Posts by Robb Engen
Weekend Reading: Crazy MLM Scams Edition
I’ve been following an incredible story in the U.S. where the blogger behind Lazy Man and Money had his identity revealed and received death threats for exposing a multi-level marketing (MLM) scam. LifeVantage, makers of a diet pill called Protandim, has gone to great lengths to discredit the author of Lazy Man and Money – creating…
Read MoreHad A Financial Awakening? 5 Steps To Take Control Of Your Finances
We’ve all experienced a moment in our lives when we decided it was time to get serious about our finances. Some call it an “a-ha” moment, or a financial awakening. What triggers this feeling is different for everyone, but it’s common to hit rock bottom – deep in debt and down to your last dime…
Read MoreWeekend Reading: Cheap Mortgage Edition
The big news this week was Investors Group taking the mortgage market by storm, offering a 3-year variable rate mortgage at 1.99%. The rate will be offered for a limited time and is only available through Investors Group – not through brokers. As with most limited time offers there are conditions – namely that you…
Read MoreBreaking Your Subconscious Money Habits
Everyone has heard of the latte factor – how your daily vice can become a long-term financial burden if you don’t keep it in check. The concept got a bad rap for concentrating on small behavioural changes instead of looking at the big picture. Related: Does your spending need tending? The latte factor concept isn’t…
Read MoreWeekend Reading: Why Investor Behaviour Needs To Change Edition
One of my favourite personal finance writers is Carl Richards, the Sketch Guy, and author of The Behaviour Gap. He has a knack for using humour and simple napkin sketches to point out our dumb habits when it comes to money and investing. In this video, Mr. Richards explains why investor behaviour needs to change – particularly when it comes to…
Read MoreThe 4 Best Strategies for Successful Life Insurance Applications
Whether you are hard to insure or have been declined for life insurance in the past, getting the coverage you need may seem impossible, but there are a few things you can do to help maximize your chance of being approved for life insurance. There are many reasons why insurance companies may decline coverage or…
Read MoreWhy It’s Hard To Avoid Buying “Stuff”
We’re taught to value experiences over material things but unless you plan to never leave the house you’re going to need a whole lot of willpower to avoid buying stuff today. Have you been out window shopping lately? There are some seriously amazing products and innovations on the market – things that weren’t even around…
Read MoreWeekend Reading: Speed Reading Edition
Whenever a new personal finance book comes out I’ll typically email the author or publisher and try to get a couple of free copies to review and then give away on this blog. So many books have come out lately that I have piles of books lying around the house that I need to read…
Read MoreUsing A Synthetic DRIP To Simplify My Portfolio
I plan to put my RRSP on auto-pilot over the next few years as I start to run out of unused contribution room. One of the first steps to simplify my portfolio was to set up a synthetic DRIP or dividend reinvestment plan. This process allows you to reinvest your dividends commission free instead of…
Read MoreWeekend Reading: Rob Carrick Hangout Edition
We’ve had some awesome guests lately on the Because Money hangout. If you’re not familiar with the format, we host a video podcast on Google+ Hangouts on Air every Wednesday night at 7:30pm MST (9:30pm EST). Last week we had Rob Carrick on the show to talk about Generation Y. We accepted the fact that…
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