Business

Here’s some food for thought: If
you brown bag it to work instead
of buying your lunch you could
easily end up half a million dollars
richer.

The other day, I didn’t pack a
lunch when I went to my office.
Instead, I splurged (for me) on a
takeout deli meal of a smoked
turkey sandwich, Waldorf salad,
litre of fresh squeezed orange juice
(1 rationalized the juice could
double as dessert) and GST. The
total came to $11.67.

As I sat enjoying my feast, I still
felt a little shocked by what I had

your local tax office giving your
employer permission to withhold
less tax at source. Then, for exam-

ple, increase your mortgage pay-

ment by $137 a month — the
E

In the meantime, of course, your
$4,000 annual RRSP contribution
(camming an average 10 per cent a
year over 25 years) will grow to
$424,728.

In other words, brown-bagging it
could easily produce a most
respectable half-million-dollar
payoff. Or, to be negative, eating

your lunch out every day over a

25-year period could cost you half
a million dollars — not simply the
$4,000 a year you spend but what
that money could have produced
for you. That’s called the opportu-
nity cost.

TheReview

Imagine how much money canbe with brown-bag lunch

and investing, you can probably

well afford to buy your lunch.
All I’m suggesting here is that if

you want — or need — to save

Wednesday, April 8, 1992

— A200 %

money, look at some of those
habitual, everyday expenses to see
which ones might be trimmed or-
eliminated.

Moore, Roberts & Co.

CHARTERED ACCOUNTANTS

Accounting & Auditing Services -
Business & Computer Consulting
Income Tax Preparation & Planning

REVENUE CANADA
AUTHORIZED E FILE PREPARER

Just spent. I compared the bill with Of course, your feelings are just >
the hidden but certainly sharply as important as your finances. You
lower cost of my usual brown bag additional amount of take-home might hate sandwich (or other
with (for example) a sandwich, pay you should find on your pay- home-made) lunches. Perhaps eat-
Taw veggies, perhaps a thermos of cheque. ing lunch out is an important part
my wife Mandy’s homemade soup By throwing $1,605 a month at of your work. The convenience
and a container of juice. the 25-year 10.5 per-cent and variety of eating out-might be
Let's say you regularly buy your $100,000 mortgage you just took ae meee ee over the years
lunch when you go to work. You out, you will own your home free than the other things you mi ht :
spend $5 to $10 S day, five daysa and ee in 16 ee instead of 25 Spend your money Bronce a Phone: 656-5547 Fax: 656-2383
week, perhaps 47 working weeks a years. That will save you an amaz- _ And if you have enough money #200-2377 Bevan Ave., Sidney V8L 4M9
year (to allow for annual and ing $74,000 in interest. for your other spending, saving
Statutory holidays). That means : : :
you spend $1,175 to $2,350 a year : : :
ai THgse lunches. : Who’s taking Advantage
In reality, you probably would
get tired of the deli or lunch wagon of Oot oat = se cloles yer
every day, and so would eat some At Investors, I'll help you save tax fe :
of hose lunches in an dollars and ‘start Saving toward a
eee yeyour Job, Tea more comfortable financial future.
1ons and taste, you could easily
se $2,000 oS) ee Call: poe ae «<
ow, you can look at $4, in be QeE Os | J
different ways. 652-8202 (Res.)
For example, if you decide to investors
brown bag it for the next year, you Group
could have up to $4,000 extra in ane
your savings account. What would
you do with that money? oS SNe, Biss = Vv Ek
dust sage you won $4,000 in — . ~ Call Your
a lottery. You might buy a home i
acne: ae or nae new FAMI LY MATTERS RavenotES:
furniture. Or take a special holiday. (written by Richard Flader and Terry Greene, partners of Representative
Or increase your contribution to an Flader & Greene, Chartered Accountants, Sidney, B.C.) Today!
a The February 25, 1992 Federal Budget introduced CORRIE
Not a bad brown bag payoff. some interesting changes related to Family Allowances, MOROZOFF jes* em
You can leverage the results of Common Law Spouses and Child Care deductions. | 656-1151 : :
your savings. If you contribute the i e4/ The e |
$4,000 to RRSP each year, you FAMILY ALLOWANCES Review z rE
could then use your (for example) The traditional Family Allowance and the existing :
$1,650 tax savings to pay down the ” Child Tax Credit will be replaced by the new Child Tax = @
MOS SAE: Benefit effective January 1, 1993. The new benefit will STRAIGHT TALK jf :
dake Lous sien furtiier Instead be paid monthly to families with total income less than ‘ABOUT ke
a ee ee $75,000 and will not be taxable. The basic annual YOUR MONEY.
h Mo benefit will be $1,020 per child with an additional $75 for i
ave $333 automatically put into : : h
your RRSP each month. the third and each subsequent child, although the
Assuming your RRSP contribu- actual benefit received will be based on the level of
tion will create or increase a-tax family income. Low-income families with children under
refund, complete the form from seven will be eligible for additional supplements if they (Rates Subject to Change without Notice)
i are not claiming child care deductions. RON GURNEY FINANCIAL SERVICES LTD.
FINANCIAL CONSULTANTS - LIFE UNDERWRITERS
COMMON LAW SPOUSES SUITE 10A — 9843 2nd St., SIDNEY (In Marina Court) 656-9393
Starting in 1993 common law spouses will be treated
in the same way for tax purposes as married spouses. |
As a result of this budget change, common law couples .
will be required to combine their incomes to determine [@
eligibility for the GST credit and the new Child Tax |
Benefit. Common law spouses will no longer be able to
claim the equivalent-to-married credit for dependent
| children. They will also be subject to the existing .
attribution rules for married spouses which attribute [
F) income and capital gains to an individual who has f
: = transferred or loaned property to a spouse.
a Some common law spouses will benefit from now
ee SS being eligible for the married tax credit and for the
% spousal roll overs which provide for the tax-deferred
30 TO 5 ON transfer of property on the death of one spouse. =e
|) Common law partners will also be able to contribute to a fa se a
ALL GOLD and SILVER spousal RRSP
JEWELLERY,
WATCHES CHILD CARE DEDUCTIONS ee
AND CLOCKS! Effective for 1993, the maximum annual a “ol :
includi © deductible for child care expenses for each child has
= vor speial orders. = Be oe increased by $1,000. This means that child care i) CHARTERED ACCOUNTANTS
SI ee ) expenses will be aedna De up i a rea $5000 : ie Plennee eben
TPT EC. IPITIFNIETY - ild under the age of seven an ; ae
Faces jewellers ons is pslWeen the ages of seven and Electronic Filing with Revenue Canada +
_ 2003 BEACON AVENUE fourteen. | 9768 THIRD STREET,SIDNEY 656-3997 —
SIDNEY. - 655-1515 : oem 2 ee iets a
_ ee ee