Canadian Couch Potato is your
complete guide to index investing
ETFs & Funds
Fundamental Indexing in the Real World
Earlier this week I discussed the promise of fundamental indexing. This strategy takes aim at the shortcomings of ...
ETF Risks in Perspective: Leveraged ETFs
This post is the second of three that will look at the potential risks that ETFs may pose ...
Tips for Trading ETFs
I happened to have Google Finance open on my computer last week when the “flash crash” happened. While ...
Couch Potato Portfolio Returns for 2020
Just about everyone was happy to wave goodbye to 2020. By the spring it was shaping up to ...
Why Index Mutual Funds Still Have a Place
Responding to a recent article on mutual funds by Rob Carrick, a Globe and Mail reader rehashed a ...
International Tracking Error: Part 1
Many international equity ETFs showed large tracking errors in 2009. For example, the iShares MSCI EAFE Index Fund ...
Indexing Basics
Beating the Market Is a New Idea
Today we take it for granted that virtually all mutual funds and stock pickers are trying to earn ...
Do You Have the Advisor Six-Pack?
When people criticize the financial industry in Canada, the target of their wrath is usually high fees and ...
When Should You Use an Advisor?
Dan Solin’s excellent new book, The Smartest Portfolio You’ll Ever Own (see my review here), devotes several chapters to ...
Can Your Funds Outperform Over a Lifetime?
Advocates of active management admit that only a minority of mutual funds will outperform their benchmarks, but they ...
Scott Burns Interview: Part 2
Here is part two of my interview with Scott Burns, the newspaper columnist and Chief Investment Strategist at ...
Review: The Smartest Portfolio You’ll Ever Own
There comes a time in every Couch Potato’s life when he or she has to answer a nagging ...
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 ...
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 ...
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 ...
Why Plans Should Come Before Products
When I wrote the MoneySense Guide to the Perfect Portfolio [now out of print], I waited until Chapter ...
What Is the Advisor’s Role?
John Lawrence Reynolds' newest book, The Skeptical Investor, argues that Canadians were badly served by their advisors during ...
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 ...
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 ...
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