University Costs Can Disrupt Your Retirement Plans
Beware – the cost of your children’s university education can compete with funds you need for retirement, writes Peter Watson. The closer you get to retirement the more focused you can become on paying down or eliminating personal debt including a mortgage. Plus increasing your savings that will be necessary to provide a revenue source […]
2023 is the year of side hustles
Your side hustle, an extra part-time job, could be your solution to cope with the rising cost of living, writes Peter Watson. Many are facing serious financial challenges this year. Let’s look at possible solutions. A starting point is what we know. One, things are more expensive including mortgage payments, housing rental rates and groceries. […]
Lessons Learned from 2022 Disappointments
Investor disappointments from 2022 can be a guide to building your portfolio, writes Peter Watson. Five high-tech stocks that previously were considered the darlings of investing lost $2.8 trillion in the first 10 months of 2022, according to S&P Global. These companies are referred to as FAANG stocks. Facebook (Meta), Apple, Amazon, Netflix and Google […]
Many struggle with high inflation
Managing personal finances is harder during inflationary times, writes Peter Watson. When it comes to how inflation affects Canadians there is good news and bad. Three out of four Canadians reduced their spending to help them cope with higher prices, according to a Maru Public Opinion Survey. The reality is people have different abilities in […]
Investments Too Good to Be True
Another large speculative company fails, and investors lose billions, writes Peter Watson. In life, people like to pick a winner, and this is certainly true in the world of investing. But this can sometimes backfire. Until recently, FTX was a global giant as a cryptocurrency exchange platform. According to CNBC its value was $32 billion. […]
Stock Market Can Provide Useful Investing Insights
Understanding how the stock market works can be a useful guide to personal investing, writes Peter Watson. Do you want to know the best place to look for reliable information on the stock market? The answer is simple. Look to the stock market. The reason is buyers and sellers come together to trade a stock. […]
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 […]
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, […]
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 […]
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 […]
