Frequently Asked Questions

Safe for whom? If you can afford to retire today and maintain your current lifestyle, then by all means, park your money with the Big Banks. That would be very ‘safe’… for them.

We prefer a different kind of safe — the kind where you live life to the fullest, retire with dignity, and continue growing your capital. We aim for performance: neither overly cautious nor recklessly risky.

From what we’ve seen, most investment advisors focus more on chasing new clients than on beating the market. They outsource security selection by loading up on mutual funds and ETFs, building portfolios so over-diversified they’re just closet indexers — with juicy fees on top. If gathering new accounts matters more than delivering results, is it any wonder so many investors get shortchanged?

At Wealth Preservation Management, we are portfolio managers first, second, and third. Everything else comes after that. We don’t outsource our security selection to mutual funds or ETFs. We actively manage concentrated model portfolios, holding a limited number of securities we know intimately. Our success isn’t magic — it’s hard work, long hours, and a smart strategy.

Our lawyers love this question. Portfolio Managers often point to theoretical performance. We don’t. Our Growth Model Portfolio shows real performance, based on real client money — nothing theoretical.

Past performance doesn’t guarantee future results. But here’s what we’ve done: since June 30, 2017, our Growth Model Portfolio has compounded at 18.15% CAGR¹. That didn’t happen by luck. We don’t outsource our thinking to funds or hug the index; we grind through the work of stock-picking and portfolio discipline every single day. And we never stop improving our process. The system may be broken, but ours isn’t. The future is bright: join us.

¹ CAGR independently recalculated by DeVisser Gray LLP. Click here for their report. Return is shown in Canadian dollars, gross of WPM's 2% fee. Past performance doesn't guarantee future results. Investing involves risk, including the possibility of losing money. WPM was registered with the BCSC in March 2023, though the same portfolio manager, James McKnight, has managed the Growth Model Portfolio continuously since inception. Details on benchmark selection here. Details on performance calculations here.

The Rule of 72 is a straightforward way to understand investment growth. Divide 72 by your annual return to estimate how many years it takes for your money to double. For instance, at a 10% return, your capital doubles roughly every 7 years. Increase that to 20%, and it doubles in just over 3.5 years.¹ A performance bump makes a tremendous difference to your wealth.

Apply the rule of 72 to your current assets and returns: are you confident that you can retire in comfort and dignity? If not, contact us.

¹This is a hypothetical return. It is not guaranteed, and investing carries the risk of loss. Based on their objectives, risk tolerance, time horizon and personal circumstances, pursuing a high rate of return may not be suitable for all investors.

If you inherited $10 Million from Aunt Ethel you don’t need us. If you can retire tomorrow and maintain your current lifestyle, you don’t need us. Everyone else is the reason we built this firm.

Doing nothing is a passive strategy in a world that demands action. Inflation is a silent thief, taxes only end at the grave, and your savings account is a leaky bucket. Investing with WPM is about taking control of your future. WPM is your performance-driven team, offering disciplined investment, a level playing field for all clients, and a legal obligation to act in your best interest. Stop burying your head in the sand and start building your wealth.

If you’re an investing unicorn who consistently beats the market during your lunch break, then why are you reading this? For everyone else, amateur investing is an extremely costly and time consuming hobby – more expensive and less fun than a weekend in Vegas.

Are you serious about real growth? Then don’t try to do part-time what 95.51% of Canadian Equity fund managers fail to do full-time. That’s right, 95.51% of Canadian Equity fund managers failed to beat the S&P/TSX Composite index over the past 10 years (as of Dec 31, 2024).¹

That’s sad. Not to brag (okay, maybe a little), but we’ve clocked an 18.15% CAGR since June 30, 2017.² The future is bright: join us.

¹SPIVA data is for industry context only and not a direct comparison to WPM’s strategy or results.

² CAGR independently recalculated by DeVisser Gray LLP. Click here for their report. Return is shown in Canadian dollars, gross of WPM's 2% fee. Past performance doesn't guarantee future results. Investing involves risk, including the possibility of losing money. WPM was registered with the BCSC in March 2023, though the same portfolio manager, James McKnight, has managed the Growth Model Portfolio continuously since inception. Details on benchmark selection here. Details on performance calculations here.

