Understand before you sign
Explanations of the rates, fees and contracts behind financial products offered in Quebec, written to be read before an appointment, not after.
212 articles
// Banking
Business Account: Compare Transactions, Deposits and Integrations
Count your monthly deposits, transfers and payments, then compare the fees for cash, cheques and currencies.
2026-07-21
// Banking
Annual Audit of Bank Fees and Unused Packages
Review twelve statements to total the fees charged and spot the included services you never use.
2026-07-21
// Investments
Asset Allocation or Product Selection: Decide in the Right Order
Set the goal, horizon and loss capacity first, then the target weights: products come last.
2026-07-21
// Investments
Market Order or Limit Order
A market order takes the book price; a limit order sets your price but may fill only partially.
2026-07-21
// Investments
Currency Conversion in a Brokerage Account
Check the currency of the investment and account, then the markup the broker adds to the exchange rate.
2026-07-21
// Investments
Foreign Dividend Withholding Tax by Account Type
Withholding depends on the dividend’s country of origin, the tax treaty and the type of account used.
2026-07-21
// Investments
Adjusted Cost Base: Keep Investment Records
Record purchases, commissions and reinvested distributions, then allocate each partial sale among the units.
2026-07-21
// Investments
Realize a Tax Loss Without Undoing the Plan
Sell the unrealized loss in a taxable account while respecting the superficial-loss rule around the transaction.
2026-07-21
// Investments
Return of Capital in a Fund: Effect on Tax Cost
Return of capital is not income: it reduces the cost base and increases the future gain.
2026-07-21
// Investments
ETF Bid-Ask Spread: The Hidden Transaction Cost
Measure the gap between best bid and ask in dollars and percentage before trading an ETF.
2026-07-21
// Investments
Bond Ladder or GIC Ladder
Distribute maturities around your withdrawals, then compare principal guarantees, credit risk and liquidity.
2026-07-21
// Investments
Cash ETF: Yield, Liquidity and Deposit Protection
Look at the assets behind the fund and the yield distributed after fees: it is not a guaranteed deposit.
2026-07-21
// Investments
RESP: Coordinate the Federal Grant and Quebec Incentive
Verify the contribution eligible for each program and confirm the promoter submits both applications.
2026-07-21
// Investments
Family or Individual RESP: Compare Flexibility
The family plan requires relationships among beneficiaries; track contributions and grants separately for each child.
2026-07-21
// Investments
Convert an RRSP to a RRIF: Prepare Minimum Withdrawals
Note the conversion deadline and the minimum withdrawal factor that will apply from the following year.
2026-07-21
// Investments
Delay the QPP Pension: Future Income and Break-Even
Compare the enhanced pension with the income forgone during the delay and locate the break-even for your situation.
2026-07-21
// Investments
Life Annuity or Retirement Withdrawal Portfolio
An annuity guarantees income but locks up capital: measure what you give up in liquidity and estate value.
2026-07-21
// Investments
Commuted Value or Pension Income
Compare the lifetime pension, its indexing and survivor benefit with the transfer value and its assumptions.
2026-07-21
// Investments
Employer Contribution: Capture the Match Without Blocking the Budget
Find the personal contribution that captures the full employer match before saving anywhere else.
2026-07-21
// Investments
Employee Share Purchase Plan: Manage Concentration Risk
Take the purchase discount, but set a selling rule to limit concentration in a single stock.
2026-07-21
// Investments
ESG Funds: Verify Method, Exclusions and Fees
Verify the index or method actually followed, the published exclusions and the fees before choosing an ESG fund.
2026-07-21
// Investments
Sequence-of-Returns Risk at the Start of Retirement
A market decline combined with early withdrawals erodes capital: plan a reserve for the first years.
2026-07-21
// Insurance
Reconstruction Cost: Do Not Confuse It With Market Value
Insure the reconstruction cost, based on materials, labour and the building’s features, not the market value.
2026-07-21
// Insurance
Home Insurance Coinsurance Clause: Verify the Insured Amount
Check the minimum percentage required by the coinsurance clause and the reconstruction value used in the calculation.
2026-07-21