Hub Blogs

Hub Blogs contains fresh contributions written by Financial Independence Hub staff or contributors that have not appeared elsewhere first, or have been modified or customized for the Hub by the original blogger. In contrast, Top Blogs shows links to the best external financial blogs around the world.

Purpose cleared to launch world’s first Ether ETF

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36% of non-Home-Owners under 40 giving up on buying first home, but others still plan to buy, RBC poll finds

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By Amit Sahasrabudhe, Vice-President, Home Equity Financing, RBC

(Sponsor Content)

The road to home ownership isn’t always an easy one and the pandemic has made it even more complex, bringing new challenges and opportunities for prospective homebuyers. For some, lifestyle changes have created opportunities for increased savings. Others find themselves priced out of the housing market.

RBC conducts an annual Spring Housing Poll to learn more about Canadians’ attitudes around home buying and the housing market. This year’s results show that despite some Canadians – especially non-homeowners under 40 – reporting they have given up on the dream of home ownership, there has been an increase in those who say they’re likely to buy in the next two years.

Even amidst an increasingly expensive housing market, most Canadians feel that housing continues to be a good investment and that it is still better to buy than rent.

Should you buy now or buy later?

The first step in knowing whether it is the right time to buy is understanding how much you can realistically afford. This includes having a full picture of your current financial situation and how it may change in the future. It is also important to consider external factors like the overall housing market and economy, as they can also have a big impact on your ability to purchase a home.

In fact, our research found that many Canadians are planning to wait to purchase a home because of the state of the economy, concerns about their job security and affordability, especially in hot housing markets. For others, historically low interest rates and the fear that housing market will become increasingly unaffordable are motivating the decision to purchase a home sooner.

While Canadians now have a lot more factors to consider when buying a home, they don’t have to embark on this journey alone. Buying a home is one of the most important decisions you will ever make and there’s no substitute for doing your research and receiving expert advice on how to fit your home purchase into your overall financial plan. RBC Mortgage Specialists are available to help you with your home buying journey from start to finish, and appointments can be booked virtually, by phone or in-branch.

Saving for a down payment

When it comes to purchasing a home, saving for a down payment can often be the biggest barrier to entry. While everyone’s financial situation is different, some Canadians have taken advantage of reduced spending during the last year to build up their savings. Our research found that most Canadians who are likely to buy in the next two years are setting aside monthly savings to put towards purchasing a home, saving an average of $789 each month. Continue Reading…

Are Bitcoin and Retirement compatible?

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By Emily Roberts

For the Financial Independence Hub

Retirement is for winding down, while Bitcoin is ramping up. It might seem like the two things do not have much in common, but on closer inspection, there is definitely room for some crossover.

Recently, CNN reported that Bitcoin was going mainstream, with one of the reasons being popular innovators like Elon Musk making substantial investments. More people are taking part now, using Bitcoin to its fullest potential. When it comes to retirement, it can certainly enrich that stage of life a great deal.

Here some reasons as to why Bitcoin and retirement could well be a perfect match.

A Sense of Freedom

Retirement is for enjoying a sense of freedom, taking your life in whichever direction that suits you when you are free of obligations. Coincidentally, Bitcoin presides over a similar ethos.

In an article by Forbes titled ‘How Bitcoin Fits In A Retirement Portfolio’, they insightfully note that “If you could invest with hindsight, you’d go back in time, put 100% of your money in crypto and hold tight to the roller coaster […] over a long stretch it has, unlike lottery tickets, delivered a positive return, and most of the time goes its own way, oblivious to the stock market.” No doubt many people of retirement age look back on numerous points in their life and wonder: what if?

As Bitcoin is trending up, a decent investment today can turn into a small fortune after a few years. Remember, Bitcoin was under US$5000 last year and is currently priced at US$55000. If a retiree had bought 1 BTC last year, his investment had increased tenfold. Price swings like this have become quite common, just imagine what the value of Bitcoin could be after a decade. All one had to do is buy Bitcoin and hold it. Continue Reading…

12 Stress Management tips for Business owners

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What is your strategy for managing the stress of running a small business?

To help you find new strategies for managing the stress that comes with running your small business, we asked small business owners and entrepreneurs this question for their best advice. From taking time to enjoy nature to setting boundaries, there are several different ways you can manage your stress.

Here are twelve strategies to managing stress while running a small business:

  • Remember Your Why
  • Regular Trips Out In Nature
  • Think About All The Impact You’re Making
  • Spend Time With Your Pets
  • Take Longer Breaks When You Need Them
  • Schedule Self Care
  • Personal Retreat Sessions
  • Give Autonomy To Your Team
  • Mindset Routines
  • Blocking Time
  • Setting Boundaries
  • Use The Pomodoro Technique

Remember your Why

When times get hectic, like they often do, it’s important to have your why statement clearly defined and visible to see at all times. Usually, when I’m feeling stressed, it’s because I am too caught up in the weeds and working “in” the business. By regularly scheduling time to work “on” the business, I start by remembering our why statement which brings my focus back to the big picture. This helps me get pumped and feeling way less stressed. — Jenn Christie, Markitors.com

Regular trips out in Nature

Here at Cruise America, we believe in working hard and playing hard. That is why the majority of our executives take advantage of our RV fleet and take regular trips out in nature. We find that this time out of the office reminds us of why we started this company years ago and the amazing experiences we provide for our customers. That’s what makes every day in the office well worth it! — Randall Smalley, Cruise America

