Santa's Checking His List, But How's His Retirement Plan?

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Dec 19, 2014, 05:00 ET

Some Considerations for Mr. Claus from RBC Financial Planning

TORONTO, Dec. 19, 2014 /CNW/ - Santa Claus is someone who knows the importance of making a list and checking it twice. To help ensure he's placing the same importance on making his financial plan and checking that at least once a year, RBC Financial Planning has some advice for Santa to consider once he's finished his deliveries for the year.

If Santa has a financial plan but hasn't written it down yet, he can put his list-making skills to good use during his hiatus. Approximately 43 per cent of Canadians have financial plans, but of those, 33 per cent say their plans are "in my head", which means these plans can't be shared with family or financial advisors to track progress and update as needed.
Even if Santa's not ready to retire yet, he should still be planning for the day when he hangs up his red suit for the final time. Santa may be interested to know that many Canadians (74 per cent) feel good and even "great" about their retirement planning, knowing they have a financial plan in place - all the more true (77 per cent) for Santa's age group (55+).
A busy man like Santa also might appreciate that one-in-three Canadians (36 per cent) works with a financial advisor - almost half (46 per cent) of Santa's peers (55+) do so.
Also, if Santa has an RRSP, he's among the majority of Canadians who are now RRSP-holders (55 per cent).
Finally, when Santa next updates his retirement planning list and checks it twice, he'll find a bag-full of online resources to help him at RBC Financial Planning and on RBC's Senior Life website.

STOCKING STUFFER FAST FACTS - RBC 2014 RRSP POLL

RESPONSES	CAN	BC	AB	SK	MB	ON	QC	AC
I have a financial plan	43%	45%	52%	33%	47%	43%	39%	42%
My financial plan is in my head*	33%	30%	33%	32%	45%	36%	26%	38%
Financial plan makes me feel good/great about retirement planning	74%	76%	81%	60%	74%	71%	77%	67%
I'm working with financial advisor	36%	37%	40%	30%	37%	38%	32%	36%
I have an RRSP	55%	58%	61%	46%	60%	55%	52%	46%

* All stats in second row are percentages of the stats in the first row

About the 25^th Annual RBC 2014 RRSP Poll
This annual poll was conducted by Ipsos Reid from November 3 to 17, 2014 via a random sample of 3,205 Canadian adults in the general population (aged 18 and over). The results are based on samples where quota sampling and weighting are employed to balance demographics and ensure that the sample's composition reflects that of the actual population according to Census data. Quota samples with weighting from the Ipsos online panel provide results that are intended to approximate a probability sample. A weighted probability sample of 3,205 Canadian respondents, with 100 per cent response rate, would have an estimated margin of error of ±2 per cent, 19 times out of 20.

About RBC's financial planning advice, resources and interactive tools
Canadians can access RBC Financial Planning and rbc.com/savingsspot for free planning, budgeting and savings advice and resources, or to find the nearest Investment and Retirement Planner. In addition, Senior Life is an online resource centre which includes comprehensive caregiving information for Canadians to help them plan for a successful retirement. For Canadians who want to get more from their day-to-day banking, protect what's important, save and invest, borrow with confidence or take care of their businesses, the RBC Advice Centre can help answer their questions.

SOURCE: RBC