How should young Canadians invest in bonds? + MORE Apr 9th

For young investors who are building the fixed-income portion of their portfolio, it’s best they keep their approach simple and go for low-cost investment options, experts say. 

“If they’re just starting out, they don’t need to maybe source out an individual bond right away. I think there are a lot of products now that make it easy to get exposure and be a little more diversified, like ETFs,” Diana Orlic, a senior wealth adviser with Richardson Wealth, said in an interview. 

Most investors understand that having fixed income is part of a well-balanced portfolio, and yet many don’t quite know how to best get exposure to bonds. 

The first steps Orlic typically takes with younger clients is to educate them about the bond market and understand their financial goals and time horizon.

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Meet Bob Joyce

As a young lad, Bob Joyce received some words of wisdom from his father that clearly resonated with him. He would, on occasion, hear his dad say that we don’t all wear blue suits. When he asked his dad what that meant, he was told that everyone is unique, and we need to recognize that in the people we meet. Joyce didn’t realize it at the time, but that message has guided him ever since.

Joyce has served clients throughout his professional life, first as a Chartered Professional Accountant (CPA) with a specialty in income tax, then as a wealth manager with Canada’s largest full-service investment firm, and now as a Certified Financial Planner (CFP), managing an advice-only, fee-only financial planning practice. He brings this combination of experience and knowledge to each client engagement.

When not working, Joyce and his wife, Sharon, along with their five rescue pets, enjoy life in St. Margaret’s Bay on the South Shore of Nova Scotia, where the beauty of the scenery is exceeded only by the warmth of their neighbours…

Canada goes to the polls on Monday, April 28. Not surprisingly, economic issues dominate this year’s federal election campaign. Whether it’s responding to U.S. tariffs, reframing climate policy or dealing with unaffordable housing, the major parties and candidates are focused on Canadians’ bread and butter. Here we’ve compiled the key campaign promises to date that will affect your household budget. We’ll keep updating this article as the parties make more announcements—so, check back often.

Canadian issues: Income taxes

All the major parties are promising cuts to income tax. The Liberal Party has promised to lower the tax rate for the bottom income bracket (below $57,375 in 2025) by a single percentage point to 14%, offering an annual savings of about $400 per tax filer. This is big because it affects virtually all taxpayers.

Conservative Party leader Pierre Poilievre has pledged to cut the bottom-bracket tax rate to 12.75% from 15%. Conservative Party calculations put the average annual tax savings at $900, or $1,800 for a two-income family…