Explorez tous les épisodes du podcast Build Wealth Canada Podcast

How do you choose between fixed and variable mortgage rates? And when might it make sense to use the equity in your home to invest or help fund your retirement?

In this episode, I'm joined by Sean Cooper, a licensed mortgage broker, the bestselling author of Burn Your Mortgage and our resident mortgage expert on Build Wealth Canada.

We discuss:

• How the Canada-U.S. trade war is affecting mortgage rates and complicating the Bank of Canada's interest rate decisions.

• What to consider when choosing between fixed and variable rates, including the idea of starting variable and locking into a fixed rate later.

• What buyers and sellers should know about the Canadian housing market.

• How the Smith Manoeuvre works, who it may suit and why assumptions about investment returns and borrowing costs matter.

• How reverse mortgages compare with downsizing or a home equity line of credit, including costs, repayment and retirement planning considerations.

Whether you're choosing a mortgage or thinking about how your home fits into your retirement plans, we explore the options and trade-offs to help you ask better questions and make more informed decisions.

Have questions about your own situation? You can book a free, no-obligation introductory call with Sean at buildwealthcanada.ca/sean.

What helps you reach financial independence earlier, and what do you only learn once you're there?

In this episode, I'm joined by Kyle Prevost, founder of the Canadian Financial Summit, for a fireside chat about what helped us reach our financial independence numbers and what we've learned since.

Get your free Canadian Financial Summit ticket: https://buildwealthcanada.ca/summit

Between the Canadian Financial Summit and the Build Wealth Canada podcast, we've interviewed hundreds of financial experts over the past decade. We've also been putting our own plans into practice. This time, we're bringing those experiences together to share lessons you can consider on your own journey towards financial independence and early retirement in Canada.

We discuss:

• How Kyle reached financial independence at an early age and what his life looks like today.
• The advice we'd give our younger selves about investing and personal finance.
• The key decisions that helped us reach financial independence.
• What surprised us after hitting our numbers, and the lessons we've learned since.

My hope is that this conversation gives you some useful ideas for your own journey and helps you think through what you want life to look like when work becomes optional.

Kyle has written for The Globe and Mail, MoneySense, Canadian MoneySaver, and the Financial Post. You can also find his work at Million Dollar Journey.

How much can you spend in retirement, and how should that amount change when your investments do better or worse than expected?

In this episode, I'm joined by Kenneth Doll and Matthew Lahey from Bracket Planning, who recently created a financial plan and retirement income plan for my wife and me.

One of my biggest questions was how much we could enjoy spending now while still planning for our portfolio to support us for the rest of our lives. We use our experience to explore lessons you can apply to your own retirement or semi-retirement planning here in Canada.

We discuss:

• How to assess whether you have enough to retire or semi-retire.
• How to approach turning your investments into an ongoing income stream.
• The trade-offs between keeping your spending steady and adjusting it as markets change.
• What to look for in a financial planner and which conflicts of interest to watch for.

Ken is a Certified Financial Planner with three decades of experience. Matt is a financial planner and partner at Bracket Planning who brings a background in technology to their planning work.

They're independent, advice-only planners, meaning they don't sell investments. This helps avoid conflicts of interest related to investment sales and was one of the key reasons I decided to work with them.

Ken and Matt were nice enough to offer a free, no-obligation introductory call for Build Wealth Canada listeners.

You can request your free call by visiting buildwealthcanada.ca/retire.

Also, a big thanks to this episode's sponsor:
Saily: Get 15% off Saily data plans at https://saily.com/buildwealth

In this episode, Mark Seed from My Own Advisor shares how he and his wife reached Financial Independence and officially retired early in Canada in their early 50s.

Discover how Mark structured his portfolio, the investment choices that got him to his number, and how they set up their investments to live off portfolio income for the long run. We also compare Mark's approach to other early retirement paths in Canada to help you choose the right financial independence strategy for your goals.

In this episode, you will learn:

• How Mark transitioned from planning early retirement to retiring this year

• The specific portfolio structure and assets that funded his early retirement

• How Mark and his wife plan to draw down and live off their investments long term

• Why there is no single path to FIRE (Financial Independence, Retire Early) in Canada

• Key investing and personal finance lessons Mark learned from running My Own Advisor for 17 years

Thank you to our sponsors:

Saily Discount Link for 15% Off Their Data Plans: https://saily.com/buildwealth

BMO ETFs: https://www.bmo.com/en-ca/main/personal/investments/etf/

ETF Market Insights YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@ETFMarketInsights

Views From The Desk Podcast:

Apple Podcasts - https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/bmo-etfs-views-from-the-desk/id1504919404

Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/0r82489eCvVh1AyWPFQs43 

Additional Resources:

Investing Guide: What I Invest In and Why? (Kornel's Portfolio): https://www.buildwealthcanada.ca/guide/

Podcast Website: https://www.buildwealthcanada.ca

Mark's Websites and YouTube Channel: 

https://www.myownadvisor.ca/

https://www.cashflowsandportfolios.com/

https://www.youtube.com/@myownadvisor

When we first start our do-it-yourself investing journey here in Canada, almost all of our focus is understandably on the accumulation phase. We are diligently saving, maximizing our TFSA and RRSP contributions, and figuring out the right asset allocation of low-cost index ETFs to grow our wealth.

But what happens when you actually hit your number? What happens the day after you reach financial independence, and you can finally quit your job to design the exact life you want?

People often think that it is all pure bliss, but for many of us, a whole new wave of anxiety sets in. Suddenly, you are shifting from building your wealth to actually spending it. The fear of future stock market crashes becomes very real, and it can be surprisingly difficult to say "no" to extra work, or you might find yourself becoming overly frugal just in case something bad happens.

In this episode, we are tackling this massive psychological and mathematical shift, and learning how my guest Stephanie and her wife Gillian tackled this challenge after retiring in their 30s and 40s here in Canada to travel the world. We discuss exactly how they did it, and how they manage their finances now to avoid running out of money while living off their portfolio.

Here is a breakdown of what we tackle in this episode:

• Their Decumulation Blueprint: How Stephanie and Gillian structure their annual withdrawals so they can travel without the fear of running out of money.

• Protecting Against Market Crashes: We discuss using cash cushions, fixed income, and if they use any specific rules for when to sell equities to refill their cash buckets.

• Lifestyle Design and Overcoming Anxiety: We cover the psychological side of things. We explore how much is "enough", how they master the management of everyday cash flows while in retirement, and how you can actually find fulfillment once you no longer have a 9-to-5 job.

In case you haven't heard of Stephanie and Gillian, they document their incredible early retirement journey and share practical financial lessons over on their website, OurFreedomYears.com, as well as on their popular YouTube channel, Our Freedom Years. They have a wealth of knowledge when it comes to the realities of living off a portfolio as Canadians, and I'm thrilled to have Stephanie on the show.

Let's get into the interview.

What are the most critical personal finance pillars that have the greatest impact on our financial wellbeing?

In this episode, we sit down with Dr. Steph Zhou, the creator of the mandatory financial literacy curriculum for medical students at the University of Toronto. Dr. Steph shares the core components she identified through her research that have the greatest impact on our financial well-being.

• The Core Pillars of Personal Finance: Discover the critical components of financial literacy that we should all focus on mastering.

• The Power of Expense Tracking: Why budgeting and/or tracking your expenses is essential, regardless of whether you are a lower-income earner or a highly paid professional.

• Practical Systems for Busy People: How Dr. Steph manages her finances as a doctor and mother, and the exact strategies she teaches her students.

• Debt vs. Investing Frameworks: Practical approaches to answer the classic question of whether you should pay off your debt first, invest, or do a combination of the two.

• Rethinking the Emergency Fund: How to best view your emergency fund, especially if you struggle with the opportunity cost of leaving cash on the sidelines instead of earning a higher return in the markets.

Dr. Steph Zhou is the founder of the annual Physicians Financial Wellness conference, a national philanthropic event focused on financial education and practice management for physicians. Her work in improving economic mobility through financial literacy earned her Canada's Top 100 Most Powerful Women award and the Ascend Canada Social Impact Award. You can find more of her financial education content on her popular Instagram and YouTube channel, Breaking Bad Debt.

Today's episode is going to be especially useful if you're a Canadian DIY investor and you want to build an optimized, passive, low-cost portfolio, but you still have questions about some of the practical details.

For example, should you just buy one all-in-one asset allocation ETF, or is there a benefit to buying the underlying ETFs individually? How much should you care about ETF trading volume? What does liquidity actually mean when we're talking about ETFs? Should you use market orders or limit orders when buying ETFs? And if you're an income-focused investor, what are the pros and cons of building your portfolio around dividends?

We also get into the active versus passive investing debate, why it's so difficult for stock pickers and active managers to consistently beat the market over the long term, and how investors can think about risk when comparing traditional bonds with things like low-volatility ETFs.

Also as a Build Wealth Canada listener, we have a brand new free issue of Canadian MoneySaver magazine for you. The issue focuses specifically on ETFs here in Canada, I wrote an article for it as well, and you can get the digital version of the entire magazine for free by going to buildwealthcanada.ca/magazine.

To help answer these questions, we have two great guests joining us.

First, we have Chris White from Canadian MoneySaver Magazine. Chris is also the Head of Research at 5i Research, and you may have heard him on CBC Radio or BNN Bloomberg.

We're also joined by popular returning guest Danielle Neziol, who is a very experienced and passionate educator when it comes to DIY investing here in Canada, especially index investing using low-cost ETFs, which, by the way, is literally how I invest all of my own money. Danielle is one of the hosts of the ETF Market Insights YouTube channel, she's a frequent speaker at industry events across Canada, and she works at BMO ETFs, one of the largest ETF providers in Canada so she incredible access to some of the best education, best practices, and resources when it comes to DIY investing here in Canada.

This content is sponsored by BMO Exchange Traded Funds.

This content is intended for information purposes only. Build Wealth Canada is compensated under this arrangement by BMO Exchange Traded Funds. The views expressed herein are subject to change without notice. The content contained herein is not, and should not be construed as, investment advice to any party. Particular investments and/or trading strategies should be evaluated relative to the individual's investment objectives and professional advice should be obtained with respect to any circumstance.

BMO Global Asset Management is a brand name under which BMO Asset Management Inc. and BMO Investments Inc. operate.
This podcast is for information purposes only. The information contained herein is not, and should not be construed as investment, tax or legal advice to any party. Particular investments and/or trading strategies should be evaluated and professional advice should be obtained with respect to any circumstance.

ETF and Mutual Fund portfolio holdings are subject to change without notice at any time. Index returns do not reflect transactions costs or the deduction of other fees and expenses and it is not possible to invest directly in an Index. Past performance is no guarantee of future results.

Any statement that necessarily depends on future events may be a forward-looking statement. Forward-looking statements are not guarantees of performance. They involve risks, uncertainties and assumptions. Although such statements are based on assumptions that are believed to be reasonable, there can be no assurance that actual results will not differ materially from expectations. Investors are cautioned not to rely unduly on any forward-looking statements. In connection with any forward-looking statements, investors should carefully consider the areas of risk described in the most recent prospectus.

Commissions, management fees and expenses all may be associated with investments in exchange-traded funds. Please read the ETF Facts or prospectus of the BMO ETFs before investing. The indicated rates of return are the historical annual compounded total returns including changes in unit value and reinvestment of all dividends or distributions and do not take into account sales, redemption, distribution or optional charges or income taxes payable by any unitholder that would have reduced returns. Exchange-traded funds are not guaranteed, their values change frequently and past performance may not be repeated.

For a summary of the risks of an investment in the BMO ETFs, please see the specific risks set out in the BMO ETF's prospectus. BMO ETFs trade like stocks, fluctuate in market value and may trade at a discount to their net asset value, which may increase the risk of loss. Distributions are not guaranteed and are subject to change and/or elimination.

BMO ETFs are managed and administered by BMO Asset Management Inc., an investment fund manager and a portfolio manager, and a separate legal entity from Bank of Montreal. BMO Global Asset Management is a brand name under which BMO Asset Management Inc. and BMO Investments Inc. operate.

"BMO" is a registered trademark of Bank of Montreal, used under licence..

As the markets hit all-time highs again, one of the things that has become top of mind for me personally is how to make sure that our investments are actually secure.

If you're a long-term passive, total market index investor like me, then you've definitely seen your portfolio grow quite substantially over the years. With this, one begins to wonder: What can be done to ensure the security of those investments?

In this case, I'm not talking about the volatility of the investments themselves, but rather how to ensure that our investment and other financial accounts do not get hacked, that someone doesn't destroy our credit score, and that we don't become victims of identity theft, among the many other security threats that exist. 

This is especially prevalent in this age of AI, where it is easier than ever for someone to replicate our voice, or have AI crawl the internet to pull personal information about us that can be used to access our sensitive accounts, steal our money, or make critical changes that can cripple our net worth.

Especially since it's tax season right now, where we have to be extra diligent due to things like CRA scams, I thought it would be a good idea to do a deep dive on the bases we need to cover from a security standpoint when it comes to our finances.

With that, I wanted to bring on an expert who literally works in the security industry day in and day out, to take us through the bases we need to have covered, as well as provide us with some practical solutions, including free and paid tools that we can use to ensure we are not being negligent on the security side of our finances.

