Random Thoughts: Back to RESP Week

Back to School

As you know, the topic of going back to school, and more specifically back to University, was on my mind this week, with two posts about RESPs. The situation I have been having is not resolved yet regarding how and where I can remove funds from my kids’ RESP accounts. Stay tuned on that one. Truly, it is RESP week.

My actual posts this week were: RESP Money to Get Money,  RESP the Old Switcheroo, RESP Withdrawals REDUX, an interesting question about Half Price Products, and Random Thoughts: Universities and RESPs.  The RESP story is an interesting one and hopefully good reader you are learning from my “case study”.

With Labour Day looming on Monday, I will most likely not be doing a post on Monday, although it might be a Best of we shall see whether the muse hits me early enough in the weekend. I will be travelling around getting ready for the new school term, one day I will go back to enjoying the Labour Day weekend as a time of rest, but it is not likely in the next few years. As for my comments post on Saturday, we shall see if time permits for that as well.

I hope that in a week or two, life will settle into a more formal pace, which will make it easier to work on things. However, it may well stay chaotic for the entire fall. I can never tell.

That was the week that was

In the blogosphere at least, here are some of the hot topics being discussed by other Personal Finance bloggers out there:

• Michael James and the Canadian Capitalist showed that numbers are fun to play with, but aren’t the only part of the Finance answer in Fun with Numbers CC shows how you can get a little optimistic about things. In contrast, Michael James posts More Realistic RRSP Contribution Expectations where he points out that numbers can be deceiving.
• Ellen Roseman points out that Mortgage Paid off? Ask for Home Insurance discount is a good idea. Hopefully one day my house will be paid off and I will remember this helpful hint.
• Preet points out there is a New Tool to Search Advisor Background and History however, it does not track that many advisors, but the ones there you can read about.
• Financial Highway points out 7 Fees the Credit Card Companies Are Getting Sneaky With, like they needed new income streams?
• Money Smarts brings up an interesting angle on the RESP issue with Relatives Battling Over RESP – Who Gets it? in my family, I do pure and simple.
• Bible Money Matters makes the poignant statement 5 Things About Money I wish I would have Known When I was Younger, which is always lamentable, but if you learned from your mistakes that is what is important (i.e. don’t do the same mistakes over and over).