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ETFs & Funds
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 ...
TD e-Series Returns for 2021
In my last post I reviewed the returns of my model ETF portfolios in 2021. Now let's take ...
International Tracking Error: Part 3
In this final post in the series on why international index funds performed so poorly in 2009, it’s ...
Swap-Based ETFs: What Are the Risks?
Monday's post discussed the inner workings of the two swap-based ETFs launched by Horizons in late 2010. Many ...
Where Does VRIF’s 4% Payout Come From?
In my last post, I introduced the new Vanguard Retirement Income ETF Portfolio (VRIF), an asset allocation ETF ...
Currency Hedging in International Funds
Currency hedging can be confusing for investors who use index funds and ETFs that hold foreign stocks or ...
Indexing Basics
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 ...
Lessons From the Last Decade
This has been a scary few months in the markets, and nervous investors may be tempted to second-guess ...
Debunking Dividend Myths: Part 5
This post is the fifth in a series exploring the myths and misunderstandings about dividend investing. The goal ...
Debunking Dividend Myths: Part 3
This post is the third in a series exploring the myths and misunderstandings about dividend investing. The goal ...
Indexing’s Dirty Little Secret
“Most actively managed mutual funds underperform the market.” Couch Potato investors sing this refrain all the time in ...
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
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 ...
What Is the Advisor’s Role?
John Lawrence Reynolds' newest book, The Skeptical Investor, argues that Canadians were badly served by their advisors during ...
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 ...
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 ...
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 ...
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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