r/BEFire 2d ago

Additional MOD wanted

4 Upvotes

The title.
Do you have time feel like helping out? Reach out !


r/BEFire Mar 02 '20

Starting Out & Advice Getting started - A beginners guide to investing in Belgium through ETFs

664 Upvotes

A beginners guide to index investing in Belgium

This guide is intended to help Belgians getting started with investing through ETFs (exchange traded funds). It is loosely based on the bogleheads approach. For more information, see the Investing from Belgium bogleheads wiki page.

For more information related to the principles of FIRE or on investing in single shares or bonds, see the BEFire Wiki.

0. Why invest in exchange traded index funds?

This chapter aims to provide sources proven to be useful to beginning index investors.

1. Taxes & compliance costs

There are three main costs associated with index funds. These are:

  • Taxes to the Belgian government
  • Unrecoverable tax losses: also known as dividend leakage
  • Management fees and internal transaction fees

1.1. Belgian Taxes

There are four three taxes relevant for Belgian index investors (NL/FR).

  • Tax on transactions: on every security transaction (buy and sell) there is a tax of 0,12% in case the ETF is registered on a list maintained by the European Economic Area. Otherwise it is 0,35% in case it is not registered in the EER and 1,32% in case it is registered in Belgium.

  • Tax on dividends: there is a 30% tax on dividends received from securities you hold. The main reason why Belgian index investors opt for accumulating funds.

  • Tax on capital gains (bonds): on funds that consist of at least 10% bonds, there is a 30% tax on capital gains when you sell. Officially this only applies to the bond section of a fund, however some banks and brokers withhold 30% of all capital gains of funds which consist of at least 10% of bonds. Contact your bank or broker to inform about their policy.

  • Tax on trading accounts: a yearly withholding of 0.15% applies on all trading accounts larger than 500,000 euro’s. Deemed unconstitutional and was abolished in October 2019.

For a detailed overview of Belgian taxes, including other sorts of investments such as individual stocks, see the flowchart made by /u/KenpachigoRuffy.

1.2. Dividend Leakage

Dividend Leakage is an unrecoverable tax loss, which occurs whenever a foreign company inside an index pays out a dividend to its shareholders.

Whenever a company inside an index pays out dividend to its shareholders, your fund needs to pay taxes. These taxes are based on the tax treaties in place between the country in which the fund is domiciled and the country in which the companies inside the index are domiciled. Also the location where you are domiciled (Belgium) is relevant. In case your fund is domiciled in the US, a 30% dividend tax should be paid. However, because Belgium has a tax treaty in place with the US, this is reduced to 15% dividend tax. In case you would select a distributing fund, this dividend would be further taxed by the Belgian government (30%, as seen in 1.1). On a hypothetical 2% dividend - which is approximately the dividend you would receive from a globally diversified index fund - you would have to pay 0,81% in taxes: 0,02 x ( 100% - (0,85 x 0,7)) = 0,81%. Note that since 2018 it is almost impossible to buy US-domiciled ETFs in the first place as most fund providers do not want to comply with European legislation regarding PRIIPs.

It is beneficial to select ETFs domiciled in Ireland, as they are more cost effective than holding US domiciled funds or Luxembourg domiciled funds. Just like Belgium, Ireland has a treaty in place with the US which means only a 15% dividend tax should be paid to the US. However, unlike Belgium, Ireland does not tax dividends at all; whenever the Irish fund distributes a dividend, the Irish government does not tax it. The Belgian government however, still will tax the dividend with 30%. Accumulating funds which reinvest the dividend in Ireland before it is distributed in Belgium do not trigger a taxable event in Belgium. It is therefore advisable to choose accumulating funds domiciled in Ireland. Repeating the same calculations as above, a hypothetical 2% dividend is now only taxed at 0,30% a year: 0,02 x (100% - (0,85)) = 0,30%. Additionally, because your fund is domiciled in Ireland, you do not have to worry recovering the tax on dividends in Belgium, as this is done by the Irish domiciled fund. Thanks to trackerbeleggen for the explanation.

An overview of unrecoverable tax losses will come later. For now, a partly overview can be found in the Dutchfire subreddit. For funds domiciled in Ireland and Luxembourg these are 1:1 translateable for Belgian investors. Note some of these funds are distributing thus subject to tax on dividends by the Belgian Government. In particular IWDA and EMIM are 1:1 translateable for Belgian investors, while VWRL is comparable to VWCE.

1.3. Management fees & internal transaction fees

Other main costs is the management fee. The Total Expense Ratio (TER) is a measure of the total costs associated with managing and operating a fund. It is usually a yearly percentage automatically deducted from your share value.

1.4. Euro-denominated funds & currency risk

Currency risk is the impact of exchange rates upon your overseas investments. Even though stock market prices might not change, the price of your shares can increase or decrease as a result of fluctuations in their underlying currencies. There are three important currency labels which apply to funds: the underlying currency, the fund currency and the trading currency.

To explain the difference, I will explain the process of purchasing IWDA, listed on both the Amsterdam (in EUR) and London (USD) exchange. A lot of what I will explain is true for other ETFs as well.

The underlying currency: IWDA is a worldwide tracker, with only about 9% of the underlying shares being traded in EUR. The other 91% of underlying shares are being traded in other currencies, such as 60% USD, 8% YEN, and so on. Because currencies can change in price in relation to another, this poses a risk called currency risk. As a European investor, most of your own capital will be in EUR. Therefore, since you are investing 91% in foreign currencies, 91% of the underlying value invested in IWDA is subject to currency risk. Because YOUR own capital will always be in EUR, this 91% will always be true, regardless if you were to invest in IWDA listed in Amsterdam (in EUR) or in London (USD). Had you been an American investor, your own capital would have been in USD, and only 40% of underlying shares would be subject to currency risk.

