When you invest in a fund, like a mutual fund or an ETF (exchange-traded fund), there’s a fee associated with the investment. This fee is called an MER (management expense ratio) and is charged by the fund company managing it and built into its price. Since Questwealth Portfolios invest exclusively in ETFs, there is an MER associated with each portfolio.

In a mutual fund, the MER goes toward paying the financial advisor, the mutual fund company, and the bank, as well as other expenses. So when comparing the MER of a mutual fund to the total cost of Questwealth Portfolios, you have to look at the mutual fund MER versus Questwealth’s management fee + MER of the specific portfolio you’re in.

Questwealth’s management fee ranges from 0.20% to 0.25% depending on your account balance. And the MERs of the portfolios range from 0.17% to 0.22% (SRI Portfolios MERs range from 0.21% to 0.35%).

Let's use an example:

If you invest $20,000 in a Questwealth Balanced Portfolio the total fee would be 0.42% (0.25% management fee + a Portfolio MER of 0.17%). Compare that to the average mutual fund fee of 2.17% and you’ll see how much you’re saving on yearly investment fees, which in turn help you keep more of your money.

Since the MER is built into the price of the ETFs, it will not appear on your statement. Only Questwealth’s management fee is shown on the statement. We’re telling you this because we don’t hide any fees, even if they’re not ours.

The 0.42% represents a Questwealth Balanced Portfolio and is inclusive of the management fees charged directly to clients and the portfolio management expense ratio (MER) charged indirectly by the ETFs held in the portfolio. Fees vary depending on the portfolio and the amount invested. The average mutual fund fee represents the average MER of 78 Global Neutral Balanced Class-A funds offered in Canada.