Seems that there was quite a bit of interest in the book “Super Trader” as there were numerous entries.  Out of all the entries, 3 were randomly chosen as winners of a free copy.  Here are the winners:

1. Linda
2. Jeff W.
3. Desmond C.

Top 5 Posts of October 2009

1. How Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT) Works - With the big hype about the tax efficiency of dividend income, the AMT makes sure that the government gets their share.
2. Prepaid Credit Card Comparison - After receiving a generous prepaid credit card as a gift, I wrote a review discussing the merits and pitfalls.
3. Tips for buying and selling on Kijiji - Staff writer Kathryn discusses some tips when doing business on Kijiji.
4. Why Don’t Financial Planners Plan Finances -  This article lists various reasons why financial planners don’t create basic financial plans for their clients.  What do you think?
5. Creating a Frugal Halloween – Even though Halloween has just passed, here are some great tips for Halloween in future years.

Top Referrers

1. Canadian Capitalist
2. Canadian Money Forum
3. The Globe and Mail
4. Four Pillars
5. Frugal Dad

Top Comment Contributors

• cannon_fodder
• Four Pillars
• Ms Save Money
• Canada Deals
• Kathryn

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Copyright 2009 MillionDollarJourney – All Rights Reserved

Canadian consumers that did redeem coupons saved over $134 million dollars.

This sounds like a lot of coupons redeemed, but when you calculate the amount of unredeemed coupons it is astounding.

With an average face value of $2.02, the amount of unredeemed coupons is approximately $7 billion dollars.

Some reasons why Canadians do not redeem coupons?

Coupons are not for all consumers. There are several reasons why consumers do not use them.

Cutting them from magazines or newspapers, printing them from various websites like, Grocery Alerts , or sorting them from the mail is time-consuming. It takes time and effort to clip coupons and organize them. Having to carry them to the store is too much of a hassle for many shoppers, whether they save a few dollars or not. Most consumers could not be bothered.

Another possible reason why some Canadians might not redeem coupons is that they might spend more money. A coupon’s purpose is to entice shoppers to try a new product. Some consumers are brand loyal and do not wish to switch brands to save some money. The discipline required to not spend additional money may be lacking from some shoppers.

Coupons are typically for name brand products for items such as Tide and Sunlight. If a family on a budget and needs to choose between Tide when using a coupon and the store’s private label brand, the final price could show that the private label brand is cheaper even if the coupon is redeemed. Therefore, using a coupon would not be beneficial

When I was a teenager and went grocery shopping with my mother, I always saw the people that redeemed coupons and I perceived them as being “cheap.” The possible embarrassment or being labeled as “poor” or “cheap” is why some people don’t use coupons. The stigma attaching to using coupons probably still remains, especially at long lines at the grocery store when someone is trying to redeem double coupons.

Some Canadians still redeem coupons

However, the recent recession has changed the general public’s mind when it comes to redeeming coupons. In tough economic conditions, families are forced to stretch their budgets further. This includes redeeming coupons on everything from oil changes to clothing stores to laundry detergent.

Thanks to the Internet, several grocery stores (Real Canadian Superstore, Save-on-Foods, Safeway Canada) have added coupons to their websites and new websites have propped up to aid in gathering more coupons.

The fact that more and more merchants are offering coupons shows the demand for them.

Final Thoughts

Personally, I carry a grocery coupon binder (just a simple tupperware container), that organizes all my coupons into different categories for easy redemption.

I have had terrible experiences at stores explaining that they do not accept photocopied coupons and when you inform the cashier that they came from a retailer’s website or from our website, it does not make a difference. Speaking with the manager at the local Save-On-Foods if the coupon came from the retailer and that it has a valid bar code, a valid expiration date, and a valid Canadian redemption address they typically redeem the coupon. This is something to look out for if a cashier or merchant ever refuses to take your coupon. Just explain that the printed coupon has everything they need to redeem.

It is not a lot of money saved typically, but I do find the coupons add up when you combine them when an item is on sale.

Here is a recent transaction.

This copy of the receipt shows that I saved 75 cents off the Glad Wrap. This does not sound like much money, however, since the item was on sale at $2.99 using the coupon saved me an additional 25% off the sale price.

How do you tend to use coupons? Do you find them more hassle then the savings?

* – http://www.couponscanada.org/index.html

Author’s Bio: The author is Steven Zussino, Founder of Grocery Alerts Canada (http://www.groceryalerts.ca/) – Home of grocery deals and money saving coupons. He enjoys personal finance and saving money in beautiful Victoria, BC.

As Baby FT was born in 2008, I assume the projections for the cost of University will be fairly close to what the article states.  As we started an RESP in 2008, will it be enough to fund Post Secondary Education?

We decided to use the RESP program which allows up to 20% of your (after tax) deposit annually will be matched by the government, up to $500 per year.  So to max out the government grant, $2500 would need to be deposited annually.  Investments can grow tax free within the account, but withdrawals will be taxed in the hands of the student which shouldn’t be a problem as they typically make very little income at that stage.

With regards to the RESP investment strategy, we decided to with the TD e-series to index the portfolio over the next 17 years or so.  The plan is to gradually reduce our equities exposure as the withdrawal period closes in.  We deposit $2500 lump sum annually with the government depositing $500.  This results in $3000 in new cash every year to invest with.

My assumption is that the portfolio will grow 5% annually after inflation which, after 17 years of growth, will result in a portfolio size of approximately $88,000.  This is not too far off the $100k required IF our child decides to live at home during University years.  If moving away is the plan, then I the difference will have to be made up somewhere.  Whether it’s student part time work, student loans, or if Daddy needs to open up his wallet once again – a plan needs to be put in place.

The issue of who should pay for post secondary education is a well publicized.  Some believe that post secondary education should be the child’s responsibility while others feel the bill should be covered by the parents.  I’m in between the two camps.  I managed to pay my way through school without student loans by working part time, choosing a degree that had paid work terms, staying at home and living frugally.  However, even that (and RESP money) may not be enough in the future with rising tuition and living expenses.

My initial thoughts (which may change over the years) are that we’ll cover all education expenses, but baby FT will be responsible for living expenses.  The amount that baby FT will have to come up with will depend whether or not they want to live at home.  If the kid(s) decide to live away from home, then they’ll most likely need to fund their living expenses on their own (or a portion of) though part time work, loans (eligible if using RESP?), or scholarships.

Who knows, if we can ingrain a good savings habit in them early, then perhaps they’ll have some cash to cushion the blow.