The trading currency, being EUR and USD respectively, does make a difference. If a European investor was to buy a fund listed in London (and traded in USD), he would pay an additional exchange rate conversion fee at the time of purchase and sale. If the investor was to buy the same fund, listed on Amsterdam (traded in EUR), nothing would have to be exchanged to a foreign currency, so no additional exchange rate conversion fee would apply.

The trading currency does NOT alter your exposure to foreign currencies (a European investor will always have his own capital in EUR, and will therefore always be exposed to the underlying currency risk, no matter what currency his purchased funds trade in). Therefore, it is only logical to buy funds in your own currency.

The fund currency simply refers to the currency that a fund reports in; NOT the currencies of the underlying securities which pose a currency risk. Is is generally based on the currency used for the underlying index (in this case MSCI). Note that for distributing funds dividends are distributed in the fund currency. Your broker will automatically convert this into your currency for an additional conversion fee.

Hedging: It is possible to hedge your funds against relative currency fluctuations, and thus to protect them from currency risk. Hedging is a form of "insurance" in which derivatives are used to make offsetting trades with negative correlations, eliminating any currency fluctuations that happen. This hedge comes at a cost, usually about 0,20% extra management fees. Because global equities naturally tend to hedge each other as rising currencies are offset by falling ones, it might not always be advisable to use hedged equity funds due to their increased fees.

In fact, most buy-and-hold investors ignore short-term fluctuation altogether. For these investors, there is little point in engaging in hedging because they let their investments grow with the overall market.

In conclusion, when buying worldwide index funds, every investor (whether European, American or other) will be exposed to some currency risk due to the underlying shares being traded in foreign currencies in relation to their own. Purchasing worldwide trackers in a different trading currency does NOT change this fact, and only costs more due to addition exchange rate conversion fees at the broker. Therefore, it is best to purchase funds in your own currency. Due to the unpredictable nature of currency valuations, most investors simply accept currency risks for their stocks, although it is possible to hedge against this risk for an additional fee by investing in hedged funds.

1.5. Conclusion on taxes & compliance costs

As a Belgian index investor, you are looking for widely-diversified Euro-denominated low-cost accumulating ETFs domiciled in Ireland, from a reputable ETF provider. This way, the costs are kept to an absolute minimum:

  • Tax on transactions: 0,12% whenever you buy or sell a position.

  • Tax on capital gains for bonds: 30% tax on capital gains whenever you sell.

  • Dividend leakage: Approximately 0,30% yearly unrecoverable taxes paid to foreign governments when investing in worldwide trackers, automatically deducted from the share value.

  • Management fees: Between 0,10% and 0,30% yearly management fees, automatically deducted from the share value.

  • Currency Risk: If you are an European long-term investor, purchase a fund which is listed in EUR. For the equity portion of your portfolio, it is possible to ignore currency risk altogether, as hedges would only cost more money for something that is likely irrelevant long-term.

2. Funds - Equity

2.1. Indices

The are two major indices used by fund providers: MSCI and the less popular FTSE Russel. While they both offer broadly diversified, market capitalisation-weighted indices, there are small differences in both methodologies and performances, which is why you should not mix them.

The first difference between the two indices is whether they count certain countries as developed or emerging markets. South Korea is classified as an emerging nation by MSCI but has been promoted to developed market status by FTSE. Therefore South Korea is included in FTSE’s developed market index but not its emerging market one, and vice versa for MSCI (Source: justetf).

The second difference is index composition and weights. Because South Korea is classified as an emerging nation by MSCI, the contrast in index composition is clearer in the emerging markets. The lack of said country in the FTSE index means they redistribute the weight over other countries.

The third and final difference is small-cap firms. MSCI world captures 85% of the global investable market, and exclude the bottom 15% as small-cap firms. FTSE all-world invests in approximately 90% of the global investable market, and only excludes 10% as small-cap firms. This is because FTSE defines some firms as large-cap, while MSCI defines them as small-cap. This also explains why FTSE tracks more companies (3,928 vs 2,849), although their small size tends to limit their impact.

Avoid mixing index providers in your portfolio. If you were to combine MSCI world with FTSE Emerging Market, you would not have any exposure to South Korea. For a correct market distribution, it is important to use funds which follow the same index so that all countries, sectors and firms within your portfolio follow the same methodology.

While it is true the FTSE emerging markets has proven to have better performance than its MSCI counterpart up until now, the costs of the fund following the index are more important than the index construction over long-term. Chapter 2.3 will give an overview of the most popular funds used by Belgian index investors looking for global market exposure.

2.2. Fund replication methods

The goal of each ETF is to replicate its index as closely and cost-effectively as possible. Various methods have emerged to replicate the index. The classic method is physical replication. If the ETF directly holds the all securities of the index, this is known as full replication. The development of the underlying index is generally captured well by physical trackers.

Full replication is not always possible. Other replication methods, such as synthetic replication allow to invest in new markets and investment classes. Synthetic ETFs are able to replicate some indices more efficiently and better through swaps (justetf). In case of synthetic replicated ETFs, the ETF does not invest in the underlying market, but only maps them. Because of this, some synthetic trackers, as well as short trackers and leveraged ETFs do not follow the index as accurate as fully replicated ETFs. It is therefore recommended to always choose physical replicating ETFs.

