Lately, many people have asked how we’re using artificial intelligence (“AI”) behind the scenes. We’ve embraced this new technology where it makes sense, and it has provided a noticeable boost to our operational efficiency. Tasks that used to take us hours can now be completed in a fraction of the time. This frees up our […]
With the market hitting record highs daily, finding compelling new opportunities at attractive entry points has become increasingly challenging. Brookfield Infrastructure (“BIPC”), which hit almost $70 as recently as March, has pulled back just about 25% the last several weeks to $53.34 today. (Disclosure: Clients, Jeff Pollock, and Sunni Schneider have a financial interest in […]
You’ve likely heard the old Wall Street adage that suggests you should “sell in May and go away”. The strategy sounds simple enough because it asks an investor to exit the stock market in early May and not return until the end of October to avoid a perceived summer slump. At Schneider & Pollock Wealth […]
Someone I knew that passed away a few years ago was very organized. She never forgot appointments, always arrived on time, and remembered the names of all her friends’ kids. But, when she passed away, it was discovered by her children that the beneficiary information on her RRIF was unfortunately left blank. Instead of the […]
Several years ago, a friend reached out about a distressing personal matter involving her mother’s retirement savings. Her mother, a client at one of Canada’s “Big Six” banks, had her savings spread across four different mutual funds, and two of those four funds became suddenly frozen. (Note: Mutual funds are pooled vehicles and their underlying […]
The Greater Toronto Area real estate market has officially dipped below the $1 million mark for the first time in five years, with the average selling price for all home types landing at $973,000 last month. This contraction represents a 27% price decline from the market’s all-time peak in February 2022. I’ve heard many people […]
The RSP contribution deadline for the 2025 tax year is Monday, March 2, 2026. Contributions made by this date can be deducted from your 2025 taxable income. The maximum contribution limit is 18% of earned income, up to $32,490. Depending on your personal situation, it doesn’t always make sense to contribute. Contributing to an RSP […]
The investments you don’t own are often just as important as those you do. After years of strong performance, software stocks have had their largest non-recessionary drawdown in almost three decades. One exchange-traded fund (called the iShares Expanded Tech-Software Sector ETF), which is a basket of software stocks, is down nearly 25% so far this […]
Last week, Donald Trump announced he would nominate Kevin Warsh to be the next Federal Reserve Chair, a move that surprised plenty (including us, since we thought Rick Rieder would be selected). The market did not take the announcement well. Many attributed the selloff to Warsh’s criticism of easy-money policies and the large expansion of […]
In the world of behavioral finance, there is a well-documented phenomenon known as loss aversion. Nobel Prize-winning psychologists Daniel Kahneman and Amos Tversky found that the pain of a loss is psychologically twice as powerful as the joy of an equivalent gain. Statistically, most investors require at least a 2-to-1 gain to offset the emotional […]
The financial crisis of 2008 was a defining moment for me as an investor. Watching the panic unfold on Wall Street, with banks teetering and markets swinging wildly, solidified my philosophy to buy when others are selling. One of my purchases during that period was Apple. In December 2008, I bought shares around $3.36 (adjusted […]
Our investment in Canadian Utilities (“CU”), which delivers gas and electricity, in November 2023 was based on a straightforward premise: its attractive 5.7% dividend yield positioned it as a prime beneficiary of anticipated interest rate cuts. We believed falling rates would naturally enhance the appeal of high-yielding dividend stocks like CU for income investors seeking […]