What are your thoughts on the rising cost of tuition?

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Copyright 2009 MillionDollarJourney – All Rights Reserved

While we were there my son got very sick. We took him to the local clinic where they admitted him and tried for hours to insert an IV into his veins without success. It was one of the most difficult things I’ve had to watch. How could I put my son through this? What kind of parent was I to put my child’s life at risk because of my work?

He screamed until he was worn out and still he got sicker. He was losing fluids faster than we could get them into him. His veins were too small to insert the IV. The nurse matter-of-factly told us that he was going to die. In truth, she said, “When he dies, may I have his portable crib?”

We knew we had to get him off the island to save his life. We had health insurance that included emergency medical evacuation. We needed to get approval. We called and the person on the phone asked to speak to a the doctor in charge. After a lengthy conversation, our health insurance provider told us that the doctor on staff had the situation under control and didn’t think we needed to be medically evacuated. Our coverage was denied.

We could see our son was fading. We knew we didn’t have time to wait for the morning ferry and begin the 18 hour journey back to mainland. He was dehydrated. His sunken eyes were rolling back in his head. He couldn’t lift his head. He was too sick to cry.

It was at that point that we decided money no longer mattered. We called directly to our supervisor and ordered our own medical evacuation. I said to Brian, “I don’t care if this costs a million dollars. I don’t care if we’re going to be in debt for the rest of our lives. Our son is dying and we need to get him off this island now.”

A small plane was called. The local people and some of our colleagues worked at quickly filling in potholes in the dirt road. The local people stood along the road as the plane landed to keep the stray dogs and pigs from running out onto the road. A plane hadn’t landed on that island for as long as anyone could remember.

It was an hour flight to Manila where we were taken to an excellent hospital. We ran into the emergency room with our son in our arms, barely conscious and fading fast. They took him from us and immediately inserted a special pediatric IV. They told us if we didn’t get there when we did, he would have only had hours left to live. He stayed in the hospital for 5 days. They never could find the cause of what made him so sick.

In the end, when the organization we work for heard our story, they covered all the costs of the medical evacuation. They knew we made the right choice.

Later, as my son was recovering in the hospital, I began to think of the incredible people we’d left behind on that remote island. These were people that took us in, fed us, housed us, cared for us, advocated for us, cleared the road and helped us when we needed it so desperately. Yet, if it had been any of their children that had faced the same situation, their child would have died. They simply didn’t have the money.

It makes me sad that access to money is what saved my son’s life. There came a point when money didn’t matter and I would have be willing to pay anything. I know I made the right choice to do whatever it took. It seems unfair that I had a choice many people never get.

Have you ever been in a situation where money didn’t matter?

Kathryn works in public relations and training for a non profit. In her off hours, she volunteers as a financial coach helping ordinary Canadians with the basics of money management. Her passions include personal finance and adult education. Kathryn, along with her husband and two children live in Ontario.

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Copyright 2009 MillionDollarJourney – All Rights Reserved

For me,  I will most likely keep the existing HELOC balance (and portfolio) but use the freed up cash flow to invest with instead of increasing the investment loan.  Perhaps it’s my conservative side coming out, but why leverage if cash is available to invest with?  I may, on occasion, dip into the HELOC balance to invest in opportunities that require large amounts of cash, such as an investment real estate transaction.

As that is my tentative plan, the question now is, how should I structure my accounts?

Ideally, to keep it simple (I already have too many investment accounts), I would like to add to my existing leveraged portfolio, but with new cash.  However, mingling regular cash with a leveraged investment loan may get messy with regards to the tax deductibility of the investment loan.  So I sought out a tax expert, Tax Guy with my concerns.  Here is what he came back with:

Co-mingling cash contributions to your leveraged investment account “may” affect the deductibility of interest. Provided you can track each cash contribution, the worst case scenario would be a proportional split of the interest.

Example:

Assume you have fully paid off the instalment portion and end up with a HELOC of $200,000 and a portfolio valued at $300,000. At the beginning of the year, you place an additional $10,000 of cash in the brokerage account. The account earns 7% for the year and has a FMV of $331,700 at the end of the year.

The interest you can deduct should be in proportion to the amount of the account you have funded with the loan or 90.4%.

Again his would be a worst case scenario (provided you can always track each dollar). Best case scenario would that the CRA would allow you to deduct the full interest from the HELOC although this would get messed up if you decide to take funds out of the account. Withdrawals would most definitely affect interest deductibility.

I would recommend you use a separate brokerage account for cash investments and keep it separate from your leveraged investments.

The idea of tracking every non-borrowed dollar deposited into the leveraged portfolio does not appeal to me, so I will have to resort to using an existing non leveraged, non-registered account or opening a brand new stock brokerage account.  If you’re a tax expert, I’d like to hear your take on this as well.  For those of you who are using the Smith Manoeuvre strategy, what are your plans once the installment portion of your mortgage is paid off?

Update: After many questions in the comments, Tax Guy revised his explanation:

Assume you have fully paid off the instalment portion and end up with a HELOC of $200,000 and a portfolio valued at $300,000. At the beginning of the year, you place an additional $10,000 of cash in the brokerage account. The account earns 7% for the year and has a FMV of $331,700 at the end of the year. At the end of the year, you take out the $10,000 and use it for a personal expense.

Prior to the withdrawal, the HELOC funded 97% of the account. This proportion would be preserved following the withdrawal but the same proportion may affect the amount of interest deducted. Thus only 97% of the HELOC interest would be deductible.

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Copyright 2009 MillionDollarJourney – All Rights Reserved

As well, the exclusive discount variable mortgage rate offered to MDJ Readers ends on Nov 1, 2009 (Sunday). So if you are in the market for a mortgage, P-0.25% is as good as it gets these days! See here for details.

