The term financial planning means different things to different people. To us a financial plan involves 3 major components:

1. Retirement Plan
2. Income Protection Plan
3. Estate Plan

Each of these components can be developed on their own. However, they are so interdependent we typically encourage you to look at all areas at once. In that way we can make our recommendations for products or services that will stand the test of time and be able to adapt to your changing needs.

Retirement Plan

This is NOT to be confused with an Investment Plan. Our retirement plan is:

• how much you have saved for your retirement so far
• how these assets will grow over time
• how you will spend the funds during retirement

Our sophisticated planning software allows us to very easily calculate several 'what-if' scenarios. For example:

• Can you retire 2 years earlier than you planned?
• What will happen if you achieve rate of return that averages 2% less than what you were expecting over the next 5 years?
• How much you can spend to buy a winter home in Arizona, yet still have the income you need.

An offshoot of this software is our custom-developed Retirement Income Management System (RIMS). This is very sophisticated software that helps you to manage several pools of money that are being used for your retirement spending. For example, if you have a RRIF with Investor's Group, RRIF GIC's with a Bank, and a non-registered account with a brokerage firm. We can analyze which account should be used when to optimize the tax savings and the best maturity dates for your GIC's.

Income Protection Plan

The best retirement plan in the world assumes you will be able to work until the day you want to retire. Unfortunately, life is not like that. Accidents happen, people get sick, people die. An income protection plan looks, not only at the amount of life, disability and critical illness insurance that you need today, but every year until you die. This amount will be constantly changing. By looking well into the future, we can help you develop an insurance plan that can change along with you.

• What is the best type of life insurance to have?
• How much life insurance do you need now and 10 years from now?
• Should you supplement your group disability insurance?
• Should you consider Critical Illness insurance as an emergency fund?

Estate Plan

• The first 1/3 of your adult life is spent raising and caring for your family.
• The second 1/3 You spend building up your assets to carry you through your retirement.
• The final 1/3 you reap the rewards of your efforts.

But, did you realize the income taxman can turn out to receive more of your estate than any of your heirs?

• About 39% of your RRSP's will go in income tax
• About 19% of any accrued capital gains on investments will be lost to tax.
• About 19% of growth in secondary real estate, such as the family cottage at the lake will be lost to tax.
• Anywhere from 2% to as much as 10% could be paid in legal, probate and executor fees.

Only with proper estate planning can you ensure that your family receives the full value of your life's work.

Fee-Based Financial Plan

We have developed our comprehensive Financial Planning software over the past 12 years and refined it through continuous practical application. This planning service is now available on a no obligation, fee-for-service basis.

Our planning service is differentiated from other providers by its simplicity, ease of understanding and, most importantly, it is not a significant time committment for you. It can be accomplished in just 3-5 hours of your time.

The advantage of a fee-based plan is you are free to take the resulting report and implement the recommendation with another financial professional. This can provide you with the assurance we are providing only unbiased advice that is solely in your best interest.

You receive:

• Initial consultation to explain the entire process and the resulting report we will provide.
• Assistance in completing the confidential planning questionnaire and assembling the required documentation required.
• An interview to finalize the plan parameters and explore some 'what-if' scenarios.
• A results session where we review the final plan in detail and discuss our recommendations.
• A transmittal letter and an elegantly bound, detailed final report for your records.
• Free annual update to the summary table by email or fax based on your updated input data.
  Every 5 years, a free interview session to discuss the plan updates.

Price:     $595 plus GST