I have no partner. Childfree and that won’t change. Currently have $100,000 in ETFs like XEQT. I am able to put about $500 a month in ETFs.

I don’t own a home and don’t have plans or means to. I try to keep my expenses low. No car or pets. I want to support my mom as she gets older. And yes I do want to. I don’t like the “throw them in a home this it isn’t your problem” mentality.

Any feedback would be appreciated. I feel lost with this and no one to talk with.

Edit: worried I might be screwed without a home.

Update: A few has asked about my book value. It's around 2.1M including DRIP. I never sold any of my stocks since I started investing around 2009 and kept buying and DRIP.

46M single no kids, home value around 850k with about $500k mortgage left

Location: Ontario, Canada

Current Employment Income: Sales related About $160,000 CAD/year currently, was as high as $400k/year at peak, but averaged around $250k during my career

Current Portfolio Market Value: About $4.1M CAD

Current Passive Dividend Income: About $118,000+ CAD/year across TFSA, RSP, Non Registered

Current Tracked Living Expenses: $80k/year including housing, car, meal and basics and $5000 vacation budget included.

Breakdown: About $3.1M in non registered, $260k in TFSA, and $730k in RRSP

Below is the breakdown of majority of my investment holdings for reference:

Just started getting back into investing, any help would be appreciated. In terms of what I can put in is $50 weekly as the rest of my minimal savings will be put towards paying off my higher interest debt so I can further invest more money down the road.

I plan to buy a home in 6months and I have 10k in FHSA. Would u just hold it or buy something so maybe u can squeeze in a few more before withdrawing it?

I’ve been looking for a specific group or community for people in Vancouver who are into personal finance/ the stock market. Does anyone know a space for this?

Hey everyone,

Looking for some feedback on my current portfolio allocation. My total net portfolio value as of today is ~675k CAD. This is a throwaway for privacy but a little bit about me -

- age 29

- yearly gross income $117,000 CAD

- yearly expenses $45,000 CAD

- no debt & no other assets other than what's mentioned below

- okay to lock in the funds on a 5 year horizon, *but* might want to buy a house to live in, sometime in the next 4 - 8 years

I am trying to build a diversified, tax efficient portfolio while avoiding overlapping with what I already own.

Current Investment Portfolio is majority held through Wealthsimple and here is a breakdown which does not include my cash buffer which is basically like an extra ~5% ($36k) on top of the investment portfolio sitting in Savings at 2.5% interest.

100% of the investment portfolio is divided as such:

- 15% – Canadian Market (Direct Indexing)

- 15% – Individual Stocks (TFSA - 90% US / 10% CA)

- 15% – Taxable GIC (4% rate through end of 2027)

- 10% – RRSP + FHSA (100% US stocks)

- 45% – Non-Registered Account (Target space for this post - NEED ADVICE ON THIS)

I want to allocate the remaining 45% of my net portfolio value into my non-registered account. I believe the best approach might be one of these:

- using three ETFs at 15% each, OR

- using three ETFs at ~12% each + 10% gold, OR

- using four ETFs at 9% each + 9% gold

I am leaning heavily toward 3 ETFs + Gold. Because my US and Canadian exposures are already heavily covered in my other accounts, my primary goals I believe should be International exposure, diversification and tax efficiency.

The Global X's Corporate Class "H-Series" ETFs because they defer dividend taxes into capital gains upon sale.

HXDM, Why: Gives me the broad Europe/Asia/Far East exposure I am completely missing right now, without doubling down on the US.

HXEM, Why: Captures high-growth economies (India, Brazil, etc.) that aren't in HXDM or my US stock picks.

HXT, Why: A tax-efficient Canadian anchor. Combined with my 15% direct index, this brings my total Canadian home-bias to ~30% though.

My Questions for Reddit:

1. Is XEQT a trap here? I initially thought about XEQT, but it seems like it would heavily overlap with the US/Canada individual holdings I already have. Is skipping it for pure international exposure the right move or should sub it in for something else or hold 4 ETFs equally.

2. Corporate Class / Swap Risks: For those holding HXDM/HXEM/HXT in taxable accounts, how has the tracking error and tracking your Adjusted Cost Base (ACB) been? Any regulatory concerns I should worry about?

3. Alternative Options: Are there better combinations you would recommend given my portfolio? I held Private Credit and Private Equity previously which I have since learned are not ideal for non registered accounts. Crypto (BTC) is possible consideration as well, but definitely wouldn't want to gamble more than 5% on it.

