Unconventional Wisdom

The Smith Manoeuvre is an efficient strategy using equity in your home to invest for your future, without using your cash flow.

It converts your mortgage over time into a tax-deductible investment credit line.

Most Canadians are searching for a feeling of financial security, but all the bills and life expenses mean they never build up enough of a nest egg to be secure.

The Smith Manoeuvre is a strategy that can help you build your nest egg and make your retirement plan work.

As Canada's Smith Manoeuvre expert, check out this podcast episode with an overview of how it works.

Top 10 Money Myths That Block Your Financial Freedom.

This is one of my favourite topics.

Most ideas that people believe about money are just not true or not optimal.

I named my podcast and blog Unconventional Wisdom because my financial advice is about all the things I've learned over the years from my experience writing thousands of financial plans and reading hundreds of books.

Mark Twain said: "It ain't what you don't know that gets you into trouble. It's what you know for sure that just ain't so."

In this week's podcast episode I go in-depth on each money myth and debunk them with facts about what works and what doesn't to create wealth in your life.

Listen to find out:

• The Top 10 Money Myths.
• Myth # 1: Wealthy people have nice cars, homes and vacations.
• Myth # 2: The economy helps you predict the stock market.
• Myth # 3: Risk is your investments going down.
• Myth # 4: Your risk tolerance is part of who you are.
• Myth # 5: You are "smart money".
• Myth # 6: Asset allocation is effective investing.
• Myth # 7: You can reduce risk/volatility, without reducing returns.
• Myth # 8: Stock market returns are random.
• Myth # 9: Crypto or Day Trading is effective investing.
• Myth # 10: Real estate returns are as high as stocks.

Rental property vs. the stock market. What's the best investment?

In my latest podcast episode we're going to look at this from the eyes of a growth investor.

You'll get a head-to-head comparison with data going back decades.

We will discuss topics you won't see anywhere else, including how to save tax on a rental & the effect of leverage on return.

Spoiler alert. Effect of leverage on rate of return is huge!

And you'll get my rental property rule of thumb!

Listen to the episode to find out:

• How does growth of real estate compare with the stock market?
• What are the sources of rental property returns?
• What is the normal return for each source of returns for rentals?
• How does the total return on rentals compare with the stock market?
• What are the best and worst types of rental properties?
• How do you minimize tax on rental properties?
• Should you deduct depreciation (CCA) on your rental?
• How do you record the sale of your rental on your tax return?
• How does the size of the mortgage affect the return on your rental?
• How do different amounts of leverage affect the returns of rentals vs. stocks?
• What is Ed's Rental Property Rule of Thumb?
• What is Ed's general advice on owning rental properties?

Should you borrow to invest?

With interest rising 4.5% recently, does it still make sense?

Spoiled with low interest rates so low for many years, leverage seemed so obvious with a credit line at 3% and tax-deductible, while getting the growth of the stock market.

As a fee-for-service financial planner, and an expert on the Smith Manoeuvre strategy and effective investing, my latest podcast episode will give you my insight.

You'll learn:

• How to borrow to invest ("leverage") effectively.
• What happened with leverage in past periods of high interest rates?
• How high can interest rates go & borrowing to invest is still beneficial?
• Rule of thumb for breakeven point of borrowing to invest.
• What is the mindset you need to borrow to invest effectively?
• What is the best tax deduction after RRSP for high income people?

What's new for your 2022 tax return?

In my latest podcast episode I'm going to give you insight into what's happening in the Canadian tax world.

Get the inside scoop on the "new" items from CRA and those being discontinued.

If you haven't done your taxes yet or you're thinking ahead to next year, find out how to get the best tax refund.

In this podcast episode you will learn:

• How today's high inflation affects your taxes.
• How the work from home (WFH) trend affects tax returns.
• How to save tax on Covid-19 benefits you had to repay.
• New tax credits & deductions this year.
• What deductions & credits are discontinued in 2023?
• What's the difference between a tax deduction and a tax credit?
• How to estimate your tax refund from a deduction or credit.
• How to avoid CRA scams.
• Effective use of the FHSA - the "Renter's RRSP" coming in 2023.
• Why are Ed's clients getting such huge tax refunds this year?

