# What is your age and asset allocation?



## Belguy (May 24, 2010)

If you care to disclose it, I would be interested in knowing your age, or life stage, along with your current asset allocation (cash/fixed income/equities). Having some idea of the investments within your fixed income component would also be of interest. Please keep your responses pithy.

Thank you!!!:confused2:


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## james4beach (Nov 15, 2012)

Belguy: how about posting yours?

I am in my 30s, a working professional.

cash/savings: 31%
fixed income: 56%
stocks/trading: 5%
precious metals: 8%
real estate: 0%

I keep lots of cash because modern jobs are unstable. I put more into PMs than stocks, because I think we're in a long-term money printing environment where fiat currencies will lose real value.


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## mrPPincer (Nov 21, 2011)

50, semi-retired

cash-HISA 10% moving towards 19% within the next half-decade or more, depending
equities 90%


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## GoldStone (Mar 6, 2011)

Belguy, you forgot to ask about pensions. Government-backed DB pension should count as fixed income.


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## DanFo (Apr 9, 2011)

age 34

invested asssets = 80K
cash = 21K
DB pension (commuted value) 200K
house (no mortgage) 200K
...increasing invested money as i go now


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## jcgd (Oct 30, 2011)

Age 25

100% stocks
All my cash goes to some debt I'm paying down.

I'm not sure how to quantify this, but my partner and I put a good chunk of money into education, her in a BSc and a BComm for me. Still an investment I suppose.


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## Ethan (Aug 8, 2010)

Age 28

Equities - 80%
Real estate - 20%

The real estate does not include my house, I only showed my investments.


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## liquidfinance (Jan 28, 2011)

Age 32

Equities - 75%
Fixed Income - 5%
REITS - 5%
Cash - 15%


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## Soils4Peace (Mar 14, 2010)

nearly 54, hard at work
88% stocks indexed, with small, value, Canadian and Emerging tilts
10% real estate
2% bonds
+ not counting as many company shares as I can lay my hands on
not counting the house

My 'fixed income' is my salary before bonuses :tongue-new:


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## lonewolf (Jun 12, 2012)

Iam not sure if age is the best standard to be using for asset allocation ?

Before I invest in stocks I want a solid return on my money that will cover my living expenses & enough for a safety net for inflation or emergency. Perhaps after certain conditions are met then the focus can be on percentages for asset allocation.


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## Soils4Peace (Mar 14, 2010)

Age is not a standard for using asset allocation. Risk tolerance is it. One component of risk tolerance is 'when you will need the money', a moment in time when you will spend it all (e.g. house downpaymet), or when you will _start_ to spend it (e.g. retirement). As you approach a house purchase date, there will be a rapid decrease in risk tolerance and stock allocation. As you approach retirement, there will be slower decrease in risk tolerance and stock allocation. 

At 20, I was 100% in Canada Savings bonds, looking at spending it all within two years for university. From 25 to around 50, I was 100% in stocks, and only now slowly increasing the bonds. 

So age is not really very useful for going through various life stages, or adopting ever changing lifestyles. It is only useful once you are set on a straight-line course, with a house bought, and steady saving towards a distant retirement. No going back to school for an advanced degree, or taking a year off to travel around the world.


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## daddybigbucks (Jan 30, 2011)

early 40's

51% stocks
43% land (not including home)
6% cash
full pension


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## james4beach (Nov 15, 2012)

Where are all you guys getting these pensions, and where can I find a job with a pension?


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## Spudd (Oct 11, 2011)

I'm 40.

DB pension: 41%
Bonds: 8%
Stocks: 45%
Cash: 6%

The pension value I'm basing on the annual statement that tells me the CV. The bonds I hold are just a standard bond index fund. Stocks are a mix of index funds - Canadian, International (of which 50% is US), European - and individual stocks of which a large portion is my company stock.


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## Nemo2 (Mar 1, 2012)

Age 70 (me) Age 60 (spouse)

~ 44% Bonds/GICs/Cash

~ 56% Equities

No company pensions for either of us.


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## thompsg4416 (Aug 18, 2010)

Age 33 - 
DB pension - Not sure how much its worth.

