“Don’t even think about it.” That’s what I would like to say to anybody who is drawn to these funds due to their prodigious tax-saving opportunities. When I was working at a discount brokerage, there seemed to be regular inquiries about these products from people who...
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When I was a teenager, some of my acquaintances dropped out of high school. In B.C., where I grew up, the rule was that you had to be at least 16 years old to make that choice. I suspect that far fewer make that choice...
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Affordable housing is a huge issue in household finance these days. Prices have increased to ridiculous levels. Governments are under pressure to address this situation, even though they are being pulled in two directions. On one hand, the real estate industry is a major part...
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You have an elderly widowed neighbour. You know her so well that she asked you to be the executor of her will some years ago, shortly after her husband died. Recently, you have noticed a few changes in her lifestyle. She is full of excitement...
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Give it away, give it away, give it away now Give it away, give it away, give it away now Give it away, give it away, give it away now* You have reached a level of wealth that gives you a sense of contentment. You are confident that...
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I will admit to a bit of a love-hate relationship with life insurance. On the one hand, insurance is almost always appropriate to buy at some time in your life. On the other hand, as someone with a chronic health condition, kidney disease, I couldn’t...
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While avoiding direct military engagement with Russian military forces, governments around the world have enacted a variety of sanctions that have significantly harmed Russia’s economic circumstances. Russia’s stock market has been closed since February 25, 2022. Russia has generally been included in emerging markets indices....
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In my student days, I remember an ethics professor saying something to the effect of, “That which is not prohibited is permitted.” Of course, one pithy sentence does not exactly provide the full range of nuance that was elaborated on over the semesters that I...
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In years gone by, many people sought a job that would provide the proverbial “gold-plated” pension plan, by which was meant a defined benefit pension, what one might refer to as a “true” pension. That is, once you retired, you would get guaranteed, possibly inflation-protected,...
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As sure as the snow will inevitably melt away in the spring, so will a portion of our income as it is paid to the Canada Revenue Agency. Many employed people will have overpaid their income taxes in the course of the year and are...
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