I love how calm your video is. You’re not yelling, if you’re doing any editing, it’s done well because your video is not jumpy. You don’t have music or other noise playing in the background, which I find very agitating on other videos. Good job and good luck!
Thank you so much for your comments. I’m just learning how to edit so not much editing happening in my videos that’s for sure. I do like some music and videos, but usually like extremely soft background type of stuff but some I’d really only used music in one of my videos. I’m really into a calm aesthetic.
I agree! The loud, jumpy, music filled videos are a dime a dozen and I have no patience for them anymore. We are overstimulated enough in life; it’s nice to get some peace ✌️
Hi, I recently discovered your channel, and love hearing your story. I live in melbourne Australia (like your son). Like you I was retrenched at 55 (7 years ago). I wasn’t too concerned at the time. My wife and I were financially comfortable. My wife owned a coffee shop, not a big source of income, and if she was not working in it, probably no source of income, but my wife enjoyed it. We still live in the house we purchased when we married in 1982. We worked many jobs when we were young and was mortgage free before we were 30. I think paying off the mortgage is financial tip # 1. My wife and I decided to take a year off and travel around Australia. Like you I traveled a lot my whole career, both locally and internationally, I was very busy, and struggled changing pace when I was retrenched. I did not want to return to the corporate world so my wife and I decided to start another business in a field I enjoyed. When I left work and spent 24/7 with the bride (of 40 year’s now) I saw my wife behaving strangely. Within 6 months of my retrenchment the bride was diagnosed with early onset alzheimers (she was also 55). I looked after her coffee shop (that’s hard work). little side note here the best way to have $1,000,000 with a coffee shop is to start with $2,000,000. They can be money pits. Anyway COVID came we closed the coffee shop, and I started building my business, while being my wife full time carer. We’re now both 62, Im finally ok with a slower pace, I share this story for context. Preparing for your retirement is so important as you don’t know what around the corner. In Australia we have a superannuation scheme. Similar to what the US calls a 401K, but it mandatory and all employers have to pay it. It’s your money, but you don’t miss it because you never see it. It’s currently 12% of your salary is paid into a fund of your choosing. This is a wonderful bucket of cash for when you retire, and if necessary you can get access to it early if you meet certain criteria. I was fortunate to be able to add additional funds to our super over the years. Without a mortgage we also invested in shares and property. Our retirement is very different to what we had in is aged. We had to sell our caravan, as the bride was unable to manage it, and we live differently. We receive an income from my small online business, our shares and property. It’s so important to set yourself up when you’re young so you can navigate what life throws at you. I can’t imaging how we would have coped had we not been financially comfortable. I also have the benefit of living in Australia. Like Canada we have a socialised health care system, and a very good support program for people with disabilities. Love your channel, and looking forward to seeing where it goes. I hope you can get your videos monetised. Regards Shayne
Thank you for the great comment. I am impressed with your story! My mom had severe Alzheimer’s and it was devastating for my father and us girls! I am dearly hoping I can spend February and March in Melbourne this winter if I can find a decent Airbnb that won’t bankrupt me lol.😂
@@smallretiredlifemaybe you could organise a house swap? Sounds like you’re being live in a great area. Alas I’m not in Melbourne but house swapping def appeals as a reduced cost way to travel.
Thank you for sharing! I followed along in your story expecting you to say the coffee shop was a drain but I'm sure you both loved it! My hubby has always dreamed of a restaurant but we're both beyond the age of doing it and so many fail! He's partially retired and I'm several years behind but always been at home but just had several side gigs over the years. Wishing you the best from Midwest US!
I am 33 y.o. I am happy to watch your video. I own a few apartments in Europe. No mortgage, no credit cards, no debts. Immigrant. Worked really hard and keep working. Driving 15 years old bmw, which I bought 2 years ago. Thank you for sharing your story ❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤
Thanks for your calm demeanor and NO horrible free RUclips music! What you say, and your simple background, are enough to make good videos. Following you now.
Lol thank you. I think I do have a little bit of music in one of my videos but it’s more in the background and it’s definitely not free! Some of the music licensing subscriptions are so expensive because they’re in US dollars!
I really like the fact that you’re Canadian and talk about finances from a Canadian perspective. I like the other woman’s comments about your video being “calm”. She is right and I enjoy this. I keep looking at Real Estate in Edmonton…so much cheaper than Ontario.
I love this! Very practical and simple. I’m in my mid 40s going through life and career transition so there’s a lot of uncertainty and fear… Thank you for this content!
Hello there! I have just started watching your videos. I am retired too so I feel pretty much identified with your stories. Keep up posting! You are an inspiration. Greetings from Chile.🇨🇱
Your channel came up in my today and I’ve subscribed! Great advice about cars. We bought the car I drive (a 2012 Mazda 5) used in 2014 and I’m still driving it. Not the newest or nicest drive but it gets me from a to b. I’m planning to let my 16 year old master his driving lessons on it before I give it up and get a “new” used car. I also just went back to work full time at 52… 1st full time work since before I had kids. I feel very fortunate to have found a job in the public sector tjat has a pension plan. There’s been quite a few years where I haven’t had that so it gives me peace of mind that I can hopefully put in 10 years there and get a small pension out of it. It’s so satisfying to be able to invest in my future at this stage of my life!
Good for you for finding work and especially at a place that has a pension plan. That is so awesome. I’m really happy for you. Yes still driving my little old car unfortunately I had to put $3000 worth of work into it this year. Can’t say I’m too happy about that. I’m hoping I can get another couple of years out of it at least.
Hi there, I just stumbled on your channel today. I live in the UK and have been retired for a few years now, I live with my husband of 54 years. You hit the nail on the head when you said live below your means. When I was at work I would hear the young girls saying about dreading the credit card bill that was due after Christmas. To me that was just mad, I didn't and still don't have a credit card. Christmas I would buy friends and family gifts that I could afford, I would think what would they really like. For our son in his first house and first Christmas I made a big food hamper, a cake that I had made and lots of little treats. It went down a treat. This last Christmas he said, how about you come to my place for Christmas dinner and I will cook, exchange for one of your Christmas cakes. It was so nice to have someone cook Christmas dinner for me. Good luck with the channel.
Oh goodness thank you for stopping by my channel. I absolutely love some of your ideas in regards to the Christmas gift. The food hamper idea is amazing. I think I’m going to incorporate that into my own Christmas giving to my kids this year. Definitely living below your means is so key to being retired. I’m too young to qualify for any of the government pensions yet so I’m pretty much living on income that I’ve saved up on my own and that needs to work for me for the next three or four years. So the only way I can do it is by being frugal. But I do have a great life and a beautiful life.
@@smallretiredlife The other year for Christmas I gave our son an old photo I had found. It was of my parents, his grand parents. I found a nice frame for the photo. This small but thoughtful gift brought a tear to our sons eye. The photo is displayed on the mantle shelf at our sons new home. What I'm trying to say, it's not the monatary cost that counts, it's the thought.
Excellent video. As a 66 year old single retired female living in small town Ontario, I can definitely relate. And I went through so many of the same things as you and am also conservative with my money. We had a DCP at my old company and I was always astounded by employees who would not take advantage of it. I hate to think where they are now in life. I was mortgage free for several years before I retired and managed to sock away a fair amount of savings. So far I am living off my company contribution plan (now RRIF and LIF) and RRSP savings. My plan is to not take my CPP or OAS until age 70. I found the book Retirement Income for Life by Frederick Vettese was very helpful to me. Keep up the great videos. Glad I found you on RUclips!!
