Frequently Asked Questions
Investment Methodology
About the MarketRiders Service
Building and Managing My Portfolio
Trusting MarketRiders
Other Investor Services
Technical Issues
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 Investment MethodologyWhat is an ETF?ETF stands for Exchange Traded Funds -- these are funds that trade on the stock exchange just like any stock. And you follow the same procedure at your online broker to buy an ETF as you would any stock like IBM or GE. It should cost you between $4 and $10 per trade.ETFs are not a secret, but investment professionals often don't make fees from them, so they go ignored. Each ETF is a "basket" of stocks that represent a particular index. For example if you wanted to own every stock in the S&P 500 Index, you would by one of several ETFs that follows that index - an example being "SPY" or Spiders. By owning one share of SPY, you gain diversification across 500 stocks. With ETFs you can invest in practically any market you want. Some of the most popular indexes are the S&P 500 (tracks the largest U.S. public companies), the Russell 2000 (tracks some of the smallest U.S. public companies) and the Morgan Stanley Europe Asia Far East (EAFE) index composed of companies in developed foreign countries. ETFs also allow you to invest in real estate, bonds, commodities, sectors and other markets. There are currently over 800 ETFs now available and growing. Mutual funds are 6 -10 times more expensive than ETFs because they hire pros who try to select a few stocks within the index that will "beat" it. But when you invest in an index fund, you basically get the exact returns of the index. Since computers (not humans) manage the stocks in an ETF, the fees are very low. MarketRiders portfolios employ the best ETFs based upon low fees, high trade volume and low turnover (which reduce taxes). How do you determine the right asset allocation for me?Based upon your profile, MarketRiders does what a great investment adviser does, but without the 1% yearly fee on all your money. We automatically calculate the right allocations in stocks, bonds, real estate and other asset classes for you based upon your age, time horizon, risk tolerance and investment experience. Read more about this in our Methodology section.How do you select one ETF over another?The recommended ETFs for MarketRiders portfolios have very low expense ratios and turnover. The average expense ratio is 0.17 percent per year. In addition, and as important, they are chosen based upon how well they index a particular asset class. For example, for various reasons, we use an ETF that reflects the S&P 600 Small Cap index over the Russell 2000 for indexing small US companies. Read more about this in our Methodology section.How often do I need to rebalance?It depends upon you. Rebalancing is a function of how you choose to set your alert function and how volatile the market is. We set our defaults so that in a typical market you'll be alerted 2-4 times yearly. In addition, if you tell us that you want to add or withdraw from your portfolio, MarketRiders will send you a list of how many shares of each ETF to buy or sell so your portfolio will be rebalanced.Our software triggers an alert when the percentage of an ETF, asset class, or whole portfolio is out of balance-- not based upon a scheduled interval of time. Want to be kept apprised about the slightest movement in your portfolio? Then increase the frequency of these alerts by moving the slider towards setting "6" to send an alert when an ETF gets out of balance. Want to just focus on the big picture? Then set the slider towards "1" to send you an alert when the whole portfolio gets out of balance. Read more about this in our Methodology section. Is MarketRiders a market timing system?No. MarketRiders embodies a buy and hold and rebalance strategy that enables one to hold to their asset allocation over time. The recommended allocations are a direct result of how the questions are answered, not a function of how the market is currently performing. Our system does not attempt to time the market yet recommends rebalancing to keep to your target asset allocation. Read more about this in our Methodology section.About the MarketRiders ServiceWho holds my money when I use MarketRiders?You do. Pick any online discount broker that you wish and open up an account for your portfolio. We'll tell you the ETFs to buy and the number of shares. Once you've bought those ETFs at your online broker, input your trades into our system, we'll track the portfolio for you and send you alerts if you need to make a change.How easy is MarketRiders? I'm a beginner.In 1990, millions of people thought they needed a CPA to do their taxes. Today, they use TurboTax. Today, most investors think they need help investing, but MarketRiders is like TurboTax for investors. It replaces the need for expensive help.If you take control of the process yourself then over time the stress goes away, you're in control, and you find it doesn't require any genius or training. In 10 minutes and 3 steps, we will show you how to replace your stocks, mutual funds and your financial adviser. I'm busy. How much time does MarketRiders take?That's the beauty of MarketRiders - it takes as little as one hour to get your