Portfolio Review

We’ll look at your portfolio from every angle, uncovering risks and opportunities while structuring your account for a successful financial future.

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Looking Beyond Investments

We will review your financial statements, mortgage payments, insurance coverage and anything else that may impact your finances. We’ll find ways to make your money work more efficiently for you, improve account structures and, where possible, reduce what you are paying in fees and taxes.

Once our advisors have an overall picture of your portfolio and a firm understanding of your motivations, we’ll figure out the best path forward and make suggestions to fix any gaps we find. By the end of this exercise you’ll be relieved at just how smoothly everything is running, and wonder why you hadn’t done this long ago.

Portfolio Review

Services

Our advisors will help answer the questions that plague most people. Am I doing enough? Should I be doing more? Is there a better way?

The Whole Picture

We’ll look at your whole financial picture. Diversification and risk exposure are just the tip of the iceberg. To ensure you attain your financial goals, we’ll look at your current saving strategy, how much debt you're carrying, and the types of assets you own.

Setting Goals

Most of us aren’t even sure what goals we should be setting, let alone how to achieve them. We’ll help you define meaningful goals and set actionable plans towards achieving them.

Fee Analysis

Are you paying too much in fees? If you don’t know the answer, you probably are. Let us help you fix that.

Risk Management

Understanding and managing risk is something that our financial advisors will help you navigate. Let’s make sure you have contingency plans in place and are aware of the insurance options available to you.

Lower Taxes

You pay enough in taxes already. We’ll structure your investments in such a way that you only pay your fair share and no more.

Account Structuring

Your needs will change over time, and so will the structure of your accounts. We’ll make sure there is a plan in place for now and when these changes take place down the road.

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Frequently Asked Questions

What areas of my portfolio will be reviewed?

Most portfolios we are asked to review need work in the following areas:

— International representation, as most are overly invested in Canada.

— Diversification is another sore spot. Some are over diversified, while others are overly concentrated in one sector or stocks.

— Most portfolios simply do not reflect what the expectations the investors have of their investments. They might have a very conservative portfolio yet complain of low returns.

— Fees are also something we will review carefully. Many investors simply do not have an appreciation of the explicit and implicit fees associated with their investments.

— Tax optimization is also something we review. When you are in the high-income tax bracket, where you own a particular investment can make a world of difference in your after-tax return.

What is the next step after I complete my portfolio review?

You can decide to make the recommended changes or hire Exponent to take over the management of your portfolio.

What is the difference between a Portfolio Manager and Financial Advisor?

A portfolio manager is a professional who is accredited by a regulatory body AND a professional designation such as the CFA charter or the CIM designation. A portfolio manager has a fiduciary duty towards their clients. In plain English, this means that the portfolio manager is bound to put the interests of their clients above their own interests or those of their employer. A financial advisor does not have this fiduciary duty and may or may not have the professional designations.

Will reviewing my portfolio help to lower my taxes?

Absolutely! Such details as the Canadian dividend tax credit, Foreign Withholding Taxes, tax treaties are realities of investments these days. Investors need to be aware of these while at the same time understanding their impacts on investments held in Tax-Free Savings Accounts (TFSA), Registered Retirement Savings Plans (RRSP) or taxable investment accounts.

Can I have multiple portfolio strategies in one account?

You can, but you should not. Each account should have it’s own investment mandate or approach. You can combine multiple accounts (say a TFSA, your RRSP and your taxable account) to be part of the same mandate. You can have multiple mandates, and in some cases, where the size warrants it, it makes a lot of sense. However, it should be done in a separate account.

How many stocks should I own in a portfolio?

We feel that between 32 and 40 stocks is the ideal number. Each position is large enough to make a difference at the end of the year in terms of performance. However, should we have stocks that do not perform as expected, their relative size will not have a material long term impact on the wealth of our clients. One should be wary of portfolios with less than 25 stocks or more than 50.