Articles

Ninety percent of Canadians plan to rely on the Canada Pension Plan (CPP) during retirement. Just under one-third expect to rely heavily on that income source despite the monthly average payout of only around $600 per month. This information was taken from the BMO Financial Group’s Registered Retirement Savings Plan study released at the end … Don’t wait to plan your retirement income needs

Banks can be both good and bad depending on your perspective. To some, the banks are both good and bad. Over the years my impression about how Canadians perceive banks is that they have a love-hate relationship with these institutions. People complain about ongoing bank charges but respect and admire their financial strength and reputation. … Look for good value when shopping for banking services

Investment advisors who were secretly videotaped got a failing grade. Their advice was often wrong or misleading and there appeared to be a conflict of interest. The CBC television show Marketplace aired a program last week about the quality and accuracy of recommendations given by various financial advisors. A woman posing as an investor with … Bad investment advice still is all too common in today’s financial world

An Olympic gold for men’s hockey on Sunday for many Canadians was the highlight of the winter games. Mission accomplished. It was an aggressively lofty goal to repeat back-to-back gold medals in our sport because so many other counties are skilled in the game of hockey. While we celebrate our success we recognize that it … Olympic-win formula can be applied to financial planning

Canada and other countries around the world fight crime and terrorism by monitoring economic activity. That is now becoming more difficult with the creation of a virtual currency known as bitcoin. Bitcoin came into existence in 2009. It is a form of electronic cash (ecash) that operates differently from conventional currencies that are created by … New government regulation takes aim at bitcoin currency

The Tax-Free Savings Account (TFSA) is a tremendous way to invest. As good as it is there are things to consider so “buyer beware”. This word of caution comes from our observation that many people completely misuse this investment option costing investors significant tax savings. The TFSA was introduced by the federal government in 2009 … Investors should optimize on wide range of TFSA options