Brokerage will definitely have an adverse impact on your returns.
I can only suggest doing the maths.
VAS has a management fee of .14%.
The unlisted version, which as a minimum buy in of $5,000, has a management fee of .75%.
Obviously the unlisted version is more expensive, and a little bit more than you are looking to invest, but it may work out cheaper if you are wishing to make regular deposits.
I also invest monthly and have found I am much better off in the unlisted fund than the ETF. Brokerage is a significant impediment.
I would also add that for the unlisted fund you also pay brokerage or what is referred to as the buy/sell spread. However, this works out significantly cheaper for smaller regular deposits as its a percentage (.06%) and not a fixed rate like brokerage.
All I can say is you will need to do the maths.
If you are considering dollar cost averaging and seem to be interested in index style funds you could also look into Raiz, Stockspot etc. There are obviously fees for using their services but they can be an easier way to diversify your portfolio.
Investing all your money into Australian equities, if that is what you are looking to do, could be overly aggressive. iShares website has a nice tool that asks a few simple questions and then allocates a diversified portfolio using a range of ETFs.
I am sure the more you research you will learn the great debates between active and passive investment...
P.S. VAS has an envious track record and most definitely does not result in a zero sum gain.