My guest today is Leigh Tynan. She's been the Director of Online Security at TELUS here in Canada for the past six years. My goal was to have her come on almost like a personal security consultant for you and me, to teach us what bases we need to cover when it comes to our online security here in Canada, and also how and when we should actually use the different security tools out there.

I figured in this world of online security, it's one of those cases where we don't know what we don't know. So, it would be valuable to have someone in Canada from the actual security industry come on to give us a checklist of sorts, along with an explanation, so that we can ensure there isn't some component we forgot about, or didn't even know about, that ends up being the avenue through which our private information is leaked or our sensitive financial accounts are compromised.

Alright, let's get into the interview.

Resources from the Episode:

TELUS Online Security (what I've been using)

Free Digital Literacy Education Resources from TELUS Wise

In 2026, it is estimated that nearly half of all Canadian mortgages will be up for renewal. This involves over 1 million households here in Canada. Because of the change in interest rates, some of these households could see their monthly payments jump by 15% to 20% on average—and in extreme cases, even higher.

That's the bad news.

The good news is that if your mortgage is coming up for renewal, the stress test requirements have likely changed since the last time you took out a mortgage years ago.

You actually have more power than ever to leave your current mortgage provider if you find a better mortgage elsewhere, and this is because the stress test has been removed in certain cases. Homeowners who were previously "trapped" with their current mortgage provider can now freely move to a competitor offering a lower rate. This forces the lenders to actually compete for your business.

In this episode, we're going to cover exactly how you can navigate all of these changes so you can keep more of your hard-earned money invested in your portfolio, rather than handing over an excessive amount to your mortgage provider.

Specifically, we're going to cover:

• What Canadian mortgage holders need to know about these changes to the stress test to avoid "payment shock" and take advantage of the new switching flexibility.

• How to choose between a fixed-rate vs. variable-rate mortgage with everything that is going on in Canada right now, based on the latest rates.

• How to execute an advanced hybrid strategy using a re-advanceable mortgage if you have a lump sum of cash to invest, but are nervous about putting it all into the market at once with valuations at all-time highs.

To help us dive into all of this, I invited Sean Cooper back onto the show. Sean is the resident mortgage expert for this podcast, he's the bestselling author of the book "Burn Your Mortgage," and he's a fully licensed mortgage broker. He is who I go to and send all friends, family, and listeners of the show to for any mortgage-related questions and research. Because he actually does this as a full-time job, he is up to date on all the latest mortgage rules, changes, and the best interest rates currently available here in Canada.

If you have any mortgage-related questions, or if you just want to see Sean's up-to-date research on the best mortgages that he's been able to find across the dozens of lenders that he's constantly monitoring all over Canada, you can send him a message, or book a free call with him over at buildwealthcanada.ca/sean. 

Alright, let's get into the show!

One of the most common questions I get, and honestly one of the biggest sources of anxiety for anyone nearing financial independence is: "How much can I spend without running out of money once I quit my job and start living off my investments?"

It's one thing to see a big number in your investment account; it's another thing entirely to hit the "withdraw" button and start taking money out.

Research, and my own experience shows that many Canadians end up underspending. They live a smaller life than they need to simply because they don't have a structured process they can trust.

Some blindly follow the "4% rule," while others just live off dividends, pensions, and/or government benefits, never touching their principal. This often results in a massive amount of money left over when they pass away. That is money that could have been spent enjoying life, creating memories with family, or donating to charity, rather than leaving a giant inheritance, and a giant tax bill to the government.

So, how do we find that balance? How do we calculate a spending number that is safe, but still lets us enjoy our lives?

To answer this, I invited Thuy Lam back on the show. Thuy is a Certified Financial Planner with over 20 years in the industry who recently built my personal financial plan. We discuss the specific cashflow plan she created for us, and the relevant insights and best practices you can apply to your own situation.

We dig into four critical areas:

1. First, the "Safe Withdrawal" question: We move past the 4% rule and discuss how to determine a sustainable spending rate that factors in current market conditions.
   
   

2. Second, the "Bucketing Strategy.": Thuy breaks down how to allocate your portfolio for short-term spending versus long-term growth. This is huge for keeping anxiety low when the market drops.
   
   

3. "Stress Testing" your plan: We talk about why using a simple average rate of return (like 8%) is a dangerous mistake, and how Monte Carlo simulations can help you see if your plan survives extreme scenarios.
   
   

4. Dynamic Spending Adjustments: We cover exactly when to tighten the belt if markets underperform, and how to safely increase spending if returns are high, so you don't die with a giant portfolio you never got to enjoy.

We're going to cover all that and more. Enjoy the Episode!

Links from the episode:

Meet with Thuy: Free Introductory Meeting & Discount Link 

Free Access to my investing guide: What I Invest In and Why? (Kornel's Portfolio)

With the new year kicking off, investing is top of mind for many of us, especially with all the new contribution room that many of us just received in our different registered accounts here in Canada (TFSA, RRSP, RESP, FHSA).

Now before we decide what to invest in with our contributions this year, I thought it would be wise to look into:

-What are some of the major and common mistakes that Canadian investors make when they do their own analysis on which investment to buy?

-When we are looking to compare two investments, whether it's a mutual fund, or an ETF, what is the process that we should follow to make sure that we are doing appropriate and thorough due diligence?

-Are we paying near the low-end vs the top-end of the spectrum when it comes to fees? What would be considered a "high" fee vs a "low" fee for the Canadian investor?

-Are there other charges or fees that we should be mindful of in addition to just looking at the MER for an ETF or mutual fund?

-How to properly compare investments that we are considering?

We go into all that and more in this episode. Enjoy!

Resources Mentioned:

ETF Comparison Tool

ETF Guide: What I Invest In and Why?

Disclaimer:

This podcast is sponsored by BMO Exchange Traded Funds. Build Wealth Canada is compensated under this arrangement by BMO ETFs.

This communication is intended for information purposes only. This update has been prepared by Build Wealth Canada and represents their assessment at the time of publication. The comments contained do not necessarily represent the views of BMO Global Asset Management (BMO GAM). The views expressed by the host and the interviewee are subject to change without notice as markets change over time. The information contained herein is not, and should not be construed as, investment advice to any party. Investments should be evaluated relative to the individual's investment objectives and professional advice should be obtained with respect to any circumstance.

Views expressed regarding a particular company, security, industry or market sector should not be considered an indication of trading intent of any investment funds managed by BMO GAM. Any reference to a particular company is for illustrative purposes only and should not be considered as investment advice or a recommendation to buy or sell nor should it be considered as an indication of how the portfolio of any investment fund managed by BMO GAM is or will be invested. This social media network is an independent organization and is not affiliated with BMO GAM.

One of my favourite types of interviews is when I get to interview someone who has hit their financial independence or retirement number early, and then picking their brain on how they got there, what worked well for them, what didn't, what mistakes they could have avoided, and learning what makes them feel happy and fulfilled both before and after hitting financial independence.

Well this time, I got to do this with one of the most famous personal finance experts in Canada, David Chilton, who, as you may know, was also one of the dragons on Dragon's Den.

Dave's bestselling book, The Wealthy Barber, was actually the first personal finance book that I ever read. I read it decades ago in high school, and in a way, it actually started me down this path of early financial independence.

Dave has recently released a massive update to the book, so we cover what has changed in personal finance and investing in Canada over the years, and what Canadians need to know about now when it comes to personal finance and investing in Canada. 

I'm incredibly grateful that Dave has chosen to spend so much of his time educating Canadians and trying to improve financial literacy here in Canada. You can definitely tell that he's not doing it for some massive financial gain, and is genuinely trying to help.

Let's get into the interview.

Today, we have a Canadian guest who has literally done over 400 interviews with different personal finance experts over the years, many of which were specifically for Canadians. Today, I pick his brain on the common conclusions, best practices, and recurring advice he's heard after interviewing so many personal finance experts.

My guest, Kyle Prevost, is also part of the FIRE (financial independence, retire early) movement and was able to hit his financial independence number at a very early age. I pick his brain on what safe withdrawal rate he has settled on and why, based on his extensive research, so that he doesn't run out of money in his early retirement and is able to live off his portfolio permanently.

I also ask him what has really moved the needle for him in terms of growing his net worth to reach financial independence so quickly, and what he does now to help ensure that he stays financially independent and doesn't have to go back to work, when we have the next major stock market crash.

Free tickets to the Canadian Financial Summit: 

https://buildwealthcanada.ca/summit

The Summit is from October 22-25 this year so be sure to grab your free tickets at the link above. You can also see all the speakers and talks at that link too.

1. After interviewing well over 400 personal finance experts over the years, what are some of the most impactful lessons or recurring pieces of advice that you've heard?
   
   
2. A few years ago, you created a retirement course where I remember my favourite section being your findings on the safe withdrawal rate - in other words, how much can we all withdraw from our investment portfolio to be able to live off it long-term? What are your current thoughts on a safe withdrawal rate, based on the research that you've seen, and have your views changed over time?
   
   
3. I know living abroad and travelling is something that you and your wife have done a lot of. When it comes to saving money on travel, can you give us 3 to 5 pieces of advice that you found really moved the needle for you when it comes to either not overpaying, or where you were able to really maximize the value that you received per dollar spent?
   
   
4. Now that you've hit FI years ago, do you still find earning more money to be a motivating factor for you? The last time you were on the show, you mentioned that it was as it lets you experience more when it comes to travel (among other things). Now that you've been FI for even longer, and since the markets have done so well over that time, do you find accumulating more money is still the motivator it once was? Or do you now get motivation and fulfillment from other things?
   
   
5. If both you and your wife were to stop generating any additional income through part-time work or side projects, how would you approach your cash position and asset allocation? Follow up: Since you are still generating some income as a household post FI, how does that change how much you keep in cash and how you structure your asset allocation? 
   
   
6. With the markets at all time highs again, there are definitely those that are getting nervous and worrying about a drop in the markets in the near future. What do you personally do to ensure you don't run out of money and are forced to return to 9-5 work if we were to have another 2008 scenario?
   
   
7. Over the decades, what factors have truly moved the needle for you in terms of net worth generation?
   
   
8. Tell us where we can hear more from you and about the Canadian Financial Summit.

In this episode, my goal was to make it relevant for both types of listeners:

First, for those who are just getting started in do-it-yourself investing or are looking to transition to becoming passive index investors instead of trying to beat the market by stock picking or owning expensive actively managed funds.

We're going to build a strong foundation for you here to help you get started, such as discussing what it actually means to be a total market index investor, and what the research says about passive index investing versus actively trying to pick investments that will beat the market. We'll also talk about the different ways you can be a DIY passive index investor here in Canada and the pros and cons of each.

Next, we're going to tackle something that's a bit more intermediate level and something that I've personally been deliberating and have been curious about for quite some time: When it comes to the more stable, fixed-income portion of our investment portfolio (often called the bond portion), what are some of the options available to us here in Canada, and what are the pros and cons of each?

We've all heard of high-interest savings accounts, GICs, and all-in-one bond ETFs that capture the aggregate bond index and have an assortment of bond types in them. But what if we only want a specific type of bond in our portfolio because of the degree of volatility and income that it provides? What are these different types of bond ETFs that we can buy, and what's the trade-off that we incur by choosing one over another?

In the past, we have had both stocks and bonds fall at the same time (2022), so what are our options and tradeoffs when it comes to specific types of bonds that we can choose, so that we can avoid or mitigate the large drops in the "safe/less volatile" portion of our portfolio?

Links from the Episode

ETF Comparison Tool. This is especially useful for comparing fees (the management fee and MER) among similar ETFs. At this link, I've already included some comparisons for you.

Here is the episode on fixed-income choices that I mentioned during the episode: Fixed Income ETFs Episode

ETF Market Insights YouTube Channel

Investor Profile Questionnaire (to help you determine your asset allocation)

This podcast is sponsored by BMO Exchange Traded Funds. Build Wealth Canada is compensated under this arrangement by BMO ETFs.

This communication is intended for information purposes only. This update has been prepared by Build Wealth Canada and represents their assessment at the time of publication. The comments contained do not necessarily represent the views of BMO Global Asset Management (BMO GAM). The views expressed by the host and the interviewee are subject to change without notice as markets change over time. The information contained herein is not, and should not be construed as, investment advice to any party. Investments should be evaluated relative to the individual's investment objectives and professional advice should be obtained with respect to any circumstance.

Views expressed regarding a particular company, security, industry or market sector should not be considered an indication of trading intent of any investment funds managed by BMO GAM. Any reference to a particular company is for illustrative purposes only and should not be considered as investment advice or a recommendation to buy or sell nor should it be considered as an indication of how the portfolio of any investment fund managed by BMO GAM is or will be invested. This social media network is an independent organization and is not affiliated with BMO GAM.

Links to speak to today's guests:
Thuy Lam: buildwealthcanada.ca/plan
Alanna Abramsky: broadmoney.ca

After conducting hundreds of interviews over the past 10 years with different financial experts and those who have been able to hit their financial independence number early, one of the common themes and best practices that I've noticed emerge time and time again is that those who are wealthy actually track their spending.

