Your Retirement Planning Simplified

The people who walk in with the most secure retirement income Joe ever sees - a defined benefit pension that pays every month for the rest of their life - are very often the most nervous about spending their savings. The strongest floor under them of anybody, and they are the ones white-knuckling the nest egg. If that is you or your spouse, this episode is for you. A defined benefit pension is a wonderful thing to have. But it is flat. And your retirement is not. The go-go years ask for more than the pension pays, and the only place that extra money can come from is the savings you spent 30 years learning to protect. Joe walks through why pension holders so often underspend, what the right job for each pile of money actually is, two real client examples, and the honest trade-offs to check before you spend a dollar differently.   In This Episode The same love of security that led someone to choose a job with a defined benefit pension also made them a great saver. And the discipline that built the nest egg does not switch off the Friday you retire. That is why this is not a math problem. It is a permission problem. The spreadsheet has been saying you can spend it for years - the trouble is that spending it feels like undoing the thing you are proudest of. Your pension is built to make your worst years safe. It is not built to fund your best years. Those are two different jobs. The go-go years ask for more than the flat pension payment, and once you see that clearly, the whole plan starts to make more sense. Give the two piles completely different jobs. The pension, Canada Pension Plan (CPP), and Old Age Security (OAS) cover the necessities for life - groceries, housing, insurance, the ordinary day-to-day. The nest egg funds the go-go years. It is allowed to shrink. That is what you saved it for. If your floor genuinely covers your needs for life, the nest egg is not your safety net - it is your permission slip. For the couples mentioned by Joe as examples in this episode, that translated to $20,000 a year for travel for 20 years in one case, and close to $36,000 a year for travel to age 80 in another. The pension kept paying, CPP and OAS kept paying, the house sat there paid off, and the necessities were covered for as long as either of them lived. Before you spend a dollar differently, check four things: whether your pension is indexed to inflation, what your survivor option provides and whether that choice has been made, whether you have decided your legacy on purpose rather than leaving a big estate by accident, and whether you have some kind of buffer - a cash reserve or a home equity line of credit - for the thing that comes out of nowhere.   Your exercise this week: Draw a line down the middle of a piece of paper. On the left, write your guaranteed monthly income - pension, CPP, OAS, and your spouse's. Below that, write what your necessities actually cost each month. Look at the gap. On the right, write the go-go list: the actual things you want to do, a rough price beside each one, and an age by which you want it done. Add up what the list costs per year between now and the last of those ages. Most people have never seen those two columns side by side. Seeing them is what starts the real conversation.   About: Your Retirement Planning Simplified is a weekly Canadian retirement planning podcast hosted by Joe Curry, CFP, CEPA, of Matthews and Associates, an independent wealth management firm. Each week, Joe breaks down retirement income, tax, and estate decisions in plain language for Canadians who are near or in retirement.   Next Steps: Want tips like this in your inbox? Sign up for the Retirement Planning Simplified Newsletter and get updates plus our popular 60-Second Retirement Tip: https://bit.ly/RPSNewsletter Ready to take the next step in your retirement planning? Watch a short overview of our True Wealth Roadmap and see if our process is a fit for you: https://www.matthewsandassociates.ca/vsl   Disclaimer: Opinions expressed are those of Joseph Curry, a registrant of Aligned Capital Partners Inc. (ACPI), and may not necessarily be those of ACPI. This podcast is for informational purposes only and not intended to be personalized investment advice. The views expressed are opinions of Joseph Curry and may not necessarily be those of ACPI. Content is prepared for general circulation and information contained does not constitute an offer or solicitation to buy or sell any investment fund, security or other product or service.

