Sheila MacKay | Member , ARTA Pension & Financial Wellness Committee

ARTA ’ s Pension & Financial Wellness Committee recently sponsored the webinar , “ Enhancing Retirement Sources .” Rick Harcourt from Capital Estate Planning Corporation explained how to responsibly take money out of our savings , specifically Registered Retirement Income Fund ( RRIF ) and guaranteed products such as annuities . Mr . Harcourt offered this summary of the webinar .

The essence of the webinar was to show members how “ flexibility ” vs . “ guaranteed balance ” works and to teach strategies to decide which route ( or combination of routes ) can harmoniously enhance our retirement income streams .

When we ’ ve spent most of our life saving , how do we approach getting our money back out ? Most financial literacy is directed toward the accumulation phase of savings — encouraging people to save , teaching various concepts , and so on . At a certain point though , we reach the stage of decumulation — taking our money out . Typically , this happens at one of two times :

● At the end of the year when we turn 71 . The Canada Revenue Agency says that you can no longer tax shelter your RRSP ; you must employ one of the following income options .

● When we need it . This will vary depending on the household . For some retirees , they ’ ll use it as a top up to bridge the gap between when they retire and when federal government benefits like CPP and OAS start . For others , they will keep the bulk of their savings intact in case of an unforeseen expense , or for future expenses like long-term care later in life .

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