To all things in life, there has to be a balance for it to maintain health and longevity, and this applies to exchange traded funds (ETFs) as well.

As an all-in-one investment, a globally balanced fund is hard to beat, says Thomas M. Anderson for Kiplinger, especially since investors can approach them as a buy-and-hold investment.

If you do decide to try a globally balanced ETF, PowerShares launched several this year that have relatively low fees, range from stocks to bonds, both in the United States and overseas, all in one fund.

• Autonomic Balanced NFA Global Balanced Portfolio (PCA): 60-40 split between stocks and bonds
• Autonomic Balanced Growth NFA Global Asset Portfolio (PAO): 75-25 split
• Autonomic Growth NFA Global Asset Portfolio (PTO): 90-10 split

These ETFs are the first of their kind, as they track an index that covers stocks, real estate, bonds, commodities and currencies in the U.S. and in foreign markets. These ETFs launched on May 20.

There are other such funds in registration, as well.

These funds can appeal to conservative investors as well as those who just don’t want to devote the time to doing research on the hundreds of funds available. They’re not for everyone, but if you find yourself in this group, they’re an option.

Tags: Bond ETFs, Real Estate