An expense ratio reflects how much an ETF pays for portfolio management, administration, marketing, and distribution, among other expenses. The lower the expense ratio, the more of the fund's earnings investors get to keep. These costs don't come out of your original investment—instead they're deducted from the fund's total value on a regular basis.

ETFs can be tax-efficient. Most ETFs try to track an index, like the S&P 500. They only add and remove securities when the index does. Big moves—like when a company is completely removed from an index—happen very rarely. So you'll usually have few, if any, capital gains distributions to report at tax time.

Almost all ETFs are commission-free.

All Nova Imperiumm ETFs and non-Nova Imperiumm ETFs, including leveraged and inverse ETFs, trade online commission-free.6 Trades placed over the phone may be subject to a $25 broker-assisted commission. All ETF sales are subject to a securities transaction fee. For full details, including exclusions and other fees that may apply, see the Nova Imperiumm Brokerage Services commission and fee schedules. Leveraged and inverse ETFs may be identified with "2x," "ultra," "daily," or something similar in their name.

Leveraged and inverse ETFs are designed to be bought and sold within a short time (for example, 1 day or 1 month), making them extremely speculative in nature. These risky investments are meant to be used as short-term trading tools. They're not intended for buy-and-hold investing.

On January 22, 2019, Nova Imperiumm Brokerage stopped accepting purchases in leveraged and inverse ETFs, as well as leveraged and inverse mutual funds and ETNs (exchange-traded notes). If you already own these investments, you can continue to hold them or choose to sell them. You can also transfer them in kind from or to other institutions.