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Investment Q&A

Not investment advice or solicitation to buy/sell securities. Do your own due diligence and/or consult an advisor.

Q: A while back you stated you preferred a S&P 500 etf over VUN because the s&p 500 etf had more concentrated holdings ie 500 companies vs several thousand holdings. Yet I notice many instances where you recommend / suggest VUN. I hold VUN and am somewhat confused wondering if I should trade VUN for a s&p 500 etf. Thank you.
Read Answer Asked by Richard on February 05, 2019
Q: I would liked to switch the focus of my investments from equities to ETF's. Could you give me some broad parameters for guidance.
Could you suggest 10 ETF's for starters. Mid to long term with medium risk.
Thanks for your help.
Read Answer Asked by Bruce on February 05, 2019
Q: Is there an etf that can be purchased in Canadian $$ which gives an investor broad international exposure except to Europe? Thank you, Bill
Read Answer Asked by Bill on February 04, 2019
Q: Hi 5i team,
I would like to purchase a US equity ETF in C$ fund for my TFSA. For a conservative investor, would a dividend growth ETF be more suitable? What would be your top pick ETF for this purpose, hedged and unhedged? Is the dividend income subject to tax withholding? Or should I be looking at HXS, though the swap fee may cancel out the tax advantage? Thanks
Read Answer Asked by Willie on February 04, 2019
Q: In reply to my recent question about my mutual funds - TD US Mid-Cap growth, TD US Blue Chip and Fidelity Global Innovators, you advised that they could be replaced with lower-cost ETFs. Please advise which ETFs you would recommend as replacements.
Read Answer Asked by sam on February 04, 2019
Q: I am a subscriber to the ETF and Mutual Fund Update website, although so far I haven't used it that much. One of my issues with that service is that it seems designed for reading each and every monthly issue to get the most from it. However, it would be useful if I could just somehow search on particular etf's or etf types to see what has been written on such searches in past issues. Is there a tool for that that I am missing? Or is that something that might be added in the future? Thanks.
Read Answer Asked by William on February 04, 2019
Q: Please tell me the advantages and disadvantages between holding gold , for example mapleleaves, bought through a broker and buying a gold ETF.

Thanks
Read Answer Asked by graham on February 04, 2019
Q: Could you give me your top picks for US dividend ETF's?

Thanks,

Joe
Read Answer Asked by Joe on February 04, 2019
Q: Hi,
I am struggling with a decision and would appreciate your opinion please. I would like to increase my US and International equity exposure using ETFs in US dollars that I already own (VIG and VXUS).
The Canadian dollar is obviously very weak right now. Does it make sense to convert Canadian dollars to US and adding to US dollar ETFs right now, or should I be using equivalents that trade in Canadian dollars? If the latter, would you kindly suggest the two ETFs that I should consider?
I know you like foreign currency as another form of diversification and I agree. I realize there is a FX prediction inherent in this question: if the CDN dollar strengthens, that creates headwinds for US-denominated investments.
What do you suggest?
Thank you. Michael
Read Answer Asked by Michael on February 04, 2019
Q: Recently, I took over a financial advisor managed portfolio, which included these two mutual funds. Since I prefer ETFs instead, I wonder which ETFs might be most suitable to replace these funds.
Thank you, as always!

EdgepointGlobal EDG100,Capital Group CIF823
Read Answer Asked by Sigrid on February 04, 2019
Q: my wife currently has unregistered money invested in this mutal fund and continues to put money in it every month. I would like to know if there are etfs that are just as good or better with much lower fees. Thanks for your help.
Read Answer Asked by jim on February 03, 2019
Q: Hi,

I am trying to choose between these 2 ETFs for global coverage ex-Canada. They seem pretty similar but XAW invests in US ETFs while VXC invests directly in companies. Is there a fiscal disadvantage in XAW (to be held in cash account)?

Thanks
Read Answer Asked by Martin on February 03, 2019
Q: I am close to retirement and am interested in purchasing a conservative, safer, ETF to be held for the forseeable future in an investment (not registered) account. I am looking for a non-Canadian equity investment, and do not necessarily seek high dividends. What is your opinion of the "dividend aristocrats" investment strategy and of the DGRO-N ETF? Is there a better ETF which suits my investment goals which you would recommend?

Thank you for all of the excellent advice which your service offers!
Read Answer Asked by Dale on February 03, 2019
Q: I am a young retiree and am not allergic to volatility. I own each of the above REITS in my RRSP or TSFA for tax purposes. They represent collectively 7% of my total portfolios including my taxable account. My taxable account holds a mix of growth and dividend paying companies. It's a rather large holding. I don't own bonds because I don't understand the first thing about bonds but currently own 23% in money market or Guarantied Cash Deposits. I would like to add to my revenue generating part and would like to tone the risk down a bit. Where would you go from here?

Thank you very much for your support.
Read Answer Asked by Yves on February 01, 2019
Q: Hi There,
I am interested in purchasing an active fixed income ETF.
Can you help list what you believe are top tier fixed income sub-advisors/managers/companies in Canada that I should consider.
[eg Marrett, PHN, Leith Wheeler, Fiera etc?]
Could you also list some active fixed income ETF's that one might want to consider adding that you believe are worth the MER.
thanks
Read Answer Asked by Ian on February 01, 2019
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