Consistent dividend payments often signal financial fortitude, and stocks that possess that quality typically display below-average volatility. But the downside to owning individual dividend stocks is the requisite work. Investors must keep tabs on a company and its financial results to ensure the payout is sustainable and the stock itself is on solid ground. After all, a high dividend yield means little if the underlying stock consistently loses value.

But investors can save themselves time and trouble with an index fund strategy, either in lieu of or in addition to a portfolio of individual stocks. With that in mind, the Vanguard High Dividend Yield ETF (NYSEMKT: VYM) and Schwab U.S. Dividend Equity ETF (NYSEMKT: SCHD) currently have dividend yields that exceed the S 500 average, and both index funds produced reasonable returns over the past decade.

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Source Fool.com