Hi, I’m looking at purchasing some ETFs for the first time. I’ve look at many other posts and articles about it many of which were a number of years old. I thought it may make sense to see what the latest is for mid 2024
I’m looking for some advice on how to make these transactions (for example commsec or other)?
Also, are there any pitfalls or extra things to be aware of?
Thanks in advance for any help offered.
can recommend self wealth as well. I have been using them for 5 years and buying ETF every couple of months on average. OP if you have more ETF related questions PM me and i will be happy to help
@FiDad, that’s really kind, I’ll reach out.
I have used the Betashares direct app for EFT's recently as there is zero brokerage.
BGBL is cheaper than VGS management fee wise!
It depends a little on what you're doing.
For once off purchases of large amounts selfwealth is good. I'd say if you're looking at doing $50,000 or over in one hit, it'll be $9.50.
If you're buying lots of small amounts regularly up to $1000 cmc markets is meant to be good (free brokerage up to $1000).
If you're buying medium amounts then Stake is also good. They charge $3 brokerage up to $30,000. If you transfer your portfolio from elsewhere the brokerage is free for a year as well.
Those are the 3 main ones I'd consider that are good value depending on your needs. Also just be mindful when buying on different platforms whether they're chess-sponsored or not. It shouldn't make a difference at end of day but better peace of mind if they are chess sponsored.
+1 to the above suggestion
If you're buying lots of small amounts regularly up to $1000 cmc markets is meant to be good (free brokerage up to $1000).
and its $1000 per asset, per day. Pretty sure you could buy $1000 of stock A and $1000 of stock B on the same day and still pay no fees
I've been using CMC for a couple of years without issue, with regular weekly buys and $0 fees (eg VHDG, DHFF)
These are long term buys so should the time come to sell, transferring to an alternate broker is an easy enough task should the CMC selling fee be too much
DingoBilly has about covered it but I'll add that if you are planning on mostly buying Vanguard ETFs then you should look into using [Vanguard's platform[(https://www.vanguard.com.au/personal/) as their ETFs have zero brokerage, plus I think you can also buy other ETFs/shares there for some brokerage fee.
Chess sponsored if you buy via Vanguard direct?
Unfortunately not. JP Morgan holds the shares as custodian.
Other advantage with vanguard directly is the auto direct option.
Can setup regular schedule direct debit/auto buys
If you're just interested in ETF's you can also consider pearler.
Transactions are $6.50 iirc, cheaper than selfwealth and is CHESS sponsored and the platform is specifically made for people like you who want to only buy ETFs.
This is coming from someone who still uses selfwealth.
Run by jokers at the UNSW.
Use betashares app and similar.
You probably need to decide on "what" EFT's you want buy first, then decide on the "how".
The reason for this is that several "platforms" (Vanguard, Betashares, etc) offer commission free purchasing on their EFT's (or low brokerage for "off platform" EFT's). If you go for a broker like Commsec, their business is based on making money off your trades, but if you are going to be a long-term "buy and hold" (EFT) investor, you would probably be better off on a platform such as Vanguard.
Also, whilst selecting the platform/broker is important (to keep costs down), "what" EFT's you are going to invest in and how often, is going to have a much more material impact on your overall investment return.
With this in mind, I'd strongly recommend creating yourself abit of a plan which fits in with your circumstances / risk tolerance. If you are thinking about investing a serious amount of money, then some professional advice might be prudent.
Electronic Funds Transfer
or
Exchange Traded Fund
Typo on my part. ETF!
check out stake and this website has every etf on the asx https://www.asx.com.au/markets/trade-our-cash-market/asx-inv…
Thanks everyone for your help and insights, it’s appreciated!
@MrFizz
I know its popular just to say super nice stuff - but alas sometimes that just gets folks into a hole. To me it's a major issue if your are not well beyond this level of knowledge before going and popping $$$ into ANY investment - ETFs or otherwise.
You must resist the urge to just jump into something - until you know exactly what you are investing in, why you're investing in it & not other options, what investing in it means (i.e timeline) and how to document this process to avoid PITAs in the future with ATO etc.
I stuffed a lot of this up many decades ago - it sucks and I'd not wish on others who are nice folks, as you seem you are.
I recommend you go to https://passiveinvestingaustralia.com/ - it's written by a normal Aussie investor and he doesn't try to sell you on crap etc. READ it from front to back, take notes - and ONLY then invest.
Oh and don't make the mistake that most investors make which is equating your strategy/tactics with ONLY the results. You need to build good investing habits & stick with them, too many do the opposite & it gets them badly in the end i.e they get lucky doing poor trades & keep doing making big losses. :-)
Thanks for sharing, it’s appreciated and helpful. I’ll have a good look at the site you shared.
Regarding “I know it’s popular just to say super nice stuff”, I feel like you and I must see different things on the internet hahaha.
Thanks again.
No worries - just understand the why's rather than just the what's i.e understand why you are investing in DHHF rather than just that you should choose DHHF.
Otherwise you likely will react adversely when market corrections occur, time markets, chase past returns, not diversify, etc - all classic easy to make errors. Best of luck.
plus vote for cmc markets. I dollar cost average every month with free brokerage up to 1k.
I went through this a while ago. CMC was my first choice. Ticked all the boxes if making free small deposits suits what you want to do.
I seemed super easy to setup an account online, fully automated, but just couldn't make it work for my SMSF due to a trustee having a name change.
I ended up with a Vanguard Personal Investor account instead. No fee on purchase, minimum transaction value $500, limited to Vanguard ETFs.
If you're just going to dump a sizeable sum in, the fee from other brokers (e.g. $9.50 for SelfWealth) isn't really significant, but would hurt for regular investing.
Are their any particular ETF you want to buy? If not, and you're already with Commonwealth, then I would recommend Comsec pocket, which is a more watered down simple platform. It only gives you a handful of ETFs to buy from, but they cover a large range of markets. $2 per transactions under $1000, or 0.2% for anything over $1000.
It also give you access to Comsec's reporting dashboard as well when you log in via netbank website.
I've learnt heaps from it, and think it's a good starting point for beginners(like myself).
No matter what broker path you choose, it is imperative that you keep accurate records of your purchases. When you come to sell you will need these records to work out gains (or losses). If you are buying parcels of shares at different prices the CGT incurred on sale will need to be calculated for each parcel against the sale price.
I always used to use CommSec. They are not the cheapest but I found their setup very good, and great when it comes to the end of the year accounts. I have used Self Wealth because I used the BGL platform for my then super fund but didn't like them at all. CommSec leaves them way behind when it comes to detail i.e. you get what you pay for. Re ETFs themselves I think Vanguard ETFs are the best choice and you can buy them on their platform but that is not as flexible as buying through say Commsec but it is cheaper. I assume MrFizz is buying ETFs as an investment. The reason I say that is 5 years ago, after managing my Super myself for around 20 years, I switched everything to an industry fund. Best decision I have ever made. Returns have been better than I was achieving most of the time and saved a huge amount of work and accounting and audit fees and I'm (a now retired) accountant.
Agree re: Super in an Industry Fund. Did this myself 20 years ago and was a great decision. Lower fees and reliable (top quartile) performance every year (against comparable funds).
In terms of the Vanguard ETF's. They are a good choice and can be bought for free (only bid/offer spreads) on their platform. They have reliable performance and low fees, so if a good option for passive investing. You can transfer them out if you want to other platforms. I tend to only use Commsec these days if I want to trade options, but use it for research.
self wealth seemed pretty good when i last looked at it - cant say for sure though i ended up buying SHIB and TRX instead *cries *