60% equities.
40% Cash

I actually rent a place right now and rent out my condo which has over 50% equity. I'm saving to buy another place but that won't be until summer of 2014.


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## mind_business (Sep 24, 2011)

This is not my preferred Asset Allocation. We'll be making some changes come April. I want to move towards a more balance portfolio, with medium risk.

Also, I have a company DB Pension which I have not accounted for. Currently makes up 72% of my assets / investment, not including our house. It will be converted to a DC Pension in 3 years.


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## The Financial Blogger (Apr 4, 2009)

I'm 31, working in the financial industry.
Married with 3 kids

Asset allocation:
100% stocks

I plan on being 100% for several years. Bonds are currently giving a very low yield and they will be hit by any interest rises. My portfolio is 95% composed with dividend stocks (roughly 45% Cdn and 55% US). I plan on buying more US stocks in 2013 - always dividend stocks.

I've switched to dividend investing 3 years ago and my investment return is much better since then ;-).


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## Belguy (May 24, 2010)

james4beach said:


> Where are all you guys getting these pensions, and where can I find a job with a pension?


Try teaching or almost anything in the public service. Even then, those folks gripe!!! Jealousy will get us nowhere.


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## peterk (May 16, 2010)

james4beach said:


> Where are all you guys getting these pensions, and where can I find a job with a pension?


Come out west James! All the big oil companies still give out nice big fat juicy pensions


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## Feruk (Aug 15, 2012)

28

Bonds: 6%
Equities: 74%
Cash: 20%

Not my preferred balance, but I just can't bring myself to buy bonds this year... Cash is sitting waiting for a pullback and will be reduced to ~5%. Of that equities number, large chunk is in ETFs.


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## anthony2532 (Jul 21, 2011)

Late 40s

65% Equity
20% Bonds
15% Cash

I have a DB pension although job is not that secure these days so may not be worth as much in retirement as expected.


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## james4beach (Nov 15, 2012)

peterk said:


> Come out west James! All the big oil companies still give out nice big fat juicy pensions


Thanks for the tips. I didn't realize big oil had pensions... I'm an engineer and grew up in the west, so looks like it's time to go back. I'm kind of tired of living in a have-not east anyway. Ontario is going to be a disaster within a few years.


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## Belguy (May 24, 2010)

The way that things are going, it won't take a few years for Ontario to become a disaster. It's already getting worse, day by day, with all of the industries closing or downsizing. The cutbacks in health care are getting scary for those of us of the older persuasion.:hopelessness::cower::frown::eek2:


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## My Own Advisor (Sep 24, 2012)

Late 30s.

Equities - 65%
Fixed Income - 25%
REITS - 5%
Cash - 5%

Not including our pensions or home.


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## Nemo2 (Mar 1, 2012)

Belguy said:


> The way that things are going, it won't take a few years for Ontario to become a disaster. It's already getting worse, day by day, with all of the industries closing or downsizing. The cutbacks in health care are getting scary for those of us of the older persuasion.:hopelessness::cower::frown::eek2:


Closings of another couple companies in Belleville were announced on local radio today.


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## GoldStone (Mar 6, 2011)

Belguy said:


> The way that things are going, it won't take a few years for Ontario to become a disaster. It's already getting worse, day by day, with all of the industries closing or downsizing. The cutbacks in health care are getting scary for those of us of the older persuasion.


Belguy, are you trying to hijack your own thread? :biggrin:


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## 44545 (Feb 14, 2012)

Mid-late 30's.

100% equity index funds.

Even three way split - Canadian, US, Intl (S&P/TSX Composite, S&P500, MSCI EAFE).


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## SkyFall (Jun 19, 2012)

21y/o

100% in stock, but portfolio is split 53% equities and 47% cash (no interest in it, some are in TFSA and other chequing account, just waiting to pull out the gun)


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## cldellow (Feb 16, 2012)

27, married and kidless for now, 7% cash, 93% equities across Canada / US / emerging / established international.


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## pwm (Jan 19, 2012)

Age 63

View attachment 212


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## ranbam (Jan 12, 2013)

Mid 50's

Equities - 99%
Cash - 1%


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## james4beach (Nov 15, 2012)

I'm kind of amazed at the equity exposure of some of the posters... what happened to you folks during the 2008 crash? Did you lose a lot?

