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Getting Our TFSAs To One Million
TFSAs are an amazing tax sheltered account that every Canadian has access to regardless of income. Unlike RRSP contribution room, which is based on employment income, we all get the same amount of TFSA contribution room every year.
The TFSA is a perfect way to save for retirement. In fact, for many young people they are better off starting with their TFSA rather than their RRSP, especially when they’re starting out at a lower income.
At lower income levels the TFSA can provide many advantages versus the RRSP. Namely that future withdrawals aren’t taxed and won’t count towards government benefit claw backs.
There are other benefits to the TFSA too, like if you have a habit of spending your tax refund. If that’s the case then maybe a TFSA contribution is a better idea.
My wife and I have a BIG goal for our TFSAs. Our goal is to grow our combined TFSAs to $1 million by the time we reach early retirement at age 55. This is an ambitious goal, one that we may not meet, but it’s fun to have a BIG financial goal like this. We find it motivating to have BIG financial goals and it gives us something to work toward.
Two years ago I provided an update on our progress to our one million TFSA goal and I think it’s time to do it again. Not just for the accountability but also because it’s good to share how amazing the TFSA is for these kinds of goals.
Common Financial Planning Mistakes We All Can Make
When we do our own financial planning we’re often too close to our own situation to have an objective perspective. We may focus on the wrong problems… or take a narrow view of the potential solutions… or miss potential issues entirely.
One of the benefits of working with a financial planner is that they provide a second set of eyes for your financial plan. Most people are already on the right path, but there are common issues that may end up working against you. A financial planner can help find these common mistakes that may otherwise go unnoticed.
Financial planning isn’t rocket science, it’s something that can be done on your own. The math itself isn’t terribly difficult, and there are tools available online to help, but one of the major downfalls of the DIY approach is that we can be somewhat oblivious to our own personal biases.
Basically, we’re too close to our own financial situation to be entirely unbiased (This goes for financial planners too!) There are certain financial planning mistakes that we all tend to make if we’re not careful.
These mistakes can lead to potential issues over time. These issues can create more risk, or decrease investment return, or increase taxes, or create a higher risk of running out of money in retirement.
These mistakes are quite common and identifying these potential issues is the first step to creating a stronger financial plan.
What Is Your Risk Profile?
What is your risk profile? This is a key question for every investor, yet I suspect it doesn’t get the attention it deserves.
Everyone sees risk differently. Some people don’t worry about risk at all, it doesn’t keep them up at night, it doesn’t cause them any stress. To them, not taking risks seems like a waste of time and resources. They’re risk seekers.
On the other hand, some people are deeply affected by risk. It causes them to worry, to always focus on the negatives, to think about all the things that could go wrong. For them, risk causes stress and sleepless nights. They’re risk averse.
Then there is everyone in-between. People who aren’t risk seekers, but who aren’t risk averse either. They see the benefit of risk, but it makes them a bit uneasy.
Choosing the right risk profile isn’t easy. There are a lot of factors to consider. Going too far one way or their other can cause issues over the long-term. But sometimes it takes some real-world experience before you can safely say what you’re risk profile truly is.