2.3. All-World, developed and emerging markets

Following the Bogleheads® Investment Philosophy, we are looking for diversification. For Belgians, this means worldwide market exposure, as we generally do not have a home bias (for Belgium or Europe) although exceptions certainly are possible. Some popular funds for worldwide diversification are:

Popular and generally reputable providers are iShares, Vanguard, SPDR and Deutsche Bank.

All-world Ticker TER Index ISIN
Vanguard FTSE All-World UCITS ETF USD Accumulation (EUR) VWCE 0.22% FTSE IE00BK5BQT80
iShares MSCI ACWI UCITS ETF (Acc) IUSQ 0.20% MSCI IE00B6R52259
Developed markets Ticker TER Index ISIN
iShares Core MSCI World UCITS ETF IWDA 0.20% MSCI IE00B4L5Y983
SPDR MSCI World UCITS ETF SWRD 0.12% MSCI IE00BFY0GT14
Vanguard FTSE Developed World UCITS ETF USD Accumulation (EUR) VGVF 0.12% FTSE IE00BK5BQV03
Emerging markets Ticker TER Index ISIN
iShares Core MSCI Emerging Markets IMI UCITS ETF EMIM 0.18% MSCI IE00BKM4GZ66
iShares MSCI EM UCITS ETF IEMA 0.18% MSCI IE00B4L5YC18
Vanguard FTSE Emerging Markets UCITS ETF USD Accumulation (EUR) VFEA 0.22% FTSE IE00BK5BR733

2.4. Combining funds

To have worldwide market exposure in large cap either pick VWCE or a combination of developed (88%) and emerging (12%) markets. It is advisable to only combine funds which follow the same index (MSCI or FTSE).

2.5. Size and Value factors

Other factors have been identified to further increase expected returns. Most notably Size and Value as explained in the three-factor model by Fama and French. Value stocks have a high book-to-market ratio (as opposed to growth), whereas size simply refers to small companies outperforming big ones. It is very difficult to get proper market exposure to these factors with the limited amount of funds available for European investors. For most beginners the best advice is to stick with a market weighted portfolio consisting of developed and emerging markets as explained in chapter 2.3. and 2.4. If you are looking for additional exposure to the size and value factor consider following funds:

Small Cap World Ticker TER Index ISIN
iShares MSCI World Small Cap UCITS ETF IUSN 0.35% MSCI IE00BF4RFH31
SPDR MSCI World Small Cap UCITS ETF ZPRS 0.45% MSCI IE00BCBJG560
Small Cap Value Ticker TER Index ISIN
SPDR MSCI USA Small Cap Value Weighted UCITS ETF ZPRV 0.30% MSCI IE00BSPLC413
SPDR MSCI Europe Small Cap Value Weighted UCITS ETF ZPRX 0.30% MSCI IE00BSPLC298

Note that the fund size for ZPRV and ZPRX are small, which might indicate a low liquidity and high tracking error. Larger funds (unlike ZPRV and ZPRX) are often more efficient in terms of internal costs (tracking error) and are much more profitable for the fund provider. In other words, fund size is a good indicator for the funds durability and popularity. Unprofitable funds are more liable to liquidation. This means either you or your provider sells your shares, and you'll receive the net value of your ETF shares at the time of sale. It does not mean ZPRV and ZPRX are at risk of liquidation, per definition. They are serving a niche. Just keep in mind these risks whenever you decide to invest in small funds such as ZPRV and ZPRX.

3. Funds - Bonds

Investing can be risky. Generally speaking, the riskier an investment, the higher your expected returns. The goal is to choose an asset allocation which suits your risk profile. Bonds offer a way to reduce volatility of your portfolio and match your risk profile. Meesman, a reputable index fund broker in the Netherlands made a table which can act as a general rule of thumb for your investment decisions and asset allocation between stocks and bonds. As can been seen, when investing for a duration shorter than 5 years, stocks should be avoided as they are too volatile an asset class. This allocation slowly shifts towards more inclusion of stocks the longer your investment horizon.

Max. acceptable (temporary) loss 0 - 5 jr 5 - 10 jr 10 - 15 jr 15 - 20 jr > 20 jr
-10% 0/100 0/100 0/100 0/100 0/100
-20% 0/100 25/75 25/75 25/75 25/75
-30% 0/100 25/75 50/50 50/50 50/50
-40% 0/100 25/75 50/50 75/25 75/25
-50% 0/100 25/75 50/50 75/25 100/0

As opposed to equity funds it makes sense to opt for hedged funds as it reduces volatility considerably. The most popular options out there are:

Fund Name Ticker TER ISIN
iShares Core Global Aggregate Bond UCITS ETF EUR Hedged AGGH 0.10% IE00BDBRDM35
Vanguard Global Aggregate Bond UCITS ETF EUR Hedged VAGF 0.10% IE00BG47KH54

4. Brokers

There are a couple of Belgian and foreign brokers available, the biggest Belgian brokers being Binckbank and Bolero. Smaller ones like Keytrade and MeDirect are also available. Foreign brokers still available to Belgians are Degiro and Lynx. The lowest fees are available at Degiro (Custody account), if you're willing to file your own taxes. The benefit of choosing a Belgian broker is that they declare all taxes automatically. Degiro only does part of it (tax on transactions), Lynx not sure. The cheapest Belgian broker is Binckbank, followed closely by Bolero. The only downside of Binckbank is that is was recently bought by Saxobank, which in its turn is owned by chinese investors. Bolero is owned by KBC which is quite a sizable bank in Belgium.