“Boutique” means we’re independent, nimble, focused, and unconventional. Boutique means you get personalized service, calls answered, and a portfolio strategy built for long-term growth – not just asset gathering and ass covering. Conventional thinking delivers conventional results. We’re here to do better.

Conventional thinking treats volatility as risk. We believe your greatest risk is running out of money—dying poor. That’s risky.

The 60/40 portfolio is the industry’s security blanket—60% equities, 40% bonds. The problem? Bonds have been dead weight. Over the past 10 years, the S&P Canada Aggregate Bond Index earned a measly 1.68% a year (as of Aug 9, 2025).¹And that’s before fees and inflation! That’s not safety. That’s paying your advisor to babysit dead money.

Similarly, conventional wisdom will have you buying equity funds run by fund managers trying to beat the Canadian market’s returns. But guess what? 95.51% of Canadian equity funds underperformed the S&P/TSX Composite over the past 10 years (as of Dec 31, 2024)!² And the Canadian S&P/TSX Composite has significantly underperformed the U.S. S&P 500 over the same period—10.15% vs. 13.89% in annualized returns (as of Aug 9, 2025).

Call us unconventional. Call us bold. Just don’t call us average. Click here for our results.

¹Index returns reflect total return, including reinvested income, and exclude fees, costs, taxes, and currency effects. Indexes are unmanaged and not directly investable.

²SPIVA data is for industry context only and not a direct comparison to WPM’s strategy or results.

“Diversified”? Try “di-worse-ified.” ETFs and mutual funds are convenient for advisors who want to outsource their job while they focus on asset gathering (and collecting fees). No one ever got sued for being a closet-indexer. And from what we can see, much of the industry is focused on asset accumulation and liability avoidance — not client performance.

Furthermore, Professor Bessembinder’s research – “Wealth Creation in The U.S. Public Stock Markets 1929 to 2019” – reveals that just 1.3% of firms during that period were responsible for ALL net wealth creation. Spreading your money across hundreds of mediocre companies is a recipe for poor returns.

We believe in focused investing: you don’t beat the market by blending in.

WPM uses Model Portfolios, so all clients hold the same securities in the same target percentages. When we buy or sell a position in our Model Portfolio, we execute the trade uniformly — at the same time and price for every client.

This approach is fair, transparent, and avoids conflicts of interest. It allows us to focus our expertise on handpicked, high-quality stocks we know intimately.

The industry standard is to manage investments at the individual account level – with each client holding different securities (bought at different times and for different prices) and their advisor tracking thousands of unique positions. In our experience, this quickly becomes unmanageable—good for paperwork, not portfolios.

We believe in a more focused approach. Having fewer securities allows us to work harder and to work smarter, and to spend much more time selecting and monitoring your holdings. Does it work? Check out our performance: Click here

We are extremely proud of the returns we’ve achieved for our clients, as recalculated by DeVisser Gray LLP using real client money and real results. See for yourself.

For context, consider the broader industry: over the past 10 years, 95.51% of actively managed Canadian equity funds underperformed the S&P/TSX Composite (as of Dec 31, 2024)—and the TSX itself lagged the U.S. S&P 500 over the same period—10.15% vs. 13.89% in annualized returns (as of Aug 9, 2025).¹That’s the reality facing most investors relying on traditional active managers. And that’s before factoring in the bond allocations many advisors use, which earned a meagre 1.68% return over the past decade (as of Aug 9, 2025).

Past performance doesn’t promise future results. If it did, investing would be boring—and a lot easier. And every investment carries risk, including the possibility of losing money. But our approach—systematic, disciplined, and tested—has worked for years, and we’re highly confident it’ll keep working.

¹ SPIVA data is for industry context only and not a direct comparison to WPM’s strategy or results. Index returns reflect total return, including reinvested income, and exclude fees, costs, taxes, and currency effects. Indexes are unmanaged and not directly investable.

