By Sheryl Smolkin

This week our favourite bloggers have been writing about getting ready for retirement.

On Boomer and Echo, Boomer asks Have You Made Your Retirement Plans? — not only saving enough money, but deciding where you plan to live and how you will fill your time.

However, for RetiredSyd, retirement is a already full-time job. She is thrilled to finally be learning to play the piano and improvising retirement as she goes along.

Canadian Finance blogger Tom Drake de-mystifies Locked in Retirement Accounts.

RetireHappy gives you the facts so you can decide whether an annuity is right for you.

And on Brighter Life retiree Dave Dineen realizes he and his wife have 27 bank, investment, credit, and insurance accounts, so it may be time to shut a few down.

Do you follow blogs with terrific ideas for saving money that haven’t been mentioned in our weekly “Best from the blogosphere?”  Send us an email with the information to so*********@sa*********.com and your name will be entered in a quarterly draw for a gift card.

By Sheryl Smolkin

According to weddingbells.ca, the average expected cost of a wedding in Canada excluding the honeymoon is $22,429 and if you include the honeymoon, the bill increases to $27,899.

Here is the average budget breakdown based on anticipated costs:

Venue	$9,255	Limo	$753
Honeymoon	$5,470	Cake	$584
Rings/bands	$2,470	Jewellery	$483
Photographer	$2,206	Hairstylist	$467
Bridal Gown	$1,847	Guest favours	$452
Decor/Florist	$1,343	Bridesmaid’s dresses	$428
DJ/Musicians	$1,247	Stationery	$384

Because weddings frequently end up going over budget, the average actual cost of a wedding is $31,110 in Canada.

Even if you have been dreaming of a fancy, traditional wedding since you could walk, that’s an awful lot of money to spend for one day when you are still paying off student loans or saving for a down payment on your first house.

Not everyone can be as frugal as Kerry K. Taylor (aka Squawkfox) who had only four guests and spent $591.12 in total on her wedding to Carl. But Part 1 and Part 2 of her wedding blogs are very entertaining and contain lots of terrific frugal helpful hints.

Here are a few of my suggestions based in part on a great list of Cheap Wedding Tips and Ideas I found online and coloured by my experience helping my daughter plan her wedding several years ago.

Invitations: Engraved invitations with return cards, envelopes and stamps can be very expensive. You can get beautiful paper and envelopes from a stationery store and print your own invitations using a laser printer for a fraction of the cost. You can also create an electronic invitation and have guests RSVP to an email address or a website. 

Venue & food: Look for a free or low cost venue like a community centre or an outdoor setting like a park or beach for a summer wedding. Sometimes it’s cheaper to get married on a week night or have a morning wedding followed by lunch instead of an evening ceremony.

If you can select your own caterer and friends and family are willing to contribute part of the meal, you will save a bundle. Also, try to find a venue that will allow you to get a liquor licence and buy your own beverages instead of paying per drink or per bottle.

But keep in mind that you may have to rent tables, chairs, dishes and even a tent for an unconventional venue. In addition to servers, you will need people to do setup, strike down and cleanup after the party. You may be more than willing to pay for a “wedding package” offered by a hotel or banquet hall that ensures you don’t have to worry about these logistics on your special day.

Rings/bands: Get simple gold or white gold bands. Think of options like coloured or semi-precious stones rather than diamonds. See if there are any family antiques or heirlooms you can incorporate into the design.

Bridal gown: Before you say “yes to the dress” and spend thousands of dollars at a traditional bridal salon, consider other options. Your mother or older sister’s dress may have great sentimental value and it may be possible to alter the dress to fit. It’s worth checking out stores that sell prom dresses or other evening gowns, particularly if you are getting married in a more casual setting like a beach. If you take a sample size, you may find your dream dress at a seasonal sale at a high-end dress store.

And don’t forget pre-owned wedding dresses available online or from The Brides Project, a charity that raises money for cancer.

Bridesmaid dresses: You have to watch the movie 27 dresses  to fully appreciate how hideous bridesmaid dresses can be and remember how much you hated shelling out for the dress you wore to your second cousin’s wedding. Allowing attendants to choose the same colour attire in styles that suit them makes everyone more comfortable. My daughter’s attendants all wore short black dresses they chose themselves with red shoes.

Flowers and decor: Buy seasonal flowers in bulk at a local market.  Display them attractively with tea lights in glass vases you can purchase from the dollar store. For a Christmas wedding poinsettias and dried branches sprayed white can make very effective centerpieces. I am not “crafty” but for those of you who are, there are lots of ideas on Pinterest.