portfolio built and purchased at your online broker and another one or two hours a year to keep it rebalanced. If you are really interested in trading your portfolio actively, MarketRiders can accommodate the needs of professionals with its advanced features.How often do I receive statements and reports?We email a monthly statement for each portfolio and send rebalancing alerts whenever an alert is triggered. If you do not rebalance your portfolio, you will continue getting that alert every 30 days. MarketRiders has a sophisticated report function where you can look at your portfolio's performance in a variety of ways.I already own an ETF portfolio. Can I manage it with MarketRiders?Yes, you can easily enter, track and rebalance your existing ETF portfolio. Once you enter your ETFs we'll show you the implicit asset allocation with your current portfolio. If you adjust your allocations, we'll send you the trades you need to make.I have taxable and non-taxable accounts. Can I manage it all with MarketRiders?Yes, you can build one portfolio and fund it from both taxable and non-taxable accounts or you can build mirror portfolios for each account- IRA and non-IRA. Oftentimes members will build one portfolio, allocate it proportionally to each account and then rebalance from within the larger non-taxable account. If you need guidance on this, we offer a coaching service that can work with you to evaluate your situation and build you a custom portfolio.Can I use MarketRiders with a company 401K plan?Every employer provides its employees with a specific and limited number of investment choices in a 401K plan. If your company's plan allows you to manage your own 401K through a brokerage account and buy ETF in that account, then you can use our system. Check with your company to understand your plan's guidelines.What is the minimum size portfolio needed to get started?We want you to understand investment fees and learn how to keep them low. If your account is under $25,000, we recommend that you use Schwab, Fidelity or Vanguard where you can build and manage an ETF portfolio without commissions. We offer portfolios specifically designed for these online brokers so that you can save on commissions when you buy and rebalance your portfolio.What will my total investment fees be?ETF funds have operating costs that are expressed as an expense ratio in each fund's prospectus. We calculate these fees for you with each of our portfolios. A typical MarketRiders portfolio, built with low cost ETFs, averages fund fees of .17% versus on average 1.5% for a mutual fund. Our subscription fee is $9.95 per month or $99.95 per year. There are trading commissions to rebalance your 6-12 ETF portfolio 4 times per year at $10 per trade, unless you are taking advantage of commission-free trading with an online broker like Schwab, Fidelity, or Vanguard.
Can I add my mutual funds and stocks into MarketRiders?No. We do not "convert" your current portfolio of mutual funds and stocks to ETFs, nor did we build the capability for you to enter these positions into our system. This is because we follow a strict methodology that ensures your portfolio has precise allocations to the specific asset classes that are best for you. We can't achieve the necessary precision with mutual funds and stocks - only with ETFs. In addition, as your positions move away from their targets, we send you rebalancing instructions. Mixing mutual funds and stocks into a portfolio prevents us from delivering rebalancing instructions. We don't want to sound inflexible, but if you want to take advantage of our methodology and easy-to-use software, we require that you invest in an all-ETF portfolio.Building and Managing My PortfolioHow do I build a MarketRiders ETF portfolio?MarketRiders has 2 "modes" to build an ETF portfolio. With the first mode, "Build it for Me," we build a portfolio for you. Based upon your answers to our questions, our algorithms automatically fit a portfolio to your needs. Alternatively, you can also use the power tool features of "I Want To Build It" to build a custom ETF portfolio using nearly every available ETF (about 1000) divided into 10 asset classes. Watch this video to learn more.I made a mistake entering trades or my portfolio is not right. How do I adjust this?There are several ways. First, you can delete the portfolio and build another one. Second, if you made a mistake when you initially entered the prices you paid for your portfolio, you can correct these mistakes by clicking on "Change Entries" on your dashboard. Third, you can click on "Make Manual Entries" and buy or sell ETFs to make your balances accurate. This is helpful if you've received dividends from a DRIP plan.How does your system account for dividends?From the dashboard when you click My Portfolio, you can either click on the portfolio's name, or on "View Activity." You will then see the portfolio and its returns. We show how much you've received in dividends this year in the "YTD Dividends" column.Can I use automated dividend reinvestment with MarketRiders?We don't recommend automated dividend reinvestment, rather it is best to have your dividends be in cash so you can rebalance your portfolio as needed to meet your target asset allocation. If you choose to use an automated