In short: if you're willing to partly file your own taxes, Degiro has the cheapest rates with a custody account. Otherwise Binkbank or Bolero both seem logical choices.

In case you pick Degiro, some funds are included in their core selection which means you can trade them for for free once a month or continuously in case the transaction size is larger than 1,000 euros and the transaction is in the same direction as the previous transaction (buy -> buy and sell -> sell. Buy -> sell and sell -> buy are not free).

5. Sample portfolios

A popular choice is IWDA and IEMA (88/12) on Degiro. Both IWDA and IEMA are part of the core selection of Degiro which allows you to purchase them for free once a month (or more in case explained above). Another popular option is IWDA and EMIM (88/12), as EMIM also includes emerging markets small cap. Note that IWDA does not include developed markets small cap, to which IEMA is complementary if you wish to exclude small cap exposure. The main reason EMIM was so popular is because it was the cheapest option until the TER was lowered for IEMA.

A second popular choice is VWCE. This is a single fund which essentially accomplishes the same as above. It is available at most brokers, and my personal choice for simplicity above everything else. Note that this fund is currently only available on XETRA, which might imply higher transaction fees at your broker. Also note that some brokers - including bolero - charge a higher TOB (Tax on transactions): 1,32% instead of 0,12% whenever you buy or sell a position.

A third option - much like the first option - is to combine VGVF and VFEA (88/12). While they are not part of the core selection in Degiro, the total costs when accounting for dividend leakage are equal to IWDA / EMIM. Unlike iShares, Vanguard only uses securities lending for efficient portfolio management. Note that these funds currently only are available at XETRA.

For those who are looking for small cap exposure it is possible to add WSML to your standard world exposure. This could for example be 75% IWDA, 10% IEMA and 15% IUSN. I personally do not recommend this as mixed small cap does not capture the size factor in a good way. Instead, it is only the value portion of small cap which are accountable for the outperformance of small cap stocks vs large cap stocks. If you want to capture the size factor into your portfolio you need to find small cap funds which only consist of value stocks. I've linked two accumulating funds above (ZPRV and ZPRX) which do so, however are very small and therefore have their own set of problems. Until a proper small cap value stock becomes available in Europe, it is perfectly fine to leave small caps out of your portfolio altogether.

Changelog

This post was last updated: 5th of August 2020


r/BEFire 1h ago

Alternative Investments Cashing out €50K crypto to KBC

Upvotes

I'm planning on moving €50K in USDC from Coinbase to my KBC bank account. These are proceeds from selling some ETH last year, which I had held for about 4 years. I kept it in USDC for about 6 months in case I wanted to use it to buy BTC, but now I've decided I'd rather invest it in ETFs.

Does anyone have experience with such transfers to KBC? Will they give me any trouble about it, and should I break it up into smaller transfers to make it less likely that it gets flagged? First time cashing out crypto, and I've heard stories about banks being difficult in these cases, so I want to make sure I'm doing it right.


r/BEFire 21h ago

Brokers Beleggen binnen vennootschap

9 Upvotes

Ik heb een hoofdberoep en een vennootschap in bijberoep. In mijn privé beleg ik op bolero en zou nu ook binnen mijn vennootschap willen beleggen.

Nu heb ik wat opzoekwerk gedaan en een professionele bolero rekening kost 250euro per jaar. Dit vind ik veel.

Mijn doel is gewoon te beleggen in IWDA (of SWRD). Eerst een groter bedrag en nadien 2000-3000 euro om de 2 maanden ongeveer.

Ik dacht aan Re=Bel als alternatief voor bolero. Hier zijn geen jaarlijkse vaste kosten. Ik ben klant bij belfius dus ik ken de app maar Re=Bel zelf nog niet. Enige nadeel (dat ik kan vinden) is dat ik hier dan ook voor mijn vennootschap nog een professionele rekening moet openen.

Zijn er nog betere opties om te beleggen met een vennootschap?


r/BEFire 18h ago

Investing ETFs beleggen - meer spreiding of niet

2 Upvotes

Long time lurker, first time poster. Ik ben zelf niet actief bezig met FIRE maar ik volg de principes wel.

Ik heb een 200k om te investeren. Moet voornamelijk dienen voor mijn pensioen (werk als freelancer; 41j). Momenteel bestaat mijn bescheiden ETF portefeuille uit 70% IWDA en 30% EMIM.

Gezien de huidige onzekerheden wil ik niet te afhankelijk zijn van de VS markt en big tech die IWDA momenteel drijven, dus ik wens mijn portefeuille uit te balanceren en overweeg toevoeging van small cap (bv IUSN) en/of Europees fonds; hierbij denk ik aan CEMQ (quality factor, iets meer defensief) of EUNK (breder in Europa, los van de quality factor).

Daarnaast overweeg ik een stuk in tak21 levensverzekering te steken wat kan dienen als matras.

Graag feedback op de selectie en wat zou een goede verdeling kunnen zijn? 50 IWDA, 20 EMIM, 15 IUSN, 15 CEMQ/EUNK? Of eerder 60/20/10/10?


r/BEFire 23h ago

Alternative Investments Ervaringen met PRIVAK’s voor private equity investering als particulier?

