I’m retired and I have never been happier.

I can’t shake the fear of outliving my retirement savings. With inflation and unexpected costs, it’s hard to feel secure, even with years of planning.

I can’t shake the fear of outliving my retirement savings. With inflation and unexpected costs, it’s hard to feel secure, even with years of planning.

the statement the lawyer shared was that the 'financial' institution gets to decide on the threshold requiring probate orders for essentially cash assets or investments. Why? Is this a regulatory requirement, or are the banks just being difficult about getting lots and lots of extra paper for just in case. The extra admin is a legal services expense and a pretty big one.

Great vid. Case studies are the ideal way to learn. It was very thorough. It’s illustrates that even though people have money, they need a plan because there are so many variables that they might not expect. This puts it in their face for decision making

I believe the retirement crisis will get even worse. Many struggle to save due to low wages, rising prices, and exorbitant rents. With homeownership becoming unattainable for middle-class Americans, they may not have a home to rely on for retirement either.

I’m in my 50 and focused on making investments that will set me up for a secure retirement. I’ve heard of people making hundreds of thousands during market downturns, and I even listened to a podcast where someone earned over $650K in less than a year. What’s the strategy behind achieving such impressive returns?

A lot to think about. Very helpful. Showing what might happen without a bit of planning, even with lots of savings/investment.

Invest in Bitcoin before retiring by diversifying across assets, allocating a small portion of your portfolio, staying updated on market trends, and considering long-term holding to balance risk and growth.

To be a successful business owner and investor, you have to be emotionally neutral to winning and losing. Winning and losing are just part of the game. Risk comes from not knowing what you are doing.

Don't work for money; make money work for you. Invest wisely today to create the freedom you desire tomorrow.

This is the “standard, prudent” approach. Some other ideas: Optimistic equity returns are 4% real (nominal less your assumed inflation rate). Be conservative with 2 or 3% real. Fixed income in tax free accounts may eke out a positive real return, but it’s more likely they won’t. Fixed income / savings in taxable environment is a guaranteed real loss. Now, run your constant returns model. Your model should incorporate changes to expenses. They will likely go down a fair bit when you reach mid 70s and again mid 80s. Think reduced travel and expensive local activities. You might temper these drops if you want to help family financially in your golden years. Assuming you can tap home equity and make it to your final year in the constant model… Assume you need 3 years of expenses over what the model says. Here’s why: all randomized models I’ve seen that show a shortfall begin with poor returns in the first 5 years. 3 years of “padding” should suffice. Then consider these: Equities, bonds, and cash do not provide adequate diversification. 2022 was a case in point when equities and bonds fell together, and bonds really took a hit, way more than any planning model would entertain. Look for a more diversified portfolio. Given the negative real returns to fixed income and the upward bias to equities… consider investing the 3 year buffer in equities. Remember, the full buffer is meant to dampen the effects of early setbacks, not replace the full expense amount for those years. Secondly, the opportunity cost is massive. Alternatives: move nontaxable to fixed income. Incrementally shift into equities over the early years while consuming your buffer funds and any additional taxable gains/dividends. You will need the buffer in this case because you are foregoing the potential gains from equities. Bottom line: whichever choices you make on implementation, your capital requirements will be 3 or more years of expenses over the constant returns model. Consider: Fixed income returns tend to match their initial yields. And, for some time, real returns have been zero or negative before tax. Be careful what you consider “risky”. Risk is your inability to fund your expenses. Be wary of the “logic” that says you do something in order to keep you from selling. It sounds wise, but it cones with its own dangers.

An increasing number of people are likely to face challenges in retirement. Low wages, rising inflation, and high rental costs make it difficult to save adequately. Now, even middle-class Americans are struggling to afford homeownership, putting their retirement plans at risk.

I am surprised you didn't use the laddered income approach (Go-go, Slow-go, No-approach) for projecting income. I think this couple has unrealistic expectations. You can buy a brand new car and easily keep it for 15-20 years if you carefully select the proper brand and maintain it. I am a little suspicious of being able to go from 30% stocks in retirement to upwards of 80%. Most people who are very conservative will likely panic during a severe market scenario despite having some sort of war chest. Overall, a great analysis.

Video far too long 😢

People are facing a tough retirement. and it's even harder for workers to save due to low-paying jobs, inflation, and high rents. Now, middle-class Americans find it tough to own a home too, leaving them without a place to retire in.

People are facing a tough retirement. and it's even harder for workers to save due to low-paying jobs, inflation, and high rents. Now, middle-class Americans find it tough to own a home too, leaving them without a place to retire in.

$1.8m in savings and they are falling short - ADJUST spending! They should easily net $100k/yr from age 60-80. Age 80-90, the government benefits they saved & invested(age 70-80) + benefits still being received should comfortably get them to +90. The issue once again here, what happens if a spouse passes away early.