At the end of the day, knowing what you spend every year on essential expenses versus discretionary expenses like vacations and fun activities lets you actually forecast with pretty good accuracy how much you need to become financially independent so that you can retire early if you wish.

It's also one of the key, critical ingredients that you need to be able to know whether you can sustainably live off your portfolio, and for how long.

Now, I will admit, tracking expenses is not something that I personally find fun. It's one more thing to do, and we're all busy enough as it is. But literally every single financial planner that I have ever worked with over the years who knew what they were doing, and every single person that I've talked to who was able to retire early or reach financial independence early, had expenses as one of the key components that they managed and that they needed to know to be able to determine with accuracy when it is safe to stop working and live off your investments forever.

It really is a skill and process worth developing that you will literally be using your whole life. My wife and I have now been either fully retired or semi-retired for the past 9 years here in Canada, and I can tell you that knowing our expenses year to year has been critical in making sure that we don't overspend and have to go back to work. And, as I've mentioned in the past, knowing this has also been a huge financial anxiety reducer for me personally, since you actually know how much you have and how much you need, and so you aren't in a state of anxiety every time that the credit card bill comes in, hoping that you and your family didn't overspend this month.

In this episode, I invited 2 highly experienced financial coaches here in Canada to discuss how we should be tracking our expenses, whether we actually need a traditional budget, the different processes that we can follow to properly manage this key component of our financial lives as efficiently as possible, and what tools we can use here in Canada to make this whole process less tedious and more automated and productive.

Our first guest is Thuy Lam. Thuy is a Certified Financial Planner (CFP) with over 20 years in financial planning, financial coaching, wealth management, and business consulting experience. She enjoys working with clients who value financial advice conveyed in an easy-to-understand fashion, and especially those looking for help with cash flow planning while going through a life change, such as a new job or career, marriage, divorce, or retirement. I've worked with Thuy personally, and she's been amazing at helping my wife and I plan out our finances in our early retirement.

Our second guest is Alanna Abramsky. She has been financial coaching for over 10 years and has helped more than 1,000 Canadians over this time. She has over 30 years of experience in the personal finance field, and she started Broad Money with the mission of empowering Canadians to take control of their financial futures, offering support and guidance every step of the way.

Have you ever felt that knot in your stomach watching the stock market tumble, especially after you've just invested some of your hard earned money? Have you ever wondered how seasoned investors with large amounts invested handle those gut-wrenching portfolio drops? 

Well in this episode, we're tackling market volatility head-on. Our guest Marc Beavis is a seasoned investor who's lived through multiple major crashes over the decades, and he shares powerful mindset shifts and actionable strategies to help you stay calm, stay invested, and stay on track—even when the headlines scream chaos.

I also share my own strategies that have helped me stay calm, anxiety-free, and stay invested after nearly two decades of investing which has played a huge impact in helping us achieve financial independence in our early thirties. 

Saily Discount Link for 15% Off their Data Plans: https://saily.com/buildwealth

One of the reasons that I really wanted to have Marc on the show is that:

1. He's been in the industry for decades working with clients, so he's got not only wisdom on what has helped him stay the course over the decades with multiple stock market drops, but also what has worked well for others that he's worked with; Canadians with different personalities and temperaments. 
   
   

2. He's retired and in his 60's so he actually has real life experience going through the crashes with a significant amount of his own money invested, like in the 2008 financial crisis and the tech crash in the 2000s, just to name a few.
   
   

3. He also runs one of the largest Canadian investing YouTube channels in Canada, called Beavis Wealth, so despite retiring, he's still very much on top of what's been happening and what we can do to better handle declines in our own portfolios.

Thanks to Marc's help, you'll learn the mindset shifts needed to endure significant declines, and discover proven strategies for staying calm and confident when your investments plummet.

Today's episode is a must-listen for anyone who's ever felt confused, anxious, or just plain stuck when it comes to money. We're diving deep into the emotional and psychological side of personal finance with Jessica Moorhouse, an accredited financial counsellor who's spent over a decade helping Canadians untangle their money struggles.

In this conversation, Jess reveals the most common patterns she's seen over the years—from overspending traps to financial fears we rarely talk about—and the simple, practical strategies that can truly make a difference.

We'll also unpack powerful insights from her new book, "The Hidden Barriers Between You and Financial Freedom", including why even those who are financially secure can still feel stressed about money. You'll learn how to spot the invisible forces that keep you stuck, and more importantly, how to move past them.

Plus, if you're in a relationship, this episode is packed with real-world advice on managing money as a couple—without the fights and resentment.

By the end of this episode, you'll walk away with actionable tips and the clarity you need to take control of your financial future—without losing your peace of mind.

A Big Thanks to Our Sponsors:

Incogni: Get 60% off Incogni by using the link: https://incogni.com/buildwealth

ETF Market Insights and BMO ETFs: Catch the latest episodes on YouTube Here: https://www.youtube.com/@ETFMarketInsights

Sun Life MyRetirement Income: To learn more about if Sun Life MyRetirement Income is right for you, visit https://buildwealthcanada.ca/myretirementincome.

BMO Asset Allocation ETFs: I use these ETFs a lot, and they are the largest Canadian ETF provider. You can see them and learn more here: http://www.bmoetfs.com/

Today I'm excited to have a panel discussion with some of the largest personal finance and investing personalities, here in Canada.

Together they have over 46 million views on YouTube (that's more than the entire population of Canada), and in this episode, I thought it would be great to pick their brains on how they actually invest their own money, what types of investments do they actually buy? what specific ETFs do they buy and what type of investing style have they found to work best for them?

They also ask me the same questions so you'll get a pretty diverse view of the different options out there, for us Canadians, when it comes to investing.

You'll notice too that while some of our styles overlap, we do also diverge in a few areas, and so we also tackle what are the pros and cons of the different styles, allowing you to make an informed and more educated decision, on what is the best fit for you.

Saily Discount Link Mentioned in the Episode:

Get an exclusive 15% discount on Saily data plans! Go to saily.com/buildwealth or download the Saily app on your phone and use the code "buildwealth" at checkout.

Questions Covered:

1. Let's start by introducing the panel. Brandon, can you start by telling us a bit about yourself, your area of expertise, roughly how much you currently invest in ETFs, and tell us about the investing style or strategy that you've chosen for yourself.

2. To kick things off, I thought it would be good to start with what I consider, one of the easiest investing styles to implement and get started with, while also being extremely effective, very passive, and low cost.

   Brandon, as you can probably guess, I'm of course talking about asset allocation ETFs which you mentioned is your preferred investing style. For anybody new to this, can you explain what asset allocation ETFs are, and then go into why you chose this as your primary investing style, along with the ETFs that you actually buy and why.

3. Let's open it up to the panel: Does anybody else here buy asset allocation ETFs? Why or why not? And if you do, what specific asset allocation ETF do you buy?

4. Adrian, you like to buy the underlying ETFs, instead of just one asset allocation ETF. For anybody new to this, can you explain what that actually means, why you choose to invest in this way, and can you share specifically which ETFs you like to buy as part of this investing style.

5. Let's open it up to the panel: Does anybody else invest in this way, and if so, what are your favourite ETFs, and give us some explanation on why you chose them and this style of investing.

6. Are there any negatives that you think are worth mentioning when it comes to this investment style of buying the underlying ETFs?

7. Marc, so far our conversation has been dominated a bit by equities (the stock portion of the portfolio), but of course, fixed income is also something that most investors find to be a good fit, especially since not everyone can stomach having a 100% equity portfolio and dealing with those occasional 30% or 40% drops and just riding those out and not panic selling. You have some focus on fixed income in your portfolio which can help reduce that volatility. Can you take us through your thought process on having these types of investments, along with which ones you like and why?

8. Thanks Marc. Would anybody from the panel like to add anything to the fixed income discussion? Are there any fixed income ETFs that you like to buy?

9. Adriano, let's talk about your investing style now. Yours is a bit different from the vanilla, total market, index investing strategy that most of us on this panel use. Can you speak to why you chose your particular investing style, the pros, the cons, who is it for, and do you have any favourite ETFs or other investments that you like to use as part of it?

10. Let's open it up to the panel: Do you have any questions, concerns or comments?

Today, we're going to cover what you need to know from a tax, investing, and financial planning perspective as all our taxes become due here in Canada on April 30th, 2025, and as we get well underway with 2025 in general.

As you know, the government makes changes every year in these areas. The implications of these changes can have a pretty substantial impact on how much you pay in taxes, your net worth, and what government benefits you are eligible to get, and how much you get.

These can easily affect your net worth in the thousands of dollars every single year, so it's definitely in your and my best interest to know about these changes and get a bit of a refresher, so that we can all better prepare, and also take advantage of any opportunities that arise, like any benefits that we might become eligible for.

A Big Thanks to Our Sponsors:

Incogni: Get 60% off Incogni by using the link https://incogni.com/buildwealth

PolicyMe Life Insurance: Proudly Canadian, get a no obligation quote at buildwealthcanada.ca/policyme

ETF Market Insights and BMO ETFs: Catch the latest episodes on YouTube Here.

BMO Asset Allocation ETFs: I use these ETFs a lot, and they are the largest Canadian ETF provider. Why wouldn't you want to buy from a Canadian provider with your ETFs? You can see them and learn more here: BMOETFs.com 

About Our Guests:

To help me with this episode, I have Certified Financial Planners Jason Heath and Paul McVean on the show. Jason is a popular returning guest on the show, definitely one of the more well-known and respected financial planners, here in Canada. Jason has been providing fee-only, advice-only financial planning since 2002, so over two decades. He is also a personal finance columnist for the Financial Post, MoneySense, and Canadian MoneySaver. He has a Bachelor of Economics degree from York University and holds the Certified Financial Planner designation.

In addition to being a Certified Financial Planner, our 2nd guest, Paul McVean is also a Senior Tax Accountant, he is a CPA, and he's a Trust and Estate Practitioner (a TEP), so definitely very knowledgeable, especially on the tax, and how to save you tax side of things where he has over 25 years of experience.

Jason and Paul are both fee-only financial planners here in Canada, which means they don't sell any investments so there isn't that potential conflict-of-interest that you see a lot of here in Canada where someone calls themselves a financial planner or a financial advisor, you think you're getting a good financial plan and that they have your best interests at heart, but really they are just trying to get you to buy the investments that their firm sells so that they can earn a hefty commission.

None of that here, we're going for purely unbiased financial education in this episode with Jason and Paul.

If you want to speak to Jason, Paul or someone from their team, you can reach them at buildwealthcanada.ca/jason.

Jason and his team have been increadible educational contributors to the Build Wealth Canada Podcast for multiple years now, their episodes are consistently some of the most popular on show, and I did want to give a big thanks to Jason as he has once again agreed to continue giving Build Wealth Canada listeners a discount, if you do decide to work with them when it comes to your financial planning, optimizing your taxes, etc.

A big thanks to Jason for that, and that link again to speak to them to see if you are a good fit for each other, and to get a discount if you do decide to work together is buildwealthcanada.ca/jason. 

And now let's get into the show.

Questions:

1. To kick things off, can you take us through any significant changes and things to keep in mind for 2025 when it comes to investing, taxes, and financial planning in general, here in Canada?
2. One other thing that I wonder about is the importance of tax planning. I get the impression most accountants are tax preparers, not tax planners. Can you talk about the difference and why it matters?
3. Let's talk about the elephant in the room: The changes to the capital gains inclusion rate. This could have a major financial impact for many of us here in Canada, but I think there are also a lot of misconceptions of who this applies to and in what situations. 

4. One very attractive headline that I see here in Canada from time to time, is that for 2025 for example, Canadians can receive up to $53,375 in eligible Canadian dividends tax free, if the investments are in their taxable investment accounts (and if they have no other sources of income). 

   Some retired couples, and aspiring early retirees will then reason that combined with their spouse, they can each earn that $53,375 tax free every year, so $106,750 together. They can then just live off their dividends in retirement, pay no income tax, and never have to sell anything. 

   This strategy has a lot of different caveats and very easy mistakes to fall into. Can you unpack this for us so that we are all aware of this strategy, but also understand its risks and limitations.

5. While on the subject of dividends, one big consideration for Canadians is that when we receive Canadian dividends in our taxable accounts, those dividends can increase the speed at which we start getting clawed back on our government benefits like the Canada Child Benefit (CCB) and Old Age Security (OAS) for example (i.e. the gross up). 

   One potential solution for this, is to use corporate class ETFs like HXCN from Global X for example (previously Global X was under the brand Horizons).

   What are your thoughts on these ETFs and can you give us your thoughts on the extra risk that we are taking on by using this type of structure where our dividends are essentially being turned into capital gains so that we don't have to worry about these clawbacks as much? 

6. For anybody new to this world of Canadian financial planning and optimization, can you take us through what an advice-only financial planner is (what you are), compared to a more traditional financial advisor title/role here in Canada?

If you own a home, are thinking about buying or selling a home, or have a mortgage renewal coming up, today's episode is here to help you make the best financial decisions in this changing market. Ultimately my goal is to save you some money when it comes to all this, or at least make things less stressful for you.

