Posts by Boomer
Non-Traditional Ways To Buy A House
A recent TD Bank survey showed that while a quarter of first time home buyers did so on their own there is a growing trend of buying a house as a group. In fact four out of 10 people surveyed think that buying property with friends or family members is a great way to get…
Read MoreWhy Putting Off Retirement Savings Can Cost You
Current popular opinion is to put off retirement savings until later years when all debts are paid off and family responsibilities are reduced. Then, when you reach your prime earning years between ages 45 and 65 you can start seriously saving and catch up. What do you see in your crystal ball? The prime earning…
Read More8 Retirement Mistakes To Avoid
For many of us retirement means the transition from the day-to-day grind of working to days of leisure, kicking back or puttering around and, best of all, no more schedules or alarm clocks. The other important transition is from the final days of earning money through employment, to spending your money. Even smart people can…
Read MoreLeave A Legacy Before The Will Is Read
If you are fortunate enough to have earned – or inherited – more than you need to live out your definition of the “good life,” you’ll have the opportunity to decide where and how to direct the funds left unspent. It is common to leave an inheritance to family members with perhaps a portion going…
Read MoreWhy You Should Eliminate Debt Before You Retire
Conventional wisdom – and a good rule of thumb – suggests you should not have any debt when you retire. However, a recent Globe and Mail article reports that people are more comfortable with carrying debt into their retirement years than past generations and that more than half of all retired Canadians are carrying some…
Read MoreWhat Could You Do With $5 A Day?
Back in 1913, the assembly line workers at the Ford Model-T plant in Detroit were paid the princely sum of $5 a day. Henry Ford wanted reliable workers, but he also assumed they would want to buy the Model-T themselves, rather than taking the streetcar to work. It would still take some serious saving to…
Read MoreRandom Musings: Beating The Index, Do What You Love, And More
I read a lot and often come across ideas and concepts that are not really explained to my satisfaction. Here are some things that I often think about. Beating the Index Many financial writers and advisers are touting the benefits of the passive investing strategy of an index-based portfolio for low cost and good performance. …
Read MoreWhat Are You Saving For?
We all know that part of smart financial behavior is to get into the habit of saving a portion of your earnings. The “rule of thumb” for savings is 10% of gross income. Many save for a “rainy day,” or “nothing in particular” rather than towards any specific goal or focus. Everyone has different goals,…
Read MoreThe High Costs Of Health Care
The grim reality is that our population is aging and this is always a factor in health care costs. All the technological advances and health care innovations keep us living longer and longer while managing chronic conditions that would have resulted in death not that long ago. Related: How mobile technology can improve your health…
Read MoreLong Term Care Insurance: To Buy Or Not To Buy?
Did you know that your chances of living to 100 years old are now better than ever? Living a long and fruitful life may be seen as a great gift. However, the chances that a 65-year-old will require long term care at some point in life are 49 percent for men and 65 percent for…
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