Opening your first brokerage account in Canada or the US
Account types, fees and the tax-sheltered wrappers worth using first.
Pick a regulated brokerage
In Canada, look for a firm regulated by the Canadian Investment Regulatory Organization with CIPF protection. In the US, look for SEC registration, FINRA membership and SIPC coverage.
That check takes two minutes on the regulator's own site and rules out most problems.
Use the tax-sheltered account first
Canada has the TFSA, where growth and withdrawals are tax-free, and the RRSP, where contributions reduce taxable income now and withdrawals are taxed later. Both have annual limits.
The US equivalents are the Roth IRA and traditional IRA, plus a workplace 401(k) that may come with an employer match.
Filling a sheltered account before a plain taxable one is usually the single biggest free gain available to a new investor.
Know the fees
Trading commissions, currency-conversion spreads when you buy US shares from Canada, account maintenance fees, and fund expense ratios. Conversion costs surprise people the most.
Set it up to run without you
Automate a fixed amount on payday. The habit does more work than any single decision you will make about which share to own.
The one thing to remember
Regulated broker, tax-sheltered account first, watch conversion fees, automate the contribution.
