Sharing, caring and saving you money

Summer is a time when there is a lot of activity going on.  Houses are being

bought and sold; renovations are happening; vacations are being taken.  It

recently came to my attention that even though we live in great communities

around this country that there are still a lot of people unsure who to do

business with. Whether you need your air conditioning serviced or have a

major project like landscaping to do, how and where do you find the trades

you trust?

Given that a lot of business is done by referrals I thought this month would

be a good opportunity for my clients to share their stories and trades people

with the rest of our community.  I will put the trades in categories and

addresses so other clients can use your great person.  I only want names

and contact information from people that you were extremely happy with

their services and that you also felt gave you good value for the money you

paid.

Names will go on the website but will only stay on as long as the service

person continues to provide excellent services to our clients.  We all want to

know we can trust the person to provide services in our best interest and

not be self-serving.  

We are looking for names in every category you can think of that has

provided some service to you such as lawyers; doctors; accountants;

salespersons (in any industry); handyman; landscapers; hairdressers; etc. 

If you know of someone please submit all their contact information to us.

Thanks for sharing and for caring.

“What’s easy to do, is also easy not to do.” Quote from Jim Rohn.

I talk to my mother almost everyday.  My mother is typical of a lot
 of people and she finds it hard to get herself motivated to do things 
on her own.  In fact on my personal side I would say I take after my 
mother.  Luckily for me I take after my father when it comes to being 
and staying motivated on the business side.  In any event I have to try 
to get my mother to do things that will benefit her on the health side 
without having her rely on other people.
 
What I am talking about
 is getting up and walking across the street to the mall.  My mother is 
84 years old and in pretty good health.  I want my mother to stay 
healthy so I have to encourage my mother to go for a walk.  The mall is 
right across the street from where my mother lives.  Walking is not only
 good physically but it is also a really good mental workout.  When you 
see other people, and you are outside enjoying the sun or taking in the 
activities at the mall, you feel like you are a part of something and 
not isolated.
 
Well it is easy to do, but as the title says it is
 also easy not to do.  In life we are faced almost daily with things we 
know we should do that are easy and would surely make a difference in 
our life, but we find it is just as easy not to do so we don't do it and
 then wonder why our life is turning out different.
 

Retirement Needs

There seems to be a large discrepancy of thought in what Canadians need to save and have available for retirement. I have heard anywhere from 50% of pre retirement income to 100%.  This is a big difference in percentages.  What are you saving now?  Are you on target to hit your percentage of retirement income? 

The challenge really is what state your health will be at retirement.  You could end up with a short retirement because your health is poor.  Or you planned for the short life span in retirement based on your family history and you end up with a long healthy retirement.  What do you do then if you planned for a shorter retirement and end up with a retirement of 30 or 40 years to fund.  Planning to save more is always a safer bet since it is better to have a choice of how you will spend your retirement years no matter how long your retirement is.  A lot more variables to consider so it is always wise to talk to a Financial Planner to help you plan your ideal retirement.

Any guesses what you need to save?

Canada Pension Plan (CPP) Bird in the Hand or Two in the Bush?

I am often asked when doing retirement planning whether you should apply for early CPP or wait until age 65 for the unreduced pension.  Just so you know, no one ever wants to defer the pension to age 70 for an increased pension but it is an option.  Although I cannot make the ultimate decision for you I can give you some food for thought options of why you may want to consider an early reduced pension.  This is where the bird in the hand comes in. 

Taking an early pension allows you up to five years of receiving money that you did not have before.  Since most of us certainly do not have a crystal ball as to when our number is up, you may want to enhance your lifestyle by using this additional cash.  If you decide to take the money and do something more conservative, this money would certainly help to increase your savings by investing in your TFSAs or RRSPs.

CPP comes with a maximum monthly amount of $1,065 currently. If are a married couple who have both contributed to CPP and one of you dies, the death benefit will be limited to the maximum allowed.  For example, you have both contributed to CPP and one of you have a reduced monthly benefit of $650.00.  The second spouse passes away, the monthly death benefit may be increased by an additional $415.00 to bring it up to a monthly amount of $1,065.  If you were both receiving the maximum CPP benefit, then your monthly death benefit would be increased by 0.  

If longevity does not run in the family; you have health problems; you are a married couple that are both CPP contributors; or you just want the bird in the hand; you should discuss with your investment advisor if taking a reduced CPP makes sense for you or should you wait until age 65 or older for the two in the bush, so to speak.

Home Owners Insurance, What Your Agent may have forgotten to tell you.

Do you know what’s in your home owners’ insurance policy? Recently I had a conversation with some clients and we happen to start talking about our home owners insurance policies.  One of the topics that came up was what you need to do when going away on holidays. 