Great Bull or Bulls–t @ Canadian Money Forum

5 Reasons To Dump Your Strict Budget @ Frugal Dad

How effective are dividend stocks in downturns? @ Thicken My Wallet

Money Management Software For The Desktop: YNAB 3 Review @ The Digerati Life

One More Reason to Avoid Labour-Sponsored Funds @ Canadian Capitalist

Wokai: Support Chinese Small Businesses through Microfinancing @ Sun’s Financial Diary

Socially Responsible Investing @ Four Pillars

What if You were Required to Share your Finances? @ Lazy Man and Money

Take it Like a Man or Invest Like A Woman? @ The Financial Blogger

how to keep a customer happy @ Brip Blap

My Bad Money Habits @ Canadian Dream

Finding the Value in Money @ My Dollar Plan

Commodity Trading Advisors @ Where Does All My Money Go

Bond Fund Investing @ Money Smart Life

Pension Reform Promised Soon @ Michael James on Money

How to Save Money for Christmas in a Short Amount of Time @ Generation X Finance

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Copyright 2009 MillionDollarJourney – All Rights Reserved

For a short while after graduating from University I worked at a collection agency. It was not a lot of fun when I was told by supervisors and trainers to be harsher on customers and threaten them as needed. Not surprisingly I left the agency fairly quickly, but I learned a lot from the inside. I learned the laws as well as how agents manipulate these laws.

Should a situation arise where you have to deal with a collection agency I hope the following tips can help you through this awful experience.

Educate Yourself

The first thing you need to do is educate yourself. What can a collection agent say or do? When can they call? What are your obligations? Understand your rights as well as your responsibilities.

In Canada collection agencies are regulated by provinces, although most have similar laws, some details will vary. Here is the collection agency act for Ontario. In the US they have the Fair Debt Collections And Practices Act.

Do Not Ignore

If the unfortunate happens and you do end up having an account in collections, do not ignore the calls and letters. Ignoring the issue will not get you anywhere, talk with the agent and try to find an appropriate solution for your financial problems. If it’s in 3^rd party collection, the agent will have some discretion over the account.

Keep Record

Keep a record of everything you do and every conversation you have with the collection agency. If you mail a letter ensure it is registered and always ask them to send you everything in writing. Have phone conversations recorded, although you may need permission for this, it can go a long way when needed. Always ask for the persons full name and ID number, write down the time and date of the call.

What Collection Agencies CANNOT Do

Here are a few things the collection agency cannot do:

• A collection agency may NOT contact you until six days after they have sent you a written notice. The notice should include all the following information: The name of the ORIGINAL creditor, the balance owing and the name of the collection agency.

• They cannot contact you before 8am and after 9pm during the week and before 1pm and after 5pm on Sundays.

• They cannot contact you more than 3 times in a seven-day period regarding the same debt.

• Disclose any information to anyone else but you, they cannot say it is a collection agency calling or in anyway reveal that you owe money. This also applies to voicemails; they cannot reveal any details on a voicemail.

• If you feel that the agency has violated any of the above rules or in anyway has harassed you record the date, time and details of the event and contact your consumer protection agency.

When speaking with a collections agent be professional and try to solve the issue rather than trying to avoid it or get in a fight.  Remember they are just doing a job.

Once an account is with a collection agency you can no longer solve the matter with the original creditor so do not try to contact them. You will only give yourself more headache and create confusion.

This is a guest article by Ray, the owner and primary author of Financial Highway, where he discusses investing, saving and practical money management concepts. You can check subscribe to his RSS feed or follow him on Twitter.

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Copyright 2009 MillionDollarJourney – All Rights Reserved

Halloween is here once again, it’s hard to imagine where time goes.  It seems that the more we age, the faster time passes.  

This year, we expect a lot of trick or treaters ringing our doorbell as our street is now fully developed (with street lights and everything!).  I’ve heard rumour that there are over 200 kids in our immediate area, so I guess it would be a good idea to be over stocked with treats than under prepared.  In terms of treats, we typically do the chips and bar thing, like Kathryn, we purchase our Halloween treats from Costco. 

Nothing too scary to report in Octobers net worth summary.  Most of the growth is due to steady savings and some portfolio growth.  I did see a fairly signifant correction in my non-registered account as a speculative stock I own took a dive. 

With regards to liabilities, if you take a look at the mortgage balance, you’ll see that it’s within striking distance of being completely paid off.  I’m actually in a bit of turmoil with regards to what I’m going to do with the large HELOC space available.  Should I continue to use the HELOC to invest with?  Or should I use the increased cash from the previous mortgage payment to fund my investments?  Or perhaps a combination? 

Assets: $ 470,500 (+0.99%)

• Cash: $4,500 (+0.00%)
• Savings: $16,500.00 (+22.22%)
• Registered/Retirement Investment Account: $73,800.00 (+2.22%)
• Pension: $27,700.00 (+0.73%)
• Non-Registered Investment Account: $16,500.00 (-4.07%)
• Smith Manoeuvre Investment Account: $51,500.00 (+3.00%)
• Principal Residence: $275,000 (+0.00%) (purchase price)
• Vehicles: $5,000 (2 vehicles) (-16.67%)

Liabilities: $85,500.00 (-1.61%)

• Tax Liability: $3,000 (-0.00%)
• Principal Residence Mortgage (readvanceable): $29,200.00 (-4.89%)
• HELOC balance: $53,300 (+0.19%)

Total Net Worth: ~$385,000.00(+1.58%)

• Started 2009 with Net Worth: $309,950.00
• Year to Date Gain/Loss: +24.12%

Some quick notes and explanations to net worth questions I get often:

The Cash

The $4,500 cash are held in chequing accounts to meet the minimum balance so that we pay no fees (accounting for regular bill payments). Yes, we do hold no fee accounts also, but I find value in having an account with a full service bank as the relationship with a banker can prove useful.

Savings

Our savings accounts are held with PC Financial and ING Direct. We usually hold a fair bit of cash in case “something” comes up. The “something” can be anything that requires cash such as an investment opportunity that requires quick cash or maybe an emergency car/home repair.  We also need cash to cover any future tax liabilities.

Real Estate

Our real estate holdings consist of a primary residence plus a rental property. The value of the principal residence remains valued at the purchase price despite significant appreciation in the real estate market that we’re in.  I will most likely be adjusting the value of the home come the new year.

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Copyright 2009 MillionDollarJourney – All Rights Reserved

Employees who feel valued are more likely to stay long term with an organization. A basic paycheck does little to motivate people to go the extra mile. A little positive feedback motivates people and reduces attrition rates. Most of these ideas have little financial cost and yet companies have the potential to save a lot of money by not having to hire and train new people, having workers who consistently work harder and who are loyal to the organization.

Here are a number of different currencies.

Financial Remuneration

This is basic pay. It’s my agreed upon wage. It’s very motivating in terms of keeping my job but doesn’t go much beyond that. It absolutely needs to be there for most people. If you work in non-profit, you may have a number of volunteers. It’s especially important to pay your volunteers with a different kind of currency if you have any hope of keeping them long term.

