Over 25 years ago, I first learned about options trading. I never got around to implementing any such strategies for my accounts, but unexpectedly, I found myself in the investment industry, initially serving U.S. investors at a discount brokerage that had a contact centre here...
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During my time in the discount brokerage world, I encountered individuals whose investment accounts seemed to function more like slot machines or roulette wheels. They would deposit money and bet it all on a single stock, implement aggressive options strategies, or day trade in and...
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Allow me to introduce Daniel—a 32-year-old single man living in Calgary, earning $105,000 per year. He contributes regularly to his TFSA and personal RRSP, and also to a group RRSP through his employer, who matches his contributions via a Deferred Profit Sharing Plan (DPSP). Daniel...
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My first full-time job did not have any benefits. I am aware that in certain careers, a lack of an employer-sponsored retirement saving benefit is the norm, whether a Defined Benefit pension, plan, Defined Contribution pension plan, Group RRSP, or Deferred Profit-Sharing Plan. Nevertheless, for...
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A New Option, or a New Distraction? Periodically, investors are introduced to new asset classes with the promise of improving their portfolios. Lately, “alternatives” and “commodities” have become buzzwords in the world of investment products, sometimes packaged as part of a fund’s “expanded opportunity set,” or...
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You may have heard that the Conservative Party of Canada (CPC) has proposed the introduction of the “Canada First TFSA Top-Up,” a plan to allow Canadians to contribute an extra $5,000 in their Tax-Free Savings Accounts (TFSAs), as long as the amount qualifies as a...
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As I write this on Monday, April 7, 2025, the repercussions of U.S. President Trump’s tariffs continue to roil the stock market. Many readers, especially those in their 50s, 60s, and older, who have likely accumulated significant investment assets over their lives, are probably down...
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The Problem Emerges Margaret's Situation At 75, and recently widowed, Margaret has decided to sell her detached home in British Columbia. She's in good health but wants to eliminate the responsibilities of homeownership. The Dilemma With anticipated net sale proceeds of $800,000, Margaret is faced with a decision about...
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The Unexpected Problem: Nature Risk Our home insurance renews at the end of January every year. In December, we received a document from our insurance broker informing us that the insurance company we had been using for the last several years was removing “overland water (flood)...
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There Are Too Many ETFs It wasn’t that many years ago when I was barely aware that Exchange-Traded Funds (ETFs) existed. After a few years, the benefits of ETFs began to appear. They were a remarkably low-cost way to get broad-market exposure to the world’s investment...
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