Investing

Us investing

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  • Jan 21st, 2013 4:08 pm
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Sr. Member
Dec 9, 2002
560 posts
36 upvotes
Vancouver

Us investing

I do a lot of us investing and have been wondering if it's really worth it in the end. I use td Waterhouse although I've applied to virtual brokers

1. Converting money into us dollars not only incurrs A forex spread but there's also a giant fee they charge me every time I put savings into us investing account

2. Are taxes any different for us investing vs Canadian? Ie do we get hit harder for investing in a foreign country? What about taxes on us stocks paying dividend income?

3. Can you invest in us markets in a rasp? I've never bought into an rrsp as I've always thought they were for Canadian stocks only.


I've always thought the us markets had higher growth than the tsx, but maybe not with all the extra fees and penalties.

Do you people invest in us or Canadian markets and how do you view the relative performance of each after tax and fees?

Thx.
9 replies
Banned
Feb 17, 2007
3190 posts
203 upvotes
I use the Norbert Gambit method to exchange USD from CAD and vise versa.
The fee is fixed at less than 20 dollars, and i can get exchange rate close to spot.
Sr. Member
Dec 9, 2002
560 posts
36 upvotes
Vancouver
Is Norbert's Gambit legit? it feels like a scam. Does TD actually let you do it? What vehicle do you buy/sell with TD? Does their customer service people know what you're talking about when you're "journaling over"?

Thanks. I don't buy mutual funds, but I will take a look at this one. Thank you.
Deal Expert
User avatar
Dec 11, 2005
20136 posts
2964 upvotes
McPaul wrote: I do a lot of us investing and have been wondering if it's really worth it in the end. I use td Waterhouse although I've applied to virtual brokers

..

2. Are taxes any different for us investing vs Canadian? Ie do we get hit harder for investing in a foreign country? What about taxes on us stocks paying dividend income?

3. Can you invest in us markets in a rasp? I've never bought into an rrsp as I've always thought they were for Canadian stocks only.
Why are you investing in the US without even understanding what the tax rules are?

**boggle**
To be nobody but yourself - in a world which is doing its best, night and day, to make you everybody else - means to fight the hardest battle which any human being can fight; and never stop fighting. -- E. E. Cummings
Sr. Member
Dec 9, 2002
560 posts
36 upvotes
Vancouver
Thanks for the help
Deal Addict
User avatar
Apr 30, 2012
3252 posts
2873 upvotes
Montreal
Thanks for this post.
I wanted to buy Apple AAPL, which is a US stock but I only have CND money. Should I be concerned with FOREX issues?
Sr. Member
User avatar
Mar 13, 2012
865 posts
145 upvotes
Planet Earth
bgallagher wrote: Thanks for this post.
I wanted to buy Apple AAPL, which is a US stock but I only have CND money. Should I be concerned with FOREX issues?
What do you mean by "forex issues"? You have tax implications if not in a sheltered account & conversion of C$ to US$ if you only have Canadian funds.

This has been covered many times on RFD. There is also a lot of QA answers here to help you: http://www.financialwebring.org/forum/v ... m.php?f=32
If at first you don't succeed, destroy all evidence that you even tried.
Deal Fanatic
May 31, 2007
5018 posts
2175 upvotes
Yes, currency exchange fees do take a bite out of your profits. Currency price/fluctuation is also a risk.

For most Canadians, US investing is best done in a RSP where the broker will allow you to hold USD cash. (not wash or forced exchanged back to cad) Then you would use norbert's gambit to change large amounts of money over. That is the best way to do it for most.
Deal Addict
Apr 14, 2007
2959 posts
463 upvotes
Montreal
US Dividends gets taxed 100% at your tax rate. Personally I wouldn't get into AAPL shares....
Newbie
Aug 23, 2012
97 posts
Arent USD stocks treated as 'foreign assets' when you do CRA tax return? So if you have over 100K in USD stocks, you have to report this?

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