Last week we touched on three things you should do when markets drop. This week is the flip side: the one mistake that does more damage than all the rest put together. If you get this wrong, it can quietly undo years of good planning in a single scared afternoon. Joe is recording this while things are calm, on purpose, so it is ready for you when markets eventually get bumpy. The flight to safety - getting scared and abandoning your plan to run to cash the moment things look bad - is completely natural. It is wired right into us. And it never feels like a mistake when you are doing it. It feels smart, responsible, and prudent. Joe walks through three true stories from COVID, the years after 2008, and 2022, to show how the same mistake shows up in different "clothing" every time, and what it actually costs the people who make it.   In This Episode On any single day, the stock market is roughly a coin flip. But historically there has never been a 20-year period where it finished negative. The longer you stay invested, the more the odds climb in your favour. History has been very kind to the people who simply stayed in their seat. Down markets are not a maybe. They are a certainty. And if downturns are coming no matter what, the answer was never to dodge them. The answer is to have a plan you can actually stick with through ugly stretches, so that when the fear shows up, you do not have to make a decision at all. You just follow the plan. In COVID, people who pulled everything out in March 2020 waiting for good news were sitting in cash by June while the market had already fully recovered. The vaccine announcement did not come until December. The market did not wait for better news, and neither did the loss for anyone who bailed. After 2008, some advisors started shifting client money to cash whenever they calculated another bear market was statistically due. The logic sounded reasonable. But from 2009 onward, clients who followed that approach missed one of the longest market runs on record, sitting in cash waiting for a crash that took years to arrive. In 2022, people sold portfolios that were down 10 to 20% and locked in a guaranteed investment certificate (GIC) rate of around 5%. That locked in the loss, made it permanent, and left them on the sidelines while global stocks returned more than 24% in 2023, over 19% in 2024, and more than 21% in 2025. The guaranteed rate felt like a smart deal. The opportunity cost was enormous.   About: Your Retirement Planning Simplified is a weekly Canadian retirement planning podcast hosted by Joe Curry, CFP, CEPA, of Matthews and Associates, an independent wealth management firm. Each week, Joe breaks down retirement income, tax, and estate decisions in plain language for Canadians who are near or in retirement.   Next Steps: Want tips like this in your inbox? Sign up for the Retirement Planning Simplified Newsletter and get updates plus our popular 60-Second Retirement Tip: https://bit.ly/RPSNewsletter   Ready to take the next step in your retirement planning? Watch a short overview of our True Wealth Roadmap and see if our process is a fit for you: https://www.matthewsandassociates.ca/vsl   Disclaimer: Opinions expressed are those of Joseph Curry, a registrant of Aligned Capital Partners Inc. (ACPI), and may not necessarily be those of ACPI. This podcast is for informational purposes only and not intended to be personalized investment advice. The views expressed are opinions of Joseph Curry and may not necessarily be those of ACPI. Content is prepared for general circulation and information contained does not constitute an offer or solicitation to buy or sell any investment fund, security or other product or service.  

Right now, markets are calm. And that is exactly the right time to talk about what to do when they are not. When markets drop, almost everything your gut is telling you to do is the exact opposite of what you should actually do. This episode is your fire drill - so you know where the exits are long before the building fills with smoke. A market downturn hits differently when you are retired or close to it. You are not just watching a number drop on a screen - you might be pulling income out of that same portfolio at the same time it is going down. That fear is real, and scared is exactly when people make their worst decisions with money. Joe walks through three specific, ordered steps to take when markets fall, so your calm clear-headed self can write the instructions your scared future self will actually follow.   In This Episode Before you touch a single thing, go back to the plan and ask one question: has my life changed, or has just the market changed? A proper retirement plan already assumed downturns would happen. If your goals have not changed, your plan has not either, and the plan is the circuit breaker standing between you and an emotional decision made at the worst possible time. When markets fall, do not run for safety. Rebalance back to your target instead. If your portfolio was built around the right mix of offense and defense for your situation, your job in a downturn is to get back to that mix, not change it. That means moving money from the safe side of your portfolio and buying more of what just dropped. It feels completely wrong. That feeling is usually the sign you are doing it right. Down markets are not something to endure. They are a window to make moves your plan already called for, at a much lower tax cost. If you have been sitting on an old holding you wanted to exit, or you have been meaning to move money from your Registered Retirement Savings Plan (RRSP) into your Tax-Free Savings Account (TFSA), a market drop can dramatically reduce what you pay to do it. When moving money between accounts to harvest a loss, watch for the superficial loss rule. If you sell an investment at a loss and you or an affiliated person repurchases the same or an identical investment within 30 days before or after the sale and you are still holding it 30 days after, the capital loss can be denied. If the repurchase happens inside your RRSP or TFSA, the loss may be gone for good. The big idea underneath all three steps is the same: when markets drop, the goal is not to do something new and clever. It is to calmly do the thing you already planned on doing, just at a better price.   