés usually become clichés for good reason. That is, they're either proven to be true, or wise, or helpful. So what's the common suggestion in question here and now? Build your portfolio on a broad, foundational holding like the Vanguard S&P 500 ETF ( VOO +0.70%) meant to mirror the entire S&P 500 . Assuming its long-term track record is an indication of how it will perform in the future, this index-based investment should produce average annual gains of about 10% per year . Just bear in mind that some of those years will be terrible. You'll just have to ride these losing years out, recognizing recoveries always eventually materialize. NYSEMKT: VOO Key Data Points No, it's not exciting. But that's OK. You don't want exciting -- you want productive. With "exciting" you'll face temptations like locking in gains after a big rally and then attempting to step back in after a sizable setback -- a strategy that not even most mutual funds , hedge fund managers, and individual speculators are able to successfully execute with any consistency. For perspective, data from Standard & Poor's indicates that most mutual funds available to U.S. investors consistently underperform their benchmark indexes in three, five, 10, and 15-year time frames, while hedge funds fare no better. The point is, rather than trying to do with your money what most professionals can't even do with anyone's money, your highest-odds bet is betting on the broad market with at least a healthy-sized portion of your portfolio. Vanguard Information Technology ETF The stock market's various sectors fall in and out of favor. And not just in sync with the economic cycle. Long-lived sociocultural (secular) trends can work for or against entire industries as well. This dynamic can make it tough to stick with certain stocks for the long haul. There's one group of stocks that's dished out market-beating performance for some time now, however, and is likely to continue doing so. That's the technology sector . The changes these companies are driving are just too big and too important to not make a point of capitalizing on them. Built to reflect the performance of the MSCI US Investable Market Information Technology 25/50 index, the Vanguard Information Technology ETF ( VGT +0.74%) will do the job nicely. NYSEMKT: VGT Key Data Points If you're a student of the market's inner workings, then you probably already...

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