If you’re a senior, the 2016 federal budget has a few welcome surprises, especially for low-income seniors and veterans. Here’s a rundown of what’s in store for seniors with Budget 2016. Safe at 65 The Harper government had previously announced plans to increase the age of eligibility for Old Age Security (OAS) from 65 to… read more
It’s that time of year that people either look forward to or dread: tax time. If you’re a Canadian senior or in a position where you are helping a family member out at tax time, here are a few tips to ensure that you are getting the most out of your tax return. 1. Canada… read more
The Canadian government has announced increases to payouts to seniors under the Canada Pension Plan (CPP) and Old Age Security (OAS), starting January 1, 2016. Tax Free Savings Accounts (TFSAs) are having their limits decreased to $5,500 for 2016 from $10,000 in 2015. Changes to CPP and OAS Canada Pension Plan payments are increasing in… read more
New fall prevention guidelines for Canadian seniors, published in the Canadian Medical Association Journal by Osteoporosis Canada, are missing key components, according to Dr. Brian Goldman of CBC’s White Coat, Black Art. Dr. Goldman puts forward a statistic that a senior in long-term care is four times more likely to sustain a serious fall where… read more
HomEquity Bank and Equifax Canada recently commissioned a study on debt levels of Canadian seniors which analyzed different debt categories including mortgages, lines of credit, credit cards and car loans. HomEquity Bank is the bank which offers the CHIP reverse mortgage program to Canadians. The key findings of the study were: Mortgage debt is increasing… read more
Demographic trends and a decline in savings are driving trends for growth in the Canadian reverse mortgage market. Steven Ranson is the president and CEO of HomEquity Bank, the bank behind the Canadian Home Income Plan (CHIP), which Horizon Equity provides to our clients. According to Ranson in this recent article for Mortgage Broker News,… read more
Was an error made in your GIS payments? Remember the Monopoly card that gave you money because a bank made an error in your favour? If you qualified for the Guaranteed Income Supplement (GIS) for the last several years, you may just have had a similar error made by the Canadian government. 150,000 files nationally… read more
It seems every week there is a new story in the news about how Canadians aren’t saving enough for retirement. The Canadian government has also taken up this cause, with a call for increases to Canada Pension Plan (CPP) contributions on the part of both employers and employees as a measure to help fix the… read more
Seniors are often considered to be more vulnerable during retirement because many are on fixed incomes. According to the federal Office of the Superintendent of Bankruptcy, 10 per cent of those who declared bankruptcy in 2014 were aged 65 and older, meanwhile TD Bank is saying seniors living in Ontario, Alberta and Quebec have the… read more
In a recent survey by BlackRock, only 41% of Canadian women know how much money they need for retirement, while 51% of Canadian men know the same figure. This 10% gap between genders speaks to a need for more retirement planning services that are tailored specifically to women. Women are more likely to outlive their… read more