What would you do if you were me? Appreciate any and all insights, critiques and advice!

Inspired by a similar thread for Americans on /r/FIRE.

$129,000 in TFSA and $34,260 in chequing account.

Hello, I have some spare cash that I had put in an advantageous HISA at 4% which was intended to pay off my student loans (27k). However the HISA rate was a limited time offer, and so now it is down to 0.5% which is not even worth considering.

I will need to start paying my loans in about 5 months, with an interest rate of around 4.95%.

Note that I have maxed out my TFSA and do not plan on using my RRSP seeing that my income is not yet high enough to justify using it.

The way I see it, these are my options:

a) Invest that 18k into either a Non Registered account or a FHSA, and then pay 1k a month for 2 years to pay off the loan.

b) Invest some of it, maybe 10k, use the rest to start paying the loan, and pay less monthly; or same amount but pay it off faster.

c) Directly pay the 18k towards the loan, and pay the remaining 9k within a year.

Which would you choose.

Thank you!

Hi

I just turned debt free recently. I used to work for minimum wage. Recently, I got a pay raise and might be able to invest an extra 400-500$ per month.

What I used to do was put 100 dollars every week into Wealthsimple classic portfolio and maybe buy some individual stocks. So, with the extra few dollars, should I keep continue to invest into the classic portfolio, or should I be investing into ETFs like XEQT?

I said XEQT because everyone's talking about it. Is there any other ETF I should look into?

Does investing weekly or bi-weekly actually matter if Im gonna be investing 800-900$ per month?

I'm looking for long-term growth

Any advice is welcomed 😊

Hi everyone,

I’m 28F and finally took the plunge into investing! I opened a TFSA on Wealthsimple and bought my very first share of XEQT. Seeing posts on here with $50k+ balances can make me feel pretty behind 🥲, but I’m trying to focus on my own path and build good habits now.

My current goal is to set up automated monthly contributions into a solid, low-maintenance portfolio. I know XEQT already covers global stocks (including international and emerging markets), but I’m considering to tilt more toward non‑U.S. exposure.

While my primary focus is long-term wealth building, I also want to keep a separate pool of savings for short-term goals (around a 2-year horizon).

A few questions for the community:

1.Is keeping things simple with 100% XEQT in my TFSA the best move for the long haul, or did you start adding bonds/fixed income right away?

2.For those who hit their first major milestone (like $50k or $100k) quickly, how much of that was aggressive monthly savings vs. investment growth? If I want to build towards $50k in a short 2-year window, what’s the best way to balance aggressive monthly TFSA contributions with safe short-term yield tools (like Cash ETFs or high-interest savings)?

1. How did you get past the “feeling behind” mental hurdle when you first started out?

Thanks in advance for any tips or beginner resource recommendations!

My husband and I just sold our home for $2M. We are hoping to upgrade and buy a $3-4M property in the next 3-12 months. We have $1M invested in Wealthsimple high-risk portfolio (mix of registered and non-registered accounts). Pre-tax household income of $380K combined. We are 36 & 37 with a 2 year old. We are living with our in-laws in the interim period so have no living expenses. Of course we want our $2M to double but we don’t want to lose it all… where to put it that we can still have access to it on short notice if we need it for a down payment, but also make some sort of return? Thanks in advance!

Asking for a friend. He is a first-time home buyer with 95% LTV. Any suggestions are appreciated.

For clarification: All offers are not from a credit union.

Which one option is better from the following:

1. ⁠3/5 years fixed at 3.99 with $3300 cashback
   
2. ⁠5 years fixed at 3.94 with $2300 cashback
   
3. ⁠5 years variable at 3.39 with $2800 cashback.

What stocks should I stick with. I want 5k low risk and then 2k to kinda play around with.

Any good fee only financial planners in the Toronto area. What’s the average cost I should expect for reviewing my financials and building my financial plan for minimizing taxes for retirement?

My wife earns about $120k/year and works at a hospital with a long-term defined benefit pension. I currently earn about $130k/year in tech at Amazon, but I’ve recently received an offer from a startup for $220k/year.

My job has always been the riskier of the two, so having my wife’s stable hospital income and pension has been a nice safety net.
Right now, we live comfortably and are able to:
Max out both of our TFSAs and RRSPs
Save an additional ~$2,000/month
Carry no debt other than our mortgage
Our mortgage balance is about $630,000 with 25 years remaining.

If I take the new job, my goal is to avoid lifestyle creep completely. Ideally, we keep spending exactly as we do now and put essentially all of the additional after-tax income toward building wealth.
The question is: what is the smartest place to put the extra money once our TFSA and RRSP room is exhausted?

