I came across this post a few weeks ago on reasons why it’s better to rent than to buy. In a nutshell, rent instead of buying if: (1) You move often (i.e. less than every five years) (2) You want money to invest in something else, or won’t have money to invest in...
Latest News
cesia@wall-arm.ca
Talk about ruling from the grave!
When Wellington Burt died, he was one of the richest men in America. He was a self-made man, having earned his fortune in timber and iron. He was philanthropic during his lifetime, sharing his wealth with the people in his community – he built a hospital, an...
Oops!
The Red Pin posted a link to this amusing little story the other day. Well, it was amusing to me - I'm sure it wasn't amusing to the seller. In a nutshell, over a series of emails Kelty Druet agreed to sell her condo to Marc Girouard for $155,000. Four hours later,...
Taxing Americans
The Globe and Mail published this article a few weeks back about Americans living in Canada who are abandoning their citizenship for tax reasons. In the US, citizens are taxed based on their citizenship, wherever they are in the world. In Canada, by contrast, we are...
Down by the bay
Up here in Simcoe County, there is a lot of waterfront property. In Barrie alone there are homes all along Kempenfelt Bay, and there are numerous lakes throughout the County where people own homes with waterfront access. There are particular issues to be aware of when...
Lifestyles of the rich and famous
I read this article in the Globe and Mail the other day, about estate planning for very wealthy families. Some points the author raises: estate planning is very complex, and involves multiple meetings with potentially multiple professionals; estate planning gets even...
Don’t take my land – please
There is a lot of construction going on in the south end of Barrie right now, with one of the major projects being the expansion of Mapleview Drive between Bayview Drive and Huronia Road. There is also talk that Mapleview is going to be expanded straight through to...
Ch-ch-ch-ch-changes
I often get asked by clients or prospective clients about doing minor changes to their wills, usually in the form of a change in their executors. Any change to a will, while keeping the existing will valid, is called a codicil. Codicils were developed because of the...
The end of the variable era?
I read this very interesting article in the Globe and Mail the other day. In a nutshell: fixed rate mortgages are the way to go right now. Because of prime rates being so low, and the constant fluctuations in the markets, it is possible to get a fixed-rate mortgage at...
Why plan when you’re going to live to 100?
Over the summer, I discovered the blog of the brilliant Candice Aiston, a lawyer out of Portland, Oregon who works in the area of estate planning. My favourite post of hers so far, by far, is her essay on planning for the unexpected. As Candice notes, asking whether...