First steps to financial literacy Life insurance and related products come in many different variations. These include life insurance policies, segregated funds, and annuities. Sometimes, it seems, there are too many variations, most of them confusing and seemingly...
Three basic RRSP maturity options Unlike a Tax-Free Savings Account (TFSA), a Registered Retirement Savings Plan (RRSP) does not last forever. In fact, it has a specific date by which you must collapse the plan and choose one of three main options for what to do...
Is an annuity right for you? As a growing number of Baby Boomers retire, the question of what to do with maturing Registered Retirement Savings Plans is becoming more pressing. RRSPs must be shut down by the end of the year in which you turn 69, and the proceeds...
You must act by Dec. 31! If you turned 71 this year, and you still have an RRSP, you have until Dec. 31 this year to convert it into another type of tax-sheltered plan. If you don’t, the Canada Revenue Agency can take away up to half of whatever is in your RRSP....
“Pensionize” your retirement income Will you outlive your money? That’s the big question a lot of pre-retirees are asking. I am a firm believer in “pensioning your retirement income,” which means creating a secure stream of income from a variety of sources that...
Three ways to use your funds – and how they work Gen-Xers, Gen-Yers, and Millennials should all have RRSPs. Sadly, most do not. The smart ones do, and are taking advantage of the powerful long-term compounding and tax-sheltering benefits of this wonderful...
Insured annuity strategy guarantees an estate too One of the big questions facing new retirees is how to protect your income during retirement while leaving something to children or grandchildren in your will. Straight annuities can provide a guaranteed stream of...
Where’s your retirement income hiding? Where will my retirement income come from? A worryingly large number of higher-tax-bracket individuals I talk to these days ask me that same question. After looking at their Canada Pension Plan payment, perhaps some employer...
Annuities are just one tool in your arsenal One of the first questions many of my high net worth clients ask me is whether they’ll outlive their money. Now, if someone comes to you with $500,000 to $1 million to manage, you’d think they’d be feeling pretty...