In Episode 16 of the Rational Reminder Podcast we talked about the following: How bad was last week's market volatility? Should you make changes to your portfolio in this market? Are people better at predicting when markets are volatile? How the market prices securities The economy vs. the stock market When do bear markets typically occur? Will passive investing exacerbate the next correction? Do index funds affect price discovery? The power of capitalism Index reconstitution Risk over the long-...
Oct 17, 2018•35 min•Season 1Ep. 16
In Episode 15 of the Rational Reminder Podcast we recapped our time at the Dimensional Fund Advisors advanced conference. We recapped the following: Eugene Fama The history of the University of Chicago and Dimensional Connecting economics with academia Behavioral finance is a branch of efficient markets (according to Fama) Crunching data for the first time Starting the first index fund – before Vanguard Volatility lessons Black swans Do you need a tstat of 3 in today's world? We referenced this ...
Oct 15, 2018•32 min•Season 1Ep. 15
In Episode 14 of the Rational Reminder podcast we were joined by Martin Parizeau, a retired banking executive with extensive knowledge of Canadian consumer debt, and a PWL client. We discussed the following: The start of the ETF boom When proponents of active management realize they should index Cutting wasteful expenses without sacrificing happiness Pulling off a successful downsizing Housing is not an investment The real cost of owning a home Defining the ideal lifestyle Digging into Canadian ...
Oct 11, 2018•31 min•Season 1Ep. 14
In Episode 13 of the Rational Reminder podcast we discussed the following: Getting into the DFA advanced conference Cancelling whole life insurance When permanent insurance makes sense Unaffordable housing in Canada Housing bubbles? Bridging the gap with a HELOC Undervalued financial advice Money does not buy happiness Defining a lifestyle Walking to work Active funds are still underperforming Missing out on the best stocks The Stories we talked about: HOUSING TRENDS AND AFFORDABILITY UBS Global...
Oct 02, 2018•33 min•Season 1Ep. 13
In Episode 12 of the Rational Reminder podcast we were joined by Doug McKenzie, an executive at a large US financial institution, and a PWL client. We discussed the following: Attacking a retirement goal Managing expenses before retirement Toronto real estate in a retirement plan Living (and working through) the financial crisis The Investor's Group Dividend Fund Income investing Robo advisors Using prepaid credit cards for budgeting CCP vs. CPM vs. DFA Running regressions Data sources Come From...
Sep 28, 2018•24 min•Season 1Ep. 12
In Episode 11 of the Rational Reminder podcast we discussed the following: Are DIY investors responsible for their actions? Starting a blog Switching from stock picking to index funds Managing behaviour The 4-minute portfolio When does it make sense to optimize? Index fund rebuttals Fee-only vs. fee-based advice Choosing a conflict of interest Robb's biggest beef with Canadian financial services Trusting the bank VGRO vs. robo advisors One-fund retirement portfolios We were joined by Robb Engen,...
Sep 24, 2018•33 min•Season 1Ep. 11
In Episode 10 of the Rational Reminder podcast we discussed the following: Grass fed beef The benefits of independence The Ontario government wants to keep the deferred sales charge (DSC) DSC back in the day The old financial advice model DIY investors are responsible for their decisions 1/3 of people say money is their biggest stressor Locus of control A better way to invest responsibly The stories that we talked about: Investment industry stunned as Ontario opposes proposed ban on mutual fund ...
Sep 17, 2018•33 min•Season 1Ep. 10
In Episode 9 of the Rational Reminder podcast we discussed the following: Being a poor grad student Budgeting Stuff does not make you happy Mental overhead is a real cost The Globe's Financial Facelift disaster Rob Arnott's slam of Dimensional Are people afraid of stocks? The 10-year anniversary of Lehman's fall Stories from the financial crisis Volatility in dollars vs. percentage points Automated rebalancing My uncle told me to buy weed stocks What does a rational investor worry about? The sto...
