Couch Potato Live in Toronto
Looking for something to do on Wednesday, November 9? ING DIRECT is hosting a public event to discuss personal finance with four panelists, including yours truly. The other three are: Rubina Ahmed-Haq,...
View ArticleETF Risks in Perspective: Securities Lending
This is the final post in a series of three looking at the potential risks that ETFs may pose to the stability of financial markets. The previous two discussed synthetic and leveraged ETFs. Now we’ll...
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Can the Pros Time the Market?
I never meant to make you cry And though I know I shouldn’t call It just reminds us of the cost Of everything we’ve lost Bad timing, that’s all – Bad Timing, Blue Rodeo One of the promises made by...
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Two Ticket Giveaways
Retire Rich with MoneySense If you’re a MoneySense reader you won’t want to miss Retire Rich 2015 in Oakville, Ontario, next Wednesday, April 8. The evening will feature presentations by Bruce Sellery,...
View ArticleGlobe and Mail Best Blog Award
I’m pleased to announce that Canadian Couch Potato has been selected as the top investing blog in Canada by the Globe and Mail. The article appears in today’s issue of the paper and online here. I’d...
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Finding the Right Advisor
One of my favourite financial authors, William Bernstein, used to recommend that investors ditch their financial advisor and handle their portfolios themselves. But in his 2010 book, The Investor’s...
View ArticleCouch Potato Portfolio Returns for 2015
With 2015 now in the books, it’s time to look back on the year that was. It was another year of surprises: after the gurus continued to predict higher interest rates, the Bank of Canada shocked almost...
View ArticleHow Long Will You Wait for Smart Beta to Work?
In my last post I shared some insights from Ben Carlson’s A Wealth of Common Sense, which argues that investors are generally better off keeping their portfolios simple and straightforward. This idea...
View ArticleIntroducing Passive Aggressive Solutions™
[Note: This post was an April Fool’s joke!] If you’re a disciple of the Couch Potato strategy, chances are that you handle your own investments without an advisor. And that’s the right decision for...
View ArticleAn Even Better Reason to Fix Your Portfolio
So your portfolio is a disaster. Your RRSP is full of high-cost mutual funds, sprinkled with some random stocks and a bunch of exotic ETFs that seemed like a good idea at the time. You know it’s time...
View ArticleSmart Beta ETFs: Your Complete Guide
Remember when index funds simply tracked the broad markets? I do, but I also remember renting movies on VHS and watching the Leafs in the second round of the playoffs. Today there are ETFs tracking...
View ArticleUnderstanding the Value Factor
This is Part 3 in a series about smart beta ETFs. See below for links to other posts in the series. In this installment, we look at the value factor: the idea that stocks whose prices are low relative...
View ArticleThe Power of the 3BAL Portfolio
[Spoiler: This was an April Fool’s joke!] Simple is beautiful, but in investing it ultimately loses its appeal. Since the beginning of 2018, all three of Canada’s top ETF providers have launched...
View ArticleAre your return expectations realistic?
An investor is frustrated because her portfolio is down in value. But is the advisor really to blame? [MoneySense]
View ArticleCan ETFs provide downside protection?
We all want to capture most of the market's upside while significantly limiting losses. Unfortunately, it’s fantasy. [MoneySense]
View ArticleShould you favour dividend ETFs in retirement?
Drawing down your Couch Potato portfolio? That doesn't mean you need to switch to a dividend strategy. [MoneySense]
View ArticleCouch Potato Portfolio Returns for 2012
I think we can safely say we are now almost four years into the most disrespected bull market in history, to borrow a phrase from Alexander Green. In a recent roundtable in The Wall Street Journal, the...
View ArticleCanadian Couch Potato Threatened By Legal Action
[Note: This post was an April Fool’s joke!] I regret to announce that this blog is in jeopardy of being shut down due to pending legal action. On the afternoon of Friday, March 29, I received a letter...
View ArticleCouch Potato Portfolio Returns for 2015
With 2015 now in the books, it’s time to look back on the year that was. It was another year of surprises: after the gurus continued to predict higher interest rates, the Bank of Canada shocked almost...
View ArticleAn Even Better Reason to Fix Your Portfolio
So your portfolio is a disaster. Your RRSP is full of high-cost mutual funds, sprinkled with some random stocks and a bunch of exotic ETFs that seemed like a good idea at the time. You know it’s time...
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