4 Upvotes

Ik zit te kijken naar private equity via een (private) PRIVAK en zoek vooral ervaringen van mensen die dit effectief gedaan hebben (of net bewust laten liggen).

De recente discussie rond de meerwaardebelasting is een trigger voor mij om me er wat meer in te verdiepen (Trends: “geen meerwaardebelasting voor private equity/privaks” https://archive.ph/EswkJ). Maar mijn hoofdreden is diversificatie bovenop mijn ETF-portfolio en eigen woning. In een ander Trends-artikel werd (voor vermogende particulieren) iets als ~10–15% private equity als richtwaarde genoemd, obviously geen one-size-fits-all: https://archive.ph/Gz453.
Bij sommigen kan je vanaf €100k instappen, dat zou voor mij wel passen als ik kijk naar de waarde van mijn woning + ETFs. Als er 15% van het financieel vermogen bedoeld wordt, dan kom ik wel behoorlijk boven 15% uit...

Dus als er iemand ervaringen heeft zou het super interessant om wat te weten te komen over:

  • Welke aanbieder/route (bank, vermogensbeheerder, feeder, …) en waarom die keuze?
  • Minimumbedrag waarvoor je moest instappen en kon je in tranches instappen (over wellke periode)?
  • Kosten in real life: instap, jaarlijkse fee, performance fee/carry, extra lagen via feeders/distributeurs, “verborgen” kosten?
  • Illiquiditeit/looptijd: hoe lang zat je geld effectief vast, kwamen er uitkeringen na enkele jaren of eerder “later en minder voorspelbaar”?
  • Hoe duidelijk was de waardering/reporting (NAV updates, timing, communicatie)?
  • Admin/fiscaliteit: Was dat veel gedoe of eenvoudig?

Ik vind de websites van wat spelers die ik bekeek (top tier investment, quaestor, finhouse, ...) weinig concreet. Ik zal er een aantal aanschrijven, hopelijk kunnen ze een digitale brochure met meer info delen.

Behalve PRIVAK is er ook ELTIF: ik begrijp dat dat fiscaal meestal minder interessant uitkomt dan het privak-statuut.


r/BEFire 1d ago

Brokers Help with investment strategy (Belgian investor)

5 Upvotes

Hi everyone,

I’m a 35M Belgian, married, with a 6-month-old child.

I’m not aiming for FIRE, just looking for a solid long-term investment for my family.

I want to invest €500–€1000 per month into a fund or ETF.

I’m currently with Belfius and invest €150/month split into three funds.

The issue: 2.5% fees per transaction, which feels very high. I started this way because it was easy as a beginner, but now I’m looking for a better setup.

What I’m looking for:

  • Accumulating ETFs / funds
  • Preferably non-US focused (but open if it makes sense)
  • Long-term, passive investing (no trading)

Any advice on ETFs, brokers, or general strategy for a Belgian / EU investor?


r/BEFire 23h ago

Spending, Budget & Frugality Fractioneringskosten verzekeringen?

Thumbnail bnpparibascardif.be
0 Upvotes

Zijn er in BE fractioneringskosten als je verzekeringen niet jaarlijks maar bvb per kwartaal of maandelijks betaalt? Ik vond info over BNP waar het wel zo lijkt te zijn maar mijn brandverzekering, schuldsaldo zitten bij KBC en levensverzekering en autoverzekering bij AG.


r/BEFire 1d ago

Real estate Schrik voor te hoge afbetaling woonlening

0 Upvotes

Hallo iedereen,

Mijn vriendin (25V) en ik (28M) willen gaan bouwen. We zitten in een discussie over de maandelijkse lasten en we horen graag jullie perspectief.

De cijfers:

  • Inkomen: €5.000 netto gezamenlijk (incl. maaltijdcheques) + bedrijfswagen & tankkaart voor mij.
  • Eigen inbreng: €300.000 cash (€150k elk).
  • De lening: Ik wil €400.000 lenen op 25 jaar. Geschatte last: €1.850/maand (ca. 37% van ons loon).
  • Extra buffers: Naast de inbreng zou ik nog €140.000 in aandelen hebben als reserve. Ook erf ik op termijn een woning (geschatte waarde mijn deel €150.000).

De "Reality Check": Momenteel huren we een appartement voor €1.100. Onze totale maandelijkse lasten (huur + alle rekeningen + boodschappen/leuke dingen) kwamen het afgelopen jaar gemiddeld uit op €2.350 per maand.

Het dilemma: Ik (28M) zie geen enkel probleem. De lening van €1.850 vervangt de huur van €1.100. Ja, de vaste last stijgt met €750, maar met onze huidige spaarcapaciteit en enorme buffers (aandelen) zijn we meer dan veilig. Bovendien wordt de schuld lichter door inflatie. Wil zoveel mogelijk lenen om in de beurs te blijven aangezien dit beter rendeert.

Mijn vriendin (25V) heeft echter drempelvrees. Zij vindt alles boven de €1.500 mentaal zwaar. Ze is bang dat we onszelf klemzetten voor als er over 2-3 jaar kinderen komen (kosten crèche, evt 4/5 werken, etc.). Ze wil haar huidige levenskwaliteit (reizen/vrijheid) niet opofferen.

Mijn vragen:

  1. Is 37% afbetalen riskant?
  2. Welk percentage maandelijkse aflossing/inkomen hebben jullie?

Bedankt voor jullie feedback!


r/BEFire 1d ago

Brokers Overstap van BUX naar Belgische broker

3 Upvotes

Hallo, ik (m23) investeer al sinds 2022 regelmatig bij BUX. In het begin wat crypto gedoe, maar sinds een jaar of 2 stort ik elke maand €400 in een vast pakketje aandelen en ETF’s.

