The Problem: Sequence Risk Meets Longevity Risk David and Marie are a 65-year-old married couple preparing for retirement. With $1 million spread across Defined Contribution (DC) pensions, RRSPs, TFSAs, and non-registered accounts, they feel a quiet contentment about reaching this financial milestone. However, recent events have...
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The Problem Nobody Sees Nearly 200,000 pension plan members in Ontario alone are “missing,” leaving $3.6 billion in unclaimed assets, according to a report from the National Institute on Ageing.* Who are these “missing pension plan members”? They are individuals entitled to pension benefits but disconnected from...
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In the YouTube video A Day in the Life of a Financial Advisor – Funny or Truth, a woman sits down with a financial advisor, unknowingly burdened with misconceptions and a dose of naïveté about personal finance. Her questions and concerns provide a helpful reflection...
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The Income and Wealth Gap The Context An unattached Canadian is a person not in an “economic family,” that is, a person living either alone or with others to whom he or she is unrelated, such as roommates or a lodger. Unattached Canadians are a growing demographic...
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Will Your Estate Plan Protect Your Family’s Future? Picture this—a couple, David and Marie, both age 65, living in Ontario. They’ve worked hard all their lives, raised four children, and saved diligently for retirement. Over and above their expectations for income from CPP and OAS, they’ve...
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As my wife and I approach retirement age, conversations about what’s next are becoming more frequent. While we think about retirement in general, I, as the primary “wealth manager” in our household, also reflect on when it might be time to step back from managing...
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The Canada Pension Plan (CPP) is often debated, with some Canadians feeling that it unfairly penalizes those who die before they can fully collect its benefits. Critics of CPP argue that mandatory contributions, when considering the possibility of early death, result in a system where...
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I follow a few Facebook pages that have to do with personal finance, retirement, etc. In a post, a man I’ll call Alan is 35 years old and has recently received a $100,000 inheritance that he hopes to use to build up his retirement savings....
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Saving for Retirement is Easy; Spending in Retirement – Not So Much You have been saving for retirement all your life. If you are a resident of Canada, you have been building up credits toward receiving Old Age Security (OAS). If you have been employed, you...
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“Would it surprise you to know the number is $1.7 million?” You may be familiar with the commercial from Qtrade, the Vancouver-based online investment platform that partners with most of the credit unions in Canada. An interviewer asks a series of people on the streets what...
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