Episode 414: Answering Your Financial Questions

(0:28) Why AMA episodes have become less frequent despite hundreds of listener questions waiting to be answered. 

(2:07) Ben shares observations from PWL’s growing institutional investment business and why low-cost, planning-focused institutional advice remains surprisingly rare. 

(6:37) Revisiting the original Rational Reminder model portfolios and how newer products have simplified implementation. 

(10:09) Should U.S. investors underweight the U.S. market relative to global market-cap weights? 

(11:07) Research, home-country bias, and Ken French’s arguments for overweighting domestic stocks. 

(18:11) Asset-allocation ETFs in retirement: Is there any benefit to separating stocks and bonds during withdrawals? 

(21:03) Leasing versus buying a vehicle, opportunity costs, depreciation, and convenience. 

(26:13) Currency exposure, RRSPs, withholding taxes, and common misconceptions about USD-denominated ETFs. 

(30:30) If Dimensional funds were unavailable, what would Ben choose instead? 

(31:26) Are there any popular ETFs investors should avoid? A look at Canada’s largest ETF holdings. 

(38:28) Why discounted cash flow models often produce wildly different valuation estimates. 

(41:47) What portfolio managers at PWL actually do when they are not trying to beat the market. 

(45:57) Concentrated stock positions, client coaching, and helping investors make better long-term decisions. 

(50:02) Why financial planning questions are often portfolio management questions—and vice versa. 

(52:53) Helping clients navigate the transition from wealth accumulation to wealth preservation and spending. 

(58:06) Revisiting Berkshire Hathaway’s long-term performance versus broad-market index funds. 

(1:02:35) The challenges of active management as assets under management grow larger. 

(1:04:22) Aftershow: Ben reflects on his experience appearing on Diary of a CEO with Steven