Don Quixote, Tax Time, Cheap Mortgages and #FreeFormFridays

Don Quixote has dismounted from his trusty steed, and I see that my ranting about Banks and RDSPs got no notice by anyone. I suppose I’ll have to resharpen my lance and try again soon to get banks to make the whole RDSP easier to use. Fear, not Don Quixote, is not giving up. He is just taking a rest for now. I did find out the National Bank might offer something. I also include the Tweet I sent to TD, which has not been responded to (as of yet):

@TD_Canada why are TD Waterhouse RDSPs so hard to deposit into? http://t.co/bdI4grtxqZ

— Big Cajun Man (aw) (@bigcajunman) March 27, 2014

Remember it is tax time real soon now, and you should be putting those final touches on your tax returns for 2013. The later you file, the longer it will take to receive any refund (if you owe money, you can still file now, you only have to pay on the deadline date (via online banking)). You have until April 30th to file this year, so don’t procrastinate much more.

Holy cow, Mortgage rates are dropping again. You can have a BMO mortgage for 2.909% over five years, is now the time to lock in? I can’t see where it can get much lower, can you?

Notice a change on the site? There is a new Tab on the menu at the top for RESP, not just RESP but RESP and University Costs. I have compiled some of my most good rants about RESPs and the cost of University education. Enjoy.

For those wondering, Russell Crowe is the next Charleton Heston starring in a Biblical Epic Noah! after appearing in Gladiator. Will he be doing a remake of the Classic The Omega Man or maybe Soylent Green? SOYLENT GREEN IS PEOPLE!!!

My Writings for Week Ending March 28st Whoever is Singing “Let it Snow” Can Stop Now!
All Sheep will be Fleeced, all Fools will be Punished Severely I was unaware that Hunter S. Thompson was such a March Madness fan, but his words do sound a lot like a Hypothetical Hedge Fund Manager as well.	Fill in the Darn Forms Is it that hard to fill out a form to get a rebate? Evidently for some folks it just might be.	Disability Tax Credit: Please Do It Yourself The stories I have read about these firms disgust me and I really do hope they all go out of business.	RDSP: Banking Challenge Ignored I guess I am not as famous a financial blogger as I thought, given I have been thoroughly ignored by all banks and now MPs as well.

Swiss Army Knife Section

Maybe it is spring in Switzerland, but it sure as heck isn’t in Ottawa:

• I am always curious about “alternate endings” to movies and Fox News brings us 10 Popular Movies that Nearly Had Alternate endings, I knew of most of them, but the Little Shop of Horrors one was a surprise.
• Million Dollar Journey gives us Smith Manoeuvre/Dividend Portfolio – Q1 2014 Update read it over they seem to be doing OK (but I still won’t do the Smith Manoeuvre too risky).
• The Canadian Capitalist is back with an update on one of my favorite templates for investing with the Sleepy Mini-Portfolio Q1-2014 Update.
• My Own Advisor thinks you don’t need $1 Million to retire on, read his story, I am not so sure he is right, but read and see for yourself.
• Mark at 2nd Career Search is looking around at houses and has come to the conclusion that In Toronto Everyone is a Real Estate Expert. Think that is a sign to get out of real estate!
• The Canadian Couch Potato points out that iShares Cuts Its Fees to the Core, which is a good thing for investors.
• Mark from the Blunt Bean Counter discusses The Dynamics of the Investment Advisor/Accountant Relationship, since I have neither, I guess mine get along swimmingly?
• Michael James Tackles a ticklish question in a marriage Who Owns the Money in a Relationship ? There is no one set answer, but it better work for both partners.
• Freakonomics did a Podcast on #Bitcoins and the transcript is interesting, however they claim Why Everybody Who Doesn’t Hate Bitcoin Loves It: Full Transcript , I neither love nor hate #Bitcoins.
• Preet wrote on his blog about how Your lifetime investing fees could easily top $100,000 , and if that isn’t depressing I don’t know what is.

March Madness

The Onion discusses the NCAA looking into expanding March Madness to 4096 teams:

Muppet Bohemian Rhapsody

One of my favourite new Muppet numbers:

Random Thoughts for 2014

Lots of these kinds of Best of articles in 2014. Here is a list of them.

