Now’s the time for RESP talk

With the kids now back in school, September is an excellent time to talk to clients with younger children about saving for post-secondary education.

This year’s freshman cohort is looking at roughly $60,000 for a four-year university degree; for children born in 2011, that’s expected to rise to $140,000.

Before you dust off the client files and call in the ones with kids, read up on the current state of education planning.

Parents come up short on education savings Almost half of Canadian parents with children heading off to college or university this fall have not saved any money to help fund the educational journey, according to a recent survey. Read more…

Making cash gifts RESPonsible Treated with a little RESP-ect, cash gifts from grandparents can do wonders for grandkids’ educational savings. Read more…

A winning educational savings plan Meaningful financial planning eludes many Canadians, especially when it comes to a sound plan for their children’s education. Read more…

Plan confusion: RESP, RDSP, RRSP or TFSA? With so many plans to choose from, how do we best advise our clients on the optimal tax-preferred savings strategy? Read more…

An RESP strategy that works RESPs should appeal greatly to investors, considering that the various incentives available for these plans can produce a return on investment of as much as 20%. And since the RESP market could conceivably grow to as much as $340 billion, there’s an obvious attraction for financial advisors. Read more…

Budget provides modest, targeted breaks for families The 2011 federal budget included changes to Registered Education Savings Plans that would allow transfers between individual RESPs for siblings, without triggering tax penalties or repayments of Canada Education Savings Grants. Read more…

Staff

The staff of Advisor.ca have been covering news for financial advisors since 1998.