Around the Blogosphere

You’ve probably seen the meme: “The perfect financial plan does not exi—” But if one did exist, it would probably look something like this. During your working years, make a solemn vow never to carry a cent of credit card debt. That one rule alone will put you ahead of most Canadians. Then follow these…

  It was a rough end to the week for markets, with a sharp sell-off on Friday reminding investors just how quickly sentiment can turn. For anyone who sold in late summer anticipating a correction and then bought back in at the start of October, that one-day drop might have felt like confirmation that they…

This week I want to highlight the upcoming Canadian Financial Summit, taking place October 22–25. This annual online event brings together some of the top personal finance experts in the country – and the speaker lineup this year is incredible. You’ll hear new insights from David Chilton, Canada’s Wealthy Barber himself, along with Dr. Preet…

A major Canadian bank brokerage recently said that it wants 25 percent of client portfolios in “alts” within five years. Translation: high-fee, hard-to-leave products. What “Alts” Really Are Advisors use “alts” as shorthand for alternative investments, anything outside plain-vanilla stocks, bonds, or cash. Think private mortgage pools, private apartment funds, private credit deals, hedge funds,…

I’m going to let you in on an investing secret that has eluded millions of Canadians for years. A secret that will save you literally thousands of dollars a year in fees and deliver stronger investment performance. A secret that does not require you to transform into a superstar stock picker or professional asset allocator.…

The dividends-versus-total-return debate has (mercifully) cooled. Most investors now accept there’s nothing magical about dividends – it’s just cash carved out of total return. The real “magic” is reinvesting, i.e., putting the slice back into the cake so it keeps baking. And yes, ex-dividend, a stock’s price typically drops by roughly the dividend amount –…

Like a lot of money nerds, I’ve always loved a detailed budget. There’s comfort in seeing where every dollar goes, especially when life throws its usual mix of irregular income and surprise expenses. Still, I was curious: what would happen if I ditched the details and looked at our finances the way author Ramit Sethi…

Exactly three months ago my Weekend Reading update was all about staying the course amidst a big stock market sell-off. I got into it with a bearish reader in the comment section who labelled my advice too naive as Trump set fire to long-standing alliances and global trade. Well, well, well, how the turntables… Zooming…

Some of my clients are surprised to learn that I don’t follow specific spending rules, like the popular 4% rule, when building out retirement income projections. My problem with spending rules stems from the fact that life doesn’t just move in a straight-line, AND we don’t have one pot of money called “retirement savings”. Indeed,…

Some personal finance topics spark polite debate. Others? They ignite full-blown identity crises. In his latest video, Ben Felix dives into three of the most emotionally charged subjects in personal finance: renting vs. owning, dividend investing, and FIRE (Financial Independence, Retire Early). He explains why these topics go well beyond spreadsheets – they challenge our…