Investment Q&A

Q: If you were going to build my bond portion (40% +/-) portion of my portfolio using ETFs, how would you build that? Is there one ETF that provides a broad mix of corporate / municipal / provincial / federal, a broad laddering of periods, a mix of risk, a mix of regions, etc? Or would you build it using multiple ETFs that specialize in specific products?

Q: Hi Peter,

With interest rates projected to go downwards, what are your top three picks in the U.S. and Canada for bond ETFs for the next five years?

Thanks

George

Q: We have held VIG in our RRSP/RRIF accounts for about five years and are happy with the performance. It is now around 7% weighting (I know you are ok with larger ETF weightings vs individual stocks) but I'm thinking of reducing it by about 25% to bolster our underweight fixed income holdings and also to hedge against possible market downturn. My only other fixed income holdings are TLT and a couple of short term GICs. Does this switch make sense and if so what short term bond fund would you recommend if I were to make this move? Thanks for the continuing great service.

Q: My sister has an RDSP with BMO. She has 75,000.00 in each the above funds. The lifestage money will mature in June and automatically go into a money market fund. The money will not be needed for years. She also has a trust fund. Do you have any suggestions for the 75k? Also, I believe the Cad and Usd equity funds are mutual funds. Should I move them to a lower cost ETF?

Q: I own these two bond ETfs inside a balanced portfolio. My understanding as the bond yields rise the price goes down, along with the price of my dividend stocks. Seems like a double whammy. Im trying to figure out if there is anything I should do here. Happy to hold the bond ETFs and collect higher distributions. Your thoughts please.

Q: Hi, is the reason for the downward trend in XGB due only to the fact that there is increased optimism with equities? Are there other factors at play?
What would be the reasons for the downward trend to continue for the XGB fund?
I'm considering ZCM as well which will provide another percentage point return.
Thanks.

Q: I would like to know what you can suggest as a canadian bond ETF that is reliable and gives a decent performance. I currently have XGB (IShares Cdn Government Bond Index ETF) but the yield is low. Previously I had MFT (Mackenzie Floating Rate Income ETF) giving a better yield. Is one is better than the other or is there a better choice? Also, is there any bond that instead of giving a yield gives a capital gain? It would be particularly interesting for my non registered account since I want to reduce the amount of interest that I receive to avoid clawback.

Q: 5i, thank you again for all the great advice! I saw someone asking a question about these bond / high interest ETFs earlier today. Do you have other suggestions for bond / high interest ETFs? I have a longer investment horizon, but currently are 40% equity and 60% cash. I want to put some of this cash to work in a relatively safer manner.

Q: What are the best bond etfs to own in Canada and US in your opinion? Please provide several options in both countries. Thank You.

Q: Do you see more downside to ZCS? And why ? It seems very safe in this environment but I want to make sure I understand the risks. Thank you!

Q: Hi,

I don't know much about bonds, but am considering the fact that perhaps I should have some in my portfolio. It's hard enough for me to keep with with the few stocks I own and watch and I'm hoping you can provide a few simple 'set it and forget it' type ETFs that provide good bond exposure.

Cam.

Q: If I was to invest $400,000.00 into an all bond portfolio, could you suggest what bond securities you would invest the money? Thanks, Bill

Q: looking ahead the next 6 to 12 months and with safety of principal in mind, how would you rank these fixed income etf's? thanks.

Q: Greetings 5i,

My question is twofold, so please deduct two credits if you see fit. I have some cash to deploy into the bond portion of my fixed income allocation, and would like your advice about how to proceed. Currently, I have VAB.TO and AGG for broad based bond market exposure, and XRB.TO for inflation linked bonds. To this, I am considering adding an ETF strictly devoted to Canadian government bonds in an attempt to add increased long-term safety (I am becoming a little skittish of corporate bonds).

This addition would be a very long-term hold (likely 20 years or more), and would bring my bond allocation to roughly 15% of my total portfolio (the majority of my fixed income investments are comprised of GIC ladders).

I am 37 years old, debt free, and fairly conservative in my risk tolerance. My investments are solely for the purpose of providing for my retirement, and I will have no need of their funds for the foreseeable future.

My research has led me to either an overarching fund such as XGB.TO or VGV.TO, or to one with laddered maturities like CLF.TO or CLG.TO. Given my situation and style, do you feel as if the addition of a Canadian government bond ETF makes sense for my portfolio (as opposed to simply adding to VAB and AGG)? Moreover, if you do approve of said addition, which of the aforementioned funds would you consider to be the most beneficial?

Thank you.

Q: Hello 5i team,
I was wondering what is the difference between the 2 above bond indexes? Do they both track CAN government bonds but are simply from 2 different institutions.

Which one is better?
Thank You,
Andrew

Q: I have some cash parked to build a house and am wondering if I should keep this as cash or invest these in bonds to get some interest. If the latter, what do you think of 50% in XSB and 50% in XGB?