Investing

Building on my evidence based investing guide, this article further explores why we invest. When we think of investing it’s only natural to dream about discovering the next Microsoft or Amazon stock or about becoming a world-class investor like Warren Buffett. But why invest in the first place? Is it the thrill of building wealth?…

It’s hard to put into words the impact Vanguard has made on the investment industry and for individual investors. Perhaps Warren Buffett described it best when he paid tribute to the late Vanguard founder Jack Bogle in 2019: “Jack did more for American investors as a whole than any individual I’ve known.” Vanguard brought its…

Happy New Year! 2021 was another crazy year for investors. Unlike 2020, which saw global stock markets shrug off a 30% decline before posting positive returns for the year, 2021 began with a meme stock craze and ended with a flurry of new all-time highs in both Canadian and US stock markets. In this post…

This article has been sponsored by BMO Canada. All opinions are my own. I’m on record to say that the vast majority of self-directed investors should simply use a single asset allocation ETF to build their investment portfolios. What’s not to like about asset allocation ETFs? Investors get a low cost, risk appropriate, globally diversified…

Many investors like to take the reins and self-manage their own investment portfolio using a discount brokerage platform. DIY investing can be relatively straightforward during your contribution years, but investing can get more complicated when it comes time to withdraw from your portfolio. This article will explain the steps involved in converting your RRSP to…

For years I’ve railed against Canada’s mutual fund industry for high fees, conflicts of interest, underperformance, poor disclosure, and lack of accountability. But today I’m going to zero-in on another major problem with mutual funds in Canada – closet indexing. Canadian equity mutual funds sold by Canada’s big banks, in particular, are some of the…

Vanguard is best known in Canada for its low cost, passively managed ETFs. Indeed, since entering the Canadian market in 2011, Vanguard now boasts a line-up of 37 ETFs with more than $40 billion in assets under management – making it the third largest ETF provider in Canada. Keeping costs low is in Vanguard’s DNA.…

I’ve received an uptick in emails and comments from investors about dividends and so I thought I’d address some common misconceptions around dividend investing. One reader in particular wanted to know if he should take the commuted value of his pension ($750,000) and put it all in Enbridge stock because it was yielding around 6.5%.…

This article has been sponsored by BMO Canada. All opinions are my own. Fixed income doesn’t get enough attention on this blog, mostly because I’m still in my accumulation years and invest in 100% equities across all my accounts. But most investors should hold bonds in their portfolio to reduce volatility and so they can…

A few readers have expressed concern about their recent investment performance. In most cases, these investors are holding a sensible, low cost, globally diversified portfolio of index funds ranging from conservative (40% stocks, 60% bonds) to balanced (60% stocks, 40% bonds). One reader said: “Psychologically, it’s tough to put money in when returns have been…