Canada Wins Gold, USA Botches the Transfer. Which One Are You?

Amelia ZhangBlog

The recent Olympic 4 x 100 men’s relay is a great metaphor for family wealth transfer. You can have great team members but if the baton is not transferred well, you will have a disappointing finish. Are you and your heirs prepared for the hand off?

Four of Life’s Most Critical Questions

Amelia ZhangBlog

The demands of all the urgent things in our life keep us from focusing on the important things. After nearly 30 years providing financial advice, I believe the following four questions are the most important to ask. These four questions, if properly answered, will change your financial future and likely the health of your family relationships.

How To Eliminate CRA From Your Estate

Amelia ZhangBlog, Financial & Estate Planning

There is a BIG hole in most individuals’ tax planning – they try to reduce their annual taxes during their lives while rarely considering how much their estate will pay in taxes.

If this isn’t addressed, it can often lead to hundreds of thousands of dollars in taxes… sometimes millions of dollars in taxes. Sometimes the family cottage or other important assets must be sold to obtain the money to pay the taxes.

If you and your spouse had died yesterday, how much of your estate would Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) receive?

This is likely a big number and a significant percentage of your net worth. It’s critical you know this number and decide if you agree with CRA inserting themselves in your estate. I have yet to meet someone who knew this number before they were a client.