One of the top retirement goals for many is travel. As many as 1.5 million so called “snowbirds” travel to the Southern United States during the winter. With summer just around the corner, thoughts turn to travel within our borders, too. The Canada Safety Council states that a few simple
Since their introduction in 1957 as an incentive to save for retirement, Registered Retirement Savings Plans (RRSPs) have evolved into the most popular savings vehicles in Canada. All too often, though, RRSP decisions are made in a panic to meet a deadline, with little or no planning or understanding of
Maureen, age 20, figures she can save $400 each month; or she can keep frittering it away at the mall. She lives with her parents and they think she should save it. Dad says, “Put it into an RRSP and get a tax break as well.” Her friends think RRSPs
Convert RRSPs to income – Roger and Sarah, retired for several years, have delayed taking income from their RRSPs so they could enjoy the tax deferred growth as long as possible. They must start an income from their RRSPs before the end of the year they turn age 71.
For years, you have been anticipating that last day at work. When it finally arrives, will it live up to your expectations? Retirement looks different in everyone’s imagination. For some, it means never wearing a tie again – for any reason. For others, it means traveling the world in
Retirement used to mean a gold watch, a pension and spending time on hobbies or new pastimes. For some this may still be true, but times have changed and there are new realities that will affect how retirement will look in the future. The largest segment of the population
Increasingly consumers in major Canadian cities such as Calgary, Edmonton, Vancouver or Toronto, are faced with a dilemma of how to best manage their cash flow in the face of record mortgage and consumer debt. A February poll by CIBC asked Canadians whether, if they had extra funds they
Most people list tax elimination or minimization as a top priority in their estate plans. For most, Registered Savings Plans (RSPs), which includes RRSPs and RRIFs, are one of their most significant assets. Most RSP accounts hold investment funds or securities that are very liquid, often accessible within a few
Gordon and Anne lived in the same house for over 30 years. Now that their children are grown and it was becoming more difficult for them to manage the house, they decided to downsize. Here is what Gordon and Anne did to get the best price they could when they
With the RRSP contribution deadline of March 2nd fast approaching many people will reflexively make a deposit to their RRSP. Many will use online banking to throw money into the RRSP at the last minute vowing to figure out how to invest it later. But life gets in the way
In this, the final installment of the series, Financial Strategies Simplified, we take a look at how to stretch your retirement income no matter how modest the starting balance. There is a common misconception amongst clients that the day they retire their approach to investing and managing their RRSPs
The so-called RRSP Season is on its way. TV, newspapers and magazines will soon be full of advertising to get you to make your last-minute RRSP deposits. And then RRSPs and retirement planning are often forgotten until the next deadline. But a little advance planning will get you more from
In our previous article, we looked at how seniors generally wish to invest their money to feel safe while in reality their expenses rise throughout their retirement years as the cost of various services, such as hydro and property taxes, typically increase annually. ( See graph at bottom )
It is that time of year again when attention turns to RRSPs and tax planning. This year’s contribution deadline is March 3rd, 2014 if you want to deduct the contribution against your 2013 income tax return. The purpose for making an RRSP contribution, from a financial strategy perspective, is
In the mid – 1960s conventional wisdom or motherhood for retirement planning said that you should take all of your investments and put them into government bonds or fixed income type products. The thinking was that you could not afford to take any ‘risk’ in your retirement years. Thus it
Canadians are living longer, healthier lives. According to Statistics Canada (2017), the average life expectancy is 80 years for men and 84 years for women. This means your retirement years may almost equal your working ones. Family therapist Rhonda Katz suggests taking some time before retirement to identify what you
Tax Free Savings Accounts (TFSAs) were introduced in 2009 and they seem to be struggling to catch on. Registered Retirement Savings Plans (RRSPs), however, have been around for over fifty years and attract billions of dollars of deposits each year. If you are serious about saving for your future, it
With so many doom & gloom news headlines, it is refreshing to know Canadians can still get very low fixed rate mortgages. A recent Financial Post article (March 9, 2012) explains that with big banks competing strongly for new mortgage business, now is a great time for Canadians to refinance
In a 2010 report to the Minister of Finance, it was found that approximately 160,000 Canadian seniors were not aware of the full range of benefits they were entitled to in their retirement years. In fact, nearly $1 billion in retirement benefits from the Canada Pension Plan (CPP), Old Age
On May 25, 2009 Finance Canada announced some proposed changes to how Canada Pension Plan will work. If approved, the changes will take effect over a period of time from 2011 to 2016, so they will affect anyone planning to retire after 2010. Below is a brief summary
Ralph and Louise have seen the TV commercials featuring Gordon Pape, the financial author, as the spokesman for Canadian Home Income Plan Corp. (CHIP) reverse mortgages. They were wondering if it would be a good way to go to help ease their current financial situation. A reverse mortgage is
Roger and Linda are approaching their retirement. With continuing volatility in the markets, they are concerned about what effect a market downturn in the few years leading up to or just after retirement would have on their income. They also think that GIC investments would not protect their retirement income
One of the top retirement goals for many is travel. As many as 1.5 million so called “snowbirds” travel to the Southern United States during the winter. With summer just around the corner, thoughts turn to travel within our borders, too. The Canada Safety Council states that a few simple
Since their introduction in 1957 as an incentive to save for retirement, Registered Retirement Savings Plans (RRSPs) have evolved into the most popular savings vehicles in Canada. All too often, though, RRSP decisions are made in a panic to meet a deadline, with little or no planning or understanding of
Maureen, age 20, figures she can save $400 each month; or she can keep frittering it away at the mall. She lives with her parents and they think she should save it. Dad says, “Put it into an RRSP and get a tax break as well.” Her friends think RRSPs
Convert RRSPs to income – Roger and Sarah, retired for several years, have delayed taking income from their RRSPs so they could enjoy the tax deferred growth as long as possible. They must start an income from their RRSPs before the end of the year they turn age 71.