We're bringing back our trusted mortgage expert and best-selling author, Sean Cooper, to first, break down the potential impact that the new US tariffs may have on our mortgage and real estate market here in Canada. 

Sean also goes over the new mortgage rules that you need to be aware of if your mortgage is coming up for renewal, or if you're getting a brand new mortgage.

We also cover:

What's happening in Canada's housing market right now? Is it a buyer's or seller's market?

We cover the different ways that you can make changes to your mortgage if you're finding cashflow to be a little tight. 

We also give an update on the fixed vs. variable rate mortgage debate. Which is the better choice based on the current state of the mortgage market and interest rates here in Canada?

Enjoy the episode.

A big thanks to Sean for offering to answer questions from Build Wealth Canada listeners at no cost. You can set up a meeting to speak with Sean over at: BuildWealthCanada.ca/sean

1. Sean, can you give us an update on what's happening in the real estate market, in Canada, right now? and can you touch on what the repercussions might be of the new tariffs between the US and Canada? Is this something that could potentially affect our Canadian mortgage rates and real estate market?
   
   
2. Is it more of a buyer's market or a seller's market? What should we expect if we're considering buying or selling our home currently, here in Canada?
   
   
3. One interesting finding, is that more than 4 million mortgages, or about 60% of all outstanding mortgages, will renew over the next 2 years, in 2025 and 2026. What should Canadians know when their mortgage is coming up for renewal, and they are shopping around for a mortgage in 2025?
   
   
4. Sean, before we continue with more questions, I just wanted to say that you've been the podcast's resident mortgage expert for years now, helping many listeners of the show. Thank you for that! For anybody that has mortgage questions, or would like to know the best mortgages that you've been able to find here in Canada, can you briefly explain how it works when working with a mortgage broker like yourself, especially when it comes to payment, just so that anybody new to all this doesn't maybe think that there are some fees they have to pay to get their questions answered or to see your research. 
   
   
5. With all these interest rate fluctuations, I'm sure many Canadians are wondering, if there is an opportunity for savings, with their current mortgage. Can you speak to this?
   
   
6. Cash flow is a concern for a lot of Canadians. What are some strategies for homeowners to lower their mortgage payment?
   
   
7. Let's talk about Fixed mortgage rates vs variable rates. Which one make the most sense right now for Canadians when choosing a mortgage, considering the current interest rates and economic environment?
   
   
8. Can you talk about all the new mortgage rules that were introduced since our last podcast in March 2024?

Have you ever wondered how financial planners in Canada plan their own retirement once they decide to retire?

Our guest today is a recurring guest that we've had on the show many times. He's a fee-for-service financial planner with decades of experience in the industry, and while he's not retired yet, he's gotten to that age where he's getting really close, and so it makes sense for him to do a more thorough financial plan for himself, for his own retirement.

And so, I thought it would be useful for us to look under the hood, and hear his thought process when planning his own retirement as a Canadian, as surely there are nuggets of wisdom, best practices, strategies, tactics and insights that he's applying when planning his own retirement, that we can then use ourselves, in our own finances.

Enjoy the episode!

A big thanks to John for offering a free 30 minutes consultation to Build Wealth Canada listeners. You can speak to John for free by going to: BuildWealthCanada.ca/john

With the end of the year arriving and the new year starting shortly, there are certain deadlines that you should be aware of every year, from an investment and tax optimization perspective.

There are also some elements to keep top of mind as the new year begins. These happen every year, so even if you are listening to this episode years from now, it will still be relevant to you, as these are things to think about and reevaluate every year.

Think of this episode as a checklist that you can use every year to help ensure that you aren't missing anything from an investment, tax, and government benefit optimization standpoint.

Enjoy the episode!

My ETF Guide: What I invest in and why (free)

My "How to Invest for Canadians Course"

What DIY Passive Investing Style is Optimum for You? (video presentation)

RESP Guide (Registered Education Savings Plan)

Asset Allocation ETFs

ZEQT - BMO All-Equity ETF

ZGRO - BMO Growth ETF

ZBAL - BMO Balanced ETF

Active vs. Passive Investing: Interview with S&P Dow Jones Indices (S&P 500) & How to Choose the Right ETFs

How to do Nobert's Gambit Guide

Today, we tackle one of the most intricate financial puzzles faced by Canadians: transitioning from accumulating wealth for retirement to effectively managing it during the decumulation phase—when you're actually living off your investments.

In this episode, we'll explore why this shift can be so complex, even for seasoned savers and investors. You'll gain insights into balancing financial security with enjoying your retirement lifestyle and sustainably spending the wealth you've worked so hard to accumulate.

We'll also discuss both hands-on and passive approaches to managing retirement funds and share strategies to help maintain your financial stability while still enjoying life.

Whether you're nearing retirement or planning ahead, this episode offers valuable strategies for navigating the decumulation puzzle with confidence and peace of mind.

Joining me today is Eric Monteiro. Eric helps lead Canada's largest provider of workplace savings and retirement platforms, covering over 1.3 million Canadians and managing more than $125 billion in assets. He does this at Sun Life, where he has worked since 2016 as the Senior Vice-President of Group Retirement Services. Eric also serves on the Board of Directors for The Princess Margaret Cancer Foundation, one of the world's leading cancer research and care organizations.

And now, let's get into the interview.

1. Easily one of the most complicated financial puzzles that I've ever had to solve, was how to transition from the accumulation stage where we're just adding to our investments for retirement, to the decumulation stage where we are now living off our portfolio, and now have to worry about not running out of money. For those of us who haven't fully gone through this challenge yet, can you shed some light on why transitioning to this new stage in life is so much more complicated? and why should we all care about it now, even for those that are still in the accumulation stage?
   
   
2. When it comes to Canadians managing their finances while living off their portfolio, there are several different approaches available to them. Some are very hands-on, more time consuming, and can get very complex. They do however have the benefit of generally having low fees and potentially being very tax optimized if managed correctly.
   
   On the other end of the spectrum, we have very hands-off, passive solutions, but those tend to have larger fees associated with them (at least from what I've seen here in Canada).
   
   Can you take us through the different decumulation solutions or strategies available to us, as Canadians, and what are the pros and cons of each?
   
   
3. I'm a passive index investor, and I don't mind micromanaging the investments and withdrawals myself to save extra money on fees and taxes. But, one thing that I worry about and that I believe all Canadians should consider, is: Who is going to manage the decumulation for your aging parents? Especially if they are not as financially savvy, and when they eventually go through cognitive decline as they reach those later years. And, what happens if you die before your partner, or go through some form of cognitive decline yourself? How can you transition what you currently do, to a partner that maybe is not willing or able to micromanage your investments to the same degree as you? Can you speak to which options you have found to work best for Canadians in these situations?
   
   
4. One of the challenges that we all face, especially as we start to live off our portfolios, is how to balance the need for security where we don't run out of money in our retirement, while still enjoying the fruits of our labour, especially while we are still healthy. In other words, ensuring that not only do we not overspend, but also that we don't underspend and end up passing away with an enormous portfolio that we regret not fully utilizing.
   
   Do you have any practical strategies, tactics, or ways of thinking to help us find the balance so that we don't end up on either extreme end of this spectrum?
   
   
5. One solution that you mentioned earlier that could potentially be used to help automate and simplify our finances in the decumulation phase was the 'MyRetirement Income' product. This is something that's new, that I'm not too familiar with. Can you tell us more about it, how it works, and what are the fees associated with it?
   
   
6. Thanks so much Eric, I'm always on the lookout for what is available out there, particularly for solutions that I can maybe suggest to my parents, or that I can transition to my wife if something was to happen to me. Can you tell us where we can learn more, and are there any other educational resources that you can direct us to when it comes to helping solve that decumulation puzzle here in Canada?

On today's episode we have another Canadian guest, Kyle Prevost, who achieved financial independence at an early age (he was able to pull it off in his 30s). He's also done hundreds of financial talks and interviews over the years with both regular Canadians, and some of the most highly respected financial experts in both Canada and the US.

In this episode, we discuss what he's learned from these hundreds of discussions that he's had, especially when it comes to best practices and financial tactics that we can apply to our own lives.

He also shares advice on how he personally minimizes and thinks about fees in his own investment portfolio, and we also discuss his findings on CPP and OAS in Canada, which in case you're not familiar, are the two main income sources from the government that Canadians rely on in their retirement. Kyle has done a bunch of research and interviews on how viable the CPP and OAS is long-term, and if we can continue to expect to receive them in our older age, even if we're nowhere near that traditional retirement age of 65 yet.

We cover all this and more in the interview.

Also, free tickets to the Canadian Financial Summit:

Kyle and I have run the Canadian Financial Summit together for years in the past, this year I'm attending it as one of the speakers, and I have free tickets for you which you can get at buildwealthcanada.ca/summit.

In case you're new to the Summit, it's a fully online event for Canadians where you can stream all the educational talks. I'll be speaking at it again this year, this time about RRSPs, and I'll be there with 36 other Canadian personal finance and investing experts who will be sharing their expertise and best practices when it comes to investing, retirement, financial planning, ETFs, pensions, cash flow management once you hit your financial independence number, and much more.

It's happening really soon this month, October 23-26. I hope to see you there, and again you can get free tickets to the event by going to buildwealthcanada.ca/summit

I hope to see you there!

Kornel

We all spend decades accumulating and growing our net worth, along with many hours of research and studying to optimize our investments and minimize our taxes as Canadians. But what if a single incident wipes all that out? or even just a large portion of it out? Wouldn't it be completely irrational to not eliminate that risk?

The best solution that I can think of for accomplishing this is insurance, so I thought it would be helpful to come up with a checklist that you can use of the different types of insurance available for us Canadians, so that you can go through it, one by one, and decide which types make sense for you, to protect your net worth.

After that, we do a minor pivot to talk about dental insurance and medical insurance for us Canadians. I have been spending an obscene amount on dental care with our two kids. It's super expensive, it stresses me out, and so I wanted to learn more about what the options are for us Canadians when it comes to dental coverage, along with getting medical coverage for things that aren't covered by the government, here in Canada.

To help me with this, I brought back one of our popular returning guests, Laura MacKay. Laura is the co-founder and COO of policyme.com, Canada's fastest-growing digital insurance company.

In 2021, she was named one of the Women of the Year by Bay Street Bull. She has a Bachelor of Mathematics from the University of Waterloo, and her degree focused on Actuarial Science, which included learning about mortality risk, the basis of life insurance pricing and valuation.

Laura is also joined by her colleague Natalie Dupley, who comes from the not-for-profit sector. Natalie is now a licensed insurance advisor that works with Laura, and specializes in life, accident, and sickness insurance.

About Laura's Company: PolicyMe.com

Educational Guides from the Episode:

Types of Dental Insurance Plans in Canada

The Canadian Guide to Health Insurance Plans

What is Life Insurance: Meaning & Comprehensive Guide

1. To kick things off, can you take us through what insurance us Canadians typically need, so that we don't miss out on any critical coverage that we should have?

2. One type of coverage that I think isn't always thought about for us Canadians is health and dental insurance, particularly since we're used to having most of our medical expenses covered by the government. Can you take us through some common misconceptions about health and dental insurance, as well as who it would be most useful for?

3. When I think of cases where I need insurance, it's typically for very sudden and time sensitive events like a car crash, or dental procedure that I need done as soon as possible. But what about having insurance for things that are less sudden like therapy and mental health, or things like braces or corrective eye procedures like LASIK surgery? How does having private insurance work in those cases?

4. When it comes to this type of insurance, how do we determine if it's more financially sensible to pay-out-of-pocket for these healthcare costs vs purchasing a Health & Dental Insurance plan?

5. Before we continue with more educational questions, I wanted to give you a chance to speak about PolicyMe, what you do, and I realise that you also specialise in health and dental insurance so perhaps you could speak about that?

6. What are the key components to look for when evaluating this type of insurance?

7. When it comes to health and dental insurance plans, is this something that also covers you when travelling? Or would that be separate?

8. Of all the things covered under a Health & Dental plan, what areas of coverage do most Canadians prioritise or care about? and what are some areas of coverage that you think are underutilised (or that Canadians can stand to benefit from more)?

9. What are some of the most common questions that Canadians ask when it comes to health and dental insurance?

10. Can you tell us more about PolicyMe, how you differentiate yourselves, and what you offer?

This interview will be a bit different as I was recently interviewed by Financial Journalist, Ellen Roseman from Canadian MoneySaver Magazine where she asked me some great questions, and so I thought it would be great to also publish that interview, here on the Build Wealth Canada Show.

In the interview, we cover what lessons for Canadians I have learned after doing close to two hundred interviews with financial experts, over the past 10 years.

My wife and I have also been either fully or semi-retired for the past 8 years, and so Ellen asked me if I have any advice for those who are also planning to retire in their 30s like us, or just retire early in general, and she asks what kind of financial changes or challenges were we surprised by that you should know about to help you with your own journey towards financial independence and early retirement.

Ellen has also been teaching investing at the University of Toronto for the past 20 years, so in the interview, she also shares some of her lessons learned over that time.

Enjoy the episode, and if you'd like to hear more interviews done by Ellen, you can check them out on the Canadian MoneySaver Podcast which you can find in your favourite podcast player.

