CanPlan Financial

08/24/2026

Your rental property has done well. The mortgage is down, the value is up, and rent comes in every month. So why would you ever sell it?

As retirement gets closer, that question can become more complicated. Maybe there’s a lot of equity tied up in one property. Maybe you’d rather have more liquidity. Or maybe the plan has always been to leave the property to your kids, which brings up another question: do they actually want to own it together?

Sometimes a great investment is still worth keeping. Sometimes it has simply done the job you originally bought it to do.

We explore both sides in our latest article: Should You Keep Your Rental Property or Sell It? Read a full article here:

https://canplanfinancial.com/insights/f/should-you-keep-your-rental-property-or-sell-it



For educational purposes only. Individual circumstances vary.

By Allen Lin, B.Sc., CFP®

05/12/2026

You can start CPP as early as 60. But should you? Many Canadians are surprised by how much their CPP changes depending on when they take it.
Let’s look at your estimated CPP and whether it may actually support your retirement goals.

Let’s run the numbers together.
https://canplanfinancial.com/book-a-consultation

05/06/2026

Owning a pet often starts as a manageable monthly expense. Around $200 a month is what most people expect, and on the surface, it fits comfortably into a typical budget.

Where it becomes more complex is outside of those regular costs. Veterinary care has been rising at 6% to 8% per year, and with only about 3.8% of pets insured, most households are paying these costs out of pocket. That means when something unexpected happens, the cost isn’t gradual, it tends to come all at once.

What tends to matter more is not the expected monthly cost, but whether there’s a buffer in place for the unexpected. About 53% of Canadians say they wouldn’t be able to cover a $1,000 emergency vet bill, even though Canadians spend over $9.3 billion annually on pet services. It’s a reminder that costs don’t always show up gradually, and most people aren’t prepared when they come all at once.

Not sure if your current budget has enough flexibility for unexpected costs?
See how we help Canadians plan with clarity at canplanfinancial.com

Source: Money.ca (2025), citing Canadian Veterinary Medical Association

03/19/2026

$1.7 million😲That’s the number Canadians say they need to retire comfortably.

In B.C., it’s even higher - around $2.2M.
Millennials say $1M would mean financial independence, but average savings are closer to $126K. Those numbers come from the latest BMO Retirement Survey.

We check these numbers every year, and here’s what we find interesting: the number keeps changing. A few years ago, it was lower, partly due to recent inflation. But that wasn’t the only reason: concern about the economy or the state of the world has resulted in folks to feel more insecure about how long their savings will last them.

In reality, retirement planning doesn’t start with a national average. It starts with your income needs. Your lifestyle. Your housing situation. Your pensions. Your tax structure.

For some families, $1.7M may be exactly right. For others, it may be more than they actually need. The risk isn’t that the number is too big. The risk is assuming the same number applies to everyone.

A survey tells us how Canadians feel. A written plan tells you where you stand.

📌 Book a consultation to explore what aligns with your goals:
https://canplanfinancial.com/book-a-consultation

Source: BMO Retirement Survey (Feb 2025); Advisor.ca, Jonathan Got (Feb 24, 2026).

03/19/2026

Are you actually on track for retirement? A lot of the time, it’s not big mistakes that affect a plan. It’s just small things that get overlooked over time.
➡️With a quick review, those are usually pretty easy to spot and adjust.
➡️If you want, feel free to message us and we can take a look together.

📌 Book a consultation to explore what aligns with your goals:
https://canplanfinancial.com/book-a-consultation

03/18/2026

For Canadians aged 30–34, the average Tax-Free Savings Account (TFSA) balance sits around $16,700, according to CRA statistics from the 2023 contribution year. The same data also shows the average unused TFSA contribution room is still over $60,000 for this group.

In other words, even though millions of people have opened a TFSA, a large portion of the available tax-free space is still sitting unused.

Part of the reason may be that early in a career, the conversation often shifts toward RRSP contributions as income rises and the immediate tax deduction becomes more attractive. In that process, the TFSA can sometimes be underused in the early years.

The TFSA was designed to be one of the most flexible tools in Canada’s financial system. It can support long-term investing, create tax-free income later in life, or simply provide flexibility when opportunities or unexpected expenses come up.

In your experience, how early should someone start using the TFSA as an investment account rather than just a savings account?

📌 Book a consultation to explore what aligns with your goals:
https://canplanfinancial.com/book-a-consultation

02/26/2026

Do you know? When it comes to RRSPs, it’s not only about how much you put in each year.

A lot of people don’t realize that contributing to your RRSP and using the tax deduction don’t have to happen at the same time. You can put money into your RRSP now, let it grow, and decide to use the deduction later, when your income is higher and the tax savings are more meaningful.

That flexibility is often what makes the biggest difference. RRSP planning is really about timing, not just contribution size.

📌 Book a consultation to explore what aligns with your goals:
https://lnkd.in/gatm8xWp