Canadian Capitalist

Where does the introduction of TFSA to our savings options leave the RESP? Contributions to both TFSA and RESP are made with after-tax dollars and both offer the benefit of tax-deferred growth. RESPs have the advantage of attracting the CES Grant of at least 20% but the grant and all the growth within the RESP [...]

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Mike from Four Pillars mentioned in a comment that the TFSA offers us a new horse to beat to death because we can now endlessly argue over whether a RRSP is better than a TFSA or does it make more sense to pay down the mortgage instead. In that spirit, let’s first consider the easier [...]

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Budget 2008 does have a sting buried deep in the document and barely mentioned in the mainstream media. In page 290, under the innocuous title of Dividend Tax Credit, the budget states:
The 2007 Economic Statement reduced the general corporate income tax rate to 15 per cent by 2012 and stated that consideration would be given [...]

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The government brochure announcing the introduction of the TFSA calls it “the single most important personal savings vehicle since the introduction of the Registered Retirement Savings Plan (RRSP)”. Unlike the usual hyperbole, the government is probably understating the importance that TFSAs are likely to play in the savings plans of all Canadians.
The TFSA is the [...]

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Finance Minister Jim Flaherty tabled his government’s third budget in Parliament today. The mainstream media has extensive coverage of budget highlights but if you are inclined to read the document yourself (available here), here are my notes of the interesting bits:

Improved management of EI: The government is proposing the creation of a new crown corporation [...]

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Finance Minister Jim Flaherty will rise in the House of Commons to present the minority government’s third budget tomorrow. Mr. Flahrety has set low expectations for the budget, claiming repeatedly that the “cupboard is bare” and not to expect significant tax cuts or spending measures in the budget.
There is some speculation that the budget would [...]

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With recent media reports indicating that the Virgin Group is planning to launch banking in Canada, the already crowded high-interest savings accounts marketplace is about to become more so. Here’s a long list of places where you can now park your cash:

E*Trade Cash Optimizer Account: The discount broker offers 4.15% on Canadian dollar and 2.5% [...]

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David Swensen urges investors to keep it simple in an article in The New York Times.
Financial Advisors talk about the worst RRSP mistakes they’ve seen.
James Daw praises UFile for offering tools to split pension income.
Jonathan Chevreau writes about a lazy portfolio for younger investors with a long time horizon and high risk tolerance.

Have a nice [...]

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While a RRSP contribution probably makes sense for most people, there are some situations where other alternatives make more sense:

Carrying consumer or credit card debt: Credit card debt is typically very expensive with double-digit interest rates. Even an unsecured loan from a financial institution will typically charge interest in the high single digits for clients [...]

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I borrowed this book (affiliate link) from the local library after reading Jon Chevreau’s interview with one of the authors - Ziv Bodie. Prof. Bodie and co-author Michael Clowes suggest that investors would be better off eschewing equity risk and investing their savings in inflation-protected instruments such as real-return bonds.
There is a lot to [...]

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