top 5 investing mistakes

Here are the top 5 investing mistakes Canadians make and how to avoid them.nnMistake number one: holding US dividend stocks in your TFSA.nThe US doesn't recognize the TFSA as tax sheltered. So you get hit with a 15% withholding tax on those dividends. If you want US dividend stocks, hold them in your RRSP instead, where that tax doesn't exist.nnMistake number two: skipping FHSA.nSkipping the first home savings account if you're planning to buy a home. It's a tax deduction just like an RRSP and tax-free withdrawals just like a TFSA. You get both benefits at once and no one talks about it. If you want to buy a home within the next 15 years, this account should be opened out as soon as possible and maxed out.nnMistake number three: timing the market.nTo wait for a dip to start investing, but no one is able to consistently call the bottom of the market. Fund managers, not analysts, not your advisor, no one. Timing the market beats timing the market has the data has been studied.nMistake number four: paying mutual funds.nPaying more than 2% management fees on a mutual fund when it underperforms a basic ETF. Over 25 years, that little fee difference can eat up six figures of your portfolio. Most Canadians are in these funds because the bank sold it to them, not because they compared it to anything.nMistake number five: no automatic contributions.nIf you rely on investing what's left over, that pretty much means most months you're going to have nothing left over. Set up an automatic transfer to pay yourself first and control your expenses with what's left.nnComment below which mistake you've made.