Also, are you taking into account the possibility that stocks don't actually go up over the long term (like Japan's stock market going down for 30 years?)


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## ranbam (Jan 12, 2013)

james4beach said:


> I'm kind of amazed at the equity exposure of some of the posters... what happened to you folks during the 2008 crash? Did you lose a lot?
> 
> Also, are you taking into account the possibility that stocks don't actually go up over the long term (like Japan's stock market going down for 30 years?)



In the 2008 crash my portfolio was down about 22%. By 2010 my portfolio hit an all-time high and has done so every year since.

As for the market not going up, I don't really care alot. All of my stocks pay dividends and I write covered calls on some of my holdings.


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## mrPPincer (Nov 21, 2011)

james4beach said:


> I'm kind of amazed at the equity exposure of some of the posters... what happened to you folks during the 2008 crash? Did you lose a lot?


Yes I lost 50%, but I rode it out and now it`s all back plus a bit more



james4beach said:


> Also, are you taking into account the possibility that stocks don't actually go up over the long term (like Japan's stock market going down for 30 years?)


I have 10% in Japan equities for some lower corelation with my other equity
I'll give a very crude example to show how you can make money on equities that are losing over time but are very volatile

Target allocation $1000-ish
$10/share you buy 100 shares - you have $1000 worth of shares
$5/share you buy 100 shares - you have $1000 worth of shares, for $1500 invested
$15 per share you sell 133 shares - you have $1005 worth of shares and $1995 cash, for $1500 invested
$4 per share you are now at $268 worth of shares with $1995 cash before rebalancing, 
for a total return of +50.866% on something that would have been -60% without rebalancing after the first $1000 investment.

It`s an extreme example, but that`s the basically why I don`t care overly much if Japan equities do or do not continue the long term downward trend.


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## pwm (Jan 19, 2012)

From Sept to March in 2008-2009 my investments accounts went down by $600k. Now they are much higher than before 2008. I didn't lose any money because I didn't sell anything. 

My credo: 
1). Stocks *DO* go up over the long term. 
2). Buy and hold, and collect the dividends and don't pay attention to the prices others are trading your securities at. 
3). Fear & greed are what make for price moves in the market. The true value of a security is often not reflected by the market price. 
4). Volatility is *not* risk.

Of course, I invest for the long term and by that I mean the rest of my life.


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## jslmsca (Aug 26, 2012)

37, single professional, mortgage free on one property, mortgage on another

30% Canadian Fixed Income
20% Canadian Equity
20% American Equity
20% International Equity
10% Canadian Real Estate

Cash would be about 20% if I included it but it acts as an emergency fund (mostly for employee stock option purchases).

Unlike those with DB pension (jealous!), I have a contribution pension from work that is split up 40/20/20/20 with no real estate component (balanced fund). I just consider it a bonus as it will never be enough to actually fund retirement.

Clearly I'm more risk averse with large FI/bond components than many here but I knew that when I started.


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## Belguy (May 24, 2010)

There seem to be a lot of young whipper-snappers on this forum and not many old geezers!!

I wonder where the geezers (other than me) hang out??:grumpy::sour::confused2::grey:


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## uptoolate (Oct 9, 2011)

How old does one have to be to make it to 'geezer' status Belguy?


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## Belguy (May 24, 2010)

uptoolate said:


> How old does one have to be to make it to 'geezer' status Belguy?


Once you pass 65, it's game over--you're old!!!:cower::hopelessness::eek2:


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## Dave (Apr 5, 2009)

I am 32.

80% cash
20% equities

I want to increase my equity position but I accumulate cash faster than I can find good investment opportunities.

Dave


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## uptoolate (Oct 9, 2011)

Ah well I'm still good for a few years then but hoping to get a few more miles after the 65 mark!


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## w0nger (Mar 15, 2010)

30

5% Canadian Fixed Income
40% Canadian Equity
25% US Equity
30% Intl. Equity


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## bettyboop (Dec 13, 2011)

I'm 53, been retired 7 years and I am 60/40 equities/gics and cash, no pension.


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## Spidey (May 11, 2009)

Age 53.

