How to Prepare for the Next Big One.

Preparing for the Next Big One

The last event I attended prior to COVID was the Daytona 500 in February 2020.
You may be wondering how a NASCAR race relates to the topic of retirement income planning?

Key Points for Wills and Powers of Attorney’s

Wills and Power of Attorney

Families during COVID-19 have realized that they should focus on concerns such as planning the family’s future. One of the most difficult challenges a Certified Financial Planner® has is to encourage clients to update and/or review their estate plan and documents. Often families tend to put this off, as it is not seen as urgent. […]

Smart Tax Strategies for Retirees: Avoid the OAS Recovery Tax

OAS Recovery Tax

It’s smart tax planning for retirees to arrange their income to avoid this clawback if possible. Some strategies to review are:  Income split with your spouse/CLP (Common Law Partner) Tax effective non-registered investments Review the start date of your RRIF Use the younger spouse/CLP’s age for RRIF payments Use TFSAs Trigger large capital gains prior […]

Avoid a huge $$$$ mistake. Check your beneficiary designations now!

Beneficiary Designations

A recent article from CBC,  Halifax women calling for more protections on RRSPs after husband’s sudden death by Emma Davie, reviews what can happen if you don’t have correct beneficiary designations on your registered plans. The article explained that the husband in the story had named his mother as the beneficiary of his RRSP when […]

Smart Tax Strategies for Retirees: Income Splitting

Income Splitting

Income tax is one of the largest expenses any retiree has. A smart tax strategy to reduce a family’s overall tax burden is to split the income. This means to shift income from a spouse or common law partner (CLP) who is in a higher tax bracket to one who is in a lower tax bracket.

Registered Education Savings Plan (RESP)

RESP for kids

My kids are 18 and 20, does setting up a new Registered Education Savings Plan (RESP) still make sense? Excerpts from the Book – Preserving Wealth – written by Jack Lumsden, MBA, CFP® A new client asked if it still made sense to set up a new RESP for his kids, who were aged 18 […]

Who should you name as Executor?

naming your executor

Excerpts from the Book – Preserving Wealth – written by Jack Lumsden, MBA, CFP® A common question I received as an advisor is whom should we name as executor in our Wills? The true answer is that it depends on your situation. It usually ends up based on how complicated your estate may be, the […]