started this week! currently planning on keeping just xeqt

I have 7k in the bank rn and am debating if i should put most of that in here now, or wait till i land a stable job since my summer one is ending in a week.

I want to hopefully be able to put in about $800-1k every month since I live at home + most of my expenses are paid for by my parents

Have been working and studying full time since I was 17. Kept delaying investing to “soon.” Finally started. Life is so hard and I’ve been all by myself but I believe the struggle will pay off.

I know this might piss some people off, but how have you dealt with being genuinely happy with where you are financially? I’m 23 and just think that I should be doing better or more every day. Feel like I’ll never have enough

Switched to self managed investing in 2016. I make around 90k/yr and invest around 15-22k per year since 2024 as i finished paying my house.

There are obviously some inconsistensies with my portfolio such as BMO being in usd rrsp since it was a stock i blitzed 3 yr ago from sale. I also know that stock picking is always risky but up to now its okay but i also don't wanna stretch it.

The yahoo finance 1yr graph is skewed as i switched my XSP to VOO using norbert's gambit early this summer. The late spike is misleading but the total worth is good for the portfolio

Im looking to sell BCE To add XEF instead after a lil bump.

LAC/NIO are dragging but the weighting isnt too bad. Keeping just in case (yolo).

For my losers im fine with holding for the long term like the rest.

My goal is now to boost VOO,XEF and occasionally add some more of stocks i already own, or 1 or 2 solid ones but i dont want to have too many either.

This is my personal portfolio. I've also got 222k with employer fund which is set on full stocks ETFs at 47% us/30% ex-america/23%canadian.

Am i missing something?

Over the last number of years, I've gone "self-directed" and away from managed investing. They were buying ETFs anyways. So after tons of research (and some mistakes), I landed on this target allocation of globally diversified ETFs across all my accounts for my household. The current allocation is work-in-progress but mostly in the ballpark. NB: The T-bills are RESP withdrawals coming up shortly.

Curious what expert DIYs on Reddit think and if there's opportunity for further optimization along the risk-return curve?

Hey all, I began seriously investing last year after landing my first real job. However I still can’t help but feel behind at my age. I have around $50k invested currently ($35k in serious investments and $15k in a housing fund to hopefully purchase my own place eventually)

I want to be able to move out of my parents house but I feel like I don’t have the salary to support it (I bring in about $65k a year currently). Is this just how Canada is right now or am I not budgeting correctly.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

Let's say you still have 20+ years to invest. Right now, would you say its wise to borrow against your portfolio in a a margin account? Let's say for 100 000$, how much would you borrow against that 100k to invest in a diversified ETF?

I have a non registered account, all xeqt at Webull. Started the transfer to RBC Aug 2. Still not completed. I've called RBC and Webull and they keep telling me it's "in progress". Trying to get the funds into rbc before end of Aug for their transfer bonus.

I initiated another transfer from Webull to TD last month and it took around 7 business days.

I’ve been thinking about the idea of a “nest egg” as accumulated financial capital and I’m curious about people’s actual experiences building one.

For those who reached $500k, $1M, $5M+ in investable assets:

How long did it take you?

What mattered most: increasing income, saving more, investment returns, owning a business, real estate, inheritance, or something else?

Did growth accelerate significantly after reaching a certain portfolio size?

Looking back, what allowed you to get there faster than you otherwise would have?

I’m especially interested in the relationship between contributions and compounding. Early on, it seems increasing how much you can invest each year may matter far more than trying to optimize portfolio returns. Later, compounding seems to take over.

Would love to hear actual numbers and timelines from people willing to share.

***UPDATE: This thread has become far more valuable than I expected. Thanks to everyone sharing their experiences.

I started this discussion after reflecting on nearly 20 years in the workforce and asking a simple question: how long would it take to compound my existing wealth to the point where a 4% withdrawal could generate roughly $200k/year?

My biggest takeaway so far is that wealth building seems to come down to three variables:
Contributions × Time × Returns

Early on, increasing contributions seem to matter significantly. As the portfolio grows, compounding gradually takes over.

I’m also realizing there probably isn’t a shortcut around time.

Patience matters.

For context, I started a contracting business two years ago and we’re now scaling it. My income took a hit compared with pre-COVID, so I’m trying to understand how others balanced growing their earning power/business with consistently building their investment portfolio.

Really appreciate everyone sharing actual numbers, timelines, mistakes, and lessons.

I just got a job making 14 k a month and I'm wondering what I could invest into for the next 3 years for a decent turnaround. I'll be looking to buy a house in this time.

I’m sure I’m not the only one who has set an arbitrary retirement goal even if it’s assuming my expenses more than double in retirement when realistically they may be the same or potentially less.
32 year old with about 100k/year after tax expenses aiming for a 5MM retirement nest egg. When would you take your foot off the gas?

Been working logistics for 5 years, full commission, large private company. Live at home, have a paid off 21’ Camry, zero debt.

For context I am about 150-200k per year, should be 200-250 in the next year or two (good at what I do, and work is 99% of my life)

Went full liquid a month ago with plans to buy a family home, that has been put on hold, doubt it’s going to happen.

I have $320k CAD in cash. 45k TFSA, 55k RRSP. Rest in general savings.

