Canadian Couch Potato is your
complete guide to index investing
ETFs & Funds
Trading ETFs Near Dividend Dates
In my most recent podcast, I addressed an excellent question from Philip, who asked, “Are there days when ...
Tips for Trading ETFs
I happened to have Google Finance open on my computer last week when the “flash crash” happened. While ...
Is VRIF’s Distribution Sustainable?
The newly launched Vanguard Retirement Income ETF Portfolio (VRIF) is designed to pay its unitholders a consistent monthly ...
Should You Buy US-listed ETFs?
Jason, a reader of this blog, recently wrote to ask why an investor would want to invest in ...
Inside the BMO Asset Allocation ETFs
In our last blog and video, Justin and I compared the popular Vanguard and iShares asset allocation ETFs, ...
Inside Tangerine’s Global ETF Portfolios
Asset allocation ETFs were revolutionary when they appeared in 2018, but they were hardly the first products that ...
Indexing Basics
The Making of a Couch Potato
I know very few people who began their investing lives as Couch Potatoes. Most started out in mutual ...
Debunking Dividend Myths: Part 3
This post is the third in a series exploring the myths and misunderstandings about dividend investing. The goal ...
Why You Should Beware of First Dates
Imagine that you’re the marketing director for MegaAlpha Investments and you want to advertise two of your mutual ...
A Different Perspective On the Last Three Years
Your eyes open slowly, and the light stings your retinas. Your mouth is burning with thirst, your muscles ...
Ask the Spud: Can You Time the Markets?
Q. Have you ever done any calculations into the optimal time to purchase index funds or ETFs based ...
Worst Mutual Fund Ad of the Year?
The mutual fund industry loves to sell past performance, and it's not above massaging the data to make ...
Financial Planning
Ask the Spud: Am I Vulnerable to US Estate Taxes?
Q: I am ready to follow the Couch Potato and would like to use the US-listed Vanguard ETFs ...
It’s Time to Ban Advisor Commissions
Should financial advisors be banned from collecting commissions on mutual funds? That’s been hotly debated for years, and ...
Why Plans Should Come Before Products
When I wrote the MoneySense Guide to the Perfect Portfolio [now out of print], I waited until Chapter ...
Dividends: Not As Tax-Friendly As You May Think
If your investments include RRSPs, TFSAs and taxable accounts, asset location is an important consideration. The returns of ...
Ask the Spud: Is My Pension Like a Bond?
Q: My wife and I have been using the Couch Potato strategy for a few years now, but ...
A Monte Carlo Case Study: Can I Retire Early?
Last week’s post about Monte Carlo simulations in financial planning sparked some interesting comments, so I thought a ...
Behavioural Finance
Why RESPs Should Be Kept Simple
In the last couple of weeks I’ve received two questions from readers who were trying to figure out ...
Cost Versus Convenience in “ex Canada” ETFs
I used to own one of those one-piece cutlery tools designed for hiking and camping—the kind with a ...
Why Simple Is Still a Hard Sell
Last January, I overhauled my model portfolios to make them simpler. Some of the older options included small-cap ...
Podcast 20: One-Stop ETF Shopping
I’ve always tried to stress that successful investing is about the right process, not the right products. But ...
Should You Buy Stocks For Your Kids?
If you’re a parent, how can you set your child on the road to investing success? One popular ...
Podcast 25: Dr. Steve Wendel on Investor Success
The latest episode of the Canadian Couch Potato podcast features an interview with Dr. Stephen Wendel, Head of ...
Portfolio Management
How to Set Up a Hands-Off ETF Portfolio
For DIY investors, asset allocation ETFs may be the greatest gift to come along in decades. It’s never ...
It’s Time to Reboot Your Portfolio
It’s been a while since the last new article appeared on the Canadian Couch Potato blog, and over ...
A New Rebalancing Spreadsheet for ETFs
It’s easy enough to build an index fund portfolio with your desired mix of stocks and bonds. But ...
TD e-Series Returns for 2020
The TD e-Series index mutual funds remain a useful alternative to the asset allocation ETFs that take centre ...
Ask the Spud: Can I Make Taxable Investing Easier?
In Episode 4 of the Canadian Couch Potato podcast, I answered the following question from a listener named ...
Is VRIF Right for Your Portfolio?
In my last few posts, I introduced the newly launched Vanguard Retirement Income ETF Portfolio (VRIF), explained where ...
Recent comments