OMG! Biggest freaking news of this decade!!!!

[pandafishowner]

I heard about that too, and as soon as my bills are paid off, my bill money will be invested into one of those.

[geeluk]

Wow looks good. Gotta take advantage of that!

[wetcoast]

It is an excellent addition to putting your money into retirement vehicles such as RRSPs, I plan on continuing to put 15% into my RRSPs and maxing the $5000 per year because of the obvious tax free benefits when withdrawing, and that it can be withdrawn and replaced back in the account without a penalty.

[CLINT]

I have urged many friends not to get RRSP's and instead invest in something where they pay taxes now.It may help in the short run to buy RRSP's but what if you ever need a lump sum for home repairs and end up oweing thousands in taxes.which will be much higher than you'll be saving for tax time.JMO but this is great news.Clint

[andresont]

Originally Posted by CLINT

I have urged many friends not to get RRSP's and instead invest in something where they pay taxes now.It may help in the short run to buy RRSP's but what if you ever need a lump sum for home repairs and end up oweing thousands in taxes.which will be much higher than you'll be saving for tax time.JMO Clint

I second that, RRSP is not a good idea.

who wants to lock the money away in today's $ buying power and get it 20 years later with less buying power and pay tax on it?

Defeats the purpose imo
Better use the money today, (Wisely) pay off the debt for example.

[michika]

Now here is hoping that some companies, like ING who specialize in high interest savings account, jumps on this wagon. I would love to get the same interest rate I get now plus get all these benefits.

[albert_dao]

Originally Posted by andresont

I second that, RRSP is not a good idea.

who wants to lock the money away in today's $ buying power and get it 20 years later with less buying power and pay tax on it?

Defeats the purpose imo
Better use the money today, (Wisely) pay off the debt for example.

??????

You might want to do some more research on RRSP's. There's a lot of misconceptions about RRSP's, in general, as a tax sheltering vehicle. More to the point, RRSP's offered by MOST banks are a ripoff. However, they are not the only RRSP's out there. Many RRSP's have great value and outrace interested by a long shot.

[Chin_Lee]

Unfortunately RRSP is the only way you can get any of your money back from the taxes that you've already paid. If you think you pay too much taxes, then get some RRSP's.

Where else can you get a 30-40% return on your RRSP amount within 2-3 months (after receiving your return)?

The biggest problem I've done in the past is when I get the return, I spend it elsewhere and not repay my RRSP loan.

[BMW Rider]

Originally Posted by albert_dao

??????

You might want to do some more research on RRSP's. There's a lot of misconceptions about RRSP's, in general, as a tax sheltering vehicle. More to the point, RRSP's offered by MOST banks are a ripoff. However, they are not the only RRSP's out there. Many RRSP's have great value and outrace interested by a long shot.

Most banks offer good RRSP options, its just that so many people choose to go with the safe and boring GICs or the like. If you want better returns, you need to be willing to accept a higher degree of risk. That means investing in money market funds or mutual funds and the like, which all the major banks offer as RRSPs. In fact, some of the best performing funds out there are run by major banks. GICs and such are not a ripoff either. they offer minimal to near zero risk, the trade off is lower returns. If you cannot afford the chance of having your portfolio decrease in value, ie: you will need to use the full value of the investment in a short time frame, then these are the vehicle you should be in. If you can ride out a weak market, then the average higher returns of the other choices will make you more money in the end. The key is to not bail out when its down.

The way I see RRSPs benifiting me is not so much that I will likely see a lower tax rate on the income, but it allows me to hold onto the tax portion of the income and use it to earn more money for me. Basically, I'm adding an additional 30% into my investment. Essentially, I'm reinvesting my refund rather than treating it as a bonus. That additional money will grow for me and end up as an even greater amount. Yes I will have to pay taxes on all of that money eventually, but I will still have a lot more net dollars.

Besides, why let the government have your money and squander it as they so frequently do. Keep it for yourself and squander it on your own ventures.