Ask the Investment Expert
Sharing your Bounty– Give to Receive
Giving is good—for your community, your charities, for those who benefit from your charitable acts and donations, & for you, too.
Your philanthropic gift is always important, but to make the best use of your giving, to preserve your legacy, and to minimize taxes/estate fees you need a sound charitable giving plan. Let’s look at your options:
Name a Charity as a Beneficiary—receive a charitable donation tax receipt reducing or eliminating income tax.
Establish a Donor Advised Fund—you receive an immediate tax receipt and retain the rights to select the charities receiving the fund’s annual income.
Establish a Charitable Remainder Trust—irrevocable trust holding cash or mutual funds with interest and dividends paid as taxable income. Upon your death, the remainder goes immediately to the charity designated, and a donation receipt for the ‘remainder interest’ of the trust to you.
Donate a Life Insurance Policy while you live-ensuring charity receives full death benefit, and you enjoy certain tax credits.
Donate Publicly funded stocks or securities—no capital gains tax, and tax receipt for full value.
Establish a Charitable Life Annuity receiving lifetime income, mostly tax free, and a charitable receipt for a portion of the donations.
Establish a Private Foundation—allowing your name to be permanently associated with the causes you’ve chosen.
Ask your professional advisor for help in establishing a planned giving strategy that makes the most of your bounty for your charities and for you.
This column, written and published by Investors Group Financial Services Inc., presents general information only and is not a solicitation to buy or sell any investments. Contact a financial advisor for specific advice about your circumstances. For more information on this topic please contact your Investors Group Consultant.
October 2011 Article
Sharing your Bounty– Give to Receive
Giving is good—for your community, your charities, for those who benefit from your charitable acts and donations, & for you, too.
Your philanthropic gift is always important, but to make the best use of your giving, to preserve your legacy, and to minimize taxes/estate fees you need a sound charitable giving plan. Let’s look at your options:
Name a Charity as a Beneficiary—receive a charitable donation tax receipt reducing or eliminating income tax.
Establish a Donor Advised Fund—you receive an immediate tax receipt and retain the rights to select the charities receiving the fund’s annual income.
Establish a Charitable Remainder Trust—irrevocable trust holding cash or mutual funds with interest and dividends paid as taxable income. Upon your death, the remainder goes immediately to the charity designated, and a donation receipt for the ‘remainder interest’ of the trust to you.
Donate a Life Insurance Policy while you live-ensuring charity receives full death benefit, and you enjoy certain tax credits.
Donate Publicly funded stocks or securities—no capital gains tax, and tax receipt for full value.
Establish a Charitable Life Annuity receiving lifetime income, mostly tax free, and a charitable receipt for a portion of the donations.
Establish a Private Foundation—allowing your name to be permanently associated with the causes you’ve chosen.
Ask your professional advisor for help in establishing a planned giving strategy that makes the most of your bounty for your charities and for you.
This column, written and published by Investors Group Financial Services Inc., presents general information only and is not a solicitation to buy or sell any investments. Contact a financial advisor for specific advice about your circumstances. For more information on this topic please contact your Investors Group Consultant.
October 2011 Article
Why you want a financial plan—and How to get one
In two recent studies a majority of Canadians agreed that by choosing financial advice, they accumulated more assets and were better prepared, financially, for retirement. Over 50% reported that they were on track to reach their desired lifestyle in retirement, compared to just 18% of those who don’t receive any financial advice. Most also felt that it improved their ability to save, made them less concerned about their financial situation and feel better about having the discretionary income to lead the life they want, and, it gave them greater peace of mind.
You need a financial plan for many financially-rooted reasons that are unique to you. Generally, your financial plan should include investment planning, cash flow, education, estate, insurance, retirement, and income tax planning each tailored to you and your needs. To achieve that, a competent professional advisor will take you through this 6 step planning process:
1. Goal Setting-defines & prioritizes your concerns
2. Data Gathering-bringing pertinent financial info to understand your current situation.
3. Financial analysis of your tax situation; whether you’ll have enough income for retirement expenses, & ways to ensure you will; what you can do to better meet your income needs; & strategies for protecting your family and income.