For years, you have been anticipating that last day at work. When it finally arrives, will it live up to your expectations? Retirement looks different in everyone’s imagination. For some, it means never wearing a tie again – for any reason. For others, it means traveling the world in
Retirement used to mean a gold watch, a pension and spending time on hobbies or new pastimes. For some this may still be true, but times have changed and there are new realities that will affect how retirement will look in the future. The largest segment of the population
Increasingly consumers in major Canadian cities such as Calgary, Edmonton, Vancouver or Toronto, are faced with a dilemma of how to best manage their cash flow in the face of record mortgage and consumer debt. A February poll by CIBC asked Canadians whether, if they had extra funds they
Most people list tax elimination or minimization as a top priority in their estate plans. For most, Registered Savings Plans (RSPs), which includes RRSPs and RRIFs, are one of their most significant assets. Most RSP accounts hold investment funds or securities that are very liquid, often accessible within a few
Gordon and Anne lived in the same house for over 30 years. Now that their children are grown and it was becoming more difficult for them to manage the house, they decided to downsize. Here is what Gordon and Anne did to get the best price they could when they
With the RRSP contribution deadline of March 2nd fast approaching many people will reflexively make a deposit to their RRSP. Many will use online banking to throw money into the RRSP at the last minute vowing to figure out how to invest it later. But life gets in the way
In this, the final installment of the series, Financial Strategies Simplified, we take a look at how to stretch your retirement income no matter how modest the starting balance. There is a common misconception amongst clients that the day they retire their approach to investing and managing their RRSPs
The so-called RRSP Season is on its way. TV, newspapers and magazines will soon be full of advertising to get you to make your last-minute RRSP deposits. And then RRSPs and retirement planning are often forgotten until the next deadline. But a little advance planning will get you more from
In our previous article, we looked at how seniors generally wish to invest their money to feel safe while in reality their expenses rise throughout their retirement years as the cost of various services, such as hydro and property taxes, typically increase annually. ( See graph at bottom )
It is that time of year again when attention turns to RRSPs and tax planning. This year’s contribution deadline is March 3rd, 2014 if you want to deduct the contribution against your 2013 income tax return. The purpose for making an RRSP contribution, from a financial strategy perspective, is
In the mid – 1960s conventional wisdom or motherhood for retirement planning said that you should take all of your investments and put them into government bonds or fixed income type products. The thinking was that you could not afford to take any ‘risk’ in your retirement years. Thus it
Canadians are living longer, healthier lives. According to Statistics Canada (2017), the average life expectancy is 80 years for men and 84 years for women. This means your retirement years may almost equal your working ones. Family therapist Rhonda Katz suggests taking some time before retirement to identify what you
Tax Free Savings Accounts (TFSAs) were introduced in 2009 and they seem to be struggling to catch on. Registered Retirement Savings Plans (RRSPs), however, have been around for over fifty years and attract billions of dollars of deposits each year. If you are serious about saving for your future, it
With so many doom & gloom news headlines, it is refreshing to know Canadians can still get very low fixed rate mortgages. A recent Financial Post article (March 9, 2012) explains that with big banks competing strongly for new mortgage business, now is a great time for Canadians to refinance
In a 2010 report to the Minister of Finance, it was found that approximately 160,000 Canadian seniors were not aware of the full range of benefits they were entitled to in their retirement years. In fact, nearly $1 billion in retirement benefits from the Canada Pension Plan (CPP), Old Age
On May 25, 2009 Finance Canada announced some proposed changes to how Canada Pension Plan will work. If approved, the changes will take effect over a period of time from 2011 to 2016, so they will affect anyone planning to retire after 2010. Below is a brief summary
Ralph and Louise have seen the TV commercials featuring Gordon Pape, the financial author, as the spokesman for Canadian Home Income Plan Corp. (CHIP) reverse mortgages. They were wondering if it would be a good way to go to help ease their current financial situation. A reverse mortgage is
Roger and Linda are approaching their retirement. With continuing volatility in the markets, they are concerned about what effect a market downturn in the few years leading up to or just after retirement would have on their income. They also think that GIC investments would not protect their retirement income