Posts by Jason Heath

The article “Should You Do A Pension Buyback?” was originally published on MoneySense on August 1, 2017. It’s almost always a good idea Q: I have been working at a college for 10 years. The last nine were full-time with pension deductions. My first year was contract and I did not contribute to the pension plan.…

The article “The Retirement Reshuffle” was originally published on MoneySense on July 25, 2017. How to rearrange investment accounts in your golden years. Q: I am married with a minor son. My wife and I have been successful saving and investing. Presently we have in excess of fifteen accounts. Mostly in equities and ETFs. These include…

The article “CPP And OAS After The Death Of A Spouse” was originally published on MoneySense on July 20, 2017. Keith arranged to split pensions with his late wife many years ago. What is he entitled to now? Q: I am 84 and many years ago my wife and I arranged to receive equal payments of…

The article “Reasons To Tap RRSPs Before Age 71” was original published on MoneySense on July 12, 2017. Doing this makes sense for plenty of Canadians. Is it the right option for you? Q: If you are self-employed and have a holding company, does it not make sense to use your RRSP funds before 71 and…

The article “Should You Use RRSPs To Pay Down The Mortgage?” was originally published on MoneySense on July 5, 2017. Careful, the tax hit may be hefty if you tap your RRSP early Q: My husband and I will have good pensions. He is thinking that we should cash out our RRSPs to pay down our…

The article “Collecting CPP While Working In The U.S.” was originally published on MoneySense on June 27, 2017. How to transfer Social Security credits from the U.S. to Canada Q: I worked outside Canada for nearly 10 years (1992-2002) in the USA. I have two questions in regard to my circumstances: How do I calculate the CPP…

The article “Tax Facts When Hiring A Nanny” was originally published on MoneySense on June 20, 2017. You have different obligations depending on if your nanny is your employee or is considered self-employed Q: I have four children for whom I can claim child care expenses. I would like to hire someone to look after them who…

The article “Retiring To Mexico – For A Lower Tax Rate” was originally published on MoneySense on June 13, 2017. You technically have to pay just 15% on your Canadian income, but there’s more to the story Q: We have a friend living in Mexico 10 months of the year. She says she pays a flat…

The article “Using Real Estate vs. RRSPs To Fund Retirement” was originally published on MoneySense on June 6, 2017. You’ll have to unwind the RRSP regardless, so watch the tax bill when selling a home for retirement income purposes Q: We have three rental properties in Vancouver (one is mortgage free) and own our own home (mortgage free)…