Thanks for tuning in, and you can get all the show notes and free resources over at BuildWealthCanada.ca.

In this episode, I interview two professional financial planners to discover what are the most common questions that they receive when working with Canadians.

Our two guests are also going to cover what the most important and frequently occurring blind spots are that we Canadians tend to make in our own finances.

We also cover how to know if you are on-track to reach financial independence and retire early, or if you have enough to retire comfortably.

We cover all this and more, as we tackle the top questions that Canadians have, here in Canada.

Our guests today are Hannah McVean and Thuy Lam from Objective Financial Partners. They are both fee-for-service financial planners, are both Certified Financial Planners (CFP), and they and their firm don't sell any investments and instead focus on providing unbiased, conflict-free financial planning advice.

Hannah was actually a guest on our January episode with Jason Heath and that was our most popular episode this year. So, it's great to have her back, along with Thuy to get multiple perspectives on these most popular questions that Canadians have.

You can book a free introductory meeting with Hannah, Thuy and their team at buildwealthcanada.ca/plan. As a Build Wealth Canada listener, you'll get 10% off if you end up working with them. The discount is for a limited time, and you can sign up for free here. A big thanks to Hannah and Thuy for offering this to Build Wealth Canada listeners.

When we first hit our financial independence number 8 years ago, one of the financial planners that I asked to look at our numbers before my wife and I quit our full-time jobs was Ed Rempel. At the time, I asked Ed if he could do his own math and analysis on our numbers, to make sure that I didn't miscalculate something when I was doing it myself, and this way I could be certain that my wife and I could quit our jobs and live off our portfolio going forward.

Well, fast forward to today, it's been around 8 years since we quit our full-time jobs, and so I thought it would be helpful to have Ed back on the show and to once again use us as a case study on how one can live off their portfolio in a sustainable, stress free, and tax efficient way, here in Canada.

On this episode, you're going to learn what strategies and frameworks tend to work when it comes to living off your portfolio here in Canada.

You'll learn about a big mistake that I made which was actually causing me money anxiety even though our investment portfolio was going up in value. Ed helped me get through that, and it's a mistake that is actually totally avoidable, and a skill that you can start building and mastering today.

And, when it comes to a strategy for paying the least amount of tax in Canada, Ed takes us through two main strategies that you can choose depending on your situation so that you pay the least amount of tax throughout your lifetime.

We cover all this and much more in the interview.

Links, show notes and free resources are all available at BuildWealthCanada.ca.

Having your investments pay you large dividends or yield sounds great. It's truly passive income where money just shows up in your account without you having to do anything, and without you having to sell off any of your investments even when markets are down.

But what if you get too focused on maximizing dividends or yield in your portfolio? After all, there is no free lunch when it comes to investing. There are always tradeoffs, and it turns out that there are some pretty significant disadvantages for investors that just try to maximize their yield or dividends at all costs, and it can result in you actually getting a substantially lower "total return" over time, on your investments.

To help us learn what pitfalls to look out for when deciding on our investments, particularly when it comes to some of these very high yielding ETFs that you may be seeing recommended online, we have Chris Heakes.

Chris has over 14 years of experience in the investment industry. He's a CFA, has a Master of Finance from the University of Toronto, and is a Director and Portfolio Manager at BMO Global Asset Management.

Chris is going to take us through what we should look out for so that we don't fall for the yield trap.

We'll also cover hidden fees that you may be unknowingly paying on some ETF, along with some arguably deceptive advertising to look out for that you may have seen here in Canada when it comes to your investments.

Lots to learn in this interview with Chris, so let's jump right in.

You can see all the show notes, resources and links for this episode over at BuildWealthCanada.ca

A big thanks to RBC for sponsoring this episode.

We talk a lot about growing our net worth as Canadians, but what about actually protecting our assets from threats like fraud?

So, I thought we'd get some security experts on the show to teach us some best practices when it comes to protecting ourselves and our family, especially when it comes to our finances, here in Canada.

They are part of the security teams at the largest bank in Canada. They have entire teams devoted to security and invest a lot of time and money to ensure that they and their clients are following the best practices.

Today, you and I are going to learn what we can do as regular Canadians, to best protect ourselves.

Our first guest is Kevin Purkiss who is the Vice President of Fraud Management at RBC. He leads the team responsible for managing RBC's fraud capabilities, and helps protect the many thousands of Canadians that they serve.

Next, we have Kevin's colleague, Vice-President, Shekher Puri, who's going to take us through some additional best practices that you and I should be using, to enhance our security, especially when it comes to our finances.

And now let's jump in to learn what you and I should be doing to better protect ourselves.

RBC Disclaimer:
This content in this podcast is intended as general information only and is not to be relied upon as constituting legal, financial or other professional advice. A professional advisor should be consulted regarding your specific situation. The information presented is believed to be factual and up-to-date but we do not guarantee its accuracy and it should not be regarded as a complete analysis of the subjects discussed. All expressions of opinion reflect the judgment of the authors as of the date of publication and are subject to change. No endorsement of any third parties or their advice, opinions, information, products or services is expressly given or implied by Royal Bank of Canada or any of its affiliates.

When it comes to managing our investment portfolios, there are definitely some mistakes that are easy to make, and ones that a lot of Canadian investors tend to do.

In this episode, we have Peter McMurtry on the show who is going to take us through what the common mistakes are that Canadian investors tend to do, as well as the best practices that he's noticed from his 30+ years in the investing industry.

One of the things Peter does is portfolio reviews for his clients, so I wanted to pick his brain on the common mistakes that he sees investors make when he reviews their portfolios so that you and I can be sure to avoid those mistakes in our own portfolio.

On the flip side, he's also worked with clients that are successful investors, and after doing this for 30+ years, one begins to notice certain patterns about what the successful investors do, that the unsuccessful don't. We go into these best practices that he's noticed over the years from these successful investors, so that we can apply these lessons ourselves.

Enjoy the show, and you can get the show notes and resources over at BuildWealthCanada.ca

Wishing you all the best,

Kornel

With inflation slowing down here in Canada, we are starting to hear talks about the Bank of Canada no longer planning to increase our interest rates, or maybe even lowering them.

This can have an impact on your investment portfolio, particularly if you hold bonds, because remember there is that inverse relationship between interest rates and bonds, where increases in the interest rate tend to lower the value of the bonds that you hold in your portfolio. On the flip side, if the Bank of Canada lowers our rates, you can expect your bonds to increase in value.

Apart from your investments, the interest rate can of course have a substantial impact on your month-to-month cashflow, when it comes to things like mortgages as well as the real estate market in general.

So, with Spring just around the corner and the real estate buying and selling season about to kick-off, I thought it would be great to have our Resident Mortgage Expert, Sean Cooper back on the show to discuss:

-What Canadians should be thinking about when it comes to their mortgages right now.

-Should you do a fixed rate or variable rate mortgage if you're buying a home or have a mortgage coming up for renewal?

-What if you're considering locking in your mortgage to a fixed rate?

The optimum answer for all of this can change for you depending on what is happening in the market right now and your own situation, so Sean takes us through the different things you should consider.

You'll also learn, what your options are if you find a better mortgage than what you have right now. What if the rates do drop and you're now able to get a less expensive mortgage? Can you switch? What can the penalties be? And, can it be worth it to pay those penalties if you find a better mortgage?

In case this is your first time hearing Sean on the show, he is the show's Resident Mortgage Expert and who I go to and who I send friends and family to for any mortgage related questions.

Sean is the bestselling author of the book, Burn Your Mortgage: The Simple, Powerful Path to Financial Freedom for Canadians.

He is also an independent mortgage broker and has made himself available to help answer mortgage related questions to listeners of the Build Wealth Canada Show.

If you have any questions, or are just looking to get a shortlist of the best mortgages that he's been able to find in Canada (since he's constantly on the lookout for the best mortgages), you can reach out to him over at buildwealthcanada.ca/sean.

And now, let's get into the interview.

Today, we're going to cover what you need to know from a tax, investing, and financial planning perspective as we head into this new year.

As you know, the government makes changes every year in these areas and the implications of these changes can have a pretty substantial impact on how much you pay in taxes, your net worth, what government benefits you are eligible to get, and how much you get.

These can easily affect your net worth in the thousands of dollars every single year, so it's definitely in your and my best interest to know about these changes and get a bit of a refresher, so that we can all better prepare, and also take advantage of any opportunities that arise.

To help me with this, I have Certified Financial Planners Jason Heath, and Hannah McVean on the show. Jason is a popular returning guest on the show, definitely one of the more well known and respected financial planners, here in Canada. 

Hannah and Jason are both fee-only financial planners, which means they don't sell any investments so there isn't that potential conflict-of-interest that you see a lot of here in Canada where someone calls themselves a financial planner or a financial advisor, you think you're getting a good financial plan and that they have your best interests at heart, but really they are just trying to get you to buy the investments that their firm sells so that they can earn a hefty commission.

None of that here, we're going for purely unbiased financial education with Hannah and Jason.

A quick little bio on these experts:

Jason has been providing fee-only, advice-only financial planning since 2002 (for well over a decade). He is also a personal finance columnist for the Financial Post, MoneySense, and Canadian MoneySaver. He has a Bachelor of Economics degree from York University and holds the Certified Financial Planner designation.

Hannah is also a Certified Financial Planner and a Chartered Investment Manager. She has experience working in the wealth management industry managing investments and filing taxes. She is now on the fee-only, advice-only financial planning side of things, and if you want to speak Jason, Hannah or someone from their team, you can reach them at BuildWealthCanada.ca/jason.

You can book a free introductory meeting with Jason and his team at buildwealthcanada.ca/jason. As a Build Wealth Canada listener, you'll get 10% off if you end up working with them. You'll also be entered into the giveaway to win a free financial plan. The discount and giveaway are for a limited time, and you can sign up for free here. 

1. To kick things off, can you take us through what we need to know for 2024, when it comes to our TFSA? and can you give us a quick refresher on how the TFSA works when it comes to taxes, and getting our contribution room back every year.
   
   
   1. Follow up question: Do you often suggest that clients keep their equities in their TFSAs due to their higher expected return compared to bonds and TFSA savings accounts?
      
      
2. What have you found to be the most efficient way for Canadians to determine how much TFSA contribution room they currently have?
   
   
3. Can you speak to how you can actually increase or decrease your available TFSA contribution room, depending on how your investments perform?
   
   
   1. Follow up question: How do you factor this in when you are doing financial planning for your clients?
      
      
   2. Follow up question 2: What kind of analysis do you do on TFSAs when you are working with clients and are there any optimizations or mistakes that people sometimes do that you are on the lookout for?
      
      
4. Let's change gears and talk about RRSPs next. Are there any changes to RRSPs that we should be aware of for 2024, and for anybody new to all this, can you give us a refresher on how RRSPs work for us Canadians, when it comes to minimizing our taxes?
   
   
5. Can you speak about the RRSP loan strategy? This is something that we often hear mentioned in different blogs and books on finance for Canadians, but do they still make sense in this higher interest rate environment that we are now in? (please explain the strategy first for anybody not familiar)
   
   
6. When it comes to RRSPs, are there any common and/or critical mistakes that you see Canadians make, when you are doing financial plans for your clients?
   
   
7. The FHSA is a relatively new tool for Canadians. Can you speak to what it is, who is it for, and how do you like to analyze and factor it in, when working on financial plans for your clients?
   
   
8. Are there any new tax credits, deductions, or government benefits in 2024 that you think we should especially be aware of? and are there any that you find Canadians sometimes tend to miss?
   
   
9. What have you found to be the best way to ensure that we don't miss any tax credits, deductions or government benefits that we are eligible for? (it's a bit of an overwhelming list if we just google it)
   
   
10. Can take us through the updates for 2024, when it comes to the basic personal amount. And can you explain what it is and the financial planning implications of it, for anybody not familiar?
    
    
11. As we enter 2024, can you take us through a checklist of what you advise your clients to do as the year progresses? What should they be doing annually now, and as the year moves forward?
    
    
12. Is there anything else that you think Canadians should know about, from the taxation and government benefits side as we head into the new year?
    
    
13. I set up a page for you where show listeners can get a free consultation with your team, and that's over at buildwealthcanada.ca/jason. Can you tell us a bit more about what problems and challenges you and your team specialize in solving for Canadians?

We've all heard of high interest savings accounts that we can open up at our bank. But is that always our one and only best option when it comes to where we keep our short term cash?

What about for things like our emergency fund, or when we are saving for something expensive like a car and we want that money to be available immediately when we need it, and not be subject to the sometimes large day-to-day fluctuations that we see in the stock market?

In this episode, you are going to learn what your options are, here in Canada, when it comes to that short term cash that you want to be readily available, without you having to worry about incurring any massive day-to-day fluctuations that you would typically see in the stock portion of your investment portfolio.

Today's guest, Matt Montemurro is going to take us through the different options that we have, as Canadians, and he's going to take us through the pros and cons of each of these options so that you can make your own educated decision on which option is the best one for you, based on your situation and risk tolerance.

Spoiler alert: The best solution isn't always the traditional high interest savings account at your bank.

Make sure you stick around because there are actually some regulatory changes happening here in Canada, which are going to be impacting high interest savings ETFs.