About: Your Retirement Planning Simplified is a weekly Canadian retirement planning podcast hosted by Joe Curry, CFP, CEPA, of Matthews and Associates, an independent wealth management firm. Each week, Joe breaks down retirement income, tax, and estate decisions in plain language for Canadians who are near or in retirement.   Next Steps: Want tips like this in your inbox? Sign up for the Retirement Planning Simplified Newsletter and get updates plus our popular 60-Second Retirement Tip: https://bit.ly/RPSNewsletter   Ready to take the next step in your retirement planning? Watch a short overview of our True Wealth Roadmap and see if our process is a fit for you: https://www.matthewsandassociates.ca/vsl   Disclaimer: Opinions expressed are those of Joseph Curry, a registrant of Aligned Capital Partners Inc. (ACPI), and may not necessarily be those of ACPI. This podcast is for informational purposes only and not intended to be personalized investment advice. The views expressed are opinions of Joseph Curry and may not necessarily be those of ACPI. Content is prepared for general circulation and information contained does not constitute an offer or solicitation to buy or sell any investment fund, security or other product or service.

Most people have one date circled for their Registered Retirement Savings Plan (RRSP) - the year they turn 71. The year when it has to convert to a Registered Retirement Income Fund (RRIF). The plan is simple - just don't touch it until you have to. But there is a move available at 65 that most people walk right past. And missing it can mean paying more tax than necessary every year between 65 and 71. When money comes out of a RRIF, it becomes eligible pension income. That unlocks two things your RRSP cannot offer: income splitting with your spouse, and the pension income tax credit. You don't have to move your whole RRSP, and the decision is flexible and reversible up until the end of the year you turn 71. Joe walks through why 65 is the date that matters, how this applies to couples bridging the gap before Canada Pension Plan (CPP) and Old Age Security (OAS) kick in, what the pension credit actually does and does not do, and who this move does not make sense for.   In This Episode At 65, RRIF withdrawals become eligible pension income, which can be split with a lower-income spouse and earns the pension income tax credit. Your RRSP cannot do either. If you are over 65 and pulling money out of your RRSP, you are missing both tools. You do not have to move your entire RRSP. You can convert as little or as much as you like at any point before 71, and it is not a one-way door. Money can generally go back into the RRSP until the end of the year you turn 71. Moving just a slice keeps required minimums small and manageable. For couples bridging the years before CPP and OAS, the withdrawal is happening anyway. The only question is which account it comes from. Moving it from the RRSP to a RRIF means that same money can be split across two tax returns, reducing the household tax bill without changing how much you actually need to spend. The pension credit is a bonus, not the reason to do this. As of 2026, it is a credit on the first $2,000 of eligible pension income per person - worth a few hundred dollars federally, plus a provincial amount. Over a long retirement for a couple, it adds up. But the income splitting is where the real value is for most households. This move is not for everyone. If you already have a defined benefit workplace pension, you may already be getting these benefits and adding RRIF income on top could work against you. If your income is already balanced with your spouse, splitting does not help. And if you are in a very high tax bracket, tax deferral inside the RRSP may still be the better choice.   About: Your Retirement Planning Simplified is a weekly Canadian retirement planning podcast hosted by Joe Curry, CFP, CEPA, of Matthews and Associates, an independent wealth management firm. Each week, Joe breaks down retirement income, tax, and estate decisions in plain language for Canadians who are near or in retirement.   Next Steps: Want tips like this in your inbox? Sign up for the Retirement Planning Simplified Newsletter and get updates plus our popular 60-Second Retirement Tip: https://bit.ly/RPSNewsletter Ready to take the next step in your retirement planning? Watch a short overview of our True Wealth Roadmap and see if our process is a fit for you: https://www.matthewsandassociates.ca/vsl   Disclaimer: Opinions expressed are those of Joseph Curry, a registrant of Aligned Capital Partners Inc. (ACPI), and may not necessarily be those of ACPI. This podcast is for informational purposes only and not intended to be personalized investment advice. The views expressed are opinions of Joseph Curry and may not necessarily be those of ACPI. Content is prepared for general circulation and information contained does not constitute an offer or solicitation to buy or sell any investment fund, security or other product or service.

