The finance minister, she of The Budget Bomb, owns a couple of rentals with her husband, Graham, in the UK. Makes sense, since he’s a British writer and report for the NY Times. She also owns a hunk of a property in Alberta (in partnership). But apparently there’s no family cottage. Good thing. She just declared war on them. You may have heard the feds say yesterday, when the punitive capital gains tax was bloated, that just the rich would be affected. “Only 0.13 per cent of Canadians with an average income of $1.42 million are expected to pay more personal income tax on their capital gains i ..read more

Yesterday the feds said their budget is generationally fair. And, yup, it is. Fair to the wrinklies. After all, we old farts get enhanced OAS, more free drugs and the benefit of oodles of government spending we’ll never have to pay for. Once again – and more than ever – the Libs have kicked the can down the road. Spending surges. The debt swells historically. Interest charges jump to record levels. Deficits become structural. And nowhere in sight is the day when revenues match expenditures. No balanced budget. Taxes can only increase. The Boomers win again. Do their kids even know what’s comi ..read more

Inflation stats this morning. Budget excess in the afternoon. Once the gory details are known, we’ll tell you what it means and what to do about it. Meanwhile we need to discuss the Elephant in the room. Of all the ‘isms’ in society, only one is still acceptable. In fact, it’s everywhere. Ageism. It’s cool to dis and dismiss people just because they get old. The irony is, it happens to everyone. Denying you’re on this journey has serious financial implications. Retirement’s long and most are unprepared. Twenty years. Maybe thirty (or more once AI steals your job). It takes a long time to get ..read more

.   By Guest Blogger Sinan Terzioglu . Estate planning is an essential aspect of a financial plan, but we know 70% of Canadians have not yet completed the most important elements, like drafting a will and designating a power of attorney (POA) for property as well as for personal care. In Canada, if you die without a will, the distribution of your assets will be determined by the laws of the province or territory in which you resided, so having a will and developing an estate plan are crucial to ensure your wishes are met. Trusts Trusts are legal structures used to hold and manage assets ..read more

.   By Guest Blogger Doug Rowat . Business headlines like these pop up in our newsfeeds every day: Does one correct call make a good forecaster?   Source: MarketWatch The implication is obvious: a single accurate past call makes an analyst’s new predictions more credible. At first glance, such headlines seem persuasive, but be wary, they shouldn’t be. One correct forecast doesn’t reveal any true forecasting talent. While certainly these traders and analysts should be congratulated for their past accuracy, what they’ve achieved is, after all, only one right prediction. What would be ..read more

Start with the math. Let’s buy a fresh-build, modest $1.2 million house – a townhouse, actually – in suburban Vancouver. The newbie buyers have been able to save a hundred grand. Good on them. The Bank of Mom ponies up the rest, so Todd and Amanda can plunk down 20%, avoiding CMHC insurance. That leaves a seven-figure mortgage. The bank says they qualify. Then they hear what the federal finance minister just did. The kiddos can arrange a 30-year mortgage, since their closing day is not until the autumn (the development is still being framed). Should they? Well, a $1 million home loan at the c ..read more

Ottawa OKs 30-year mortgages; doubles RRSP homebuyer limit. Weird times. What do Canadian mortgage rates and Trump have in common? Lots, it turns out. The cost of fixed home loans will be rising by ten or twenty beeps by Tuesday (budget day). For a while we can kiss adieu anything with a 4-handle, as five-year mortgages all cross over to the mid 5% range (or higher, depending on the lender). The bond market did this. The yield on Canada five-year debt is back at the level of last November. This week it jumped from 3.6% to 3.8%. In the bond world that’s a Beyoncé. It reflects a big bounce in ..read more

For the sixth and last time, Tiff hit the snooze button. As economists expected, no change. Rates on pause today. The policy stays at 5%. The big question remains: when do the cuts start? Markets believe the answer’s still June. The CB is being careful not to build up expectations and, in fact, still warns rates could rise. But it always says that. We’re goin’ down. The reasons are simple. Inflation has been sub-3% for a few months. The economy is languishing. The last jobs report sucked. The big banks have set aside a few billion for potential bum loans. Business confidence is frayed. Hundre ..read more

Has a tax ever made things better? The people we’ve elected lately sure think so. Canadians face not only some of the highest marginal tax rates in the world (topping 54% on incomes – maybe more next Tuesday), but also sales taxes (to 15%) and now a bevy of levies on our fav asset, houses. Nope, not just property taxes (increasing by double digits in lots of places), land transfer tax, and non-locals tax, but big hungry new fees for selling or using your own property in a way the government doesn’t like. Let’s review a few of them. The Residential Property (Short-Term Holding) Profit Tax Act ..read more

Just two more sleeps ’til Tiff day. It’ll be a corker, with an interest rate decision, statement, media conference and background document on Wednesday from the Bank of Canada – those fun guys who hiked rates ten times, took mortgages from 1.5% to 6.15% and made your house worth less in 2023. What’s coming? Nothing. A pause. No change in the CB rate, the prime at your bank, home loans, lines of credit, business loans or HELOCs. But Mr. Market is clearly indicating this will probably be the last time boss Tiff Macklem hits the snooze button. Here are the implied interest rate movements and pro ..read more