A lot of Canadians have been investing pretty heavily in these, and now it's gotten to the point where the regulators have started to take notice, and they are about to implement some pretty significant rule changes that can negatively impact some of your investments, if you purchase or are considering purchasing high interest savings ETFs.

A bit of a background about our guest:

Matt is a specialist when it comes to fixed income. He is currently the team lead for all fixed income portfolios managed by BMO ETFs, which is the largest Canadian ETF provider.

In his role as portfolio manager and trader, Matt and his team are responsible for all segments of the fixed income market, both in Canada and internationally. He has over a decade of experience in this field and holds an HBA and MBA from the Richard Ivey School of Business at the University of Western Ontario and is a CFA Charter holder (definitely a very difficult designation to get).

I'm thrilled to have him on the show, and I must say, speaking with him during this interview actually made me re-evaluate where I keep my short term cash.

I really wish we were all taught this back in school, as it's important for us to know what our options are here in Canada, along with the pros and cons of each, instead of just always automatically defaulting to a regular high interest savings account at our bank.

Enjoy the interview, I learned an absolute ton, and I'm sure you will too. Let's get into it.

Questions Covered:

1. The high interest savings account is something that most of us have heard of, and this is often the default choice for many of us when we're saving for something, or using it as an emergency fund or as an account that pays for our day-to-day expenses.
   
   However, there are also high interest savings ETFs. What is the difference between those, and a high interest savings account that we would open up at a bank? Can you take us through the pros and cons of these two options and why wouldn't someone just put their cash in their existing high interest savings account at their current bank?
   
   
2. There seem to be some changes coming up in 2024 when it comes to high interest savings ETFs. Can you take us through what those are, and how it will impact us regular Canadian investors?
   
   Follow up questions:
   
   Now that we know the significance of this, what should we do or start thinking about regarding these rate changes?
   
   Is a consequence of this that we should also expect to see the rates offered at banks for high interest savings accounts to drop?

3.    For those of us that do invest in high interest savings ETFs, can we expect a drop in those ETFs coming Jan 2024 because of a potential sell off?

Follow up: If not, how do sell-offs work when it comes to ETFs? For example, when there is a sell-off of a specific stock, we know that the price of the stock will plummet. But does it work differently with ETFs because ETFs consist of many different underlying assets?

4.    How is a high interest savings ETF different from a money market ETF? Can you take us through the pros and cons?

5.    How does using something like a high interest savings account compare to using something like a money market ETF instead (i.e. what are the pros and cons)? And for anybody not familiar, can you define what it means when an ETF is considered to be a "money market" ETF

6. For something like a money market ETF like ZMMK or a high interest savings ETF, would you expect the capital gain to be $0, because everything from that investment is coming in as income in the form of interest?

1. When we are comparing the interest rates that we can get on an ETF like ZMMK vs a high interest savings account, or a high interest savings ETF, when looking at the ETF page, should we be looking at the annualized distribution yield or the weighted average yield to maturity? And can you define what those are for us?
   

8.    While we are on the subject of ETFs that we can use for that relatively safe portion of our portfolio, can you speak to using ultra short-term bond ETFs instead of a money market ETF, like the ZMMK that we just talked about. What are these ultra short-term bond ETFs, and what are the pros and cons of using those, vs something like a money market ETF or even instead of just using a high interest savings account at our current bank.

1. Follow-up question: I noticed that in your case, you also have a different variation of the ETF ZST which is ZST.L. What is the difference between the two? 

9.    When it comes to bond ETFs like ZST for example, can you teach us how they can have some tax advantages, in certain scenarios, over something like a high interest savings account?

10. Alright Matt, thanks so much for training us on all of this today. For everybody that wants to learn more, what's the best place for them to go?

In this episode, you're going to learn:

How to deal with the volatility of the stock market, once you are financially independent and are living off your investments:
There are many schools of thought and structures when it comes to dealing with this challenge here in Canada. Retirement expert, Kyle Prevost takes us through his research on the top recommended and respected structures that he has uncovered for us Canadians.

We also go through Kyle's research on the optimum location for the fixed income portion of your portfolio. Traditionally the advice has been to keep fixed income like bonds in our RRSP. But does that still apply considering these higher interest rates that we are now experiencing here in Canada? And what about GICs? How do they fit into all of this? Should we be using those instead?

Last but not least, after taking into account all the research that he's done on investing and financial planning for over a decade, Kyle shares what types of investments he buys for his own investment portfolio, and what accounts he puts his own investments in for the greatest tax savings and efficiency.

1. Once someone has hit their financial independence number here in Canada and wants to start living off their portfolio, what have you found to be the top recommended structures to deal with the volatility of the market? For example, having a rule for how big the cash cushion should be, using GIC ladders, etc. 

2. What investments do you buy for your own portfolio, and what accounts do you put your own investments in?

3. From your research, what have you found to be the optimum location for the fixed income portion of our portfolio? Traditionally the advice is to keep fixed income like bond ETFs in our RRSP. Does that still apply considering these higher rates? What about GICs?

If you liked the episode sign up for free to receive all new episodes as they get released, news on giveaways, and the free guide on the Top 5 Personal Finance and Productivity Tools.

In this episode, our guest Kyle Prevost is going to take us through how much we need to retire, as Canadians, and how much can we sustainably withdraw from our portfolio to not run out of money once we retire.

If you are a long-time listener of the show, then by now you would have definitely heard of the 4% rule, which helps answer these two questions. But, the 4% rule was created by Americans, for Americans, so how do all those findings and statistics apply to us Canadians? 

(If you are new to the show, then don't worry, we'll go through what the 4% rule is, and the many caveats that exist with it, that we should keep in mind as Canadians.)

You're also going to learn:

• By how much can you increase the amount that you withdraw from your portfolio when you retire, so that you can keep up with inflation.
• For those (like myself) who don't like how rigid the 4% Rule is and would rather adjust their spending year-to-year depending on how the markets perform (i.e. taking out more during the good times, and less when the markets are down), Kyle discusses what sort of structures he has found to work well for that.

Kyle is founder of the Canadian Financial Summit and he and I have been co-hosting the summit together for the past 2 years. He is also a longtime personal finance columnist and you've probably seen a lot of his work over at MoneySense, and he's been in the National Post, CBC News, The Globe and Mail, and many others.  Most recently he is also the creator of 4 Steps to a Worry-Free Retirement - the first online course for Canadian retirement planning.

1. When it comes to figuring out how much we need to retire, we often hear about the 4% Rule. Yet, a lot of the research out there on the 4% Rule was created by Americans, for Americans. In the research and interviews that you've done, how well have you found the 4% Rule to apply to Canadians? (and please briefly define the 4% Rule for anybody that is new to all this).
   
   Follow-up question: Are there any caveats that you've found in your research that are different for Canadians using the 4% Rule vs the Americans using it?
   
   

2. If somebody decides to use the 4% Rule, one of the rules/guides that they are supposed to follow is to increase the amount of money that they withdraw every year by inflation. For us Canadians, where have you found to be the best place to get that number?
   
   

3. For those that don't like how rigid the 4% Rule is and would rather adjust their spending year-to-year depending on how the markets perform, what sort of structures have you found to work well for that? (ex. variable percentage withdrawal rules)

With the multiple interest rate hikes that we've been experiencing here in Canada, many Canadians have seen their monthly cashflow take a hit, whether it's because you have a variable rate mortgage, a line of credit, or other forms of debt.

So what are your options if you're paying more than you'd like on your interest payments, or maybe you have that mortgage coming up for renewal and you're going to have to make that multi-thousand dollar decision on how you're going to proceed?

Should you go with a fixed or variable rate mortgage when interest rates are high like they are right now?

Keep in mind too that if you have a mortgage coming up for renewal, then you won't be able to get as good of an interest rate upon renewal, as you did when you first got that mortgage years ago, due to all these massive interest rate hikes that we've been experiencing.

To tackle all of this, I've brought on an expert that deals with these types of interest and mortgage related questions every day, and that is the show's resident mortgage expert, Sean Cooper. 

Sean is who I go to and who I send friends and family to for any mortgage related questions. He is the bestselling author of the book Burn Your Mortgage, and he is an independent mortgage broker so he's not tied to any one particular lender which gives him access to the top mortgages available in Canada.

Sean has also been kind enough to answer for free, any questions that you, the Build Wealth Canada listeners have. I've set up a special page for him so all you have to do is go to buildwealthcanada.ca/sean, and there you can send him a message with your questions, or, if you prefer, you can even pick a time on his calendar on that page for a phone or video call to get your questions answered with him live, for free.

Sean is a licensed mortgage broker too, so I definitely also encourage you to reach out to him if you're looking to get a new mortgage or if your mortgage is coming up for renewal, as at the very least he'll be able to provide you with a short list of the best mortgages that he's been able to find across all of Canada from the 60+ lenders that he monitors.

None of this costs you anything, and there's no obligation to get your mortgage through him or use any of those suggested mortgages.

That link again to get in touch with Sean to get your questions answered, and get his research on the best mortgages that he's been able to find in Canada is over at  buildwealthcanada.ca/sean.

Enjoy the episode. :)

Questions Covered:

1.    After pausing rate hikes since January, the Bank of Canada shocked many by starting to raise interest rates again in June. What was behind this? What does the future hold?
   
   
2. Some homeowners in Canada are facing a doubling or more of their mortgage rates at renewal. What options do homeowners have?
   
   
3. For those in that situation where they'll be dealing with deciding between a fixed vs variable mortgage, how should they be approaching this dilemma, factoring in the current interest rate environment?
   
   
4. When you and I spoke offline, you mentioned that there is a really big missconception that some people have when it comes to mortgages, that could really be causing them to overpay on their mortgages. Can you speak to that?
   
   
5. With higher interest rates, it's not all doom and gloom since tools like high interest savings accounts and GICs are now paying out more to us consumers compared to what they were offering when we had those rock bottom interest rates. Are there any tools or strategies that you are using yourself or are fond of, when it comes to taking advantage of these higher interest rates and how are you investing these days when it comes to the fixed income portion of your portfolio? (ex. HISA vs GIC vs Bonds).
   
   
6. Are you buying more shorter-term or longer-term investments? (ex. short term vs longer term bonds/GICs etc.)
   
   
7. If any of the listeners have some form of debt, and they suspect that maybe they aren't paying the absolute lowest amount that they could be paying on that debt (it doesn't have to be some kind of really high credit card debt, just any debt that they think seems high), what are the tools or options available to them, here in Canada, in terms of taking that higher interest debt and turning it into the lower interest debt?
   
   
8. For anybody listening that has questions for you, or would potentially like to work with you or see your research on the top mortgages that you've been able to find here in Canada as a mortgage broker, can you tell us more what the process is for Build Wealth Canada listeners to get a free call with you?

Today we have Canadian author and speaker Fred Masters on the show. Fred has been a professional financial educator for decades here in Canada. He speaks at different universities to students and alumni, teaching financial wellness. In this episode, he's going to share his findings on:

1. What he's found to be the main problem areas that tend to prevent us Canadians from reaching financial independence years earlier. 

2. What type of investing he has found to be the most effective in helping us achieve early retirement as quickly as possible here in Canada.

Fred is also the author of the book "Lessons on Mastering Money" where he identifies six key pillars that can really move the needle for us, when it comes to our finances. We cover those, and much more in the interview.  Enjoy!

Get show notes and more free educational resources over at BuildWealthCanada.ca

Today, you're going to learn how you can save money on your investments, by having the right investments, in the right accounts so that you pay as little tax as possible here in Canada.

For example, if you hold Canadian stocks, or ETFs that hold Canadian stocks, should you put those in your RRSP? Your TFSA? Or your taxable account? Which one of those is the most tax efficient?

What about your US and other international ETFs and stocks? What accounts should they go into so that you pay the least foreign tax on those investments?

For us Canadians, different investments are taxed differently depending on what those investments include, and what investment accounts you put them in.

It's essentially an optimization puzzle that you can solve, by putting the right investments in the right accounts to pay the least Canadian and foreign tax, on those investments.

If you choose to optimize to this extent like I do, you can essentially reap the benefits of these tax savings for the rest of your life, since those savings will compound over your investment lifetime, and can accelerate your net worth, since every dollar saved in taxes on your investments, is a dollar that stays invested, and continues to grow and compound for you.

Resources mentioned in the episode:

• My guide on How to do Norbert's Gambit
• The video guide on: How to Setup Passiv to Pay the Least in Investing Taxes (for Canadians)
• You can get a free Passiv account at this link.
• Instructions on how to get the free PREMIUM account from Passiv is here.

Today, you are going to learn about how much you can save in fees and taxes on your investments, depending on how much time you want to spend optimizing your investment portfolio.

In Canada, there are inexpensive options that make things extremely easy and automated for you, but they are slightly more expensive and slightly less tax efficient.

On the other end of the spectrum, there are other investments available to Canadians that are as optimized as you can get in terms of keeping your fees low, and saving you money on both Canadian and international taxes. The trade-off though, is that these optimizations take a fair bit of work on your end to learn and implement.

So how big are these optimization benefits to you?

How much are you really saving by going with a fully optimized approach vs. a semi-optimized approach?

