Posts Tagged ‘Links’

The federal government delivered a package of goodies for seniors and middle-class families in its 2015 budget this week. The TFSA contribution limit was increased to $10,000 – fulfilling an election promise from 2011 – however it will no longer be indexed to inflation. Changes were made to the RRIF withdrawal schedule – effective immediately a 71-year-old…

My wife and I first got passports prior to our wedding and honeymoon in 2006. I last travelled to the U.S. in 2011 when I attended a conference in Orlando, Florida, just a few months before the five-year passport expired. Since then, changes to Canada’s passport program include the new e-Passport, along with the option to apply for…

The federal budget will be unveiled April 21st and one of the hot-button issues is whether the conservatives will follow-through on an election promise to double the TFSA contribution limits. In a confidential letter leaked to the media this week, finance minister Joe Oliver indicated the government would honour that promise and increase TFSA limits to…

It’s been a bad year for retail stores in Canada. Last week, Future Shop joined the ranks of Target, Sony Corp, Radio Shack, Mexx, and Smart Set, by abruptly closing 66 of its 131 stores (with plans to convert the remainder into Best Buy locations). The “Amazon effect” is partly to blame, according to researchers, as Canadians…

One of the best investments you can make when looking to get a handle on your finances is a subscription to MoneySense magazine. For just $25 per year you’ll get eight issues loaded with useful tips and practical advice from some of Canada’s leading financial experts and authors. The MoneySense team is hosting a Retire Rich event on the…

Back in January I sold my portfolio of dividend stocks and bought two exchange traded funds – Vanguard’s Canada All Cap Index (VCN) and its All-World ex Canada Index (VXC). The move has drawn some interest from readers and media alike, I think in part because I had abandoned a market-beating strategy to “settle” for market returns (minus a…

Thomas J. Stanley, who co-authored The Millionaire Next Door, arguably one of the most influential personal finance books ever written, died in a car accident last week at the age of 71. Stanley’s work centered around the idea that financially successful people similar traits, namely living below their means and valuing financial independence over high status.…

Alberta Premier Jim Prentice got into some hot water this week regarding comments he made during a CBC radio interview about the province’s potential $7-billion revenue shortfall in the upcoming budget year. Prentice said that Albertans have enjoyed the best public services in the country but haven’t built a revenue model to sustain them. “In…

We’ve been beating this drum for years now but a new study by the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives suggests that high mutual fund fees could cause Canadians to delay their retirement by as much as 11 years or else leave them with 40 per cent less money for their retirement. The study compares the management fees charged…

I’ve spent the past two weeks studying hard for part three of the four-course CFP certification program. Learning the program online through the Canadian Institute of Financial Planning is fine, I don’t mind learning online, but I’m frustrated by some of the outdated material. This course is about strategic investment planning and includes gems like technical analysis, financial…