Voc reDabebetty ee nerient TheReview Wednesday, January 10,1990 — B9 Will you be able to retire with comfort? “Everybody needs a retirement plan even if they don’t plan to retire.” That quote comes from Robert - Atchley, a specialist in aging, in a cover feature in Fortune magazine entitled, Will You Be Able to Retire? Many people plan to work at least part-time in retirement, or perhaps don’t plan to retire at all. But what happens if your health fails? Or if you change your mind — and don’t have enough money to retire? Depending on how good a pen- sion plan you have, you should probably be saving/investing 10 to 20 per cent of your (family’s) pre-tax income to maintain your standard of living after you retire. If you hope to retire early, the required savings rate could well be closer to 30 per cent. Yet in the lead article of the current issue of Taxation Today, editor Evelyn Jacks notes that more than half of all Canadian workers have no RRSP or work- related pension plan. What can you do to make sure you have enough money so you can at least choose whether you want to retire? Jacks suggests: « Contribute to a registered pen- sion plan or RRSP as early as you can. e Shelter income from taxes wherever possible. e Minimize debt charges. e Acquire assets, especially a home if you can. ° Look after your health so you sary. can be productive longer if neces- * Be as productive as possible to contribute to economic growth. In her newsletter, Jacks provides a one-page summary of the changes being introduced by pen- sion and RRSP reform. And she also gives a brief description of 40 changes on the 1989 tax returm — a far more detailed breakdown than Revenue Canada has in its 1989 Tax Guide. Jack’s list provides an excellent reference to help make sure you don’t miss out on any deductions or credits — or forget to declare income and perhaps end up paying 15 per cent interest on what you owe. You can get a free copy of the eight-page newsletter by writing to Taxation Today, 1345 Pembina Highway, Suite 205, Winnipeg, Manitoba R3T 2B6. (Sorry, there’s no toll-free num- ber with this offer. We had too many readers running into busy signals on overloaded phone lines when they responded to the offer of a different tax newsletter a couple of months ago.) Taxation Today is published 10 times a year. A regular subscrip-. tion is $89 but Jacks is offering the student rate of $69 to those who write for a free copy of the current issue. Jacks wams if you pay quarterly tax installments, you will have to make payment by the 15th of next March, June, September and December. Until now, you had ~ Tree-in success # The first annual Tree-in convinced a lot of Greater Victoria people to buy live Christmas trees for later re-planting. One of the stores helping make it happen was Sidney’s Thrifty Foods. Now, hordes of people are scrambling to adopt the trees. Other trees are being planted at various locations — along a creek in Cowichan Valley, in Copely Park. For information call, yes, the Tree-In Phone Line, 385-3315. *K & HENRY AVENUE INDUSTRIAL PARK 2064 HENRY AVE. | FOR SALE or LEASE - 9 UNITS LEFT TO CHOOSE FROM =. READY TO MOVE INTO - SIZES FROM 1500 SF - OFFICES, PARKING, HEATED - PURCHASE, LEASE or INVEST INDUSTRIAL - COMMERCIAL USES LYLE KAHL — 655-1585 REMAX OF VICTORIA - 386-5333 RES. 478-5648 until the end of those months. If you should have been paying quarterly but haven’t, you will be hit with an interest charge which jumped to 15 per cent for the last three months of 1989. You are supposed to pay quar- terly if you find you owe federal © tax of $1,000 or more in the current tax year and the immedi- ately preceding tax year — and if tax is not withheld from at least three-quarters of your net income. Jacks suggest you ask your local tax office for Form T7B Install- ment Guide for Individuals if you think you might have to pay quar- terly, especially if you receive alimony, maintenance or separa- tion payments; if you are self- employed with net business income; if you are an investor with large interest or dividend earnings; or if you are a farmer or fisherman. Since Ottawa boosted the inter- est On unpaid taxes by two percent, not paying quarterly when you should has become rather expen- sive. It doesn’t make sense to save money that might ear seven per -cent after tax (if you are lucky) when you are being charged at least double that on taxes you owe. - Mike Grenby is a Vancouver-based independent financial adviser; he will answer your questions as space allows in his column. Write to him clo The Review, 9781 2nd St., Sidney, B.C., VSL 3895. xo Ja by = pape SareKeme seman’ peak bw lke ONS SINFONIA SSRN ; , on o- Sey Pty ey tone TERM In Sidney DEPOSITS . Nobody K MeSH 30 DAYS 11.3% \ 2475A BEACON AVE. RBC Dominion Securities Pemberton. fI(=-\; ieee Servicing the Peninsula. 4.009 FULL TIME/FULL SERVICE 5 YEAR 11.00% 655-1303 RATES SUBJECT . ~ TO CHANGE . @ O CURRENT RATES SUBJECT TO CHANGE One Year. Two Years Three Years Four Years Five Years 11.375 11.00 11.00 11.00 11.00% 4% VICTORIA ASSET MANAGEMENT GROUP INC. IS PLEASED TO ANNOUNCE THAT GARY L. SHILLINGTON IS OPENING AN OFFICE AT 2442 BEACON AVENUE SIDNEY, B.C. GARY HAS HELPED THOUSANDS OF GREATER VICTORIANS WITH THEIR INVESTMENT DECISIONS OVER THE YEARS. LET GARY SHOP THE MARKET TO FIND THE INVESTMENT JUST RIGHT FOR YOU. PLEASE CALL GARY. {:) TO ARRANGE FOR A FREE CONSULTATION. 656-8801 z | Melanie is in Grade 8 at Mt. Melanie Talson has been selected as the Review Carrier of the Week. 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