There is a lot of talk lately about Pay Equity for women. It’s been 30 years since the government introduced Equal-Pay-for-Equal-work legislation. This year both the Federal and Provincial governments have proposed further legislation to standardize employment income in hopes…
2018 Budget Highlights
Earlier this week the federal government presented its third annual budget entitled Equity + Growth: A Strong Middle Class. The budget mainly focuses on investing in innovation and research as well as pay equity, with the goal to position Canada’s…
Should you Contribute to your RRSP or TFSA?
With the RRSP deadline fast approaching (Thursday, March 1st) many people are still confused as to where to invest their savings; an RRSP or TFSA? In a perfect world investors would maximize both plans; however for most Canadians that is…
What You Need to Know About RRSPs
A Registered Retirement Savings Plan (RRSP) is not an investment in itself; but rather an account that you hold investments within. An RRSP is not tax-free, it is a savings plan that allows you to put off paying tax on…
Putting Recent Volatility in Perspective
After an extended period of strong performance and a rally that saw the S&P 500 Index surge up almost 22% in 2017, volatility returned to the equity markets with a vengeance this week. Thus ending, or at least interrupting a…
5 Upcoming Changes to CPP
Canada’s finance ministers agreed to a number of changes to the Canada Pension Plan (CPP) during their mid-December meeting that will take effect in 2019. These include: A new formula will be used for Canadians who take extended time-off work…
When to Borrow for your RRSP Contribution
If you have unused contribution room available and no other source of funds that could be used for your contribution before the March 1st deadline, you may want to consider an RRSP catch-up loan. Are you retiring this year? An…
What is an ETF?
Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs) are investment vehicles that combine some of the features of Mutual Funds with some of the features of individual stocks. Although they are structured and regulated like Mutual Funds, they are listed and traded on stock…
Q4 Economic Update
As we go forward into 2018, I would like to take the opportunity to provide you with an overview of financial market results from the past 12 months, and to offer insights into some of the investment themes that may…