Blog

By: Shawn Todd CFP

We’ve all heard terrible financial advice at one point or another.

It might have been in the locker room at hockey, around the coffee machine at work, or even from a friend.

“Your most expensive advice is the free advice you receive from your financially struggling friends and relatives.” – Robert Kiyosaki

“Max out your credit cards to build credit.” This advice suggests that fully utilizing your credit limit will enhance your credit score. In reality, high credit card balances can lead to significant debt and negatively impact your credit rating. Terrible quote. Can really start someone off on a terrible foot.

“You don’t need a budget.” Some claim that budgeting is unnecessary. However, without a budget, it’s challenging to track spending and achieve financial goals, often leading to overspending and financial instability. I see this so many times. 80% of people just don’t take the time to write this out.

“Renting is throwing money away.” This advice implies that homeownership is always superior. However, owning a home comes with significant costs like maintenance and property taxes. Depending on individual circumstances, renting can sometimes be the more financially sound decision. A strong belief by many. Last time I did the math – I believe you are fine renting for about 7 1/2 yrs before seeing a crossover on benefit / cost. So no need to rush. Ownership over long term can help with wealth building in most cases though.

“You should buy as much house as possible.” Encouraging individuals to purchase the most expensive home they qualify for can lead to financial strain, especially if unforeseen expenses arise. This is terrible. I had a friend tell me this in my 20’s and all this mantra did was produce stress to buy a big house. This carries no great value to it,

“You don’t need insurance if you’re young and healthy.” Neglecting insurance due to youth and good health overlooks unforeseen events. Accidents and illnesses can occur at any age, and lacking insurance can result in substantial financial burdens. Again terrible advice. Many insurance disbelievers [and there are groups of financial advisers of the same thinking] that minimize needs for insurance, particularly for younger people. Getting approved mid 40’s and 50’s with high cholesterol and heart conditions can be difficult. Having the proper coverage starting young isn’t a bad idea at all.

“Always go for the cheapest option.” Opting for the least expensive choice isn’t always cost-effective in the long run. Investing in quality can lead to better durability and value over time. I see this a lot with investment discussions. I won’t argue the merits of trying to find affordable and cheaper investment options – that’s reasonable. Some believe that cost is the most important part of this conversation on any topic – and this isn’t always true. No matter if you are discussing investment options, insurance, the fee for advice from an accountant, lawyer, or financial planner…or a nice dress shirt. Or flowers for your spouse. And definitely do not take the cheapest rock-climbing course, or scuba diving course. You can see where this is going. If I have an option between a hand made, professionally inspected custom parachute for $500, and a machine made parachute [that everyone else is doing] for $99 that all of the articles assure me do the same thing, sometimes its worth just looking a little deeper at the more expensive parachute. Sometimes.

“You don’t need to save for retirement yet.” Delaying retirement savings can significantly impact your financial future. Starting early allows for compound interest to work in your favor, building a more substantial nest egg. This can really be costly. Delaying too long will back you into a corner that will cost you tens if not hundreds of thousands of dollars more.

“Follow your passion, and the money will follow.” While pursuing passions is fulfilling, it doesn’t always guarantee financial stability. It’s essential to balance passion with practical financial planning. I’m a big follow your dreams guy. I think this speaks to balance. Just opening the door, walking outside and declaring to the world you biggest dream, isn’t going to do it. Passion is important. Paying bills & saving – also important.

“Co-sign a loan to help a friend or family member.” Co-signing makes you legally responsible for the debt if the primary borrower defaults, potentially damaging your credit and financial standing. Scott Terrio – will lose it if I don’t mention this here. This has a small space in the terrible advice section here for a reason. So many make this choice without understanding what this really means. It’s not just a favour.

“You can’t get rich working a 9-to-5 job.” This mindset undermines the potential of disciplined saving and investing. Many individuals have achieved financial success through traditional employment by managing their finances wisely. So wrong. I see lots of manual, very traditional 9-5 job employees have significantly more wealth [monetary, family and life] with their situations. Working endless days does not equal financial freedom. Decision making does.

“Always follow your instincts when making financial decisions.” While intuition can be valuable, relying solely on gut feelings without research or professional advice can result in poor financial choices. We are wrong too often to rely on this. Sometimes the gut check is a big saviour. Sometimes it also will devastate you. This is where all those buying into weed stocks should please leave a comment below.

“You should get a credit card as early as possible to build credit.” While establishing credit is important, obtaining a credit card without understanding responsible usage can lead to debt accumulation and financial mismanagement. Credit is important. Living under debt =not important. Please be cautious.

“Investing is only for the wealthy.” This misconception prevents many from taking advantage of investment opportunities. Starting with small amounts can lead to significant growth over time through compound interest. Growing up, the only people I saw who invested were the ‘wealthy’. I feel this is where good planning, and good advice fits it. There are so many who should be investing, to build their own wealth. It’s often a missed strategy for so many.

“You should always aim to retire with $1 million in the bank.” Setting an arbitrary retirement savings goal without considering individual lifestyle, inflation, and future needs can be misleading. Personalized planning is essential. What will help someone else’s situation, may not help yours. This might work if you have no debt, and a decent lifestyle. If you are a spender, and carry debt, and want to retire earlier – this advice won’t be helpful.

