There’s a point in life where it’s no longer possible to shrug off retirement planning as something you can look after in the distant future.
Millennials have reached that stage. The oldest members of this generation are 42 years old – jump ahead 20-plus years and they’ll be starting to enter retirement. How are they feeling about this? To find out, I’m asking older millennials to fill out the questionnaire below.
The millennial generation came to prominence back in the 2000s. Back then, the struggle for traction in the work force defined these young adults in a financial sense. Expensive housing was also part of the story then, as it is now.
Millennials still have years – decades, in fact – to prepare for retirement. But the habits and attitudes they have today will have a big influence on how things turn out. That’s where the survey comes in. Twenty-plus years ahead of retirement, how well positioned are millennials?
The millennial generation was born between 1981 and 1996. This anonymous survey is aimed at older millennials who will this year turn 35 to 42, a stage when retirement starts becoming more of a consideration than in younger years.
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Rob’s personal finance reading list
Cashback vs. travel rewards
Travel rewards are flashier, but cashback is a very practical way to get value out of credit card reward programs. Here’s a rundown on how cashback works, with pros and cons compared with travel rewards.
Top tips for saving money on cruises
A veteran of 110 cruises in the past few decades offers his best ideas on how to save money in planning and then enjoying a cruise. Some interesting thoughts on booking a cabin.
Burning down the RRIF
A question I get a lot from retirees and people looking just ahead to retirement is whether it makes sense to make larger than required withdrawals from RRSPs and RRIFs early on. Financial planners offer their views here.
Tax alert for high earners
Proposed changes to the alternative minimum tax are designed to ensure high earners pay at least a minimum level of tax. Here are details on the changes, including a look at who they will affect. The changes are expected to generate an estimated $2.6-billion.
We want to hear from you
Is a $100,000 a year enough for a comfortable living any more? To buy a home, travel, maybe have kids, save for retirement? Globe reporter Erica Alini is looking to interview Canadians earning around $100,000 from all over the country for a feature about the cost of living. Please reach out to Erica via e-mail: ealini@globeandmail.com
Reader Comment
In a newsletter last week, I answered a question from someone seeking some input on how to invest $200,000 for her heirs. A reader replied with this useful comment: “Good reply to person with $200,000 to invest to leave to heirs. I would only add the question: Would [the heirs] be better off having all or some of the money now? Kids? Education? TFSAs?”
Tools, Explainers, Guides and Charts
Let a 37-year-old help you plan your retirement? Kyle Prevost, a teacher and long-time personal finance writer and blogger, is 37 and financially independent. His latest project is an online course called Worry-Free Retirement that costs $499. The interactive course has been praised by financial planner Jason Heath and personal finance expert Ellen Roseman for offering clear, common sense guidance.
The Money-Free Zone
I got a shout-out recently from Wordsmith.org for my use of the word ‘anachronistic’ in a column about on-demand pay.
On social media
About those supposed “secrets of the wealthy” …
In case you missed these Globe and Mail personal finance-related stories
– Mortgage renewing soon? Here are four strategies to reduce the financial pain
– Seven tax-saving ideas to consider before year-end
– How to navigate the financial repercussions of moving kids to private school
More Rob Carrick and money coverage
Subscribe to Stress Test on Apple podcasts or Spotify. For more money stories, follow me on Instagram and Twitter, and join the discussion on my Facebook page. Millennial readers, join our Gen Y Money Facebook group.
Even more coverage from Rob Carrick:
- 🎧 Catch up on Stress Test: Why millennials and Gen Z are Alberta-bound for a more affordable life • Rising interest rates brought pain for new homeowners – and opportunity for house hunters • Why more Canadians are choosing to be child-free or delay parenthood • Love in the time of inflation: How to manage rising costs when dating • You’re not bad at money – you’re suffering from money shame • Retirement might look different for Gen Z and millennials. Here’s how to plan for it • Recession-beating tips for the job market, housing, investing and the cost of life • Is the middle class dead for millennials and Gen Z?
- ✔️ The housing file: A house isn't special. Get your head straight about the reality of home ownership • The good, the sad and the unaffordable: Saving for a home downpayment in Canada's big cities • Property taxes are popping in some cities – how worried should you be about other tax hikes? • Our other real-estate problem – people have too much wealth tied up in houses • Borrowers and savers, here's how to time the eventual rollback of interest rates
- 📈 Investing: Canada's top digital broker is TD Direct Investing, with an assist from the TD Easy Trade app • 2023 Globe and Mail ETF buyer's guide part one: Canadian equity ETFs • For the ultimate in cheap investing, check out the Freedom .08 ETF Portfolio • Yes, there is risk in Canadian bank deposits for the unwary and complacent • CDIC covers bank deposits, but who protects your investments if your broker goes bust? • Answers to your questions about the low-risk ETF paying almost 5% • Happy fifth birthday to one of the all-time best investing products for everyday people • An investing strategy that wins cleanly over the long term by outperforming in bad years like 2022
- 💰 Your money: Mortgage holders, savers and GIC investors, it’s time to change your thinking on interest rates • How much debt is each generation of Canadians carrying, and how do you compare? • For the sake of their financial futures, young people should leave Toronto and Vancouver • This practical new spin on a savings account might just peel you away from your big bank • Rental fraud grows amid rise in fake, falsified tenant applications • Are Canadians worse off financially now than in the 1980s? • From groceries to auto loans, here’s how much more it costs to live right now • When saving for retirement, should you change your asset mix over the course of your career? • Do retirement income needs always rise alongside inflation? Not necessarily • When the bank suggests you lock in your variable rate mortgage, it has an angle