Financial Bonus

A financial bonus can be tied to company profit or individual effort. It’s a monetary bonus on top of a regular salary. Sadly, regular yearly expected bonuses become much like regular salary. Unexpected bonuses or bonuses that individuals can work towards can be a great way to increase morale and motivate employees.

Token Bonus

A token bonus is a small gift that recognizes an employee’s effort. This might be a gift certificate, a book or in the case of RIM employees, tickets to a U2 concert! It doesn’t have to cost much but recognizes effort in a tangible way. I know of one large company whose employees make signifiant salaries. Yet the weekly meeting where one outstanding employee receives a $20 gift certificate to a local restaurant, has been a huge motivating force.

Public Verbal Recognition

Public verbal recognition occurs when a supervisor publicly recognizes employees. It may be in front of one or two other employees or in a larger group meeting. This is the one that is farthest from what motivates me. I have a supervisor who does this regularly and I’m often embarrassed to be publicly recognized. I don’t like being the centre of attention. For others, receiving public recognition is key to feeling valued.

Private / Written Recognition

I confess. This one is my currency. During an interview when an employer brings up remuneration, I’m often tempted to hold up a sign that reads, “Will work for appreciation.” All it takes is a one line e-mail that says, “Well done”, “Good job on the presentation”, “Keep up the good work”, and I’m good to go for months. I thrive under authentic feedback.

Positive Formal Review

For some, receiving a positive formal review makes all the difference. It’s a formal tangible document that becomes part of that person’s employment history. It shows quantifiable areas of success and growth.

As an employer, it’s important to figure out what it is that motivates your employees and helps them to feel valued and appreciated. One of the best methods is to try them all and see what works. Don’t be surprised when different people are motivated by different currencies.

People are discouraged in these difficult economic times. I’ve heard from many recently that morale is low in their organization. Remunerating people in their currency is a great way to increase morale and encourage employees. It doesn’t have to cost a lot but the dividends are priceless.

What’s your currency?

Kathryn works in public relations and training for a non profit. In her off hours, she volunteers as a financial coach helping ordinary Canadians with the basics of money management. Her passions include personal finance and adult education. Kathryn, along with her husband and two children live in Ontario.

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Copyright 2009 MillionDollarJourney – All Rights Reserved

Trading has been a hobby of mine for the past few years and I must admit that the ability to consistently trade profitably is a challenge.  This book is written by a well known trader who goes over some of the psychological barriers of trading which he believes is perhaps the largest obstacle that traders, or aspiring traders, face.

About the Author:

According to the book:

Van K Tharp, Ph. D., is an internationally recognized consultant and coach to traders and investors, as well as the founder and president of the Van Tharp Institute. He is the author of multiple bestselling books on trading and investing, including Trade Your Way to Financial Freedom, Safe Strategies for Financial Freedom, Financial Freedom Through Electronic Day Trading, The Definitive Guide to Position Sizing and The Peak Performance Course for Traders and Investors.  Tharp is a popular speaker who develops and presents workshops for trading firms and individuals around the world. He has published numerous articles and has been featured in publications such as Forbes, Barron’s, Market Week, and Investor’s Business Daily.

About the Book

As I mentioned above, this book really focuses on the psychological side of trading instead of technical.  It talks about creating a system for yourself starting with eliminating limiting beliefs, developing a business plan/trading system and position sizing.

This book is not for you if you are looking to learn about charts and technical indicators.

Here is what Super Trader consists of:

Part 1: Working on Yourself:  The Critical Component That Makes It All Work

Part 2: Developing a Business Plan:  Your Working Guide to Success in the Markets

Part 3: Develop a Trading System That Fits Each Market Type You Plan To Trade

Part 4: Understanding the Importance of Position Sizing

Part 5: More Ideas for Producing Optimal Trading Performance

Final Thoughts

This book is for someone who is serious about taking their trading to the next level.  Tharp believes that a successful trader isn’t one who knows all the technicals of trading but someone who has mastered the psychology of trading and using a sound business plan.

Want a Free Copy?

McGraw-Hill was generous in offering Million Dollar Journey readers the chance to win 3 copies of the book.  The details are below:

1. Sign up for the new MDJ Money Tips Newsletter for an entry.

Sign up for the Million Dollar Journey Money Tips Newsletter absolutely free. We respect your privacy – your information will never be given or sold to third parties. As well, you can unsubscribe at any time.
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2. Follow me on twitter to receive an additional entry.

• Only those with a North American mailing address may enter (publisher rules, sorry).
• Contest will end Sat 5pm EST Oct 31, 2009 and the winner announced shortly after!

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Copyright 2009 MillionDollarJourney – All Rights Reserved

Once upon a time, discounted variable rate mortgages were the norm. However, the credit crisis in 2008 changed all that, and actually pushed variable rates well above prime rate.

With the economy starting to come around (supposedly), and global credit easing, variable rate mortgages are getting cheaper again.  Just recently, the big banks started offering variable rates at prime which is a great improvement over the prime + 1% they were offering at the peak of the crisis.

However, you probably aren’t satisfied with paying prime on your mortgage, you want a discount off prime.  Until now, that hasn’t been possible.

Our friends and blogger colleagues at Canadian Mortgage Trends have a special offer exclusively for Million Dollar Journey readers.  They are offering a variable rate mortgage at Prime – 0.25%!

Overview:

*  Canada’s lowest variable rate (as far as we know!)
*  From the country’s most reputable lenders
*  15-20% lump-sum pre-payment options
*  Optionally increase payments up 15-100%
*  Lock into a discounted fixed rate at any time without cost
*  Available readvanceable line of credit (80% LTV maximum)

This is a limited time offer which expires November 1, 2009.  If you are in the market for a mortgage, you can read about the details here.

Weekend Links

Try an auction for savings @ Canadian Money Forum

CPI: How Many Negatives Make it Deflation? @ Canadian Personal Finance Blog

why McDonalds is a good investment @ The Money Gardener

How Much Does Raising A Child Cost? @ Canadian Finance Blog

Living Will @ Financial Highway

Money Tip: Keep a one page account summary @ Canadian Capitalist

Financial Peace Through Planning @ Five Cent Nickel

5 Recent Examples of Consumer Food Price Inflation in Second Half of 2009 @ Money Energy

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Copyright 2009 MillionDollarJourney – All Rights Reserved

This week is all about tips for buying and selling on Kijiji or Craigslist:

Use photos

It’s extremely easy to post photos. You don’t even have to register to post an ad with a photo. It lets people see what your selling and clearly shows the the state of the item.

