Personal Finance Reading List #9- B.C Pooled Pension Plan
It’s almost soothing to hear the month “March” come out of my mouth because that only means we are one step closer to the snow taking a hike and the flowers blooming.
All my fans know I have a thing for gardening, beer and tanning so the anticipation builds. The snow is what I’ve come to endure in Canada although I don’t mind the crisp air and the beautiful landscapes.
In fact it gives me some time off from the yard work to focus on other areas of my life and to brag to my family back home about how much snow we have.
We used to dream when we were younger that the snow would fall so we could go out to play in it.
Now I dream that it doesn’t fall so much as I have to go out and shovel it like a maniac similar to the past few days.
On the flip side I’ve worked hard on my gardening skills behind the scenes which I will talk more about in the upcoming week.
I’ve also got a contribution post that I wrote for my mates who run an informative blog at Newlyweds on a Budget, “Food Shopping On A Budget” that I think you should all check out.
BC Pooled Pension Plan
I don’t know if you read anything but it was interesting to learn from the Canadian Press that the B.C government has brought a “Pooled Pension Plans” to the table for 2 thirds of the people with no plans.
This was announced just yesterday by Finance Minister Mike De Jong and I’m guessing it’s a good thing for the people who don’t have a works pension plan especially those that are self-employed.
I suppose it’s one of the downfalls of being self-employed as you don’t get the perks of a pension plan at work like others might. Looking out for yourself becomes even more challenging.
I’m still learning plenty about Canada and like anywhere else everyone has their own opinion on what the good, bad and the ugly is when it comes to investing in our future.
Something I’ve always thought, even in my early years is that we can’t rely on what the government is going to give us when we retire and believe that it’s going to be enough.
Sometimes I think we are in the dark and turning a blind eye to the message the government is sending and that is we better get prepared for our retirement because no one else is going to look after us. At least that’s the message I’m hearing, I don’t know about anyone else.
In the UK I also have a pension that has being growing year after year which I participated in where my employer matched up to 11% of what I contributed.
Although I did contribute from the time I was allowed I’m happy I did because it’s something that I can look back on and say, it was a smart move, at least for me.
I remember my mates who did not contribute to the plan because they said they couldn’t afford it, yet they would be the first ones down to the pub as soon as pay-day came around. I guess it all boils down to priorities and what people value in the present and if they even care or want to care about the future. There’s nothing wrong with a little balance and beer as along as all my bases are covered.
Just to show how frugal I am, wouldn’t you know my acquired taste for Canadian Beer tops the Dirty Dozen Cheap Beers In Canada and fits nicely with my allowance.
The last thing I want to see happen is I get to the point where we retire and find out we didn’t invest enough even if only in a Tax Free Savings Account to weather the storm we may be in for. I sure as heck don’t want to get near the end of my journey to find the pot empty at the end of the rainbow.
Apparently with this pooled pension plan the employers don’t have to participate with a plan to match employees, all they would have to do is set it up.
They say the plan is managed by outside licensed financial institutions and for those that have no other options such as the defined benefit plans or a defined contribution pension plan it may be something to look into.
I have a pension at my place of employment but the reality is that I’m new to Canada so I have to step it up a notch when it comes to making sure I’m saving enough for when the day comes I want to pack it in.
It would be nice to have some sort of passive income coming in like my parents who have homes paid for and rented and the money is just their “spending money” although they travel quite often.
Even though I don’t know if early retirement will be in the cards for me what I do know is that I’m going to make sure I plan now when I’m young instead of hoping and praying that I’ll make it through.
Questions:
What do you think of the new BC Pooled Pension Plan Act?
Should all the provinces adopt this act?
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