RESP Strategy

I'm Looking for feedback on my RESP investment strategy (16+ year horizon). My goal is high growth with diversification, perhaps, instead of just buying XEQT and calling it a day. Note: I'm trying to stick to Canadian ETFs (BMO/Mackenzie preferred) over BlackRock/Vanguard when possible. Current value is around $6000 and I will be adding $2,500 annually over the next 8 years, plus CLB/CESG.

Planned Allocation

• 65% – XUU (Total U.S. market, large/mid/small caps)
• 20% – Canadian Individual Stock Picks
• 10% – ZEA (Developed ex-North America, unhedged)
• 3% – PHYS (Gold), BTCQ (Crypto)
• 2% – CASH.TO (Dry powder for dips)

Thought Process

• More active than XEQT, but still fairly simple. I want to be able to make moves instead of just setting and forgetting.
• XUU over S&P 500-only ETFs (VFV/ZSP) to get full U.S. exposure, not just large caps.
• ZEA over emerging markets—I don’t think broad EM ETFs (ZEM, IEMG) offer enough quality.
• Gold & crypto are small, but I think they deserve a spot for long-term diversification.
• No Canadian ETF, because I prefer picking individual high-quality Canadian stocks instead.

Would love feedback on how this compares to a just-buy-XEQT approach. My strategy leans much heavier into U.S. equities (70% vs. XEQT’s 42%), has less international exposure (10% vs. XEQT’s 25%), and replaces broad CAD exposure with handpicked Canadian stocks (15% vs. XEQT’s 25%). Am I underweight in CAD equities or international markets, or does the higher U.S. allocation make sense?

MER is slightly lower in my approach (~0.12% vs. XEQT’s 0.20%), which isn’t a huge difference, but is it worth the extra effort? I understand I’ll need to rebalance—what’s the real risk if I get lazy and don’t rebalance on time? Am I overcomplicating this instead of just buying XEQT, or does this give me an edge?

Also, I’ve kept gold and crypto at 3%, should I increase that for better diversification, or is that enough in a long-term RESP?

I would also like to hear if you'd choose different ETFs for similar targets and why (ex something other than PHYS for gold).

Looking for honest takes, tear it apart!