The TD GoalAssist app on Weekend Reads.

On Tuesday of the this week, TD took aim at Wealthsimple Trade and Canadian Robo Advisors with the launch of the TD GoalAssist app. The TD GoalAssist app is a stock and ETF trading platform that also has some Robo-like qualities. I think it’s another welcome addition. Many of the big players in the Canadian financial field are lined up for the future. That future includes the continued slide of high-fee mutual funds as Canadian investors move to lower fee options that includes ETFs or creating a portfolio of individual stocks.

At the core of the TD GoalAssist app, and true to its name, is the goal-setting feature. Investors will complete an online profile to create investment or life goals. The app will then work like guardrails, keeping the investor on track.

I outlined the app in this week’s MoneySense post. I also looked at Canadian dividend stocks on sale, the energy sector and the tech monster earnings season.

On the app, investors can then trade TD exchange traded funds (ETFs) with zero commissions and have the ability to trade stocks listed on major North American exchanges. There are no investment minimums or monthly fees. Investors will pay $9.99 per trade for stocks. 

The Robo option.

And here’s how TD GoalAssist is Robo-like. After completing the investor profile, investors can choose to move to one of the comprehensive asset allocation ETFs, the TD One-Click Portfolios. Those portfolios are offered at 3 risk levels.

The fees (MER) for the TD One-Click Portfolios is .25%. That would make it the cheapest in Robo land. But here’s the Robo rub, the GoalAssist investor would have to press that buy button. This is for the self-directed investor. With a Canadian Robo Advisor there is advice (and at times financial planning) available and the Robo Advisor will manage the investments for you.

That said, at the core of TD GoalAssist is a very robust educational platform. I would greatly encourage investors to get up to speed so that they have the knowledge to manage their own investments. If you’re a younger investor, this is a great place to start. If you have kids who are old enough to invest, they might begin with a platform such as TD GoalAssist.

BMO InvestorLine adviceDirect.

I am more than happy to see this addition to the Canadian investment landscape. It is similar to, but likely not near as robust as BMO’s adviceDirect that I reviewed on this site. I am updating that post that week as BMO has added several enhancements.

More Weekend Reads.

Since we are on the topic of TD, here’s a timely review of TD Direct Investing on Savvy New Investors. That is TD’s online brokerage for self-directed investors. I invest through that platform. I find it works very well for my needs.

On My Own Advisor Henry Mah, the author of Your Ever Growing Income, answers reader questions.

On findependencehub John De Goey looks at lower for longer interest rate policy and how that might affect public policy. And on the front of investment considerations John offers …

From a financial planning perspective, I cannot help but think that virtually everyone’s assumed rate of return for bonds, GICs and other debt instruments is almost certainly far too high.  Irrespective of how our policy makers proceed, investors would be well-advised to alter their expectations accordingly. 

And also on MoneySense, how safe is your money in the bank? In that post Juliette Baxter gives you all of the details on CDIC insurance.

And given the low rate environment, Horizons offers two potential strategies for ETF investors.

Mike the Dividend Guy shows you how to protect your dividend stream with a look at payout ratios explained.

Wide moat stocks in Canada and the US.

Here’s a great post from DGI&R Dividend Growth Investing and Retirement – Every wide moat stock in the US. I am a big fan of the moat (lack of competition) when it comes to stock selection. I see about 12 of our 20 US stocks on that list.

And here’s a look at the Canadian stock list.

This post on Banker on Wheels just has so many great charts and insights on returns and asset allocation. That’s a mountain of research. That’s a mountain I would not want to climb on my bike.

Once you decide what kind of investor you are (or want to be) …

The rest should be easy.

And from Arthur Salzer of Northland Wealth Management, in the Financial Post, Decrypting bitcoin: why the digital currency should be part of your balanced portfolio. I added some bitcoin a few months ago. It sits at a 2% weighting of my balanced portfolio. I’m up about 40%, so far on my bitcoin investment.

You don’t have to be perfect.

I really like this message from Carl Richards, author of The Behaviour Gap. This came to my email inbox …

Chasing perfect leads to frustration; as there is no perfect. And thinking too hard can lead to stress and can make us react as well. Chill. Once you get a simple low fee investment plan, you can let it go on auto pilot IMHO. Of course, always know and invest within your risk tolerance level.

When you need some advice or a second opinion, you can check in with a fee-for-service planner.

And on that simplicity, for The Evidence Based Investor (TEBI) Carl asked – Do you have a one page plan?

Canada’s top-ranked discount brokerage.

Cut The Crap Investing readers can sign up with Questrade (Canada’s top-ranked discount brokerage) through this partnership link. You can buy ETFs for free.

They offer the Questwealth portfolios. You can also visit our Robo Advisor page. I continue to believe that is the answer for the majority of Canadians who are stuck in high fee mutual funds.

And check out EQ Bank for those who want to make their cash work a lot harder. The current high interest savings account rate is 1.5%. They also offer generous rates for GICs.

While I do not accept monies for feature blog posts please click here on the mission and ‘how I might get paid’ disclosures. Those affiliate partnerships help me pay the bills for this site.

Dale