If you miss the RRSP contribution deadline, fret not. You’ve lost the opportunity to claim any additional RRSP contributions for the tax year, but you have not lost the ability to tap into that room in the future. Imagine that. You don’t always lose what you don’t use! Since 1991 when CRA capped how much …
Picture it. New Year’s Eve. 2013. A couple of friends and I were sitting around doing what most people do on this night: making resolutions. And – like the vast majority of you out there – getting “healthy” (i.e.; losing weight and inches) was tops on our list. As anyone who has ever attended a …
Regular readers of this blog will know I am not much of a shopper. With the exception of the gift closet I kept stocked when both my children were in daycare and we were averaging two birthday parties a week, I usually buy things as I need them. I am not a shopper, but I …
Readers of this blog would know that I am a Mom. My children have been my greatest joys and my best teachers since the day they were born. And – if I’m being totally honest – they have also been the biggest financial commitments I have ever made. Spoiler alert: having children is expensive. In …
Investment trends can be so fickle sometimes, it scares me. In the early 1990’s, RRSPs (and more specifically, RRSP Loans) were all the rage. Every bank was pushing them and every tax payer wanted to get in on the action. It was so easy to get caught up in the hype that few of us …
If you are a parent of a young child, you need an education savings plan. Period. As a Financial Advisor, my answer to most financial questions is often, “It depends.” However, on this point, I do not waiver. Yet with all the other demands on our cash flow, many struggle to free up the recommended …
I’m going to come clean before you read another word. This month’s post falls under the category of “blatant sales pitch.” Normally I do not promote any one specific company or its products. Instead, my main objective is always to introduce my readers to financial concepts, often wrapped around stories to which we can all …
I’ve got good news and bad news. Which one do you want first? I agree. Let’s get the bad news out of the way. According to the Canadian Cancer Society, 2 out of 5 Canadians – that’s 46% of men and 41% of women – are expected to develop cancer during their lifetimes.* The good …
I’ve been thinking a lot lately about the concept of abundance. Not in the “I’m so grateful that my life is so full” sort of way, but more in the “I’m completely overwhelmed by how full my closets are” sort of way. I suspect I’m not the only one who has ever felt this way. …
Most will agree that the decision to purchase a home is often an exhilarating, overwhelming and expensive one. And with repayment timelines (aka: amortization periods) lasting longer than most marriages do these days, it is not a commitment to be entered into lightly. It’s also not surprising that most people choose to protect themselves and …
When it comes to financial planning and money management, my mother could teach us all a thing or two. Of course, she herself would strongly disagree with that statement. In fact, financial affairs and money often intimidate her and leave her feeling a little, well…how to say this…well, just plain stupid! Yet as much as …