There’s never a bad time to start taking your finances more seriously. With household debt on the rise and an uncertain financial future, it’s a good idea to begin to put some of your money away and find assets you want to invest in. However, it can be overwhelming to decide what investments are best suited for your financial goals. Even finding a platform to manage your money can be difficult, particularly with so many options available to choose from. If you’re interested in learning more about using Wealthsimple, read on for a guide to their products and fees.
What is Wealthsimple and what type of fees do they charge?
Before getting into Wealthsimple’s fees, you should know a little more about what Wealthsimple is and how it can benefit you. Wealthsimple has a variety of different products that can help investors take control of their finances and manage their assets more effectively. They have five main investment platforms: Wealthsimple Invest, Wealthsimple Trade, Wealthsimple Cash, Wealthsimple Crypto, and Wealthsimple Tax.
Wealthsimple Invest is a great tool for those just getting started, as it provides you with a robo-advisor. Robo-advisors can provide guidance by using algorithmic principles to direct your investment portfolio. Their trading platform is perfect for self-directed stock and ETF purchases without hefty fees. Wealthsimple Cash functions like a high-interest savings account and a flexible checking account. They even introduced Wealthsimple Crypto for investors interested in these increasingly popular assets. You can even take advantage of their tax platform to put your taxes together at the end of the fiscal year.
It’s a good idea to learn about Wealthsimple fees before you sign up. One of the major benefits of using Wealthsimple is that they don’t charge an abundance of fees for using their investment services. There isn’t an inactivity fee or annual fee charged, which should be appealing to both amateur and experienced investors. The only fees that you’ll be responsible for when using Wealthsimple are standard management expense ratio (MER) fees. That means no commission fees when you trade stocks using Wealthsimple Invest or purchase crypto assets like Bitcoin and Ethereum using Wealthsimple Crypto.
How else can you improve your financial situation?
Debt reduction is essential for anyone who wants to improve their fiscal health. Target high-interest debt first, especially credit card debt. It’s often best to focus on paying down one account at a time. Make the largest payments you can on the highest-interest debt you owe until it is paid off, then repeat the process until you’ve gotten rid of as much debt as you can. Some types of debt, like a mortgage, are fine to hold onto over a longer period of time, but high-interest debt can create serious problems.
Before you even start investing or paying down debt, you should ensure that you have an emergency fund to fall back on. Try to save enough to cover three to six months of expenses. Surprise medical bills, car repairs, or job loss can all cause significant financial stress and aren’t expenses that most people have budgeted for. When you dip into your emergency fund, make sure you build your savings back up as soon as you’re able to.
Learning about finance and investing is a worthwhile pursuit, but it’s important to have the right tools to help you on your investment journey. Wealthsimple is one of the companies that offer a wide variety of products that can help you invest in a variety of assets, work to build up your savings, and even help you handle your taxes. While they do charge MER fees, Wealthsimple doesn’t charge for inactivity or a standard annual fee, as many of their competitors do. Whatever investment strategy you decide to pursue, Wealthsimple can help you make better and more informed financial choices.
