The following questionnaire is designed to help you assess your investment needs. For example, your investment objectives, tolerance for risk, and the time frame for your investment all play an important part in how you manage your money.
At the end of this questionnaire, we have outlined guidelines for a series of suggested portfolios that allocate assets differently, depending on your investment characteristics. You can add your scores to find out what kind of portfolio could be most suitable for your needs.
SECTION ONE
INVESTMENT OBJECTIVES
Select one of the following investment objectives that best fits your primary objectives:
 | INCOME ( 2 pts) |
My objective is to invest my money conservatively for the purpose of generating interest and dividend income. Safety is very important. My goal is to generate enough income to keep pace with inflation.
| INCOME WITH SOME GROWTH ( 4 pts) |
My objective is to invest my money for the purpose of generating a moderate level of investment income (interest and dividends). In addition to income, I want the potential for my assets to appreciate. My goal is to outpace inflation and increase purchasing power over time.
| HIGH INCOME ( 6 pts) |
My objective is to invest my money for the purpose of generating a high level of income on a monthly or quarterly basis. The growth of my assets is not a concern to me. Instead, I require a high, consistent income stream. Safety of principal is a secondary objective.
| GROWTH AND INCOME / BALANCED ( 8 pts) |
My objective is to invest my money with equal emphasis on growth and income. I would like to attempt to balance the risk of equities with the more conservative nature of bonds. Immediate income is not important. My primary emphasis is on "total return" resulting from a combination of interest and dividends, and equity growth.
| CAPITAL APPRECIATION / GROWTH ( 10 pts) |
My objective is to seek capital appreciation by investing in a portfolio comprised mostly of stocks. Generating income is not an objective. My goal is to generate long term capital gains over a period of many years for the purpose of wealth accumulation. I would like to attempt to invest in blue chip stocks and higher rated bonds. None the less, I understand the volatile and riskier nature of the stock market.
| MAXIMUM APPRECIATION / AGGRESSIVE GROWTH(12 pts) |
My objective is to accumulate wealth as quickly as possible by investing aggressively in securities such as small capitalization stocks. I understand that many aggressive investments are of lesser credit quality and are associated with a higher degree of risk. Income is of no interest to me and safety is only a secondary concern.
TOTAL SCORE
THIS SECTION_________
SECTION TWO
FINANCIAL PROFILE
1. Do you have money set aside in an emergency fund?
| No. (1 pt) |
| Yes. Equal to six months salary or less. (2 pts) |
| Yes. More than six months salary. (3 pts) |
2. What percentage of your total investment assets are being considered for a new investment account or portfolio?
(Investment assets are defined as stocks, bonds, mutual funds, cash equivalents, annuities, life insurance cash value, retirement account assets, GICs, and equity in investment real estate.)
NEW INVESTMENT ACCT ÷ TOTAL INVESTMENT ASSETS = % OF ASSETS
| Less than 25% (5 pts) |
| Between 25% and 50% (4 pts) |
| Between 50% and 75% (3 pts) |
| More than 75% (2 pts) |
3. Which one of the following statements best describes your expected future income over the next five years:
| I expect my income will increase substantially. (4 pts ) |
| I expect my income will increase. (3 pts) |
| I expect my income will be stable. (2 pts) |
| I expect my income may decrease. (1 pt) |
4. Add all consumer debt, (car loans, credit cards, etc.) including second mortgages (home equity loans), but excluding your first mortgage. Divide total debt by total investment assets (see above).
TOTAL DEBT ÷ INVESTMENT ASSETS = DEBT/ASSET RATIO
| DEBT/ASSETS RATIO | SCORE |
| BELOW 50% | 3 PTS |
| 50% TO 100% | 2 PTS |
| 100% TO 200% | 1 PT |
| OVER 200% | 0 PTS |
TOTAL SCORE
THIS SECTION_________
SECTION THREE
RISK AND VOLATILITY
What is your investment objective? Knowing what your objectives are will help you decide the kinds of securities you should invest in. For example, bonds are typically considered income investments. MOST stocks, on the other hand, are classified as long-term growth investments. Depending on your objectives, your assets could be allocated mostly in bonds or mostly in stocks or some combination of the two.
Your investment objective is also a factor in determining the level of risk you can handle. The next part of the questionnaire will go into more detail about risk levels.
Understanding your ability to tolerate risk is important in designing a portfolio.
While a portfolio may be well constructed, it may be inappropriate for you if you are not comfortable with the portfolio’s risk level.
To illustrate, an investor might say high income is their objective. But in order to maintain a high income portfolio, the investor must be able to deal with high volatility.
It is crucial that you match your risk tolerance to your expectations when choosing a portfolio.
Remember: the higher the risk, the higher the reward potential. Of course, high risk does NOT guarantee a high reward.
