Make the Most of What You've Got: The Canadian Guide to Managing Retirement Income

You can retire but your money can't! For much of your adult life, the question is "How much do I have to save to fund my retirement?" But as you approach retirement, or if you're already retired, the question becomes "How can I make the most of what I have saved?" Many Canadians live for over twenty years in retirement - that's a long time to make your nest-egg last. If you're not working, then your money had better be! Make the Most of What You've Got is the comprehensive, common-sense guide for everyone who wants to make the most of their retirement, whether you're already retired, or just approaching the threshold: * Helps you maximize your retirement income and minimize your tax bill. * Explains how to plan for a dependable retirement income, turn your investments into income, and manage your investment portfolio in retirement. * Alerts you to the top ten retirement planning mistakes. * Covers the complex decisions you need to make about your nest-egg: dealing with maturing RRSPs, deciding whether a RRIF or an annuity is right for you, determining if you can afford to retire early, and much more. * Prepares you for working with your financial advisor or planner.* Features practical examples, checklists, forms, tips, and Q&As.

Table of Contents:
Preface Acknowledgements Retirement Checklist Chapter 1. What is Retirement Planning? What Retirement Planning Means Today Six Steps to a Successful Retirement Step 1. Assess Your Sources of Retirement Income Step 2. Calculate How Much Income You Need What are Your Expenses? Life Expectancy Step 3. Develop an Investment Strategy to Pay You the Income You Need How Much Does Your Portfolio Need to Earn? Is it Time to Redesign Your Portfolio? Step 4. Integrate Your Retirement Income Plan with a Tax and Estate Strategy Tax Planning Estate Planning Step 5. Review the Plan Periodically Continue to Do Tax Planning, Not Tax Filing Review Your Annual Performance Step 6. Build a Life For Yourself Retirement (From a Child's View) Summary Chapter 2. How Much Is Enough? Inflation The Retirement Income Projection Using Assumptions What Return Should You Use in Your Projection? Too Good To Be True? The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly The Reality Check Got Enough? Not Got Enough? It's Ongoing Summary Chapter 3. Government Benefits Canada Pension Plan (CPP) Starting CPP Benefits Early Starting CPP Benefits After Age 65 Managing CPP Benefits Old Age Security (OAS) Basic OAS Strategies to Help You Keep More OAS Federal Supplemental Benefits Guaranteed Income Supplement (GIS) Spouses' Allowance Provincial Supplemental Pensions Summary Chapter 4. Your Company Pension Plan Your Annual Pension Statement Contributory or Non-contributory? Types of Company Pension Plans Defined Benefit Plan Defined Contribution Plan or Money Purchase Deferred Profit Sharing Plan (DPSP) Selecting Your Retirment Date Retiring Early Is the Purchasing Power of Your Pension Protected? Paperwork at Retirement Basic Pension Options Life Only Joint and Survivor Opting Out of the Joint and Survivor Benefit Minimum Guarantee Period Should You Opt Out of Your Company Pension Plan? Summary Chapter 5. Converting Your RRSP Revenue Canada's Rules May Not Be Good for You Planned Withdrawals Maturing your RRSP Cashing in the RRSP Cash = Tax? Purchase a Registered Annuity Convert your RRSP to a RRIF Combine Two or More Options Making the Right Decision Last-Minute Planning Opportunities Make Your Final Contribution Claim Your Overcontribution Are You Still Earning RRSP Contribution Room? Summary Chapter 6. The Annuity The Types of Annuities for Tax Purposes Basic Types of Annuities Term Certain Annuity Life Annuity Guarantees Available With an Annuity Guarantee Period of Life Annuities Indexing Six Steps for Getting the Best Annuity How Much Annuity Will Your Money Buy? Advantages of an Annuity Disadvantages of an Annuity Summary Chapter 7. The RRIF and LIF The RRIF The Different Types of RRIFs RRIF Withdrawal Rules Calculating the Minimum Payment Should You Take Out More than the Minimum Required? Withholding Tax Ways to Minimize the Tax on Your RRIF Withdrawal Converting Your RRSP to a RRIF Naming a Beneficiary Naming a Successor Annuitant Transferring a RRIF From One Financial Institution to Another The Spousal RRIF Should You Continue to Have a RRIF? Advantages of a RRIF Disadvantages of a RRIF Life Income Fund (LIF) A LIF is Similar to a RRIF The Maximum Withdrawal The Annuity Option