This is great video and very informative. You're a great example of being financially responsible. Keep up the amazing work on your videos. These life lessons and your life examples are what you should focus on in your videos. Also, thank you for representing our demographic!
Thank you for watching and leaving a comment. I’m glad that you can take something from this. You’re still so young and you have time to really forge your future. Watching videos of people who maybe struggled but eventually kind of found their way is a great learning thing. I wish there had been RUclips when I was younger!
I have wasted so much time not knowing about money. I had children with a wealthy psychopath who destroyed me financially and emotionally. Twenty years later at age 65, I'm just beginning to recover. I feel like crying when I hear how sensible you have been and still are.
The amazing thing about life is that it’s never too late to learn and move forward. You will be OK and you can certainly learn anything you want regarding finances.
There's a financial planner on YT (Azul) who said something that I found so true amongst my friends (we're all in our 60s)....while you (hopefully) plan for retirement, in fact, probably half of us will "be retired" by others....not according to our plans. We may not even realize it at the time. We think we'll find another job....but in fact we are retired. Doesn't mean you can't create something new for yourself but as far as your former career...you may be retired.
All good advice :) Esp the debt free part! Coming from someone who lived most of my adult life in debt, and now in my 60s, I'm not. I'm still working, but if I had substantial debt right now, that pressure would make me sad. But I feel lucky, I get it though, I learned the hard way, and the learning is still ongoing. This video is helpful and good reminders. I too had roll-down windows for a long time :D haha I loved it though, the car was old but it was in really good shape for a long time.
Smart lady you did everything right I love ❤️ didn't live beyond your means it helped you thank you for sharing I'm retired and I enjoy listening to stories as yours
Hello Raina, thanks for sharing your videos, I watched a few tonight, and they are all very good and very informative 👍I can relate to a lot of what you are explaining, I am 54, and still working in tech, but also very closely related to the energy business (Norway). So I had the severance package thing 6 years ago, which was quite good and gave me the opportunity to learn how to code, take certifications in Data Science, etc, which perked up my CV greatly. During the pandemic I was able to work as a contractor, I ended up investing in some nice office furniture for my home office, and at the end of the day, it was not too bad of a situation for me personally. I did the _exact_ same trick with the Audi: I bought it in 2013, cash, and I still have it. Which is fun because it's a stick shift, and diesel, which has become quite vintage in Norway where most vehicles are now electric cars. Cheers and keep up with the great vids, I think you've got something here! 😀
Oh wow, great comment. And you learned coding…l bow down to you because that’s like learning a new language. Thank you for watching and thank you so much for your comment.
You’re a great example for young women today.Some of this should be taught in School.Coming from a 77 yr old retired widow who still doesn’t know very much.
This has been taught in Australia at least four 30 years. I learnt it in year 12 back in 1993. We did a while term on the stock market. During that year, our maths teacher brought in a guest speaker who wrote a book "How to make a million dollars". I bought the book as a struggling high school kid. It changed everything. I bought my first house before my first car. Never took out a credit card. I became a millionaire as single mum by the time I was 45 putting my kids through private school all by myself. This could not have been done had I not had a dedicated teacher who taught us about money management.
GREAT Advice! Live below your means and avoid debt, buy property & invest while you’re young. Drive old cars 😇Max out matching employer contributions. With the sky-rocketing cost of living, I worry that younger people will not realistically be able to buy an apartment or live below their means. Add to that the burgeoning student loan debt here in the U.S., and many young people feel their financial future is bleak.
Hello Raina! So great to hear from a fellow Canadian lady! You are very inspirational ❤️ thank you for your amazing channel and great information! I look forward to more of your amazing videos. 😊
Thank you, appreciate your videos and the message you have not only for those coming up on retirement but I think our younger generation can benefit a great deal from your channel. Thank you 😊
Thanks Cynthia…you know I admire you a lot for your channel. It’s heartwarming seeing you do your walking videos for the benefit of health and wellbeing.
I really enjoy your content. I’m in Edmonton. I see you’re in Calgary. It’s wonderful to know that content creators are from all walks of life and from all over the world. Cheers. Martin
@@smallretiredlife Oh that’s wonderful. I actually prefer Calgary but my wife was born and raised in Edmonton so we stay here. I watched several more of your videos. Great content and informative. 🙏
Just stumbled on to your channel and happy that I did (I’ve subscribed). I’m a solo Canadian in my mid 50’s and retirement has been on my mind lately. I’m enjoying your videos and I’m looking forward to more. Hoping you will be posting a variety of content as I find it lovely to watch and learn from other solo ladies here on YT. ❤
Thank you so much for subscribing and welcome here. I love when Canadian peeps comment on the here. I will definitely be covering a wide variety of topics and if you have any suggestions, I would love to see them.
Thank you very much for watching and for leaving a comment. Yes I definitely agree with you. One thing I found working in the capital markets is that women tended to not have the level of knowledge regarding investing that sometimes men did. I think that’s slowly changing but, financial information and knowledge should be shared in school as far as I’m concerned.
@@smallretiredlife i absolutely agree. I only started getting into investments at 38 years old. I never thought I could manage my own rrsp, tfsa’s without a financial advisor. I started watching videos, reading and researching and found it so fascinating. I find your channel very encouraging to all women out there to just be interested in their finances. Rely on no one, not a boyfriend not a spouse. Take control. Also in Calgary Alberta! So neat to see content creators in our own city! ♥️
If I ever break into your home, I will steal that gorgeous painting in the background. Might also take the lovely sansevieria if I can manage ... Keep your doors locked!
@@CherryBelle-sh2jxIt’s also called “Cast Iron Plant” because it stays strong and survives in darkness as in the Victorian era when everyone had thick heavy curtains to keep out the cold.
I so wish I heard all your strategies 6-7 years ago. I would have done things so differently. I find myself now in a financial crisis. I recently got rid of all my belongings and moved into a shared accomadation scenario. I was lucky and found a great living space and hope to pay down some of my debt to prepare for my retirement when I turn 65, which will happen in less than 3 years. Thank you for sharing your tips and experiences . Would love to see more of what you occupy your days doing as a retired solo female . Like day in a life.
Will definitely do a day in a life at some point… lol, I need to learn how to work my camera better. When I move around with it, the video bops up and down, and I don’t wanna make anyone nauseous.
@joannedonato8898 I would also like to see this. My retired life is very ho hum. I get bored and find myself becoming very unmotivated. Free things are good but generally require a bit of travelling. All my friends are still working, making weekends only time for catch ups.
@@smallretiredlife do you have a gopro? I think those cameras have a motion control feature. My son runs with his for his You Tube Channel and it's excellent.
I simply love you!❤❤ iam so glad i found you here at you tube😊 I retired when i was 42. I live in Denmark north Europe( Skandinavien) and i am 53 years Old now. Thank you for for tælling u’s your story ! Love you ❤️
One strategy for managing a windfall (and you touched on this but not in detail) is to let yourself splurge on something that costs 1-3 percent of the total and then sock the rest away. For instance, I once got a $7,000 employee sharing payout and spent around $80 on a dinner for my partner and I (we're cheapskates, so that's a fair bit for us), gave $100 to each of my nieces to help with college, and then socked the rest away in savings/IRA.
Absolutely spot on. I’ve done that as well when I received any kind of large sum of money. I took one percent of that and spent it on something that was a want instead of just a need.
I love this idea. I recently took a very demanding pet sitting job for 3 dogs for 10 days to meet a savings goal. I did spend less than $100 on a new clothing item. The rest will go into my emergency savings fund. WIN! WIN!
