Save Money By Avoiding Costly Add-Ons
There have been numerous studies showing how people who pay for their purchases by credit card spend more money than if they would have paid by cash because they upgrade or buy impulsively. But, a lot of people pay off their balances in full each month and use their credit cards for various reasons –…
Read MoreWeekend Reading: Vancouver Edition
My wife and I celebrated our 10th anniversary with a trip to Vancouver last week. We found round-trip flights from Calgary for less than $300 and then decided to splurge by staying at a boutique hotel downtown. The location was perfect, as we could walk everywhere from Stanley Park to Granville Island. We took a free shuttle…
Read MoreA Big List Of Behavioural Biases
There’s a fascinating link between psychology and money that tries to explain how we think and behave when it comes to saving, spending, and investing. It was Meir Statman’s book, What Investors Really Want, that first opened my eyes to behavioural biases and how to make smarter financial decisions. Later, it was Carl Richards’ The Behavior Gap that showed the…
Read MoreWhat Is Your Credit Score? (Should You Know It?)
One way to determine your financial creditworthiness is to know your credit score and how it is calculated. You can get free credit reports from Canadian credit reporting agencies such as Equifax and TransUnion once a year, but they do not include a credit score. Until recently, you either had to pay for this information…
Read MoreWeekend Reading: New Mortgage Rules Edition
The big news out of Ottawa this week saw the federal government taking steps to cool the housing market by introducing a financial stress test to all insured mortgages and closing a tax loophole for foreign real estate buyers. Starting October 17th all home buyers must qualify at the bank’s posted rate, or the Bank…
Read MoreBuilding Your Confidence As A DIY Investor
Whether you’re a novice investor or experienced trader, most of us can stand to gain more knowledge about the stock market and different investing strategies. Investor education is exactly what Scotia iTRADE had in mind when it launched a series of free direct investing courses online. Through the Scotia iTRADE U education platform, investors can…
Read MoreI Am Still A Dividend Investor
Mark Seed recently wrote in his blog, My Own Advisor, that his thoughts on his dividend investing style haven’t changed. This was actually a rebuttal of the post by our own Robb Engen, aka Echo, who described why he switched to an all ETF portfolio a short while ago. It’s apparent that readers of both…
Read MoreWeekend Reading: Ending Canada Savings Bonds Edition
Canada Savings Bonds are still a thing? The legacy savings program that was built to fund the Second World War is now in its 70th year of sales and costs the federal government $60 million per year to run. But savings bonds that once paid double-digit interest rates now yield a paltry 0.5 percent in today’s low rate environment.…
Read MoreFrom The Boomer & Echo Mailbag: Retirement Planning For Single Women
Q. I am a single woman, by choice. So much financial advice is written for couples. How can I invest for my retirement when I have to cover all my living expenses by myself? Women are already at a disadvantage when it comes to saving for retirement. They often face lifestyle and economic issues that…
Read MoreFinancial Planning For Couples: Protecting What You Have
Insurance is one of those expenses we all hate to pay for, but we are very glad we have it if we ever have to make a claim. Auto insurance is a necessity for all drivers and if you have a mortgage on your house, home owner’s insurance is a requirement by your lender. All…
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