Individual pension plans ideal for professionals, executives, business owners If you’re a high-bracket professional, executive, or businessperson, and you’ve maxed out your RRSP, you may be surprised to learn that there are other tax-efficient retirement plans...
How to withdraw funds for post-secondary expenses If you have kids going off to college or university this fall, and you’ve accumulated substantial savings in a Registered Education Savings Plan, now’s the time to tap into those funds. But you won’t be able to use...
Making the most of the sweet spot in your financial life Graduation from college or university is an exciting time. But it can also be unsettling. If you have student loans, you’ll need to start paying those off. You can’t pay them off by, say, “travelling” for a...
It’s not too late, provided you follow five basic rules Q – My husband and I are in our mid-40s, with two teenage children. We now own our home free and clear. Because we’ve been diligent about paying off our mortgage, with bi-weekly payments and annual...
What you need to know for RRSP success Should you contribute to a Registered Retirement Savings Plans (RRSPs)? With Tax-Free Savings Accounts (TFSAs) becoming more popular, there’s a fierce debate among the experts on the relative merits of each type of account....
The remedy for financial overindulgence Every year around this time, I’m asked how to overcome the seasonal spending disorder that grips a large part of the population. But there is a remedy, and it doesn’t involve laborious budgets and daily penny-counting....
3 key principles of Madonna’s pop star staying power Long-time pop queen Madonna really hit the big time with the debut of her second album “Like a Virgin.” That was 30 years ago, and she’s been a pop celebrity ever since. Success like that is tough to replicate....
How bank deposits are costing you and what to do about it Thinking of saving a few bucks with your local bank? Forget it! The days of putting a little something aside in your “savings” account are long gone. That’s because these days, you’re earning just about...
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...
Permanent life policies pitch savings growth... at a price If you’ve ever shopped for life insurance, you’ll know you can quickly get tangled up in a thicket of plans, policies, terms, exclusions, riders, benefits, and all the other paraphernalia that comes with...
You may have more than you think “I don’t have any money!” Sound familiar? That’s the reason most often cited for not contributing to a Registered Retirement Savings Plan. And it does seem like a problem, especially if you’re living paycheque to paycheque (and...
Maybe it should be more than just cash Do you know what you have in your RRSP? I don’t mean how much money; I mean what kinds of investments. If you answered “guaranteed investment certificates” or “cash savings account,” welcome to the very large club! If so,...