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.

5 ways post-secondary students can save money

Posted By Financial Independence Hub | October 13, 2017

By Brandon Silbermann

Special to the Financial Independence Hub

When it comes to education, there are important financial lessons to be learned by post-secondary students outside of class.

According to Statistics Canada, there are currently more than two million full and part-time students at Canadian universities and colleges, and for those who leave home to study, a four-year university education could cost as much as $90,000. The road to responsible money management is a lifelong journey and many post-secondary students would benefit from ongoing practice: no matter their financial situation.

As a millennial financial advisor with freedom to provide impartial advice to helps young adults and parents prepare for life on campus, here are my top five tips and tricks to help students save money and put themselves on a solid financial footing throughout the school year.

1.) Look for scholarships and bursaries

There are many different scholarships out there available to students based on factors such as their choice of major, financial need, academic performance and community involvement. Surprisingly, however, many scholarships and bursaries go unclaimed each year. Although it may be time-consuming to find all the options available to you, contacting your school to get a directory is a great start and may be well worth the effort. You can also access Canada.ca’s student financial assistance section to learn what is available to you and how to apply for help to pay for your post-secondary education.

2.) Hone your cooking skills and save big

Buying food at restaurants every day can quickly add up and put a damper on a limited student budget. Shopping at a local market or on student discount days at a grocery store is a smarter route. For example, Zehrs – a Loblaws brand grocery store – offer 10 per cent discounts off students’ groceries on Tuesdays if they present their student cards in Waterloo. You can also order a basket of ugly but delicious produce via second-life.ca or browse through your local grocery store for discounted fruits and vegetables nearing expiry. Certain supermarkets, such as Loblaws, Sobeys or Metro, now offer a range of “imperfect” fresh products at affordable prices.

3.) Pay down highest interest rate debt first

Always show up for a free lunch!

Posted By Financial Independence Hub | October 12, 2017

By Heather Compton

Special to the Financial Independence Hub

Always show up for a free lunch!

That’s the tongue-in-cheek advice I give all “soon to retire” folks but, frankly, taking advantage of free lunches is key for every investor.

I use the term “free lunches” for all manner of benefits and it’s alarming to me how many people pass them by. Many employers offer employees matching contributions to Retirement Savings accounts that require the employees to pull out their own wallet too.

One major corporation I worked with gave all employees a contribution of 6% of their salary to the Defined Contribution Pension Plan. The employer would contribute a further 4%, contingent upon the employee also contributing 4%. That’s a great free lunch! A shocking number of employees felt they couldn’t afford to participate: they said they couldn’t meet all their other financial obligations without that 4% of salary. Actually, by making the 4% RRSP contribution they also earned a tax deduction, so the after-tax, out-of-pocket expense was even less.

Don’t overlook the daily Special

Many companies offer employees the convenience of group savings programs, even where there are no company-funded contributions. That too has value; the investment choices available in these plans often have significantly below market rate MERs (management expense ratios) and no account fees or cost to buy or sell. One company with which I am familiar has a savings plan offering a solid range of investment funds with MERs ranging from a low of 0.10% to a high of 0.58%.

Only a knowledgeable investor, capable of building a low cost ETF (exchange traded fund) portfolio, could match this low-cost option. If the contributions are made to a group RRSP, the employer can also add the convenience of reducing the tax paid at source. Since the contributions and investments are made regularly, often monthly, we can add the benefit of dollar cost averaging to the mix.

What other free lunches are often overlooked?

Indian economy poised for sustainable growth: Excel Funds’ Atul Penkar

Posted By Financial Independence Hub | October 11, 2017

Atul Penkar at Excel Funds Indian Road Show

(Sponsor Content)

The Indian economy is firing on all cylinders, fueled by policy reforms that are the catalysts for growth in one of the world’s fastest growing economies.

This was the central theme of the message delivered by Atul Penkar, lead sub-advisor of the Excel India Fund at an investor conference held in Toronto on September 19th. Mr Penkar is also the Head of Offshore Equities at Birla Sun Life Asset Management Company Ltd. (BSLAMC) in India.

Titled “Expert Insights into India: The World’s Growth Giant,” the conference was sponsored by Excel Funds Management Inc., in association with BSLAMC, the on-the ground sub-adviser of Excel’s three India-focused funds: Excel India Fund, Excel India Balanced Fund and Excel New Leaders Fund.

Mr. Penkar noted that India’s GDP growth has exceeded long-term projections made by Goldman Sachs and that the country was already close to achieving 2020 growth forecasts five years earlier.[1]

Huge Demographic Dividend

Stocktrades.ca’s author interview on Findependence and Victory Lap Retirement

Posted By Financial Independence Hub | October 7, 2017

By Dylan Callahan, Stocktrades.ca

Special to the Financial Independence Hub

We’re constantly reaching out to financial authorities we feel would benefit our audience the most. From Mark Seed, to Xiaolei Liu, to Rob Carrick, we are always looking to compile information and pick the brains of experts in the industry. This is why we were ecstatic to hear that Jon Chevreau was willing to do a little interview with us about his most recent book. (Highlighted link is to original post at Stocktrades.ca)

A little bit about Jon before we start

Jon has long had our attention here at Stocktrades from his writing at Moneysense and the Financial Post. He is the owner of FinancialIndependenceHub, the author of Findependence Day and the co-author of Victory Lap Retirement, which is what this interview will be about. He was a columnist for the National Post from 1993 to 2012 and was Editor-in-Chief for Moneysense Magazine from 2012 to 2014. If we had to choose some financial authorities on the internet today that we’d follow, Jon would be near the top of the list.