Post a price

I don’t even contact a seller who says ‘please contact’. Just tell me what your price is. If I can’t see it in person, I’m not about to start negotiating a price.

Price reasonably

We have had tremendous success selling anything we’ve posted on Kijiji really quickly. Usually it’s sold within hours of posting an ad. We’ve sold everything from wagons, winter coats, bedroom sets and even a piano.

Before posting I do a search for similar type items and put the price at just a little bit under. So for example, when selling the wagon, I did a search for the same one and found 4 of them for sale for $40. I posted ours for $35 and it was gone within the day.

Do your research

My husband has been keeping his eye out for an American made Fender Stratocaster. He saw one recently that seemed like a reasonable price. Then when he read the fine print, he realized it was a low end model and the person was in fact selling a used one for more than they go for new! Be honest with what you post and do your research to make sure you’re getting a good deal.

Look outside your own city

When looking for our bedroom set, we set a budget, saved some money and then started looking. We knew we wanted something in solid wood and we were hoping for a four poster bed. We checked regularly and still found nothing. Finally we expanded our search to surrounding cities. Immediately we found the perfect set 100 km away. Even with the cost of renting a van to pick it up, we still came in $250 under budget and we found exactly what we were looking for.

Check frequently

Checking regularly is the key to finding exactly what you want. The good stuff goes fast. My brother-in-law furnished his entire cottage from Craigslist. It’s gorgeous. It doesn’t look used. It looks like something out of a magazine and suits the cottage perfectly. He said he did it by checking every morning and every evening. He had a list of what he was looking for. He knew his budget and he kept checking.

Use the search feature

Trying out Kijiji the first time can seem overwhelming. There are thousands if not hundreds of thousands of items posted. If you type in exactly what you’re looking for and define the parameters a bit, you’ll only see the types of ads you want.

Stay safe

Use a generic e-mail address, not one with your name in it. Don’t post your address online. I don’t even post my home phone number. I usually let interested buyers contact me by e-mail at which time I give them my address and phone number. I don’t want someone looking me up and showing up at my door without notice.

A friend learned this lesson the hard way after she posted her daughters dance shoes online. Within the hour a man showed up at her front door saying he just looked up her last name and tracked her down by the google map on the site. He needed those shoes now! Ever since, she switched to her generic e-mail that doesn’t contain any personal information. There are some weirdos out there but there are also ways you can protect yourself.

Make it readable

f u wnt me 2 buy wot U r selln, plz uz real wrds. I don’t want to have to use google translator to figure out your text speak. Explain what the item is. State your price. Use some descriptive words. Explain how you’d like to be contacted. Use spell check.

Use Kijiji Etiquette

• Once someone has said they are coming to purchase your item, give them a time limit and edit your add title with the letters PPU at the end. This stands for “pending pick up”. If the person is a ‘no show’, you can remove the PPU.
• Normally we get anywhere from 1-10 replies to our ads. I write to the first one and explain they were the first to reply. They give me a time. I explain if they aren’t there with an hour of the time they stated, I will offer it to the second person. I also contact the next people in order and explain that they are next in line and will be contacted if the first person doesn’t show. It’s irritating to reply to an ad an hear nothing back.
• As soon as the item has been picked up an paid for, delete your ad.

Using Kijiji or Craiglist is a great way to get good stuff for a great price. It’s also a great way to sell the things you no longer want and get some money for it!

Do you have any additional tips that I might have missed?

Kathryn works in public relations and training for a non profit. In her off hours, she volunteers as a financial coach helping ordinary Canadians with the basics of money management. Her passions include personal finance and adult education. Kathryn, along with her husband and two children live in Ontario.

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Copyright 2009 MillionDollarJourney – All Rights Reserved

Before I get too far ahead of myself, lets get back to basics.  A tax free savings account (TFSA) is an account where investments can compound tax free.  Tax refunds are not offered on deposits, but amounts can be withdrawn from the TFSA without any taxation or conflict with seniors benefits.  The deposit limit increases by $5,000 per year (over age 18).  For more details, check out my original post about TFSAs.

With the basics out of the way, as mentioned, the Finance Minister has proposed a few changes to the TFSA:

• Make any income attributable to deliberate overcontributions and prohibited investments subject to existing anti-avoidance rules in the Income Tax Act.
• Make any income attributable to non-qualified investments taxable at regular income tax rates.
• Ensure that withdrawals of deliberate overcontributions, prohibited investments, non-qualified investments or amounts attributable to swap transactions, or of related investment income, from a TFSA do not create additional TFSA contribution room.
• Effectively prohibit asset transfer transactions between TFSAs and other accounts.

Over Contributions

Over contributions in the TFSA are currently charged an interest of 1% per month. Even though this fee is hefty, some are intentionally over contributing in an attempt to surpass the penalty in profits. For example, if someone bet the index in March 2008 by over contributing to a TFSA, the investment gain would easily beat any penalties charged.

What do the proposed changes mean?  Simply that if the investor intentionally over contributes, invests and makes a profit, the gains will be completely taxed away.  Basically the changes will eliminate the incentive to over contribute.

Non Qualified Investments

What is considered a non-qualified investment?

• Shares of the capital stock of a corporation in which the holder has a significant (10% or greater) interest
• Investments in entities with which the holder does not deal at arm’s length
• Land
• General partnership units

What are the new penalties for non-qualified investments?  According to the Globe Investor

Any gains on prohibited investments, such as shares of a company in which you own a significant interest, will be taxed at 100 per cent while any secondary income related to non-qualified investments, such as land or general partnership units, will be taxed at regular rates.

Asset Transfer

Basically, this new rule prohibits the transfer from registered and non-registered accounts (non-cash) to a TFSA.

The proposed amendments would effectively prohibit asset transfer transactions between registered or non-registered accounts and TFSAs. The prohibition would apply to transfers effected between accounts of the same taxpayer or that of the taxpayer and an individual with whom the taxpayer does not deal at arm’s length.

Generally speaking, the proposed changes will not affect the everyday investor, but perhaps those who like to push the rules to the limit.  What are your thoughts on the new rules?

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We went to a fascinating conference a couple weeks back that showed the inner workings of the financial planning industry in Canada. It was the first annual Financial Planning Week in Canada, so all the “experts” met for a day to discuss how the industry is misunderstood. “Financial planning is still about selling” is the title to Jonathan Chevreau’s article.