I know that there is a lot of thought when planning to go on vacation.  You get your lists and make sure you have not missed anything.  You plan the perfect vacation.  Then you come home and find that you had a water pipe burst and you have a lot of damage in your basement.  The first or second thing you do is call your insurance representative right?  Then you hear the representative say, I am sorry but that is not covered under your home owners’ insurance policy.  You are stunned, shocked and angry.  You pay for home owners’ insurance and now you are told you are not covered for the damage.  Why, because your insurance representative may not have brought it to your attention that there is a clause in your insurance policy that states: “If you are planning on leaving your home empty four or more days, especially in the winter, you had better notify your insurance company”.  And more importantly you should arrange to have someone come into your house on a regular basis to check that everything is in working order.  This may include the heating, no burst water pipes, etc.  It is even suggested that water not only be turned off but you should drain your pipes as well if you plan to be away more than four days in the winter.  If your pipes burst and cause water damage you may not be covered.  Now your own specific insurance policy will have its own wording but you get my message.

April's Budget, Showers us with Presents

Budget Highlights as it Relates to Tax and Investments, I have decided to provide a short summary of the Federal Budget and how it may relate to you and your investments.

First thing I want to address is the anticipated increase in the TFSA. The limit has increased to $10,000 effective for 2015. This is great news. The maximum you can now contribute to your TFSA is $41,000. In the future all other increases to the TFSA will have to be legislated. The plan can no longer increase with inflation automatically.

If you have children, the Children's Fitness Tax Credit has doubled to $1,000.  For those of you retired or nearing retirement and were not happy about the having to withdraw so much of your RRIF annually, you are now going to get a break. Your RRIF limits have been lowered. Where at 71 you were required to redeem 7.38%, now the minimum is 5.28%. You can always take more so that hasn't changed.

For seniors and others who qualify for the Disability Tax Credit there is a new Home Accessibility Tax Credit. This is a 15% non-refundable tax credit that applies to renovations done to your home such as putting in wheelchair ramps, walk-in bathtubs, etc. The maximum you can claim is $10,000 in renovations to give you $1,500 in tax savings. Unfortunately this is not retroactive so it would only be for new renovations.

The budget proposes to reduce the small business tax to 9% over the next four years. This applies to the first $500,000 of business income.

And lastly there will be a change in reporting specified foreign income. If you have foreign assets between $100,000 and $250,000, form T1135 will streamline the process for reporting these assets. No changes for foreign assets over $250,000.

I realize there is so much more to the budget than what I outlined, but these are just some of the things that may have a direct impact to you or someone in the family that is immediate.
Please book an appointment if you wish to discuss further or how the budget will affect you personally with your investment plans.

Linda J. Levesque, CFP®, FMA, FCSI
Sr. Investment Advisor Director, Private Client Group
HollisWealth
Insurance Advisor
HollisWealth Insurance Agency Ltd.
Levesque Wealth Planning

Who the Heck is Linda Levesque?

I know you all know who I am but as I celebrate 25 years in this business next month, I wonder how I can get more people to know what you know. And that is, Who the Heck IS Linda Levesque?

Like a good gospel you want to spread the word. At least I would like you to spread the word. I am growing my business. I am especially letting those of you that may wonder when I will choose to leave the business and retire, that as far as I am concerned, I retired when I left the federal government and entered this business back in 1990. I have grown a business, I am a published author, given many public presentations and recently was a guest on the Maggie Linton Sirius Satellite Radio Show all in 25 years and I am just beginning to gain steam.

Since 1990 I have helped many loyal clients retire when and how they have chosen. I have been there to support and guide clients to make the right financial decisions to send their children to post-secondary school. I have been around to help wind up estates when a loved one has passed on or when marriages have broken down. I have helped clients purchase their first home or help when it was time to downsize. I have been there for my clients for most of the important events of their lives. Now as I have put an impressive team together to look after almost all your financial needs, I am asking you for the ultimate favour, refer me when you know our services will fit your friend or family member’s needs.

This is a time of celebration so I would also like suggestions on how I can mark this milestone mark in my career. So far I have started a Twitter account so I can spread the good word. There is also a Facebook for Levesque Wealth Planning. Everything will be linked to our webpage as well. www.levesquewealthplanning.com

Be sure to book appointments during this year since there will be some extra surprises when we meet. I also want to take this time to thank all of you that have been with me for the last 25 years through up and down markets and as we head into the unknown future together. Remember I will be there no matter what the markets do to help you navigate towards the life of your financial choosing, because at Levesque Wealth Planning, we help you to realize all your financial goals.