Is Pension Income Splitting a good thing?
The only legal way to income split in Canada is via pension income splitting, which is available only to folks with pension income.
Unlocking Phones, Raiding Parents’ RRSP, Household Debt and #Moneytalk
Today is the first day of Unlocking Phones in Canada. The CRTC’s rules about how Cell phone providers must give the phone to you unlocked comes into play today. You can also get your phone unlocked for free, if you have a contract with the firm. Isn’t this a great day? Wonder when we start getting cheaper rates and unlimited wireless internet? Guess that one is going to take a little longer?
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The minister of National Revenue reinstated the Disability Advisory Committee. This might be a good thing, but hard to tell. I believe this is a reaction to the media coverage of Disabled Folks losing their DTC. What is this committee going to do?
“The Committee will advise the CRA on how we can better inform people with disabilities and various stakeholders about tax measures and important administrative changes. The Committee will also review the CRA’s administrative practices and make recommendations on how we can enhance the quality of our services for people with disabilities.”
So my guess about them reacting to folks losing their DTC in the media is on-target.
The Real Estate world seems to be wetting their pants over possible drops in sales, so now they have come up with a new ferkokten idea, allowing buyers to borrow from their Parent’s RRSPs? I love my kids, but that is possibly the most meshuge idea ever. Put money away for my retirement, but decide I’d rather keep working so my kids can have a house? I keep reading that phrase and it doesn’t make any sense. Whoever thought that up is the definition of Chutzpah.
The amount of hype the Real Estate industry is creating is getting to the levels of the Cigarette Companies in the late 1960’s. A family in every house, a car in every garage and a chicken in every pot as the National Dream may well be over.
Did I say bubble? With Bitcoin smashing through $1000 maybe it is time to think about investing in it? What you nuts? Here is an interesting statistic for you, Bitcoin mining consumes more electricity than 20+ European countries. People are wasting that much electricity for this? Wow.
Do those Boomers have money for their kids to borrow? Stats Canada put out a study that suggests:
“The level of household debt relative to income in Canada remains high by historical standards and continues to rise, driven by growth in mortgages and home equity lines of credit.”
This is bad news for all the bubbles out there. Eventually the Debt bubble will go pop, with either higher rates of interest or creditors tightening rules for lending. Listen closely folks the next financial bang might be very loud. Remember the good old days when Mortgages were 10% and we thought that was low? Should call my friend Mr. Hoyes to see how many bankruptcies he’d expect if interest rates went to that level?
My Recent Writings
With the maniacal shopping of Black Friday and Cyber Monday, I figured I’d go to the one day out of it that speaks to me and that is Giving Tuesday. Everyone has their go to charities, and with Giving Tuesday, My List I give you my list of the charities I am giving to this year. I didn’t mention my Church on the list, but that is the other charity I donate to.
Micro Blogging on Finance
Today is the big day! The caveat I read is that your unlocking phones must be done under contract with one of the Cell Phone providers, but what about me, I am not on a contract, I am month to month? We shall see I suppose.
Giving Tuesday My List
Giving Tuesday is a response to Black Friday and Cyber Monday, where you should give to a Charity, but which one? I have a list for you.
What is Your Price, BLACK FRIDAY, Phoenix and #MoneyTalk #FLM2017
A very odd Twitter exchange erupted this week between Robert Browne, Gail Vaz-Oxlade, Kerry K. and a few other folks about what is your price? What amount of money will cause you to walk away from your blogging morals and do it just for the money? It is interesting because that exact question was asked over dinner between myself, Mr. Browne, Mrs. Browne and Michael James, and the number seems to be $1 Million (to begin with).
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What would we do for it? Someone stated:
“For a mil, I’d walk up and down Yonge Street wearing a sandwich sign for a payday loan place. Naked. In February.”
I stated I’d have to be paid $1.25M to watch this exhibition.
To quote one of my favorite heel wrestlers from the 90’s, “The Million Dollar Man” Ted Dibiase:
Whoever says they would never, just hasn’t thought about how much money it would take.
It is Black Friday today, where mayhem and deals run rampant. I am not really sold on the concept of all these great deals, but I am sure there will be mayhem. I have nothing on my list to purchase, but I may do some on-line window shopping. Look at Anti-Virus software and maybe Quicken, both worth having.
The Phoenix Pay system was in the news again. The Auditor General’s report confirmed what anyone in the Civil Service knew, the system is a mess, and will take a lot of money and time to repair it (at least 2 years and another $540M). That is a pretty high price for taxpayers and there is no guarantees it will be fixed by then. It has not lived up to the promised money savings, but the blame can be shared across the board.
My Recent Writings
A couple of articles by me over the past few weeks, still not back to more than 1 a week, but things may change in the new year.
I went to the financial confessional with Why Waiting 6 Months to Update Your Financial World is a Bad Thing (and it is). I felt sorry for myself and let things go, and paid a price for my self-pity.
My instincts are to work hard to save small amounts of money, for some reason, and Banking and Saving Fees outlines another important way I am saving $3 an ATM withdrawal. Maybe I should spend more time worrying about Macro Finance issues?
Micro Blogging on Finance
It seems the folks at Telus and Rogers are having problems complying with the December 1st deadline for selling and unlocking cell phones for free, and are now asking for an extension on this and the other parts of the CRTC’s policies? Let us hope the CRTC says, No!.
Stop Spending Money on Bank Fees
Banking and saving fees is a constant battle for consumers, and ensuring you pay the least for your fees (if not zero), should be your goal.
