“Irrational exuberance” is how former US Fed chairman Alan Greenspan described the stock market during the dot-com bubble of the 1990s. Investor’s Digest of Canada columnist Edward Gardiner looks at   Read More

According to Weddingbells.ca, 67 per cent of Canadian weddings occur between June and September. They offer no statistics for common-law or non-traditional unions but financial, trust and estate planner Mark   Read More

Since 1802, the US dollar has lost 95 per cent of its purchasing power. After inflation, that dollar invested in US stocks would’ve soared to $704,997 by 2012; invested in   Read More

Now that people are living longer, it’s no surprise that one of the biggest concerns among aging Canadians is the genuine fear of outliving retirement savings. And most people would   Read More

To find stability amid volatility, columnist Mark Halpern details the oft-ignored (or simply unknown) advantages of taking out participating life insurance as an investment option. Participating insurance is a more   Read More

“Freedom 55 now occurs when your youngest child turns 55.” Certified financial planner and trust and estate practitioner Mark Halpern recalls London Life’s aspirational slogan of the 1980s with a   Read More

Your home is likely your biggest investment. And your job is likely your biggest source of income. As a result, you should build an investment portfolio that hedges against the   Read More

And six gold stocks to buy if you must. The price of gold appears to have stabilized. Lower producer costs raise profits. While you might hold a little gold to   Read More

So you’re a hands-on investor and you want to decide for yourself which investments go into your self-directed Registered Retirement Savings Plan. TaxLetter contributing editor Samantha Prasad, a tax partner   Read More

In a government debt crisis, is there a possibility of precious metals being seized? Professional gold bug Nick Barisheff examines the history and likelihood of government confiscation or expropriation of   Read More

Puts and calls may seem a little bit exotic at first, but their potential to earn you some handsome extra income from stocks you already own may well be worth   Read More

Stock markets keep rising as the precious metals miners’ rally pauses. Technical analyst Brian Hoffman warns that investors should watch support levels in an environment like this. He names three   Read More

Benjamin Franklin was one of the wealthiest men of his time. He could have retired in luxury  at a relatively young age but instead pursued a lifetime of philanthropic endeavours.   Read More

Gold and gold mining stocks will benefit from the turbulence of the Trump presidency. And, analyst David Chapman writes in Investor’s Digest of Canada, the amount of new gold being   Read More

We thank American actress Bette Davis for this keen insight. It’s tough to anticipate the joy of a new day when all your bits and pieces ache and won’t move   Read More

Investor’s Digest technical analyst Brian Hoffman says trading in gold and silver mining stocks is likely to be quite volatile until it is clear where the precious metal prices head   Read More

Behavioural finance analyst Ken Norquay makes the case that stock market risk is higher than normal as 2017 begins and advises investors to hold lower-than-normal amounts of stocks and bonds   Read More

Whether you’re old enough to remember the original “Home, Sweet Home” or your generational instincts are more attuned to Mötley Crüe’s 1985 power ballad of the same name (or Carrie   Read More

Canada’s residential real estate market may be growing into a giant collapsible bubble. Portfolio manager and regular MoneyLetter columnist Keith Richards argues there are better ways to seek capital gains   Read More

The ‘greater fool theory’ states that it is possible to make money by buying investments, whether overvalued or not, and later selling them at a profit because there will always   Read More

Election day in the United States of America is almost here. As compelling to observe as it may be for those of us on the northern side of the border,   Read More

Near-term production and district-scale potential has attracted some of Canada’s biggest and best-known gold investors to this junior gold mining stock. Investor’s Digest of Canada columnist Richard Buzbuzian says Golden   Read More

Investor’s Digest of Canada columnist Jeana Deal may not own a horse named Silver nor a six-shooter loaded with silver bullets. But she does think it’s time to saddle up   Read More

Investor’s Digest of Canada technical analyst Brian Hoffman says rising wedge patterns have formed in the precious metals sector, the oil patch,  financial companies and with broader market indexes. A   Read More

Robert ‘Bob’ Walkden, a long-time chairman of this company’s investment planning committee and its last remaining direct link to our founder George C. Armstrong, died this month. Bob spoke often   Read More

The outcome of the U.S. election is making investors skittish. However, notes market observer Edward Gardiner, a Trump victory will precipitate a stock market disaster—but the price of gold will   Read More

Since 1802 the dollar has lost 95 per cent of its purchasing power. After inflation, a dollar invested in stocks in 1802 would’ve soared to $704,997 by 2012. A dollar   Read More