Summary Chapter 8. Building a Retirement Income Portfolio The Well Thought-out Portfolio Selecting the Asset Mix Your Goals and Objectives The Emergency Fund What Are Your Objectives? Designing Your Portfolio Understanding Market Behaviour Selecting the Mix Between Canadian and International Equities Foreign Content inside Your RRSP/RRIF Stay on Track— Rebalancing Your Portfolio Summary Chapter 9. Getting the Most From Your Cash Bank Accounts Canada Savings Bonds (CSBs) Just Like Cash? Redeemable GICs Money Market Investments Money Market Funds Summary Chapter 10. Getting the Most from Your Fixed Income Investments Guaranteed Investment Certificates (GICs) or Term Deposits Traditional GICs Non-Redeemable GICs Tracking your GICs Escalating GICs Equity-linked GICs Bonds and Mortgages Types of Bonds Building Income with a Portfolio of Bonds Bond Quotes Accrued Interest Strip Bonds Mortgage-Backed Securities Reducing Risk When Investing in Fixed Income Investments Laddering the Maturity Dates of Your Fixed Income Investments Use Compounded GICs or Strip Bonds Select Quality Issuers Reducing the Risk of Long-term Bonds Summary Chapter 11. Getting Income From Other Investments Getting Income from Stocks Dividend Payments The Dividend Yield Selling Stock Holdings Getting Income From Mutual Funds Taking the Distributions in Cash 10% Free Redemption Privilege Selling Your Units Systematic Withdrawal Plan (SWP) SWPs are Tax Effective Making SWPs Work Getting Income from Segregated Funds How They Work The Reset Option Making Withdrawals Selecting Segregated Funds Other Ideas for Income Private Mortgages Royalty or Income Trusts Prescribed Annuities More After-tax Income Insuring an Annuity to Protect the Value of Your Estate Charitable Annuity Ways to Protect Your Investments and Savings Summary Chapter 12. Using Your Home for Income Sell Your Home and Pocket the Profit Tax-free The Reverse Mortgage Borrowing Against Your Home Setting up a Line of Credit Borrowing to Invest Earning Rental Income Putting an Apartment Unit in Your Home Taking in Students Summary Chapter 13. Don't Pay More in Tax Than You Have To Factors that Affect the Amount of Tax You Pay The Basic Tax Rules How Different Types of Income Are Taxed Interest Income Dividend Income Capital Gains Tax Deferral with Capital Gains Capital Losses What Types of Income Should You Have? File Your Quarterly Taxes Instalments on Time Watch Transactions that Increase Your Tax Bill Annual Mutual Fund Distributions Organize Your Portfolio to Make it More Tax Effective Even Out Your Income to Reduce Your Lifetime Tax Bill Techniques to Deduct, Divide, and Defer Taxes Deduct Make the Most of Your Tax Credits Pension Income Choose the Spouse Who Can Make the Best Use of the Tax Credit Defer Retiring Allowance Alternate Minimum Tax Divide Which Spouse Should Do the Investing? Split Canada Pension Plan Benefits Gifts and Loans to Adult Children Loan Your Spouse Money to Invest Summary Chapter 14. You Can't Take It With You What's Important to You? Death and Taxes Taxes on the RRSP/RRIF Capital Gains How Much Tax? Ways to Reduce the Tax Bill Transfer Assets to Spouse Spend Money Now Buy Life Insurance Making Planned Gifts Set Up a Testamentary Trust Incapacity Dealing With the Death of a Spouse Common Death Benefits Canada Pension Plan Other Benefits Summary Chapter 15. Do You Need Professional Advice? Selecting an Advisor Designations to Look For The Initial Meeting Questions to Ask Your Financial Advisor The Different Ways to Pay for Financial Advice Transferring Your Account Beware of Transfer Fees Redemption Fees Watch the Tax Costs Are You Getting What You Pay For? Not Getting What You Expected? Summary Chapter 16. Make the Most of What You've Got Your Retirement Countdown Retirement Checklist Appendix Sources of Income Expenses in Retirement Assets that Could Be Turned Into Income Cash Flow Projection Portfolio Asset Mix Index Suggestions and Seminars

About the Author :
Sandra E. Foster, RFP, FCSI, specializes in wealth management. Her common-sense approach helps Canadians make decisions that fit their personal situations and makes her a popular, sought-after speaker. She is a regular contributor to Advisor's Edge and has written on a wide range of financial issues in IE Money, The Toronto Star, and The Globe and Mail. She is the author of You Can't Take It With You: The Common-Sense Guide to Estate Planning for Canadians, which is a national bestseller and winner of the 1998 Canadian Association of Financial Planners Multimedia Award.