Investment Q&A

Q: It has been suggested to me that over the long term, the the average investor like myself is better off buying the indexes VFV with a dividend of 1.64% and XIU with a dividend of 3.61% rather than buying a portfolio of individual stocks. Would appreciate 5I's observation of this comment. Thanks, Bill

Q: Hi Peter & 5i team, is there any overlap in these ETF's, if so any alternatives that you could suggest.
Thanks kindly,
Ivan

Q: Most of my information is supplied by your insightful replies in this form but now require a little more direction.
Need to convert about 105000 from rrsp to rrif .
Am looking for 4 or 5 ETFs that are dividend payers as all our needs are covered with
oas and cpp plus company pension.
We also have tfsa, US and Canadian trading accounts so this would be for discretionary spending.
Thank you
Barry

Q: Follow your balanced portfolio and hold the above etfs for american exposure.. Vgg has performed better over the last 18 months. Thinking of selling vun, vfv and buying vgg. What do you think? T steve

Q: I currently have $115 K saved in my children's RESP with the chikdren’s ages almost 14 (grade 9) and 12 (grade 7).

Currently I have $46,600 in 1-2 year GICs
$9K in Fortis
$25k in VDY
$35k in VFV

Considering cashing in Fortis or $10K of gains out of VFV for another GICs as I am concerned about markets and will need this money in the next 4-6 years for both children. Should I stay at 60/40 or reduce to 50/50 at this point?

Q: Have all of these and so far all performing fairly well---they all around 2%
Want to top 2 of them up to 5%----or maybe you have a better choice.
Please advise your thoughts
Peter

Q: What is a good S&P 500 Index Fund to invest in and tuck away for 20 years? S&P 500 is already up 16.5 % this year and historically has performed about 10% per year. Seems like a good long term investment.
Thanks.

Q: If you could only buy one of these in the current market, which would you prefer and why. Is there an argument for holding both of them.
Thanks as always.

Q: Hi,
I'm looking for advice to build a TFSA portfolio. It can be all stock, all ETFs or a combination of both. Probably, no more than 8-10 securities. I am more of an income oriented investor with a time horizon of 4-5 years.
Thank you

Q: I was surprised to see that BAM outperformed VFV over 5 years and longer, especially noticeable over the past 5 years. Which was less volatile over these periods and how do you measure volatility?

Q: For the purpose of simplicity I would like your opinion on these 3 ETF portfolios.
My idea is to rebalance 1 / year.
non registered: VFV 30% VDU 30% VAB 40%
TFSA: VFV 50% VDU 50%
RRSP: VOO 30% VIG 30% IWO 30% VAB 10%
Any suggestions as to changing the etf's used for better tax purposes ?
Are there better etf's that you would recommend using?
Thanks for your help .
Victoria

Q: Morning
Quick follow up question for clarification
If I hold VFV in a RRSP , will it be subject to the 15% withholding tax?
Holding VGG in a non registered account, is there a way to get this tax back?
Thank you

Q: Thank you for all your help
I am a novice investor learning the ropes
For that reason, although I want to increase my US exposure , I am not comfortable picking individual stocks
Which of the following etf’s would you recommend, and why
VUN VGG XHU. (I already own VFV)
Also,I heard you do not want US in a TFSA. Why is that..?
Thanks again

Q: 2 questions - please deduct as many points as needed.
Q1 - according to Portfolio Analytics, I need to increase my fixed income allocation by $90k. I own 4% positions in XBB, ZIC & PMO005 and 2.6% in CPD. Would you recommend adding to one of these or would you suggest adding another ETF?
Q2 - I need to add $125k to International exposure. Current international holdings include XAW, XMI & XEC at just over 2%. Should i add to anyone of these or add something else?

Q: I was expecting Armageddon/ volatility in the markets with no China deal and more tariffs and China retaliation. What gives? At some point this is going to impact earnings, jobs, etc. In fact the market has risen, what do you make of it?

Q: I have subscriptions to both 5i Research and to the ETF & Mutual Fund Newsletter. Is there any way that these subscriptions can be linked, or must they be kept separate?

In the ETF Model Portfolios you recommend VSP and XQQ. Both ETFs are "Canadian Hedged". Are there non-hedged versions of these ETFs available? Why do you prefer the Canadian Hedged versions at this time?

Q: Is this a a good play to the US market in a TFSA. Thanks

Q: I have 30% of my money in diversified CDN equities and don't need the money for 20 years.
I am not interested in bonds or REITs. I was considering putting the other 70% in the following ETF's.
45% VFV
18% VUN
18% XQQ
11% XEF
8% VEE
This would put around 57% of the total money in the USA. I am fine with that.
The MER would be around 0.18% based on the blend. I know this breaks your rule of keeping less than 25% in one fund. It also places a lot of money in Vanguard - which has been around since 1975, but nothing is for sure. Wondering what you think of this set up and also maybe I could sub out VUN for XUU. This would make 53% Vanguard and 47% iShares. Trading VUN for XUU would lower the MER a little as VUN is 0.16% and XUU is 0.07%

Q: CIF 823 is the last remnant from the portfolio of my former financial advisor. How would you assess this mutual fund? Would an ETF (or several) be a preferred replacement?
Your input is always appreciated!

Q: looking for an S&P 500 ETF with low fees. do you prefer a hedged or unhedged ETF? i am considering the ZSP and TDB902 or any other you would recommend. 20 year time horizon.