Wedding cake: We decided to substitute a tiered plate of exotic cupcakes for a more traditional wedding cake. They tasted better and, there were only a few left over by the end of the night. 

Photographer: See if you can find a photographer who will take pictures of the wedding and in return for an hourly rate, give you a CD with all of the pictures. You can select the pictures you want to print and even create your own photo books online or using the services of a local camera store. To augment the professional photos, put disposable cameras on every table and ask your guest take pictures throughout the event.

Weddings are emotional occasions that bring out the best and the worst in people. One of the biggest challenges can be paring down the guest list to stay on budget without alienating someone.

You want your wedding to be perfect, but remember it’s just the first day of the rest of your life. You will be off to a much better start if in the early years of your marriage if you don’t have the additional burden of paying off debts for a wedding you couldn’t really afford.

Have you planned a wedding? Send us an email to so*********@sa*********.com and tell us about how you saved money. Your name will be entered in a quarterly draw for a gift card. And don’t forget that the Saskatchewan Pension Plan offers a flexible way to save affordable amounts for retirement.

If you would like to send us other money saving ideas, here are the themes for the next three weeks:

25-Apr	Taxes	Why declating all of your income can save you money
2-May	Gardening	Cheapest ways to plant a maintenance-free garden
9-May	Mother’s day	Mother’s day gifts for every budget

By Sheryl Smolkin

This week Jon Chevreau, the editor of Moneysense magazine celebrated his 60^th birthday and the release of the U.S. edition of his book Findependence Day. You can listen to a podcast interview I did with Jon last summer.

In a “must read” blog he wrote to mark the occasion, Jon made an important distinction between early retirement and financial independence:

“Financial independence is not the same as retirement,” Chevreau says. “Ideally, it precedes retirement by decades. It means you continue to work because you want to, not because you have to.”

Exploring a similar topic, on Darwin’s Money, the author debunks some myths about extreme early retirement and says, “The problem I have with people declaring that they’ve retired in an ‘extreme’ fashion is that they’re either not really retired, or they’re relying on a spouse, which, well, isn’t really the same thing.”

So based on the discussion in the two posts above, did guest blogger Robert (a financial planner) on Canadian Dream: Free at 45 really retire at age 35, or has he simply achieved financial independence? To find a purpose in “retirement” he has gone back to school with the goal of eventually living and working overseas.

The same question may be asked of accountant “Retired Syd” who retired in her 40s. On Retirement: A full-time job she muses about the best place to live for the next chapter in her life. Because her priority is friends and family, she concludes that living close to the people she loves is more important than any dreams of settling in a more distant locale.

But She Thinks I’m Cheap has already made the leap to London with his wife and in his latest blog you can read about their experience relocating overseas and re-entering the workforce.

Do you follow blogs with terrific ideas for saving money that haven’t been mentioned in our weekly “Best from the blogosphere?”  Send us an email with the information to so*********@sa*********.com and your name will be entered in a quarterly draw for a gift card.

SPP posted a return of 0.60 to the balanced fund (BF) and 0.037 to the short-term fund (STF). The year to date return in the BF is 4.65% and in the STF is 0.110%.

Market index returns for March 2013 were:

Index	Mar 2013 return (%)
S&P/TSX Composite (Canadian equities)	-0.19
S&P 500 (C$) (US equities)	2.53
MSCI EAFE (C$) (Non-north American equities)	-0.37
DEX Universe Bond (Canadian bonds)	0.44
DEX 91 day T-bill	0.07

Click here for a complete list of returns.

By Sheryl Smolkin

It seems like filing income tax returns gets more complicated every year. Most of us will be e-filing this year because the Canada Revenue Agency is no longer sending paper forms to every household. But even if you carefully fill in the blanks on an electronic form, it’s easy to miss important deductions or tax credits that will help you to hold on to more of your hard-earned money.

Here is a list of 10 tax deductions and tax credits to remember when you are filing your tax return.

1. Line 208 – Saskatchewan Pension Plan contributions
   You must have available RRSP room to make an SPP contribution. SPP contributions should be reported on Schedule 7 of your income tax form and claimed on line 208. Both your application and your contribution must be received by SPP before a tax receipt will be issued.SPP contributions will be taken into account in determining RRSP over-contributions. Spousal contributions are permitted and if the contributor has available RRSP room, he or she may contribute and receive a tax deduction for both their personal and their spouse’s account. Spousal attribution rules apply to SPP.
2. Line 214 – Childcare expenses
   The annual childcare expenses you can deduct depend on the age of your child. For example:
   • For a child born in 2006 and later: $7,000
   • For a child born in 2012 or earlier: $10,000
   • For a child born 1996-2005:            $4,000

   What qualifies as a childcare expense and who can make the claim are discussed in detail on the Information Sheet and Form T778.