• World Cup Side-Effects, Seinfeld Cars, and #BestofFinancial What happens around the World at half time of the World Cup Final? Is it like Flushed away? Is there a sudden tsunami? Who knows?
• Cuba, Rubles, Christmas and #BestThisWeek – getting close to Christmas but Ian McKellen can teach us about impulse control.
• Snow, Christmas, Enhanced and #BestThisWeek talk of more festive ideas, like how to save money at Christmas.
• A Gentleman, Day of Disability, Christmas, Rugby and #BestThisWeek noted the passing of Jean Beliveau and John Oliver’s views on Lotteries.
• Black Friday is Here, Advent, and #BestThisWeek speaks of the blessed Black Friday and associated sales but also includes a Fanfare for the Common Man.
• Lake Effect Snow, Web Cameras, Travel Insurance and #BestThisWeek November brings snow in Toronto, as we see, and other financial ideas.
• Asteroids, Tax Cuts, Lemurs and #BestThisWeek how many times has the Earth almost been hit by an asteroid? Too often to remember.
• Lame Ducks, Financial Literacy, Working for Free and #BestThisWeek lame duck leaders never really get that much done, no matter how they negotiate.
• Happy Halloween, Income Splitting and #BestThisWeek a wonderful financial time of the year is Halloween? Maybe income splitting is a better subject.
• Ottawa We Shall Remember, Bank of Canada and #BestThisWeek after a bad week in Ottawa, with senseless violence.
• Crashing Markets, Ebola, Low Loonie, Cheap Gas and #BestThisWeek even in 2014 the markets were a little volatile.
• Hockey, Turkey, Leaves, Carry On Bags and #theBestFin4TheWeek is it right that the hockey season starts before Thanksgiving?
• October, Hello Ebola, Give Blood and #theBestFin4TheWeek October arrived unexpectedly this week, almost unnoticed. As we have entered the final (calendar) quarter of the year 2014, it may be time to start considering a year-end review of your financial plans.
• Autumn , United Kingdom, Beer Money, and #theBestFin4TheWeek the colours in Ottawa during Autumn are truly spectacular.
• Pins, Alibaba , Apple Pay , Lecosse , and #theBestFin4TheWeek remember when Alibaba the IPO happened, those were heady days.
• Home Despot, iPhones, and #theBestFin4TheWeek
• Back to School, Tim Burger King, Knee Defenders and #theBestFin4TheWeek will the dutchie ever come back? I can only hope.
• Broken Humerus, Ebola, Anniversaries, Blood and #theBestFin4TheWeek remember when we thought Ebola was going to wipe us out?
• It is Done, Ice Bucket Challenge, Media Perceptions and #theBestFin4TheWeek
• WW1 Centenery, More Hacked Passwords and #theBestFin4TheWeek
• The Long Weekend with no Name, Defaults, and #BestFinancialForTheWeek
• Unmasking Super Heroes, Dogs of Summer and #BestOfFinancialForThisWeek
• All Stars, Al Stars and the #BestOfFinancialForWeek the world cup was a big thing in 2014 as was Bastille day too.
• Brazilian Defeats, Tour De Chunnel, and #BestOfFinancialForWeek you mean Brazil can lose at the world cup?
• Tennis, Racing, Inflation and #BestofFinancial Canada Day is the start of the summer for most Canadians, and financial stories too.
• The Stand, Football Biting, Naughty Banks and #BestofFinancial even in 2014 the banks were misbehaving with shenanigans.
• Elections, Dad’s Day, World Cup, Friday the 13th and #BestofFinancial somehow the Liberals won the 2014 Ontario Provincial Election
• No Rate Hike, Better Performance, Montreal Grand Prix and #Bestof-Financial back in 2014 we were worried about rates, but they were already pretty low.
• Elections, Farewell Knowlton, May Done, and #Bestof-Financial Knowlton Nash was the voice of news for Canada for a while.
• Internet Memory, Grand Prix of Monaco and #FreeFormFridays the Internet has memory?
• Time Off, Elections, Victoria Day and #FreeFormFridays Victoria Day is always a fun weekend.
• Frosts, Elections, Farley Mowat and #FreeFormFridays it does get cold in May!
• Rain, Budgets, Bloggers Meeting, May Day and #FreeFormFridays When financial bloggers meet what happens?
• Beware the Financial Jabberwock, Netflix Expansion, Model Trains, Backups and #FreeFormFridays a thematically odd article.
• Easter is Here and a Saturday #BestOf for the Weekend a time of renewal, new beginnings in life and financially as well.
• RIP Flaherty, Heartbleed, Tax Time, Quebec Elections and #FreeFormFridays the former finance minister did a lot of good for the economy.
• #Selfies, Quebec Election, Big Joe, Awareness, and #FreeFormFridays would Big Joe Mufferaw have been a good fit for the Redblacks? We’ll never know.
• Don Quixote, Tax Time, Cheap Mortgages and #FreeFormFridays gotta hate tax time.
• Spring Has Sprung, March Madness, Celebrity Blogger and #FreeFormFridays talking about Spring in March in Ottawa can be a bit early.
• Pi Day, March Break, Two Ferns, Snow and #FreeFormFridays given pi is infinite, how much pie can we expect?
• Quebec Elections, Eating Sugar, Suing Parents, Big Rocks and #FreeFormFridays those elections in Quebec are never dull.
• Saint David’s Day, Big Posts, RRSP Time, the Dating Game and #FreeFormFridays always a good time to put a Welsh Choir Clip in an article.
• Hockey Day, Tax & RRSP Time and #FreeFormFridays Hockey day in Canada? Well it does happen, right around RRSP time too.
• More Olympics, Budgets, Love Day and #FreeFormFridays Valentine’s Day: Celebrating Love and Dealing with Financial Whining.
• Olympics, Not Super Bowls, Creationism and #FreeFormFridays 2014 Olympics Opening Ceremonies and Soshi Stadium’s Doppleganger: The Super Bowl.
• Senators, Weak Loonie, Superb Owls and #FreeFormFridays Rugby is a Hooligan’s game played by a Gentleman.
• Polar Vorteces, Olympics, Mayors and #FreeFormFridays The Polar Vortex brings Winter in Canada. But don’t worry – -30C highs in Ottawa in January are normal.
• Giveaways, Oil tanks, Eagles and #FreeFormFriday Have you checked your oil tank if you heat with Oil? What will your insurance do if the tank ruptures?
• Truly Canadian Issues, Ultra HD TV, Car Loans and #FreeFormFriday Get your lock de-icer and unlock your Super Mailbox cubicle like I did – Canadian Tire to the rescue!
• Some #RandomThoughts from 2014 Some of the best of, best of posts on my random thoughts weekly post.
• CPP Reform, Snow, Christmas, Boxing day and #FreeFormFriday Did the CPP reform of 2013 fix much? Kind of, but Christmas was coming too.