Weekend Reading: Free Gift Card Edition

We partner with a comparison site called creditcardGenius to share the best rewards cards in Canada and keep you informed of the latest promotions and sign-up bonuses. I prefer it over other comparison sites because creditcardGenius offers an objective, math-based scoring system that sorts through 189 Canadian credit cards and recommends the best rewards card for your personal situation.

You can see it in action here on our credit card comparison page.

Free Gift Card Promo

I’m excited about their new promotion, which gives applicants the opportunity to earn $150 in Amazon e-Gift Cards when they sign up and get approved for the Scotiabank Gold American Express Card. This is one of the top travel rewards credit cards in Canada and pays 4x points on spending categories such as groceries, gas, dining, and entertainment (the most bonus spending categories of any Canadian credit card).

You’ll also get 15,000 in Scotia Rewards points when you spend $1,000 within the first three months. Those points are worth $150 in travel. The card comes with a $99 annual fee, which is lower than most premium travel rewards credit cards.

When you combine the early spend bonus with the $150 in Amazon e-Cards, and subtract the annual fee, that’s a net gain of $201. Now add in the opportunity to earn 4x points in those bonus spending categories and there’s potential to earn hundreds of dollars in rewards in a year.

Okay, you’ve heard enough. Here’s how to get the deal:

Visit creditcardGenius and click on ‘Get This Deal’. Then share the deal on Facebook to unlock the first $50 Amazon e-Gift Card. Upon approval you’ll receive a $100 Amazon e-Gift Card. Spend $1,000 in the first three months and you’ll receive 15,000 in Scotia Rewards points. It’s that simple.

Act quickly because this deal expires on October 31st, 2018.

This Week’s Recap:

On Thursday I reviewed Fred Vettese’s Retirement Income for Life and explained why a realistic retirement income target might be much lower than we think.

Next week we’ll have a guest post from Dale Roberts who shares some year-end tax planning for mutual fund, ETF, and individual stock investors. Plus, I’ll cover a very interesting investment opportunity that could be good for the planet and your portfolio.

Weekend Reading:

The Bank of Canada raised its key interest rate by 25 basis points to 1.75 percent. It’s the fifth increase since last July and the rate hikes are starting to put noticeable pressure on variable interest loans such as mortgages (mine!) and lines of credit.

Next year we could see a welcome government increase – in the form of higher TFSA contribution limits. The limit is expected to increase to $6,000 in 2019.

As you age, should you simplify your investment holdings for estate planning purposes? The Blunt Bean Counter has the answer.

Contrary to what Suze Orman believes, Mark Seed at My Own Advisor says early retirees don’t need $5 million to retire comfortably.

Jerry is 60, just lost his job, and has $580,000 in investments. Dan Bortolotti explains how he should invest to get $35,000 annually in income.

In his latest Common Sense Investing video Ben Felix explains how asset allocation works to build a diversified portfolio:

Michael James looks at getting even with big businesses like banks and telecoms by owning their stocks.

Million Dollar Journey lists the top 10 wealthiest Canadians, from the Thomson family to Jimmy Pattison.

Should you incorporate a business to save on taxes? We did, but only because we could stream dividends to my stay-at-home wife. Jason Heath explains why incorporating only makes sense if you can justify the initial and ongoing costs, and don’t need all the income for personal needs.

Finally, are financial literacy programs a waste of time? The evidence seems to point to “just-in-time” financial literacy tools that can teach concepts and provide the right nudges precisely when you need them.