Bonds are great if you’re already rich. If that applies to you, fill your pockets with them. The rest of you probably need to call us.

Over the past decade, U.S. bonds have delivered a dismal 1.80% annualized return (as of Aug 9, 2025)—compared to 11.89% for the S&P 500.¹ And Canadian bonds aren’t any better. Inflation eats away those paltry returns, and bond upside is capped, unlike the growth potential of equities. And to top it off, 100% of the bond interest income is taxed at your full marginal rate every year. With equities, you’re only taxed on 50% of the capital gain, and only when you sell. (this is the part where we say “consult your accountant”)

So why do traditional investment advisors recommend such a heavy allocation of bonds? Maybe it’s a misguided adherence to Modern Portfolio Theory. Maybe it’s a mandated asset allocation model. Or maybe it’s just the well-trodden, conventional path—and safety is an easy sell. But while they might sleep soundly, it’s your future on the line. At WPM, we’re not here to help your advisor sleep better. We’re here to work like hell for your prosperity.

¹Index returns reflect total return, including reinvested income, and exclude fees, costs, taxes, and currency effects. Indexes are unmanaged and not directly investable.

Yes, we are concentrated in the best stocks we can find. Your main risk isn’t volatility—it’s running out of money in retirement. We’re here to guard against that.

Professor Bessembinder’s research, Wealth Creation in the U.S. Public Stock Markets, 1929–2019 shows that 57.8% of stocks lost money in this period, while just 1.3% created all net wealth.

So why scatter money across mediocrity? We believe in focused investing: a small number of exceptional stocks we know inside and out. That’s conviction—not closet-indexing mediocrity.

We’re proud Canadians, but nationality has nothing to do with returns. Canada’s great for nature hikes, not market performance. Parking your capital here is settling for less—and that’s a cost you can’t afford.

In stark contrast, the United States vibrates with world-class dynamism, technological innovation, and fierce competition. The U.S. is the incubator for global colossi like Apple, Google, Facebook, and SpaceX, a world of difference from Canada’s reliance on Big Banks and resource companies. The sheer scale is staggering: Apple’s market cap (~$3 trillion) dwarfs Canada’s entire GDP ($2 trillion) as of mid-2025.

We often encounter questions about international investing. Ultimately, our goal is to maximize your portfolio’s growth without taking dumb risks. That’s why we invest in large-cap U.S. stocks: we let them invest globally for us.

The Dividend Aristocrats Model Portfolio is an all-Canadian, all-equity portfolio designed for long-term investors seeking a disciplined dividend growth strategy. We track every dividend paying Canadian stock and each holding must meet strict inclusion criteria: a minimum of five consecutive years of dividend increases, and a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of at least 10% in both share price and dividend growth. Actively managed and fully invested, this portfolio is best suited for investors with a time horizon of 5 years or more who are comfortable with moderate risk.

The Income Model Portfolio is a low-risk, laddered portfolio of income investments such as Government of Canada and provincial bonds, or bank-issued Certificates of Deposit. It is designed for investors who prioritize stable, predictable income over capital growth, and we believe it is best suited for those who are already wealthy.

If you have lived a sufficiently charmed life not to have encountered Modern Portfolio Theory (MPT), lucky you. MPT is a theoretical model that champions diversification to optimize risk-adjusted returns. However, as with any model, garbage in, garbage out. And MPT’s fundamental assumptions are –in our opinion –garbage:

• It assumes markets are perfectly efficient. (They aren’t.)
• It assumes investors behave rationally. (They don’t.)
• It assumes returns follow a normal distribution. (They don’t.)
• It presumes asset correlations are knowable, and don’t change over time. (They change over time, and can break down when you need them most... like in 2008).

So, despite MPT’s formulaic insistence on the benefits of diversification, it often leads to “diworsification” – owning so many securities that you’re destined for mediocre market returns (minus fees, of course).

Then there’s this: MPT thinks volatility (stock prices going up and down) equals risk. But what investor loses sleep about prices going up? And if you don’t need to sell to pay the rent, what do you care if the market goes down on Tuesday? The real risk is eating dog food in retirement.