While many financial planners claim to do financial planning and provide holistic advice, very few actually provide comprehensive planning with written financial plans, as taught in the CFP courses.

The issue is best highlighted by Alan Goldhar, Professor of Financial Planning at York University and Manager for the Ontario Public Trustee. The Public Trustee takes over the finances for people that are mentally unable to make financial decisions. They have taken over more than $500 million in investments for 10,000 clients, most of which had a financial planner, broker or bank advisor. They interview the client and the family and then send in a team to obtain all financial documents.

The shocking fact is that, of the 10,000 clients they took over, none had a financial plan! Not one!

We have reviewed the finances for about 2,000 families and found the same result – none of them had a proper written financial plan prepared in Canada.

Alan Goldhar also teaches Finance at York University, where he says most financial planning students don’t bother completing the CFP designation, because “the industry has jobs for salespeople, not for professional financial planners. It’s like graduating from medical school and then being allowed only to check temperatures and change band aids.”

Cary List, CEO of the Financial Planners Standards Council (FPSC), says: “The single most common misunderstanding about financial planning is that it is all about investing.”

First, to make the issue clear, a financial plan, as defined by the FPSC, is a written document customized for you that gives you complete advice on all areas of your finances, including:

1. Cash Flow- Helping you understand how you spend your money.
2. Debt/Asset Management – Structuring your debts and your assets in the most effective way.
3. Life Goals, including Retirement Plan – Identify your financial goals in detail and strategies to help you achieve them.
4. Income Tax Planning- Determine most effective strategies to minimize tax over your lifetime.
5. Estate Planning- Determining the most effective way to transfer your assets to your beneficiaries.
6. Risk Management- Determine your needs for insurance and which type is the cheapest/most effective for you.
7. Investment Management- Recommending the strategies and investments appropriate for your plan and keeping you focused on your goals.

In short, it is a complete “road map” to the life you want that allows you to make decisions with your overall plan in mind, instead of making each decision on its own. A plan is not an investment projection, a questionnaire, a goal based on a rule of thumb, or a document with nice graphs printed out in 15 minutes or less.

From experience, we find that the benefits of having and following a plan are far more significant than people realize – and far more significant than Investment A vs. Investment B. For example, the main reason most Canadians will retire at a much lower standard of living than they want is because they never figured out how much they need to invest or what kind of strategies/investments they need to reach their goal.

Just keeping you focused on your goals alone can be the most obvious benefit of a plan. Anyone that lost focus and sold investments since last fall has wiped out years of gains.

“They did not plan to fail – they just failed to plan.”

Why is the industry focused on sales, instead of financial planning? What needs to happen so that Canadians will get real professional plans from their financial planners?

Here are the main suggestions at the conference for why most financial planners don’t plan finances:

1. Blame the public – Financial planning is misunderstood by the public. Most people think short term and do not understand why they need a financial plan. Canadians do not ask that their advisor to do a comprehensive, written plan for them.
2. Blame the schools – Financial education is not taught in schools, even though it is a basic life skill.
3. Blame the industry organizations – They have not effectively educated the public on the need for a plan. They also have a confusing list of degrees, instead of focusing on the CFP designation.
4. Blame “financial planners” – Most advisors focus on the investments or insurance that make them money and consider financial planning to be unpaid service work.
5. Blame the banks, insurance companies and planning firms – They have not been able to figure out a good business model that includes financial planning.
6. Blame the regulators – They focus regulation on products and disclosure related to products, and do not make allowances for advice that is part of a comprehensive plan.
7. Blame the government – There are no national restrictions on who can call themselves a “financial planner” or “financial advisor”. Those that do not write professional financial plans and have the qualifications should have to call themselves what they are: “mutual fund salesperson” or “insurance rep”.
8. Blame the industry –The industry has effectively taught the public that most “financial planners” are just salespeople. Most people have met with or know a “financial planner” and the planner did not do a plan, but mainly just tried to sell them a mutual fund or insurance.

What do you think? Why don’t most financial planners plan finances?

Ed Rempel is a Certified Financial Planner (CFP) and Certified Management Accountant (CMA) who built his practice by providing his clients solid, comprehensive financial plans and personal coaching.  If you would like to contact Ed, you can leave a comment in this post, or visit his website EdRempel.com.  You can read his other articles here.

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Copyright 2009 MillionDollarJourney – All Rights Reserved

I’ve heard of these prepaid credit cards before, but I’ve never used one.  Upon examining the package, it clearly indicates that there is a $6.95 activation fee.  My first reaction was one of slight agitation as it eats into the balance (I dislike fees).  However, upon further investigation, I soon realized that it’s person who purchases the card that’s responsible for the activation fee when purchasing the gift.

Prepaid credit cards are a pretty smart revenue stream for credit card companies.  They get the initial activation fee for every card along with their regular 2% – 3% merchant fee for every transaction.  In addition, if the user doesn’t spend the money fast enough, they start charging a monthly fee.

The Upside

Not only is it great for credit card companies, it’s also great for the receiver of the gift.  They get to shop anywhere they like without being bound to a single store like the traditional gift card.  Some may suggest to simply give cash to avoid the activation fee, however, giving cash to a frugal person (like me) will just end up being saved or used for essential bills.  This way, the money can be spent as a gift without any guilt.

Using the card could not be simpler.  I would think a gift card like this would need to be activated somehow. With the Vanilla Mastercard however, the user simply swipes and signs, just like a regular credit card.

The Downside

If I were to look at the downside of prepaid credit cards, I would say that tracking the balance is a bit of an inconvenience.  Typically with specific store based gift cards, the balance is shown on the receipt.  Not so with prepaid credit cards which need to be tracked by the user.  The transaction will simply decline if the purchase price is greater than the card balance.  Fortunately, the Vanilla Mastercard has an online system to track purchases painlessly.

Another annoyance is the fee charged for inactivity.  For the Vanilla Mastercard prepaid credit card, they start charging $2.50/month at the 6 month mark after activation.

So, with Christmas around the corner, you may be considering a gift of a prepaid credit card (at least I am).  There are a few offerings for prepaid cards in Canada, which I have compared below.

Prepaid Credit Card Comparison

Final Thoughts

Judging from the table above, it seems that the BMO product is best if you were to purchase the card for personal use as it has a long expiry date along with extended warranty/purchase insurance .  However, as a gift the $9.95 charge is a bit high which makes it a toss up between the Vanilla Mastercard and RBC.

