Investment Q&A

Q: Hello 5i,
I would like to add a comment regarding Richard's post about his friend's LIF. My wife also had her entire LIF in RBF 461 and we finally chose to move it to RBC Direct Investing and put it all in XTR. This immediately reduced the MER significantly and increased the distribution income as well. In terms of holdings, I believe XTR is about as close as you can get to RBF 461 in one holding, although there may some others out there as well.
While making this move we also took the opportunity to tweak some other aspects of the LIF such as payout amount and frequency, withholding tax amount and added our children as Contingent Beneficiaries. While we could have done some of this without making the move, it was very easy and quick to do with the change. This, along with some recent experience as an Executor, motivated us to add our children as Contingent Beneficiaries to all of our other Direct Investing accounts that we could.
Please note, this is not meant to be a recommendation of any kind, merely a personal anecdote for what it is worth. I hope it is of some help.
Cheers,
Mike

Q: I am developing an income portfolio which will fund our retirement as we have minimal pension income. We are looking for monthly income that is relatively stable. We have a number of the big Cdn banks and Utilities owned in this portfolio. Which of the 2 monthly income funds would you prefer?
Thanks

Q: as a follow up to a previous question and answer: The ETF XTR might be a good substitute for FAP....I'm heading into retirement. what account would be best to add this to. tfsa? or a taxable act? my tfsa holds su, t and cgi. my trading act. is a mixture which i am trying to organize.

Q: FAP seems to be a loser, and i am just now starting to weed out the bad and cut back on my stocks. i will be selling FAP, what would be a good stock to replace it with? i am heading into retirement.

k

Q: 5i,

Could I have your thoughts on this trust? SIN.UN
Is SIN.UN an ok buy for a income fund or would you recommend something else?

Thanks

Q: Hi, . I want to invest in 5 stocks ,mainly for income , I would like your thoughts on my ideas , and give me your ideas . p.s. I hold BNS and TD . I would buy 1 at atime over the next several months thx Jack

Q: Hello 5i,
Is there a better alternative to XTR in terms of size, liquidity, MER - or any other measure I am missing?
Thanks!!
Cheers,
Mike

Q: Good evening 5i.

I just want to say I have enjoyed this forum lots over the past year and it has helped me stay in the game.

My question is.

I need ideas for a few dividend etfs for my non-registered portfolio. To date I'm holding some large cap Canadian dividend stocks and fixed income. I find it easier to manage with less stocks and a few etf.
I now have 10% CDZ in my RRSP, would it make sense to put CDZ in my non-registered also?
Is CDZ dividend taxed the same as a Canadian stock dividend when held in a non-registered account?


Thanks Steve

Q: Hello 5i,
My wife has a very small LIF (around 1% of our PF value) which was put into RBF461 A. Initially it generated enough income to almost cover the withdrawals, only a minimal amount was needed to be sold. The last year, however, has seen the fund return very little and more has needed to be sold to cover the annual withdrawal.
I was contemplating switching the LIF to XTR which would seemingly generate far more income and require a smaller amount to be sold. My questions are:
1. Would you endorse moving out of the RBC mutual fund and into an ETF?
2. If so, would XTR be a suitable candidate or would you recommend something else?
We currently have (5) pensions and an equity portfolio which also has some fixed income in it (@15%).
Thanks for any direction you might be able to provide.
Cheers,
Mike

Q: Good afternoon team
I’m looking to add to the income side of my portfolio and already hold 10-15% of ZPR and CPD.
I’d like to add another 5% to the income side of my portfolio so which one or two options do you advise?
I’m looking for more income with little or no growth as my equity weighting is fairly high in dividend paying stocks as well as growth stocks already?
Thnx in advance!

Q: Dear 5i team: would you rate any other products out there etf's or mutual funds that you may find as a better option as a monthly payer or a total return type product for a retired investment? Or are these as good as any except of course a group of individual stocks.thanks Larry

Q: Hello 5i team: from what I gather zmi has lower roc than xtr albeit a higher payout. Do you think this a concern and do you like any other names etf or mutual funds that you would prefer for a all in one hands off income provider for a retirement fund?

Q: Hello Peter, Ryan and crew.

I am retired and rely on investment income of about 4% dividends/interest. Because I no longer wish to take the time necessary to monitor 50 stocks and 10 bonds, I have been looking for some good income funds or ETFs to replace the individual stocks and bonds that I currently own. The ones I have found have distributions that meet my needs, but do not appear to have the underlying earnings yield to justify the distribution yield, so they appear to be paying me back some of my own money every month. Can you recommend some income funds or ETFs that pay out at least 4% and actually earn what they distribute? Like 5i, I am also sensitive to fees.

I have been a 5i member since the beginning and I continue to be impressed by your knowledge and insight as well as the continuous improvements in the service.

I wish everyone at 5i all the best in the New Year.

Thanks

Q: Hello 5i team,
In calculating percentages of holdings and sectors: concerning complete portfolio vs, equities and fixed: are ZPR and and XTR considered equities or fixed?

Thank you
Stanley

Q: Can I have your opinion on this fund. Is there another fund or etf that would be preferred in this category? Thank-you.

Q: My wife and I are retired with pension income sufficient to cover monthly expenses. We are looking for some income and a bit of growth from our investments. Wondering if an investment in XIN AND XTR would help us reach our goal? Is a return of capital involved with either ETF? Also, could you suggest other ETF's that would help us to build a solid, well-divesified retirement portfolio of ETF's. Thanks so much for you guidance.

Q: Which etf would you consider for income,diversity, and some downside protection. I own several Cdn dividend stocks eg. TD,SLF,Mfc,ALA,Fts,Aqn,T,Bce,et al. Thank you.

Q: Hallo I5, is there a tax advantage between dfn, df and zwu, would you please rate or rank them from safety point of view. Perhaps suggesting a couple better ones. I do not have any India holding. Would you consider either of the above safe with reasonable MER, perhaps a suggesting a couple better ones. Many thanks, J.A.P. Burlington

Q: My son is currently 39 years old and is trying to develop a solid diversified portfolio. All of his holdings are in his RRSP except for some money in a Tangerine International growth fund which is in his TFSA. He has some new funds to add to his holdings. Could you please recommend some companies from your model portfolios that would add more diversification to his portfolio keeping in mind his relatively long investment horizon. As always, thanks for your advice.

Q: Do you PIN and Purpose Investments in general? What do you see as the main risks with PIN? Thank-you.