Personal Finance in the News – January 2022: Welcome to Money News – January 2022, and Happy New Year! This month we look at a variety of personal finance related stories, including increasing CPP (Canada Pension Plan) premiums, tax changes for 2022, new BC real estate assessment data, skipping home inspections, and CEBA (Canada Emergency Business Account) loan extensions. Read:…
Tag: COVID-19
Welcome to tags! Here you will find all the relevant blog posts and content tagged with or discussing the term “COVID-19”.
Money News – November 2021
Personal Finance in the News – November 2021: Welcome to Money News – November 2021! This month we look at rising inflation, its impact on taxes, and further extensions to Canada’s Covid benefits. Read and Watch: Inflation continues to run hot in the US and Canada, where the rates of inflation have hit 6.2% and 4.7% respectively. This is the…
Money News – October 2021
Personal Finance in the News – October 2021: Welcome to Money News – October 2021, and Happy Halloween! This month we look at the end of the Canada Recovery Benefit, the state of Canada’s housing market, and shifting mortgage market dynamics. This update also covers North America’s ongoing labour shortage, and if it pays to be in a relationship. Read…
Money News – April 2021
Personal Finance in the News – April 2021: Welcome to Money News – April 2021! I have three noteworthy news topics for you this month. We’ll cover Canada’s new taxes, inflation, and the upcoming April 2021 tax deadline. Read: The Federal Government has released its first budget in two years. This budget proposes a host of new taxes. Jamie…
Money News – January 2021
Personal Finance in the News – January 2021: Welcome to Money News – January 2021! I have four noteworthy news topics for you this month. Read: For those of you interested in stocks, this month has been bonkers, with the market ripping higher. Most noteworthily, an online community of individual investors (often called retail investors) has taken aim at institutional…
Annual Financial Review and Goal Setting
As the year draws to a close, I have started my annual financial review and goal setting process for the year ahead. This is an important step in any financial planning. For me, the exercise helps me determine where my family’s finances stand and if adjustments are needed. It also gives me a clear picture of our current accounts and…
Money News – November 2020
Personal Finance in the News – November 2020: Welcome to Money News – November 2020! I have five noteworthy topics for you this month. Read & Watch: Not all is doom and gloom out there in this Coronavirus pandemic. Canadians are sitting on a record $90 billion in cash according to this BNN-Bloomberg article. The Household Savings Rate has also…
Money News – October 2020
Personal Finance in the News – October 2020: Read: The Bank of Canada has ended a pandemic program that helped real estate prices surge. This largely unknown but wide-reaching policy saw the Bank of Canada buy nearly $10 billions in mortgage bonds. This artificially lowered borrowing costs and helped send home prices through the roof. What happens now is anyone’s…
Money News – June 2020
Personal Finance in the News – June 2020: Here’s a summary of June 2020’s Money News: Read & Watch: CMCH is tightening mortgage rules for homebuyers. Credit scores are becoming more important and debt service ratios are becoming more conservative – therefore more mortgage conservatism may be a good idea given the debt loads out there. For more on that…
Liquid Net Worth
Liquid net worth is an unfamiliar term for most people. Many know about net worth, but few understand liquid net worth, what it means, and why it is important. This article will explore the term and unpack its usefulness. What is liquid net worth and how is it calculated? While net worth measures the value of all the assets you…
Money News – May 2020
Personal Finance in the News – May 2020: Here is a summary of May 2020’s Money News. This time around, topics that grabbed my attention included mortgage deferrals, COVID-19 scams, and changes in consumer behaviour. Read & Watch: Canadians are falling victim to a variety of new COVID-19 scams. These articles by BNN-Bloomberg, CBC, and Richmond News detail the common…
Preparing your finances for a second wave and a new normal
Have you been preparing your finances for a second wave and a new normal? A lot of people are returning to work or are starting to receive government aid, and this has more than few people wondering “What should I do with my money now?” Even if you’ve been lucky enough to keep your job, answering this question is important.…
Money News – April 2020
Personal Finance in the News – April 2020: Here is a summary of April 2020’s Money News. As you can guess, COVID-19 and the global health crisis continue to dominate everything, including personal finance. Read: Many families have been deferring their mortgage payments as layoffs mount and the recession bites. As of early April, almost 500,000 Canadians had requested mortgage…
How to Live on Less
Are you wondering how to live on less? A lot of people are these days. COVID-19 has resulted in record unemployment claims, and the economy is facing an ugly recession. Whether you’ve lost your job, had your hours reduced, or are just uncertain regarding your future finances, it never hurts to think about how to live on less. Below are…
Money News – March 2020
Personal Finance in the News – March 2020: March 2020’s Money News is here! As the global health crisis goes from bad to worse, the economic costs are piling up and spilling over into significant financial hardship. Read: The US and Canada have reported their largest weekly initial unemployment claims ever at 3,280,000 and 929,000 respectively. For perspective, the previous…
Personal Finance and the COVID-19 Coronavirus
Introduction: COVID-19 is a real wake up call for how we should be managing our finances. Aside from the health impacts, COVID-19 may result in real financial hardship for many. Quarantines, school closures, and lockdowns could result in lost time at work and reduced incomes. In the bigger picture, employers may be forced to lay off workers and reduce staff.…