iStockPhoto / Getty Images
Name, age: Sydney, 42
Annual income: $180,000
Debt: $1,257 in student debt, $515,000 mortgage
Savings: $6,000 in savings account, $69,000 in tax-free savings account (TFSA), $236,500 in registered retirement savings plan (RRSP), $280,000 in pension plan
What she does: Business development manager at a financial institution
Where she lives: A mid-size Ontario city
Top financial concern: “Paying for my mortgage. It keeps me up at night, and I’m always trying to find ways to reduce it and pay it off. … I wonder if it was a good investment.”
Sydney’s parents came to Canada as refugees and worked precarious jobs with low pay when she was growing up. “We never really had any stability,” she said. “My parents have always struggled financially.”
But Sydney has made the most of the opportunities her parents were seeking in Canada. She has a commerce degree and a master of business administration and a high-paying job at a financial institution.
She helps her parents with bills and has paid $200,000 toward their mortgage over the years, under an agreement that Sydney will eventually get the house. With so much of her money tied up in their home, she was only able to make a 10-per-cent down payment on her condo, so in addition to her large mortgage, she has mortgage insurance payments as well.
“It was a pretty bad purchase given I’m on a variable mortgage,” she said of the two-bedroom, two-bathroom unit she bought for $602,000 in February, 2022. “I don’t think I could get what I paid for it now.”
Sydney froze some of her eggs in her 30s, and now, at 42, has to decide if she’s going to attempt parenthood as a single mom. She’ll have to cut some expenses to afford in-vitro fertilization, as well as taking parental leave and possibly a lower-paying job that would give her more flexibility.
“IVF is quite costly, and it just depends on how many times I need to do it,” she said, noting that each round costs roughly $15,000. Her work benefits include $20,000 for IVF, but after the first round, she’ll be paying out of pocket.
She’s weighing whether to scale back her mortgage payments to the minimum – less than half of what she currently pays – sell her condo and move in with her parents for a couple of years or get rid of her golf club membership, despite how much she loves it. She spends about $17,000 a year there, including fees, lessons and food, but her $4,000 work wellness account covers some of that.
“I would miss it, it’s my social place,” she said, noting she knows a group of single moms there whom she’s been relying on for advice about how to make it all work.
Sydney feels she probably worries about money more than most people in her privileged position.
“I have no one to rely on,” she said. “Growing up poor made me feel like I never wanted to feel like I didn’t have money.”
Her typical monthly expenses:
Investment and savings: $867
$200 to TFSA. “If I have extra cash I will increase my contributions.”
$667 to RRSP. “I make one lump-sum payment after I receive my bonus in February.”
Servicing debt: $4,103
$103 to student debt. “Lifelong Learning Plan borrowed via my RRSP. Should be paid off by next year.”
$4,000 to mortgage. “Biweekly accelerated payments are $1,595, but I am prepaying an additional $400 biweekly.”
Household and transportation: $1,817
$623 to condo fees. “They are slowly going up each year.”
$64 on property insurance
$417 on property tax
$200 on utilities
$50 on home maintenance
$120 on gas
$106 on car insurance
$42 on car maintenance
$20 on Uber or taxis
$90 on cellphone
$85 on internet
Food and drink: $710
$400 on groceries. “I try to bring my lunch to work every day and buy in bulk at Costco.”
$10 at coffee shops
$250 at restaurants. “I do go out maybe every two weeks with friends for dinner or I might buy my lunch with a co-worker every other week.”
$50 on alcohol. “One or two drinks when I go out.”
Miscellaneous: $5,917
$3,034 to income tax
$150 on entertainment. “Movies, events.”
$70 on streaming services. “Netflix, Crave, Hayu.”
$4 on newspaper subscription
$400 on clothing. “I like really nice clothes. I will figure out all the outfits I want and then buy them all on Black Friday.”
$1,083 on golf membership. “Initiation fee, annual dues, lessons, minimum food and beverage spend, capital levy, green fees.”
$33 on golf clubs
$100 on parents’ bills. “Some of their phone bills and repairs.”
$67 on haircuts. “I colour my hair once a year and get it cut twice a year.”
$30 on cosmetics
$100 on personal services. “Massages, facials, carbon laser peels.”
$50 on vision care
$417 on vacations. “I usually take two big trips a year.”
$25 on donations
$333 on gifts. “Christmas gifts, baby showers, bridal showers, weddings.”
$21 on memberships. “Costco, Amazon Prime, Apple Data.”
Some details may be changed to protect the privacy of the person profiled. We want to thank them for sharing their story. Are you a millennial or Gen Z who would like to participate in a Paycheque Project? Send us an e-mail.