3. Line 215 – Disability supports deduction
   If you have an impairment in physical or mental functions, you can claim a disability supports deduction if you paid expenses that no one has claimed as medical expenses, and you paid them so you could:
   • Be employed or carry on a business (either alone or as an active partner).
   • Do research or similar work for which you received a grant; or
   • Attend a designated educational institution or a secondary school where you were enrolled in an educational program.

   You cannot claim amounts that were reimbursed by a non-taxable payment such as insurance. Expenses must be claimed in the same year they are paid.

4. Line 301 – Age amount
   You can claim this amount if you were 65 years of age or older on December 31, 2012, and your net income is less than $78,684. If your net income was:
   • $33,884 or less, you can claim $6,720.
   • More than $33,884, but less than $78,684, complete the chart for line 301 on the Federal Worksheet to calculate your claim.

   Don’t forget to also claim the corresponding provincial tax credit.

5. Line 319 –  Interest paid on your student loan
   You may be eligible to claim an amount for the interest paid on your student loan in 2012 or the preceding five years for post-secondary education if you received it under:
   • The Canada Student Loans Act.
   • The Canada Student Financial Assistance Act; or
   • A similar provincial or territorial government law.
6. Line 324 – Tuition, education, and textbook amounts transferred from a child
   The maximum tuition, education, and textbook amount transferred from a child (or from each child), is $5,000 minus the amounts that he or she uses, even if there is still an unclaimed part. Tuition, education, and textbook amounts that the student carried forward from a previous year cannot be transferred. Only one person can claim this transfer from the student. However, it does not have to be the same parent or grandparent that claims the student as a dependant.
7. Line 330 – Medical expenses
   You can claim on line 330 the total eligible medical expenses you or your spouse or common-law partner paid for:
   • Yourself.
   • Your spouse or common-law partner; and
   • Your child or your spouse’s or common-law partner’s child born in 1995 or later.

   The amount you can claim is the lesser of:

   • 3% of your net income; or
   • $2,109.

   To maximize this claim, it should be deducted by the spouse with the lower income.

8. Line 331 – Allowable amount of medical expenses for other dependants
   Claim on line 331 the part of eligible medical expenses you or your spouse or common-law partner paid for the following persons who depended on you for support:
   • Your child or your spouse’s or common-law partner’s child who was born in 1994 or earlier, or grandchild; or
   • Your or your spouse’s or common-law partner’s parent, grandparent, brother, sister, aunt, uncle, niece, or nephew who was a resident of Canada at any time in the year.
9. Line 365 – Children’s fitness amount
   You can claim to a maximum of $500 per child, the fees paid in 2012 relating to the cost of registration or membership for your child or your spouse’s or common-law partner’s child in a prescribed program of physical activity.
10. Line 370 – Children’s arts amount
    You can claim to a maximum of $500 per child the fees paid in 2012 relating to the cost of registration or membership of your child or your spouse’s or common-law partner’s child in a prescribed program of artistic, cultural, recreational, or developmental activity.

Have you filed your taxes already? Send us an email to so*********@sa*********.com and tell us about other valuable tax deductions we may have missed. If your story is posted, your name will be entered in a quarterly draw for a gift card. And remember to put a dollar in the retirement savings jar every time you use one of our money-saving ideas.

If you would like to send us other money saving ideas, here are the themes for the next three weeks:

18-Apr	Wedding	How to beat the high cost of weddings
25-Apr	Taxes	Why you should file your tax return on time
2-May	Gardening	Cheapest ways to plant a maintenance-free garden

By Sheryl Smolkin

“Best from Blogosphere” took a week off due to the Easter break, but our favourite bloggers just kept on writing. Therefore this issue reports on 10 interesting blog posts, rather than the usual five.

Contemplating winters in a warmer climate? Read the key questions Jim Yih on retirehappy says you should ask about retirement in a different country.

Saskatchewan blogger Tim Stubbs tells us on Canadian Dream: Free at 45   how he spent the week before Easter shovelling snow off his roof and away from his foundations to try and avoid a flooded basement.

On Brighter Life, Deanne Gage offers home-staging tips from the pros for those of you selling your house this spring and important information about insurance coverage for single parents with children.

$he Thinks I’m Cheap blogger Andrew explores the touchy subject of money and relationships. His rule #1 is do not discuss money on the first date!

If you are planning a one day or longer shopping trip to the U.S. check out articles on the Canadian Finance Blog about new cross-border shopping exemptions and how to save money on hotel rooms.