Investment advisors and robo-advisors have a massive disadvantage – they are short-term thinkers.

You can easily outperform them by learning the skill of long-term thinking.

Short-term thinking leads them to select suboptimal investments and focus on the wrong risk.

You can clearly see this because nearly all investment advisors and robo-advisors do the "4 Performance Drags" that drag down their long-term performance.

Just avoid the "4 Performance Drags" and you can easily outperform them.

Listen to the podcast to find out:

• How short-term thinking reduces long-term returns.
• What is the "wrong risk" and how does it reduce investment returns?
• What are the 4 Performance Drags?
• How to use the 4 Performance Drags to compare popular investment strategies
• The skill of long-term thinking. Why long-term thinkers easily outperform and how you can learn to think long-term.
• The secrets to outperforming with stock market investing.

Did you know that how you define risk, can actually make or break your retirement?

This podcast episode is a direct head-to-head comparison of two different outlooks on the world and on investment risk.

Defining risk is critical to decide the best investment strategy for you.

People with the right outlook on risk retire comfortably, while others do not.

In my latest podcast episode you'll learn how to think about risk properly, so you can retire comfortably.

This topic is a really important topic for you to understand and one I'm really passionate about. We care about our clients too much to kill their future with the normal financial advisor methods.

Listen to the podcast to find out:

• How does the investment industry define "risk"?
• What is "investment risk that affects your life"?
• What is wrong with the investment industry definition of "risk'?
• How does this difference affect your investment strategy?
• How does thinking properly about risk help your retirement?
• Why do almost no Canadians retire with their desired retirement?
• How can you learn to think properly about investment risk?
• The risk tolerance questionnaire and mistakes most financial advisors make.
• How to be successful in retirement.
• The good and bad news about financial planning.
• How much to invest in a balanced portfolio.
• The long-term risk of stocks vs. bonds.
• How inflation increases your risks in your retirement plan.
• How your Interactive Financial Plan clearly shows how investment risk affects your life.

You may have heard of FIRE, which is Financial Independence Retire Early, but how do you actually get there?

How do you LIGHT your fire?

You do it with Lifecycle Investing. It's the #1 wealth-building strategy for young people to retire early.

This investment strategy is based on a concept by two university professors who wrote the book of the same name. It has worked 100% of the time in the last 150 years and increased portfolios at retirement by an average of 63%.

In my latest podcast episode I explain this strategy in detail, and how it can help you retire early.

Listen to the podcast to find out:

• The 3 stages of Lifecycle investing.

• Why this strategy is so popular with millennials.

• How "diversifying across time" is the reason it works so consistently.

• How many years you should focus on this strategy for it to work.

• The true meaning of last decade risk.

• How to borrow to invest big.

Inflation is now the #1 fear with "6 in 10 Canadians concerned they might not have enough money to feed their family", according to an Ipsos poll.

Most Canadians have never experienced high inflation. It has been flat at 2% for 3 decades, but now jumped to 8% in 2022, and is now down to 5% in 2023.

Many people are asking me what is going on and can I give them some context.

Looking at inflation in the past is very helpful to understand what is happening today.

In my latest podcast episode you'll learn:

• Why is inflation scarier than a market crash?

• How do inflation & market crashes affect your retirement plan?

• Inflation history - the similarities between current inflation and the 70s and 80s.

• Factors that are contributing to inflation.

• Low unemployment and worker shortage.

• What is stagflation?

• Bank of Canada's role in lowering the inflation.

• Ways to solve inflation

• Should we be worried?

• How long will it last?

• How can we fix inflation?

I was interviewed by Isabelle Docto from Daily Hive on the "Best Ways to Get a Bigger Tax Refund".

She asked two really interesting questions that didn't make it into the interview, so I thought I'd answer them in this podcast episode.

The questions are:

• How can you get a very large tax refund?

• Are there any other tips and tricks people should know?

Please check out the original article here: https://dailyhive.com/canada/best-ways-bigger-tax-return

Listen to the latest podcast episode to find out:

• How to get large tax refunds through borrowing money to invest and RRSP strategies.

• RRSP Gross-up + RRSP Catch-up Strategies.

• How to maximize your RRSP room.

• Why borrowing to invest gives you a big tax refund.

• What is the "Renters RSP"?