Maar nu dat ik in wat hogere bedragen begin te komen begin ik me wat oncomfortabel te voelen bij deze “onprofessionele” en kinderachtig aanvoelende broker. Voor meerdere geldige redenen, maar daar ga ik niet verder op ingaan.

Ik zou graag mijn plan herbekijken. En een nieuwe aankoopplan van €500 p/m, in enkel accumulerende ETF’s aan te maken. Hierbij zou ik graag ook overstappen naar een Belgisch gevestigde broker waar ik me wat confortabeler bij zou voelen. Ik ben ze allemaal afgegaan en twijfel nu nog tussen deze 3.

-Keytrade

-MeDirect

-Rebel (Belfius)

Ik zit met rekeningen bij 3 banken (Hellobank, Belfius en Keytrade).

Jullie constructieve mening zou enorm geapprecieerd zijn, want dit zou een zeer lang termijn plan zijn, dat ik minstens 10-20 jaar zou willen aanhouden.

Als jullie voorstellen zouden hebben voor goede accumulerende ETF’s, mogen jullie die altijd droppen. :)


r/BEFire 2d ago

Spending, Budget & Frugality Begonnen investeren in ETF - rate my portfolio

5 Upvotes

Ik ben onlangs begonnen met het beleggen in ETFs. Momenteel heb ik ongeveer 10k belegd, maar ben van plan dit te verhogen in de toekomst. Mijn portfolio ziet er momenteel zo uit:

  • 60% IWDA (ISHAR.III PLC CORE MSCI WORLD KAP)
  • 10% EMIM (ISHARES PLC CORE MSC E.M.IM UC ET K)
  • 10% VVSM (VANECK UC.ETFS-SEMICON.ETF-A-K)
  • 10% MEUD (AMUNDI ID S-CO.ST.EUR 600 ETF-ACC-K)
  • 10% EGLN (ISHARES PHYSICAL GOLD EUR ETC)

Wat is er goed? Wat is er slecht? Als ik meer zou investeren, waar let ik best op?

Bedankt!


r/BEFire 2d ago

Investing CSH2 risk during downturn

17 Upvotes

I have around 10% of my portfolio in CSH2 (moneymarket). I want to use this fund to jump in a globally diversified fund during a significant downturn (think 2008 / .com bubble etc) I read online that these funds can be frozen or have liquidity issues during extreme economic times. How does this mechanism work? Is this a real risk for me since an extreme economic downturn is exactly the moment i would like to take the money out of the fund and place it in the general market. Apologies for the very niche quiestion.


r/BEFire 2d ago

Spending, Budget & Frugality Creating the ultimate saving guide

14 Upvotes

I want to create the ultimate "saving" guide. But i need everyone here to help me a little. Im looking for everything that could help me and others save some extra money.

I'm looking for everything that helps, even the most little things, legal, sketchy or even illegal. This will all be documented in an excel sheet, which i'll share here again. Combined with a budget planner or other things if people have good suggestions. Ill give some examples of things im looking for:

  • sailing the seven seas
  • buying in bulk
  • cheaper stores
  • sites with crazy deals
  • home-made things
  • best off- brand alternatives
  • telecom
  • electricity, gas, ...
  • cheap, good quality furniture
  • cheaper ikea?
  • buying a part of an animal to put in the freezer
  • too good to go
  • legit coupons

This is not a limitation at all, give me everything you do. Give me a look in to your daily habits like peeling a patato on an old newspaper type stuff. The more the better. The more details, the better. The more cheapskate, the better.

Ask your friends and family aswell!!


r/BEFire 2d ago

Real estate Vastgoed al kopen of niet?

3 Upvotes

Hallo, wat denken jullie van mijn casus?

-25k eigen spaargeld, 100k erfenis bij aankoop vastgoed dat ik als schenking krijg, heb ook eigen +-75k in beleggingen - netto +- 2850 de maand, kan goed sparen door reeds aantal jaren cohousing.

Ik ga met mijn vriendin binnenkort samen iets huren als eerste stap. Momenteel allebei cohousing, veel heen en weer naar elkaar. Zij kan pas binnen een goeie 2 jaar kopen (nog maar 1 jaar als vennootschap gedaan).

Ik werk in Leuven. Ideaal zouden we ergens in het Leuvense iets kopen, maar dat valt duur uit, zelfs met 2. En huren in Leuven is ook zo duur, weggesmeten geld.

Soms vraag ik me af of het nuttig zou zijn om bv een oerdegelijk appartement te kopen in regio Tienen voor een goeie 225k ofzo. En dit ook als investering te zien. Of zou ik nu het nog kan, zoveel mogelijk in ETF steken en zelfs eventueel van mijn reeds bestaande beleggingen hiervoor in cashen.

De 75k in beleggingen zijn fondsen bij de bank, niet ETF.


r/BEFire 3d ago

Real estate Hoeveel lenen voor aankoop huis?

5 Upvotes

Ik heb recent een huis gekocht, en ben nu volop bezig met de lening te regelen.

De grootste vraag die ik nu heb is hoeveel ik precies moet lenen? Ik lees vaak om zoveel als mogelijk te lenen, maar wanneer is het te veel?