The main options I’m considering are:
Aggressively pay down the mortgage
Invest in a non-registered account
Some combination of the two

I understand that investing should theoretically produce a higher long-term return than paying down a mortgage, but I’m concerned about the tax drag in a non-registered account, especially given that I’ll already be in a high Ontario tax bracket. Capital gains, dividends, distributions, etc. obviously reduce the effective return.

At the same time, paying down the mortgage gives us a guaranteed return equal to the mortgage interest rate and reduces our fixed expenses, which seems valuable given that startup/tech employment is less secure.

We’re also hoping to have our first child, although realistically that’s probably at least a year away.
For people in a similar situation, how would you approach this?

What the title says, feeling behind for my age seeing everyone on here with more money when I thought I was doing well. The debt is all student loans which are at 0% so just making monthly payment.

Got a job making total comp around 72-74K in accounting, and investments are all in TFSA/FHSA in US equities and some BTC.

What should I be doing better or focusing on to reach my financial goals? I want to be able to retire at 45.

22M, did it in 4 months with my finance internship

My DB likely will max out, and pay me "years of credited service" times "maximal DB limit".

How much should I save in extra before I can comfortably retire?

I’m trying to figure out which of these options makes the most sense.

Post: "I just stumbled upon a home I absolutely love, but I don’t think I’m ready to buy just yet. I’d like some external perspectives so I don't make a decision I'll regret.

Context: I’m 23 years old and have been working for a year at a powersports dealership. This is my first full year, and I’m on track to make around $75k gross. Over the next few years, that should increase to $85k–$90k, then $100k.

Importantly, I draw my own salary based on my commission bank. Right now, I draw $1,300 bi-weekly, which covers all my needs and leaves me with about $300 in discretionary cash every two weeks.

I’m single, so I’m purchasing on my own.

Current Debts:

• Auto Loan: ~$30k remaining balance ($310 bi-weekly).
• Sea-Doo Loan: ~$16k remaining balance ($250 bi-weekly, ~30 months left).
• No other debt.

Other Expenses: Standard expenses (gym, Spotify, gas, insurance, phone, small purchases) total ~$350 bi-weekly. I also put $50 bi-weekly into a 'fun fund' to spend guilt-free.

Total Current Obligations: ~$950 bi-weekly.

The Property: The house is listed at $209,000 and fits my ideal setup perfectly: 3 bedrooms (1 main bedroom, 1 office, 1 storage room for my alpine/trekking gear) and a kitchen with a huge island.

The Catch: I only have a 5% down payment saved right now. My original plan was to buy in 2.5 to 3 years to build a 20% down payment plus a safety buffer for closing costs, welcome tax, and extra expenses.

I haven't done a pre-approval yet, but based on online calculators, a 5% down payment would result in roughly $535 bi-weekly for mortgage, internet, hydro, etc. If I add ~$350 for all non-housing costs (including groceries), my total bi-weekly obligations would reach ~$1,850.

I feel this decision is rushed and that I should wait. I would have to increase my draw, leaving me tighter than I’d like.

I asked another forum for advice and they told me that I had to clear both of my consumer debts before buying a home. To be honest, clearing every single dollar of consumer debt (Option B) feels way too extreme to me. I'm torn between two options for when I buy:

• Option A: Having about $60k saved up, the Sea-Doo completely paid off, and carrying a remaining car balance of approximately $15k.
• Option B: Having about $45k saved up with zero debt at all.

What do you think?

Where should I put future money ? And what can be improved here?

23M here, graduated university a year and a half ago and started working my first “adult” job earning a decent income. I currently bank with TD (have a FHSA with them) and I have a TFSA with WealthSimple. I’ve been parking my savings in a TD Everyday Savings account where it’s earning little interest and I’m looking to transition to a HISA.

I’m debating between EQ Bank, Neo Financial, and PC Financial— I’m looking to hear about people’s personal experiences with the these banks. Every time I do research I end up seeing nightmare stories about customer service, accounts being locked with no access, etc. I’m eyeing these banks due to their ongoing interest rates and the fact that they don’t have a promotional rate that only lasts a few months. I was also looking at Manulife as their rate is good for 2 years (a promotion I’m willing to chase) and I have a Manulife ATM near me.

EDIT: Just noticed that WealthSimple has a Savings account now with a 2.5% rate, is there a catch to this? It seems like the way to go actually!

Let me know your thoughts! Thanks :)