“Get to know and minimize the investing fees you pay”: Michael McCullough, MoneySense contributing editor + MORE Oct 30th

Financial writer and editor Michael McCullough has made a career of helping Canadians understand a wide range of money topics, from real estate to alternative investments. In addition to being a MoneySense contributor and contributing editor, Michael writes for The Globe and Mail and BCBusiness, and he’s a former managing editor of Canadian Business magazine and editorial director of Canada Wide Media.

Image courtesy of Wiley

Recently, Michael helped to update the Canadian version of Personal Finance for Dummies (7th edition), a comprehensive guide to everything from budgeting and spending to taxes and retirement. Below, he shares his own money experiences and what he thinks is the most underrated financial advice.

Who are your finance or investing heroes?

Maybe John Bogle, who founded The Vanguard Group, an investment firm in the U.S. that created the first index funds for retail investors. He was driven by more than self-interest. He wanted to empower small investors. Bogle also wrote The Little Book of Common Sense Investing, which made it into MoneySense’s list of 25 timeless personal finance books…

Leasing a car is a unique financial arrangement and while it has its perks, experts say it suits a fairly slim group of people. The biggest draw for leasing is lower payments, and on a shiny new car no less. This is usually what hooks drivers on a tight budget.

What does it mean to lease a car?

A car lease is essentially a long-term rental: you’re paying the dealership for use of a car over an agreed-upon period of time, usually a few years. Though you aren’t an owner of the vehicle, monthly lease payments are typically lower on a new car than if you were paying off an auto loan.

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The when to lease a car and when not to

“When it comes to leasing, new vehicles is definitely a big part of it,” said Brandon Wiebe, a fee-only financial planner with Money Helps, based in Saskatoon…

After hearing countless success stories from crypto investors on social media, Martin Dasko, a 36-year-old money blogger in Toronto, could no longer ignore the hype. His father happened to be an early adopter of the cryptocurrency ether (the native coin of the Ethereum platform). But when Dasko brought up the subject of crypto investing in March 2021, he was met with skepticism. His father responded with quips about crypto’s unsustainable growth and wild swings, and he questioned the lack of regulation and corporate governance. Ignoring his dad’s warnings, Dasko went ahead with his own research and decided to invest a small amount of money. 

Talking about crypto with your family

With Canadians having different opinions about crypto—not to mention different levels of comfort and familiarity with the asset—you couldn’t bet how someone might respond. So, it can be a tricky topic to discuss with family members. It may be helpful for you to bridge the gap. 

“These conversations can involve a type of reverse mentoring, in which young adult children (millennials and Gen Zs) may end up teaching their parents about the blockchain and cryptocurrency,” says Robin Taub, Chartered Professional Accountant and author of The Wisest Investment: Teaching Your Kids to Be Responsible, Independent and Money-Smart for Life (Robin Taub Financial Consulting, 2021)…