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Entering the CF and YOUR Money....

Question re: the pay scales: are the figures on there net or gross income?

Also, what percent is taken off for tax/CPP, that kind of thing.

If these questions sound a bit dense, remember, I'm 17 hopefully starting BMQ in the fall, so I don't have much experience with this kind of thing.

Cheers,

 
schutz said:
Find a good advisor in your area and work with them. Don't go off of other peoples' advice out there, because are they financially independent? I think not.

Isn't this a just a tad contradictory?  Or are financial advisors not "other people"?

Also, if a financial advisor really knows all, then why aren't they financially independent, and hence, retired?

Just a little food for thought.  I know financial advisors can be very helpful, but I believe all advice should be taken with a grain of salt.  I used to go to an independent advisor myself, until I discovered that they were making a commission off of every transaction, and, as a result, wanted me to switch up my portfolio every 5-6 months!

 
LongRange said:
Question re: the pay scales: are the figures on there net or gross income?

They are gross figures of monthly income for 1 month.
 
There are some advisors who engage in some dodgy ethical practices (the industry term is "churning"), but for the most part we aren't like that (incidentally, I'm a Certified Financial Planner myself).  I used to be skeptical of why anyone would deal with a commissioned advisor, but any time you go to hire a planner, ask how they get paid.  If they're not up front about their compensation, then don't do business with them.  Most CFPs will have you sign a letter of engagement that explains all of this.  Don't be afraid of commissioned planners, either.    Overall, you're paying for the service you get from them over time one way or another.

The firm I'm with rebates commissions we get if we switch a mutual fund investment that has deferred sales charges, for example.  If we made a decision we believe needs to be changed, we don't see that as a profit opportunity.  Some in the business don't do this, but I consider such a practice wholly unethical (and it could be grounds for disciplinary action if the advisor is a CFP licensee!)

In the end, financial planning is a business, the planner/advisor is looking to earn a living.  What you need to do in selecting one is ask questions - ask about what service they expect.  Ask for referrals.  Ask about what services they can provide, what they can't, and if they have referral agreements to help ensure all your bases are covered.  If you're just starting out, a bank isn't a bad place to go - because generally you can set up a simple savings plan, and the advisors are generally salaried - the advantage to you there is that if you don't have a lot to invest, a lot of advisors (unless they are charging you a fee) won't give you a lot of time - time is money, and they haven't got a lot to make on the deal.  A bank can help you get started and build up some equity, which then you can take to an independent advisor who can start to offer you more customized solutions.

If I were in the position of just being out of school, newly in the Forces and making money on a stable basis for the first time, that's what I'd do, knowing what I do.

I'm interested to see how good the SISIP FP's are, if they know their stuff well, I can't comment on them from any form of personal experience, though.

Garbageman said:
Isn't this a just a tad contradictory?   Or are financial advisors not "other people"?

Also, if a financial advisor really knows all, then why aren't they financially independent, and hence, retired?

Just a little food for thought.   I know financial advisors can be very helpful, but I believe all advice should be taken with a grain of salt.   I used to go to an independent advisor myself, until I discovered that they were making a commission off of every transaction, and, as a result, wanted me to switch up my portfolio every 5-6 months!
 
SISIP, like any other financial services company, has it's own proprietary products. They are from AIG - which just applied for bankruptcy protection. SISIP will not help you invest anywhere else.

Maybe someone else knows what happens to the investors now?? I believe deposits are covered, but not interest.

Avoid SISIP if you can, an independent financial advisor will serve you much better, even if they do charge nearly what a lawyer does!
 
is there a min age requirement for RRSP? I am 17 but would like to contribute as soon as I can  :P
 
No minimum age, the sooner you start, generally speaking, the better.

 
is there a min age requirement for RRSP? I am 17 but would like to contribute as soon as I can 

No minimum age for starting an RRSP however you must have filed income tax in previous years in order to generate contribution room.  Contribution room is based on your earned income for the previous year (ie RRSP deduction for 2005 is based on earned income in 2004).  You will note that financial planners encourage young people to file an income tax return even if they don't make much money as this provides contribtution room that can be carried forward for future use.

If you do contribute to an RRSP at a young age, you will want to be careful about claiming it as a deduction.  Generally speaking, young people (less than 18) do not make a lot of money during the year and they pay little if any tax.  You are allowed to carry forward RRSP deductions for future use and you will probably want to do this if you know that you are going to be making more money in the future.

As an example, I was deployed for much of 2004 and approximatley 5 months of my salary was tax free.  Although I made a large RRSP contribution for 2004, I carried about 30 per cent of it forward to 2005 when my taxable income will be much higher (as I will only have approximately 6 weeks of tax free income).  Depending on how much I contribute to RRSPs in 2005, I may wish to further carry over some my RRSP deduction to 2006 or later.

