Investment Q&A

Q: Please clarify which kinds of securities should be held in non-registered accounts vs RRIFs and TFSAs. I have held yield-assets in our RRIFs and capital assets in our TFSAs and personal accounts, preferring to pay capital gains taxes on appreciation in personal accounts than paying full rates on capital appreciation upon withdrawals from RRIFs. What is your advice and are there exceptions?

Q: As this is a income trust(I think)income received is a dividend or a return of capitol?Thanks Jim

Q: Are there tax implications to holding XUS and XSP in a TFSA?

Q: Am I correct in assuming that probate fees in Ontario apply to RRIFS and TFSAS??

Q: I know you have suggested growth stocks in tfsa,however if seniors who have their oas clawed back,would it not be better to have their growth stocks in their non registered accounts and their high income stocks in their tfsa?

Q: I own these 2 ETF in non-registered accounts. Are their dividends subjected to a withholding tax?

Q: This is a follow up question regarding where to place XEF for tax efficiency. You Stated "These points could be argued, and could be variable based on one's exact situation and tax rate. But we would generally agree with this assessment."

Just wondering which points in my argument could be questioned. Also, if my corp is taxed just under 15% (small business) and my personal tax is low, does the reasoning fit better?

Thanks again,

Fed

Q: If you would have to start new position today what would be your preference LSPD or SHOP and why?

Second question:I have unregistered joint account what is the value of USD holdings in joint account that requires filing T 1135 ,is it market value or book cost at time of purchase.
Andrew.

Q: It is possible that next year we may have a minority's govt. in Ottawa between the liberals and ndp. As there is too much govt debt and the ndp will want to increase social spending and perhaps block any pipeline expansion they will need to increase tax revenue.one way would be to increase the capital tax from 50%.We are in our early 80s and were long term investors ,have large capital gains. Does it make sense for us to sell our equities with a view to repurchase them back using the net after tax proceeds? After all eventually we or our estate will have to pay the tax.

Q: One of the BNN guests stated that ZDI dividends do not qualify for the dividend tax credit. Would this be the same in a TFSA as well? I assume there is no issue in an RRSP.

Q: As I need more US exposure, I am thinking of purchasing VUN, in my TFSA . Will this be subject to US withholding taxes?

Thanks
Helen

Q: here's a PSA for the gang

the brookfield group of companies are generally solid businesses and good stocks

yet, the tax reporting is generally late and mostly very convoluted

PSA - if at all possible, place brookfield assets in registered accounts

you, or your accountant will be happier

bob

Q: Is an investment in this fund better in a taxable or non taxable account, and does return of capital reduce its adjusted cost base? Thanks. Bill

Q: Hi,
Is there a strategy to transfer stocks with nice capital gains (SHOP approx 250%) from my Margin act to TFSA. My understanding is that such a transfer is considered a deemed disposition. Thanks.

Shyam

Q: Hi 5i,

My question is in regards to tax loss harvesting. I am down, in our non-registered accounts, anywhere from 10-30% on Magna, Methanex, NFI, Vermilion, and Great Canadian Gaming.

I like all of these companies and would like to have them in my portfolio as long term holds. My time horizon is years, if not decades. I don't mind the volatility of these stocks at all, nor do I mind being down (on paper) significantly at any point in time with them - I understand these are cyclical names. Dividends, and dividend growth, from most of them ease any short term frustration.

All of that said, would you recommend crystalizing a loss on any of the above? Do you see any catalyst for short term price jumps (earnings?) that may cause me to get caught buying back in at a higher price in 30 days? And if harvesting a loss is the way to go, would I be better off keeping the proceeds in cash to buy back in after waiting? Or park it in comparable securities? If so, any suggestions?

Dollar-wise, the amounts are significant enough that trading costs aren't really material. The only other variable I should mention is that I don't have any capital gains (realized) to use the losses against, so it would just go "in the bank" to be carried forward to the future.

Lots of parts to that question so deduct credits as necessary.

Thanks, enjoy the long weekend!

Q: Hi 5i,
Can you recommend a good time to complete a tax loss sell on the following securities: TSGI, TV, TOY, GC. Will be buying back in either TFSA or RRSP in 30 days (If one security does not need to be rebought please feel free to comment).

Thanks.

Q: I am sure your recent article regarding foreign content was aimed specifically at me...haha. You nailed it! My method (illustrated in your article) resulted in 35% foreign content. The Domiciled method was 10% It sparked a fair bit of inflection on how I determine my asset allocation and I am still working through some scenarios. Probably another question for another time.

Q#1 = I am a retired, conservative, dividend-income investor. If I wanted a one-stop shop USA ETF that pays a good dividend, I was thinking of ZWH-ZWS. I already own ZWC and ZWE. I like the covered call strategy, especially at this point in the market cycle. Are there others I should consider?

Q#2 = Would you go unhedged...I am guessing yes, based on your previous "hedging" answers?

Q#3 = I understand that if I wanted to buy a USA ETF, like ZWH or ZWS, that the preferred placement would be in my RRSP...due to the withholding tax issue and the "distribution" tax benefits. That, however, would require a major overhaul on a reasonably successful asset allocation already in place.

What about purchasing ZWH-ZWS in my Cash account? I understand the distribution would be comprised of Capital Gains, Interest Income, Dividends and ROC and each would be taxed accordingly....no problem. What about the withholding tax? I thought Canada had an agreement with the USA that there would essentially be no double taxation. So, if the USA withheld tax, then this would become a tax credit against Canadian tax owing...with this being reflected in the T3-T5 issued annually. Please help me to understand.

Thanks for your help...again, great article...Steve

Q: I have a question about the tax treatment of Canadian stocks that are listed on the American exchange. I own a number of Canadian stocks listed in the TSX that pay Canadian dividends and allow me to apply dividend tax credit in my non-registered account. Ex. AQN, BNS, BIP.un
I'm considering exchanging some of these stocks to the American exchange so that I can collect dividends in US dollars.
Will the dividend tax credit remain in tact in the non-registered account?Would there be any tax with held impact if I made to same switch in my TFSA?

Q: Could you confirm that if I buy bonds in an ETF, they pay dividends rather than interest and are therefore taxed at a preferential rate. If I buy bonds, they pay interest which is taxed at a higher rate.
Are all management fees for investments held with a financial advisor tax deductible or only those held in non registered accounts (margin accounts).
Would management fees for RRIFs, RRSPs and TFSAs qualify for a tax deduction?

Could you confirm that if I hold securities in foreign securities such as Berkshire and have bank deposits in foreign currencies one is required to declare any amounts exceeding $100,000. Is this amount at cost or retail value of the security. Is this calculated in Canadian currency? Are foreign investments held in registered accounts (RRIFs, RRSPs and TFSAs exempt of this declaration. Could this be avoided by holding Canadian securities that have foreign investments such as TD, Brookfield (BEP.UN, BPY.UN, BIP.UN, BAM.A)? How does one calculate the value considering the volatility of the exchange rate if it is to be converted to Canadian currency?
I assume it is calculated on the cost of the security to avoid the volatility of the security.

Q: Hi Peter/Ryan can you tell me if there is benefit or a drawback in holding a trust in a TFSA more specifically BAM or BEP.UN. I was thinking of adding one of these. Which would be a better addition to a TFSA to reap the greater reward. Thanks, Nick