Investment Q&A

Q: I have held Middlefield's IDR for a short time in a RIF and am down 6.05%. Found it has been merged with 2 other ETFs or funds. I am feeling very uncomfortable with it. Can you comment what has happened and if MREL is worth holding? Losses do not bother me much & I can easily move on.
Thank You

Q: Hi 5i;
Just a follow up to my question and your answer about IDR this morning, so that I can better analyze ETF's which I have to say I find to be a perplexing exercise.
You wrote that IDR has "fees" of 1.28%, but both CIBC and BMO indicate that its MER is .98% - approximately a 30% difference, so quite significant. Is there more to the cost of ownership than just MER which I should consider when reviewing ETFs that would account for the difference? If so, where do I look to find this information?
You also indicated that IDR 's "small size" is $61M while CIBC seems to peg it's value at $107.4M and BMO at $109.8M - again quite significantly different. Am I missing something in my understanding of the value as stated by the likes of CIBC/BMO that I should be aware of when looking at ETFs, going forward?
Thanks - I appreciate your advice.
Peter

Q: Hi 5i,
I gather from your answers to the few questions that have been asked about it that you are not great fans of IDR for real estate exposure, and my initial question is basically why and what should I be concerned about?
If I'm reading the information correctly, IDR's 10 year growth rate (2011 - 2021) is 167%, with YTD sitting at 29%. It's annual yield meanwhile is 5.60% (or more) and it is diversified through holding residential, industrial and retail REITs in Canada (67%), USA (24%) and the UK (2%).
Could one potentially do better and risk less through holding individual REITs instead of the basket afforded by IDR and, if so, which ones would you recommend for the real estate portion of a portfolio in the current economic climate?
Thanks!
Peter

Q: I am a long-term investor. I am looking for 5i's favourite REIT etfs (cost/liquidity, etc.). Please provide one or two GROWTH REITS (lower monthly yield) and one or two HIGH-INCOME REITS (highest monthly yield with growth as a secondary focus). This would be for both a non-registered account and a TFSA in $CAD currency (replication is fine). US/CAN or Global REITS. Whatever the preference.

Please also comment on IDR.TO (Middlefield Indexplus Reit), and whether this fits in some manner to the above categories.

Much appreciated!

Q: Which would you prefer, IDR, ZRE, or RIT, and why?