Insights

Many investors understand that they can expect volatility in their investment portfolios. But, when the storm clouds gather and they experience temporary declines in their account balances, they are prone to panic. For many investors, the risk of making an emotion decision at time of market stress can make the difference between their retirement success or failure. In this video I am going to walk you through a simple tool that you can use to help keep you on track when markets are volatile.

By far, the biggest worry that retirees have is running out of money in retirement. But what if I told you that there is a financial product out there that is structured to pay you guaranteed income throughout your retirement, regardless of how long you live? In this video I am going to talk about the role of annuities in a retirement income plan. I will demonstrate how a hypothetical retiree couple can introduce an income annuity into their retirement plan, boost their guaranteed retirement income, and reduce their stress of running out of money in retirement.

What types of returns should we assume for our retirement projections? This is a question that has come across my desk a few times over the past several weeks. Making reasonable assumptions about what our investment performance could be in the future is a critically important part of good financial planning. If we assume too little, it may cause us to pursue investments that aren’t suitable for our plan. If we assume too much, it could cause us to over-spend and potentially run out of money down the road.

In this video, I walk through how much you may need to have saved up for retirement based on different retirement spending needs. Then, I walk through some of the variables that may cause your retirement number to change - both up and down.

As you approach retirement, should you be putting money into your TFSA or into your RRSP? Many people preparing for retirement consider this question. The short answer is: it depends. In this video I am going to describe the TFSA and RRSP accounts and walk through different scenarios that compare the two accounts side by side, and at the end of the video I am going to give you some key takeaways as you consider this question for your own retirement savings.

Are you nearing retirement and concerned about how much of your hard-earned savings will go towards taxes? The bad news is that you will almost certainly be paying income taxes throughout your retirement. In fact, it may be one of your largest household bills. The great news is that, with a bit of smart planning, you can manage that tax bill downward based on how and when you make withdrawals from your retirement accounts. In this video, I am going to walk you through an example of how you can strategically time the withdrawals from your investment accounts to lower your tax bill.

Silicon Valley Bank was the 16th largest bank in the United States. It failed last week, becoming the second largest bank failure in US history. Canadians have long enjoyed a strong and relatively stable banking system. But some Canadian savers and retirees may be wondering - could a similar bank failure happen in Canada? And if so, what protections are in place to make sure that your money is protected? In this video, I explain what happened at SVB, some of the differences between the Canadian and US banking system, and the protection that is in place for Canadian bank depositors.

In this video, I explain what happened at SVB, some of the differences between the Canadian and US banking system, and the protection that is in place for Canadian bank depositors.

The years leading into retirement are full of excitement and anticipation of a new life, free to enjoy it as you wish. The years leading towards and into retirement can also be some of the most anxious years, as getting used to managing finances in retirement can be overwhelming. There are 3 mistakes that I see prospective retirees making. In this video, I walk through the 3 mistakes, and offer some resources and perspectives that I hope will help.

The often-forgotten, but nevertheless critical asset class for many investors is fixed income which are broadly referred to as bonds. Stock holders are owners of the company and are entitled to a share of dividends that are paid out if the company issues them or if the company itself is ultimately liquidated. Bond holders are lenders of capital to the company or, in the case of government bonds, the government.