Better Planning Through Better Oversight

The benefits of managing your retirement assets in one place

Planning for retirement means keeping watch over all of your savings and investments to ensure they are working to help you reach your goals. That can be difficult when you have to pull together information from many different sources. Instead, consolidating your retirement income resources into a single account, such as a Registered Retirement Savings Plan (RRSP), or with a single institution can make it much easier to plan for and track income.

Consolidation makes it easier to track and manage your retirement investments and overall asset allocation. You can see your investment “big picture” and develop a holistic retirement distribution plan – tapping assets in a logical order to minimize taxes and maximize ongoing growth opportunities.

The following are some of the advantages of consolidating assets in one place:

1. Keeping track – Consolidating assets with one financial institution means you receive one set of transaction  records,  statements  and  tax  When you need to access your money, it’s all in one place. And, a consolidated statement reflecting all account activity during the year can help you keep track of income and expenses.

2. Simplicity – If you maintain RRSPs, RRIFs, TFSAs, managed accounts, etc., at more than one institution, it may be difficult and time-consuming to gather information and maintain records. Combining your assets at one firm makes it easier to review statements, initiate portfolio changes, monitor performance, track beneficiary options and calculate your required RRIF minimum withdrawals.

3. Lower costs – By leaving assets in former employer plans or spreading them across multiple registered accounts, you could be paying fees to each company for doing essentially the same thing. Consolidating retirement assets can eliminate redundant maintenance and management fees.

4. Benefits of professional advice - You can work with the financial advisor of your choice. Unlike advice that may or may not be available through your employer plan sponsor, you will receive professional advice that is customized for your financial goals and an asset allocation that is tailored for your needs and fits within the framework of your overall portfolio.