Equity 65%, FI 35%

My target is 50/50 for normal markets but I consider bonds currently over-valued and equities a little under-valued. If the TSX moves to about 13500 I will start moving more equities to FI. But if we experience another 2008 type crash, I would go to about 90% equities. 

Generally, I think using one's age as the percentage of fixed-income is a pretty good yardstick, but there are many variables.


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## longinvest (Sep 12, 2012)

Age 44

25% Can. equity
25% US equity
25% Int. equity
25% Emerg. equity

(Lived through 2008 without losing any sleep.)


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## Belguy (May 24, 2010)

70. No private pension. Recently revised allocations:

10% HISA
20% Bonds--VSB/Corporate ETF's/JNK/Emerging Mkts. Debt
5% Preferreds CPD
10% REIT's--ZRE
10% VCE
10% CDZ
20% VFV
5% VEA
5% VWO/Mackenzie Cundill Recovery Fund
5% IGT

Any critiques?


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## Xoron (Jun 22, 2010)

Late 30's. Target Portfolio:

30% US Equities
30% CA Equities
30% International Equities
10% FI

US Equities - individual stocks that I buy and sell regularly
CAD Equities - CRQ.TO
INTL Equities - CIE.TO
FI - CLF.TO and CBO.TO

My current allocations aren't exactly on target now, but it's pretty close and requires a little tweaking every now and again. I always seem to have 5-10% in cash sitting around, I really need to get that money deployed.


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## Soils4Peace (Mar 14, 2010)

Belguy said:


> 70. No private pension. Recently revised allocations:
> 
> 10% HISA
> 20% Bonds--VSB/Corporate ETF's/JNK/Emerging Mkts. Debt
> ...


- Preferreds won't give you worthwhile diversification. They are intermediate between stocks and bonds, so why not divide the AA among lower MER stock or bond ETFs?
- Cundill Recovery has 2.60% MER. By the rule of 30 they will have 1/3 of your money within 12 years. If you don't pay for your vices, the gangsters will close up shop.
- imo VTI beats VFV because you get a few small caps in the mix and there is less turnover.
- Like the VCE, VWO and VEA.


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## webber22 (Mar 6, 2011)

Belguy said:


> 10% HISA
> 20% Bonds--VSB/Corporate ETF's/JNK/Emerging Mkts. Debt
> 5% Preferreds CPD
> 10% REIT's--ZRE
> ...


This is only 30% fixed income, with a part of that in JNK :eek2:


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## kcowan (Jul 1, 2010)

webber22 said:


> This is only 30% fixed income, with a part of that in JNK :eek2:


That is a couch potato that would make my head hurt and my stomach churn! :eek2: All those claims turn out to be false...


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## Belguy (May 24, 2010)

kcowan said:


> That is a couch potato that would make my head hurt and my stomach churn! :eek2: All those claims turn out to be false...


Oh well, some people can't get anything right in the eyes of some people.

By the way, this mainly ETF portfolio is very similar to one recommended for seniors in the current issue of MoneySense.

But then, some people will tell you to never believe anything that you read in the media--just in their own posts.:frown::livid::chargrined:

By the way, what happened to my 'ignore' status?


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## wwwkp84 (Sep 7, 2012)

Age: 28

30% - Canadian Equities
30% - US Equities
10% - International Equities
10% - US REITS
20% - US Bonds


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## 1980z28 (Mar 4, 2010)

52 years on this planet

Bonds 0%
Cash 12%
US stocks 31%
Canadian stock 47%
International stock 10%
House no mortgage
26 acres just purchased for retirement home in NL,very cheap to live,tax on property very,very low
No pension
1 Kid at home
Will stop working in 3 years


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## Canuck (Mar 13, 2012)

47 years old and semi-retired

95% equities
5% cash

thankfully I missed 2008 (for the most part), I sold a couple of rental properties in 2010 and only then got fully invested in the market. All my stocks are dividend payers


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## Barwelle (Feb 23, 2011)

Belguy said:


> By the way, what happened to my 'ignore' status?


Soils4Peace quoted your asset allocation in one of his/her posts, so that's how kcowan could see it. The ignore function hides posts of the ignored, but not quotes of the ignored's posts.

I'm 23. Working, wifeless, childless.

