Investment Q&A

Q: I’m wondering which type of account would be best for these ETFs. I assume they would not all be best in the same account. The choices of accounts would be personal taxable, RRSP, TFSA, and corporate.

Thanks.

Q: Which one do you prefer? Thanks

Q: Hello Peter,
For a 30 year old that wants to invest for the long term and not have to worry about following the markets constantly, what is your opinion on investing on the 5 ETFs: 40 % to VBAL ( as it contains bond portfolio) and 60 percent to the rest of the 4 ETFS. I know there is some duplication but wanted your opinion.. thanks for the service.

Q: This is a follow up question to my previous question about using ETFs instead of stocks.

You mentioned that ZEM was “fine,“ whereas your comment on XEF is “solid,” XUU “we like it quite a lot,” and XIC is a “go-to.”

Do you have an alternative to ZEM that you would consider to be better? If so, please explain why.

Q: I just noticed that XUU is an ETF of ETFs. Does increase the possible problems with ETFs, such as tracking errors, fees, and liquidity? Does it add further issues? Also, what are the taxation implications?

Thank you once again.

Q: As I’m running low on time to spend on investing, I’m thinking of selling all of my equities and buying ETFs instead. I’m considering the following ETFs in a 1:1:1:1 distribution.

XIC
XUU
XEF
ZEM

Could you please give me the pros and cons of these ETFs, and alternatives if you feel there are any that are better.

Thank you very much for your service.

Q: The Canadian Dollar has weakened against the US and is reaching relatively historic lows (for the last 10 years). For Registered accounts like an RRSP and TSFA where there are no tax implications of selling, would you support the switch from Non-hedged ETFs to CAD-Hedged ETFs? For example, the switch from XUU.CA to XUH.CA

Q: Hi 5iTeam,

May I please have your comments on the above ETFs. If you have to choice one out of these 2, which one would be your choice and why?

Also, in your opinion, are there better options on the market right now.

Thanks and deduct as many credits as you deem fit.

H

Q: Hello Peter,
There is a possibility of rate cuts in US. Would the small cap space be good place to be? I was thinking of XSU, Russel 2000 index as opposed to XUU , the whole US market. Which one would be best in a lower rate scenario? Much appreciate it

Q: I want to spread some cash out, and away from a Canadian focus. Which of these two ETF's would you consider a better purchase for long term growth?

Q: I have just updated my portfolio analytics and am delighted with the results and the advice from it. 5i has been a big part of that, giving me the insight, information and confidence to make mostly good decisions.

I originally put a 30% allocation for bonds when I started 4 years ago, mostly because that's what was usually advised for those in my position (about 10 years out from retirement).

However, I have put no new money into bonds over that time because the ones I own have been the worst part of my portfolio. They did not act as ballast when the market went down - they seemed more volatile than most of my conservative equities. They also did not go up appreciatively when interest rates rose, and overall, even with the payouts, I'm in the red on these bonds over the past 4 years.

I heard you mention bonds in asset allocation on the recent podcast but I didn't sense any great endorsement of them. Other than the traditionally recommended 60-40 or 70-30 split, can you offer reasons not to sell them off and buy conservative stocks like CN, CSU, BN, etc or else broad-based index funds like XIC, XUU etc.?

Q: Hi team!
I am considering a hybrid portfolio of either (A) 80% ETFs and 20% individual stocks or (B) 80% in an All-in-one ETF (VEQT/VGRO) and 20% individual stocks. I understand there may be foreign withholding tax considerations on the Vanguard All-in-one ETFs depending on the account type in which it's held and I'm wondering how significant this actually is.

Questions:

- Which accounts out of RRSP/LIRA, TFSA, RESP, and Non-Registered would US listed ETFs be a better alternative due to this foreign withholding tax drag?

- At what account value would the tax drag from these withholding taxes be material enough to warrant buying individual ETFs (ex. VT, VTI, XUU, XEF) instead of using an all in one fund (VGRO or VEQT)?

Trying to avoid losing 15% or more of any US/foreign dividends due to unrecoverable foreign taxes if possible!

Thanks for your great work!

Q: Please rank in order the following etfs in a non registered account.
Main criteria being growth, dividend and mer.

Xuu
Vfv
Vun

Q: What are the Can ETFs that cover the main US ETFs, like SPY? And what are their mers?

What are the advantages of using these Canadian versions?

Do you still require W-BEN forms if you buy these?

Thanks for all your help.

Q: Good afternoon,

Looking for some general guidance.

I currently have 25% of my portfolio in CAD-listed US ETF's - 14% XUU, and 11% ZSP. I have a few questions for you guys....

1. Would you ever put just 25% in (either) ETF or do you like that fact theyre different (I think you recommend no more than 15% per ETF max? is that correct?). I'd see the advantage of all-in one being better for DRIP'ing but think you (and me) prefer diversification.

2. I would like to add more American holdings in general (maybe 8% more to get to 33%). I am mostly interest in CAD-ETF's to achieve this. Would you view XQQ or XUS as a way to add some 'torque'?

Thanks for your help.

Q: My sister just pulled out of Questrade's Robo account to a self-directed account. She planned to buy basic 4 index ETFs in order to keep things simple (XIC for Canadian (30%), XUU for US (35%), VIU for Europe (20%), and VEE for emerging markets (15%)).

However, when the funds appeared, we found two thirds of it was in CAD and one third in USD. It seems inefficient to convert it back to CAD and buy those funds. So we're thinking of buying the US equivalent ETFs for XUU and perhaps VIU and VEE.

Can you give us the US equivalents of these funds. If you have any advice on our strategy here or the funds I've mention (eg. whether iShares or Vanguard is preferable in these areas) feel free to add your wisdom which I so much value as a member.

Q: So I'm a lot less diversified than I thought and have something like 35+% of my investments in Tech. I have a good deal of money in XUS, XUU, and XAW. I thought I was getting diversification, but I didn't realize how heavily weighted in Tech (25% or more) these ETFs were. A few smaller investments (SKYY, IGV, GOOG) put me far more into the Tech space than I realized.

What's the best way to invest in broad ETFs without being so heavily invested into Tech? I feel like 20% is already a high weighting for this sector

Q: Currently have 25% of my portfolio in XUU. I am interested in increasing my US exposure up to 30% though. My question is do you have any problem with 30% XUU or would you possibly split it in to two? Eg ZSP and something else? Note - I would prefer a Canadian listed ETF but if you think there is a better American option I'm willing to listen.....

Q: Good afternoon. Buy and hold investor. Currently hold 20% XUU, 15% VIU, 5% VEE in portfolio as my non-Canadian equity holdings. What would the pros and cons be of selling them and putting it all in to XAW, and would you recommend such a move? I only re-balance once a year as it is. Thanks for your reply.

Q: Would you sell xuu etf and replace with zqq etf? Looks like zqq has outperformed xuu over the short and long term?