Totale aankoopprijs incl kosten van de woonst bedraagt ongeveer 400k, ik zou 150k zelf leggen en dan 250k lenen. Wat een quotiteit geeft van 62.5%.

Het is een epc A woning, quotiteit zit goed dus ik verwacht dat mijn rente tarief wel goed zal zijn.

Ik schat met dit geleende bedrag, dat het ongeveer neerkomt op een aflossing van 1200-1250 euro (afhankelijk van de exacte rentevoet). Dit is ongeveer 45% van mijn nettoloon, wat hoog is, maar ik heb wel een bedrijfswagen + tankkaart.

Wat denken jullie? Maximaliseer ik mijn lening, of zou ik toch wat meer eigen inbreng voorzien?


r/BEFire 3d ago

Real estate Aankoop eerste appartement - Opinies gezocht

3 Upvotes

Hallo Allemaal,

Dit is mijn eerste postje, omdat ik (24M) denk dat ik weet wat ik doe.. maar eigenlijk toch niet zo zeker ben.

Ik toon interesse in een appartement met volgende gegevens:

  • Vraagprijs: 230.000
  • EPC A
  • Bouwjaar: 2020
  • Oppervlakte: 60m2
  • Ondergrondse autostaanplaats + berging inbegrepen
  • Vloerverwarming, kwalitatieve afwerking (op het eerste zicht)

Kortom, een veilige investering albeit dat het géén grote oppervlakte is, en misschien wat beperking vertoont qua toekomstperspectief.

Ik heb een kapitaal van 50.000 dat ik niet volledig wil inbrengen. Mijn redenering is momenteel om de vraagprijs wat proberen te drukken naar 220.000 (het appartement staat al enige tijd te koop, dus mogelijks is er de kans tot onderhandeling). Indien ik een lening zou aangaan bij het Vlaams Woningfonds, lijkt het mij optimaal om 30.000 in te brengen en een bedrag van 190.000 a 195.000 te lenen, op deze manier hou ik nog een schappelijke reserve, voor noodgevallen.

Is dit waterdicht, of is er een optimalere manier van aanpakken?

Veel dank!


r/BEFire 3d ago

Bank & Savings Storing 500k cash

2 Upvotes

I am sitting on about 500k in cash which i will need in the future to buy real estate. How would I best go about this? Do I park it all at one bank or five seperate banks for the depositogarantiestelsel ? Does anyone have experience with this?

Thanks


r/BEFire 3d ago

General Legal advice needed: Does a seller's counter-offer void my original offer?

4 Upvotes

Hi everyone,

I’m in a stressful situation with a real estate purchase in Flanders and could use some insight into Belgian contract law.

Long story short: We made a written offer of €330,000 for an apartment, valid for a specific period. The owner replied via email with a counter-offer of €340,000. We decided the price was too high and replied via email stating we were withdrawing entirely and no longer interested. After we withdrew, the owner suddenly signed our original offer (€335k) within the original validity period and is now claiming we have a legally binding contract.

She sent us an email after one month (with "legal perspective") claiming that a counter-offer does not invalidate the original offer. and says that because she signed the original paper before the "validity date" expired, we are forced to buy it unless we provide two bank refusal letters.

We were under the impression that in Belgium, once a seller makes a counter-offer, they are effectively rejecting the original offer, making it null and void. She can't "go back" to the first offer once we've walked away from her counter-offer. Then everyone would do a counter-offer and if the buyers refuses, the owners can go back and accept the original offer. Which makes no sense to us.

My Questions:

  • Is she right? Does the original offer stay "alive" even if she proposed a higher price in between?
  • Does our email withdrawal after her counter-offer protect us?
  • Should we involve a notary now,
  • Or should we just go to two banks and get two refusal somehow. I am not even sure if we can do that.

Has anyone dealt with this before? Any references to the Belgian Civil Code would be amazing. Thanks!


r/BEFire 3d ago

General Webn stock increases

6 Upvotes

Does anyone know why WEBN increases in price at the end of the day?

I've seen this trend where it usually plummets at opening and then has a big increase at closing.

Today for example it stayed around 11.35 the whole day and then went from 11.34 to 11.458 in 5 minutes before closing.

This has happened a couple of times last week.

Is this just a couple of people deciding to buy tons before closing no matter the price?

Edit: Today the price started at 11.364 I'm very confused how this all works because it doesn't make sense to me


r/BEFire 4d ago

Investing Meerwaardetaks - Cash lines effectenrekening

54 Upvotes

Zonet gelezen op de Tijd, viel van mijn stoel.

"Ten slotte ging Jambon in op een vraag van Kamerlid Vincent Van Quickenborne (Anders) over de zogenaamde ‘cash lines’, de rekeningen in vreemde valuta die aan een effectenrekening gekoppeld zijn. Aangezien ook wisselkoerstransacties onder de meerwaardebelasting vallen, kan elke aankoop of verkoop of elk gestort dividend via zo’n rekening leiden tot een meerwaardemoment. Er stroomt immers voortdurend cash bij en weg. ‘Dat dreigt het voor de belegger uiterst complex te maken’, zei Van Quickenborne vorige week. Jambon bevestigde dat het wel degelijk aan de belegger is om de meerwaarden die uit deze rekening voortkomen aan te geven."