US stock market will hit all time highs in 2025. Don't let advisors scare you out of the market. Keep a certain percentage in cash and feel comfortable investing in growth for the long term

Excellent overview

Another fantastic video with clear, consice information. I really appreciate all of your efforts. Take care

You mention, perhaps buying when markets are down. How does one know exactly when the sale starts?

Would you still recommend the 2 year cash wedge if one spouse was still working and covering all daily expenses? More or less, I would like to stay 100% invested still about 6 months before she retires, then create cash wedge.

I retired at 52 and honestly, I wish I’d done it sooner. The 9-to-5 grind steals your freedom for a paycheck that barely scratches the surface. My advice? If you’re in your late 30s or early 40s, start saving for FIRE now - Financial Independence, Retire Early. And if you’re in your 50s, invest smartly and break free from relying on your job. Market trends, like the Trump Effect, have made millions for many, including me. Stay focused, stay consistent, and remember: financial freedom is within reach if you make it a priority.

If a person didn’t have to convert their rrsp to a rif and take minimum mandated withdrawals whether they need the money that year or not that would help a lot of people

Excellent.

Good advice.

Thanks. Very helpful. 👍 Retiring in January. Started to clip my Canadian bank holdings to realize those profits, and adding some diversification. Also created a cash wedge by moving 2 years worth of planned retirement income into cash assets. But maybe i need to add to that wedge. Food for thought. 🤔 Cheers from western MB.

How does a new DIY investor (with no financial skills) find good, solid Canadian stocks & ETFs to invest in? I know there is a list of dividend Aristocrats that may be helpful but unsure of how to find solid ETF picks. Thank you for sharing your knowledge with us.

Great content!

Your video popped up in my KZbin feed, and since we just did the RRSP to RRIF conversion I thought I would watch. As I listened, hey I recognized the voice and looking at the Assante clues I realized it was you. Very good video, good points and well delivered. The one comment I will make is about having multiple RRIF accounts with different financial institutions is that the yearly minimum withdrawal applies to each RRIF account.

Thanks for this!

According to my Adviser; *Investing for Retirement is better than Saving for Retirement.*

I have a cfp with a big bank. Returns have been ok. He has created a retirement roadmap that shows $ from various accounts. Are you able to review that roadmap and make comment? Is that a 500 dollar review or 5000?

Hi, you mentioned that people Port their DCPP funds over to their individual RRSP but I'm with SunLife through my employer and they don't seem to allow it. Unfortunately there isn't a match on our group rrsp while there is on the dcpp. I've gotten into index investing recently and would much prefer ETFs over mutual funds in Canada at least.

Can you please do videos on certain kinds of Trusts that can be set up to guarantee disable children are secured financially when the parents pass away? Thanks.

Making good money before you retire is super important. It can boost your social security benefit and give you a stronger retirement portfolio. Basically, the more you earn now, the better off you’ll be later

No tax is withheld when the minimum amount is withdrawn from a RRIF. When withdrawals in excess of the minimum amount are made, the above RRSP lump sum withholding tax rates apply, but only on the excess over the minimum amount.

Thank you so much for the quick reply! So I am assuming that the same scenario would apply to a capital gains loss in an rrsp? The differentiator being that the money removed out of the rrsp would be taxed but also losing the Capital loss write off?

Hello thank you for the wonderful content. Can you please tell me if I have an investment in my tfsa that is currently at a negative, if I move it "in kind" into a non-registered investment account and then sell it from my non registered investment account, can I use that investment loss in my 2024 income tax?

It would have been nice for you to give a title each chapter ideas but thanks 😊

Very comprehensive, thank you. And there were a couple of tidbits that I had never heard before. 🙂

Thank you for very informative and useful video

Are you doing one time financial planning (advice) on retirement income and how much is your fee for that?

As someone who lives in Ontario and who happens not to have any children, I am very interested in the concept of having a Donor Advised fund. Could you please do either a video about or name an Ontario DAF that can operate in perpetuity without naming trustees? This was a very helpful video.

The threshold targets "net income before adjustments", line 23400 on the T1, not gross or total income. For a lot of people this will equal total income, but it's not accurate to say gross income.

Great job. Gracias.

And how many people have 450K more importantly how many will have it after this recession.

As an lnvesting enthusiast, I often wonder how top level investors are able to become millionaires off investing. . I’ve been sitting on over $545K equity from a home sale and I’m not sure where to go from here, is it a good time to buy into stocks or do I wait for another opportunity?.

What’s the difference between this timeline portfolio and general 60/40 portfolio? Will it handle sequence of returns risk better?