My asset allocation is kind of wonky because I am just starting my career and therefore have little investments relative to savings.

My pure long term investments are 100% equity.

But I have some cash on the side for rebalancing... this cash is from extra income, which was higher than I expected... that brings it to 70% equity, 30% cash.

If I lump everything together, including some savings (cash, GICs, and some equity) I have for real estate or business opportunities, I'm at:
40% equity
30% fixed income
30% cash


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## J Watts (Jul 19, 2012)

Mid 20s
TD e-Series Model:
20% Canadian equity
20% International equity
20% US equity
40% Canadian bonds


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## Belguy (May 24, 2010)

J Watts said:


> Mid 20s
> TD e-Series Model:
> 20% Canadian equity
> 20% International equity
> ...


From where I sit, an allocation of 40% in bonds sounds a tad too conservative for an investor who is in their 20's.

That said, during the '08 market crash, you would have been darn grateful for your fixed income allocation and many found out the hard way that they were not nearly as risk tolerant as they thought they were.

However, those who just hung on would have likely atg least have made all of their losses back by now.

The lesson that I derive from this is that you can afford to take on more risk if you have a long time horizon. If you have confidence in the longer term prospects for equities and you can just hang tough during the inevitable market crashes, then you will end up doing well.

As you approach retirement, or are within five years of needing the proceeds of some of your equity investments, is the time to become more conservative in your approach.

My concern about a more balanced allocation going forward is that you equity investments will post only modest gains, perhaps in the range of 6 per cent annually but, at the same time, bonds will lose value and erode even some of that modest gain in equities leaving you with not much to show for your investing efforts and perhaps wishing that you had just gone the laddered GIC route.


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## J Watts (Jul 19, 2012)

Belguy said:


> From where I sit, an allocation of 40% in bonds sounds a tad too conservative for an investor who is in their 20's.


Agreed, however most of the money invested right now will be needed within ~5 years (mortgage down payment, student loan repayment, wedding maybe). Once those expenses are paid off (and they almost are) I will probably rebalance into some more equities.


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## JohnnyHollow (Feb 8, 2013)

24 years old with about 90% in US equity (that I'm trying to move). I'm a complete beginner when it comes to investing and am simply working my way though my first book on the subject at the moment (neatest little guide to stock market investing).

With that said, I do have what I hope is a quick question: I own a corporation and would like to have my corporation invest. But of all the online discount brokerages like questrade and itrade, I've been unable to find an option for setting up a corporate account: both services require personal information. How does one go about having their company invest? Am I limited to working with a brokerage firm?


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## techcrium (Mar 8, 2013)

Age: 27

Asset Allocation: 110% stocks.

Borrowed at 1% interest to invest.

100K Portfolio.

Get rich or die trying.


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## snowbeavers (Mar 19, 2013)

36, married, no home or pension: 

44% Equities (VTI, VEA, VCE)
25% Bonds (XBB, VSB, BND)
5% US REITs
26% Cash 

Normally I'm about 60% stocks, 33% bonds and 7% REITs but need the cash at the moment.


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## newfoundlander61 (Feb 6, 2011)

52 years old 
Stock: 27% 
Bond: 36% 
Cash & Short Term Securities: 37%


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## AlbertaBoy (Mar 21, 2013)

30 years old, house (almost half way to paid off) and DC pension.
Equities: 65% (VTI, VXUS, XRE, XIC, CM.TO, BNS.TO, ENF.TO, BCE.TO, POT.TO)
Bonds: 25% (XBB, XRB)
Cash: 10%


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## Ag Driver (Dec 13, 2012)

25, Single, No House, No Debt, No Pension, ~60k liquid assets
Cash: 90%
Individual Dividend Stocks: 10%

I cringe reading the young guys with 100% in equity! I'm not sure what percent is a good percent ... but it just seems like an "all in" bet I'm not willing to make. I will also be getting back in GIC's here shortly.


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## dave2012 (Feb 17, 2012)

Age: 54
Status: married, semi-retired (but still making more than enough to cover living expenses and still invest), house, no pension (just CPP), no debt

Currently:

69% stocks
9% bonds
22% cash

36% US
64% Cdn
(nil on the Intl side)

All dividend paying stocks on the Cdn side.
A mix on the US side.