And the hits keep coming:

What advisor can possibly keep tabs on thousands of positions across hundreds of accounts? We’d rather have deep knowledge of a few holdings than a vague idea about a thousand.

Many of history’s greatest investors (ex. Warren Buffet) built their fortunes with concentrated portfolios, not by “diworsifying” themselves into mediocrity.

“Diversification is protection against ignorance. It makes little sense if you know what you’re doing.” Warren Buffett

The bottom line? We believe MPT provides a rationale for failure, and its main beneficiaries are academic scribblers and the 95.51% of fund managers who underperform the market.¹ If you’re serious about results, not excuses, contact us today.

¹SPIVA data is for industry context only and not a direct comparison to WPM’s strategy or results.

Wealth Preservation Management is a fiduciary, which means we’re legally bound to act only in your best interest. We will never do the following:

• Ignore lower-cost options
• Push proprietary products
• Avoid transparent fee disclosures
• Churn accounts to generate commissions (excessive trading)
• Fail to seek out the best returns for their clients

If you suspect your advisor is doing these things, contact us. We charge transparent flat fees, give advice that puts you first, and stay on top of your portfolio.

All client assets are held in custody, safekeeping, and segregation by Aviso Wealth. Aviso is a very large Canadian financial services provider owned by Canada’s leading provincial credit unions with a combined balance sheet of hundreds of billions of dollars in assets. (https://www.aviso.ca/en/who-we-are/ownership) Wealth Preservation Management doesn’t hold your assets; our clients simply empower us to make portfolio decisions on their behalf. All client funds are held in safekeeping, segregation, and trusteeship, totally separate from Aviso’s and WPM’s corporate assets. This means that even if we fall under the bus, or an asteroid strikes our office, you can still get your money.

At WPM, safeguarding your privacy is paramount. All client data is protected with robust encryption, multi-factor authentication, and is securely stored on cloud servers located within Canada. We leverage the advanced cybersecurity infrastructure of Microsoft Azure for our cloud services. Furthermore, we adhere to all requirements of Canada’s federal Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (PIPEDA), as well as all applicable provincial privacy legislation. Read our full Privacy Policy.

We charge one flat fee – no hidden charges, no commissions, no surprises. Our fee is based on a percentage of your assets under management, so we make more money when you make more money.

As fiduciaries, you can be confident that we are buying and selling in your best interest, not because it earns us commission. Our interests are aligned with yours: when you win, we win.

It is our goal to have zero conflicts of interest. We invest our own money in the same set of securities we recommend to our clients. In fact, our advisors can’t buy securities that our clients don’t already own—and client trades (buy or sell) always take precedence over employee trades. We eat our own cooking.

Faceless numbers. Elevator music. Automated menus. Chatbots. In our experience, that’s the Big Bank Experience. At WPM, you don’t get a machine: you get us. No robots, no runaround, no middlemen. We don’t take our clients’ trust for granted—we earn it by showing up. Boutique is better. Period.

We created the free Prophet of Profit blog because the only thing worse than some investment advisors’ returns is their writing. The problem isn’t that investing is dull. The problem is bad writing. If it puts you to sleep, it’s being done wrong.

This is our way of cutting through the financial mumbo jumbo to have a real conversation with you—no jargon, no filler. You’ll either want to invest with us or steal our ideas. We’re good with either. Read it, then reach out.

Our ideal client is someone who’s worked hard and has at least $100K in investable assets (or a plan to get there). They are ambitious, want to grow their wealth, and are sick and tired of mediocre returns. If you’re happy settling for “average,” we’re not for you. If you want to prosper, let’s talk.

Our roots are in Vancouver, but you absolutely do not need to be located here to benefit from our expertise. The magic of technology allows us to work effectively with clients across Canada – and even the United States, subject to the appropriate registration and compliance requirements. Our focus is on delivering exceptional Portfolio Management, not on your postal code.

Call us. Email us. Click here.

Don’t die poor, wondering “What if?” Contact us today for a confidential consultation. Let’s talk about where you are now—and where you deserve to be.

No pessimist ever built a skyscraper. Let’s build something together.