Having children comes at a “significant” cost for a woman’s career, according to a recent report from the Royal Bank of Canada, which says women lose earnings for up to five years after giving birth.

Like many investors, Norman Levine was sure that interest rates were going to rise. He was so sure that he bought a number of rate-reset preferred shares, which are shares that reset their dividend every five years. If rates rise, those payouts climb. If not, they fall. Unfortunately, for Levine – and the many other investors who adjusted their portfolios thinking that rates were on a steady climb higher – long-term interest rates have fallen, while short-term rates may not be moving much this year either. “Our preferreds got clobbered,” says Levine, a managing director at Toronto’s Portfolio Management Corporation. 
Over the last year or so, portfolio managers, economists and journalists like me, have been talking about how interest rates are going to rise and the destruction that would cause in rate sensitive sectors, such as utilities, real estate investment trusts and telecoms. While we were right at first – between January 2 and October 1, 2018, the 10-year U.S. Treasury yield climbed by 33%, while the S&P/TSX Capped Utilities Index fell by 11…

The Liberals have raised the amount you can borrow from your RRSP to buy a home, but there are costs, writes Gordon Pape.

The Canadian Women’s Hockey League announced Sunday it would be discontinuing operations as of May 1 because of a business model that proved to be “economically unsustainable.”

Lyft had little trouble getting investors to hop on board its increasingly popular ride-hailing service, as its initial public offering fetched a $72 per-share price that exceeded even its own expectations. Around midday it was changing hands at $87 a share, up 20 per cent from the IPO price of $72.

Q. How safe or wise is it to invest some savings in gold? Many of my friends say it’s a great inflation hedge. But I have a very well-diversified portfolio that’s mainly equity index funds right now. Is having a small portion of gold, say 5% or 10%, a good option? Why or why not?
— Thanks, Mary R.
A. I love my friends. I ask them for advice on all sorts of things. Like how to peel butternut squash without losing a finger, or how to gel my daughter’s hair for her synchronized swimming competitions. (Knox Gelatin, for the record). But unless we are talking about one of my friends who works full time as a portfolio manager in the investment industry, I don’t ask my friends for investing advice.
Your question is best directed to an advisor who can look at your complete financial picture. And I bet that before she recommends you buy gold, she’ll want to talk more about your fixed income position and whether or not you need some to balance out your equity.
But you didn’t ask me to opine on your friendships…

Q. My husband and I had a combined investment portfolio of about $750,000. We agreed to a 0.75% fee to our advisor, which amounted to $5,600 last year. Despite that cost, our portfolio is now worth $732,120. This advisor claimed that 4% was his expected gain for us, and he has fallen far short. Any advice would be appreciated.
— Dana
A. One of the most challenging parts of creating a financial plan is managing expectations. Dana, it’s possible that your advisor assured you that your portfolio would achieve an annual return of approximately 4% every year, but such a promise could have got him fired. In an era where safe investments (such as government bonds and GICs) pay less than 3% before fees, it simply is not possible to earn a consistent annual return of 4%: no advisor should ever promise that, and no investor should expect it.
My guess is that the advisor quoted you and expected long-term average return of 4%, which is actually quite conservative for a balanced portfolio of stocks and bonds…

Woman who feels no pain has genetic mutation, scientists discover  CBC.caWoman with genetic mutation feels virtually no pain  CTV NewsWoman with ‘mutant’ gene who feels no pain and heals without scarring discovered by scientists  The IndependentScientists find genetic mutation that makes woman feel no pain  The GuardianSupergran: Woman (67) with mutant gene feels no pain and heals without scarring  Independent.ieView full coverage on Google News

Late in February American Express released the refreshed Marriott Bonvoy™ American Express® Card. This is the new version of the Starwood Preferred Guest Credit Card from American Express that was always highly recommended by us for many years. With the name change also came an increased welcome bonus of 60,000 Marriott Bonvoy points when you spend $1,500 on the card within the first three months of having it. For many of you who may be new to points and miles or just the Marriott program, you may not be fully aware of what 60,000 points can really bring you. In this post we’ll give a few examples of this value and why this card ranks in our Top 5 Sign Up offers for the month despite having an annual fee. On top of the welcome bonus the card has lots of other benefits that extend the value of this card, namely the anniversary free night benefit for hotels which we also look at below! Value in the the Welcome Bonus Let’s get down to business. I hear your yelling at your screen. Show me the value! What can I get for 60,000 points?Fancy a fancy staycation during the summer high season? The St…

The former owner of Aeroplan will cut about 25 per cent of its workforce as it charts a new course following the sale of the loyalty program to Air Canada.

Woman who feels no pain has genetic mutation, scientists discover  CBC.caWoman with genetic mutation feels virtually no pain  CTV NewsWoman with ‘mutant’ gene who feels no pain and heals without scarring discovered by scientists  The IndependentScientists find genetic mutation that makes woman feel no pain  The GuardianSupergran: Woman (67) with mutant gene feels no pain and heals without scarring  Independent.ieView full coverage on Google News

Lyft is lifting the price target for its initial public offering in a sign of the excitement surrounding the stock market debut of a ride-hailing service that’s gaining ground on its rival Uber.

