56 With $280,000 and Nine Years to Go? These 3 ETFs Make the Last Stretch Count

You’re 56, you have $280,000 saved, and retirement is nine years away. If that balance feels behind where you wanted to be, you still have control over how the next stretch goes. Three funds from Schwab’s low-cost lineup can do most of the investing work in those years: the Schwab U.S. Mid Cap ETF (NYSEARCA:SCHM), the Schwab International Equity ETF (NYSEARCA:SCHF), and the Schwab Intermediate-Term U.S. Treasury ETF (NYSEARCA:SCHR). One supplies growth, one spreads your risk beyond the U.S., and one stabilizes the whole portfolio.

Your Biggest Lever Is How Much You Save

Feeling behind can often encourage people to load up on aggressive investments. Close to retirement, that approach can backfire. A large decline a few years before you stop working leaves little time to recover — the sequence-of-returns problem we unpacked in a free guide to defending the first five years. The more reliable tools are saving more, keeping costs low, and staying invested consistently.

The tax code works in your favor here. Per IRS Publication 590-A, IRA contributors who are age 50 or older by year-end can make an additional catch-up contribution, so you already qualify. Separately, Congress wrote a larger catch-up amount into the Internal Revenue Code for workplace plan participants who reach age 60 but not 64 by year-end. That window applies to workplace plans such as a 401(k), and IRAs fall outside it. You’ll pass through it before you retire, which makes those years especially valuable.

Your retirement date is a tool, too. Working a bit longer, or phasing into retirement, gives your savings more time to grow.

SCHM Keeps Real Growth in Your Mix

SCHM holds mid-sized U.S. companies. These businesses have historically had more upside potential than the giants at the top of the market, and they swing harder in both directions. The fund managed about $14.9 billion as of August 31, 2026, and is part of Schwab’s ultra-low-cost ETF family. Low costs matter here because every dollar you don’t pay in fees stays invested.

No single stock dominates. The portfolio spreads across technology, industrials, healthcare, financials, energy, materials, and consumer companies. On an adjusted-price basis, SCHM rose 17.89% year to date and 196.95% over ten years. Expect a bumpier ride than a large-cap fund.

SCHF Takes Your Money Beyond U.S. Borders

If all your stocks are American, one economy decides your retirement. SCHF tracks the FTSE Developed ex U.S. Index, giving you large and mid-sized companies in developed markets outside the U.S. Its reported holdings span the U.K., Japan, Australia, France, Germany, Switzerland, the Netherlands, South Korea, Hong Kong and more. At roughly $69.7 billion in assets, it is the largest of the three.

Chipmaking equipment supplier ASML (NASDAQ:ASML | ASML Price Prediction) was among its largest reported positions at about 2.1% of assets. The fund rose 17.67% over the past year on an adjusted-price basis. It pays dividends twice a year, totaling $0.843 per share over the trailing 12 months, though the two payments can differ widely. Its most recent payment was $0.165, compared with $0.678 in the prior period.

SCHR Builds the Stable Side You’ll Need

SCHR holds U.S. Treasury securities in an intermediate maturity band. This is the stable portion of your portfolio. The fund held about $13.4 billion as of June 30, 2026, and pays monthly. Its latest distribution was $0.0816 per share, with $0.9701 paid over the trailing 12 months.

Know two things before you lean on it. First, a bond fund holds bonds but has no maturity date of its own, so there’s no date when your original investment comes back to you in full. Second, it tends to fall in price when interest rates rise. The 10-year Treasury yield hit 5.31% on October 5 before easing to 4.94% on October 30, and SCHR is down 1.13% year to date on an adjusted-price basis.

Trade-Offs You Should Weigh First

Each fund carries a cost. SCHM’s growth potential comes with sharper drops. SCHF adds foreign-market and currency risk, plus income that comes unevenly. SCHR cushions stock declines but can slip when rates rise, as it has this year. None of the three can make up for contributions you skip, and recent gains say nothing certain about the next nine years.

Still, for someone in your position, the trio covers the jobs that matter most: growth you still need, diversification you can’t get from U.S. stocks alone, and a stable base as your date gets closer. Pair them with steady saving and the catch-up rules you’re entitled to use, and you’re working the tools you actually control.

Contact [email protected] for any questions or corrections.