Are You Saving Enough For A Rainy Day? + MORE Sep 9th

Another day, another study about shortfalls in our retirement savings!  The reality is:
Retirement nest eggs will need to last longer than ever before. Life expectancies in Canada continue to increase.  A female aged 65 can expect to live on average another 21 years while a 65-year-old male will live another 18 years (Statistics Canada);
Greater out-of-pocket expenses may be required during the later years in retirement. The higher rate of childlessness means increased demand and consequently price for service workers as well as fewer employees to support the expensive entitlement programs of retirees;
Cash flow in retirement may be hampered by personal debt. “A separate report from Equifax Canada last week found that seniors were borrowing money to finance their post-retirement lifestyles. Total consumer debt in Canada rose $77-billion, or 6.1%, in the second quarter of 2013 from last year, and by 6.5% among those 65 and over,” the report said.
Soon-to-be or recently retired and feeling that your retirement savings are insufficient? It is time to get creative about finding paid work…

As your little ones head off to school, it’s hard to imagine your thoughts will turn to post-secondary education in the not-so-distant future. If you haven’t already set up a Registered Education Savings Plan (RESP), there’s no better time than now.

You’ve likely heard of “life hacks” – quick and easy tweaks made to your living habits that make your day-to-day that much smoother. Well, what if you could apply the same thinking to your mortgage – simple changes that lead to a whole lot of return on your investment?
This week, we’re looking to do just that, and have identified a few ways to save even more on your mortgage. Whether you’re exploring your financing options, considering a renter, or even paying your mortgage off completely, read on for our tips and tricks.
Should You Use The Smith Manoeuvre On Your Mortgage?
The Smith Manoeuvre is a method of blending mortgage financing, a line of credit and select investments in order to claim a tax refund on your mortgage interest payments. Seems like a pretty savvy strategy, right?
Before you jump right in and take out a line of credit, take a look at our breakdown of Smith Manoeuvre basics.
Read Allan’s Blog | Should You Use The Smith Manoeuvre On Your Mortgage?
The Final Mortgage Payment: What You Need To Know
There’s tons of info out there about getting your first mortgage, or refinancing your existing agreement – but what about when it’s almost entirely paid up? It’s certainly easy to be giddy when approaching the end of your mortgage – but there are a few financial decisions you can make to save even more on those last few interest payments…

Chaos is all around us. It breathes the same air we do and lies dormant (grinning!) in sidewalk cracks, waiting for the chance to trip you. Chaos is that loose hook of yarn hanging on your favourite shirt waiting to be grabbed by some encroaching nail on your way out the door. It’s the unexpected – the middle-of-nowhere flat tire, the busted hot water tank or even a devastating job loss.
And often, chaos has a way of slipping its trickster fingers into your pocket book.
So are you saving enough for the worst case scenario?
Most Savings Not Up To The Task
According to BMO’s third annual Rainy Day survey, 68 per cent of Canadians have had to draw from the ol’ rainy day fund in the event of an emergency, and 58 per cent of those say their savings didn’t quite cut it, failing to cover the unexpected expense.
The survey also shows 51 per cent of Canadians have less than $10,000 in emergency savings, while one-in-five have less than $1,000.
Car Repairs Account For Almost Half Of Canadian Emergency Savings
Of those polled, 49 per cent used their emergency fund to cover an unexpected auto repair, 47 per cent have had to put that money towards an emergency home repair and 35 per cent of those who were hit with a job loss had adequate emergency funds to sustain them…

There’s a ton of information out there about getting a mortgage, or refinancing halfway through – but the tail end of an amortization often gets short shrift. When the end is in sight, and your mortgage is nearly paid off, it’s easy to get giddy – but there are still opportunities to get savvy about your payment options, and some tough decisions to make.
Here are a few financial conundrums you may face in the final years of your mortgage.
Invest Or Pay Off?
When your mortgage is close to the end, it’s important to take a bigger picture look at your money. Is paying your mortgage off faster the best place to put your money? If your retirement savings are tiny, you have kids in university, or are looking to launch a business, the answer may be no.
Since you are paying off more principal in the later years of your mortgage, and not so much interest, paying things off on a predetermined schedule might not be a bad idea if you have other financial commitments. Socking the money you might have put into extra payments in an RRSP might not be a terrible idea!
Negotiate Your Mortgage Rate
If you have a lot of equity and a tiny mortgage, you have some options for what kind of mortgage you want to go for…