We hope you enjoy this interview, and if you’re interested in purchasing Jon’s book, head on over Victorylapretirement.com to see what it’s all about or purchase it from Amazon here.

WHAT INSPIRED YOU TO WRITE THIS BOOK?

Jon: Co-author Mike Drak approached me with the idea of a book about Retirement/Victory Laps after he encountered my website, the Financial Independence Hub, and my financial novel, Findependence Day. We thought we could marry the two concepts since Findependence gets you to the point you can launch a proper Victory Lap.

COULD YOU BRIEFLY DESCRIBE THESE FOLLOWING TERMS IN YOUR OWN OPINION, OR AS THEY RELATE TO THE BOOK?

What is Findependence?

Jon: Findependence is simply a contraction of the phrase Financial Independence. And so Findependence Day is the day you achieve financial independence, which we define as the moment when all sources of passive income (pensions, investments, royalties etc.) exceed your monthly expenses nut (rent/mortgage, food, clothing, utilities etc.)

Explain a Victory Lap Retirement?

Jon: Victory Lap Retirement can be described variously as semi-retirement, self-employment, an encore career or launching a creative career (writer, artist, musician) that lets you monetize what was previously a hobby. Normally, the Victory Lap is made possible by first achieving Financial Independence. It differs from traditional full-stop retirement in that you may still be working, albeit not for a single employer.

Rather you have multiple streams of income, some of which may be passive (pensions, investments) and some of which may be active (part-time work, contracts, an online business). This allows you to pursue the inner creative dreams you may have harbored when you were young, and which you may have put aside during the decades you worked in a traditional “Job” and raised a family. In your Victory Lap, you work because you want to, not because you have to (financially speaking).

Lastly what is an Encore Career?

Jon: An Encore Career or Legacy Career is a late-life reinvention of your career, as described by the website encore.org and the book Encore by Marc Freedman. Its subtitle says it all: Finding Work that Matters in the Second Half of Life.

IN YOUR OPINION, HOW IS A VICTORY LAP RETIREMENT MORE BENEFICIAL THAN THE TRADITIONAL RETIREMENT?

Jon: We think it’s crazy to go from the 100% work mode of traditional salaried employment to 100% non-stop leisure, which is the traditional “full-stop” retirement that often occurs at age 65. By the way, I turn 65 next April and don’t expect to slow down much if at all. I’m in the fourth year of my own Victory Lap and am as productive as ever, and probably in much better physical and mental health.

5 online marketing tips for your business

Posted By Financial Independence Hub | October 6, 2017

By Alex Alexakis

Special to the Financial Independence Hub

Marketing your business online is crucial in the competitive marketplace of the 21st century. This is the case whether your business operates exclusively online, only in the brick and mortar world, or both online and in the proverbial “real world.”

As you contemplate your online marketing plan, you do not need to reinvent the wheel. You do want to put your own unique spin on your online marketing efforts for your business. However, there are some tried and true general strategies you will want to consider when developing your own online marketing plan for your business. Indeed, there are five specific tips you will want to keep in mind when it comes to your online business marketing endeavors.

1.) Fully leverage Social Media

In order to most effectively market your business online, you need to understand that social media is not just for socializing any longer. Indeed, that has been the case for some time. The effective marketing of your business demands that you fully leverage social media.

Research into social media and business marketing reveals that utilizing a platform like Facebook or Instagram can prove to be twice as effective as email marketing and telemarketing, according to CIO, a leading magazine on digital marketing.

Some business owners initially balk at the idea of integrating social media into their overall marketing plan. In the end, social media need not be overwhelming.

The best course to take to begin fully leveraging social media into a comprehensive marketing scheme is to commence the process slowly. What this means is you can begin to develop a successful, compelling social media effort by initiating the process through the use of one platform.

Focus your initial attention on a social media platform that appears to be favored by your customers or clients, as well as by opinion leaders in your industry or market segment. This may be Facebook, Pinterest, Instagram, Twitter, Google+, or LinkedIn. From beginning with one social media platform as part if your comprehensive marketing efforts, you can build over time and truly fully leverage appropriate social media options.

2.) Use Pay-Per-Click advertising

Another methodology you can employ to develop an effective online marketing regimen for your business is utilizing pay-per-click advertising. Pay-per-click, or PPC, advertising allows you to place ads in certain locations online, including at social media sites.

PPC advertising permits you the ability to highly target your advertising. You truly can focus on a very precise market segment, a process that works to optimize your overall return on the investment you make in advertising dollars. With PPC advertising, you only pay when a potential client or customer actually clicks on your advertisement.

3.) Prepare and distribute Press Releases