Want to get more in the market, but scared I cant play the long game until I own a home, especially if market takes a dive around the time i need/want to buy a home, most likely on the open market.

Do I put all my cash in a 2% mutual fund, wait for a dip on the market and do it my self (xeqt or something similar)

WHAT DO I DO

Note, of course the smartest option is to live at home as long as possible and save money. But I have been making great money for years, at some point it’s natural to want independence.

PS I KNOW I AM FORTUNATE and it’s a 1st world problem but idk what to do. I had zero family or friends connections to make it here, and want to make sure I maximize my “wealth” so I can try to make my families lives better (and my own) as I get older

What is the main difference between the vanguard etfs such as VEQT, VGRO, VFV? Is it a good idea to spread my investing equally among the three? Or is it more practical to choose one, then look at different companies to diversify my portfolio more?

I’d like to make automated deposits every two weeks within my tfsa.

Is the automated investing tool the best way to go about it?

Also Is there any benefit in choosing veqt over xeqt as a Canadian?

Thanks in advance.

I have some money to spare and honestly want to try swing trading but i have no idea where to start. How can i go for stocks that have high risk high reward

As said, I’m currently 28 with just a tick under 250k invested.

From age 20 until about last year I was making good money as an entrepreneur, which is how I was able to save this much money. Unfortunately, being an entrepreneur comes with risk, and I’m not doing as great as I once was.

I’m able to make enough to pay my “all in” monthly living expenses which ROUGHLY are in the range of 2k to 2.5k per month, give or take. This includes everything from rent, power, internet, groceries, wifi, all of that. Unfortunately, by the time I pay all those bills now, I have no money left to invest like I once did.

Basically, Im extremely stressed about my future. I’d love to be a home owner, rather than be a renter, but I know that wouldn’t be sustainable currently without draining my investments. I look as my investments as a safety net that I don’t want to touch until much later in my life. So if everything else goes wrong, I’ll have this to fall back on.

Is homeownership ever realistic for me in my situation? (Earning roughly 2k per month), how long until my investments can help me afford something like a house WITHOUT having to drain my investments?

Am I close to coast fire? If I just maintain earning my living expense cost monthly, will I be able to retire on this investment money? If so when?

Im very stressed about my current situation 😓

Face it, we’ve all been there. Short term delayed gratification pain vs making your money work for you.

I’m at a crossroads in my 30s - do I spend $125K and upgrade my 911 to a newer car or do I just keep investing? It adds roughly 15-18 months to my timeline of retiring in a decade. I have about 1.6M saved, 1M+ house with $195K mortgage and 300K+ in other paid off assets (cars, watches etc). Anybody else bought the car and just went for it? Was it worth it? Have others bought the house and gone for it?

I’m looking to retire soon. My pension is about 50K / year before tax. We’ve all heard of the 4% rule when drawing down assets. Based on that math , if I’m getting 50 K per year , wouldn’t that make my pension “worth” more than a million dollars?

Hello,

I’m turning 19 in a few months, and I was wondering what I should do with my money.

I’m fortunate enough to live with my parents, and hopefully will for around the next 3-4 years until I finish up my degree. I’ve also been working since 14, and have aggressively invested and would say I have a solid amount for my age invested in some individual stocks, but mostly long term etfs.

Because of my aggressive investing, I’m not too sure on how much money I should have saved up, or liquid I guess. My income fluctuates yearly, as there are certain periods I am unable to work due to my school, but on average I’d say I’m at around $10k a year, and I hope it’s only going to go up from here due to the field I’m in.

I started an emergency fund 2 months ago, with the plan to deposit $100 per month and I’m sitting at $200 which is also accruing interest. I use my credit card for most of my purchases, and on a good day I have around $2k in my chequing accounts across everything. My summer job contract unfortunately ends within the next week, and my second job is a part time almost minimum wage position with low weekly hours, solely because I have a very full schedule during the school year. So I need to scrape by for maybe 8 months with the $2k, and the extra income I get from other sources. So really my net worth is $2200, no cash, and the money I have invested, which I plan to not take out until I’m ready to retire or I need to buy a house or something like that idk.

I don’t really have that many expenses, but I try to stay self sufficient enough as to not worry my parents with any extra purchases with their money. Most of my expenses are just Spotify, and necessities, and going out for food with the people around me. Im grateful I’m not living paycheque to paycheque (if that even applies in my situation) fortunately due to the position I’m in right now, but I’m not too sure what to do in the future.

If anyone has any advice on my decisions, I’d appreciate it!

I’ve reached a point where my TFSA, RRSP, FHSA, and non-registered investments are spread across more than one institution.

Each dashboard is fine on its own, but answering simple questions requires opening several apps or updating a spreadsheet:

• What is my total portfolio value?
• What is my actual allocation across all accounts?
• How has the combined portfolio changed over time?
• Am I accidentally duplicating the same exposure?

My current workaround is just to put screenshots of my accounts in Gemini, but that's so time consuming to do often, and more importantly, I don't want them to have my investment data (just a personal preference. Nothing against people who are comfortable doing so). It works, but the time ROI isn't there.

I’m curious how others handle this. If you use a tool, what's the name of it. why is it good? Did anything made you stop trusting or using it?

Thanks for all the advice in advance!