Cheers,
 
being the age that i am (19) this is some advice for us "youngn's" haha if your working part-time and still in highschool like what i was doing, your yearly income will probably float just undr $10,000. I here that RRSP'S are based on your LAST YEARS income tax?? we'll heres what i did haha just before i started my job i had told my employer to deduct an extra 75$ per pay, when i received my t-4 this year and after i did my taxes i got back over 1700$ hahaha so would that "benifit contribution purposes" for an rrsp?

and as a new recruit (reg force) starting bmq up in fall that $600, is that what you make monthly? or weekly??

im looking to start up an investment savings account, theres no fees, and has an interest rate of 2.5% i'm hoping to live on base too and pretty much bank my income, so at approx. $250/month for an investment savings account @ 2.5% is that a good deal?

Also i here GIC's, RRSP's, RSP's, Canadian Savings Bonds (or Premium bonds) <--- Actually i havn't heard to many people mentions Canadian Premium Savings Bonds? Whats the hurt of trying to invest in all of them??
 
doing, your yearly income will probably float just undr $10,000. I here that RRSP'S are based on your LAST YEARS income tax?? we'll heres what i did haha just before i started my job i had told my employer to deduct an extra 75$ per pay, when i received my t-4 this year and after i did my taxes i got back over 1700$ hahaha so would that "benifit contribution purposes" for an rrsp?

Mike, two points on this statement: First RRSP contribution room is earned from your gross earning, hence, whether or not you have your employer save $75 a month or not it doesn't effect your RRSP contribution room (18% of your total gross income - before income tax, EI, CPP, etc).  Secondly, unless you are a very poor saver, I don't think your strategy is effective as you are in essence providing the government with a tax free loan and you are missing out on any interest or growth it may make.

im looking to start up an investment savings account, theres no fees, and has an interest rate of 2.5% i'm hoping to live on base too and pretty much bank my income, so at approx. $250/month for an investment savings account @ 2.5% is that a good deal?

Most planners recommend ING Direct or President's choice financial for high yield savings accounts.
 
I was watching the news and the GIC's aren't doing very well... some of the shorter terms were below the inflation rate.
 
That is true, but you gets what you pays for!  Lower risk means lower return, conversely higher risk means potentially higher returns.  I would wait until interest rates go up before buying into GICs.  Having said that, it depends on what you want to use that money for in the short or long term.   
 
heh I'm 19 and i took my dads advice he said "once you get your first tax return, open an RRSP" that was when i was thirteen Ive dropped 200$/month since then thats $14,400 +interest I'm glad Ive already saved so much money as it will come in handy since when i join the army i have a feeling my income is going to be less then what i make now, but you don't even need an RRSP, i also have a savings account with a withdrawl hold or something like that i forget the term the bank used, you can just drop a little bit of money a week in or even a large sum every month. the point is, saving is saving and every little bit helps out in the long run.
 
I was wondering as a new recruit joining the armed forces, about how much money do you get paid a month at Basic in St. Jeans Quebec for the 10 weeks? I'm just trying to get an idea seeing as have got a couple of answers and was wondering which one was correct. Also how much does the CF charge you when your at basic? (Room and board).  ???
 
Cyr said:
I was wondering as a new recruit joining the armed forces, about how much money do you get paid a month at Basic in St. Jeans Quebec for the 10 weeks? I'm just trying to get an idea seeing as have got a couple of answers and was wondering which one was correct. Also how much does the CF charge you when your at basic? (Room and board).  ???
I just finished my IAP at St-Jean so I could probably help you out althought officers' pay and deductions differ somewhat. My base pay was $1356/month, rations came out to $365 and single quarters to $92. With other basic deductions my net came out to about $766/month, more when I got field pay. I'm not sure of basic recruit pay but your quarters may be cheaper since you don't get individual rooms like the officers.
 
  Don't you mean 1356$ per pay?....Instead of per month?
    An NCM recruit makes 2421$ a month in basic.
Cheers
Steve
 
CallOfDuty said:
  Don't you mean 1356$ per pay?....Instead of per month?
    An NCM recruit makes 2421$ a month in basic.
Cheers
Steve
I wish, it's $1356/month. I'm ROTP so that probably explains my low pay, I know UTPNCM OCdts make $2400/month or so.
 
It is not fair to compare OCdt ROTP and NCM Basic pay.  An OCdt is also having his education/tuition and books paid for during the school year.
 
Has anyone here dealt with Edward Jones and mutual funds?

Thanks!
 
I've dealt with mutual funds a fair bit (finance is something of a hobby of mine), but not Edward Jones.

Planes
 
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