It’s RRSP “season”, a term you’ll hear often in the first 60 days of any calendar year in Canada*. I’m sure you’ve seen many commercials on TV and online trying to convince you to set up or contribute to a registered retirement savings plan. As common as RRSPs are, I’m often asked basic questions about … Read More
2017 is now behind us and 2018 is a clean slate, waiting for us to fill in the blanks. You’ve probably already thought about New Year’s resolutions during the first week of January. If you felt any stress over money last year, you may be thinking about making some financial resolutions to prevent that from … Read More
If your spouse was the member of the household who handled all issues pertaining to car ownership, everything from purchasing decisions to scheduling and handling maintenance, taking over this job as a widow can seem daunting. I’ll give you some help with that today and in future posts. In fact, cars are an oft-neglected piece … Read More
As I’m writing this post, it’s Thanksgiving Day in the U.S. and tomorrow is “Black Friday”, the biggest single retail sales day in North America. Between now and the end of the year, it will be virtually impossible to avoid advertising designed to persuade us to buy “stuff” for both holiday gift giving and for … Read More
I don’t know a single person who delights in preparing their tax return. As a widow, filing your spouse/partner’s final tax return adds another layer of gloominess to the chore. And yet dealing with the tax returns of a deceased spouse is an unavoidable task every widow faces. Filing your spouse’s final taxes is definitely … Read More
A few months ago, I wrote about how common it is for widows to struggle with the reality of being on their own, financially and in most other aspects of their life. You, the surviving spouse have to re-establish life as an individual. This can feel overwhelming. Depending on how you and your partner handled … Read More
When your spouse/partner dies, what happens to any debt they had or that you shared jointly? Are you responsible for any money owed? What will happen to your credit rating? With household debt in the U.S. and Canada being at or near all-time highs, chances are the death of your spouse will bring questions about … Read More
I want to introduce to you the concept of thinking of managing your money as part of your overall self-care. Wikipedia says, “self-care is any necessary human regulatory function which is under individual control, deliberate and self-initiated”. Simply put, as this fact sheet says, “self-care is care provided for you, by you”. Read anything on … Read More
There are two emotions spoken about in the investment industry; fear and greed. Any investment professional will tell you real success lies in the ability not to let either emotion take control of your decision making. If they’re truthful, they’ll also tell you how trying to control these emotions is a constant battle. As a … Read More
In recent posts, I’ve covered issues widows face regarding being seen as an open wallet and how to wean adult children off of financial support in cases when they’re capable of being financially independent. Today, let’s look at those instances when there are legitimate reasons for lending money to your adult children. I won’t go … Read More
Recently, I wrote about how widows can often be targeted as an open wallet for other people — unscrupulous con-artists, well-meaning advisors and sales people, and even family members. Today, let’s look closer at that last category and in particular adult children who continually come to mom for financial support. I understand the emotional aspects … Read More
In previous posts, I’ve mentioned that putting money aside for an emergency fund should be a priority in your financial goals (read Step 5 in 7 Steps for Dealing With Financial Stress). The term “emergency fund” brings to mind money saved for severe, unexpected expenses such as losing your job, or experiencing an unfortunate injury … Read More