dividend reinvestment program, then periodically, you will have to manually add the shares received through the program by clicking on "Make Manual Entries."Trusting MarketRidersWhy should I trust MarketRiders over any other investment website?MarketRiders is fundamentally based around the opposite principle of every other investment website because we're in the business of driving down your investment fees, not trying to sell you new ways to "beat the market." We do this by providing you with software that replaces a highly paid financial adviser and an arsenal of mutual funds. MarketRiders wasn't created to mine your pocketbooks. In fact, it's to do the opposite -- to make a difference and help people grow their nest eggs quickly and safely. Our service costs less than the fees invested in a $10,000 average mutual fund, or a couple hours spent with your CPA - no matter how much money you have invested. When you have the right asset mix, hold the right funds representing those asset classes, and keep total investment cost very low, you have a much higher probability of outperforming others who are trying to beat the market. That is what MarketRiders is all about.Do you profit by recommending certain ETFs?No. We have no affiliation with any financial institution or ETF provider, nor would we accept any affiliation opportunity that would bias this site or our recommendations in any way.Which online discount broker do you recommend and do you profit?MarketRiders doesn't offer brokerage services. Because of our philosophy, a broker is just a place to deposit your portfolio. We direct you on what trades to make in an online brokerage account. We track and manage your portfolio outside of the broker account. We do not make any money from any broker nor do we have any affiliations with online brokers.What happens to my personal information? Who owns it?Amounts invested in your portfolio are NEVER disclosed. We will aggregate community information regarding portfolio allocations and trends for the community to see and this is owned by MarketRiders. Please read our Privacy Policy.Other Investor ServicesCan MarketRiders manage my portfolio for me?Many of our members aren't yet comfortable being "do-it-yourself" investors. We manage IRAs (Individual Retirement Accounts) for a low fixed annual fee no matter what size your account is. It's a great way to get started with MarketRiders and eventually you might feel comfortable enough to take over the account yourself. We can set you up in 15 minutes over the phone. Click here to learn more.Alternatively, if you have more complex requirements, we'd be happy to refer you to firms like Portfolio Solutions who can help you execute a similar strategy. I want to do it myself, but do you offer help getting started?You can have one of our registered investment advisors help you get started using MarketRiders. We'll take you through a 5-step process that includes taking an inventory of your investments and helping you build, buy and rebalance your MarketRiders portfolios. You'll be up and running in no time! Click here to learn more.Technical IssuesHow do I sign up for the 30-day Free Trial?First, you must set up a MarketRiders account by giving us your name, email address and password by clicking here. Once you have done that, you must complete the registration process by entering your billing information. You will be asked to:
Once you've done that, you are now ready to create your portfolio. How do I change my credit card on file for my MarketRiders subscription?Go into your MarketRiders account under 'My Account' in the upper right corner and click 'Manage my subscription.'How do I change my MarketRiders subscription plan from Monthly to Yearly?Go into your MarketRiders account under 'My Account' in the upper right corner and click 'Manage my subscription.' On this page, 'Cancel My Subscription' and you will be provided with a link to resubscribe indicating 'Yearly' as your new subscription plan choice. Your credit card will be billed on your next billing date, for the entire year.If I already own an ETF portfolio, will MarketRiders assess my current allocation and recommend changes?If you currently have a portfolio of ETFs, we suggest you enter these ETFs using the 'Let Me Build It' method. In Step 1 of 5, you'll click on the last radio button and enter your own ETFs. Once you do this, we will show you what your asset allocation is. You can then see what our recommended allocations would be for you by creating a portfolio using the 'Build It For Me' method and comparing your portfolio with our recommended one. If you'd like to adjust your current ETF portfolio click on 'Change Target %'s or ETFs' from the dashboard to change your existing ETF portfolio.Can you manage multiple portfolios with one MarketRiders account?Yes, you can build up to 10 portfolios in your MarketRiders account and manage them all with MarketRiders for one membership fee.When do you update the prices of my ETFs?They are updated daily at 9PM EST. Since we are not a trading platform, and we don't encourage active trading, we find a daily update more than sufficient to track a portfolio as well as monitor it for rebalancing. To see real time pricing of your portfolio, go to your online brokerage account. |
