This question recently came up, and I’ve been noodling on it ever since. My whole adult life, I’ve been following the habit of maxing out my RRSP, my TFSA, and saving another chunk of my paycheque in my non-registered investment account. However, yesterday, someone asked me what I was saving it all for and whether […]
Last week, I wrote about the challenges of having a variable rate mortgage when mortgage rates are increasing. This week, I’d like to discuss how fixed rate mortgages (FRM) offer a measure of safety. Depending on when your FRM is up for renewal, you have some breathing room to figure out how to handle the […]
As I understand things, people with variable-rate mortgages should be very worried about their minimum mortgage payments increasing. They are facing trigger rates on their mortgages. These rates force people to make higher minimum mortgage payments. A variable rate mortgage (VRM) payment covers interest and principal. However, when the mortgage rates increase on VRMs, the […]
There is no way around it. You should always be saving money – some way, some how. Life is expensive, and it only gets more so. Name one essential thing in your life that has gotten cheaper over the years. Food? Nope. Rent or housing costs? No! Gasoline? Not a chance. Utilities? Not a bit. […]
I’ve enough life experience to know that life gets in the way of the best laid plans. And since this is a personal finance blog, I’m going to try and expound on this idea as it impacts your money decisions. It’s easy to tell people to invest consistently. Showing others how to set up automatic […]
As I’ve mentioned a time or two, I’ve made many mistakes with my money. One of my biggest money mistakes involved how I went about finding my community. When I first started to learn about financial independence, early retirement and investing, I made two mistakes based on arrogance. First, I mistakenly assumed that everyone was […]
One of things that I’ve always understood about investing is that money works harder than people are able to. Money never gets tired, sick, distracted, or unmotivated. It literally works around the clock once it has been invested. People can’t do that. People need food, rejuvenation, sleep and time with loved ones. Those items are […]
One of the ways to ensure that you meet your goals is to review your progress along the way. Doing so involves taking stock and making tweaks as necessary. No journey is perfect for all people in all circumstances. That’s simply not possible. As a matter of fact, there is no such thing as a […]
There’s a distinction between your income and your salary. They are not the same thing, although you’ll routinely hear the words used interchangeably. I’m going to spend a few minutes telling you why I think they are different animals. Your salary is based on what your employer pays you. I’m only aware of 2 ways […]
The boring middle… I’ve come across this phrase several times in the past two years while perusing various personal finance sites. It refers to the period of time between setting a long-term goal, such as financial independence or retirement, and achieving that goal. From my own experience, it’s an apt term to describe the slog. […]