How big should your investment portfolio be before you start optimizing? or should you start optimizing right away?

We also cover where to go to check what fees you're currently paying on your investments, so that you can have a nice apples-to-apples comparison when you are debating what fund or ETF to buy, or to check whether you are currently overpaying on your investments.

We cover all this and more on this episode.

This week's episode is a little different since I optimize my investments to this highest level (in terms of paying the lowest fees and lowest taxes), and my guest also does the same. And so, in this episode, instead of the guest doing 90% of the talking, we instead each talk about how we both tackle these questions and I figure this way you are getting two educated perspectives, from two different people, in Canada, who have already been doing this for years.

I think ultimately this approach to the episode will help you make an educated decision on what level of optimization you want to pursue in your own portfolio. 

Enjoy the episode. :)

Kornel

Today I'm going to be answering your questions, to help you out as much as I can in the world of personal finance and investing, here in Canada.

We're going to focus on actionable, practical advice, specifically for Canadians while taking into account the investment options that we have here in Canada, factoring in our Canadian taxes to make sure that we're not overpaying, and much more.

In today's Q&A session, I'm going to be answering questions around:

1.     How to determine if you should sell a particular investment that you own.

2.     How to evaluate whether your investment returns should be higher. 

3.     What rate of return should you expect on your investments?

4.     Where can you go to check your "total return" on your investments (growth + dividends) and not just the increase in price.

5.     And much more. 

If you would like to submit a question, the easiest way is to sign up anywhere for free over at buildwealthcanada.ca. When you do that you'll get taken to a page where you can leave a comment with your question. Also, when you do that, I'll email you my guide on the "Top Personal Finance and Investing Tools" that I personally use. Enjoy the episode :)

It's graduation season here in Canada, so we thought it would be good to focus this episode on parents with kids, those with nieces and nephews, as well as those that are students or fresh out of school. This week, we cover the topic of how to best set up young Canadians and young adults for success, when it comes to money. 

Sadly, if you're my generation or older then you probably got zero education about money when you were in school or fresh out of school. Yet, those are the crucial years where you either establish good or bad money habits, and there are so many things that can lead a young person astray. 

Heck, knowing how to keep your investment fees low can literally save you hundreds of thousands of dollars over your investment lifetime, so why wouldn't you want to know about these things as a student or upon graduation so that you can set yourself up for financial success?

To help me with this topic, I have Canadian author, Douglas Price on the show. Douglas has written the book "Seventeen to Millionaire" a personal finance book for teens and young adults, specifically here in Canada, aimed to help them become financially literate and establish that strong financial foundation to set them up for success.

Enjoy the interview. :)

1. To kick things off, can you tell us about your book and why you decided to write it?
   
   
2. Whether we're a child, teenager or adult, learning to manage our cashflows is a critical skill that we have to employ our entire lives. What process do you recommend to ensure that we are managing our income and expenses appropriately and not overspending?
   
   
3. When someone is entering the world of investing in the markets for the first time (whether it's someone that just turned 18, or an established adult that is now learning how to navigate the world of investing), where do you stand on using something like a robo advisor vs a single asset allocation ETF vs buying multiple individual ETFs vs other options (ex. mutual funds, using an advisor at a bank, etc.).
   
   • Follow up question: Do you have any advice on how to prevent overwhelm when teaching someone this for the first time?

1. Your book focuses on helping teenagers learn about money and how it works so that they can have that strong foundation for the rest of their lives, but what are your thoughts about how parents of younger children can best educate them and set them up for success when they are still in elementary school, or early high school?
   
   
2. When it comes to kids or teenagers learning about money, what have you found that they struggle with the most, where us parents or educators need to spend some extra time on?
   
   
3. What would you say are your top 'best practices' that us parents can do to ensure that our kids are set up for success when it comes to their financial lives?
   
   
4. The world is obviously a lot different now than it was when you and I were kids. Are there any areas that have changed a lot when it comes to money that us parents need to be cognizant of when trying to set our kids up with that strong foundation when it comes to financial literacy?
   
   
5. One of the things that I found impressive in your book, is that you hired high school students to test out your book to ensure that the lessons were communicated in a way that is engaging and digestible for them. Did you learn anything from those feedback sessions when it comes to how to best teach your kids or teenagers about anything, as a parent or educator?
   
   
6. I'd really like to thank you for clearly putting in a significant effort to help educate young Canadians when it comes to financial literacy. Can you tell us again where we can get your book and where we should go to learn more?

In this episode, I interview S&P, the creator of the S&P 500, Dow Jones, and many other popular indices used around the world by millions of investors. 

On today's interview, we're going to be covering the SPIVA scorecards which are semiannual reports published by S&P that compare the performance of active funds (i.e. active investing) vs taking the passive index investing approach.

In other words, when you hear the debate of whether you should be a passive index investor, or an active investor, the SPIVA scorecards actually look at how well the active managers have done compared to if you just invested in the index.

Our guests today are Joe Nelesen from S&P, and Erin Allen from BMO ETFs. Joe is the Senior Director of Index Investment Strategy over at S&P, and Erin is the Vice President over at BMO ETFs, which is the largest Canadian provider of ETFs.

I thought we could have both Joe and Erin on the show, as that way we can learn more about the insights and discoveries learned from the SPIVA reports when it comes to the active vs passive debate. And, since Erin and her team actually create these ETFs for Canadians, we discuss how to actually practically apply these SPIVA findings and insights, when constructing or optimizing our own investments portfolio, here in Canada.

In other words, what to look for and things to watch out for when we are actually building, optimizing, and deciding which ETFs to use for our own portfolio. 

1. Joe, to make this friendly to anybody new to the world of investing, can you start by telling us a bit about S&P, as well as the SPIVA reports and why they are important for us everyday investors?
   
   
2. The SPIVA analysis has over 20 years of data at this point. Can you speak to what these decades of analysis have taught you and individual investors about passive and active management around the world?
   
   
3. Erin, for those like myself who are totally on-board with what the SPIVA findings suggest and are looking to just have an easy-to-manage investment portfolio where they're just looking to buy the total market index; what are the options available to them in Canada, and can you take us through the pros and cons of these different approaches?
   
   
4. Joe, one of the reports that I've always found fascinating is the persistence scorecard that you publish. Can you speak to what it is, where can listeners find it, and what is the role of 'persistence' when measuring active outperformance?
   
   
5. Erin, when it comes to the core ETFs and asset allocation ETFs that try to mimic the index, one of the critical metrics that individual investors need to be aware of is the tracking error, especially when trying to choose a comparable ETF from one provider to another.
   
   Can you take us through:
   1. What 'tracking error' is?
   2. Why is it important?
   3. How can we check it ourselves?
      
      
6. Is some tracking error normal, and how do fees (MER) factor into the tracking error number that we see published?
   
   
7. At what point would a tracking error be considered high? And does that number vary depending on which index we're looking at? (ex. S&P TSX vs something like an MSCI emerging markets index)
   
   

8. Joe, it seems like with the thousands of investment products out there, the definition of the word "passive" can really vary quite a bit, not just amongst individual investors but amongst companies offering these products as well.

   I've even heard arguments about the S&P 500 not actually being 100% passive as there is still a committee that chooses which stocks are included in the S&P 500 index. Can you speak to that a bit and also, how do you think individual investors should define "passive" vs "active"?

9. Erin, when a DIY investor is purchasing total market index ETFs, do those literally include all publicly traded companies on any exchange that fit that region? (ex. S&P TSX for Canada), or is it more of a representative sample of that region?

10. Also, I think it would be good for investors to know about what the difference and implications are of a capped index, vs an uncapped index. Can you explain these?

11. Usually, we see the Canadian index (S&P/TSX) being capped when it comes to ETFs like with your ETF, ZCN. What about core index ETFs for other countries like the US, and beyond. Are those typically capped as well?

12. Joe, in the past, you mentioned how indexes help us manage our own human behavioral biases and overcome market hurdles that can otherwise derail our investing success. Can you elaborate on this?

13. Thank you to both of you for coming on. Erin, can you tell us where we can learn more on your end, and perhaps let everyone know about the ETF Market Insights sessions that you run every week where listeners of the show can submit their questions and have them answered live.
    
    Joe, thank you very much for coming on as well. Can you tell us more about where we can learn more from you and your team, and where we can find the SPIVA reports and any other resources that Canadian investors may find helpful.

Today we have a great case study of somebody that I really respect, and who has been able to achieve financial independence, at a really early age.

I wanted this episode to be relevant to you no matter where you are on your financial independence journey, so I thought we could approach it from two angles:

1. If you are in the asset accumulation phase and working towards financial independence, we get into how you can get there quicker AND also enjoy the process and not get burned out as you're working your way towards it.
   
   
2. If you are already financially independent or are getting close to it, we tackle how to live a happy, fulfilling and meaningful life once you transition to the financially independent stage of your life.

1. One of my favourite things to do on the show is interview those that have achieved financial independence early, where they can retire if they choose. Then, I like to dissect and take lessons from that journey, that we can all learn from and apply to our own lives to help us get to financial independence quicker, and to actually be happy with the journey before and after achieving financial independence, where we can retire if we choose.
   
   There are lots of different paths to get there. For anybody hearing about you for the first time, can you tell us about your journey and how you got to early financial independence?
   
   
2. I've been following your work for a long time, and it's clear that you definitely don't need to be working at all anymore, and definitely don't need to be taking on any new income producing projects in your semi-retirement. Yet, it seems like you keep taking on significantly large projects, like the YouTube channel that you launched and worked a lot on to get to where it is today, and of course you have your giant book launch today that took you three years.
   
   All this takes up a good amount of time obviously, and I imagine it's really not about the money anymore for you. So what keeps you going? Why not just relax, or at least scale things back a bit?
   
   
3. How many years have you been financially independent now? What were some of the most critical lessons that you learned about financial independence? Was there anything that surprised you?
   
   
4. You've interviewed over 450 entrepreneurs on your My Wife Quit Her Job Podcast. Some were incredibly successful where they are most certainly financially independent and could just close up the business or sell it, and just live off the proceeds from their investments. Have you found commonalities in regards to what keeps them going? Why do they keep working?
   
   
5. What are your sources of fulfilment in semi-retirement? and what have you found to generate the most meaning in your life after hitting financial independence?
   
   
6. From those that you interviewed, have you noticed any patterns in terms of what tends to add the most to that feeling of fulfilment, purpose, and happiness once money is no longer the priority?

Steve's New Book: The Family First Entrepreneur

Steve is a highly recognized influencer and speaker in the e-commerce space. His blog, MyWifeQuitHerJob.com has been featured in Forbes, Inc, The New York Times, Entrepreneur and MSNBC.

His podcast, My Wife Quit Her Job, is one of the top 25 marketing shows on all of Apple Podcasts, and he and his wife run a 7 figure e-commerce store called BumblebeeLinens.com

Steve also runs one of my favourite marketing podcasts here.

One critical topic that can have a substantial financial impact on both us and our loved ones, is the subject of inheritance, and how to ensure that you and your loved ones don't end up overpaying in both taxes and fees, once the whole inheritance process starts taking place. 

To help me with this subject, I'd like to welcome back Selene Soo on the show. We learned a lot from her last time in the interview on annuities, and this time, we're going to focus on some best practices, when it comes to inheritance.

Selene is the Director of Wealth Products at RBC Insurance. She has been in the wealth management industry for over two decades, so she definitely has a really large wealth of experience and knowledge when it comes to different retirement planning solutions, whether it's annuities, segregated funds, and much more.

Enjoy the episode, I hope you learn a lot from the session, thanks for tuning in, and now, let's get into the interview.

1. Why is it important to have an estate plan here in Canada?
   
   
2. Selene, I was told that you and your team did a new survey when it comes to how prepared Canadians are when it comes to inheritance. Can you take us through the insights and lessons learned from those results, that we can then apply to our own lives?
   
   
3. One component that I think is a bit of an unknown for those of us that haven't gone through the process, is the subject of probate and probate fees. Can you speak to this, and what are the options available to us for minimizing probate fees?
   
   
4. Are there any other fees or taxes that we should be aware of when thinking of inheritance and estate planning?
   
   
5. I suspect that the word "will" is often used interchangeably with "estate planning". Can you speak to what the differences are between the two, in particular, so that we can all be aware of the different components of estate planning here in Canada, and plan accordingly.
   
   
6. To tie everything together, can you give us a synopsis as well as anything else that you'd like to add in regard to best practices that we Canadians can do to ensure that we have this critical part of our financial planning taken care of?
   
   
7. When it comes to inheritance and estate planning, I suspect that I common challenge most Canadians experience, is bringing up the subject with their loved ones, and then carefully navigating some of the really sensitive and emotion triggering questions that inevitably come up. How do you think it's best to bring this subject up? and what are some good questions to ask, and "next actions" to do, to actually get the ball rolling on this project?
   
   
8. Can you tell us more about what you and your team do, and direct us to any educational resources that we may find helpful when we start working on optimizing our inheritance and estate planning?

