Financial Planning Wisdom
Gold Goes Down on Inflation. Why Doesn’t the Industry Know This?
Gold goes down on inflation. Why doesn’t the industry know this? This is one of the most common and wrong conventional wisdoms. The conventional wisdom is that Gold protects you from inflation, so if we have high inflation Gold should be up. It should maintain its value. The problem is – this isn’t true and…
Read MoreFinancial Post Article: Middle-aged woman who just lost her high-income job wonders when it’s ‘safe’ to retire
The Financial Post asked me to review the finances of a 47-year-old woman who lost her high-income job, and wants to know when it’s “safe” to retire. A successful professional, she was well on her way to an early retirement at age 52 or 53, but now she’s wondering if that will still be possible,…
Read More6 Key Lessons Learned as a Fee-For-Service Financial Planner – Talk With Ellen Roseman’s Investment Club
I was honoured to be invited by Ellen Roseman to speak with her Investment Club about the 6 key lessons I have learned as a fee-for-service financial planner. They have had investment guest speakers, but never someone just talking about financial planning. Ellen Roseman is a journalist who sticks up for ordinary Canadians. Her personal…
Read MoreShould I start my CPP early? – Real-Life Examples
The most common CPP question I am asked is: “Is it smart to take my CPP early?” Prefer an overview? Like videos? Check out our whiteboard video, podcast episode or read the full post below! A quick review of the facts: The simple breakeven calculation misses many important factors. For example, if John starts receiving…
Read MoreThe 6 Steps to Become Financially Independent
What will it take for you to become financially free? To have enough money that you never have to work again? This video and podcast episode is my insight into the few key ideas you really need to know. It’s an overview to give you the big picture of what really works. Some of these…
Read MoreHow to EASILY Outperform Robo-Advisors
It is EASY to outperform robo-advisors? Why? They don’t even try to outperform. They try for: “Reasonable return with less risk”. You would think robo-advisors would just invest in a few broad indexes, but often they don’t. And they require you to invest in bonds no matter how high your risk tolerance. Robo-advisors are big…
Read MoreFinancial Post Article: Married couple need roadmap to ensure their comfortable lifestyle continues in retirement
The Financial Post asked me to review the finances of a married couple in their 60s who are winding down their successful Ottawa-based consulting business and operating company. They want to shift to a two or three-day workweek and take summers off, and they are trying to determine where to invest their money, so they…
Read MoreAsset Allocation Loss Ratio (AALR) – What Is It & How Does It Help You?
When you go to any investment firm, they require you to fill out & sign a Risk Tolerance Questionnaire of some kind. The purpose is to prevent you from investing too aggressively. This can be important, because you might sell a more aggressive investment when it is down and lose money. However, there are 2…
Read MoreHow to EASILY Outperform Index Investors
It is EASY to outperform index investors? Why? You would think that people that consider themselves “index investors” would just own 1 or 2 broad indexes and try for the index return. However the ones I see usually do not invest this way. Most of them have suboptimal portfolios that may contain: 1/ Bonds –…
Read MoreGambling, Speculating, Saving & Investing. What’s the difference?
How should you invest your money? If you don’t invest wisely, it will be hard to fund your future. There are always new areas you can put your money into, but are they worthwhile long-term? In my latest video and podcast episode, I look at all the possible areas to invest your money and fit…
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