Good suggestions, I'm trying to learn a lot more about finance and will go away and research some of your terms 😊 I'm late 50s and have a ridiculous lack of knowledge about all this. (ps. I've always driven very basic cars too and have a family story also about explaining to a child how to roll down a back window 😂)
I’ve caught up watching all your videos! Love them all! I agree with pay off that mortgage. The tax deduction you get on the interest never cancels out the interest.
Exactly. And here in Canada, we don’t get to write off any kind of interest expense. We also have to renew our mortgages anywhere from 1 to 2 to 3 to 5 years depending on your term. So we are always exposed to interest rates.
I stumbled upon your channel the other day and turned on the subscribe button - I am a fellow Calgarian - approximately 1 year out from retirement and am soaking up all your amazing advice. I haven’t looked yet at your other video but I am hoping to find something on delaying CPP and OAS and your thoughts on that.
New subscriber here! I am watching/listening to all your videos today as I clean and declutter. So glad I came across your channel. So inspiring! Keep doing what you do ❤
I am so glad that I stumbled upon your video and that you are so transparent that your finances and investment in your late 30s. I feel like I still have hope as a late starter in life.
It's always a good idea to front-load your savings, because you never know how long you'll be able to work. A lot of people found that out the hard way during the pandemic.
I was also divorced with 2 kids in my early 30’s too. I was just surviving till about 3 years ago. Now I’m really trying to get on track with simple living. Thank you for sharing your story and experience
Thank you for watching. I’ve been thinking of doing a video about that, but it’s tricky because I am not a financial advisor. I don’t want to be telling people what to do with their money so I’ll have to give it some good thought.
Hello from Sydney Australia 👋🏻 Same as your son and his family, our eldest daughter, her partner and their 2 kids are living in Melbourne, our younger daughter and her husband (who are living at the back of our house since her wedding 6 years ago) will also soon move to Melbourne by early 2025, then my husband and I will become empty nesters. We are both in our 60s and still working full time. In Australia, retirement age is 67 to be able to receive Age Pension. My husband wants to work as long as his workplace allows; I'd rather to be able to enjoy life without doing anything, but just answer to myself (and sometimes answer to my hubby 😅), as long as our bank savings agree for our future, especially when both my parents are in their mid/late 90s, that means most likely I could live for another 30 years 😮 Totally agree that we must save and spend wisely, so we can have a more enjoyable relaxing life after we retired 😊
Would you be able to share more investment or stock tips. I’m 61 and planning to retire in 3 years. Love the idea of living off dividends and not relying totally on a pension. Love your home btw!
That’s right. I’m in Ontario. The job I have now for the past year is a government job. Wish I started here 20+ years ago as I finally have a pension. I too have to consider working another year at 66. I have savings however how long will it last? CPP & OAS won’t cut it in todays condition. Hard decision. 🇨🇦
I own a cottage, a five year old truck, and a small home. I also have a pension and RRSP, but I don’t have any cash savings. I just started a TFSA, but it’s not growing very fast. Trying to persevere, so I can retire in a few years.
Great video, you’re one smart lady. I’m interested in hearing more about investments. I opened a Trading 212 account a year ago but trying to learn more about buying and selling 😊
Great video. Two comments: 1. Not everyone lives in a steep-slope rising housing market - that seems to be a big bonus for Canadians in general so this strategy is just not possible in many cities. 2. In the US, one can get a 30 year mortgage and when interest rates were very low, people locked in at very low 30-year (or 15 year) rates. I don’t think one can do this in Canada with the highest lock-in-rate duration being 5 years (not sure). Anyway, if one has a very low mortgage rate, such as 3%, it’s not always in one’s best interest to pay it off asap - with the assumption that they invest the “savings”, of course. I did like your point about cars - they are a ridiculous expense.
Thank you. You definitely make good points, especially about the mortgage. I totally agree. Yes we can get 30 year mortgages here, but we have to renew them much more frequently than you do in the U.S. however, for me, I would rather just pay the mortgage off and then take that money and invest it into stock of some kind. I think I just have a personal hate relationship with the debt lol.
Also remember that the "guaranteed rate of return" from paying off your mortgage early is tax-free, unlike investment earnings (unless they're in a Roth IRA). But at the end of the day, I think it's a personality type as much as anything. The security of being debt-free appeals to me more than an extra percentage point or two (not guaranteed) on my remaining balance. And it's a form of diversification in your portfolio.
Thank you for your tips and information. I have to tell you, you are so way ahead of the game than most people here in the US in same age group. Being mortgage free with no debt between 55-60 is a dream.
The one thing you don’t talk about is “home maintenance” costs. There isn’t always money to “invest” when you have to put on a new roof for 20,000; renovate 18 years old bathrooms, what if you can’t lawnmower and have to pay $200.00 per month, and get someone to clean Eavestroughs and downspouts and trim hedges as you get older, or re-do decks or replace them with Trex. Houses are not cheap. You may wish to discuss this. Even if you have a paid off home, property tax in Ontario is much higher than in the west. 13,000 annually property tax on an 1800.00 square foot home in Kingston, Ontario, is double the tax the same home would be in Toronto. Small town taxes in Ontario are very very high because places like Kingston, Ontario, rely only on residential property for property tax as there is NO industry in Kingston and other small town Ontario towns. Toronto has small property tax (1/2 of Kingston) as it has lots of industry and doesn’t rely on residential only for property tax. No sense in moving to smaller (160,000 population or less) in Ontario . Property tax in these towns is a rip-off. Seriously.
Good point. I guess I don’t think about this because I pay condo fees every month. Condo fees are exactly to prepare for things like that along with maintaining our townhouse complex.
Great tips😊 Unfortunately here in America if you are Black American there may be a chance you won’t get the best rate for your home as your White American neighbors, it doesn’t happen to everyone but it happens often. We are denied home loans at an increased rate, we are denied exclusive neighborhoods…it’s such a sad feeling. Being a homeowner is the best feeling and I pray that everyone experiences it. ❤
Wow, that is hard to hear! I would like to believe this does not happen in Canada, but that would be naive! I agree, owning your own home is so empowering. Thank you for watching my video!
Did the 1/5 acre inheritance on VI from your parents help as well? So many rely on inheritance to fund retirement but don’t realize that it may not be there.
I’m 57 Working for a friend at this point but totally ready to retire I don’t have enough time to do things I really want to do like visiting my granddaughter who lives a little over an hour away It’s hard Work church school all things take time
When I was married, we kept all of our finances together, but we were both students when we got married. I never remarried after that. I did have two boyfriends, but we weren’t married and I kept everything separate. The only thing we kind of had together was our home which we had a formal agreement on how to deal with that if we ever broke up.
Being single is harder in some ways, easier in others. Certainly childcare expenses are a major challenge for single parents. If you have a partner who has bad money habits, that makes it much harder to save. Or if you have a nasty divorce, that can destroy your savings. Women often wind up leaving the workforce earlier than they planned to care for an ill or aging spouse.
Thank you for watching my video and leaving a comment. I’ll definitely put that on my list of videos to do or something to talk about in one of my videos maybe. It’s not an area that many people are familiar with, but it was kind of interesting how I got into it.
@@smallretiredlife Wow thank you for responding! I’m in comms and I’ve always wanted to pivot to investor relations-that said, there are people out there who can benefit from learning about different careers and developing strategies to get into those positions without having to resort to going back to school. I love school that and student loans have become a crutch for many.
I am currently in my 50s and This is no time to taper retirement savings. I want to max out my retirement contributions and I also have another $200k in a savings account that i want to invest in a non-retirement account. Where should I invest it now?
