The annual reset of Isa allowances on 6 April makes this an opportune time to review and refresh your investments.

Money experts say you should think about how your personal circumstances have changed, whether this affects your investing goals, and if you need to revamp your portfolio accordingly.

Even without your intervention, the performance of your investments might have made your holdings too heavily or lightly weighted in one area, and therefore more or less risky over time.

'Not everybody will spare a thought for their investments this spring, but they probably should,' says Laith Khalaf, head of investment analysis at AJ Bell. 'Even the most considered portfolios still need regular reviews in order to keep them on course.'

Rob Burgeman, senior investment manager at wealth manager RBC Brewin Dolphin, says: 'A regular review process can ensure that you aren’t simply holding on to dead wood in the portfolio and that you aren’t overexposed to certain sectors, regions or themes and, equally, not underexposed to key areas.

'By regular spring cleaning, investors can keep their portfolios optimised and prepared to deliver future returns.'

Here are the five steps investing experts recommend taking to ensure your portfolio remains up to scratch.

1. Consider your personal situation

Material changes to your circumstances are probably the most important thing to assess, says Khalaf.

'Getting married, having a child, or buying a bigger house can have an impact on your finances, such as your life insurance requirements and the need to update your will.

'But life events might also affect how much risk you’re willing to take with your investment portfolio.'

Khalaf says you might feel more comfortable dialling up your investment risk because you’ve come into an inheritance and your financial security has increased.

On the other hand, if you have decided to retire earlier and draw on your pension it might be a good time to reduce the volatility of your portfolio, he suggests.

2. Review your current asset allocation

You should reassess the current geographical split of your investments. And, unless you solely hold shares, also how they are spread across asset classes like bonds - corporate and government - property, cash, gold and 'alternatives' like private equity.

Khalaf says: 'This is all easier than it might sound at first, as many investment platforms will offer you an online tool that breaks down your accounts by region and asset class.'

James Igoe, head of the Manchester office at Redmayne Bentley, says: 'The importance of good diversification cannot be understated.

'It ensures a good balance within the portfolio regarding the number of bonds held when compared to the amount of equities (companies), cash, and alternatives.'

Rob Burgeman, of RBC Brewin Dolphin, says: 'In general terms, bonds are there to provide some income and some ballast in the event of stormy markets and do not normally provide much in the way of capital growth.

'Alternatives sit somewhere between bonds and equities. Property, for example, can provide income and, while gold certainly does not provide any income, it tends to be uncorrelated with equities, and can benefit at times of heightened tensions.

'The heavy lifting of capital growth, then, is done by equities, with the other asset classes reducing some of the risk and volatility that equities also provide.'

3. Rebalance your portfolio

Market prices and therefore the shape of your portfolio are not static, says Khalaf.

'Over short periods this won’t make much difference, but given time, the equilibrium in your portfolio can be lost as some bits move up faster than others and may mean your portfolio becomes too reliant on one fund or one region.'

He says you should therefore check whether any investments have done a lot better than others, and for example your portfolio hasn't become too too heavily reliant on just one fund manager, no matter how good they are.

Even the very best managers can go off the boil, and regular rebalancing of a portfolio is therefore an important discipline to keep it in good order, according to Khalaf.

Igoe says: 'It’s common - and not a terrible result - for individual investments which have performed very well to become a risk in any portfolio.

'Capital gains must be considered whenever reviewing an investment that has performed well over time, but this should be done in the context of the objectives of the portfolio and the risk the client is willing to take.'

Burgeman says if you get a year or two where equities have done really well, they would be a greater percentage of your overall portfolio compared with other assets.

'The net effect, then, is that without doing anything at all, the overall portfolio is now riskier than it was a year ago.'

He explains: 'If you have 20 investments at 5 per cent each and, after a year, half of the investments have gone down by 50 per cent and the other half up by 50 per cent, you now have 10 investments at 2.5 per cent and 10 at 7.5 per cent which is, arguably, a much risker proposition than the basket of investments you started the year with.'

4. Investigate your active funds

Look at your actively managed funds to find any serial poor performers, suggests Khalaf.

'These are not funds which have had a bad year, or where their investment style is out of favour, but rather funds which have consistently lagged behind competitors for a long period and show little sign of change for the better.

'You should consider replacing fund duds with more promising active funds, or cheaper tracker funds.

'The latter won’t outperform, but at least they aren’t charging the higher fees associated with active management for the privilege.'

5. Check your biases

You should also review a portfolio to understand whether your casual biases have led to too much exposure to any one area, says Igoe.

'This can create a "crowded trade" where a large proportion of the portfolio moves up and down in tandem.'

He adds that it is important to take stock of what you don’t own as much as what you do.

'Portfolios can become congested in certain areas. As such, a review of the investments not currently owned, which could offer some sensible ballast to the overall portfolio, is recommended.'

Igoe says investors may overlook areas of the market with good long-term prospects, but which have performed below par in recent years and are somewhat forgotten.