Jack and Diane want to improve their financial situation and feel that making financial New Years resolutions and implementing them is a good start. To help identify their priorities, they made the following list:
Set Objectives - Goal setting is the foundation of achieving financial success. If they write down their goals, it will help Jack and Diane clarify them and establish their personal and financial priorities.
Ralph and Mary have accumulated a nice estate, a good portion of it in cash. They want to leave it all to their children when they die, but they also want to do something for them today. Being part of the Savings Generation, they are reluctant to give large sums to their kids today, as they are part of the Spending Generation. Ralph and Mary also want to treat their children as fairly as possible.
When someone dies, their estate falls into three basic categories:
Part 1 - Proceeds that can be passed on by way of a named beneficiary designation.
Mortgages today are not like they were when our parents or grandparents bought their homes. As most of us don't have the cash to buy a home outright, we need to borrow from a lender. There are a number of strategies you can use to get the best deal, pay it off more quickly and pay off the debt in the event of premature death.
On June 29, 2009, Bernard Lawrence 'Bernie' Madoff was sentenced to 150 years in prison for perpetrating what has been called 'the largest investment fraud in Wall Street history.' Actual losses have been estimated at $64.8 billion by prosecutors. Apparently, Madoff admitted to his sons that his company, Bernard L. Madoff Investment Securities LLC, was nothing more than a giant Ponzi scheme.
On May 25, 2009 Finance Canada announced some proposed changes to how Canada Pension Plan will work.
If approved, the changes will take effect over a period of time from
2011 to 2016, so they will affect anyone planning to retire after 2010.
Below is a brief summary of some of the most important changes:
Early retirement (before age 65) will result in a reduction in CPP benefits by 7.2% per year, which is up from the traditional 6%. This means that if you
begin to take your pension at age 60, your payments will be cut by 36%, not 30%.
Retirement funding is a complex machine, with several moving parts. For many Canadians employer pensions and government benefits will make up the core of their retirement income.
A recent RBC survey found 54% of Canadians expect their pension will be the largest source of income, but when asked what kind of pension they have, 19% do not know.
Personal savings, whether in the form of an RRSP or non-registered savings, help pad out the post-career lifestyle, but only 18% of Canadians said personal investments would be their largest single source of income.