A good number of people discredit the effectiveness of financial advisors in exploring new markets, but over the past 10years I’ve had a financial advisor consistently restructure and diversify my portfolio/expenses and I’ve made over $1.2m in gains… might not be a lot but i'm financially secure.
My CFA 'Grace Adams Cook' , a renowned figure in her line of work. I recommend researching her credentials further. She has many years of experience and is a valuable resource for anyone looking to navigate the financial market.
Reading books is what I did. I have a video on investing …maybe watch it and I’ve also got some books in my Amazon links that are really good for beginner investors to read. They are Canadian focused, so I’m not sure if you’re from Canada.
I feel any interest that you have after either retirement or laid off from a job. You learn the skill and put yourself in that position to master the craft. Lol, you keep saying your video bag lady there's a song out here by music artist Erykah Badu, 😅💪🏾🙏🏾
I was laid off at 52, after being with a company for 18 years, i did get nice severance which helped me pay off my home, and due to the younger generation not wanting to work, the great resignation i was able to get another job, but it was tough, there is a such thing as age discrimination, now able to save due to no mortgage...and my goal is to remain working but only remotely. Oh that company that laid me off is giving me a pension when i hit a certain age
Thanks for your comment. Getting laid off in your 50s is really hard and it’s scary, but I’m glad that it sounds like things kind of worked out for you. The pension thing….amazing!
Your advises are prudent for relatively younger people. You were lucky to have been preparing for retirement even though it came came earlier than expected. What is your advise for people 60, and nothing saved for retirement? They have no income to invest.
Unfortunately, if you’re 60 and you have zero in savings, then the reality is that you do need to work and start saving us quickly as possible. I don’t know what country you’re writing from and what kind of safety nets it has for folks who have no income past retirement age, but in my view, if you have no money at 60, then you are definitely going to have to work at something.
Do you still invest now. What do you think about RRSP . I'm not very trusty when it come to any dealings with banks. I have investments that I started before Covid, but I stopped investing when the whole lockdowns stared and never resumed it . All the big talks about stock market crashing in Canada got me scared of losing what I had. I would like to learn how to properly invest and understand it. Maybe this is something you can teach.
I will do a video on how I learned to invest. I am not going to give any stock tips. I’m not qualified to give stock tips. I do invest in the stock market, mostly ETFs and good quality stock and a good amount of GICs to even things out . I don’t let alarmism influence how I invest my money. Stock markets go up and stock markets go down, but I only have stocks that pay dividends so I don’t really worry about what the market is doing. But investing is all about your tolerance for risk. I have RRSPs, they are what is paying my income so I can be retired since I’m not really of an age to collect any government pensions yet.
I have just watched all your videos. I am in identical situation as yourself. I was made redundant 12 months ago. I chose to retire on a very low income, which is doable. However, what I worry about is a big unexpected expense. Like getting seriously ill. Or a major repair to my home. I worry so much that I can't seem to enjoy my retirement. Do you find this as well? I guess it's out of my control, but this constantly rules my expenditure and controls any plans I may consider for enjoyment in my future 😊
Yes, that would be very worrisome, but I do have money in my budget. Saved up that if anything unexpected happens I can deal with it. Having an emergency fund is pretty critical.
@@smallretiredlife I do have an emergency fund also, however will it be enough. I guess it would depend on what the emergency is. Perhaps replacing your car, replacing household items, a simple medical procedure, these are mostly expected events....but what about the big stuff like cancer treatments that can cost a lot of money if not covered by your health fund. This is the worrying part of retirement for most people. Will they run out of money.
I think the Canadian healthcare system is a factor here as well. In the US, medical debt is a serious risk, at least until we hit Medicare age. Any early retirement plan *must* include a plan for affordable health insurance before age 65.
You aren’t going to live forever. If you have most of your stuff paid off, you should not focus so much on saving. This is how I feel. You could be given a cancer diagnosis tomorrow as I was. But, I do agree with trying to live below your means, but again, this needs to be balanced with enjoying life to some degree.
2 relationships and a divorce that ended sounds expensive. Financial advisers never warn clients about the risk of divorce or relationship breakdown (more than 50% likely), but I think they should.
I love how calm your video is. You’re not yelling, if you’re doing any editing, it’s done well because your video is not jumpy. You don’t have music or other noise playing in the background, which I find very agitating on other videos. Good job and good luck!
Thank you so much for your comments. I’m just learning how to edit so not much editing happening in my videos that’s for sure. I do like some music and videos, but usually like extremely soft background type of stuff but some I’d really only used music in one of my videos. I’m really into a calm aesthetic.
I agree! The loud, jumpy, music filled videos are a dime a dozen and I have no patience for them anymore. We are overstimulated enough in life; it’s nice to get some peace ✌️
Very calm presence u bring god bless you ❤
Most people don’t like music in back ground I’ve learned over the years.
Agree, nice low key and easy to listen to
Most channels I watch make me want to go out and buy things so this is refreshing!
Those channels make profits by selling things. It’s their way of making a living.
Hi, I recently discovered your channel, and love hearing your story. I live in melbourne Australia (like your son). Like you I was retrenched at 55 (7 years ago). I wasn’t too concerned at the time. My wife and I were financially comfortable. My wife owned a coffee shop, not a big source of income, and if she was not working in it, probably no source of income, but my wife enjoyed it. We still live in the house we purchased when we married in 1982. We worked many jobs when we were young and was mortgage free before we were 30. I think paying off the mortgage is financial tip # 1. My wife and I decided to take a year off and travel around Australia. Like you I traveled a lot my whole career, both locally and internationally, I was very busy, and struggled changing pace when I was retrenched. I did not want to return to the corporate world so my wife and I decided to start another business in a field I enjoyed. When I left work and spent 24/7 with the bride (of 40 year’s now) I saw my wife behaving strangely. Within 6 months of my retrenchment the bride was diagnosed with early onset alzheimers (she was also 55). I looked after her coffee shop (that’s hard work). little side note here the best way to have $1,000,000 with a coffee shop is to start with $2,000,000. They can be money pits. Anyway COVID came we closed the coffee shop, and I started building my business, while being my wife full time carer. We’re now both 62, Im finally ok with a slower pace, I share this story for context. Preparing for your retirement is so important as you don’t know what around the corner. In Australia we have a superannuation scheme. Similar to what the US calls a 401K, but it mandatory and all employers have to pay it. It’s your money, but you don’t miss it because you never see it. It’s currently 12% of your salary is paid into a fund of your choosing. This is a wonderful bucket of cash for when you retire, and if necessary you can get access to it early if you meet certain criteria. I was fortunate to be able to add additional funds to our super over the years. Without a mortgage we also invested in shares and property. Our retirement is very different to what we had in is aged. We had to sell our caravan, as the bride was unable to manage it, and we live differently. We receive an income from my small online business, our shares and property. It’s so important to set yourself up when you’re young so you can navigate what life throws at you. I can’t imaging how we would have coped had we not been financially comfortable. I also have the benefit of living in Australia. Like Canada we have a socialised health care system, and a very good support program for people with disabilities. Love your channel, and looking forward to seeing where it goes. I hope you can get your videos monetised. Regards Shayne
Thank you for the great comment. I am impressed with your story! My mom had severe Alzheimer’s and it was devastating for my father and us girls! I am dearly hoping I can spend February and March in Melbourne this winter if I can find a decent Airbnb that won’t bankrupt me lol.😂
@@smallretiredlifemaybe you could organise a house swap? Sounds like you’re being live in a great area. Alas I’m not in Melbourne but house swapping def appeals as a reduced cost way to travel.