Sep 10, 2018•32 min•Season 1Ep. 9
In Episode 8 of the Rational Reminder podcast we discussed the following: Fidelity's 0% MER index funds are already at $1 billion When costs are 0%, how do you pick a fund? Indexing is not a passive investment strategy Index construction and product implementation > low fees A three factor regression on the Manulife Multifactor ETFs Indexing is still a tiny part of the market Not all factors belong in a portfolio Dividend investing shouldn't be so controversial Dividends are not a spending ru...
Sep 05, 2018•34 min•Season 1Ep. 8
In Episode 7 of the Rational Reminder podcast we discussed the following: Ottawa home prices The longest bull market in history What goes up does not have to come down All time highs are normal and should be expected Is the market overvalued? Even the CAPE only explains 40% of future return differences Should you dollar cost average or invest in a lump sum? Your better off in the market than trying to time the market Was WEED an obvious buy at $2.00? There are still plenty of public companies to...
Aug 28, 2018•30 min•Season 1Ep. 7
In Episode 6 of the Rational Reminder podcast we discussed the following: Subscribe to the podcast on iTunes! Wealthsimple's new no-commission trading platform Do individual stocks ever play a role in a financial plan? Can behavioural coaching be scaled? Being aware of conflicts of interest Wealth and happiness are not always connected If you buy an R8, you'll want a McLaren next Retiring does not mean doing nothing How do you retire without a financial plan? The 4% rule is false! If you want to...
Aug 17, 2018•32 min•Season 1Ep. 6
In Episode 5 of the Rational Reminder podcast we discussed the following: Checking your credit Optimizing your credit score Investing vs. paying off your mortgage Asset allocation Reframing mortgage debt Are we in a tech bubble? The rise in the US market is backed by fundamentals How the largest Canadian pension funds invest Skewness in VC returns It's still really hard to beat index funds The stories we talked about: Mortgage debt and asset allocation Fed Up Andrew Coyne: Canada Pension Plan's ...
Aug 14, 2018•31 min•Season 1Ep. 5
After a successful launch, the podcast will live on! Thanks for the support and feedback. In Episode 4 of the Rational Reminder podcast we discussed the following: The longest bull market in history? Are we repeating the tech bubble? Why it still makes sense to hold bonds Rebalancing isn't always easy The Lost Decade, sort of Is tax-loss selling worth it? Horizons' marketing mistake One decision funds Index fund fees are finally at 0% Sec lending is the future of index fund revenue Charley Ellis...
Aug 08, 2018•29 min•Season 1Ep. 4
In Episode 3 of the Rational Reminder podcast we discussed the following: Should you lease or buy your vehicle? How are the new mortgage stress tests affecting Canadian real estate? Home ownership is not required to build wealth, with a little discipline Amazon's size is not unprecedented Successfully investing in growth stocks is really hard Consolidation in the Canadian asset management industry Independence benefits wealth management clients Are backend loads on mutual funds still a thing? Fu...
Aug 03, 2018•29 min•Season 1Ep. 3
In our first ever episode of the Rational Reminder podcast we discussed the following: The purpose of the podcast How we invest DFA Factor investing Our worst investment ever Tripling our money in JDS Hedge funds still can't beat the market CSA won't deploy a statutory best interest standard The cheapest financial advice may not be the best Is a financial advisor worth it? Cost vs. complexity The stories we talked about: Dave Butler Discusses Finance and Basketball Hedge Funds Should Be Thriving...
Aug 02, 2018•30 min•Season 1Ep. 1
In Episode 2 of the Rational Reminder podcast we discussed the following: The underperformance of value stocks Are we in a Winner Take All market? Facebook's crash Global value performance Canadian value premium at ~+5.5% Rebalancing into the pain Factor diversification Having a philosophy and sticking with it Index fund flows are slowing down in the US Canadian active funds are still dominating passive ETFs Markets are still efficient Deciding to be an index investor takes work Fewer highly ski...
Aug 02, 2018•34 min•Season 1Ep. 2