Continuing with a shopping theme, on Boomer and Echo, Robb Engen investigates how much you have to spend to make a Costco executive membership worth buying and Gail Vaz-Oxlade says companies marketing to women should cut the cute stuff and take them seriously.

And last but not least, Squawkfox (Kerry K. Taylor) gives detailed instructions on how to make a healthier McDonald’s Egg McMuffin for 65% less. We are NOT surprised that she managed to both cut the calories and cut the cost.

Do you follow blogs with terrific ideas for saving money that haven’t been mentioned in our weekly “Best from the blogosphere?”  Send us an email with the information to so*********@sa*********.com and your name will be entered in a quarterly draw for a gift card.

By Sheryl Smolkin

SOURCE: SHUTTERSTOCK

After renovating an old house and then buying a new house in the suburbs, we think we finally got it right with our current home which is close to the Finch subway station in Toronto.

Over 10 years ago, the builder assembled three large lots with small bungalows, tore them down and built five new two-story detached homes. We got the end unit surrounded by a park. We have an energy efficient furnace, the house is fully wired for Internet and it was a lovely blank, clean canvas to decorate.

I thoroughly enjoy working at home in my cheerful, bright office. When I do have to go downtown for meetings in off peak hours, I walk to the subway in five minutes and I always get a seat.

But whether to buy a new house or a resale is a very personal decision. Here are a few of the things you should consider before making up your mind.

Location:

If you want to live in a built up neighbourhood, close to public transportation you will generally opt for a resale home. Unless you can get an infill house in an old neighbourhood, new homes tend to be in a suburban area which can mean a longer daily commute.

Cost:

In a new development you will typically get more house for your money. But depending where you work, you also have to figure in the cost, wear and tear of a longer commute. Furthermore, resale homes generally already have paved driveways, fences, decks and landscaping which you will have to shell out for on top of the initial purchase price of a new home. Proximity of local schools and other services may also influence your decision.

Layout:

Older homes often have traditional layouts. It may be possible to add another bedroom, an ensuite bathroom, an upgraded kitchen or a main floor family room.  However, renovating can be hard on both your nerves and your wallet.

When you buy a home from the plans, you can select the layout you prefer and in some cases you can even customize. You also get to chose from a broad selection of paint colours, kitchen cabinets, counter tops, carpet and flooring.

Energy efficiency:

Newly constructed homes are typically better insulated and have double or triple glazed windows which will save you money on heating and cooling costs. They also generally come with a high energy furnace and new more efficient appliances.

Maintenance:

Upkeep for an older home can be more expensive because of older appliances, plumbing and electrical systems. You may need a new roof or a new furnace sooner than you think. Old windows and inadequate insulation can drive up heating bills. In contrast, every new home in Saskatchewan is covered by the New Home Warranty Program.

What I’m hoping is that someone will decide to build new, affordable infill bungalows close by so for the next chapter we can have the best of all worlds – a new home on one floor in an established neighbourhood that is also accessible to public transit.

And the icing on the cake would be if our wonderful neighbours keep their promise to buy the house next door.

Have you bought or sold a house lately? Send us an email to so*********@sa*********.com and tell us whether you bought a new or resale house and why. If your story is posted, your name will be entered in a quarterly draw for a gift card. And remember to put a dollar in the retirement savings jar every time you use one of our money-saving ideas.

If you would like to send us other money saving ideas, here are the themes for the next three weeks:

11-Apr	Taxes	10 tax deductions you might miss
18-Apr	Wedding	How to beat the high cost of weddings
25-Apr	Taxes	Why you should file your tax return on time

SPP posted a return of 1.78% to the balanced fund (BF) and 0.028% to the short-term fund (STF). The year to date return in the BF is 4.02% and in the STF is 0.073%.

Market index returns for February 2013 were:

Index	Feb 2013 return (%)
S&P/TSX Composite (Canadian equities)	1.26
S&P 500 (C$) (US equities)	4.32
MSCI EAFE (C$) (Non-north American equities)	1.95
DEX Universe Bond (Canadian bonds)	1.00
DEX 91 day T-bill	0.07

Click here for a complete list of returns.

A comprehensive investment update to the end of the fourth quarter is available on our website at saskpension.com.

By Sheryl Smolkin

On a recent 10 day trip to California I read an 800 page book using the Kobo app on my PlayBook. I agree with journalist and technology expert Marc Saltzman that electronic books have many advantages. For example:

1. I can store hundreds of books on small device.
2. I can buy books 24/7 as long as there is wifi and they are generally cheaper than hard copy.
3. I can download library books and there are no late fees because they automatically expire after a certain date.
4. I can adjust the font style and size, and click on hyperlinks to get definitions of words and other background information.
5. Music and audiobooks are also available on some models.

