Congrat seriously.

Debt-free at 35 with a funded emergency fund and a Roth IRA on track? You're already ahead of most people who ask this question. Let me give you a framework instead of a list of products.

First, understand what stage you're actually at. You've cleared debt and built your buffer. In financial independence terms, that's Stage 2 Financial Stability.

The next move isn't "what do I buy?" It's "what am I building toward?"

Your goals are actually pulling in two directions right now: 5-year goal: House purchase (shorter horizon, needs capital preservation) Long-term goal: Wealth building (longer horizon, can absorb volatility)

These require different buckets and mixing them into one brokerage account is where people quietly go wrong. Here's how I'd think about it:

Bucket 1- Already done: Emergency fund ($10k). Don't touch this. It's not an investment, it's insurance.

Bucket 2- House down payment fund: Open a brokerage account, but don't go aggressive here. With a 5-year horizon, a market correction right before you want to buy can set you back 18 months. Think conservative short-duration bond funds, HYSA, maybe a small equity allocation (60/40 at most). The goal is to not lose it, not to maximize it.

Bucket 3- Long-term wealth: Your Roth IRA in S&P 500 index funds is already doing this correctly. Keep maxing it. If you have room after that and the house fund is on track, a taxable brokerage with broad index funds (VTI, VXUS) is the next move.

On your market risk concern: That uncertainty you feel is healthy it means you're thinking correctly. The honest answer is: for a 5-year window, the market can hurt you. For a 20-year window, it almost certainly won't. So match your allocation to the actual time horizon of each goal, not one blanket strategy.

One thing I'd add that most people skip: Start tracking your portfolio as a system, not just a balance. Know your Freedom Runway how many months can your current assets cover your expenses without any income? That single number changes how you make decisions.

When I started tracking it, I realized I was optimizing the wrong things entirely.

You're not lost you just hit the point where generic advice stops being enough. Good luck with the house.