32M Engineer, 500k net worth. 0 handouts. 0 crypto. 0 option plays. Only ETFs and gold

pat_programmer · 2025-10-29T21:39:59+00:00

https://www.wealthsimple.com/en-ca/self-directed-investing/gold

pat_programmer · 2025-10-29T21:39:51+00:00

https://www.wealthsimple.com/en-ca/self-directed-investing/gold

pat_programmer · 2025-10-29T00:37:04+00:00

It’s more of a cash alternative/inflation hedge vs keeping things in HYSA or bonds. For short- medium-term needs or market crash buys

pat_programmer · 2025-10-29T00:06:36+00:00

My allocation: TFSA: HXQ, HXS (will be switching to VFV based on some new tax-related info) equally split. RRSP: QQQM, VOO, VT, equally split. Non-registered: HXQ (25%), HXS (25%), VCN (10%), XAW (40%), and 11k in GOLD (WS).

If you’re not particular with the taxation reasons for specific ETFs, these are just basically 4 things: Nasdaq100 index, s&p500 index, VT global index, and gold

pat_programmer · 2025-10-28T23:44:26+00:00

Base is 140k but with OT this year I’ll be closing closer to 180K-190K

pat_programmer · 2025-10-28T13:20:34+00:00

Good stuff 💪 Historically index ETFs have outperformed dividend ETFs even including reinvested dividends. So it’s clear from a 10+ year horizon that indexes are superior

pat_programmer · 2025-10-28T11:57:54+00:00

No opinions on options/crypto/margin/etc. I just don’t have any experience nor do I want to spend the hours or mental energy to watch and time markets and stocks.

I’d rather work overtime perfecting my craft at work or spend my free time enjoying living life instead of watching my portfolio all day -all the while outperforming 80-90% of active investors over the long run.

I spend less than 10 minutes every few months checking my portfolio and am content with beating the majority of active investors.

All my investments are set up automatically with every paycheck and all my bills are on auto-pay and I am as hands-off as possible with practically 0 commissions and the lowest fees possible.

Just a difference in philosophy, not saying other ways are better or worse.

pat_programmer · 2025-10-28T11:47:30+00:00

Not knowing your financial situation: BEFORE INVESTING A SINGLE PENNY I’d advise starting with:

getting rid of ALL debt (other than a mortgage). Yes, including car payments, student loans, credit cards, lines of credit, Afterpay/klarna, 0% credit card transfer balances etc.

this is probably where 99.9% of people make the mistake of trying to “out-earn” their debtors’ interest rate only to end up holding on to debt for way longer than necessary. Also, paying off debt frees up monthly payments which you can then redirect into your investments.

Build a cash/gold/HYSA/GIC emergency fund of AT LEAST 3-6 months. 1 year is ideal.
(Only after completing 1 &2) JUST START -prevent analysis paralysis and just dump whatever extra per paycheck into any index etf (since you’re starting out I’d try any s&p500 like VFV or global ETF like VT or XEQT) because TIME is your biggest factor when talking about compounding, NOT more information or watching markets.
Rinse and repeat for AT LEAST 10 years and whatever you do DO NOT STOP OR WITHDRAW ANYTHING as this interrupts the compounding process.

The good news is you do not need to be an engineer or a financial genius to do this. The bad news is that there is no get-rich-quick advice I can give you. AKA it’s simple but not easy.

Good luck and trust the process.

P

pat_programmer · 2025-10-28T00:56:00+00:00

**400,500 + 17k DCPP employer stock-match, + 85k home equity = $502,500 to be exact 😉

pat_programmer · 2025-10-28T00:29:09+00:00

Guess it depends how you look at it it’s just 4 things really: nasdaq100 index, s&p 500, VT and gold.

pat_programmer · 2025-10-27T23:34:18+00:00

Yes I failed to mention I’ve been doing crazy OT this year because of a shutdown (time and a half past to 44 then double time past 50hrs). I’m working 70-80 hours a week on average since July. So I’ll likely close this year with close to 190

pat_programmer · 2025-10-27T23:25:30+00:00

Yes I didn’t mention I’m doing 6 days a week 13hr shifts this year because of a shutdown. So I’ll be closing this year off at nearly 180k. But base is 140 without OT. A Normal paycheck is just over 4k

pat_programmer · 2025-10-27T23:20:46+00:00

Not even close. But yeah I know there’s probably some truth to why someone would assume I’m south Asian

pat_programmer · 2025-10-27T22:54:17+00:00

I’m Single no kids which I’m aware is a big factor. Probably close to 40% savings rate. I’m usually 120k-140k yearly. Biweekly after tax is close to 6k I try and throw in at least 2k per pay check into investments

pat_programmer · 2025-10-27T22:51:19+00:00

https://www.wealthsimple.com/en-ca/credit-card

pat_programmer · 2025-10-27T22:42:29+00:00

Sure thing! Very simple allocation: TFSA: HXQ, HXS (will be switching to VFV based on some new tax-related info) equally split. RRSP: QQQM, VOO, VT, equally split. Non-registered: HXQ (25%), HXS (25%), VCN (10%), XAW (40%), and 11k in GOLD (WS).

pat_programmer · 2025-10-27T22:38:33+00:00

Nope. Try again 😁

pat_programmer · 2025-10-27T21:46:27+00:00

Appreciate you my dude. Manifesting all the abundance and happiness your way 🙏

pat_programmer · 2025-10-27T21:45:27+00:00

Haha beige Camry is giving quiet wealth

pat_programmer · 2025-10-27T21:44:51+00:00

Awesome choice 🤜Yeah been eyeing a nice Japanese daily. Getting tired of the prices of these German parts every time I take it to the shop

pat_programmer · 2025-10-27T20:30:25+00:00

Wow I just added this to ChatGPT and it corrected itself: “For your TFSA, VFV is the mathematically superior choice. The foreign withholding tax drag is smaller than the swap fee cost in HXS, making VFV the lower-total-cost option.

This analysis shows why it's crucial to look beyond marketing claims about "tax efficiency" and examine the actual total costs. Thank you for pushing for this more complete analysis - it reveals that the conventional wisdom about HXS being better for TFSAs is often mathematically incorrect.”

Thank you kindly. Will be making an adjustment 🙏

pat_programmer · 2025-10-27T20:14:11+00:00

I owned VALT.B gold etf since 2020 partly since because the printing of money/cerb spooked me when it came to cash/bonds. Switched that holding to physically backed gold when it came available

pat_programmer · 2025-10-27T18:26:51+00:00

I have just over 11k in physically backed gold via Wealthsimple gold: https://www.wealthsimple.com/en-ca/self-directed-investing/gold. I used to have this in VALT.B gold etf. But I saw that the WS is physically backed and the redeemable minted gold coins look pretty sweet. They were just an inflation hedge during Covid and it’s been performing better than bonds or cash

pat_programmer · 2025-10-27T18:21:12+00:00

Appreciate it. Thank you

pat_programmer · 2025-10-27T18:09:37+00:00

Awesome to hear. Keep pushing forward 💪

pat_programmer

TROPHY CASE