Transferring your investment accounts is likely easier than you think. When we start working with new clients, they’re often anxious or worried about who they’re going to have to talk to at their bank or wherever. And they’re often pleasantly surprised to learn that...

One of the biggest misconceptions about rich people is that they got rich by beating the market or by having some special access to investments with sky-high returns. In reality, that’s almost never the case. Many of the investment vehicles wealthy people have access...

If you’ve got screws, a hammer sucks. If you’ve got nails, a screwdriver is useless. Different investment accounts and financial products are the same: different tools with different uses. A common mistake people make is to start with a tool and then complain when it...

First Home Savings Accounts (FHSAs), which were introduced this year but are not widely available just yet, are a great way for people to save for their first home. You get the best of a TFSA (tax-free growth and withdrawals) and the best of an RRSP (tax-deductible...

At Tallkirk Financial Group, we put a lot of emphasis on building a long-term relationship with the people we work with. That’s because financial planning is an ongoing process. As your life changes, your financial plan will too. It’s not a one-and-done kind of thing....

Over the next 80 years, if all goes well, I’m going to turn a $60,000 investment into $4 million for my future grandchildren. How? I took out two whole life insurance policies on my twins. I’ll pay $3k each year ($1.5k each) for the next twenty years for a total...

One reason everyone has an opinion when it comes to personal finance is that a lot of things work. At least to some extent. It’s a lot like the fitness industry. Everyone is selling their unique program with different variations of sets, reps and exercises. And some...

I wish I embraced being the tall guy sooner, in both my personal and professional life. I use to crouch and slouch and lean on things–literally make myself smaller. Because I wanted to be more normal, less unique. In a weird way, less like me. I didn’t want to be the...

One of the worst financial practices that’s still super common is selling creditor insurance or balance protection to people when they’re getting some form of debt, like a credit card, line of credit or mortgage. Often these products are sold during the application...

Most people are not making the most of their Tax Free Savings Account (TFSA). Part of the problem is the name. It’s not a savings account. It’s an investment account and it should be used like one. Yet, a BMO study from last year found that: * 37% of Canadians don’t...

Retirement isn’t a number. It’s not an arbitrary age or predetermined net worth. It’s about getting to the point in life where you can sustain the lifestyle you want to lead indefinitely. Where you’re choosing to work because you want to. Where you could quit at any...

When my wife and I sold our two townhouses a couple years ago, we set up the Yasmar Charitable Giving Fund to start giving to causes we care about now, and to continue giving to causes we care about in perpetuity. I feel extremely grateful for how lucky I’ve been in...