If I sell BNS stock at a $30K loss and use the funds to buy BMO as a "placeholder", won't I be in the same position either way? i.e. after a 10% gain I would either recover my losses as the BNS stock increases or I would grow tax-free gains as the BMO stock increases (up to $30K)...
Surely for this tax loss strategy it is best to just stick with the company I most believe in, yes?
Keep in mind, we are not tax experts, but the idea with tax-loss selling is that these investments are in a non-registered account, and that when an investor sells a stock at a loss, they can use that capital loss to offset any capital gains materialized within the year, thus decreasing taxes owing. It is more a factor of timing. An investor selling BNS and buying another bank stock that later increases in value would not imply growing tax-free gains, as once those gains are materialized, capital gains taxes apply, but only when those gains are materialized (could be years down the line).
In general, we prefer to use tax loss selling strategically when appropriate, but largely we prefer owning stocks that we like and feel have the best future potential rather than minimizing taxes.