Planning and Advice

Fundamentals helped firm flourish

From a basement office in 1997 to a stand-alone building that houses their business and serves as a gathering point for more than a dozen local charity groups, O’Farrell Financial Services Inc. in Kemptville, Ont., has seen a lot of change in the past 13 years. But, amidst all the change, the firm has stuck […]

By Philip Porado |February 1, 2010

3 min read

Planning and Advice

Redefining retirement and your business

A year ago, advisors heard many clients announce they’d delay retirement. Fear was the flavour of the month. And, with losses mounting, a lot of advisors who’d been preparing to shift focus from accumulation to payout put the brakes on those plans and opted to stay on the asset-gathering course a little longer. But surging […]

By Philip Porado |February 1, 2010

2 min read

Planning and Advice

Growing income during retirement

Every RRSP season, we try to think up clever campaigns in an effort to mine retirement assets—I like to call it the Old Rush.

By Fred Pinto |February 1, 2010

7 min read

Planning and Advice

Final Words: Ethnic communities present opportunities

Canada’s face is changing fast. Immigrants seeking better opportunities and savvy financial services providers know they must cater to new needs. Allen Wong, president of Allen Wong & Associates in Thornhill, Ont., has been serving ethnic markets for years, primarily the Chinese Canadian community, and shares these thoughts about how to connect with a niche […]

By Staff |February 1, 2010

3 min read

Improving retirement income decisions

How can advisors help clients be better prepared to choose? Let’s start with the qualifying information needed to make this key decision. Advisors should consider seven important questions: Does your client have a spouse or children who will rely on this pension for income, even after your client has passed on? Is your client within […]

2 min read

Maximize retirement income choices

Clients on the brink of retirement face a crucial decision on the income they’ll receive for the rest of their lives, if they’re lucky enough to have a pension. Most pensions offer different income-level options, some that provide income till your client dies, and others that continue at a reduced amount if the client dies […]

5 min read

Social media can help advisors

When used effectively, social media is a valuable addition to the marketing mix of financial planners. Due to the wide distribution and democratic nature of these social tools, it’s important for planners to understand they are already involved in the social conversations unfolding online. Word-of-mouth recommendation has existed since the dawn of language, but the […]

6 min read

Ensure endowments are properly funded

Last month we introduced AER readers to the Happy Valley case study , in which the wealthy widow and matriarch of the fictional microcosm community sought an advisor’s help on how to create an endowment fund to be used to improve the social and environmental conditions of the community. We’ve examined how to structure an […]

By Mark Noble |February 1, 2010

8 min read

Celebrating Advice: Measuring a clients’ needs

While most advisors quickly realized they needed to change lanes on risk-allocation, and pull the brakes on emotionally charged, recession-ravaged clients, Jeff Swanson, owner of Vancouver-based Swanson Financial Footprint, says he avoids speed bumps by keeping greed firmly in check during bull runs. “The good times are the most dangerous times and I know how […]

4 min read

Debt’s not a dirty word

Over the last nine years, I think I’ve become pretty effective at getting my point across with my clients when I talk about debt. However, it has become somewhat automatic for me. I have no problem starting the debt conversation with anyone, really. In fact, I find it a difficult conversation NOT to have. I […]

8 min read