Exchange-traded funds (ETFs) can make it easy to gain exposure to a large or small section of the market. But one thing investors should be careful of are fees. High fees can chip away into your overall returns, especially over the long term. If you’re looking at an ETF to hold for years, you should prioritize one which has a low expense ratio.

To follow the Canadian market, the iShares Core S&P/TSX Capped Composite Index ETF (TSX:XIC) can be an excellent option. It invests in the entire Canadian market and it has a management expense ratio of just 0.06%. The top holdings in the fund are the biggest stocks on the TSX, including Royal Bank of Canada (TSX:RY)(NYSE:RY), Shopify (TSX:SHOP)(NYSE:SHOP), and Toronto-Dominion Bank (TSX:TD)(NYSE:TD). Together, these three stocks make up around 16% of the ETF’s total holdings.

With a yield of around 2.5%, investors will also collect a fairly high distribution from the fund, giving those who hold it inside of a tax-free savings account (TFSA) plenty of incentive to hang on to it for years – to collect not just a great payout but benefit from the fund’s long-term appreciation.

This year, the ETF has risen by 19% and over a five-year stretch it’s up by 45%. At a time when U.S. equities look dangerously overvalued, TFSA investors may want to focus on the Canadian market, where there could be more of an opportunity to earn a good return. The ETF averages a modest price-to-earnings ratio of around 20, which can make it a solid value buy.

COMTEX_459928937/2559/2024-11-18T11:13:00