We last spoke with Bruce in September, when he acted on our counsel to trim his weighting in bonds and add to equities.

Bruce and Courtney’s portfolio rose roughly 2% in 2011 (its aggregate value at year-end was approx. $346,500). While Bruce isn’t popping any champagne, he realizes that their portfolio fared quite well considering its bias towards equities (which had a weak year).

At the end of December, their asset mix was:

Savings Fund – 10%
Income Fund – 26%
Equity Fund – 26%
Global Equity Fund – 22%
Small-Cap Equity Fund – 16%

The couple contributed $10,000 each to their RSP accounts this week. They want to keep on track with their strategic asset mix (SAM), so they didn’t add anything to the Small-Cap Fund (which had drifted higher, from 12% to 16% of their portfolio). They each invested $5,000 in the Equity Fund, $2,500 in the Global Equity Fund and $2,500 in the Income Fund. They had a tough time adding to the Global Fund given the mess in Europe, but they realize its place in their portfolio. They also understand that valuations for global stocks look attractive.

Bruce and his wife also contributed $10,000 each to their Tax-free Savings Accounts (TFSAs). They didn’t get around to adding to their TFSAs in 2011, so they had extra contribution room this year (reminder: you can contribute $5,000 per year to a TFSA. Unused contribution room carries forward). They used the Savings Fund in their joint investment account as the source of funds for the contributions.

The contributions slightly increased the Equity Fund’s overall weight in their portfolio to 27%, while the weight of the Small-Cap Fund was reduced to 15%. Bruce and Courtney’s bond weighting remains at the low end of their SAM range, following our advice that stocks currently represent better value. The couple continues to hold roughly 10% of their portfolio in the Savings Fund. As a reminder, the purpose of this cash is two-fold: 1) as a source of funds for a vacation property; and 2) as a source of dry powder if the market experiences a notable decline.

With their investments front of mind, Bruce and Courtney took care of one last piece of housekeeping – they RSVP’d for our Annual Client Presentation. They’re interested in hearing Steadyhand’s assessment of the markets. And they really like our cookies.