Don't Panic: Planning Offers Financial Advice

Like any other investment professional, Taivi Tayler is watching the financial markets bounce around through 2020.

In a recent CIBC survey, four out of 10 respondents were concerned about the COVID-19 pandemic’s effect on their retirement savings. Almost a quarter were unable to contribute to their nest egg since the pandemic began.

The markets normally fall down in the fall, Tayler said, but the presidential election added a bit of a boost this year.

Other news headlines will also prompt the markets to fluctuate.

“Every whiff of a vaccine coming in, the markets are going to run (up). Every failure of a vaccine, the markets are going to fall. We have to be cognizant it’s just overreaction one way or another.”

For retirees wondering what to make of the ups and downs, Tayler said they shouldn’t panic.

Whatever is bouncing around up and down in the market should not be influencing their day-to-day decisions. They should have planned for this already,” she said. “You should have a strategic plan. Retirees still love GICs. What little they earn is going to be taxed away if it’s not in a Tax Free Savings Account.”

She recommends a Tax Free Savings Account for many, including those who don’t have a lot of disposable income.

And with many residents working from home right now, Tayler said now is the perfect opportunity to get caught up on loan payments.

“You’re not going out on a Starbucks run, you’re not spending as much on gas,” she said.

For people who are unemployed, or receiving the Canada Emergency Response Benefit or one of its replacement recovery benefits, Tayler wants them to be ready for tax time.

“There could be some nasty surprises for people who are on claim going into April of next year,” she said, noting it wasn’t taxed before it was paid out.

“People are going to be upset; they’re going to be mad they weren’t told. In financial circles, we all know what’s going to happen.”