House swapping also lets people know where you live so be extra careful
Thank you for sharing! I followed along in your story expecting you to say the coffee shop was a drain but I'm sure you both loved it! My hubby has always dreamed of a restaurant but we're both beyond the age of doing it and so many fail! He's partially retired and I'm several years behind but always been at home but just had several side gigs over the years.
Wishing you the best from Midwest US!
I am 33 y.o. I am happy to watch your video. I own a few apartments in Europe. No mortgage, no credit cards, no debts. Immigrant. Worked really hard and keep working. Driving 15 years old bmw, which I bought 2 years ago. Thank you for sharing your story ❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤
You should make your video on how to buy property in such young age.
I love ur story I follow you can we be friends 😂
Thanks for your calm demeanor and NO horrible free RUclips music! What you say, and your simple background, are enough to make good videos. Following you now.
Lol thank you. I think I do have a little bit of music in one of my videos but it’s more in the background and it’s definitely not free! Some of the music licensing subscriptions are so expensive because they’re in US dollars!
I really like the fact that you’re Canadian and talk about finances from a Canadian perspective. I like the other woman’s comments about your video being “calm”. She is right and I enjoy this. I keep looking at Real Estate in Edmonton…so much cheaper than Ontario.
I love this! Very practical and simple. I’m in my mid 40s going through life and career transition so there’s a lot of uncertainty and fear… Thank you for this content!
Excellent tips. Paying off my mortgage was essential to my peace of mind! 🏡
Yes, I totally agree. I got mine paid off as soon as I could.
Looking forward to paying mine off, five more years 😍
Agreed
I'm 60 and really needed to hear this. Thank you. I'm in the investment industry... it sure helps.
Hello there! I have just started watching your videos. I am retired too so I feel pretty much identified with your stories. Keep up posting! You are an inspiration. Greetings from Chile.🇨🇱
Thank you so much for watching!
Your channel came up in my today and I’ve subscribed! Great advice about cars. We bought the car I drive (a 2012 Mazda 5) used in 2014 and I’m still driving it. Not the newest or nicest drive but it gets me from a to b. I’m planning to let my 16 year old master his driving lessons on it before I give it up and get a “new” used car. I also just went back to work full time at 52… 1st full time work since before I had kids. I feel very fortunate to have found a job in the public sector tjat has a pension plan. There’s been quite a few years where I haven’t had that so it gives me peace of mind that I can hopefully put in 10 years there and get a small pension out of it. It’s so satisfying to be able to invest in my future at this stage of my life!
Good for you for finding work and especially at a place that has a pension plan. That is so awesome. I’m really happy for you. Yes still driving my little old car unfortunately I had to put $3000 worth of work into it this year. Can’t say I’m too happy about that. I’m hoping I can get another couple of years out of it at least.
Hi there, I just stumbled on your channel today. I live in the UK and have been retired for a few years now, I live with my husband of 54 years.
You hit the nail on the head when you said live below your means. When I was at work I would hear the young girls saying about dreading the credit card bill that was due after Christmas. To me that was just mad, I didn't and still don't have a credit card. Christmas I would buy friends and family gifts that I could afford, I would think what would they really like. For our son in his first house and first Christmas I made a big food hamper, a cake that I had made and lots of little treats. It went down a treat. This last Christmas he said, how about you come to my place for Christmas dinner and I will cook, exchange for one of your Christmas cakes. It was so nice to have someone cook Christmas dinner for me.
Good luck with the channel.
Oh goodness thank you for stopping by my channel. I absolutely love some of your ideas in regards to the Christmas gift. The food hamper idea is amazing. I think I’m going to incorporate that into my own Christmas giving to my kids this year. Definitely living below your means is so key to being retired. I’m too young to qualify for any of the government pensions yet so I’m pretty much living on income that I’ve saved up on my own and that needs to work for me for the next three or four years. So the only way I can do it is by being frugal. But I do have a great life and a beautiful life.
@@smallretiredlife The other year for Christmas I gave our son an old photo I had found. It was of my parents, his grand parents. I found a nice frame for the photo. This small but thoughtful gift brought a tear to our sons eye. The photo is displayed on the mantle shelf at our sons new home.
What I'm trying to say, it's not the monatary cost that counts, it's the thought.
@@smallretiredlife I'm pretty sure we can start collecting CPP at 60, but you may be choosing to wait so your monthly pension is larger.
Excellent video. As a 66 year old single retired female living in small town Ontario, I can definitely relate. And I went through so many of the same things as you and am also conservative with my money. We had a DCP at my old company and I was always astounded by employees who would not take advantage of it. I hate to think where they are now in life. I was mortgage free for several years before I retired and managed to sock away a fair amount of savings. So far I am living off my company contribution plan (now RRIF and LIF) and RRSP savings. My plan is to not take my CPP or OAS until age 70. I found the book Retirement Income for Life by Frederick Vettese was very helpful to me. Keep up the great videos. Glad I found you on RUclips!!
I love that book!
This is great video and very informative. You're a great example of being financially responsible.
Keep up the amazing work on your videos. These life lessons and your life examples are what you should focus on in your videos. Also, thank you for representing our demographic!
Great content
I’m in my early 30s and do happy I found your video. This is inspiring and insightful.
Thank you for watching and leaving a comment. I’m glad that you can take something from this. You’re still so young and you have time to really forge your future. Watching videos of people who maybe struggled but eventually kind of found their way is a great learning thing. I wish there had been RUclips when I was younger!
Thank you for giving some great strategies on saving after life after 50 yrs old It is never too late to take control of my finances.🎤👍🏾
I have wasted so much time not knowing about money. I had children with a wealthy psychopath who destroyed me financially and emotionally. Twenty years later at age 65, I'm just beginning to recover. I feel like crying when I hear how sensible you have been and still are.
The amazing thing about life is that it’s never too late to learn and move forward. You will be OK and you can certainly learn anything you want regarding finances.
There's a financial planner on YT (Azul) who said something that I found so true amongst my friends (we're all in our 60s)....while you (hopefully) plan for retirement, in fact, probably half of us will "be retired" by others....not according to our plans. We may not even realize it at the time. We think we'll find another job....but in fact we are retired. Doesn't mean you can't create something new for yourself but as far as your former career...you may be retired.
That is exactly spot on. Definitely my old career is gone, but that’s OK. I love my new life better.
@@smallretiredlife ... and you prepared thoughtfully for this time. Congratulations.
All good advice :) Esp the debt free part! Coming from someone who lived most of my adult life in debt, and now in my 60s, I'm not. I'm still working, but if I had substantial debt right now, that pressure would make me sad. But I feel lucky, I get it though, I learned the hard way, and the learning is still ongoing. This video is helpful and good reminders. I too had roll-down windows for a long time :D haha I loved it though, the car was old but it was in really good shape for a long time.
Wow ! thankyou. I wish I had been as careful as you. However, I still have a chance to improve things and I appreciate you wise words.
Smart lady you did everything right I love ❤️ didn't live beyond your means it helped you thank you for sharing I'm retired and I enjoy listening to stories as yours
Thank you so much and thank you for watching and commenting!
Yes
Hello Raina, thanks for sharing your videos, I watched a few tonight, and they are all very good and very informative 👍I can relate to a lot of what you are explaining, I am 54, and still working in tech, but also very closely related to the energy business (Norway). So I had the severance package thing 6 years ago, which was quite good and gave me the opportunity to learn how to code, take certifications in Data Science, etc, which perked up my CV greatly. During the pandemic I was able to work as a contractor, I ended up investing in some nice office furniture for my home office, and at the end of the day, it was not too bad of a situation for me personally.
