Can I afford to retire? It was a beautiful May morning when I next saw Rachel and Mike. Rachel was carrying a large gift-wrapped box.
“This is for you,” she said, smiling and handing the box to me. “Thank you,” I said, pleasantly surprised.
I wrote this book for one simple reason: to help Canadians retire smarter, richer and happier. Over the years, I’ve had the pleasure of meeting many hard-working people from all walks of life, and far too many of them wonder if they can ever afford to retire.
While some may regard retirement as a key moment in their financial journey, it’s not an event but a process, says veteran financial advisor Clay Gillespie in a new book.
In the year you turn age 71, you must convert your RRSP funds to a RRIF, annuity, or cash out. Converted to a RRIF, the plan must pay out a minimum of 7.38% of the value on January 1st.
When dealing with the estate planning of a family business, it is particularly important to consider the issue of estate equalization. One of the common objectives in a family business succession plan is to treat the children fairly and/or equally.
Investing today is not for the faint of heart. Fortunately for Canadians, segregated fund products offered by many life insurance companies provide a safety net for nervous investors.
Many of us set New Year’s resolutions for ourselves and often those resolutions have to do with finances. January is the month we say, “Ok, this year I am going to save more and spend less”. By February, sometimes those resolutions are long forgotten.
For many Canadians, the majority of their wealth is held in personally-owned real estate. For most, this will be limited to their principal residence; however, investment in recreational and real estate investment property also form a substantial part of estates. Due to the nature of real estate, it is important to do estate planning to realize optimum gain and minimize tax implications.
In November, the Department of Finance finalized their changes to the taxation of life insurance as previewed in the March 2013 Federal Budget. These changes resulted in an update to the “exempt test” which determines how much tax-deferred value can accumulate in a life insurance policy before it is subject to accrual taxation. The new rules take effect and will apply to policies issued January 1, 2016 and later.
If you have a desire to make a donation to your favourite charity, you might want to investigate how significant bequests can be made using life insurance on your life. Generally, strategies utilizing life insurance for charitable purposes fall into two categories:
