Business TheReview Wednesday, J anuary 2, 1991 Al2 Year-end review of priorities How did your first year of the *90s go? Did you accomplish all — or even — some of your objectives? Let’s run through a quick check- list of people’s most common financial objectives, and some ideas on how to achieve them. Tick off the ones you have achieved; circle those that need more work. Then save this list to help set objectives for 1991 — call them New Year’s Resolutions if you like. Reduce debt. Cut up your credit cards; cut up one card a month if you can’t bring yourself to do the job in a clean sweep. Close your line of credit. This will limit your spending to the money you actually have in your account. Pay off the most expensive debt first. Then apply that payment to the next most expensive debt, and so on. When the debts are gone, redir- ect that monthly payment to your savings/investment program (although you might)let yourself have perhaps 10-25 per cent of that former snowballed debt pay- ment for spending — as a reward for having wiped away all that red ink). Maximize your RRSP. The reg- istered retirement savings plan is the one tax shelter most Canadians should use, and use to the maxi- mum. Make your contribution now for the 1990 tax year; don’t wait until the March 1 deadline. Try to get a year ahead. Contri- bute early in 1991 for 1991, or at least put in your money on a ‘While you work for a living, you will probably never become fruly wealthy. That achievement is reserved for those who put their money to work for them’ Public wilderness gets area input Forest Minister Claude Rich- mond announced last week that the government will seek public input on the proposed wilderness study areas throughout the prov- ince. The B.C. Forest service has proposed that 59 areas be studied for wilderness area designation. There may be considerable local opposition to some of the propos- als because the designation would take the areas out of active timber production which, in turn, means the loss of jobs. But the forest minister pointed out that the ministry’s mandate included the preservation of wil- derness areas. “We recognize that British Columbians want special areas protected. They want to maintain biological diversity. They want to maintain the wilderness experi- ence,’ Richmond said. Information sessions to be held jointly by the forest service and B.C. Parks throughout the province are planned for early in the new year. monthly basis, from Jan. 1 through Dec. 1, 1991. Or start on March 1 and make your last monthly pay- ment Feb. 1, 1992. Are you married? Is your spouse likely to be in a lower tax bracket than you when the RRSP funds are withdrawn? Then make a contribu- lion to a spousal RRSP. The con- tributor gets the tax deduction and the money eventually comes out in the hands of the lower-income spouse. Note that you must decide how to withdraw your RRSP funds before the end of the year you turn 71, choosing one or more of the three options: take cash, buy an annuity (which is just like a pen- sion) or buy an RRIF (with the registered retirement income fund, you can/must take more control over your funds). Put money to work. While you work for a living, you will proba- bly never become truly wealthy. That achievement is reserved for those who put their money to work for them. The more you invest, the more time you devote to managing your investments and the more exper- tise you develop, the wealthier you can expect to become. The more Tisks you take, the greater your chance of making — and losing — money. Consider the stock market, either through direct involvement or via mutual funds. Look at revenue property — even if it means only renting out part of If you're NEW IN TOWN and don't know which way to turn, ‘call the tTo. You'll be glad you aid. hostesses at: ~ (Sidney & North Saanich) Theresa Thom 656-7746 Claudia Parfitt 656-7898 (Brentwood & Central Saanich) Frances Suddaby 652-7767 Vicky Jackson 652-5689 (Baby Welcome) Wetome Wigan, Fern Gifford 656-8932 § Welcome Wagon Answering Service 479-3385 your home. What about investing in a business? Unless you win the lottery, an investment program is the only way to riches. Do estate planning. That’s a fancy term for having an up-to- date will, possibly a power of attomey, enough life insurance and a plan to keep income tax to a minimum at death. Does your will say what should happen to your assets after you die? Is your executor/executrix the best person to see that your wishes are Carried out? If you have no will, are you prepared to have your assets distributed according to pro- vincial law? Is there enough life insurance to pay off debts and replace a wage- eamer’s income — if somebody is dependent on that income? Reve- nue Canada can still take a bite out of an estate, or force the sale of an asset to pay the income tax bill. A final spousal RRSP, a lump sum death benefit, filing more than one tax return, the way assets are transferred to a surviving spouse — all can help keep down the tax bill. Strike the right balance. Your work, family, friends and live in general can make so many demands it’s tough to cope with them all. Every month — or perhaps even every week or day — write down your priorities. When it comes to your (family’s) finances, aim for the best balance between spending and enjoying now vs. saving so you can spend and enjoy in the future — whether that future is a month or a year from now, or after your retirement. If you have a partner or family, make sure the priority list and balance reflect everybody’s wishes, or at least reflect a com- promise. Mike Grenby is a Vancouver- based columnist and independent personal financial adviser; he will answer your questions as space allows in his column — write to him clo The Review, Box 2070, Sidney, B.C. V8L 3C5. North Saanich houses hit the highest price Prices for houses sold in North Saanich topped the whole region last month, the Victoria Real Estate Board announced last week. With 17 homes selling for a median price of $235,000, North Saanich was the most expensive place to move to among 15 munic- ipalities polled in the Capital Regional District. VREB spokesman Anne St. Dennis said the median sale price of a single family home for the whole district in November was $159,000 — which was up $4,000 from October. Though sales are significantly down over November of 1989, the median price last month was $20,000 higher than for the same month a year ago. Hence, the trend suggests sale prices remain buoyant despite a slump in the number of transac- tions, she said. A total of 14 houses changed hands in Central Saanich last month at a median price of $165,000. One of the cheaper areas in the region to buy a home proved to be Sidney. At a median price of $147,800, up to 11 houses found new Owners in Sidney last month. ___734 BROUGHTON ST. You’re worth a lot more than you think. Call me today to find out how Investors can help you start building your financial future. CALL ERIC HURWOOD 388-4234 ; investors Group Building futures since 1940. _ - Victoria Riding for the Disabled Associ- ation provides therapeutic & recreation- al riding lessons for handicapped peo- ple of all ages, Tuesdays, September to June, Bear Hill Farm on Central Saanich Road. For inform. Call 652-6341 To volunteer - 479-8717 CAPITAL CONSULTANTS LTD. Personal - Corporate INVESTMENT ADVISORS > FINANCIAL PLANNING PAYS = Complete Investors Service Including RRSP’S, RRIF’S Educational Monthly Savings Plans Lee Ann Weigold Financial Planning 384-8844 or 655-4105 Res. Thanks for your patience When we get wind, rain, ice or snow in British Columbia, trees and tree branches can come down. And often they fall on power lines. When power is knocked out, a crew is dispatched as soon as ssible to locate and correct the problem. If a tree is on a power lite the crew must first clear it away. Then they can repair the line and restore power. We work as quickly as possible. We bring in crews from many areas and use contractors extensively. But it still takes too long to restore power if many trees are down, or the trouble is in an isolated area. Hydro's priority is to restore service where outages are affecting the largest numbers of customers, and deal with single outages later. Outages in remote or hard-to-reach areas naturally take longer, but our goal is always to restore service as quickly as possible. ur responsibility is providing power. But property owners can help us enormously by ensuring that trees and tree branches are kept well away from power lines. _ Recent severe weather conditions caused many such interruptions. Thank you. BG hydro Your cooperation and understanding is appreciated.