4. Plan formulation & recommendations– reviewing & agreeing on solutions
5. Plan implementation—a written report summarizing steps needed
6. Monitoring and plan review—annually and when major life events occur. Comprehensive financial planning is necessary & complex & precisely tailored to your life today, & adaptable to changes. A professional advisor with the qualifications, tools & track record ensures that your professional plan will do the job for your life.
This column, written and published by Investors Group Financial Services Inc., presents general information only and is not a solicitation to buy or sell any investments. Contact a financial advisor for specific advice about your circumstances. For more information on this topic please contact your Investors Group Consultant.
September 2011 Article
Three ways to find hidden investment money
Day-to-day living is costly, but you know you should save because contributing to your investments is the best way to financial and retirement comfort. Your mantra should be ‘pay myself first’ and here are 3 ways to do just that using money you already have.
Consolidate debt- if you have a number of small loans &/or carry debt on several credit cards, consider a debt consolidation loan or a personal Line of Credit at a better interest rate and lower overall monthly payment instead of the 18-28% of many credit cards. Use the ‘found’ money from your lower monthly loan and debt payments to fund your investments.
Be tax smart- if you get a tax refund, you’ve actually loaned the government your money, interest-free throughout the year. Instead, apply to reduce the tax withheld from your pay each month and invest the extra money each pay period.
Cut your coffee habit- a coffee a day costs only a buck or two, but break your coffee habit and put those ‘small’ amounts into your RRSP or TFSA monthly, and thanks to the magic of compounding, the price of your daily regular coffee will add up to an additional $9,800 in your plan in 10 years (based on annual return of 6%). Over 30 years, you’ll accumulate $60,000, providing an annual pre-tax retirement income of about $5,000 over 22 years. If you’re a latte lover, deleting your daily habit will put an additional $19,600 in your RRSP after 10 years and over $121,000 after 30 years, giving you a pre-tax annual retirement income of $10,000 for over 22 years. And you won’t have to stand in line every morning.
Now that you’ve uncovered those ‘hidden’ investment dollars, put them income of $10,000 for over 22 years, and you won’t have to stand in line every morning.
Now that you’ve uncovered those ‘hidden’ investment dollars, put them to work before they get gobbled up on other day-to-day costs by setting up a Pre-Authorized Contribution plan(PAC) that makes automatic withdrawals from your bank account and transfers them to an investment account. Talk to your professional advisor about PAC and other strategies that’ll help you reach your financial and life goals faster.
This column, written and published by Investors Group Financial Services Inc.,presents general information only and is not a solicitation to buy or sell any investments. Contact a financial advisor for specific advice about your circumstances. For more information on this topic please contact your Investors Group Consultant
August 2011 Article
Life Insurance for Your Home
A home is the largest single debt for most Canadians, and it’s the centre of your family’s life. That’s why you should look long and hard at mortgage insurance.
Traditional mortgage insurance can be conveniently obtained form your lender as part of your overall mortgage ‘package’. The premium is added to your monthly mortgage payment.
*It has no cash value; benefits are paid directly to the lender.
*Your lender owns the policy. If you decide to change your lending institution to get a better mortgage rate, or move to a new home, you have to re-qualify medially for new protection, potentially at higher premiums.
*Your coverage ends when the mortgage is paid off.
*The insurance company could change the rate structure or cancel coverage as a whole.
Personal life insurance is all yours. YOU own the policy and it insures YOU not the mortgage. You decide on the type of policy—term or permanent insurance- and you choose the beneficiaries who can use the funds any way they wish—to pay off the mortgage, provide an income, or cover immediate expenses.
*Your coverage isn’t reduced by a declining mortgage balance. Any benefit payout in excess of the mortgage balance is available to the beneficiary.
*If you choose term insurance, you can convert it to permanent insurance at a suitable time.
*Your coverage goes everywhere with you and you can reduce the amount of coverage anytime.
*It’s YOUR plan, with options, features and premiums that fit your needs and budget. You can add disability and critical illness insurance.
Your home is your family’s protective nest—it makes sense to protect it (and your family) with mortgage insurance. Your professional advisor can help get the right protection that blends with your overall financial life.
This column, written and published by Investors Group Financial Services Inc., presents general information only and is not a solicitation to buy or sell any investments. Contact a financial advisor for specific advice about your circumstances. For more information on this topic please contact your Investors Group Consultant.
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