Max in any one holding is 6%.

Up 10.24% YTD (converting to Cdn dollars) as of today (easy calc as I haven't added to the portfolio so far this year) so I am happy.

Favorites this year: ACQ, V, BPF.UN, IPL.UN, BMY, SLF, BMO, MUTF_CA:EFI067

On my 2nd year managing our own portfolios since firing previous 'sales advisors'.

Sales advisors had us in 0% cash in 2008. Took a 45% dive but rode it back up, lost lots of sleep back then until we fired the salesmen and now we are sleeping easy with lots of cash on hand, ready for an pullbacks and in control of our own money. Amen!


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## Canadian (Sep 19, 2013)

Age: 20

Allocation: 38% cash, 62% equities

My cash consists of a couple accounts for managing my pay/bills/etc., and an interest-bearing account where I throw a little from my paycheques once bills are paid and investment savings are set aside. I use it as an emergency/vacation/unexpected purchase account. I also have cash in my investment accounts, which is waiting to be deployed - I'm just waiting for the right opportunity.

Equities consist of a couple Canadian dividend-paying stocks and REITs. I plan on starting new positions and adding to my current positions for a couple years before I expand into US stocks.


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## Video_Frank (Aug 2, 2013)

Age 49, married, two boys (12 and 10)

16% Can Eq (XIC)
17% US Eq (VTI)
17% World Eq (VXUS)
40% Bond (XBB and XSB)
5% REIT (XRE)
5% cash (People's Trust at 1.9%)

$50k RESP split 50/50 XIC / XBB


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## My Own Advisor (Sep 24, 2012)

Well done Dave2012.


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## Yoqui (Mar 5, 2013)

Age 24...100% equities...80k portfolio ... split between 2 micro cap stocks (well 3, 50/40/10, GRE/CAL/HWO) ...ya I'm crazy


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## jcgd (Oct 30, 2011)

Yoqui said:


> Age 24...100% equities...80k portfolio ... split between 2 micro cap stocks (well 3, 50/40/10, GRE/CAL/HWO) ...ya I'm crazy


Holy smokes.


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## nathan79 (Feb 21, 2011)

Age 34

64% cash
21% fixed income
15% equities

Not including real estate and other things like Bitcoins.


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## Fain (Oct 11, 2009)

Age 25

Roughly 180k in Equities(100%)

Pretty overconcentrated portfolio though


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## gibor365 (Apr 1, 2011)

Age 47, wife 38, 2 kids 12 and 18 (just stared university). No debt. Own house.
For both mine and my wife's accounts:
Total about 600K
a little less than 50% Cash, GIC, HISA and bonds (4-5% withing FI portion)
a little more than 50% equities (all in registered accounts and TFSA), within equities 1/3 US and 2/3 Canadian , 2% in VEA, REIT 8-10%.

P.S. not included: kids RESPs, mine RRSP from work = 25K that I have to invest into stupid seg funds and stocks from my wife previous INTC and current (Cdn bank) work that we considering like a gift


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## AMABILE (Apr 3, 2009)

retired 65 yrs old
house $ 700k  no mortgage
rental property $335k no mortgage
reg / rrsp / tfsa ---- total $350k
$125k in gics ---$225k stocks ($100k in BCE )


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## gibor365 (Apr 1, 2011)

AMABILE said:


> rental property $335k no mortgage


I don't really understand in rental properties,..... but isn't it better to buy big REIT stock of REIT ETF with 6-7% yield than rent property? No maintenance, no hassle?!


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## AMABILE (Apr 3, 2009)

I've had my rental property for 23 years and as I've
stated in another thread a few days ago, I'm finally
going to sell it for a huge profit without paying capital
gains to offset my huge NORTEL loss.
I've had the same tenant for 21 years...then another for
1 and half years with no trouble...then the last
6 months these new tenants are not so great.
IT'S TIME TO SELL each:


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## snowbeavers (Mar 19, 2013)

Yoqui said:


> Age 24...100% equities...80k portfolio ... split between 2 micro cap stocks (well 3, 50/40/10, GRE/CAL/HWO) ...ya I'm crazy


Why would you do this?? Diversify those assets!


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