Welcome to another edition of Weekend Reading! I’m on holidays but I wanted to share a quick update and thank you to all of my readers and clients for your support this year.
I started this blog back in 2010 during what I’d call the height of popularity for personal finance blogs. Today, the preferred mediums have shifted to podcasts, YouTube, TikTok, and Instagram. Blogs seem to be slowly fading away.
But I love writing and I plan to keep this blog going for as long as you’re interested in my takes on personal finance, investing, and retirement planning. I’ll continue sharing my successes and failures, answering reader questions in the ‘money bag‘, and rounding up the best personal finance articles from around the web.
I’m grateful for the 15 million page views in the 12 years since this blog launched – including 1.25M so far this year. What started as a way to share my experience with money turned into a freelance writing career and a financial planning business. Simply put, it has changed my life for the better.
I may never start a podcast or a YouTube channel or a TikTok account, but as long as you keep reading I promise to keep writing here.
I hope you all have a wonderful Christmas weekend. I might post something during the void between Christmas and New Year’s, but if not I’ll catch up with you in 2023!
Weekend Reading:
David Booth, founder of Dimensional Funds, says this past year has been a test on developing a financial plan you can stick with. I agree 100%.
A Wealth of Common Sense blogger Ben Carlson answers the impossible question of what’s going to happen in the stock market next year?
Mr. Carlson then looks at how often the market is down in consecutive years.
This terrific episode of the Rational Reminder podcast covers investing basics and answers common questions like should you own your employer’s stock, should you pick stocks in your TFSA, and how to prepare your portfolio for a recession.
On the topic of owning your employer’s stock I recall someone being upset that I suggested he unload a large amount of employer stock to diversify and accelerate some other financial goals. The stock went on to surge another 50% over the next six months. But today the stock is down 67% from the time he sold.
What is a good retirement income target? Fred Vettese argues that it’s not the often cited 70% of gross income (subs):
“If the mortgage is paid off and the children become self-supporting by retirement age, a good retirement income target is 50 per cent of gross income.”
Now to dash your hopes of safely spending up to 4% of your portfolio without fear of running out of money. New research suggests that number is closer to 2.7%:
Millionaire Teacher Andrew Hallam debunks the idea that after a stock market crash investors should move their money to ‘safe’ assets like gold.
Travel is a mess right now. Barry Choi shares a detailed guide to understand the ins and outs travel insurance.
Patrick Sojka at Rewards Canada explains credit card spending caps in his latest loyalty lesson article.
Of Dollars and Data blogger Nick Maggiulli wonders if his parents could have avoided bankruptcy and divorce if they had a higher degree of financial literacy.
Mr. Maggiulli also rounded up his favourite investing writing of 2022.
Bank of Canada governor Tiff Macklem says the Bank missed the mark on rising inflation but a turnaround is near (subs).
Finally, why Canadian doctors trained at international medical schools increasingly give up on returning to their home country for work.
Happy holidays, everyone!
