The New Financial Challenge for Seniors – Mortgage Payments
Statistics Canada reported 1.5 million people older than 65 had a mortgage in 2021. This was an increase from 1.2 million during the previous five years. Rising interest rates will make paying off a mortgage more difficult so it is understandable that the trend for more seniors to have a mortgage will continue. That will […]
Financial Pain Comes From Higher Interest Rates
Interest rate increases are necessary but painful, writes Peter Watson. There is a whole lot of financial pain being inflicted on Canadians. This comes in the form of the Bank of Canada raising interest rates again by one half of one per cent. This is the seventh time in 2022 the central bank has raised […]
Stock Market Volatility Can Leave You Depressed
There is a reason why the normal ups and downs of the stock market can leave you depressed, writes Peter Watson. It has to do with human behaviour. People are emotional. Investors value gains and losses differently. A loss has more significance on an investor than a gain of an equal amount. For example, if […]
The Challenges of Another Interest Rate Hike
Many households will feel the pain of the most recent interest rate hike, writes Peter Watson. Plus, the cumulative effect of so many rate hikes over such a short period of time could be unmanageable. The Bank of Canada’s most recent increase to the cost of borrowing is one half of one per cent. That […]
Financial Pain is on The Way
Beware, the financial storm clouds are closing in, writes Peter Watson. That was the tone of a recent warning by Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland. Her conclusion was that many households are going to be adversely affected. Interest rates are being aggressively increased to try to control inflation. That will slow the economy, businesses will suffer, […]
How to Build Your Investment Portfolio
A good portfolio will address two important principles. Investing to achieve a higher expected return and managing risk, writes Peter Watson. As an example, we will consider saving for your child’s university education. The same logic can be applied to other financial objectives. Assume a university education will cost $25,000 per year over four years […]
Investing – A Time to be Brave
Investing in the current climate can be challenging, writes Peter Watson. The stock market has been volatile with many significant declines and bonds, that are meant to be a safe haven, have done poorly too. Then there is that sacred asset that Canadians are so proud of: Homeownership. Rising home values over a prolonged period […]
Retirement in Canada is Becoming More Risky
Canadians financial risk during retirement is a reason to plan carefully, writes Peter Watson. Canadians underestimate the impact of longevity, inflation and healthcare costs have on retirement savings, and that’s making our country a less secure place to retire. This is according to the Natixis annual ranking as reported by Investment Executive. Greater focus needs […]
Canadians Net Worth Declined Significantly
Canadians’ net worth suffered a significant decline during the three months ending June 30. Both real estate and financial investments fell in value making this the largest drop of household wealth on record. This information was recently released by Statistics Canada. Stock markets performed poorly during the first half of the year. Many investors diversify […]
Saving for Your Children’s University Education
Your children’s university education will be very expensive. There are several things you can do now that will help cover post-secondary expenses. A four-year university degree costs can be as high or higher than $100,000. That is expensive and more so depending on the number of children you have. Plus because of inflation, every year […]