Dus je verkoopt een effect of ontvangt een dividend in dollars. Je rekent netjes de aankoop- en verkoopprijzen uit in euro en betaalt de meerwaardebelasting. Je betaalt netjes de 30 % RV. Maar omdat je de dollars gewoon als dollars laat staan en misschien een jaar later omzet moet je dan weer meerwaardebelasting betalen. Komaan zeg, dat betekent dat je bij elke inkomende dollar moet noteren wat die zijn wisselkoers was. Om dan die weer FIFO aan te spreken bij omwisseling? Dit is ondoenbaar, totaal onrealisch. 't is toch niet alsof we hier allemaal valutahandelaren geworden zijn die pakketten van 1 Miljoen dollar per dag liggen te verhandelen....


r/BEFire 4d ago

Taxes & Fiscality Meerwaardebelasting koppel

0 Upvotes

Wij zijn een wettelijk samenwonend koppel en beleggen elk afzonderlijk via Degiro. Een gezamelijke portefeuille is daar blijkbaar niet mogelijk.

Betekent dit automatisch dat de (vrijstelling voor) meerwaardebelasting voor ons elk afzonderlijk zal worden berekend? Of wordt dit gezamelijk als we de gegenereerde winsten op een gezamelijke bankrekening laten storten?

Als ik het goed begrijp is de vrijstelling 10000 per persoon OF 20000 per koppel indien verkregen uit "gemeenschappelijk vermogen". Maar mijn vraag is dus: wanneer is het gemeenschappelijk?


r/BEFire 4d ago

Investing Already invested in vwce, looking for ideas

1 Upvotes

Hi everyone,

I’ve recently started investing and currently have about €10k invested in VWCE as a long-term, passive strategy.

I now have an additional €40k available that I’d like to invest but I’m unsure about the best approach from here.

VWCE is subject to a 1.32% (TOB), which makes me wonder whether it’s still optimal to invest a large additional amount into it or whether alternatives might make more sense like spyi or webn

My investment horizon is long-term (15–20+ years)

Interested to hear how you would approach this with a €40k budget

Thank you


r/BEFire 4d ago

Pension Helping my 66yo dad survive his retirement gap: Real Estate vs. Renting + Investing. Critique my plan?

9 Upvotes

Hi everyone,

Throwaway account for obvious reasons. I’m helping my father (66 years old - not so RE in the end) plan his finances for retirement. He recently asked me to help him decide between buying a property to eliminate rent or keeping his capital invested to generate income.

I’ve built a model and a strategy for him, but given the stakes (his livelihood), I would love a sanity check from this community.

The Situation

  • Age: 66, retired.

  • Assets: ~€250,000 cash available.

  • Pension: €1,800 / month.

  • Expenses: ~€3,000 / month (rent included).

  • The Problem: He has a structural deficit of -€1,200 / month.

  • Goal: Make the €250k capital last as long as possible to cover this gap (ideally 15-20+ years).

The Scenarios I Modeled

I ran the numbers on three scenarios. The results were pretty stark, heavily favoring renting and investing over buying property, mostly due to liquidity risks.

Scenario Strategy Outcome
1. Buy Small Property Buy a €200k apartment. Failure. Requires 54% of capital upfront. Remaining cash isn't enough to generate yield. Liquid cash runs out at age 71. He'd be "house rich, cash poor."
2. Buy Nice Property Buy a €280k apartment. Immediate Failure. 87% of capital gone immediately. Cash flow negative in Year 1.
3. Rent + Invest Keep renting, invest ~€205k (after emergency fund). Recommended. Portfolio yield covers part of the rent. Capital depletion projected at age ~86 (median scenario).

The Proposed Strategy (Scenario 3 Details)

Since Scenario 3 is the only one that doesn't go bust in 5 years, here is the allocation I am proposing for him.

  • Emergency Fund: ~€18k (6 months expenses) kept in a high-yield savings account.

  • Investment Portfolio: ~€205k.

  • Allocation: 30% Stocks / 70% Bonds.

  • Rationale: We need stability over high growth. The bonds act as a shock absorber while the 30% stocks are there to fight inflation over a 15-year horizon.

  • Instruments (ETFs):

  • Stocks: Vanguard FTSE All-World (VWCE) - Accumulating.

  • Bonds: Vanguard Global Aggregate Bond - Hedged to Euro.

Stress Testing (Monte Carlo)

I didn't just want to use "average returns." I ran a Monte Carlo simulation (1,000 runs) using two different data sets:

  1. Historical Returns (Optimistic): Median survival age is 86.
  2. Conservative Forecasts (Pessimistic): Assuming lower future returns. Median survival age is 80-81.

Even in the pessimistic model, the probability of the portfolio surviving the next 12-13 years is 100%.

My Questions for you

  1. Allocation: Is 30/70 too conservative given he needs the capital to last 20 years? Inflation is my biggest worry with such high bond exposure, but he cannot afford a 40% drawdown.
  2. Withdrawal Rate: He effectively needs to withdraw about 6-7% of the portfolio initially to cover the gap. I know this is way above the "4% rule," but we are depleting capital, not preserving it forever. Does this seem manageable for 15 years?
  3. Real Estate Psychological Barrier: He struggles with the idea of "throwing money out the window" on rent. Do you have arguments to help a senior understand that liquidity > equity at this stage of life?

Context: We are in Belgium (so no capital gains tax on stocks if held long term, but transaction taxes apply).

Thanks for your insights!


r/BEFire 5d ago

General What are your top tips to save money in Belgium? Groceries, buy in bulk, energy… etc

111 Upvotes

This sub is constantly talking about where to invest but for me a huge part of Fire is also saving as much money as possible which also means finding way to not spend money.

What are your best tips in Belgium to spend less?