It’s simply the single best (legal) way to beat the taxman If you don’t have a Tax-Free Savings Account (TFSA) yet, what’s holding you back? It’s quite possibly the best tax shelter now available to Canadians, and it will only get better over time. Almost everyone is...
Use RESPs and tax credits to offset high tuition costs Getting kids off to that first year of university or college is a big move in more ways than one. It’s exciting and stressful and emotional – and that’s just for the parents! As the universities like to remind us,...
Who are all those people and what do they do? I’m often asked why the financial services industry in Canada isn’t better regulated. After all, we frequently read about some unfortunate investors who were bilked of their life savings by an unscrupulous “advisor” who...
5 questions you should ask yourself about your advisor Finding a financial advisor can be like choosing a flavor from the 56 listed at your local ice cream store. They all sound good, but some are better than others. To help you narrow down your search, here are five...
4 financial planning principles for the soon-to-be-married Many newlywed couples I talk to in my financial planning practice are of the high net worth variety. They are often professionals or executives and each brings to the marriage a fairly robust net worth and...
Calculating your critical illness and disability insurance needs Congratulations! You’re a successful businessperson. You’ve finally achieved that magical HNW designation – that’s “high net worth.” You’re a busy professional, executive, or business owner, and you’re...
High cost, tight restrictions make it poor value for the money You’ve bought a new house, and you’re sitting with the bank’s loans officer ready to sign for that mortgage. Then she casually asks, “Would you like mortgage insurance with that?” Almost like your waiter...
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...
How to prevent inflation evaporation in your portfolio Scottish distillers call the routine evaporation of a small amount of whisky during the distilling process “the angels’ share.” Likewise, inflation is quietly evaporating your retirement nest egg, your investment...
When the holiday-spending credit card bills start coming in this month, some of us will pay off the balance to zero and calmly go on as before. Others – many others – among us will add it to the ever-growing pile of debt, try to make a minimum payment on at least one...
Have you been naughty this holiday season? Financially, at least, many of us tip over to the “naughty” side, overextending our spending and maxing out our credit cards. I won’t get into other kinds of overindulgence here, but you know what they are. With the financial...