I did the _exact_ same trick with the Audi: I bought it in 2013, cash, and I still have it. Which is fun because it's a stick shift, and diesel, which has become quite vintage in Norway where most vehicles are now electric cars. Cheers and keep up with the great vids, I think you've got something here! 😀
Oh wow, great comment. And you learned coding…l bow down to you because that’s like learning a new language. Thank you for watching and thank you so much for your comment.
You’re a great example for young women today.Some of this should be taught in School.Coming from a 77 yr old retired widow who still doesn’t know very much.
Yes, I agree. Budgeting, investing, finances should all be taught in school. I would’ve been way ahead if I had more learning in my early years.
This has been taught in Australia at least four 30 years. I learnt it in year 12 back in 1993. We did a while term on the stock market. During that year, our maths teacher brought in a guest speaker who wrote a book "How to make a million dollars". I bought the book as a struggling high school kid. It changed everything. I bought my first house before my first car. Never took out a credit card. I became a millionaire as single mum by the time I was 45 putting my kids through private school all by myself. This could not have been done had I not had a dedicated teacher who taught us about money management.
GREAT Advice! Live below your means and avoid debt, buy property & invest while you’re young. Drive old cars 😇Max out matching employer contributions.
With the sky-rocketing cost of living, I worry that younger people will not realistically be able to buy an apartment or live below their means. Add to that the burgeoning student loan debt here in the U.S., and many young people feel their financial future is bleak.
Hello Raina! So great to hear from a fellow Canadian lady! You are very inspirational ❤️ thank you for your amazing channel and great information! I look forward to more of your amazing videos. 😊
Thank you, appreciate your videos and the message you have not only for those coming up on retirement but I think our younger generation can benefit a great deal from your channel. Thank you 😊
Thanks Cynthia…you know I admire you a lot for your channel. It’s heartwarming seeing you do your walking videos for the benefit of health and wellbeing.
@@smallretiredlife thank you, it has become a passion 😊
Your channel sounds interesting to me as well Cynthia. I’ve subscribed 😊
@@glynisfalloon3567 thank you 😊
I really enjoy your content. I’m in Edmonton. I see you’re in Calgary. It’s wonderful to know that content creators are from all walks of life and from all over the world. Cheers. Martin
Hi Martin, thank you for watching! I lived in Edmonton for nine years! Nice to see a fellow Albertan on here.
@@smallretiredlife Oh that’s wonderful. I actually prefer Calgary but my wife was born and raised in Edmonton so we stay here. I watched several more of your videos. Great content and informative. 🙏
Very soothing and aesthetic background!
Just stumbled on to your channel and happy that I did (I’ve subscribed). I’m a solo Canadian in my mid 50’s and retirement has been on my mind lately. I’m enjoying your videos and I’m looking forward to more. Hoping you will be posting a variety of content as I find it lovely to watch and learn from other solo ladies here on YT. ❤
Thank you so much for subscribing and welcome here. I love when Canadian peeps comment on the here. I will definitely be covering a wide variety of topics and if you have any suggestions, I would love to see them.
@@smallretiredlife Are you also solo? I am wondering if you have a partner. I am single and working toward retirement.
Thank you for sharing! So important for women and young women to watch!
Thank you very much for watching and for leaving a comment. Yes I definitely agree with you. One thing I found working in the capital markets is that women tended to not have the level of knowledge regarding investing that sometimes men did. I think that’s slowly changing but, financial information and knowledge should be shared in school as far as I’m concerned.
@@smallretiredlife i absolutely agree. I only started getting into investments at 38 years old. I never thought I could manage my own rrsp, tfsa’s without a financial advisor. I started watching videos, reading and researching and found it so fascinating. I find your channel very encouraging to all women out there to just be interested in their finances. Rely on no one, not a boyfriend not a spouse. Take control.
Also in Calgary Alberta! So neat to see content creators in our own city! ♥️
Yes absolutely
As stated above by others, thank you for your calm demeanor. You provide so much hope and peace in your presentation. You are blessing us all.
If I ever break into your home, I will steal that gorgeous painting in the background. Might also take the lovely sansevieria if I can manage ... Keep your doors locked!
🤣 I also like that painting and I am an artist here in Lowell, MA / USA. Awesome piece!! 🎨🖌
In the uk the fun name for the sanseviera is "mother in law's tongue" 😅😅😅
@@CherryBelle-sh2jxIt’s also called “Cast Iron Plant” because it stays strong and survives in darkness as in the Victorian era when everyone had thick heavy curtains to keep out the cold.
It looks like it might be a television art screen saver or a Frame TV 😍🖼️
Wonderful advice, I love your calming voice and relaxing vibe!!
I so wish I heard all your strategies 6-7 years ago. I would have done things so differently. I find myself now in a financial crisis. I recently got rid of all my belongings and moved into a shared accomadation scenario. I was lucky and found a great living space and hope to pay down some of my debt to prepare for my retirement when I turn 65, which will happen in less than 3 years. Thank you for sharing your tips and experiences .
Would love to see more of what you occupy your days doing as a retired solo female . Like day in a life.
Will definitely do a day in a life at some point… lol, I need to learn how to work my camera better. When I move around with it, the video bops up and down, and I don’t wanna make anyone nauseous.
@joannedonato8898 I would also like to see this. My retired life is very ho hum. I get bored and find myself becoming very unmotivated. Free things are good but generally require a bit of travelling. All my friends are still working, making weekends only time for catch ups.
@@smallretiredlife do you have a gopro? I think those cameras have a motion control feature. My son runs with his for his You Tube Channel and it's excellent.
I simply love you!❤❤ iam so glad i found you here at you tube😊
I retired when i was 42.
I live in Denmark north Europe( Skandinavien) and i am 53 years Old now.
Thank you for for tælling u’s your story ! Love you ❤️
Welcome!!
So easy to understand. Thank you for keeping it simple. I appreciate the info.
Glad it was helpful!
One strategy for managing a windfall (and you touched on this but not in detail) is to let yourself splurge on something that costs 1-3 percent of the total and then sock the rest away. For instance, I once got a $7,000 employee sharing payout and spent around $80 on a dinner for my partner and I (we're cheapskates, so that's a fair bit for us), gave $100 to each of my nieces to help with college, and then socked the rest away in savings/IRA.
Absolutely spot on. I’ve done that as well when I received any kind of large sum of money. I took one percent of that and spent it on something that was a want instead of just a need.
I love this idea. I recently took a very demanding pet sitting job for 3 dogs for 10 days to meet a savings goal. I did spend less than $100 on a new clothing item. The rest will go into my emergency savings fund. WIN! WIN!
Good suggestions, I'm trying to learn a lot more about finance and will go away and research some of your terms 😊 I'm late 50s and have a ridiculous lack of knowledge about all this. (ps. I've always driven very basic cars too and have a family story also about explaining to a child how to roll down a back window 😂)
Everything you said in this video has been true for me! Thanks for sharing as always!
I’ve caught up watching all your videos! Love them all! I agree with pay off that mortgage. The tax deduction you get on the interest never cancels out the interest.
Exactly. And here in Canada, we don’t get to write off any kind of interest expense. We also have to renew our mortgages anywhere from 1 to 2 to 3 to 5 years depending on your term. So we are always exposed to interest rates.
I stumbled upon your channel the other day and turned on the subscribe button - I am a fellow Calgarian - approximately 1 year out from retirement and am soaking up all your amazing advice. I haven’t looked yet at your other video but I am hoping to find something on delaying CPP and OAS and your thoughts on that.