"My pension pays $4,000 a month for life." "I've got a million and a half in GICs and I'll live on $100,000 a year for the next 20 years." Both statements are said with real relief - and both people might be taking on a lot more risk than they realize. Today Joe explains why guaranteed is not the same as protected, and what to check so your income still holds up at 85. Most people plan retirement in today's dollars. They look at what they spend now, match it to money that feels secure, and call it done. It looks great at 65. But prices go up every year, and if you are retired for 30 or 40 years, the gap between what your income guarantees and what it actually buys can be enormous. Joe walks through how each common income source handles inflation, what a GIC really guarantees, why retirement lasts longer than most people plan for, and what your portfolio needs to do to fill the rest.   In This Episode At 3% inflation, $4,000 a month has roughly half the buying power after 20 years. The same deposit lands in your account, but it buys a lot less life. And a $100,000-a-year lifestyle costs about $180,000 a year in 20 years at that same rate. It never feels like a big hit in any single year, which is exactly what makes it so easy to miss. Canada Pension Plan (CPP) is adjusted every January based on the consumer price index. Old Age Security (OAS) is reviewed four times a year and does not go down if prices fall. Both earn a check mark. Workplace pensions are different. Some are fully indexed, some partly, some only when the plan decides it can afford it, and some not at all. Check your plan booklet or administrator to find out which one you have. A GIC guarantees your principal and the interest rate over the term you locked in. It does not guarantee the rate you will get at renewal, and it does not guarantee what that money can buy. Over the last 20 years in Canada, GIC rates have averaged roughly 2% while inflation averaged about 2.2%. Before tax, GIC money has essentially been standing still or losing purchasing power slowly. After tax, in a non-registered account, the gap is wider. A couple with a million and a half in GICs who need $100,000 a year might feel the math works for 20 years - and on a flat spending assumption it almost does. But if their costs rise 3% a year with inflation, that same million and a half runs out in about 15 years. And for a couple retiring in their early 60s, there is a real chance at least one of them lives well into their 90s. Your portfolio needs to fill the gap, and it needs to be built for rising costs. That means a defense bucket for shorter-term spending so a bad market never forces you to sell at the wrong time, and a growth component for longer-term money so it has a chance to stay ahead of inflation for the next 20, 30, or 40 years. A portfolio that only keeps your principal safe does not address inflation risk, interest rate risk, or longevity risk - and in that sense, GICs carry more risk than they feel like they do.   Your one action this week: List every income source you will have in retirement and mark beside each one whether it keeps up with inflation. If you built your retirement income timeline you created (from Episode 212), you can add a note beside each line. If you do not know the answer for a source, find out! You cannot build a proper plan without it.   About: Your Retirement Planning Simplified is a weekly Canadian retirement planning podcast hosted by Joe Curry, CFP, CEPA, of Matthews and Associates, an independent wealth management firm. Each week, Joe breaks down retirement income, tax, and estate decisions in plain language for Canadians who are near or in retirement.   Next Step: Want tips like this in your inbox? Sign up for the Retirement Planning Simplified Newsletter and get updates plus our popular 60-Second Retirement Tip: https://bit.ly/RPSNewsletter Ready to take the next step in your retirement planning? Watch a short overview of our True Wealth Roadmap and see if our process is a fit for you: https://www.matthewsandassociates.ca/vsl   Disclaimer: Opinions expressed are those of Joseph Curry, a registrant of Aligned Capital Partners Inc. (ACPI), and may not necessarily be those of ACPI. This podcast is for informational purposes only and not intended to be personalized investment advice. The views expressed are opinions of Joseph Curry and may not necessarily be those of ACPI. Content is prepared for general circulation and information contained does not constitute an offer or solicitation to buy or sell any investment fund, security or other product or service.