Your Personal Financial New Year’s Resolution
Find the mistakes you are making with your personal finances, writes Peter Watson. I have a suggestion for your new year’s resolution. But first a story. When my children were young, before they took an examination at school, I would ask them an important question: What are the chances you will get a perfect score? […]
Thank you volunteers for all that you do
Volunteers are an important fabric of our communities, writes Peter Watson. The end of the year is always a good time to look back and reflect. Some can measure success because of their career that is possible because of a strong effort to develop their skills, plus a lot of hard work. Others can measure […]
Three Types of Investment Risk
The more you think about investment risk the more you realize the different ways your investment returns might be lower than expected, writes Peter Watson. The problem with risk is it comes in several different forms. The first risk is having poor investment returns. This is the one that gets all the attention. One option […]
The Worst Financial Event of 2023
It’s time to consider how the Bank of Canada (BOC) accomplishes its mandate, writes Peter Watson. According to its website, its main role is “to promote the economic and financial welfare of Canada.” That is a very important task and I strongly agree with its mandate. The problem is the way this policy is implemented. […]
Holiday Spending Expected to Decline
Holiday spending will be less this holiday season, writes Peter Watson. There are many significant headwinds that will limit spending this holiday season. Our economic fabric is less solid than it has been in previous years. Many just do not have enough extra money to spend on holiday gifts. Inflation is high and everything seems […]
Longevity is a Financial Risk
Running out of money during retirement is a possibility, writes Peter Watson. Planning your finances for later years often focuses on reaching retirement: work hard for decades for your golden years. Most attention is on earning an income and paying the bills. Managing ongoing living expenses is important. But it is only a start. Reaching […]
Immigration is Good for Canada
Immigration brings challenges but has advantages, writes Peter Watson. Are the high numbers of immigrants to Canada causing us economic harm The Canadian economy has a housing shortage and has a much higher rate of inflation than in previous decades. It is understandable that many wonder why. Some say high immigration levels are adding too […]
Homeownership Affordability is a Major Concern
Affordability of homeownership continues to be a major concern, writes Peter Watson. Many people dream of home ownership; however, the reality of owning a home does not depend on dreams but on simple arithmetic. Some mistakenly think real estate values operate in a similar fashion to that of the stock market. Comparing house values to […]
Does food bank usage mean that our financial system is broken?
The demand for food banks has increased sharply and that underlies the significant financial challenges many Canadians face, writes Peter Watson. More families find it difficult to make ends meet. It seems everything is more expensive. Homeownership costs have risen largely because of the increase in the cost of borrowing and therefore mortgage payments are […]
Beware of the Financial Blame Game
Blaming others is not a financial solution for personal financial problems, writes Peter Watson. There have been two the public examples by the federal government of blaming others for financial hardship. It is no secret that many Canadians are finding it very difficult to make ends meet. Everything seems so expensive, and many cannot keep […]