Should I open a CD Ladder?

[Jluke]

I'd take a different approach. Go 100% stock and rebalance in your tax-advantaged accounts by adding more bonds there. Look at all of your investment accounts as one pot of money. No point in paying more taxes than you need to pay.

so I have 50k in VTI in taxable and the market bombs. I’m at 25k. I need 40k for some reason.

how do I get the 15k by balancing through retirement? I can’t access that money.

serious question.

if I have 50k in Wellington I wouldn’t lose 50%. In theory.

that was the reason why I went that route. Also OP doesn’t want to lose money so I couldn’t suggest to an internet stranger to go 100% stocks in taxable.

[Petunia 100]

so I have 50k in VTI in taxable and the market bombs. I’m at 25k. I need 40k for some reason.

how do I get the 15k by balancing through retirement? I can’t access that money.

serious question.

if I have 50k in Wellington I wouldn’t lose 50%. In theory.

that was the reason why I went that route. Also OP doesn’t want to lose money so I couldn’t suggest to an internet stranger to go 100% stocks in taxable.

That's true, you can't. However, OP has 1.5 years of expenses sitting in cash and is contemplating moving some of it, not all of it. The chunk still sitting in cash will continue to be available.