*Sponsored by TurboTax
With the 2019 tax deadline fast approaching many Canadians are focused on maximizing their tax return. The Canadian Revenue Agency (CRA) requires all private income tax returns to be filed , while self-employed have until June 17, 2019 to file.
If you do think you’ll owe taxes, however, or you may incur penalties.
For a full list of deductions you may be eligible to claim it’s important to seek financial advice, or use a tool like TurboTax.
TurboTax is a tax software that makes filing your taxes online easy, and is supported by real-life tax specialists who can step in to advise if needed. After signing up online, TurboTax can guide you through your entire 2019 return, prompting you with questions and advice at every step, to ensure you get the maximum refund.
One often overlooked deduction on anyone’s tax return is insurance. The list of insurance deductions for salaried individuals is very short. Individuals can often deduct private health insurance premiums on your tax returns, as well as any medical expenses…

To new buyers, the real estate market can appear intimidating with jargon like amortization, mortgage insurance, fixed vs variable and so on.
Here are some of the key terms and mortgage types you’ll encounter when shopping for your home loan.
What is a Mortgage?
A mortgage is a loan offered by financial institutions to make the process of owning a real estate property feasible. Interest is charged on the Principal amount and each mortgage payment consists of repayment of the principal, plus some of the interest.
In Canada, potential home buyers pay at least five percent of the total cost of the house upfront.
Now let’s explore the different types of mortgages that the Canadian market holds:

High Ratio Mortgage: Refers to the loan to value ratio of the loan. If you pay less than 20 percent of the property cost as a down payment the loan has a high LVR. In this instance, it is mandatory to attain Mortgage Insurance, also referred to as CMHC (Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corporation) Insurance…

China will sharply expand market access for foreign banks and securities and insurance companies, especially in its financial services sector, Premier Li Keqiang says, as senior U.S. officials arrived in Beijing for more trade talks.

China will sharply expand market access for foreign banks and securities and insurance companies, especially in its financial services sector, Premier Li Keqiang says, as senior U.S. officials arrived in Beijing for more trade talks.

This week tech giant Apple announced they are getting into the business of credit cards. Powered by MasterCard and Goldman Sachs, ‘Apple Card,’ is touted as “the most significant change in the credit card experience in 50 years” by Apple CEO Tim Cook.  The tag line in the media release is “Built on Simplicity, Transparency and Privacy, and Designed to Help Customers Lead a Healthier Financial Life.” Here is what we know about the card so far.  
America First  
The card will be available to residents of the United States starting this summer. There is no date for a Canadians launch of the card, but if we do get it the card will be available through our Apple wallet. Customers can opt for a virtual card or a physical laser-etched titanium card. Anyone already using Apple pay will be familiar with how the new ‘Apple Card,’ will work.  
Easy sign up 
As is with most Apple products ease of use is paramount. Apple says in minutes customers can sign up for Apple Card in the Wallet app, and start using it right away…

China will sharply expand market access for foreign banks and securities and insurance companies, especially in its financial services sector, Premier Li Keqiang says, as senior U.S. officials arrived in Beijing for more trade talks.

Apple’s new credit card has the potential to disrupt the credit card business in the same way Uber and Lyft disrupted the taxi industry, according to a digital marketing expert.

Building and maintaining good credit is a key component of a person’s financial health. Not only does it make it easier to buy a house or obtain a car loan, these days, it’s often a prerequisite to signing a lease, securing a job, or landing a great cell phone plan.
The problem is, most people have never taken the time to review their credit report because they don’t know how. Thankfully, companies like Credit Karma make it easy to keep your credit in great shape.
Who Is Credit Karma?
Credit Karma is a personal financial company that started in the U.S., in 2007. In recent years, they’ve expanded into Canada. Amongst other things, Credit Karma provides its members with free access to their TransUnion credit bureau report and provides regular updates as well as recommendations on how they can better their overall credit score.
Credit Karma makes money from affiliate partnerships with lenders and other personal finance companies. In other words, when customers apply for credit cards and loans advertised through their website, Credit Karma receives a referral commission…

We see the return of the Aeroplan hotel loyalty program conversion bonus! Last seen in November, the hotel only transfer bonus is back and as we have now become accustomed to it is a 30% bonus. There are two programs offering more miles however, Radisson Rewards is adding in an additional 30% for 60% total while Coast Hotels Coast Rewards is giving 4x Aeroplen Miles. You’ll have until April 22 to make any transfers into Aeroplan. This bonus offer is a good way to use up some of those orphaned hotel points you may never use if you are a frequent Aeroplan redeemer. The great news for the spring version of this bonus is that Marriott Bonvoy is included again, well last time we still knew it as Marriott Rewards. Marriott (and its subsidiaries) have the best transfer ratio to airline programs at a rate of 3 Marriott Rewards points to 1 airline mile but they also add in 5,000 more miles when you convert 60,000 points at a time. That means with this promotion 60,000 points transferred to Aeroplan will net you 32,500 miles (20,000 miles at 3:1 + 5,000 miles from Marriott + 30% bonus)…

TransAlta Corp. says Brookfield Renewable Partners and its institutional partners have signed a $750-million deal to invest in the company’s hydro assets.

One-fund ETF portfolios can be ideal for education savings [MoneySense]

Investors were taking a cautious approach on Monday after Friday’s steep slide in stock indexes, with shares down both in Toronto and New York.

Halifax-based Emera Inc has agreed to sell its electrical transmission and distribution assets in Maine for $1.8 billion Cdn to Calgary’s Enmax Corp.

It’s been about a week since federal budget day and I still have questions about some of the things the government announced. For instance, why did they introduce a deferred annuity, which will allow Canadians to put 25% of their RRSP or RRIF into an annuity that must start paying out by 85 at the latest, instead of pushing back the RRIF withdrawal age limit? With more people working past 65, changing the withdrawal limit from 71 to, say, 75, would have allowed people to invest longer and then drawdown savings later in life when they really need it.
The biggest head-scratcher for me, though, was around the RRSP Home Buyers’ Plan. I still can’t figure out why the Liberals decided that letting first-time homebuyers withdraw $35,000 from their RRSP, which they still have to pay back over 15 years, instead of $25,000 is the answer to Canada’s housing problems. It seems to me that it only benefits professionals in Toronto and Vancouver who are already making good money and can afford a home whether they’re saving in their RRSP or not…