When contemplating how you want your estate to be divided, care should be taken when it comes to making use of beneficiary designations for registered investments (RRSPs, RRIFs) and life insurance. Beneficiary designations allow you to bypass your estate and have certain assets (RRIF or life insurance) paid directly to your chosen beneficiary. This is…
Life Insurance
Keeping the Family Cottage…in the Family
With the recent real estate boom in BC, cottages and other vacation properties have increased significantly in value. Properties that have been held for many decades will generally be worth substantially more than their original purchase price. At death, 50% of this appreciation will be subject to tax. It’s a tax time bomb that many…
Insured Retirement
When most think about saving for retirement, RRSPs (Registered Retirement Savings Plans), RRIFs (Registered Retirement Income Funds) and TFSAs (Tax-Free Savings Accounts) are the usual methods that come to mind. These tax-assisted plans provide an excellent way to accumulate assets on a tax-favourable basis, but what if you have fully maximized your available contributions to…
The Importance of a Buy-Sell Agreement
You are a group of successful entrepreneurs who have worked hard to grow your business into a successful enterprise. This asset now represents a significant part of your wealth and you want to ensure that your investment value and the business itself are protected for the future. The Problem If your business loses an owner suddenly, the…
Splitting Owner & Beneficiary: Corporations
Budget 2016 proposes changes for the Capital Dividend Account (CDA). In addition to the changes outlined in the recent “Changes to the Capital Dividend Account” post, there is another important change that we would like to highlight as it will affect many clients. Background The Capital Dividend Account is a cornerstone of effective succession and…