“Borrowing from your retirement fund is a good way to handle short-term financial needs.” Tapping into retirement savings can jeopardize your future financial security and incur penalties, making it a risky short-term solution. Ripping out long term money to pay off the hot tub, vacation, or house reno you just did is terrible decision making, and bad advice all around. That $10,000 you removed from your RRSP at age 30 to do one of the above – will only get you $7,000 in your pocket, and would have potentially grown to $76,122 by age 60. That was costly.

I’d never shy away from listening to advice around the coffee shop. Great friends, great people – they all want you to hear what they have done. Listen, learn, act wisely.

My thoughts on this today –

By: Shawn Todd, CFP

There are lots of ways to spend your time.

In fact, I find there is just no end to how we can use it.  It can be spent reading, hiking, watching TV, time with friends, playing boardgames with your family, a sport you love, or you can literally watch time pass doing very little – if you choose to.

When I spend time with a variety of business owners, or growth minded clients – having a conversation about what is most important to them, a majority of time they will always write down that family is the most important thing to them.  Everything they have built or spend time doing during their day – is all done with the intention in appreciating, supporting, or helping their family.  This makes sense – it is their most cherished part of their life.

Surprisingly, even though all the activities they are doing are meant to help their family, this is not necessarily where they are spending their time.  This speaks to me as I’m also guilty of this.  I’m going to give full credit to my spouse Michele for showing me a great values exercise that came up in conversation a few years ago.

When wanting to consider if you the time you are spending in your life aligns with your values – then write out two columns.  Write your values and things that are important to you – in one column.  Write where you are spending your time in the second column.  Rate each of the values that you have on a scale of 1-10. How important is being dependable to you?  Love? Health? Self-Improvement?

Now compare what is most important to you, to how you are spending your time.  Are they aligned? If not, are there areas of your life that you need to reconsider or change?  Do you need to consider adjusting some of your routines, or being more focused in other areas?

Spending time reviewing my own values, and they way I spend my own time has allowed me to begin [its not perfect yet] aligning my time with what is most important to me.

Living well begins with ensuring you are spending your time doing the things that will best advance your life in the way you really wish it was moving.  This exercise may help as you contemplate your life goals now, and in the future.

In a recent article “97% of retirees with a strong sense of purpose were generally happy, compared with 76% without that sense” – the Retirement Manifesto 2023

Even spending time reading this article is conscious decision on how you wish to spend your time.  Should I read this article, or should I go for a walk outside?

There is no end to how we spend our time, and I hope this helps in all of our efforts in spending our time well.

Just my thoughts for the day.

Shawn Todd CFP – Partner – ECIVDA

By:  William Henriksen, CFP^®

I’m writing to share with you some wonderful news that fills me with both excitement and gratitude. After much reflection and anticipation, I have moved to the beautiful city of Victoria, British Columbia! I’m excited to be here and thrilled to expand ECIVDA’s presence on the West Coast. The West Coast is growing, and it aligns with our vision of growth and providing clients with an even more enriching financial planning experience.

To all my clients living in Ontario and Quebec, I’m continuing to expand my practice in the east as well. Your financial success is at the heart of everything I do, and you will continue to receive the personalized and high-quality financial planning you deserve. I will remain just as accessible as I have been. In fact, I’m now available for evening meetings thanks to the 3-hour time difference.

The year of the lockdown was a year of adjustments, and it was a difficult one for many. I met with clients virtually and was surprised when I eventually found that not only was it easier than I expected to host meetings this way, but it was also simpler to walk through various concepts using the tools on my computer and present my recommendations by sharing my screen. Throughout the year I realised there were other benefits of having virtual meetings such as saving the travel time between meetings and lowering overall paper consumption. Clients could fit in meetings more easily because there was no physical meeting location to get to and back from, and both the client’s and my use of time was more efficient.

It had become the norm in my practice to meet virtually, and I started thinking about what other opportunities could come from this. Last year, I was in California visiting my cousin for the holidays and I scheduled a few meetings with clients living in Ottawa. The meetings went seamlessly, and the idea to move across country sprouted from there.

I’m now living in Victoria, as the first out of province ECIVDA advisor. Before we dive into this new adventure, I want to express my deepest gratitude to my clients for your unwavering support. Your trust has been the backbone of my success, and I am genuinely excited about continuing this incredible journey with you in the years and decades to come.

I also want to express my gratitude to my Ecivda Family. I’m very fortunate to have such an amazing team supporting me. Their dedication and hard work behind the scenes have been instrumental in making this move as smooth as possible.

If you have any questions, thoughts, or just want to chat about this exciting move, please feel free to reach out to me.

Here’s to new beginnings and continued success together.

Warm regards,
William Henriksen CFP

“How One Advisor Doubled His Book in Six Years”

An article featuring our very own, Corey Butler, CIO – Chief Investment Officer, Wealth Advisor, Ecivda Financial Planning Boutique.

by: BMO Mutual Funds HQ

Corey Butler began his career as a bricklayer, where he learned the value of building a solid foundation. Now a successful Wealth Advisor and Chief Investment Officer at Ecivda Financial Planning Boutique, Butler shares the secrets that have allowed his advisory practice to more than double its assets under management in only six years, and why he sees the BMO Strategic Equity Yield Fund as an important building block for client portfolios.

Click HERE to read the full article!

#ECIVDA #ThinkForward #planningrighttoleft #BMO #BMOglobalassetmanagement