However, the battery on my tablet only lasted about six hours before it had to be recharged. As a result, I’m looking for a lighter digital reader with a longer battery life to take on future trips to Eastern Europe and the Far East.

So I asked Saltzman for some hints about what I should look for. Here’s what he told me:

Q. Who are the major players in the Canadian eReader market?

A. I would say Kindle, Kobo and Sony.  They each have a line of products ranging from an entry level bare bones eReader up to something more sophisticated with colour and apps that acts a little bit more like a tablet computer. Kindle has the largest library but you have to purchase Kindles from the U.S. and they are the only one of the three that won’t let you borrow books from the public library.

Q. What questions should consumers ask if they are considering an eReader purchase?

A. I first ask people whether they are looking for a straightforward device for reading books or if they want something with colour that will allow them to surf the web, play games or read email. That’s when you go for the higher end eReaders that are more like a tablet computer.

If all you want is to read books, then look for a black and white touch screen wifi eReader that costs between $60 and $120. Once you start adding things like cellular connectivity (only offered by Kindle) then you will pay $200 or more for better screens, larger screens, colour screens and app stores.

Q. How does battery life stack up?

A. The Kindle Paperwhite is the eReader with the longest battery life – about two months on a single charge. The Sony and Kobo last about a month depending on usage. More advanced tablets with backlit screens max out at about 10 hours. They are also heavier.

I prefer my iPad mini with the Kobo and Kindle apps because I have everything I need on it when I travel to meetings. I can leave my computer in the hotel.

Q. What about downloading library books?

A. Both Kobo and Sony let you do that. What is required is a personal computer, some free Adobe software, and your library card. You go to your local library’s website, and if they offer eBooks, you sign on with your library card number and then it will walk you through the software you need.

Then you reserve books in advance like you would at your local library, and when the book is available, you download it to your computer. The next step is to tether your eReader to your PC or Mac with the USB cable in the box, and it copies the book over to the mobile device. On the day it expires you will no longer be able to access  the digital book unless you can renew it in advance.

Q. Do any of the ebook readers allow you to share books with other people on their eReaders?

A. That’s one of the downsides of an eBook. You can’t share them. It’s intangible so  you can’t put it on a bookshelf or give an autographed copy to someone as a gift. In the U.S. Kindle has something called the Kindle Lending Library, but it is not available in Canada.

Q. What’s next, what’s on the horizon for eBooks?

A. I think more and more of them are going to have tablet features. The line is going to blur between an eReader and a tablet. Even entry level eReaders are going to have a lot more capabilities. We’ll see faster wireless connectivity, more storage and more people subscribing to electronic newspapers and magazines. And down the road they are going to be thinner, lighter and even roll-able.

So that’s the skinny on eReaders from one Canada’s top experts. You can see a comparison of prices and features for four different Kobo models here.

Have you purchased an eReader or tablet computer lately? Send us an email to so*********@sa*********.com and tell us what you like and don’t like about your device. If your story is posted, your name will be entered in a quarterly draw for a gift card. And remember to put a dollar in the retirement savings jar every time you use one of our money-saving ideas.

If you would like to send us other money saving ideas, here are the themes for the next three weeks:

04-Apr	Real estate	New or resale house? Pros and cons
11-Apr	Taxes	10 tax deductions you might miss
18-Apr	Wedding	How to beat the high cost of weddings

By Sheryl Smolkin

Our best favourite bloggers continue to explore a number of interesting themes this week.

On Boomer & Echo, we hear from Boomer this week about How Her Retirement Plans Got Derailed – Big Time, and what her options may be to get back on track.

The Blunt Bean Counter is an accountant and this week he presents valuable information on stress testing your finances so you are protected in the event of death or other unforeseeable events.

When you purchase real estate is resale value important to you? Then read what shethinksimcheap has to say about how future transit plans can affect real estate.

Last week we talked about job hunting strategies. When you land a new position, you will be interested in Anne Levy-Ward’s new job survival guide on Brighter Life.

And finally, although you got a new job with a huge salary jump, you may wonder why you don’t seem to be able to save more. Krystal Yee calls it lifestyle inflation and discusses how you can manage it.

Do you follow blogs with terrific ideas for saving money that haven’t been mentioned in our weekly “Best from the blogosphere?”  Send us an email with the information to so*********@sa*********.com and your name will be entered in a quarterly draw for a gift card.