What are your thoughts on prepaid credit cards?  Would you buy them as a gift?

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Copyright 2009 MillionDollarJourney – All Rights Reserved

We did a book review of The Secret Language of Money with a giveaway at the end of the review which generated a lot of interest.  As promised, I chose 2 random winners out of the entries from the comments and subscribers.

The winners are:

1. Gene
2. Lyne

If you like these book review and giveaways, stay tuned, I have another one about stock trading coming up.

Weekend Links

The Ultimate DRIP Portfolio @ Canadian Money Forum

The Dow hit 10,000..that is so last century @ Intelligent Speculator

Salary Negotiation – How to Win @ Five Cent Nickel

What Follows a Lost Decade? @ Michael James on Money

Four Fiscally-Fit Financial Roadblocks @ Generation X Finance

ScotiaMocatta eStore: A pricey way to buy bullion @ Canadian Capitalist

3 Easy Steps To Dump Your Resentments – And The Money You’ll Save When You Do @ Frugal Dad

Working with Canadians @ Four Pillars

Double Dip Recession: Why Dow 10,000 May Not Last @ The Digerati Life

Change the World or Be Happy? @ Canadian Dream

To Wed or Not to Wed @ Lazy Man and Money

Are dividend ETFs redundant? @ Thicken My Wallet

Dow Closed Above 10,000 for First Time in a Year – Chart of the Day @ The Sun’s Financial Diary

Americans Consumers Are Like Children @ Financial Blogger

how to avoid work while on vacation @ Brip Blap

Managed Futures @ Where Does All My Money Go

Fixed Annuities Overview @ Money Smart Life

Do You Need a Local Bank? @ My Dollar Plan

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Copyright 2009 MillionDollarJourney – All Rights Reserved

The underlying dynamics of who should pay are often so subtle, most people couldn’t be bothered to understand what they’re sub-communicating to their date in terms of how you view money – for better or worse.

Here are some helpful tips to keep in mind:

Your Date Is Your Guest

The general rule of thumb is that if you’re inviting someone out that person is your guest; so treat them as such. You’re inviting them into “your world” in order to get to get to know you better.

From my experience out in the dating scene, the last thing you want is to be known as “That Stingy Guy” – it’s not a very attractive label to have at all – especially if your date will be telling about his/her experiences with all of her friends and you realize the dating pool is a lot smaller than you originally imagined.

A Few Thoughts on Tipping

The practice of tipping, may be different depending on which region of the world you may be living in (such as Australia where it’s not expected that you tip at all). I usually go with anywhere between 10-15% which is the norm in Canada. However if the service is atrocious, I’d leave about 5% or none if it was that bad.

When it comes to loose change, I can’t be bothered with small change and have coins clinking around and cluttering up my pocket especially if you know the night will wear on, so use your own judgment accordingly.

Setting a Precedent

Let’s face it, going out on dates regularly can get pretty expensive. If you’re going out on a string of dates, it can quickly add up and you’ll soon realize that you can get in a money crunch if you’re not aware of how much money you’re spending on dates. I’m not talking about spending lavishly – it’s more so the frequency of going out can really make a dent on your pocket book. If the date goes well enough to warrant another date, don’t set a precedent where you’re always paying.

If you continually pay each time you and go out with your date (or significant other), what you’re essentially doing is conditioning your date to expect you to pay which is the last thing you want to happen. For me, in terms of who pays, I liken it to a game of tennis where you’re returning each other’s volley. If you’re going out of your way to organize a fantastic and fun date (the “first serve”), I would expect that there would be some effort to be reciprocated and they hold their own to keep the game going (return volley).

Going Dutch

If your date insists you “go dutch” at the end (splitting the bill between the two of you). The way I go about it would be something like this:

Your Date: No, no. I insist to pay for my portion.

You: Hear me out – if I invite a person out, they’re my guest and I treat them as such :).  Tell you what – the next time you invite me out, you can pay. Deal?

Your date: okay fair enough…

You: Great! Anyway, as we were talking about earlier…

Then You pick up where you left off before settling the bill.

This is a perfectly reasonable counter-argument that would clear up any squabbles and at the same time plant the seed for your next date – pending that your date goes well ;)

If your date isn’t budging on the issue, then just flow with it, don’t put up obstacles in them wanting to pay for their portion. Remember, the key to moving beyond this tricky portion of your date is to settle your bill in a quick, smooth and painless fashion. You can also be sneaky about this in a playful manner to get around this.

Make it Playful

The point of going out on a date is to not only to get to know each other and connect on a deeper level, not squabble over who owes how much (unless you feel like you’re being taken advantage of). The time spent with your date should first and foremost be fun! When you throw money into the mix, it can really throw off the vibe of a date if it’s going well. Usually I just bypass the whole awkward vibe by being sneaky and paying ahead without my date knowing.

Being Judged

You already know this, you’re constantly being judged while on a date. Everything you say and what you sub-communicate can and will be taken for face value. And of course there will be moments where you’re judged on how you treat your money. The key is to be unapologetic and not make an issue of it. There’s a fine line between being smart with your money and being stingy, I’ll leave you to guess which one is more attractive.

Closing Thoughts

I’m going to go out in a limb here and assume that as a reader of Million Dollar Journey, you’re smart with your money, socially intelligent and not to mention a fantastic date.

I’ve heard so many instances from female friends that their date was going so well until it came to paying for the bill. The unfortunate circumstance of their date being stingy was a total turn-off and subsequently didn’t want to go forward with seeing the person again.

To get to the root of the problem of who pays exactly, you’ll have to ask yourself what the priorities of going out on dates are. Is it to make a favourable impression and genuinely connect with your date on a deeper level in order to get to know him or her better? Is it worth running the risk of being labeled as stingy to save a few bucks ? Remember that you’ll have plenty of time to talk about “money psychology” when you’re in a relationship ;)

How do you usually go about handling the tricky issue of who pays and how has it affected your dating life?

You might also want to check out the Frugal Dating Etiquette Guide

Will is the “Cheap Date Chief” and Founder of CheapDateIdeas.ca, which provides relevant and up to date cheap and free date ideas that are primarily focused in North America. Besides providing cheap date ideas to help you save money and still have an awesome time, his passions include personal development, improv, collecting Transformers toys, finding cool iPhone apps and drinking tea.

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Copyright 2009 MillionDollarJourney – All Rights Reserved

Sounds like a great deal, but the government still wants their cut, which is why the Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT) was created.  In this situation, both the AMT and the regular income tax must be calculated, with the higher of the two paid as income tax for the year.