Happy to see another Calgarian. Oof, delaying CCP etc is so personal. So many factors come into play, the main being how long you’re going to live 😂😂.
All the best as you have started vlogging. Sharing is caring.
New subscriber here! I am watching/listening to all your videos today as I clean and declutter. So glad I came across your channel. So inspiring! Keep doing what you do ❤
Welcome here and thank you so much for watching. And also thank you for taking the time to leave a comment. It is so appreciated!
Terrific video. I am retiring in December. I appreciate your advice.
I live in Calgary as well and I am 62 years old widow . I agree with every word you say .
Wow, fellow Calgarian! Welcome here and thank you for taking a time out and leaving a comment.
Thank you for sharing your most honesty saving for retirement.
I am so glad that I stumbled upon your video and that you are so transparent that your finances and investment in your late 30s. I feel like I still have hope as a late starter in life.
You are an inspiration 😊 all the best
Aw, thank you. So sweet. Hope you’re doing well.
Yes she is
It's always a good idea to front-load your savings, because you never know how long you'll be able to work. A lot of people found that out the hard way during the pandemic.
Totally agree!
It also puts your money to work for you - instead of you having to work for every penny.
Great stuff. I watched your other video about being laid off in your fifties also. Good luck with your endeavours.
Thank you so much. Definitely not a time that I want to experience again. But got through it and onward and forward definitely love being retired.
Our financial lives are the same with few differences. Retire in style, being your very own financial institution.😊
Subscribed. Great information here. We have quite a lot in common regarding our strategy with money. I appreciate your channel. Thank you.
I was also divorced with 2 kids in my early 30’s too. I was just surviving till about 3 years ago. Now I’m really trying to get on track with simple living. Thank you for sharing your story and experience
Thank you for watching. I hope things go well for you - being a single parent is tough.
Great video. I think it’s really important to live below your means and know where your money is going.
Appreciate this! Great video 😊
Investment is key.
Build money bearing Assets.
Good advice over all.
Thank you for taking the time to leave me a nice comment. I appreciate it. Hope you come back for more videos!
Hello, new to your channel. I am feeling fortunate to hear this info as a middle aged paycheque to paycheque employee ❤
Welcome!
Great advice for both young and old. Since you have knowledge of investing please share more information on how to invest.
Thank you for watching. I’ve been thinking of doing a video about that, but it’s tricky because I am not a financial advisor. I don’t want to be telling people what to do with their money so I’ll have to give it some good thought.
Hello from Sydney Australia 👋🏻
Same as your son and his family, our eldest daughter, her partner and their 2 kids are living in Melbourne, our younger daughter and her husband (who are living at the back of our house since her wedding 6 years ago) will also soon move to Melbourne by early 2025, then my husband and I will become empty nesters. We are both in our 60s and still working full time.
In Australia, retirement age is 67 to be able to receive Age Pension. My husband wants to work as long as his workplace allows; I'd rather to be able to enjoy life without doing anything, but just answer to myself (and sometimes answer to my hubby 😅), as long as our bank savings agree for our future, especially when both my parents are in their mid/late 90s, that means most likely I could live for another 30 years 😮
Totally agree that we must save and spend wisely, so we can have a more enjoyable relaxing life after we retired 😊
Would you be able to share more investment or stock tips. I’m 61 and planning to retire in 3 years. Love the idea of living off dividends and not relying totally on a pension. Love your home btw!
I definitely can’t share any stock tips. I am not a financial planner nor a stockbroker. I will, however do a video about investing at some point.
That’s right. I’m in Ontario. The job I have now for the past year is a government job. Wish I started here 20+ years ago as I finally have a pension. I too have to consider working another year at 66. I have savings however how long will it last? CPP & OAS won’t cut it in todays condition. Hard decision. 🇨🇦
Thanks you for the strategies and sharing. Take care.
I own a cottage, a five year old truck, and a small home. I also have a pension and RRSP, but I don’t have any cash savings. I just started a TFSA, but it’s not growing very fast. Trying to persevere, so I can retire in a few years.
I think it’s great. You started a TFSA. In my view, it’s better to have something growing slowly than nothing growing at all.
@@smallretiredlife 100%
Such good advice, thanks for sharing
Thank you for watching.
Great video, you’re one smart lady. I’m interested in hearing more about investments. I opened a Trading 212 account a year ago but trying to learn more about buying and selling 😊
Love your plants 💚
Thank you so much.🌿🌱🌵
Excellent video! It will help a lot of people if they follow your steps. 🥰
Thank you for watching and leaving such a nice comment.
Can you do a video on strategy no. 8 : investing? Did you invest in the stock market directly or did you use a financial advisor?
I am definitely planning some thing. I won’t tell people what stocks to buy or talk about specific stocks, but I will do a video on investing.
@@smallretiredlife Looking forward to hearing your thoughts on investing. Thank you.
New to your channel and watching all your videos! Subscribed! ❤
Thank you so much and welcome here. I have a lot of great videos planned.
Great advice God Bless..happy saving 😊
Thank you for sharing!
Thank you for sharing. I
Can you do a video about investing please? Eg. How do you know if a company pays dividends?
You can check dividend history for companies. It will tell you who pays and how much. Yahoo finance is good also
Very informative! Thank you!
Great video. Two comments: 1. Not everyone lives in a steep-slope rising housing market - that seems to be a big bonus for Canadians in general so this strategy is just not possible in many cities. 2. In the US, one can get a 30 year mortgage and when interest rates were very low, people locked in at very low 30-year (or 15 year) rates. I don’t think one can do this in Canada with the highest lock-in-rate duration being 5 years (not sure). Anyway, if one has a very low mortgage rate, such as 3%, it’s not always in one’s best interest to pay it off asap - with the assumption that they invest the “savings”, of course. I did like your point about cars - they are a ridiculous expense.
Thank you. You definitely make good points, especially about the mortgage. I totally agree. Yes we can get 30 year mortgages here, but we have to renew them much more frequently than you do in the U.S. however, for me, I would rather just pay the mortgage off and then take that money and invest it into stock of some kind. I think I just have a personal hate relationship with the debt lol.
@@smallretiredlife I also hate debt, but a lot of my friends - who do not mind debt - have mentioned that this is their strategy.
Also remember that the "guaranteed rate of return" from paying off your mortgage early is tax-free, unlike investment earnings (unless they're in a Roth IRA). But at the end of the day, I think it's a personality type as much as anything. The security of being debt-free appeals to me more than an extra percentage point or two (not guaranteed) on my remaining balance. And it's a form of diversification in your portfolio.
Thank you for your tips and information. I have to tell you, you are so way ahead of the game than most people here in the US in same age group. Being mortgage free with no debt between 55-60 is a dream.
Great information. Thank you for sharing your strategies.
The one thing you don’t talk about is “home maintenance” costs. There isn’t always money to “invest” when you have to put on a new roof for 20,000; renovate 18 years old bathrooms, what if you can’t lawnmower and have to pay $200.00 per month, and get someone to clean Eavestroughs and downspouts and trim hedges as you get older, or re-do decks or replace them with Trex. Houses are not cheap. You may wish to discuss this. Even if you have a paid off home, property tax in Ontario is much higher than in the west. 13,000 annually property tax on an 1800.00 square foot home in Kingston, Ontario, is double the tax the same home would be in Toronto. Small town taxes in Ontario are very very high because places like Kingston, Ontario, rely only on residential property for property tax as there is NO industry in Kingston and other small town Ontario towns. Toronto has small property tax (1/2 of Kingston) as it has lots of industry and doesn’t rely on residential only for property tax. No sense in moving to smaller (160,000 population or less) in Ontario . Property tax in these towns is a rip-off. Seriously.