Think about all the Impact you’re making

It is so easy to get caught up in the stress of running a small business and losing sight of why you first launched your company in the first place! Whenever I feel overwhelmed, I just think about all the good my company has done for cities and their communities over the last 37 years and it makes it all worth it. — Blake Murphey, American Pipeline Solutions

Spend time with your Pets

The best part of working remotely is that I get to spend all day with my dog! Whenever I start to feel stressed or overwhelmed, I love taking him on a walk or playing fetch with him on the beach. It is a great way for me to step away from my desk, get a healthy dose of Vitamin D, and of course spend some time with my fur baby. –– Carol Bramson, Side by Side

Take longer Breaks when you need them

Many people stress at work. They do overtime and compensate by accumulating extra holidays and taking spare time off. But by doing so, there’s also the impending fear of stress from having to go back to work. I make the most of every day at work, with myself, and with colleagues. I take longer lunch breaks when I want to—an extra hour to go to the lake or stroll around the city. And if you find yourself dozing off, ask colleagues to get a coffee outside of the office—or if you’re still lucky enough to get some sunshine—go for a gelato run collectively! Nobody ever says no to ice cream. — Hung Nguyen, Smallpdf

Schedule Self Care

Schedule self-care and breaks into your daily schedule. When you map out each week in your digital calendar or physical planner, schedule self-care, family time, and exercise first. These are your non-negotiables. Then schedule everything else work-related around these non-negotiables. Your self-care is unique to you! It may vary from a scheduled meditation time to daily walks, to 30 minutes reading a fiction book. But if you don’t plan for it, work will chip away at life, leaving you little in the way of work-life balance. — Reese Spykerman, Design by Reese

Personal Retreat sessions

Personal retreat sessions are a wonderful strategy to help manage the stress of running a small business. Retreat sessions create plenty of downtime and space for reflection, which is exactly what small business owners need to move naturally towards solutions that can solve stress-inducing issues. Continue Reading…

What the CRA already knows or may learn about your crypto portfolio

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Image via Unsplash: Bermix Studio

By Anna Malazhavaya

Special to the Financial Independence Hub

For better or for worse, cryptocurrencies have gained popularity, at least in part, due to their anonymity. As the industry develops and tries to shake the “crypto-is-for-criminals” reputation from its early days, the anonymity in certain areas fades.

Know Your Client requirements at crypto exchanges have become quite sophisticated. News reports keep appearing about popular crypto exchanges, such as Coinsquare in Canada and Coinbase in the United States, handing information about their account holders to local tax authorities.

The price of Bitcoin has more than tripled in the last four months. As lucky crypto investors consider whether to HODL (Hold On for Dear Life) or sell, they can be certain the taxman is watching. When can information about your crypto investments and earnings become available to the Canada Revenue Agency? Here are a few examples.

1.) If you are audited, the CRA auditor can get access to your crypto exchange account

 If you are audited by the CRA for any reason, the auditor may come across a crypto exchange purchase on your bank or credit card statement. If so,  expect follow-up questions from the auditor. If the auditor asks about your assets, you must disclose all your assets, including your crypto portfolio. Lying to the CRA is never a good idea and can lead to criminal charges.

The CRA has the power to compel third parties, including currency exchanges, to disclose information related to your crypto account activity through a so-called Requirement for Information (“RFI”). If a crypto exchange receives such RFI, they must either comply with it, dispute it at the Federal Court, or face criminal charges. Most Canadian-based exchanges will promptly release your information to the CRA.

2.) Even if you are not currently audited, the CRA may get access to your crypto exchange account as part of a so-called “unnamed persons” RFI

In some cases, the CRA can ask the Federal Court for an order to compel third parties to disclose information on a group of “unnamed persons” if the group is “ascertainable” and the purpose of the request is to verify the tax compliance of these taxpayers. A recent example of the CRA successfully exercising this power was a Federal Court order compelling Home Depot to disclose information about the accounts of its commercial customers. It appears that the CRA won’t hesitate to use this power when dealing with crypto exchanges.

In September of last year the CRA filed an application in Federal Court seeking an order to compel Coinsquare Ltd., a popular Toronto-based digital asset exchange, to disclose activity of  its clients. All its clients. And all the way back to 2013, no less. Coinsquare disputed the application arguing that the group was not “ascertainable” and that the CRA engaged in a “fishing expedition” invading the taxpayers’ privacy.

On March 23, 2021, in its blog post, Coinsquare announced that it reached an agreement with the CRA for an order, whereby only a portion of accounts would be disclosed to the CRA on or before April 6, 2021. Coinsquare would produce to the CRA information on accounts valued at  $20,000 CDN or more on December 31 in the years 2014 through 2020, along with 16,500 of the largest client accounts by trading volume during those periods.

3.) Proceeds of Sale of Cryptocurrency can be visible to the CRA

Whether or not you used a popular crypto exchange platform to sell or spend your cryptocurrency, the CRA may question the source of proceeds (traditional currency or assets purchased with cryptocurrency) you received in exchange. If you are audited, your reported taxable income should be consistent with that large deposit in your bank account or that late-model Tesla parked in your driveway. If the CRA finds a discrepancy, the consequences can be very serious.

4.) Crypto investments are only anonymous while your crypto address is not linked to your name. But if the CRA makes the connection, look out

Using the same crypto address for sending and receiving some types of cryptocurrency is like writing under the same pseudonym. If anyone ever connects your real identity to the pseudonym, all you ever published under the pseudonym will then be linked to you. Continue Reading…