Globe and Mail – Financial Facelift by Dianne Maley
“Recent health problems have Gerry wondering whether he can retire soon. At the moment, he is collecting disability insurance. His wife, Jeanine, is not working because she has health problems of her own. Both are 50. ‘I’m self-employed and do not have an assured job to go back to,’ Gerry writes in an e-mail, ‘so we are wondering if we have enough of a nest egg to stop trading time for money in the near future.’ They have substantial savings and a mortgage-free British Columbia home. As well, Gerry has a government pension from a previous job that will pay him slightly more than $17,000 a year starting at age 55. ‘Can we live on our assets for the rest of our lives if my disability benefits are terminated but I cannot find work?’ Gerry asks. If he can’t afford to retire now, how much longer must he work? We asked Ian Black, a financial planner and portfolio manager at Macdonald, Shymko & Co. in Vancouver, to look at Jeanine and Gerry’s situation.” Click here to read the rest of the article
“After raising two children, paying off their Edmonton home and building their separate businesses, Serge and Sally would like to quit in four years when their younger daughter finishes high school. Serge is 56, Sally is 59. Neither has a company pension. They have set money aside for the girls’ education, so their retirement goal is to maintain their current lifestyle. Sally’s corporation will have no sale value, but Serge’s might fetch up to $500,000, mainly for intellectual property, half of which would go to him and Sally, who each own 25 per cent. Both have been drawing salaries and contributing to their registered retirement savings plans, which are worth about $1.6-million. They ask in an e-mail: Can they afford to retire in four years? Are there better options than contributing to their RRSPs? Can they arrange their affairs in a more tax-effective manner? We asked 
“Fiona and Ted recently celebrated their final mortgage payment on their suburban Toronto house, leaving them with an extra $2,300 a month. They’re wondering whether to savour their mortgage-free status for a year or two or upgrade to a new home. He is 43, she is 40. They have two children, ages 11 and 13… Should they move soon or should they wait a few years, perhaps until the children are off at university? they ask in an e-mail. While they have a tidy sum in a registered education savings plan, they wonder if they should shift their education savings to a tax-free savings account instead. Finally, the retirement question: ‘Are we saving enough for our retirement or should we increase our monthly RRSP contributions?’ Fiona asks. They are both teachers, earning a combined $195,000 a year, so they have defined benefit pension plans… Fiona and Ted would like to retire as early as their mid-fifties. We asked 