Good point. I guess I don’t think about this because I pay condo fees every month. Condo fees are exactly to prepare for things like that along with maintaining our townhouse complex.
Great tips😊
Unfortunately here in America if you are Black American there may be a chance you won’t get the best rate for your home as your White American neighbors, it doesn’t happen to everyone but it happens often. We are denied home loans at an increased rate, we are denied exclusive neighborhoods…it’s such a sad feeling.
Being a homeowner is the best feeling and I pray that everyone experiences it. ❤
Wow, that is hard to hear! I would like to believe this does not happen in Canada, but that would be naive! I agree, owning your own home is so empowering. Thank you for watching my video!
😔
Did the 1/5 acre inheritance on VI from your parents help as well? So many rely on inheritance to fund retirement but don’t realize that it may not be there.
I’m 57
Working for a friend at this point but totally ready to retire
I don’t have enough time to do things I really want to do like visiting my granddaughter who lives a little over an hour away
It’s hard
Work church school all things take time
Life is weird....I spend over three hours daily commuting!
enjoying your video thanks for posting
How important was having a financial partner at 3 different times in your life? Did you keep your money separate? Being single is much more difficult.
When I was married, we kept all of our finances together, but we were both students when we got married. I never remarried after that. I did have two boyfriends, but we weren’t married and I kept everything separate. The only thing we kind of had together was our home which we had a formal agreement on how to deal with that if we ever broke up.
Being single is harder in some ways, easier in others. Certainly childcare expenses are a major challenge for single parents. If you have a partner who has bad money habits, that makes it much harder to save. Or if you have a nasty divorce, that can destroy your savings. Women often wind up leaving the workforce earlier than they planned to care for an ill or aging spouse.
Great advice Reyna ! Thank you
We would love to learn about your pivot into investor relations and capital markets
Thank you for watching my video and leaving a comment. I’ll definitely put that on my list of videos to do or something to talk about in one of my videos maybe. It’s not an area that many people are familiar with, but it was kind of interesting how I got into it.
@@smallretiredlife Wow thank you for responding! I’m in comms and I’ve always wanted to pivot to investor relations-that said, there are people out there who can benefit from learning about different careers and developing strategies to get into those positions without having to resort to going back to school. I love school that and student loans have become a crutch for many.
I am currently in my 50s and This is no time to taper retirement savings. I want to max out my retirement contributions and I also have another $200k in a savings account that i want to invest in a non-retirement account. Where should I invest it now?
A good number of people discredit the effectiveness of financial advisors in exploring new markets, but over the past 10years I’ve had a financial advisor consistently restructure and diversify my portfolio/expenses and I’ve made over $1.2m in gains… might not be a lot but i'm financially secure.
I’ve been looking to switch to an advisor for a while now. Any help pointing me to who your advisor is?
My CFA 'Grace Adams Cook' , a renowned figure in her line of work. I recommend researching her credentials further. She has many years of experience and is a valuable resource for anyone looking to navigate the financial market.
Thank you for the lead. I searched her up, and I have sent her an email. I hope she gets back to me soon.
You are best to seek advice from someone qualified like a financial advisor. If you deal with a good bank, they may be able to help.
Like you advice but if we have no idea of investing. Where can we start to learn this sistem. Thankyou ❤
Reading books is what I did. I have a video on investing …maybe watch it and I’ve also got some books in my Amazon links that are really good for beginner investors to read. They are Canadian focused, so I’m not sure if you’re from Canada.
You are up in Canada. No wonder all the cute sweaters.
lol 😂 yes. It’s “swetah wetha” here in the morning!
@@smallretiredlife 🤣
I feel any interest that you have after either retirement or laid off from a job. You learn the skill and put yourself in that position to master the craft. Lol, you keep saying your video bag lady there's a song out here by music artist Erykah Badu, 😅💪🏾🙏🏾
I was laid off at 52, after being with a company for 18 years, i did get nice severance which helped me pay off my home, and due to the younger generation not wanting to work, the great resignation i was able to get another job, but it was tough, there is a such thing as age discrimination, now able to save due to no mortgage...and my goal is to remain working but only remotely. Oh that company that laid me off is giving me a pension when i hit a certain age
Thanks for your comment. Getting laid off in your 50s is really hard and it’s scary, but I’m glad that it sounds like things kind of worked out for you. The pension thing….amazing!
Thank you, enjoy your new car it was worth it too.😊
New subscriber 😊 Similar story. Thank you for sharing yours.
Good advise. Totally agree.
Your advises are prudent for relatively younger people. You were lucky to have been preparing for retirement even though it came came earlier than expected.
What is your advise for people 60, and nothing saved for retirement? They have no income to invest.
Unfortunately, if you’re 60 and you have zero in savings, then the reality is that you do need to work and start saving us quickly as possible. I don’t know what country you’re writing from and what kind of safety nets it has for folks who have no income past retirement age, but in my view, if you have no money at 60, then you are definitely going to have to work at something.
Do you still invest now. What do you think about RRSP . I'm not very trusty when it come to any dealings with banks. I have investments that I started before Covid, but I stopped investing when the whole lockdowns stared and never resumed it . All the big talks about stock market crashing in Canada got me scared of losing what I had. I would like to learn how to properly invest and understand it. Maybe this is something you can teach.
I will do a video on how I learned to invest. I am not going to give any stock tips. I’m not qualified to give stock tips. I do invest in the stock market, mostly ETFs and good quality stock and a good amount of GICs to even things out . I don’t let alarmism influence how I invest my money. Stock markets go up and stock markets go down, but I only have stocks that pay dividends so I don’t really worry about what the market is doing. But investing is all about your tolerance for risk. I have RRSPs, they are what is paying my income so I can be retired since I’m not really of an age to collect any government pensions yet.
I have just watched all your videos. I am in identical situation as yourself. I was made redundant 12 months ago. I chose to retire on a very low income, which is doable. However, what I worry about is a big unexpected expense. Like getting seriously ill. Or a major repair to my home. I worry so much that I can't seem to enjoy my retirement. Do you find this as well? I guess it's out of my control, but this constantly rules my expenditure and controls any plans I may consider for enjoyment in my future 😊
Yes, that would be very worrisome, but I do have money in my budget. Saved up that if anything unexpected happens I can deal with it. Having an emergency fund is pretty critical.
@@smallretiredlife I do have an emergency fund also, however will it be enough. I guess it would depend on what the emergency is. Perhaps replacing your car, replacing household items, a simple medical procedure, these are mostly expected events....but what about the big stuff like cancer treatments that can cost a lot of money if not covered by your health fund. This is the worrying part of retirement for most people. Will they run out of money.
I think the Canadian healthcare system is a factor here as well. In the US, medical debt is a serious risk, at least until we hit Medicare age. Any early retirement plan *must* include a plan for affordable health insurance before age 65.
Very handy strategies
You aren’t going to live forever. If you have most of your stuff paid off, you should not focus so much on saving. This is how I feel. You could be given a cancer diagnosis tomorrow as I was. But, I do agree with trying to live below your means, but again, this needs to be balanced with enjoying life to some degree.
Love this topic!
Thank you and thank you for watching.
2 relationships and a divorce that ended sounds expensive. Financial advisers never warn clients about the risk of divorce or relationship breakdown (more than 50% likely), but I think they should.