4-minute read

Q: At what stage of life can you start saving?

A: It's always advisable to start saving as early as possible, as this enables you to develop good habits. Moreover, saving as soon as you have income lets you build up an emergency fund before you experience a major change in your life, such as starting a family or planning to buy your first home.

Q: Is it better to contribute to an RRSP or a TFSA at the beginning of your career?

A: It depends on your situation and objectives. An RRSP is a good choice for retirement, buying your first home under the Home Buyers' Plan (HBP) or financing a return to school with the Lifelong Learning Plan (LLP).

On the other hand, a TFSA can also be an excellent retirement savings vehicle depending on your age and income. For younger professionals who expect to have a higher income a couple years down the road, a TFSA can help them save for years when their tax rate will be higher and it will be wiser to contribute to an RRSP. In addition, you can withdraw from a TFSA without paying tax on returns. Your advisor will guide you based on your situation and objectives.

Unlike a TFSA, an RRSP provides an immediate savings on the taxes you have to pay. You will only need to pay them when cashing in your RRSP, often several decades later, so it's a bit like an interest-free government loan for all those years.

RRSP contributions can also have an impact on social benefits, especially for people in precarious situations, such as single-parent families or the working poor. They could receive more in government benefits like Canada child benefit, the GST/QST refund, etc.

RRSP contributions could therefore become even more profitable than a simple “tax refund.” It’s better to discuss this with your tax advisor, who will be able to analyze your situation closely and give you the best tax planning options.

Q: What’s the best strategy for mid-career retirement planning?

A: First, complete your financial health assessment to better understand the state of your current finances, as well as your goals and priorities, and get personalized advice to improve your financial health.

Then, to properly plan your retirement, it’s best to start with a projection to assess whether your current saving habits will enable you to retire at the age you want.

If there’s a gap between your current situation and your retirement objectives, the retirement projection will enable your advisor to suggest the best strategies based on your savings capacity.

There’s no need to deprive yourself of everything today to enjoy life only once you retire. The important thing is to start saving and review the plan annually. A good time could be when you receive employer bonuses or just after your salary review.

Q: Is it worthwhile to contribute to an RRSP after age 50?

A: Before age 50, people often have a mortgage loan to pay off and expenses incurred for the children, which may prevent them from contributing to their RRSP as they should.

After their mid-forties or early fifties, people tend to be able to save more, so this could be the perfect opportunity to increase contributions to make up for lost time.

After age 50, you often have a higher salary, and your expenses decrease. The more your salary increases, the more advantageous it becomes to contribute the maximum amount to your RRSP, because your tax savings go up.

Q: At what age can you start using the money you’ve saved over the years?

A: There’s no one-size-fits-all strategy. Retirement and transitioning to it will vary from one person to the next; the most important thing is to plan for a transition.

Many people don't necessarily want to go from a 50-hour workweek to not working overnight. Increasingly, people are opting for semi-retirement, consulting or even reduced hours to focus more on enjoying their leisure time and starting small projects.

Much like how you can expect and plan for a change in how you spend your time, you can also expect and plan for the way you use your savings as income replacement.

Your advisor will work with you to set a disbursement strategy to take full advantage of your hard-earned savings and limit the tax impact on your nest egg.

Good to know

The earlier you contribute to your RRSP, the better prepared you will be for your retirement. To properly manage your personal finances, or complete or review your Laurentian Bank financial health assessment, feel free to contact your advisor. They will suggest the best investment strategy according to your objectives and current financial situation.

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