1. If the value of your portfolio decreased by more than 20% in one year, how would you react?
I would be very concerned, and I would probably liquidate my portfolio and find a safer way to invest my money. (0 pts)
I would be somewhat concerned, and I would probably sell some securities in favor of less volatile investments. (3 pts)
I would not be very concerned, and I would view the loss as a temporary market decline. (5 pts)
I would welcome the market decline as an opportunity to invest more of my assets at lower prices. (7 pts)
2. Which one of the following statements best describes how you feel about investing:
I am uncomfortable with the possibility of losing any portion of my original investment. I usually prefer investments like bank CDs, money market funds, and T bills. (0 pts)
I can accept price fluctuation, but prefer to take less risk. I would feel comfortable with most of my assets in fixed income investments, and a smaller portion of assets in equities. I understand exposure to bonds has the potential for loss, especially during periods of rising interest rates.
(4 pts)
I am comfortable with price fluctuation and prefer a balanced mix of investments, with some of my assets invested at a low degree of risk, and the balance of assets invested with moderate risk. I can tolerate a series of quarters of negative returns through difficult phases in the market cycle.
(6 pts)
I am comfortable with market volatility and believe that taking risks may result in higher returns. While a small portion of my assets might be invested in lower risk investments, the emphasis should be on growth securities with moderate to higher risks. I can tolerate an extended period of negative returns through difficult phases in the market cycle.
(8 pts)
I am uncomfortable with any portion of my assets being invested in low risk securities that traditionally offer stability and lower returns. I prefer to invest only in securities with moderate and higher risks and greater volatility that may lead to higher returns. I can tolerate more than a year of negative returns through difficult phases in the market cycle. (10 pts)
TOTAL SCORE
THIS SECTION_________
SECTION FOUR
TIME HORIZON
Your investment time frame will affect the structure of your portfolio. For example, if you are investing for a short period of time, or if you are planning large withdrawals from your account during the next few years, then a more conservative approach is appropriate.
Conversely, we believe the longer you are able to invest, the more important it is to have exposure to the stock market.
By applying the concepts of asset allocation and properly diversifying among asset classes, account volatility may be reduced.
1. In how many years will you begin to withdraw the funds which are now being invested?
| Within 2 to 3 years (1 pt) |
| 4-6 years (3 pts) |
| 7-10 years (5 pts) |
| 10-15 years (7 pts) |
| More than 15 years (8 pts) |
2. In how many years will 100% of these investment funds be entirely withdrawn?
| Within 2 to 3 years (1 pt) |
| 4-6 years (3 pts) |
| 7-10 years (5 pts) |
| 10-15 years (7 pts) |
| More than 15 years (8 pts) |
3. During the next 10 years how much money do you plan on depositing to this account? When compared to the initial investment, planned deposits are:
| 0% - 20% | 0 PT |
| 20% -40% | 1PT |
| 40% - 60% | 3 PTS |
| 60% - 80% | 4 PTS |
| > 80% | 6 PTS |
4. During the next 10 years how much money do you plan on withdrawing from this account? When compared to the initial investment, planned withdrawals are:
| 0% - 20% | 6 PTS |
| 20% -40% | 4 PTS |
| 40% - 60% | 3 PTS |
| 60% - 80% | 1 PT |
| > 80% | 0 PTS |
TOTAL SCORE
THIS SECTION_________
SCORE SHEET / PORTFOLIO DETERMINATION
Add all your scores together from the previous sections. Now, refer to the Portfolio Referral table at the bottom of this page and review the portfolio we believe may be suited to your needs.
Now that you have a better understanding of your investment characteristics, it should be easier for you to work with your investment advisor to determine the right asset mix for you.
Thank you for taking part in the GFC Personal Investor Profile. We hope this has given you a chance to reflect on your investment objectives. We welcome the opportunity to help you strive toward reaching your goals.
1. Fill in your scores for each section of this questionnaire below:
| SECTION | SCORE |
| SECTION 1: INVESTMENT OBJECTIVES | |
| SECTION 2: FINANCIAL PROFILE | |
| SECTION 3: RISK TOLERANCE | |
| SECTION 4: TIME HORIZON | |
| TOTAL |
2. Use the table below to find out which portfolio type we may feel is most suitable for you:
Note: If you scored less than 25 points, you may wish to reevaluate your ability to tolerate market fluctuations given your low tolerance to risk.
If you scored on, or close to, the borderline between two portfolio types, you may wish to go back and review the questionnaire for any possible fine-tuning that may more clearly define the best portfolio suited to your needs.
| SUGGESTED PORTFOLIO | |
| 64-70 | Aggressive Growth Portfolio |
| 58-63 | Moderate Growth Portfolio |
| 51-57 | Conservative Growth Portfolio |
| 41-50 | Balanced Portfolio |
| 33-40 | Income PLUS Portfolio |
| 33-40 | Aggressive Income Portfolio |
| 25-32 | Conservative Income Portfolio |
Please feel free to print or save this form to disk for your own use, to complete and fax, bring or mail to us for further consultation.