A Registered Retirement Income Fund (RRIF) is an extension of the RRSP. On December 31st of the year you reach age 71, you’re required to do one (or all) of three things with the funds in your RRSP:Withdraw all funds in your RRSP as cash. With this option, the entire amount withdrawn is immediately taxable by Canada Revenue Agency. Use the funds to buy an annuity. You will receive an … [Read more...]
5 Ways To Save Up For Your Down Payment
Planning to buy a home in Canada? Plan to start saving early!The average price of a home in Canada climbed to $504,458 in June 2017, a 0.4% increase over the previous year. While average prices vary across provinces, the general trend for prices has been up. New home buyers will require a fairly hefty sum of money in down payment if they are planning on getting a traditional or conventional … [Read more...]
How To Avoid Pesky Canadian Bank Fees
Canadian banks and their never ending bank fees! Every year, we hear of banks increasing their fees and blaming it all on the "competitive nature" of the market, rising costs, inflation, and so on.Banks are expected to seek the highest possible profit (while operating within the confines of the law) for their shareholders, and they have been doing a great job at that, with stock prices, … [Read more...]
CPP vs. OAS: How Do They Compare?
As older Canadians near retirement, an understanding of pension and other retirement benefits become very important.Questions that are often asked include:What is the difference between Old Age Security and Canada Pension Plan? How much can I expect in pension or retirement benefits? Should I elect to take CPP early, or should I delay it by a few years? What can affect my … [Read more...]
RRSP Transfers Explained
There are several scenarios where you may need to move your RRSP assets around. For example, this could be because you want to move your RRSP to another financial institution and a new RRSP account or it could be that you have just turned 71 and your RRSP account has matured and needs to be converted to an annuity or RRIF.Alternatively, changes to your RRSP may be as a result of adding assets … [Read more...]
CPP and OAS Benefits for Surviving Spouse and Children
What retirement benefits are available to survivors after the death of a spouse, common-law partner, or parent?If the deceased contributed to the Canada Pension Plan (CPP), survivors may qualify for benefits including the CPP Death benefit, Survivor’s pension, and Children’s benefits. A surviving spouse may also qualify for Old Age Security (OAS) payments in the form of a benefit referred to … [Read more...]
Buying vs. Leasing a New Car
Canadians love new cars. With the prevailing low interest rates, car dealerships had a record sale of 1.948 million vehicles in Canada in 2016, an increase of 2.7% compared to 2015.Data from November 2016 show that the average sales price for cars and light trucks in Canada was $38,800, more than 6% higher than the year before.With respect to buying vs. Leasing, the average monthly car … [Read more...]