Holidays

Finding your Valentine’s money match

14. February 2013 · 5 comments · Categories: Dating, Holidays, Relationships

Happy Valentine’s Day everyone! Yes, I realize it’s not for everyone, but I like having a special day to look forward to in the middle of a cold, dark winter. And I’m very sensible – I told my husband not to bother with flowers this year since we’re going away the following day, and I really wouldn’t get to enjoy them!

So, how do you make sure your financially compatible with your special someone? Here are some tips to make your finances work as a couple:

Bare it all – financially! Figure out where you stand as a couple – looks at everything you own and owe – from bank balances to credit card statements.
Decide how you want to manage your day to day finances – do you want joint accounts or separate? How will you handle your monthly bills?
Set goals and make a plan to achieve them. Whether your priorities are to get debt-free or to buy your first home, you’ll need to agree on a plan to get there.
Talk it out regularly. Have a regular money meeting to troubleshoot any issues and help you keep your plans on track.

How do you make sure you’re financially compatible with someone?

Happy new year all!

01. January 2013 · Write a comment · Categories: Holidays

Happy new year all! I’m trying to get back into the swing of things. For the next few day or so, I’m going to talk about how to achieve some of the most common New Year’s resolutions without spending too much – or anything at all! Tune back in tomorrow.

Smart financial moves to take before New Year’s!

11. December 2012 · 10 comments · Categories: Holidays, Investing

I know, I know – it’s begining to look a lot like Christmas, and who has time to worry about things like saving on your taxes or getting your finances in order? But there are some great things you can do to help save on your taxes and get your finances organized that don’t take up too much time!

Donate to your favourite charity

It’s that time of year anyways – to think about others. December 31st is the last day to make a donation and obtain a tax receipt for 2012. Plenty of places are set up to make it easy to donate online, and you can get electronic tax receipts that are generated and emailed to you instantly. My brother and I have taken to “exchanging” charitable donations as Christmas gifts. We each donate to a cause the other believes in, and get a nice tax receipt to show for it!

Contribute to an RESP for a child or grandchild

The federal government provides a Canada Education Savings Grant of 20% on the first $2,500 of annual RESP contributions per child, which can add up to $7,200 to an RESP during a child’s lifetime. If you haven’t maximized RESP contributions for your children or grandchildren, you can make an enhanced catch-up contribution in 2012. I give money to my brother each year at Christmas to go towards my niece’s RESP.

Pay expenses by year end to be eligible for tax deductions and credits

Claiming expenses, such as interest on money borrowed for investing or student loans, daycare fees and children’s fitness or arts fees can all provide benefits at tax time. You must be sure to pay these expenses by the end of the year to realize the tax savings for 2012.

Review your investments

The end of the year is a good time to review the types of investments you hold, and the accounts in which you hold them.

Prepare for retirement

There are a number of tax considerations for those just entering into their retirement years:

If you turned 65 in 2012 and have not yet applied for Old Age Security benefits, remember that retroactive benefits, which can be worth over $6,500, can only be claimed within a limited time. To receive those benefits, you should apply as soon as possible.

If you turned 71 in 2012, you have until December 31 to make any final contributions to your RRSP and convert it into a RRIF or registered annuity. And you can’t avoid this – the bank will force convert you if you don’t arrange it yourself – they are required to by law.

What financial moves, if any, do you have planned for the end of the year?

Saving for Christmas – 8 dollars a day – how to do it

22. October 2012 · 10 comments · Categories: Holidays · Tags: avoid debt at christmas, general money saving tips, saving for christmas

There was a post recently on MSN money that suggest you can save 8 dollars a day in order to come up with the 600 the average Canadian spends on gifts. Here are some of the things they suggested you can do:

Raise your car insurance deductible
Avoid driving to work and try biking, walking or taking transit
Stop buying music and add it your own Christmas wish list
Brew your own coffee
Make a fancy dinner at home instead of going out
Brown bag your own lunch
Cut out your gym membership
Rent a movie instead of going to one (even better – get it from the library!)
Set up an automated savings account and transfers
Sell stuff!
Put your change in a jar every night. You can take it to a Bank of Montreal (BMO) coin counter – it’s free and available to everyone. I didn’t know about this- and I have a big jar of change that needs counting!
Clip coupons. I do try to use coupons, but we just don’t get the savings here that you can in the U.S. I have one waiting on the fridge though for the next time the kitty needs food!
Try to live without using the A/C or the heat. It won’t be long til the Canadian winter kicks in..
Do your laundry in non-peak hours to save on energy use. This is a good idea – but it’s a pain some times. My Mom still hangs things out on the line, and as it gets dark earlier, she’s not huge on putting stuff out late – but she has to do the wash late due to time of use rules.

On the whole, I think this is a pretty good list! Mind you, these tips can be used any time to help you save money – not just for Christmas gifts. If you want to cut back on how much you spend on Christmas in general, you can:

Make gifts yourself. Think it through though and price it out – the materials and your time may be more costly than buying it yourself. Or you can offer a service such a babysitting or cooking!
Cut down on who you shop for. We buy gifts for my nieces and nephew and my parents (we have a small family, so if we didn’t buy them something, they really wouldn’t get any gifts at all!). We do a charitable donation in my brother and sister in law’s name, and that it’s. My in laws have a large family and plenty of people to shop for, so we just decided it’d be easier for everyone if we didn’t exchange gifts.

What do you do to save for Christmas or cut down on your Christmas costs?