How To Calculate AMT?

This is the basics of how to calculate AMT from the kpmg tax planning book for 2009,

1. Calculate taxable income after all deductions for regular tax purposes.
2. Add back the deductions not allowed under AMT – losses from tax shelters, losses from partnerships, interest expenses, employee relocation, 60% of amounts claimed under employee stock option deduction.
3. Add 60% of the untaxed half of capital gains.
4. Deduct gross up of dividends – only actual dividend amount is used for calculations, not the grossed up amount.
5. Deduct $40,000 – The 2008 AMT exemption
6. Multiply by 15% (federal tax) for 2008.
7. Deduct Personal Credits – basic personal amount, age credit, disability, cpp contributions, EI premiums, tuition, education, medical and charitable.  Do not deduct, investment tax credits, spousal amount, tuition credit transferred from a child, dividend tax credit (and more).
8. If the result is higher than your federal tax calculated normally, then AMT must be paid.
9. Provincial AMT is then calculated by multiplying the above AMT amount by a provincial AMT rate (varies by province).

An Example of AMT

Going back to our BC investor Derek that made $70,000 from dividends, he would actually have to pay tax.  How much?

To calculate Derek’s income tax using regular rules, he would owe $0 in tax due to the dividend tax credit.  However, using the AMT calculations, he would owe:

• $70,000 (dividend income) – $40,000 (amt exemption) = $30,000 x 15% = $4,500 – basic personal amount (~$1500) = $3,000 + the provincial AMT amount (up to 50% of federal amount).

Final Thoughts

In my example above, it showed an investor making $70,000 in dividends as their sole source of income.   In terms of taxation, the investor went from owing $0 in tax to at least $3,000 to the federal government (not including provincial government) due to Alternative Minimum Tax.   To put this in perspective though, assuming an average dividend of 4%, the portfolio size would be around $1.75 million so I’m sure the investor isn’t feeling too much pain.

There is a bright side though, because of the AMT exemption of $40,000 and basic personal amounts, most provinces will allow up to $50,000 in dividend income (as your only source) while paying very little tax (if any).

Disclaimer:  I’m not a tax pro, this post should be used for informational purposes only. Please consult your tax accountant if you think that alternative minimum tax applies to you.

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Copyright 2009 MillionDollarJourney – All Rights Reserved

Not that long ago, we wanted to change the loft bunk bed in my son’s room to something a little more grown up. On a Friday night we sold the set for $150 and by Saturday afternoon had bought a replacement bedroom set for $150. It didn’t cost us a thing other than the gas to drive across town.

What I love about Kijiji / Craigslist

1. It’s free! – It’s free to post an ad. It’s even free to reply to an ad. You have the option to upgrade your ad for a price but in our experience, anything we’ve posted the free way has still sold within the day.
2. There is nothing to mail and no hidden fees – You don’t have to worry about reading the fine print. There are no shipping and handling fees. It’s very straightforward. If the patio set says it’s $100, you pay $100 unless you can talk them down in price and pay even less.
3. You get to see the item before you purchase it – If the photo doesn’t look like reality, you can just say: “Thanks but no thanks”, and leave. You won’t have wasted anything except for the cost of gas to get there. There are a few things we’ve gone to look at and changed our minds once we saw the item. There are others things that looked way better than the photo showed.
4. You pay cash – You get to keep your privacy. There are no cheques with your address and bank information. No credit card information. Just plain old cash. I like knowing that I don’t give away any personal or financial information about myself when making a purchase. Even Kijiji has no way of tracking who bought what.
5. No sales tax -This is my favourite thing about Kijiji. When I buy something from someone directly I pay no sales tax. If I had bought that same item at a consignment store, I would have to pay the tax on it. I like not paying tax legally!
6. There is little risk – Get buyer’s remorse? Just sell it to someone else. Let’s say you bought a coffee table for $50. You get it home and try it out. It’s not quite the style you were hoping for. It doesn’t look as good as you thought. It’s easy. Take a photo. Post it online and sell it to someone else.
7. It’s popular – Who would have thought I could find the exact espresso maker I was looking for in a week? I had narrowed it down to two brands thanks to reviews at amazon.com and kept checking every day. There are thousands of new posts that go up every day. One night, there it was. I contacted the person right away and had it within the hour.
8. It’s a great way to re-use and recycle – Some people don’t even want money for their stuff. They just want to get rid of it and don’t want it going to a landfill. Not that long ago when people wanted to sell something, they’d post an ad in the paper with no photo. They were lucky to get any response at all. Now with free ad posting and photos, it’s an easy way to get rid of things you don’t use any more and make a little money in the process.

My son said to his friend the other night, “You have to try my Mom’s frothed hot chocolate she makes with her new espresso maker. It’s awesome.” I went ahead and made them each a mug of peppermint hot chocolate, frothed and steamed to 130 degrees. When his friend tried it, he said, “That’s the best hot chocolate I ever had!”.

My son replied, “You can thank Kijiji for that!”

Kathryn works in public relations and training for a non profit. In her off hours, she volunteers as a financial coach helping ordinary Canadians with the basics of money management. Her passions include personal finance and adult education. Kathryn, along with her husband and two children live in Ontario.

1. Creating Super Human Kids – This was a popular post that I wrote while researching activities for our child.  It just seems overboard the number of activities that kids are involved with these days.
2. Converting a Principal Residence into a Rental Property – A common strategy among home owners when moving is to keep their existing property and rent it out.  If the numbers make sense it may be a smart wealth strategy, however, most do not completely think through the tax consequences of converting a principal residence to a rental property.  Check out the article for more details.
3. What’s Important About Money To You? – I’m a big fan of money psychology and this article makes you think about your money personality.  Everybody has one, which one are you?
4. Canadian Bank Accounts for Kids – If you have children, have you opened a bank account for them?  Kathryn goes through the list of available Canadian bank accounts for kids and compares them in a nifty table.
5. Scotia Momentum Cash Back Visa Review – As a big fan of rewards credit cards, multiple readers have emailed me to review Scotia Banks momentum Visa.  Seems like a decent card, but there are better cards out there without the annual fee.
6. Taking Baby Steps Towards Financial Goals – We typically have 5 articles listed here, but I had to throw in this article as it was a personal favorite and something that I believe in.  Think big, but set smaller goals along the way.

Top Comment Contributors

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