Retirement Investment Solutions - RBC Insurance

Facebook: @RBCInsurance

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/rbcinsurance/

Check out my previous interview with Selene on Annuities - Guaranteed Income for Life

Today's guest is Jason Heath, one of Canada's best known fee-only financial planners that you've probably seen in all sorts of media here in Canada over the years. He's a Certified Financial Planner (CFP), has been providing financial planning for over 20 years, and is currently a personal finance columnist for the Financial Post, MoneySense, and is also a regular contributor to RetireHappy.ca.

I've been reading his insightful financial planning articles for years, so it's really great to have him on again, and in this episode, we get his perspectives on:

1. How much do you actually need to be financially independent here in Canada and have the option of retiring? What is the process that should be undertaken to figure this out?
   
   
2. Next, we get his take on how to live off your investment portfolio by withdrawing a sustainable amount every year, along with some alternatives to the 4% rule (which as you likely already know, has some limitations).
   
   
3. We actually go through the process and calculations that he does annually with clients to ensure that they are withdrawing a sustainable amount from their portfolio every year, and we discuss how you can do it yourself in case you're purely DIY and want to do it all yourself, and not have to meet with a financial planner every year.
   
   
4. Also, since Jason has been doing fee-only financial planning for over 20 years, we talk about the patterns that he's noticed between those that are successful financially in and in life, long term, vs those that are not. From those, we hone in specifically on the things that you and I can actually control and do in our own lives, to help get us there too.

Enjoy the episode, it's great having you here, thanks for tuning in, I hope you leave the show a rating on Apple Podcasts or Spotify, and now let's get into the interview.

Questions Asked:

1. When somebody is trying to determine how much they need to be financially independent and have the option of retiring, what is the process that should be undertaken to figure this out?
   
   
2. One strategy that has really peaked my interest and that I think can be highly relevant for those that have hit their financial independence number, is doing some sort of variable withdrawal strategy with a spending ceiling and floor.
   
   When a client comes to you and says that they don't just want to use a fixed withdrawal strategy like the traditional 4% rule, and instead would like to be able to take out more when the markets are doing well, and are okay withdrawing less when the markets are not performing well, is there a certain variable percentage withdrawal strategy that you have found to work well, along with any particular rules for a spending ceiling and floor? or is there maybe something else entirely that you prefer recommending to clients?
   
   
3. What is the process and calculations that you do annually with clients to ensure that they are withdrawing a sustainable amount from their portfolio every year?
   
   My understanding is that the ideal way to tackle this, is to work with a fee-for-service financial planner like yourself or somebody at your firm, where every year the numbers get updated in the financial planning software for that person's particular situation. Then the expertise and analysis of the Financial Planner is used to determine what the withdrawal rate should be for that year. Is that the ideal way you'd recommend that it's done?
   
   
4. For those that are more on the DIY side and do not want to meet with someone annually, what approach or process do you recommend for them? For instance, maybe they just want to meet with a Financial Planner when there are significant life changes or financial events like an inheritance, the birth of a child, getting married, etc.
   
   
5. You have been a Financial Planner for decades at this point and I'm sure with that level of experience you've noticed certain patterns when it comes to clients that are successful financially and in life, versus those that are not. Can you give us any insights in terms of the best practices or patterns that you've noticed from those that are financially successful and also appear to be happy and fulfilled in their day-to-day life?
   
   
6. On the flip side, are there any common and/or major mistakes or regrets that you have seen clients have over the years that we can all learn from so that we do not repeat those mistakes in our own lives?
   
   
7. In your practice, I'm sure you've helped clients of all different net worth sizes; from those struggling to very high net worth individuals. What have you noticed that the wealthy do that the poor or middle class do not?
   
   
8. You have been in this industry for multiple decades. Would you be able to recommend some resources online that you find to be reliable and reputable sources of information, for those that like to continue to educate themselves when it comes to financial planning, retirement planning, and investing in Canada?
   
   
9. Tell us more about where we can see your work and tell us more about your practice.

With the significant increase in interest rates over the past year, and with home buying and selling season right around the corner, I thought it would be great to have our resident mortgage expert on the show, to go over the implications of this higher interest rate environment that we're in. 

Whether you're getting a new mortgage, or are considering refinancing, we tackle whether you should go with a variable rate or fixed rate mortgage in this current interest rate environment.

There could also be some new mortgage rules coming out this spring as well, so we cover what those are so that you can be better prepared. 

You might have also been experiencing quite a bit of a payment shock if you hold a variable rate mortgage, with a drastic increase in your monthly mortgage payments. And, if you're a fixed rate mortgage holder, then you're not out of the woods either, as when your mortgage inevitably comes up for renewal, you might very well be forced into a much higher rate on your new mortgage than what you've been used to over the past few years. We're going to cover this new challenge that you may be facing, with these higher rates, along with some things you can do to lower your monthly mortgage payments, despite these increases in rates.

Our guest today is the show's resident mortgage expert, Sean Cooper. He's who I go to and who I send friends and family to for any mortgage related questions.

Sean is the bestselling author of the book, "Burn Your Mortgage". He bought his first house when he was only 27 in Toronto and paid off his mortgage in just 3 years by age 30.

These days, Sean's helping others burn their mortgages too, as an independent mortgage broker.

Sean has offered to answer for free, any questions that you, the Build Wealth Canada listeners have. I've set up a special page for him so all you have to do is go to buildwealthcanada.ca/sean, and there you can send him a message with your questions.

Or, if you prefer, you can even pick a time on his calendar for a phone or video call to get your questions answered with him live, for free.

Sean is a licensed mortgage broker too so I definitely also encourage you to reach out to him if you're looking to get a new mortgage or if your mortgage is coming up for renewal, as at the very least he'll be able to provide you with a short list of the best mortgages that he's been able to find across all of Canada from the 60+ lenders that he monitors.

None of this costs you anything, and there's no obligation to get your mortgage through him or use any of those suggested mortgages.

At the very least, you'll get some good education and research on the top mortgages available in Canada right now, you'll learn what to look for when choosing your next mortgage, and you can always decide later whether you'd like him to help you with the process, or if you want to do it all yourself. It doesn't cost you anything regardless.

1. In 2022, the Bank of Canada raised interest rates 8 times. The prime rate went up a whopping 4%. So far we have already seen one increase of the prime rate in 2023. As someone that's in the industry, what are you hearing and what do you think is in store for mortgage rates in 2023, 2024 and beyond?
   
   
2. With all these mortgage rate changes that we've seen in the recent past, what are some considerations when choosing between a fixed rate and a variable rate mortgage?
   
   
3. What's happening in the real estate market right now (so the first quarter of 2023 which is when we're recording this episode)? And is now a good time to buy a home?
   
   
4. I heard there could be some new mortgage rules coming out in the spring. Can you tell us about those and how they may affect buyers? 
   
   
5. For anybody new to working with a mortgage broker, can you speak to how it works, and whether you have to pay for the services of a mortgage broker?
   
   
6. What are some ways to qualify for a higher home purchase price, despite the new pending mortgage rules? 
   
   
7. A lot of people are facing "payment shocks" right now. If your mortgage is coming up for renewal in the next few months and you currently are locked into a low fixed rate, you can expect your payment to jump at renewal. What are some things you can do to lower your payment back down?

It's RRSP season here in Canada. Remember that March 1 is the deadline for contributing to an RRSP, and have it count towards your 2022 tax year. 

Also while we're on the subject, remember that your TFSA contribution room grows every year, and for the 2023 calendar year, you now have an extra $6,500 that you and your partner can contribute each. That's $13,000 total if you both max it out.

Last year the limit was $6,000 per person so the government did increase that by $500 per person for this year. 

I find that these are things that are easy to forget as life gets buys, but I always have reminders set up for these things as, especially in the case of the TFSA, it's always nice to put in the effort to max that out so that you can get that tax-free growth on that new money invested, all year long.

Since it's RRSP season, and tax season is coming up, I thought it would be worthwhile to have another successful Canadian Financial Planner on the show, so that we can get a good second opinion on:

·         How much do you need to be financially independent and have the option of retiring?

·         What are some of the sustainable withdrawal strategies that you can use when you're ready to start living off your portfolio?

·         What is the process and calculations that should be done annually to ensure that you are withdrawing a sustainable amount from your portfolio?

·         And, since our guest has been in the financial planning industry for decades at this point, I ask him if he's noticed certain patterns when it comes to clients that are successful both financially and in life, versus those that are not. This way we can pick some lessons learned from others, apply them to our own lives, and hopefully avoid some completely avoidable mistakes that others endured before us.

Before we get into the interview, I wanted to invite you to a free webinar and Q&A that I'll be doing with the actual co-creator of the TFSA.

He's the former Chief of Staff for the Minister of Finance in Canada. His name is Kevin McCarthy, and if you've ever had TFSA or RRSP related questions, or would just like to ask the creator of the TFSA your questions, you can do so at this webinar.

I'll be there too obviously and so after Kevin goes through his educational presentation where he goes over the RRSP and TFSA fundamentals, as well as the tax deductions and tax credits available to us as Canadians, we'll then have a live Q&A with him and I and so you can ask him or me your questions when it comes to personal finance, investing, financial independence and retirement, living off your investments, etc.

The session is on February 23, 2023, and it will be recorded so even if you can't make it live, you can still signup to be emailed the replay once it's released. 

Also, Kevin has informed me that anyone attending live will receive a downloadable version of his and his team's proprietary Income Tax and RRSP Tax Savings Calculator.

The link to sign up for free is BuildWealthCanada.ca/webinar.

I look forward to seeing and interacting with you there, and now, let's get into the interview!

In this episode, I interview one of the most experienced Canadian financial planners that I know, and who I tend to go to when I have any complex tax and financial planning questions. His name is Ed Rempel, and in this episode, we tackle:

• How to determine how much you need to be financially independent?
• What are some sustainable withdrawal strategies that you can use to not run out of money when you're living off your investments?
• How to pay less tax here in Canada
• And much, much more. 

Thanks so much for tuning in, and please remember to leave a rating on Apple Podcasts or Spotify if you enjoy the show. 

Here are all the questions we cover in the interview:

1. When somebody is trying to determine how much they need to be financially independent and have the option of retiring, what is the process that should be undertaken to figure this out?
   
   
2. What are some of the sustainable withdrawal strategies that you recommend, for those looking to live off their portfolio?
   
   
3. Have you ever used some type of variable withdrawal strategy with your clients where the amount withdrawn every year to live off the portfolio varies depending on how the markets did that year?
   
   
4. Have you ever done any sort of variable withdrawal strategies like using a spending ceiling and floor for the year?
   
   
5. For those that don't feel comfortable going with 100% equities, what do you recommend? Do you change your recommendation depending on what is happening in the bond market? (like with the recent drops)?
   
   
6. What is the process and calculations that you do annually with clients to ensure that they are withdrawing a sustainable amount from their portfolio every year?
   
   
7. When it comes to tax planning and making sure that we're paying the least amount of tax when living off the investment portfolio, are there any strategies or approaches that you'd recommend?
   
   
8. For those that want to read or watch more of your research and insights, what's the best place for them to go?
   
   
9. You have so many resources on your website, a YouTube channel with how-to's, where people can learn all about creating a financial plan. Why is it important to also work one-on-one with a financial planner like yourself for example?
   
   
10. You have been in this industry for multiple decades. Would you be able to recommend some resources online that you find to be reliable and reputable sources of information, for those that like to continue to educate themselves when it comes to financial planning, retirement planning, and investing in Canada?

Today we have another financial independence case study to learn how a real-life couple here in Canada were able to reach their financial independence number by the age of 34.

We talk specifically about the practical tactics, strategies and mindset that you can apply in your own life, to help hit your financial independence number quicker. Or, if you're already at financial independence, these tactics can further help solidify and enhance your net worth and that extra financial cushion that's always nice to have, when you're living off your portfolio. 

Our guest today is Kyle Prevost who I have run the Canadian Financial Summit with for the past 2 years. What makes Kyle unique with his financial independence story, is that he and his wife were able to get there on two teacher salaries. 

Oftentimes when we hear these stories of couples who have achieved financial independence early, they are often engineers, programmers, or other high paying professions which makes achieving that early retirement number easier. In Kyle's case, they were able to do it on two teacher salaries instead, so we're definitely getting a nice unique perspective here.

This interview and presentation that Kyle prepared was actually one of the bonuses that we offered to Canadian Financial Summit attendees who bought the All-Access-Pass so you'll hear him reference his slides at a few points during this talk, but don't worry, all the lessons and advice still make total sense without the slides. 

Enjoy the interview and presentation!

Resources from the episode:

The live Retirement Planning Workshop on November 29th at 1pm EST is over at BuildWealthCanada.ca/workshop

The Canadian Financial Summit mentioned on the episode is over at BuildWealthCanada.ca/summit

You can see more of Kyle's writing over at milliondollarjourney.com

Questions from the episode:

1) Kyle, for those not familiar with you, let's just start with the usual first question in a job interview - "Tell us a little about yourself".

2) You recently reached financial independence - tell us about what that term means to you, and what your plans are in terms of work going forward.

3) Tell us what you think your keys to financial success were.

4) How did you and your wife Molly earn money after leaving university?

5) Let's peak inside your portfolio, and tell us how you invest.

6) To wrap up, just to give folks a broad overview on what the financial independence by 34 road map has looked like for you and Molly, can you sum up how you two were able to do it?