Here’s a solution for the ‘wannabe’ real estate investor searching for the simple answer to ‘How to make money in real estate’. You can earn almost six per cent—and someone   Read More

We don’t know if portfolio manager Keith Richards gave any advice to Casey and the strawberry blonde he adored, but Mr. Richards recently warned his readers in The MoneyLetter to   Read More

With apologies to the “No Sex, Please—We’re British” playwrights,  The MoneyLetter’s behavioural finance analyst Ken Norquay takes a look at why people make seemingly irrational decisions about investment strategy. His   Read More

Since 1802 the dollar has lost 95 per cent of its purchasing power. After inflation, a dollar invested in stocks in 1802 would’ve soared to $704,997 by 2012. A dollar   Read More

Voters in the United Kingdom have voted to leave the European Union. The U.S. Fed has signaled that U.S. interest rates will remain lower for longer, perhaps not rising until   Read More

Markets have hit some resistance as the weather has warmed and seasonality is a likely catalyst for the correction. The S&P/TSX Composite Index has found resistance just above 14,000. Technical   Read More

All that glitters is not gold—especially gold exchange-traded funds that hold no gold but only derivative contracts based on gold. Nick Barisheff is president and CEO of Bullion Management Group,   Read More

Since the U.S. Federal Reserve’s 1913 creation, gold has retained its purchasing power while the U.S. dollar is worth 98.2 per cent less. Nick Barisheff, president and CEO of Markham,   Read More

The price of gold has recovered somewhat so far in 2016. While you might hold a little gold for diversification purposes, remember its disadvantages.
Gold has been trading above US$1,250 an   Read More

You must turn your RRSP into a RRIF or an annuity by the end of the year you turn 71. Otherwise you’ll receive all your RRSP money and have it   Read More

The Money Reporter recently surveyed all of Canada’s federally- or provincially-insured deposit-taking institutions to find the best interest rates paid in Canada. Rates offered ranged from 0.47 per cent for   Read More

Mark Halpern, a Markham, Ont.-based certified financial planner and trust and estate practitioner, is a regular contributor to The TaxLetter. He says investment and tax planning strategies like the immediate   Read More

Investor’s Digest of Canada recently surveyed market analysts who follow 40 real estate investment trusts (REITs). The analysts surveyed found three that were being driven by acquisition growth in both   Read More

Floating-rate preferred shares have advantages and disadvantages. You earn higher dividend income, along with the potential for capital gains, when interest rates rise. But the opposite can occur when rates   Read More

If you are in the market for a cottage, cabin, camp, chalet, shack or whatever you may call a second or vacation home in your part of this Great White   Read More

If you believe a continued market downtrend for the intermediate term is likely, then shorting the market with exchange traded funds, stocks, currencies and gold might be of interest to   Read More

Markham, Ont.-based Mark Halpern is a Certified Financial Planner (CFP) and Trust and Estate Practitioner (TEP) with special expertise in tax planning for high net worth individuals and their families.   Read More

The Bank of Canada was right to hold off on cutting the prime interest rate but sunny government inflation statistics and industry forecasts are deceptive. Edward Gardiner, an Ottawa-based market   Read More

The tech stock favourites of the stock market have fallen back and precious metals and the companies that produce them may pull back after a brief rally. Toronto-based Brian Hoffman,   Read More

The crafters of the legislation creating the Tax-Free Savings Account obviously weren’t moved by Juliet’s lament to Romeo: “What’s in a name? That which we call a rose by any   Read More

The U.S. federal government has over $19 trillion in funded debt, at least $6 trillion in off-balance sheet obligations, and staggering unfunded liabilities for Medicare, Medicaid, Social Security, etc., which   Read More

Syvia Poon is a financial analyst and an avid market observer with a particular interest in stock options trading. She explains that beyond their use as speculative trading vehicles, stock   Read More

Among the Canadian real estate investment trusts monitored by the Money Reporter, CAP REIT’s defensive qualities should appeal to risk averse investors. Its properties are mainly located in or near   Read More

Mark Goodfield, CPA, CA, LPA, editor of the popular blog The Blunt Bean Counter, author of Let’s Get Blunt About Your Financial Affairs and a contributing editor to The TaxLetter,   Read More

Gold as an alternative investment provides important portfolio diversification because its price is least tied to traditional financial assets. Nick Barisheff, president and CEO of Bullion Management Group Inc., a   Read More