YOUNG FAMILIES (Ages 30-45)

Building Wealth While Raising Your Family

Your Life Right Now:

You're in the thick of it, juggling careers, raising children, managing a mortgage, trying to save for your kids' education AND your own retirement. Money feels tight even though you're earning more than ever. Every financial decision feels high-stakes because you have so many competing priorities and limited resources.

Your Biggest Challenges:

1. Competing Financial Priorities Should I pay down my mortgage faster or invest more? Max out RESPs or RRSPs? Build emergency fund or save for retirement? Every dollar has five different places it could go.

2. Inadequate Insurance Protection You have young children depending on your income, but life insurance feels expensive. What if something happens to you? Would your family be financially secure?

3. Education Funding Stress University costs are skyrocketing. How much should we save? Are we maximizing government grants? Will we have enough when our kids are ready?

4. Feeling Behind on Retirement We know we should be saving more for retirement, but there's always something else that needs the money first. Are we going to be okay?

5. Tax Optimization Confusion RRSP or TFSA? We have no idea which is better for our situation. Are we leaving tax savings on the table?

6. Career Transitions and Decisions New job offer with different benefits,is it better overall? Stock options, pension vs. RRSP, group insurance, what does it all mean?

PRE-RETIREES (Ages 50-65)

Transitioning from saving to spending in Retirement with Confidence

Your Life Right Now:

Retirement is no longer a distant concept, it's approaching rapidly. You've spent decades building wealth, and now you're facing complex, high-stakes decisions: When can you retire? Should you take CPP early or delay? What about your pension? How much can you safely withdraw? One wrong decision could mean working years longer than necessary or running out of money in retirement.

Your Biggest Questions:

1. "Can I Actually Afford to Retire When I Want?" You've saved diligently, but is it enough? Will your money last 30+ years? This question keeps you up at night.

2. "When Should I Start CPP and OAS?" Age 60, 65, or 70? Each choice has major implications for lifetime income. How do you decide?

3. "What Should I Do About My Pension?" Commuted value buyout or monthly pension income? This decision is complex and permanent. Get it wrong and you'll regret it forever.

4. "How Do I Generate Retirement Income Without Running Out?" You've been accumulating for 30 years. Now you need to shift to distribution. What's the right withdrawal strategy?

5. "Should I Reduce Investment Risk?" Markets feel scary as retirement approaches. Should you be more conservative? How much?

6. "How Do I Minimize Taxes in Retirement?" You'll still pay taxes in retirement—maybe more than you think. How do you minimize the tax burden and keep more of your money?

WHY THESE TWO LIFE STAGES?

Young Families and Pre-Retirees: Where Expertise Matters Most and yet are ignored by big institutions and big firms unless they have over $750,000 in assets

I've intentionally focused my practice on these two life stages because they're where comprehensive financial planning creates the most significant, measurable value:

For Young Families:

• Foundation-building years—decisions now compound over decades

• Multiple competing priorities requiring strategic prioritization

• Insurance needs are critical but often overlooked

• Early optimization creates hundreds of thousands in additional wealth

For Pre-Retirees:

• Complex, high-stakes decisions with permanent implications

• Pension choices, CPP timing, withdrawal strategies—get these right

• Transition from accumulation to distribution requires expertise