Comments on: ETFs: how much is too much?

By: Thicken My Wallet » Blog Archive » Personal finance blogs vs. mainstream media

Mon, 20 Jul 2009 09:03:01 +0000

[...] and I both recently wrote about investing in ETFs against the back-drop of the sheer amount of EFTs being sold. Rob’s excellent article tackles subjects mine does not and vice versa. I would suggest [...]

By: The Financial Blogger » Blog Archive » Financial Ramblings

The Financial Blogger » Blog Archive » Financial Ramblings — Sat, 11 Jul 2009 18:59:32 +0000

[...] Is there too much ETF’s? [...]

By: In Case You Missed It: G8 on the Global Economy and Other Good Tidbits | MoneyEnergy

Sat, 11 Jul 2009 11:04:38 +0000

[...] ETFs: How Much Is Too Much? – Thicken My Wallet has a great post looking at how many ETFs is too many for your portfolio. [...]

By: admin

admin — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 20:48:51 +0000

Sampson- it is another topic altogether but if you have a lot of equity in your house, purchasing REITs could give you over-exposure to real estate in general (yes, its residential vs. commerical re). If you are starting out, it may be better to build with ETFs tracking broad based equity indexes and then work towards the mid and small caps but I agree with your point that you could go large, mid and small. But in the beginning, I would adhere to the KISS principal.

By: Sampson

Sampson — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 19:18:35 +0000

I have one issue with essentially holding only 4-6 ETF’s in the core portfolio. You are bound to have an unbalanced distribution when looking at market capitalization.

In your example of investing in Canada, you basically suggest that someone could invest in the TSX60 or if they have a higher risk tolerance, an index tracking small or midcap equities. I think its important to have exposure to large, mid and small cap companies, thus boost the number of ‘essential’ ETFs by at least 2-4 depending if you value buying small/mid cap companines in foreign markets also.

Last thing, I think its good to have some exposure to real estate through REITs although personally owning rental units could be used in its stead.

By: Canadian Capitalist

Canadian Capitalist — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 15:27:22 +0000

I would add one point about the “fun” portfolio — do not add new money to it! Just put 5% or so in a separate account but never add to it. That way most of the portfolio is safe from being driven by emotions.

Thanks for the plug!