The truth about sequence of returns risk

In this video, Ben Felix tells us that contrary to popular belief, having an all-stock portfolio in retirement is actually the safest asset allocation, even if the stock market has a poor year right at the beginning of your retirement. The catch? Instead of keeping your spending level each year, you need to adjust your spending depending on how the market does. This means lower spending in weak markets. 

Is the public ready for private equity?

Private equity sounds enticing, and many people wonder if they need to have some in their portfolio. Up until recently, accessing private equity investments has been exclusive, available only to institutional clients like pension funds, or very wealth people. Recently, it's become more accessible to more people. But should you add private equity (companies that don't trade on the stock market) to your portfolio? Is it good enough to own just public equity (companies that trade on the stock market)? I'm quite skeptical about private equity, mainly because it is not at all transparent for investors, and your money can be tied up for quite a long time. Although returns on private equity have been very good at times, this podcast dives into why the future of private equity for average investors like you and me isn't so bright. The message? Don't have FOMO about private equity.

Covered calls: A devil's bargain

I really, really disliked covered call ETFs. Posing as an income product, investors are attracted to their high yields. But yields (the percentage of income you get paid annually as an investor) that are really high are always (yes, always) a warning sign: you don't get a high income payout for nothing. Covered call ETFs usually have poor performance because the upside potential is stripped away due to the nature of selling call options, which is what these funds do. Ben explains this at length in the video. These funds also tend to have a high return-of-capital component to the payout, which simply means you are receiving your own money back as "income". These two qualities make covered call ETFs not only a bad investment, but a marketing gimmick that only benefits the fund provider.

Can you be confident in the stock market?
Ed Rempel is a big believer in investing heavily in stocks, even 100% stocks in retirement. This is an unconventional view as most advisors say you need some bonds. In this video, Ed reviews the history of the stock market and explains why a stock-heavy portfolio can be a good thing. The caveat is that many people don't have the stomach for it and could end up selling their stocks in a down market. 

Implications of investing within a corporation

When you generate business income in a corporation, it's taxed at a low rate. This is great. But money you earn from investing (including rental income) in a corporation doesn't get this favourable tax treatment. Many people don't understand that this passive or non-business income is taxed at a much higher rate than the business income, often even higher than your personal tax rate. You need to be purposeful about how much you take from the corporation and invest personally and how much you keep in the corporation. This video explains some nuances of corporate taxation. Once you have a better understanding of how it works, talk to your accountant about the best strategy for taking money from your corporation.